From: cwynne@liberty.uc.wlu.edu (Colin J. Wynne)
Subject: REPOST: Ghosts...(4/7)
Date: Wed, 4 Nov 1992 00:12:53 GMT
Distribution: global
Organization: Washington & Lee University
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL5


"Ghosts from the Past," Ch. 10 to Ch. 12:
-----------------------------------------


 
                            CHAPTER X


     The Kzinti had at one time been considered a problem.  Dozens 
of years ago, when the United Federation of Planets was young and 
weak, and just beginning to expand, they encountered the race of 
giant felinids.  The resulting brief war was a victory for the 
Federation, which then proceeded to expand around and past the 
Kzinti Hegemony.
     Since the Federation was now much larger, they no longer 
considered the Kzinti a threat, because they were always too busy 
dealing with factional infighting.
     Outpost 63 was, therefore, one of the most boring assignments 
in the Federation.  Outpost 63 was one of the dozen stations 
around Kzinti territory, put there to make sure the Kzinti never 
came out.  In the last  few years, they had acquired a more 
important mission, that of keeping the Ferengi from entering and 
trading military equipment to the Kzinti.
     The station occassionally supervised inspections, to make 
sure that the Kzinti remained relatively disarmed.
     There wasn't a day when Cmdr. T'prill, the base commander, 
didn't have these thoughts somewhere in the back of her Vulcan 
mind.  There also wasn't a day when she estimated the chance of 
something serious happening to be more than 1.64%.  Unfortunately, 
this was the day for the improbable.
     "Commander, the sensors are picking something up."
     T'prill's left eyebrow arched.  "Indeed?  Can you elaborate, 
Lieutenant?"
     "Ships, three of them.  Looking for a match."
     "Yellow Alert.  Charge shields and weapons.  Do the ships 
exhibit any Kzinti design techniques?"
     "No, sir.  Nor Ferengi, as far as I can tell.  Wait - I have 
a match now.  Similar to a type reported recently near the Klingon 
border."
     "Similar?"
     "Same basic shape and energy patterns, but bigger."
     "When were they last reported?"
     "About two weeks ago."
     "Communications, hail those ships, then send a message to 
Starfleet."
     "They're attacking!"  The base's shields came on 
automatically as a concentrated salvo lashed the base.
     "Severe strain on number three shield, Commander."
     "Reinforce number three. Phasers, return fire on best 
target."
     "They're launching missiles.  One-hundred fifty inbound!"
     T'prill realised just at that moment that Academy simulations 
never really taught about tactical defense.  She would suggest 
that to the Commandant - if she had the chance.  "Fire phasers 
rapid-pulse on the missiles.  Full power photons on the nearest 
target, narrow salvo."
     "Aye, aye."
     "We've been hit again!  Number three down; fires in the 
hangar bay.  Casualty reports coming in."
     "Rotate the station.  Bring a new shield to bear."
     "One-hundred twenty missiles left, closing fast."
     "Activate countermeasures.  Fire photons."  The eight orange 
balls of fire disappeared into the target's invisible shielding.
     "Forty missiles still active, impact in sixteen seconds."
     "All systems to passive, and launch a decoy."
     All detectable emissions were switched off, so that the 
missiles would lose their lock-on.  A decoy, a small electronic 
generator which simulated the base to the small electronic minds 
of the missiles, was launched away from the base, to attract the 
warheads.
     "Six still tracking.  Impact!"
     The explosions went off in rapid succession.  "Shields four 
and five down!  Heavy damage in outer hull area."
     "They're circling around again, Commander.  We're wide open 
to them."  Despair was evident in the Science Officer's voice.
     "I see.  Prepare to eject the log buoy and order abandon ship 
on my command."
     The communications officer swallowed hard.  "Aye, sir."
     "Prepare to fire again."
     "Unable to, Commander.  Fire control systems are down."
     "Sir!  More missiles on screen.  At least - two hundred!"
     "How many can we jam effectively?"
     "They're not targeted on us.  They are going after the 
hostiles!"
     "Fascinating...  Can you identify the missiles?"
     "Trying now, sir.  Yes - they're Kzinti combat drones."
     "I thought as much."
     The waves of drones overran one of the attackers, completely 
obliterating it.  The other two, damaged, turned to face their new 
opponents.  They found themselves face-to-face with a dozen Kzinti 
battlecruisers, their own battle scars jagged on their dull red 
hulls.  Disruptor bolts lashed out on one of the remaining alien 
ships, scattering its atoms to the stellar winds.  The last ship 
began to turn tail and run, but was swallowed by another swarm of 
drones.
     The Science Officer stared at the screen dully.  "Where did 
the Kzinti get all of those ships?"
     "Kzinti admiral hailing, Commander T'prill."
     "On screen."
     The station's main viewscreen crackled a bit, then coalesced 
into the form of a seven foot tall, two hundred-plus kilogram cat 
with little pink parasol-like ears.  Huge carnivorous teeth jutted 
from his mouth when he spoke.  "Federation base, this is Admiral 
k'Rzaal of the Patriarch's Grand Fleet."
     "Admiral, this is Commander T'prill, of Starfleet.  We are 
very grateful for your assistance.  If there-"
     "Spare it, commander; it was not a favor.  These ships are 
all over the Patriarch's territory.  I have come here, as a 
representative of the Patriarch to ask the Federation for 
permission to leave the boundaries of the Hegemony in dealing with 
this threat."
     "Admiral, I have no jurisdiction in-"
     "Commander, I have a sizable battle force here.  If, for some
reason, there were no outpost on the border, we may not be able to 
remember where it was anyway."
     "It would be logical to preserve this station if your threats 
are to be taken seriously."  The Kzinti bared his teeth in a 
ferocious smile.  "I see that they are.  I will contact my 
superiors."
     "Your cooperation is appreciated, Commander."



     Starfleet Command was in a panic.  After twelve days of 
apparent calm, all hell had broken loose all over the place.  The 
President of the Federation was trying desperately to maintain an 
air of calm about him.
     "Mr. President, I have an intelligence report from the 
Romulan border."
     "Yes?"
     "They seem to be under attack, too, at least near the 
border."
     Another runner came across the room.
     "Mr. President, report from the Kzinti sector.  They, too, 
are under attack.  They want us to allow them outside of their 
territory."
     "We need as many ships as possible.  Agree to their request."
     "Yes, sir."
     "Mr. President!"  The Klingon ambassador's hoarse bellow cut 
through all the other noise in the room.
     "Yes, Ambassador Krondai?"
     "The Klingon Empire is being invaded.  By order of my 
government I am too inform you that we are completely mobilising 
all of our forces."
     "I see, Mr. Ambassador.  What is the extent of this invasion, 
and will your forces be crossing the neutral zone?"
     "Numerous ships in the spinward section of our territory, 
near our mutual border - and what if they do cross?" he asked with 
traditional Klingon arrogance.
     The President was nonplussed.  "Then we would appreciate any 
help you could lend us in dealing with similar problems of our 
own."
     Krondai was not expecting this answer.  "Yes, I suppose that 
when we have eradicated our own problems we could help you."
     "Thank you, Krondai."
     The President raised his voice over the confusion in the rest 
of the room.  "I want your attention everyone!"  They quieted 
down.  "As of now, Stardate 42943.4, I declare all territory of 
the United Federation of Planets to be on Full Invasion Alert.  
Admiral Heirok?"
     The Chief of Starfleet stepped forward.  "Yes, Mr. 
President?"
     "I want you to upgrade all active ships to war status, 
constant Yellow Alert."
     "Yes, Mr. President.  We're already in the process of 
mobilising the rest of the Planetary Defense Fleet."
     "That won't be enough.  Make sure all local system defense 
fleets are on alert status as well."
     "Aye, aye."
     "And pray, Admiral.  Pray."



     "Mr. President, this is the forty-third sighting in the last 
three hours.  The PD-Fleet is spread much too thin, and the 
situation is only getting worse."
     "How are the local fleets doing?"
     "Not very well against these new heavy units, but they've 
held their own against the smaller ships so far."
     "I see.  How is the build up going?"
     "We're getting mothball ships on-line as quickly as we can 
get crews for them.  That's not that much right now - cancellation 
of leave, transferring base and ground personnel to ships, and 
some reservists.  Within a day, we should be getting a steady flow 
of reservists."
     "This is terrible!"  The President glanced at his watch.  
"We've been on alert for nine hours already.  How many invaders in 
our territory, Admiral?"
     Heirok looked toward a small hand-held computer he was 
carrying.  "Two-hundred sixteen light units, and one-hundred and 
two of the big ships."  The screen flashed, and the Andorian 
scowled. "One-hundred and five."
     "I see."



     "Dr. Crusher?"
     Beverly turned towards the call.  It was Starbase 42's Chief 
Medical Officer, Dr. Grul, a pig-nosed Tellarite.  "Yes, Grul, can 
I help you?"
     "What do you think of our preparations?"
     Beverly had never before had to operate under war conditions, 
but was, of course, trained in them at Starfleet Medical School.  
"Very commendable, Doctor.  Since these are the largest facilities 
in the sector, you'll probably be handling a lot of casualties 
here."
     "Yes,  I thought so, too.  Will you be staying here?"
     Here, thought Crusher, on the nice safe Starbase, while Wes 
was still on board the ship - the ship where he was already 
wounded.  He was fully recovered now, and back on duty on the 
battlecruiser, out in the middle of all of this!  "Yes, I'm 
staying aboard," she answered, somewhat meekly.
     Grul issued a short grunt.  "Must be bad for all of this."  
His gesture took in all of the bustle of preparation going on all 
around them.  "Eh?"
     "Must be," she agreed, shivering slightly.



     Almost as soon as the Council declared the alert, Enterprise-
C was ordered back to active status.  Her crew had not yet been 
entirely dispersed from the Starbase, and she was the first ship 
recommissioned for defense duty.
     Also, even though she was a research vessel, Picard's ship 
was sent out to intercept the invader ships as well.  
     Picard had noticed Riker's eagerness to return to his 
command; his zeal easily overpowered whatever ill fellings he had 
on the situation.
     Picard had no such distractions.  As a completely peace-
oriented officer of Starfleet, whose primary interest lay in 
research and knowledge, Picard was having great difficulty in 
accepting what was basically a war mission.  There were ships in 
Starfleet that existed only for such situations as the one now.
     But Starfleet had decided that they needed as many ships in 
service as soon as possible.  And as soon as possible meant that 
there was no time to evacuate the civilians from the Enterprise.  
Picard had a problem with that.
     He suggested that they just leave the saucer section at the 
Starbase, but Starfleet Command told him that that action would 
degrade the ship's combat performance too much.
     So now Picard had a ship with hundreds of despondent - he 
paused on his next word - noncombatants aboard.  They were 
despondent because the Federation hadn't been on an Alert since 
the Fed-Klingon War, almost a hundred years ago.  And there was 
nothing that they could do about it!  Picard had had words with 
Starfleet Command previously regarding the subject of shipboard 
civilians.  He couldn't deny the positive effect that the presence 
of family had on the crew of an extended voyage, especially after 
his twenty year mission on the Stargazer, but, more often than 
not, they simply were in the way or in unnecessary danger.
     If the ship got into a bad situation fighting the invaders, 
Picard could not even rely on separating the saucer then, because 
the attackers always operated in threes.  The saucer, going on 
sublight power, would be helpless against even one of the light 
units.
     As these thoughts permeated the Captain's mind, he stared out 
the viewport of his ready room, hoping to find an answer in the 
stars.  There had to be a peaceful resolution to this conflict.  
After all, these were intelligent beings.  There must be some way 
to reason with them.  Every fibre of Picard's being cried out for 
a sane alternative to this awful violence.





                            CHAPTER XI


     For several days, the two Enterprises had been extremely busy 
trying to keep up with the increasing rate of the invaders' 
attacks.  Fortunately, neither vessel had been damaged badly, nor 
their crews suffered any serious injuries.  The attackers' tactics 
were becoming somewhat predictable, and this made Riker's job of 
intercepting them that much easier and somewhat less dangerous.
     Data and his team of computer techs had moved to the backup 
memory banks, and were trying to access the battlecruiser's hidden 
knowledge by that route.  It was the android's hypothesis that the 
information might be more easily accessed by this indirect method, 
since the main computers, it seemed upon detailed inspection, had 
born the brunt of whatever it was that damaged the system in the 
first place.
     The log entries from the starship's journey through the rips 
had been mostly reassembled, but there were still some key pieces 
missing, and, although they could determine the content of most of 
the memory bits, they were still having trouble accessing the 
data.
     So, despite the fact that they now had sorted out most of the 
log entries and restored them in order, they couldn't actually 
watch them, yet.
     Riker had taken advatage of a quiet moment on the bridge to 
visit the engineering section.  He had a lot on his mind and 
needed some time away from the bridge.  Argyle, too, was using the 
lull to kick his feet up and rest for a while.
     Will walked into the engineer's office.  "How are things, 
Argyle?"
     The engineer could tell that his captain was somewhat 
distracted by more important considerations than how Argyle was 
feeling.  "Not bad, right now, Commander."
     "I know what you mean."  He paused, and then continued more 
emphatically.  "I just wish we could do something more than- than 
chase these damned invaders all around space!"
     "We do what we can, Commander.  Right now, we don't have a 
way to take the fight to them."
     "Well, we need one.  If we don't go on the offensive soon, 
we'll be overwhelmed by sheer numbers.  Those ships are piling up 
faster than Starfleet can come up with ships to deal with them."
     Argyle looked momentarily pensive, then offered, "Well, they 
know how to control those rips, to a degree."
     "Yes, yes.  That they do."
     "If we could find out how..."
     "You mind telling me how you plan on doing that?
     Argyle shifted the subject.  "You know, I'm having trouble 
seeing exactly how much of a problem all these ships are.  After 
all, they're so spread out, and-"
     "Argyle, Starfleet is at least as spread out in dealing with 
them, and we have less ships.  Just imagine a trio of those enemy 
battleships sailing into an undefended, populated system."
     "Oh."
     The klaxon wailed and the ship turned a deep crimson.  "Red 
Alert, Red Alert.  Commander Riker to the bridge."
     "I've got to go," said Will, and was out the door.



     Riker practically leaped out of the turbolift.  "Status!" he 
ordered.  Worf answered him.
     "Starbase 42 is under attack by nine enemy ships, six scouts, 
three battleships."
     The battlecruiser and Enterprise-D had been scanning reported 
rip zones in between bouts of combat, such as now.
     "Are we the nearest ships?"
     "Yes, sir."
     "How far at max speed?"
     "Thirty-four minutes, sir," answered the Helmsman.
     "Get me Captain Picard."
     "On screen."
     "Yes, Commander?"
     "The Starbase is under attack.  We are the closest help they 
can get."
     "I see, Commander.  Transmit an intercept course and we'll 
follow."
     "Yes, sir."  He turned towards the helm.  Worf was there.  
Wesley was at navigation, and Data was at the Science station.  
They were the most necessary of the bridge crew right now.
     "You heard him, Worf.  Let's go."
     "Aye, aye, sir."



     "Message from Starbase, Commander.  Six attackers remaining.  
ETA is two minutes."
     "Riker to Picard."
     "Yes, Commander.  What is it?"
     "When we are in range, we will identify and prioritise the 
targets.  First heavy units, then scouts.  Is this acceptable?"
     "Perfectly, Number One."
     "Okay.  Here we go."
     The two ships slowed as they approached the base, dropping 
down through the speed of light rapidly.  In front of them, the 
base was swapping shots with six of the invaders' ships, two 
battleships and four scouts.  A full salvo from the base tracked 
one of the lighter vessels then made contact, obliterating it.
     One of the battleships  was moving away from the base, 
directly towards the Enterprises, preparing for another attack.
     "There's your first target, Mr. Worf.  Data, offer them 
surrender first."
     "Aye, aye, sir.  They're scanning us right now."  Data sent 
his message.  "No response, sir.  And their weapons are charging."
     "Make sure the Enterprise is with us.  Prepare to fire, on my 
mark."
     Riker had received the intelligence reports on these heavy 
units, these battleships, but neither Enterprise had had to fight 
one yet.  The proverbial moment of truth was upon them.
     "Still no response?"
     "No, sir.  I think they're trying to jam communications.  
Very ineffective, however."
     "Open fire."
     Red fire lashed out from both starships, slamming into the 
battleship.  The target jolted hard from the strain, but the 
invisible shields held.  Then she spat an answer.
     For a split second, Riker felt as though a giant hand were 
squeezing his chest.  The straps on the chair held him, however, 
from catapulting through the viewscreen.  "Damage Report!"
     Worf wheezed slightly, while Riker realised he had to gasp 
for breath.  "Shields at minimal power.  Electrical Fires on decks 
twelve through eighteen."
     "Full torpedo spread, max power.  Fire the megaphasers!"
     The orbs of energy completely surrounded the invader before 
detonating, washing it in a white burst of energy.  The phaser 
cannon bored through the globe of light, the shields, the ship, 
and kept going.  The attacking vessel was no more than an 
expanding cloud of vapor.
     "Worf, how are the aft shields?"
     "Approximately half power, Commander."
     "Riker to Picard."
     "Picard here."
     "Our forward shields are almost down.  Suggest you and the 
base concentrate on the other battleship."
     "Understood, Commander.  Good luck.  Picard out."
     "Worf, full stop.  Turn us around and back into one of those 
scout ships."
     Worf's voice belied the fact that he was genuinely impressed 
by Riker's choice of action.  "Aye, aye, sir."
     "Prepare all aft weapons."
     The battlecruiser, aft end first, charged down on one of the 
scout ships busily engaging a squadron of the base's fighter-
shuttles.  It started to respond to the new threat, but it was too 
late.
     "Fire!"  The megaphasers split the void once more, turning 
their target into a twisted mass of skeletal deckwork and cables.
     At that moment, the starbase's spin was carrying fresh 
weapons into range of the invader battleship.  Simultaneously, 
both phaser rings on Enterprise-D and a battery of phasers from 
the base took the attacker, fore and aft.  The shields gave, and 
the vessel took heavy hits at the bow and stern.
     As expected, the ship self-destructed, the energy release 
carrying the battlecruiser's shields dangerously near collapse.
     "Cmdr. Riker, the remaining three vessels are turning away 
from the base and accelerating."
     "Pursuit, now!"
     "Aye, aye, sir."
     As Riker's ship closed on the fleeing vessels, Data noticed 
something.  "New energy reading, Commander, from all three ships."
     Just then, the three ships each produced a beam of pale blue 
light.  Where the beams all met, a shape, blacker than the space 
behind, began to spread.
     "They're starting a rip!  Data, scan that."
     "Scanning and recording.  Sir, the computer is attempting to 
identify the pattern."
     The rip was bigger now, and was starting to pull the ship 
towards it.  The invaders were already moving through.  "Full 
stop, hold position."
     Almost immediately, the hole began to close.  Data continued.  
"There is no direct match, but there are several similarities in 
the pattern to the readings associated with transwarp travel."
     "Is that so?  Very interesting.  Get me the Captain."
     


     Secured from general quarters, the ships remained at 
Starbase.  Riker's crew was repairing damage to the ship, and the 
few casualties were being treated.  Argyle was pondering the bit 
of information that Data had uncovered, while reviewing the sensor 
recordings again and again to see what he could make of it all.
     Argyle could only keep telling himself how thickheaded he 
must be not to see some sort of connection.
     Data was back down with his computers, Wesley was sleeping in 
his cabin, Worf was on the bridge, and Riker was pacing in the 
rec-room.  The ship now had a complete crew and was fully 
operational, so the rec-room had been opened up.  There were not, 
however, many people there, since most of them were taking their 
free time on the starbase.
     Will went back to his table and sat down.  The data he had 
been studying was still on the computer screen there, intelligence 
reports on the invaders' ships.
     There was a full set of external views, extremely detailed, 
showing clearly a flattened cigar shape with a rectangular box 
covering most of the aft section.  Gun turrets, missile launchers, 
sensor apparatus, all labelled for easy identification.  Something 
that looked like a huge intake of some sort.
     Those heavy vessels, the battleships, were truly awesome, 
extremely huge ships, much bigger than an Alaska class.  
Fortunately, only a very few of them had been seen so far.
     All the technology was very different from anything ever seen 
before, some not even identifiable.  And Riker had to learn how to 
deal with it all, because the whole Federation was in the hands of 
Riker and other captains just like him.  It was an imposing 
thought.
     Data's voice broke his reverie.  "Commander Riker, please 
report to the auxillary computer room."
     Riker stood up, switched off the screen, and headed for the 
nearest turbolift.



     Data stood patiently, hands clasped behind his back, waiting 
for Riker.  As Will walked through the door, Data said, 
"Commander, I have some very good news."
     Riker's face broke into an expectant smile.  "You've got it?" 
     "We can now access all of this ship's log entries and flight 
recordings."
     "Wonderful!  Can you patch it through to the main viewer on 
the bridge?"
     "Indeed, sir."
     "Let's go then.
     The two moved briskly toward the lift and were on the bridge 
just moments later.  "Worf, call Wesley and Argyle up here.
     "Riker to Picard."
     There was a brief pause, then Geordi's face appeared on the 
viewscreen.  "He's off the bridge right now, sir.  Shall I get 
him?"
     "Yes.  Tell him we've accessed all the logs on the 
battlecruiser."
     "That's great!  All right, hold on a minute."
     The screen blanked.  Wesley and Argyle emerged from the lift 
together and stood behind the bridge railing.  Moments later, 
Captain Picard was hailing.
     "Captain, did Geordi tell you?"
     "Yes, Number One.  Good work, all of you.  Can you patch us 
in to watch?"
     "Data?"
     "Already set up, sir."
     "Perfect.  Here we go, everybody."
     Riker sat back in the command chair.  Picard's image was 
replaced by static, then the picture cleared up.  It showed the 
bridge of Enterprise-C, bathed in combat lighting and filled with 
smoke.  The officers, dressed in old style Starfleet uniforms, 
were dazed, but the Captain was speaking, his voice hoarse from 
the fumes wafting through his bridge.





                           CHAPTER XII


     Romanov was out of breath; his eyes stung from the smoke of a 
dozen small electrical fires, and his throat was raw.  He reached 
for the log recorder controls at his right armrest.  Flipping the 
toggle, he looked towards the small video recorder just above the 
main viewscreen.
     "Captain's Log, Stardate 15246.4:"  Romanov coughed, 
unsuccessfully trying to clear his rasping voice.  "My ship - 
pulled through a rip in - fabric of space itself.  Computers 
unable to match to-"  Valeriy's lungs heaved in a fit of choking 
and coughing.  Several more bridge officers were trying to rouse 
themselves, blinking their eyes repeatedly to bring themselves 
back to reality.  The captain continued.  "To match any known star 
patterns.  I must tend to damage and casualties now, but I think - 
ship still operational."
     The Science Officer, Lieutenant Karapos, apparently more 
coherent than the rest, had started to bring the ship's systems 
back to life.  "Captain."  Her voice gave away the pain she must 
have been controlling.  "Damage is mostly superficial, circuit 
damage.  Repair parties are on the way to the bridge and other 
essential areas."
     Romanov was feeling noticeably better by now.  "Good, good.
Casualties?"
     "Report from sickbay now.  A lot of minor injuries, only
about a dozen seriously injured, and two fatalities in
engineering."
     "Damn.  Alright, let's get this bucket back in shape and find
out where the hell we are."
     "Captain!  Sensors picking up three vessels, type unknown,
closing at high sublight velocity."
     "Range?"
     "One-hundred thousand kilometres.  They just appeared there,
sir."
     "Red Alert, try to hail."
     "Too late!"
     Romanov couldn't manage any words as the little flattened
cigar shapes spat electric death at his all but crippled starship.



     "Captain's Log, Supplemental:  We have had a very tense 
moment.  Three unknown vessels fired on my ship.  However, after 
we attempted to contact them, they broke off and began orbiting 
the ship.  No extra damage was sustained.  After several hours of 
communication with these beings, the universal translators are 
functioning very well.
     "I am attaching this log just prior to communicating with a 
representative of this previously unknown race of aliens, who call 
themselves the Jhonkai, as closely as I can pronounce it.
     "Transmission to follow."



     "Captain Romanov, I presume?  I am honoured to meet you.  I 
am Marshal Lerhok of the Third Scouting Fleet.  I apologise for 
the reception you were given.  My field commanders acted 
irrationally, to be sure."
     "No harm done, Marshal.  I am glad that a worse situation was 
avoided.  Perhaps you may be able to assist us.  We are 
somewhat...lost."
     "Ah, yes, Captain.  We noticed your vessel as soon as at 
appeared through one of the voids."
     "The voids.  Then you have seen these before?"
     "Unfortunately so, Captain.  I must now appeal to you for 
help.  But you must first know why.
     "The voids have existed for as long as anyone can remember, 
several generations back.  At first they were a mere astronomical 
curiosity.  But they became worse.  At first, some of our 
scientific vessels disappeared through them.  They were never 
heard from again."  Lerhok paused.
     Valeriy looked at the tripartite alien on the screen.  "I, 
uh, assume there's more."
     "You needn't have all the details, Captain.  Our space, as 
far as we can explore, is being torn apart by the voids.  And the 
worst of the effects are moving towards our civilisation.  
Already, a few of our farthest planets have been ripped apart, 
completely and without warning.  And two stars have been forced 
into a nova stage prematurely.  They were, fortunately, unoccupied 
systems."
     "I am glad for that, Marshal Lerhok."
     "Captain, our time is running out.  Our most optimistic 
forecasts show that our entire civilisation will be obliterated 
within-"  Lerhok calculated the conversion, "-one hundred years."
     "Oh my God...  And you've already been exploring for-"
     "The oldest ships in our fleet are three hundred and fifty 
years old. My people have put every available resource into 
building ships to find us a new home, but without success.  As far 
as we can explore in every direction, the voids are there."
     Romanov thought of something that the alien had said earlier.  
"How is it that you expect us to be able to help you?"
     The Marshal seemed genuinely surprised by this query.  
"Captain, you came through the void.  That means it is possible to 
survive travel through the voids, and we now have an almost 
limitless expanse of new territory to explore.  I might also add, 
that you have alluded to the fact that you have never seen these 
voids before?"
     "I understand now.  You now possess the knowledge that there 
are other places in the universe where you can be safe."
     "Or other dimensions.  We do not know enough about the 
phenomena to be certain."
     Romanov spread his arms in front of him, a gesture of 
futility.  "But Marshal, we do not know how to move through the 
voids, even if we can get back.  Our presence here is an 
accident."
     Lerhok made a gesture to kill the audio pick-up, and 
conversed silently with several of his officers.  After almost a 
minute, he returned his attention to Romanov.
     "Captain, I have been authorised to extend an invitation for 
you, your ship and your crew to accompany us to one of the Jhonkai 
Concordium's planets.  Will you accept?"
     "I would be most honoured, Marshal."


     "Captain's Log, Stardate 15246.7:  My ship is currently in 
orbit around one of the Jhonkai's planets.  Our long range scans
indicate that the inhabited, or, at least industrialised, planets 
make up a group of fifteen core star systems all within thirty 
light years of one another, and several dozen other colony 
systems.  This region of space has an extremely high stellar 
density, average distance being 1.2 light years.
     "I have been invited to partake in a dialogue with the 
Jhonkai Sector Governor on the moon of this planet.  He says he is 
interested in hearing about the place from which we have come.
     "Following my first officer's advice that we allow these 
still mostly unknown creatures limited knowledge of our 
technology, I shall take a shuttlecraft to the meeting, instead of 
the transporter."



     The Enterprise's executive officer, Cmdr. Geoffrey
Bainbridge, twisted uneasily in the command chair that Romanov had
left him with.  The captain had taken a small transmitter along, 
and the Comm officer was broadcasting the meeting over the bridge 
speakers.  Some inner voice had told Geoff to put the ship on 
Yellow Alert, and he hadn't even for a minute thought of 
dismissing that advice.
     "They're getting really nosey down there," commented the Exec 
to Karapos, who he had ordered to keep a constant scan on Romanov.
     The Jhonkai representatives were pressing for details about 
the Federation - size, population, military, industry, etc.  The 
captain was doing his best to answer in generalities.
     Bainbridge stood up to pace.  On his third circuit around the 
bridge, Lt. Karapos did a double-take at his screens.
     "Sir!"
     "What is it?" queried Geoff as he moved towards the science 
console.
     "Large numbers of Jhonkai ships appearing."
     "Range and bearing?"
     "Range, about a million kilometres.  Bearing - all."
     "What do you-"
     "They're completely surrounding us!"
     "Red Alert, now!  Charge weapons and shields."
     The klaxon filled the air while the computer droned out its 
general quarters alert.
     "Are they maintaining position?"
     "Yes.  No, wait.  They're moving now.  Accelerating towards 
us and closing formation."
     Just then, the viewscreen lit up.  "Enterprise!"
     The Captain was surrounded by several heavily armed Jhonkai 
warriors, all their weapons aimed straight at Romanov's 
midsection.
     "Your captain chooses not to oblige us, Commander, so it is 
now up to you.  Your vessel is to lead our fleet through the void 
back to your Federation.  Refuse and Romanov dies.  Refuse us 
again and you all die!  Make your decision, but do it now."
     Fury welled up inside of the First Officer, and he screamed 
at the viewscreen.  "Well your just goddamned out of luck, you 
barbarians!
     "Transporter, emergency recall, now!  Close communications 
and prepare for battle."
     "Captain safely recovered, sir.  Shields at full."
     "Report, Mr. Karapos."
     "They're moving in faster.  Seven hundred thousand klicks, 
and closing."
     Romanov's form burst onto the bridge.  "Thank you for your 
timely assistance, Commander.  Now let's get the hell out of 
here."
     "What was that all about?" asked Bainbridge, his anger 
somewhat settled.
     "Seems they'd like to conquer the Federation, Geoff.  All 
those exploration vessels they said they were building, well 
they're armed to the teeth, each and every one.  Guess they were 
just waiting for an opportunity like this one."
     "Oh, god..."
     "Yeah.  And they know that rip-travel is possible now, so the 
best we can do is warn the Federation, make sure they're prepared 
when it all comes down."  The captain gestured at the wall of 
ships on the viewscreen.  "That's what they want to stop us from 
doing."
     Valeriy punched an intercom button.  "Engineering, bring the 
mains up to full power.  We'll be needing them."
     "Captain," responded the Engineer, a Vulcan named Sympak.  "I 
would have to advise against using the Transwarp engines, sir.  
If this transition through the rip has already put us into a 
dimension not our own, then Transwarp travel could be unduly 
dangerous."
     "Look, Chief, we don't have many alternatives.  I may have to 
use them anyway."
     "Understood, sir."
     "Mr. Karapos, find us the weakest spot in that globe and give 
us a course towards it."
     "In the computer now, sir."
     "Outstanding.  Full impulse, Helm."
     The ship leapt like a tiger, freed from its cage, straight at
part of the Jhonkai armada.
     "We're being targeted, sir.  Oh my god, they're firing!"
     "Geoff, fire at will."
     Phaser fire pierced the dark space, ripping through the 
hostile ships with ease.  Three fell to Enterprise's first full 
salvo.
     "Keep it up, XO."
     "Captain, they're moving all around us."
     The ship lurched under return fire.  "Damn.  They're 
following us.  We can't outrun them at sublight."
     "I doubt it, sir.  And we can't take much more of this, 
either."
     "We're out of choices.  Engage Transwarp engines, full 
speed.  Cross your fingers everyone.
     "Engage!



     "Captain's Log, Stardate 15247.3:  Fortunately for all of us, 
Chief Sympak's concerns were unfounded, and the ship is safe.  We 
are still however, lost in whatever part of the universe fostered 
this race of beings called the Jhonkai.
     "The successful operation of the main engines has given us 
some hope, however.  Lt. Cmdr. Sympak has hypothesised that, due
to the nature of Transwarp travel, the main engines might be 
recalibrated to allow us to return to Federation space.
     "I have authorised him to go ahead with this work while the 
rest of the crew stands down to Yellow Alert.  The Jhonkai might 
return any time, now."
     Romanov switched off the log recorder.
     Geoff was suddenly standing behind him.  "Well said, 
Captain."
     "What do you mean?"
     "Sensors just picked up a Jhonkai scout at long range.  He 
hasn't seen us yet, I don't think, but he's headed this way.  And 
with the mains down for these alterations..."
     "I see.  What are our chances to avoid detection?"
     "Slim to none.  He's headed almost straight for us."
     "Engineering, how much longer do you need?"
     "I estimate thirty-four minutes, sir."
     "Geoff, as soon as that scout is in megaphaser range, take it 
out."
     "Isn't that being a little hasty, sir?  Starfleet regulations 
say that no Federation vessels may initiate-"
     "Damnit, Commander!"  Bainbridge flinched noticeably.  The 
Captain relaxed his tone, but not entirely.  "Look, if we get 
destroyed, it won't matter whether we followed regs or not.  And 
if that scout gets off a contact report, we've had it."
     "But-"
     "No buts!  Mr. Karapos, analyse the Jhonkai ships' propulsion 
systems."
     "Yes, sir.  A form of conventional warp drive, and plasma-
fusion sublight engines."
     "What speeds?"
     The lieutenant peered at one of her monitors.  "When those 
ships started to appear all around us, I took some readings.  They 
had to be moving at at least Warp 15."
     A whistle of incredulity escaped the exec's lips.  "Point 
taken, Captain.  I withdraw my protest."
     "Thank you, Geoff.  Believe me, I don't take this decision 
lightly.  But Starfleet made me a captain because they trust my 
decisions, even ones like this.  I hope we're around long enough 
for you to heed that advice.  Range?"
     "Three-hundred thousand kilometres.  Shot in twenty seconds."
     "They're moving slowly," mused the Captain.  "We've never 
actually seen them manoeuvring in warp, have we?"
     "No, sir," answered the Science Officer.  "They may only be 
able to warp at such high speeds in a straight line."
     "Interesting."
     Geoff gestured at one of the screens and raised his voice.  
"They're changing course."
     The Comm officer added, "That ship is sending off a message, 
Captain."
     "Full impulse, intercept course.  Prepare to fire."
     The giant hunter shot across the velvet background towards 
the little Jhonkai vessel.  The prey tried to escape, but was 
quickly overrun.  Blue lightning speared from the saucer weapons 
pods on the battlecruiser, igniting the fleeing scout.  Seconds 
later, the target obliterated in a shower of molten metal.
     "Helm, get us as far away from here as you can.  No telling 
how soon their fleet will be here."



     "Captain, my work will be complete in twelve minutes.  
Assuming, of course, I am not unduly delayed by your continual 
requests for that piece of information."
     "Of course, Chief.  Bridge out."
     Romanov was getting very edgy.  There was nothing for him to 
do so long as the engineers did their work, and the scanners were 
monitored.  He was getting to the point where his tension was 
starting to rub the crew the wrong way - and that could be bad. 
     "Sir!  Ships appearing, bearing two-five-two mark seven, 
range, six-hundred thousand kilometres."
     "That close?"  Romanov was more than slightly surprised by 
that.  They didn't get that scout in time after all...
     "Yes, sir, and closing rapidly."
     "Helm, bows-on to the hostile ships, and full impulse astern."
     "Yes, s-"  He paused.  "Did you say 'astern', sir."
     "Yes, and I don't mean later mister.  Full power astern!"
     Romanov was thinking of his Academy combat classes.  The 
retrograde manoeuvre - a hypothetical tactic allowing a captain to 
move his ship away from an enemy while keeping his strongest 
weapons to bear.
     "They're charging weapons."
     "Fire at will, Geoff.  Keep them away from us."
     At least three dozen Jhonkai warships - for certainly Romanov 
no longer regarded them as 'science vessels' - bore down on the 
damaged starship.  Their formation created a huge square wall on 
the main viewscreen.
     It was a strange picture, the backwards fleeing Federation 
ship swapping shots with the huge squadron of Jhonkai vessels.
     "Mr. Karapos, maximum power to countermeasures.  Weapons, 
take your shots carefully."
     "Aye, aye, sir."
     The Enterprise's technological superiority was paying off.  
Despite being so badly outnumbered, she was taking no worse than 
she was giving.  The small armada was having a difficult time 
hitting their target, and the starship's shields held while a 
half-score of the armed research vessels winked out of existence 
under the impact of phasers and torpedoes.
     Then things changed for the worse.  "Captain!  Multiple 
missile launch.  All hostiles have launched - tracking over one 
hundred inbound!"
     "All systems to passive!  Launch decoys, and reserve power to 
jammers!"  Romanov's finger stabbed the intercom.  "Mr. Sympak, 
hurry the hell up, and I mean it!"
     "Sir, the calibrations will be finished momentarily," 
responded the Vulcan, unfazed by the Captain's irrational tones.  
"Computer simulation will, however, require several more minutes."
     "Damn your eyes, mister! I will be activating the mains in -"  
The captain glanced at Karapos, who pointed at the missile tracks 
and mouthed the time to impact.  "- less than two minutes.  You 
had better be ready!"
     The shields, already weakened by combat and the power drain 
to the electronic defenses, took the full impact of a lucky salvo 
from one of the attacking ships.  On the bridge, Romanov felt a 
strong thump through the decks, and all the displays momentarily 
showed static.  The damage control station suddenly lit up with 
large swaths of red through the engineering section.
     "Captain, we've been hulled near life support control."
     "How bad."
     "Unable to ascertain at the moment, sir.  I'm checking."
     "Time to impact?"
     "Forty seconds."
     "Captain Romanov, this is engineering.  The Transwarp engines 
are ready for activation."
     "Helm, activate, now!"
     Power drained from all over the ship, rerouted through the 
massive Transwarp nacelles astride the ship's hull.  The bridge 
emergency batteries kicked over, enough to bring up the main 
viewer and red lighting.  
     Energy sparked and danced in space immediately in front of 
the ship.  A glowing orb of black swallowed the minor pyrotechnic 
display, and disturbances in the very fabric of space rippled out 
like waves.  The ship bucked and heeled, while several inbound 
missiles detonated, triggering a chain reaction of explosions 
through their ranks.
     Then, like a startled animal, Romanov's ship leaped into the 
void, and an unseen hand began to squeeze the consciousness out of 
the captain's body.



     As the bridge crew sluggishly came to, and things returned to 
some semblance of normalcy, the Engineer's voice was the first 
heard.
     "Captain, this is Engineering, Chief Sympak.  The main 
engines have lost all power, and the energisers appear to be 
damaged beyond repair.  I must look more closely."
     "Understood, Chief.  Excellent work.  You are to be 
commended."
     "Mr. Karapos, where are we?"
     "We are back in our own space.  I can't be sure exactly 
where, though.  We are either in or near Klingon territory."
     "That could be bad, in a crippled starship."
     "Yes, sir," agreed the Exec.  "There's worse news."
     "Uh-oh."
     "Life-support is very badly damaged.  Toxic waste is being 
pumped into the air supply, and we can't stop it."
     "Can it be repaired?"
     "Not in time.  We have less than twenty minutes of good air 
left."
     "Then we don't have much choice.  Comm, put me on shipwide."
     "Circuit open."
     "Attention all hands - this is the captain speaking.  I want 
to commend everyone on their excellent performance during this 
crisis.  We are now back in our own space, however, our ship is 
crippled, and must be evacuated.  You have ten minutes to collect 
and stow one bag of personal effects.  The lifeboats will be 
launched in fifteen minutes.  Good luck to you all."
     Romanov sighed despair, and added, "All senior officers to 
the bridge."
     Valeriy gestured for the circuit to be cut.  "Do we have 
power for a transmission, to find out if there are any starbases 
around?"
     "Negative, sir."
     "Very well, then.  Put out a low power distress signal."  
With that, Valeriy went to his center chair and activated the log 
recorder.
     "Captain's Log, Final Entry, Stardate 15247.7:  I include 
this entry to warn the Federation of the danger that the Jhonkai 
present.  I sincerely hope that the sum of the recordings made by 
my vessel will be helpful in protecting the Federation, and all of 
our friends and families throughout.
     "With my ship crippled, and so near - perhaps in - Klingon 
territory, I have no choice but to abandon and scuttle the 
Enterprise.  I give this order with a heavy heart, but at the same 
time I recommend the following members of my crew for the 
Federation Citation of Gallantry, posthumously if need be...
     "Lt. Commander Sympak, Chief Engineer; Commander Geoffrey 
Bainbridge, Executive Officer; Lieutenant Karapos, Science 
Officer; Lieutenant Juergen Wasserman, Tactical Weapons Officer.
     "Attached to this transmission is the programmed course for 
all of the lifeboats, so that our survivors may be rescued."
     "Prepare the log buoy for launch right after we set the self-
destruct."
     By now, all of the senior officers were present.  The oxygen 
was getting noticeably scarce, and the engine waste in the 
atmosphere stung at their throats.
     As the fifteen minutes ticked away, the group of officers 
felt and heard the lifeboats dropped away from the ship.
     "Ladies and gentlemen, we will set the destruct sequence to 
go when all lifeboats are clear, then we will go to our boats."
     "Aye, sir," they all responded.
     Romanov was beginning to feel extremely dizzy as he 
concluded, "Let's get this over with."