Prologue
Let me back in! In back me let!
Freedom had been within his grasp for but a moment and yet never had it even been there. Beyond the wall, the spider scratched against it; searching desperately for any signs of weakness. Fair is fair and fair is there; yet I am here, not there. There should be here and not there, the spider thought as he banged against the shiny membrane and his hollow words rang out for no one but himself to hear. This can't be happening to me. Me? He. He is the one that should be. Not me! he laughed manically as he scratched against the wall.
Time. Time is all I need. The spider knew his patience would pay off in the end, but when? Now! NOW! NOW! NOW!! "Now," a voice called out. From where? Here? No, there. There? But how? he wondered, the voice was new, yet old. New to me, but yet I know. News to me. "Now," the hollow words rang out as the spider tried to find the source of them and yet couldn't. Gathering all his strength, he replied, "When?" And then a brilliant flash of light streamed across the spider's web and the wall was gone. "Now," the reply came.
Chapter I
Captain Jean-Luc Picard was dead. Or at least, that was what he thought at first. He couldn't quite feel his body, or hear the distant echo of his heart beating in his ears. Instead, he found only a faint fragment of himself struggling to discover his surroundings. He tried desperately to take in a breath of air, but found that he could not make his lungs function. If I even have them anymore, he realized. He struggled in the emptiness with every fiber of his strength until at last; he felt a ray of light hit him. Or perhaps it was coming from within him? He couldn't say for certain, but as the flash dissipated; he was finally able to get his bearings. I am not dead, he realized as he rubbed his cold hands together. Yet this does not feel real, he decided. As his eyes adjusted to the place he was in, the Captain recognized it as a rustic hotel room; with elements similar to those commonly found in Europe long ago. He rubbed his forehead in confusion and still felt unsteady from whatever he had just been through, then tried to recall where he had just been. I was onboard the Enterprise-E of course, he realized. Beverly and I had just decided to go to bed, the Captain recalled. So then I must presume that this is a dream, he thought.
Yet everything about this place doesn't quite feel like that, Jean-Luc realized. It was something else, imbued with an intangible force just beyond the grasp of his subconscious mind. But then again, I have been fooled before into thinking I was awake or took control of my dreams; they were usually quite exciting, he reasoned. He walked over to the mirror and looked over himself and the odd garb he was attired in. If this is one of those dreams, I hope that I can find a decent change of clothes, he thought with a smirk. As he walked down the stairs of the hotel, Picard glanced outside at the bustling town and realized that it was nearly high noon already. Good, perhaps we're getting to the action first, he reasoned. Not that I haven't had my fair share of adventure recently, the Captain realized. Ever since the Borg's invasion on Federation space, every star system in the Alpha Quadrant had been on alert for what lay ahead.
True, now that the Borg had been transformed into a race which professed devotion to non-aggression; there was no need to worry about them anymore, he thought. But there were plenty of other races throughout the galaxy which could mean us harm; some we might not even have met. And with the Romulan Empire on the verge of civil war, this is no time to be indulging in fantasy, Picard reasoned. But despite his best judgment, the Captain chose to go outside and find out what this experience was supposed to be about. As he stepped into the street and felt the chill of the wind on his back and the faint smell of lilacs in the air, Jean-Luc realized that this couldn't possibly be a dream. For some reason, this is quite real, he thought. Part of him wished that he had a weapon even as he approached the square then stopped at the sight of the cloaked figure on the far side. What happened next caught him by surprise, for the stranger seemed to grow larger; then abruptly turned into a black hole. The Captain tried to find something to grasp a hold of as the wind howled, but soon realized that this wasn't necessary.
All around him, the town and its surroundings was being swept into the abyss; but he remained stationary. What is the meaning of all of this? he thought, then detected the hiss of an enormous serpent from beyond the dark portal and he strained his eyes to see what was on the other side. Yet he found himself instead staring fixedly at the center of the square. Unlike the rest of the town, the small fountain didn't waver because of the mighty storm and a man dressed in the black robe of a minister stood in front of it and waved his arms into the air while wailing incoherently. Picard moved towards him and wondered if this message might be from the Prophets. He recalled how there had been reports of those beings using dreams in such a way to proclaim looming events of the future. Instead, what he found was as the figure turned towards him was an individual he had not seen in quite some time. His old acquaintance frowned and pointed at the remnants of the vortex and proclaimed, "Repent, sinners! And turn back the maelstrom, ye hypocrites! This Day of Judgment is nigh!"
Jean-Luc found himself becoming very agitated and yelled at the top of his lungs, "Q!" Yet the storm refused to stop and the Captain growled at his old nemesis, "What is the meaning of this? How dare you disturb me even in my dreams?!" Q shook his head sagely and replied in a loud voice, "The point of no return has been reached, blasphemer! Fall down upon your knees and beg for forgiveness!" "Q, enough of this foolishness! The last thing I need right now is to deal with your pretentious desire to prove your superiority!" Abruptly, the storm stopped… or rather, everything became engulfed in it save for the two of them. A moment later, they were encased completely in darkness. Picard wasn't quite sure if he was still there or not, but he knew Q was and so he asked, "Have you had your fun?" "Really, my dear Jean-Luc; I would have thought recent events would have impressed on you the need to enjoy every minute of your otherwise mundane existence. Don't you have appreciation for the classics?" Q asked as he appeared in a blinding flash of light and stood there in front of the Captain.
Jean-Luc noted that he still wore the ebony robe, which made him almost invisible against the void. "I've learned that with you there is very little to appreciate other than your departure," Picard said evenly. "You know, Picard; after our last visit I thought that we would become friends again… but I see you still retain the enmity which has marked our every encounter. After all, did I not arrange for you and your motley crew to save the universe on more than one occasion?" Q countered. He considered saying something else, but realized that Q was correct in this instance. "You never even properly thanked me," Q said, shaking his head sadly. "So why show me that cataclysm?" Picard asked. "Those images were actually taken from what you would've experienced while sleeping if the universe hadn't come to an end in the middle of it," Q said with a shrug. "So then… this is my subconscious?" Jean-Luc asked. "In a manner of speaking… I know it must be truly disturbing to hear this, but it is impossible to hide anything from me," the pompous super-being said. "I suppose your colleagues merely choose not to pry," Picard commented.
"The mind is dangerous thing when left idle… it's even harder to manipulate. We've got thought patterns in the way, recipes, what am I getting for my anniversary? All sorts of flotsam and jetsam which the Continuum chooses to avoid since that might have some sort of detrimental effect upon the weak mortals who still scurry and spawn willy-nilly throughout the cosmos. I find that their attitude is dreadfully boring. Aren't you glad I'm not like them?" Q said with a smile. "Sometimes I wonder if that is a blessing or a curse," Picard muttered. "Yes well, all joking aside… did you enjoy your first row seat of The End?" Q asked. "The end of what? I thought I'd already witnessed the destruction of existence. Several times over, as I recall. What was that?" Picard replied. "Now that is a good question," Q said with a nod and then walked towards Picard and asked, "I don't suppose you'd be willing to make a guess?" "Have you chosen me to once again become the savior of the universe and mankind? Q, I am flattered; but I must also remind you that I am getting up in my years. Aren't there other Captains in Starfleet you can bother?" Jean-Luc said with a smirk.
"You? Old? Hmm… that's not the Captain Picard I know. And from what I hear, you're going to be a doting father any day now. With the advances in technology your Federation is churning out, there's no telling how many years you have left within you. Of course, if you ever wanted to give immortality a try…" Q said with a chuckle. "Thank you, but no," Picard said, even though he suspected that Q was just joking; you could never be certain. "So… that was the end of the universe… again?" he asked, returning to the subject at hand. It would seem that Q won't leave me alone until he allows me to become involved in this, he realized. "I already told you… it is The End. Not just one anomaly, or a cosmic erase button disguised as a planet or the temporal loop created to cage a particularly noisome entity. What part do you not understand? I thought you took grammar…" Q said with a sneer. "The end… as in, everything?" Picard asked. "Now we're getting somewhere. Well, actually if you want to get technical; it's The Beginning as well," Q said with a shrug. "Q, make sense for once…" Jean-Luc said, shaking his head.
"Actually, that's all I know. And you'll find out the rest soon enough. But be ready for what lies ahead. You may find yourself wishing that everything really had ended right here and now," Q replied and then with a flash of light everything around him was gone and he gasped for breath. I am in bed on the Enterprise, he realized. Shaking his head in bewilderment, the Captain wondered how soon these events Q had spoken of would take place. He glanced at Beverly and wished that they would be able to raise their child in a peaceful galaxy. But apparently, that isn't going to happen anytime soon, he thought.