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Headlong Flight

Page 26

by Dayton Ward


  Try as he might, Picard could not stay in his chair. It was as though it burned him whenever he tried sitting in it. His only recourse seemed to be pacing that expanse of deck between his chair and the conn and ops positions. He did so in slow, deliberate fashion, taking advantage of the motion to inspect each of the workstations within his field of vision. Status indicators provided him with all he needed to determine the condition of the ship. Those things that were not at full capacity concerned him, but there was nothing to be done about those issues now. For better or worse, he along with the Enterprise and every­one else aboard her were committed.

  On the viewscreen, Ushalon drifted within the violet maelstrom that was NGC 8541. Though Picard knew it was ludicrous, he could not shake the feeling that the pallid gray world somehow seemed more alive now. How much longer would he be able to gaze upon it? Once it was gone, would it ever return? He hoped not, for the sake of the people who called it home.

  “Reactor power levels at eighty-four percent,” reported Glinn Ravel Dygan from the ops console. The Cardassian had taken over monitoring the status of the Sidrac fusion reactor and quantum-field generator, providing constant updates about the facility deep beneath the planet’s surface. This left oversight of the ship’s deflector shields and the main deflector array to Lieutenant Aneta Šmrhová.

  From the bridge intraship, Geordi La Forge said, “That’s probably as good as it’s going to get, Captain.” The chief engineer had only returned to the Enterprise moments ago, and Picard could hear the tension in the other man’s voice.

  “Understood, Commander,” replied Picard. “Stand by.”

  “We’re ready here, Captain,” said Will Riker over the open communication frequency shared by both Enterprises and the Romulan warship. “We’ve linked into the signal buoy’s transmission stream just as we did before, and adjusted our proximity to the planet in line with our previous shift. Here goes nothing.”

  Sarith, her voice taut, added, “We are in position, as well, Enterprise.”

  Halting his pacing, Picard centered himself between Dygan and Lieutenant Faur at the conn position and said, “Enterprise to Nelidar. What is your status?”

  On the viewscreen, the image of Ushalon was replaced by that of the female Sidrac. “Our calculations for the transition to target location three are finalized, Captain. We are preparing to generate the new quantum field.”

  “Good luck, Nelidar. Perhaps one day our people will meet again.”

  Nelidar bowed her head. “I look forward to that day, Captain. Stand by. We are initiating the new quantum field.”

  Uncertain as to what to expect, Picard remained in place as the Sidrac disappeared from the screen and the image of Ushalon returned. The planet looked as unremarkable and even uninviting as it always had.

  “Picking up elevated quantum fluctuations,” reported Dina Elfiki from the science station. “The increase is steady. Matching the quantum signature.” Her hands moved across her science console as she divided her attention between sensor readings and the monitors providing her with additional information she extracted from the ship’s computer banks. “It’s a match, sir. Target location three confirmed.”

  “Captain,” said Worf from where he stood to the right of the command area. “Look.”

  On the screen, Ushalon was beginning to waver, and portions of the planet were fading, to the point Picard could see the nebula behind it.

  “We’re starting to get some feedback from our power transfer, Captain,” said La Forge over the speakers.

  Glinn Dygan reported, “Power levels in the reactor are starting to drop, sir.”

  “It’s the shift, Captain.” La Forge’s voice sounded harried, and Picard waited as the chief engineer issued a series of terse, indecipherable commands to one of his people.

  “We’re losing our connection to the power distribution network.”

  Glancing over his shoulder to Šmrhová, Picard asked, “Shield status?”

  “Holding at sixty-one percent,” replied the security chief. “Even though we’re not supposed to be going anywhere, it could get bumpy for us.”

  Picard returned his attention to the screen, feeling his jaw tighten as he watched the planet Ushalon trying to disappear.

  What was taking so long?

  ChR Bloodied Talon

  Something was wrong, Sarith decided.

  “This is not working,” she said. Her fists clenched at her sides, she stalked a circuit around the bridge’s central hub. The illumination had been reduced to tactical mode, freeing up extra power for the ship’s deflector shields and also eliminating glare on the various display screens arrayed at stations around the room.

  “The quantum field is increasing,” reported Subcommander Variel, who now stood beside Centurion Darjil at the sensor station. The science officer had been tasked with monitoring the quantum energy readings throughout the upcoming transition. “Energy readings are rising rapidly.”

  “Our shields are at half strength,” reported Centurion N’tovek from the weapons station. “The quantum fluctuations are already straining the generators. If this continues, they may overload.”

  Sarith asked, “What about the N’minecci and the Jarax?” On the advice of the human captain, she had ordered the crews from their two support vessels transferred to the Talon to ride out the transfer. At this moment, all available berthing and cargo space was allocated to supporting their new guests. It would be a tight fit on the lower levels, but it was a minor inconvenience while pursuing the greater prize.

  “Their shields are already approaching the overload point, Commander,” reported Darjil. “If we continue to tow the vessels, that is power we do not have for our shields.”

  “I am aware of our ship’s power needs, Centurion,” said Sarith. “And our link to the beacon?”

  Standing before the communications station, Centurion Skerius replied, “Our connection to its broadcast signal is holding steady, Commander.”

  “Look at this,” said Subcommander Ineti, and when Sarith turned in his direction it was to see her second-in-command scrutinizing the image of the planet depicted on the viewscreen. Stepping closer, Sarith saw that the gray, dead world was shimmering while parts of it faded in and out of sight.

  “It begins,” she said. All around her, she could hear the Bloodied Talon’s mounting protests at the stresses being placed upon it. She saw anxiety in the faces of her subordinates, who were doing their best to present a brave front as they forced themselves to attend to their individual responsibilities.

  “Commander Sarith,” said the voice of the human captain Riker over the active communications frequency currently being shared between the Talon and the two Starfleet vessels. “The shift is starting. Hold your position and maintain your link to the buoy.”

  Everything had come down to this; waiting while others worked to secure the Talon’s return to its own dimension. Assuming this gambit was successful, how would she explain it all to her superiors? What would Toqel, her mother and trusted advisor to Praetor Vrax, think or say when she learned that her daughter had allowed her ship and crew to be assisted by humans? Would Sarith’s decisions and action—or lack of same—bring disgrace to Toqel and perhaps their entire family?

  None of that mattered just now.

  “Our shield generators are beginning to overheat,” reported N’tovek. “Shield output at one-third strength.”

  “The Jarax!” It was Ineti, manipulating the view­screen controls to change the monitor’s image. Sarith looked past N’tovek to see that the subcommander had called up an image of the escort ship from the Talon’s sensor array. She was in time to see the smaller vessel’s hull starting to buckle under the unseen forces being heaped upon it.

  “Sever the tractor beam,” she ordered. There was no sense diverting energy to preserve a ship that obviously could not stand up to the strain
they were experiencing, and Sarith knew they might still need the power for her own ship’s defenses. Noting that the second escort was also showing signs of succumbing to the escalating quantum fluctuations, she said, “Do it for the N’minecci as well. Divert energy from the tractor system to the shields.”

  Ineti replied, “Yes, Commander.” His response came just as, on the screen, the Jarax starting to drift now that it was free of the Talon’s tractor beam.

  “Shield strength improving, Commander,” reported N’tovek, “but only slightly.”

  Based on their past experience with this phenomenon, Sarith knew that the shields operating at that capacity would not be sufficient to protect the Talon from the effects of the dimensional shift. Indeed, the ship might end up suffering even greater damage than it had before, and this time it might be too much for her engineer to repair.

  “Stand by to break all connections,” she said, turning back to the central hub. “Prall, plot a course away from the planet and the Federation ships.”

  Turning from the viewscreen, Ineti eyed her with concern. “Commander? If we abandon this course, we may never see home again.”

  “And if we continue as we have, we may die.” In her mind, there was no choice. They would find Romulans here, in this dimension, who would provide support. For all she knew, the Empire of this reality had developed the sort of technology required to accomplish what she and her crew were now witnessing.

  “Sarith!” It was Riker again, blaring over the open channel. “What are you doing?”

  U.S.S. Enterprise-D

  Pushing himself from his chair, Riker moved to where Wesley Crusher once more manned the conn position. “What are they doing?” On the bridge’s main view­screen, the planet Ushalon was becoming more indistinct with every passing second. The dimensional transition was well under way, and there was no turning back now.

  “Their shields are failing, sir,” replied Wesley. “They might be panicking.”

  “What’s our status?”

  At the tactical station behind Riker, Tasha Yar said, “Shields holding steady, sir, along with our fix on the targeting buoy. We’re pretty much right in line with what we had the last time.” She shook her head. “Captain, without shields the Romulan ship is going to get pounded pretty hard.”

  “We could extend our own shields as a means of protecting the Romulan vessel,” said Data. “We would lose some strength in the transfer, but it would only be needed for a short time.”

  Riker nodded. “It’s better than anything I’m going to come up with. Bridge to engineering. Geordi, we need to extend our shields around the Romulan ship. Can we do it?” There was a brief pause, and Riker imagined he could hear his chief engineer swearing under his breath as he considered the unorthodox maneuver.

  “We can do it,” replied La Forge, “but it’s going to weaken the whole bubble around both our ships.”

  “But only for a minute or so, right?” asked Riker.

  La Forge said, “Sure, but that’s all it takes to blow us up.”

  “Do it.” Moving to Worf, he tapped the Klingon on his shoulder. “Take us in closer. Maybe we can cheat this a little bit.”

  “We’re extending shields,” reported Yar. “Total shield strength now at sixty-eight percent.”

  Riker grimaced, unhappy with the number. “That’s just going to have to do.” This was no time to play it safe.

  “Picard to Captain Riker,” said the Enterprise-E’s captain over the shared channel. “We see what you’re doing. We may be able to—”

  His voice faded in the midst of what to Riker sounded like the rush of oncoming water. Vivid white light pulled inward from the edges of his vision, and a wave of vertigo washed over him. He grabbed the back of Worf’s chair for support. Squinting, he could just make out the image of Ushalon on the viewscreen, mere seconds before it and everything around him dissolved into nothingness.

  26

  HERE

  U.S.S. Enterprise-E

  All around him, the ship shuddered, struggling to come to terms with the strain to which it was being subjected. Picard ignored the wails of alarms that sounded due to overloaded circuits and burned-out relays, trusting his people to address whatever issue had caused a particular alarm. Instead, his attention was riveted to the viewscreen, and he watched as Ushalon disappeared. Within seconds, the planet was gone, leaving behind only the silent beauty of the nebula.

  “Discontinuing main deflector beam,” reported Lieutenant Šmrhová at the tactical station.

  Pivoting away from the viewscreen, Picard asked, “What about those Romulan escort vessels?”

  The security chief replied, “Both of them took pretty decent beatings, sir. Neither ship was occupied.”

  Picard allowed himself a small sigh of relief, thankful that Commander Sarith had heeded his suggestion to transfer the crew of the two smaller, more vulnerable ships to her own vessel. “Any change in the buoy’s transmission beam?”

  “Nothing yet, sir.”

  Commander La Forge had told him to expect a delay in any sort of confirmation that Ushalon’s transfer was successful. Owing to the power drain of the Sidrac’s fusion reactor and the need to continue with the process of targeting and shifting to the next dimension, Picard knew there might not be time for Riker or Nelidar to dispatch the messages all had agreed to send upon reaching their destinations. There might also be other, unanticipated effects from the transition that Riker and his crew would now be forced to address in order to bolster their chances of returning to their own dimension.

  And there’s nothing we can do to help them.

  “Glinn Dygan,” he said. “Damage report.”

  The Cardassian exchange officer turned in his seat. “Nothing serious, Captain. Overloaded circuits and power distribution nodes. Commander La Forge reports his teams are already addressing those issues.”

  Small favors, Picard decided. The ability to prepare for the effects of the quantum fluctuations and the dimensional shift had played a large role in the ship being able to weather the event, but he knew that the Enterprise-E was the vessel least impacted by the entire affair. For the rest of this bold plan to succeed, its counterpart would bear the brunt of the punishment. The task had become that much harder after Captain Riker’s daring maneuver to protect the more vulnerable Romulan warship with his ship’s deflector shields. What effect might that have on the Enterprise-D’s ability to withstand whatever it might endure in the midst of successive transitions?

  There was no way to know. All that remained for Picard and his people was the waiting.

  Good luck, Will.

  ELSEWHERE

  ChR Bloodied Talon

  The disorientation, not nearly as severe as during their previous shift, faded. Realizing she was still holding on to the edge of the sensor console for support, Sarith released her grip and stepped away from the central hub. A hint of smoke lingered in the air, signaling some kind of overstressed power conduit or other component. Around the cramped bridge, several of her subordinates were already removing access panels and examining the innards of different consoles and equipment. Sarith noted that there were no audible alarms.

  “Report,” she snapped. “Is there any new damage?”

  Subcommander Ineti was already consulting the instruments dedicated to monitoring the Talon’s shipboard systems. “Our shield generators have automatically deactivated in order to avoid overload. There are numerous circuit burnouts across the ship, but nothing critical.”

  “Commander,” said Variel from the sensor station. “I have scanned for the targeting beacon in this dimension, and it possesses the proper quantum signature.” The subcommander looked away from her controls, her expression one of surprise. “We are home.”

  Ineti said, “So, the human captain was being truthful after all.”

  “It would seem so.” Sari
th could not help looking to the viewscreen, where an image of the planet was once more displayed. Beyond the dead world was the welcoming sight of the Lirostahl Nebula, where this entire bizarre journey had begun. She did not think she would ever be happy to see the familiar yet mind-numbing clouds of blue-green gases. “What of the Enterprise?”

  Darjil replied, “Their shield strength is down considerably, Commander. Extending their screens to protect us was a dangerous maneuver, but their ship appears to have escaped serious damage. They have activated their deflector array and the Enterprise is channeling power to the quantum-field generator.”

  The next phase of this audacious plan, Sarith knew. Without the other Starfleet ship to provide assistance, this Enterprise was now responsible for helping the Sidrac power their facility long enough to complete at least two more dimensional shifts. The situation would grow more precarious following the next transition.

  Only for the most fleeting of moments did Sarith consider the tactical situation. As a Romulan soldier, evaluating an adversary and seeking a strategic advantage came without conscious thought. Despite training and instinct attempting to assert itself, she halted that line of thought as she considered the true danger the Starfleet captain had accepted to protect her ship and crew. The human, Riker, had done so without hesitation, placing his own vessel in harm’s way as though they were allies or even trusted friends rather than enemies. Sarith wondered if, with the circumstances reversed, she might have acted in similar fashion. She was surprised, and somewhat ashamed, to realize she had no answer to her own question.

  If it were only so easy for all of us to trust one another, to undertake risk on behalf of one another.

  “Is the communications link still open?” she asked.

  Centurion Skerius replied, “Yes, Commander.”

  Moving to the console for the main viewscreen, Sarith tapped the control and the image of the planet was replaced by that of the bearded human, Riker. Behind the Starfleet captain, she observed the number of alarm indicators flashing along the back wall of his ship’s bridge.

 

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