A Universe of Change: Realized Probability
Disclaimer: see chapter one.
Author's Notes: Hope u enjoy this.
Summary: The Enterprise C and D blunder into the borderland between the Scarren Empire and The Peacekeepers. This fic is a part of AlbertG's Ruinations series and has been written with his express permission.
Chapter
Two: First Contact
After Commanders Riker, Sisko and Data
had left the briefing, the others had stayed to discuss some other
matters and yet again Captain Picard had dictated what had to be done
without considering Captain Garret's opinion. When they were
finished the others had filed out of the conference room and left the
two Captains alone. Captain Garret slowly got up and stood at the
foot of the table opposite Captain Picard, who was still looking over
one of the pads Lt. Commander Geordi had left behind.
"Captain Picard," she began icily, "I thought we had discussed this and already come to an agreement and compromise."
Picard looked up in surprise at Garret's cold tone, "Excuse me Captain?"
Her face was impassive not relating to Picard any emotion, except through her voice, "I thought we had agreed to share overall command?" she demanded.
"Yes-" began Picard.
She cut him off. "Then what do you call what you just did? You spent the entire meeting dictating to our Officers what you wanted done without consulting with me once! I let it pass with the away mission, but afterwards you still continued to ignore my concerns and opinions," she snarled angrily.
Picard sat there silently without an answer. She was right.
"Well, Jean-Luc, do have anything to say about it?" she demanded forcibly.
Picard cleared his throat before answering. This was embarrassing…he hadn't sought out or listened at all. They were all alone in this universe and they needed to stick together here, otherwise they would be lost. "I – I'm sorry Captain, I am just not used to sharing command with anybody," he replied.
Captain Garret relaxed slightly at his heartfelt apology. "Well then you had better get used to it and fast because we're stuck with each other."
Picard nodded in tact acknowledgement of their situation before saying, "You know this is the second time you have admonished me like a cadet, are you going to make a habit of it?"
Garret laughed. "Just as long as you don't force me to."
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The big, dark-skinned, intimidating man that was responsible for the Starfleet marines on the two Enterprises. Commander Benjamin Sisko was piloting the runabout they had taken from the Enterprise-D's docking bay for their away mission. They had detected no transporter capabilities in the scans of surrounding ships and commerce planet. It had been unanimously decided not to show their hand with the transporters.
With him were Commander's Riker and Data along with five of his marines.
Benjamin Sisko was a quiet man of few words. He'd survived numerous encounters and battles with the best the Kilngon Empire had to offer, but some reason this mission made him nervous. No it wasn't this mission; it was the fact that before they had left Guinan had told to be careful of whom he trusted on this planet. He'd had a couple of encounters with her before and he'd seen how Captain Jean-Luc Picard the Captain of the flagship of the United Federation of Planets took her word as fact. This was what was making him so nervous; he felt it deep in his bones-something bad was going to happen on this mission.
Sisko glanced over his shoulder at the other team members; Commander Data was working tirelessly to make adjustments to the Universal Translator. The spaceport authorities had answered them in yet another unknown language when they'd asked for landing coordinates. That was something else that was troubling him, misunderstands could get a person hurt-or worse
Many other things bothered him as well; they were in a strange universe and they couldn't find a way back and this angered him. If they couldn't get back home how could he avenge his murdered family? He was suddenly cut off from what had been the driving force in his life for years and it made it want to lash out at something, anything.
The flight down was uneventful as each member of the away team mused over what they may find down there. As they prepared to disembark, Commander Riker addressed them all and laid down all the rules.
"Remember people; don't attract any attention to yourselves. We're here to find out about this universe in general, Earth, the Peacekeepers and Scarrens in particular. Tuttle and Jackson, you two stay with the runabout and guard it and keep an eye out for anyone suspicious that comes, you got that?" he commanded the two marines. "We'll meet back up here in six hours."
A chorus of 'yes Commander' came from the rest of the away team. Riker gestured for them to get on with their mission. The teams were dressed in civilian clothes so as not to attract attention. They had with them disguised communicators, tricoders, and personal phasers.
With Riker's gesture they spilt up into three teams, Riker with the Vulcan T'vas, Data with the Andorian Theeka, and Sisko with the Trill Larz Dax, Tuttle and Jackson stayed with the runabout as ordered. They sealed themselves in after the rest of the team had dispersed into the city.
As the groups of two moved into the city, they missed the shadowy figure that was watching them all closely from behind one of the starport's loading vehicles. After they had disappeared, he began talking into his Comm.…in Scarren.
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A few hours later, found Sisko and Dax in a drinking establishment that catered to many different species. They were sitting in a poorly lit corner of the place, nursing cups of the local ale, so as not to attract attention. Or, at least not any more attention then they already had. There were a lot of stares directed in their direction in the bar.
After separating from the others, the two Starfleet officers had found themselves in a dirty highly industrialized planet in which many different species pursed a variety of pursuits. After only a few minutes it was abundantly clear to them that in the city anything and everything was for sale. One stand held various foodstuffs while the one next to it held an assortment of hand weapons the likes of which they had never seen. That stand had attracted the most attention as they got their first look at the common weaponry of this universe; most of it was pulse-based and needed chakon oil cartridges as the vendor had explained. One weapon in particular had caught Sisko's attention; it was a very impressive looking one that the alien vendor called a hand-held personal frag canon.
During all their explorations however, the aliens around him had acted strangely. Nearly all of them seemed intimidated by him and Dax and those that weren't glared at them angrily. Sisko had seen hostile aliens before; the Klingons were a fine example of that, he thought darkly. But here in this place they didn't have any reason for this hostility. He and Dax had especially gone out of their way to avoid any type of hostility, which included being very polite with all beings they encountered. This had only earned them some disbelieving stares and muttered whispers from many onlookers. But one thing had been constant, all of them refused to speak with them. Except the vendors and they only talked about their wares, no matter what questions, he and Dax asked.
"These people really know how to make a person feel welcome, don't they?" Dax sarcastically joked to Sisko as he looked around the place.
"That they do Dax…that they do," Sisko said. He surveyed those nearest to them they seemed to paying the two Starfleet officers an inordinate amount of attention. "I'm starting to think that coming in here was a mistake," he conceded.
Dax followed Sisko's line of sight looking at the aliens sitting at the table and said, "I'm with you boss," seeing the aliens' increasingly hostile stares.
"I think its time to go," Sisko said rising quickly.
It was too late. The group of aliens had already left their table and walking towards them.
"Going somewhere Peacekeeper?" snarled one of the ugly skeletal white-faced aliens with canine features in black body armor.
'Peacekeeper?' "Excuse me?" replied Sisko cautiously; he stepped forward, obscuring their view of where Dax was still sitting.
The lead alien snorted and said, "These Peacekeeper spies keep getting dumber every time." His two cronies laughed.
Sisko did not like where this was going. Who were these beings anyway?
He opened his mouth to speak, to clarify these creatures' mistake but it was too late the lead one was going for the weapon at his side.
Sisko leaped to the side and the creatures turned to track his movements, having momentarily forgotten about Dax. They remembered him real quick when a phaser blast struck the first alien knocking him senseless and into the one behind him.
The third unengaged alien turned his focus on Dax. But before he could shoot, Sisko stunned him as Dax stunned the entangled one who had been just starting to get free.
The bar froze as Sisko rose up to his feet once more; he surveyed the room and put on his best intimidation face, "Nobody else needs to get hurt here…" he said as he held his phaser in front of him, at the ready.
The occupants of bar all seemed to gulp slowly as they returned Sisko's stare. He glanced at Dax and gestured towards the door with his head. They both then slowly walked out of the bar and back onto the street. Sisko took the lead intending to get back to the runabout as fast as humanly possible.
Sisko touched his communicator, "Sisko to Riker! Commander, we've been attacked by unknown hostiles," Sisko reported Riker.
He waited a long time for an answer he didn't get one.
"Commander Riker?" he called again.
This time he did get an answer. "I'm a little busy here Ben. Were they canine and wearing black body armor?" asked Riker; in the background he could hear phaser fire.
Sisko exchanged a concerned glance with Dax before answering, "Yes Sir! How did you know?" he asked though he had a sinking suspicion about how the First Officer would answer.
"Because we're pinned down by ten of them!" retorted Riker, "Beam back to Enterprise. I've already informed them of our status-and don't go back to the runabout they've already left," he ordered tensely.
"What about you, Sir?" Sisko wouldn't leave anybody behind, not in their universe and not in this one either.
"We were about to beam out when you called, now contact Data and then get out of here!" Riker screamed.
The link cut out and Sisko contacted Data, relaying to him Riker's orders and their own skirmish.
"We have not been attacked Commander and I have discovered some startling details," Data commented in his calm emotionless voice that never wavered.
"Good, we couldn't get anything here, but get back to Enterprise. We don't have time to talk now."
"Acknowledged Commander," the channel cut out.
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Meanwhile back on the Enterprise-D, Captain Picard was fuming in his chair. Ever since Commander Riker's first report of battle had come in he had wondered how the hell this had happened. According to Riker they had done nothing at all to provoke everyone. It was a perplexing and infuriating situation. They had hoped to avoid any sort of conflict. He'd certainly had enough battles to last a lifetime. Two or three even.
He notified Garret immediately after Riker's contact, and both Enterprises had gone to yellow alert shortly afterwards. Both Ships were actively scanning in all directions wary of an ambush
"Captain, we've got a very large vessel coming into the system. Sir, it's coming in fast." Suddenly reported Ensign Wesley Crusher from where he sat at ops "Sir it's heading right for us!"
"On screen," commanded Picard.
The entire bridge gasped in shock.
"Merdé…" gasped Picard in disbelief.
Author's Notes: He he, a nice little cliffhanger for all my readers, as always, Read, Enjoy and Review!
