This is a revised version of my first fanfic. It’s the first in what will hopefully end up a nine-part crossover story (although I am now thinking about ways to turn it into six parts). If you already read the first version of this story, this isn’t necessary to read to follow the later episodes (although I would recommend reading the 1st scene in chapter 1). If you really want to read the original version you still can at http://www.daltonator.net/fanfics/stori ... erging.txt . That version will be replaced after this version is complete though. Star Trek is a registered trademark of Paramount. Star Wars is a registered trademark of Lucasfilm. No copyright infringement is intended and no money is being made. This is solely for entertainment. Hope you enjoy the story.
Eric Upp
It is said that there are an infinite number of universes. This is a story about two of them.
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away and in our own galaxy in the 24th century
Star Trek and Star Wars
Episode I
The Merging
It’s a dark time for the Republic. Led by Count Dooku, the Separatists are gaining ground. Thousands of worlds are making preparations to leave the millennia old institution. On Geonosis, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Senator Padme Amidala have been captured. A large group of Jedi are now preparing to leave Coruscant to rescue their companions.
In the Milky Way, the United Federation of Planets and the Klingon Empire are deep in a war that seems hopeless. The Dominion outnumbers them considerably in the Alpha Quadrant, and thousands of reinforcements sit on the other side of the Bajoran Wormhole. The Federation’s only defense against this new, unstoppable fleet are a few thousand innovative mines.
Intelligence suggesting the Dominion has found a way to deactivate the mines has forced the Federation to attempt a risky recapture of their former wormhole base, Deep Space 9. Together with the Klingons, the Federation is winning this critical battle, and the U.S.S. Defiant has slipped through enemy lines, but the Dominion is almost ready to destroy the mines…
Chapter 1: The Last Days
If you’re worried about something you love being destroyed, it’s easy to spend countless hours and energy doing everything you can to defend it. What’s hard is sitting back and waiting when there is nothing you can do. That was the position Captain Picard was in now, as he sat in his command chair on the bridge of the Enterprise listening to the reports coming in. On the viewscreen, thousands of dots marked the various Federation, Klingon, and Dominion ships involved in the largest battle of the war so far. He had seen the initial Federation fleet greatly outnumbered and lose a lot of ships fast. He had seen the massive Klingon fleet show up, and level the odds. It looked like this might be a victory, and Picard could see his crew perking up. He knew something most of the rest of the crew didn’t though. Intelligence was reporting that the Dominion had found a way to destroy the mines blocking the wormhole. If true, that meant the fleet was fighting time and not just this Dominion fleet. He had to admit, this had him more than a little worried. It would have been better if the Enterprise was there. Picard wouldn’t have had time to worry then. Instead, they were here in the Neutral Zone, trying to make the Romulans see that this war involved them too. So far, they hadn’t had much luck.
Picard heard Data report that a couple dozens ships had just broken through the Dominion lines when he started hearing a sound that didn’t belong on his bridge. It was shouting. He had heard that kind of shouting before. He turned around, but instead of seeing the familiar tactical station behind him, he saw a mid-21st century courtroom. “Q!”
“Mom Captain, welcome back.” Q floated towards Picard in his judges chair and clothes.
“Q! Why am I in this courtroom again? Twice, I have been forced here, and have proven that humanity has evolved beyond its savage past.”
“How many times must I tell you, Jean-Luc? The trial has never ended. The question of how far humanity has evolved has never satisfactorily been answered.”
Picard signed, and calmed himself down a little. “Another test. Q, what has humanity ever done to deserve such special attention? You have said, the Q worry that we may someday approach or even surpass them, but I find it hard to believe that there aren’t others who should concern the continuum just as much. Why so much attention on us?”
Q shouted, “He finally asks a good question!” The crowd laughed loudly, and Q had to hold his had up to quite them, and then spoke in a much quieter tone. “Why do think I don’t, Jean-Luc? I must do something with my time between visits with you, you know.” Louder, Q said, “How do you know I haven’t had trials for ten thousand races since we last met here?” The crowd laughed uncontrollably again.
Picard spoke somberly. The thought of Q or the Q Continuum doing that to so many troubled him greatly, but he didn’t believe it. “I don’t, Q.” His voice became firmer. “But, I know you’ve always seemed to have a special interest in humanity. I know there are many other races we’ve encountered with similar drives and desires, and I don’t think you care to put a single one of them on trial.”
Q floated right up to Picard’s ear and then whispered, “You’re right. Humanity is one of the few races ever to have been on trial by the Q.”
“Why?”
“Can’t you just pretend to use your mind? You didn’t even try to think of a reason.” There was fresh round of laughter from the audience.
“How am I supposed to know the reason you keep putting us on trial?“
Q looked at Picard like a parent losing patience with a child and said, “You’re not, but you could at least attempt to use that device you call a brain, before asking me to connect all the dots for you.”
“OK, then why?”
Q suddenly became very serious. The crowd quieted, but Q spoke too softly for them to hear. “Jean-Luc, I discovered a plan just before our first meeting. A group, a group weaker than the Q but still very powerful, has hatched a very dangerous plan. The reward if such a plan is successful would be wondrous for the entire universe, for all the universes in fact. On the other hand, failure would be,” Q paused a moment and then said, “bad.”
“What does that have to do with humanity?”
“I don’t know the whole plan, but I found out individuals from both branches of humanity are key.”
“Both branches of humanity?”
“That’s not important now. The point is, I knew humanity was instrumental to their plan.”
“So you wanted to see if humanity was up to the challenge, and if necessary stop it from ever occurring. Why me? Why the Enterprise? Are any members of my crew key? Am I?”
Q raised his voice again, “He asks if he is key.” Laughter resumed. “No Jean-Luc; as far as I can tell, you are not part of their plans.” Q approached Picard and lowered his voice to a whisper again, “I haven’t let on that I know of this group’s plans. Aside from you, no one else knows, not even the Continuum. I did bump into one the important individuals once, but it had to seem like an coincidence.”
“Who? Who did you bump into? Who is this group?”
“Who they are does not matter right now. What matters is that they are about to start their plan. They don’t want to yet, but their hand is going to be forced soon enough. So Jean-Luc, I have a question for you, and you need to use all your brain power to answer it?”
“What is it?”
“I can stop this group. If I tell the Continuum what I know right now, they will be alarmed, and will attempt and certainly succeed in stopping this ‘Merging’ from occurring. The trial can end now. Humanity can be found to still be a barbarous child race, but one that has made improvements. The punishment would only be not to allow you to partake in this group’s plans.”
“I don’t know this group, Q. I don’t like to think of humanity being used in this way though.”
“So you plead guilty to being a barbarous child race?”
Picard knew he should think more before answering, but he immediately replied, “Absolutely not.”
Q shouted again to the laughter of the courtroom, “Then the trial continues.”
“Wait!”
“Do you wish to change your plea?”
“No, but…”
“Then there is nothing else to say. Mon Captain, I would advise against telling anyone this, even your Number One. If word gets out, life for your whole species might become dangerous. Now I’ll let you get back to watching your battle. The mines are about to be destroyed.”
“Destroyed. Q, wait!…” But he was gone. The mines destroyed… Then that meant, Picard feared the Federation might be entering its last days.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala sat in a cell on Geonosis. Padme had kept up a brave front, and had really led since they had been captured, but Anakin could feel her fear now. If she had been a Jedi, she would have felt his too. Who could blame them though? There didn’t seem to be any escape possible, and they had just been sentenced to be executed. Wanting to speak of more pleasant things with the one he loved so much though, Anakin asked, “When did you decide to run for queen?”
“I was discussing politics with a few of my friends in the legislative youth program.” Padme smiled, “Arguing with them to be more precise. It was silly really. We were arguing about whether or not the terms of the king/queen should be extended, or kept the same. I thought they should be kept as they were, but the other four all thought they should be longer. By the end, I had all but one convinced. He said with persuasion skills like that, I should run for queen. That was the first time I ever considered it, but couldn’t get it out of my head afterward. I thought I could do more good for Naboo and the Republic than anyone else I saw running. So, I entered the race.”
A new voice echoed behind them. “It is sad that the Republic, the same one you wished to serve so badly, turned a blind eye on you when the Trade Federation attacked.”
Anakin quickly responded, “It’s too bad you now work for them, Dooku.”
“It’s more like we are working together for a common goal. The end result of which is going to be the destruction of the Republic as we know it.” If they only knew how badly he wanted to be rid of those aliens. They were necessary for now though.
“Neither the Jedi, nor the chancellor will sit back while you try to dismantle the Republic, Dooku.”
“Of course, they won’t. It’s too late though. They don’t have the armies to oppose us, and it will take too long to recruit and train them. If war begins now, the Republic will suffer enough devastating defeats to ensure that Palpatine falls. For any new chancellor, it would be political suicide not to accept the generous peace proposal we will offer, not when the only other possibility is a war which would take a large draft of Republic citizens and at least 5 years to win.”
Anakin was very defiant. “The people will not sit back while you try to do this.” Padme looked more worried.
“Come now, young Skywalker. All the people will see is planet after planet fall. It will take time for the Republic to build up to even a level cable of defending against us. Without a major victory, with an offer to return all loyal Republic members, and a chance to stop a war, which is costing the lives of billions, do you really think the majority will continue to support the war? Even your friend Palpatine won’t be strong enough to resist the pressure. He will have to meet our demands or be replaced.”
Anakin still wasn’t showing the proper respect. What was the Jedi Order allowing these days? “So is that your plan Dooku?”
“Maybe. Or maybe, I have a far more rewarding plan worked out.” Dooku thought of the army of Sith he would command. He thought of the Separatist leaders being executed for treason. He thought of the future empire of humans that could properly run the galaxy. “You can decide that for yourself. Unless you have a highly trained 10 billion man army hiding somewhere though, I think the Republic is entering its final days.” Dooku had to stop himself from laughing. He, the leader of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, knew the Republic had an incredible army ready to fight, but the Jedi and the powerful senator sitting before him had no clue it existed.
“You forget Dooku. All we have to do is destroy you and your master.”
“How naive.” Before Dooku could say anymore, he felt his communicator vibrate. “I afraid I most go.”
Dooku left the couple and headed to an empty room. The Viceroy of the Trade Federation told him what he already knew; his master wanted to speak to him. This was unexpected. They usually had their times set out ahead of time. This must be important. He activated the hologram. “My master, this is an unexpected call.”
“Tyranus, an unexpected development is about to occur.”
“What is it my master?”
“I can not be certain. It acts on the Force in a unique way. I believe it is being caused by something far way.”
“What should I do, my lord?”
“Nothing different now, but be prepared. You may have to postpone the execution of the Jedi for the time being though.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“I must go. I will be missed shortly.”
Sidious’s hologram disappeared, and Dooku had to wonder, “What was going on?”
The Merging (revised version)
Moderator: LadyTevar
-
Star Empire
- Padawan Learner
- Posts: 242
- Joined: 2004-11-30 10:48pm
- Location: Columbus, Ohio
The Merging (revised version)
Last edited by Star Empire on 2005-12-09 01:11pm, edited 1 time in total.
-
Star Empire
- Padawan Learner
- Posts: 242
- Joined: 2004-11-30 10:48pm
- Location: Columbus, Ohio
Chapter 2: The Merging
There are a couple of words that can accurately describe space: empty, cold, and of course, vast. The distance between stars within galaxies made even the largest supergiants seem tiny by comparison. Despite this fact though, it is possible for life to travel between these seemingly infinite distances in even their short life times. That said, the energy and knowledge necessary for a species to achieve this ability is extraordinarily high. Few civilizations make it to this level without being amazed at their own accomplishment. Afterward though, once faster than light is no longer new, even these speeds can start to seem too slow. On board the USS Defiant, rather than focusing on how fast the ship was now going, the crew was focusing on how slow maximum warp was.
Dax looked at the time. “Ben, if I were you I would start coming up with a Plan B.”
Captain Sisko didn’t have one. Hopefully, fortune would favor the bold, and he wouldn’t need one. The viewscreen’s look changed as the Defiant came out of warp. They would have to get the station’s shields down quick. Never mind that they weren’t a match for its weapons. Hopefully, Kira and the Bajorans would do something to help them out. They had to succeed and had to do so now.
All thoughts of any victory washed away from Sisko at the sight before him. A huge explosion was occurring. No, it couldn’t be. The mines were gone. They had failed.
Dax said, “What do we do now captain?”
What was there to do? They had made it all the way back here, back home, but it was too late. Sisko couldn’t go back. Everything was apparently lost, but the least they could do was make a stand. They couldn’t just sit back and watch as the fleet that would surely destroy the Federation came into the Alpha Quadrant. “Take us into the wormhole.”
O’Brien, obviously more than a little shocked, said, “What the hell, we’re just going to meet a couple thousand Dominion ships.”
Dax wasn’t too impressed either. “One ship vs. a whole fleet, that’s one hell a Plan B.”
“Chief, how does that poem end?” It was Garak.
“You don’t want to know.”
The Defiant went through the wormhole. In a way, this was a fitting place for it to end. The wormhole had been their discovery. It was only right they should be here at this critical moment. “Full stop. Chief, divert all power to forward shields and weapons.”
Dax reported, “Captain, I’m reading multiple warp signatures ahead.”
“On screen, Maximum magnification.”
Thousands of Dominion ships filled the screen. Sisko knew what he was looking at, and by the looks of his crew, he could tell they did too. This single fleet was better than three times the size of the one the Defiant had just been at battle with. It was better than three times the size of the one the largest Federation/Klingon fleet ever assembled was barely beating. If it somehow wasn’t enough to conquer them, there would be even more too.
Sisko looked at the fleet, and then looked past them into the future. What he saw chilled him to the bone. He saw the end of the Federation. With these reinforcements, they would be at Earth in no time. He could see Jem’Hadar patrolling the streets in front of his father’s restaurant. His mind’s eye saw a Dominion flag flying in front of Starfleet command. He saw kids being left as orphans as their parents were executed for being suspected members of resistance cells. He could see the Federation’s resources, its ships, its shipyards, and factories being turned into part of the Dominion’s war machine. They would be used to conquer others.
Defeat had always been the most likely outcome, but it had never been inevitable. Now that wasn’t true anymore. Defeat was very close. There may be two weeks left in the war. The entire Federation, what it had stood for, there would soon be nothing left. “Lock phasers. Prepare to launch quantum torpedoes.”
And then his life was lifted from that plain of existence. The Prophets. He felt no gratitude for this temporary salvation. He felt annoyed and angry. “Why have you brought me here? Show yourselves. What do you want?”
A figure that looked like Odo appeared. “The Sisko has returned to us.” Others started appearing and again disappearing as well. His surroundings looked like DS9, but that of course was an illusion.
Jake: He has arrived with questions.
Kira: There are always questions.
“I didn’t ask to come here.”
Dukat: You desire to end the game.
“What game? I don’t understand.”
Weyoun: You wish to end your corporal existence.
Damar: That cannot be allowed.
Odo: The game must not end.
“The game. You mean my life. Is that what this is about? You don’t want me to die?”
Dukat: The game must continue.
Weyoun: You are the Sisko.
“Believe me. I don’t want to die, but I have to do everything I can to prevent the Dominion from conquering the Alpha Quadrant. If that means sacrificing my life and the life of my crew so be it.”
Jake: We do not agree.
Kira: We find your reasoning flawed.
Odo: Insufficient.
“I’m flattered you feel that way but it doesn’t change anything. Now send me back to my ship.” The scene did change. He was on the Defiant, only still not the real one. “This isn’t what I meant. I want to return to my reality.”
Damar: You are the Sisko.
“I am also a Starfleet captain. I have a job to do, and I intend to do it.”
Weyoun: The Sisko is belligerent.
Dukat: Aggressive.
Damar: Adversarial.
“You’re damn right I’m adversarial. You have no right to interfere in my life.”
Kira: We have every right.
“Fine, you want to interfere, then interfere. Do something about those Dominion reinforcements.
Odo: That is a corporeal matter.
Dukat: Corporeal matters do not concern us.
“The hell they don’t. What about Bajor? You can’t tell me Bajor doesn’t concern you. You sent the Bajorans orbs and emissaries. You even encouraged them to create an entire religion around you. You even told me once you were of Bajor. So don’t you tell me you’re not concerned with corporeal matters.”
“I don’t want to see Bajor destroyed, neither do you, but we know that is exactly what is going to happen if the Dominion takes over the Alpha Quadrant.”
Odo: He will not listen.
Damar: We can take him yet.
Kira: He has not passed the test.
Dukat: He cannot be allowed to end the game.
Odo: We must begin.
Weyoun: The corporeal time is incorrect for this side.
Kira: We will be weakened.
Dukat: We have no choice.
Damar: The others do not agree.
Kira: They will never agree.
Odo: There is no balance.
Dukat: It must start.
“What, what must start?”
Kira: The Merging.
Sisko looked around again. He was back on the Defiant. It was the real one this time. He looked up at the viewscreen to see the Dominion fleet. Before he could even think about what he was seeing though, he was forced to the floor as the ship was thrown from the wormhole. “Report.”
Dax looked at the panel in front of her. “We have been thrown just outside the Bajoran system captain. I think the Dominion was thrown to their side too.” She trailed off at the end as she tried to figure out what she was reading. “Captain, I’m reading several new stars in the area. The star count around here has skyrocketed.” What have the Prophets done? Then Dax noticed one other thing on her sensors. This one brought a smile to her mouth. “Captain, Deep Space 9’s weapons are off-line.”
“Good job, Major,” Sisko said to himself. “Take us back and prepare to attack the station.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“What do you mean that…” Anakin stopped mid-sentence and sat upright. Seeing the change of expression on his face made Padme worry. “Anakin.” He didn’t respond. “Anakin, what’s wrong?”
Anakin stared at her for a moment. “Something just happened.”
“What? Something good or bad?”
“I don’t know.”
There are a couple of words that can accurately describe space: empty, cold, and of course, vast. The distance between stars within galaxies made even the largest supergiants seem tiny by comparison. Despite this fact though, it is possible for life to travel between these seemingly infinite distances in even their short life times. That said, the energy and knowledge necessary for a species to achieve this ability is extraordinarily high. Few civilizations make it to this level without being amazed at their own accomplishment. Afterward though, once faster than light is no longer new, even these speeds can start to seem too slow. On board the USS Defiant, rather than focusing on how fast the ship was now going, the crew was focusing on how slow maximum warp was.
Dax looked at the time. “Ben, if I were you I would start coming up with a Plan B.”
Captain Sisko didn’t have one. Hopefully, fortune would favor the bold, and he wouldn’t need one. The viewscreen’s look changed as the Defiant came out of warp. They would have to get the station’s shields down quick. Never mind that they weren’t a match for its weapons. Hopefully, Kira and the Bajorans would do something to help them out. They had to succeed and had to do so now.
All thoughts of any victory washed away from Sisko at the sight before him. A huge explosion was occurring. No, it couldn’t be. The mines were gone. They had failed.
Dax said, “What do we do now captain?”
What was there to do? They had made it all the way back here, back home, but it was too late. Sisko couldn’t go back. Everything was apparently lost, but the least they could do was make a stand. They couldn’t just sit back and watch as the fleet that would surely destroy the Federation came into the Alpha Quadrant. “Take us into the wormhole.”
O’Brien, obviously more than a little shocked, said, “What the hell, we’re just going to meet a couple thousand Dominion ships.”
Dax wasn’t too impressed either. “One ship vs. a whole fleet, that’s one hell a Plan B.”
“Chief, how does that poem end?” It was Garak.
“You don’t want to know.”
The Defiant went through the wormhole. In a way, this was a fitting place for it to end. The wormhole had been their discovery. It was only right they should be here at this critical moment. “Full stop. Chief, divert all power to forward shields and weapons.”
Dax reported, “Captain, I’m reading multiple warp signatures ahead.”
“On screen, Maximum magnification.”
Thousands of Dominion ships filled the screen. Sisko knew what he was looking at, and by the looks of his crew, he could tell they did too. This single fleet was better than three times the size of the one the Defiant had just been at battle with. It was better than three times the size of the one the largest Federation/Klingon fleet ever assembled was barely beating. If it somehow wasn’t enough to conquer them, there would be even more too.
Sisko looked at the fleet, and then looked past them into the future. What he saw chilled him to the bone. He saw the end of the Federation. With these reinforcements, they would be at Earth in no time. He could see Jem’Hadar patrolling the streets in front of his father’s restaurant. His mind’s eye saw a Dominion flag flying in front of Starfleet command. He saw kids being left as orphans as their parents were executed for being suspected members of resistance cells. He could see the Federation’s resources, its ships, its shipyards, and factories being turned into part of the Dominion’s war machine. They would be used to conquer others.
Defeat had always been the most likely outcome, but it had never been inevitable. Now that wasn’t true anymore. Defeat was very close. There may be two weeks left in the war. The entire Federation, what it had stood for, there would soon be nothing left. “Lock phasers. Prepare to launch quantum torpedoes.”
And then his life was lifted from that plain of existence. The Prophets. He felt no gratitude for this temporary salvation. He felt annoyed and angry. “Why have you brought me here? Show yourselves. What do you want?”
A figure that looked like Odo appeared. “The Sisko has returned to us.” Others started appearing and again disappearing as well. His surroundings looked like DS9, but that of course was an illusion.
Jake: He has arrived with questions.
Kira: There are always questions.
“I didn’t ask to come here.”
Dukat: You desire to end the game.
“What game? I don’t understand.”
Weyoun: You wish to end your corporal existence.
Damar: That cannot be allowed.
Odo: The game must not end.
“The game. You mean my life. Is that what this is about? You don’t want me to die?”
Dukat: The game must continue.
Weyoun: You are the Sisko.
“Believe me. I don’t want to die, but I have to do everything I can to prevent the Dominion from conquering the Alpha Quadrant. If that means sacrificing my life and the life of my crew so be it.”
Jake: We do not agree.
Kira: We find your reasoning flawed.
Odo: Insufficient.
“I’m flattered you feel that way but it doesn’t change anything. Now send me back to my ship.” The scene did change. He was on the Defiant, only still not the real one. “This isn’t what I meant. I want to return to my reality.”
Damar: You are the Sisko.
“I am also a Starfleet captain. I have a job to do, and I intend to do it.”
Weyoun: The Sisko is belligerent.
Dukat: Aggressive.
Damar: Adversarial.
“You’re damn right I’m adversarial. You have no right to interfere in my life.”
Kira: We have every right.
“Fine, you want to interfere, then interfere. Do something about those Dominion reinforcements.
Odo: That is a corporeal matter.
Dukat: Corporeal matters do not concern us.
“The hell they don’t. What about Bajor? You can’t tell me Bajor doesn’t concern you. You sent the Bajorans orbs and emissaries. You even encouraged them to create an entire religion around you. You even told me once you were of Bajor. So don’t you tell me you’re not concerned with corporeal matters.”
“I don’t want to see Bajor destroyed, neither do you, but we know that is exactly what is going to happen if the Dominion takes over the Alpha Quadrant.”
Odo: He will not listen.
Damar: We can take him yet.
Kira: He has not passed the test.
Dukat: He cannot be allowed to end the game.
Odo: We must begin.
Weyoun: The corporeal time is incorrect for this side.
Kira: We will be weakened.
Dukat: We have no choice.
Damar: The others do not agree.
Kira: They will never agree.
Odo: There is no balance.
Dukat: It must start.
“What, what must start?”
Kira: The Merging.
Sisko looked around again. He was back on the Defiant. It was the real one this time. He looked up at the viewscreen to see the Dominion fleet. Before he could even think about what he was seeing though, he was forced to the floor as the ship was thrown from the wormhole. “Report.”
Dax looked at the panel in front of her. “We have been thrown just outside the Bajoran system captain. I think the Dominion was thrown to their side too.” She trailed off at the end as she tried to figure out what she was reading. “Captain, I’m reading several new stars in the area. The star count around here has skyrocketed.” What have the Prophets done? Then Dax noticed one other thing on her sensors. This one brought a smile to her mouth. “Captain, Deep Space 9’s weapons are off-line.”
“Good job, Major,” Sisko said to himself. “Take us back and prepare to attack the station.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“What do you mean that…” Anakin stopped mid-sentence and sat upright. Seeing the change of expression on his face made Padme worry. “Anakin.” He didn’t respond. “Anakin, what’s wrong?”
Anakin stared at her for a moment. “Something just happened.”
“What? Something good or bad?”
“I don’t know.”
Last edited by Star Empire on 2005-12-09 01:10pm, edited 1 time in total.
-
Star Empire
- Padawan Learner
- Posts: 242
- Joined: 2004-11-30 10:48pm
- Location: Columbus, Ohio
Sorry it’s been so long. I'm finally on break and am making a goal to finish this rewrite before I go back (maybe way too optimistic, but oh well). Chapters 4 and 5 will up soon. I would like to thank X-Over again for Beta reading.
Please Note: There is (or will be about 30 seconds after I post this), a very brief addition to the end of chapter 2.
Chapter 3: Total Chaos
On Coruscant, Jedi Master Mace Windu was just about to give the order to lift off. Yoda had already left to retrieve the clone army, but the rest of the Jedi were still here. Before he could say anything though, he felt a massive disturbance in the Force. It was like being hit by a Wookie; it was such a big disturbance in the Force.
Mace just sat in his seat. He tried to make sense of what he had just felt, but it was impossible to. The very universe seemed to have changed around him. The Force itself seemed changed somehow.
Mace wasn’t sure what to do. He looked around and saw that all the Jedi in the ship seemed as stunned and shocked as he was. He would have to remain calm and in control. He stopped concentrating on the larger universe for a moment (or at least focused a little attention away from it) and just considered his own immediate surroundings. He couldn’t afford to be so absorbed in the larger picture that he lose focus on what was right in front of him. Something much closer could be threatening, and every Jedi here might miss it, as distracted as they were. He couldn’t sense any direct threats though. That much was good at least.
Mace went up to the cockpit and looked at a very confused pilot. The pilot turned around and said, “Master Windu, I had permission to lift off, but have since been ordered to remain here. I’m not sure why?”
Windu was far from shocked. “It appears that Obi-Wan is going to have to wait.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From The Emergence of a New Galaxy: A Brief history of the Milky Bi-Galaxy Following the Merging
By John Charles
Copyright: Columbus, Ohio, Earth, Union of Intelligent Life Forms. 21,328 AD; 18,954 AM [After Merging]
Chapter 2: Panicked Responses to the Merging
What caused the Merging is an issue that is still debated to this day, and one that is unlikely to ever be convincingly answered (although there are some arguments historians tend to support more than others). The reactions of the various space-faring races to it in the first moments of the Milky Bi-Galaxy are recorded well in history though.
To properly consider just how horrified the civilizations of both galaxies were-imagine this: you are safe alone in your home, and all of a sudden your house looks completely different from how it is supposed to be. All your stuff is still there, but so are a lot of things you’ve never seen before. Also, several aliens (from species you’ve never seen before) have appeared inside. What would your reaction be?
The reactions of the space-faring civilizations varied considerably, but understandably, there was a lot of violence. Most civilizations, which detected thousands of ships seemingly magically appear within their space, initially thought that they were under attack. Many (although still a tiny minority) responded by firing on everything they saw. It was estimated that as many as 2,500 small battles occurred within 15 minutes of the Merging.
Generally, the ex-Milky Way civilizations were the ones attacking and Republic ships were the defenders. This was largely true since, most of the time, Milky Way worlds had more reason to fear invasion than their Republic counterparts. Few within the Milky Way had knowledge of much the galaxy beyond their own borders, many had territorial disputes with neighbors, and all had reason to fear the vast unknowns of the galaxy. By contrast, Republic worlds had existed in such a large and stable institution for so long that the concept of an external invasion seemed absurd.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the Delta Quadrant, a Kazon ship detected a smaller ship in what the sect considered their territory. They powered their weapons and approached it. Unfortunately for the Kazon, size doesn’t always determine power, and the ship they were confident they could beat had raised its shields and quickly returned fire. The Kazon were little match for the turbolasers and ion canons coming at them.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the Gamma Quadrant, close to the center of Dominion space and also close to a cloning planet, Dominion ships detected a large ship just appear on their sensors. They did not ask questions. Immediately, a dozen small Jem’Hadar warships and one larger one set a course for it. Thirty seconds later, they were within weapons range. All 13 ships fired immediately. Its shields held for a moment, until a smaller Jem’Hadar vessel did a suicide run against its shield generator. After that, the Jem’Hadar beamed over and took control of the ruined vessel.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the very heart of the Republic, just outside of Coruscant, Republic sensors picked up a ship coming in at a very high velocity in normal space. Fortunately, it stopped just outside the system, but when a young Republic captain requested to board the ship and search because of its proximity to Coruscant, fighting almost broke out. Cooler heads did prevail though, and the Republic would soon consider the Corta Alliance as its first contact with a new galaxy.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vessel design unknown. Species unknown. Weapons analyzed. Weapons inefficient to penetrate cube defenses. Cube 13569 assimilate. “We are the Borg, lower your shields and surrender your vessel. Your technological and biological distinctiveness will be added to our own. Resistance is Futile.” Vessel attempting to leave system. Firing weapons. Shield down. Lock tractor beam. Assimilate vessel. Add technological and biological distinctiveness to our own.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On Coruscant, things were a mess. It had only been half an hour since the event, and they were already receiving millions of distress and emergency calls. The government had never anticipated or planned for anything of this magnitude occurring. The Senate, which had been in session, had been evacuated in case this was some form of attack. The individual members were now in what were considered safe areas, and trying to figure out what was going on. So far, all anyone knew was that another spiral galaxy had just popped right on top of them.
A great number of rumors had started. One was that giant planet-sized ships were currently destroying whole systems. Another more humorous one was that a Republic scientist had been working on a new hyperdrive and had somehow transported the whole galaxy to this new place.
Word was also now being sent to high-ranking officials that new races around Coruscant were primitive and as confused as they were. In truth, no one really knew if they were more primitive. They had seemed that way from scans and initial contacts, but no one really knew. All the same, anything that would quiet the nerves of their own leaders was being used now. Palpatine sat in his chair in his office about to make a speech. He was told he was on started his speech.
“Greetings to all citizens of the Republic and all else who receive this transmission. For every one receiving this not from my galaxy, I am Chancellor Palpatine representing the Galactic Republic which is made up of most my galaxy. As almost everyone is already aware, a major event has occurred. We here on Coruscant are doing our best to find out what has happened. It seems that our galaxy and that of another have some how merged. I would like to assure everyone that this does not appear to be an attack. The centers of both our galaxies are in about the same location, and the spiral arms follow similar courses as well. This merging threw many, if not all our ships, out of hyperspace. This was fortunate, because without every additional star, planet, moon, and other astronomical phenomenon in the computers every jump would be the equivalent of a blind jump. There could have been millions of deaths. For the time being, all ships in the Republic are ordered not to engage their hyperdrives. We will update our computers with every new item as soon as possible, but for the time being, I must insist this rule be obeyed. If you find yourself under attack or in an emergency situation use it carefully.”
“Coruscant is capable of going through the numerous signals we are now getting. However, the sheer number of signals is slowing down response time to the true emergencies. I ask that for the time being that citizens, ships, and member planets of the Republic only contact Coruscant if there is an emergency. Also, if anyone listening to this believes you know what has caused this event please contact us. If you are not from my galaxy, just ask a Republic ship for help, if you are unable to reach Coruscant. I will make another speech later when we find out more about what’s going on. Thank you everyone.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On Geonosis, Anakin and Padme kissed as they were being led out on chariot, to what should be their deaths. In so many ways this moment is terrible. They are about to be killed. The Separatists may well have the means and will to destroy all they both stand for. In another equally real way though, the moment is perfect. There doesn’t need to be anymore hiding from what they felt for each other. There are no questions about what is allowed or proper. For a single moment, the only thing that matters to both of them is that they love each other. Nothing, not even a death sentence can overshadow that fact.
After their lips part, the couple gets a look at where they’re heading…or not heading? They have turned around and are heading back where they came from. “Where are we going?” Padme asks.
“I don’t know,” Anakin responds with complete honesty. Could it have something to do with that disturbance in the Force? It would have to be. Despite being completely absorbed in it not too long ago, Anakin had almost forgotten about it. How in the galaxy could he have let that slip his mind? Well, there was only one thing that could have made him forget about it and he was looking at her.
Please Note: There is (or will be about 30 seconds after I post this), a very brief addition to the end of chapter 2.
Chapter 3: Total Chaos
On Coruscant, Jedi Master Mace Windu was just about to give the order to lift off. Yoda had already left to retrieve the clone army, but the rest of the Jedi were still here. Before he could say anything though, he felt a massive disturbance in the Force. It was like being hit by a Wookie; it was such a big disturbance in the Force.
Mace just sat in his seat. He tried to make sense of what he had just felt, but it was impossible to. The very universe seemed to have changed around him. The Force itself seemed changed somehow.
Mace wasn’t sure what to do. He looked around and saw that all the Jedi in the ship seemed as stunned and shocked as he was. He would have to remain calm and in control. He stopped concentrating on the larger universe for a moment (or at least focused a little attention away from it) and just considered his own immediate surroundings. He couldn’t afford to be so absorbed in the larger picture that he lose focus on what was right in front of him. Something much closer could be threatening, and every Jedi here might miss it, as distracted as they were. He couldn’t sense any direct threats though. That much was good at least.
Mace went up to the cockpit and looked at a very confused pilot. The pilot turned around and said, “Master Windu, I had permission to lift off, but have since been ordered to remain here. I’m not sure why?”
Windu was far from shocked. “It appears that Obi-Wan is going to have to wait.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From The Emergence of a New Galaxy: A Brief history of the Milky Bi-Galaxy Following the Merging
By John Charles
Copyright: Columbus, Ohio, Earth, Union of Intelligent Life Forms. 21,328 AD; 18,954 AM [After Merging]
Chapter 2: Panicked Responses to the Merging
What caused the Merging is an issue that is still debated to this day, and one that is unlikely to ever be convincingly answered (although there are some arguments historians tend to support more than others). The reactions of the various space-faring races to it in the first moments of the Milky Bi-Galaxy are recorded well in history though.
To properly consider just how horrified the civilizations of both galaxies were-imagine this: you are safe alone in your home, and all of a sudden your house looks completely different from how it is supposed to be. All your stuff is still there, but so are a lot of things you’ve never seen before. Also, several aliens (from species you’ve never seen before) have appeared inside. What would your reaction be?
The reactions of the space-faring civilizations varied considerably, but understandably, there was a lot of violence. Most civilizations, which detected thousands of ships seemingly magically appear within their space, initially thought that they were under attack. Many (although still a tiny minority) responded by firing on everything they saw. It was estimated that as many as 2,500 small battles occurred within 15 minutes of the Merging.
Generally, the ex-Milky Way civilizations were the ones attacking and Republic ships were the defenders. This was largely true since, most of the time, Milky Way worlds had more reason to fear invasion than their Republic counterparts. Few within the Milky Way had knowledge of much the galaxy beyond their own borders, many had territorial disputes with neighbors, and all had reason to fear the vast unknowns of the galaxy. By contrast, Republic worlds had existed in such a large and stable institution for so long that the concept of an external invasion seemed absurd.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the Delta Quadrant, a Kazon ship detected a smaller ship in what the sect considered their territory. They powered their weapons and approached it. Unfortunately for the Kazon, size doesn’t always determine power, and the ship they were confident they could beat had raised its shields and quickly returned fire. The Kazon were little match for the turbolasers and ion canons coming at them.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the Gamma Quadrant, close to the center of Dominion space and also close to a cloning planet, Dominion ships detected a large ship just appear on their sensors. They did not ask questions. Immediately, a dozen small Jem’Hadar warships and one larger one set a course for it. Thirty seconds later, they were within weapons range. All 13 ships fired immediately. Its shields held for a moment, until a smaller Jem’Hadar vessel did a suicide run against its shield generator. After that, the Jem’Hadar beamed over and took control of the ruined vessel.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the very heart of the Republic, just outside of Coruscant, Republic sensors picked up a ship coming in at a very high velocity in normal space. Fortunately, it stopped just outside the system, but when a young Republic captain requested to board the ship and search because of its proximity to Coruscant, fighting almost broke out. Cooler heads did prevail though, and the Republic would soon consider the Corta Alliance as its first contact with a new galaxy.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vessel design unknown. Species unknown. Weapons analyzed. Weapons inefficient to penetrate cube defenses. Cube 13569 assimilate. “We are the Borg, lower your shields and surrender your vessel. Your technological and biological distinctiveness will be added to our own. Resistance is Futile.” Vessel attempting to leave system. Firing weapons. Shield down. Lock tractor beam. Assimilate vessel. Add technological and biological distinctiveness to our own.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On Coruscant, things were a mess. It had only been half an hour since the event, and they were already receiving millions of distress and emergency calls. The government had never anticipated or planned for anything of this magnitude occurring. The Senate, which had been in session, had been evacuated in case this was some form of attack. The individual members were now in what were considered safe areas, and trying to figure out what was going on. So far, all anyone knew was that another spiral galaxy had just popped right on top of them.
A great number of rumors had started. One was that giant planet-sized ships were currently destroying whole systems. Another more humorous one was that a Republic scientist had been working on a new hyperdrive and had somehow transported the whole galaxy to this new place.
Word was also now being sent to high-ranking officials that new races around Coruscant were primitive and as confused as they were. In truth, no one really knew if they were more primitive. They had seemed that way from scans and initial contacts, but no one really knew. All the same, anything that would quiet the nerves of their own leaders was being used now. Palpatine sat in his chair in his office about to make a speech. He was told he was on started his speech.
“Greetings to all citizens of the Republic and all else who receive this transmission. For every one receiving this not from my galaxy, I am Chancellor Palpatine representing the Galactic Republic which is made up of most my galaxy. As almost everyone is already aware, a major event has occurred. We here on Coruscant are doing our best to find out what has happened. It seems that our galaxy and that of another have some how merged. I would like to assure everyone that this does not appear to be an attack. The centers of both our galaxies are in about the same location, and the spiral arms follow similar courses as well. This merging threw many, if not all our ships, out of hyperspace. This was fortunate, because without every additional star, planet, moon, and other astronomical phenomenon in the computers every jump would be the equivalent of a blind jump. There could have been millions of deaths. For the time being, all ships in the Republic are ordered not to engage their hyperdrives. We will update our computers with every new item as soon as possible, but for the time being, I must insist this rule be obeyed. If you find yourself under attack or in an emergency situation use it carefully.”
“Coruscant is capable of going through the numerous signals we are now getting. However, the sheer number of signals is slowing down response time to the true emergencies. I ask that for the time being that citizens, ships, and member planets of the Republic only contact Coruscant if there is an emergency. Also, if anyone listening to this believes you know what has caused this event please contact us. If you are not from my galaxy, just ask a Republic ship for help, if you are unable to reach Coruscant. I will make another speech later when we find out more about what’s going on. Thank you everyone.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On Geonosis, Anakin and Padme kissed as they were being led out on chariot, to what should be their deaths. In so many ways this moment is terrible. They are about to be killed. The Separatists may well have the means and will to destroy all they both stand for. In another equally real way though, the moment is perfect. There doesn’t need to be anymore hiding from what they felt for each other. There are no questions about what is allowed or proper. For a single moment, the only thing that matters to both of them is that they love each other. Nothing, not even a death sentence can overshadow that fact.
After their lips part, the couple gets a look at where they’re heading…or not heading? They have turned around and are heading back where they came from. “Where are we going?” Padme asks.
“I don’t know,” Anakin responds with complete honesty. Could it have something to do with that disturbance in the Force? It would have to be. Despite being completely absorbed in it not too long ago, Anakin had almost forgotten about it. How in the galaxy could he have let that slip his mind? Well, there was only one thing that could have made him forget about it and he was looking at her.
-
Star Empire
- Padawan Learner
- Posts: 242
- Joined: 2004-11-30 10:48pm
- Location: Columbus, Ohio
Well, here's chapter 4 too. Chapter 5 will be along later today or tomorrow I think.
Chapter 4: The First Day
To say a lot of things happened in the 24 hours following the Merging would be an understatement of the largest proportions. Thousands of battles occurred, wars ended, and the new galaxy started to understand what had just happened. On Coruscant, Republic leaders finally began accepting that this was not an attack. Palpatine had stated that almost immediately, but no one had seemed to be very convinced. The Senate had reconvened and was trying to work through the chaos.
In the Alpha Quadrant, the Federation and the Klingons had signed a temporary cease-fire with the Dominion. The Ferengi were already hard at work acquiring as much new technology as possible. All the major powers and most of the minor ones had tried to contact Coruscant (having to ask to use Republic equipment, which was rather embarrassing for some of the more proud races). Many still had not gotten to talk with anyone, but the process did seem to be speeding up.
Sisko picked up his baseball and thought about all the changes a day had made. Yesterday, the Federation was as close to destruction as it ever come, and now there was a cease-fire. He was back on Deep Space 9, in his own office again. That alone was difficult enough to believe. He couldn’t get his mind around everything else going on.
Sisko had reported what had happened to Starfleet. A large part of him didn’t want to, but he had to nonetheless. Since then, he had talked to nine, no ten admirals. Two of them were on the station right now. They had just left him about an hour ago, and Sisko figured they should be back again anytime (and would probably want to hear the exact same report again).
Ben had to wonder exactly what he was responsible for. The Prophets had ultimately saved, or at least spared the Federation for now, but at what cost? If this Republic, that seemed to exist everywhere throughout this new galaxy, was hostile, then the whole galaxy could be threatened. Was he even sure the Dominion wasn’t a threat anymore. Really, what was there to stop them from restarting the war? He didn’t know what would happen if they tried to use the wormhole again, but he was far from confident that the Prophets would intervene again. What was more than that, they wouldn’t need to. This new galaxy apparently had some other form of transportation besides warp that could get them across the galaxy in days. He would just have to hope that the Founders would be concerned enough about the Gamma Quadrant to allow the status quo to continue in the Alpha Quadrant.
Right now, Sisko had two ships of this new galaxy docked at the station. One was pretty small. It was a little outside of the Bajoran system and a Galaxy-class starship had tractored them to the station. The other had been farther away and had detected the station after it had stopped. Not wanting to be in the middle of nowhere, it had engaged its engine again and came here.
Sisko heard his door chime and Admiral Ross walked in. “Admiral, back so soon.”
“Starfleet has just completed first contact with the Republic.”
“That was fast. Did they tell them my story?”
“Yes they did. They are a little skeptical.” That could hardly be considered a shock; virtually everyone he had told in Starfleet was more than a little skeptical, and they, at least, had read previous reports on the wormhole aliens. “But they want you to go to their capital anyway.”
That should be interesting. “How do I get there?”
“We made them a deal with them. We gave them our star charts and in return they gave us this engine design of theirs. It’s quite impressive.” A little surprise showed in Sisko’s face. That was exceptionally quick for Federation diplomacy. Seeing his face, Ross continued, “Ordinarily, we wouldn’t have done something like that right through subspace, or whatever it is they use, but we are worried the Dominion might get it first.” Sisko nodded. “You won’t be going by hyperspace on one of our ships though. It will take too long to install the engine. The bigger Republic ship docked here right now said they could carry the Defiant if they have to. Personally, I think the captain is just happy for an excuse to leave. Anyway, we are downloading our star charts to him now and they should be ready shortly. A team full of ambassadors will follow soon on the Enterprise. It’s near the Neutral Zone right now and has already been ordered back to install the hyperdrive. You’ll get there first though. I can’t tell you enough how important it is that we make a good first impression with these people.”
Yes it was important. Maybe if they turned out to be friendly, the Dominion wouldn’t be a problem after all. “I understand.”
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No one on Coruscant had ever heard the phrase, ‘running like a chicken with his head cut off’. If anyone had though, they would probably have considered it an accurate description of the government’s actions in its current state. Most senators seemed to agree that decisive action must be taken immediately in light of such an extraordinary event. Few had any idea what type of action to even consider though. Proposals were all over the place. One thing was certain though. They needed to get to know all these new governments. Having tens of thousands of potentially hostile governments (or possibly even more) to worry about was terrifying to most in the Senate. What was even less comforting was that some planets had actually declared being under attack. All that being the case, a bill was proposed and almost immediately passed (regular rules of procedure were dropped by a high enough vote) that would call for a galactic summit on Coruscant, where they could meet with the new governments, or blocs of them together, to discuss what had happened, and the future. With this knowledge, Palpatine sat behind his desk again, ready to make another speech.
“Greetings once again to all citizens of the Republic as well as everyone else receiving this transmission. I am Chancellor Palpatine of the Galactic Republic. I am the leader of a republic that spans most of my galaxy. We would like to thank everyone for their patience in this difficult time. As I said earlier, it appears that two galaxies have somehow combined into one. One galaxy was ours, that of the Galactic Republic, and the other is one full of many small, but great civilizations. As of right now, we do not know what has caused this. We will continue to investigate.”
“To all those out there, who are not of my galaxy, I would like to extend an invitation. Two weeks from today, here on Coruscant, we will be holding a galactic summit. We will make contact with all civilizations that attend and attempt to make at least temporary treaties with everyone. I understand that most of the civilizations of this galaxy will be unable to make it here on their own propulsion systems. If you contact us, we will arrange something. We look forward to meeting everyone.”
“To all Republic ships, we are now sending out updated star charts. Please be patient. After you receive the new star charts please travel carefully. We have worked diligently with governments from around the galaxy to get these, but I suspect there are still small details left out. Merchant ships, I must also ask for your help. As I said earlier, we are preparing for a galactic summit. In order to get everyone here we need help. I ask that if requested to bring a representative from any of the Milky Way governments to Coruscant that you respond. If possible, we may try to compensate you later. Thank you everyone for your patience. If we continue to work together everything will work out fine.”
Chapter 4: The First Day
To say a lot of things happened in the 24 hours following the Merging would be an understatement of the largest proportions. Thousands of battles occurred, wars ended, and the new galaxy started to understand what had just happened. On Coruscant, Republic leaders finally began accepting that this was not an attack. Palpatine had stated that almost immediately, but no one had seemed to be very convinced. The Senate had reconvened and was trying to work through the chaos.
In the Alpha Quadrant, the Federation and the Klingons had signed a temporary cease-fire with the Dominion. The Ferengi were already hard at work acquiring as much new technology as possible. All the major powers and most of the minor ones had tried to contact Coruscant (having to ask to use Republic equipment, which was rather embarrassing for some of the more proud races). Many still had not gotten to talk with anyone, but the process did seem to be speeding up.
Sisko picked up his baseball and thought about all the changes a day had made. Yesterday, the Federation was as close to destruction as it ever come, and now there was a cease-fire. He was back on Deep Space 9, in his own office again. That alone was difficult enough to believe. He couldn’t get his mind around everything else going on.
Sisko had reported what had happened to Starfleet. A large part of him didn’t want to, but he had to nonetheless. Since then, he had talked to nine, no ten admirals. Two of them were on the station right now. They had just left him about an hour ago, and Sisko figured they should be back again anytime (and would probably want to hear the exact same report again).
Ben had to wonder exactly what he was responsible for. The Prophets had ultimately saved, or at least spared the Federation for now, but at what cost? If this Republic, that seemed to exist everywhere throughout this new galaxy, was hostile, then the whole galaxy could be threatened. Was he even sure the Dominion wasn’t a threat anymore. Really, what was there to stop them from restarting the war? He didn’t know what would happen if they tried to use the wormhole again, but he was far from confident that the Prophets would intervene again. What was more than that, they wouldn’t need to. This new galaxy apparently had some other form of transportation besides warp that could get them across the galaxy in days. He would just have to hope that the Founders would be concerned enough about the Gamma Quadrant to allow the status quo to continue in the Alpha Quadrant.
Right now, Sisko had two ships of this new galaxy docked at the station. One was pretty small. It was a little outside of the Bajoran system and a Galaxy-class starship had tractored them to the station. The other had been farther away and had detected the station after it had stopped. Not wanting to be in the middle of nowhere, it had engaged its engine again and came here.
Sisko heard his door chime and Admiral Ross walked in. “Admiral, back so soon.”
“Starfleet has just completed first contact with the Republic.”
“That was fast. Did they tell them my story?”
“Yes they did. They are a little skeptical.” That could hardly be considered a shock; virtually everyone he had told in Starfleet was more than a little skeptical, and they, at least, had read previous reports on the wormhole aliens. “But they want you to go to their capital anyway.”
That should be interesting. “How do I get there?”
“We made them a deal with them. We gave them our star charts and in return they gave us this engine design of theirs. It’s quite impressive.” A little surprise showed in Sisko’s face. That was exceptionally quick for Federation diplomacy. Seeing his face, Ross continued, “Ordinarily, we wouldn’t have done something like that right through subspace, or whatever it is they use, but we are worried the Dominion might get it first.” Sisko nodded. “You won’t be going by hyperspace on one of our ships though. It will take too long to install the engine. The bigger Republic ship docked here right now said they could carry the Defiant if they have to. Personally, I think the captain is just happy for an excuse to leave. Anyway, we are downloading our star charts to him now and they should be ready shortly. A team full of ambassadors will follow soon on the Enterprise. It’s near the Neutral Zone right now and has already been ordered back to install the hyperdrive. You’ll get there first though. I can’t tell you enough how important it is that we make a good first impression with these people.”
Yes it was important. Maybe if they turned out to be friendly, the Dominion wouldn’t be a problem after all. “I understand.”
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No one on Coruscant had ever heard the phrase, ‘running like a chicken with his head cut off’. If anyone had though, they would probably have considered it an accurate description of the government’s actions in its current state. Most senators seemed to agree that decisive action must be taken immediately in light of such an extraordinary event. Few had any idea what type of action to even consider though. Proposals were all over the place. One thing was certain though. They needed to get to know all these new governments. Having tens of thousands of potentially hostile governments (or possibly even more) to worry about was terrifying to most in the Senate. What was even less comforting was that some planets had actually declared being under attack. All that being the case, a bill was proposed and almost immediately passed (regular rules of procedure were dropped by a high enough vote) that would call for a galactic summit on Coruscant, where they could meet with the new governments, or blocs of them together, to discuss what had happened, and the future. With this knowledge, Palpatine sat behind his desk again, ready to make another speech.
“Greetings once again to all citizens of the Republic as well as everyone else receiving this transmission. I am Chancellor Palpatine of the Galactic Republic. I am the leader of a republic that spans most of my galaxy. We would like to thank everyone for their patience in this difficult time. As I said earlier, it appears that two galaxies have somehow combined into one. One galaxy was ours, that of the Galactic Republic, and the other is one full of many small, but great civilizations. As of right now, we do not know what has caused this. We will continue to investigate.”
“To all those out there, who are not of my galaxy, I would like to extend an invitation. Two weeks from today, here on Coruscant, we will be holding a galactic summit. We will make contact with all civilizations that attend and attempt to make at least temporary treaties with everyone. I understand that most of the civilizations of this galaxy will be unable to make it here on their own propulsion systems. If you contact us, we will arrange something. We look forward to meeting everyone.”
“To all Republic ships, we are now sending out updated star charts. Please be patient. After you receive the new star charts please travel carefully. We have worked diligently with governments from around the galaxy to get these, but I suspect there are still small details left out. Merchant ships, I must also ask for your help. As I said earlier, we are preparing for a galactic summit. In order to get everyone here we need help. I ask that if requested to bring a representative from any of the Milky Way governments to Coruscant that you respond. If possible, we may try to compensate you later. Thank you everyone for your patience. If we continue to work together everything will work out fine.”
-
Star Empire
- Padawan Learner
- Posts: 242
- Joined: 2004-11-30 10:48pm
- Location: Columbus, Ohio
I've decided that while I'm writing more now, I'm probably just going to post one a week. That way, when things get busy again, this won't just completely stop. Here is one more chapter for now though.
Once again, thank you X-Over for your wonderful proofreading.
Chapter 5: Escape from Geonosis
“Now I would appreciate it if you were a little more careful. This is my head after all.” R2 chirped a reply and finished putting C3PO’s head back on. “Why I never.” C3PO had been decapitated shortly after landing on Geonosis. His head had been placed on a Trade Federation battle droid and that droid’s head was put on his body. R2-D2 had been captured, but his restraints had been shot by C3PO earlier releasing him. R2 was now returning the favor. He had followed C3PO’s head until the droid’s body had malfunctioned, and then found the rest of his body with a malfunctioning head.
“Where are you going now? I’ve never seen a droid as…” R2 started rolling up to a terminal. He had to find where his masters were. Before he reached it though, an alarm went off. “Now what could that be? We better get back to the ship.” R2 was not about ready to leave without Anakin and Padme. He connected to the terminal and started reviewing the orders coming in. He made an extremely loud squeal and started going off as quickly as he could. “What’s going on? I swear if you are going anywhere but back to the ship I won’t follow you this time.”
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Obi-Wan was hearing a lot of commotion outside his cell. It wasn’t the first time in the last day that he had heard a lot, but this time it seemed to involve more panic. After 5 minutes, he was led in chains to a secured speeder. After a short ride on it, he stopped and was directed towards a ship. Heading towards it, he saw something he shouldn’t. Anakin should not be here. He was supposed to be protecting Padme…it appeared she was here too. He was pushed over with them. “What are you doing here? You were supposed to forward my message to Coruscant.”
“I did, and then we decided to rescue you.”
They were being pushed up the platform of the ship. It looked like they were the last ones getting on. “Some rescue. Do you know where we’re going?”
Before Anakin could answer someone else did. “You’re not going anywhere. Leave them here.” It was Count Dooku.
“What if they escape?” The Viceroy of the Trade Federation said a little nervously.
“There is nowhere for them to escape to.” The three got pushed out and the ship started to take off. “Obi-Wan, you’ll be needing this. I’d give Anakin his back, but he got a little clumsy with it.” He threw a lightsaber to the ground and the ship disappeared from sight. Looking around, it wasn’t the only one.
“What could make them just leave us here? We can expose them.” Anakin said, as Obi-Wan destroyed his own chains. He then destroyed Anakin’s and finally Padme’s.
“This doesn’t make any sense. If the Jedi were attacking, they wouldn’t just leave us here. Not unless this is some type of trick.” Padme said.
Anakin replied, “I don’t think it is. The Separatists are completely confused. Their anger doesn’t even approach their level of confusion. Besides, whatever caused that disturbance in the Force, it wasn’t the Republic.”
Obi-Wan thought they really needed to hurry. “For right now, it doesn’t matter. What matters now is getting off this planet. Where is your ship?”
The trio rushed as fast as they could, but all of them knew they would be too late. From what, they didn’t know, but even a short speeder trip was going to take quite a bit of time to back track on foot. The Jedi looked around for other ships to use, but couldn’t spot any. Just then, one started to land.
Anakin couldn’t believe his eyes. It was a Naboo ship. It was the ship they had taken here. It landed and opened its door. Sitting inside were two droids. One was a little one appearing to have taken control of the ship. The other appeared to be holding on for dear life.
“R2 that is the last time I fly with you. This craft was made for humans to fly, not droids.” R2 beeped. “No, I don’t think you’re a good pilot.”
Anakin praised the droid, “Good job R2,” as they all ran to the cockpit of the little ship.
Padme turned to Obi-Wan. “Can you find out why everyone is fleeing?” On her speeder trip over, Padme had seen what looked like a total evacuation. A lot of droids were being left behind, not to mention the factories and a lot of materials, but all the ships seemed to be gone, and other than the native Geonosians, no one seemed to be staying behind.
“I’m detecting over a hundred ships. Each one of them is cube-shaped, about 3 kilometers long. I don’t see how we are going to get around all of those ships.”
Anakin could feel those on board the cubes with the Force. There was something terribly wrong. Who was on those ships? It felt like thousands of individuals, but it also felt like only one being. Anakin took the controls. “Well, we’ve got to go somewhere.” He plotted the course that would provide the least amount of resistance. There wasn’t much time. He knew they had to get out of here fast.
The Naboo ship quickly reached the upper atmosphere and the Borg tried to lock on to them for the first time. Anakin felt this and had to turn the ship into a tight turn to avoid the beam. A few seconds later another cube tried the same thing. A little more out of the atmosphere made dodging a little easier this time. Closer, Anakin could feel what was on those ships even better now. There were thousands of individuals, but none of them had free will. Something had taken it from all of them. The thought made Anakin sick. He had to try very hard to keep that anger in check. That made the next dodge a lot more difficult. He still avoided it, but barely.
“Anakin you must keep your feelings in check.” Despite his calm demeanor, Anakin could tell that Obi-Wan sensed just how evil those ships’ presence was too. If Obi-Wan could keep his mind at peace so could he though.
Two cubes simultaneously tried to grab them next. The area Anakin could maneuver to and avoid both tractor beams was very narrow. Anakin jerked the ship into that location as quickly as he could, and everyone was knocked to the floor as he did the move. Anakin quickly got up. He had made it past the last of the ships, but surprisingly none were following them. “I guess they finally decided they’d never get us.”
“More likely they don’t consider us a great enough prize to be worth anymore trouble,” Obi-Wan said. “Oh, I really hate flying.”
Once again, thank you X-Over for your wonderful proofreading.
Chapter 5: Escape from Geonosis
“Now I would appreciate it if you were a little more careful. This is my head after all.” R2 chirped a reply and finished putting C3PO’s head back on. “Why I never.” C3PO had been decapitated shortly after landing on Geonosis. His head had been placed on a Trade Federation battle droid and that droid’s head was put on his body. R2-D2 had been captured, but his restraints had been shot by C3PO earlier releasing him. R2 was now returning the favor. He had followed C3PO’s head until the droid’s body had malfunctioned, and then found the rest of his body with a malfunctioning head.
“Where are you going now? I’ve never seen a droid as…” R2 started rolling up to a terminal. He had to find where his masters were. Before he reached it though, an alarm went off. “Now what could that be? We better get back to the ship.” R2 was not about ready to leave without Anakin and Padme. He connected to the terminal and started reviewing the orders coming in. He made an extremely loud squeal and started going off as quickly as he could. “What’s going on? I swear if you are going anywhere but back to the ship I won’t follow you this time.”
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Obi-Wan was hearing a lot of commotion outside his cell. It wasn’t the first time in the last day that he had heard a lot, but this time it seemed to involve more panic. After 5 minutes, he was led in chains to a secured speeder. After a short ride on it, he stopped and was directed towards a ship. Heading towards it, he saw something he shouldn’t. Anakin should not be here. He was supposed to be protecting Padme…it appeared she was here too. He was pushed over with them. “What are you doing here? You were supposed to forward my message to Coruscant.”
“I did, and then we decided to rescue you.”
They were being pushed up the platform of the ship. It looked like they were the last ones getting on. “Some rescue. Do you know where we’re going?”
Before Anakin could answer someone else did. “You’re not going anywhere. Leave them here.” It was Count Dooku.
“What if they escape?” The Viceroy of the Trade Federation said a little nervously.
“There is nowhere for them to escape to.” The three got pushed out and the ship started to take off. “Obi-Wan, you’ll be needing this. I’d give Anakin his back, but he got a little clumsy with it.” He threw a lightsaber to the ground and the ship disappeared from sight. Looking around, it wasn’t the only one.
“What could make them just leave us here? We can expose them.” Anakin said, as Obi-Wan destroyed his own chains. He then destroyed Anakin’s and finally Padme’s.
“This doesn’t make any sense. If the Jedi were attacking, they wouldn’t just leave us here. Not unless this is some type of trick.” Padme said.
Anakin replied, “I don’t think it is. The Separatists are completely confused. Their anger doesn’t even approach their level of confusion. Besides, whatever caused that disturbance in the Force, it wasn’t the Republic.”
Obi-Wan thought they really needed to hurry. “For right now, it doesn’t matter. What matters now is getting off this planet. Where is your ship?”
The trio rushed as fast as they could, but all of them knew they would be too late. From what, they didn’t know, but even a short speeder trip was going to take quite a bit of time to back track on foot. The Jedi looked around for other ships to use, but couldn’t spot any. Just then, one started to land.
Anakin couldn’t believe his eyes. It was a Naboo ship. It was the ship they had taken here. It landed and opened its door. Sitting inside were two droids. One was a little one appearing to have taken control of the ship. The other appeared to be holding on for dear life.
“R2 that is the last time I fly with you. This craft was made for humans to fly, not droids.” R2 beeped. “No, I don’t think you’re a good pilot.”
Anakin praised the droid, “Good job R2,” as they all ran to the cockpit of the little ship.
Padme turned to Obi-Wan. “Can you find out why everyone is fleeing?” On her speeder trip over, Padme had seen what looked like a total evacuation. A lot of droids were being left behind, not to mention the factories and a lot of materials, but all the ships seemed to be gone, and other than the native Geonosians, no one seemed to be staying behind.
“I’m detecting over a hundred ships. Each one of them is cube-shaped, about 3 kilometers long. I don’t see how we are going to get around all of those ships.”
Anakin could feel those on board the cubes with the Force. There was something terribly wrong. Who was on those ships? It felt like thousands of individuals, but it also felt like only one being. Anakin took the controls. “Well, we’ve got to go somewhere.” He plotted the course that would provide the least amount of resistance. There wasn’t much time. He knew they had to get out of here fast.
The Naboo ship quickly reached the upper atmosphere and the Borg tried to lock on to them for the first time. Anakin felt this and had to turn the ship into a tight turn to avoid the beam. A few seconds later another cube tried the same thing. A little more out of the atmosphere made dodging a little easier this time. Closer, Anakin could feel what was on those ships even better now. There were thousands of individuals, but none of them had free will. Something had taken it from all of them. The thought made Anakin sick. He had to try very hard to keep that anger in check. That made the next dodge a lot more difficult. He still avoided it, but barely.
“Anakin you must keep your feelings in check.” Despite his calm demeanor, Anakin could tell that Obi-Wan sensed just how evil those ships’ presence was too. If Obi-Wan could keep his mind at peace so could he though.
Two cubes simultaneously tried to grab them next. The area Anakin could maneuver to and avoid both tractor beams was very narrow. Anakin jerked the ship into that location as quickly as he could, and everyone was knocked to the floor as he did the move. Anakin quickly got up. He had made it past the last of the ships, but surprisingly none were following them. “I guess they finally decided they’d never get us.”
“More likely they don’t consider us a great enough prize to be worth anymore trouble,” Obi-Wan said. “Oh, I really hate flying.”
-
Star Empire
- Padawan Learner
- Posts: 242
- Joined: 2004-11-30 10:48pm
- Location: Columbus, Ohio
Thanks X-Over for the beta reading. Merry Christmas everyone.
Chapter 6: The Biggest City
The biggest man-made achievements are inherently small when compared to the vastness of nature. The largest ships in the galaxy appeared colossal when most looked at them, but even the largest aren’t as big as the biggest asteroids. Even the most developed planets still had more nature in them than man. If you got beyond the surface and underground facilities, what you had left was a vast interior that looked like the interior of any other similarly classed planets. Believing that the planet below him could have more in common with nature than man though was something Sisko had a hard time believing.
The Defiant was now moving in on its own power to Coruscant. The ship that carried them this far was heading in a different direction. The planet was nothing like anything Sisko had ever seen. There were no forests or rain forests, no deserts, no tundra, no lakes or rivers that he could see, no plains, or volcanic islands. The whole planet seemed to be just one large city.
The sight a little ways outside the planet was almost as amazing. Thousands of ships were in the system already, and it seemed a minute didn’t go by without another 10 ships entering from either hyperspace or warp. As they got closer, Sisko could see the ships in more detail. Some seemed monstrous. There were designs that were over a kilometer long. Dax turned and said, “Captain, we are receiving a message from the planet.”
“Put it through.”
“Welcome to Coruscant. Please take a shuttle to the coordinates we are transmitting to you now. Send no more than 4 people. Your ship must remain at least ten million kilometers from the planet at all times. Is that understood?”
“Yes. We’ll be right down. Defiant out.” Sisko looked again at the incredible fleet of ships assembled. “Chief, how many of those ships are Republic?”
“Hard to say. I’d guess at least 70% are Republic, most are merchant ships. There appears to be a lot of trading going on just outside the ten million kilometer boundary.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sisko, Dax, O’Brien, and Bashir were on the Federation shuttle about to land. Sisko had a lot to think about, but he still couldn’t help but be in awe over this planet. He had been expecting a highly-populated planet, but this was far above his wildest expectations. Earth was almost uninhabited compared to this. Not only was this entire planet covered in a single huge city, but it had run out of ground millennia ago and just kept building higher. The population of this planet probably surpassed the population of the entire Federation.
As the shuttle landed, Ben noticed several guards waiting for them. They exited the ship, and one of them spoke, “Welcome to Coruscant. Captain Sisko if you’ll please follow me I’ll lead you to the Chancellor. The rest of you can follow Jason.” He pointed to another guard. “He will take you to meet with some of the other visitors we have here.”
Sisko, in all honesty, had expected to be brushed off. He had really been hoping for it in fact. He didn’t expect most of the galaxy to understand the Prophets, and had no idea what other species’ reactions to the wormhole would be. As he entered an elevator in what looked like one of the higher buildings, he knew it was too late to hide now. He should have considered this more before submitting his report to Starfleet. Sisko’s guard led him to a room on top of one of the highest buildings. The guard gestured for him to go in, but did not follow. There was a man in a chair. The man stood up, walked up, and put his hand out. “Welcome to Coruscant, Captain Sisko.”
As Sisko shook his hand, he all of a sudden felt cold. “A pleasure to meet you, Chancellor. I have to tell you, I never expected to come straight here.” There was something very wrong with this man. He didn’t know what, but there was definitely something wrong.
“The Jedi felt your story was credible. They were reviewing all explanations for this event; we’ve had quite a few. They wanted to see you as soon as you arrived, but I decided we had better get in a little chat in first.”
“Thank you, who are these Jedi?”
“That’s a difficult question to answer. Have you ever heard of the Force?”
“No, can’t say that I have.”
“The Force surrounds all living things. Some people have the ability to use the Force to do what might otherwise appear to be almost magical.” Palpatine could tell Sisko wasn’t overly impressed. Sisko no doubt thought that he had come across whole races of beings like them before. “You should meet them, perhaps then you will understand.”
“I would like that.”
“I’m glad you would. I believe you will be impressed. Now, the enemy fleet that was coming through the wormhole, have they tried to reenter it?”
“Fortunately not. They didn’t like what happened last time, and I don’t think they’ll be willing to chance it again for at least for a little while. They appear to be more concerned about protecting the Gamma Quadrant for the time being.”
“Are you convinced that they know the wormhole was the cause? From their perspective, could it have been just a symptom of what was happening to the rest of the galaxy?”
Sisko hadn’t considered this. “No, you maybe right. They might think it was just bad timing going into the wormhole.” This might be a problem. If that was the case, they wouldn’t see restarting the war as being as risky, as Sisko would like them to. Sisko still felt they would be too worried about the Gamma Quadrant for the immediate future to risk anything in the Alpha Quadrant, but he could foresee them trying to expand again soon if they were satisfied their core were secure. Long term, they would be better able to stand up to the Republic if they were larger, and the Federation and Klingon Empire would add a lot to its space.
“Captain, do you think we should inform the rest of the galaxy about the Prophets or keep that quiet for the time being?”
Sisko was genuinely surprised to be asked this question. He assumed that as soon as Palpatine knew the truth, he would want to tell the galaxy. So what did Sisko think? That was a question he already knew the answer to, and that fact disturbed him greatly. The Dominion would be less willing to risk a conflict if they were worried about the Prophets, but Sisko didn’t want to tell the rest of the galaxy about how they merged. “If we inform the galaxy now, there will be attempted reprisals against the Prophets, and the Prophets will be forced to defend themselves. We don’t know how they will act, but know they are clearly capable of a lot.” Sisko was fairly certain the Prophets wouldn’t do anything else like this, but hoped this would convince the Chancellor nonetheless.
“Very well, I agree. Now that that’s settled, the Republic would like to make a few requests.”
Sisko hadn’t really expected this, but was prepared. “Such as?”
“Thanks in large part to your Federation, we have accurate star maps. The detail your scientists put into them was most impressive. It will make going through hyperspace in your part of the galaxy far easier than in other parts.”
“The Federation has always considered exploration one of its primary goals. We try very hard in making sure we do it right, I’m happy they were so useful for you.”
“Yes, I’m wondering if the Federation is equally careful in records relating to the different civilizations it has encountered.”
“Yes, as explorers, that is just as important as the information on stars and planets.”
“Good, if possible, we would like the information you have on the different cultures you have come across. We are communicating now with thousands of different worlds, and we would like to have some idea who we’re dealing with. We’ve already been attacked in some areas.”
“I hope the attacks haven’t been too severe.”
“Some have, I’m afraid. The attacks have been the worst in what you call the Delta Quadrant.” Sisko hadn’t even thought about that yet, he had been so focused on the Dominion, but being across the whole galaxy put Republic systems in Borg space.
“That would probably be the Borg. We’ll give you all the information we have on them immediately. I suggest you evacuate anyone in that area for at least the time being.”
“I’m not sure that’s possible, but we’ll take that under advisement. What about information on the rest of the civilizations you’ve encountered?”
“I believe we can work out a trade. The Borg problem is only going to get a lot worse very quickly though. Action should be taken in the Delta Quadrant as soon as possible. I don’t think I can emphasize that enough.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Let me get this straight. You let a bug live inside of you!?”
The alien looked at Dax in total disgust, and Dax was getting a little angry. “It’s not a bug. When one agrees to become a host, they agree to a union of their person with the symbiont. We are part of each other.”
The alien, about half of Jadzia’s height, looked as if he had never even heard of a punishment as horrible as what Dax had willingly agreed to. “That’s the most disgusting thing I’ve ever heard. My species’ government spent half of its budget a couple of decades ago for almost ten years to get rid of anything on our home planet that would ever attempt to survive or feast upon our bodies. When we settle a new planet, eliminating any similarly threatening species is given higher priority than housing. You let that thing survive inside you!”
“You spent half your budget on eliminating mosquitoes?!”
Julian Bashir walked up and said, “If you’d like I could give you the full details on the medical procedure of putting the symbiont in?” The alien looked like he was about to throw up and dashed away.
Jadzia smiled, “Thanks.”
“No problem. I just left a woman who is trying to get her homeworld to abolish all technology.”
Jadzia laughed. “I suppose she walked here.”
“It sounded like she represents a very minor political party in her society. The other members of her group said she fainted when she saw the planet.” Bashir glanced back over at her. “Look they are introducing her to an android.”
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sisko had spent about 40 minutes with Chancellor Palpatine. Despite the fact that an outright alliance had seemed possible, he hadn’t enjoyed any of it. There was just something about the Chancellor. Ben hoped his next meeting wouldn’t leave him feeling the same way. He wasn’t disappointed.
The moment Sisko entered the room that held the Jedi Council, the Jedi saw that there was something different about him. It was some trace that these Prophets had left on him. Ben told them about all the experiences he, his crew, and Bajor had had with the Prophets. They listened and asked questions.
When Sisko finished explaining his last story, Yoda spoke, “To these Prophets, different the Force is; different to the whole Milky Way it is. Still, wonder do I if perhaps central to the Force, these Prophets are.”
“What do you mean?”
“Certain, I am not. For the Prophets, differently the Force acts. Merging they spoke of, interesting it is.”
Sisko had the feeling Yoda saw more here than he did. “Do you think it refers to more than the uniting of our two galaxies?”
Yoda paused. The rest of the council was looking at him with as much interest as Sisko was. “Know, I do not.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On a Separatist ship Dooku looked at the hologram of his master, Darth Sidious. “My lord, how must our actions change due to this turn of events?”
“Inform Viceroy Gunray and the rest of the council to wait to reveal themselves. I must concentrate on developing a new plan. We might be able to use the Borg to our advantage. This Federation is the key though.”
“Did Sisko know what caused this?”
“Yes.” Sidious smiled. “I have a mission for you. Go to the planet identified as Bajor and find out all you can on these Prophets of his.”
Chapter 6: The Biggest City
The biggest man-made achievements are inherently small when compared to the vastness of nature. The largest ships in the galaxy appeared colossal when most looked at them, but even the largest aren’t as big as the biggest asteroids. Even the most developed planets still had more nature in them than man. If you got beyond the surface and underground facilities, what you had left was a vast interior that looked like the interior of any other similarly classed planets. Believing that the planet below him could have more in common with nature than man though was something Sisko had a hard time believing.
The Defiant was now moving in on its own power to Coruscant. The ship that carried them this far was heading in a different direction. The planet was nothing like anything Sisko had ever seen. There were no forests or rain forests, no deserts, no tundra, no lakes or rivers that he could see, no plains, or volcanic islands. The whole planet seemed to be just one large city.
The sight a little ways outside the planet was almost as amazing. Thousands of ships were in the system already, and it seemed a minute didn’t go by without another 10 ships entering from either hyperspace or warp. As they got closer, Sisko could see the ships in more detail. Some seemed monstrous. There were designs that were over a kilometer long. Dax turned and said, “Captain, we are receiving a message from the planet.”
“Put it through.”
“Welcome to Coruscant. Please take a shuttle to the coordinates we are transmitting to you now. Send no more than 4 people. Your ship must remain at least ten million kilometers from the planet at all times. Is that understood?”
“Yes. We’ll be right down. Defiant out.” Sisko looked again at the incredible fleet of ships assembled. “Chief, how many of those ships are Republic?”
“Hard to say. I’d guess at least 70% are Republic, most are merchant ships. There appears to be a lot of trading going on just outside the ten million kilometer boundary.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sisko, Dax, O’Brien, and Bashir were on the Federation shuttle about to land. Sisko had a lot to think about, but he still couldn’t help but be in awe over this planet. He had been expecting a highly-populated planet, but this was far above his wildest expectations. Earth was almost uninhabited compared to this. Not only was this entire planet covered in a single huge city, but it had run out of ground millennia ago and just kept building higher. The population of this planet probably surpassed the population of the entire Federation.
As the shuttle landed, Ben noticed several guards waiting for them. They exited the ship, and one of them spoke, “Welcome to Coruscant. Captain Sisko if you’ll please follow me I’ll lead you to the Chancellor. The rest of you can follow Jason.” He pointed to another guard. “He will take you to meet with some of the other visitors we have here.”
Sisko, in all honesty, had expected to be brushed off. He had really been hoping for it in fact. He didn’t expect most of the galaxy to understand the Prophets, and had no idea what other species’ reactions to the wormhole would be. As he entered an elevator in what looked like one of the higher buildings, he knew it was too late to hide now. He should have considered this more before submitting his report to Starfleet. Sisko’s guard led him to a room on top of one of the highest buildings. The guard gestured for him to go in, but did not follow. There was a man in a chair. The man stood up, walked up, and put his hand out. “Welcome to Coruscant, Captain Sisko.”
As Sisko shook his hand, he all of a sudden felt cold. “A pleasure to meet you, Chancellor. I have to tell you, I never expected to come straight here.” There was something very wrong with this man. He didn’t know what, but there was definitely something wrong.
“The Jedi felt your story was credible. They were reviewing all explanations for this event; we’ve had quite a few. They wanted to see you as soon as you arrived, but I decided we had better get in a little chat in first.”
“Thank you, who are these Jedi?”
“That’s a difficult question to answer. Have you ever heard of the Force?”
“No, can’t say that I have.”
“The Force surrounds all living things. Some people have the ability to use the Force to do what might otherwise appear to be almost magical.” Palpatine could tell Sisko wasn’t overly impressed. Sisko no doubt thought that he had come across whole races of beings like them before. “You should meet them, perhaps then you will understand.”
“I would like that.”
“I’m glad you would. I believe you will be impressed. Now, the enemy fleet that was coming through the wormhole, have they tried to reenter it?”
“Fortunately not. They didn’t like what happened last time, and I don’t think they’ll be willing to chance it again for at least for a little while. They appear to be more concerned about protecting the Gamma Quadrant for the time being.”
“Are you convinced that they know the wormhole was the cause? From their perspective, could it have been just a symptom of what was happening to the rest of the galaxy?”
Sisko hadn’t considered this. “No, you maybe right. They might think it was just bad timing going into the wormhole.” This might be a problem. If that was the case, they wouldn’t see restarting the war as being as risky, as Sisko would like them to. Sisko still felt they would be too worried about the Gamma Quadrant for the immediate future to risk anything in the Alpha Quadrant, but he could foresee them trying to expand again soon if they were satisfied their core were secure. Long term, they would be better able to stand up to the Republic if they were larger, and the Federation and Klingon Empire would add a lot to its space.
“Captain, do you think we should inform the rest of the galaxy about the Prophets or keep that quiet for the time being?”
Sisko was genuinely surprised to be asked this question. He assumed that as soon as Palpatine knew the truth, he would want to tell the galaxy. So what did Sisko think? That was a question he already knew the answer to, and that fact disturbed him greatly. The Dominion would be less willing to risk a conflict if they were worried about the Prophets, but Sisko didn’t want to tell the rest of the galaxy about how they merged. “If we inform the galaxy now, there will be attempted reprisals against the Prophets, and the Prophets will be forced to defend themselves. We don’t know how they will act, but know they are clearly capable of a lot.” Sisko was fairly certain the Prophets wouldn’t do anything else like this, but hoped this would convince the Chancellor nonetheless.
“Very well, I agree. Now that that’s settled, the Republic would like to make a few requests.”
Sisko hadn’t really expected this, but was prepared. “Such as?”
“Thanks in large part to your Federation, we have accurate star maps. The detail your scientists put into them was most impressive. It will make going through hyperspace in your part of the galaxy far easier than in other parts.”
“The Federation has always considered exploration one of its primary goals. We try very hard in making sure we do it right, I’m happy they were so useful for you.”
“Yes, I’m wondering if the Federation is equally careful in records relating to the different civilizations it has encountered.”
“Yes, as explorers, that is just as important as the information on stars and planets.”
“Good, if possible, we would like the information you have on the different cultures you have come across. We are communicating now with thousands of different worlds, and we would like to have some idea who we’re dealing with. We’ve already been attacked in some areas.”
“I hope the attacks haven’t been too severe.”
“Some have, I’m afraid. The attacks have been the worst in what you call the Delta Quadrant.” Sisko hadn’t even thought about that yet, he had been so focused on the Dominion, but being across the whole galaxy put Republic systems in Borg space.
“That would probably be the Borg. We’ll give you all the information we have on them immediately. I suggest you evacuate anyone in that area for at least the time being.”
“I’m not sure that’s possible, but we’ll take that under advisement. What about information on the rest of the civilizations you’ve encountered?”
“I believe we can work out a trade. The Borg problem is only going to get a lot worse very quickly though. Action should be taken in the Delta Quadrant as soon as possible. I don’t think I can emphasize that enough.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Let me get this straight. You let a bug live inside of you!?”
The alien looked at Dax in total disgust, and Dax was getting a little angry. “It’s not a bug. When one agrees to become a host, they agree to a union of their person with the symbiont. We are part of each other.”
The alien, about half of Jadzia’s height, looked as if he had never even heard of a punishment as horrible as what Dax had willingly agreed to. “That’s the most disgusting thing I’ve ever heard. My species’ government spent half of its budget a couple of decades ago for almost ten years to get rid of anything on our home planet that would ever attempt to survive or feast upon our bodies. When we settle a new planet, eliminating any similarly threatening species is given higher priority than housing. You let that thing survive inside you!”
“You spent half your budget on eliminating mosquitoes?!”
Julian Bashir walked up and said, “If you’d like I could give you the full details on the medical procedure of putting the symbiont in?” The alien looked like he was about to throw up and dashed away.
Jadzia smiled, “Thanks.”
“No problem. I just left a woman who is trying to get her homeworld to abolish all technology.”
Jadzia laughed. “I suppose she walked here.”
“It sounded like she represents a very minor political party in her society. The other members of her group said she fainted when she saw the planet.” Bashir glanced back over at her. “Look they are introducing her to an android.”
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sisko had spent about 40 minutes with Chancellor Palpatine. Despite the fact that an outright alliance had seemed possible, he hadn’t enjoyed any of it. There was just something about the Chancellor. Ben hoped his next meeting wouldn’t leave him feeling the same way. He wasn’t disappointed.
The moment Sisko entered the room that held the Jedi Council, the Jedi saw that there was something different about him. It was some trace that these Prophets had left on him. Ben told them about all the experiences he, his crew, and Bajor had had with the Prophets. They listened and asked questions.
When Sisko finished explaining his last story, Yoda spoke, “To these Prophets, different the Force is; different to the whole Milky Way it is. Still, wonder do I if perhaps central to the Force, these Prophets are.”
“What do you mean?”
“Certain, I am not. For the Prophets, differently the Force acts. Merging they spoke of, interesting it is.”
Sisko had the feeling Yoda saw more here than he did. “Do you think it refers to more than the uniting of our two galaxies?”
Yoda paused. The rest of the council was looking at him with as much interest as Sisko was. “Know, I do not.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On a Separatist ship Dooku looked at the hologram of his master, Darth Sidious. “My lord, how must our actions change due to this turn of events?”
“Inform Viceroy Gunray and the rest of the council to wait to reveal themselves. I must concentrate on developing a new plan. We might be able to use the Borg to our advantage. This Federation is the key though.”
“Did Sisko know what caused this?”
“Yes.” Sidious smiled. “I have a mission for you. Go to the planet identified as Bajor and find out all you can on these Prophets of his.”
-
Star Empire
- Padawan Learner
- Posts: 242
- Joined: 2004-11-30 10:48pm
- Location: Columbus, Ohio
Thanks X-Over for the wonderful Beta Reading.
Chapter 7: A Little Closer to Home
Streams of ships had been entering Coruscant for hours. The last one to arrive, one that had managed to snag a ride with a much bigger ship heading here, hadn’t really wanted to stop at all. It would have preferred to keep going right to Earth. It didn’t have that option right now though so being almost half way back to their intended destination was nothing to complain about. Like the Defiant’s crew they were left in total amazement at the sight before them. Tens of thousands of ships (at least!) appeared on the viewscreen. The only ones Janeway could spot that she even recognized were a few Ferengi ships that had just appeared out of hyperspace.
Tuvok, who was the only on the bridge without any visual emotions showing, reported, “Captain, I am detecting one other Federation ship. It is the USS Defiant.”
“Open a channel.”
“Channel Open.”
A moment later a Klingon popped onto the screen. “I am Commander Worf of the Federation starship Defiant.”
“I’m Captain Janeway of Voyager. I see Starfleet hasn’t wasted any time getting a ship here. I must admit, I thought we’d be the first. We were a little closer than any other Federation ship.”
“I remember hearing about your ship. How did you get here?”
“We’ve been trapped in the Delta Quadrant the past four years. When this whole mess happened we tagged on a ship heading here.”
“It is an honor to meet you. It must have been difficult to survive so long, without any type of help.”
“Thank you commander. I’m sure this event has everybody in Starfleet working over and beyond their capacity, but for us it has been kind of a blessing. I wasn’t expecting to see another Federation ship in the near future. Has Starfleet already sent a team of ambassadors down?”
“No, the Enterprise will be here in a little less than two days with that. We’re here...for other reasons.”
It was obvious he wasn’t supposed to go into more details. Janeway nodded, a little confused. Not able to get the sight she had just seen out of her mind, Janeway commented, “There are a lot of ships out there, Mr. Worf.”
“Yes, and the number is already 35% higher than it was when we arrived just a few hours ago.”
“So this is a big commotion, even to the ones who built that world.” Janeway thought about how many people that world must be capital to. She thought about the thousands of warp capable vessels she saw around her, and considered how little the Federation represented. Could they really be that insignificant? This was only a tiny fraction of the Milky Way represented at that. Even with the Federation’s size, they would speak for virtually no one, comparatively, in the grand scheme of things. Of course, the last few years away from home had taught her that the Federation really wasn’t that big, but this just furthered that realization. “So what’s been going on at home since we left?”
At this, Worf paused. They had missed the entire Dominion War. Weren’t there Maqui onboard that ship as well? Did they know that that their entire rebellion had all but been wiped out in barely 3 days by the Dominion? “A lot.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“This is truly incredible.” Padme just sat looking at the new star charts. Both galaxies had the same center and the spiral arms of both seemed to stretch in almost the exact same direction. “And they say that no one from this galaxy knows anymore about this than we do?”
Obi-Wan answered, “Apparently not.”
“Could it be a trick? Maybe someone from this other galaxy wants us to believe they didn’t cause this.”
“That could be the case, but why? This isn’t an attack. There’s nothing that even approaches a central government in this ‘Milky Way’. There are signs of a few heavily advanced cultures, but most are actually quite primitive by our standards. What would anyone have to gain from this?”
“I guess we’ll have to find out when we get back to Coruscant.” Neither Anakin nor Obi-Wan looked entirely pleased by that statement.
“Senator, we still haven’t captured the bounty hunter who was after you.”
“Obi-Wan, this is a galactic emergency and I need to be in the Senate. Besides, the bounty hunter was on Geonosis and we know that the Separatists have bigger problems now.” Neither Jedi seemed too convinced. “You’ve done your jobs. Now its time I did mine.”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Count Dooku considered the trip he was on right now one of the most educational ever. Bajor was surrounded by the Force in a way he had never seen a planet before. No one here even seemed to realize that. Of course, none of it compared to traveling through the “wormhole.” The Force seemed to actually be embodied in it. No wonder the Bajorans thought so highly of it. That it was nothing but transportation to the major powers of the quadrant was an insult.
None of this made the Prophets allies, of course. They had disturbed his master’s and his plan. They cared nothing to help preserving it and may well interfere again. He knew something important about them though. He had sensed it while traveling through the Celestial Temple. While, they may be associated with the Force itself in a way he couldn’t even imagine, they were also extremely weak. Whether it was just from their latest actions he didn’t know, but they were completely overwhelmed somehow. That meant there was an opportunity. These Prophets had enemies. Enemies, he could use and maybe even control. There was one particularly promising one. He would just need to steal a book to find out more about them.
Chapter 7: A Little Closer to Home
Streams of ships had been entering Coruscant for hours. The last one to arrive, one that had managed to snag a ride with a much bigger ship heading here, hadn’t really wanted to stop at all. It would have preferred to keep going right to Earth. It didn’t have that option right now though so being almost half way back to their intended destination was nothing to complain about. Like the Defiant’s crew they were left in total amazement at the sight before them. Tens of thousands of ships (at least!) appeared on the viewscreen. The only ones Janeway could spot that she even recognized were a few Ferengi ships that had just appeared out of hyperspace.
Tuvok, who was the only on the bridge without any visual emotions showing, reported, “Captain, I am detecting one other Federation ship. It is the USS Defiant.”
“Open a channel.”
“Channel Open.”
A moment later a Klingon popped onto the screen. “I am Commander Worf of the Federation starship Defiant.”
“I’m Captain Janeway of Voyager. I see Starfleet hasn’t wasted any time getting a ship here. I must admit, I thought we’d be the first. We were a little closer than any other Federation ship.”
“I remember hearing about your ship. How did you get here?”
“We’ve been trapped in the Delta Quadrant the past four years. When this whole mess happened we tagged on a ship heading here.”
“It is an honor to meet you. It must have been difficult to survive so long, without any type of help.”
“Thank you commander. I’m sure this event has everybody in Starfleet working over and beyond their capacity, but for us it has been kind of a blessing. I wasn’t expecting to see another Federation ship in the near future. Has Starfleet already sent a team of ambassadors down?”
“No, the Enterprise will be here in a little less than two days with that. We’re here...for other reasons.”
It was obvious he wasn’t supposed to go into more details. Janeway nodded, a little confused. Not able to get the sight she had just seen out of her mind, Janeway commented, “There are a lot of ships out there, Mr. Worf.”
“Yes, and the number is already 35% higher than it was when we arrived just a few hours ago.”
“So this is a big commotion, even to the ones who built that world.” Janeway thought about how many people that world must be capital to. She thought about the thousands of warp capable vessels she saw around her, and considered how little the Federation represented. Could they really be that insignificant? This was only a tiny fraction of the Milky Way represented at that. Even with the Federation’s size, they would speak for virtually no one, comparatively, in the grand scheme of things. Of course, the last few years away from home had taught her that the Federation really wasn’t that big, but this just furthered that realization. “So what’s been going on at home since we left?”
At this, Worf paused. They had missed the entire Dominion War. Weren’t there Maqui onboard that ship as well? Did they know that that their entire rebellion had all but been wiped out in barely 3 days by the Dominion? “A lot.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“This is truly incredible.” Padme just sat looking at the new star charts. Both galaxies had the same center and the spiral arms of both seemed to stretch in almost the exact same direction. “And they say that no one from this galaxy knows anymore about this than we do?”
Obi-Wan answered, “Apparently not.”
“Could it be a trick? Maybe someone from this other galaxy wants us to believe they didn’t cause this.”
“That could be the case, but why? This isn’t an attack. There’s nothing that even approaches a central government in this ‘Milky Way’. There are signs of a few heavily advanced cultures, but most are actually quite primitive by our standards. What would anyone have to gain from this?”
“I guess we’ll have to find out when we get back to Coruscant.” Neither Anakin nor Obi-Wan looked entirely pleased by that statement.
“Senator, we still haven’t captured the bounty hunter who was after you.”
“Obi-Wan, this is a galactic emergency and I need to be in the Senate. Besides, the bounty hunter was on Geonosis and we know that the Separatists have bigger problems now.” Neither Jedi seemed too convinced. “You’ve done your jobs. Now its time I did mine.”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Count Dooku considered the trip he was on right now one of the most educational ever. Bajor was surrounded by the Force in a way he had never seen a planet before. No one here even seemed to realize that. Of course, none of it compared to traveling through the “wormhole.” The Force seemed to actually be embodied in it. No wonder the Bajorans thought so highly of it. That it was nothing but transportation to the major powers of the quadrant was an insult.
None of this made the Prophets allies, of course. They had disturbed his master’s and his plan. They cared nothing to help preserving it and may well interfere again. He knew something important about them though. He had sensed it while traveling through the Celestial Temple. While, they may be associated with the Force itself in a way he couldn’t even imagine, they were also extremely weak. Whether it was just from their latest actions he didn’t know, but they were completely overwhelmed somehow. That meant there was an opportunity. These Prophets had enemies. Enemies, he could use and maybe even control. There was one particularly promising one. He would just need to steal a book to find out more about them.