Chapter 45


Stargazer...to Enterprise

Auto-destruct sequence initiated. Bright light, intense heat, nothingness. Auto-destruct sequence initiated. Bright light, intense heat, nothingness. On repeat. How many times, he went through this, he was unable to tell, but during that instant repeated over and over, he never even had time to scream before his ship was destroyed. But which ship? Then gradually the bright white light faded to grey, and two voices could be heard. One impossibly calm; the other was agitated, possibly even angry.

Saucer separation sequence completed...Was he even solid matter anymore? He only heard the calm voice dimly as he emerged from the bizarre loop in which he had been traveling. Then the second voice became clearer. "Wake up!" The second voice yelled in his ear. If someone could yell into his ear, then it followed that he still possessed a body. And if he could hear that unpleasant person yelling into his ear, it then it also meant that he was alive.

No more intense heat or white light. "...do you hear me, son? Don't leave me now or I will never forgive you!"

Someone was shaking him roughly, and he felt the back of his head thudding against carpet . Red Alert...Red Alert...repeated the calm voice.

"Hey..." was all he was able to murmur in protest as the shaking continued. "Let me sleep," he murmured. "So tired." And then he felt the slap. Yes a slap; one of the most insulting and alarming things to do to a person. Still he did not feel outraged.

Shields are at 69 percent, said the first voice. Ever calm, ever patient. He realized he had something of an affection for that first voice. He tried to open his eyes but his eyelids seemed fused shut. Shields are at 60 percent. The ship is under attack. Evasive action is recommended.

"Worf to Captain Picard."

For some reason, at that moment, Picard's eyes snapped open. He blinked a few times into the face of the elderly woman who had been shaking him. "Mary?" He squinted as her features became clearer." That's right!" She suddenly grabbed the sides of his face and kissed him.

"Ah!" he exclaimed, when it appeared she had no intention of stopping.

"I had a feeling that would get you up and moving," she said, getting up from her crouching position. "You aren't much for affection are you?"

He sat up rubbing his head. "What happened?" Suddenly the ship shook violently. Mary staggered, grabbing the back of his chair. He grabbed her hand and guided her into the chair next to him at ops.

"What happened is that you left me again, Jean-Luc. Several times in fact. You're not with us in this world anymore are you? Not fully at least."

"I don't know who...where or when I am, anymore," he said honestly. He turned his bead to look at the old woman. Quite possibly the last person he would see alive. "And it scares the hell out of me, Mary. It really does."

"Worf to Captain Picard. The lead Malkatan ship is returning, and appears to be targeting the Enterprise.

"Fire the...fire the hybrid weapon," Picard managed to get out.

"Already done, Captain. The weapon destroyed one of the enemy ships."

"Ugh...that's hardly a dent. There are hundreds more of those ships." Picard pulled himself up and into the seat at the helm. His hands were unsteady and his vision was still hazy.

He gasped and slammed his head back into the headrest as another disorienting wave washed over him. A tall man with a missing ear and a mocking sneer was rushing for him. Someone from his past. But then the white light and unbearable heat engulfed him and it was over. His eyes snapped open and there was the field of firing ships yet again. Tears escaped his eyes before he could clench them shut again.

The ship shook again under another volley of fire and he tried his best to maneuver the ship out of harm's way. He fired the phasers in short bursts. The lead Malkatan ship was determined to stay with him. He put on a burst of speed, but the enemy ship stayed on his trail.

"What can I do to help?" Mary asked him from ops.

He blinked tears out of his eyes as he struggled to pilot the ship. "The inertial dampers..."

"The inertial whats?"

"I may have trouble piloting the ship once we're in the Earth's atmosphere...do you see a gold icon on the panel in the top right hand corner?"

"Yes," she said, not sounding completely sure. He wiped at his bleary eyes with the sleeve of his shirt. "Good. That control keeps the ship stable when we are decelerating or accelerating. Mary, you've got to ensure that it remains gold in color. If it...if it turns red for more than just a few seconds, we'll know it already because the whole ship will be breaking apart from the strain."

"What do I do?"

"Just place your palm to the left of it, if you see the icon flicker. Now hold on tight," he continued as the blue and white of Earth loomed below. He adjusted the controls readying for a steep descent. "Here we go."


The Aldrin

Geordi LaForge rapped his knuckles on CASU's metallic shoulder. "You ready, buddy?" The robot lay inside the photon torpedo launch tube, perfectly still.

"My altered weaponry and proto thrusters are optimal," the robot replied simply.

Geordi nodded and stood up, glancing over at Data. "Do you think CASU's aware, Data?"

"Do you mean, is CASU aware of its own mortality, Geordi?" Data tapped at the torpedo bay launch control panel.

Geordi shrugged. "Something like that," he said solemnly.

"The simplest answer is yes," Data said, looking at his friend squarely.

"Huh," Geordi said walking away from the robot and standing clear of the launch area. "I can definitely relate."


Deanna and Beverly reached the holodeck together and stepped inside. For a moment or two they stood together on the gold and black grid in silence. What are we doing here? Deanna asked herself. They were in the middle of a battle that they would likely perish in, and she was attempting to deceive her best friend into believing there was somewhere safe left to go. If Beverly had been well...if she hadn't been shifting through time...and if she hadn't had her newborn baby with her, she would have fought-they both would have. Deanna might even want to spend her last hours with Will. But things were so very different now. Eventually Deanna forced a laugh, breaking the silence. "You know, this just won't do. Let's program something nice Beverly; something that will make us both feel better."

Beverly fixed Troi with a vacant stare. "Feel better...I don't think that's going to happen, Deanna," she said quietly. "Although I appreciate the effort." The baby was beginning to wake up and started to cry. Beverly glanced around her. "She's hungry and I need to feed her...I need a place to sit down."

"Computer," said Deanna. "Please give us a rocking chair...twentieth century, North American."

A chair appeared and Beverly sat down carefully with the baby in her arms, talking to her gently. Deanna watched them for a moment, smiling at a brief moment of peace. She hasn't settled on a name yet. She's waiting for the Captain. "Initiate program Betazed paradise one."

I am unfamiliar with the requested program. Please create a new program, or choose another.

Deanna' s brow wrinkled with annoyance. She supposed that it was an old program from her previous life on board the Enterprise...now long gone. Suddenly she felt overwhelmed with emotion, frozen by the events that had gotten so out of control. Still Deanna' s voice steadied when she looked at Beverly gently trying to placate her little baby. "Computer replicate the foothills of the Zhani mountains in southern Betazed...late spring, afternoon."

Instantly their surroundings were flooded with sunshine and despite the circumstances, Deanna felt almost elated to be there. Soft purple and green grasses stretched all around them over the low hills, and a warm, sweet breeze tickled Deanna' s nose. She could nearly smell the ocean in the distance. "Let's have some soft chairs, computer. And a blanket and some food."

Immediately the items she had requested appeared. She and Beverly sat down. She glanced over at Beverly who was now nursing her baby. She looked down at the child, but her expression remained distant. Presently Beverly said "she has a good appetite," and then fell silent again.

Feeling very helpless, Deanna leaned forward clasping her hands between her knees. "Beverly what else can I do...I want to make you feel comfortable."

Beverly looked up sharply. "Comfortable? You mean before the Malkatans murder us?"

Deanna blinked. Beverly sounded much clearer than she had before. Clearer...but her anger was almost overwhelming to Troi. She was in this world for now at least. Perhaps her baby was keeping her focused on the present. "Beverly we don't know that..."

"We know they have superior weaponry and that they've already slaughtered millions of us, Deanna. What other evidence do you need? The war against the Malkatans is over already Deanna-and we've lost our home. We've lost Earth, don't you see?"

"But we still have to think positively," Troi insisted, hardly believing she had just uttered such silly words. "It's not going to make you feel any better to worry so much."

Beverly didn't look up, but her response was hard. "Do you know what would make me feel better, Deanna? To see my son...to know that Jean-Luc is safe and not in pain somewhere...in any time. Even if I never see him again, and even if he never gets to hear me say that I love him, I want to know that he's alright. That's all." She leaned back in the chair and stroked the baby's single curl of red hair. "I want to see my son," she said in a softer voice, almost to herself. Suddenly she looked up. "Computer...generate a holodeck image of Wesley Crusher."

Deanna wasn't certain whether seeing an image of her son would help Beverly or not, but either way, she had no intention of trying to dissuade her friend. Outside in the corridor, she thought she heard an explosion. Instead of panicking, she absently ate from a bunch of grapes and watched as Beverly negotiated with the computer.

I have a number of images stored. Please specify, the computer was saying. Beverly hesitated. "I'd like to see him in his Academy uniform-no when he came on board the Enterprise several years ago...he was so excited and happy then."

A smiling hologram of Wesley appeared, standing next to them. Beverly took in a halting breath. She knew it wasn't him but she allowed herself to be fooled for a moment. Reaching up to take his hand, he willingly came to sit down beside her.

"Hi Mom," said the hologram, still holding her hand. The hologram's expression remained unchanged as a rolling series of now unmistakable explosions rumbled underneath the deck.


The Planet Glanau 2366

Now Wesley knew, he had to get the neutralizer. How he would use it once he stole it from the insane scientist he wasn't certain. But the neutralizer was the key. It had proven under several circumstances before to lessen the effect of the singularity. And its presence explained Mayer's unique ability to control the singularity technology, making all those in his path suffer. Without the neutralizer, Mayer would no longer be able to pervert time in order to carry out his own twisted experiments.

Still coughing and choking from the swirling dust, Wesley lunged desperately for Mayer' s ankle, grabbing for the neutralizer band. His fingers just grazed it, but Mayer jumped back quickly and then brought his other boot down onto Wesley's wrist. The snapping sound nauseated him and the pain was excruciating. Laughing, Mayer backpeddled in the sand. Wesley pushed himself up and then staggered up to his feet, cradling his fractured wrist. Then amazingly Mayer appeared to flicker in front of Wesley's eyes; stopped dead in his tracks, and then inexplicably fell onto the dusty ground, writhing. "Picard!" he screamed, and then disappeared.


Wesley let his face drop into the dirt out of sheer exhaustion. He rolled onto his back. was Mayer dead? Had the Captain defeated him in another time? Suddenly he became aware that someone was there and he opened his eyes.

"Hello, Wesley," the Traveler smiled placidly down at him.

"Huh?" Wesley propped himself up on his elbows, as the Traveler crouched down next to him. "I thought you were...I thought you had been captured."

"I was," admitted the Traveler. "But now my Jailor has become aware that the key to solving his problem is on this planet, and he set me free. Perhaps he believes that I still may be of some use to him."

"I don't get it," Wesley said. "Is Mayer dead?"

"That is not likely. Mayer is still in control."

"If he's alive then where did he go? And why was he calling out for Captain Picard?"

"Something remarkable has happened Wesley, that has again changed history, and will soon change the present and future."

Wesley's voice dropped to a whisper. "Something happened to the Captain?"

"Captain Picard sacrificed his life in 2355 to try and stop Mayer. He either destroyed or damaged the Singularity Net by destroying his ship within it."

Wesley's whole body grew instantly numb. "The captain is dead?"

"I am afraid so."

"But will that...will that kill him now? I mean in 2367? He and my Mom...they're having a baby. What is going to happen to the Captain of the present?"

The Traveler was solemn. "I am afraid there may be nothing that can be done to save the Captain of 2367 Wesley. Not now that the Picard of 2355 has been lost."

Wesley hugged his broken wrist close to his body. "I refuse to believe that! I have to help him. Help send me back into time. I know I can fix this."

The Traveler's expression was sad. "I am a Traveler, Wesley...but you are a Shaper. Only you can put the pieces back the way they were meant to be. But I do not believe that the solution you seek lies in the distant past."

"But with the Singularity Net gone...how will that effect the Malkatans? They won't have eleven years to develop their lethal weapons now."

The Traveler smiled. "That is correct. And yet they were still exposed to the technology before Picard ensured they would never see it again. The effects of Captain Picard's actions still remain to be seen."

"But all Mayer has to do is go back in time again and make sure some other cruel race has access to the Singularity technology he developed."

"I believe in you Wesley. I believe you will find a way. When you are ready, I will return and help you in your final journey."

"Wait!" Wesley shouted as the Traveler shimmered and then disappeared. Wesley kicked at the ground angrily. "Goddamn it! Now what am I supposed to do?"


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