Chapter Three

The Arrival of New Prophesies


Starfleet Deep Space 9 Space Station

Bajor system

July 10, 2377

General Kira Nurys was in her office, studying the daily reports from the departments aboard the station. She wasn't really paying much attention, as her dreams had been most vivid as of late. So much so that she called upon an old friend to help her out with them.

She held the comm PADD in her left hand, and was playing around with the baseball on her desk in her right. It had been six years since Commander Benjamin Sisko had disappeared and supposedly died. The death still haunted her after all this time, which is why she stayed on at this post, despite plenty of offers to serve back on Bajor and other locales. Then again, she sometimes wondered if he really died at all.

Her commlink beeped, and her executive officer, Commander Paul Windsor, informed her of the arrival of her friend from Bajor. It had been a long time since they had chatted, especially given her friend's schedule, and General Kira was very much pleased that her friend could make time for her for this.

Kai Pila Neral came into the office with all the vestments of the Bajoran equivalent of the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church. The Kai was the same age as Kira was, and they had served in the resistance to Cardassian rule oh so many years ago. Her specialty was prophecy, and she had brought the Orb of Prophesy with her on this trip, much to Kira's surprise.

Kira came around her desk and embraced her old friend. They went over to the couch in the corner of the office for privacy, and Kai Pila placed the orb on the coffee table.

"Thank you for bringing that, Pila. Lately, I've been having some very strange dreams and need some help to explain what they mean."

"I know, Kira, which is why I brought the orb. When I got your call, it disturbed me greatly, because it is something that I haven't seen in my own contemplation with the orb. But I get the feeling that these dreams are not a figment of your imagination, because for the Emissary to appear in them is remarkable."

Kira nodded replied, "I don't completely understand them, because it's hard to believe that Captain Sisko would want me to take the station into the wormhole, but he says the Prophets need me to do so because of what he called, 'the coming storm'."

Pila nodded and opened the orb, which was floating inside its case. The orbs were the gifts from the Prophets, who lived inside the wormhole that was a fast connection to another part of the galaxy. Despite her occasional doubts about her faith, she still had managed to stay devout to her beliefs through all the events in recent years.

Kira positioned herself in front of the orb, and Pila held her hand in support. The vision wasn't long in coming as a flash of light overcame Kira.

She saw herself in a room with light blue walls, and light came into the room from a window overlooking a city whose buildings looked to have been made out of crystal. There, seated at a conference table, were Commander Sisko, still clad in his Starfleet uniform and looking stark with his bald head and dark skin. Beside him was a white Human male in another type of military uniform that was unknown to her. Also at the table was a lithe blond Humanoid female whose hair was almost as long as her dress, and, to her left, was a younger version, probably her daughter, in some kind of light blue uniform. To the daughter's left was a man cloaked in a light brown, mottled hood and cape, and, to his right, is a being unknown to her. Its skin glowed like a light, and the face was so plain that she thought that it might be one of the Prophets in corporeal form.

Sisko stood up and walked over to his former executive officer. "Kira, it's good of you to come. There are matters that are coming to a head and I need your help like I have needed it before."

Kira nodded and asked, "You know you have my help, but do you really need to bring the station into the wormhole? You know well enough how difficult that will be, but if you can prove the need for it, I'll do my best to accomplish this task."

The lithe blond woman stood up and introduced herself. "Hello General Kira. Sisko recommended we communicate with you to help in the coming battle. My name is Starsha. I'll introduce the others later, but for now, let me show something."

The lights dimmed as the window darkened over, and a three-dimensional display hovered over the table. It showed a planet of immense beauty, with beings of light walking around the alien structures.

"Long ago, there was a race called the Legendora, who were one of the first space faring races in your galaxy. They evolved from their corporeal forms into beings of light, much like your Prophets. However, several millennia ago, a group of their race split off and went off on their own to form a new race, called the Ragendora. While the Legendora are dedicated to helping the younger races develop and evolve, the Ragendora dedicated themselves to conquest and war. Over the centuries, they have battled, with the Legendora barely being able to hold off their enemies. However, this time, they need our help, along with others, because the Ragendora are looking to bring in allies for their campaign this time, and we need all the help we can get.," explained Starsha.

Kira looked at the Ragendora in the images, and was reminded of the Pai Wraiths that had battled the Prophets in the last years of the Dominion War. They were dark and fierce, and their ships looked foreboding, but instead of being intimidated, she felt outraged, as if these beings were out to attack her very own gods.

The man in the cloak stood up and removed the hood of his garment from his head, revealing a being with a bald head and a bone crest sticking out from the back of his skull. "I am Valen, and I have come here to assist these people in their battle with the Ragendora. You must know that this will be a war unlike any kind you have seen before, because this will be a battle across dimensions and universes. We'll need all the ships, bases of operations, and soldiers we can get to aid in the coming conflict. Your help is vital to the cause."

The being of light stood up and walked up to Kira. He removed his own hood from his head, and revealed himself to be baldheaded. "You see, my child, we know of your Prophets. They are a different race than us, but we have been friendly allies of their for eons. If you look inside your heart, you'll know that our cause if right and just, and you'll be willing to help. If you need more evidence, seek out the Prophets and they will explain it all to you."

Sisko walked up to his former exec and put both hands on her shoulders. "This is vitally important, Nurys. You must help us, or all of us are in danger of extinction. Please, do not take long in deciding about this,because we are not sure when the Ragendora will start their campaign. Time is of the essence. Goodbye for now."

With a flash, she returned to the room. Pila was beside her, still holding her hand.

Kira managed to croak out, "Did you see?"

Pila's face looked haunted, but soon set itself in resolution. "I believe these people, Nurys. The Prophets wouldn't have sent this to us if they were not sincere. What do you plan on doing?"

Kira got up off the couch, went over to her desk, and pressed a communication button on the flat panel. "Commander, contact Chief Miles O'Brien on Earth and tell him I need to speak to him immediately. Then prepare the Defiant for a mission. I'll brief you as soon as I get through with O'Brien."

"Yes, General. I'll track him down as soon as possible. Windsor out."

Pila went to her friend and asked, "Does that mean you are going to try to take the station into the wormhole"

Kira nodded, "Yes, but I need the chief's help with this, and it'll give me time to go into the wormhole and consult the prophets. I want to be absolutely sure about this before I commit myself to a course of action."

Pila nodded and they both left the room.

Interstellar Alliance headquarters

Tuzinor, Minbar

January 23, 2271

3:30am Earth Standard Time

President John Jay Sheridan paced his office nervously, waiting for the latest communication from Earth Alliance President Suzanna Luchenko, who was trapped on Earth because of the Drakh plague. Because of the contagious nature of the plague, Earth was quarantined and no one could land there or leave the surface of the planet. In the three years since the Drakh had unleashed the plague, millions had died, and, in two years time, all life on Earth would be dead if no cure was found. Sheridan wasn't a religious man, but he was now hoping desperately for a miracle for his homeworld.

His wife, Delenn, walked into his office with someone he knew all too well. Delenn had been able to get the governing body of Minbar, the Grey Council, to authorize full assistance in finding a cure for the plague, because it was originally meant for Minbar, as the Drakh had planned on using the immense Shadow planet killer devise to obliterate Earth.However, Sheridan was able to bring together a fleet in time to defeat the Shadow device, but his forces could not prevent the Drakh's Plan B from taking effect.

"John, Vice President Hollifield is here to see you.," said Delenn, who sat down at the desk while the guest made his way to the desk.

Sheridan smiled and extended his hand towards Hollifield, which he shook briskly. "Garrison, my old friend. How are you?"

Garrison smiled and said in his smooth Southern drawl, "Just fine, John, or as best as I can be in these days. President Luchenko sends her respects, but she won't be able to communicate with you anytime soon.

This brought Sheridan up short, and he asked, "Why not?"

"Because she has developed a very rare form of breast cancer, and it's going through her body fast. Doctor Franklin doesn't think she'll last more than six months because of it."

Sheridan's face dropped at the news. While he wasn't a friend of Luchenko's, she had been an ally in bringing the Earth Alliance around to joining the Interstellar Alliance. "My God, what will they do on Earth when she dies?"

Hollifield shrugged and said, "Go on as best they can. That's all they can do. When the time comes, I'll do the best I can to lead from afar,
but by then there may not be much left of the human race on Earth to lead."

There was a knock on the door, and standing in the doorway was a member of Minbar's warrior caste. His name was Shaniel, and he had become the de facto leader of the caste. He had gone a long way to bridging the gap between the generally xenophobic warriors and the Interstellar Alliance.

"Shaniel, what troubles you? You usually call ahead before coming over.," said Delenn, who knew her old friend was a stickler for protocol.

Shaniel nodded and replied, "I know, but this news was too urgent to worry about pomp and circumstance. Mr. President, our long distance probes have detected a massive force of Drakh warships headed this way, and preliminary reports have indicated that they may have another planet killer with them."

Delenn desperately caught her breath, then said, "In Valen's name! Our forces are spread apart right now! How many ships can we bring together before they arrive?"

Shaniel looked down at the floor, worried, but lifted his head and said, "I've taken the liberty to recall all Minbari warships back to the homeworld, but we'll need more than that to face them." He then looked over at Vice President Garrison Hollifield.

Hollifield nodded and replied, "I'll get on the horn back to Earthdome and see what I can do. I don't know how many ships I can bring into the fight, but I'll get as many as I can."

Shaniel went over to Hollifield and shook his hand, Earth style. "Thank you, old friend, but we may need even more than that, I'm afraid."

Sheridan looked up from his desk and said, "We need a miracle, people. We need one badly."