Chapter 4
First contact with the human is not recommended.
First contact has already been achieved. We have been in Picard's life as far back as he can remember.
And yet, he is not aware of the Q. He does not even begin to comprehend.
This is true. He thinks the Q are merely a figment of his imagination. How arrogant of him.
If you intend to confront him, Q, you must be careful. The timing and circumstances must be right. If you are to gain his trust, he must come to view the Continuum as benevolent and all-powerful.
Now, who is being deceitful?
Despite Kor's warning, Picard had also remembered Alynna Nechayev's, and hadn't beamed over alone. As the transporter beam dissipated he turned slightly to look at his companion. Of course, T'Pel was as composed as ever. The Klingon ship was warmer than he was used to and smelled a little musty. He'd only been on a Klingon ship once before and found himself immensely curious. As they stepped off of the transporter pad they were met by two guards.
Picard knew better than to expect a friendly atmosphere. Too much antagonistic history preceded this visit, as well as cultural differences that were still at times glaring. However, he was certain that most of these differences were not too vast to overcome. One of the most immediate differences was the absence of women, aside from one female who he guessed was an engineer based on the fact that she was performing maintenance on a control panel as they passed by.
The guards didn't say a word as the Starfleet officers were quickly escorted to a large room. A large viewport displayed a greenish planet just several hundred thousand kilometers away. The guards moved silently to stand on either side of the large doorway. Kor, who was tall himself, and an even taller Klingon officer were waiting for them. A large cask of dark red liquid sat in the middle of a large stone table. Kor nodded to his associate who poured the contents of the bottle into several large metal cups.
"Welcome aboard my ship, the Mat-Leh. This is Commander Loras." The large officer nodded respectfully.
Kor gestured for Picard and T'Pel to sit down, which they did, and then he slid them their drinks.
Picard hesitated, before picking up the cup and taking a respectable drink. He felt an immediate head-rush.
Picard glanced at T'Pel in surprise as she drank hers in one long gulp and then placed the empty cup back down carefully. Klingon wine was very potent, and he was already starting to feel a little light-headed. T'Pel, on the other hand, appeared unaffected.
He cleared his throat. "Thank you for your invitation to come aboard, Captain Kor."
Kor grinned. "The invitation was only for you, Jean-Luc," he said. He eyed T'Pel. "Although this ship is in need of some beauty, even for a short time."
"That is apparent," said T'Pel coolly.
"Kor, in Starfleet we choose our officers based on their qualifications, not their appearance. Commander T'Pel serves as second officer on board my ship, and is highly regarded for her abilities."
Kor grunted and passed T'Pel another cup of wine. She eyed it momentarily before drinking it down.
I need to get through this meeting without my science officer getting drunk.
Loras began to laugh as he refilled two cups. He drank one quickly and then wiped his mouth, glaring at T'Pel, whose expression was as unbothered as ever. "I like your abilities," Loras growled, slamming the wine down in front of the Vulcan.
Picard swiftly grabbed the cup and moved it aside, giving T'Pel a meaningful look. "Thank you for your hospitality...but we're not here for a drinking contest."
Loras growled and then erupted into laughter before walking away from the table.
Kor was staring at Picard. "You are correct, captain. Let us get down to business."
"My sister sends her regards," said Kor, in Klingon.
Surprised and slightly embarrassed, Picard adjusted his features quickly back to normal. Jean-Luc recalled that he had spent a good deal of time with Kor's sister, Char, on Kronos, but it was something he had tried to keep from his friend. Apparently, his attempts at secrecy had not been successful. Now Kor was trying to throw him off. But why? He couldn't sense any ill will from Kor, but something was wrong.
"nom tInwI'pu' lulegh," said Jean-Luc cautiously, searching for the correct wording. [I send them back]
"veSDujmeymaj yIlIjQo chel choraQ." [She is looking for a mate.]
Jean-Luc struggled for an adequate response in Klingon but could find none. He settled for: "I see."
Loras again began to roar with laughter. "majQa' tlhInganpu'." [A Klingon female would destroy him!]
"Tam!" [Silence!] Kor finally shouted at his second in command.
Jean-Luc decided to remain silent, still unsure where this was going.
"qorDu'ghotpu', juppu'wI' Jean-Luc. 'ej qo' Dachaw'meH DuHbe'" [As a friend, let me give you some advice, Jean-Luc...you should take your ship and go now before there is no turning back.]
"verghta' vorcha' veSDuj QImerogh 'ej tugh mejbeHqa'." [As I'm sure you are aware, Kor, we were assigned to this sector to help the KDF investigate attacks on your people.]
"veSDujmeymaj yIlIjQo' chel choraQ." [No investigation is needed-or rather, the answers that matter are already known.]
"'ach vIpong." [I'm sorry, but I don't understand.]
Kor leaned in and Picard heard the crunch of his armored leather uniform. "Qo'noSDaq ghIQtaH cha' Picard. 'ej chepmeH choraQ." [We know who has been attacking our ships and colonies, Picard. And so do the leaders of our respective societies.]
"qaS chuS'ughHey. 'ach yabwIj, 'e' yImev," said Jean-Luc slowly. [That may be so... however, I still have my orders.]
Kor narrowed his eyes and growled. "ngoQ DamuSHa'be' Jean-Luc? chaq SoHvo' choQublaHbe' 'e' vIHar." [You would be a willing pawn then, Jean-Luc? I thought you a stronger man than that.]
Picard bristled at that, and reverted back to Federation Standard speech."We both have to answer to others, Kor. My understanding was that this was to be a joint effort to uncover attacks against your people. If you want us to leave this sector, I'm afraid I will have to confer with my superiors before I do as you request."
Kor suddenly leaped up and slammed his fist on the table. "Leave! Believe me when I tell you that this is a trap. Does our friendship mean nothing to you?"
Picard remained seated and regarded the Klingon coolly. "Can you give me something more to go on, Captain?"
Suddenly shouts could be heard, and an alarm was wailing, as booted feet pounded past the door. A Klingon voice came over the loudspeaker. "HIvchu'!" [We are under attack!]
Kor pointed at Jean-Luc. "What did I tell you? Beam back to your ship and we will tackle this foe together!"
Picard and T'Pel got up quickly, and Picard flipped his communicator open. "Picard to Stargazer, two to beam directly to the bridge."
Loras rested his fist on T'Pel's shoulder before the transporter beam took them. "Fight well, T'Pel of Vulcan. It is a good day to die."
"Shields up," Zev was shouting as they materialized on the bridge.
"Status," Picard said, parting ways with T'Pel as she headed for her science station. He sat down in his chair and checked the tactical situation.
"The Klingon ship was just attacked by an energy beam, captain. Their shields are holding," said Jack from tactical.
"Can we get a visual on the enemy ship," said Picard.
"Negative, appears to be a cloaked vessel."
"We've never seen a vessel that can fire when cloaked," said Zev. "It could be Romulans, sir."
"Possibly..." He glanced over his shoulder. "Mr. Crusher, take the helm. Time to test your upgrades. Vigo, move to tactical."
Once the officers had switched places, Picard tapped his armrest intently. "Mr. Crusher take us to the coordinates I just sent you, one quarter impulse power."
"Aye, sir...we're in position." Jack's hands were steady, but he couldn't keep the excitement out of his voice. Although being in a battle was rarely the ideal outcome, one could not deny the adrenaline rush it produced.
"All stop."
"Captain," reported T'Pel. "I have analyzed the residue from the particle beam fired at the Mat-leh. "It is disruptor technology, sir."
"Noted." A cloaking device and disruptor technology meant the attacking ship was likely either Klingon or Romulan. The only way to find out would be to force the ship to uncloak.
He opened the hailing frequencies himself. "Unknown vessel, this is Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the United Federation of Planets. By firing on the Klingon ship you have committed an act of aggression, and possibly war...stand down, or we will engage our weapons systems."
There was a long pause.
"No response, Captain."
The forward viewscreen remained empty, save for the Mat'leh which was also hanging in the blackness of space just waiting.
Vigo's shouts broke the silence. "Incoming!"
"Evasive maneuvers."
"We've been hit...shields are holding."
Picard got out of his seat quickly. "T'Pel, run a scan for anything that could be considered an anomaly."
"Aye, sir."
"Vigo, can you retrace the trajectory of that weapons fire?"
"I can try, captain...sir, we're receiving fire again."
"Return fire!"
The bridge shook, and Picard grabbed the back of his seat, still standing. "Initiate Picard delta v..."
"Initiating," Jack confirmed, taking the ship to full impulse power and turning the ship upside down reversed course and sped off in the opposite direction.
"The Klingon vessel appears to be in pursuit of the cloaked vessel," Zev said from her station. "They are firing a spread of torpedoes."
"Can they see it?"
"No more than we can."
"Put some space between us and the Klingon ship... I'd like to avoid friendly fire."
"Captain," reported T'Pel. "Picking up an increase in tachyon particles within 1000 meters of our two ships."
"Run a tachyon sweep," said Picard, as the ship shook again. "Try and isolate it."
"Shields at sixty percent," said Vigo. "They got us that time."
"Our lower starboard nacelle has taken damage, Captain," confirmed Zev. "Engineering reports a plasma fire on deck 12."
"There is a coalesced space of tachyon particles approximately 600 meters long," said T'Pel. "It is mobile, Captain."
"That's the ship, then," said Picard. "Vigo, use the targeting scanner, and see if you can get a lock."
"The mass is traveling at our equivalent of one half impulse power, Captain."
"Track it...see if you can get a lock," he maintained through gritted teeth.
"Klingon ship is taking additional damage, Captain," warned Zev. "The attacker is totally focused on the Klingon vessel, and for the moment is ignoring us."
They watched the view screen enraptured as the Mat'Leh fired aft torpedoes in a widespread pattern.
"Well," said Jack. "At least they know they'll hit something."
"Shh," said Vigo from tactical. Sweat poured down the man's brow as he attempted to zero in on the invisible enemy. "Tracking..."
"Speed of the tachyon mass?" Picard questioned in a hushed tone.
"One quarter impulse power."
Picard walked toward the view screen, as another bolt of green lightning came out of the darkness and struck the Klingon ship.
"The enemy ship has taken on damage," said Zev. "They're trailing ions."
"They're bleeding," Picard whispered. "Match that speed, ahead one quarter impulse power, and lock phasers on the coordinates of the ion leak," he said in a louder voice. Jean-Luc gripped the back of Jack's seat at the helm, as the ship rolled and did as it was commanded.
"Approaching coordinates, Captain."
"Fire!"
The starscape erupted in a series of green flashes, as the enemy ship snapped into view dead ahead.
"Evade, we're too close!"
The grey predatory looking ship was larger than the bird of prey, but was unmistakably a Klingon ship.
"Identify," snapped Picard.
"Klingon, D7 battlecruiser, late 23rd century make," said Zev quickly.
"Their shields were weakened significantly by the Mat'Leh, sir...we pierced the cloak with that last phaser volley," Vigo reported.
"Enemy ship is firing photon torpedoes!"
"We're too close, brace for impact."
Picard's grip was broken by the impact, and he slammed into the deck, attempting to roll toward his command chair. He crawled forward and finally pulled himself up into his seat, as the bridge was rocked by another direct hit.
"Shields are at forty percent."
"Return fire and then get us clear," Jean-Luc breathed.
"Direct hit. We've got them now," Vigo exclaimed, pounding his fist on the tactical station.
"The Mat'Leh is advancing...they don't seem concerned that they are firing on their own people," Zev observed.
The D7 battlecruiser twisted in space, and a series of explosions were scattered along its sleek hull.
"Hold your fire, and hail the Mat'Leh."
Suddenly, the enemy cruiser sped away toward the green planet, Picard had seen while meeting with Kor.
Kor's ship followed, firing ruthlessly, but somehow the enemy ship escaped into the planet's atmosphere.
The viewscreen flashed and Kor was at the center of the screen. "Captain Picard...victory is ours!"
Picard could feel his muscles locking up from the tension, but he pushed himself to his feet. "Who were they?" he demanded.
"The enemy...just as I warned you, Jean-Luc. It was a trap. And now the cowards have fled to the surface of that desolate planet."
"We'll organize an away team...we'll go down and look for survivors," said Picard.
Kor laughed and spat on the deck. "Don't waste your time and energy, Jean-Luc. Trust me...you won't find any answers that please you." He gave Picard a brief salute. "Until we meet again, my friend." The screen went black.
"The Klingons are leaving the sector...should we pursue them?"
"No. Let them go." Picard paced back and forth for a few moments, but when he stopped, his mind was made up. "Get a medical team ready. We're going to beam down. look for survivors, and get some answers."