Chapter 5 – Part Two - Investigations
Two hours later ship functions were more normal, both Captain and First Officer sat at a table enjoying a replicated meat balls in rich red wine sauce.
"Are you glad to be back in command 'Stasia?"
"You bet, better that than confined in my pigpen"
Leanne smiled and leant back further on her chair. "Captain I think there is another piece of puzzle we're missing, and it's a big one"
"I agree. Tell me what do you think Dukhat's human genes, the Valen legend?"
"I think that Valen was likely a human altered to resemble a Minbari highly probable, an event which will send shockwaves through the length and breadth of their culture"
"It'd be a bit like 20th Century Earth finding out Jesus was actually an alien that had crashed on Earth and had waiting for someone to hear his distress beacon." Eyes alight with mischief, she grinned impishly.
"Yeah that'd do it," her smile matching her friend's. Since entering into space most within the Star Fleet had given up religion of any kind, only a few civilians had any such beliefs. Even faith in any kind of afterlife was long since dead, oh the irony!
"Leanne did you ever attend any of Kirk's seminars at the Academy?"
"Which ones'Stasia?"
"You know about the Preservers, or someone, exposing us to subspace anomalies and events that should never, ever have happened?"
"Weren't they based on the fact that most species have rarely encountered one, let alone the thousands we have over the centuries"
"Yep," she replied taking another mouthful of a meatball.
"Weren't they generally ridiculed for being without basis?"
"They only ridiculed Admiral Kirk to his face all the while behind his back they held a lot of weight"
"I never knew that"
"Apparently T'Bon had been told by Spock that many top brass were secretly scared shitless in the event he should be right – as he often is."
"So they ridiculed him to assay their fears?" She shook her head sadly. "So why maintain the old treaties? It's not like the Romulan or Klingon Empire exist anymore"
"Good question, one I have often wondered about unless we are not yet ready to begin that phase of our growth"
"Interesting idea. But what would constitute being ready?"
"I don't know Leanne, I really don't but I do think about it constantly"
"Maybe we'll need to understand subspace a whole lot more before we begin to make intergalactic journeys?"
"It scares me really. I wonder if we are ever really going to make it that far"
"Me too 'Stasia"
Deep within Sol's system a dozen Federation ships combed every planet for any useful data they could find. The Trailblazer was currently in orbit of Neptune, using its sensors to pick up anything anomalous, unfortunately that was somewhat akin to the old needle in the haystack approach. But they were Starfleet's orders, so Valentine sat there in the Captain's chair waiting, preying for some goods news that never came. Looks like another quiet day, tapping the arms of his chair in frustration catching an annoyed look from his First Officer.
"Sorry 'bout that Commander, I'm a bit…"
"Frustrated Sir," the Taheen Science Officer chipped in, his comments causing both to smile, glad of the distraction.
"Pretty much. Are we really expected to find something?"
"I very much doubt it, but…..wait a minute what was that?"
Ahead on their view screen was a ship shaped like a blue arrowhead which then suddenly vanished.
"Hail that ship" he ordered.
"No response sir," responded the officer at tactical.
"Damn," he cursed. "Someone, anyone please tell me where in the hell that went"
"Trying sir," said Merak, "I think they used some sort of advanced phase cloaking technology beyond anything we've ever seen before"
"Sort of makes the Voth's version primitive in comparison"
"Are you both serious?" he inquired glancing at both Merak and Korath.
It was the avian officer who answered though, "Absolutely, no rippling or phase effect they just vanished without even leaving any radiation or background emissions – it was nothing short of remarkable"
"You sound awed by them"
"I am Captain – but if they can do that above Pluto…." He left the threat hanging.
"They can do that anywhere, even bombard the Earth and be gone before we can retaliate"
Rising from his chair, stared at the blackness of space. "Who are they? Did we get any scans at all?"
"None worth a damn"
"Shit," unable to prevent the curse that escaped from his lips, unbidden, "Send a message to Starfleet to that effect. It goes from bad to worse." With that he stormed off the Bridge to his Ready Room.
The CMO of the Dominance was a Suliban by the name of Zovirax who right now was elbow deep in bodily fluids belonging to the alien arthropod that had attacked Bajor. Despite great chunks having been blown off by phaser fire, it was more or less intact. Most of the brain, central nervous system, and internal organs were somewhat singed, but otherwise intact. Placing the remains within a dual field which served as part containment and part stasis – it was designed to slow the passage of time of everything within the field.
With no particular haste as it was no longer living he continued his tests leisurely, serenely. Cataloguing everything he found, whether it was significant or not. He could always go over the data later. That was strange he thought there is something familiar about their DNA, unsettling and with a quick shake of his head ignored those feelings compartmentalising them for later. It took only an hour for the battery of tests to be complete, but he was not alone in his activities, various nurses and other assistants helped speed things up considerably.
He sighed tiredly, having been up late last night talking with both Garrick and Gaila, more than a few drinks of synthehol had been involved, at least until she had cracked open some Orion whisky - it had then things had got a bit chaotic. Tongues had wagged more than usual well except for that damn Cardassian he recalled ruefully who had sipped his drink all night - barely even finishing one glass. Both he and the CSO had imbibed half a dozen glasses. Some interesting topics of conversation had developed, idly wondering if the former Tal'Shiar operative was right, that the aliens were somehow interested in humanity – for whatever that may be, and that this [I]burning curiosity – that was the only way he could describe it[I]; but whatever significance they had was the reason millions had died, and many more would continue to die.
His display flashed again, more familiar DNA readings, but where in the hell had he seen them before? Maybe the alcohol last night had not been such a good idea? Taking a long slug of water pushed on regardless, wiping the sweat from his brow, continued to stare incessantly at the DNA readout, refusing to be beaten. It was then he realised where he'd seen it before.
"Doctor Zovirax to the Admiral Saavik – report to Sickbay immediately, I know where I've seen the alien DNA before"
"On my way"
Passing from Earth, on her way to Mars the flagship of the Star Fleet swam the void, sleek, majestic, powerful – looking for the strange, the impossible, and for the crew of the Enterprise this was very much a normal state of affairs but instead of charting the unknown reaches of space – they were searching every nook and cranny of their own backyard – their solar system. A temporary exclusion zone had been placed around Sol, no traffic in, and certainly none out – unless it bore Starfleet registry. This had been done mainly to prevent any disruptions to their sensor sweeps. Jasminder sat implacably at tactical never once taking her eyes off the console, the sole focus of her activities was watching for threats – now more than ever. Slowly, cautiously she began to run a program, one designed to scan for anything phase shifted, looking for any telltale readings. Her brow furrowed, did she just detect something? "Jaza did you just see that?"
"Like something was there and gone again?"
He turned to both crew members, "Our mystery ship again?"
"No Captain this was actually on the Moon's surface – it appeared to be some kind of city"
"Impossible, we would have noticed it sooner"
"Not if it was out of phase Captain," she began to study her readings again. "There it is again, crystal clear"
"On screen" he ordered, and sure enough right before their eyes on the dark side of the moon was one of the most beautiful alien cities he had seen in a long time.
"Sir we're receiving a transmission, from the city"
Appearing before them was a perfect hologram of a humanoid almost seven feet tall with a bald bulbous head seemed almost too big for his body. He appeared to be wearing something resembling a toga with a long cape at the back part of which was wrapped around its right arm.
"Greeting mortals! It has been over four hundred years since I last spoke with your kind"
"You know us?"
"Yes Commander Worf I do," replied the apparition, "Please come down I mean you no harm, none at all. Captain Riker it would be good to meet you!"
It dissolved leaving nothing but empty space.
"Suggestion?" Turning towards his senior looked quizzically at them.
"I say we beam down"
"I agree" affirmed the Bajoran science officer.
"Of all the people Worf you're the last person I least expected that from", he smiled, glancing around the bridge at anyone who disagreed. He took a deep breath, "They could have attacked us at any moment or chosen a time when we were weak."
"Sir, we've got a signal which I presume would be our coordinates"
Riker took one last glance around the Bridge, "Signal our action to Starfleet. Worf you stay on the Bridge," although he never got chance to finish.
"You're not going down?"
"I am. No arguments" he stated in tones that brooked no reproach. You're with me," he said pointing. Both Lieutenant Choudhury and Lieutenant Commander Najem fell in step behind their captain into the turbolift and once more into the unknown.
Within the city they were met by its sole inhabitant, who strolled languidly towards them, "Welcome to my humble abode. My name is Uatu," he said in a strangely musical and melodious voice, extending a hand in greeting.
Riker reached out, his hand looked small in comparison. "It is good to meet you. You won't mind if I ask why you are in Federation space?"
He smiled enigmatically, "Your space? I was old before dinosaurs dominated your planet. I watched the Voth survive the cataclysm by flinging their tiny ships into space"
"There is no way you're that old?" he replied sceptically.
"Actually Riker I'm far older than that. You might say that the beings you term the Preservers are my cousins, so to speak"
"Impossible – they're just a legend"
"You'd be surprised Captain," smiling once more gestured towards a much larger area not far ahead that seemed positively cavernous. "Come with me." They walked for about one hundred yards down a corridor until they reached a domed ceiling of cyclopean proportions that made most structures rather small by comparison – It stretched thousands of feet into the air, to the extent that no angled surface existed within it.
"What is this for?" inquired the Bajoran.
"You're not yet ready to find out Lieutenant Commander Najem – but you will discover these things yourself – in time." He said smiling at his own joke. "Look up," he pointed at the heavens, the Away Team watched as the domed ceiling suddenly became opaque, "What do you see?"
Jasminder looked at the terraformed planet that hung in the sky, "Why? Are you saying that is where we need to look?"
"I cannot give you the answers but I can certainly point you in the right direction – time grows short"
"For us or for you?"
"My species have taken an oath only to watch, never to interfere"
"Wouldn't you consider pointing us in the right direction interference?"
"Yes Captain Riker they would, but I will remain true to my principles, above all else. I'm sure you can understand?"
Smiling graciously, "I believe I do. Riker to Enterprise prepare to change course, full impulse. Standby to beam the Away Team home"
"We're going?"
"Indeed, we've learnt all we can here. Thank you again Uatu. I hope we will meet again?"
"We will speak again Captain of that you can be most certain. Your Federation is about to see how big this universe really is. I wish you well." He extended a hand to the Watcher, exchanging handshakes once more.
"Three to beam up, energise"
Moving adjacent to a gaseous nebula the USS Formidable dropped out of transwarp into normal warp, as it continued at a sedate five thousand times c, watching the stars go by Bateson reflected on the Shi'ar, a race they had heard many a legend about, believing them extinct, until now. Unobtrusively he observed another battle drill, timing the crew on is chronometer, hoping they would get it down to pat, mobilising to repel borders in under two minutes, quite a challenge he thought considering the size of the ship.
Something most newer recruits were missing, well those not from his era anyway, of having ships almost stuck together with superglue and duct tape, jury rigged to the hilt, things that did not work as shown in manuals. It was this type of off the wall thinking that could be cultivated, learnt to an extent – ways around the system. It was this thinking that allowed him to spot many entry or exits between decks - things less experienced officers would miss – even after being onboard three weeks.
On deck twenty there was a little service hatch which connected to a Jeffries tube, too small for him and most others, but not all races are the same size – it was small enough for a human child to navigate. All it would take is a bomb. Part of him hoped they had missed it, something the old man still had to teach – not that he had aged a day since his emergence into the 24th century, courtesy of rejuvenation and anti-agathics.
Waiting, he rubbed his beard thoughtfully.
"Well?"
His First Officer looked smug, too smug, by far.
"One minute fifty two seconds," he smiled.
"Go to internal security control and show me deck twenty, junction 25." He watched in satisfaction as the grin disappeared. "Miss something Commander?" he said pointing. "No one is guarding that Jeffries tube"
"No one can get up or down that tube it's designed plainly for the movement of the self repair nanobots"
"A child could get down it, or a Bynar, or a dozen other smaller races. Should they be willing to sacrifice their life…"
His XO got the implication immediately, "That'd take the deflector dish and probably half the ship"
"Correct. That's enough drills for today I think. But on the next ones I expect all such entry and exit points to be guarded."
He looked crestfallen at such an obvious failure. "Understood Captain"
"Don't worry about it Commander. Think it as a friendly game of chess your job is to beat the old man," watching as Vahn brightened considerably. "Good job by way, under two minutes," walking towards his Ready Room glanced back, "Lieutenant Pierce if you would join me for a moment?"
The Councillor followed obediently and once they were behind closed doors sat down on the sofa. "What can I do for you," she turned her head to the side and ran long fingers through her blonde hair so that she could re-tie her ponytail.
"What did you think of the Shi'ar?"
"Honestly?" She appeared to search for the right words, "Militant, eager to size up an opportunity, then seize it"
"Is that what you think they were doing?"
"Absolutely Captain and I might say other than the man mountain that was her bodyguard"
"Gladiator"
Nodding, "I believe me made a good accounting of ourselves. They won't be quite as eager to take advantage of a Starfleet vessel in a hurry"
"That was my assessment too. I just wanted to validate my perceptions"
"They'll be back though, without a doubt and next time in greater numbers"
"Part of me wanted you to disagree, just even a glimmer of doubt. Damn" clasping his hands behind his back turned to look out of the window. "How long do you think we have before they return?"
"Months, maybe years it's hard to tell"
"I understand," he began but never had chance to finish.
"I don't think you do. Wenever had chance to talk about this…..but some were dead set on taking our ship immediately, what made them step back and do a double-take was the assassination attempt and our being able to slow and if we had really wanted to, to stop the Royal Bodyguard."
"Making them take stock, to think twice"
"Exactly but next time it may be worse"
He swivelled the top half of his body to look her into her blue eyes, "You mean they'll have a plan, in all likelihood a multiple layered one?"
"Judging from what I could get from Lilandra, yes"
"She certainly seemed to gauge my reactions well enough, ascertain what I wanted"
"Shame it's too much to think we might have peace with them"
"I take you sent your log to Admiral Shelby detailing your thoughts and feelings?"
"Already done, what with the current situation I didn't want to take any chances"
"Sometimes Lieutenant Pierce you are wise beyond your years"
"Shame my parents never thought so"
Two hours later they were back into transwarp and within two days they would be beyond Known Space, back to their original mission, seeking out new life. Secretly while their engineers had been repairing the Shi'ar ship, they had had the opportunity to poke into the alien computer core, downloading some of their history, and it was a bloody one at that.
Having amassed a rich database cataloguing many races unknown to the Federation, ones even external to the Milky Way, some were incredibly powerful and it was this information that had required them to pass it all to Fleet Command. It did not bode well that was for sure. He strolled onto the Bridge, feeling his pulse quicken in anticipation.