ST: Independence 08 "Way of the Gun"
- Thread starter Dnoth
- Start date
Another tense, action-filled chapter. Good work. You had me going with Uhura's 'death' for a moment. Your line about Ivan regretting killing Collins was cool, and fit his character very well. But I personally am glad he didn't kill Collins. I want to see more of him.
CHAPTER 7
Supplemental
Yanas Tigen’s Home
Port Jackson, New Sydney
He felt a faint nudge…another, this time, more vigorous. A voice was heard… “sir?...sir, wake up!”
Commander Collins quickly became aware of his surroundings. His eyes opened to see a New Sydney police officer over him. He looked more concerned than anything. ‘He doesn’t know what happened,’ realized Collins. Quickly, he rolled his head to the spot where the woman he stabbed was sitting. She was no where in sight; neither were the others. ‘Did they all leave together? …No, there was only one officer here.’ The other probably went with, at least, the home owner to the hospital…leaving just the man above him. ‘What did the cop on the comm. call her?’ “Mrs. Tigen,” asked Collins with worried eyes, “is she alright?”
“She’s been sent to the medical facilities. What happened here?” inquired the officer.
“I don’t know,” began Collins, “it happened so quickly.” He propped himself up as he wiped away a manifested tear. “Four humans, two males and two females, busted in and assaulted us.”
“How do you know Mrs. Tigen?”
Collins didn’t miss a beat, “I’m her house keeper. I was about ready to leave for the day, when they burst in.” He grabbed the officer’s arm, “Did you find them…the ones that did this?”
The officer shook his head, “No, not yet. But don’t…”
Collins reached for the officer’s sidearm and shot him in one quick, fluid motion. “Then you’re of no use to me.”
The commander stood; blooded, but not beaten. This game wasn’t over yet. He tapped on his chest, “Computer, recall transport. Energize.”
*****
“Knight to queen’s level five,” said Jinal, the Indy’s chief engineer. He had suggested a few weeks ago to Kimula that they start playing a game other than kal-toh. She had handily beaten him several times. Had he really been a Vulcan, it would be rather…embarrassing. In Jinal’s case, however, the stakes were much higher. With each loss, a hidden panic began. ‘Would this be the time that Kimula puts two and two together?’
He had been hesitant to even spend off hours with her at all. It was too risky. Kimula, however, had a persistence about her.
His parents were killed by the Tal’Shiar during a defection attempt. He escaped, and from 16 on, he was stuck in the Federation. He had been raised to mistrust humans, so he told whoever asked, that he was Vulcan. He continued that lie when he joined Starfleet.
Jinal was constantly in character. It was a terrible burden. He wondered how real Vulcans could manage.
He wanted nothing more than to be done with the lie. But how could he? Years ago, Norah Satie led, what he perceived as, an inquisition against Romulans in the fleet. He could be made an example of, just like that poor man who was part Romulan. Now the woman might be president. Only one Independence crewmember knew his origin: the doctor. Zo’Kama, however, was sympathetic and had her own run in with Satie, in the past.
Even more than that, he feared the reaction from his crewmates, friends, and especially Kimula. He saw how the crew treated Windslow because his deception. How would they treat him?
“What do you think she’ll do to him?” asked the Andorian.
Jinal looked up mildly confused, “What?”
Kimula rephrased, “What do you think Sintina will do with Karim and Chase, once we find them?”
“Oh,” he considered, “If indeed he received orders, even verbal orders, from Admiral Nechayev, he is in the right.”
She removed one of Jinal’s rooks, “But why would she do an end run around the captain like that?”
The Romulan held in a bit of annoyance. Then, he offered, “Karim was in SI, perhaps it is a need to know mission.” Jinal looked away from the tri-level board and into her eyes, “You mentioned Section 31 during the briefing today. What is that?”
The Andorian withdrew, even her antenna slumped. She began, “I probably shouldn’t answer. It was something Karim told me in confidence.”
“Oh, very well,” responded the mock Vulcan, as he refocused on the game.
Kimula leaned in, “Well, if you’re going to twist my arm. Karim said during our stop-over at DS9, he talked to a doctor there, called Bashir…”
*****
The Delos and Ivan’s shuttle lifted off from the spaceport just seconds ago. Uhura was in the back of the runabout with Karim. All shared a communications link.
Chase opened the discussion with, “Anybody know who that guy was?”
After a brief pause, Uhura said, “We can only assume he was working with who ever attacked my ship.”
Ivan jumped in, “Starfleet destroyed your ship, or someone trying to set up Starfleet.”
“How do you know?” Nyota asked.
“That’s impossible,” Nicole said over Uhura.
He responded, “I found a quantum torpedo signature at the scene.”
Uhura grinned slightly, “That’s possible.” She opened a med-kit, “I never saw our attackers and I’ve heard some rumors.”
Lieutenant Chase suggested, “It’s more likely someone wants you to think Starfleet did it, but who?”
Nicole’s question went unanswered. After a few moments she moved to another subject, “Admiral Uhura, why did you trust us? I mean, you don’t even know who sent us?”
“I have a good idea,” she rejoined. She pressed a hypo to Bin Nadal’s neck, causing him to go into a deep sleep. “Besides, at the time, I didn’t have much choice in the matter.”
Cherenkov came over the line, “I assume, as soon as we break orbit, we’re heading for Sauria.”
“That’s right, Mr. Cherenkov.” She added, “At warp 5, we should get there just in time.”
“In time for what,” asked Chase from the pilot’s seat of the Delos.
“You don’t need to know that, Lieutenant,” said Uhura.
Nicole protested, as she looked aft, “But you said, you’d tell us everything.”
The elderly woman turned to the cockpit and said, straight-faced, “I lied.”
“I’m reading a vessel on an intercept course with us.”
Nyota placed a shard of bloodied glass on a nearby table, “Is it the NSPB?”
The Independence ops officer manipulated some controls, “No, I’m reading it as a Valkyrie-class Starfleet Fighter.”
Nyota put the tweezers back and moved forward. “Well, that confirms it.” She sat at the tactical station.
“What are you doing?” questioned Nicole.
“I still know how to fire phasers.” She examined the updated LCARS configuration. “I hope,” she added under her breath.
“Its transponder is disabled,” said Ivan.
Uhura acclimated herself to the controls, “No surprise, there.”
“I can’t believe a Starfleet ship opened fire on you,” commented Chase.
“If we survive this,” began Ivan, “I can guide you to the debris field.”
Chase huffed, “I think you guys are jumping the gun a bit. I mean, we don’t even know…”
Uhura cut in, “He’s charging weapons.” She turned to Chase, “How high do we have to be to go to warp?”
“We can’t warp until we’re at 500 kilometers,” she responded.
“No,” said Nyota, “I don’t mean the regs. I mean, how high do we have to be to avoid taking part of the atmosphere with us.”
Nicole checked with computer, “At 125 km, we wouldn’t cause significant damage to the atmosphere, but I’d rather not create a warp field so deep in the planet’s gravity well.”
The former Head of Starfleet Intelligence dismissed the young woman’s concerns, “It’s been done before, lieutenant.”
“Keep heading into orbit so you can warp out of here. I’ll hold him off.”
Nicole objected, “But we’re better armed.”
Ivan’s response was quick, “You’re also more important. Get Uhura to the Saurian system.”
“Ivan,” said Uhura, “I’m going to keep a transporter lock on you.”
“Acknowledged.”
END OF CHAPTER 7
Supplemental
Yanas Tigen’s Home
Port Jackson, New Sydney
He felt a faint nudge…another, this time, more vigorous. A voice was heard… “sir?...sir, wake up!”
Commander Collins quickly became aware of his surroundings. His eyes opened to see a New Sydney police officer over him. He looked more concerned than anything. ‘He doesn’t know what happened,’ realized Collins. Quickly, he rolled his head to the spot where the woman he stabbed was sitting. She was no where in sight; neither were the others. ‘Did they all leave together? …No, there was only one officer here.’ The other probably went with, at least, the home owner to the hospital…leaving just the man above him. ‘What did the cop on the comm. call her?’ “Mrs. Tigen,” asked Collins with worried eyes, “is she alright?”
“She’s been sent to the medical facilities. What happened here?” inquired the officer.
“I don’t know,” began Collins, “it happened so quickly.” He propped himself up as he wiped away a manifested tear. “Four humans, two males and two females, busted in and assaulted us.”
“How do you know Mrs. Tigen?”
Collins didn’t miss a beat, “I’m her house keeper. I was about ready to leave for the day, when they burst in.” He grabbed the officer’s arm, “Did you find them…the ones that did this?”
The officer shook his head, “No, not yet. But don’t…”
Collins reached for the officer’s sidearm and shot him in one quick, fluid motion. “Then you’re of no use to me.”
The commander stood; blooded, but not beaten. This game wasn’t over yet. He tapped on his chest, “Computer, recall transport. Energize.”
*****
“Knight to queen’s level five,” said Jinal, the Indy’s chief engineer. He had suggested a few weeks ago to Kimula that they start playing a game other than kal-toh. She had handily beaten him several times. Had he really been a Vulcan, it would be rather…embarrassing. In Jinal’s case, however, the stakes were much higher. With each loss, a hidden panic began. ‘Would this be the time that Kimula puts two and two together?’
He had been hesitant to even spend off hours with her at all. It was too risky. Kimula, however, had a persistence about her.
His parents were killed by the Tal’Shiar during a defection attempt. He escaped, and from 16 on, he was stuck in the Federation. He had been raised to mistrust humans, so he told whoever asked, that he was Vulcan. He continued that lie when he joined Starfleet.
Jinal was constantly in character. It was a terrible burden. He wondered how real Vulcans could manage.
He wanted nothing more than to be done with the lie. But how could he? Years ago, Norah Satie led, what he perceived as, an inquisition against Romulans in the fleet. He could be made an example of, just like that poor man who was part Romulan. Now the woman might be president. Only one Independence crewmember knew his origin: the doctor. Zo’Kama, however, was sympathetic and had her own run in with Satie, in the past.
Even more than that, he feared the reaction from his crewmates, friends, and especially Kimula. He saw how the crew treated Windslow because his deception. How would they treat him?
“What do you think she’ll do to him?” asked the Andorian.
Jinal looked up mildly confused, “What?”
Kimula rephrased, “What do you think Sintina will do with Karim and Chase, once we find them?”
“Oh,” he considered, “If indeed he received orders, even verbal orders, from Admiral Nechayev, he is in the right.”
She removed one of Jinal’s rooks, “But why would she do an end run around the captain like that?”
The Romulan held in a bit of annoyance. Then, he offered, “Karim was in SI, perhaps it is a need to know mission.” Jinal looked away from the tri-level board and into her eyes, “You mentioned Section 31 during the briefing today. What is that?”
The Andorian withdrew, even her antenna slumped. She began, “I probably shouldn’t answer. It was something Karim told me in confidence.”
“Oh, very well,” responded the mock Vulcan, as he refocused on the game.
Kimula leaned in, “Well, if you’re going to twist my arm. Karim said during our stop-over at DS9, he talked to a doctor there, called Bashir…”
*****
The Delos and Ivan’s shuttle lifted off from the spaceport just seconds ago. Uhura was in the back of the runabout with Karim. All shared a communications link.
Chase opened the discussion with, “Anybody know who that guy was?”
After a brief pause, Uhura said, “We can only assume he was working with who ever attacked my ship.”
Ivan jumped in, “Starfleet destroyed your ship, or someone trying to set up Starfleet.”
“How do you know?” Nyota asked.
“That’s impossible,” Nicole said over Uhura.
He responded, “I found a quantum torpedo signature at the scene.”
Uhura grinned slightly, “That’s possible.” She opened a med-kit, “I never saw our attackers and I’ve heard some rumors.”
Lieutenant Chase suggested, “It’s more likely someone wants you to think Starfleet did it, but who?”
Nicole’s question went unanswered. After a few moments she moved to another subject, “Admiral Uhura, why did you trust us? I mean, you don’t even know who sent us?”
“I have a good idea,” she rejoined. She pressed a hypo to Bin Nadal’s neck, causing him to go into a deep sleep. “Besides, at the time, I didn’t have much choice in the matter.”
Cherenkov came over the line, “I assume, as soon as we break orbit, we’re heading for Sauria.”
“That’s right, Mr. Cherenkov.” She added, “At warp 5, we should get there just in time.”
“In time for what,” asked Chase from the pilot’s seat of the Delos.
“You don’t need to know that, Lieutenant,” said Uhura.
Nicole protested, as she looked aft, “But you said, you’d tell us everything.”
The elderly woman turned to the cockpit and said, straight-faced, “I lied.”
“I’m reading a vessel on an intercept course with us.”
Nyota placed a shard of bloodied glass on a nearby table, “Is it the NSPB?”
The Independence ops officer manipulated some controls, “No, I’m reading it as a Valkyrie-class Starfleet Fighter.”
Nyota put the tweezers back and moved forward. “Well, that confirms it.” She sat at the tactical station.
“What are you doing?” questioned Nicole.
“I still know how to fire phasers.” She examined the updated LCARS configuration. “I hope,” she added under her breath.
“Its transponder is disabled,” said Ivan.
Uhura acclimated herself to the controls, “No surprise, there.”
“I can’t believe a Starfleet ship opened fire on you,” commented Chase.
“If we survive this,” began Ivan, “I can guide you to the debris field.”
Chase huffed, “I think you guys are jumping the gun a bit. I mean, we don’t even know…”
Uhura cut in, “He’s charging weapons.” She turned to Chase, “How high do we have to be to go to warp?”
“We can’t warp until we’re at 500 kilometers,” she responded.
“No,” said Nyota, “I don’t mean the regs. I mean, how high do we have to be to avoid taking part of the atmosphere with us.”
Nicole checked with computer, “At 125 km, we wouldn’t cause significant damage to the atmosphere, but I’d rather not create a warp field so deep in the planet’s gravity well.”
The former Head of Starfleet Intelligence dismissed the young woman’s concerns, “It’s been done before, lieutenant.”
“Keep heading into orbit so you can warp out of here. I’ll hold him off.”
Nicole objected, “But we’re better armed.”
Ivan’s response was quick, “You’re also more important. Get Uhura to the Saurian system.”
“Ivan,” said Uhura, “I’m going to keep a transporter lock on you.”
“Acknowledged.”
END OF CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
Supplemental
In the troposphere of New Sydney
Just below the clouds, Ivan’s small shuttle performed an Immelmann maneuver. He pulled up into a half-loop, rotated 180-degrees at its zenith, and headed straight for their pursuer. The Delos disappeared into the mist.
Almost immediately, a stream of micro-phaser pulses emitted from the fighter. Ivan pitched hard to the right. Despite his efforts, about half of the pulses still slammed into his shields. He returned fire with what seemed like an impotent phaser beam. At least, it hit its mark. The Russian glanced down, his forward shield was at 12%. ‘I’m not going to last long against that fighter.’ He wasn’t fighting for him, he reminded himself; he was fighting for time.
*****
“We have to go back!” pleaded Lieutenant Chase.
The former admiral had resolve on her experienced face, “We can’t go back.”
*****
Too late, Cherenkov realized the fighter wasn’t going to engage him. The hostile was making a beeline for the runabout. Ivan set thrusters to maximum and set an intercept course with the fighter; his single, Type-IV phaser blazing along the way. The fighter was just too damn fast. Soon, Ivan found himself looking at the aft of the attacker. He knew his shuttle couldn’t keep up. “Come on, fight me!” he cursed.
*****
“The fighter is closing,” observed Uhura with a calm professionalism. “Transferring power to aft shields.”
Nicole reported, “We’re at 56 kilometers.”
*****
The three vessels rushed into the thinning atmosphere. First, the Icarus runabout; followed closely by the fighter, then a few seconds later, the civilian craft.
Collins opened up another devastating onslaught, this time at the Delos. One pulse after another ripped into the protective barrier. The last two projectiles hit the runabout, unopposed. The first left some scoring on the hull, the last rocketed into the aft-port thruster.
*****
Inside the Delos, the power grid fluctuated and the vessel violently pitched down for a moment. Chase recovered the runabout, and told Uhura, “We’ve lost a thruster. We’re losing speed.”
“And the impulse engines are useless to us.” Nyota said it more to herself.
Nicole added, “Yeah, most people don’t like highly energized plasma in their atmosphere.”
Admiral Uhura initiated a firing program at the attacker, “Ivan, can you give us any help?”
“ I’m maxed out on atmospheric flight. I can’t get a lock. And I’m more likely to hit you than him.”
Quickly, the old woman checked the capacity of the transporter buffers on the runabout. “Just enough,” she whispered. “Hold on, Mr. Cherenkov.”
“Ma’am, what are yo…”
*****
Ivan’s entire shuttle dematerialized in flight.
*****
Commander Collins achieved another target lock. Another volley would be more than enough to destroy the runabout. Then, he could double back and finish off the civilian shuttle. He reached for the fire control.
Then, he noticed a twinkling directly ahead of his fighter. He was confused for only a moment. Everything seemed to slow. The civilian shuttle began to take shape directly in his flight path. He took his hand away from tactical to flight control. The aged shuttle loomed large in his cockpit window.
*****
Ivan’s weight shifted as he rematerialized in the cabin of the runabout. It didn’t take long for him to adjust to his new surroundings. He quickly looked out the aft window. He was just in time to witness the collision. His shuttle broke up upon impact. The fighter’s shields glittered blue. Both craft were taken by gravity.
Cherenkov got closer to the view port and looked down. The fighter still seemed to be intact, but was in a free fall. He turned to see both women already gazing at him. He finally reported, “He’s down, but I can’t tell if he’s out.”
“It’s good enough,” commented Chase, “”We’ll be able to warp in a few seconds.”
Uhura closed her eyes, sighed deeply, and leaned back. “Miss Chase, set a course for the Saurian system, warp 5.”
*****
The G-forces were nearly overwhelming for Collins. Alarms and malfunction indicators lit up his board. Propulsion was off-line. He wondered if it would come back before he impacted on the surface. Luckily, the Valkyrie had something resembling wings. Instead of thrusters he continuously fired his port pulse cannon. Slowly, it brought the lateral spin under control. The fighter was now gliding, more or less.
Collins knew he was still going suicidally fast. He tried to restart the engines…again. The rocky surface now showed more detail. For some reason, the deuterium wasn’t reaching the RCS thrusters. He purged the system and re-injected the fuel. The restart worked this time. His thrusters came to life. Without any emotion, except a slight grimace, he headed back up into the atmosphere.
The commander knew he probably wouldn’t be able to bridge the gap to his prey. Even if he did, his photon launcher was disabled and his shields were minimal. To top it off, his craft lacked a warp drive. He wouldn’t let them go so easily. …Perhaps there was another way…
*****
The runabout Delos sped through sub-space.
Nicole Chase joined the others in aft lounge. As she entered, she said, “Looks like we’re in the clear.”
Uhura sat on a cushioned bench; Ivan opposite her. Karim lay awake, but sore. His face was healed but still slightly red and swelled.
Chase sat next to Karim and propped his head on her thigh. She looked at Ivan, “So what’s your story?”
Cherenkov didn’t seem enthusiastic to talk about himself, “I’m a Lieutenant Commander in Starfleet. My last assignment was first officer of the USS Aegis.”
“The Aegis? Wasn’t it destroyed by Cardassian insurgents?” inquired Bin Nadal.
Ivan’s face hardened. Being reminded of the fate of that ship was like pulling a scab for the man. Had he…or Captain Glover, only been there, maybe things would have been different. Seventy-five of his fellow crewmates died. At least, he should have died along side them. Luckily, Aquiel, the chief engineer, made it. Aquiel…the woman that turned down his marriage proposal…there was a whole other issue. Finally, he hesitantly answered, “Yes, but I was…at Jaros when that happened.”
“Jaros,” repeated Nicole, “You mean the stockades?”
“Yes,” Ivan began, “Some of the command crew stole the cloaking device from the Defiant…to rescue our captain. As punishment, we spent ninety days there.”
Bin Nadal intended a joke, “Did you meet a guy called Ethan Windslow when you were there?”
“I know Ethan,” Ivan's voice was somber, “he was in an adjacent cell. He's a good man.” Cherenkov's blue eyes blazed as he stared at Karim, challenging him to object.
Karim instantly felt ashamed of himself for taking such a pot shot at his XO. A hush fell in the cabin.
After a while, Nicole spoke up, “Should we be sending a message? I assume you want to talk to someone. Why not just send it over sub-space?”
“That might have worked before,” said Uhura, “but now, they’d be looking for it…and us.”
Chase folded her arms, “Are you guys going to tell me what’s going here? I mean, you can’t keep me in the dark forever.”
Both Karim and Ivan looked to Uhura for guidance. She thought to herself for a moment. ‘Nechayev sent Karim, Satie probably sent Ivan, but how did this Nicole get involved?’ She didn’t like unknowns. The elderly woman rested her arm on the top of the backrest, and said, “How long have you two been seeing each other?”
“I’ll take that as a ‘no,’” huffed Nicole.
Bin Nadal answered, “About five months.”
Chase anticipated her next question, “I insisted on coming. I didn’t give him much of a choice.”
“I see,” said Uhura, dispassionately.
Chase stood. “Fine, don’t trust me,” she spat. She headed for the cockpit, “I’m going to make sure we haven’t drifted from our course.”
Once Chase was out of ear shot, Ivan asked Karim, “Do you trust her?”
“I wouldn’t have brought her along if I didn’t,” he rejoined.
Uhura looked at Karim with non-judgmental eyes, “What have you told her about our group?”
Karim sat up and smirked only slightly, “Nothing.”
Uhura smiled, “A man after my own heart.”
Bin Nadal got up, “I’d better talk to her.” Then, he too, went to the bow.
Uhura and Cherenkov were now alone. She looked at him for several seconds. He examined the deck.
Nyota asked, “Are you alright, Mr. Cherenkov?”
“Sure, why do you ask?”
In a compassionate tone, she observed, “You seem…mildly depressed.”
Normally, Cherenkov would have taken issue with someone who said that. But there was something tender and accepting about the elderly woman. She reminded him of his aunt. He exhaled, “You have a way of disarming people, don’t you?”
She grinned, “It’s one of my most annoying qualities.”
He considered going into detail: Aquiel, the Aegis, Kespyrtt III, his family. Instead, he simply said, “For a time, I had hoped to get out of this lifestyle of violence, but I keep on being led back.”
Uhura nodded sympathetically, “I wanted to settle down a few times myself.” She laughed humorlessly, “One man turned out to be stuck in a transporter for eighty-years…but too much had changed.” She sat next to Cherenkov and laid her fragile hand on his knee, “The only advice I can give you, is to make your own choices in life. If you don’t, other people will be more than willing to make them for you.”
END OF CHAPTER 8
Supplemental
In the troposphere of New Sydney
Just below the clouds, Ivan’s small shuttle performed an Immelmann maneuver. He pulled up into a half-loop, rotated 180-degrees at its zenith, and headed straight for their pursuer. The Delos disappeared into the mist.
Almost immediately, a stream of micro-phaser pulses emitted from the fighter. Ivan pitched hard to the right. Despite his efforts, about half of the pulses still slammed into his shields. He returned fire with what seemed like an impotent phaser beam. At least, it hit its mark. The Russian glanced down, his forward shield was at 12%. ‘I’m not going to last long against that fighter.’ He wasn’t fighting for him, he reminded himself; he was fighting for time.
*****
“We have to go back!” pleaded Lieutenant Chase.
The former admiral had resolve on her experienced face, “We can’t go back.”
*****
Too late, Cherenkov realized the fighter wasn’t going to engage him. The hostile was making a beeline for the runabout. Ivan set thrusters to maximum and set an intercept course with the fighter; his single, Type-IV phaser blazing along the way. The fighter was just too damn fast. Soon, Ivan found himself looking at the aft of the attacker. He knew his shuttle couldn’t keep up. “Come on, fight me!” he cursed.
*****
“The fighter is closing,” observed Uhura with a calm professionalism. “Transferring power to aft shields.”
Nicole reported, “We’re at 56 kilometers.”
*****
The three vessels rushed into the thinning atmosphere. First, the Icarus runabout; followed closely by the fighter, then a few seconds later, the civilian craft.
Collins opened up another devastating onslaught, this time at the Delos. One pulse after another ripped into the protective barrier. The last two projectiles hit the runabout, unopposed. The first left some scoring on the hull, the last rocketed into the aft-port thruster.
*****
Inside the Delos, the power grid fluctuated and the vessel violently pitched down for a moment. Chase recovered the runabout, and told Uhura, “We’ve lost a thruster. We’re losing speed.”
“And the impulse engines are useless to us.” Nyota said it more to herself.
Nicole added, “Yeah, most people don’t like highly energized plasma in their atmosphere.”
Admiral Uhura initiated a firing program at the attacker, “Ivan, can you give us any help?”
“ I’m maxed out on atmospheric flight. I can’t get a lock. And I’m more likely to hit you than him.”
Quickly, the old woman checked the capacity of the transporter buffers on the runabout. “Just enough,” she whispered. “Hold on, Mr. Cherenkov.”
“Ma’am, what are yo…”
*****
Ivan’s entire shuttle dematerialized in flight.
*****
Commander Collins achieved another target lock. Another volley would be more than enough to destroy the runabout. Then, he could double back and finish off the civilian shuttle. He reached for the fire control.
Then, he noticed a twinkling directly ahead of his fighter. He was confused for only a moment. Everything seemed to slow. The civilian shuttle began to take shape directly in his flight path. He took his hand away from tactical to flight control. The aged shuttle loomed large in his cockpit window.
*****
Ivan’s weight shifted as he rematerialized in the cabin of the runabout. It didn’t take long for him to adjust to his new surroundings. He quickly looked out the aft window. He was just in time to witness the collision. His shuttle broke up upon impact. The fighter’s shields glittered blue. Both craft were taken by gravity.
Cherenkov got closer to the view port and looked down. The fighter still seemed to be intact, but was in a free fall. He turned to see both women already gazing at him. He finally reported, “He’s down, but I can’t tell if he’s out.”
“It’s good enough,” commented Chase, “”We’ll be able to warp in a few seconds.”
Uhura closed her eyes, sighed deeply, and leaned back. “Miss Chase, set a course for the Saurian system, warp 5.”
*****
The G-forces were nearly overwhelming for Collins. Alarms and malfunction indicators lit up his board. Propulsion was off-line. He wondered if it would come back before he impacted on the surface. Luckily, the Valkyrie had something resembling wings. Instead of thrusters he continuously fired his port pulse cannon. Slowly, it brought the lateral spin under control. The fighter was now gliding, more or less.
Collins knew he was still going suicidally fast. He tried to restart the engines…again. The rocky surface now showed more detail. For some reason, the deuterium wasn’t reaching the RCS thrusters. He purged the system and re-injected the fuel. The restart worked this time. His thrusters came to life. Without any emotion, except a slight grimace, he headed back up into the atmosphere.
The commander knew he probably wouldn’t be able to bridge the gap to his prey. Even if he did, his photon launcher was disabled and his shields were minimal. To top it off, his craft lacked a warp drive. He wouldn’t let them go so easily. …Perhaps there was another way…
*****
The runabout Delos sped through sub-space.
Nicole Chase joined the others in aft lounge. As she entered, she said, “Looks like we’re in the clear.”
Uhura sat on a cushioned bench; Ivan opposite her. Karim lay awake, but sore. His face was healed but still slightly red and swelled.
Chase sat next to Karim and propped his head on her thigh. She looked at Ivan, “So what’s your story?”
Cherenkov didn’t seem enthusiastic to talk about himself, “I’m a Lieutenant Commander in Starfleet. My last assignment was first officer of the USS Aegis.”
“The Aegis? Wasn’t it destroyed by Cardassian insurgents?” inquired Bin Nadal.
Ivan’s face hardened. Being reminded of the fate of that ship was like pulling a scab for the man. Had he…or Captain Glover, only been there, maybe things would have been different. Seventy-five of his fellow crewmates died. At least, he should have died along side them. Luckily, Aquiel, the chief engineer, made it. Aquiel…the woman that turned down his marriage proposal…there was a whole other issue. Finally, he hesitantly answered, “Yes, but I was…at Jaros when that happened.”
“Jaros,” repeated Nicole, “You mean the stockades?”
“Yes,” Ivan began, “Some of the command crew stole the cloaking device from the Defiant…to rescue our captain. As punishment, we spent ninety days there.”
Bin Nadal intended a joke, “Did you meet a guy called Ethan Windslow when you were there?”
“I know Ethan,” Ivan's voice was somber, “he was in an adjacent cell. He's a good man.” Cherenkov's blue eyes blazed as he stared at Karim, challenging him to object.
Karim instantly felt ashamed of himself for taking such a pot shot at his XO. A hush fell in the cabin.
After a while, Nicole spoke up, “Should we be sending a message? I assume you want to talk to someone. Why not just send it over sub-space?”
“That might have worked before,” said Uhura, “but now, they’d be looking for it…and us.”
Chase folded her arms, “Are you guys going to tell me what’s going here? I mean, you can’t keep me in the dark forever.”
Both Karim and Ivan looked to Uhura for guidance. She thought to herself for a moment. ‘Nechayev sent Karim, Satie probably sent Ivan, but how did this Nicole get involved?’ She didn’t like unknowns. The elderly woman rested her arm on the top of the backrest, and said, “How long have you two been seeing each other?”
“I’ll take that as a ‘no,’” huffed Nicole.
Bin Nadal answered, “About five months.”
Chase anticipated her next question, “I insisted on coming. I didn’t give him much of a choice.”
“I see,” said Uhura, dispassionately.
Chase stood. “Fine, don’t trust me,” she spat. She headed for the cockpit, “I’m going to make sure we haven’t drifted from our course.”
Once Chase was out of ear shot, Ivan asked Karim, “Do you trust her?”
“I wouldn’t have brought her along if I didn’t,” he rejoined.
Uhura looked at Karim with non-judgmental eyes, “What have you told her about our group?”
Karim sat up and smirked only slightly, “Nothing.”
Uhura smiled, “A man after my own heart.”
Bin Nadal got up, “I’d better talk to her.” Then, he too, went to the bow.
Uhura and Cherenkov were now alone. She looked at him for several seconds. He examined the deck.
Nyota asked, “Are you alright, Mr. Cherenkov?”
“Sure, why do you ask?”
In a compassionate tone, she observed, “You seem…mildly depressed.”
Normally, Cherenkov would have taken issue with someone who said that. But there was something tender and accepting about the elderly woman. She reminded him of his aunt. He exhaled, “You have a way of disarming people, don’t you?”
She grinned, “It’s one of my most annoying qualities.”
He considered going into detail: Aquiel, the Aegis, Kespyrtt III, his family. Instead, he simply said, “For a time, I had hoped to get out of this lifestyle of violence, but I keep on being led back.”
Uhura nodded sympathetically, “I wanted to settle down a few times myself.” She laughed humorlessly, “One man turned out to be stuck in a transporter for eighty-years…but too much had changed.” She sat next to Cherenkov and laid her fragile hand on his knee, “The only advice I can give you, is to make your own choices in life. If you don’t, other people will be more than willing to make them for you.”
END OF CHAPTER 8
A very nicely done segment. Collins is becoming a favorite villain of mine--a Pava without morals and unchained--not a pleasant prospect to be going up against. I also liked the subtle nod you gave to the notion of a Scotty-Uhura affair.
Looking forward to the next part!
Looking forward to the next part!
CHAPTER 9
Stardate: 53729.6 (24 Sep 2376)
An Undisclosed Location
In Orbit of Lyaksti'kton (The Saurian Homeworld)
Hhiss. Agent Morgan removed the hypospray from the Saurian’s neck.
“Saurian” is the name humans…and most other races, call them. It dates back to the first space boomers from Earth. Someone must have thought they looked like dinosaurs. Morgan didn’t see any resemblance. …The green ones maybe…the one he was working on was more of a gray.
Morgan didn’t really care for the species. They stank. Their slick skin was gooey. They rarely blinked. And their big, bulgy, yellow eyes were…annoying.
The Saurian male was sitting in a metal chair. Morgan rested the hypo on a nearby table. It, the chair, Morgan, and the Saurian all appeared to be on a small chunk of rock, floating in space. All types of colored gases surrounded them. It was quiet and cool; a rather tranquil setting, actually. The scene didn’t reflect the horrid procedure underway.
Morgan, a human of African decent, circled the chair and its occupant. “Remind me, what is your programming command?”
The Saurian looked straight ahead, “Wizard of Oz.”
“Your default command?” continued the human.
With a blank expression, he responded, “Scarecrow.”
“Your activation command?”
“Wicked Witch of the West,” said the native.
Morgan couldn’t help but smirk. ‘No one can accuse me of not having a sense of humor.’ He gave the creature some room, “Excellent…Scarecrow.”
In a blink of an eye, the Saurian perked up. He looked around and saw Morgan, as if for the first time. “What am I doing here?” He stood, realizing his environment. He retreated to the chair and looked over, “Who are you?”
Morgan said, “Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that…Computer, begin training exercise.”
The spacescape dissolved and was replaced by a sparsely wooded area surrounded by mostly white buildings. None of them were over five stories tall. There were several gravel paths crisscrossing the area. The sky was a soft orange.
Just off the park, an amphitheater was sunken into the ground. A stone railing protected pedestrians from the drop off. It was about 10 meters to the bottom. The theater was filled to capacity and a human female was addressing the crowd.
The native instantly recognized the place. It was the city square of Nihoor’klem; were he often set up his food cart.
The Saurian looked at Morgan and demanded, “What’s this abo…”
“Wicked Witch of the West,” interrupted Morgan.
A switch was flipped. Calmly and methodically, the Saurian went to his food stand and reached under it. He pulled up an Alshain-made disruptor rifle.
Morgan crossed his arms and looked on. He said after a moment, “Computer, enable scroll lock at my position.”
The native strode to the railing, rested one hand on the top of it and carefully aimed his weapon at the replica of Norah Satie. He didn’t wait long. He squeezed the trigger. A bolt of energy disintegrated the presidential candidate.
“Good work,” coolly commented Morgan. “Now, run to the Alshain ministry of commerce building. It’s only a block away.”
The Saurian turned in the appropriate direction with rifle still in hand and ran. Even though the terrain moved, Morgan appeared to still be standing right next to the assassin.
“Faster,” ordered the agent, “we don’t want you to get caught…alive.”
The gunman increased his stride. Soon, he reached the gilded gates of the embassy. He banged on the barrier. “Let me in! You said you’d give me asylum! Please, let me in!”
“Don’t plead too long,” said the agent, “The Alshain aren’t going to protect you, anyway. Now, put the rifle under your chin and fire.”
The Saurian turned around, leaned against the gate, and did exactly as instructed. The program ended. The hologrid reappeared and only the native and Morgan remained.
The human came closer to the creature. “Very good…I’m the wizard of Oz. You will not remember being here.” He once again places a hypo on the Saurian. This time, the native fell to the floor. Morgan crouched down, “Good night, scarecrow.”
The dark-skinned man rose, “Computer, return subject one to his home and scan for subject two.”
*****
Captain Sintina Aurelia only stood 1.6 meters, but her presence on the bridge was far more imposing than her stature denoted. She stood just behind the ‘pit,’ the lowered tactical and helm stations. Her arms were crossed; her foot tapped.
Counselor Kimula considered reminding Aurelia that such body language was poor form for a captain, but decided to let it slid, in this case.
Aurelia looked over at her first officer. He sat at the operations consol. She chided herself for noticing his short, terra cotta hair was grayer than when he first boarded, nine months ago. The captain only allowed herself an instant to wonder what his experience at Jaros was like. She pushed the notion out of her head.
He looked over at her expectant gaze. “That’s it. The Samos has docked.”
Sintina acknowledged and turned her head, “Mr. D’nas, take us to New Sydney, warp 9.”
*****
Collins’ fighter approached an Axanar cargo vessel. He determined it was capable of, at least, warp 6.5. It would do nicely.
The Philadelphia’s first officer hailed them, “Axanar ship, is your destination Federation space?”
A pink-skinned being with several face and head ridges appeared on a small screen in the cockpit. “Yes, but why does that concern you?”
“The New Sydney Police Bureau is allowing me to search vessels heading into Federation space. There is a Starfleet fugitive on the loose and he might be trying to stowaway. May I have permission to dock in your shuttlebay and search your ship?”
“A criminal Starfleet officer?” began the captain, “I guess that’s a sign of the times.” He sighed, “Of course you may search my ship. My small crew are my direct relatives. I would hate for something to happen to them.”
Collins stared blankly and the man, “Don’t worry. I’ll be quick about it.”
END OF CHAPTER 9
Stardate: 53729.6 (24 Sep 2376)
An Undisclosed Location
In Orbit of Lyaksti'kton (The Saurian Homeworld)
Hhiss. Agent Morgan removed the hypospray from the Saurian’s neck.
“Saurian” is the name humans…and most other races, call them. It dates back to the first space boomers from Earth. Someone must have thought they looked like dinosaurs. Morgan didn’t see any resemblance. …The green ones maybe…the one he was working on was more of a gray.
Morgan didn’t really care for the species. They stank. Their slick skin was gooey. They rarely blinked. And their big, bulgy, yellow eyes were…annoying.
The Saurian male was sitting in a metal chair. Morgan rested the hypo on a nearby table. It, the chair, Morgan, and the Saurian all appeared to be on a small chunk of rock, floating in space. All types of colored gases surrounded them. It was quiet and cool; a rather tranquil setting, actually. The scene didn’t reflect the horrid procedure underway.
Morgan, a human of African decent, circled the chair and its occupant. “Remind me, what is your programming command?”
The Saurian looked straight ahead, “Wizard of Oz.”
“Your default command?” continued the human.
With a blank expression, he responded, “Scarecrow.”
“Your activation command?”
“Wicked Witch of the West,” said the native.
Morgan couldn’t help but smirk. ‘No one can accuse me of not having a sense of humor.’ He gave the creature some room, “Excellent…Scarecrow.”
In a blink of an eye, the Saurian perked up. He looked around and saw Morgan, as if for the first time. “What am I doing here?” He stood, realizing his environment. He retreated to the chair and looked over, “Who are you?”
Morgan said, “Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that…Computer, begin training exercise.”
The spacescape dissolved and was replaced by a sparsely wooded area surrounded by mostly white buildings. None of them were over five stories tall. There were several gravel paths crisscrossing the area. The sky was a soft orange.
Just off the park, an amphitheater was sunken into the ground. A stone railing protected pedestrians from the drop off. It was about 10 meters to the bottom. The theater was filled to capacity and a human female was addressing the crowd.
The native instantly recognized the place. It was the city square of Nihoor’klem; were he often set up his food cart.
The Saurian looked at Morgan and demanded, “What’s this abo…”
“Wicked Witch of the West,” interrupted Morgan.
A switch was flipped. Calmly and methodically, the Saurian went to his food stand and reached under it. He pulled up an Alshain-made disruptor rifle.
Morgan crossed his arms and looked on. He said after a moment, “Computer, enable scroll lock at my position.”
The native strode to the railing, rested one hand on the top of it and carefully aimed his weapon at the replica of Norah Satie. He didn’t wait long. He squeezed the trigger. A bolt of energy disintegrated the presidential candidate.
“Good work,” coolly commented Morgan. “Now, run to the Alshain ministry of commerce building. It’s only a block away.”
The Saurian turned in the appropriate direction with rifle still in hand and ran. Even though the terrain moved, Morgan appeared to still be standing right next to the assassin.
“Faster,” ordered the agent, “we don’t want you to get caught…alive.”
The gunman increased his stride. Soon, he reached the gilded gates of the embassy. He banged on the barrier. “Let me in! You said you’d give me asylum! Please, let me in!”
“Don’t plead too long,” said the agent, “The Alshain aren’t going to protect you, anyway. Now, put the rifle under your chin and fire.”
The Saurian turned around, leaned against the gate, and did exactly as instructed. The program ended. The hologrid reappeared and only the native and Morgan remained.
The human came closer to the creature. “Very good…I’m the wizard of Oz. You will not remember being here.” He once again places a hypo on the Saurian. This time, the native fell to the floor. Morgan crouched down, “Good night, scarecrow.”
The dark-skinned man rose, “Computer, return subject one to his home and scan for subject two.”
*****
Captain Sintina Aurelia only stood 1.6 meters, but her presence on the bridge was far more imposing than her stature denoted. She stood just behind the ‘pit,’ the lowered tactical and helm stations. Her arms were crossed; her foot tapped.
Counselor Kimula considered reminding Aurelia that such body language was poor form for a captain, but decided to let it slid, in this case.
Aurelia looked over at her first officer. He sat at the operations consol. She chided herself for noticing his short, terra cotta hair was grayer than when he first boarded, nine months ago. The captain only allowed herself an instant to wonder what his experience at Jaros was like. She pushed the notion out of her head.
He looked over at her expectant gaze. “That’s it. The Samos has docked.”
Sintina acknowledged and turned her head, “Mr. D’nas, take us to New Sydney, warp 9.”
*****
Collins’ fighter approached an Axanar cargo vessel. He determined it was capable of, at least, warp 6.5. It would do nicely.
The Philadelphia’s first officer hailed them, “Axanar ship, is your destination Federation space?”
A pink-skinned being with several face and head ridges appeared on a small screen in the cockpit. “Yes, but why does that concern you?”
“The New Sydney Police Bureau is allowing me to search vessels heading into Federation space. There is a Starfleet fugitive on the loose and he might be trying to stowaway. May I have permission to dock in your shuttlebay and search your ship?”
“A criminal Starfleet officer?” began the captain, “I guess that’s a sign of the times.” He sighed, “Of course you may search my ship. My small crew are my direct relatives. I would hate for something to happen to them.”
Collins stared blankly and the man, “Don’t worry. I’ll be quick about it.”
END OF CHAPTER 9
These guys play for keeps. Turning some poor food vendor into an assassin is low. Brilliant, mind you, but low. And one can only shudder to think of what awaits the crew of that Axanar freighter at Collins' hands. 
Have I told you recently how much I really like Collins? A dangerous, completely amoral villain. And yes, the use of a simple food vendor as an assassin is a nice touch. Also, that line "A criminal Starfleet officer...I guess that's a sign of the times." is an incredibly powerful statement saying much about how things have changed within the Federation since the War--really before the War. Leyton's coup leaves its legacy...
CHAPTER 10
Stardate: 53736.6 (26 Sep 2376)
Runabout Delos
In route to Sauria
Nicole Chase, the Indy’s operations officer, looked back at the closed hatch. She was annoyed, but not surprised. Uhura, Karim, and Ivan were all talking in the lounge about something; no doubt their ‘secret’ mission. The old women’s distrust of her was more than evident. She didn’t blame Uhura, really; but it was very irritating. Nicole made the best of the time alone.
*****
The former admiral continued, “My contact saw the holo-simulation…”
“You have a contact inside 31?” blurted Karim, in disbelief.
Nyota forgave the interruption with grace. She answered, “Not everyone inside is as willing to void the Federation constitution. The Section is led by a directorate; not consensus.” She got back on track, “Satie is going to speak at Nihoor’klem’s central park district. Our assassin is a native Saurian. He has a food cart near the amphitheater.”
Cherenkov asked; hoped really, “Do you have a name?”
“No,” responded Uhura, “And there is more than one vender in that area.”
“How much time will we have to search before the shooter acts?” questioned Bin Nadal.
Admiral Uhura shrugged, “I don’t know for sure. I only know the assassin will strike during the speech.” She looked over at the chronometer, “And we should be able to beam down about a half-hour before the speech starts.”
“That’s mot much time,” commented Ivan.
“No,” Uhura said, “but it’s the time we have.”
*****
The blade-shaped hull of the USS Independence glided in orbit above New Sydney.
*****
Sintina walked a circuit around the bridge, glancing over the shoulders of different officers as she went. Everyone on deck 1 was ready for the NSPD to respond.
Finally, an indicator flashed at communications. Kimula quickly swiveled around, “Captain, Deputy Police Commissioner Kalty is on the line.”
“Put him on,” ordered Aurelia as she moved to the center of the bridge.
A light-skinned, human male filled the viewer. His hair was white, but full. He wore formal civilian attire.
“Commissioner Kalty,” began the captain, “thanks for speaking with us.”
“I was hoping you could answer some of my questions as well,” he stated.
“Oh?” uttered Sintina.
Kalty had a suspicion in his eye, “There has been some very odd Starfleet activity around New Sydney lately. First, a ship is destroyed in orbit by what could only be a quantum torpedo; then, a murdered police officer and an injured citizen. And most recently, a phaser fight in our skies. Do you know anything about all this?”
Aurelia literally stepped back and soaked in what the commissioner had told her. She stood straight again, “I had one officer come here in an Icarus-class runabout. But I can’t believe he would be responsible for any murders. And he didn’t have access to quantum torpedoes.”
“Does your vessel have quantums in its arsenal?” questioned Kalty.
Sintina’s eyes grew wide at the accusation. “Yes, but we just arrived.”
He nodded and leaned back, “We believe there were at least two parties involved. Your runabout warped out of here way too low. They were being pursued by a Starfleet fighter; perhaps its mothership destroyed the freighter.”
“I find that hard to believe,” rejoined Sintina.
Kalty’s stare was that of an experienced law enforcement officer, “Believe it or not, the evidence is there.”
Aurelia thought it best to change topics, “What happened to the fighter?”
“We don’t know,” he responded, “Our patrol craft tried to rendezvous, but by the time we got there, both vessels were gone.”
Aurelia stepped forward and rested her hands on the consoles separating tactical and helm. “Do you have any idea where my runabout went?”
The commissioner nodded, “It had a heading of 051 mark 356. However, we lack the resources to make chase. If you would be willing…”
“Oh, you have my promise on that,” said Aurelia with resolve. She began to dismiss the commissioner and look over at the helm.
He spoke up, however, “A few more things. I’ve already contacted Starfleet Command and requested any information it had on starships sent to this system. And I’d like to remind you that New Sydney has an extradition treaty with the Federation. I’ll be reporting this to our State Department. I want the person responsible for this.”
The captain was only half paying attention to what was said. She looked up, “Understood. Thanks for you help.”
Commissioner Kalty had obviously hoped for more answers. He reluctantly closed the channel.
D’nas reported what Aurelia had silently ordered, “The Saurian system is along that route, captain.”
She returned to the center seat, “It’ll have to do. Set a course.”
*****
Stardate: 53742.2 (28 Sep 2376)
Lieutenant Chase looked over at the sensors. A contact directly aft was catching up to them. She activated the comm., “Hey guys, you might wanna come up here.”
Seconds later, all three joined her in the cockpit. Ivan reached tactical first. Bin Nadal decided to take the consolation prize of co-pilot. Uhura sat at the engineering station.
Karim examined the displays, “It’s an Axanar freighter. It may be nothing to worry about. This is a common trade route.”
“Yeah,” observed Ivan, “but merchantmen usually don’t run with shields and weapons hot.”
“You’ve got to be kidding, me,” somberly chided Nicole.
Uhura commented, “He’s tenacious, I’ll give him that.”
The Independence’s security chief said, “If that is him, at least we have the advantage this time. That ship can’t have more than a few type-IVs.”
“He’s closing,” reported Chase, “300,000 km…2.5.”
“Raising shields, weapons at the ready,” came from tactical.
“In less than ten minutes, we’ll have to drop out of warp anyway,” said Bin Nadal. “We’re just outside the Saurian system.”
The elderly admiral then commented, “He wouldn’t give himself such an obvious disadvantage. What’s he planning?”
The momentary silence in the cabin was the answer.
“Fifty-thousand kilometers,” said Chase, “is he going to ram us?”
Apparently Karim had already thought that, “No, his flight path is slightly off ours.”
Cherenkov tapped a few controls, “He could beat us to the system and wait for us there. I’d have to assume that fighter is in one of those cargo bays.”
“We could drop out of warp inside the system at the very last minute,” suggested Nyota.
“He going to pass us,” reported Nicole.
Ivan got a dark grin on his face, “That guy just made a fatal mistake.” He manipulated the controls, “Locking on with photons.”
Karim turned, “Wait! What if it’s not him? Right now, all was know is that ship is running on red alert. That’s it.”
Uhura concurred, “Karim’s right. If we’re wrong…”
Nicole noticed some movement on the cargo ship. One of the large bay doors began to open. “Look!”
Karim and Ivan got up just in time to see the Starfleet fighter hovering behind the forcefield. It rotated to face them inside the bay.
“Son of a…” blurted Ivan as he quickly moved for tactical.
Two photons shot rapidly out of the fighter, passed through the freighter’s shields, and smacked into the Delos.
Cherenkov managed to recover from the impact and report, “Fore-port shields are gone!”
“Rotating on Y-axis…” began Chase.
Her attempts were futile, however. A third photon tore into the port nacelle. Inside the runabout, a massive jolt rocked the occupants. There is no other sensation than being on a ship that drops out of warp due to damage. Reentering normal space felt like running into a brick wall. The lights momentarily failed. A micro fracture formed in the hull. The sound of air escaping the cabin was deafening. Suddenly the back-up generator came on and an emergency forcefield sealed the breach.
Uhura relayed, “The port nacelle is gone! Main power is offline.”
“So are shields and weapons,” added Ivan.
The admiral looked over to the blonde Russian, “He’s a sadistic bastard, set up transport inhibitors.”
He acknowledged and moved to the storage area.
“Admiral,” shouted Nicole with a smile on her face, “A starship is coming!”
Karim sighed with relief. He looked over to Uhura and reported, “It’s the Philadelphia!”
END OF CHAPTER 10
Stardate: 53736.6 (26 Sep 2376)
Runabout Delos
In route to Sauria
Nicole Chase, the Indy’s operations officer, looked back at the closed hatch. She was annoyed, but not surprised. Uhura, Karim, and Ivan were all talking in the lounge about something; no doubt their ‘secret’ mission. The old women’s distrust of her was more than evident. She didn’t blame Uhura, really; but it was very irritating. Nicole made the best of the time alone.
*****
The former admiral continued, “My contact saw the holo-simulation…”
“You have a contact inside 31?” blurted Karim, in disbelief.
Nyota forgave the interruption with grace. She answered, “Not everyone inside is as willing to void the Federation constitution. The Section is led by a directorate; not consensus.” She got back on track, “Satie is going to speak at Nihoor’klem’s central park district. Our assassin is a native Saurian. He has a food cart near the amphitheater.”
Cherenkov asked; hoped really, “Do you have a name?”
“No,” responded Uhura, “And there is more than one vender in that area.”
“How much time will we have to search before the shooter acts?” questioned Bin Nadal.
Admiral Uhura shrugged, “I don’t know for sure. I only know the assassin will strike during the speech.” She looked over at the chronometer, “And we should be able to beam down about a half-hour before the speech starts.”
“That’s mot much time,” commented Ivan.
“No,” Uhura said, “but it’s the time we have.”
*****
The blade-shaped hull of the USS Independence glided in orbit above New Sydney.
*****
Sintina walked a circuit around the bridge, glancing over the shoulders of different officers as she went. Everyone on deck 1 was ready for the NSPD to respond.
Finally, an indicator flashed at communications. Kimula quickly swiveled around, “Captain, Deputy Police Commissioner Kalty is on the line.”
“Put him on,” ordered Aurelia as she moved to the center of the bridge.
A light-skinned, human male filled the viewer. His hair was white, but full. He wore formal civilian attire.
“Commissioner Kalty,” began the captain, “thanks for speaking with us.”
“I was hoping you could answer some of my questions as well,” he stated.
“Oh?” uttered Sintina.
Kalty had a suspicion in his eye, “There has been some very odd Starfleet activity around New Sydney lately. First, a ship is destroyed in orbit by what could only be a quantum torpedo; then, a murdered police officer and an injured citizen. And most recently, a phaser fight in our skies. Do you know anything about all this?”
Aurelia literally stepped back and soaked in what the commissioner had told her. She stood straight again, “I had one officer come here in an Icarus-class runabout. But I can’t believe he would be responsible for any murders. And he didn’t have access to quantum torpedoes.”
“Does your vessel have quantums in its arsenal?” questioned Kalty.
Sintina’s eyes grew wide at the accusation. “Yes, but we just arrived.”
He nodded and leaned back, “We believe there were at least two parties involved. Your runabout warped out of here way too low. They were being pursued by a Starfleet fighter; perhaps its mothership destroyed the freighter.”
“I find that hard to believe,” rejoined Sintina.
Kalty’s stare was that of an experienced law enforcement officer, “Believe it or not, the evidence is there.”
Aurelia thought it best to change topics, “What happened to the fighter?”
“We don’t know,” he responded, “Our patrol craft tried to rendezvous, but by the time we got there, both vessels were gone.”
Aurelia stepped forward and rested her hands on the consoles separating tactical and helm. “Do you have any idea where my runabout went?”
The commissioner nodded, “It had a heading of 051 mark 356. However, we lack the resources to make chase. If you would be willing…”
“Oh, you have my promise on that,” said Aurelia with resolve. She began to dismiss the commissioner and look over at the helm.
He spoke up, however, “A few more things. I’ve already contacted Starfleet Command and requested any information it had on starships sent to this system. And I’d like to remind you that New Sydney has an extradition treaty with the Federation. I’ll be reporting this to our State Department. I want the person responsible for this.”
The captain was only half paying attention to what was said. She looked up, “Understood. Thanks for you help.”
Commissioner Kalty had obviously hoped for more answers. He reluctantly closed the channel.
D’nas reported what Aurelia had silently ordered, “The Saurian system is along that route, captain.”
She returned to the center seat, “It’ll have to do. Set a course.”
*****
Stardate: 53742.2 (28 Sep 2376)
Lieutenant Chase looked over at the sensors. A contact directly aft was catching up to them. She activated the comm., “Hey guys, you might wanna come up here.”
Seconds later, all three joined her in the cockpit. Ivan reached tactical first. Bin Nadal decided to take the consolation prize of co-pilot. Uhura sat at the engineering station.
Karim examined the displays, “It’s an Axanar freighter. It may be nothing to worry about. This is a common trade route.”
“Yeah,” observed Ivan, “but merchantmen usually don’t run with shields and weapons hot.”
“You’ve got to be kidding, me,” somberly chided Nicole.
Uhura commented, “He’s tenacious, I’ll give him that.”
The Independence’s security chief said, “If that is him, at least we have the advantage this time. That ship can’t have more than a few type-IVs.”
“He’s closing,” reported Chase, “300,000 km…2.5.”
“Raising shields, weapons at the ready,” came from tactical.
“In less than ten minutes, we’ll have to drop out of warp anyway,” said Bin Nadal. “We’re just outside the Saurian system.”
The elderly admiral then commented, “He wouldn’t give himself such an obvious disadvantage. What’s he planning?”
The momentary silence in the cabin was the answer.
“Fifty-thousand kilometers,” said Chase, “is he going to ram us?”
Apparently Karim had already thought that, “No, his flight path is slightly off ours.”
Cherenkov tapped a few controls, “He could beat us to the system and wait for us there. I’d have to assume that fighter is in one of those cargo bays.”
“We could drop out of warp inside the system at the very last minute,” suggested Nyota.
“He going to pass us,” reported Nicole.
Ivan got a dark grin on his face, “That guy just made a fatal mistake.” He manipulated the controls, “Locking on with photons.”
Karim turned, “Wait! What if it’s not him? Right now, all was know is that ship is running on red alert. That’s it.”
Uhura concurred, “Karim’s right. If we’re wrong…”
Nicole noticed some movement on the cargo ship. One of the large bay doors began to open. “Look!”
Karim and Ivan got up just in time to see the Starfleet fighter hovering behind the forcefield. It rotated to face them inside the bay.
“Son of a…” blurted Ivan as he quickly moved for tactical.
Two photons shot rapidly out of the fighter, passed through the freighter’s shields, and smacked into the Delos.
Cherenkov managed to recover from the impact and report, “Fore-port shields are gone!”
“Rotating on Y-axis…” began Chase.
Her attempts were futile, however. A third photon tore into the port nacelle. Inside the runabout, a massive jolt rocked the occupants. There is no other sensation than being on a ship that drops out of warp due to damage. Reentering normal space felt like running into a brick wall. The lights momentarily failed. A micro fracture formed in the hull. The sound of air escaping the cabin was deafening. Suddenly the back-up generator came on and an emergency forcefield sealed the breach.
Uhura relayed, “The port nacelle is gone! Main power is offline.”
“So are shields and weapons,” added Ivan.
The admiral looked over to the blonde Russian, “He’s a sadistic bastard, set up transport inhibitors.”
He acknowledged and moved to the storage area.
“Admiral,” shouted Nicole with a smile on her face, “A starship is coming!”
Karim sighed with relief. He looked over to Uhura and reported, “It’s the Philadelphia!”
END OF CHAPTER 10
Well you have clearly mastered the concept of the cliff-hanger writing. And your action scenes and pace is also quite remarkable.
The ending to this last part is especially thrilling as it open up a lot of possibilities. And it's probably going to be bad news for our heroes.
This is a very intriguing tale so far and I am exited to see how it pans out.
The ending to this last part is especially thrilling as it open up a lot of possibilities. And it's probably going to be bad news for our heroes.
This is a very intriguing tale so far and I am exited to see how it pans out.
CHAPTER 11
Supplemental
Runabout Delos
Just outside of the Saurian System
‘I had a chance to kill him twice now,’ Ivan Cherenkov berated to himself as he activated the inhibitor unit in the aft of the vessel. He made his way back to the cockpit, “The inhibitor is set up.” The lack of acknowledgement from the others indicated a new development, “What’s going on?”
The elder Uhura fielded his query, “The Philadelphia and our attacker seem to be communicating with each other.”
Chase quickly offered, “They could be telling him to surrender.”
A dread fell over Ivan. The admiral seemed to have it as well, but it was lost on the other two. He moved closer to Uhura, “What about the quantum?” He looked at everyone else, “It had to have come from somewhere.”
Nyota coolly responded, “I agree.”
Nicole did a one-eighty in her chair. “No, no, no, no. This can’t be happening. You’re saying we have to evade a Sovereign now?”
The group exchanged worried looks. All felt Chase’s frustration and anxiety, at least on some level.
A beep came from the co-pilot’s station. Bin Nadal reported, “The cargo ship’s shields have dropped. A transport is in progress.”
Ivan questioned, “Have they captured him…or recovered him?”
“I have a feeling,” offered Uhura, “that we’ll find out soon enough.”
*****
Commander Zackary Collins entered the bridge of the USS Philadelphia from the turbolift. His face was bruised, but his mannerisms didn’t indicate his pain.
An Andorian wearing black was all smiles. “Well done, commander,” said agent Visala. “You’re just in time. Take a station out of view of the main screen.”
Collins stayed, “I’d prefer to take tactical to make the kill.”
“We’re going to capture them,” spat Captain Russell, “not kill them.”
The Section 31 agent placated Collins, “Don’t worry. We’ll bring them onboard. You’ll have your chance before the end.”
The commander bit his lip. He unenthusiastically said, “Alright.” Then, he rigidly sat at the most port-side console.
Visala sat at an auxiliary station. She ordered, “Go ahead, captain.”
The captain stood in the center of the room. He felt more powerful than he knew he was. ‘He would just have to get them onboard,’ he said to himself. After they were in Visala’s hands, he had no further responsibility. He just had to hand them over…that’s all. The thought made him feel better about what he was about to do. “Hail them,” said Russell.
The viewer came to life. An image of a Central Asian man appeared.
“I’m Captain Dalton Russell of the USS Philadelphia. We’ve talked down your attacker. My security personnel are getting his side of the story. What’s yours?”
Something was a bit off, decided Karim. Russell sounded rushed, rehearsed. The Persian hoped he could be more convincing. “Lieutenant Commander Karim Bin Nadal of the Independence,” he began, “the person you now have on your ship attacked me on several occasions and he had access to a Valkyrie fighter.”
“Interesting,” offered Russell, though he showed none. He stepped down from the command deck, “We’re reading three other humans on your runabout. Who are they?”
The choreographed dialog continued. Now, it was Karim’s line, “We’re an SI team on an urgent mission. That’s all I can say.”
On the surface, the captain quickly accepted Karim’s explanation. “Very well,” he said, “but your craft has been disabled. We’ll dock it in our shuttle bay and you can use us to get to where you need to go.”
Bin Nadal gave a kind smile. Now, no doubt existed in his mind. “That’s a kind offer, but we’ll be fine.”
Russell crossed his arms, “I’m afraid I must insist, commander.”
Karim’s arm moved under the screen, “So be it.” The transmission abruptly ended.
*****
Bin Nadal looked back at the others, “It has to be them.”
A soft blue light immersed the craft. “They’ve got a tractor on us,” reported Ivan.
“The emergency transporter is standing by,” confirmed Nicole.
Nyota Uhura turned to reassure everyone, “Don’t get jittery. If we do this too soon, it won’t work.”
Two nods, and an ‘Aye sir,’ were her acknowledgment.
*****
The relatively small runabout moved smoothly along the ventral side of the Sovereign-class starship via the tractor beam. When it reached the cut off point, the aft tractor took over the chore of the fore one. The Delos arched around to the aft of the ship, where the main shuttle bay was located.
*****
Ivan reminded the group, “We have to do this before we lose line of sight with the freighter.”
“Do it on my mark,” ordered Uhura, “T-minus 10 seconds.”
A series of alerts sounded. Cherenkov reported, “Another ship is dropping out of warp.”
Karim quickly looked on his own display. He clapped and yelped, “Yes! It’s the Indy!”
*****
A flash appeared in space. The assault cruiser slowed to impulse speeds just kilometers away from the three other vessels.
*****
Captain Aurelia got up from her command chair. She impatiently looked over at Kimula, whom stationed communications, and ordered, “Hail them.”
A dark-haired Caucasian man filled the main screen. He started, “I’m Captain Dalton…”
“What are you doing with my runabout?” interrupted Sintina.
Russell cleared his throat, “We…ah, were offering it aid. It came under attack.”
Windslow stood up from operations after he double checked, “Then why do the occupants of that shuttle have a transport inhibitor powered up?” He glanced over at Aurelia the moment he stopped speaking, slightly regretting his outburst.
Luckily, she didn’t seem to mind too much. It strengthened her hand, so she really couldn’t complain. She cocked her head, “Well, captain?”
All Dalton could muster was, “I…I have my orders.”
Commander Windslow advanced on the viewer, bolder than before, “Orders from whom?”
The captain of the Philadelphia looked as if he were lost. He looked to starboard. He seemed to be requesting advice. He began to utter something when Sintina cut him off.
She coyly strutted just above the ‘pit.’ “Tell me captain, have you been to the New Sydney colony in the last few weeks?”
Russell began to visibly sweat. He stood there with is mouth ajar for a moment, then he managed, “No. No, we were at…um…”
Aurelia jumped in, “You need to come up with lies quicker than that.” She could taste her anger, “Release our runabout, now.”
“I can’t,” was his simple response.
“You will,” corrected Aurelia, “Red alert.” The lighting immediately dimmed, a red glow surrounded the crew, and klaxons sounded. She looked over at her first officer, “Can you disrupt that tractor beam?”
Ethan Windslow seemed to have resolve for the very first time, “Watch me.”
Sintina was genuinely impressed with his determination.
“What do you think you’re doing?” burst Aurelia’s counterpart.
“It’s time for you to pick on someone your own caliber,” challenged Sintina. “D’nas, take the Delos in tow. Maneuver it out of sight of the Philadelphia.” She again addressed Russell, “To get them, you’ll have to open fire on me.”
Captain Russell’s brows crimped. A mixture of shock and confusion formed on his face, “Are you crazy.”
Aurelia’s answer was instant and deadpan, “A little.”
The first officer of the Independence joined his captain. He looked at Russell, “Have you ever heard of M.A.D., Captain…” He realized Aurelia never gave him the chance to fully introduce himself, “captain?”
Russell’s already confused look evolved into befuddlement. Aurelia’s body language didn’t reflect clarity, either.
Ethan elaborated, “It’s an acronym for Mutual Assured Destruction. It’s a term from Earth’s 20th century. You see, we’re both equipped with quantum torpedoes. Who ever launches first, the other will have the chance to launch their own. Our quantums will pass each other in space and both our ships will be annihilated.”
Captain Aurelia crossed her arms and rotated her hips to look at Windslow. The look wasn’t one of displeasure or anger. Aurelia honestly didn’t know what to think.
Ethan offered, “I just wanted the captain to make an informed decision, ma’am.”
Her hips straightened out; her arms still crossed. She addressed the captain, “Your move.”
END OF CHAPTER 11
Supplemental
Runabout Delos
Just outside of the Saurian System
‘I had a chance to kill him twice now,’ Ivan Cherenkov berated to himself as he activated the inhibitor unit in the aft of the vessel. He made his way back to the cockpit, “The inhibitor is set up.” The lack of acknowledgement from the others indicated a new development, “What’s going on?”
The elder Uhura fielded his query, “The Philadelphia and our attacker seem to be communicating with each other.”
Chase quickly offered, “They could be telling him to surrender.”
A dread fell over Ivan. The admiral seemed to have it as well, but it was lost on the other two. He moved closer to Uhura, “What about the quantum?” He looked at everyone else, “It had to have come from somewhere.”
Nyota coolly responded, “I agree.”
Nicole did a one-eighty in her chair. “No, no, no, no. This can’t be happening. You’re saying we have to evade a Sovereign now?”
The group exchanged worried looks. All felt Chase’s frustration and anxiety, at least on some level.
A beep came from the co-pilot’s station. Bin Nadal reported, “The cargo ship’s shields have dropped. A transport is in progress.”
Ivan questioned, “Have they captured him…or recovered him?”
“I have a feeling,” offered Uhura, “that we’ll find out soon enough.”
*****
Commander Zackary Collins entered the bridge of the USS Philadelphia from the turbolift. His face was bruised, but his mannerisms didn’t indicate his pain.
An Andorian wearing black was all smiles. “Well done, commander,” said agent Visala. “You’re just in time. Take a station out of view of the main screen.”
Collins stayed, “I’d prefer to take tactical to make the kill.”
“We’re going to capture them,” spat Captain Russell, “not kill them.”
The Section 31 agent placated Collins, “Don’t worry. We’ll bring them onboard. You’ll have your chance before the end.”
The commander bit his lip. He unenthusiastically said, “Alright.” Then, he rigidly sat at the most port-side console.
Visala sat at an auxiliary station. She ordered, “Go ahead, captain.”
The captain stood in the center of the room. He felt more powerful than he knew he was. ‘He would just have to get them onboard,’ he said to himself. After they were in Visala’s hands, he had no further responsibility. He just had to hand them over…that’s all. The thought made him feel better about what he was about to do. “Hail them,” said Russell.
The viewer came to life. An image of a Central Asian man appeared.
“I’m Captain Dalton Russell of the USS Philadelphia. We’ve talked down your attacker. My security personnel are getting his side of the story. What’s yours?”
Something was a bit off, decided Karim. Russell sounded rushed, rehearsed. The Persian hoped he could be more convincing. “Lieutenant Commander Karim Bin Nadal of the Independence,” he began, “the person you now have on your ship attacked me on several occasions and he had access to a Valkyrie fighter.”
“Interesting,” offered Russell, though he showed none. He stepped down from the command deck, “We’re reading three other humans on your runabout. Who are they?”
The choreographed dialog continued. Now, it was Karim’s line, “We’re an SI team on an urgent mission. That’s all I can say.”
On the surface, the captain quickly accepted Karim’s explanation. “Very well,” he said, “but your craft has been disabled. We’ll dock it in our shuttle bay and you can use us to get to where you need to go.”
Bin Nadal gave a kind smile. Now, no doubt existed in his mind. “That’s a kind offer, but we’ll be fine.”
Russell crossed his arms, “I’m afraid I must insist, commander.”
Karim’s arm moved under the screen, “So be it.” The transmission abruptly ended.
*****
Bin Nadal looked back at the others, “It has to be them.”
A soft blue light immersed the craft. “They’ve got a tractor on us,” reported Ivan.
“The emergency transporter is standing by,” confirmed Nicole.
Nyota Uhura turned to reassure everyone, “Don’t get jittery. If we do this too soon, it won’t work.”
Two nods, and an ‘Aye sir,’ were her acknowledgment.
*****
The relatively small runabout moved smoothly along the ventral side of the Sovereign-class starship via the tractor beam. When it reached the cut off point, the aft tractor took over the chore of the fore one. The Delos arched around to the aft of the ship, where the main shuttle bay was located.
*****
Ivan reminded the group, “We have to do this before we lose line of sight with the freighter.”
“Do it on my mark,” ordered Uhura, “T-minus 10 seconds.”
A series of alerts sounded. Cherenkov reported, “Another ship is dropping out of warp.”
Karim quickly looked on his own display. He clapped and yelped, “Yes! It’s the Indy!”
*****
A flash appeared in space. The assault cruiser slowed to impulse speeds just kilometers away from the three other vessels.
*****
Captain Aurelia got up from her command chair. She impatiently looked over at Kimula, whom stationed communications, and ordered, “Hail them.”
A dark-haired Caucasian man filled the main screen. He started, “I’m Captain Dalton…”
“What are you doing with my runabout?” interrupted Sintina.
Russell cleared his throat, “We…ah, were offering it aid. It came under attack.”
Windslow stood up from operations after he double checked, “Then why do the occupants of that shuttle have a transport inhibitor powered up?” He glanced over at Aurelia the moment he stopped speaking, slightly regretting his outburst.
Luckily, she didn’t seem to mind too much. It strengthened her hand, so she really couldn’t complain. She cocked her head, “Well, captain?”
All Dalton could muster was, “I…I have my orders.”
Commander Windslow advanced on the viewer, bolder than before, “Orders from whom?”
The captain of the Philadelphia looked as if he were lost. He looked to starboard. He seemed to be requesting advice. He began to utter something when Sintina cut him off.
She coyly strutted just above the ‘pit.’ “Tell me captain, have you been to the New Sydney colony in the last few weeks?”
Russell began to visibly sweat. He stood there with is mouth ajar for a moment, then he managed, “No. No, we were at…um…”
Aurelia jumped in, “You need to come up with lies quicker than that.” She could taste her anger, “Release our runabout, now.”
“I can’t,” was his simple response.
“You will,” corrected Aurelia, “Red alert.” The lighting immediately dimmed, a red glow surrounded the crew, and klaxons sounded. She looked over at her first officer, “Can you disrupt that tractor beam?”
Ethan Windslow seemed to have resolve for the very first time, “Watch me.”
Sintina was genuinely impressed with his determination.
“What do you think you’re doing?” burst Aurelia’s counterpart.
“It’s time for you to pick on someone your own caliber,” challenged Sintina. “D’nas, take the Delos in tow. Maneuver it out of sight of the Philadelphia.” She again addressed Russell, “To get them, you’ll have to open fire on me.”
Captain Russell’s brows crimped. A mixture of shock and confusion formed on his face, “Are you crazy.”
Aurelia’s answer was instant and deadpan, “A little.”
The first officer of the Independence joined his captain. He looked at Russell, “Have you ever heard of M.A.D., Captain…” He realized Aurelia never gave him the chance to fully introduce himself, “captain?”
Russell’s already confused look evolved into befuddlement. Aurelia’s body language didn’t reflect clarity, either.
Ethan elaborated, “It’s an acronym for Mutual Assured Destruction. It’s a term from Earth’s 20th century. You see, we’re both equipped with quantum torpedoes. Who ever launches first, the other will have the chance to launch their own. Our quantums will pass each other in space and both our ships will be annihilated.”
Captain Aurelia crossed her arms and rotated her hips to look at Windslow. The look wasn’t one of displeasure or anger. Aurelia honestly didn’t know what to think.
Ethan offered, “I just wanted the captain to make an informed decision, ma’am.”
Her hips straightened out; her arms still crossed. She addressed the captain, “Your move.”
END OF CHAPTER 11
Looks like Collins might have to put his blood lust on hold for now. Ethan seems to have found something he lost and Russell is taking on the original loose cannon.
Of course, Karim's got some 'splainin' to do!
Of course, Karim's got some 'splainin' to do!
I'd have to say, "advantage - Independence," at least for the moment. Captain Aurelia and Commander Windslow seem to have the Philadelphia's captain off-balance. But they better be careful not to lose that slight edge - there are some extremely ruthless people on the bridge of that Sovereign-class ship!
And let me add how much I'm enjoying this story! It's taken me a while to catch up, but it's been a pleasure reading this. Great work, and I'm looking forward to the rest of the tale! :thumbsup:
And let me add how much I'm enjoying this story! It's taken me a while to catch up, but it's been a pleasure reading this. Great work, and I'm looking forward to the rest of the tale! :thumbsup:
