Planet of Dying Dreams

[Darth Fanboy]

Episode V: Honor of the Defeated

Refugee Hospital, Downtown Seattle

"Things have gotten interesting in the time since we last saw each other." Alyeska sat on an empty crate of medical supplies long spent. Allen stood attentively, he hadn't heard much in the way of news since his escape from San Francisco. "For one thing, we've learned a lot about our new planetary government, Admiral Janeway did indeed survive the attack at Las Vegas, in fact, other than you. She is the only survivor of that battle." Allen spit toward the ground and cracked his knuckles. "There's no way she could have survived. The Empire wasn't planning on taking prisoners and the few soldiers that got word of the attack didn't make it." Alyeska's tone was solemn as he spoke; his tone gave way to an even darker revelation. "Janeway didn't leave as a prisoner, she left as a collaborator." Before Allen could do anything Alyeska interrupted, "We don't need that down here. Especially if the Empire decides its time for a shakedown and we're pretty sure they have someone watching within the building. "

Allen relaxed his muscles and sat on the floor. Keeping the anger at bay was difficult, but he managed to listen. "Fine, explain away then." "Well from what you've told us you left before the building was destroyed, so you wouldn't have noticed it when she excused herself from the room. Did you see any security personnel with her?" Allen struggled to let his mind remember that fateful day; the images were like needles in his skin. "A small contingent of armed guards yes, shadowing her everywhere and flying escorts in an amazingly tight formation." Alyeska nodded, "Those weren't actually Starfleet officers, our intelligence indicates that those were Imperial Personnel disguised in our own uniforms. They ushered Janeway out of the building prior to an attack, they didn't use transporters thanks to heavy jamming that was undetected prior to the attack."

Alyeska stood again and paced. "It seems Janeway's motives aren't entirely selfish. The new planetary governor, a man we know only as Wong, offered Janeway a position in the planetary government if she collaborated. Janeway was foolish enough to trust Wong and she thought she could work from within to bring about a peaceful resolution to the war. She accepted but as soon as she handed over every bit of information she could, she was imprisoned. Of course she wasn't lucky enough to get the luxury suites at Oakland. Sources say she's a permanent Imperial guest in the New York Base, which I may add is about ten times larger and a thousand times more important than Oakland."

"If she's in prison though why would she cooperate with the Empire though?" Allen was beginning to grow more desperate as the situation got worse with each word. "A good question, we think Wong is holding the threat of orbital bombardment and mass executions over her head to force her into compliance." "There is also some disturbing news that is for your ears alone Mark." The others who had congregated around the discussion left the two to their own discussion. "Allen, after tonight you need to stay as far away from resistance cells as possible. I haven't told anyone else yet, but Olrik has you marked." Several lights began blinking, their brightness as loud as any sound. "That's the silent alarm, the Empire's doing a shakedown of the hospital. Everybody get out of here with the weapons, Allen, you have to stay with me and make sure that the people upstairs are taken care of afterwards." Allen nodded his consent and the two went up the lift to the third floor.

They walked out of the lift, checking the corridors for soldiers. "There are hand phasers stashed in the medical storage closets on floors two and four and a phaser rifle is hidden in a compartment on the roof. Do not use them unless absolutely necessary, we'll talk after they've left." "What about the mark though? Those troopers are going to recognize me." Alyeska handed a communicator and lowered his voice to avoid attention. "Olrik is trying to keep his vendetta with you discreet. An Imperial agent by the name of Falkenhorst has been given the job. Make no mistakes Allen, he's good, he's the guy that discovered the Section 31 installation in the Marianas Trench during the invasion and he's the same guy who assassinated Supreme Chancellor Martok during the siege of Q'o'nos." "If that's the case then why in the hell is he chasing after a low rent fugitive like me?" "Details are sketchy but it seems he used to be a stormtrooper under Olrik's command, Olrik saw the potential in him and got him the transfer to intelligence."

"Where in this god forsaken world do you get your information from?" Allen had to restrain himself from screaming. He had wandered around for months without hearing anything and Alyeska was giving him details left and right. "We've got a few good hackers left on this planet. Imperial military records aren't that hard to crack but once we crack a file we don't have much time before the Empire responds." The two men walked casually toward the lobby area, the stormtroopers were hassling people all over but so far no one had been abused severely or treated in a manner that required drastic action. Allen turned though, when the cries of a girl made him react. It was only a shock though, because he recognized the voice.

"Get your hands off of me you bastards!" Allen saw Trina being harassed by the stormtroopers. "Listen girl, I'm not going to ask again, why are you carrying this weapon?" the trooper held a hand phaser to her face and tightened his grip on her wrist. "Why should I have to explain anything to you, all you do is walk around with your blasters killing people!" "Same old Trina, not letting anyone force her to compromise herself and lacking subtlety." Alyeska put his hand on Allen's shoulder. "Let it go kid, they do this all the time." Allen cracked his knuckles and lowered his head a bit. "Sorry, but I've always been a sucker for a damsel in distress. Besides that's Therese Adair's daughter and I'm guessing you owe her one." Alyeska, stunned by the revelation regretfully consented. "At least lets go grab the phasers, we don't stand a chance against an armed squad like that." "The rest of them are scouring the upper floors, I'm going to go bail her out and then I'll be out of your hair until I can deal with this Falkenhorst guy."

"Allen, one thing before you go. I need you to do me a favor before you go." Allen was reluctant to listen as the trooper shoved Trina to the ground and began shouting louder. "If you want to hurt the Empire, do it where it counts while you can. I can't leave here but you're still free to fight." Allen heard the words, but did not take long to ponder them as he ran into the lobby at a dead sprint. He leaped into the air and slammed his foot into the trooper's head just as he was about to pull the trigger. "Allen! I knew you would be here!" Allen focused on the next trooper, he grabbed the barrel of his opponent's blaster and shoved it aside while planting a fierce kick to the solar plexus. "Come on! We've got to get out of here now!" Allen led Trina out through the door. They were out of the building but running wouldn't get them away from the Empire fast enough.

"Allen, this way!" Allen recognized the familiar Argo in the distance. "We only have to evade the for a little bit while we get to the station!" The blonde was fast, as her sprint overtook Allen's "What station are you talking about?" Trina didn't even look back. "I booked two tickets on a passenger train to Chicago. It's a slow trip, but the Empire doesn't regulate the trains." Allen climbed in as Trina started the ignition on the Argo and sped off into the night. "The station isn't too far and the closest airbase is a remote base in the Yukon." The two soon ditched the Argo but a few blocks away from the station, hiding it behind a long abandoned building. It wasn't until they had already boarded the train that Allen made a realization. "Shit! My satchel!"

North American Rail Line, Thirty Minutes after boarding

"Allen, it's not that big of a deal. It was just a satchel and that phaser mom gave you is only going to cause more trouble than it can get us out of." Trina had been trying to convince him he hadn't made a mistake since the train had left. There was an awkward silence and then Trina spoke again. "I'm not as naïve as my mother thinks you know, I knew she had been helping coordinate the resistance in Seattle for some time. You shouldn't have left though, it was dangerous to go hooking up with the resistance like that." Allen cut her off. "It was dangerous for you to come looking for me, you realize how close you were to being killed?" "Some things are worth dying for." "Maybe dying for saving the Earth isn't so bad but dying because you think you owe me something? That's ridiculous." Trina turned her head, and Allen saw tears running down her cheek. "Besides," he said, "if you had been killed looking for me. I couldn't forgive myself, no matter what. You deserve to live happily for as long as you want and no one should get to take that away from you." Trina wiped away her tears and managed a small smile. "You, you mean it?" "Without a doubt, go ahead and rest now I have to think." Trina laid her head against Allen's shoulder. "Before I fall asleep, there's one thing I'd like to do." With those words she leaned forward and kissed him, her lips pressing against his with a sweetness unrivaled by anything he had ever tasted. He responded to it and held her in his arms. She soon fell asleep and Frink was forced to respond to the conflicting emotions in his head. "I care for this girl, she's done so much for me. No, I can't stay with her though; I'll just end up getting her killed somehow. How can I live without her either way?"

Back at the Hospital

"Agent Falkenhorst sir! An unexpected surprise this is!" "You can spare me the courtesy sergeant; I'm here because I just received word that a rebel with incredible hand-to-hand combat skills was spotted in this building." "That's right sir, he took down two soldiers before escaping with a girl who was being questioned for possession of a weapon." "What sort of weapon was she in possession of?" "A Federation type II hand phaser, it was set to kill." Falkenhorst pondered for a second and examined the scene of the attack. "Those sort of phasers aren't made for civilian use. Where could she have gotten it?" "One of the hospital patients we've interrogated recognized her as a local girl named Adair. Her mother owns a restaurant on the outskirts of the city, word has that the mother is also a retired Federation officer." That definitely explained where she got the phaser, and if she was connected to this rebel who was almost certainly the target then he might be able to shorten his search and get back to more pressing duties in time for the Imperial push against the Gamma Quadrant's Dominion.

"Agent Falkenhorst sir! Contraband has been discovered in a basement sub level sir!" "Bring it to me." Minutes later, Falkenhorst held a satchel with various items within it. Non-perishable food, water, a hand phaser, and a few other things a wanderer might carry. He pulled the scanner out of his pocket and waved it over the surface of all the objects. "What's that sir? " asked a trooper who was as green as a forest moon. "It's a Dermal Imprint Scanner, I'm trying to cross reference the prints on the bag with prints of a few fugitives I am in the midst of tracking." Suddenly, the small display screen on the scanner went green and indicated a 99.843% chance of matching with subject #92679, Mark Allen.
"I've got you now Allen," Falkenhorst silently celebrated, "It's only a matter of time before you and your new lady friend are under my boot heel." Falkenhorst rose to his feet from the position he had been sitting in and summoned the sergeant. "You say the girl's mother operates a restaurant in their area and you are sure she is a former federation officer?" "So says the informant." "Excellent, prepare a squad of soldiers and find out where exactly this place is. I need to go pay this woman a visit."

The Train to Chicago

"If you want to hurt the Empire, do it where it counts while you can." Alyeska's words haunted Allen as Trina lay next to him. Allen was faced with a difficult choice though, he had to carry on fighting against an Empire that had taken so much from him, but if he did so with Trina by his side she might be killed and with that Imperial agent on his tail he couldn't guarantee her safety. She had seen a light in him that no one, including Mark Allen himself, had ever seen before. If he left her now, then he might extinguish that forever. Allen closed his eyes with reluctant thoughts nagging him. "Alyeska told me to hurt the Empire where it counts... of course! Unless that bastard was being truly cryptic he must mean the Imperial Capital."

Trina awoke about an hour later, "I'm surprised you haven't jumped off the train to get away from me." "I was going to wait until I was a little closer to Chicago actually, my damn feet are killing me." Allen laughed a bit and Trina giggled but nervously. She couldn't tell whether he was kidding or not. 'Relax, this time I'm not going to leave you. If you're going to get into trouble then I'm going to be right there with you, understand?" Her beautiful eyes opened wide and she hugged him tightly, "Thank you." "There's just one thing we need to talk about though, after Chicago I need to go somewhere. You can go with me, or stay behind in Chicago and wait for me." "You know I don't want to wait, where is ti we're going?" Allen rubbed his temples a bit to stave off the growing pain up there. His last and best hope was that Trina would wait for him to return from his assignment, and then the two would have time together. "I need to go to New York, and then make every Imperial there wish that a certain rebel had died during the invasion." Trina shook her head in agreement, "I understand it's going to be rough but you can't leave me behind and think I won't follow." "Yeah, I know." "So, what exactly is the plan Allen?" "That is what I don't know"

Colonel Olrik's Office, 1 day after Allen's Escape

"It's been three years Colonel, I figured you would have called in this favor by now." Olrik offered Falkenhorst a seat. "I've been tempted on many occasions, but this time I am trapped by my own position, and this operation will require a delicacy I am completely incapable of." Falkenhorst raised a gloved hand to his chin, "I never thought you'd let yourself be trapped by a desk, and you're right. Your specialty has always been broadswords over scalpels. Now explain to me what exactly it is you want me to do." The colonel stood from his desk and walked over to a window, staring out into the bay. "The damage to this base was done by two men, one of whom I hold personally responsible. Not only did he wreck a good part of this base but also he killed many of my prestigious prisoners and also embarrassed me at the General Inspection Tour I was hosting at the time. My promotion to General needless to say, is now further off than Tatooine. I need you to find this prisoner, this mark Allen, any information on him you can get me as well. It must be discreet though, I have to have this dealt with personally so that rumors of my incompetence can be diffused before they reach the highest levels."

Falkenhorst stood and walked out of the room, "I'm almost disappointed that you give me such an easy task after all that you've done for me. Needless to say I will find this man. If the information you have given me is accurate then he can't be too far from here now." Even if he somehow found a way to use one of those accursed transporters he still couldn't have made it out of this region without being detected. He's out there and when I find him he will be dead."

Yosemite Forest, at that same moment

"...And that's when Alyeska handed me the transporter unit. The next thing I knew I was here and you were coming to greet me." Allen had just finished his report on the escape from Oakland Prison to the members of the Federation resistance based in the Yosemite Forest. His inquisitor had sat motionless throughout the meeting. "I see, Alyeska never shied away from a challenge but all of those people in that prison. It just doesn't seem worth it." Allen stood, "I understand how you feel. Listen, I can't exactly stay long though I need to start making my way home." The inquisitor, who refused to give his name to strangers in these troubled times, lifted his head. "Oh, and where might home be?" "Well most of my friends and relatives were in San Francisco but my parents live in New Orleans." The older man laughed a bit and then sighed. "New Orleans used to be a beautiful place this time of year, one of the few places left on the Earth where it was still legal to purchase large quantities of hard liquor?" "What does that have to do with anything, nothing on this continent took an orbital bombardment I thought."

The Inquisitor paced a bit, Allen noticed he was walking with a slight limp. "You're right, so far North America has not been bombarded, however, during the first days of the occupation several influential leaders gathered in New Orleans to speak out against aggressive Imperial tactics. Not more than an hour later the Empire had sent TIE Bombers to systematically level the city. The civilian survivors were then taken aboard transports and shuttled off to some experimental colony the Empire is trying to run and the only thing left of the city are piles of ash and rubble." Allen felt emotion well up n him again, it was very possible that his parents were now either dead or Imperial slaves.

"Listen, I know this is a hard time for you but if you still want to fight we could make use of you." The Inquisitor handed a piece of paper and a small bag of supplies to Allen. "Alyeska was going to go on this mission for us, but now you're the only one we can spare, please." Allen hesitated, and then took the items. "I owe that man a debt I can't repay. What is it you ask?" "You will go to San Francisco. At the old Federation Embassy Complex on Cochrane Street there is a secret meeting of regional resistance fighters. Go there and carry on your fight against the Empire. When you get there, just remember the famed birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk for the password."

"Fine, I'll do it. You have to take me at least as far as the outskirts though." The old man coughed a bit and grasped at his chest. Allen rose to help but he was waved off. "It's ok, I'm just a little out of breath right now. I'll have a transport get you to the San Francisco city limits, before the Imperial checkpoints begin." The old man hobbled his way back into the forest, and another man wearing the uniform of a Starfleet marine took his place. "This way, I will be a long drive, so if you want to rest on the way go right ahead." Allen shook his head and looked towards the sky, wondering what it was he was getting into.

The transport was a stripped down shuttlecraft that had its phasers and all of its computer equipment removed save for the navigational systems. The roof of the shuttle had been removed also. "We had to remove the roof so that the Empire would be less suspicious of the craft, the phasers were removed so we can pass sensor scans, and the other equipment was removed for more passenger room as well as cargo. All of the materials are going to be sent off to a secret location so they can be used later. "For what though, wouldn't it have been better to keep the shuttle intact, especially the weapons?" The pilot brought the shuttle down lower over the ground; there were altitude restrictions in this area. "Alyeska taught us that any resource we have means that our enemy has one fewer. It also means that if we need those things at a later date we can use them then. Besides shuttlecrafts are worthless against TIE fighters, they just weren't designed for that type of combat."

The shuttle set down on a hill outside of the city. Allen actually saw the city for the first time since he had left during the invasion. Once great buildings lay in rubble or stood precariously with large chunks taken out of the side. The once majestic Golden gate bridge, which had stood for centuries, was no longer prominent in the skyline and was now resting at the bottom of the Bay. "This is insane, how did I ever make it out of here alive." The pilot tossed Allen the gear bag. "Don't lose that satchel, it's something Alyeska taught us. If you leave it behind and the Empire finds it, they might be able to trace it back to you. Then they trace anyone they can link to you." "I understand, thank you for taking me this far." The shuttle took off and moved back to the hidden refuge in Yosemite.

Allen waited until it was dark before he made his approach into the city. Fortunately there wasn't much more than a token Imperial presence, meant to keep the pitiful and starving remnants of he city in line and to remind them every day that the Empire was in power. It was at that moment, that Allen vowed to fight the Empire at every turn. Not resting until he was victorious.

Castle Machina, New York City

Moff Wong looked out the window of his throne room. The city of New York had been the perfect choice for his capital and now the construction droids were making his dream of a new Coruscant come true. He had always aspired to build great things, weapons, buildings, even an empire of his own. Now all of those things and more were coming together on this planet Earth. The Emperor had given him the world and now he was remaking it the way it was supposed to be. His master plans were far from completion though; the West Coast of North America was among many places left on Earth where futile rebellions had begun their guerilla wars. However, they were still unlearned in the tactics used by the Rebel Alliance back in the home galaxy. Soon he would order his forces to begin purging those areas, and this and every other world in the quadrant would be his to rule. He opened the window and walked out on the balcony and admired the city from above.

"Look at what happens to the cities that serve me, they prosper and the people become wealthy. The West, where resistance groups have refused to allow progress to take place, has suffered and crumbled where once proud cities thrived. This is the way my world works, the people that live in it can serve me or die."


END OF THE FIRST SAGA

[Darth Fanboy]

Thus ends "Escape from San Francisco" hoping you've enjoyed the story so for. The next saga will have a lot of explosions, shootouts, some exposions, some uber Imperial hardware straight from Toronto, and definitly explosions.

In the meantime there might still be a side story depending on wether or not I can pry myself away from the playstation.