This writer does not own Star Trek or any of its affiliates. He only owns his own story line and ideas

Chapter Five

Attack on Omega 4

Ambassadors Spock and Picard walked slowly as they talked about the session of the day when Picard said "I really don't like the way things ended here! I realize that a mandate has been given not to attack the Omegans, but I feel uneasy and I don't know why."

Spock said "I understand your feelings on the matter for I, too, am uneasy about this. I didn't realize so many prominent Starfleet Officers were unopposed to taking up arms against these people. Picard, I saw them at their worst and believe me you can kill them by the thousands and they will keep coming. They seem to have no fear in them, and I am concerned that the Federation will get involved in a war that could destroy it. If these people ever did weaponize their virus, like the Romulans did, they could wipe out anything that got in their way. No…I think the best way would be to let these people remain peaceful."

At that moment Spock and Picard saw people running towards the operations room of Starfleet headquarters and they hurriedly followed. When they got in they could hear what the commotion was all about. They heard traffic from several starships:

"Zhukov, this is the Sentinel, get around behind that big carrier in the lead and see if you can take out its engines."

"Sentinel, this is the Zhukov their shields are too powerful on it" then the traffic from the Zhukov stopped."

"Sentinel to Zhukov…do you copy? Sentinel to Zhukov…do you copy?"

"Valley Forge to Sentinel the Zhukov was destroyed, we have taken several hits. Their cobalt tipped shells are destroying our shields."

Spock looked at Picard and mouthed "Cobalt tipped shells?" Picard rolled his eyes, and hung his head.

"Sentinel to fleet scatter and regroup back in the alpha quadrant."

Then the operations officer pushed the mic key and said "Starfleet command to the USS Sentinel…come in. Starfleet command to the USS Sentinel come in." Then the Sentinel answered "Sentinel to ,Starfleet we read you." "Sentinel where are you and what is your mission?" the operations officer inquired. "Starfleet, I'll apprise the admiral when and if we return, right now we have an enemy ship on our si…" and the communication was lost.

The operations officer looked at his superior and said "I don't know sir, I don't know where they could be or what could have happened to them." The commander said "the minute you reconnect with them, you get back with me" and left the room.

2 Hours Earlier

It was a beautiful day of sunshine, the temperature was a perfect 72 degrees in Washington DC and Stephanie McDaniel had just walked in from school. She looked at her mother and asked "Any news from dad?"

"Nope, sorry kiddo…nadda, I wish there was because frankly I miss him too" Mary said.

Stephanie said, "You know I am going to be a captain in the Navy when I grow up. Who knows maybe I'll get the Hancock!"

They both chuckled and Mary said "Oh…you don't usually get a carrier right off the bat; you usually have to start with something smaller like a destroyer or an ATS. And besides that by that time the Hancock will be obsolete, ready for the scrap heap."

"Huh uh..." Stephanie said "Hanna will never get the scrap heap."

"I don't know…" Mary said "I did some research and in the year 1976 the Navy scrapped the aircraft carrier Hancock."

"Yeah, but Mom, that ship was built in 1945 and it went through three wars, the end of World War 2, the Korean War, and the Viet-Nam War and in those years it sailed through the oceans and seas. That's hard on a ship, but our Hanna doesn't have to sail through oceans and seas, it just travels through space, and it has shields—soooo…it will never see the scrap heap" Stephanie said with a smile on her face.

Mary looked at her and decided that she wasn't going to win this argument, so she said "Alright, but as for right now you are still my little girl, so I want your homework done before dinner." And with that Stephanie happily skipped away to her room.

Above the Earth in the Earth's Defense Force Station Control Room.

Ensign Delmar George sat looking out into deep space wondering if he was ever going to do anything exciting. All he ever did was to sit here at his console opening the defense shield for ships as they come in. He was off duty the morning the Borg attacked, so he didn't get to be part of the action. "Just my miserable luck!" he thought as he looked at the clock on the console. It said "1630 Hrs," which means that he only had another hour and a half of this boredom.

Suddenly it seemed as though lighting struck and George found himself facing five ships, unlike anything he had ever seen: "Exciting enough for you Delmar?" he asked himself. "Who are these guys?"

"This is the Earth Defense Force Station, uh….uh, identify yourselves and state…and state your…your" he was breathing very heavy, but he continued "and state your business here. What can I do for you?" There was no answer from any of the ships.

George found the frequency of Command Task Force and sent the following message: "EDF to CTF five ships of unknown origin have entered our space and are facing the gate at this time. Need immediate instruction and assistance."

Command Task Force San Francisco, California.

Petty Officer 2nd Class radioman Cicile Colman took a sip of her hot tea when the call came in from Earth's Defense Force: "EDF to CTF five ships of unknown origin have entered our space and are facing the gate at this time. Need immediate instruction and assistance."

"Lt" Colman cried out. "What!" Lt. Waller retorted. He was tired of Coleman always getting too excited over nothing. "What do you want?" he asked.

"Lt, EDF sent us an urgent message sir" then she replayed the message. Waller listened to the message and looked at the scopes. He then keyed the mic and said "CTF to EDF come in!" There was nothing but silence. He tried several times, but all he got in return was silence. Waller said "Well…ignore it, it's probably nothing" when his sentence was cut short by the deafening sound of an explosion nearby.

On the Bridge of the Sentinel

The communication's officer turned to the Captain and said "Sir, we are picking up a message from the station. They are asking who we are and what our intentions are."

Captain Harrigan turned to his communication's officer and said "Instruct the Zhukov to head towards the gate." As the communication's officer gave the Zhukov the instructions Harrigan turned to the weapon's officer, Ens. Georgina Rollins, and ordered: "Lock torpedoes on that station."

Rollins couldn't believe her ears! Did he just give her an order that would possibly kill an innocent? She turned and said "Sir?"

Harrigan glared at her "Do you have hearing problems Ensign?"

"No sir, but isn't this in violation of General Order One?" Rollins asked.

"Ensign, we are working under General Order Twenty Four which authorizes us to destroy all life on an entire planet" Harrigan told her. "Now, lock torpedoes on target."

"Sir Starfleet Directive 010 says: 'Before engaging alien species in battle, any and all attempts to make first contact and achieve nonmilitary resolution must be made,' and we have not made any attempt to make first contact with them" Rollins countered.

"Ensign" Harrigan stood up pulling a phaser from his belt "I grow tired of this debate, so let's pretend that I am the Captain, and you are the Ensign. Now lock torpedoes on target."

Rollins looked at the face staring at her in the monitor from the station; the face of a very scared Ensign and she thought "What's the worst he could do to her if she refused? The worst he could do is the court-martial and she had Starfleet Regulations on her side." She grasped for breath and turned and said "No Sir, this is wrong and you know it!"

Harrigan was tired of this, he walked to the weapon's platform and pointed his phaser at the young ensign and ordered in a loud and firm voice "LOCK TORPEDOES ON TARGET, NOW."

Rollins' hand moved to the locking selection key and pressed it. She watched as the locking mechanism zeroed in on the control station, and when it was finished she sat there frozen. Harrigan ordered "Fire."

Rollins sat there with tears in her eyes as she looked at the young Ensign in the control station doing everything possible to get help, and she finally said "No Sir, this is wrong, it murder and you know it. This isn't our mission, and I won't do it."

Harrigan placed the phaser against her head and said "Fire, or die."

"Then I'll die, sir. I won't commit murder" she said.

Harrigan grabbed her right hand with the phaser still against her head and placed her right hand on the fire plunger, and said "FIRE."

Again, Rollins refused to fire the torpedoes. Harrigan placed his hand on top of her's and pushed down as Rollins tried to get her hand free the plunger went down and the torpedoes were fired. She watched as the quantum torpedoes tore through the shield and the control station killing the young Ensign.

Rollins felt very sick and she started throwing up on herself. Harrigan looked at her and yelled "YOU ANIMAL, YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO THE UNIFORM. YOU ARE RELIEVED OF DUTY. GET OFF MY BRIDGE." He then instructed security to escort her to her quarters and confine her there.

Rollins sat in her quarters after cleaning herself up throughout the duration of the attack and then she felt the Sentinel get underway. They hadn't been gone more than a few minutes when she felt the ship shudder from weapons fire. After a brief, but furious, fire fight she felt the ship drop out of warp. She heard on the com that they were about to be boarded. She sat down on her bed and waited for the enemy to come and do to her what she had done to that poor man locked in that control room. After all it is what she deserved, as far as she was concerned.