Star Trek: Babylon
Andrew J. Talon
The subspace sensors aboard the Archangel were specially tuned to detect and track unusual subspace distortions. Considering that the Borg, the main reason for the Sovereign-class starship's creation, used artificial subspace distortions to travel throughout the galaxy, it was little wonder Lieutenant Mizuho's console lit up the instant such an event occurred.
"Slipstream event, bearing three five seven, mark two one five," Mizuho announced, to which the bridge crew went to work. Captain Marik stood and took the first officer's station, as Commodore Koroshiya took his usual place at center.
"Onscreen." Immediately, the holographic viewscreen shifted from its standard view of sensor tracks nearby the Archangel, to a real-time image of a swirling green vortex. Out of which soon appeared two small, sleek vessels. Koroshiya smiled even before the IFF signals were received.
"Confirmed. It's Voyager and Miyazaki," reported Osborne at the tactical station. "Admiral Janeway is hailing us."
"Onscreen." The familiar bun came into view first, before the admiral looked up and smiled wanly into the viewer.
"Commodore Koroshiya! A pleasure to see you again."
"Likewise, Admiral," Koroshiya grinned. "Nice to see you're still bad at keeping a schedule."
"Well, when you're seven years overdue on a three-week mission, it seems somewhat silly to rush around anymore," the admiral laughed. She then frowned.
"Where is the Sojourner? I thought Captain Lee was supposed to be here by now."
"They sent ahead a message saying that they were having difficulties with the slipstream drive. Seven was working on it." Janeway nodded thoughtfully.
"We'll wait one more hour, and then we'll go get them. I told Seven to keep the upgrades simple, but…" Janeway sighed. "That's what I get for teaching her to go her own way."
"Kids, huh?" Koroshiya smiled. Janeway smiled back, before turning back to her Tactical officer, the serious-looking Lieutenant Kim. A motion from her, and the channel closed. Koroshiya sighed fondly, settling back in his chair.
"Commodore? When did you meet the Admiral?" Asked Kei at the helm. Koroshiya smiled.
"The academy. I was actually her classmate. She annoyed the hell out of me though," the commodore confessed.
"Her reactions were logical, considering your ignorance of her feelings towards you," Marik noted dispassionately. Matsuo, up on the engineering station, snickered.
"Considering that sharp chin, I'm not surprised."
"She is very beautiful, mother," Mizuho interjected. Matsuo snorted.
"She looks like a man."
"Only if you ignore the whole package," Osborne noted with a grin. Koroshiya shook his head.
"Are we really discussing the sex appeal of an admiral?"
"We have discussed numerous subjects similar to this one before," observed Marik. Koroshiya shook his head, groaning.
"Yeah… Not exactly a puritan locale, this ship," Osborne grinned.
"The Puritans had no problem with sex: Provided it was within marriage," put forth Mizuho, head bent over her console. Captain Marik raised an eyebrow.
"Indeed. It is a shame more of their culture did not survive. It may have allowed humanity a greater sense of unity and control." Koroshiya smirked.
"Yes, well, we can't all be Vulcans, Marik. As I recall, you had more than your fair share of trouble with the opposite sex at the Academy." Marik's non-expression darkened very slightly.
"Yes. However, the subject is irrelevant to such discussions."
"What is it, Marik? Do you get squeamish around this subject?" Teased Matsuo. Marik raised an eyebrow.
"Vulcans do not get 'squeamish', Miss Kazami. We are able to keep our passions from interfering with our lives, permitting us greater abilities in problem solving, and granting greater unity. Slaking your lusts only creates disorder and mistrust." Matsuo looked like she'd been slapped, while Koroshiya hid a grin. For an ensign, Matsuo was rather pushy and loud-mouthed. Her aristocratic background with the Onegai was probably to blame. Now, she glared daggers into the back of Marik's head, as his most trusted officer went to work on his reports.
"So, what ever happened between you and the Admiral, if you don't mind me asking sir?" Kei forged ahead, oblivious of the danger in continuing the subject. Before Matsuo could bark at the ensign and cut him to shreds, Koroshiya stepped in.
"We dated, and then parted as good friends. It was a happy ending, all told." The ensign smiled, before turning back to work.
That kid owes me. Big time, the commodore thought, considering Matsuo as she griped at a few other engineers over the comms system, stabbing the control panels with more force than necessary. She was edgy, unpredictable, and sometimes violent: A stark contrast with her calm, rational, caring daughter at the Ops station. She had been made a provisional officer at her own request, so that she could apply her considerable engineering talent on the most advanced starships. Matsuo preferred space, that was obvious.
But she really needed to learn to curb that temper of hers. Koroshiya shook his head, before turning forward at a loud beeping.
"Sir, it's a MIDAS message," Mizuho dutifully reported. She stiffened in her seat. Koroshiya noted Marik becoming more rigid than usual nearby, so it seems likely that whatever his Vulcan empathy picked up from their pink-haired operations officer, it can't be good.
"It's Sojourner. She's at the anomaly."
"Somehow, I don't think this is where we're supposed to be," Captain Lee observed, glaring at the looming anomaly in the viewscreen, instead of Task Force Pi, which was supposed to be in his viewscreen. He turned around, facing both Wyn and Haro at their stations.
"Why are we in Sector 5336A?"
"Er, I don't know, Captain," Haro replied, frowning at her console. "The slipstream navigational program looks fine…"
"Twee?"
"I concur. The navigational computer says we're where we're supposed to be. But we're not. Doesn't feel anything like where we're supposed to be," the dolphin commander chirped, looking a bit put-off. To a dolphin, navigation is life. If you don't know where you are, things are already in bad shape.
"And there's that thing right there," Lee added, gesturing towards the anomaly, which should not have been there. The captain sighed, and then hit his communicator.
"Captain to Seven." He waited. The former drone did not reply. He tried again.
"Captain to Seven. Seven, this is the captain. Do you read?" There was only silence. Lee frowned then turned to Wyn.
"Get security to find Seven. She may be… I don't know…"
"Malfunctioning?" Offered Noah. Twee squeaked slightly.
"She felt… Odd, when she was here. As though she did not feel at ease. As though something else was taking her attention," the first officer spoke. Lee's frown deepened.
"Uh, Captain? The helm just-" The conn panels went black, soon followed by the ops, tactical, mission ops, environmental, science, and communications stations.
"Computer, initiate emergency measure Lee Alpha 33 Shutterbug!" Lee yelled. The computer trilled in response, and the stations came back online, though they continued to flicker. Lessing looked confused, as the other officers went to work.
"Sir?"
"It's a security measure Wyn devised. It changes the computer's entire programming language and restricts the consoles that can process it to the bridge," explained Lee. He turned to Wyn. "Is Astrometrics still online?"
"Yes. I have dispatched security teams there," the Angosian replied darkly.
"Sir! Bridge controls are being rerouted to Main Engineering!" Haro warned.
"Lockout the consoles with the Shutterbug software processors!" The captain ordered. Haro typed furiously, as Wyn hefted her phaser rifle.
"… Where were you keeping that?" Asked the captain. The rifle came online with a muted cry of life, after which Wyn just stared at Lee. He sighed.
"Nevermind. Get down to Main Engineering. Communications?"
"They're down. Only the manual input is available," explained Haro.
"I don't fancy a spacewalk right now," Lee grumbled. The deck shifted.
"We're heading for the anomaly, Captain!" Warned Twee. "I am attempting to take back control, but the systems are offline!"
"Hell… Switch to manual!" The dolphin smacked his beaky nose against a panel in the console, and an old-fashioned joystick emerged. The dolphin took hold and pulled it to starboard with all his might, but the green-blue rift continued to grow in the viewer.
"I've got the communication badges working again," Haro reported.
"Wyn? What's the situation?"
"Main Engineering is locked off. The manual override has been disabled. And a scattering field has been raised around the entire compartment, we can't beam in or get scans." Wyn reported, over loud shrieks of phaser fire.
"What's with the noise?"
"We are attempting to blast through the main doors. It's harder than it seems," she explained. Lee gritted his teeth, a feeling of helplessness beginning to emerge in the back of his mind.
"Keep at it."
"This is Rollins to bridge. Sir? Seven's down in the Astrometrics lab. She's unconscious," announced the voice of one of the security team leaders over the intercom. Lee nodded, knowing that the security man couldn't see him but feeling like he needed to make the body movements anyway.
"Roger that, Rollins. Get her to sickbay. We have shields?"
"Yes. Only things that we can't control are the engines. Since, ya know, whoever or whatever's doing this has taken engineering," Haro noted. Lessing shook his head, muttering something that sounded vaguely like a prayer.
"Okay… Could we fire a torpedo and have it detonate close enough to know us away?" Asked Lee.
"I think it's a little late for that," Haro groaned, as the ship began to shake. "We're going into the anomaly!"
"Damnit," Lessing muttered. "I just finished unpacking too…"
Lee would have responded to that, had Sojourner not decided to turn off the artificial gravity and inertial dampeners, sending him and everyone else tumbling into the viewscreen like bugs on a windshield from the inside. Just before the small ship was swallowed whole, a single voice rang out on the bridge:
"Get off my face!"
The ship was a wreck; that much was clear. Their sensors had been unable to penetrate a few areas of the hull that were still intact, but the image of the mangled engines, drooping saucer, and crumbling dorsal told the leftenant all he needed to know.
"Life signs?" The lieutenant stretched out a hand to the image floating in mid-air. Pressing one of the translucent figures, the image shifted to one of infrared. The lieutenant narrowed his eyes.
"Estimate that there are approximately one hundred-fifty survivors, out of a crew of perhaps four-hundred," the officer reported. He frowned, looking past the massive dome of the ship to the stars, and to the small, drifting vessel.
"Curious design," the captain spoke aloud. "Almost resembles the Akagi-class starships, only the engine pods are situated above the hull, not below."
"Probably not meant for landing," the lieutenant opined. "Built for space, and maybe atmospheric flight, but no other environs."
"Sure went through a lot of hell," the captain pointed out, frowning out over the magnified screen. "These blasts here? Considering the hull material, I don't think Ral'nai'HAO would survive just one of what this thing took."
"Careful that Priest Hul doesn't hear you say that," the leftenant smiled slightly. "He'll think you a heretic."
"He thinks me a heathen already," the captain shrugged with a wry grin. He then frowned, and waved his hand over a section of the hull. "Looks like the bridge… And there's some kind of markings here. Any subspace noise?
"None," the lieutenant sighed. "Looks like her systems are dead. Her transponder is also offline, provided she has one." The leftenant frowned, tracing his fingers lightly over the markings decorating the forward part of the saucer module.
"Kim? Something wrong?"
"These markings… It's a Latin alphabet. Earth." Kim's frown deepened. "Strange. No Earth ship ever made it this far."
"Indeed. You are the first human to ever reach this space. Or so I thought," the captain mused. "Can you read them?"
"Yes. My mother taught me," Kim acknowledged. His hazel eyes narrowed in concentration.
"NCC… 26136… USS… Zhuko? Or something similar."
"USS? Same as the old Federation vessels," the captain raised an eyebrow. Now this was certainly interesting. Nalkoth'I Haru had been an avid starship modeler back on the homeworld as a boy. He'd bought every one he could find, especially those of the Federation. Unlike the warships of his own people, the Federation's ships were a mix of both organic and inorganic construction materials.
"Can't be, sir. They stopped at 2001," Kim indicated. "In addition, this vessel does not match any known Federation starship designs. And, well… It's power plant is… Unusual."
"How so?" Asked Captain Haru. Kim brought forth a holoscreen of a very elaborate, very inorganic engine schematic.
"It's not a ZP organ. All ships from the Federation territories use them. This is some kind of matter/anti-matter reaction system, managed by some kind of crystalline control rods. We are detecting a significant amount of hafnium 6, carbonitrium, tritanium, and a number of other alloys and composites we cannot identify."
"The warp coils?" Asked Haru. Kim switched to another view.
"Artificial verterium cortenide. Federation starships used solenoid organs to produce it naturally, where it was continuously replaced everytime the ship went to warp."
"Like our bone marrow, replacing dead blood cells," surmised Haru. Kim nodded.
"Aye sir. This verterium cortenide is a lot denser, and much more resilient than the Federation version. Whatever this ship is, it's not from the Federation."
"And yet, if it is a forgery, it is a very poor one. Not to mention a very bizarre and obvious one," Haru thought aloud. He frowned, studying the ship like he would any puzzle.
"Leftenant, take a boarding party over. Find out what you can, and collect the survivors. I'll have the hospital made ready."
"Aye sir."
To be continued…