A FIFTH COLUMN SECRET MEETING SPOT
Al Calavicci was bored. Usually since Al just had a holographic image of himself projected into the past to guide his friend Sam, he could walk out of the Imaging Chamber whenever he needed to or whenever it got really boring. Now, however, he really was a holographic image that was stuck in the past with Sam. Only it wasn't their past. It was the past of some parallel world that had been invaded by alien visitors from another planet. And just to make it a little weirder, he was stuck on guard duty with an alien named Willie. Some of their sleeping group had come from a futuristic world and belonged to a group called Starfleet. Two others claimed to be fighter pilots for a long-lost race of Humans from outer space.
It had been an hour since they had started their shift of guard duty and Al still wasn't sure what to say to the guy. He carefully studied him as the alien clumsily bit away at a carrot.
"I thought you guys only ate living, breathing things?" If that didn't get a conversation going I don't know what will, thought Al.
The alien in question cocked his head to the side and regarded him for a moment. "My people do. As far as I know I am the first of my kind to try living solely on the bodies of vegetables and fruits."
"O-kay." Al was about to give up on trying to converse when he noticed the Willie's gaze returning to one of the females sleeping in the corner on the far side of the room. "Who is your lady friend?"
Willie nodded sheepishly. "Thelma and I were promised to each other by our families when we were just hatchlings." A grin spread across his face as he looked upon her sleeping form. "She is to be my date someday."
Al's eyebrows shot up. "I take it that dating is pretty serious among your people."
Willie regarded him with a look of confusion for a second then shook his head. "Ah, that was the wrong word. Let me think... Mate. Yes, she will be my mate someday. The two of us are to be buried."
Al chuckled, realizing that the alien had meant to say 'married' instead of 'buried'. He decided to not correct his grammar. "Still sounds like a pretty serious thing."
"Yes, it is," agreed Willie. "It is also serious among your people."
Al thought a moment in retrospect of his many ex-wives. "Well, you see, in my experience as a Human living among other Humans, we are a complicated and selfish-"
A red warning light flashed above the door they were guarding. Willie drew his laser pistol while Al backed up to wake the others. Before either of that happened, the light turned green.
"It's a Fifth Column member," commented Willie. "They have piped in the right code sequence, so we know that they are on our side."
"You mean 'typed'," corrected Al who was starting to get used to Willie's word slipups. "I'll go wake Philip. You make sure that they really are friendly."
Philip turned out to be a light sleeper along with almost everyone else there. After a few minutes the only one still sleeping was Kai Winn because Major Kira wanted her to rest as much as possible.
After Al had done his part of waking people up, he returned to find a new guy that had the same type of uniform that Philip and Lt. James wore. The new guy, who was introduced as Leo, was also all excited and busy speaking to Philip in length about invaders in the ship.
"That would be the Borg," yawned Beverly Crusher as she ran her fingers through her hair to try restoring some semblance of order to it. "They are the ones we've come to stop."
"There has also been a Human task force that has taken over one of the shuttle bays. It was led by Ham Tyler."
Mike's eyes widened. "Tyler's onboard?"
Leo nodded. "And moving fast. We have been cutting all the transmissions that could reveal his location. The last I heard he seemed to be heading toward the bridge."
"He would." Juliet shook her head in amazement at the man's tenacity, though she did wish him luck.
"He also had some men accompanying him dressed in the same uniforms as those two," added Leo as he pointed to Apollo and Starbuck.
Apollo came forward before Starbuck could say anything. "Like this? Are you sure?" he asked as he gave Leo a closer look at his uniform.
"Exactly the same," said the Fifth Columnist Visitor.
Starbuck grinned at Apollo. "Boy, Boomer's getting quicker at rescuing us in our time of need. Remind me to buy him a bottle of Ambrosia when we get back."
Philip noticed that Leo wasn't interested in any of the other conversations his news had sparked up. He had more news to share. "Our spy cameras that we put outside Lydia's office have shown a most surprising development! The Leader! He is alive and has gone to Lydia!"
Philip was overwhelmed. "Are you sure it was the Leader?"
"It was him. He even wore the purple sash only he is allowed to wear."
Mike Donovan wasn't as compliant as Philip. "Did he say how he survived or what his next moves might be?"
The newcomer was a little taken aback by the questions. Even though he was fighting for the Human cause, he had had very little interaction with them.
"It's alright, Leo," interceded Philip.
Leo reluctantly answered. "We do not have any surveillance devices inside her office because it is constantly checked for such things. The closest we were able to come was to plant a few devices in the hall just outside her office. That way we can at least monitor where she is and who is going to see her."
"So we don't really have a clue as to what they actually talked about," pointed out Juliet Parrish.
Philip shrugged. "No. That is true, but we do know that now that he is here that Diana is definitely not in charge anymore."
"But that doesn't mean that the Leader is on our side though," pointed out Mike.
Philip and Leo were upset by the statement. "How can you-"
"He has a point," interrupted Willie.
Thelma, Willie's fiancée, gasped. "Whatever do you mean?"
Willie, though nervous of all the eyes on him, continued. "Of my people, I have been the longest to live away from Sirius IV, and from the Leader in particular. I have been doing a lot of stinking about-"
"'Thinking'," Juliet automatically corrected.
"Yes. Thinking. Thank you." He took a moment to regard Philip, Leo and Thelma knowing that what he was going to say could be considered almost blasphemy to them. "Our Leader has great mental abilities with which he can use to manipulate people and change others hearts-"
"The Leader would never-" blurted out Philip in outrage.
"Please, at least let me point out the events that trouble me." Willie saw that they reluctantly agreed though Thelma had turned away and was weeping quietly. To contemplate an indiscretion on the part of the Leader was practically unthinkable. And Willie was sure that was part of the problem.
General Hammond coughed briefly from where he sat to clear the air. "Please continue, son. It at least sounds interesting."
"Well, why would the Leader cultivate the worst traits of those in positions of authority?"
Philip was indignant. "I consider myself and my brother to have been very good officers."
"Yes, but you were a minority. And totally loyal to the Leader. All of the rest of those in leadership had no problems with causing genocide to the life of an entire planet just to feed our own."
"We-we are in desperate times."
"Yes," agreed Willie. "But we had been warned years before it got to the point that we couldn't feed ourselves by those in the Covenant of Zon. Why didn't we listen to them and their words about pollution and the need to raise more food?"
"They had turned against the Leader and were trying to get him out of power," pointed out Leo.
"They were a peaceful sect that merely wanted to serve Zon and do good works for the people. And they were right about the pollution and the depleting food supplies. And what was their reward? To be hunted down and tortured for trying to help the people. By the Leader. Even though he himself was born with the Mark of Zon."
Philip looked confused. "There may have been some mistakes made in the past, but that is old news."
"Then help me understand some recent mystery."
"You mean 'history', Willie," corrected Juliet.
"Yes, thank you. Diana was the lover of the Leader before he sent her here to help take over this planet, correct?"
"What are you trying to say?" asked Thelma. There was a tremble in her tone. She could sense that she was about to hear something that could change how she understood things, and that concept terrified her.
"Just this. With the Leader's great mental powers, he must have known what Diana was like as soon as he met her. Why would someone who is benevolently good take someone who is deviously evil as a lover?"
Everyone stopped to think of the implications of this statement. Almost everyone. Al was busy ogling the ladies of the group.
"Do you mind?" B'Elanna Torres complained.
"Not really. Ah, I mean sorry. I'm not used to being seen while I'm a hologram."
"That is no excuse for ogling me, you brightly-colored baboon!"
"Say," Beverly jumped up from where she was sitting. "I've got an idea."
"What's that?" asked Mike.
"We can use the sexist-pig to find out about the Leader for us."
"What sexist-pig?" asked Al.
"I think it's safe to assume they are referring to you, Al," answered Sam with a grin. "And if it's what I think, then it sounds like a good idea to me."
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A RESEARCH WORK AREA NEAR THE MIDDLE OF THE MOTHERSHIP
A door opened and a group of people hurried in, quickly locking the door behind them.
"Great! Now we're surrounded!" raged Kyle Bates.
During their initial escape from the Borg, the Doctor's team kept running into groups of the drones which resulted in them running away from the cyber-zombies. They had been running down a corridor away from some of the more persistent body-snatching drones only to find more drones ahead of them. K-9, having detected a strange and powerful energy source through one of the doors, had somehow managed to get the Doctor's curiosity peaked even under these circumstances. And, besides, they had to get out of the corridor anyway.
"Now what are you going to pull out of your hat?" berated Kyle in frustrated anger. He didn't like these cat-and-mouse games the Doctor seemed to enjoy playing with the Borg.
"I don't carry anything in a hat," he said, smiling toothily at the young man. "Nothing up my sleeves either."
Paul Forrester used his natural powers to seal the door, at least temporarily, against their drone pursuers. "This won't hold them long," he said to anyone listening.
"Then we won't stay here long," stated the Doctor. "Kyle, Scott, be good chaps and look for a door on the other side, would you?"
Kyle was about to say something but Elizabeth gave a tug on his arm and shook her head. Sighing in frustration, the young man complied with the request and went to go look for another exit. Scott, being more than a little scared, was more enthusiastic in his haste to seek another egress point. He really wanted to get far away from those Borg things.
"Big place we have here. Wonder what it's for?" wondered the Doctor out loud.
"Sensor analysis of the area suggest a research area," pointed out K-9.
"Yes, but researching what?" The Doctor flipped a switch on a panel near him, which caused a number of spotlights to focus on a massive ring-shaped object near the left far wall.
Leela sat resting at one of the chairs at a desk along with Elizabeth. "What is that, Doctor?"
"I'm not sure." He glanced down to his robotic companion. "K-9, is this where the energy reading you detected were coming from?" he asked, pointing to the large object.
"Yes, master," responded the small mechanical droid.
Unable to help himself, the Doctor walked closer to the object and for a time ceased to worry about the problems behind him. "It has a number of symbols around it. Thirty-nine to be exact. Interesting." He studied the small console set before the large, ringed object. "And this must control it somehow? I wonder what it does. The symbols must signify something about the function of this device. K-9, do an analysis on the symbols on that outer ring. See if you can decipher their meaning."
"Analysis complete, Master. Each symbol represents a star constellation," remarked the cybernetic unit.
"Star constellations? Ah! Of course!" He gazed at the large device before him in wonder. "Interstellar traveling device. A gateway between the stars. Looks to be ancient yet it seems ancient." Gingerly, he ran his hand over the console before him. Suddenly, a sadness came upon him. "Oh dear."
"Doctor?"
"I'm afraid we'll have to destroy it, Leela," answered the Doctor with much regret.
"No, you won't!" shouted out a female voice.
The Doctor shielded his eyes from the bright lights being shown down on him and the stargate. A dark haired woman with an evil smile came out of the shadows. She held Kyle by the neck with a laser pistol at his head for good measure. "And to who do we have the honor of addressing," asked the Doctor with his best smile and a low bow.
"Diana!" called out Elizabeth in horror.
"Ah, my little star child," greeted Diana. "I should have known you wouldn't be far from your little boyfriend." She quickly pointed her weapon at the Doctor while keeping the others in her line of view. "You! Why were you going to destroy that device now that you have figured out what it is for?"
"Well, there is a certain matter of containment. You see, outside the door over there is a certain group of beings that belong to something they call the Borg. And they indoctrinate anyone they come across into their collective." He saw the fear light up in her eyes. "I see you have already met them. I'm sure you've found them as charming as we have. And that is also why we can't allow them to spread to another part of this universe."
Diana looked at the door Paul and Jenny were standing by. "How do I know I can trust you?"
The Doctor smiled. "You are the one with the weapon. How do we know that we can trust you?"
"You can't trust her," mumbled Kyle from beneath her tight grip.
"I see," said the Time Lord. "K-9, fetch!" he said while pointing at the laser pistol.
A beam of magnetic energy pulled the weapon out of Diana's hand. Diana stared in shock as her pistol hung at the side of the small robot dog's muzzle.
Diana grabbed Kyle closer and clamped on of her hands on his throat. "Come any closer and I'll crush his throat!" Kyle for his part was unable to move and was gasping for air.
Just then she felt something jab her in the back. "Release him or I'll shoot," a voice informed her.
"Scott!" Jenny called out to her son. Paul's head turned from where he was still keeping the door shut on the drones, also.
"I'm fine, mom. I was checking one of the corners when I happen to see this 'lady' come out of the ventilation system and jump Kyle," explained Scott. "So, what's it going to be, 'lady'?" he asked in his best Clint Eastwood voice. "Are we going to be peaceful about this or am I going to have to put a hole in you?"
With much reluctance, Diana let go of her grip and pushed Kyle away from her. Elizabeth immediately went to him and pulled him toward one of the chairs while he tried to catch his breath.
Scott backed away from Diana and then widely circled around her. Diana cursed in her own language when she saw that the 'gun' the boy had jabbed in her back was actually a metal pipe.
"Sorry," chuckled the boy, "but my dad doesn't let me play with weapons," he explained.
"You'll regret that!" threatened Diana, her mind already considering the tortures she would employ of this youth once she captured them all.
Elizabeth stood up from where Kyle sat catching his breath and turned to glare at the evil woman. "I think you are going to be too busy worrying about your own troubles to do anything to Scott." She took a few steps closer to her nemesis, while all the others in the room stood quietly by. "Because of you I was born. So for that reason and that reason alone I will give you a warning. The Leader is alive and well and he very much wants to see you."
Diana stood there stunned. "You-you're lying!"
Elizabeth smiled. "You know that I am not. After all, the Leader, Kyle and I were on that shuttle that you blew up. If Kyle and I survived, then why not the Leader?"
A myriad of emotions-fear, anger, frustration and hate-crossed over her face. Then she turned and bolted back the way she had come and ran into the ventilation system.
Kyle was on his feet and running after her when he heard the Doctor yell at him to stop. Considering all the hate Kyle had for Diana, Elizabeth was surprised that he had given up pursuit.
"We have bigger problems to work on here; or would you rather run off and get lost like Mr. Fox did?"
Walking back with great reluctance, Kyle gave a half-hearted grin to Elizabeth. She greeted his return with a quick hug and a peck on the cheek. "So what now, chief?" he asked.
"Well, let's check our options. K-9, I need you to destroy that stargate device."
"Unable to comply, master."
"What? Why is that?" demanded the Time Lord.
"The energy released upon its destruction by my weapons would result in an explosion that would destroy at least half of this vessel, resulting in it falling onto the city below, killing everyone aboard this vessel and all those below for several miles due to the explosion."
"Well, that's not good," the timelord said, taking off his hat as he stood regarding the stargate again. "Especially since we are still on this ship."
"Doctor!" exclaimed Paul. The man was giving off a blue light that seemed to be keeping the door closed. The door itself seemed to be slowly disintegrating. "I'm slowing them down but they seem determined to come through!"
"We've got to get out of here!" cried out Jenny. "We can leave the same way that other woman left!"
"No we can't," said the Doctor quietly, but just enough to be heard.
Scott pulled his mother into a comforting hug. With a look of defiance, he glared at the Gallifreyian. "Why not!"
"Because!" exploded the Doctor. "We came here to stop the Borg! Not let them take the opportunity to spread themselves throughout the stars of this universe!" he bellowed while waving his arm with his hat at the stargate. "And believe me, given the opportunity that is just what they would do! After all, that's how they got here!"
"So you are saying this is like the Alamo?" asked Kyle. "We have to take our last stand here so that can't get any farther?"
"Yes, the Alamo," said the Doctor deep in remembrance. "A horrible tragedy. Wish they had listened to me."
"Well, I think we are all willing to listen now," answered Scott. "Think you can start by giving us some advice that will help my dad."
The Doctor looked up. Leela was already over by the blue, glowing man ready to plunge her knife into anything that tried to come through the growing opening in the door.
"Right! First let's move those tables over here to give us some cover," said the Doctor as he began his defense strategy.
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LYDIA'S OFFICE
Al cursed his luck. He had found what he was looking for. It was all that delicious-looking redheaded doctor's fault for suggesting that they send him in to spy on the Leader in Lydia's office to find out what he was really planning. Since Al was a hologram and could walk through walls and render himself invisible to those around him, he was the perfect choice for this type of espionage project. The only problem would be that the Leader may be able to telepathically detect him... and possibly affect him somehow. Possibly brainwash him or kill him.
Al groaned as he remembered a scene from a movie he had watched the other night where a telepath had caused a guy's head to explode just by thinking about it.
"Okay, Calavicci. Let's pull it together." He punched one of the brightly colored buttons on the datapadd that normally connected him to Ziggy. Q, however, had changed that for now so that now all the datapadd did was make him visible and audible to people other than just Sam. Plus, it could be used to transmit to the Starfleet comm badges. "I found the door. There are some guards outside the door, but that doesn't worry me since they can't see or hear me."
The voice of a frustrated Major Kira answered out of Ziggy's datapadd. "Well, get in there already and find out something. Philip's got us in a holding pattern until you do."
"Sheesh! Nice to know risking my neck is so appreciated," replied Al. The real problem for Al lay in the fact that the holographic image system was set up to send an image of Al in the chamber out into the past to be received by brainwaves, the time-traveling Sam Beckett's brainwaves in particular. Now that Q had modified Al and his image they weren't sure how that part worked anymore. The real seriousness of the question would come into play when Al came into close contact with the Leader, a powerful telepath who may be able to detect his brainwave despite Al being immaterial.
"Al!" came Sam's voice. "Be careful in there. Don't take chances."
"You took the words right out of my mouth, buddy." Steeling his nerve, Al took a deep breath and walked through the wall and into Lydia's office. "Think quiet thoughts," whispered Al to himself as he punched another button of the data padd to allow the others to listen, but not speak to him.
He did a double take when he saw the beautiful blond sitting behind the desk. "Now there's a pretty picture," he commented as he took in the view of the attractive woman.
The object of Al's recent affections was totally oblivious to him. "My Lord, I'm unable to contact the bridge," commented Lydia as she punched some buttons at her desk.
Al looked to see who she was talking to and froze when he saw a large green-scaled humanoid lizard standing just a few feet away from him. Ah man, this is where my brain gets turned to goo! thought Al.
The Leader hissed in frustration. "Is everything on this vessel falling apart?"
"Just a moment," she said. "I have a call from one of my captains."
The Leader just shrugged and returned his attention back to the table of live snacks.
"He couldn't see me. He looked right at me and couldn't see me." Al relaxed as some of the weight was taken off his shoulders. He regarded the lizard-man again to size him up. "Boy, were you ever severely beaten with the ugly stick." Al shook his head in dismay. "No wonder you people wear fake human skins all the time." A thought occurred to Al and he pivoted back to regard Lydia. Suddenly picturing what she really looked like with her scales, Al regretted the earlier thoughts he had had, wondering what she would look like in a hot tub.
His former attraction punched a button ending her call. "My Lord, a group of Humans have invaded the Mothership and have taken hold of the bridge."
There was a slight choking noise. Al turned and was just able to catch sight of a large tail of a rodent disappearing into the mouth of the Leader even as a large lump moved down his throat. Al immediately felt himself gagging at the sight and had to turn away.
After clearing his throat, the Leader spoke. "Is nothing going right here?" He stretched his arms dramatically. "I just take a simple trip to see how my people are doing in taking over this water-blessed planet and all I find is one disastrous event after another!"
"Oh boy," muttered Al. "He's losing it."
"I'm rerouting soldiers up there now."
"Good. I'm going to take a look for myself as to what is going on," replied the Leader. He stood there with his eyes closed and his mind reaching out. Finally, the ruler of Sirian people slumped into a chair near the prone body of George Fox. Gently, he began messaging his forehead with one of his massive hands.
"My Lord, are you all right?"
The Leader didn't even bother to look up. "There is a buzzing in my head like... whispers that I can't quite hear. The background noise it's causing is making it too painful for me to project my powers as far as the bridge just yet with me so run down."
Al swallowed nervously as he took a few steps towards the far wall in case he needed to make a run for it.
Lydia looked up from where she sat with concern in her eyes "Maybe something you ate didn't agree with you?"
He just shook his reptilian head. "No. I think it has something to do with this hive-mind that that Doctor mentioned about the Borg."
"I still have teams out looking for the Doctor and his friends that held you captive. And also for any possibility of this Borg threat that they mentioned to you. So far all the teams that have reported back have seen no sign of them. There are four teams that are late in reporting in so I have dispatched people to go check where they were last located. I also have a team guarding that strange box you say you arrived in in the stern shuttlebay."
"Yes, I definitely want to find out more about that box, the TARDIS, I believe it was called," commented the Leader in retrospect.
Suddenly, there was a shift in weight as if the room were actually an elevator.
"The mothership is rising!"
"I know that!" snapped the Leader. "Tell me where the fool Humans are taking us!"
Her fingers danced on the keyboard in front of her. "So far just up into the atmosphere."
"Enough of this foolishness! Contact the other motherships waiting in orbit around the moon. Tell them we will be leaving this vessel and joining them."
"What of those still on this vessel?" asked the female Visitor.
"I have a overpopulated planet back home; you really think I'm going to worry if the people on this vessel die when I have it blown out of the sky?"
"Oh boy," said Al as he walked through the wall and into the hallway. He quickly punched a button on the datapadd to restore his link with the others.
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BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
"Commander, what's wrong now? Why are you breaking radio silence?" Sheba asked reluctantly. She knew she wasn't going to like the answer.
Commander Bojay had taken the Battlestar Pegasus and staged an ambush near a large asteroid field that he hid behind. The Battlestar Galactica had moved to the rear of the space convoy of Colonial ships in order to give the appearance that the Pegasus was still with the fleet and give the Galactica a quicker chance to aid the Pegasus once their trap was sprung. But in order to make the ambush work, radio silence had been necessary.
"We have a problem, Sheba," Bojay responded with a troubled look on his face. "The Cylon ships have stayed on their previous course and never even came near us. They are still headed straight for Earth."
Sheba was surprised to say the least. "But why? Surely they could detect our convey. Why would they pass us by?"
"I think the answer is obvious," answered the other commander with much regret. "I think that they must have picked up the same signal that we did, the one that led us to Earth."
"So instead of helping them with their problems, we have given our long lost relatives over to the very fate we have been trying to avoid."
"Nonsense!" insisted Bojay. "The Cylons would have picked up on the Earth signal sooner or later even if they hadn't been following us."
"You're right," she agreed. "But what do we do now?"
"For starters, I'm going to take the Pegasus and follow them."
"Follow four BaseShips? Not even my father was that crazy!"
"That's debatable. But don't worry, I don't plan on going anywhere near them until I've planned something out."
"Well, I'm not going to let you go alone. I'm going to park this convey in that asteroid field that you're in and then I'm coming after you."
Bojay didn't even bother to argue. Lt. Sheba was her father's daughter. "There is one thing that you should do before joining me."
"What's that?"
"You should send a signal to Earth to warn them of what is heading their way."
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THE BRIDGE OF THE MOTHERSHIP
"Do you have the weapons online yet?" snapped Tyler to three of his men that were doing their best on the computer consoles in front of them.
"Got it!" one of the men exclaimed. "Yowza!"
"Sir!" called out another. "Sensors show a number of ships leaving orbit around the moon and heading our way."
"Bet that number is about thirty motherships," Ham answered. He wasn't worried about them anymore. Not since the Resistance had reported that the Leader had been sighted. Once the other motherships learn that their Leader was still alive and on board they wouldn't dare fire on them. But he could fire on them. That was why he had had this mothership cease hovering over Los Angeles and head out of the atmosphere. "And now things get interesting. And we better have figured out how to work those weapons soon or we won't last very long up here."
Arthur, one of the Fifth Column leaders stepped forward. "I think we should call the other motherships and explain the situation to them."
"By all means, tell them that if they attack, we'll kill their Leader."
Arthur blanched at the very idea. "We-we don't even have the Leader yet."
Ham smiled. "They don't know that."
"But-"
"How about I talk to them? It would probably be more believable. I have a reputation for these sort of things."
Arthur felt a wave of relief flow over him. "Yes. That would be better."
"Mr. Tyler!" Hugo called out. He had one of their walkie talkies to his ear and was waving to him frantically. "It's my sister, Cassie!"
Ham felt as if something was squeezing his chest. "I don't have time now. Just tell me if it is good news or bad."
"She says it's good. Chris has been stabilized and is resting comfortably," answered Hugo.
Showing emotions not being his strong point, Ham just nodded. "Good. Now let's get busy on these other matters."
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CRYOGENIC STORAGE AREA
Samantha helped the man slowly sit up. "Here. Drink a little of this." Once her team had successfully returned from retrieving the weapons, Jack O'Neill had her go over and help those that had just been revived from their cryogenic slumber. She had protested at first, feeling still weak, but he had pointed out to her that now that the doctors understood what they were doing they were freeing people faster, which left fewer people to help those that were just coming around.
"Oh, what hit me?" groaned the man before her.
"I have no idea. Just be grateful that you are alive." She wiped a towel down one of his arms to remove some of the gel that remained from the cryogenic chamber.
"How long was I out?"
"Probably a few months," she answered.
The man managed to open one of his eyes for a second. "Was I in a coma?"
"You wish." She gave him a quick rundown on the current events. He took it well, all things considering. Jack had been right about having her help out her. Most of the men seemed to calm down when they saw a young, beautiful woman treating them. Some had been a little unsavory, but she had also received two marriage proposals. All that mattered to her at the moment, however, was that she was helping people.
He looked around in amazement, shock and revulsion at the sight of the countless numbers of people hanging in gel-like cocoons from the ceiling. He had heard the stories of how the Visitors stored their Human captives like this to keep them fresh. But to wake up from being in one of those knowing that-
"So what's your name," she asked, trying to distract him.
"McGee. Jack McGee. I'm a war correspondent for the Freedom Network. Before the Visitors came along, I was just a reporter for the National Register."
"The Register? That's one of those supermarket tabloids. I used to read that when I was a kid," said Samantha with a chuckle. "The neighbor's youngest boy would bring it over when his mother was through reading it. The two of us would each take half of the paper and we would see who could find the most outrageous stories. It was great fun."
McGee gave a halfhearted smile as he wiped some of the gunk out of his eyes. "Some of those stories were true, by the way." Looking down he could see that he was naked and covered with some type of transparent gel. A small blanket had been placed around his waist to give him some form of modesty.
"Yeah," she conceded. "Some of those stories about famous people were true, I'll bet. One of my high school teachers always said that truth was stranger than fiction, especially when it comes from Hollywood."
"Oh really. So I take it you don't believe all those UFO sightings and alien kidnappings that were printed in the paper?"
She laughed. It was pretty hard to contest that since they were both currently in the heart of an alien spaceship. "I'll give you that one but the rest were just too outlandish."
"I do agree that I think some of my fellow writers may have given into creative fiction for a paycheck, but some of those stories, even some of the more incredible ones, were true."
"But some of those stories just couldn't be true. Like the one about the bat-boy, the androids that took over a theme park and planned to take over the world, or the man who turns into an immensely, strong, seven-foot-tall, green beast-"
"The Hulk," he interrupted. "And that one does exist. I was hunting him for years before the Visitors showed up."
"Oh, come on." She shook her head in disbelief.
"That is exactly the reason I've been so persistent in finding the Hulk. I wanted to bring him before the world and show them I was right all along. Then I'd get the recognition I deserve and be able to start writing serious things again for a real newspaper." He sighed. "Now with this war - with the very survival of our race at stake - it all just doesn't seem to matter."
She began using the already ruined towel to get rid of some of the gel. "Come to think of it, I might have a scoop for you. I was talking to a captain earlier, Jack O'Neill is his name, and he told me that eight one-man fighters came down in Chicago today who all claimed to be from a long-lost colony of Humans from outer space." She looked down to see if he was taking her serious, but to her surprise he wasn't even paying any attention to her. "What's the matter? What are you looking at?"
"A dead man."
"Whoa! One of Captain O'Neill's first rules is no fighting among ourselves up here. We've already had two incidents-" She glanced over her shoulder to see who he was staring at.
"That's not what I mean," explained the reporter. "That man over there, the doctor. I was the one who reported him dead. I was probably the last one to see him alive."
"Are you sure? That's, uh, Dr. David Baker. I spoke with him a little. He's very good and seems like a nice guy."
"Yes," said the reporter who now had most of the puzzle pieces he had been working on for years in place. "But I think I can safely say you wouldn't like him when he's angry."
Cries of alarm came from one of the side entrances followed by shots being fired.
"I knew it was too good to last!" exclaimed Samantha as she took her sidearm out of her belt.
"What's going on?" asked McGee.
She was about to tell him that the Visitors must have found out what they were up to and were attacking. But that was not what came through the door. "What...?"
Even as she shook of her surprise, blasts of laser fire were being exchanged. She ducked behind a makeshift gurney and pulled Jack McGee down beside her. Risking a peek, she saw Dr. Mark Greene being stabbed by one of the attackers dressed in black.
"They don't seem very quick on their feet," commented McGee.
He was right, she noticed. The attackers didn't seem to mind the hail of laser blasts that were being rained on them either. Something like a force field appeared each time the attackers would have been hit and blocked the lethal blasts. Spotting Dr. Greene again, she was surprised to see him alive. But as she watched, his face was contorted in agony as grayish veins spread over his exposed skin.
Off to the side and closer to the action, the doctor that Jack McGee had been so interested in was busy trying to move one of the patients he had just revived from the gel cocoons away from all the danger. A stray shot hit one of the cocoons next to him causing it to explode onto him like a broken fish tank and knocked him hard to the floor.
"Dr. Baker!" cried out Samantha.
"I hope you're right about that," said McGee, "because if I'm right and that's Dr. Banner, things are going to get a whole lot more complicated."
The object of their attention was slowly getting to his feet, pushing off the now dead body that had come from the exploding gel cocoon. Gaining his feet, the physician looked up at the events around him, his eyes an eerie white. He seemed to grow before their eyes as his clothes, becoming more and more too small for him, tore to shreds. His skin and hair took on a greenish-hue as power flowed through his once meek human frame.
"Things just got a lot more complicated," commented McGee to the young woman next to him. "I don't suppose you could point me to where I can get some pants?" he asked while holding the small blanket around him the best he could. "I don't think I can run very well like this."
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HALLS OF THE MOTHERSHIP
A large troop of Visitors marched down the hall. Lydia had called her best and most loyal fighters to guard the Leader as he was moved to a shuttlecraft. The Leader himself had checked each of their minds to make sure that Diana had not tampered with them. Eight of those had been executed on the spot because the Leader didn't want to waste his strength to correct their brainwashed loyalties. In the middle of the group of soldiers walked the Leader and Lydia followed by two large soldiers dragging the groaning figure of George Fox.
"It's a shame that Diana will be dying on this ship. Fitting, I suppose, but still a shame," murmured the Leader as they moved down the hall.
"As much as I would like to have her corpse at my feet, I believe she will find some way to survive." Lydia looked over at the Leader. "Survival is what she is best at. Right after treachery."
"If she survives this, then she is definitely worthy of being my mate," commented the Leader. "But I will have to find an outlet for her more devious tendencies."
"Perhaps what you and she need is a harem."
The Leader took a moment to consider Lydia. While he had mentally reinforced her loyalties to him, he had left her own crafty and devious nature intact. "I can see why having a harem would benefit me, but how would my having a harem benefit Diana?"
"Simple. It would give Diana people to plot against for your attention and affection."
The Leader laughed loudly at the thought.
"It would work even better if you added a known rival of Diana's to the harem."
"Such as yourself," concluded the Leader. The Leader had been noticing Lydia throwing hints of affection at him for a while now, but with everything going on he hadn't been able to think much about it. He could sense her genuine attraction to him, but he knew that, while not to the same degree as Diana, Lydia also hungered for power. "It is an interesting idea. I will have to give it some thought. And then, only if Diana does survive."
Laser blasts suddenly filled the air and the guards began falling all around the Leader. Lydia quickly pulled the Leader with her, hugging the side of the wall. Looking around frantically, she could see that her soldiers weren't going to last much longer. Spotting a possible avenue of escape, Lydia pulled on one of the hatches leading into the ventilation system. As soon as she got it off, however, the first thing she saw was a laser pistol pointed straight at her head.
"Going somewhere?" asked a familiar voice.
Lydia cursed at her luck. All the fighting behind her had ceased, but she didn't have to guess who had won.
Juliet Parrish slowly stepped out of the hatch while keeping her weapon trained on her enemy. "My, my, imagine finding you here." Behind her, a woman with an oddly-ridged forehead and wearing a black and yellow spandex uniform took away Lydia's pistol. Lydia was surprised to see a red-haired woman in a similar uniform colored blue and black attempting to treat some of the survivors with the help of a young man in a yellow and black uniform.
The Leader, right next to Lydia, was about to use his powers to seize the Human female's mind when he saw someone he recognized. "Philip!" he bellowed. "What is the meaning of this outrage!"
Philip, with a look of resolve on his face, just stepped up to the being he had honored more than any other. "We have a few things we would like to discuss with you. We are hoping your answers will-"
"I don't have to answer any of your questions!" roared the large lizard humanoid. "I'm the Leader! You accept whatever I tell you!" He was about to reestablish his mental hold on Philip when he noticed all the weapons pointed at him. More weapons held by more hands than he could currently control right now. What really angered him was that he could see that half of the weapons pointed at him were being held by his own people. His forked tongue flickered slightly out of his mouth for a second as he took in the situation. Frustration built in his head as he realized he would have to wait for now and strike when the opportunity was right.
Philip was about to try again when a messenger ran up to him and handed him a note. With the internal communications of the ship down in large areas of the mothership, messengers were the most reliable way to get information back and forth. Philip read the paper in stunned silence; then read it a second time to be sure of what it said.
"Well?" asked Mike Donovan.
Wordlessly, Philip handed the paper over to the Leader.
"What does it say?" asked Mike again.
Philip looked up at everyone, the weariness of the matter laid heavily on him. "We have received a communication from outside of this solar system. It was a warning of a new threat headed our way called the Cylons."
"By the Lords of Kobol!"
Philip looked over at the two Colonial Warriors. "You know of this threat?"
"Yes," answered Apollo. "The warning was most likely sent by my people. We have fought the Cylons for over a thousand yahrens. They are determined to wipe out the race of Man wherever they find it."
Philip chose to forgo the history lesson. "How dangerous are four BaseShips? Because that is what the message says is headed our way."
"Very dangerous!" spat Starbuck. "We lost twelve planets to the Cylon BaseShips."
"Show me," spoke up the Leader.
"What? What the Cylons can do? I don't have any data on me," replied the warrior.
"You have your mind," pointed out the Leader.
"If you think I'm going to let you mess around with my mind, then you are out of your mind!" snapped Starbuck.
General Hammond stepped up. "I think, if I am understanding him right, what he is asking is just a quick peek of what we are up against."
Starbuck remained obstinate. "And what if he decides to do some rearranging while he's in there?"
Mike leveled his weapon at the Leader's head. "We won't give him time to do that."
Starbuck looked over at Apollo, who nodded his consent as well as pointing another weapon at the Leader's head. "Alright, but only a quick look."
Juliet came around and looked the Leader in the eye. "You have twenty seconds. If you are in his head longer than that then we'll blow your head off. Any questions?"
"Yes. Whatever happened to trust?" he asked snidely.
Philip leaned forward. "You abused that long ago, so that just leaves you with us and these weapons at your head."
"You, too, Philip?" The Leader shook his head in mock surprise. "Very well." The large reptilian man turned to Starbuck. "Let's get this over with."
It was a tense 20 seconds as Starbuck felt his mind rush through all his encounters with the Cylons. "Enough!" he shouted as he turned away, breathing heavily.
"I agree," commented the Leader. "These Cylons will not settle with just wiping out your race. They will attack my people as well. That I cannot allow." He looked down at Lydia, who was also looking up at him. "We cannot fight them alone. Not with our home planet dying and our hold on this one not fully established yet." His gaze took in General Hammond. "We must join forces if any of our people are to survive."
Hammond nodded. "I thought you might see it that way." He didn't like it. How could he. But sometimes even an enemy can be an ally, albeit briefly, in the time of need.
"I do see a couple of major obstacles," interjected Mike. "The first is this Borg menace that we have only just now heard of. The second, however, is what may prove to be a real problem."
"What's that?" Juliet asked.
"There is no way that Ham is going to give up command of this ship now that he has taken it over."
Characters in order of appearance or mentioned:
Calavicci, Adm. Al (Dean Stockwell) – from the TV series Quantum Leap (1989-1993)
Beckett, Dr. Sam (Scott Bakula) – from the TV series Quantum Leap (1989-1993)
Visitors– from the TV series V (1983), V: The Final Battle (1984), V- The Series (1984-1985)
Willie (Robert Englund) – from the TV series V (1983), V: The Final Battle (1984), V- The Series (1984-1985)
Thelma (Marilyn Jones) – from the TV series V- The Series (1985)
Philip (Frank Ashmore) – from the TV series V- The Series (1984-1985)
Adami, Kai Winn (Louise Fletcher) – from the TV series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993-1999)
Nerys, Col. Kira (Nana Visitor) – from the TV series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993-1999)
James, Lt. (Judson Earney Scott) – from the TV series V- The Series (1985)
Crusher, Dr. Beverly (Gates McFadden) – from the TV series Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1994)
Tyler, Ham 'The Fixer' (Michael Ironside) – from the TV series V: The Final Battle (1984), V- The Series (1984-1985)
Parrish, Juliet (Faye Grant) – from the TV series V (1983), V: The Final Battle (1984), V- The Series (1984-1985)
Apollo, Capt. (Richard Hatch) – from the TV series Battlestar Galactica (1978-1979)
Starbuck (Dirk Benedict) – from the TV series Battlestar Galactica (1978-1979)
Boomer, Lt. (Herbert Jefferson, Jr.) – from the TV series Battlestar Galactica (1978-1979)
Lydia (June Chadwick) – from the TV series V- The Series (1984-1985)
The Leader (never seen) – from the TV series V (1983), V: The Final Battle (1984), V- The Series (1984-1985)
Donovan, Mike (Marc Singer) – from the TV series V (1983), V: The Final Battle (1984), V- The Series (1984-1985)
Diana (Jane Badler) – from the TV series V (1983), V: The Final Battle (1984), V- The Series (1984-1985)
Hammond, Major General George (Don S. Davis) – from the TV series Stargate SG-1 (1997-2007)
Torres, B'Elanna (Roxann Dawson) – from the TV series Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001)
Bates, Kyle (Jeff Yagher) – from the TV series V- The Series (1984-1985)
Doctor, The 4th (Tom Baker) – from the TV series Doctor Who (1974-1981)
K-9 Mark I (voiced by John Leeson) – from the TV series Doctor Who (1977-?)
Forrester, Paul (Robert Hays) – from the movie and TV series Starman (1986-1987)
Hayden, Scott (Christopher Daniel Barnes) – from the TV series Starman (1986-1987)
Maxwell, Elizabeth (Jennifer Cooke) – from the TV series V- The Series (1984-1985)
Leela (Louise Jameson) – from the TV series Doctor Who (1977-1978)
Hayden, Jenny (Erin Gray) – from the movie and TV series Starman (1987)
Fox, Agent George (Michael Cavanaugh) – from the TV series Starman (1986-1987)
Ziggy – from the TV series Quantum Leap (1989-1993)
Sheba (Anne Lockhart) – from the TV series Battlestar Galactica (1978-1979)
Bojay (Jack Stauffer) – from the TV series Battlestar Galactica (1978-1979)
Farber, Chris (Mickey Jones) – from the TV series V: The Final Battle (1984), V- The Series (1984-1985)
Carter, Samantha (Amanda Tapping) – from the TV series Stargate SG-1 (1997-2007)
O'Neill, Col. Jack (Richard Dean Anderson) – from the TV series Stargate SG-1 (1997-2007)
McGee, Jack (Jack Colvin) – from the TV series The Incredible Hulk (1978-1982)
Hulk / Banner, David (Bill Bixby/Lou Ferrigno) – from the TV series The Incredible Hulk (1978-1982)
Greene, Dr. Mark (Anthony Edwards) – from the TV series ER (1994-2002)