Chapter 2: The Anomaly
In an entirely different part of the universe, an entirely different reality even, separated from the Koprulu sector not only by space and time, but dimension, a starship could be seen speeding through the empty void of space. The stars surrounding it looked more like thin strands of multi colored light then the usual white dots people are used to see when they look up at the night sky, the reason of course being that the ship in question was travelling at speed far beyond that of light.
Some people would recognise this ship as a Sovereign-class starship, one of the newest models to be produced by the United Federation of Planets. Others still might recognise it as the Enterprise, one of the most decorated ships in all of Starfleet, and indeed its very flagship. The crew and its Captain, Jean-Luc Picard, had been apart of many strange stories heard throughout this quadrant of space, and their heroics hadn't gone unnoticed by anyone with even the smallest sense of adventure.
But in sharp contrast to the silence of the empty void outside the ship, the inside, more specifically the mess hall, was ablaze with laughter and sound, as the crew of the ship welcomed back a very old friend.
Lt. Commander Worf had rejoined his old crew once more for a diplomatic mission to Q'onoS, the Klingon homeworld. Starfleet hoped that his presence among the delegation might be looked upon favourably by the Klingons, since he in part had been responsible for the exposing of the changeling posing as Martok not too long ago.
And in truth, Picard had asked Worf to accompany them for personal reasons as well. Worf had been sorely missed by the crew since his reassignment to Deep Space Nine, and Picard thought that his short visit on board the Enterprise might be a boost to the otherwise sore morale, what with the threat of war with the Dominion hanging over their heads.
Worf, who had always been one to avoid gatherings like these as best he could, was standing alone in the crowded room, with a half empty champagne glass in his hand, hoping that the spectacle would be over soon and that he could resume his duties.
All around him he could see people chatting, laughing and generally having a very good time. But Worf much preferred his solitude from the constant gossiping and talking the humans so enjoyed. His eyes fixed a foursome that was nearly bending over with laughter, a disapproving scowl on his face. The large man drained the tiny looking glass in his hand with one swift motion and put it down on a table near him.
"Looks like you could use another one." He heard the familiar voice of Deanna Troi say behind him. He turned around and found her standing there with another glass stretched out towards him.
"I suppose it could help me get my mind off this... gathering." He said and accepted the glass. Troi had to suppress a small chuckle, it didn't take an empath to see that Worf was clearly annoyed. The Klingon hadn't changed a bit.
"I hear you received command of your own ship, the Defiant, right?" Deanna asked, trying to switch the topic to something that might be more to Worf's liking. Apparently it worked too, as his expression brightened up instantly.
"Indeed," Worf said with a hint of pride in his voice. "Captain Sisko thought it fit to leave me in charge of the ship, he himself has his hand full with the station, so it was quite understandable."
"And what are your thoughts on the meeting on Q'onoS? Do you think we will be received well?" Troi continued asking. This time more for her own benefit then anyone else's. How they would be received by the Klingons was anyone's guess, and Deanna always liked to know a little about the situations they were getting themselves into beforehand.
"That, I'm afraid I cannot say. It is very difficult to predict how the Klingon High Council will react to something like this. On one hand, they know they need the help of Starfleet if both our governments are to survive, this much they already admitted to Captain Sisko, but as you undoubtedly know, their pride very often get in the way of their reasoning. I wouldn't be surprised if they suddenly thought they could take on the entire Dominion all by themselves and forfeit the alliance with Starfleet." Worf said at length.
"Hello there, I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" Yet another familiar voice asked. This time the voice was that of Beverly Crusher, the ship's chief medical officer.
"Oh no, not at all, we were just discussing the upcoming meeting on Q'onoS." Troi explained.
"Ah, so are everyone else." The Doctor smiled, having already been over the subject with a number of other people in the room. "Somehow I get the feeling that there will be a lot of bruises and broken bones that will have to be fixed before the meeting is over, and that's if the meeting goes peacefully."
The comment was meant as a joke, but all three of them realised that the truth probably wasn't too far from that prediction. Klingon gatherings had a tendency to get a little on the rough side.
On the other side of the room, Jean-Luc Picard, Captain of the Enterprise, stood. He was looking out of one of the viewports, at the backdrop that was space. For some reason, seeing all those thousands of bright stars out there had a calming effect on him. His hand was rubbing his chin, a telltale sign that the Captain was deep in thought. No doubt he was just as happy as anyone else to be reunited with one of his old officers, if only for a short while. But bigger things now occupied his thoughts, namely the increasing hostilities between the Federation and the Dominion.
The latest report on the subject had reached him just before the Enterprise had set off from Earth, and the news was grim indeed. Most of the people in Starfleet HQ were already talking about the matter as if it wasn't a question of if there would be war, but rather when it would be.
Picard, who still bore the mental scars from their last major clash with hostile aliens, the Borg, back during the Wolf 359 incident, had begun to feel a little too old for this sort of thing. He wished he could go back to the days when the Enterprise was on a mission to explore the unknown parts of this galaxy, instead of jumping between hotzones, trying to calm an increasingly volatile situation. And as if to punctuate his increasing weariness and age, he slid his hand over his bald head and fast receding hair line.
"Everything alright, Captain?" William Riker asked, managing to startle Picard somewhat by his sudden appearance. "You look like you're a million lightyears away." He added.
"Yes, everything is quite alright," Picard replied. "It's just that I can't seem to stop thinking about the political situation we currently find ourselves in."
"The political situation? You mean you're thinking about the Dominion and their play for power again. It's a tough situation, I'll give you that. But there's not much we can do from out here either, except maybe help keep the Klingons on our side."
"I know, I know. But still. I've started to wonder if true peace can ever be achieved." Picard started. And then in a slightly louder and more frustrated voice added "Every time we manage to avert a disaster or defeat an enemy a new one shows up, this one even stronger and far more deadly then the last. Is it going to go on like this forever?"
Riker really didn't have an answer for that, in fact the very same thoughts had been plaguing him lately.
"Well, the way I see it, it all comes down to one simple question. If somehow you knew that peace could never truly be achieved, would it make you stop trying to attain it? Or would you still try to reach for it?" Riker asked.
Picard thought about the matter for a while, but both of them already knew the answer. "Yes, yes of course." He said in a soft voice. "I don't think I could live knowing that I haven't tried my utmost to uphold the ideal of the Federation. Even if I knew it was all in vain."
Riker, starting to feel a little depressed by the mood the Captain was showing, thought to divert his attention to something a little more pleasant. "Worf doesn't seem to be particularly pleased by our little celebration."
Picard laughed at that statement. "No indeed, I'm guessing his Klingon heart would rather be in the gamma quadrant right now, battling the Jem'Hadar and singing songs of bravery and glory."
The old warrior was indeed still the same man the Captain had known all those years he served aboard the Enterprise, and this was as cheery a thought as he had ever had.
-----
He found himself walking down a corridor, the only thing keeping him from tripping in the darkness a dim green light vaguely outlining his surroundings. He tried to make out where it was coming from, but he could find no source, it was as if the light was simply there.
Tubes, wires and metal could be seen everywhere, the floor, the walls, even the ceiling. The whole scene had a very eerie and surrealistic tone to it, as if it wasn't quite real, as if it was somehow wrong. The air was heavy to breathe and had a stale taste to it, the humidity making his skin sweaty and sticky.
He could see someone approaching then, the silhouette of a figure walking up the corridor in slow and methodical pace. He tried to call out to it, but no sound was forthcoming.
Why was there no sound?
The approaching figure was illuminated briefly as it walked past a faint light and horror gripped him then, as he realized what the figure was. It was a drone, a Borg drone. Large areas of its body and skin had been removed, torn from the remains of the person's once biological self, and replaced by various cybernetic enhancements.
The seconds seemed to slow down as the drone approached ever closer. He tried to run away, to escape somehow, but he could do nothing, it was as if he was paralyzed. Instead he kept walking towards it, in that same methodical pace. But surprise took him as the drone walked right past him, as if it hadn't even noticed him.
It was almost as if he was one of them, one of the Borg.
A horrible thought crossed his mind then and he somehow managed to force himself to look down, to look down at his arm. But it wasn't there. Instead there was something else occupying that space now, something mechanical, something cybernetic.
He suddenly felt very naked and exposed, as if all his thoughts had just been made public, as if everything he was and stood for was put on display for everyone else to see. Fear gripped him and he tried to scream, but he couldn't, his mouth would not obey his commands, and instead he just continued on his path down the corridor, obediently, as if he was only a passenger in his own body, with no control over what it did.
A voice rang out in his head, the voice of a million people talking as one, in perfect unison, the all too familiar voice of the Borg collective.
"Anomaly detected in spatial grid two-one-one-five. Parameters fitting a possible breach level event. Investigate with highest priority." It said, and then suddenly everything went black.
The next thing Picard knew, he was sitting wide awake on the small bed in his ready room. His breathing was heavy and sweat trickled down his forehead.
He had been dreaming, it had all been a dream. He just sat there for a moment, staring at the floor, not daring to move a muscle, not daring to find out if the nightmare was truly over.
"No, it was just a dream, nothing more." He whispered to himself, trying to regain some of his composure. "..Just a dream."
But on some level he knew, he knew that what he had just experienced was not just a simple nightmare, but the thoughts and intentions of the Borg collective. One of the few remaining curses he still bore for having been assimilated into the collective once.
But what did it all mean? Breach level event? What was that?
Did it even matter to him?
The console on his desk beeped to life then, and slid out from its folded position inside the desk, startling the Captain in the process and bringing him back from his contemplations. He calmed himself and got up from the bed, walking over to the desk.
'Incoming transmission from Starfleet HQ', the screen read.
They're in an awful hurry to hear how the meeting with the Klingons went, Picard thought to himself. The Enterprise had barely gotten on their way from Q'onoS and already someone at Starfleet wanted to know what happened.
"The least they could do is wait for me to finish my damned report on the matter." Picard mumbled and sat down in his chair, making sure that he was in a presentable condition as he did.
He tapped the screen, accepting the incoming transmission. The display changed to that of a slightly aged man with gray hair and a very important looking uniform on him.
"Admiral, it's good to see you again." Picard said and put his best diplomatic smile on, trying hard not to show his dismay.
"Likewise Jean-Luc," The figure on the screen replied. "How did the meeting with the Klingon delegates go?"
"As well as can be expected, there was a lot of bluster on their part, but some progress was made. I'll have my full report on the matter sent to you as soon as possible." Picard replied.
Indeed any sign of progress with the Klingons could be taken as a very good sign, or perhaps as a sign of the desperation in the situation.
"That's good news Jean-Luc. However that's not why I've contacted you."
"Oh, then what is it?" Picard asked, already entertaining the idea that the Dominion had declared war on the Federation while he was on Q'onoS. And that the Admiral was just now informing him about it.
"Our long range sensors have detected an anomaly at the edge of Federation space, near your current location. It's situated close to both the Klingon and Romulan borders, and this is why I've contacted you. It's probably nothing but some of the scientists back here seem to think that it might be worth examining, and as you're already in the area, I thought the Enterprise would like to do the honors." The Admiral explained.
An anomaly? Picard thought to himself. Didn't the Borg voice in the dream say something about an anomaly? He dismissed the notion of the two things being related immediately though, choosing rather to forget about the disturbing dream and focusing on what mattered in stead.
"I understand Admiral," Picard acknowledged. "Although I have to say I'm a little surprised that you decided to use the Enterprise for a simple survey mission. Don't you think the flagship of the Federation could be put to better use during a time like this?" He asked.
"To be frank, yes, I do think the flagship of the Federation has better uses. But I might have been understating it a little when I said that some of the scientist are excited about this anomaly, their positively exhilarated about it. So that's why I'm sending you. I don't want anything going wrong on this one Jean-Luc, and there's no one I trust more then you and the Enterprise."
"I see Admiral, I'll do my best not to disappoint you then." Picard replied with a sincere smile.
"Good, I'm transmitting everything we know about the anomaly right now. Report back to me as soon as you know anything." He said, and the display changed to a message saying 'transmission terminated'.
Picard leaned back in his chair, soaking up everything the Admiral had just told him.
"Well, it looks like the Enterprise has one final hurdle to jump before we can get back to Starfleet HQ." He said to himself.
-----
A couple of hours later Picard found himself sitting in his ready room once again, going over the report the Admiral had transmitted to him for the third time.
His mission seemed straight forward enough, all he had to do was locate the anomaly in question and then perform a series of scans on it, to determine exactly what it was. It was more the location of the anomaly that bothered the Captain, as it was situated very close to both the Klingon and Romulan borders. If the two empires chose to, they could create quite a mess of the entire situation. A Federation ship near their borders performing in-detail scans could be misinterpreted quite easily, and that was not a very pleasant thought, since the whole thing was volatile enough already.
But worrying about those things was not why he was here, Picard reminded himself. The anomaly was the only thing his mind should be focused on right now. Besides, the sooner they completed this mission, the sooner they could leave this place.
Picard was just in the middle of the technical part of the report, the part explaining why it was so imperative to study this phenomenon. Apparently the chief scientist back at Starfleet HQ had gone haywire when he had first analysed the information coming back from their scans. Of course Picard didn't understand most of the techno babble that was scribbled on his pad, but he thought he had gotten a somewhat firm grasp of the basics of it at least.
In short, the anomaly was getting the energy, which was quite substantial, from somewhere previously unknown to their current grasp of physics, and discerning the location or method the anomaly was getting its energy was top priority, as it could lead to whole new avenues of scientific research, and perhaps even give them an edge against the Dominion if the method could be used as a new power source.
But the last part was probably just wishful thinking on the scientist's part, Picard realized.
The Captain was still deep in his own thoughts when he heard his commbadge chirp. "Picard here." He said absently as he tapped the badge.
"Captain, we are coming up on the anomaly now." He heard Commander Riker's voice say over the comm.
"Acknowledged, I'll be right there." Picard replied. There was nothing more he could learn here, so he got up from behind his desk, straightened out his uniform, and strode out of his ready room.
"Report." Came the order as soon as he stepped out onto the bridge.
"We have arrived at the coordinates Starfleet gave us and are standing by." Lieutenant Hawk, the helmsman, replied.
"What's the status on the anomaly, Data?" He asked and turned towards the gold skinned android, who had been given control over the more scientific parts of this endeavour, along with Lt. Geordi LaForge.
"The anomaly is currently in its dormant state but should reappear in a few minutes." He replied.
Picard recalled the report saying something about the anomaly disappearing, only to reappear exactly thirty-seven minutes later in the exact same place. Curious, he thought, that a naturally occurring phenomenon would be so punctual and precise.
"Good, prepare to make a full spectrum scan of the anomaly once it reappears, I want to know everything there is to know about it. Geordi, assist Data." The Captain said.
"Aye, Sir." Data and Geordi acknowledged, taking up their appropriate stations.
Picard walked over and sat down in the Captains chair beside Commander Riker.
The entire ship came alive during these next few minutes, as crewmen ran back and forth, readying a wide assortment of equipment for the upcoming task. On the bridge, Data and Geordi were busy adjusting the scanners to narrow on the area the phenomenon was supposed to show up in, and recalibrating it to perform a complete analysis.
Then, precisely as predicted, the anomaly appeared. "Captain, I am reading an increase in gravimetric activity, centred on the location where the anomaly should appear." Data said, swirling around in his chair to face Picard.
"On screen." the Captain said, eager to finally see what all the fuss was about. The front of the bridge changed to a holographic display showing an area of empty space outside the ship.
At first, the area was silent and nothing could be seen, except the ever present backdrop of space. But then, slowly, lights could be seen shooting back and forth, like small strands of lightning in space. And then suddenly, the entire area exploded into a bright flash of light, forcing everyone on the bridge to cover their eyes.
The light subsided and the crew reopened their eyes, but now the area in front of them was no longer empty, as a giant sphere, that looked almost as if it was comprised of some kind of liquid, had appeared there. Colored lights were still clearly visible inside the bubble, and its surface was rippling, like the surface on water.
"Incredible!" Commander Riker said and got up from his chair, to get a better view of the magnificent display.
"Indeed, number one, it is beautiful." Picard agreed.
The light from the stars around them reflected off the surface of the sphere, just like the sun would reflect off water, reacting with the glow from inside the sphere in a most fascinating way.
"But we're not here to gape at it in awe, were here to determine what it is, what are you picking up on the sensors Geordi?"
LaForge had a confused look on his face, as he analysed the readings on his console. "Sir, some of these readings are way of the charts and others… well, they shouldn't be possible at all. It's as if that part of space is very different from normal space in terms of both physics and on the subatomic level." Geordi said, still tapping his console to confirm the readings. "And it's not even constant, it's shifting back and forth as if it's neither here or there." He added.
"Is there anything we can do to make sense of it?" The Captain asked, this time directing the question towards Data.
"I suppose it could be possible to establish some sort of structure and cohesiveness to the phenomenon, by modifying the scanners to pick up subatomic patterns that are not related to that of normal space, and then try to anticipate the seemingly random changes." Data said, looking to Geordi for confirmation of his theory.
"I guess it could work, but the computer and the scanners will be hard pressed to solve a puzzle of that magnitude. We are talking about solving the base structure of a piece of space not at all related to our own, in terms of laws of physics. It will take some time I'm afraid."
The front of the bridge flashed in a bright light, forcing the crew to cover their eyes again. And when they looked out at the space in front of them again, it was empty. It was as if the bubble had never even been there.
"Then you better get started straight away, I don't want to stay here a minute longer then I have to."
-----
A week of intense scanning and study of the anomaly passed by, with little actual progress being made. The "bubble", which it was now known as, remained the mystery it had been when the Enterprise first encountered it. Even the sight of it, that had at first been breathtakingly beautiful, was now as dull as the void of space itself to the crew. The good news in all this was that neither the Klingon Empire nor the Romulans had shown up during this time, although they definitely knew of the Enterprise's close proximity by now, and were probably keeping a close watch on them.
Captain Picard had summoned all the senior members of the staff to the briefing room for a status report, in the hopes of reaching some sort of consensus on how they should proceed from here. On one hand they weren't really making any progress, but Picard wasn't all too willing to leave a mission unfinished either. So they would definitely not leave until every single possible trick they had at their disposal had been tried.
"Well, it seems as if everyone is present, so let's get on with the meeting." Picard said, regarding each and every one of the faces sitting at the long table. "Mr. LaForge, why don't you and Data start by telling us what you have discovered of the anomaly so far?" He continued, and motioned to the two officers to speak up.
"To be honest sir, not much." Geordi said with a resigned look on his face. He and Data had been working on the anomaly almost without pause for the entire week. And unlike his android counterpart, Geordi did get tired and frustrated at the fact that they had gotten nowhere in analysing it. "There are more questions unanswered now then there were when we first arrived. We have not been able to determine what is causing this phenomenon, or even where all the energy creating and sustaining it is coming from. It's almost as if it's completely detached from our own reality, and inside it, time and space seem to be in a constant state of flux, without any way to predict the changes or pattern." He explained at length.
Picard considered Geordis statement for a moment while rubbing his chin and contemplating all the information on the subject. He knew that the lack of progress was not because of either Data or Geordi, indeed they were two of the most brilliant minds on the ship, if not the entire Federation. But something had to be done. "What about you Data? Do you have anything to add?" Picard asked.
"I agree with Geordi's assessment of the situation sir. The anomaly is most peculiar and elusive, yet definitely worth further study. But there is no gain in the Enterprise staying here anymore, as we do not have the equipment to properly study this phenomenon." Data concurred.
"So the question then becomes, how will we proceed from here." Picard said, with a slightly disappointed look. He never did like leaving a mission unfinished.
"Captain if I may?" Counsellor Troi spoke up.
"Yes?" Picard prompted, hoping that she could shed some light on what to do.
"The moral of the crew has deteriorated severely over the past week. News of the brewing war with the dominion is continuing to come in, and the close proximity to both the Klingon and Romulan borders is not a helping either." She explained.
"Indeed Captain," Lt. Cmdr. Worf interrupted. "Security has had to break up a rising number of fights between crewmembers. Some have even had to be detained in the brig."
"Then as first officer of this ship I have to recommend we return to Starfleet headquarters and deliver them all the data we currently possess on the matter, they'll know what to do with it and how to proceed from there. Perhaps they'll send a better equipped science vessel to continue the work we have started here." Riker said.
"What Starfleet decides is not for us to speculate on, however if there really is nothing more we can do here then-" The Captain started saying but was cut off by his comm badge. "Picard here." He said and tapped it.
"Captain, you are needed on the bridge, we have a situation here." A hurried voice said.
"I'm on my way. Everybody return to their posts, this meeting is over for now, I'll give you further details on how to proceed once the current situation is resolved."