The Enemy of My Enemy
Three Weeks Later.
The crew of Intrepid was on shore leave for 30 days. Trip, his old friend JC, the rogue Section 31 operative that had taught Trip covert and deadly tactics back on Earth after his experience with the Lisyrians over three years ago, along with an alien physician and Malcolm Reed, took a cloaked shuttle pod into a remote system beyond the Gamma Quadrant.
JC had not done a lot of space travel and was a bit uneasy. But Trip needed someone to watch his back, to size up a dangerous situation in a split second and kill at the drop of a hat. He also needed someone who could keep his mouth shut.
Dr. Raqueslier was from a planet called Ventaxia. Trip had sought out the doctor after his encounter with Daniels several weeks ago. The old doctor had vital information about the aliens they were soon to visit. The doctor had kept a secret all these years, partly out of fear, partly because he felt no one would believe him. He had been waiting for many years to confront these aliens.
Trip had brought Malcolm along with him because he needed a friend with him, someone whom he knew he could trust, no matter what. Malcom had become that for him over the years. He knew Malcolm would keep his secret also. They were on a thirty day leave and T'Pol was on Vulcan. Trip was using his mental shields to block her from sensing his emotions and hearing his thoughts. She would be mad as hell when he got back, but he would just have to endure her wrath and make it up to her. This unauthorized mission was too important and too dangerous for her to be involved.
"Trip, we're getting near the coordinates," Malcom said. "How do we proceed?"
"We're gonna keep her cloaked until we're all the way into Voltarian air space and until we can sit her down in a safe place."
"There's nothing safe about what we're trying to do," Malcolm replied.
"That's what I'm here for," JC said as he checked his high powered weapon.
"The Voltarians have an amazing arsenal, super-sophisticated technology and an army that is incomparable," Dr. Raqueslier added. "But they are also most inefficient at hand to hand combat, they are not very strong. And they have limited vision, even with those large eyes. Their other senses are dull as well. This is our advantage."
"I don't intend to give 'em a chance to detect us and blow us out of the sky," Trip replied. "If we can get into their Grand Council's compound, we should be able to handle anyone we encounter on the ground. All I want is a few minutes alone with their GC."
"You don't mess around do you CT," JC said laughing. "You go straight to the top. I like that. I taught you well, didn't I?" Trip grinned at him for a moment, then turned back to the console of the shuttle craft.
"How do you know he'll go for this Trip?" Malcolm asked. "How do you know you can back these guys into a corner far enough so that they'll give you what you want?"
"Mal, with what I got on these guys, I think they'll play ball."
"I certainly hope so," Malcolm said. "I certainly hope so."
The small crew landed the shuttle craft in a wooded area on the surface of Voltaire. All armed, they trekked a mile undetected. Doctor Raqueslier followed along, a bit winded, but he was able to keep up. When JC detected guards near the compound, he immediately deployed a tear gas like substance and knocked out the first two near the gate. He and Malcolm then took a laser and cut through the fence around the compound. Upon finding an entrance, they entered and was immediately confronted by five more guards. A hand to hand battle ensued and JC, Malcolm and Trip easily rendered the startled aliens unconscious.
Upon entering the building, Trip found their main computer and started working on disabling their security system, lights and doors. It was a lot more complicated than he thought. What usually took him a few minutes to do, took more than 20 minutes. They almost aborted the mission, but being the brilliant engineer that he was and with assistance from Dr. Raqueslier, Trip was finally able to shut everything down.
They hurried along the corridor when they were confronted by two residents. JC grabbed one and Malcolm grabbed the other.
"Where's the Grand Counselor?" JC said holding a phase pistol at the Voltarian's head.
The younger looking alien started to scream uncontrollably. "Shut the hell up!" Trip shouted, "Or you won't be able to scream ever again! UT on line?" he asked. Malcolm nodded, yes.
"Forgive my young friend," the older looking alien said. "He has never seen an alien, and you are…unsightly."
"Hey wait a minute," JC said, "did he just call us ugly?"
"Who are you?" the older alien asked. "How did you get in here and what do you want?"
"I'm the one asking the questions here!" Trip growled getting right in the alien's face. The Voltarians had slimy greyish looking skin they had large heads with big eyes on either side of their faces. They reminded Trip of the aliens Enterprise had encountered their first year in space, the ones that had scanned them, and boarded the ship, only they were bigger. They had caused Enterprise to have to install phase cannons out in space. "Now I'm asking one more time, where is the Grand Counselor?"
"I-I don't know!" the young alien replied.
"Tell me another lie and my friend is gonna snap you in half like a twig!" Trip warned.
"Do not tell them," the older alien JC was holding spoke up. "The Grand Counselor's identity cannot be revealed, ever!"
"He is correct," the other alien agreed. "Go ahead…kill us! Long live the Grand Counselor!" With that JC shot the older alien in the neck with his phase pistol. The young alien was terrified.
"Why did you do that?" Dr. Raquselier said shocked. "I told you these aliens were gentle unless provoked, you need not kill to get what you want from them. Malcolm was actually taken aback as he knew there may be fatalities involved, but not so soon, not like this.
"Trip what are we doing?" Malcolm said.
"Sorry doc, Mal," but we need answers and we need 'em fast," Trip replied. "And I don't intend to coddle these guys and I don't have time for bluffin', just results. That's why JC is here, that's what he does, he get results. Now, you, Voltarian! Where. Is. The. Grand Counselor?!"
"I will take you to his residence, just please don't kill me!" the alien cried out. They then started down the corridor, the alien leading the way. JC had taken a hold of him and pressed a phase pistol against his side as they walked. They passed several guards and the alien engaged in a little small talk and kept it moving.
When they reached the floor where the Grand Counselor resided the alien began to tremble with fear.
"I-I have done what you ask, now let me go!"
"Oh hell no!" JC said. "You are gonna get us in."
"I cannot, please. I have done what you ask, please release me."
"Like the man said, you're gonna get us in," Trip snapped. "Now how do we override the codes to this door? Is it a hand print, a retinal scan? Don't make me cut that hand off or have to dig one of those big ass eyes outta your skull to get through that door!"
"All right! All right!" the alien shouted. JC then pushed him toward the door, still holding the pistol on him. The alien shot a lizard like tongue out of his mouth three times at a section of the door. The others all glanced at each other. They would have never been able to break that code, then the door slid open.
An older and thicker looking, distinguished alien, along with two females were sitting on what looked like very uncomfortable furniture. They all leaped to their feet and the women screamed.
"Radrick! What is the meaning of this!" the older alien shouted. "Who are these creatures?"
"I am sorry father," the younger alien said. "They killed my guard, they forced me to bring them here! I don't know what they want! I was terrified!"
One of the women rushed over to the young one and embraced him. "Are you alright Radrick, did they harm you?"
"No we didn't harm him!" Trip spoke, "Not yet anyway." The women gasped.
"Who are you? What do you want? And How did you find our world?!" the old man asked.
"I wanna talk to you GC, alone," Trip said. "So get rid of your little ladies here and your baby boy."
"They are my mothers," the young alien cried out. "Father, these aliens are killers, we must get help."
"Zip it," JC said. Reed, would you do the honor of making sure we're alone?"
"My pleasure," Malcolm said and began checking in the other rooms. After a few minutes, he returned.
"It's clean," Malcolm said. "Perhaps now we can get down to business."
"In there," Trip said to the women and the young man as he motioned toward the other room. "You, sit," he gestured to the GC. "What's your name?"
"I am called Akata," the old man said. "And as you already are aware, I am the Grand Counselor of Voltaire. I have been for 30 years. And to whom do I have the pleasure of addressing?"
"I am Charles Tucker, Captain of the Star Ship Intrepid. I am a human."
"I am familiar with your species," Akata said.
"I am sure you are," Dr. Raquselier replied. "It has been a long time Akata. When I heard you had ascended to Grand Counselor, I was concerned. But I have neither heard nor seen evidence of your kind since our last encounter."
"W-what! You know this guy?" JC asked incredulously.
"Yes," Raqueslier replied. We had the pleasure of crossing paths many years ago, on Earth. We came to an…understanding all those years ago."
"You mean all you had to do was just call this fellow up and tell him you were in town?" Malcolm asked. "Instead we steal a shuttle craft, break into a compound and kill a guard to get in here!"
"It's not that simple," Trip said. "We did what we had to do, otherwise, we would have never gotten in here."
"You are correct Captain Tucker," Akata said. "And as far as the guard is concerned, he died protecting my son. This was his sole function. He has fulfilled his purpose in life and we do not mourn this. He will be celebrated. But we are isolationist, primarily. Only a select few of us have ever seen an alien. We leave our planet only under extreme conditions. How did you find our world? Only the devil himself could have shown you the way. Are you the devil Captain Tucker?"
"If I need to be," Trip replied. "Now let's get down to business. Akata Jen-ciennes Viacatouri…" Trip began.
"You know my name!" Trip shot him a fake smile, then continued.
"Grand Counselor, Voltaire Alpha Catouri, you are hereby charged with crimes against humanity. Count One, the theft of human blood cells, brain matter, amniotic fluid, human embryos and experimenting on humans resulting in mental dysfunction, physical impairment and death."
"What!" JC and Malcolm shouted.
"Our people suffered a plague. We needed a certain chemical compound to develop a vaccine. We searched many galaxies and eventually found such a compound on your Earth."
"The problem is where this chemical compound was located," Dr. Raquselier interjected. "In the bodies of unsuspecting human beings."
"That's disgusting!" Malcolm said.
"I agree. TC, let me blow this bastard to kingdom come right now!' JC said.
"Hold it, just hold it a minute!" Trip interrupted. "We're not blasting him, we need him!"
"I thought you came here to capture a criminal?" JC said. "Someone who was going to have a major effect on the war!"
"I did, and he will," Trip said. "But don't kill him. He's vital to our future where this war is concerned."
"What war do you speak of," Akata asked. "Voltarians do not engage in war conflicts unless it is under extreme circumstances; only in the event our identity and our world is at risk of discovery."
"And you are at risk of both," Trip said. Akata looked at Trip very concerned. "Everybody sit down," he ordered. They all sat. "Doc Rocs and me are gonna tell you a story Akata, and when we're done, you'll understand and you'll know exactly who I am and what I'm doing here. And you will do what I need you to do."
"Gentlemen," Raqueslier started. "Thirty seven years ago I was one of the first physicians chosen for a medical exchange program on the planet Vulcan. I spent two years on Vulcan at great cost to my health. Their planet's atmosphere was not suitable for my species and I became ill in that desert waste land. My people had had first contact with a planet called Earth, but not many of us had visited there. Our systems are many, many light years away. However, a Vulcan physician sent me to Earth on belief that its atmosphere would better serve me. I went to Earth, received treatment for my lung condition and flourished there. So, I stayed.
I began working at an interspecies University hospital in a place called the Florida panhandle. It was a beautiful place. There I met many species with varying forms of diseases and ailments. We treated many with experimental drugs and equipment. We also treated humans diagnosed with incurable diseases. There was unspeakable suffering. I was devastated that I couldn't help."
"Yeah, that's right," Trip said. "But the good doc here had the best intentions. He really wanted to help people. That's where things went horribly wrong."
"I was approached by another alien physician that I was unfamiliar with. He told me of an experimental treatment that could help many of my patients. I went to my superiors and they approved the treatment with the patients' consent. The treatment worked and 39 patients survived some of the worst diseases."
"Little did those folks know they would be infected with alien genes with serious future consequences," Trip said. "They were duped."
"While the treatment worked," Raqueslier continued, "my patients nor I had any idea that the treatment gave the Voltarians access to their DNA, brain matter, even unborn children. The alien genes acted as beacons, enabling the Voltarians to remove human cells from my patients that they used to create a vaccine to cure their dying race.
"That's what brings us here," Trip finally said. "That alien doctor that so graciously assaulted my species, stole part of humanity from us, then just rode off into the sunset and never looked back; never thought about what he had done to the humans he stole from, assaulted and some, killed. It was you!"
"How have you come into this knowledge?!" Akata demanded jumping from his seat. "As I have said only a demon from the pit of hell could have told you!"
"You let me worry about how the good doctor and I know it was you and your people!"
"My people were desperate! Humans possessed something that was used for good!" Akata insisted. "Perhaps our measures were unorthodox, but in exchange we gave life and hope to many people on your world!"
"At what price?" Trip asked. "It was wrong and you knew it. That's why you lied and snuck around, perpetrating your alien gene therapy on unsuspecting, desperate people! You experimented, and stole blood, embryos, amniotic fluid, aborted babies and human cells until you perfected your little miracle drug for your people! "
"That's quite a story TC!" JC finally spoke up. "And now I know I wanna blast this guy!"
"No," Malcolm said. "I'm beginning to understand. I think I get it now, why we're really here. I think you do too," Malcolm said pointing at Akata.
"You want help with winning your war," he growled.
"That's right," Trip admitted. "You have some amazing technology I'm told. You have some serious weaponry and fire power. I want some of it! As a matter of fact, I want a lot of it!"
"You want Voltarian military technology do you?" Akata hissed. "You would never be able to wield it. Haven't you ever heard the old saying, great power corrupts greatly."
"Never stopped you from giving it away to other less honorable species," Trip said, "which brings us to criminal act number two. You've given your technology to hostile and violent species. Those who only want to conquer and annihilate others."
"We have not given away the secrets to our technology in many years. Besides, we had no idea these so called aliens were not honorable and untrustworthy. I told you we were desperate and we were hard pressed for help, from any source at that point. Being isolationists we were so very naïve when we finally had to venture from our planet for help."
"So that should help you understand my position. We're desperate. We're losing this war and I'm gonna do everything I can to make sure that doesn't happen."
"Why would I help you?"
"Because if you don't I'm going back to my world and I will expose you," Trip said. "I'll go on international TV, interspecies conferences all over the universe and I'll tell 'em what you did to my people, what you'll do to others if you want! You'll no longer be able to hide out here. Everybody will know who you are and where you are."
"You would expose us for personal vengeance?"
"It's not just because of what you did to the folks from my home town. Doc Rocs has documented other cases, hundreds, thousands, of cases where you either interfered with someone's life or he suspects that you interfered. You stole people's DNA, aborted embryos for God's sakes, you experimented on us without our consent for decades. You'll help me or your little secret society will be exposed for all the universe to see." Akata did not speak, he just sat down hard. Then the doctor cleared his throat.
"There is one other matter," he said. Everyone looked at him. "There is a space station, an automated repair station in the alpha quadrant. No one knows who built it. It was actually nearly destroyed by the human ship Enterprise some years ago. However, it has been rebuilt, repaired itself."
Akata looked down. He started to lie, but thought better of it. "That station has been of service to many, many space travelers for generations."
"Bloody hell!" Malcolm said. "Trip did you know about this! That these…aliens, the Voltarians built that thing!?"
"Not until a few weeks ago Mal, when the doc and I talked about coming here for the first time. I didn't even know he knew about that place. And that brings us to criminal act number three."
"I was appalled when Captain Tucker told me how it runs. The nature of its power source," the doctor said. "After Mr. Tucker described their experience with that place I knew instantly that it had Voltarian technology written all over it. Your species built it, you just confirmed it."
"Just one more thing we can use to expose you Mr. High and mighty GC!" Trip exclaimed. "If everyone in the universe knew that you were kidnapping people and hooking them up to your equipment, using their brain power to run your repair station, some of 'em just might come gunning for you. Some because they'd be afraid of a species that could build something like that, others because they'd want the technology. And that repair station is just one of many, right!"
"Alright, alright!" Akata said exasperated. "What exactly do you want from me?"
"I want you to build me a ship," Trip said. "I want the biggest, baddest war ship that has ever been built and I know you can do it. Your planet is overflowing with natural resources. All of you are wealthy as hell, there is no underclass here. I have the specs of the ship I want with me. I tried to get my people to build it, but they said it would cost too much, that we didn't have the resources. Meanwhile we're having our asses handed to us by the Romulans!"
"Romulans!" Akata said rising. "You are at war with Romulans?"
"You know of them?" Malcolm asked.
"Unfortunately, yes. We once had a colony on another world, many years ago. We began to colonize another inhabitable planet in the event we ever had to relocate; in the event we couldn't eradicate the plague and our planet was laid waste. We sent 20,000 of our people to settle on this new world. The ones called Romulans discovered them. They attacked the planet, tortured and killed our people hoping to learn the location of our home world. We were able to dispatch them eventually, without exposing ourselves and leading them to our world, but the price was great indeed. Two thirds of the colonist were killed and the planet was destroyed by the hostiles known as Romulans. And this was after we had given them some quite advanced technology."
"Let me guess," Malcolm said. "How to build drone ships and how to pilot them remotely."
"That would be it," Trip said. "Criminal act number four. Malcolm and I almost died on one of those friggin' ships."
"We consider the Romulans to be our enemies," Akata said.
"Well then," Trip said. "All the more reason to help us. We share a common enemy. You build me the ship I want and not only will I consider that you have paid your debt to me and my planet, but you help yourself by making sure the Romulans don't win this war. If they do, it'll be just a matter of time before they discover you and come gunning for you."
Akata thought about this for a few minutes. He asked Trip to show him the specs for the ship he wanted. He paced the floor still thinking, contemplating.
"All right Captain Tucker," he finally said. "I will direct my finest engineers to build your war ship. It will be like nothing you have ever seen. Just please, do not expose my people. Our way of life is sacred to us. I know we have interfered with others and we have made mistakes. But we do not wish to have contact with other species anymore, we want to be left alone. So, yes, we will build your ship. Then our debt to you will be repaid and afterwards we never want to see you again."
"So, how do I ensure that you'll keep your word?" Trip asked. "Do I need to take your son on a tour of the universe? Or one of your wives, maybe even you?"
"No, Captain, please. That will not be necessary."
"Trip, if we leave without insurance what's gonna stop them from blasting us out of the sky when we return?" Malcolm asked. "I have to agree CT," JC said.
"Because Akata knows that I know where his world is located and he doesn't want anybody else to know. And he knows that if he double crosses me, that I'll lead the Romulans right to him."
"Please Captain, I assure you that that will not be necessary. I have no desire to see my world engaged in a war."
"How do I know I can trust you?"
"Because Captain Tucker," Akata said, "the enemy of my enemy, is my friend."