30 Worlds: Megaforce, Episode XVIII: "Golden Voyagers"

EPILOGUE

With repairs to the Prime Timeline ships complete, members of all eight crews gathered in a bar on Starbase Yorktown for a very special presentation. Sofia walked up to William. "Prince William of Cinnabar, as High Commander of the Scarlett Army, I hereby present you with this," Sofia said, holding out towards William a small silver badge.

"It is the crest of the Scarlett Army," Sofia said. "As of this moment, you are officially a member of the Scarlett Army." "Thank you, High Commander," William said as Kelvin Kirk pinned the badge to William's tunic. "In addition, I am assigning you to replace Admiral Heihachiro Nogura as commander of the Army's space defense forces. As such, you should have a flagship that befits your status," Sofia said.

"As you'll remember, Commodore Paris had the engineers here at Starbase Yorktown refit the Ambassador, with help from our friend Q," Sofia continued. "An extensive refit such as this one demands that the Ambassador receive a new name and registry number."

Sofia opened her Mobilates. "This is Princess Sofia. You can move that workbee now," Sofia said before closing and replacing it on her belt. A workbee pulled out away from the observation port, allowing the gathered visitors to see the results of the refit.

Across the ship's hull, design elements echoing every starship that had ever borne the proud name now emblazoned on the Ambassador's hull beckoned to her crew. Tears began to fall from William's eyes as he saw the legend "DDV Enterprise SAV-1701-A" glistening in the docking port's spotlights.

Kelvin Kirk tapped William on the shoulder. "Are you all right, William?" he asked. "Yeah, I'm fine, Jim," William said as he dried his eyes.

"William, we need to get the Prime Timeline crews back to their ships," The Doctor said. "They must be sent back to their proper places and times soon."

"Right, Doctor," William said. But, before that could happen, Kelvin Kirk held up a glass of champagne. "May I propose a toast?" he said.

The eight crews held up their own glasses. "To the crew of the DDV Enterprise-A. May their deeds make them worthy of the proud name," Kelvin Kirk said.

"To the Enterprise-A!" the visitors chorused before drinking their beverages of choice. William noticed that Sofia was not drinking champagne like she normally did during formal occasions such as the re-commissioning of the DDV Enterprise-A.

That night, as "night" fell on Starbase Yorktown and the other ships had returned to their proper places and times leaving only the two Enterprise-As, William walked up to Sofia. "Sofia, I got your message. What's wrong?" William asked.

Sofia turned to William. "William, I think I might be pregnant," she said. "That's why you didn't drink champagne at the re-commissioning ceremony this afternoon," William said. But before Sofia could explain further, a fanfare sounded.

Sofia reached for and opened her Mobilates. "Princess Sofia. Go ahead," she said. "Princess, this is Dr. McCoy on the Enterprise-A...that is, my Enterprise-A. I have the results of your exam," Dr. McCoy said on Sofia's Mobilates.

"That's good, Doctor," Sofia said. "William and I are on our way." As Sofia closed her Mobilates, William looked up at her. "Who was that?" he asked. "That was Dr. McCoy. We need to get to the native Enterprise-A," Sofia said.

William led Sofia to a nearby turbolift car. "Level, please," Yorktown's computer said. "Docking Port A-113," William said. The doors slid closed.

William and Sofia walked into the Sickbay on the native Enterprise-A. Dr. McCoy looked up from his paperwork at the sounds of the doors opening and closing. "You're not really pregnant, Princess," McCoy said, gesturing for William and Sofia to sit down.

"Then, what was wrong with me?" Sofia said. "It must have been something you ate recently," McCoy said. "Food poisoning is surprisingly common, even in food from replicators."

William reached for his Mobilates. "Prince William to Enterprise. Take all food replicator systems off-line and perform a full level-1 diagnostic. Tell the galley that they'll be working overtime for the next couple of days," he said. "Yes, sir," Calhoun said. "Enterprise, out."

As William replaced his Mobilates on his belt, McCoy smiled at Sofia. "You did the right thing though, Sofia—not drinking alcohol at the ceremony earlier," he said. "Now, I know you're a little disappointed that you're not pregnant..."

"I'm not," Sofia said. "William and I really do want to start a family someday...just not right now with Xur and the A.I.C. still out there." "I see," McCoy said. "Well, I'm sure that you two will be really great parents someday."

"Thank you, Leonard," William said before shaking McCoy's hand. Sofia did the same before they both left Sickbay.

Back aboard their Enterprise-A, William took a deep breath as the turbolift taking him and Sofia to the ship's new Bridge began to slow. "William, are you feeling all right?" Sofia asked.

"Yeah," William said. "Just a little bummed about you not really being pregnant." "William, I said to Dr. McCoy that it would be best to wait for the defeat of Xur and the A.I.C.," Sofia said. "And I mean it—so much so that before we arrived here, I have been seeing Isabella in Sickbay for birth control treatments."

Sofia put a hand on William's shoulder. "Bill, I know you've been hurting ever since your adopted father died and I know that you want to have a family again," Sofia said. "But you must focus on our mission, so that our future family will be safe."

William turned and looked into his wife's eyes. "Sofia, you're right, as always," William said. "But..." Sofia said, a suggestive smile on her face.

"What?" William said. "We can practice tonight in our new quarters," Sofia said. William smiled, then drew Sofia in a tight embrace and kissed her.

The turbolift doors slid open, but William and Sofia didn't notice...until, that is, Phineas cleared his throat. William and Sofia looked at their friends and sheepishly broke their embrace. "How long were you watching?" William asked.

"Long enough," the entire Bridge crew chorused. William and Sofia stepped onto the Bridge and took their positions. "Helm, set course for Challenger Base," William said. "We need to begin searching for our next mission."

"Course laid in," Chad said. William smiled at his friends and comrades-in-arms before giving the order. "Let's see what's out there. Engage," he said.

The DDV Enterprise-A sailed into a dimensional fold...and into the future.

Space...the final frontier. These are the voyages of the United Federation of Planets. Its continuing mission: to explore strange new worlds...to seek out new life and new civilizations...to boldly go where no one has gone before...

To be continued in

30 Worlds: Megaforce, Episode XIX: "The Ashes of Destiny"