STAR TREK: HELIX
Episode: “The Crossing part II” by Todd Kelley
Last Time On Star Trek: Helix
In an alternate time line , seven year after The Borg had won Wolf 359,
the last bastion of freedom waged their final fight again The Collective.
Alas, the Borg were too powerful; the resistance was overwelmed and
quickly the destroyed. Alex Garrett and his crew aboard the Helix were
the only ones to survive. There only hope was to use an experimental
transporter system called “The Fold” to transport the Helix safely away
from the fight. But a freak mishap through the ship and it’s crew back in
time. . .
Theoretically, the Helix’s trip back through time changed history and
cause the Borg’s defeat at Wolf 359. The ship and crew are found by a
Starfleet rescue unit headed by Admiral Cynthia Porter; one half of the
ruling thrown to the covert organization known as The Program. Feeling
the crew’s fighting experience and the Borg-enhanced spaceship could
be an asset to her, she enlists their help. But unknown to her associates
and crew, she has a deadlier agenda which will decide the fate of the
Alpha Quadrant in the years to come . . .
And Now The Continuation . . . .
PRELUDE: SHADES OF THE PAST
At first there was nothing.
Silence. Black.
And then he noticed the steady beating of is heart. Still with the darkness, he felt
‘things’ prodding him. Fingers and cold objects brushed against his exposed skin.
Panic overwhelmed him. He struggled for his first breath of air. It came to him in a
painful rush which filled his weak lungs with life. After a series of gasps, he felt the
habit returning to him.
‘Open your eyes…’
Something inside him spoke. His eyelids opened and images of colorful light burned
in his retinas. He tried to squint, but realized something was holding his eyes open.
He struggled for mobility, to find himself constrained.
He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing happened.
‘Open your mind….’
The voice said next. Alex struggled even more to no avail. As his vision began to
clear, he began to see objects shapes in motion before him.
‘Open you mind…’
He struggle feverishly because he knew all of it was wrong. This was not to ‘good
place’ he usually would come.
‘Open your mind…’
He tried to scream, but he had no voice. He had no freedom.
‘Open you mind.’
More voices joined in. It was a universal voice the thoughts of a thousand beings.
He opened his mind, and reached out with a thought of curiosity. “Who are you?”
‘We are legion….you…are legion’
His heart stopped when he realized who ‘It/They’ were. He tried to close his mind,
but it was too late. ‘It/They’ had already entered and were at work. He could feel a
million mental fingertips caressing his brain, molding his thought patterns into
something different.
“Please….don’t hurt me!” he mentally lashed out
The enemy gave no pity. ‘Pain is irrelevant…’
Then, all at once it stopped and there was once again darkness. Alex could no
longer hear is heart or his breathing. Everything had changed.
‘Respond…’
The voice commanded, and Alex felt a need to. The voice was no longer terrifying,
but more commonplace. It was the ‘Voice/Voices’ of oneness.
‘Respond….’
Alex felt his lips move.
He opened his mouth and spoke: “”Resistance is futile….”
Alex woke up in a frightening spasm. He jerked the covers from his bed and violently
swung in the air. As he began to realize he was dreaming, his urgent sense of action
turned into fatigue. He sat up, huffing greatly, trying to calm down.
“Never again…” he whispered to no one; frightened that the inner voice would reply to
him, like it did in the dream . And like it did three years before.
“Never again….”
CHAPTER ONE: FOR THE CAUSE
PERSONAL LOG: First Officer Mia Gan-An’War recording . . .
Since we are encouraged to follow Starfleet protocol, I’m
initializing this entry as our first official log entry. I
haven’t made them since my days with the Tolsh Yar, so It’s
gonna take some time getting use to. Here it goes:
BEGIN LOG ENTRY: It’s been three days since we agreed to join
Admiral Porter’s Program. Alex and I have been working around
the clock on repairs to the Helix and estimate we’ll be
space-worthy in under twenty-four hours. Tash has been away on
reckon duty; retrieving needed supplies and information for
the refit of the databanks.
Our situation being thrown back in time and altering the
timeline, has been a lot to take in for us. Although we’ve
accepted our fate, fighting the Borg in our timeline has done
nothing but make us weary of what was to expect in this
‘improved’ timeline. The Borg are still out there and they’ll
try again.
Off the record, although the Admiral seems to have the best of
intentions, I still don’t trust her. There seems to be more
than what the surface shows. It is apparent she is more
interested in our ship and us; probably waiting for the right
time to seize it. I’ve been wondering if sharing our anti-Borg
technology would be beneficial to this Alpha Quadrant. But
there’s still so much we don’t know yet. . .
And then there’s Kyle, our ‘newest’ member. His dossier says
he’s a Trill host for a multi-century old symbiote. There’s a
lot of information which was deleted from his file. It’s going
to take a few months of work, but I should recover it all.
He seems to walk the fence, but he’s gonna have to fall on
someone’s side soon. Who’s side will it be? More importantly,
how many sides are there to choose from…
E N D _ T R A N S M I T T I O N
Mia entered the transporter room to find Admiral Porter and Kathy Brooks already
waiting. Five minute before, they were informed that Tash and the reckon team had
just pulled into transporter range. The Starfleet officers were intently whispering, but
quickly stifled when the Vulcan was in ear distance.
“You’re late.” the Admiral commented.
“So it would seem.” Mia answered nonchalantly. “I caught one of your engineers trying
to open a conduit in a non designated area. He ended up with third degree burns on
his right arm from the automated defense systems.” She almost smirked, but held her
composure.
“Wait a minute…” Kathy Brooks intruded. “You specifically said it was safe for our
people to get in there and help with repairs.”
“I said the designated areas in need of repairs were safe. I also told you to inform your
crew that non designated areas would be unsafe to venture; let alone be tampered
with.”
The Admiral stepped forward. “I hope you’re not accusing my men of having ulterior
motives?”
“No.” Mia replied. “I just didn’t know that using the class-seven laser torch on
Galvanian-Plate Armor, in non specified work areas was part of Starfleet
operations…” with that she walked to transporter chief; her smirk starting to surface.
“Energize…”
The Chief looked over toward Admiral Porter who gave him the green light. In a
matter a seconds, Tash and three Starfleet officers appeared on the beam pads.
“How’d we do?” Mia asked her brother who was already off the pad and coming
toward her, digging in his sachet. He came out with a brown quartz-like crystal which
glimmered in the track lighting.
“Jackpot.” Tash replied with a smile. “They were just where Lucani left them. We got
about seventeen good-size crystals; about fifty years worth for the holodeck and
medical systems. I’m gonna run them to engineering and start the refining process.”
As he left the transporter room, Lt. Kathy Brooks stared at the booty. “I don’t
recognize those rocks.”
“They’re Takarian Rune Crystals. The Breen use them as emergency substitutions for
dilithium, cause the charge is so low that they’re not suitable for regular use. One of
our resistance scientists found that if you take three good size crystals and lock their
energy expenditure into a continuous loop, the energy degradation falls to less than
0.04% an hour. To conserve dilithium supplies, we outfitted the holodeck and sickbay
equipment to run on these crystals.” She started walk out and the Admiral and
Lieutenant followed. “They’re virtually nonexistent now. But in our time, a Garidian
pirate name Lucani told us of a large stash he had on a moon in the Breen system. Five
years from now we would’ve used up the stash fighting the Borg, so I was certain they
should still be in place.”
“What about your friend? I mean, it’s still his stash?” The Admiral asked stopping at
the turbolift.
Mia stepped in, leaving her companions in the hall. “The way I see it, we won’t be
friends for another two years. So, screw him. Deck 5.”
The doors close and Admiral Porter and Lt. Brooks began to walk about. The
Admiral leaned over to whisper “I think I’m going like that bitch…”
Kathy laughed outloud.
“….I thought they weren’t suppose to be moved for three days?!” Kyle K’nar said
pacing in his new quarters aboard the Helix. He was using a coded frequency to
contact his section of the Bajoran resistance.
An elderly woman filled the comm-screen. “You know our intelligence is sketchy at
best. Kira said they intercepted one of our patrols in the Badlands and made
their transport quota early.” she replied, concern in her tone.
“Where are they going?”
“Tarok Nor. But first they’re scheduled to rendezvous with the 5th Order patrol
squad half way through. It’ll be a 24 hour stop over before they’re underway.”
“Understood”
“I want my grandson back, Kyle. Ian doesn’t have anything to do with all this!
He’s only a child…”
Kyle pulled close to the screen. “I made a promise that I’d get him back for you, and I
will. There’s somebody very special also on that transport. I’ll find a way to get them.
You have my…”
The entrance bell sounded. “Ending transmission…” Kyle said terminating the console’s
power just as Admiral Porter and Lt. Bates entered.
“My my…” he said with a grin. “You coming to see me without a security entourage?
You’re either getting brave or stupid in your old age.”
“You know what gets my goat, Kyle?” the Admiral asked. The Trill shrugged his
shoulders. “The fact that I believe in your cause, but I don’t believe in you.”
“Tell me when its suppose to hurt my feelings, so I can try and cry.” Kyle smirked.
The Admiral motioned for the Lieutenant to leave the room and Kathy did reluctantly.
Porter strolled over and sat beside Kyle who was busy suiting up.
She paused for a few seconds and got serious. “This is one of The Programs’ most
important campaigns, Kyle. The reason I’m giving you a second chance is because
your motives are good. We both want the same thing….”
Kyle looked back at the Admiral. “Tell me the truth. Why do you want the end the
Cardassian Occupation?”
The Admiral smiled. “To help liberate the Bajorans for….”
“Bullshit!” Kyle shouted. “I don’t want a bullshit answer!”
“O.K. How about ‘I can’t stand Cardassians’. How about ‘I want to see them pay for
what they did to my husband and his crew’? Which do you want, ’cause I have a
million of them. But all of that is irrelevant! All you need to know is that I’m giving you
the means to finish the job you and the resistance couldn’t!” She handed him a data
chip and walked to the door. “That’s your next three mission dossiers, all the access
codes and contact information is still the same so you have to walk the others through
our operations. And don’t forget I’m gonna be watching you, Kyle. Follow my
directions and you’ll hit the jackpot. Cross me and I’ll consider you an enemy. And
you know what I do to enemies.”
She quickly left to give Kyle time for her words to sink in. He stared at the blank
console he was using minutes before.
“Well, so much for the nice approach.”
He was about to become the enemy….
When Mia reached Alex’s quarters, she didn’t bother to use the entrance request.
Back in the resistance, there was no place for privacy. Everything was community
property, and living quarters were nothing more than a big storage facility or a giant
cave.
As the door swung open, she noticed Alex sitting by the window sipping what seemed
to be coffee.
“Alex, we should’ve been on the Helix ten minutes ago.” Mia said walking behind him.
Alex swiveled around in his chair to face his teammate.
“I don’t think their going anywhere without us…” Alex answered. “We have time.”
Mia smiled and tapped her combadge. “Mia to Tash…”
“Go ahead.” her brother’s voice responded.
“Postpone the launch for another half hour. We have a few things to straighten out
down here.”
“Understood. But Kyle is pretty impatient to get going…”
“Let him wait.”
“Understood. Tash out.”
With that, Mia found a spot on the couch across the room and layed down. “So, are
you gonna tell me what’s wrong, or do I have whine to get it out of you?”
“I used one of Tash’s old access codes to get into the Tolsh Yar’s network. I wanted
to check up on your counterparts in this era.”
“Weren’t we instructed not to do that.”
“Yep” Alex smiled, but his grin was empty
“And?” Mia didn’t like where all this was going.
He took a deep breath. “You were killed in a freak shuttle accident en route to
Romulus three days ago. Tash was last seen the day before, investigating an incident
near The Neutral Zone. He’s assumed to be dead also.”
Mia was in shock. She slowly sat up and stared at her captain who now stood up and
went to sit beside her.
“My counterpart was killed at Wolf 3-5-9, which means there’s no evidence of the
time rift.” he leaned over to speak softly. “I think we may be in trouble. This Program
isn’t exactly what it seems. And it’s influence doesn’t just stop with The Federation.”
“Then what do we do? We could make a run for the badlands; rejoin the Bajoran
resistance. I’m sure this Kyle guy wouldn’t have any objections.”
Alex shook his head. “The Admiral’s a smart old bitch. She would’ve thought of that.
Right now, all we can do is hide in plain site. We’ll play along until we can find out
what’s really going on…”
“And what if it’s bad?” Mia asked.
“Well, remember we have access codes, top secret operations, espionage routines,
and illegal actions of every major faction in the alpha quadrant in our fragmented
databanks. It’s all history to us, but in the here and now; it’s all valuable commodity.”
Mia smiled. “We could stir up quite a few problems once the data core is back
online.”
Alex smiled more fiendishly. “Or make nice amount of latnum. But for now, lets play
like nice little soldiers and do what we’re told.”
In the hour that followed, the four-man Helix crew had made it aboard and ran their
final system checks. Although the ship wasn’t at 100%, all the main systems were
online and fully functional. Alex had assumed his place at command, Tash at navigation
and communication, and Mia at security and engineering. Kyle remained in his quarters
stating he wasn’t fully needed until the action started. Alex knew he had a tuff road
ahead with the Trill warrior. He wasn’t going to have to win the old man’s trust.
Aboard the Starship Craven, they were readying to depart for earth.
“Admiral on the bridge!” Lt. Cmd Brooks said as Cynthia Porter exited the turbolift
and headed for the command chair.
“As you were.” she said and everyone tended to their posts. “Hail Mr. Garrett,
please.” she ordered easing into the chair was grace and presence.
Alex’s face appeared on the front screen. Porter could see Mia in the background
shuffling from station to station in preparation.
“We’re all set to go, Admiral” Alex said.
“Very good, Captain. You are to proceed to the rim of Cardassian space. Kyle has
your mission briefing. We will remain in communication silence, but we have people in
the field who will monitor and keep us updated on your progress.”
“Understood. Garrett out.”
Lt. Brooks walked to the Admiral’s side. “You do understand that Kyle’s got his own
agenda?”
“Yes.” the Admiral replied. “That’s exactly what I’m expecting to happen. By this time
next week, the Helix should have a full crew compliment, thanks to our rogue Trill
warrior.” she leaned back in her chair. “It doesn’t matter if they’re 20 or 200 years old.
A terrorist fighting a lost cause is an open book. And if you read them correctly, they’ll
do everything and anything you want.”
CHAPTER TWO: A MATTER OF TRUST
The four-man crew of the Helix gathered on the Holodeck. Since repairs to the
conference room were pushed to the minor list, Mia configured the holometer to
replicate the Craven’s assembly quarters. Kyle searched the computer’s subroutines
and accessed the mission log. The hologram of space crafted appeared in slow
rotation.
“This is the Cardassian transport Galorma.” Kyle started; assuming his comfortable
role as military strategist. “Officially it’s classified as a passenger transport. Since it’s
registered as a non-military vessel, it’s had minor access to cross the neutral zone and
other sectors. “Unofficially, operatives have leaked out information that it’s a modified
carrier transporting weapons and military personnel to secret strategic locations.”
“Hasn’t Starfleet tracked the vessel along it’s route?” Mia asked.
“Yes. But they conveniently have been known to pass through nebulas,
anonallies….basically anything that screws with sensors.”
“So what are we to do about it?” Alex stepped in. “If I remember correctly, the treaty
stipulates that Starfleet vessels can’t search Cardassian freighters without probable
cause.”
“True.” Kyle smiled. “But we’re not a Starfleet vessel.” He shut down the holoscreen.
“Their manifest says they will rendezvous with warships from The 5th Order patrol
squad in twelves hours. During they’re 24 hour lay-over, we’ll engage and disable the
warships, board the transport and uncover evidence.”
“All by our little old selves, huh?” Alex said sarcastically. “That’s seems like a tall order
for a small ship and a four man crew.”
“I’ve done it with less. And come on, I’ve read what this ship could do in the records.
Hell, the fact that you can fire cloaked is enough to give us an advantage. I thought you
guys were hotshots in your reality.”
Tash interceded. “That doesn’t make us suicidal.” he turned to Alex. “But I think it’ll
work. We can disable the warships by reprogramming the auto defense weapons to
locate and strike key areas on the warships simultaneously.”
“How long?” Kyle asked. Tash stared at Kyle for a few moments and then turned to
Alex.
Alex grin ned. “How long?”
Tash continued. “I’m not sure. With Mia’s help, it should be ready in time.”
“Then get to it. That’s all people.” The siblings stood up and quickly left the room
leaving Alex and Kyle sitting across from each others.
They stared at each other. Alex saw this situation coming a long time ago. Basically
Kyle’s been the man in charge for as long as he can remember. And he probably
wasn’t gonna take orders from a complete stranger.
“You must be really something, Garrett” the Trill host said.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean the way you train the Romulan monkeys to hang on your every word.”
Alex felt his eye switch. He tried to hide it, but it was apparent that Kyle knew what
buttons to push. “First of all, their not Romulan. Their Vulcan. Secondly, what you saw
isn’t training, it’s trust. Something we’ve built over years of fighting the Borg. And I’d
watch what I say around here, this crew’s killed bigger men for lesser things.”
Kyle stood up as to intimidate the human, but Alex stood his ground. “Did you just
threaten me?”
Alex smiled. “Yep.” he started to walk away. Without thinking, he ducked and
sidestepped, just missing Kyle’s thick-armed lariat swing. On instinct, he was on his
feet and sending a kick to the Trill’s midsection. But his leg was caught in mid-air and
Alex stumbling backwards, falling over the conference table.
“Nobody’s here to save you, boy. Let’s see what you got!” Kyle said coming for his
captain.
Alex had to think quick. “Computer…” he called out. “Garrett Workout #7”
In an instant, the conference room disappeared and was replaced by the ruins of some
lost civilization. The change startled Kyle, and that was all Alex needed. He sent a
double-fisted thrust to the Trill’s stomach and up into his chin. He was lifted off is feet
and to the ground.
But Kyle quickly turned the fall into a role and was quickly on feet with a power kick
forward; meeting Alex’s ribcage.
The Captain’s heart fluttered for the second. He didn’t realize he lost his balance and
hit his head on a nearby stone.
Kyle smiled, wiping the dripping blood from his lips. “Now, I may not have been
there, but I sure you didn’t beat any Borg with woosy moves like that.”
“Son of a bitch!” Alex yelled staggering to his feet. “Computer….Batlith!” The Klingon
weapon materialized beside him and in one swift motion, he grabbed it and sent it
swinging for Kyle. The Trill dodged the blow and Alex fell past him. As he fell
forward, all the pain in his stomach and chest faded away and was replace by
humiliation. He could hear his opponent laughing.
He rose to his feet, enraged by the Trill who hadn’t even broken a sweat. In a last
burst of fury, Alex let out a roar worthy of a Klingon, and raised his weapon. He
rushed his opponent.
Kyle was ready. With a subtle flinch of his wrist, a small phaser-type weapon slid out
from his sleeve and nestled in his right palm. Just as Alex lunged in mid-swing, he
pointed and fired the weapon. The lavender disrupter shot struck Alex in the check
and halted his momentum like hitting a brickwall. He flipped end over end out of
control. And as he flew by Kyle, the Trill snatch the Batlith from his hand. Alex fell the
ground limp, quickly grasping his chest in pain.
Kyle approached and nelt in front of him. “You’re tougher than I thought.” he said
smiling.
“Satisfied?” Alex said with a scratchy voice.
“Not really.” he answered. “There wasn’t anything to satisfy. We needed to know
where each other stands. I think we’re done . . . Captain.”
“Is that sarcasm?”
Kyle smiled. “No. Just acknowledging the chain of command.”
Alex grinned. “Understood.” He reached his hand out and Kyle met it for a quick
shake. “Maybe you can teach me a few of those moves, old man?”
“Sure thing.” The Trill answered on his way out. “But the first things you need to learn
a few things. Number one, anger is your worst enemy. And two, if you’re going to
cheat and use a weapon, THINK: PHASER.”
As the door close behind Kyle, Alex pulled himself up and walked over to the
comm-system. “Alex to Mia.”
“Go ahead.” her voice answered.
“Log Kyle in the system records and give him level three clearance. And after that, I
need you on the holodeck. I think I broke something.”
“The holo-emitters, again?”
“No. About two or three ribs…”
Kyle had to stop half way to his quarters to catch his breathe. He didn’t want to let
Alex know, but his effortless defensive moves took a lot out of him. He had reached
the OVER THE HILL stage in his present life. He knew because he’d been there a
number of times before.
As he straightened his self up to continue his walk, he sensed someone was watching
him. He stopped and glanced behind himself. The corridor seemed totally deserted.
“Who’s there?” he called out. There was no answer.
When he turned to continue was walk, he didn’t see the slender roundhouse kick
which struck the side of his head. He was lifted off his feet and thrown into the wall. A
series of kicks and punches followed as he helplessly absorbed the blows; covering his
face for safety. Just as he began to regain his senses to counteract, he felt the cold
touch of metal press firmly against his neck. he thought for moment to try a Klingon
maneuver to escape, but realized it would be a chance move.
He opened his eyes to find the cold expression of a Vulcan woman almost nose to
nose. Mia’s stare was almost a frightening as the blade to his neck.
“Let’s clear something up first…” she spoke, her tone was soft yet deadly serious. “The
fact that we haven’t had a chance set the ground rules on this ship is the ONLY reason
you’re still alive. There’s not much to memorize really. Number one, TRUST is taken
above all else. Betray that and you’re considered just as bad as the enemy. Number
two, no abuse of your access privileges. You have a problem understand this, see rule
number one. And number three…” she pulled close to whisper in his ear. “…this little
skirmish was a warning, old man. You ever…EVER put your hands on Alex again, I’ll
use this blade to amputate every limb, digit, and extrusion on your body, while you
watch. Do you understand me?”
When she moved back, Kyle’s body fell to the floor. He began to cough violently and
gasp for breathe. He looked up at Mia as she walked away. She’s the one he thought
to himself.
Without turning around she called out. “I’m going to treat Alex’s wounds. As soon as
you’re fit, come to the med-lab and I’ll patch you up.”
“Under..stood.” he forced out between breathes. He had to smile. He had just found a
friend to play with.
MISSION LOG: Captain Alex Garrett recording . . .
We entered Cardassian space three hours ago, and will be
reaching the rendezvous point any time now.
Kyle’s detailed strategy has been studied and the four of us
are ready to engage the enemy. This will be this crew’s first
‘non-destructive’ mission ever. I hope they will perform just
as effective in this post-war tour of duty. . .
E N D _ T R A N S M I T T I O N
“Status report?” Alex asked from the command chair on the bridge.
Tash responded. We’ve just entered visual range.”
“On screen”
A ragged, adobe colored transport ship was nestled between a horde of Cardassian
warships.
“Run a sensor scan.” Alex was surprised. He expected four warships at the most.
Tash ran his fingers along the console. “I’m not reading any unusual readings. The
cloak seems to be working.
“Good. Take us in. Position us in the designated area for the initial assault. Where’s
Kyle?”
Mia, situated at tactical answered. “I reached him a couple minutes ago. She should be
on his way.”
As if on cue, the entrance doors slid open and Kyle entered the bridge; moving a little
slower than usual. Alex had to take a second glance at the Trill. There were multiple
bruises on the his face and arms.
Alex smiled. “I didn’t know I did so much damage in our little squabble?” he said
swiveling his chair forward nonchalantly.
Kyle smiled. “I guess you don’t know your own strength.” He glanced up at Mia,
who’s expression was as cold as he could remember. “I see we’ve made it. Have the
phaser systems been scripted?”
“We’re set.” Alex replied. “All the data you supplied was entered. Mia and Tash will
engage the systems as soon as we’re set up in the transporter bay. Let’s go. Mia’s got
the bridge.”
As Alex and Kyle left the bridge, Mia transferred tactical controls to Tash’s systems
and made her way to the Captain’s chair. “I don’t like where this is going. Keep a
transporter lock on Alex. If there’s any trouble, get him out of there.”
“What about Kyle?”
“Hm… I guess him too, if you have the time. But don’t make it a priority…”
Alex and Kyle positioned themselves on the giant transporter pad situated in the
middle of the bay.
“Remember…” Kyle said. “As soon as we beam over, we’ll drop gas cannisters and
find cover. The toxins will only effect Cardassians and should spread through the entire
ship. This should give us enough time to find was we need.”
Alex nodded and then tapped his combadge. “Team 1 to Mia. We’re set down here.
You make the call.”
On the bridge, Mia ran her fingers along the command console and nodded to Tash.
“Initiating program: K’NAR 7 2 5 1.” her Vulcan sibling relayed over the open
comm-system. “Execution in 5 seconds.”
The Cardassian warships didn’t know what hit them. Without warning an intricate web
of phaser and photon torpedoes appeared from nowhere, striking the ships at vital
points. With their shields down and weapons unarmed, they suffered massive damage
across the board. They began to slowly drift out of position.
As the Helix passed the transport, it fired an aft torpedo into it’s navigational array.
The impact sent the ship slowly drifting in circles. >From it’s port side, a series of small
distruptor returned fire, but were met by three more torpedoes which ripped the
weapons from their foundation. By the time the assault was over, thje transport was
dead in space
That’s when Tash watched his console’s display go crazy. “Something’s wrong.” He
tried to access his controls to no avail. “The program’s executed commands hidden in
the subroutines! I’m locked out!”
Mia stood in defiance. “Damnit, Kyle!!”
The program took over the ships controls and started to go after the damaged ships.
The auto-phaser systems went crazy, unleashing a fury of shots across the ships like an
hail storm. One after the other, the erupted in a blaze of hellfire leaving nothing but
small fragments of what use to be powerful warships.
“Dear God!” Mia screamed. She ran to her brother’s side. “Stop them from
transporting! Block the damn transport signal!”
Tash shook his head. “Too late. They’re already on their way, and we still don’t have
access to the controls! He’s shut down everything!”
“I don’t give a damn what you have to do, regain control of the ship! Rip out the
conduits if need be. We got to get Alex out of there!” she screamed as Tash ran for
the turbolift.
Mia walked to the forward view screen; which displayed the Cardassian transport in
full view. She felt like kicking herself for not trusting her instincts. She didn’t trust the
Trill from the very start. And now, after the Borg attack , after The Assimilation
Wars , after all they’ve been through it could very well end with the stupid act by a
stupid relic of a soldier.
“Mia, we got trouble.” Tash’s spoke from her combadge. “There’s a level 3
security shield erected around the bridge area. I can’t get access to any of the
sensitive areas.”
“Then get back up here. We’ll have to try something else.” she replied as she took her
seat at command once again. She stared toward the viewscreen, but pure anger was
clouding her vision. “Old man, you are DEAD….DEAD……DE….” Suddenly, the long
range sensors started to fluxuate. She could guess that the three unidentified ships
racing for their position weren’t going to be friendly. “…dead.”
According to Kyle’s records, they were suppose to materialize in the cargo bay
holding the illegal weapons. They were to verify the cargo as Cardassian weapons and
seize the ship for Starfleet inspection. But as their transporter beams began to
dissipate, Alex realized they were in main engineering and surrounded by a crew of
Cardassian troops. Panic set in as he watch them reach for their weapons.
“Get down!” Kyle screamed grabbing Alex from behind and tossing him over a large
bulky appliance. He could almost feel the disrupter beams energy as they whisked
passed him; just missing his head as he followed Alex for cover.
Alex the grabbed his phaser and boosted the setting to kill, but Kyle grabbed his wrist.
“Save your power cells.” the Trill said as he reached for one of the gas canisters. He
tossed it at the enemy, and watched it as it was met by a stray disrupter shot. The can
exploded in the mist of fine crystals and quickly spread throughout the room. At first
Alex didn’t think it worked. But then the Cardassians started to scream in agony. They
clutched their face and started to squirm frantically. By this time Kyle was quickly on
his fleet. With a Klingon blade in his hand, he systematically went to each Cardassian,
quick slittling their necks with a fluid motion which could only be taught by experience.
Within a small minute, the siege on Engineering was over..
As Alex came from his hiding place, he saw that Kyle was already at the room main
control systems.
“What the hell happened?” Alex asked. He looked down at one of the Cardassian
bodies near him and saw that Kyle’s actions with the blade weren’t necessary. The
corpse face seemed to be eaten away by something. he quickly looked at the other
bodies and saw the same thing. “Jesus, Kyle. What the hell was in that canister!? What
the hell did you do!?”
Kyle acted like he didn’t hear the question. His was busy loading the other canisters
into the ventilation system. “We got side tracked.” he finally answered. “I had to
improvise.”
Alex approached him in rage. “Somehow I don’t believe that!!!”
“I’m sorry you feel that way. But now’s not the time to quarrel.” he finished his work
with the ventilation system, and then brought up a schematic of the ship. “The canisters
contain a chemical called Ogun-17. It’s a metagenic weapon design for Cardassian
DNA. I’ve sent it throughout the ship. They’ll spend most of their time trying to limit the
exposure, which will give us enough time to finish the mission.” he switched the
schematic view. “We’re gonna need to split up. According to the computer, what
we’re looking for is in med lab and storage quarters. I’ll take storage and meet you
back here in fifteen minutes!”
“Damnit Kyle, you screwed us. . .”
“This isn’t the time or place, Kid!” Kyle replied as he headed for the door. “I’ll explain
everything once we’re back on the Helix. Now go!” With that, the Trill disappeared
into the darkened hallway. Alex reluctantly followed.
Aboard the Helix, Mia and Tash worked feverishly get control of the ship. The
unidentified ships turned out to be Cardassian warships on an intercept course. With
only 20 minutes until contact, they tried everything to bypass the security lockouts put
in place by Kyle’s nano-scripts.
“Bingo.” Tash said calling Mia over. “I’ve found a diagnostic sub-routine that’s
unprotected by the lockouts.” he looked up at her. “A back door!”
“How long is it going to take?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I’m gonna have to follow the subdirectory paths to however they lead
to central system options.”
Mia felt hopeful. “Do what you have to. Our first priority is to get the transporter back
online to get them outta there.”
“What about navigation?”
“We’ll regain everything else once that Trill bastard is back on board. Believe me, it’s
the only reason he’s gonna live long enough to escape…”
CHAPTER THREE: ON CUE
The Cardassian med-lab was one of the few areas that was quarantined quick enough
the keep the gas from entering. Dr. Malaan, the Chief Medical Supervisor nervously
watched out his window as the small unknown warship circled their transport like a
hungry vulture.
“How can this be!?” he yelled, tossing the medical instrument he was holding. Whowas
crazy enough to attack them with a number of warships surrounding them? And how
could each and every ship have been destroyed by the ship barely larger than a shuttle.
“I must… must follow procedure…”
He quickly left his office and hurried to the treatment area, where only one person lay
waiting for him. A young, battered bajoran boy was strapped onto a table. Malaan
loomed over his body with a hint of disappointment. He had to go through twelve
bajoran test subjects before he could find a suitable prisoner for his experiments.
There was an inner strength in Ian’s fifteen year old frame. A strength which helped
him withstand two days of torturous genetic testing.
“We were so close, weren’t we?” he spoke to the boy’s shivering body. “All I needed
was another few days and I would’ve found the right combination for the mind control
chemicals. But it seems we’re under attack, and you know what that means. Protocol
stipulates that in the event of a siege, all prisoners was be terminated.” he slowly ran
his hand up the boy chest until it was firmly around his neck. “I know I should just
evaporate you ;put you out of your misery. But I’ve always wanted to kill someone up
close and personal. Watch the life drain out of them…”
Just as he began to squeeze tightly, the entrance way swung open. Alex rushed in the
find the doctor and his patient. He looked at the doctor’s frightened face and then the
lifeless body on the table. “Get away from him!!!” he shouted with conviction.
The doctor stumbled back into the wall. “I sorry! I wasn’t trying to…” before he could
finish, Alex fired a phaser shot which struck the Cardassian in his torso. He tried to let
out a scream, but his body was already being disrupted from the inside-out. In less
than a second, he was nothing more than a fine mist.
An explosion rocked the ship and caused Alex to stumble forward toward the kid.
“Sweet Jesus!” he said startled. The bojoran child’s eyes had rolled inside his head and
his body was shaking radically. Alex quickly started to pull the electrode and needles
from his skin; with every yank the boy flinched. He checked for a pulse. “Come on
Kid! Don’t give up yet!”
Suddenly his combadge was active, again. “Mia to Alex, are you there?”
Alex responded. “Mia! Two to beam directly to the med-lab! Hurry”
Just as Alex pulled the kid off of the table, he felt the tingling sensation in his stomach.
He pulled the kid close and watched the Cardassian Med-Lab disappear and the
Helix’s med-lab appear in it’s place.
Save death, there was nothing else in this universe that could’ve been done to Jann
Jaxa. She had been subjected to violent attacks from nearly every Cardassian on the
transport. Now was battered body lay hutled between a pair of storage containers
while three Cardassain soldiers searched for her. She knew they were going to kill her.
They had to before they could leave.
“Check that corner! She can’t be too far.” one of them said gesturing for the other two
to search the opposite side of the room. “Damnit, Jann! Come out! We’ll make it
painless! One quick shot and it’s all over!”
She could see the entrance just ten feet away from her hiding place. And when the
door slid open, her first thought was that more soldiers were joining the hunt. But
instead of a Cardassian, and series of short disrupter beams blasted into the room.
She heard the Cardassian scream and try to return fire, but it was over before it
started.
“JJ!!!” she heard a familiar voice call out. She frantically started to push containers
around her away just as Kyle cautiously entered the room.
“Kyle!!!!” she screamed and stumbled toward him. She used her last bit of energy to
fall in his arms. “You said you were coming for us. You did…come…”
He smiled, “You know I always keep my promises.”
“Ian!” Jann suddenly remembered her friend. “We gotta get Ian before they…”
“It’s already being taken care of.” he finished just as the transporter signal activated.
Unlike Alex and Ian, Kyle and Jann materialized on the Bridge. When the
transportation sequence finished, Kyle found himself face to face with Mia and a hand
phaser.
“I can explain. . .” he started
“I don’t care what you have to say!” she rushed him with a right hook which sent him
stumbling backwards and pushing Jann aside. “What you need to do is deactivate the
lockouts before the Cardassian patrol reaches. . .”
Just then, the ship quaked with a strong impacted. Everyone reached for something to
brace themselves.
Tash who was at his station held on to his seat. “I got two Kelvin Class warships on an
attack run!” He tried to access the controls and then slammed his fist on the console in
frustration .”We need to do this now!”
Another series of blasts rocked the ship. The forward view screen showed the two
fierce warships quickly approaching.
“Kyle!” Mia yelled.
Kyle was already on his way to the nearest terminal. “Computer delete program:
K’NAR 7 2 5 1! Authorization: Kyle-0-0-1-3 Mark-7.”
Instantly, the console systems were back online and Tash back at navigation. “I’m
gonna try and reinitialize the warp engines. Mia I need some time!”
“I’m on it.” she replied heading for the tactical console.
Jann, riddled with fatigue, went to Kyle’s side. “Take me to Ian?” she asked. With a
nod, Kyle grabbed her hand and they headed for the exit.
“I need that help now Mia!” Tash yelled as another wave of shots from the
Cardassians threatened to tear the ship apart. “I need 30 seconds!”
“I get you that, and then some.” she replied. As reconfigured auto-phaser systems
quick began to charge. “I don’t think we’re gonna make it! The deflector array is
shorting out. I can’t get the shields stable.”
Tash jumped up and ran to her side. “While I was I was looking for a way in the lock
out, I found think I got access to some of the experimental systems.” he took over the
controls. “Yes. It’s some type of shield mechanism.”
Mia took Tash’s spot at the helm. “Sounds good to me! I’ll try and keep them off our
ass! Hold on!”
With warships coming at them for in front and back, Mia pulled the Helix into a quick
nose dive, gracefully dodging the orange beams rising from thier attackers. “Brace for
impact!” Just as the warships regrouped to follow, Mia fired three torpedoes past
them and into the transport vessels. It exploded close enough to the other ships to
knock them off course. One other ship which had circled around the others was now
in hot pursute. A perfect shot on one of the Helix’s nacelles sent the ship in to a
tailspin.
On the bridge, the power systems started to flutter. Mia asessed the damage. “That
took the warp drive offline! We’re gonna have to fight our way outta this one.”
The Helix came to a hault just as the three Cardassian warships surrounded them.
Mia looked back for her brother. “How we doin’?” The bridge lights dimmed for a few
seconds and the hum of the deflector systems rumbled to life. “What did you do?”
“It’s this . . . Meta-Shield.” Tash smiled with grin. “It’s reconfigured deflector. I mean
actually- physically restructured the modules into. . . something else.” he tried to find
an answer. “It has to be some of the Borg-mecha that’s . . . .”
Suddenly, the Cardassians ships started to aggressively attack the Helix. The ship
rocked back and forth making is hard for Tash to monitor the shields effectiveness.
“Shield down to eighty percent……”
The communications systems explosed and caught fire. “…..sixty-seven percent!”
The viewsscreen shatterer and sparked with fire “…forty-two percent!”
Mia grabbed the extinguisher, but lost it when the ship shifted from another blow.
“….forty…… forty-eight percent?” Tash stared at the console in disbelief. He repeated
the task make sure it was correct.
Another blow rocked them, but this time it wasn’t so severe.
Tash started to smile. “What the… shields at eight-nine percent! The deflector array is
somehow… absorbing disruptor energy and…. converting it to power itself!”
“Borg-Tech!” Mia said, smiling as another blast is barely felt. “Ya gotta love it!”
But then Tash’s grinned turned to a look of concern. “Uh oh. We may have a
problem.”
“What now, brother!”
“Shields are at 100% but the stupid thing’s not shutting down! I getting feedback
accross the board!” his console exploded and became laced with electricity. “Stay
away from the panels!”
Mia stood up and felt the ship begin to vibrate frantically.
Although they couldn’t tell, the biggest change was happening outside the ship. As the
Cardassian warships pounded the Helix’s, the circular protective shield turned blazing
white and sizzled with electricity. The Cardassians must’ve got a hint to what was
happening because they broke off their attack and started to retreat. But it was too
late. The white-hot sphere suddenly expanded outward in an incredible explosion
which stretched over fifty-thousand kilometers. The warships were instanly engulfed.
Their shield was no match as the electrical shield swallow them entirely along with
anything else in it’s path.
In a matter of ten seconds, the incident ended as suddenly as it began. The blank void
of space was quiet. Red hot cinder debri littered the area, and in the middle sat the
Helix untouched.
The comm-system went crazy before Mia could get to her feet.
Without even answering the hail. “Standby Alex.” she said. “As soon as we figure this
out for ourselves, well let you know.”
Tash found a working console and ran system checks. “The warships are destroyed.
Virtually everything except impulse and lifesupport is fried.”
“What happened?”
“I don’t have a clue. But i think our new shield wasn’t a shield at all. Some kind of
weapon the Borg must’ve assimilated at one time. In any case. We need to start
limping home ’cause we’re in no shape for more guests. . .”
CHAPTER FOUR: THE HEAR AFTER . . .
“First, I’d like to say I’m sorry.” Kyle spoke as he stood in front of Alex, Tash and
Mia on the bridge. It had been almost an hour since they left Cardassian space with
nothing show for the mission but a badly injured kid and a field doctor; both current
members of the Barjoran resistance, and ship almost reduced to scrap. “I altered the
Admiral’s original assignment and hac54ked the computer systems. I didn’t mean for it
to get as hairy as it did.”
“That’s not excuse!” Alex yelled. “On this ship we run on trust and respect! If you
abide by those rules than there won’t be a place for you in this crew!”
“Wait a minute!” Mia jumped in. “There WON’T be? He’s still one of us?!”
“He did what he had to do, Mia.” Alex replied. Kyle was surprised by the Captain’s
support. “Wouldn’t you have done the same for any of us?”
“That’s not the point. He’s a rogue, Alex! He doesn’t know what teamwork is! He’ll
get one of us killed!”
“That’s not true.” Kyle stood up for himself. “I didn’t know if I could trust you. Admiral
Porter’s not on my ‘favorite people’ list. I couldn’t entrust the lives of my people with
others I didn’t know.” he walked to Mia so they were eye to eye. “Ending the
Cardassian Occupation is my life. Those two people in med-lab are my family.
Another reason I needed to get them away, is to enlist them as part of this crew. Jann
one of the best doctors I’ve seen in all my lifetimes, and Ian’s already flown combat
missions. If you give me. . us another chance, I guarantee you won’t be sorry. Please
Alex. . .” He turned to the others, hoping to spark some sympathy. The Admiral was
right. Alex and his team did have what it takes to make a difference and he wanted to
be a part of it.
Alex stood and walked to Kyle. “I don’t approve what you did . . . but I can
understand it. I’d like to give you another chance, but everyone needs to be in
agreement. i do nothing without the full support of my crew.”
Instantly Tash nodded in agreement. “As long as he keeps his fingers off my
subsystems, I can live with it.”
And all eyes fell on Mia who was had already started making her way toward Kyle. “I
don’t like you or how you handle things. I think you’re a danger to everyone around
you. But I trust Alex’s judgment and I’ll go along with anything he says. But listen to
me good. All I need is one good reason and I’ll take you out; end of story. Are we
clear?” Kyle nodded and quickly left the room.
Alex, Mia and Tash sat in silence for taking in the quiet of the moment.
“So, what now?” Tash said.
“We have a crew compliment of six.” Mia answered. “That’s the minimum.”
“The ship’s fried. We won’t be combat ready for six month at least. With The
Programs’ help we might able to fully refit the Helix in under year.”
“Good.” Alex added. And as he walk the viewscreen which was partially working and
stared out into space. For the moment they were on the winning side. Somehow, God
had dealt them a second chance to make things right. All the pain and hardship of the
past seven years had been erased and the bright new future had been put in it’s place.
But to keep that future bright, they were gonna have to take drastic measures; maybe
do things which will brand them outlaws. First agenda, the liberation of the planet
called Bajor.
“I thinks it’s about time we started making a difference.” Alex slowly slid into the
captains chair which tilted slightly and propped his feet up. “Tash, take us
home…wherever that is.”
The End