Chapter 7

Desertion

Lieutenant Edwards was just doing up his uniform tunic as he exited his quarters. His shift began five minutes and he did not intend to be late. Not long ago he was contacted by Captain Picard and informed that he would be temporarily in charge of ship's security until the situation on Vesuvia was resolved and Alec returned to duty. Edwards did not enjoy getting the job under such circumstances. When Alec first came on board and was given the chief of security position, Edwards was very resentful as he was next in line. But as time went on, Edwards grew to see Alec's skill and dedication to the position. He no longer held any ill will towards Alec, only the utmost respect. And there was also nobody he would prefer not to face in combat, whether it be ship to ship or man to man.

Edwards made his way to the nearest turbolift. He stood there awaiting his transit to the bridge. Shortly after his arrival he saw someone coming hurriedly around the corner of the corridor. It was Alec, he slowed his pace when he saw Edwards.

"Commander."

"Lieutenant."

Edwards had never seen such a definitive look of determination in someone's eyes. He saw the katana on Alec's back, it was something he wasn't sure he'd ever see again. "Where are you taking that old thing?"

"Holodeck." said Alec. "Now that I have some free time on my hands I figure it's a good idea to brush up on my skills and maybe vent a little frustration."

I can't blame you. I'd probably do the same thing myself. There was an awkward silence as the turbolift doors opened and they stepped on. Nothing was quite like the feeling of standing face to face with the man that took over your job. "Commander, I just want you to know I'm not after your job, I'm just keeping it warm for you."

"I know, John. I just hope it's still here for me.

Before Edwards could ask the meaning of Alec's strange remark, the turbolift came to a stop and he stepped off into the corridor towards the holodeck.

After Alec led Edwards to believe he was really going to the holodeck he found the nearest turbolift and proceeded to his real destination: The main shuttlebay. He had hoped to avoid contact with anyone in the corridor as they could throw a wrench into his plan. He was thankful he made use of his time with Crusher's office terminal before she walked in on him.

He stepped off the turbolift and walked the short distance to the shuttlebay. The large, airtight doors opened with a loud mechanical hum instead of the normal low hiss of standard ships doors. He looked around to make sure there was nobody present. Nobody was supposed to be on duty at the moment but sometimes officers use shuttles as their pet projects. Luckily for him he was the only one in the bay.

He made his way for the shuttlecraft which was one of his own pet projects over the past few years, the Travioli, a Delta-Class shuttle. She was originally based on the Delta Flyer, a custom made shuttlecraft designed by Lieutenant Tom Paris of the U.S.S. Voyager when she was still lost in the Delta Quadrant. When Voyager reestablished contact with the Alpha Quadrant, the plans were studied and a few alterations were made, mainly the removal of its Borg weapons in favor of more conventional ones, and the replacement of Lieutenant Paris' 'Captain Proton' instruments with standard touch screen panels.

Every ship in Starfleet soon had a Delta-Class shuttle on board along with its standard compliment of shuttles. Alec had been impressed with the craft's versatility and wanted to put his own personal stamp on it as he had the defense systems of the Enterprise. He managed to enhance the shield strength along with the range and strength of her phasers. There were two modifications he was particularly proud of. Along with the help of James, Data, and La Forge he had applied a plate of ablative armor to the hull of the Travioli. He also equipped her with a small supply of quantum torpedoes. He didn't want to ever go up against any Romulan Warbirds in her but he intended to show any adversary that chose to pick a fight that this little ship had teeth.

This would be the first time Alec had ever used the Travioli for such a purpose. He had hoped to have James with him for something like this, but at the same time he didn't want to drag anyone down with him. This was something that the had to do alone.

The act he put on for Edwards cost him time, he would have to hurry if he were to be off the ship before the modifications he made to the internal sensors wore off. He stepped up onto the hull of the Travioli and opened the port hatch. The size of the empty cockpit was still surprisingly spacious to him. The interior of the shuttle consisted of a small lab, a living area, and a small storage area containing pressure suits, spare equipment, phaser rifles and anything that might be necessary for a short term mission.

Alec walked towards the front of the cockpit and placed his katana on the tactical console on his right before going down the inclined walkway to the helm. Before he took off he wanted to do a full systems check.

Guilt tore at his conscience. He was already breaking his promise to Rene. When he saw her again, if he saw her again, she might not forgive him. There was a chance he was in over his head and would never track down those responsible. But he had to try. As foolish as it may seem to others, he would rather go out fighting than be put away for a crime that he had been manipulated into. Although he felt he was justified in his actions, his superiors would need convincing if he was ever going to resume his career, which looked shaky as it was. He did not want to come back empty handed.

The diagnostic was complete. All systems checked out. In a few minutes he would be on his way to see some old friends for help.

Edwards was not impressed with the tactical display. Two starships had warped into the system, one B'rel-Class Klingon Bird Of Prey, and one Nausicaan combat raider. He grit his teeth. They were here to vie for Alec's head. And that made them enemies even if they hadn't fired a single shot at the Enterprise. Part of him was tempted to take potshots at them, but his inner Starfleet officer stopped him from doing so.

Picard was curious about the ships themselves. To be used by bounty hunters he imagined they would have been refit and upgraded. "Tactical analysis on the two ships, Lieutenant."

"Aye, sir. Just one moment." Edwards ran a quick sensor scan of the two ships. The Klingon ship was the more powerful in regards of weapons and shields. "The Bird of Prey is equipped with not just the twin mounted disruptor cannons but several disruptor emitters around her hull. She has about as much firepower as a Vor'Cha-Class attack cruiser, Captain."

"That's a hell of a lot of firepower for a ship that size." said Riker. A Vot'Cha-Class vessel was the Klingon's answer to a Galaxy-Class starship, which up until the Soveriegn-Class was the big gun of Starfleet.

Data was reading his own sensor results, although he instead ran a sweep on her propulsion systems. "Captain, based on these readings, I believe this Bird Of Prey has had significant upgrades to her engines."

"That's not surprising considering the defensive systems."

Riker leaned forward. "What kind of upgrades are we looking at, Mr. Data."

"Her impulse speed has been increased by 50. And according to the readings I am getting from her warp drive, I estimate her top speed to be in the vicinity of warp 9.9."

Riker's head snapped towards Picard. "That's faster than a Galaxy-Class starship."

Picard found it easy to reason that the Klingon bounty hunter was no amateur. To afford the kinds of upgrades the ship possessed required a bounty hunter in the top of his game. And there was still the Nausicaans. "Mr. Edwards, what about the other ship?"

Edwards was still thinking about the Bird Of Prey. Although it was no match for the Enterprise, any ship that went up against it without performing a detailed scan might be caught of guard enough to have some serious damage dealt to them. The Klingon ship might have been the more powerful ship but the Nausicaans had a wider array of upgrades. "Captain, the Nausicaan ship has a tritanium enforced hull. Regenerative shielding. Plas-"

Riker raised an eyebrow in surprise. "That's Federation technology."

"Yes, sir. They must have scavenged their technology from the wrecks of the war."

McClary scowled. "Graverobbing vultures." she said under her breath.

Edwards continued. "I'm also detecting high concentrations of trilithium isotopes."

"Plasma torpedoes." grumbled Riker.

"Yes, Commander. Looks like they got their hands on some Romulan ships too. Wait a minute... Commander Data, sir. Can you verify these readings for me?"

Data waited momentarily while Edwards transferred his sensor information to the ops station. When it appeared in his screen he performed his analysis. "Sensor readings verified. There are chronitons present."

"They've got a cloaking device." said McClary. "Looks like Commander Wilson has the best of the best after him."

"It would appear so, Lieutenant." Picard turned to Troi, who looked puzzled. "Are you alright, Counselor?"

"It's not me, sir." said Troi. "It's Alec. What I'm sensing isn't typical of officers that have just been relieved of duty. Instead of sadness and regret, I'm sensing determination, hatred and... if I had to choose a word to describe it, I'd say wrath." Her eyes focused in a moment of crystal clarity. "I think he's up to something, Captain."

"I should have known he wouldn't leave this along." said Riker. "In fact, I wouldn't expect anything less. Bridge to Commander Wilson." Nobody answered him. "Commander Wilson, please respond." Again Riker was met by silence. "Computer, locate Lieutenant Commander Wilson."

"Commander Wilson is in his quarters."

Edwards' head snapped up from his console. "I ran into him in the corridor. We shared a turbolift. He was on his way to holodeck 2."

"Bridge to holodeck 2. This is Captain Picard."

"Holodeck 2 here, Captain." A female voice answered, a touch of anxiety inflected her tone.

"Is Commander Wilson there with you on the holodeck?"

"No, sir." Confusion replaced the anxiety.

"What the hell?" exclaimed Riker.

"It appears you were correct, Counselor." said Picard. "Lieutenant Edwards, take a security team. Go to his quarters."

Alec was still a little behind schedule but he was making good time. As long as he was on board the ship and remained undetected by the internal sensors he could work unhindered. But as soon as the Travioli left the shuttlebay he would be vulnerable. He had managed to deactivate the Enterprise tractor beam and was currently working on a way to cover his escape to warp. Maybe I should have taken the offer to join Section 31, this is kinda fun.

In a few minutes he'd be ready to leave. He'd be leaving behind his wife, his friends, and his career. He just hoped it was worth it.

"Edwards to bridge."

"Go ahead, Lieutenant." said Picard.

"Commander Wilson isn't here, sir."

"Acknowledged, Lieutenant. Picard out." He had no intention of letting one of his officers do anything foolish or dangerous. "Picard to all hands. If anyone spots Lieutenant Commander Wilson, contact security immediately. He has been relieved of duty and is acting on his own initiative. Do not, I repeat, do not attempt to apprehend him yourself. Picard out." He had an idea, he was hoping that his shipwide announcement would cause Alec to do something that would reveal his position. It was a long shot as Alec was not one that often made mistakes. "Suggestions on where to start looking."

"He won't be beaming down to Vesuvia." said Riker. "Even Alec wouldn't be that reckless. It's a death trap for him down there." The answer hit Riker like a ton of bricks. He couldn't believe he hadn't thought of it sooner. "The main shuttlebay!"

"The Travioli." said Picard, catching on.

"He just finished work on it last week. It makes sense that he would want to take it and track down whoever he thinks did this."

"Picard to Edwards, proceed to main shuttlebay."

Riker exhaled loudly. "Let's just hope we can stop him before he does something foolish."

They're on to me. Alec would have to leave before he finished working on his distraction. I can finish it on the fly. It's almost done. There was one more thing he would have to do before taking off. He'd have to disembark the and climb the ladder up to the control room to open the shuttlebay doors. He stuck his head out the side hatch to check the bay for any unwanted visitors. When he was satisfied there were none he stepped down from the craft and headed for the ladder. Upon reaching the top, he turned to his left and crossed the threshold of the control room.

Much to his surprise there was someone in the control room waiting for him. Someone who had not been in there before but had arrived in the last few minutes via the secondary turbolift along the rear wall. He knew this person had not been there the whole time because he had seen him on his way to the bridge a short while ago. Edwards was standing by the control console, a phaser in his hand. Alec thought it was rather smart of him actually. Edwards knew that Alec would have to go in there to open the doors so he cut him off at the pass. He'd have to make a point not to underestimate Edwards again.

"Commander."

"Lieutenant." Alec sized up his apparent opponent. He did not want to fight Edwards but he would if he had to. He kept his eyes on the phaser in Edwards' hand. "Captain Picard send you to stop me?"

Edwards nodded. "Nice job with the internal sensors. You threw us off."

"I would have been out of here by now if I hadn't bumped into you at the turbolift."

"Maybe fate wanted us to cross paths again so we could do this."

Alec took a small step forward, glancing down at Edwards' phaser before meeting his eyes again. "I don't believe in fate."

Edwards stepped forward as well, his hand never moved. "Neither do I. I just wanted something poignant to say and that was the best I could come up with."

A smile made its way across Alec's face as he took another step. He gestured with his head towards Edwards' phaser. "You planning on using that?"

Edwards raised his hand and glanced down at the weapon. He and Alec were only about a foot apart. "Not really. I just wanted to make it look like I actually intended on stopping you."

"Pretty sly."

"I like to cover my bases whenever possible. We're rooting for you, Alec. Might not say it out loud, but we are. Find these bastards."

"Thank you, that means a lot."

"Just don't bruise my face too much. I have a date tonight."

Alec clenched his fist. "I'll do my best." His fist connected with Edwards' jaw and he was on the floor, unconscious before he was down. A trickle of blood dripped out of his mouth. "Sorry, John. Had to make it look good."

He had only one thing left to do to get off the ship, open the shuttlebay door. The control panel on his left would give him access to the system. He was just accessing the controls when the panel went black.

"Captain Picard to Commander Wilson. We have locked out the controls to the shuttlebay. Turn yourself in."

For a split second, and only a split second, did he consider adhering to Captain Picard's warning. He had an idea, and if all went well, he wouldn't have to force his way out, they'd simply let him go. They had denied him access to the bay doors, but they had understandably left the other screens active. There was only one thing he had his mind on, the fire suppression system. After accessing another system, he exited the control room and sealed the door. Moving quickly back to the ladder he slid down the handles to the bay.

The shuttlecraft Kirk was the nearest to him. Alongside it was a storage cabinet. He grabbed a fuel transfer hose and a small container used for spare deuterium. He connected one end to the shuttle's fuel port and the other to the container. He would only transfer a small quantity because he didn't want the explosion to be too big. Once he thought there was an appropriate amount he shut off the transfer. After he moved the container away from the shuttle he climbed back to the side hatch of the Travioli. Underneath the tactical console was a small compartment that held a type II phaser. He changed the setting from level 1 to level 6, took aim and fired. The loudness of the explosion had been expected, but he had underestimated the shockwave. It threw him backwards onto the floor. He quickly brushed it off and got to his feet, closing the hatch before hurrying to the helm.

"Captain," said Riker, temporarily manning the tactical station. "There's a fire in the main shuttlebay."

"What kind of fire?" asked Picard, annoyance gathered with each word.

"Deuterium. Alec must have used fuel from one of the shuttles."

"Why would he do that?" asked McClary. Her appetite for excitement was being satiated.

Data had the answer. "Captain, the fire suppression system in the main shuttlebay is not functioning. It cannot be extinguished."

"Oh yes it can." grumbled Picard. He had not anticipated this course of action from Alec. First he deactivates the fire suppression system. Then he starts a fire, leaving them only way to prevent its spread. To put out the fire they'd have to open the shuttlebay doors, completely venting the atmosphere in one swift stroke.

"I always wondered what it would be like if it was ever us against him." said Riker.

"Open the door, Mr. Data." said Picard. There was no tone of amusement in his voice. He was angry, and he made no effort to hide it. "Number One, when he's clear, bring him in with a tractor beam."

The door began to go up. Alec laughed to himself as he powered up the engines and the shuttle hovered above the floor, held there by the thrusters. Normally, thrusters were used to pilot a shuttle out of the bay and away from the ship at which point the impulse engines were used. But this was not a normal situation. He held his hand steady over the engine controls. He intended to fly the shuttle out of the bay at full impulse. It was something he had never tried before but he needed every second he could get and hopefully the maneuver would catch them off guard.

The door had fully raised and the blue glow that lined the archway went dark, meaning the forcefield was off. Acting on reflex, before he even knew he had done it, the Travioli was out of the shuttlebay and flying out into space.

"On screen." said Picard. The Travioli appeared on the viewscreen. In between the warp nacelles, the ship was speeding away at high impulse. "Number One."

Riker, still at tactical, accessed the tractor beam system. But as he should have expected, it was not functioning. When he thought about it, he would have been more surprised if Alec hadn't deactivated it. "Tractor beam is off-line, Captain."

Picard sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Suggestions."

"Catch up to him and take out his engines." said Riker. "Phasers are still online. He must not have had time."

"Lieutenant, bring us about. Transfer auxiliary power to the impulse engines. I want to catch him before he goes to warp. Number One, target his impulse engines. But first, open a channel. Let's see if we can stop this."

"Channel open, sir."

It was Picard's hope that Alec had grown less stubborn since his experience with the Borg, but he wasn't counting on it. "Enterprise to Commander Wilson. Power down your engines."

Nobody expected him to respond, and they were surprised when he did. "I'm sorry, Captain. I can't do that."

"Damnit, Alec!" said Riker. "Don't throw away your career like this."

"Sorry, Will. My job comes before my career."

"Commander-"

"It's no use, Captain. He cut off communications."

Picard's gut was starting to wrench. He did not want it to come to this. "Time to intercept?"

"Forty-five seconds, sir."

Picard accepted what he had to do, but he did not like it. The order must be given. "Number One, open fire as soon as we're in weapons range."

Riker reluctantly acknowledged. Keeping his eyes on the tactical sensors he noticed two more ships enter the vicinity of the Enterprise and the Travioli. One bad situation had been traded for another. "Captain, those bounty hunters must have been monitoring our communications, because they're on an intercept course with Alec."

His workspace in the torpedo room was cramped, but Alec was determined to finish work on the diversion which would allow him to warp out of the system without anyone tracking him. It only required a few more touches before it was done. If he had not run into Edwards in the corridor he probably wouldn't have had to do it on the run like he currently was.

As strange as it seemed, he drew a sense of excitement and satisfaction from getting as far as he had. Taking pride in one's abilities and accomplishment's was so very human.

"Enterprise will be in weapon's range in thirty seconds."

"Computer, red alert. Begin evasive maneuvers as soon as they lock on." As soon as the computer beeped in acknowledgment. Alec was thrown off his feet by a weapons hit. The Enterprise was too far away to open fire, so it must have been one of the other two ships he detected. "Computer, what was the source of that weapons fire?"

"A B'rel-Class Bird of Prey."

Those two ships must be the bounty hunters. He did not expect to deal with them so soon. The last thing he needed was someone else getting in his way. "What about the other ship?"

"The Nausicaan combat raider is closing. Estimated time to weapons range: twenty seconds."

"And the Enterprise?"

"Ten seconds."

He put the finishing touches on his project and left the torpedo room for the cockpit. He placed his hands on the walls a few times to maintain his balance under the weapons fire. It was still just the Bird Of Prey that was attacking him otherwise the gyrations would have been greater. Once he was in the cockpit he headed straight for the helm. "Computer, shield status."

"Shields are at 68"

"You guys are hurting my girl. I can't have that."

The Bird Of Prey was dead center in the viewport and getting closer by the second. Green disruptor blasts continued to be absorbed by the shields. He'd much prefer to be sitting at the tactical station but he'd rather not turn pilot control over to the computer. His options were limited. He was practically surrounded by people that wanted to get their hands on him, and two of them had less than friendly intentions. His next move was clear. Immediately he brought the ship about and headed for the Enterprise which was directly aft of the Travioli. Alec would bet his life that the Enterprise would not open fire. They would not risk disabling him and leaving him vulnerable, allowing the bounty hunters to swoop in.

The view of the Enterprise from a head on angle took his breath away. With her sleek, contoured design, the Soveriegn-Class starship was a sight to behold. At almost seven hundred meters - which made her the longest ship in service - her size alone was intimidating. When it came to a Starfleet ship, size usually came hand in hand with power, as did the name Enterprise, and the current incarnation was no exception. Her elliptical saucer section - or primary hull - housed nine of the ship's type XII phaser banks, and her main torpedo launcher was centered in the ventral section of the saucer, directly opposite the bridge.

As he passed under the ship he glanced at the drive section of the colossal interstellar craft. Directly at the base of the drive section - or secondary hull - underneath the circular main deflector dish were two more torpedo launchers. Opposite those two directly aft and underneath the second shuttlebay were two more launcher, and in between was a ventral phaser bank. The sixth launcher was centered in the dorsal section of the secondary hull.

The ship's massive warp nacelles sat atop rear projected diagonally angled pylons with a phaser bank on the outer side of each pylon. The nacelles glowed blue from back to front and glowed red at the front where the Bussard ramscoops collected interstellar dust particles to refuel the deuterium tanks, which powered the twin impulse engines in the aft section of the saucer.

His other assumption also proved correct, that the Klingons would not be stupid enough to open fire on the Enterprise. He did not expect them to cloak however. The only ships left on his sensors were the Enterprise and the Nausicaan raider.

"I'm tired of being shot at. Computer, load the modified torpedo in the aft bay. Let's see how you all like this."

They had been watching everything on the viewscreen. The Bird Of Prey had been unleashing steady weapons fire on the comparatively small shuttle and not taken a single return hit. One suggestion was that Alec was hurt and unable to respond but that was disproven when the shuttle came about and flew right at them. At first they thought that maybe he decided to turn himself in, but they then realized he was just using them for cover. The Bird Of Prey cloaked as soon as the Enterprise locked weapons.

"Ensign, reestablish pursuit. Number One, if that Nausicaan ship so much as powers it's weapons I want you to open fire."

"Aye, sir."

The Travioli was centered in the viewscreen and grew larger as the Enterprise closed the gap. The Nausicaan ship was just to port, she had not opened fire. Riker did not want to open fire on his friend but he was being left little choice. He sympathized with Alec, he would probably do the same thing, but he couldn't let his friend pursue such a reckless venture.

They were about to enter weapons range when his tactical sensors registered a torpedo launch from the Travioli. Shocked, Riker looked up at the viewscreen. The torpedo was acting very strangely. It was not red like a photon, nor cyan like a quantum, but almost bright yellow. It's behaviour got even stranger when it moved slower, and slower, until it just seemed to hang there in space.

And in the next unexpected moment, the small, almost sunlike point of light expanded in all directions like a star gone supernova. The extreme brightness not only caused everyone to cover their eyes in response, but it also shorted out the viewscreen, reducing the clear image of space outside to a jumbled, grey static distortion.

"What was that?" asked McClary, still seeing spots.

"All stop." said Picard, his eyes still closed. "Damage report."

"The ship has suffered no damage." said Data. "It appears to have been a polyluminous burst, also commonly known as a 'warp flare.' However I have never seen one used to that effect." He checked his sensors, they were not functioning. "Captain, I ascertain it was designed to temporarily disable our sensors. I cannot get any readings at this moment."

"Tactical sensors are off-line too." said Riker.

"I shall have to have a word with Commander Wilson the next time I see him."

"Captain," said Data. "Sensors are slowly coming back online. I am getting some readings. The Klingon Bird Of Prey is directly above us. It appears the burst overloaded their cloaking device. The Nausicaan ship is still to port. I cannot locate the Travioli, sir."

"That's what the warp flare was for." said Riker. "He wanted to disable our sensors so we couldn't track him when he went to warp."

"That is the most likely assumption, Commander." said Data.

"He could be going anywhere." said a bewildered McClary. She lowered the ship on its y-axis, just in case the Klingons didn't have their sensors back online yet.

"Captain," said Edwards. "Before sensors went offline, they detected something that I can't explain."

"What is it, Lieutenant?"

"There were two lifesigns on board the Travioli."

The stars were flying by. Alec checked the sensors to confirm that he was not being followed. He had not expected there to be ships other than the Enterprise present when he used his decoy. It was fortunate his polyluminous burst had the same effect on them as it did the Enterprise.

He was really in it now, past the point of no return. Everything that he did from this point on must be done without error or the only thing he could look forward to seeing for the next few years was the inside of a holding cell. Penal colonies were not exactly fun filled institutions, that was something he learned from Lieutenant Tom Paris.

Alec leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes. It had been a very long day. He needed rest if he was going to approach this with a sharp mind. He reduced the light in the cockpit, and spoke to his friends on the Enterprise, even though they couldn't hear him. "Please tell Rene, that I'm sorry."

"Why don't you tell her yourself?" asked a familiar voice behind him.

Oh, hell.