Chapter XVIII
Meticulous preparation was what people expected from Data, and that was exactly what they got. He locked himself away for the first two days after his return, preparing for the mission to the Aralla mother ship.
He spent the first day analysing all of the data that the Fleet had on the Aralla – their weapons, propulsion systems, hull designs, sensor nets – everything. Most of that data had been collected on his own expedition, but there was some interesting data that had been picked up at the huge battles before their retreat from the Gamma Quadrant.
The second day was spent drawing up an attack plan. Silent insertion and capture was the key. Data had already found that Aralla ships had weak long-range and short-range scanners, relying heavily on the attack planes for scouting missions. That would make the insertion fairly simple.
However, getting about in the ship would be a different matter. In theory, he and Worf would beam in, capture the ship, and fly it out through the main hangar entrance. However, the mother ships were absolutely immense. Data had the information from his scans of the vessel he and Odo had escaped from, but there was no way to know if they would encounter the same one again. If it was not, then part of the mission would fail there and then.
Picard also wanted to have Voyager get as close as possible in order to scan the main computer and power distribution networks. This would tell them how the invasive program would affect the ships as it spread throughout their computers. Picard was hoping that not only would the Program bring down their shielding, it would also knock out their weapons, and maybe even propulsion as well. If so, it would make the Aralla defenceless in a battle.
Thus, Data went to the Astrometrics lab aboard Voyager on the third day. Harry Kim was on duty, and Data had him call up some scans of the area immediately around the last known position of the Aralla fleet.
And it was there that Data stared at the huge screen for a long moment, and then said, 'Where are they?'
Kim frowned, looking at the console, as if it might provide the answer. 'This is the area around their last position that you gave us. There's not a trace of a single Aralla ship in that area.'
Data stepped up to the podium, examining the map. 'Make a new scan of the five sectors around that position.'
'Sir, that'll take hours!'
'We have plenty of time, Ensign,' said Data distractedly. 'A worrying theory is forming in my mind.'
Kim nodded, realising that he had nothing better to do with his time. 'Beginning scan of sector delta 5547.'
For two hours, they slowly, methodically scanned the areas around the last Aralla position for a distance of eight light-years in every direction. Once that failed, they extended their search, looking beyond their expectations of where the Aralla would be.
They were scanning through sector delta 5551 when Data shouted, 'Wait!'
Kim stopped the scan, and looked expectantly at Data, who pointed to the map. 'That planet – what's its name?'
Kim glanced at his console read-out. 'It's –' Harry paused. 'Rakosa V.'
'Rakosa,' said Data quietly. 'Focus on it.'
Harry did so, and brought the planet into full view on the screen. And stepped back from the console, fear and horror running across his face.
Rakosa V, a planet that Voyager had once saved from the Dreadnought missile, hung in space, it's burning cities throwing fire and smoke into a once clear atmosphere, huge continent-sized explosions propelling more dust into space.
Data stared for a silent moment, his face becoming more and more angry. 'The Aralla have arrived.'
'No....' whispered Kim, remembering the sacrifices that Voyager had been prepared to make for that planet.
'How did they get there?' Data said, almost to himself. 'That's in completely the wrong direction. They're heading away from our position.'
He turned and looked at Harry, and his face softened. 'I'm sorry, Ensign,' he said gently. 'Would you like to return to your quarters?'
Harry swallowed, shook his head and stepped to the console again. 'No, thank you, sir,' he said in a voice that was noticeably unstable, his face pallid. He stared into Data's eyes, his own eyes smouldering with hatred. 'I'd like to help find the Aralla.'
Data held his gaze for a moment, nodding slowly. 'Thank you.' He turned and stepped from the podium. 'Rakosa V is not right. They normally come straight for us. Extrapolate their course from their last known position to Rakosa V,' he said.
A red line appeared, tracing a straight line from the origin point to Rakosa. Data frowned, perplexed, but worried. 'That's a long way out of their way. In fact, that's nearly a two year journey at maximum warp. How the hell -?'
He turned and faced Kim, whose face had regained some of its colour. 'Start scanning all the M-class planets between the origin point and Rakosa V. Look for signs of Aralla attacks.'
In the end, every single M-class planet along the way had been destroyed by the Aralla. The litany of horror dulled Harry's voice as he read off the scan results. Some of them were very familiar planets to the Voyager crew. By the time that they reached Rakosa, hatred for the Aralla tinged Harry's every word.
Finally, the red line had shifted somewhat. Despite still going from the origin point to Rakosa V, it now had huge bends and waves in it, some more than a hundred light years long. Data was by now pretty certain of his horrifying new theory.
'I need to go and speak with Admiral Picard,' he said to Kim as he stepped from the podium. 'I want you to continue scanning –'
'Sir!' interrupted Kim. 'I've found an Aralla ship!'
Data moved to his side. 'Are you sure it's not a cometary mass or a rogue planet?'
'Absolutely certain, sir.' Kim looked up at the screen. 'Look.'
An Aralla city destroyer was eclipsing the stars before them. Around it swarmed hundreds of attack planes. In the distance, Data could see four more destroyers.
'Scan for the mother ship,' ordered Data. Kim did so, and then shook his head.
'No sign, sir. I'm picking up twenty city destroyers in that group. They've just departed an unnamed Class-M planet.'
'Status of planet?' asked Data, but he already knew that answer.
'Destroyed,' said Kim quietly.
Then, a motion on the screen caught their eye. The attack planes had disappeared, and the Aralla ships had jumped into warp. Starlines streaked past their hull as the scanners kept track of them.
Then, a new development confirmed Data's theory. The Aralla accelerated, faster and faster, until they suddenly vanished in a flash of light. The screen blanked out, as the scanners could not keep up, and returned to the view of the galaxy. Data shuddered, knowing that this information might destroy the Fleet once and for all. He tapped his commbadge.
'Data to Admiral Picard.'
'Picard here.'
'Sir, I have very bad news.' Data glanced at Kim. 'The Aralla have transwarp drive.'
'You're sure?' asked Picard, looking at Data steadily. The android nodded, and Picard sat down heavily. 'This is bad news, Data. This means that the Aralla can now hit us whenever they want, without warning.' He looked up at Data again. 'How have they managed this?'
'I believe that they may have salvaged an engine from one of the Borg Cubes that they destroyed,' said Data.
'But to study, redesign and modify that engine, test it and match it to their own engines, and then to produce the sort of power it would take to move one of those monstrosities at transwarp speed –' Picard broke off, horrified by the prospect. 'It's taking the Borg a full week just to outfit a single starship in this Fleet. They've done it to their entire fleet in less than a month.'
'Sir, I want to get the Voyager mission underway now,' said Data, taking advantage of the silence.
'Are you sure?' asked Picard, glancing up at him.
'My findings say that we haven't got much time now, sir. We need to get out there, scan for the main mother ship and get that attack plane. While we're there, we may be able to get some tactical data on the Aralla plans. We still don't know why we only picked up twenty city destroyers. Where are the mother ships, and why are the Aralla hitting planets that are nowhere near our position?'
Picard nodded, understanding the point. 'You do realise that Voyager's engines haven't been tested properly at maximum capacity?'
'Then we'll test them out there,' replied Data. 'We need to go now, sir.'
Picard nodded reluctantly. 'You're right. Be ready to go at 0800 tomorrow morning.'
Data nodded. 'Aye, sir.'
'Data to Worf.'
'Worf here.'
'Mobilise.'
'Understood. I'll be on the Voyager in twenty minutes.'
'Data out.'
Worf turned away from the skull-faced warrior before. Data had interrupted him during a training exercise, but that was all right, because they were going to strike back at the Aralla at long last.
Worf, despite his long Starfleet career, had felt his warrior's blood boiling at Picard's unwillingness to retaliate against the Aralla. Planet after planet had fallen, but Picard would not strike back. Defeat after defeat, but still the Fleet ran from the black ships that had conquered the Alpha Quadrant. A true warrior would have stood and fought.
And died, added Worf's training and experience. The Starfleet side of Worf's character spoke to him, telling him that the policy that Picard had taken had saved the Fleet. Any stand against the Aralla was doomed to failure until the shields came down. And Worf would be part of that – a critical component.
But Worf knew that as time went on, his warrior side, frustrated and ready to lash out, was starting to predominate. His entire life had been a struggle between his human upbringing and his Klingon nature, and he had thought that struggle won long before. But time and again, he had been brought to face one or the other, finally having to support the Federation in direct conflict with the Klingon Empire not too long ago. Defying his friend, Gowron.
Killing his comrades in battle....
With a snarl, Worf shouted, 'Resume program!' and swung his mek'leth down to parry the stroke of his opponent's blade. Forcing the sword down, he knocked it aside, and then punched his opponent in the face, sending him sprawling to the ground.
Worf howled, a barely coherent scream, one that came from the darkest depths of the Klingon soul. And brought the weapon down into his enemy's heart.
The hologram shuddered and went still, fading a moment later, letting Worf's blade clatter to the ground.
Worf stood for a brief moment, exulting in the successful kill – and realised that he had totally lost control of his anger for a moment, something that had not happened in these callisthenics programs for a very long time. And that was a bad sign.
Worf, troubled, picked up his mek'leth and left the holodeck, forgetting to order the program to shut down.
Data stepped onto the bridge of the Voyager, lost in thought. A thought train that was leading him in a very worrying direction....
'Welcome aboard, Captain,' said a voice, and Data looked up at Janeway, who was observing him from just in front of her command chair.
'Sorry?'
'Welcome aboard,' she repeated, slightly testily.
'Oh, thank you,' replied the android. 'Is Commander Worf aboard yet?'
At that moment, the other turbolift slid open, and Worf stepped out. 'Commander Worf reporting for duty as ordered,' he said formally.
'Welcome aboard as well, Commander,' said Janeway, smiling.
'As well...?' Worf glanced across and saw Data. 'Captain Data!'
'Hello Worf,' said Data.
'I'll have Mr. Kim show you to your quarters, gentlemen.'
'Thank you, Captain,' said Worf, when Data didn't seem about to respond. Data, instead looked up at Janeway.
'Captain, could I have a private word?'
'By all means,' answered the other. 'Ensign, show Mr. Worf to his quarters,' she added as she led Data across the bridge.
They entered Janeway's ready room. Data immediately said, 'Is the special equipment I asked for installed in my quarters?'
'Yes,' said Janeway.
Data nodded, his manner that of an absent-minded scholar. 'I would like Ensign Kim seconded from his duties and to work with me in Astrometrics.'
Janeway nodded. 'By all means, Captain. May I ask the reason?'
'We have several hypotheses about the behaviour of the Aralla. I wish to test them.' Data looked her full in the eye for the first time since coming aboard. 'We must get underway.'
Janeway didn't believe, as many others did, that the eye was a window to the soul, but she looked at Data's mechanical eye, and saw, within, a tortured human – just a brief glimpse. And once again, since meeting the Fleet, she wondered, What's happening to us?
The Voyager turned away from the bustling mass of the ships that clouded the Unicomplex, turned for deep space. It's nacelles lifted to a slightly higher position, and the starship shot into warp.
'Prepare for transwarp,' ordered Janeway. 'On my mark.'
'Capacity at 20%,' said B'Elanna. 'I advise going no higher than fifty.'
'We will start at 50%,' interjected Data. 'We need as much speed as possible,' he added.
Janeway held his gaze, and then nodded to B'Elanna who shook her head and reset the controls.
Down in Engineering, Joseph Carey, second-in-command of that department, added his shake of the head to the litany of confusion that spread through Voyager's crew. However, in deference to his superiors, who he hoped knew what they were doing, he programmed the unit for 50% of capacity. He turned, and looked at the tall warp core, and the small unit that was attached by Borg technology to its side, pumping a strange concoction into the anti-matter/matter intermix. He was only surprised that it had not destroyed the ship the second it was activated.
'Transwarp at 50%,' said B'Elanna sourly. 'Awaiting the order.'
Janeway gave Data a final glance, which he ignored. 'Engage.'
B'Elanna nodded and pressed a control. 'In five, four, three, two, one!'
The Voyager jolted slightly, and then faded away in a beam of light that split space in two, making it look to the observer as if the starship had actually passed through a curtain, one that just happened to be the very fabric of reality.
It was, after all, merely a veil.
The screen blanked out. Janeway stared for a moment at B'Elanna. 'What's going on?' she asked quietly.
'I- I- don't know,' admitted the stunned engineer. 'I've never seen anything like this before. According to the transwarp drive, we're at 50% of capacity, but we're not in transwarp space.'
'This is real transwarp,' said Data, who had seen it before. 'You all understand that warp-capable ships don't travel in normal space. Einsteinian laws prevent that. What happens is that the warp engine makes a hole in space into subspace, and that allows us to go at faster than light velocities. The transwarp drive is effectively doing the same thing – pushing us from subspace into transwarp space. The sensors are not capable of displaying it, so the monitor is blank.'
'So why didn't it do that in the initial tests?' demanded B'Elanna. 'All we saw was the green tunnel effect.'
'Yes, that's correct,' said Data. 'The main part of warp drive is the initial push through the barrier of normal space into subspace. The rest is all fairly easy on the engines, accelerating beyond light is a simple task after going to warp one in the first place. With transwarp, it is much the same thing. It makes a hole from subspace into transwarp but, unlike warp drive, at less than 50% capacity, the effect is merely skimming between subspace and transwarp space. Over 50%, you are fully propelled into transwarp space. It will be safe to accelerate now. I recommend taking the drive to 70% of capacity.'
'You heard him, B'Elanna,' said Janeway.
'Aye, Captain.' The engineer adjusted a few controls.
There was no appreciable effect, but B'Elanna nodded to Janeway, indicating that the job was done. Janeway turned to Ensign Foster. 'ETA to target?'
'Four hours, three minutes.' They were travelling nearly one thousand light years in just over four hours, a journey that would have required weeks at maximum warp.
'Amazing,' muttered Chakotay.
'I will retire to my quarters,' said Data to Janeway. 'Please alert me when we reach our destination.'
'Yes, Captain,' she replied, and Data nodded and left the bridge.
'Bit of a cold fish,' remarked Chakotay to Janeway as she sat beside him.
She nodded. 'I was given to understand that he had emotions now. He will be difficult to deal with.'
'What are his plans?' asked the commander, but Janeway shrugged.
'We find out when we get there.'
'Damn strange way to run a mission,' said Chakotay, his voice frustrated.
'You're telling me,' Janeway agreed. She glanced at her friend. 'I can't understand this Fleet sometimes. It's as though they're not fully human anymore.'
'Why?'
'I don't know. Picard and Data are both strangers, and I've met them both in the past. Even Ben Sisko isn't the same man.'
'War changes people,' suggested Chakotay.
'Are the Aralla so terrible?' Janeway said, her voice questioning. 'Is there the possibility that Picard and this Fleet may have been so badly wrong in judging the Aralla that we're fighting a war that could have been avoided?'
'Possibly,' said Chakotay. 'We were always taught that war is always avoidable, and should always be the last resort in any conflict of interest.'
'Exactly. And, to be honest, we still haven't got the full story. We know that the Aralla have attacked and destroyed huge swathes of the galaxy, but why did they do that? I intend to ask Admiral Picard that question when we get back.'
'Bear in mind, Captain,' added Chakotay, his tone that of warning, 'we have not yet faced the Aralla. And Harry said that they have destroyed Rakosa V.'
For a moment, Janeway's face darkened. 'Yes, that's a fact. Picard is right about one thing – the Aralla are certainly ruthless.'
The door bleeped. 'Enter.'
Worf stepped into Data's quarters, and looked at the android who sat at a computer desk, silent. 'Sir, I wanted to talk with you.'
Data roused himself from his contemplation. 'By all means?' He motioned to a seat, and Worf sat. 'What did you want to talk about?'
'You, sir,' said Worf, straightforward as ever. Data looked him in the eye.
'Me?'
'Yes, sir. I have always believed that you can talk to your friends. So, I understand, have you. Why do you not talk?'
'What would I want to talk about?' asked Data, bemused by Worf's line of questioning.
'Captain, you have been highly secretive and depressed since you returned from your expedition. I know that it is not my place –'
'You're right! It isn't your place at all, mister!' Data's shout of anger took Worf a little by surprise. His face told Data that he had made a mistake, and the android subsided. 'Sorry, Worf. I shouldn't have shouted.'
'It is your prerogative, sir,' said the Klingon, reflecting that despite his advantages of size and height, Data had once broken his leg without really trying.
'No, I was in the wrong. You're quite right Worf. I have been extremely downbeat of late.'
'Then, with respect, what is the problem, sir?' Data remained silent. Worf sighed, exasperated. Data pursed his lips, and then spoke.
'I am extremely new to the world of emotions, Worf. You organic beings are able to deal with certain feelings and experience through childhood. However, I have had to deal with them as an adult. The sudden, unexpected rush of defeats and deaths has caused great depression in me, starting with the death of Counsellor Troi all the way through to Odo's death. I cannot handle all of them at such short notice – I am, in short, being overwhelmed by a tide of emotion that I simply do not have the experience or the time to deal with. I've been cast straight back into the fray after a very long and tiring journey all the way from the Gamma Quadrant. Even androids are not immortal. Neither are we indestructible.'
Worf nodded, understanding that Data was suffering from stress and an android version of extreme exhaustion. 'Admiral Picard must be made to realise that, Data, and you are the only one who can do that.'
Data sighed ever so slightly, and then nodded. 'Thank you, Worf. You've given me a lot to think about. Was there anything else?'
Worf bowed his head and shook it slightly, unable to believe Data's attitude. 'No, sir. I just wanted –'
'Thank you, Mr. Worf.' The android cut him off, and returned to his work, leaving Worf crestfallen. The Klingon turned and left.
Data tapped his fingers against the smooth surface of the padd he cradled in his hand, staring up at the vast screen before him.
The Voyager had made eight stops along the way, collecting intelligence data about the Aralla movements. So far, they had detected five different groups of ships, all moving in different directions, and all of them unaccompanied by a mother ship.
They had also detected forty more destroyed planets, all of them attacked in the same way, undoubtedly the work of the Aralla.
Now, the small network of lines had expanded, giving rise to more theories about the Aralla plans. From a single point of origin, Data had drawn six red lines, all curving away from the origin, and all moving away from the Borg Unicomplex. Every planet along that route that harboured even the remotest possibility of life was attacked mercilessly.
However, each of those lines, despite curving slightly as the Aralla ships branched out to attack planets away from their chosen route, was following a roughly parallel course to the others, one that now beginning to curve back around. Data turned to Kim.
'Ensign, I want you to extrapolate those lines along their current course. See if they meet up.'
'Yes, sir,' said Kim, setting to work. The lines lengthened slowly, and curved around even further. Data watched, horror rising, as they converged together towards the bottom of the map. Finally they all met, exactly at the same point. Data stepped closer, realising what the Aralla were doing.
At the exact centre of the lines were the Borg Unicomplex and the Fleet. They were encircled by the Aralla advance perfectly, and the Aralla would be perfectly placed to attack as soon as they reached their final destination.
Data suddenly had an inspiration, and he whirled to face Kim. 'Ensign, scan the convergence co-ordinates!'
'I can't, sir. It's well out of range,' said Kim.
Data nodded, annoyed slightly. 'Ask Captain Janeway to come to Astrometrics. I have some bad news.'
'Damn, you're right!' said Janeway, staring at the red lines before her. 'But why are they doing it in such a roundabout way?'
'I have no idea,' admitted Data. 'However, I believe I know where the mother ships are.'
'You do? Where?'
Data pointed silently to a point on the map – the point at which the lines converged. 'They are waiting for the return of the city destroyers. From there, they will launch their attack upon the Unicomplex.'
Janeway nodded grimly, and pressed a control on the console. 'Janeway to bridge.'
'Bridge here,' answered Chakotay.
'Commander, set course along a new set of co-ordinates that I'm transmitting to the helm. Engage transwarp at 50% of capacity, and then run her up to 100%.'
'A hundred?' asked Chakotay, voice stunned. 'Captain, we've –'
'I'm well aware of that. However, this is vitally urgent.'
'Understood,' said Chakotay immediately, but Janeway could hear the cautious reluctance in his voice. 'Bridge out.'
Janeway turned to Data. 'I've done as you asked.'
'Thank you, Captain.'
'Now you can do me a favour,' added Janeway as if Data had not spoken.
'A favour?' echoed Data.
'You could tell me exactly what you're planning to do?'
'Ah,' said Data guiltily. He realised that he had not informed Janeway of his plan, and it was one which would require great risk of Voyager and her crew. 'You're right. You have a right to know.'
He gestured to the map. 'We will proceed to the location of the Aralla mother ships, to a point just out of transporter range. Then, you will warp in, drop out of warp long enough to transport myself and Commander Worf aboard one of those ships and then warp back out of range. After shaking off any Aralla pursuit, you will get just within scanner range of the mother ships again, and make full sensor sweeps of them. We need to know as much as possible about those ships' internal structures, power distribution centres, and computer networks as possible. Aside from that, merely await my signal.'
'And if we are attacked by the Aralla?'
'Retreat to a place of safety. It's far more important that you get back with those sensor scans than myself or Worf get out.'
Janeway nodded slowly. 'Once we receive your signal....?'
'Worf and I are attempting to steal an attack plane from the Aralla, which we will, if all goes well, pilot into the shuttle bay on Voyager. Then we will make our escape.'
Janeway smiled. 'You make it sound so easy.'
'Believe me, it won't be,' replied Data. 'The first thing that we have to do is identify the right mother ship to board. Then we need to beam into the right place. It is far more likely than not that we will have to hunt through the ship for a likely candidate for capture, which will be dangerous and time-consuming. Once we locate our target, and capture it, we will come under fire from the Aralla. If we escape the docking bay, we will head directly for your position. At that moment, I will signal for you to receive us.'
'How long do we wait?'
'Ten hours after insertion, if we have not signalled, assume that we are dead or captured, and make your way back to the Fleet at full speed. Make no attempt to rescue us. The Aralla will tear apart a single ship with ease.'
Janeway nodded again, her face becoming grim. 'Why are you stealing this ship?'
'That is a question for Admiral Picard to answer,' answered Data shortly. 'I am not at liberty to say.'
Janeway watched the android for a brief moment. 'I understand.' She glanced at Kim, who stood looking at his console, being unobtrusive. 'Ensign, our ETA?'
'Four hours, ten minutes, Captain.'
Janeway glanced at Data. 'I'll be on the bridge. We'll make advance scans as we reach the target. I advise you and Commander Worf to prepare.'
Without another word, she turned and left, leaving Data staring at the map.
The Voyager's short journey towards the rendezvous point was punctuated by drops from transwarp, on Data's orders, to make more scans for Aralla ships and to confirm his theory. And the scans confirmed it.
Nearly eighty Aralla ships were picked up, all on different courses, but all following the curve that Data had predicted to bring them around to their predicted destination. All of the ships ha been sighted either departing or attacking a planet, giving the Voyager crew an unparalleled view of the enemy.
And at every planet, Data would look slowly at the reactions of the crew, a mixture of horror and misery, and then order them to press on.
One of the most illuminating scans showed an Aralla fleet in transwarp. They held the speed at what Data judged to be 50% of the capacity of the Voyager's transwarp engines, and then dropped back out again. They paused for a brief moment, and then launched themselves again.
Data nodded appreciatively. The energy demands of keeping such a huge mass in transwarp for any length of time were being negated by skipping in and out of transwarp in short jumps. They would arrive at the outskirts of a system and drop out of transwarp, continuing the rest of the journey either at warp or impulse speed.
He had come to the bridge an hour after Janeway had left him in Astrometrics, and had appropriated Chakotay's command chair. Shortly afterwards, the Voyager had outstripped the Aralla ships, and was on course for the final destination.
'Sir,' said Kim abruptly, 'I have a scanner view of the Aralla rendezvous.'
'Hypothesised,' chided Data, 'hypothesised, Ensign. On screen.'
Kim activated the viewer, and Data closed his eyes briefly, after seeing the vision before him.
Janeway and the bridge crew around him all failed to contain their surprise. The Aralla mother ships all sat, dark and foreboding, in space, eclipsing the stars totally. Their darkness made them difficult to see at first, but once you traced out their outline by the stars that they eclipsed, their vastness could be fully appreciated.
They lurked against a small planet, one that should have dwarfed them, but instead seemed to emphasise their size. At that moment, in a rather impressive effect, the sun cut across the planet, drenching them in light for a brief moment. The crew could see the thousands of attack planes buzzing around the huge ships, all swarming on aimless journeys that held the purpose of an ant-heap.
'They,' said Worf from the rear of the bridge, 'are the Aralla.'
And no more needed to be said.
'Ensign Foster,' said Janeway, 'can you bring us out of warp about a quarter of a light year away from the Aralla ships?'
'Aye, sir,' answered the helmsman. She programmed in the course, slowly guiding the now warp-borne Voyager into a deceleration curve that ended with them stopping in space.
Data turned to Ensign Foster. 'Ensign, do you know how to perform a manoeuvre known as "Touch-and-go downwarping?"'
'Yes, sir,' answered Foster confidently.
Data nodded slightly. 'On my order, you will warp along the vector of the Aralla ships, shields down, and perform said manoeuvre. Then, you will warp back out again.'
'With shields down, sir, we may not survive a sustained attack,' said Chakotay, ignoring Janeway's warning glance.
'The Aralla will not react sufficiently to cause problems for a capable helmsman. Indeed, the only concern will be the attack planes. With their strike capabilities, I estimate that you will have a margin of thirty seconds to perform the manoeuvre and get out of range,' countered Data. Still his face was impassive.
Janeway nodded, forestalling any response from an angry Chakotay. 'We understand, Captain. My crew knows what to do. It's time you carried out your end of the deal.'
Data nodded solemnly. 'I will transmit the order to launch when I am ready.'
He turned, and he and Worf left the bridge. Immediately, Janeway turned to Ensign Foster. 'Ensign, you're relieved.'
'Sir?' asked the surprised helmsman, her voice disappointed. Janeway smiled at her, realising what a blow to her confidence this might be.
'I have every confidence in your abilities as a helmsman, Ensign, but I think that Captain Data's prediction of the Aralla response is dead wrong. You've never piloted a starship in a combat situation like that.'
Foster nodded sadly, and stood from her seat. Janeway motioned for Chakotay to take the helm. As he passed Janeway, he said, sotto voce, 'Neither have I.'
Janeway stared steadfastly forward, making no indication that she had heard him. Chakotay shrugged, and sat down.
The captain leant down and whispered in his ear, 'I really miss Tom.'
Chakotay nodded sadly.
Data entered the transporter room and walked straight to the small pile of weapons that he and Worf had carefully selected from Voyager's stores. He slung a phaser rifle across his back, buckled a combat belt around his waist, which contained his tricorder, a set of photon grenades, and a type-two phaser. To this he added a type-one phaser for a surprise.
Worf had picked up the same equipment, but he also had his bat'leth and mek'leth and instead of a phaser rifle he carried a different weapon, one that Data recognised, but had kept quiet about. He passed Data a small armband which Data strapped to his forearm and pressed a key. It lit up blue and then red and went dark again. Satisfied, Data tapped his commbadge. 'Data to bridge. I am transmitting a transponder code on channel 5574. Confirm that you can detect this.'
'Confirmed,' answered Kim's voice.
'If both signals are lost, assume we are dead and retreat from the area.'
'Understood,' answered Janeway.
Data glanced at Worf. 'All set?'
The Klingon nodded, and stepped onto the pad, followed by Data. He tapped his badge again. 'Execute.'
The Voyager leapt into warp, straight for the Aralla ships. It flashed past them and dropped out of warp next to the huge black hull of one particular ship chosen by Data earlier.
'We've dropped out of warp,' warned the transporter chief.
'Energise!' ordered Worf.
The glittering energy surrounded them –
The Aralla mother ship opened fire on the Voyager. A single beam of the cutting weapon slashed out and narrowly missed the port nacelle of the tiny starship, brushing it with an energy discharge.
The ship shuddered, Chakotay fighting to evade another blast already heading their way. 'They certainly reacted a lot faster!' he shouted.
Janeway nodded tensely.
'Attack planes on intercept!' said Tuvok. 'Thirty seconds to intercept!'
The transporter beam blazed bright around Worf and Data for a second, before they vanished. The transporter chief hit his badge. 'Transport complete!'
Janeway glanced at Kim as another beam of energy missed Voyager. 'Confirm!'
'Transponders detected!' replied Kim, smiling. 'They're onboard.'
Chakotay didn't need an order.
The Voyager raised its shields, and turned away from the Aralla. A desultory salvo from the attack planes missed wildly as the starship warped out of harm's way, leaving the Aralla confused and in disarray behind it.
Ten minutes later, Voyager appeared behind the planet again and settled in to wait patiently.
Janeway turned to Kim. 'Get down to Astrometrics and scan every inch of those ships from stem to stern.'
'Aye, captain,' said the young man, turning and leaving the bridge.
Janeway turned to look at the now quiescent mass of the Aralla ships, beginning to realise what sort of a threat they faced in those ships. Chakotay gave the helm back to Foster and began running through the minor damage reports in the first officer's seat. He glanced at Janeway. 'Captain, just a direct hit from one of those energy beams would have blown Voyager apart easily.'
'I know,' answered Janeway. 'I may have been wrong about the Aralla. They opened fire as soon as they saw us.'
'We are at war, and I believe that Admiral Picard would have done the same,' remarked Chakotay.
'I know,' repeated Janeway. She looked at her friend, worry written across her face. 'Is it possible that the Aralla have made us into versions of themselves?'
Chakotay could not find an answer, and after a moment, he looked away. Janeway looked back at the screen, extremely worried. For both Voyager, and the Fleet.