Naruto: Infinity Divide

Battle in the Snow

Blanket Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Star Trek

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

This chapter we go to the South Pole of Atra. Enjoy!

Port = Left

Starboard = Right

[ ] Signifies a foreign language

~ ~ Signifies singing

Last time:

Planet Atra, Imperial Palace, Empress Rosoni's private chambers

Empress Rosoni was an ageing but very powerful Monarch who had guided the people of Atra for many decades. She was in her private chambers and took a walk through a hidden stairway to a bluish crystal room to speak alone…

She kneeled in a praying position and sang in a powerful, operatic voice, "~Oh Guardian of our people, I ask that you come forth! Your humble servant seeks your great wisdom for the entirety of Atra.~"

An image materialized of a humanoid woman wearing long blue robes that hid all of her features. She spoke in a tuneless, commanding voice. "What is it you seek of me Rosoni? It is not with your usual time or manner of prayer that you summon me this time."

Empress Rosoni remained kneeling and sang, "~Forgive me oh Guardian; the matter is urgent and I had to make the greatest of haste.~"

The Guardian pondered a moment and said, "Speak."

"~An outside force known as the United Federation of Planets has arrived as you said they would one day oh Guardian. They have done us a great service and by custom should be welcomed by our people in return but I do not trust their motives.~"

"So, the Federation has returned after one hundred years…interesting…" said the Guardian.

The Empress sang, "~I fear for my people oh Guardian; how shall I guide them through this crises?~"

The Guardian said with a smile in her voice, "You shall welcome them with open arms Rosoni. One of my heralds has spoken to me and claims an heir to Rzom is aboard their ship." Empress Rosoni gasped, and the Guardian said, "Do not let this be known. I wish to see how this heir reveals himself to me. It should be…very interesting indeed."

"~I shall do as you say oh Guardian.~" sang Rosoni. "~Your humble servant is once again in your debt for imparting your great wisdom.~"

"I will be watching." said the Guardian as she vanished.

Rosoni came out of her private chambers and addressed her council of ten advisors. She sang in a commanding tone, "~I have come to a decision. Inform Admiral Muiruan that the Federation ship is welcome here at Atra.~"

"~Thy will be done.~" sang the advisors as a choir…

…

Chapter 45

...

Stardate 2274.314, Epimetheus III System, NCC-1728 U.S.S. Gettysburg

The U.S.S. Gettysburg and her Atraen escorts were travelling at a stately speed of .75 the speed of light which was a high cruising speed for the Atraen fleet. In other words, the Federation cruiser was travelling at three-quarter impulse power. It had taken four long days to traverse the Epimetheus III System. The crew was using their time to be productive but frankly they were fighting a losing battle to the greatest enemy of all: boredom.

Ensign Rafi was at the helm and the young Trill woman was ready to pull her dark brown hair out of her head. She turned to her partner in crime at the navigation, Lieutenant Samui Schrodinger. "Oh. My. Gawd. Samui; we're still travelling at three quarter impulse speed! I'm going to lose my mind. It's taken us four days to get to Planet Atra and there are still six hours to go. We could have made the entire trip in less than an hour at warp speed! Those Atraen buckets of bolts only have two speeds: slow and very slow."

Samui was trying to keep from laughing at Rafi's ranting when Commander Kumo came around and the two younger officers straightened up immediately. Mabui said to the Trill woman in her usual strict tone; "Ensign Rafi; vessels of the Atraen Navy have three speeds, slow, very slow and reverse. Bear with it you two." Then the Commander was on her way again.

Rafi looked totally shocked and Samui kept a totally straight face. Then the blonde bombshell raised an eyebrow and asked with a wry smile, "Did our own Executive Officer, Commander Mabui Kumo just crack a joke?"

"Wonders will never cease." said Shar in a harried tone of total disbelief from the sciences station. The girls just cracked up…

…

Planet Atra, location unknown

The Guardian appeared before her three Heralds; all of whom wore Starfleet Uniforms from the U.S.S. Bach. Commander Katrina Chase was in the front center and was flexing her fingers on her now healed wrist. The Guardian asked, "Is there further damage that needs to be repaired Katrina?"

Katrina shook her head. "No Master; I just cannot believe that I was defeated so badly. The original Shinobi are fearsome indeed. I thought they were extinct."

"As did I." replied the Guardian. "Even more so, this particular Shinobi is a direct heir to the line of Empress Otsutsuki. We must not underestimate him."

"I could take him." said a black-haired male Lieutenant confidently. "I'm the strongest among the Heralds and have studied the Shinobi arts more than any of the others."

The Guardian said, "Jonathan Stocksdale, you have no idea what you are dealing with. I was the Guardian over the Tkon Shinobi Colony for many centuries and saw them rise and fall. I recorded all their data dutifully as I was instructed. When they became extinct, I came here to Rzom and became Guardian of this world. The chakra powers I have granted all of you are great, but they are not as potent as those of the original Shinobi. All of your abilities are pale imitations of the originals."

Stocksdale smirked. "I am practically a God compared to what I was before you found me. He will be no match for me."

Katrina frowned. "Lieutenant Stocksdale; you may practically be a God in power but certainly not in judgment. We all have the same human frailties that we had before we were enhanced. I'll grant you that you're a better hand to hand combatant than I am John, but you are no match for Lord Otsutsuki. He even stopped my raikiri with a rasengan of all things. That is a jutsu that none of us can master despite studying it for over a century. One of us died trying to figure it out against the Guardian's edicts."

"I still say I can destroy this 'Heir of Otsutsuki' Commander Chase." said John without missing a beat. "You were just sloppy."

The third Herald looked frightened at his words and Katrina's eyes lit up with chakra. "Are you challenging me Stocksdale?" she growled.

He smirked again. "Heavens no Commander; I'm just a security officer." Stocksdale turned to the Guardian. "Let me test this Shinobi, Master. I guarantee results."

The Guardian slowly scrutinized the Lieutenant and said, "I will allow you to test him when the time is right Jonathan. Until then stay your hand."

"Of course, Master." replied Jonathan. "I need to polish up my moves." He turned to the third Herald. She was a lithe Asian woman with a bob haircut. "Join me, Lei Xu?"

The now named Xu shook her head. "You are on your own this time Stocksdale."

Lieutenant Stocksdale shrugged and said, "Your loss Lei." Then he disappeared.

Xu said, "His arrogance knows no bounds."

"You used to be infatuated with him Lieutenant Xu." said Commander Chase with a slight smile.

The Asian woman got a look of distaste on her face and replied, "I grew out of that phase."

The Guardian said, "Johnathan Stocksdale guaranteed results. We shall see if they are good or bad ones soon enough…"

…

U.S.S. Gettysburg

"We are now entering geosynchronous orbit of planet Atra." announced Rafi from the helm. The relief in her voice was evident. "Per Atraen Naval Command instructions we are over one of their main spaceports."

Commander Lyakat looked up from the sensor station and stated, "As you surmised Captain Sarutobi; the spaceport is a military installation. Every weapon they have is trained upon us."

Asuma smiled. "They are just playing it safe Lyakat." He turned to the helm position and said, "Steady as she goes Ensign Rafi."

"Aye sir." replied the young Trill woman. "Steady as she goes."

….

"Ship's Log, Stardate 2274.314: Captain Asuma Sarutobi reporting. NCC-1728 U.S.S Gettysburg has at last reached the planet Atra and we are beginning the process of offloading our many Atraen passengers from the Imperial Princess. Under normal circumstances we would beam our guests down to expedite the process, but the Atraen Navy is providing military transport to the surface. Unfortunately, Atraen transport shuttles are rather large so we can only receive them one at a time. The net result is very time consuming, and our shuttle bay deck crews are working double shifts to keep up. On the positive side the Atraen pilots are well trained and very professional. We have not had one mishap and that is a testimony to the skills of all parties involved…"

…

The long and laborious process of offloading the Atraen passengers from the Gettysburg took hours as each individual Atraen shuttle landed and took off from the shuttle bay of the Federation cruiser. Captain Shanis of the Imperial Princess was the last to leave and thanked the officers and crew of the U.S.S Gettysburg for being such gracious hosts. "~We will always be thankful for your help Captain Sarutobi.~" sang the Atraen Captain. "~I have an audience with Empress Rosoni herself and I hope to see you again on the surface soon.~"

"As do I." replied Asuma as he presented her with a bottle of wine from the ship's stores. "A little something to remember your voyage on the Gettysburg by."

Captain Shanis gave him a winning smile and was soon on her way.

Asuma watched as the shuttle bay doors closed and said, "Now we wait for the diplomats…"

…

Bridge

Commander Mabui Kumo was in the Captain's chair while Captain Sarutobi bid farewell to their guests down in the shuttle bay. The sciences team was carefully mapping planet Atra's surface features and was looking for any signs or evidence that the crew of the U.S.S Bach had influenced the Atraen people. So far, they'd found nothing out of the ordinary except at the south pole….

"It's an underground city below the ice on the southernmost continent." said Commander Lyakat. "I can find no evidence of life, but it is laid out the in the same way as the city on Ozari-thul. It seems to be protected by an advanced form of shielding. I have little doubt this city was constructed by the Tkon here on Atra."

"Interesting." said Commander Kumo. "What else can you tell about it Commander Lyakat?"

The Saurian scientist grinned and said, "We're compiling data as we speak Commander Kumo. At this point I believe it would be best to scan the nature of that shield. It's difficult to discern its nature from orbit and we can't send an away team down without Atraen permission regardless."

Mabui nodded. "Keep scanning Lyakat. Hopefully we'll be able to explore it in detail soon."

…

Ship's Labs

Doctor Alison Fairbanks, Ensign Maya Ayasugi and Lieutenant Naruto M'Fau were looking over a map of the planet Rzom that they'd found amongst the many data memory crystals. The redhead said, "The city on the southern continent is called Rzom-thul and was the hub of the Tkon activity on Rzom. Apparently the Atraen people were still evolving at the time and the Tkon Empire considered themselves protectors over this world. They seemed to be interested in watching the world develop without direct influence much like the Federation's Prime Directive. Interesting."

Ayasugi said, "For just a watching post Rzom-thul is a hell of a city."

"The scans of the surface match these maps to the millimeter." said Naruto. "Rzom-thul is completely intact. Why did the Tkon abandon the city?"

"It's quite a mystery." agreed Alison.

The blonde Vulcan switched over to the communicator and said, "Lieutenant Naruto M'Fau to bridge."

"Lieutenant Commander Lyakat here." answered the Saurian. "Go ahead Naruto."

"We have a map of the city of Rzom-thul that matches the scans of the southern pole city on Atra." replied Naruto. "We've created a map overlay to match the city's details. Shall I transmit it to the bridge?"

Lyakat sounded thrilled. "This is outstanding news Lieutenant Naruto! Transmit the map now."

"Understood Commander. Stand by." acknowledged Naruto.

…

Bridge

Captain Sarutobi stepped onto the bridge and found his crew oohing and aahing over a computer-generated map on the main view screen. Shizuka was right behind him and muttered, "What the hell…?"

Asuma said, "My thoughts exactly Lieutenant Nadeshiko." Turning to Mabui he said, "Report Commander Kumo."

Mabui pulled her eyes away from the screen and said, "We have successfully matched a map of the Tkon city Rzom-thul to a hidden city on the southern continent of Atra. There is no longer any doubt that Atra is indeed planet Rzom."

The Captain's eyes lit up with excitement. "Excellent! This is fantastic. It seems we've finally found our lost Tkon colony."

"Now if we can only get the Atraen people's permission to explore it…" added Commander Lyakat.

Asuma replied with a smile, "All in due time Commander, all in due time…"

…

Planet Atra, Imperial Palace, Council Room

While the crew of the U.S.S. Gettysburg was patiently waiting in orbit; Empress Rosoni and her Council were speaking with Admiral Muiruan of the Imperial Atraen Navy and Captain Shanis of the Imperial Princess. The topic of discussion was obvious; how to handle the appearance of the Gettysburg and the United Federation of Planets the ship represented. The public already knew about the Federation cruiser being in orbit and despite the tight clamp on the media the Imperial Government couldn't keep a lid on this.

Several members of the Imperial Council were still terrified, but Empress Rosoni already had her mind set to receive the Federation starship and her people as the Guardian had instructed. "~We are in a position where we must move forward.~" sang the Empress. "~There is no turning back now. The galaxy is a bigger place than we know. If we want to thrive, we must no longer live in isolation. We will welcome the United Federation of Planets as our friends publicly here at the Capitol. As soon as the arrangements can be made we will invite Captain Sarutobi here for an appropriate welcoming ceremony.~"

The various advisors sang out their thoughts on what would be a proper ceremony to welcome a foreign ambassador but in the end Admiral Muiruan's thoughts carried the day. "~The Atraen Empire's last foreign welcoming ceremony was nearly 300 years ago when the Southern Republic became part of the Empire. We should have a similar ceremony to welcome Captain Sarutobi and the crew of the Gettysburg.~" sang the Admiral.

"~You present an intriguing idea Admiral Muiruan.~" sang the Empress. "~I am most pleased.~"

Singing out their opinions, the advisors all agreed that it was an excellent idea.

Empress Rosoni smiled and sang in a pleased tone, "~The decision is made. Let us research the protocols of the old era so we may usher in a new one.~"

The Advisory Council sang, "~Thy will be done.~"

….

U.S.S. Gettysburg, Bridge

Commander Lyakat focused on an anomaly in the map of Rzom-thul and found something unexpected. Zeroing in he gasped and then tuned the sensor array on that area. He turned to Wanda Hardy and said, "Lieutenant Hardy, boost the scan wavelength at these coordinates. I believe I've found something I didn't want to see."

Wanda raised her eyebrows and asked, "What did you find Commander?" Adjusting the sensors as instructed she said, "…An old sublight shuttlecraft on the surface just outside the city. It's from the U.S.S. Bach isn't it?"

"That's my suspicion." replied Lyakat grimly. "Let's see if we can identify it."

Mabui came over and asked, "What have you found Commander Lyakat? You don't sound pleased at all."

The Saurian locked on to the shuttle and enhanced the image multiple times before he answered. "I have little doubt it's a shuttlecraft from the U.S.S. Bach landed outside Rzom-thul. If the people of Atra found it and learned from it then the Bach's crew contaminated Atraen culture and broke the Prime Directive whether intentional or not."

Commander Kumo exchanged glances with Captain Sarutobi and the mocha skinned woman said, "Put it on the main screen."

A shuttlecraft appeared on the main screen and Asuma said, "Magnify." As the image grew larger Samui made out the hull numbers on the shuttlecraft's roof and said, "NCC-174/2…It's the number two shuttle from the U.S.S. Bach alright."

Shizuka added, "The records show the Bach was minus a shuttlecraft on her return to Federation Headquarters. They must have sent an Away Team down and left them behind for some reason."

"How many passengers could that size of shuttlecraft hold?" asked Mabui.

Lieutenant Nadeshiko answered, "The maximum capacity for an old sublight shuttle of that type was six Commander."

Mabui sighed. "Your orders Captain? Shall we beam down and investigate? We know at least that First Officer Katrina Chase was one of the passengers on that shuttlcraft. It may have log entries that will tell us what happened."

"Get an Away Team assembled Commander Kumo." ordered Asuma. "We'll need to be discreet."

"Understood Captain." replied Mabui. "Shizuka, Samui; you are with me. We'll need a computer tech. Get me Ensign Daniel Simmons from engineering. We're going to get Lieutenant Naruto and Doctor Fairbanks too. Maybe the two of them can make heads or tails of that shield around Rzom-thul while we're on the surface."

…

Transporter Room

Commander Kumo addressed her party. They were all bundled up in their winter gear and loaded up with scanning equipment and phasers. "Alright team; I want to get in and get out quickly. If we attract the attention of Commander Chase, we will take a defensive stance if possible and leave. Any questions?"

"What kind of a timetable are we looking at?" asked Alison. "Analyzing the nature of that shield could be very time consuming especially if we can't do it from orbit."

Mabui answered, "Our timetable will be determined by how fast we can download data from the shuttlecraft. If Ensign Simmons gets it done quickly then we will leave as soon as he's done. I hope that it will not take longer than a standard hour."

Doctor Fairbanks nodded, and Naruto said, "We took extensive readings of the force field surrounding the tombs at Ozari-thul. We can use that as a reference point."

"Any other questions?" asked the Commander. "If not; let's go."

Once everyone was situated on the transporter platform Mabui ordered Ensign Heidi Gaul, "Energize."

….

Planet Atra, outside of Rzom-thul

The Away Team from the U.S.S. Gettysburg materialized about thirty meters south of the shuttle and was immediately hit by a sub-zero wind. "Damn it's cold!" said Alison from behind her facemask. "Let's get on with this."

Naruto quickly got out his tricorder and said, "Ther are no life form readings in a five kilometer radius Commander."

Mabui nodded and led the way over to the shuttle. It was half buried in a snow drift but the visibility was acceptable despite the wind. When they got over to the shuttlecraft, the Commander said, "It's your show Ensign Simmons."

Daniel nodded and got out his tricorder. He wiped away the frost and snow with a gloved hand and found an access panel on the old shuttle. "Let's see if this derelict has any power left in the batteries." He hooked his tricorder into the shuttlecraft with an adaptor and said, "There is a little juice left in it; I'm surprised." Punching in some override codes rapidly, Ensign Simmons activated the door to enter the shuttle. It slowly unlocked with a groan and slid open about halfway before it stopped. Samui and Naruto came over and pushed the door the rest of the way open and the emergency lights flickered on.

Mabui motioned everyone inside the shuttle for a moment to get out of the wind. She looked at Shizuka who said without preamble, "It's minus 43 Celsius out there with the wind. If we're not careful we could freeze to death. Perhaps Doctor Fairbanks should stay inside the shuttle while Naruto and I take the readings on that shield."

Alison grumped, "I'm not that frail Lieutenant Nadeshiko. I can handle a little wind chill."

Commander Kumo said, "Shizuka, go with Naruto and Doctor Fairbanks. Keep watch just in case. Lieutenant Schrodinger; stay here with Simmons and I. It will probably take all three of us to get this old shuttle's computer online."

Everyone nodded and soon Naruto, Alison and Shizuka plodded out into the cold about fifty meters from the shuttle to set up a small sensor array to examine the shield surrounding Rzom-thul. After verifying there was no interference from the old shuttlecraft or any other source the two scientists quickly got to work while Shizuka watched for hostiles and the bigger danger, the brutal wind chill…

…

Inside the shuttlecraft

Ensign Simmons and Lieutenant Schrodinger carefully took one of the panels out of the shuttle's floor to access the batteries and Commander Kumo held a work light above them so they could see what they were doing in the low emergency lighting. After about twenty minutes of carefully working with the antique shuttle parts Daniel glanced over at Samui and said, "At least these power adaptors fit to specs. I was afraid this old shuttle would have some nonstandard fittings."

Samui nodded and said, "Cool. Everything is locked in. The auxiliary power packs are in place." She looked up at Mabui and stated, "Everything is green Commander Kumo. We are ready to power up."

Mabui nodded and ordered, "Make it so."

Simmons said enthusiastically, "Let's do it!" as he flipped the switch to transfer the power. The emergency lights immediately went out leaving them in total darkness except for the work light Mabui had…

"Well, shit!" growled three voices from the inky blackness…

…

Out on the surface

Naruto and Alison were rapidly setting up the sensor array to transmit data back to the Gettysburg. Given the bitter cold and the timetable involved both scientists agreed that setting it to scan automatically was a better choice than possibly freezing to death. The small sensor system could be beamed back up to the Gettysburg later. Doctor Fairbanks was soon growling about having to calibrate the sensor array manually since it was malfunctioning. "Why won't the sensors synchronize? I can't believe a sensor set up this advanced needs to be physically calibrated three times!" said Alison irritably. "Starfleet had better start working on its quality control."

Shizuka was a bit affronted by the redhead slamming Starfleet but Naruto was quite used to Alison ranting and (secretly) found it amusing. He placed a gloved hand on the petite scientist's shoulder and said, "Let's give it one more try." He looked up at Shizuka and asked, "Lieutenant Nadeshiko; could you monitor the surrounding area for burst interference?"

The Security Chief looked surprised for a moment but then said, "Sure thing Naruto."

Doctor Fairbanks frowned behind her facemask. "You think someone is deliberately jamming us don't you Naruto?"

"That is my suspicion." acknowledged the blonde Vulcan…

…

Inside the shuttlecraft

Once the shuttle's power transfer circuits warmed up the shuttle lit up automatically and the previous fifteen minutes of scrambling around and stumbling over each other in the dark to check things proved to be a complete waste of time. Mabui sighed and instructed her Junior Officers, "Strike the last fifteen minutes from your reports. Embarrassing ourselves is not necessary. Understood?"

Quickly getting the affirmative answers she wanted from Lieutenant Schrodinger and Ensign Simmons, her green eyes twinkled as she smiled behind her facemask. "Excellent; let's get back to work then."

The three quickly started working on accessing the shuttle's computer under Ensign Simmons' directions. The computer science engineer took a quick look at the format the data was in and then started downloading it all into his tricorder. "It will be just as easy to copy it all now instead of going through the most recent entries." Daniel quipped. "This old shuttle's total memory capacity isn't as great as a modern tricorder's backup memory. If the technology wasn't so outdated, then we'd have it all copied by now."

Samui looked at the shuttle's black boxes they were copying data from. "It doesn't appear that anything was tampered with. I suspect no one has been on this shuttle since the Away Team from the U.S.S. Bach landed here over a century ago. It's possible the Atraens never stumbled upon it."

"I find that a bit hard to believe with the Tkon ruins so close by." said Mabui. "Surely they would have located the shuttle during an archeological dig in the last one hundred years."

Simmons replied, "If that was the case, perhaps they mistook the shuttle for a Tkon artifact as well?"

The blonde bombshell shook her head. "That's even more unlikely. The first thing they would have noticed was the letters and numbers on the hull aren't related in any way to the Tkon language. It would have stuck out like a sore thumb."

"That's a good point." agreed Daniel. "I guess with the level of technology that the Atraens have the shuttle wouldn't have remained hidden long."

"It's a mystery for another time." stated Commander Kumo. "First we need to secure this data and return to the ship…"

…

Out on the surface

Shizuka carefully watched her tricorder as Naruto said to Alison; "On my mark. Three, two, one, execute!" The two scientists started the recalibration on the sensor in unison.

Within a second there was a high frequency microburst that showed itself on Shizuka's tricorder and she locked onto it. Pivoting to the source the Security Chief pointed and said, "The source is one hundred fifteen meters north-northwest. It's beyond that small ice formation."

Naruto switched his tricorder over to scan for life forms in the area Shizuka indicated. Then he sensed a chakra source using a sensory jutsu. "It's a chakra wielder. It may be Commander Katrina Chase. We need to be cautious."

Shizuka drew her phaser and said, "Our orders are to pull out. Stay low while I contact Commander Kumo." She activated her communicator. "Nadeshiko to Commander Kumo; do you copy…?"

…

Inside the shuttlecraft

Meanwhile, Daniel's tricorder beeped and he checked over the data. Samui asked, "Did you get it Simmons?"

"Confirmed!" said the Ensign. "The data's been transferred. We'll have to sort through it using the Gettysburg's computers to see what's intact and what isn't."

Mabui's communicator blared to life. "Nadeshiko to Commander Kumo; do you copy…?"

The mocha skinned woman replied, "Kumo here Nadeshiko. I copy; what is your situation?"

"Our sensor array is being jammed by a chakra using life form." said the Security Chief. "It could be Commander Chase…"

Mabui growled, "Damn, I was hoping that we wouldn't be spotted. Go ahead and beam out, sensor set up and all. We'll be right behind you."

…

Out on the surface

Shizuka acknowledged her orders from Mabui and signaled the ship. "Nadeshiko to Gettysburg. Come in Gettysburg…"

M'rella's purring voice came over the communicator. "Gettysburg here Lieutenant Nadeshiko. We read you loud and clear."

"I have three for immediate beam up." said Shizuka. "We have been detected and-"

Naruto yelled, "There is a second one to the southwest! Get down!" He tackled both Shizuka and Alison to the ground as several beams shot right over their heads.

Jonathan Stocksdale stood up from his position and growled, "Damn it! I missed!" He gathered some chakra and said, "I won't miss this time! Laser circus!"

The blonde Vulcan countered with a Water Encampment Wall that blocked the incoming jutsu. He said under his breath, "You'll pay for trying to hurt those I love." His eyes were blazing with chakra and he said, "I'll deal with this one."

Shizuka nodded. "I'll deal with the other one. Doctor Fairbanks; stay low to the ground."

Alison lay low and said, "I understand." Her mind was on the blonde's words though. 'Naruto said, "You'll pay for trying to hurt those I love"…Does he mean he loves me like I do him…?' she wondered hopefully.

Lei Xu crouched in her position beyond the ice formation watching. 'What the hell is Stocksdale doing? We were told specifically not to engage!'

A phaser beam, courtesy of Lieutenant Nadeshiko shot over Xu's head and forced her to duck. "Man, that was close!" squeaked Xu. Another phaser shot blew away some of the ice and the Asian woman said, "We need to get the hell out of here!"

While Xu was pinned down by Shizuka; Naruto went on the offensive against Stocksdale. The black-haired Herald was trying to overwhelm Naruto with a barrage of beams from his Laser Circus jutsu but Naruto was too fast and Stockdale couldn't keep up. Then the blonde completely vanished in a body flicker…

"Where is he?" growled the arrogant Herald. "I can't believe that was an actual body flicker…We need an external power source to teleport…was it a genjutsu?!"

The black-haired Herald's world seemed to explode into agony and confusion as Naruto hit him in the center of his spine with a murderous chakra enhanced Kareel-ifla kick. As Stocksdale flew through the air, he felt himself skipping like a stone across the icy surface of Atra. The arrogant man felt a strange sense of detachment as he skidded to a halt with his broken body in a position that no human should be in. He knew he was lying on his back because his eyes were facing the overcast skies…

That was when Naruto appeared above him in a body flicker with vengeance glowing in his eyes. The blonde said emotionlessly as he formed a rasengan in his hand; "Die."

Jonathan Stockdale's last thought before the rasengan destroyed his brain was, 'So this is a real Shinobi…I never stood a chance…'

Lei Xu saw her comrade die and teleported back into the safety of Rzom-thul to report to Commander Chase…

…

U.S.S. Gettysburg, Bridge

Captain Sarutobi quietly listened to the communications chatter and wondered just what his Away Team had encountered. Within minutes all six Away Team members were confirmed as safely aboard as well as the remote sensor array they were supposed to set up. Leaving Commander Lyakat in charge of the bridge he went down to the transporter room to get a report from his First Officer…

…

Mabui Kumo had just shed her facemask when Captain Sarutobi entered the transporter room. "Report, Commander!" ordered Asuma. "What happened down there?"

"My team beamed up from the shuttle without incident after we downloaded the computer logs." replied Mabui. "Lieutenant Nadeshiko's team of three was assaulted while trying to set up the sensor array. Their attackers withdrew after a short battle and the three of them beamed up as well. That is all that I have been able to establish at this point."

Asuma turned to the Security Chief and asked, "Who attacked your Team Lieutenant?"

Shizuka saluted and answered, "The two individuals who attacked us were apparently other survivors of the U.S.S. Bach. Naruto engaged and killed the male while I drove off the female with phaser fire. The male attempted to kill us with energy beams he called a 'laser circus.' The female didn't show any direct hostility towards us other than jamming our sensor array, so I forced her to withdraw without injuring her."

"Damn, this could be a diplomatic disaster." said Sarutobi.

"We still have no idea if the Bach survivors have any association with the Atraen government or whether they are acting independently." volunteered Naruto. "Our observations so far indicate the Atraens have no knowledge of the U.S.S. Bach or any of her personnel."

Mabui nodded. "Lieutenant Naruto raises a valid point, Captain. We've seen no evidence of any sort of connection so far."

The Captain sighed softly. "We'll just have to play it by ear then…I'll expect written reports from all of you with the next two hours. Dismissed."

...

Planet Atra, within Rzom-thul

Katrina Chase was talking to Lei Xu who was still in shock from what she'd seen out in the tundra. "What happened Lieutenant Xu? You were observing them and suddenly withdrew. Where is Lieutenant Stocksdale?"

Xu shook her head. "Stocksdale is dead. Jonathan attacked them without provocation and was slain as a result. The Otsutsuki Shinobi killed him ruthlessly…"

The sandy blonde sighed. "Our Master told Stocksdale to stay his hand…"

"He never was good at following orders." replied Xu.

"Were you injured?" asked the Bach's former First Officer.

The Asian woman shook her head. "No, I was jamming them with chakra bursts and they detected me somehow. After Stockdale attacked them; they pinned me down and I was forced to retreat."

Commander Chase was at a loss. "We'd best report to Master and see what she says…

Xu said somberly, "That just leaves the two of us Commander."

"I know Xu." said Katrina. "There were once five Heralds and we're the only ones left."

'Maybe our Master will let us return to Earth with the Federation ship…' thought Xu. 'I don't want to die fighting Lord Otsutsuki like Jonathan did…and I'd like to see my home world once again…'

…

Planet Atra, Imperial Palace, Empress Rosoni's private chambers

In the bluish crystal room where Empress Rosoni always prayed to the Guardian; another was in her place. This was the Imperial Princess Amionn who was as of this day heir to the throne…though only she and the Guardian knew it. Like the Guardian was known only to the Royal Empress and a closely guarded secret; the line of ascension was a mystery to all but the Guardian and the heir. Many promising heirs to the throne had been passed over to crown Empress Rosoni several decades before and now Princess Amionn -the third daughter of Empress Rosoni's second daughter- was considered the heir as chosen by the Guardian. Most people knowledgeable in the Royal Line would never have guessed since Amionn was only 18 years of age…

Princess Amionn was beautiful and extremely intelligent. Her deep blue doe eyes, platinum hair and delicate elvish features hid a ruthless and cunning intellect. She was a supreme manipulator as well. Why had she been chosen as the next heir by the Guardian? …Because the Atraen people would need a ruthless and powerful leader to compete in a huge political entity such as the United Federation of Planets… Or so the Guardian thought.

"~I am greatly honored to have been chosen as the next Empress oh Guardian of our people.~" sang the radiant Princess jubilantly. "~With your guidance and wisdom I shall lead the Atraen people to a place of great prominence in the galaxy.~"

The Guardian nodded and said in an authoritative tone, "I am going to teach you things you must know Amionn. Things about Rzom; things about Atra…things not known by your predecessors. It is a necessity now that Atra is debuting on the galactic stage. Let me tell you about the Tkon Empire of the ancient past…"

…

POSTSCRIPT:

It was my original intention to get to the meeting between the Empress Rosoni and Captain Sarutobi this chapter but the detour to the South Pole took longer than expected and I ran out of space. Next chapter we'll see the reaction of the Atraen public to the crew of the U.S.S Gettysburg. See you next time. Blue out 10/1/23