A/N - Once again, sorry for the delay. Had a pretty crappy few days but it's better now. Have two chapters!
Oh, I probably should have done this a while ago so - Disclaimer - I own nothing from the NCIS universe.
The science in these chapters won't be right. I've tried to keep it as accurate as I can, because I like that kind of stuff, but this is Science Fiction and sometimes facts go out the window because otherwise the plot just wouldn't work.

"The next call please, Or'Vanci."

Timothy wasted no time and, at his words, the junior technicians immediately began working. He would just have to hope, for there was no way of telling, that Sarah would be home with his Mom and Dad.

"Connection is establishing." Leah said quietly. "This should only take a minute or two."

Behind them, the door slid open. Timothy turned around to order the new arrival to leave, but Harriet did not give him a chance. She held a gun in her hand; a sleek, white metal weapon that fired high-energy laser beams. These had been standard issue when Timothy last served and he was relieved to find they were still in use. No matter how much he loved the technology up here, most of it was beyond him. He didn't have time to learn how to use a complicated new weapon.

"It's here." Harriet panted. He had never seen her like this before; never see her eyes so wide, her breathing so fast or her composure so far gone. The hand on her weapon was, however, still steady as a rock. Harriet was, always, the consummate fighter. Sometimes Timothy doubted whether there was anything human still left in her.

"The Aricon Radars are picking up incoming ships. Thousands of them. They just appeared out of nowhere."

Harriet was afraid. The realisation hit him with a terrible jolt.

"How long do we have?" He heard his voice asking, clear and calm, no trace of the fear he could feel bubbling inside his own stomach. Instinct was taking over now.

"At this speed, hours. I've never seen anything like it before."

"That should be impossible." Kinoan's voice was enough to bring Timothy fully back to the present. Though the alien was a fantastic General, he was a diplomat at heart and had no stomach for battle. He dealt in words rather than weapons. This was Timothy's command now.

"Control room."

Leaving the three technicians behind, Timothy, Harriet and Kinoan tore through the corridors of the Lunar Orbiter, heading for the massive central room from which everything was run. More than 100 units reported in here every day, their calls diverted from the radio room if a pressing matter came up.

The door slid open silently as the three, harried and in great alarm, skidded up to the circular Control Room. Inside, there was the steady buzz of an organised kind of chaos from almost 200 people talking, walking and working at once. Every head turned to the door as Timothy, Kinoan and Harriet burst in. At the sight of Timothy, eyes widened but in here, unlike in the radio room, no one had the time to stop and stare. Those nearest snapped off a sharp salute but most of the workers returned to their duties immediately.

Control was the most heavily staffed area of the entire station and was always thrumming with activity, always loud and always moving. To an outsider, it probably looked like complete chaos but the system - or, at least, the workers in it- was highly efficient.

Today, though, there was a definite undercurrent of tension running through the staff. No formal announcement of the imminent attack - for that was what everyone assumed this would be - had been made, so these people were the only ones onboard who knew what was happening. There was fear on many a face, though no outward sign of panic.

When Timothy had first visited this room, many, many years ago, he had expected to see it staffed mostly by humans. The Lunar Orbiter was, after all, the Earth's primary defence system and it was Peace Force tradition to have the native species of a planet in charge of their own defences. He soon learnt, however, why Earth was one of the few exceptions.

Humans were, almost exclusively, the warriors of the Peace Force. While every other species contributed technology, weapons, medical equipment and services or transport, all Earth had to offer was its soldiers. They were regarded, throughout the Force, as the fiercest and most determined fighters. It was said that, if you wanted to stamp out a rebellion before it had even begun, you sent in a Stars unit and all your troubles would disappear.

This had always bothered Timothy but, right now, he couldn't worry about his species' dangerous reputation. There were ten huge screens hovering in mid air at key locations throughout the room. On a normal day, they would all be displaying different information from across the galaxy. Today, every screen was identical: radar output from the Aricon debris belt at the edge of the Milky Way, which showed a vast number of ships heading inwards at an alarming rate.

"Generals, Captain," a two-headed humanoid with shockingly blue hair ran up to them. "The ships are gaining speed. If they keep going at this rate, they'll reach this station in five hours time."

"Go to Emergency State One." Timothy barked at the man, who wore the uniform of a Commander. He was obviously in charge of this room and Timothy thought he recognised him, vaguely. "Sound the alarm. Recall all non-necessary units to every station in the galaxy."

"Yes, sir." The two-headed man didn't need to relay this order to his staff; those nearest passed the message on and, within seconds, the whole room was focused on their tasks. The room seemed calmer now they had something practical to do.

"I want every unit kitted out and ready to go in no more than three hours, understand?"

"Yes, sir." The two-headed man hurried away and, moments later, a loud claxon sounded in every room. This was shortly followed by the Commander's short, sharp message.
"This station is now at Emergency State One. Every non-essential soldier is to report to their unit Captain immediately and prepare for deployment."

Timothy wheeled round to face Kinoan and Harriet.

"I've just sent word to my force," Kinoan said, indicating another Joscial Ax native, a woman, hurrying away. "The Diplomats are to gather in conference. Perhaps our new visitors will want to talk."

Harriet rolled her eyes; it was well known that she had little time for the Diplomatic Force.

Before she could speak, Timothy addressed her.

"Harriet, get two Hoppers ready. We'll go out and meet them half-way."

"Don't be ridiculous," Kinoan interrupted. "There are more than a hundred thousand ships in that fleet alone! The Hoppers only have light weaponry and practically no shielding."

"We're not going to fight them, General." Timothy replied. Harriet had already gone, heading towards the Hangars at a run. "We'll be cloaked. I want to see what we're dealing with in person, not just on radar."

Kinoan still seemed unsure, but the look on Timothy's face was one he recognised from years past. The old General nodded and didn't bother to say any of the things he wanted to. Timothy's eyes were blazing and everything about him screamed that he was prepared for a fight.

There was nothing left in Timothy's head except war; tactics and half-formed plans, and the blind, brutal determination to win at any cost.