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Terran Empire - Unity (Mirror Trek AU Fan Fic)
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HappyTarget
- Padawan Learner
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Akira
- Official SD.Net Chew Toy
- Posts: 165
- Joined: 2002-08-23 08:28am
- Location: Terran Empire, 2nd Fleet, ISS Athena
Chapter 34 – Eye of the Storm
Valley Forge, Sickbay Four
The young girl in the white fur, the same one that had warned him and haunted his dreams, smiled up at him then began to fade out. All to soon, she was totally gone, leaving Ulysses alone in the darkness. But even the darkness began to fade, growing brighter and brighter.
Ulysses biological eye fluttered open as consciousness forced its way through the thick shroud of darkness.
“Welcome back into the land of the living Uly.” A soft voice said from beside him. It took him a moment to focus on its source, his eye blinking a few times to help clear its vision.
“Anna?” His voice cracked, as if starting afresh from long disuse.
“Yes Uly, it’s me.” There was relief in her voice. “How do you feel?”
“Not that bad actually. I assume that I have you’re expertise to thank for that?” His voice became closer to normal the more he used it. Ulysses tried to sit up, but moved to fast. The room swam and his arms went rubbery. He allowed himself to fall back down to the padded biobed with a small groan. The room continued to wobble and he felt like he was in a tumble, but it gradually subsided.
“Slowly, Uly, slowly.” Anna said, placing a restraining hand lightly on his chest. “You took a nasty couple of bumps on the head and have been out for close to three days now.”
“Three… DAYS?!?” Ulysses said in a forceful whisper, startled that he had been out of it for so long.
“Yes. It was touch and go there for a while, but you’re a fighter, just like you’ve always been. I wasn’t able to save your cybernetic eyepiece, it was too damaged. The major trauma was from a boulder you fell on after the hydrogen explosion threw you for a loop. There were times where I thought you stayed with us just because you were too stubborn to let go.”
“Or you were too stubborn to let me give up. Thank you, Anna. For… for everything. For patching me back together. For being my friend when I needed you to be. Just… everything.”
In the muted lighting of the Sickbay, Ulysses swore that Anna’s fair skin turned a few shades darker. Then she spoke with a strange tone in her voice. “And thank you Uly, for staying with us.” Then she leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips. Contact was broken near instantly, but the passion of it left Ulysses head swimming. Now it was his turn to blush, eyes showing surprise. But Anna was already walking across the Sickbay. “There are some others that are eager to see you up and about again, and I think I’ve kept them waiting about long enough.” She said over her shoulder.
Ulysses slowly managed to rise to a sitting position and swing his legs around to let them dangle off the side of the biobed. Surely she didn’t feel THAT way about him?! This was something that was going to require more thought and searching of his own feelings on the matter. He wasn’t certain that he was ready to take things to the next level if that was where she was leading. But that would have to wait. The Sickbay doors swooshed open, admitting P’tel and Clay Heidberg.
“Skipper!” Clay said. “Good to see you up and about again. You really had us worried there for a while.” There was a look of mild concern and anger on his face as he took in the mess of Ulysses left eye socket. The ruined ocular implant couldn’t be replaced with local resources. It would require a trip to the core worlds where a specialist could stick on a new customized eyepiece.
“Admiral.” P’tel said from behind her customary Vulcan mask of non-emotion, but Ulysses swore he saw something much akin to joy flash in her eyes.
“Good to see you all again to, all three of you.” Ulysses said pausing a beat with a smile before continuing. “Can someone tell me what happened? The last thing I remember was flying through the air.”
P’tel proceeded to tell him what the Marines had done to save him.
“Make sure they all get my recommendation for a medal. Especially that Assault Shuttle’s pilot and crew. It was their quick action that got them there soon enough.” Ulysses said. “So what else has happened in my absence?”
“Only one major incident Admiral.” P’tel said. “We received a distress call from an Imperial vessel that was abruptly cut off midstream. Sir, the vessel was the Anubis.”
“Damn.” Ulysses cursed softly. The ISS Anubis was the transport that was bringing replacement Flag officers to Prescott’s Star. If it was lost, Ulysses was on his own for the foreseeable future. How the Anubis was taken out was up for debate, for it shouldn’t have happened given its phase cloaking device.
“We have also received word that Bajor Sector has come under attack by not only the expected Cardassian forces, but by a major Galactic Unity Fleet as well. Shortly after the message was sent, all communications from the Bajor Sector were cut off.”
Ulysses blanched slightly. “I sure hope that this doesn’t mean that the GA and GU are starting to act in concert with each other, I don’t need to tell you how difficult a position that would put the Empire in.” Ulysses gave a silent prayer for the tens of thousands of Imperial personnel and innocent civilians on Bajor that were under assault by two foes.
“Agreed Admiral, but until contact is reestablished, we will not be certain weather they are in collusion or not. It would be illogical to form any conclusions on such fragmentary data.” Ulysses nodded his agreement. He sincerely hoped that all of the Empire’s enemies weren’t operating together. Such an outcome would be even worse than letting the monsters in Section and Starfleet have free reign.
“In the system itself,” P’tel continued, “there have been a few probes by GU forces but nothing significant. However, the probes have been increasing in both frequency and size. It is my belief that the GU will attack soon. The fact that the final outer colony in the sector has fallen to the GU further supports that they will attack us again soon.”
“Agreed. If they’ve finished with the outer systems, we’re the only ones left. How’s the Fleet elements shaking down to the new tactics I initiated before my… accident.”
“Quite well sir. Needless to say, they were slightly irritated at being sequestered to ensure that word doesn’t get out, but they have been practicing your new tactics and are now thoroughly capable of executing them.”
“Good.”
“One minor thing I think you should get a heads up about Skipper,” Clay said, “The Commissar wasn’t too pleased when she figured out the cost to loss ratio of those new energy buoys you got her to agree to just before you went down to Lilith.”
Anna snorted. “That’s the biggest understatement of the year. If you’d been conscious at the time, she might have tried to throttle you. She was really steamed that you were able to pull one over on her like that.”
“I don’t think you’ll be able to pull a fast one on her like that again Sir.” Clay nodded as he continued. “She’s to smart for it and she’ll be on the lookout for it in the future.”
“She didn’t stop production on them did she?” Ulysses asked. If she did that, things could prove more difficult when the GU Fleet again came calling on Prescott’s Star.
“No sir, I don’t think she could without a considerable loss of face. It would show to all who cared to look that she had signed off on something without knowing everything about it.”
“Good. The cost to loss ratios were in the brief I gave her, it isn’t my fault she didn’t read them thoroughly.” Of course, in his pitch to get her support, he conveniently ignored the cost to loss ratio and sold her on the high points of the new energy buoy design. Just like any salesman would do when trying to sell something.
“That is why Commissar Stevens isn’t here now Admiral, she is currently out at Nightingale Shipyards looking over what you conned her into authorizing. At least their simplistic design means they’re a quick assembly. We should have adequate numbers for when the GU come calling again. Same goes for the new torpedoes Section was kind enough to give us.”
“Very good. They just might give us an edge if the enemy behaves as I think they will. As far as they know, they have all the advantages. Hence, it’s my belief that they will come in with the subtlety of a bull in a china shop. It’s what I would do in their place, with their advantages. But given our new assets, it will bleed them white before they even gain range.” Fire flared in Ulysses eye momentarily.
“But until then, I want to continue to have the fleet train hard. They might grumble, but the extra training will make the coming battle easier. Have our GU guests said anything of use?” Ulysses asked. Quite a few GU personnel had been picked up by the SAR crews and were currently dirtside on one of Lilith’s more isolated islands. Ulysses had left strict orders that they were to be fairly treated.
“Nothing other than surprise Admiral. It seems that they were under the impression that we were raving animals who would eat them at the first possible opportunity.” Anna said. “While they’ve been tight lipped to our interviewers on matters of technology and protocol, they have been quite forward in their observations of us. Many seemed quite shocked that their accepted worldview was so thoroughly wrong.”
“On the tech side of things Skipper, I think we may have hit the jackpot.” Clay’s eyes gleamed. “Per your orders, I’ve had all spare Engineers combing through the debris and shattered ships the GU left behind. And I think that we’ve unearthed one of their internal dampers.”
“You’re serious?!” Ulysses said, his lone eye widening.
“It’s still preliminary, but I believe so yes. It might prove a false alarm yet, but so far it looks like the real deal.”
“Hmm. Keep me apprised please. If we can neutralize their STL speed advantage, it’ll be a major boost to our combat effectiveness. Slipstream works to gain the range, but not all ships have undergone the refit and with the hot war with the GU and the stalled one with the GA, I doubt that very many will be able to receive the extensive replacement anytime soon. But if all we have to do is replace our damper system to level the playing field, it can be done in field with little effort. Well done, and give my personal thanks to whomever was responsible for unearthing this little treasure.”
“Aye sir.” Clay said with a smile.
“Now if you’ll excuse me,” he said, standing up from his seat on the biobed’s edge, “I need to put on a uniform.”
“Of course Sir.” Anna shepherded the two officers outside while Ulysses picked a new uniform that she had conveniently laid out on the next bed for him. Walking slowly and deliberately towards the adjacent bathroom, Ulysses gradually felt his unbalance subside. One look in the mirror showed him how badly his mangled face looked. Anna had been forced to seal over the now dead cybernetic implant with false skin. His face was nearly featureless on his left side thanks to his lack of definable eye socket, eye and eyebrow. After slipping into the bodysuit of his uniform and clasping his command cloak around him, Ulysses surveyed himself in the mirror. His face looked out of place, with only one eye staring back at him. Then he got an idea.
--- --- ---
Ulysses walked out of Sickbay with a jaunty smile on his face and a black eye patch over where his left eye should be. P’tel merely raised an eyebrow while Clay and Anna raised two. Anna was the first to speak.
“On you, the look works for some strange reason. Just don’t replicate a stuffed parrot and stick it on your shoulder. That might be taking the motif a bit too far.” A smile creased her face, and it was the most beautiful thing Ulysses had ever seen.
ISCV Purity of Heart, 1294th Superdreadnought Battlegroup, 901st Fleet, Galactic Unity Peaceforces
“No, NO, NO!” The remnants of 901st Fleet and its assigned reinforcements were working up far better than could possibly be hoped for, but it still wasn’t good enough to mollify Fleet Marshal Teresa Chora. “You call that a tight formation?” she said, gesturing to the recent fleet exercise in the holotank behind her as her irritated voice and face went out to the command and flag decks of each ship in her Fleet. “Look at how loose your squadron level manuvers are. When a snap maneuver is ordered, I expect it to be carried out smoothly, not with half of you beginning your turn when the other half are nearly done. We are going to stay here and do this till you get it right. I don’t care if it takes all night. When we engage the enemy, I intend to have this Fleet tempered into an razor sharp blade, not one better fitting a cudgel in name. We are members of the GU Peaceforces, not a bunch of Terran rabble, start acting like it!” She snarled. “Again!”
--- --- ---
It had only taken another four hours of fleet wide exercises for Teresa to be satisfied, her lips curving upward slightly in a faint smile. That same satisfaction had corresponded with an upwelling of pride throughout the fleet upon successful execution of her orders. She had kept her telepathic barriers down, allowing everyone in the fleet who had the ability to sample her thoughts and feelings. They knew that she was honest when she said she was proud of them, and as such, they began to take pride in their own success. The following day, they responded just as crisply, with the confidence that they had thought lost after the disaster in Prescott’s Star.
“Taskforce 90153 has reported back Ma’am.” A Q’Nabbian Lieutenant said through his environmental suit’s external speaker. “The Imperial colony world of Williamsburg has fallen, population of two million. Peaceforces report light resistance dirtside. It would appear from preliminary reports that orders have been given for the civilians to be as peaceful as possible. Many of those with less extensive mental shields leaked that they feel that they will not be long under our control. They are under the impression that our fleet will loose its battle to control Prescott’s Star, and that Admiral Vanguard will then come out and free them.”
“Send those who are caught in open rebellion to Justice. They’ll deal with them just like they have on all the other world’s we’ve taken over.” The telepaths in ISC Justice Department were amongst the most gifted of all ISC telepaths. If anyone could make the Terrans who rebelled against GU rule see reason, it would be them. “Have Taskforce 90153 form up, it’s time to remove the Terran’s false hope in salvation by one Admiral Ulysses Vanguard.” Shortly thereafter, the prodigious might of 901st Fleet of the GU Peaceforces began to move. A yellow pinprick of light was directly in front of them, the place where the final resistance in the Sector would be crushed.
ISS Valley Forge
Ulysses was awakened by the insistent piercing chime of his com. Rolling out of bed, he swatted the com acceptance key.
“Vanguard here, go ahead.”
“Admiral,” P’tel’s usually cool voice had a barely discernable edge. “Sensor platform 459 – A has detected an incoming warp footprint. It is a large one Sir, and it is coming from the probable approach vector of the Galactic Unity Fleet. ETA is seven minutes, 56.2 seconds a present velocity.”
“Order the Fleet and fortifications to battlestations.” Ulysses said as he began slipping on his uniform. “I’ll be on the Flag Bridge momentarily. Ulysses out.” And so it begins. Ulysses thought.
Valley Forge, Sickbay Four
The young girl in the white fur, the same one that had warned him and haunted his dreams, smiled up at him then began to fade out. All to soon, she was totally gone, leaving Ulysses alone in the darkness. But even the darkness began to fade, growing brighter and brighter.
Ulysses biological eye fluttered open as consciousness forced its way through the thick shroud of darkness.
“Welcome back into the land of the living Uly.” A soft voice said from beside him. It took him a moment to focus on its source, his eye blinking a few times to help clear its vision.
“Anna?” His voice cracked, as if starting afresh from long disuse.
“Yes Uly, it’s me.” There was relief in her voice. “How do you feel?”
“Not that bad actually. I assume that I have you’re expertise to thank for that?” His voice became closer to normal the more he used it. Ulysses tried to sit up, but moved to fast. The room swam and his arms went rubbery. He allowed himself to fall back down to the padded biobed with a small groan. The room continued to wobble and he felt like he was in a tumble, but it gradually subsided.
“Slowly, Uly, slowly.” Anna said, placing a restraining hand lightly on his chest. “You took a nasty couple of bumps on the head and have been out for close to three days now.”
“Three… DAYS?!?” Ulysses said in a forceful whisper, startled that he had been out of it for so long.
“Yes. It was touch and go there for a while, but you’re a fighter, just like you’ve always been. I wasn’t able to save your cybernetic eyepiece, it was too damaged. The major trauma was from a boulder you fell on after the hydrogen explosion threw you for a loop. There were times where I thought you stayed with us just because you were too stubborn to let go.”
“Or you were too stubborn to let me give up. Thank you, Anna. For… for everything. For patching me back together. For being my friend when I needed you to be. Just… everything.”
In the muted lighting of the Sickbay, Ulysses swore that Anna’s fair skin turned a few shades darker. Then she spoke with a strange tone in her voice. “And thank you Uly, for staying with us.” Then she leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips. Contact was broken near instantly, but the passion of it left Ulysses head swimming. Now it was his turn to blush, eyes showing surprise. But Anna was already walking across the Sickbay. “There are some others that are eager to see you up and about again, and I think I’ve kept them waiting about long enough.” She said over her shoulder.
Ulysses slowly managed to rise to a sitting position and swing his legs around to let them dangle off the side of the biobed. Surely she didn’t feel THAT way about him?! This was something that was going to require more thought and searching of his own feelings on the matter. He wasn’t certain that he was ready to take things to the next level if that was where she was leading. But that would have to wait. The Sickbay doors swooshed open, admitting P’tel and Clay Heidberg.
“Skipper!” Clay said. “Good to see you up and about again. You really had us worried there for a while.” There was a look of mild concern and anger on his face as he took in the mess of Ulysses left eye socket. The ruined ocular implant couldn’t be replaced with local resources. It would require a trip to the core worlds where a specialist could stick on a new customized eyepiece.
“Admiral.” P’tel said from behind her customary Vulcan mask of non-emotion, but Ulysses swore he saw something much akin to joy flash in her eyes.
“Good to see you all again to, all three of you.” Ulysses said pausing a beat with a smile before continuing. “Can someone tell me what happened? The last thing I remember was flying through the air.”
P’tel proceeded to tell him what the Marines had done to save him.
“Make sure they all get my recommendation for a medal. Especially that Assault Shuttle’s pilot and crew. It was their quick action that got them there soon enough.” Ulysses said. “So what else has happened in my absence?”
“Only one major incident Admiral.” P’tel said. “We received a distress call from an Imperial vessel that was abruptly cut off midstream. Sir, the vessel was the Anubis.”
“Damn.” Ulysses cursed softly. The ISS Anubis was the transport that was bringing replacement Flag officers to Prescott’s Star. If it was lost, Ulysses was on his own for the foreseeable future. How the Anubis was taken out was up for debate, for it shouldn’t have happened given its phase cloaking device.
“We have also received word that Bajor Sector has come under attack by not only the expected Cardassian forces, but by a major Galactic Unity Fleet as well. Shortly after the message was sent, all communications from the Bajor Sector were cut off.”
Ulysses blanched slightly. “I sure hope that this doesn’t mean that the GA and GU are starting to act in concert with each other, I don’t need to tell you how difficult a position that would put the Empire in.” Ulysses gave a silent prayer for the tens of thousands of Imperial personnel and innocent civilians on Bajor that were under assault by two foes.
“Agreed Admiral, but until contact is reestablished, we will not be certain weather they are in collusion or not. It would be illogical to form any conclusions on such fragmentary data.” Ulysses nodded his agreement. He sincerely hoped that all of the Empire’s enemies weren’t operating together. Such an outcome would be even worse than letting the monsters in Section and Starfleet have free reign.
“In the system itself,” P’tel continued, “there have been a few probes by GU forces but nothing significant. However, the probes have been increasing in both frequency and size. It is my belief that the GU will attack soon. The fact that the final outer colony in the sector has fallen to the GU further supports that they will attack us again soon.”
“Agreed. If they’ve finished with the outer systems, we’re the only ones left. How’s the Fleet elements shaking down to the new tactics I initiated before my… accident.”
“Quite well sir. Needless to say, they were slightly irritated at being sequestered to ensure that word doesn’t get out, but they have been practicing your new tactics and are now thoroughly capable of executing them.”
“Good.”
“One minor thing I think you should get a heads up about Skipper,” Clay said, “The Commissar wasn’t too pleased when she figured out the cost to loss ratio of those new energy buoys you got her to agree to just before you went down to Lilith.”
Anna snorted. “That’s the biggest understatement of the year. If you’d been conscious at the time, she might have tried to throttle you. She was really steamed that you were able to pull one over on her like that.”
“I don’t think you’ll be able to pull a fast one on her like that again Sir.” Clay nodded as he continued. “She’s to smart for it and she’ll be on the lookout for it in the future.”
“She didn’t stop production on them did she?” Ulysses asked. If she did that, things could prove more difficult when the GU Fleet again came calling on Prescott’s Star.
“No sir, I don’t think she could without a considerable loss of face. It would show to all who cared to look that she had signed off on something without knowing everything about it.”
“Good. The cost to loss ratios were in the brief I gave her, it isn’t my fault she didn’t read them thoroughly.” Of course, in his pitch to get her support, he conveniently ignored the cost to loss ratio and sold her on the high points of the new energy buoy design. Just like any salesman would do when trying to sell something.
“That is why Commissar Stevens isn’t here now Admiral, she is currently out at Nightingale Shipyards looking over what you conned her into authorizing. At least their simplistic design means they’re a quick assembly. We should have adequate numbers for when the GU come calling again. Same goes for the new torpedoes Section was kind enough to give us.”
“Very good. They just might give us an edge if the enemy behaves as I think they will. As far as they know, they have all the advantages. Hence, it’s my belief that they will come in with the subtlety of a bull in a china shop. It’s what I would do in their place, with their advantages. But given our new assets, it will bleed them white before they even gain range.” Fire flared in Ulysses eye momentarily.
“But until then, I want to continue to have the fleet train hard. They might grumble, but the extra training will make the coming battle easier. Have our GU guests said anything of use?” Ulysses asked. Quite a few GU personnel had been picked up by the SAR crews and were currently dirtside on one of Lilith’s more isolated islands. Ulysses had left strict orders that they were to be fairly treated.
“Nothing other than surprise Admiral. It seems that they were under the impression that we were raving animals who would eat them at the first possible opportunity.” Anna said. “While they’ve been tight lipped to our interviewers on matters of technology and protocol, they have been quite forward in their observations of us. Many seemed quite shocked that their accepted worldview was so thoroughly wrong.”
“On the tech side of things Skipper, I think we may have hit the jackpot.” Clay’s eyes gleamed. “Per your orders, I’ve had all spare Engineers combing through the debris and shattered ships the GU left behind. And I think that we’ve unearthed one of their internal dampers.”
“You’re serious?!” Ulysses said, his lone eye widening.
“It’s still preliminary, but I believe so yes. It might prove a false alarm yet, but so far it looks like the real deal.”
“Hmm. Keep me apprised please. If we can neutralize their STL speed advantage, it’ll be a major boost to our combat effectiveness. Slipstream works to gain the range, but not all ships have undergone the refit and with the hot war with the GU and the stalled one with the GA, I doubt that very many will be able to receive the extensive replacement anytime soon. But if all we have to do is replace our damper system to level the playing field, it can be done in field with little effort. Well done, and give my personal thanks to whomever was responsible for unearthing this little treasure.”
“Aye sir.” Clay said with a smile.
“Now if you’ll excuse me,” he said, standing up from his seat on the biobed’s edge, “I need to put on a uniform.”
“Of course Sir.” Anna shepherded the two officers outside while Ulysses picked a new uniform that she had conveniently laid out on the next bed for him. Walking slowly and deliberately towards the adjacent bathroom, Ulysses gradually felt his unbalance subside. One look in the mirror showed him how badly his mangled face looked. Anna had been forced to seal over the now dead cybernetic implant with false skin. His face was nearly featureless on his left side thanks to his lack of definable eye socket, eye and eyebrow. After slipping into the bodysuit of his uniform and clasping his command cloak around him, Ulysses surveyed himself in the mirror. His face looked out of place, with only one eye staring back at him. Then he got an idea.
--- --- ---
Ulysses walked out of Sickbay with a jaunty smile on his face and a black eye patch over where his left eye should be. P’tel merely raised an eyebrow while Clay and Anna raised two. Anna was the first to speak.
“On you, the look works for some strange reason. Just don’t replicate a stuffed parrot and stick it on your shoulder. That might be taking the motif a bit too far.” A smile creased her face, and it was the most beautiful thing Ulysses had ever seen.
ISCV Purity of Heart, 1294th Superdreadnought Battlegroup, 901st Fleet, Galactic Unity Peaceforces
“No, NO, NO!” The remnants of 901st Fleet and its assigned reinforcements were working up far better than could possibly be hoped for, but it still wasn’t good enough to mollify Fleet Marshal Teresa Chora. “You call that a tight formation?” she said, gesturing to the recent fleet exercise in the holotank behind her as her irritated voice and face went out to the command and flag decks of each ship in her Fleet. “Look at how loose your squadron level manuvers are. When a snap maneuver is ordered, I expect it to be carried out smoothly, not with half of you beginning your turn when the other half are nearly done. We are going to stay here and do this till you get it right. I don’t care if it takes all night. When we engage the enemy, I intend to have this Fleet tempered into an razor sharp blade, not one better fitting a cudgel in name. We are members of the GU Peaceforces, not a bunch of Terran rabble, start acting like it!” She snarled. “Again!”
--- --- ---
It had only taken another four hours of fleet wide exercises for Teresa to be satisfied, her lips curving upward slightly in a faint smile. That same satisfaction had corresponded with an upwelling of pride throughout the fleet upon successful execution of her orders. She had kept her telepathic barriers down, allowing everyone in the fleet who had the ability to sample her thoughts and feelings. They knew that she was honest when she said she was proud of them, and as such, they began to take pride in their own success. The following day, they responded just as crisply, with the confidence that they had thought lost after the disaster in Prescott’s Star.
“Taskforce 90153 has reported back Ma’am.” A Q’Nabbian Lieutenant said through his environmental suit’s external speaker. “The Imperial colony world of Williamsburg has fallen, population of two million. Peaceforces report light resistance dirtside. It would appear from preliminary reports that orders have been given for the civilians to be as peaceful as possible. Many of those with less extensive mental shields leaked that they feel that they will not be long under our control. They are under the impression that our fleet will loose its battle to control Prescott’s Star, and that Admiral Vanguard will then come out and free them.”
“Send those who are caught in open rebellion to Justice. They’ll deal with them just like they have on all the other world’s we’ve taken over.” The telepaths in ISC Justice Department were amongst the most gifted of all ISC telepaths. If anyone could make the Terrans who rebelled against GU rule see reason, it would be them. “Have Taskforce 90153 form up, it’s time to remove the Terran’s false hope in salvation by one Admiral Ulysses Vanguard.” Shortly thereafter, the prodigious might of 901st Fleet of the GU Peaceforces began to move. A yellow pinprick of light was directly in front of them, the place where the final resistance in the Sector would be crushed.
ISS Valley Forge
Ulysses was awakened by the insistent piercing chime of his com. Rolling out of bed, he swatted the com acceptance key.
“Vanguard here, go ahead.”
“Admiral,” P’tel’s usually cool voice had a barely discernable edge. “Sensor platform 459 – A has detected an incoming warp footprint. It is a large one Sir, and it is coming from the probable approach vector of the Galactic Unity Fleet. ETA is seven minutes, 56.2 seconds a present velocity.”
“Order the Fleet and fortifications to battlestations.” Ulysses said as he began slipping on his uniform. “I’ll be on the Flag Bridge momentarily. Ulysses out.” And so it begins. Ulysses thought.
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CaptainChewbacca
- Browncoat Wookiee
- Posts: 15746
- Joined: 2003-05-06 02:36am
- Location: Deep beneath Boatmurdered.
EYE PATCH!!!
Hope he catches himself saying "Avast!" and thinks better of it.
Hope he catches himself saying "Avast!" and thinks better of it.
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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Crazedwraith
- Emperor's Hand
- Posts: 11937
- Joined: 2003-04-10 03:45pm
- Location: Cheshire, England
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CaptainChewbacca
- Browncoat Wookiee
- Posts: 15746
- Joined: 2003-05-06 02:36am
- Location: Deep beneath Boatmurdered.
Stay tuned, Battle of Bajor will be finished soon!
(Would be finished sooner, but I got hit with the flu.)
(Would be finished sooner, but I got hit with the flu.)
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
Oh, let's see this pirate theme get carried on further
How stupid can they be? Those flag officers were, like, their last hope!“Damn.” Ulysses cursed softly. The ISS Anubis was the transport that was bringing replacement Flag officers to Prescott’s Star. If it was lost, Ulysses was on his own for the foreseeable future. How the Anubis was taken out was up for debate, for it shouldn’t have happened given its phase cloaking device.
Busily picking nuggets out of my well-greased ass.
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CaptainChewbacca
- Browncoat Wookiee
- Posts: 15746
- Joined: 2003-05-06 02:36am
- Location: Deep beneath Boatmurdered.
HT can't spel gud.
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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HappyTarget
- Padawan Learner
- Posts: 439
- Joined: 2003-01-29 08:24pm
- Location: Michigan USA
- Contact:
Sad part is it's really true. My spelling and grammar skills suck. 
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CaptainChewbacca
- Browncoat Wookiee
- Posts: 15746
- Joined: 2003-05-06 02:36am
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Ok, this is the wrap-up of the battle. Its been four months in the making, but I'm glad its over. Hope everyone enjoyed it!
Chapter 34- Extra Innings
The bridge of Cardassia’s Song was a barely constrained chaos from Damar’s command pedestal. As he scanned the battle, things didn’t look quite so grim as they had only a few minutes earlier. He watched in amazement as the Terran destroyers extended their shields around his Vole-ships, which continued to lob heavy blasts against the unity ships. The “Galactic Unity” had sent an immense fleet, but they hadn’t expected to start fighting quite so soon, which meant they weren’t properly ordered. The fleet was attacking in largely one group, unspecified, using simple numbers to pound back the two enemy fleets into submission.
“Fleet Status?” Damar knew he was losing ships fast.
“Almost twenty percent losses, Legate Damar.” Garak at his shoulder like a phantom. Analysis of the outcome doesn’t look promising. Unless we can turn this around soon, I expect total losses within the hour.”
“I suppose you have another plan?” Silently, Damar wondered why he had civilian oversight on this mission.
“Actually, I do.” Garak tapped a few buttons. “With the position our ships are currently at, we can destroy almost sixty percent of the Terran fleet. Once we do that, we can use the debris as a screen and retreat to Cardassian spa-“
A loud crack emanated from Garak’s jaw as Damar’s fist connected solidly, sending him on his back to the floor. The Commissioner was in shock. “You listen to me, you pathetic worm.” Damar was visibly enraged. “Civilian orders got us into this mess, and I have no doubt more civilian advice would be most unhelpful. I am not going to betray Sisko like some Terran general and run home. We are going to fight!” The last he said loud enough for the whole bridge.
Garak stood and rubbed his jaw as it clicked into place. On the tactical display, another Sartan exploded under a volley of plasma torpedoes. “We are going to die.” He said under his breath.
***
On the bridge of the Transcendence, Fleet Commander Ariidon was very pleased. He studied the display and smiled. The unenlightened Terrans and Cardassians had been in the middle of a large engagement when his fleet stumbled upon them. Although this meant that both fleets were somewhat diminished, that also meant that to get to Bajor, he would have to go through the fleets. And now they seemed to be working together, a most upsetting development. “Form up assault groups nineteen through forty, and have them mass at the center of our formation to split them.” No need for overcomplicated work, the sheer power of the unity fleet would overwhelm them.
“Commander, we still are not able to destroy the Cardassian mauler-ships.” A Pronhoulite lieutenant was monitoring the battle. His tail twitched in frustration. “The Imperial destroyers continue to deflect our fire, and their superdreadnaughts are equipped with far better torpedoes than we anticipated.”
The commander sighed. “Increase fire on the Imperial destroyers, and dispatch the sixth superdreadnaught group to disable the Imperials.” He gave his orders with disinterest. There was no challenge here, only waiting.
As Ariidon watched the battle display, a ship suddenly appeared beyond the edge of the Imperial fleet. “What is that?” He pointed to the red dot that was now approaching the Imperial rear.
“An Imperial Sovereign-class, sir. It has taken heavy damage, but all its systems are operating at full efficiency.” The Pronhoulite twitched again. “I see no way it could be functioning with such damage.”
“Ignore it.” Ariidon lapsed back to an amused boredom. “One ship is of no consequence.”
***
“Are you sure?” Sisko leaned forward on his throne.
“I’m sure, Admiral.” The lieutenant continued to scan. “The Enterprise is somehow up and running, all systems operational.”
“Signal them, get me Admiral Lore.” This is good sign, Sisko thought. Morale had taken a hit when the banner ship of the Empire went down, but now it was charging to the fore.
“Admiral, I have the Enterprise.” Sisko nodded.
On the screen he could see the ruin of the flag bridge of the Enterprise. Consoles were torn from their mounts, wires were dangling from the ceiling, and bodies littered the floor. But most disturbing was what was in the center of the image. There sat Admiral Lore on his command throne with a coil of glowing optical cable connected to one of his cranial ports. The cord shimmered with the volume of data traveling through it. Sisko was speechless.
“Hello, Admiral Sisko.” Lore’s mouth didn’t move, but his voice came over the display from the Enterprise’s systems. “I suppose an explanation is in order.”
“You’re damn right it is, Lore.” Sisko felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. It would be the M-5 debacle all over again. “What have you done?”
“The main computer core sustained heavy damage due to a warp-field backwash when two cores were ejected. All main systems were offline.” Lore continued to stare straight ahead, not moving. “A Cardassian boarding party anesthetized over ninety-five percent of the crew, but I was able to overcome them. Unfortunately, environmental controls were offline, and the crew needed an antidote within ten minutes.”
“So you thought you’d handle it yourself.?” There was an incredulous tone in Sisko’s voice.
“Indeed, Sir. The crew has been treated, and should regain consciousness within fifteen minutes. I felt I could contribute to the battle in the meantime.”
Sisko sighed and rubbed his head. What the hell. “Agreed, Admiral Lore. The command of the second group will remain with Commodore Minchori, but you are free to engage all Unity targets. We have a ceasefire agreement with the Cardassian fleet for the duration of the engagement.”
A handful of heartbeats passed in silence. “Understood. Enterprise out.” The display went back to the battle. A pair of wraiths passed over a Unity dreadnought group, tearing jagged holes into their ablative armor. The comm clicked to signal a message from Kira.
“Are you sure this is wise, Admiral? You know what happened to the M5.”
“Yes, Captain.” Sisko leaned back in his chair. “But right now I doubt we could stop Lore if we wanted to.”
***
The ISS Enterprise flew through the fleet with more agility than any ship her size had a right to be. Lore could see through every sensor, in every direction and in every spectrum. He marveled at the beauty of the EM signatures of the phaser blasts, of the radiation spikes emanating from the torpedoes that grazed his shields. Every hull seal, every conduit on the ship tingled in Lore’s mind. He WAS the Enterprise. He was a ship of war.
Acquiring targets at extreme range, Lore sent volleys of quantum torpedoes to break up formations of Unity ships. He twisted, dodged, and wove a curtain of deadly energy around himself. Again and again he fired his phaser lances through ships, all the while cycling his shields so that they met individual hits with maximum strength, at a speed no humanoid mind could comprehend. He was actually using LESS energy for his shields than normal, but was absorbing far more damage.
Suddenly, Lore found himself in the middle of the Unity fleet, coming up hard on their Monitor ship. It was immense, but Lore’s keen sensors detected a weakness. He powered up his torpedo launchers and emptied them into the rear of the ship before banking away. A flurry of blue-white explosions rocked the back of the vessel as its engines went dead. Lore mused, as he fought his way back to the fleet, that the Transcendence would never move again without significant repairs.
***
“Commander! Main engines are down, as are warp cores four, seven and eight!” Alarms blared across the bridge of the Unity command ship.
“Seal the drive section at once!” Ariidon bellowed over the din. “We’ll get by on thrusters until we can effect repairs. They can tow us to Bajor if we need.” He glanced to his weapons officer. “How is our weapon status?”
“Full power, Commander.”
“Excellent.” Ariidon sat down. “Show them they aren’t the only ones that can make crippling strikes.”
***
“Incomming!” The Saratoga was rocked by plasma blasts. A large battlegroup had broken through the line and was now pounding Kira mercilessly. “INCREASE SHIELDS! Target their weapons!”
“No effect, Captain! Primary power relays are offline!” There was panic in the air. The lights dimmed and came back on. “We just lost main power, Captain. We’re on reserves and those are dropping fast.”
Kira stood glaring in silent fury at the ships on the screen. Their blue lights glowed like the eyes of predators. “Abandon ship.” She turned to her crew. “Abandon ship. Signal all crew. I’m going to the flag bridge with the Admiral. We’ll engage the forcefields and continue to direct from there.”
Crewmen scrambled to escape pods as Kira headed for her private turbolift. “Computer, activate automated combat sequence Beta four.” The doors closed and she sank eight levels to the flag bridge.
The doors opened into a still bustling room. Flag staff would not be permitted to evacuate as long as the Admiral remained. “How bad is it, Admiral?” Kira took her seat next to Ben.
“Could be worse,” he smiled to her. “The Cardassians and us are each down almost twenty-five percent, and we have a long way to go before we have numbers on the Unity.”
“Can we retreat?” Kira checked the displays. Things were indeed going bad. Half of Eddington’s group was gone, Minchori was fast becoming surrounded along with his fleet, and the Saratoga was now abandoned.
“No, we can’t.” Sisko shook his head. “If we did, they’d pick us off as we ran. Their weapons have a range better than our upgraded torpedoes. Hell, we can’t even warp-ram them for all of the subspace interference around here.” He looked at his XO “We’re in trouble, Nerys.”
“I know, Ben.” Kira smiled. “At least I’m going to die for the right man.” The ship shuddered under another volley and the rear wall of the bridge exploded. A sheet of fire swept across the bridge, throwing everyone to the floor. Sisko rolled over, trying to find a railing to steady himself. His grasping hand reached out, and instead found a small box. Instinctively, he held it to his chest and pressed the gems on its four sides.
The top of the box opened, and a shimmering white light flashed out.
In the middle of the fleet, a great wheel of light appeared. Over twenty kilometers across, it blossomed from nothingness into a great hole in space, with a golden light shining from it. All of the ships near it were brushed aside by the shock and arcs of energy coming from it, except the Saratoga. A wave on white energy suddenly leapt from the surface of Bajor, streaking faster than light into the hole. It dragged the Saratoga with it into the golden light, and then everything vanished.
***
What is it? It is not the Sisko.
It is the Sisko, but another one. Another game.
“Game?” Suddenly Sisko was standing on the main deck of DS9.
“Another game.” Jennifer was suddenly next to him. “You are another game. Our Sisko taught us about such things. "
“What? Who are you? Where am I?” He reached out to grab her, but she vanished. He turned around and was in his quarters.
Now his son Jake was speaking to him. “You are the Sisko. Another, Sisko. Your game is ending.”
“Yes, I am losing the battle.” Sisko looked at the being with his son’s face. The eyes were not ones he recognized. “Why do you care?”
“We are of Bajor.” Kira was at his side. “You are of Bajor. You will take our word to them. You have many tasks.”
“You’re damn right I do.” He had better things to do than play riddles with aliens. Like find his son. “And winning that battle is one of them.”
“He cannot win.” Now Julian was speaking to Kira. “We must change the game.”
“It is not linear.” Kira shook her head.
“But he is of Bajor. Bajor must remain linear. Its game must not end.” Julian looked to Sisko. “Will you play the game?”
“Will I fight? Yes.” Sisko crossed his arms.
“We must tell him more, he must learn.” Now Jennifer was standing with them.
“Not yet. He is not ready.” Julian stretched out his hand, palm up, to Sisko. “We will send you help, to win the game. In one of your year’s time, you will return to us at this place, and we will speak more.” There was a flash of light, and Sisko was back on the floor of the bridge. Kira was next to him, badly burned.
She looked into his eyes. “Emissary...?” Her head dropped as she gasped for air. Her lungs were scarred, and now breathing was almost impossible.
“Medic!” Sisko bellowed and a blue-uniformed man came running. He knelt to treat Kira. “Give me a sensor report!”
“Admiral!” The lieutenant’s voice was filled with disbelief. “I’m detecting almost three thousand old-style Jem-Hadar fighters emerging from the anomaly.
“What?”
***
“What?” Legate Damar was dumbfounded.
“I said, sir, that a Jem-hadar fleet has emerged from the wormhole and is hailing us. They are looking for Gul-Dukat and are awaiting orders. They don’t recognize the hull signatures, but they claim to be allies of the Cardassian Union.”
Damar and Garak looked at each other. “What the hell is going on, Garak?”
Garak slowly craned his neck back. “I would say an opportunity, my dear Legate.” Garak smiled. “Signal the lead Jem-Hadar ship, and give them our sensor feed, with the Unity fleet as enemy targets.”
“Yes... YES!” Damar laughed out loud. “Order them to make every possible effort to destroy the Unity fleet.”
***
“What?” Fleet Commander Ariidon was dumbfounded.
“Commander, they are old style Jem-Hadar fighter-class destroyers. They could be old Dominion remnants off the white and out for revenge, I don’t know.” The tactical officer’s voice was quavering.
“They came from behind and started firing and ramming our ships on their rear sections, where shield strength was weakest They are wreaking havoc with our ships!” On the screen fireballs continued to blossom as the small fighters tore through the Unity fleet like locusts.
How in the universe could this be happening? Ariidon’s mind whirled. “Signal all ships! Rotate modulation and target them. Keep trying to transmit-“
”Commander! There are eighteen fighters closing in on our position at flank speed!”
“Evasive action! Bring weapons...” Ariidon remembered that the Transcendence’s weapons were offline. “Screening fire, intercept-“ But he never got a chance to finish the order, as over a dozen Jem-Hadar fighters tore through the armor and superstructure of the ship at full impulse.
Victory was life... and death.
***
On the Flag bridge of the Saratoga crewmen were cheering. The Jem-Hadar ships had destroyed most of the Unity capital ships, and now the smaller ones were fleeing into the subspace corridors.
“Stand down, all ships!” Sisko smiled and rolled his baseball in his hands. “Begin repairs and begin to bring the fleet under order for return to Bajor.
“Incoming transmission from the Cardassia’s Song, Admiral.”
Sisko turned to the screen and saw similar jubilation on Damar’s bridge. “Well done, Admiral Sisko.” Damar smiled. “I don’t know where those ships came from, but I’m betting they were your doing. Someday you’ll have to tell me.”
“I look forward to it, Legate.” Sisko laughed. “My ships will render you whatever assistance you need in retrieving your injured crewmen, and in making any repairs to your ships necessary to get you under way.” An edge came into his voice. “In one day all operational ships will leave the system.”
“Understood, Admiral.” Damar nodded, his eyes narrowing. “And I offer to you the same assistance.”
“Thank you, Legate.” Sisko turned to end the transmission.
“Oh, Admiral?”
“Yes, Legate?” Sisko raised an eyebrow.
“Find your son.” Damar. Gave a military nod, and the channel closed.
“A home run, Admiral?” Kira was in her seat, groggy from the medication she had been given.
Admiral Sisko sat on his throne and began to check damage reports. “I’d call it a Grand Slam, Captain.”
***
The End... of my part anyway. Bajor is safe, the Terrans and the Cardassians cooperated, and the wormhole is discovered but off-limits for a year.
So, how'd I do? :p
Chapter 34- Extra Innings
The bridge of Cardassia’s Song was a barely constrained chaos from Damar’s command pedestal. As he scanned the battle, things didn’t look quite so grim as they had only a few minutes earlier. He watched in amazement as the Terran destroyers extended their shields around his Vole-ships, which continued to lob heavy blasts against the unity ships. The “Galactic Unity” had sent an immense fleet, but they hadn’t expected to start fighting quite so soon, which meant they weren’t properly ordered. The fleet was attacking in largely one group, unspecified, using simple numbers to pound back the two enemy fleets into submission.
“Fleet Status?” Damar knew he was losing ships fast.
“Almost twenty percent losses, Legate Damar.” Garak at his shoulder like a phantom. Analysis of the outcome doesn’t look promising. Unless we can turn this around soon, I expect total losses within the hour.”
“I suppose you have another plan?” Silently, Damar wondered why he had civilian oversight on this mission.
“Actually, I do.” Garak tapped a few buttons. “With the position our ships are currently at, we can destroy almost sixty percent of the Terran fleet. Once we do that, we can use the debris as a screen and retreat to Cardassian spa-“
A loud crack emanated from Garak’s jaw as Damar’s fist connected solidly, sending him on his back to the floor. The Commissioner was in shock. “You listen to me, you pathetic worm.” Damar was visibly enraged. “Civilian orders got us into this mess, and I have no doubt more civilian advice would be most unhelpful. I am not going to betray Sisko like some Terran general and run home. We are going to fight!” The last he said loud enough for the whole bridge.
Garak stood and rubbed his jaw as it clicked into place. On the tactical display, another Sartan exploded under a volley of plasma torpedoes. “We are going to die.” He said under his breath.
***
On the bridge of the Transcendence, Fleet Commander Ariidon was very pleased. He studied the display and smiled. The unenlightened Terrans and Cardassians had been in the middle of a large engagement when his fleet stumbled upon them. Although this meant that both fleets were somewhat diminished, that also meant that to get to Bajor, he would have to go through the fleets. And now they seemed to be working together, a most upsetting development. “Form up assault groups nineteen through forty, and have them mass at the center of our formation to split them.” No need for overcomplicated work, the sheer power of the unity fleet would overwhelm them.
“Commander, we still are not able to destroy the Cardassian mauler-ships.” A Pronhoulite lieutenant was monitoring the battle. His tail twitched in frustration. “The Imperial destroyers continue to deflect our fire, and their superdreadnaughts are equipped with far better torpedoes than we anticipated.”
The commander sighed. “Increase fire on the Imperial destroyers, and dispatch the sixth superdreadnaught group to disable the Imperials.” He gave his orders with disinterest. There was no challenge here, only waiting.
As Ariidon watched the battle display, a ship suddenly appeared beyond the edge of the Imperial fleet. “What is that?” He pointed to the red dot that was now approaching the Imperial rear.
“An Imperial Sovereign-class, sir. It has taken heavy damage, but all its systems are operating at full efficiency.” The Pronhoulite twitched again. “I see no way it could be functioning with such damage.”
“Ignore it.” Ariidon lapsed back to an amused boredom. “One ship is of no consequence.”
***
“Are you sure?” Sisko leaned forward on his throne.
“I’m sure, Admiral.” The lieutenant continued to scan. “The Enterprise is somehow up and running, all systems operational.”
“Signal them, get me Admiral Lore.” This is good sign, Sisko thought. Morale had taken a hit when the banner ship of the Empire went down, but now it was charging to the fore.
“Admiral, I have the Enterprise.” Sisko nodded.
On the screen he could see the ruin of the flag bridge of the Enterprise. Consoles were torn from their mounts, wires were dangling from the ceiling, and bodies littered the floor. But most disturbing was what was in the center of the image. There sat Admiral Lore on his command throne with a coil of glowing optical cable connected to one of his cranial ports. The cord shimmered with the volume of data traveling through it. Sisko was speechless.
“Hello, Admiral Sisko.” Lore’s mouth didn’t move, but his voice came over the display from the Enterprise’s systems. “I suppose an explanation is in order.”
“You’re damn right it is, Lore.” Sisko felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. It would be the M-5 debacle all over again. “What have you done?”
“The main computer core sustained heavy damage due to a warp-field backwash when two cores were ejected. All main systems were offline.” Lore continued to stare straight ahead, not moving. “A Cardassian boarding party anesthetized over ninety-five percent of the crew, but I was able to overcome them. Unfortunately, environmental controls were offline, and the crew needed an antidote within ten minutes.”
“So you thought you’d handle it yourself.?” There was an incredulous tone in Sisko’s voice.
“Indeed, Sir. The crew has been treated, and should regain consciousness within fifteen minutes. I felt I could contribute to the battle in the meantime.”
Sisko sighed and rubbed his head. What the hell. “Agreed, Admiral Lore. The command of the second group will remain with Commodore Minchori, but you are free to engage all Unity targets. We have a ceasefire agreement with the Cardassian fleet for the duration of the engagement.”
A handful of heartbeats passed in silence. “Understood. Enterprise out.” The display went back to the battle. A pair of wraiths passed over a Unity dreadnought group, tearing jagged holes into their ablative armor. The comm clicked to signal a message from Kira.
“Are you sure this is wise, Admiral? You know what happened to the M5.”
“Yes, Captain.” Sisko leaned back in his chair. “But right now I doubt we could stop Lore if we wanted to.”
***
The ISS Enterprise flew through the fleet with more agility than any ship her size had a right to be. Lore could see through every sensor, in every direction and in every spectrum. He marveled at the beauty of the EM signatures of the phaser blasts, of the radiation spikes emanating from the torpedoes that grazed his shields. Every hull seal, every conduit on the ship tingled in Lore’s mind. He WAS the Enterprise. He was a ship of war.
Acquiring targets at extreme range, Lore sent volleys of quantum torpedoes to break up formations of Unity ships. He twisted, dodged, and wove a curtain of deadly energy around himself. Again and again he fired his phaser lances through ships, all the while cycling his shields so that they met individual hits with maximum strength, at a speed no humanoid mind could comprehend. He was actually using LESS energy for his shields than normal, but was absorbing far more damage.
Suddenly, Lore found himself in the middle of the Unity fleet, coming up hard on their Monitor ship. It was immense, but Lore’s keen sensors detected a weakness. He powered up his torpedo launchers and emptied them into the rear of the ship before banking away. A flurry of blue-white explosions rocked the back of the vessel as its engines went dead. Lore mused, as he fought his way back to the fleet, that the Transcendence would never move again without significant repairs.
***
“Commander! Main engines are down, as are warp cores four, seven and eight!” Alarms blared across the bridge of the Unity command ship.
“Seal the drive section at once!” Ariidon bellowed over the din. “We’ll get by on thrusters until we can effect repairs. They can tow us to Bajor if we need.” He glanced to his weapons officer. “How is our weapon status?”
“Full power, Commander.”
“Excellent.” Ariidon sat down. “Show them they aren’t the only ones that can make crippling strikes.”
***
“Incomming!” The Saratoga was rocked by plasma blasts. A large battlegroup had broken through the line and was now pounding Kira mercilessly. “INCREASE SHIELDS! Target their weapons!”
“No effect, Captain! Primary power relays are offline!” There was panic in the air. The lights dimmed and came back on. “We just lost main power, Captain. We’re on reserves and those are dropping fast.”
Kira stood glaring in silent fury at the ships on the screen. Their blue lights glowed like the eyes of predators. “Abandon ship.” She turned to her crew. “Abandon ship. Signal all crew. I’m going to the flag bridge with the Admiral. We’ll engage the forcefields and continue to direct from there.”
Crewmen scrambled to escape pods as Kira headed for her private turbolift. “Computer, activate automated combat sequence Beta four.” The doors closed and she sank eight levels to the flag bridge.
The doors opened into a still bustling room. Flag staff would not be permitted to evacuate as long as the Admiral remained. “How bad is it, Admiral?” Kira took her seat next to Ben.
“Could be worse,” he smiled to her. “The Cardassians and us are each down almost twenty-five percent, and we have a long way to go before we have numbers on the Unity.”
“Can we retreat?” Kira checked the displays. Things were indeed going bad. Half of Eddington’s group was gone, Minchori was fast becoming surrounded along with his fleet, and the Saratoga was now abandoned.
“No, we can’t.” Sisko shook his head. “If we did, they’d pick us off as we ran. Their weapons have a range better than our upgraded torpedoes. Hell, we can’t even warp-ram them for all of the subspace interference around here.” He looked at his XO “We’re in trouble, Nerys.”
“I know, Ben.” Kira smiled. “At least I’m going to die for the right man.” The ship shuddered under another volley and the rear wall of the bridge exploded. A sheet of fire swept across the bridge, throwing everyone to the floor. Sisko rolled over, trying to find a railing to steady himself. His grasping hand reached out, and instead found a small box. Instinctively, he held it to his chest and pressed the gems on its four sides.
The top of the box opened, and a shimmering white light flashed out.
In the middle of the fleet, a great wheel of light appeared. Over twenty kilometers across, it blossomed from nothingness into a great hole in space, with a golden light shining from it. All of the ships near it were brushed aside by the shock and arcs of energy coming from it, except the Saratoga. A wave on white energy suddenly leapt from the surface of Bajor, streaking faster than light into the hole. It dragged the Saratoga with it into the golden light, and then everything vanished.
***
What is it? It is not the Sisko.
It is the Sisko, but another one. Another game.
“Game?” Suddenly Sisko was standing on the main deck of DS9.
“Another game.” Jennifer was suddenly next to him. “You are another game. Our Sisko taught us about such things. "
“What? Who are you? Where am I?” He reached out to grab her, but she vanished. He turned around and was in his quarters.
Now his son Jake was speaking to him. “You are the Sisko. Another, Sisko. Your game is ending.”
“Yes, I am losing the battle.” Sisko looked at the being with his son’s face. The eyes were not ones he recognized. “Why do you care?”
“We are of Bajor.” Kira was at his side. “You are of Bajor. You will take our word to them. You have many tasks.”
“You’re damn right I do.” He had better things to do than play riddles with aliens. Like find his son. “And winning that battle is one of them.”
“He cannot win.” Now Julian was speaking to Kira. “We must change the game.”
“It is not linear.” Kira shook her head.
“But he is of Bajor. Bajor must remain linear. Its game must not end.” Julian looked to Sisko. “Will you play the game?”
“Will I fight? Yes.” Sisko crossed his arms.
“We must tell him more, he must learn.” Now Jennifer was standing with them.
“Not yet. He is not ready.” Julian stretched out his hand, palm up, to Sisko. “We will send you help, to win the game. In one of your year’s time, you will return to us at this place, and we will speak more.” There was a flash of light, and Sisko was back on the floor of the bridge. Kira was next to him, badly burned.
She looked into his eyes. “Emissary...?” Her head dropped as she gasped for air. Her lungs were scarred, and now breathing was almost impossible.
“Medic!” Sisko bellowed and a blue-uniformed man came running. He knelt to treat Kira. “Give me a sensor report!”
“Admiral!” The lieutenant’s voice was filled with disbelief. “I’m detecting almost three thousand old-style Jem-Hadar fighters emerging from the anomaly.
“What?”
***
“What?” Legate Damar was dumbfounded.
“I said, sir, that a Jem-hadar fleet has emerged from the wormhole and is hailing us. They are looking for Gul-Dukat and are awaiting orders. They don’t recognize the hull signatures, but they claim to be allies of the Cardassian Union.”
Damar and Garak looked at each other. “What the hell is going on, Garak?”
Garak slowly craned his neck back. “I would say an opportunity, my dear Legate.” Garak smiled. “Signal the lead Jem-Hadar ship, and give them our sensor feed, with the Unity fleet as enemy targets.”
“Yes... YES!” Damar laughed out loud. “Order them to make every possible effort to destroy the Unity fleet.”
***
“What?” Fleet Commander Ariidon was dumbfounded.
“Commander, they are old style Jem-Hadar fighter-class destroyers. They could be old Dominion remnants off the white and out for revenge, I don’t know.” The tactical officer’s voice was quavering.
“They came from behind and started firing and ramming our ships on their rear sections, where shield strength was weakest They are wreaking havoc with our ships!” On the screen fireballs continued to blossom as the small fighters tore through the Unity fleet like locusts.
How in the universe could this be happening? Ariidon’s mind whirled. “Signal all ships! Rotate modulation and target them. Keep trying to transmit-“
”Commander! There are eighteen fighters closing in on our position at flank speed!”
“Evasive action! Bring weapons...” Ariidon remembered that the Transcendence’s weapons were offline. “Screening fire, intercept-“ But he never got a chance to finish the order, as over a dozen Jem-Hadar fighters tore through the armor and superstructure of the ship at full impulse.
Victory was life... and death.
***
On the Flag bridge of the Saratoga crewmen were cheering. The Jem-Hadar ships had destroyed most of the Unity capital ships, and now the smaller ones were fleeing into the subspace corridors.
“Stand down, all ships!” Sisko smiled and rolled his baseball in his hands. “Begin repairs and begin to bring the fleet under order for return to Bajor.
“Incoming transmission from the Cardassia’s Song, Admiral.”
Sisko turned to the screen and saw similar jubilation on Damar’s bridge. “Well done, Admiral Sisko.” Damar smiled. “I don’t know where those ships came from, but I’m betting they were your doing. Someday you’ll have to tell me.”
“I look forward to it, Legate.” Sisko laughed. “My ships will render you whatever assistance you need in retrieving your injured crewmen, and in making any repairs to your ships necessary to get you under way.” An edge came into his voice. “In one day all operational ships will leave the system.”
“Understood, Admiral.” Damar nodded, his eyes narrowing. “And I offer to you the same assistance.”
“Thank you, Legate.” Sisko turned to end the transmission.
“Oh, Admiral?”
“Yes, Legate?” Sisko raised an eyebrow.
“Find your son.” Damar. Gave a military nod, and the channel closed.
“A home run, Admiral?” Kira was in her seat, groggy from the medication she had been given.
Admiral Sisko sat on his throne and began to check damage reports. “I’d call it a Grand Slam, Captain.”
***
The End... of my part anyway. Bajor is safe, the Terrans and the Cardassians cooperated, and the wormhole is discovered but off-limits for a year.
So, how'd I do? :p
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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Crazedwraith
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1st 2 post havn't read but it looks cool 
edit:: wow oh wow oh wow oh wow.
Nice tie in with canon trek iam guessing thoose were the ships that the prophets dissapeared in sacrifice of angels?
edit:: wow oh wow oh wow oh wow.
Nice tie in with canon trek iam guessing thoose were the ships that the prophets dissapeared in sacrifice of angels?
Last edited by Crazedwraith on 2003-06-25 02:45pm, edited 1 time in total.
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CaptainChewbacca
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Why'd you post if you didn't read? Just so you could be the first?
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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Crazedwraith
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CaptainChewbacca
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So read it already. 
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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Crazedwraith
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CaptainChewbacca
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You bet they were. Ever since I first watched that ep I wondered where the ships went. Now we know.
I hope I got the prophets right. Their disorienting encounters don't always translate well to print.
I hope I got the prophets right. Their disorienting encounters don't always translate well to print.
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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Natorgator
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CaptainChewbacca
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Multiple badasses saved the day, including Lore, Damar, and Sisko.
Though Lore would definitely win in a fight.
I wonder if he could take a fury if they were similarly armed.
Though Lore would definitely win in a fight.
I wonder if he could take a fury if they were similarly armed.
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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Natorgator
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You know, now that I think about it, this could be of some precedence. Lore, IIRC, isn't unique to the Terran empire and there are others like him...if he's so efficient at controlling the Enterprise himself why does that not happen more often? And to take it a step further, could entire ships be automated all the time? If memory serves the Furies had their own ships which were completely automated/controlled by them.CaptainChewbacca wrote:Though Lore would definitely win in a fight.
I wonder if he could take a fury if they were similarly armed.
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CaptainChewbacca
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HT did a short about this subject. Basically, they tried it with the M5 computer like in the TOS timeline. Unfortunately, this computer took control, went apeshit, and glassed a couple of planets.
So, now there's a general suspicion of AI's, and fleet command keeps close tabs on Lore, as they have no safeguards on him like the assasin androids.
So, now there's a general suspicion of AI's, and fleet command keeps close tabs on Lore, as they have no safeguards on him like the assasin androids.
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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HappyTarget
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http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?t=15178
^ TEverse "In Service of Empire #1 - M-5" and the reason why while AI control is far superior yet virtually never used in the TE.
TE doesn't exactly fear AI, just that they view it with a strong suspicion and would rather do things themselves than have AI's control things.
^ TEverse "In Service of Empire #1 - M-5" and the reason why while AI control is far superior yet virtually never used in the TE.
Yep, nearly totally controled by the ships computer core via a mind/machine interface between the Fury Pair and their Stalker. But they are merely extensively automated, not true AI controlled.If memory serves the Furies had their own ships which were completely automated/controlled by them.
TE doesn't exactly fear AI, just that they view it with a strong suspicion and would rather do things themselves than have AI's control things.
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