Sometime in the distant past

Preserver #1: "Initiation of the current experiment is a success."

Preserver #2: "Yet, the price may be too great. We need to seal the gate in order that the price does not stress the Pattern too much.

Preserver #1: "Agreed. The sealing will take some time if we are not to leave a scar in the omniverse."

Preserver #3: "It is predicted that a race will discover the gate. However, the gate will completely seal before that race could exploit the discovery fully. The price will remain low."

Preserver #2: "Barring any unforeseen events. Even our considerable prescience cannot see everything."

In the Earth year 2293

"Second star to the right and straight on till morning."

That was the last thing James T. Kirk said upon leaving Khitomer. Captain Kirk chuckled. Even though he's aging, he still has the desire for adventures. He would not like a peaceful retirement. He walked over to the communications station and glanced at Nyota Uhura. "Starfleet Command is still demanding that we return to Earth for decommissioning and retirement." Uhura smiled. It was tacitly agreed that they would ignore Command until ship's morning. A beep sounded from her console. Uhura frowned and held her communication device closer into her ear. "Captain, there's a distress signal from a civilian freighter. It doesn't say what kind of trouble, but it's calling for any starship to help the freighter." Kirk raised his eyebrows. Distress this deep in Federation territory?

Spock was already looking at his science scanner. The Vulcan turned back to face Kirk. "Captain, the civilian freighter is the Hakudo Maru carrying an archaeological team to the ruins in the Titan System. We are the only starship in this sector." Spock looked at Kirk questioningly.

One last adventure before morning! Kirk practically ran to sit in the command chair and gave his order. "Mr. Chekov, alter course to the Titan System. Maximum warp!" "Aye, aye, Keptin!"

The Enterprise dropped out of warp upon entering the Titan System. Kirk turned his chair to look at Spock. "Anything?"

"The Hakudo Maru does not appear to be there anymore. There is no debris nor is there any recent warp trail indicating either the freighter or any other vessel. It is simply not there." Kirk frowned. The distress signal had stopped repeating itself soon after the Enterprise altered course for the Titan System. Was the signal false? "Was the Hakudo Maru actually here?"

"A trap?" Chekov was leery of falling into yet more conspiracies. Spock simply looked at Chekov before answering Kirk's semi-rhetorical question. "The freighter was indeed here. There is a faint trail of a vessel leading into the system to the fifth planet before ending there. The signature of the warp trail matches those on file for the freighter." Kirk frowned in thought, staring at the starfield in the main viewer. One of the stars was particularly large and bright, its light reflected by the crescent surface of one of the outer gas giants.

"Take us into standard orbit around Titan V, Mr. Chekov." He walked over to Spock and asked, "What can you tell me about the Hakudo Maru and Titan V?" Spock's fingers danced on the science console, bringing up files for them to see. "The Hakudo Maru is one of the old updated Surak-class ships built at the T'Khut Shipyards. It served as a science and patrol ship for the Vulcan Colonies before being bought by a merchant from New Nippon. It was recently contracted to the University of Medara on Betazed and the University of Cydonia on Mars as part of a Federation program of cultural exchanges in archaeology. The ruins on the K-class planet Titan V have not been thoroughly surveyed since the system was charted by the Federation in its aggressive move to establish outposts along the Klingon border and has since been ignored. It was ideal for the scientists of both universities. Yet, the process of choosing this star system was odd."

"Odd? How?" "The director of the program claimed to have a 'hunch' about Titan V." Kirk had to smile. "Spock, hunches are common and often are right for humans."

"The director is Vulcan." "Well, now, that is odd." He gave Spock a wry smile. The Vulcan raised an eyebrow at Kirk.

Chekov called out, "Entering standard orbit around Titan V. Scanning for survivors and energy signals." Uhura shook her head in negation at Kirk. No communication signal. Spock called up sensor readings at his science station and said, "Captain, there is a human biosign on the surface. It is within the dense cluster of ruins on the edge of the north-eastern seabed, near a passive energy sign. But it is faint." Kirk grunted and called for Dr. Leonard McCoy to meet Spock, Chekov and himself at the main transporter room.

The hum of Federation transporters filled a dark stone chamber. Pillars of light briefly lit the chamber, adding to the faint sunlight streaming through the larger of the two doorways facing each other. They coalesced into humanoid forms before dissolving to reveal the Enterprise's away team. Dr. McCoy coughed in the dust. "Damn transporters. Never liked 'em. Always dropping you into surprise environments no matter what the ship sensors say." He whipped out his medical tricorder and began to wave it around himself.

Spock was likewise holding out a science tricorder to scan the chamber and beyond. "Perhaps you wish to remain on the Enterprise and endure no surprises."

McCoy snorted. "There are always surprises on the Enterprise. I mean, just look at what happened over the past few weeks! Gorkon and Romulan ale, General Chang, Valeris and so on! This is actually quite relaxing for a change!"

Kirk's look at McCoy was a good-natured admonishment. "Anything?" The medical tricorder chirped. "Yes. The biosign's deeper inside this building. Still faint. We must go." Kirk nodded and called Chekov from the larger doorway before walking through the opposite smaller doorway. Spock was the first to go through the door, but inexplicably, he stopped in his tracks. Kirk nearly bumped into his shoulder and stepped around him. As his eyes adjusted to the dimness, his mouth opened wider and wider.

The inner chamber was huge. Huge like one of the old European Gothic cathedrals. And it was filled with plinths supporting objects. The objects appear to be alien exotic artifacts. Tiny holes in the ceiling and high in the walls let in beams of sunlight to shine upon most of the objects. McCoy was staring at it all as well. "An alien museum..."

"Makes me think of the Hermitage Palace Museum back home in St. Petersburg," Chekov chimed in. "Russian museums are the best on Earth, but this takes the cake."

Spock shone his flashlight on a particular object. It was a large statue of stone and metal, inlaid with unknown gemstones. The statue had Vulcanoid male and female features, holding a rod. "T'nanna, deity of love and death revered in the Vulcan Empire of T'Kalasa before the time of Surak."

McCoy made a face of disgust. "Love and death. Lovely." The group cautiously walked down the apse of the ancient museum. Many of the artifacts were from worlds recognizable by the group, while others were utterly alien. One of the artifacts was a transparent globe that contained a golden glow. The light inside the globe took on forms that McCoy thought were from an overactive imagination. He also hoped that the eerie sounds of the globe just below the human range of hearing were from his imagination. It was too small and too transparent to have come from planet Arret. He muttered, "I wouldn't be surprised if that came from Dante's desk."

Chekov, taking point for the away team, found some modern tools at the end of the hall. "Federation tools. At least they are not part of the exhibit." Kirk nodded in agreement and peered through the open doorway in which the tools were scattered. Upon entering the darkness beyond, they finally heard a moan. The team hurried to light up the chamber with their flashlights. Kirk's eyes widened in surprise. He knew the woman lying on the floor, even if her face was on the floor hidden by her dirty blonde locks.

Kirk ran over to the woman dressed in a uniform patterned in white and violet over a pair of black pants. Getting down on one knee, he turned the woman over onto her back. Spock and Chekov raised their eyebrows. Dr. McCoy breathed, "Oh dear. More surprises. Gotta stock on Cordrazine for our hearts."

It was Dr. Gillian Taylor, formerly of 20th century San Francisco, California, Earth.