-- Chapter One --
"Emperor on the bridge," The voice sounded immediately after the swish of the Turbo-Lift doors sliding open. Throughout the bridge, crew members turned their heads, seated crew members stood up to see the Emperor walk up the steps, into the bridge. He was a serious man, fairly tall, and with a medium build. He had black hair and brown eyes. As his uniform, he wore black pants accompanied with a black long-sleeved shirt, with a black turtle-neck underneath. On the right of the turtle-neck's collar there was an oddly shaped pin.
It was silent as the Emperor glanced around, taking in the sight of his ship's bridge and her crew. The bridge was circular, with two command chairs in the center, on an elevated platform. The left chair, being the executive officer's, was slightly to the front of the Emperor's chair, and slightly lowered. Behind the chairs on the command platform, was a railing, partially surrounding the chairs. In front of the command platform was two helm stations, separated by a gap. To the side of them was a door leading to the Briefing Room. There was a large viewscreen in front of the stations. In the rear, beside the spot the Emperor stood, was an alcove for the OPS station. To the left of the alcove, directly behind the command platform, was a Science station. And to left of the science station was a Tactical station alcove. On either side of the alcoves there was four steps heading down to doors. One, on the OPS side, was the Turbo-Lift, were the Emperor came from, the other was the Emperor's ready room and living quarters. After a few seconds the Emperor opened his mouth, beginning to say something, but stopped. "As you were," He finally said. All hands turned back to their stations - except for one crew man. He walked up to the Emperor.
"So, is she satisfactory?" He said, giving the bridge a good glance. The Emperor did the same.
"Indeed," Was his only reply as he looked back at the man. He then looked passed him, his eyes appeared to widen slightly for just a moment, then he stepped around the man and headed to where he was looking so eagerly: the center chairs. Once he was there, he stopped and looked at them. The other man approached silently and stood behind him, smiling. Then after a moment the Emperor took a step toward them and then unexpectedly turned to the man. "Lieutenant," the Emperor began, eyeing the three silver pins the man wore. "Where is the Intendant?"
"The Intendant should be arriving any minute, sir. He told Lieutenant Commander Krag he would be here at 1500 hours." The Emperor turned his head to look at the rear console, searching for the present time. "It is 1504 hours, sir." He said, understanding what the Emperor was looking for. The Emperor looked at him, then quickly turned to the OPS station where he heard a faint beeping.
"Report," he said. The crewman looked up to the Emperor.
"It is the proximity alarm, sir." The crewman replied. "There is a shuttle approaching off our aft bow," The officer paused. "It is requesting permission to dock." The Emperor looked at the Lieutenant.
"That must be the Intendant," the Lieutenant said with a smile, assuring the Emperor. The Emperor turned back the OPS station.
"Grant it permission." He said. The crewman looked at him, nodded and looked down at his console.
"Aye, sir."
The Emperor moved to the Turbo-Lift. As the doors swished open, the Lieutenant stepped beside the him.
"Sir, should I inform Commander Krag of the Intendant's arrival?" The Emperor stepped into the Turbo-Lift. He slowly spun around and looked at the Lieutenant.
"Have him meet me in Shuttlebay One."
"Aye, sir." The doors swished shut.
The Emperor entered into the shuttlebay, flanked by two security guards. They stopped after taking a few steps into the room. The shuttlebay was huge, with large crates piled up in the left corner. In front of the three men, not nearly in the center, was a Class Two shuttle. With its rear facing them, they could see that the hatch was open. Then a small, faint hum filled the room as the shuttlebay doors began to slide upwards. They could see a Denuba-class runabout in the distance, between the Zenith's warp nacelles, getting bigger as it approached the opening. The familiar hiss of the shuttlebay doors were heard as they slid open and the first security guard turned to see who was coming. He nodded his head in acknowledgment as he saw Lieutenant-Commander Krag walk in, accompanied by the Lieutenant from the bridge. They both joined the group.
An odd, crackling sound filled the room as the runabout passed through the atmospheric forcefield, then the thin flickering blue wall stopped flashing as the runabout's rear finally passed through it. The faint whine of the runabout's engines stopped and was replaced by a soft hum as it switched over to antigrav maneuvering units, enabling it to land softly.
The Emperor walked passed the guards towards the runabout as he saw the small hatch on its side open, dropping to the ground and revealing steps on the inside of the door. A figure stepped out, onto the steps, and walked down them. His hair was short and black, accompanied by dark brown eyes. The man was fairly tall. His skin was slightly tanned and he had a medium build. He was smiling as he looked around the shuttlebay. His uniform was the same as the Emperor's, except for his pin, although it was still oddly shaped. He walked toward the Emperor who was now standing still, waiting for him.
"Welcome, Intendant." The Emperor said with a smile. "Nice to get away from Terra, isn't it?"
"That's for sure." The Intendant replied with a sigh. "At the rate those men down there are working, the modifications of Startfleets headquarters will never get finished within the next year. You should go out there yourself and give everyone of them a good shove." The Emperor laughed silently, then immediately stopped, seeing Lieutenant-Commander Krag shift in his spot. He looked over to him.
"This is Lieutenant-Commander Leban Krag. That is ...." The Emperor paused, realizing he'd never learned the name of the lieutenant from the bridge.
"Lieutenant Nero Griffith, sir." The officer finished off.
"Nice to meet you both." The Intendant said, nodding his head.
"Well, Intendant. Lets head over to the bridge," The Emperor said, standing aside and holding his hand out, letting the Intendant walk past him. "Hold on." The Emperor suddenly said. "Did you come alone?"
"Oh, yes!" The Intendant said, snapping his fingers. "Ensign Silas! He was just checking the manifolds; he claimed something was out of line." Just as he finished, an officer stepped out of the runabout. When at the bottom of the steps, he stiffened in attention for the Emperor. And the Intendant.
"As you were, Ensign." The Ensign immediately resumed walking towards them. "Shall we?" The Emperor said, gesturing towards the shuttlebay doors. The Intendant stepped in front of him and the Emperor followed. Then all the other officers followed out of the room.
The Turbo-Lift doors hissed open. The Emperor, the Intendant, Lieutenant Commander Krag and Lieutenant Griffith all walked out of the lift. The Intendant stopped as he reached the top of the four-step stairway. The Emperor, however, continued walking towards the center chairs with the Commander. But the Commander did not stop where the Emperor stopped. He continued to the left Helm station. Once he reached it, the officer already sitting there stood up and went to the Tactical alcove. Lieutenant Griffith headed towards the OPS station.
The Emperor spun around to look at the Intendant. He was still standing at the steps, looking around the bridge. He then met the gaze of the Emperor.
"There's two chairs, Intendant." He said with a small smile. Commander Krag spun his chair around to observe the Intendant.
"Indeed," the Intendant replied, attempting to mimic the Emperor's voice. He walked over to the chairs, to look at them, and then looked up to the Emperor. The Emperor stepped up to him.
"That one's mine." The Emperor said pointing to the left seat, which the Intendant was standing in front of. The Intendant stepped back with a smirk on his face. The Emperor stepped in front of the Intendant, took a deep breath and slowly sat down in the chair. He looked up to the Intendant, then to the Commander, who was still watching them, clearly amused. "I watched this ship being built, waiting for the day it would be complete." The Emperor said, eyes closed for a moment. He abruptly opened them. "And now it is." He looked at the Intendant who then sat in his chair.
"Well, Emperor," He said, smiling a big smile. "Lets see how she runs."
"Indeed." The Emperor agreed. He looked at the Commander. The Commander spun back to face his console.
"When ever you say the word, sir-err, sirs." He glanced back at them, then turned back to his console.
"Why don't you have the honour ..." The Emperor began.
"No, no." The Intendant smiled. "Please, you - you are the Emperor."
"Ah, but I insist. It's our ship." They stared at each other. At that moment, in unison, they turned their heads to the front of the bridge and said aloud, so all the bridge crew could here,
"Lets take her out." They looked at each other and the Intendant laughed, the Emperor only smiled. Commander Krag tapped a few commands and the deck beneath them shifted. The magnificent ship began to move through space. Its primary hull an oval saucer, connecting to the secondary hull at the rear. There was no 'neck' between the two hulls. The warp nacelles came out of the body from the top and moved extensively to the back. On the primary hull, the letters read, USS ZENITH. "Commander, activate the main viewscreen." The Emperor commanded.
"Aye, sir." The Commander punched in another set of commands. The big screen in the front of the room flickered once, then it was filled with space. White stars twinkled on the veil of black, and off to the side was a rusty red form, half way onto the viewscreen.
Mars. Its craters were clearly noticeable at this distance. Inside them, their depth was shown in darker shades of red. Then as it passed by, a larger planet, the largest in Solar Prime came into view. The planet named Jupiter, after the king of the Roman gods. It was a beautiful sight, its multicolour bands wrapping around, and its giant red spot turned slowly. Then Jupiter passed by, and Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, then Pluto. The ship continued, though nearing the border of Solar Prime.
"Our destination, sir?" Commander Krag asked, turning from his console. The Emperor glanced at the Intendant then looked back at the Commander.
"Take us out until Alpha Centauri. Nowhere far from home. Just a test run." The Emperor replied. The Commander nodded in acknowledgment. "This ship runs quite smoothly, does it not?" The Emperor asked, as he turned to the Intendant.
"Yes, it sure does." The Intendant answered, not taking his eyes off the screen. The Emperor and the Intendant immediately twisted their heads back at the sound of a faint beeping. Lieutenant Griffith looked up at them abruptly.
"It's a distress call."
"Emperor on the bridge," The voice sounded immediately after the swish of the Turbo-Lift doors sliding open. Throughout the bridge, crew members turned their heads, seated crew members stood up to see the Emperor walk up the steps, into the bridge. He was a serious man, fairly tall, and with a medium build. He had black hair and brown eyes. As his uniform, he wore black pants accompanied with a black long-sleeved shirt, with a black turtle-neck underneath. On the right of the turtle-neck's collar there was an oddly shaped pin.
It was silent as the Emperor glanced around, taking in the sight of his ship's bridge and her crew. The bridge was circular, with two command chairs in the center, on an elevated platform. The left chair, being the executive officer's, was slightly to the front of the Emperor's chair, and slightly lowered. Behind the chairs on the command platform, was a railing, partially surrounding the chairs. In front of the command platform was two helm stations, separated by a gap. To the side of them was a door leading to the Briefing Room. There was a large viewscreen in front of the stations. In the rear, beside the spot the Emperor stood, was an alcove for the OPS station. To the left of the alcove, directly behind the command platform, was a Science station. And to left of the science station was a Tactical station alcove. On either side of the alcoves there was four steps heading down to doors. One, on the OPS side, was the Turbo-Lift, were the Emperor came from, the other was the Emperor's ready room and living quarters. After a few seconds the Emperor opened his mouth, beginning to say something, but stopped. "As you were," He finally said. All hands turned back to their stations - except for one crew man. He walked up to the Emperor.
"So, is she satisfactory?" He said, giving the bridge a good glance. The Emperor did the same.
"Indeed," Was his only reply as he looked back at the man. He then looked passed him, his eyes appeared to widen slightly for just a moment, then he stepped around the man and headed to where he was looking so eagerly: the center chairs. Once he was there, he stopped and looked at them. The other man approached silently and stood behind him, smiling. Then after a moment the Emperor took a step toward them and then unexpectedly turned to the man. "Lieutenant," the Emperor began, eyeing the three silver pins the man wore. "Where is the Intendant?"
"The Intendant should be arriving any minute, sir. He told Lieutenant Commander Krag he would be here at 1500 hours." The Emperor turned his head to look at the rear console, searching for the present time. "It is 1504 hours, sir." He said, understanding what the Emperor was looking for. The Emperor looked at him, then quickly turned to the OPS station where he heard a faint beeping.
"Report," he said. The crewman looked up to the Emperor.
"It is the proximity alarm, sir." The crewman replied. "There is a shuttle approaching off our aft bow," The officer paused. "It is requesting permission to dock." The Emperor looked at the Lieutenant.
"That must be the Intendant," the Lieutenant said with a smile, assuring the Emperor. The Emperor turned back the OPS station.
"Grant it permission." He said. The crewman looked at him, nodded and looked down at his console.
"Aye, sir."
The Emperor moved to the Turbo-Lift. As the doors swished open, the Lieutenant stepped beside the him.
"Sir, should I inform Commander Krag of the Intendant's arrival?" The Emperor stepped into the Turbo-Lift. He slowly spun around and looked at the Lieutenant.
"Have him meet me in Shuttlebay One."
"Aye, sir." The doors swished shut.
The Emperor entered into the shuttlebay, flanked by two security guards. They stopped after taking a few steps into the room. The shuttlebay was huge, with large crates piled up in the left corner. In front of the three men, not nearly in the center, was a Class Two shuttle. With its rear facing them, they could see that the hatch was open. Then a small, faint hum filled the room as the shuttlebay doors began to slide upwards. They could see a Denuba-class runabout in the distance, between the Zenith's warp nacelles, getting bigger as it approached the opening. The familiar hiss of the shuttlebay doors were heard as they slid open and the first security guard turned to see who was coming. He nodded his head in acknowledgment as he saw Lieutenant-Commander Krag walk in, accompanied by the Lieutenant from the bridge. They both joined the group.
An odd, crackling sound filled the room as the runabout passed through the atmospheric forcefield, then the thin flickering blue wall stopped flashing as the runabout's rear finally passed through it. The faint whine of the runabout's engines stopped and was replaced by a soft hum as it switched over to antigrav maneuvering units, enabling it to land softly.
The Emperor walked passed the guards towards the runabout as he saw the small hatch on its side open, dropping to the ground and revealing steps on the inside of the door. A figure stepped out, onto the steps, and walked down them. His hair was short and black, accompanied by dark brown eyes. The man was fairly tall. His skin was slightly tanned and he had a medium build. He was smiling as he looked around the shuttlebay. His uniform was the same as the Emperor's, except for his pin, although it was still oddly shaped. He walked toward the Emperor who was now standing still, waiting for him.
"Welcome, Intendant." The Emperor said with a smile. "Nice to get away from Terra, isn't it?"
"That's for sure." The Intendant replied with a sigh. "At the rate those men down there are working, the modifications of Startfleets headquarters will never get finished within the next year. You should go out there yourself and give everyone of them a good shove." The Emperor laughed silently, then immediately stopped, seeing Lieutenant-Commander Krag shift in his spot. He looked over to him.
"This is Lieutenant-Commander Leban Krag. That is ...." The Emperor paused, realizing he'd never learned the name of the lieutenant from the bridge.
"Lieutenant Nero Griffith, sir." The officer finished off.
"Nice to meet you both." The Intendant said, nodding his head.
"Well, Intendant. Lets head over to the bridge," The Emperor said, standing aside and holding his hand out, letting the Intendant walk past him. "Hold on." The Emperor suddenly said. "Did you come alone?"
"Oh, yes!" The Intendant said, snapping his fingers. "Ensign Silas! He was just checking the manifolds; he claimed something was out of line." Just as he finished, an officer stepped out of the runabout. When at the bottom of the steps, he stiffened in attention for the Emperor. And the Intendant.
"As you were, Ensign." The Ensign immediately resumed walking towards them. "Shall we?" The Emperor said, gesturing towards the shuttlebay doors. The Intendant stepped in front of him and the Emperor followed. Then all the other officers followed out of the room.
The Turbo-Lift doors hissed open. The Emperor, the Intendant, Lieutenant Commander Krag and Lieutenant Griffith all walked out of the lift. The Intendant stopped as he reached the top of the four-step stairway. The Emperor, however, continued walking towards the center chairs with the Commander. But the Commander did not stop where the Emperor stopped. He continued to the left Helm station. Once he reached it, the officer already sitting there stood up and went to the Tactical alcove. Lieutenant Griffith headed towards the OPS station.
The Emperor spun around to look at the Intendant. He was still standing at the steps, looking around the bridge. He then met the gaze of the Emperor.
"There's two chairs, Intendant." He said with a small smile. Commander Krag spun his chair around to observe the Intendant.
"Indeed," the Intendant replied, attempting to mimic the Emperor's voice. He walked over to the chairs, to look at them, and then looked up to the Emperor. The Emperor stepped up to him.
"That one's mine." The Emperor said pointing to the left seat, which the Intendant was standing in front of. The Intendant stepped back with a smirk on his face. The Emperor stepped in front of the Intendant, took a deep breath and slowly sat down in the chair. He looked up to the Intendant, then to the Commander, who was still watching them, clearly amused. "I watched this ship being built, waiting for the day it would be complete." The Emperor said, eyes closed for a moment. He abruptly opened them. "And now it is." He looked at the Intendant who then sat in his chair.
"Well, Emperor," He said, smiling a big smile. "Lets see how she runs."
"Indeed." The Emperor agreed. He looked at the Commander. The Commander spun back to face his console.
"When ever you say the word, sir-err, sirs." He glanced back at them, then turned back to his console.
"Why don't you have the honour ..." The Emperor began.
"No, no." The Intendant smiled. "Please, you - you are the Emperor."
"Ah, but I insist. It's our ship." They stared at each other. At that moment, in unison, they turned their heads to the front of the bridge and said aloud, so all the bridge crew could here,
"Lets take her out." They looked at each other and the Intendant laughed, the Emperor only smiled. Commander Krag tapped a few commands and the deck beneath them shifted. The magnificent ship began to move through space. Its primary hull an oval saucer, connecting to the secondary hull at the rear. There was no 'neck' between the two hulls. The warp nacelles came out of the body from the top and moved extensively to the back. On the primary hull, the letters read, USS ZENITH. "Commander, activate the main viewscreen." The Emperor commanded.
"Aye, sir." The Commander punched in another set of commands. The big screen in the front of the room flickered once, then it was filled with space. White stars twinkled on the veil of black, and off to the side was a rusty red form, half way onto the viewscreen.
Mars. Its craters were clearly noticeable at this distance. Inside them, their depth was shown in darker shades of red. Then as it passed by, a larger planet, the largest in Solar Prime came into view. The planet named Jupiter, after the king of the Roman gods. It was a beautiful sight, its multicolour bands wrapping around, and its giant red spot turned slowly. Then Jupiter passed by, and Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, then Pluto. The ship continued, though nearing the border of Solar Prime.
"Our destination, sir?" Commander Krag asked, turning from his console. The Emperor glanced at the Intendant then looked back at the Commander.
"Take us out until Alpha Centauri. Nowhere far from home. Just a test run." The Emperor replied. The Commander nodded in acknowledgment. "This ship runs quite smoothly, does it not?" The Emperor asked, as he turned to the Intendant.
"Yes, it sure does." The Intendant answered, not taking his eyes off the screen. The Emperor and the Intendant immediately twisted their heads back at the sound of a faint beeping. Lieutenant Griffith looked up at them abruptly.
"It's a distress call."