AUTHOR'S NOTE
Many thanks to jettmanas, who kindly did the cover art for this story.
Out in the vast reaches of space, the starship PATHFINDER flew gracefully through the vast expanse of the galaxy, like a giant silver arrow heading straight for its target, its shiny hull plates occasionally catching the glare of a nearby star. Long and sleek in design, the PATHFINDER was one of the most impressive spacecrafts of the 27th Century, yet despite its huge size, the automatic systems onboard meant that only a small crew was required to man it. This was a surprisingly easy task, for not only were the crew well trained in their roles, but the computer systems were also highly efficient in all the required tasks for maintaining the integrity of the ship, thus taking a huge workload off the crew's shoulders and allowing them for the most part to put their feet up during the long journey to planet Epsilon-Gamma, a huge gas giant on the edge of the galaxy that had previously been of no interest to anyone but the occasional astronomer.
However, a few months ago, a passing robot satellite conducted a scan of the rocks that made up the rings that encircled the planet, and the transmitted results indicated that there was some form of energy embedded in each of the orbiting rocks. Scientists on Pluto theorised that this could be the indication of a valuable mineral like jethrik, which could have the potential to fuel the fleet of the Galactic Federation for hundreds, possibly thousands, of years. And so PATHFINDER was sent to investigate the rings of Epsilon-Gamma, to ascertain if the satellite scans were correct, and if so, to explore the possibility of mining said mineral and ascertain its worth.
It had been a long voyage, but at last, PATHFINDER was nearing its destination. Sitting back in his command chair on the bridge, Captain John Hisko, a formidable looking man in his mid-thirties, sipped his coffee and gazed at the sight of Epsilon-Gamma on the main viewscreen. The planet was a magnificent spectacle as numerous bright colours swirled across its giant body, while its rings gently drifted around the colourful globe. Even if the satellite scans would turn out wrong, Hisko did not regret the long journey as to him, seeing the beautiful display before him made the trip worthwhile.
"Quite a sight, isn't it?" remarked a voice next to him. Hisko smiled and turned to look at his chief pilot, Commander Jane Lyon, an attractive female in her late twenties. Although she looked human, Lyon was originally an inhabitant of Omicron 4, home world of a peace-loving civilisation that was well mastered in the art of space travel. Lyon in particular was a highly-trained pilot and a competent leader, which was why Hisko choose her to act as his second-in-command for this mission. Well-liked by the rest of the crew, Lyon was also distinguished by her long jade-green hair, which benefited her attractive and slender figure.
"Yes, it certainly is," agreed Hisko as he got out of his seat and stepped closer to the viewscreen, taking in the gargantuan shape of Epsilon-Gamma. "Who would have thought that we had to come out so far just to take in this spectacle, hanging like a Christmas bauble in the darkness of space."
He turned back to Lyon. "Anyway, that's enough sight-seeing, Number One. We've got a job to do after all."
"Aye Aye, sir," replied Lyon as she crossed to her console and began to run a scan across the whole planet.
Just then, the main door slid open and Professor Marc Andrews, expert geologist and head of the expedition's science team, stepped onto the bridge.
"Well, here we are, Professor," grinned Hisko, gesturing to the main viewscreen. "Epsilon-Gamma. Quite a beauty, isn't she?"
"Indeed, Captain," said the Professor as he adjusted the spectacles perched on the end of his nose. "Well, the first course of action I suggest we take is to take one of the rocks onboard for examination, with full quarantine procedures of course."
"Agreed," said the Captain. "We don't want to risk an unknown infection getting on this ship. I think that..."
But before he could complete the thought, Hisko was interupted by a bleeping sound from Lyon's scanner console. Frowning, Lyon check the readings again and raised her eyebrows in surprise.
"Uh, Captain, you may want to take a look at this," said Lyon as she adjusted the magnification setting of the main viewscreen so that it zoomed in on a particular part of the rings. The crew stared in astonishment as they saw a small rectangular structure hanging above the rings in perfect geostationary orbit above the planet.
"What in the galaxy is that?" gaped Professor Andrews in disbelief.
Captain Hisko blinked in bewilderment. "Well if I didn't know better... I'd swear that is an old Earth American diner hanging in space!"
The object did indeed look like a diner from the old United States of America, and if the Captain had been able to step inside, he would have found the initial interior to be the same with tables, benches and a service counter to match. But of course, this was not a real diner, for beyond the rear door were not kitchens, but a large bright white control room, with roundels on the walls and a large computer bank set on one side of the room. In the centre of the room was a hexagonal-shaped control console with various switches and dials on each side, while a column-shaped time rotor was set in the centre of the apparatus, gently going up and down, indicating that the craft was in flight.
Gathered around the console were two attractive ladies, short in height and who both looked fairly young, but with a look in their eyes that indicated that they were both much older than they appeared. The tallest of the two had long brunette hair and big brown eyes, and was dressed in a rather smart suit and tie, while her companion, a slightly shorter, dark-haired girl, was dressed in a black-dress and leather jacket. What was also noticeable was that the two girls each wore a wedding ring, a clear display of the deep bond and feelings of love that had developed between the two over the course of their 315 years of travel together.
Clara Oswald, the woman in the suit, flicked a switch on the control console and a display of Epsilon-Gamma appeared on the TARDIS's scanner screen above their heads. "Wow, just take a look at that, Me," she said with a grin. "That's quite a colourful gas giant, isn't it?"
Me, formally known as the viking girl Ashildr, smiled back at her wife. "It's certainly pretty, Clara. Just seems a pity that it's not going to be there much longer."
Clara nodded a little sadly. "Yeah, I know what you mean. But according to the TARDIS's databanks, this planet is shortly going to mysteriously explode and turn into a raging fireball. I just figured it sounded a mystery worth solving."
Me frowned. "Um, you do realise that in going back in time to this point, we could end up caught in the chain of events that cause the planet to ignite in the first place? That sounds a tad too reckless to me."
"Relax," said Clara with a reassuring smile. "I set the TARDIS in geostationary orbit, so we can see what happens from a safe distance. No way we'll end up in the thick of things."
No sooner did Clara say this, than the whole ship lurched, sending both girls tumbling to the floor. Scrambling to her feet, Me frantically checked the sensor readings on the console.
"Not end up in the thick of it, huh?" she said. "We've just been caught in a tractor beam of another ship and it's pulling us in!"
"Okay, so I spoke too soon," said Clara sheepishly. "I guess I picked that habit up from the Doctor."
"Well, never mind, hon," said Me, as she took Clara's hand in her own. "We'll just have to hope that whoever's onboard isn't a bit trigger happy."