WELCOME & UNWELCOME GUESTS-
After another hour of touring the Jupiter-Two, Kirk signaled to the Enterprise to return. He and John Robinson had already made arrangements for the small celebration. After explaining again the safety and ease of transporters, they agreed to have the Jupiter-Two members come over an hour later. Even the Robot was invited, after Spock told Kirk that the automaton would become "highly emotional if excluded." The Jupiter-Two was taken in tow by the Enterprise tractor beam.
In the meantime, Spock continued to pour through the historical records of the Enterprise's computer. He had a particular focus for his investigation, though he made no mention of it to Captain Kirk.
At 1500 hours, ship-time, the first of the Robinson party beamed over. Robinson, his wife, son, and two daughters arrived first. Minutes later, West, Dr. Smith, and the Robot beamed over. All seemed a bit disoriented, but pleased by the event.
"Professor," Kirk said, wearing his dress uniform, "Good to see you again." John Robinson shook hands again with the captain of the Enterprise. "If you'll all follow me?" Kirk led them on a quick tour of the Enterprise. Spock had to take part of the group with him, as the Robot occupied quite a large part of a turbo-lift car. First up was Engineering. Scotty awaited them in his dress uniform and tartan kilt.
"Welcome to Engineerin'," he said proudly. He showed off the warp and impulse engine controls and the dilithium chamber. Robinson, his son, and West were obviously impressed. The others showed polite interest. Smith kept insisting on one topic.
"Captain Kirk" he began again, "I must ask that I be returned to Earth as soon as possible. 23rd Century or not, I….inadvertantly..joined this little expedition and no longer wish to be part of it." Kirk agreed, tiring of the man's whining. "Fine, Dr. Smith. We can find you transport back to Earth at our stopover at Starbase Ten in a few days. Satisfactory?" Smith, unsure, nodded. The tour continued.
Next up was the Bridge. Given it was nearly the size of the whole upper deck of the Jupiter-Two, all of the Robinson group seemed quite stunned by its size. Introductions were made. Uhura, Chekov, and Sulu all greeted the group. Sulu showed Don West the helm controls. Judy Robinson spoke to Uhura, "I love your earrings and that ear charm." The Communications Officer smiled at the reference to the remote in her ear. "Actually it's an isolation monitor for communications."
Spock meanwhile was showing the Robot a console at his station. "This is our Bridge interface with the Main Computer." The Robot, fitting tightly between the console and the railing, activated its scanner. "Duotronic processor." Spock nodded and said "Affirmative." The Robot continued "Kilo-quad capacity, near AI-level simulation, all ship's functions directed by the Main Computer." Again Spock replied "Affirmative." The Robot seemed to ponder this. "I am obsolete", it even seemed to hang its head in dejection. "Negative," Spock replied, "Artificial Intelligence in a robotic unit is still beyond Federation technology. Dr. Keljan Soong and Dr. Richard Daystrom are attempting it, but with little success. Other races may have such technology, but not in the Federation. You are a unique creation to Earth science." The Robot appeared to "brighten up" and seemed "proud" again.
The reception then began. Yeoman Chang led the Robinson party back down to Recreation Hall, where hors d'oevres and drinks were already being served. Spock stopped Kirk though before he boarded the turbo-lift. "Captain, if I may have a moment?" Kirk nodded. The Vulcan returned to his Science Station.. "I did further research onto the Jupiter-Two's 'physician." "Go on, Spock."
"I found this in an old Interpol database, one of the few surviving from the old international police force. At the end of the Eugenics Wars, Khan Noonian Singh…Are you familiar with him?" Kirk nodded, "A little. He was the Eugenics 'superman' in Asia, wasn't he?" Spock nodded.
"Yes, and despite the fact he was defeated by the forces of the non-Augmented allies in late 1996, several 'sleeper cells' of his agents still existed for many years in the democracies who rallied against him. A file of those agents was retrieved in late 1999 by a Roberta Seven of the American National Security Agency. The operations in the United States was under the code-name 'Aeolus 14 Umbra' and had a key operative within the US Air Force at Alpha Control. His identity was only discovered years after the Jupiter-Two's disappearance and no connection was made to that incident. Although, some suspected he may have been a saboteur in the pay of 'Aeolus 14 Umbra'." Spock pressed a button and an image came on the screen above the console.
Dr. Zachery Smith. In a USAF uniform, slightly younger, but undoubtedly, the man who just came over from the Jupiter-Two.
"Jim," Spock began, "It is logical to assume that that man…sabotaged the Jupiter-Two and became trapped on the ship upon launch, while doing it. And I believe the Robinsons may even know it." Kirk was puzzled. "Why would they cover for him?" "Unknown. Human actions are even more of a mystery than a 300 year old criminal case." Kirk grinned. Though he'd deny it, Spock had a unique sense of humor. "Okay, if I get a chance, I'll talk to John Robinson and try to find out what's going on. Meanwhile, let's go to the party."
The reception was a festive affair. Senior officers were excused and the off-duty crewmembers greeted the Jupiter-Two crew as heroes. Living on a home-grown or rationed diet, the Robinsons, West, and Smith were treated to a banquet unlike any they had seen since leaving Earth. The wonders of food replicators weren't lost on Maureen Robinson or her family. Scotty broke out a bottle of his personal collection of Scotch whiskey and poured it for the older Jupiter-Two men and Maureen.
Under Kirk's advisement, McCoy was enlisted to "keep an eye on" Zachery Smith. Under the excuse of "being a fellow doctor", he plied Smith with drinks and gently tried to glean any information he could about the man, his medical degree, background, etc.
Meanwhile, John and Maureen Robinson spent their time talking with Jim Kirk. "Captain," Professor Robinson began, "Our mission was to colonize Alpha Centauri. We still would like to complete it." Kirk nodded. "I understand." He smiled. "Naturally, you'll have a lot more company there now than you would have. Alpha Centauri A-VII has a human colonial population of ….Spock?" The Vulcan spoke up "67.59 million people as of the last Federation census, sir." The Robinsons were aghast. Kirk continued, "It's a beautiful place, you ought to see it. The first Earth colony when Cochrane settled there in the late 21st Century." Spock interjected "Plus, the University of Alpha Centauri is one of the premiere institutions of learning in the Galaxy, they would no doubt benefit from your expertise." Robinson sighed.
"I don't know, Mr. Spock, I'm a little out of date. I'd be as inexperienced as a raw undergrad." Spock shook his head. "On the contrary, history is the guide to the future. Your insights into the past and the early development of the modern technology we now take for granted, would be most illuminating, Professor." Robinson and his wife seemed pleased with that. Kirk smiled. "Regardless, we can get you all to Alpha Centauri easily. Plus, Starfleet would be honored to have the Jupiter-Two as part of the Fleet Museum." A strange look of forlorn came over the Robinsons. Maureen spoke first. "The Jupiter-Two has been our home for nearly three years. I'd miss it if it was stuck in some dusty old museum." Kirk nodded at the sentiment. "Well, ma'am, times change." She smiled.
Almost immediately upon finishing that sentence, the Ship's Intercom rang out. "Red Alert! Red Alert! All crew to battle stations!" Sulu's voice came over the speaker. Kirk rushed to an intercom station and pushed the button. "Sulu, what is it?" "Romulan warbird decloaking off the starboard bow, sir…she's lock…" He wasn't able to finish the sentence. Immediately the Enterprise shook with tremendous force. Then a second blast hit as Kirk was trying to make for the door; he stumbled and fell over a chair.. Panic ensued as the crew in the Rec Hall attempted to rush to their stations.
As Kirk was helped to his feet by Spock, he noticed a sickly-sweet smell and then saw a greenish gas exuding from the ship's ventilation system. At once the Captain became light-headed and then was unable to focus or concentrate. He noticed that McCoy too was acting strangely and then….blackness.
Meanwhile the Robinsons, West, Smith and the Robot were totally confused. John Robinson quickly determined from the alarms and Sulu's alert about "Romulans" that it must be an attack by some alien species, hostile to the Federation that Kirk and his crew came from. As the second blast hit, he too was trying to get to his feet and noticed the sweet smell, the greenish gas, and the increasingly catatonic state of the Enterprise crew. Fortunately, he also saw that neither he, Maureen, the children, Don, or even Smith seemed effected. Don rushed up to him.
"John, what's going on?" "I don't know, Don, obviously some alien attack on the ship." Maureen came to his side. "John, what's wrong with Captain Kirk and his crew." "I don't know, dear." Quickly though the three of them did notice one unaffected member…Spock. They went over to him.
"Mr. Spock," Robinson began, "What's happening?" Spock seemed confused as well, but kept it more hidden. "The blasts we felt were undoubtedly Romulan plasma hits" He paused as an aside. "The Romulans are an interstellar government hostile to the Federation." He then continued. Observing Kirk and the human crew members. "This gas appears to be some form of tranquilizing or nerve gas." He looked to the Robinsons. "Despite your civilian status, Professor…Major…it is advisable for you to accompany me to the Bridge. I would further advise your wife, children, and Dr. Smith to remain here." The men from the Jupiter-Two nodded and followed Spock out into the corridor.
They boarded the turbo-lift and quickly arrived at the bridge. The Bridge Crew was in a similar state. Uhura was slumped over her console, while Chekov and Sulu and other crew were upright but apparently catatonic. Spock went to his Science Console and ran an internal scan. Robinson and West joined him at his side.
"Data indicates a theragen derivative" he read off, then explained "A nerve gas weapon developed by the Klingons, another antagonistic species. Usually deadly, this form seems to deaden key higher-level brain function in humans." "Why are we unaffected, Mr. Spock?" John Robinson asked. "Unknown. Perhaps some expos…I am detecting Romulan transporter signals." He modified the panel switches. "Ten Romulans have now materialized in Main Engineering."
Quickly, he activated the interface with the Main Computer. "Computer, Intruder Alert Level-1. Lock-out all command functions unless proceeded by the prefix 1 - 7 - 3 - 4 - 6 - 7 - 3 - 2 - 1 - 4 - 7 - 6 - Charlie - 3 - 2 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 7 - 7 - 7 - 6 - 4 - 3 - Tango – 7-Lock" The computer spoke mechanically "Affirmative, all command functions now locked out unless proceeded by prefix code." Robinson and West basically understood what Spock had done, in preventing the intruders from gaining control of the ship.
"What now, Mr. Spock?" Don West asked. "Logically, the Romulans will come to the Bridge to attempt to capture the ship. We must leave." He went to the turbo-lift with the two humans following behind. "Armory" Spock said as he activated the controls. The turbo-lift quickly went down, opening its doors a moment later. The corridor was crowded with Enterprise crew members, some standing silently, some on the floor in heaps. Spock led Robinson and West to a secured door. Activating the code-lock, they entered. Racks of phaser rifles and phaser pistols (as well as smaller hand phasers) lined the walls.
Grabbing three phaser pistols, Spock spoke to the other two men. "From the historical records, you are familiar with hand-held beam weaponry, correct?" Robinson nodded. "We have advanced laser pistols and rifles…well, they were advanced." Spock nodded back. "This weapon has a setting for stun, " he set the dial on each man's pistol, "and I would prefer not to kill the intruders." The men agreed.