The slow forward progress of the Elachi walker came to a halt, and the ship stood over Tw'eak and her away team, its great forward section tilting downwards at them like a great eye. This was something of a mismatch - the Elachi crescent-beam disruptors and torpedoes were vastly more powerful than her hand phaser. Even getting close enough with it set to overload would, at most, leave a singe mark on the outer surface. This was it - she knew it was over. To what end - to be taken captive by the Elachi? As a prisoner of war, or as a food source? Or perhaps to become one? And how did this moment square with what Spera's future self had told her was intended to happen?
A beam came forth and illuminated the space just in front of the away team. They themselves were not being targeted - perhaps the intention was to destroy the mycelial platform upon which they stood? "Ready weapons," Tw'eak ordered. "Bring it in and be ready." She could hear Bianca, Yett and Ralani as they closed in tightly towards her, a protective circle, straight out of their training.
Within moments, something began materializing - a tall, slender unit of an Elachi. Tw'eak took to one knee, alongside Yett, to give Bianca and Ralani a clearer field of fire with their rifles.
The Elachi took a step forward, his eyes ...softening? He tilted his head slightly, and raised an empty hand. "Do... not fire... We... are allies."
Tw'eak tightened her grip on the phaser. A long moment passed - perhaps just a few seconds, but the tension made it feel like an age.
"Forgive me," the Elachi continued. "It has been so long since I have used my voice."
"It's a trick," Ralani muttered.
"Identify yourself," Tw'eak said to the Elachi.
"I am - I was... Tarsev. A Romulan, once. I am Elachi now."
"Are you reverting to your previous form?" Bianca asked as the away team lowered their weapons.
"Partially," Tarsev replied. "My mind returns to the time before my change. The weapon is to blame. It corrupts some of us, drives us mad. Others, like me, become fusions... of Elachi, and what we were before."He looked in the direction of the Mo'Kai devices. "Wait. These weapons. They are not of your creation, are they?"
"No," Tw'eak said. "We're here to stop them. The weapons were fired by a renegade Klingon matriarch named J'Ula, of House Mo'Kai."
The Elachi raised a fist. "You must stop her! Close the rifts, destroy her weapons! If she continues this madness, she will utterly corrupt the realm. If that happens, it will break through into the void space - your realm - and destroy everything."
Tw'eak moved away from her team and towards the Elachi. "That's what we heard. It's why we've come. To help."
"You should return to your realm. J'Ula's attack... has angered other Elachi. They are taking a fleet to destroy anything on the other side of the rift."
"Like our ships," Ralani ventured.
"You must leave now," the jahSepp Patel added. "Go to your realm, help your people... while you can."
"We will." Tw'eak gave a smile. "Thank you for your assistance."
"It is our way," Patel replied. "The jahSepp thank you for removing the sickness. We will work with Tarsev and other Elachi who wish to stand together against J'Ula. We believe we will meet again, as friends. Goodbye."
"Farewell," Tw'eak said, turning to Tarsev. "I need to ask - do you know if any Federation personnel are being held aboard Elachi vessels?"
"I do not know," Tarsev replied, his eyes looking down. "But I know that the Elachi have taken from your people in the past."
"It's why we weren't surprised when we had to open fire on the other Elachi before." Tw'eak took a step forward, looking up into the Elachi-Romulan's eyes. "There's a friend of mine. Captain Birmal Dazz. She's a Bolian. If you can arrange for her - for all our people to come home..."
"After what you have helped us do here today, we free Elachi owe you a great debt. I will do all I can for Captain Birmal Dazz, the Bolian, and all others in our care."
The jahSepp Patel spoke up. "We will also aid those whom we can."
Tw'eak smiled appreciatively. "That's all I can ask. Thank you both." She then looked to Stamets. "How about you, Commander? Are you coming with us, or staying here?"
"Oh, I belong out there," the hologram replied, "with all of you."
"Just thought I'd ask. Your choice, after all." She tapped her commbadge. "Sh'abbas to Minerva. Five to beam up."
Tw'eak returned to the command deck of the Minerva, where Aurora and her crew were already at red alert. The ship's captain was conferring with her first officer, Tuxx, at the helm.
"But if we stay too close to the rift- Admiral." Aurora looked up as Tw'eak entered. "We could use your input here. We're trying to determine the best position to take and maintain a full-coverage defense while the rift is closed. Hofmann and Reskava are going to position themselves at either end, it's just a question of where we're best to go. If we stay right over top, we'll be vulnerable to the Elachi as they come through - but if we stay to one side or another, we risk the Elachi having a free shot at either of the two ships."
"So we pick a side." Tw'eak put her arm out on one side of the projected rift. "Then we lure them in."
"What if the Elachi don't play along?" Tuxx asked.
"We're the biggest ship out here. They'll want to take us down first."
"They will?" Aurora gasped. "You mean - of course they will. Not that we'll let them."
Tw'eak nodded. "Exactly. And your fighter wings and launches should be able to sweep over Reskava and Hofmann, to intercept any high-yield torpedoes."
The door to the command deck opened to admit Commander Bianca duBois. She took a step inside and caught the eye of the captain, her sister Aurora. "Hey, Bia."
"Hey." Bianca looked up and around. "This is quite a place you've got here."
"I thought you'd like it," Aurora said, half-hugging her sister. "You all made it back?"
"Yes, we did," Lieutenant Ralani replied from tactical, to which she had just returned. "Flight wings scrambling, Captain. Weapons systems are powered and ready."
"Tell the fighters to avoid flying over the rift," Tw'eak instructed. "Elachi ships coming through, they could find themselves at a real disadvantage - fast."
"I'll remind them to mind their defensive fire as well," Ralani added. "We don't want them hitting friendlies."
"Good idea." Tw'eak turned back to Aurora. "Wish we'd had control systems like this back on the Bonaventure. Would've made Lio'wan's job a lot easier."
"Lio'wan?" Tuxx queried.
"He was the flight deck officer," Aurora replied. "Big Caitian dude. Huge. Paws the size of watermelons. A real sweetheart."
Tw'eak nodded with a smile, remembering her old friend. "That he was. And now he's the - the acting captain." She thought briefly of Birmal Dazz, and hoped for the best. Her thoughts and hopes also quickly turned to another old friend - Octavia, now captain of the starship Warspite, and apparently wanted by Starfleet.
Ralani's console raised an alert. "Captain, we're receiving a signal from the Hofmann. They're in position."
Aurora looked to her tactical officer. "How about Reskava?"
"Not yet."
Aurora looked to Tw'eak. "I don't know if we explained - they're going to opposite ends of the rift, to get differential sensor readings. Once they're ready, we'll use a deflector modulation to close the rift."
"Any sign of the Klingons?"
"None, Admiral," Ralani advised. "I'm keeping a close eye out for them." As her console beeped with another notification, she looked down. "Reskava is ready, initiating its scans now."
"And here come the Elachi," Tuxx added.
At first, a small squadron of Elachi ships - one larger escort ship and a set of three frigates - emerged from subspace with a crackle of lightning. Then another - and another. Before long, the space over the rift was swarming with small, glowing-green Elachi ships, some of which made attack runs against Minerva before snapping back into subspace and re-appearing on her aft quarter.
"Quite a few of them," Tw'eak acknowledged.
"Counting nine - make that twelve frigates. Escorts... are targeting Reskava."
"Alpha Wing is engaging," Tuxx noted.
"Helm, take us forward," Aurora ordered. "Give them reasons to target us. Full spread of photon torpedoes, please."
"Torpedoes ready," Ralani responded. At the helm, the diminutive figure of Ensign Staunton worked her controls, and the rift grew on the viewscreen as the ship's nose angled towards it.
"Fire when ready," Aurora said. Within a split-second, the sound of torpedoes launching from the tubes could be heard, and the screen sparkled with red flashes. A few moments passed, and the torpedoes burst against their targets, the blasts scissored with phaser fire from Minerva.
"Two frigates destroyed - another three - six... six more joining the fight." The ship rocked from side to side. "The escorts - focusing on us."
On the screen, one of the escorts began targeting Minerva with its heavy disruptor cannon. Staunton tried to evade, but a crescent-shaped bolt of yellow-green energy impacted the forward shields despite her efforts. Another one lined up an equivalent shot, as did a third. The carrier's bulk worked against its ability to outmaneuver the faster attack craft the Elachi were using.
Tw'eak watched the display next to Commander Tuxx. Alpha Wing was showing signs of being overwhelmed, as was Bravo Wing defending Hofmann. She exchanged wary glances with Bianca, who hovered about in the aft quarter of the command deck, uncertain of where to go. A thought crossed her mind - the irony of it, having spent most of her life trying to avoid being here, that she should meet her end defending Andoria from a subspace invasion. She shook off the unpleasant sentiment with a huffing noise as the ship's deck bucked and thrust beneath her feet.
"Our shields are at sixty-four percent," Ralani noted. "They've got us on all sides. Targets on all phaser grids."
"Emergency power to weapons and shields," Aurora ordered. "We've got to hold on."
"Their tactic works," Tuxx mused. "Get us to call back our fighters to defend, then they use their rift-jumps to go after the other two ships before we can respond..."
The ship was hit again. Aurora looked over towards Tw'eak. "If you've got any tactical advice, Admiral, I'd love to hear it."
Tw'eak considered their options as she came to stand behind the captain's chair. "How much longer do they need?"
Bianca had found her way to a console at the back, and had a map of the rift visible. "Hofmann says another couple minutes. They're having trouble getting a clear picture."
"And Reskava?"
Bianca shook her head. "They're out there, they're just... not reporting in."
That was when Ralani chirped up unexpectedly. "Captain? We're being hailed."
"Hailed?" Aurora was confused. "By the Reskava?"
"No," the tactical officer replied. "It's - it's the Enterprise."
Tw'eak and Aurora turned towards the viewscreen, jubilant. "Put them on screen," Aurora replied.
The sight of Va'Kel Shon in his command chair was a welcome one. "Sorry I'm late," he said, smiling.
"Perfect timing," Tw'eak replied, smiling. "Glad you made it."
"I have a good reason," Shon continued. "I'll be bringing a few friends of ours from the Andorian Imperial Guard. They'd like a piece of the Elachi."
"There's more than enough of those to go around," Tw'eak said. "It'll give them a chance to be part of a story for the ages."
Shon nodded. "Absolutely. We're inbound now. Just hold them as best you can. Shon out."
The ship took another hit, knocking Tw'eak to her knees, and then... things became quieter. "Elachi ships are moving off," Ralani noted. "They're heading towards the Enterprise." Then another alarm sounded from her console. "Wait - Captain! I'm reading a huge spike from the rift. Something big is coming through."
Tw'eak looked up, as Aurora helped her to her feet. The cruciform shape of an Elachi dreadnought materialized, ominous and severe. Its metallic surfaces glinted in the rift's projected light, and its sheer mass - roughly that of the Jupiter-class carrier - made it a formidable presence.
"This is it," Tw'eak said, pointing. "Commander - order all wings to commence immediate runs against that dreadnought." She looked to Ralani. "Put everything we have into the forward shields. We hold here until those two ships are ready - but we have to hurt that thing badly enough that we keep its attention. It could carve through either of those other ships without a second thought."
Aurora inhaled sharply. "It wouldn't do the same to us?"
Tw'eak smiled. "It can try."
"Alpha and Bravo Wings are engaging," Tuxx declared. "We're launching a few extra fighters to get their numbers back to full squadron strength."
"Good plan," Aurora noted. "How about weapons?"
"Forward phaser banks are continuing to engage," Ralani replied. "Torpedoes are ...reloading for a full spread."
"Fire at will," Aurora ordered. She looked back to Bianca. "Can you take deflector control? I want to close that rift the moment we're ready."
Bianca nodded. "Can I do it from here?"
Aurora pointed out a science console further forward. "Up here."
Without a moment's hesitation, Bianca came up to the science position. Just as she reached it, an impact from the dreadnought knocked her to the ground. Tw'eak braced herself against Ralani's console as it did, then looked over. "I'm okay," Bianca said in anticipation of her concern. "Deflector control," she added, repeating what she was doing.
"Update from Hofmann," Ralani reported. "They're ready."
"How about Reskava?" Tw'eak asked.
"Nothing yet - wait." Ralani pressed a few inputs, and the sound of Captain Kuumaarke's voice could be heard on the bridge.
"This is the Reskava! We've finished our computations and are switching to defense!"
"Fire the pulse!" Aurora shouted. "Close it!"
"Firing now!"
The eerie glowing from within the rift dimmed, flickered, then dimmed again. Then the rift began to collapse. Within moments, a flash of light followed, and the rift was sealed. As it did, the Elachi dreadnought - and, indeed, all of the remaining Elachi ships - ceased firing and winked back into subspace, withdrawing from the Andoria system.
"We did it," Aurora pronounced. "Well done, everyone."
"Stand down from red alert?" Tuxx asked, as much of Tw'eak as Aurora.
"Yes, please," Aurora replied.
Ralani's console sounded again. "I have the Hofmann - and the Reskava - hailing us, Captain."
"On screen."
Beside Captain Sh'marois stood the hologram of Commander Paul Stamets. "Wow, that actually worked. I can't say I didn't have doubts at first, but... whew. well done." He raised a hand. "Not to rain on the parade here, but J'Ula's still out there. As long as she has that weapon, and the spores it needs for power, this can happen again."
"Well," Captain Kuumaarke replied, "you can count on the Lukari. We will do what we can to stop her. This isn't just a threat to our universe." Her eyes shone. "There's a brilliant, wondrous realm lying beneath our conception of space, and it's in danger as well. We can't let harm come to it from our side of the cosmos."
"Agreed," Tw'eak said quietly. "Thank you for your help, Captain." With a parting nod, Kuumaarke disconnected.
"We stopped J'Ula's attack and saved Andoria," Captain Sh'marois noted. "I'd call that a good start. That rift, though... that's something you don't see every day, even in Starfleet. And I've seen some strange things in my time."
"You can say that again," Aurora said with a laugh.
"It was good working with you all. I'll make sure Starfleet Command is updated. We'll do everything we can to bring J'Ula to justice, and put a stop to this."
"You're a credit to Starfleet, Captain."
Sh'marois smiled. "As are you, Admiral - even in retirement. I have a few members of the Guard whom we rescued that are going to be very disappointed they didn't get the chance to meet you."
Tw'eak gave a quick smirk to Aurora, who smothered a giggle. "My apologies. I'll need to be... well. I'll have my own report to make to Command, and after that, I'll... be in touch."
"Good luck out there, Admiral." Sh'marois tilted her head towards Stamets, who nodded, without breaking eye contact with Tw'eak. "We'll be in touch, I'm sure. Hofmann out."
"Well, it's been quite a day," Tw'eak heard Aurora say to her crew.
Tw'eak smiled and looked at her friends, Aurora and Bianca. They had both come so far with her as their commander. She felt an intense pride at having served with them, and fought alongside them, even if this last time had been mostly her tagging along for the ride. Still, they, too, were worthy of their uniforms and she was glad to serve alongside them this one last time.
This feeling brought up a pang of regret, and she took a deep breath before she replied. "A long day, indeed. But I'm afraid it's not quite over for us yet."
It felt as though the air had been sucked out of the room. Commander Tuxx straightened up at his post, as did Ralani. "What do you mean, Admiral?" Bianca asked her.
Tw'eak looked to Aurora. "I mean that a friend of ours is wanted for criminal activities."
"Octavia," Aurora replied.
Tw'eak nodded. "She needs our help." She gave a meaningful look of concern to Aurora. "Tell me everything."
