by Edward H. Bart IV

CAUTION: Contains some coarse language and violent situations, PG-13 equivalent

This book is dedicated to DeForest Kelley who played Doctor Leonard H. (Bones) McCoy. CMO of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 and 1701-A



What Went Before:
        Seven Years Ago....

        “You are all go,” the comm system announced. Captain Callista Keller sat proudly in her command seat. She looked around the bridge, at her crew. After months of intensive training and simulations, the day had come. Keller and her crew would take the prototype ship out from the Sol system.
        “Helm, you heard Command. Power up the Transwarp Drive,” Keller commanded.
        “Aye aye, sir!” Lieutenant Miller replied. She ran her nimble fingers over the conn console, sending the order to Engineering to start up the power relays which would feed electroplasma power into the latest Transwarp Drive. All thoughts about previous transwarp tests which yielded negligible results were banished from Lieutenant Miller’s mind. She was confident that the Research & Development team, the team that had labored on this Transwarp Project for years, had succeeded this time.
        Captain Keller held the same confidence. She was sure that each of the 46 other crewmembers aboard held the same confidence all over the ship. However, it wouldn’t hurt for some inspirational words. Keller pressed a console on her armrest, opening a comm channel.
        “This is Captain Keller to everyone. As we prepare to embark on the first actual Transwarp test flight, I wanted to say a few words. First of all, I wish to commend each and everyone of you for your hard work and dedication to this project. Next, I wish to commend you all for making this a successful test flight. I know, we haven’t even left yet. However, I’m optimistic enough to say so at this point. I’m proud to be with you all.” She looked around the bridge, seeing proud smiles on the rest of the bridge crew. She nodded, acknowledging their smiles.
        “The success of the new Transwarp Drive will inaugurate a new era in space travel and exploration. This flight will become a legend. The U.S.S. Galaxy and her crew will become a legend. Captain Keller out.”
        “Good speech, sir,” Miller said, turning to face the captain.
        “Thank you, lieutenant.”
        “Engineering reports all ready. Just say the word,” Miller smiled.
        Captain Keller settled back in her seat. She said the word. “Engage.”

        The other ships gathered near Pluto watched as the U.S.S. Galaxy made the jump into transwarp. A bright glowing light surrounded the large ship, until the observers could only see the outline of the broad saucer and the three warp nacelles. The image of the ship shimmered, then snapped in another flash of bright light.
        When the light faded, the ship was gone. Cheers arose throughout the other ships. These cheers slowly subsided as the first signs of trouble came in.
        Captain Keller was correct. The U.S.S. Galaxy became a legend, but not in the way she expected.

What Went Elsewhere:
        Within the interspatial vortex that conveyed the precursor of the Vendoth Armada, a scientist glanced over her computer readouts. Her green fingers ran over the computer panel, her trimmed claws tapping lightly on the surface.
        The Vendoth looked up from her computer panel and tightened her jaw. “Tr’Dunarg, Is the data you are feeding me correct?” she asked her subordinate, who stood stiffly nearby.
        “Yes, Qe’doth Project Leader,” Tr’Dunarg murmured in reply. “All sensors have been calibrated thrice, and filtered. The information you are reviewing is correct.”
        Aung’Rama’s quills flexed as her frustration became evident. “This bears further investigation.”
        Another Vendoth stepped to the central station. “Qe’doth Project Leader, this VenQu’ respectfully offers a contrary viewpoint.”
        “What is it?” Aung’Rama asked.
        “As per our order specifications, we are to journey through the vortex along the prescribed pathway,” the security chief stated.
        “Yes, VenQu’ Roq’Ragn, to ensure smooth transit for the Mer’jot Armada. I am fully aware of our order specifications.”
        “In my opinion, the benefits of diverting our vessel’s course does not outweigh the benefits of adhering to course,” Roq’Ragn clasped his hands behind his back, thrusting his chest to Aung’Rama, indicating his confidence.
        Aung’Rama clicked the stubs of her three talons together against her sharpened thumb talon as she mused over several courses of actions and responses. With a few seconds, she had crafted a response.
        She fixed her dark, deep-set eyes on Roq’Ragn. “VenQu’ Roq’Ragn, I see your point of view. However, your point of view does not matter, since I am the Project Leader, chosen by the Roj Che’dak’s staff. Naturally, as such, my judgment overrides yours. You may return to your station.”
        Roq’Ragn jutted out his jaw, exposing his two lower fangs and turned on his feet, walking away from the central station without a word. Aung’Rama kept her eyes on him as he resumed his post. After a moment, Aung’Rama returned her gaze to her monitor. “Craft Navigator Si’Paien, please adjust course to the coordinates I have entered.”
        Tr’Dunarg remained standing next to the central station. Aung’Rama turned to look at him. “We shall have to investigate this anomaly. While it’s to be expected for temporal instabilities to occur within the vortex, these readings have the indications of interdimesional instabilities.”
        Tr’Dunarg bowed his head slightly. “Yes, Project Leader. That is why I triple-checked sensor readings.”
        “It is good you did. Your initiative shall be noted in my evaluation report. However, be mindful of your position aboard my craft. Now, if these readings do bear fruit, we may be on the threshold of proving Kart’esdec’s theorem regarding interdimesional rifts. As the first Doths, we will have the exclusive rights to research this phenomenon. This will be a tremendous honor to us all.”
        Si’Paien turned at her post. “Project Leader, we are approaching the coordinates.”
        “Sensor readings on view,” Aung’Rama ordered. She turned to look at a curved wall with multiple monitors, each showing a different sensor wavelength. She took in the multiple feeds simultaneously, assembling a mental view of the anomaly.
        Outside of the angular scout shuttle, a roiling mass of energy spun slowly, reminding her of the Pylops’tren storm on the gas giant in her home system. Just like the storm’s size dwarfed her home planet, the anomaly dwarfed her scout shuttle.
        “Si’Paien, maintain a cautious distance,” Aung’Rama warned.
        “Yes, Project Leader.”
        Tr’Dunarg walked to his station, running his fingers over several menus. “Project Leader, readings are fluctuating the closer we are. I am detecting an increase in gravimetric forces.”
        Aung’Rama turned to the navigator. “Increase distance between us and the anomaly!”
        “I cannot!” Si’Paien declared. “We have lost momentum. We are in a gravitational stasis.”
        “Increase power allotment to impulse motivators,” Aung’Rama ordered.
        “No effect,” Si’Paien reported.
        “Increase power allotment to gravitational dampeners.”
        “No effect.”
        Roq’Ragn declared, “Project Leader, the rest of the expeditionary fleet has passed by us. Within the next moment, the vortex bubble will pass by, and we will revert to realspace.”
        Tr’Dunarg looked at Aung’Rama. “I do not know the effect the anomaly will have on us, upon reversal.”
        Aung’Rama hissed a long breath. “Well, we shall find out. Is there time to-”

Chapter 1

        Lieutenant Janet Kyle stroked the armrests of the command seat, as she sat in it on the U.S.S. Courageous’s bridge. She liked the feeling of power that it implied. The small monitors at her hands allowed her instant access to any and all aspects of the starship’s operation. If she wanted to, she could take control of the helm, and put the Courageous-class ship into a corkscrew barrel roll maneuver.
        Of course, if she did, she’d have a hell of a lot to explain to her commanding officer, Captain Thomas Johnson. Instead, Kyle remained content with reviewing the periodical status reports from the other various departments aboard the bridge. It was the night shift, her shift. As the third in command, behind Johnson and the first officer, Major Max Ironsides, it was her duty to command the ship on the third shift.
        She enjoyed it very much. She enjoyed sitting in the command seat. The only thing she didn’t enjoy was the boredom of the night shift. Almost nothing happened during the night shift. If the captain expected something to happen, he’d be sitting in the command seat instead of Kyle. He had done so for several weeks in Romulan space. Kyle had resented that. She resented the implication that she wasn’t capable of handling whatever emergencies might have arisen.
        Her ego was placated when Captain Johnson had explained that he had done that due to behavioral modifications by outside parties. The captain had apologized to Kyle and reassured her that he still believed her to be a capable Executive Officer. Kyle recalled that the captain had to make quite a few apologies for his behavior to others as well.
        Kyle sighed, and looked at the viewscreen. The only image was of the blue vortex of the quantum slipstream the ship was traveling in. The No Man’s Land was a vast wasteland, utterly devoid of celestial bodies. Planetary systems, asteroid belts, comets and the like were not to be found here. The stars were few and far between. There was nothing of worth at all in this large stretch of space. Therefore, no one wanted it. Hence the name, No Man’s Land. No government bothered to stake a claim.
        It was not very interesting at all. However, it stretched across vast sectors of space, which would require years upon years of traveling at Warp Factor 9. But with the introduction of the Quantum Slipstream Drive by the now famous U.S.S. Voyager, vast distances were no longer daunting. The U.S.S. Courageous boasted the first Federation Quantum Slipstream Drive, based on the one the Voyager used.
        Now, what would have taken decades to traverse, only took a month. The ship had been in this slipstream since leaving Romulan space three weeks ago. There was nothing to do but maintain the slipstream’s structural integrity. The sparseness of No Man’s Land offered no other distractions. The night shift was even more boring than usual. Kyle started tapping her fingers on the armrest idly, as she settled in to pass the long hours.
        Kyle heard a turbolift whine to a stop, then the hiss of opening doors immediately thereafter. She turned to see who was the new arrival.
        “Oh, Sir!” Kyle looked up at Johnson in surprise. She began to stand, as per protocol for when a captain stepped onto the bridge.
        “At ease, lieutenant,” Johnson waved his hand. She noticed that the captain wasn’t wearing his usual black uniform. Instead, he wore light brown pants and a grey longsleeved shirt, with a large number 86 on the front and back. Kyle recognized it as the captain’s old Parrises Square team shirt.
        Kyle sat down hesitatingly. “I wasn’t expecting you. Is this a surprise inspection?”
        “Oh, no, nothing of the sort,” Johnson shook his head. “I just couldn’t sleep. The last few weeks have been so boring. Even my dreams have become boring. Well, except for that one dream...” Johnson frowned and shook his head, shrugging it off. He looked back at Kyle. “Anyway, I thought I’d come up to my ready room and do a little paint work on my starship models.”
        “I see, sir,” Kyle nodded slowly.
        Johnson shot her a friendly smile and walked across to the entrance to his ready room.
        Ensign Polonski called out. “Sir, I’m picking up something odd.”
        “What is it?” both Kyle and Johnson asked. Johnson caught himself and took a step back. He looked at Kyle.
        “I’m sorry. You’re on duty. I’m not. You can take care of everything. I’ll be in my ready room.” Johnson then stepped in front of the doors, allowing them to slide open for him.
        Kyle turned to look at Polonski at tactical. “What did you pick up?”
        The young man shook his head, shrugging. “I don’t know. The signal just vanished.”
        “Hmm,” Kyle frowned. Inwardly, she was smiling. Finally! Something to do, She thought to herself. She looked at the ensign. “Pull out the recording from memory. Play it back, use standard communications protocol.”
        “Aye, sir.” Polonski ran his fingers across the black tactical console, examining the mystery signal. “I think I may have something. I’m not sure, but I think it’s a fragment of the first part of a Federation automated distress signal.”
        “Really? Out here in No Man’s Land?” Kyle tilted her head at that news.
        “That’s what it looks like to me,” Polonski replied.
        “Can you determine where it came from? Which ship it came from? When it was sent?”
        “I doubt it. As I said, it’s only a small fragment. I’ll do my best.”
        Kyle turned around in her seat, facing front now. She leaned on an elbow, pondering what to do next. Should she call in the captain now? With only the barest hint of information they had? Or should she wait until morning when his shift began?
        “Jakob, you’re sure it’s a fragment of a distress signal?”
        “I am reasonably certain of that,” Ensign Polonski answered.
        “That’s that, then,” Kyle said. “Bridge to Captain Johnson.”
        “What is it?” Johnson asked over the comm.
        “It’s a mystery, that’s what it is,” Kyle muttered sotto voce. She cleared her throat and reported back. “Ensign Polonski picked up a signal. He believes it to be a fragment of a Federation automated distress signal.”
        “Out here?” Johnson’s voice replied. “As far as I know, we’re the only other Federation ship ever to travel this way, after the Voyager.”
        “I know. Still, the signal was there.”
        “I see,” Johnson said.
        “I have him working on tracing its location, and ship of origin.”
        “Good. I see you’re on top of everything. Keep me informed.”
        “Yes sir. Any other orders?” Kyle asked.
        “Not at the moment. There’s nothing we can do until we find out more about that signal. Until then, maintain course for the Borderlands.”
        “Yes, sir.”

        “Hey, the distress signal is back!” Ensign Polonski called out. “No, it’s gone again.”
        Kyle sighed. “Well at least we know it’s really there, not a distortion of the quantum slipstream we’re in, don’t we?”
        “I’m not even sure about that, sir. Really, I can’t say anything for sure unless we were out of the quantum slipstream. Sensors are only at half strength from within the quantum slipstream. All our other systems are affected as well.”
        Kyle nodded, acknowledging Polonski’s point. She bit her lower lip and mulled over the situation. “I don’t think we should do that. You know as well as I do, if we drop out of the slipstream, it’ll take weeks to calculate another set of slipstream variables. You have nothing to lock onto anyway. Now if we were receiving the signal as we dropped out...” Kyle’s voice trailed off as she thought about the options.
        “It’s back!” Polonski shouted.
        Kyle spun around and looked at the helmsman. She froze for a split-second. The words were out of her mouth before she consciously chose to speak them. “Drop out of the slipstream. All stop.”

        “Oh God! Oh God!”
        Ensign LeAnn Walker arched her back as she squirmed in her seat. Her quarters were dark, illuminated only by the iridescent blue-white glow of the quantum slipstream the starship was traveling through. It was enough light for LeAnn to look down to her lover, Lieutenant Amanda Ruiz, kneeling on the floor in front of her.
        “You like that, huh?” Ruiz smiled, her dark eyes looking up at LeAnn.
        “Oh yes,” LeAnn panted. “It feels so good. Oh! Mmmm...” LeAnn bit her lip as Ruiz resumed her work. She looked down, watching Ruiz. “You’re so good at this... you just know how to rub it right...”
        Ruiz stopped and looked back up at LeAnn. “Well, I picked it up in Basic Training in Starfleet Marines training. It’s come in handy a lot. Especially after long hikes.”
        LeAnn wiggled her toes playfully as Ruiz began massaging the sole of her foot. LeAnn rolled her eyes back in her head, and sighed contentedly, settling in her seat. “Oh, Mandy, that feels so wonderful. I wish I knew how to do it as well you do.”
        Ruiz smiled. “That’s allright. You do other things that I like just as much.”
        “Really? Like what?”
        Ruiz smirked. “I love the way you nibble on my ear.”
        “Oh yeah...” LeAnn smiled softly. “You know, the Bajorans believe that the pagh is accessible through the ear. You can really tap into a person’s soul that way.”
        “Do you believe that?”
        LeAnn shrugged, and wiped her blond hair out of her eyes. “Well, not really. My mother wasn’t all that devout in her beliefs. And my father, well, he’s human so he never really got into it.”
        Ruiz nodded. “I understand. I’m a lapsed Catholic myself.” Ruiz got onto her feet and stood up slowly, sitting in the large armchair next to LeAnn. She leaned in to kiss LeAnn. “Feet all better?”
        “Yes,” LeAnn replied, kissing Ruiz back. “Much better.”
        “Good,” Ruiz nodded.
        LeAnn ran her fingers through Ruiz’s short, dark shoulder length hair, twirling a strand around her finger. “Is there anything I can do for you? How can I make you feel as good as you made me feel?”
        Ruiz’s brown eyes glittered as she looked in LeAnn’s eyes. “Well... why don’t you nibble on my ear as I think about it?”
        LeAnn laughed, her lilting voice filling the quarters. “You’re almost Bajoran in your ear fetish!” LeAnn sighed, shaking her head bemusedly.
        Ruiz ran an index finger down the faint ridges on LeAnn’s nose. “You know, these past few weeks we’ve had together have been so great.”
        “It’s been really good for me too,” LeAnn agreed.
        “I never thought I’d be so happy to spend a month doing nothing,” Ruiz murmured.
        “Me too.”
        “Walker...”
        “Yes, Amanda?”
        “I’m really happy I found you.”
        “I’m happy too,” LeAnn nodded slowly.
        Ruiz’s lips tightened as she swallowed. “I... I just wanted to tell you that... I--”
        The room suddenly went dark as the undulating light streaming through the exterior windows vanished.
        “Now what?” Ruiz frowned, looking out the windows. Very few pinpoints of stars were visible now, the quantum slipstream gone.

        The helmsman had went to work quickly. He had been listening and knew time was of essence. The large ship shuddered slightly as the energies of the quantum slipstream were allowed to dissipate around them. The viewscreen showed the spiral waves of the slipstream fading away. A few stars came into view. The helmsman then worked on cutting off the ship’s leftover momentum.
        Kyle spun around to look at Polonski. “You got it?”
        “Got it! Analyzing it now...”
        The door to the ready room opened. “What the hell is going on? Why are we out of the slipstream?” Johnson asked darkly. He stared at Kyle, awaiting an answer.
        “I’m sorry, sir. I ordered us out of the slipstream,” Kyle said. “The ensign informed me that he was unable to trace or analyze the mystery signal unless we were out of the slipstream. It had been reaching us erratically, fading in and out. It had just appeared and I had to make a quick judgment call.”
        Johnson frowned and Kyle could see his jaw muscles at work beneath his skin. The captain glanced over at Polonski. “Have you reacquired the signal?”
        Ensign Polonski nodded “Yes, sir. I have. I’m running an full analysis on it now.”
        Johnson slowly exhaled. He looked at Kyle then back at the young ensign. “Continue doing so.” He looked at Kyle again. “We’ll see if your judgment call pans out. If not...” Johnson let the words linger in the air. He turned and walked back into his ready room.

        The first shift of the new day was on the bridge when Johnson walked out of his ready room. Chief Bogarde and Garak were immersed in a discussion at the tactical station. Lieutenant Ruiz and Ensign LeAnn were talking as they controlled the Courageous’s flight.
        Johnson didn’t see Lieutenant Kyle. Instead, he saw Major Ironsides, his first officer and the ship’s Marine Commanding Officer, seated in the command seat. He sighed. Perhaps he had been too hard on the lieutenant earlier. After all, if the signal turned out to be nothing but a trick of quantum subspace, they’d only arrive about a week or so later into the Borderlands. Hardly worth the heavy threat he had left implied.
        “Good morning, sir,” Ironsides said. He stood up, allowing Johnson to take his seat.
        “Morning, Max,” Johnson said, sitting down. Ironsides sat down in the seat on Johnson’s right hand. The captain noticed that. “Well? Aren’t you going to take up your favorite position at OPS?”
        “Not just yet. You look like you’d like to talk,” Ironsides replied.
        “Do I?” Johnson glanced at the major. “Well, maybe I do. No matter. What’s the progress on the investigation? Why is that Cardassian here?”
        Ironsides glanced at his seat’s armrest console. “It’s almost time for their next update. Why don’t you ask them yourself?”
        “Good idea. Get it straight from the horse’s mouth,” Johnson nodded as he stood up. He walked around the long rail that separated the command seats from the aft stations. He walked up to Bogarde and Garak.
        “Gentlemen. I hope you have something new to report?” he asked.
        The dark human security chief and Cardassian looked up from their consoles to look at the captain. “First of all,” Garak said, “I wish to object to my mouth being compared to a horse’s mouth. I think my mouth is a very fine example of an Cardassian mouth. Hardly like anything resembling a Terran quadruped.”
        “It’s just a Earth idiom,” Johnson sighed.
        “Ah, I see. One would have thought after spending a decade in constant contact with humans, one would have learned all the tedious and inane turn of phrases that arose from Earth. Obviously not,” Garak shook his head. “What, pray tell, does that idiom mean?”
        Bogarde turned to look at Garak. “It means getting the information straight from the source.”
        Garak looked up at the taller man. “And how does that relate to a horse’s mouth?”
        Bogarde shrugged and raised an eyebrow. “Well, uh, I think it goes back to the old Earth gambling game...”
        Johnson held up a hand. “This is a tedious and inane conversation, one I don’t wish to listen to. Now someone tell me what you have learned.”
        “Well, the signal has been showing up on and off as usual,” Bogarde said. “There’s no pattern to it at all. We don’t know why it’s doing that.”
        “I see. What else?” Johnson prompted.
        “It’s Federation,” Garak offered.
        “Are you sure of that?”
        “I am reasonably certain of that fact,” the Cardassian nodded.
        “How do you know?” asked Johnson.
        Bogarde explained. “Ensign Polonski came up with a list of possibilities regarding the signal. He made it when I told him to go back to his quarters and get some sleep.”
        “The poor lad had been up all night,” Garak nodded.
        “One of the possibilities was that the signal had corrupted data in it. So I ran a clean-up filter on the signal, and it turns out he was right. A lot of the data has been corrupted. However, the clean up showed that the signal is originally encrypted.”
        “Which explains why the ensign had been unable to get any information out of the signal,” Garak added. “A corrupted signal... difficult to analyze. Now, for a corrupted encrypted signal...”
        “Forget about it,” Bogarde ended Garak’s statement. “no chance. Anyway, once I found that the signal was encrypted, I checked it against our record of encryption fingerprints. I came up with no hits. So, I thought of the one other person who’d be most familiar with encrypted signals.”
        “Which is where I came in,” Garak said. “The chief showed me the signal and I analyzed it. The encryption pattern is uniquely Federation.”
        Johnson shook his head. He looked at Bogarde. “If you already checked it, how did you miss it?”
        “You have to understand, Captain,” Garak explained, “the signal is corrupted. Very corrupted. Almost as corrupt as the old Cardassian Central Command, as I’d say.” He chuckled.
        Johnson didn’t crack a smile. Garak cleared his throat. “Well then, I extracted what little clean data I had and checked those scraps. I was able to identify a Federation pattern.”
        “Garak showed me that, and I took it and replicated the data strands further, extrapolating what the full encryption code might be,” Bogarde concluded.
        “And it’s Federation?”
        “Yes,” Bogarde said. “Actually, it’s the encryption process in use from seven to ten years ago.”
        “The plot thickens,” Garak smiled.
        Johnson sighed, nodding. “Well... you still can’t decode the signal and find out what it says, who it’s from, or where? Even knowing the encryption pattern?”
        Bogarde shook his head. “The signal is FUBAR. Forget about it.”
        “Acknowledged,” Johnson said. “Well, can you at least trace it back to the origin?”
        “We were working on that just now. Garak was about to leave to Astrometrics. There, I’d feed him information so between the two of us, we might be able to triangulate a location.”
        “Good job chief. Thank you, Garak, for your help. Carry on, men.” Johnson turned to return to his seat, when a beep on Bogarde’s console made him pause. Bogarde quickly checked the console. He looked up at Johnson.
        “Sir, it’s Admiral Nechayev, priority signal, for you.”
        “Really?” Johnson frowned. “Not Lisa? Hm. Well, it’s probably our weekly report session. I’ll take it in my ready room as usual.”
        “Aye sir. Transferring now,” Bogarde said. Johnson walked over to the door to his ready room. He heard Garak ask a question.
        “What’s FUBAR?”
        “Military term. Fouled Up Beyond All Recognition. That’s the clean version though,” Bogarde replied.
        “Oh? What’s the dirty version?”
        Johnson continued on into his ready room. He went over to his desk, quickly glancing at the half-painted model that stood in the center of his hobby table. The paint should be dry about now, he thought to himself. He tapped his desktop monitor and saw the thin face of Admiral Nechayev.
        “Hello, Alynna,” Johnson said. Johnson was allowed to call the admiral by her first name due to their shared histories. They had both been on intimate terms once, briefly. It didn’t last very long, but fortunately, they formed a good friendship from it. She was in fact, the admiral who assigned him to the original Kitty Hawk all these years ago. Johnson still harbored some suspicions that she had reined in Admiral Stone so that he was able to command the next Kitty Hawk. He smiled at his friend and commanding officer.
        “Thomas,” she nodded back.
        “I was just going to get in touch with Headquarters today,” he said. “You’ll have to give me a minute, I don’t have my PADDs together just yet. I wasn’t expecting to make contact with Earth for a few days, much less be contacted by you directly. Is there something wrong with my wife? Why isn’t Lisa briefing me?”
        Nechayev shook her head. “No, she’s allright. I know that as the liaison between the Courageous and Starfleet Command, Captain Stone-Johnson usually handles your briefings. Several points of interest have risen that necessitated an earlier meeting, and a more direct one just between you and I, not through the office of Captain Stone-Johnson.”
        “Oh.” Johnson frowned, looking at Nechayev. “Well, you’ll have to give me a few moments, I don’t have any of my status reports together to transmit to Headquarters. I wasn’t planning on making contact with Earth for another three days.”
        “That’s allright, I know I’m early. I’ll wait.”

        An hour had passed since Johnson sat down to talk with Nechayev. “And that takes care of Engineering’s report. Scotty and LaForge and Dr. Brahms will be glad to know their ship’s running perfectly,” Johnson concluded.
        Nechayev nodded with a slight smile. “I’m sure they will.”
        “Oh, one last thing- last night we picked up a signal. It seemed to be a fragment of a Federation distress signal. After further analysis, we’ve confirmed that. Right now I have my people working on triangulating the signal. Once we locate it, I’ll order the Courageous to change course to investigate it.”
        “How far off course are you going?” Nechayev inquired.
        “We’ll enter the Borderlands five to seven days later than planned,” Johnson scratched at his dark brown hair. “It depends on the location, how far away. It’s not too much of a delay. The peoples of the Borderlands will just have to wait a bit longer to meet us.” Johnson smiled.
        “That seems satisfactory to me. And besides, you’re bored and this is something to do.”
        “Uh, yes,” Johnson admitted sheepishly, “That’s correct, sir.”
        “Carry on with your course of action, Captain. Be sure to keep us here back at home informed.”
        “Of course, Admiral.”
        Nechayev sighed. “I suppose you’re wondering why I’ve contacted you earlier than usual.”
        “I have, but I know you. I knew you’d explain in due time.”
        Nechayev smiled sadly. “You’re right. I have important news to relay to you. I know the news I am about to tell you are already contained within the standards news packet carried on this signal from the Midas Array, but I wished to speak to you personally about them. The packet, of course, has the latest casualty lists on it as well. ”
        “Any increase?”
        Nechayev shook her head. “No. Casualties remain at the same level as last week. I suppose it’s better than more casualties. As I said earlier, I wanted to personally inform you of two things.”
        “Go ahead,” Johnson inclined his head.
        “Several days ago, the structural skeleton of the U.S.S. Saratoga NCC-31911-B collapsed entirely. One person died and several others were critically injured. An investigation is currently underway, but the prime suspect is substandard materials.”
        “Oh...the Saratoga was to be the next Courageous-class ship to be produced, right?”
        “That’s correct,” Nechayev confirmed. “However, in light of this disaster, we’re leaning towards scrapping the project and salvaging the materials to put towards other ships. The materials originally intended for the Saratoga could be used to make at least four Defiant class ships. We’re running low on materials, as you can tell.”
        Johnson nodded somberly. “What of the third ship slated for production?”
        “You’re referring to the U.S.S. Vigorous, I take it. That is currently in preproduction, and should be completed in two to three years.”
        “That’s good,” Johnson nodded. “The Courageous won’t be alone then.”
        “No it won’t,” Nechayev smiled slightly. It faded quickly. “However, this only serves to underscore the importance of your mission. Hopefully, you’ll be able to find more resources in the Borderlands. We’re not running out of supplies just yet, but we still are approaching a crisis-point in about five years.”
        “I know,” Johnson nodded. “Don’t worry, I know the seriousness of the situation. I know how the war is eroding the Federation’s economy and eating away at our supplies.”
        “Now, onto the second point...” Nechayev paused and drew in a deep sigh.
        Johnson could see the sadness and seriousness in Nechayev’s eyes. He leaned in close to the monitor to listen.

        Garak looked up at the large curved tri-dimensional map that took up the wall of the Astrometrics lab. “There you are...” he said. He glanced at his console, then looked back up at the several blinking dots on the map. “Well actually, I probably should say, ‘There you probably are.’ ” He tapped his combadge. “Garak to Bogarde. I think I’ve narrowed down some locations.”
        “That’s great. And just in time.”
        “What do you mean?”
        “I’ve been noticing a gradual decrease in the signal power- well apart from the erratic appearances. It’s losing power.”
        “Ah.”
        “Yeah. We only have less than a few hours to get to it before we lose it completely,” Bogarde’s deep voice intoned.
        “Well then I’d better forward my findings to the bridge.”
        “Yeah. You better. Bogarde out.”
        

Chapter 2

        Lieutenant Commander Fonda sat down wearily onto her couch in her quarters. She had spent two shifts finishing off the repair jobs in Engineering. The journey through Romulan space had made Fonda’s job so much harder. She looked around her quarters. Furniture and objects laid sprawled over the floor.
        She sighed. She hadn’t even had the time to clean up her quarters after the last attack. The mess made her skin crawl. Her body was at war with itself. Half of her wanted to get right on the floor and clean everything up and put the room back into it’s normal pristine condition; while the other half just wanted to sleep.
        As her eyes slowly closed, signaling the end of her inner war, her combadge chimed. She shook herself awake, and tapped the badge. “Fonda here.”
        Ironsides’s voice spoke. “The captain’s ordered a staff meeting in a half hour.”
        “Can I send Lieutenant Hiroshi in my stead? I’ve been on duty for almost 25 hours.”
        “Sorry, Chief. You need to be here.”
        “Allright fine, Major. I’ll be there. Fonda out.” She sighed and stood up. At least she’d have time for a sonic shower and change of uniform. She stepped over an upturned coffee table to get to her bedroom. She paused to pick up a holopicture.
        She set it on its proper spot, the desk. She activated it to see her daughter, Reneé. She smiled at her young daughter’s beautiful face. She sighed and headed for a good sonic shower. The mess, as much as she hated to admit, had to wait.

        Ironsides’s voice piped through the ready room comm system. “Captain, I’ve informed everyone of the staff meeting.”
        “Thank you, Major. That’ll be all for now.”
        “Aye sir.”
        The channel clicked closed. Johnson sighed, tapping on his desktop. He glanced at the desktop monitor, which showed the ship’s seal. Nechayev’s news still hung in the air. It still took time to sink in. He leaned forward. “Can’t put it off any longer,” he said to himself. He tapped on his desktop console, activating a shipwide link. He’d rather wait until after the staff meeting, but it wouldn’t be fair. Johnson sighed again, and tried to think of what to say.

        Hartman sipped at his hot tea, as Favor sat across the booth, wolfing down toast. “You sure you don’t want some of my toast?” the ambassador gestured to his plate of toast.
        Hartman shook his head. “No thanks, Nathan. I’m fine with my eggs and bacon.”
        “Suit yourself, Ed,” Favor shrugged. He sliced off a piece of ham and spiked it with his fork.
        Hartman set down his cup of tea, and sighed, looking around the nearly empty crew lounge, Eleven-Forward. It was not even breakfast time yet, which explained the absence of the other crew. Only Favor, Hartman, and Seamus were in the lounge.
        Seamus, the Chief Galley Officer, shook his head at Favor’s large breakfast. Hartman smirked. He would have thought that Seamus would be used to it, after serving him breakfast every early morning for the duration of the Courageous’s trip through No Man’s Land.
        Favor swallowed down his food and picked up his mug of coffee. After a swig from the mug, Favor sighed and looked at Hartman. “How come you’re not eating?”
        “Oh, I’m eating. Just slower than you are,” Hartman smiled.
        “Well, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You’re a doctor, you should know that.”
        “I do know that. But you always eat like there’s no tomorrow.”
        Favor cocked his head. With a lopsided grin, he said, “I always live like there’s no tomorrow.”
        Hartman could only shrug and nod.
        “Actually,” Favor frowned, “it’s just a habit I’ve picked up from my vagabond days. Some days I didn’t have enough money to buy food, so I had to go hungry. So I know the value of a good large meal.”
        “Interesting isn’t it?” Hartman leaned against the table, picking up a strip of bacon.
        “What is?” Favor looked questioningly at Hartman.
        “Back then when you were off, uh, gallivanting around the quadrant, you were dirt poor. And today, you’re one of the ten richest people in the Federation.”
        “Yeah,” Favor shrugged. “You know, if I had to do it all over again, I would have done it all exactly the same.” After chewing thoughtfully on another piece of ham, Favor reconsidered. “Well... I probably wouldn’t have insulted that Nausicaan. On rainy days, my knee aches, because of that big galoot breaking it.”
        Hartman rolled his eyes.
        “I suppose I shouldn’t complain. I got off easy. Besides, everyone’s got problems.”
        Hartman looked up at Favor. “What do you mean by that?”
        Favor shrugged, chewing. “Just that. Everyone’s got problems. Hm?”
        “Sorry. I thought you were saying something else.”
        Favor paused, furrowing his brows. “No... I wasn’t. Is there something on your mind?”
        “No, not really,” Hartman shook his head.
        “Okay. You know, you can talk to me about anything. I’m your buddy.”
        “I know. I’m just tired, that’s all.”
        “Yeah. Seems like everyone’s tired. I have to admit, I’m feeling a bit stir-crazy, being cooped up on this ship for weeks on end. I keep checking on the computer how much longer it’s going to take until we get to the Borderlands.” Favor turned to look out the large bay windows. “And we’re not there yet, I can tell you that much. Do you know what’s going on?”
        “Nope.”
        “Ah well. Good to know you’re out of the loop, just like me.” Another silence descended as the two friends resumed eating their breakfasts.
        Favor set his fork down on the table. “You know, lately I’ve been getting the impression that Tom seems uncomfortable when I’m on the bridge. Do you know anything about that?”
        “Not really. I don’t spend that much time on the bridge,” Hartman said. “I’m usually in one of the sickbays, or in a science lab.” He paused, thinking. “Well... if anything- it might be that, uh, he doesn’t really know you that much anymore.”
        “What do you mean?”
        “Well, you’ve been out of touch with Tom and I for almost ten years. And for the ten years before that, we only heard from you once in a while. You can’t expect to pick up where you left off in a friendship.”
        “But you and I did,” Favor pointed out.
        “I’m a different person from Tom. Look, don’t talk to me about this, if you have issues, talk to Tom himself.”
        Favor pursed his lips. “Perhaps I’ll just do that. We haven’t talked much since the fight in the brig.”
        “Yeah. That definitely is an issue, right there,” Hartman wagged his index finger.
        “Ok, we don’t have to talk about it. It’s not really your problem. It’s Tom’s and my problem. We’ll work it out. Hey, I got a letter from Selari last night.”
        “Oh?” Hartman picked up his tea cup. “How are things going there?”
        “As well as ever. Romulan politics is still a bear, but she’s gotten back in the swing of things.”
        “That’s good,” Hartman nodded, sipping at his tea. He narrowed his eyes at Favor. “You know, I’ve been meaning to ask you this. Are you actually planning to get married?”
        “Yes.”
        “You’re serious?”
        “Dead serious.” Favor’s customary smile faded as he looked back at Hartman.
        “How does she feel about a five year engagement? I mean, you’re stuck on this ship for a while.”
        “She doesn’t mind. In some cases, Romulan tradition dictates up to ten years before nuptials are allowed.”
        “Really?”
        “Nah. I’m just BSing you,” Favor laughed.
        Hartman groaned and shook his head.
        “But seriously, she really doesn’t mind. I love her. She loves me. We waited almost ten years before seeing each other finally. We can wait just another five years to get married.”
        Hartman shook his head, and pushed his empty plate forward on the table. “Man, I envy you guys. You and Tom. Tom, married, what has it been? Nine years? to Lisa. And you, about to get married to your dream Romulan girl. Sometimes I feel like I’ll never find that one gal.”
        “Don’t worry, Ed. If it’s fated to be, it’ll happen.” Favor winked at his friend.
        “Yeah.”
        “Hey, whatever happened to that redhead you told me about, the one you dated on the Pacific?”
        “You mean Jaime? I don’t know. I haven’t checked up on her in years.”
        “Why not?”
        “Well, I suppose I’m afraid to find out that she’s now married with three kids.”
        “Hey, you never know...” Favor shrugged with a smile.
        “Well as you like to say so much, we ought to think about the future. I’d rather not think about the past.”
        “Suit yourself. I’m easy,” Favor replied.
        Just then, the comm system chimed, alerting the ship to an impending announcement.
        “This is Captain Johnson speaking.”
        “I wonder what news Tommy has for us today,” Favor said, while listening to the announcement.
        “Maybe another poker game like the one a couple nights ago?” Hartman said. “Or maybe an explanation of why we’re out of the quantum slipstream?”
        Johnson continued on. “I’m afraid I have sad news to present. I’ve just recently found out that two days ago... Admiral Leonard H. McCoy, head of Starfleet Medical, had passed away.”
        Hartman’s jaw dropped. He stared at the ceiling’s comm speaker.
        “Oh man!” Favor sighed.
        “For those of you interested, Starfleet Headquarters has sent a holovid package of the memorial service. Please come to my office about this matter. That is all. Johnson out.”
        The comm system shut off.
        Favor sighed again. “Wow. He’s been around so long, that you’d have thought he’d live forever. He was what? 130 years old? Something like that I guess.” He looked at Hartman, noticing the doctor’s stillness.
        “Ed? Hey, Ed. You okay?”
        Hartman shook his head, blinking his eyes. “I’m allright. I guess I was just shocked by the news.”
        “You worked with him once, didn’t you?”
        Hartman nodded. “After graduation, I interned with him for about a month.” He looked around, noticing some crewpeople entering the lounge. “Look, I think we better get going. I’ve got some paperwork in my office to do before the staff meeting.”
        “No problem,” Favor said. “Hey, I wasn’t invited. I wonder why.”
        Hartman shrugged slightly.
        Favor shrugged too. “Probably not a diplomatic matter. You’ll tell me what’s up afterwards?”
        “Yeah if I’m allowed to,” Hartman nodded.
        “Okay. Breakfast same time tomorrow?”
        “Sure,” Hartman nodded. “Just like the day before and the day before that.”
        Favor stood up, smiling. “And we’ll talk about how nothing happened the day before, and the day before that, et cetera, et cetera, ad nauseum. Hey, that’s the glorious boredom that No Man’s Land has to offer!”
        Hartman smirked as he stood up. The two of them walked out of Eleven-Forward, heading off to their respective work.

        Fonda walked into the conference lounge, to see that she was the last person to arrive. She disliked being the last to arrive. She always prided herself on being punctual. The captain was seated at his usual place at the head of the curved table. His hand was over his mouth as he leaned on the table, deep in thought.
        The rest of the crew were seated around the table. Fonda took the nearest available seat, which was next to Doctor Hartman. Like the captain, Hartman seemed deep in thought. Fonda was surprised to see Lieutenant Kyle seated at the table. She yawned inconspicuously. This was her off shift, and she usually was sleeping. At least I’m wasn’t the only one going without sleep, Fonda thought to herself. The rest of the crew were talking amongst themselves. Fonda was able to hear snatches of conversation.
        “Can you believe it?”
        “End of an era I suppose.”
        “Yeah, he went. So what? Everyone knows he wasn’t really running things.”
        Fonda leaned over to Lieutenant Ruiz who was near her. “What’s the chatter about?”
        “You don’t know?” Ruiz asked, surprised. “Didn’t you hear the announcement?”
        “What announcement?” Fonda answered. “I was in the sonic shower.”
        Ruiz nodded in understanding. “Doctor McCoy died,” she said simply. Fonda nodded slowly. Ruiz continued. “The captain has the funeral on holovid, if you want to see it.”
        Fonda frowned slightly. “Ah, I see.”
        “LeAnn and I might check it out. You’re welcome to join us,” Ruiz offered.
        Fonda smiled politely. “Thanks, but no thanks. I don’t really feel the need to observe his funeral. The end result is still the same. He remains dead.”
        “That’s true,” Ruiz nodded.
        Johnson looked over his crew. Naturally they were talking about McCoy’s death. He had to admit he was thinking about it as well. He sighed inwardly. Death was never easy to accept, though this particular one was easier. The venerable doctor had lived a long life, experiencing all the 23rd and 24th centuries had to offer.
        Johnson’s eyes fell upon the youngest person at the table, Ensign LeAnn Walker. The young half-Bajoran was barely finished with her teenage years. Johnson smiled slightly. Why, it had only been a month ago that Ensign LeAnn had her first Romulan Ale. Looking at her, Johnson knew he’d take her death differently. There was a vast difference between a life ended after a century, and a life ended before its prime.
        Johnson shook these thoughts out of his head. It was counterproductive to begin this mission with thoughts of death. He cleared his throat, and got the desired result. The crew looked at him, listening attentively. Even Garak’s mouth was closed.
        “I suppose you all are expecting me to say a few words regarding Dr. McCoy. Well, I’m not. I’ve already said my piece in the announcement. Yes, it’s allright to acknowledge his passing, but business doesn’t stop,” Johnson said as he brought his hands together on the table top, interlacing his fingers.
        “Which brings me to today’s particular order of business. We’ve stopped in our journey to the Borderlands due to a mysterious signal that the night shift tactical officer, Ensign Polonski, detected. I have Lieutenant Kyle, the night shift commander, here to explain. Lieutenant, if you please.”
        “Thank you, sir,” Kyle said. She looked at the others. “While within the quantum slipstream, Ensign Polonski detected a faint and erratic signal. As you know, sensors aren’t operating at full efficiency due to the nature of the slipstream. I made the decision to cease slipstream travel in order to investigate the signal further, based on the suspicion it might have been Federation in origin. The ensign was later joined by Chief Bogarde in his analysis of the signal. I’m afraid I’m not up to date to what you’ve learned, Chief.”
        “That’s okay, sir,” Bogarde nodded. “I took over the analysis of the signal when Polonski’s shift ended. I determined that the signal was encrypted, and I consulted with Garak to determine the encryption pattern. Polonski’s initial hunch was correct. It was a Federation encryption pattern. However, we couldn’t decode it due to extensive interference and corruption of the signal. However, Garak and I were able to triangulate the signal. We reported the possible coordinates to the Major.”
        Johnson nodded. “That pretty much sums up just about everything with this situation. I’ve already approved a course change to intercept the signal. We’re currently on course for it.”
        Kyle turned to Bogarde. “Wasn’t there anything else that you could figure out from the signal?”
        “Only that it was an older encryption pattern. It hasn’t been in use for over seven years,” the chief replied.
        “Let’s not forget that the signal is losing strength by the minute,” Garak cautioned.
        “Good point,” Johnson said. “Will we reach it before it fades out permanently?”
        Ruiz shook her head. “When I changed course, Bogarde told me that the signal was getting weaker. I calculated our ETA to his estimated last reception. We’ll get there about 67 minutes after the signal ends.”
        “I see,” Johnson nodded. “Has the signal moved at all?”
        “No, captain,” Garak replied. “I’ve been monitoring it in Astrometrics. It hasn’t moved from the estimated area we believe it to be in.”
        “Lends credence to the fact that it may be a ship in distress,” Fonda remarked at last.
        “Very true,” Johnson tapped a finger on the table top. “Ruiz, what’s our current ETA?”
        “One hour and 31 minutes, sir,” Ruiz reported.
        “That’s how much time we’ve got to prepare for what we may find,” Johnson declared. “I want to be prepared for damage control, both ship and crew.” Johnson looked at Fonda and Hartman. “I want to be prepared for a trap. In short, I want to be prepared for everything. Fonda, are we ready for combat with an unknown enemy?”
        Fonda’s lips pressed together tightly before she replied. “We will be in a hour and 20 minutes.”
        “Good,” Johnson nodded. That was the only answer he expected from his able chief of engineering. He looked over at the Bajoran seated at the far end of the table. “Dr. Joh, I’d like you to learn as much about this area of space as you can. If I can’t know what I’m getting into, at least I can know where I am going.”
        The Bajoran science officer nodded.
        “Everyone else knows what they should be doing. Garak, keep an eye on the signal for us. If you can learn anything new, tell us ASAP.”
        “I will certainly do that, captain,” Garak nodded solemnly.
        “Dismissed,” Johnson said as he stood up. “Get to work.” He walked over to Hartman, putting a restraining hand on the doctor’s shoulder. “Hold on for a moment,” he told Hartman, as the others filed out of the conference lounge.
        “What is it?” Hartman asked.
        “When Admiral Nechayev informed me of Dr. McCoy’s death, she told me that the doctor composed a message for you before he died. I have it on file. You can access it anytime you want.”
        “Ah, I see. Thanks, Tom,” Hartman nodded. “Can I go now?”
        “Sure. You okay?”
        “Yeah, I’m fine.” Hartman looked out the windows. “Just odd to think about it.” He shrugged. “It had to happen sooner or later.”
        “That’s true.” Johnson paused for a moment. Then he said, “I’ll let you get back to work.”
        “Allright.” Hartman and Johnson walked out of the conference room, and Johnson headed to his seat.
        
        “We’ve lost the signal,” Bogarde declared.
        Johnson twisted in his seat to look back at the security chief. “For good, or temporarily?”
        “I think for good. Our last contact was very faint. I had to boost sensors to 115% to even read it.”
        “I see. Ruiz, is the ETA you mentioned earlier still accurate?”
        “Yes, sir. We’ll be approaching the signal zone in 66 minutes now,” Ruiz said.
        “Okay.” Johnson leaned over, pressing on his chair’s armrest console. “Johnson to Engineering. Fonda, repair status report?”
        “Phasers and Torpedo systems all online at specified efficiency levels. Shield systems powered up. The Phaser Cannon is still offline, though. We still have to complete power relay repairs on Deck 10.”
        “That’s fine. We still should be able to face down anything that might crop up.”
        “That’s my belief, sir,” Fonda said back.
        “Good. I’m going to order an increase in speed, so we’ll arrive, hmm twenty minutes earlier than reported. Just letting you know.”
        “Thank you sir. I’ll prioritize repair efforts accordingly.”
        “Johnson out.” He sat up and looked at the helm. “Increase speed to Warp Factor 8.”
        “Aye, sir,” Ensign LeAnn reported back. “Warp Factor 8.”
        The comm system chimed. “Joh Emmeril to Captain Johnson.”
        Johnson glanced upwards slightly. “Johnson here. What is it, doctor?”
        “The report you requested on No Man’s Land- I’ve prepared it. Meet me in Stellar Cartography.”
        “I’m on my way,” Johnson said, already getting out of his chair. He glanced at Ironsides. “You have the bridge.”
        “Aye sir.” Ironsides nodded as he moved out from the OPS cubicle to the command seat.

        A quick turbolift ride took Johnson to the deck where the large Stellar Cartography room was located. Johnson stepped into the darkened room. The Stellar Cartography room was basically a nearly spherical holodeck with a long plank suspended in the center. This room was one of the most essential rooms on the Courageous. The Stellar Cartography department was responsible for mapping the previously unexplored Borderlands.
        Since they weren’t in the Borderlands, the department worked at half strength. Johnson could see that only a few scientists, including the scientist on loan from the Bajoran Militia, Joh Emmeril, were in the room. Johnson glanced at the curved walls. The holoemitters were projecting mostly dark black space. Johnson could only count about six stars in the entire map projection. Joh hadn’t been kidding when she had told him that No Man’s Land was a vast wasteland.
        “Doctor,” he nodded to the waiting scientist. “Do you have anything new to report?”
        “No, captain,” Joh replied, shaking her head slightly. Her long braided ponytail wagged slightly. Even in the dim light of the map room, Johnson could see the considerable streaks of grey through Joh’s light brown hair. “As I’ve already informed you, this area of space is very empty. I have tied in long range sensors to scan the sector where the signal is thought to originate from.” She waved her hand. “This is what sensors report back.”
        “A whole lot of nothing, huh?” Johnson remarked.
        “If you insist on putting it in imprecise terms, yes.”
        Johnson wanted to roll his eyes at her straitlaced response. He resisted the impulse, not wanting to disrespect this eminent scientist. “So, you can’t offer us any helpful information regarding on what we might encounter?”
        “There is none to be gathered, sir.”
        “I see. We’ll be arriving at the location within forty minutes. You might want to be on hand on the bridge.”
        “I shall be there,” Joh nodded once. “There is one other thing.”
        “Yes?”
        “I have proved one of the theories about No Man’s Land.”
        “What’s that?”
        “Warp travel speed is increased, due to the low gravitational fields in this area of space.”
        “Ah, that’s because there’s less stars around?”
        “Correct, sir.”
        “How much faster?” Johnson asked, curious.
        “There is a .000000032 increase.”
        “Ah,” Johnson nodded. “Well, make a report of that, and we’ll send it along back to Starfleet Headquarters on our next communications dump.”
        “I have already done so.”
        “Okay, good.” Johnson crossed his arms and leaned against the railing that enclosed the workstations. “You know, doctor, we haven’t talked much in the last few months since we began. How have you been doing?”
        “Fine.”
        “Good. How have you been getting along with the rest of the regular Starfleet crew? This is a kind of a new situation, having a member of the Bajoran Militia serving as our science officer. How do you think that’s working out?”
        Joh sighed impatiently. “The situation is fine. The science department acknowledges my authority and follows my orders. There are no problems with my integration with the Starfleet crew. I merely do my job. They merely do their job. That is all is required.”
        “Made any friends?”
        “Excuse me?” Joh looked at Johnson.
        “Friends? Acquaintances? Relationships?”
        “No. I was not aware I had to.”
        Johnson uncrossed his arms, and stood up straight. “No, it’s not required. However, it’s a long journey. Five years is a long time to be alone.”
        “No it’s not,” Joh said quietly. “Now if there’s nothing else, I shall continue monitoring sensor readings from here. I shall be on the bridge when you arrive.”
        She turned away and walked towards an unused console, making it clear she wanted no further conversation. Johnson sighed, and walked along the plank to the exit. He made an mental note to talk to Raven about Dr. Joh. His friend was in charge of the Bajoran contingent aboard the Courageous, so he should know a little about her.
        
        “Have you ever seen anything so boring?” LeAnn asked Ruiz as they sat at the Courageous’s helm.
        “Yeah,” Ruiz nodded, looking at the empty viewscreen. “The mineral run between Jupiter and Alpha Centauri V. That was my father’s regular route. It’s a totally mindless job. Hell, even a Denebian slime devil could have done it.”
        “Ah,” LeAnn nodded.
        “Yeah. I rode along with him on that haul often. It’s very boring. In fact, that’s one major reason why I decided to enter Starfleet Academy. I didn’t want to just fly freighters,” Ruiz explained.
        “Yeah, I know. You mentioned that before. I remember,” LeAnn nodded.
        “At least it’s a cakewalk,” Ruiz shrugged. “So, when do you want to check out McCoy’s funeral?”
        “Oh, I don’t know...” LeAnn mused. “Let’s just see what happens when we get there.”
        “Okay, no problem,” Ruiz nodded. “Have you ever met him?”
        “Met who?”
        “Doctor McCoy?”
        LeAnn shook her head. “No, I never did.”
        “That’s a shame. He used to make speeches once a year at the Academy, until like five years ago, when he stopped. Probably health problems.”
        “Oh yeah. Did you hear him?”
        “Yeah I was in the Academy before that. I heard one of his last speeches. He was very charming and interesting. Hard to believe he was over a hundred years old at that time,” Ruiz said.
        “You know, I wonder if Dr. Hartman knew Dr. McCoy,” LeAnn mused.
        Ruiz shrugged, frowning. “Who knows? Maybe. There’s thousands of doctors from Starfleet Medical, not all of them knew Dr. McCoy personally. We could ask him sometime.”
        “Yeah, we could,” LeAnn agreed.
        The turbolift door opened, and the two of them turned to glance at the newcomer. Captain Johnson walked down to the command seat. Ironsides stood, and walked over to OPS, as was his custom.
        Johnson settled into his seat, and glanced at his armrest consoles, checking the current ship’s status. He looked up. “So, Ruiz, have you noticed that we’re traveling a little faster than normal?”
        “Yes, sir. It’s because of the low number of stars in this area of space,” Ruiz nodded.
        “Ah. I just learned that from Dr. Joh,” Johnson said.
        “Yeah. She contacted me for navigational data a while ago,” Ruiz commented. She glanced at her console. “Hm. That’s odd.”
        “What is?” Johnson asked.
        “I’m not showing the increase in speed now,” Ruiz said. “I’m actually showing a decrease.”
        “Could something be affecting our speed?” Johnson inquired.
        LeAnn shook her head. “No, sir. Everything’s running in near peak condition. I’ve already checked with Engineering just now. We’re getting the same engine readings.”
        “It has to be a gravitational influence,” Ruiz said. “But sensors show nothing that should be affecting the gravitational fields of this sector of space.”
        “Ironsides,” Johnson looked over at the major. “Are you looking into this?”
        “I’m on it, sir,” Ironsides nodded, already peering over his OPS consoles.
        Johnson tapped his chair’s armrest. “Bridge to Dr. Joh.”
        “Yes, bridge?” Joh asked.
        “Remember that speed increase you told me about? We can’t find it now. We’re trying to account for the loss.”
        “That shouldn’t be,” Joh said over the comm system. “I have analyzed our route and there is nothing that should affect us. Perhaps it is mechanical? Have you checked with Engineering?”
        “Ensign LeAnn has already compared her readings to Engineering. It’s an outside influence,” Johnson stated.
        “I shall look into it further,” Joh said. “Joh out.”
        Johnson clenched his fist, and tapped his knuckles lightly on his chair’s armrest. An unknown situation didn’t need any more mystery, but that’s what was happening.

        Joh Emmeril walked onto the bridge approximately fifteen minutes later. Johnson glanced up at her. He gestured to the empty seat to his left hand. “You can sit.”
        She nodded and walked around to the seat from the turbolift. She sat down, sitting on the edge of the seat. “I am sorry that I have no conclusive data to give to you. I have checked and re-checked sensors. All I can tell you is that there is something where sensors say there is nothing.”
        “And we’re coming right up to that ‘something,’ right?” Johnson asked.
        “Yes, captain.”
        “Well,” Johnson sighed, “since you’re here, you can stay and see it as we do.”
        “That was my intention,” Joh said, standing up. She looked at him, waiting politely, He nodded, letting her go. She walked over to the science station that was among the aft bridge stations and sat down.
        As the Courageous approached the signal’s location, different stations began getting various odd readings. Joh oversaw all these readings, and tried to unite them to get a better understanding of what they were approaching. And finally the ship arrived within visual range.
        Johnson and the others looked upon the viewscreen with expectation as the ship dropped out of warp near the signal. The viewscreen showed only sparse blackness. Johnson called out, “Maximum magnification.”
        The viewscreen complied, now showing a splash of dark color in the center of the screen. It grew larger as the ship flew towards it. On a few occasions, Johnson thought he saw flashes of light from within the color.
        He didn’t bother asking Joh or Ironsides what it was, because it was clear they were busily examining their sensor readings. As they got closer, Johnson could see it more clearly. It seemed to be a huge gaseous phenomenon, primarily dark blue and green. There indeed were flashes of light, which reminded Johnson of lightning in a rainstorm. In fact, the phenomenon reminded Johnson of a giant thundercloud. It constantly changed shape, roiling around.
        “All stop,” Johnson ordered, just as the viewscreen was filled with the dark inky colored ‘storm.’
        “Aye, sir. All stop,” Ensign LeAnn reported back.
        “Allright, Dr. Joh. You’ve had a few minutes to check it out. What is it?”
        Joh stood up and walked over to the tactical station that was between the aft stations and the command seats. “It seems to be a very unusual nebula.”
        “And why haven’t we picked it up earlier?”
        “It’s hard to tell, but I think it’s operating on an extra-dimensional level. The normal indicators that our sensors would be receiving are in fact being emitted in a different dimension.”
        “Sir, the ship must be within that nebula,” Ironsides said. “Perhaps that accounts for the erratic signal, and the sporadic contacts.”
        “That is a plausible hypothesis,” Joh remarked.
        “I see. So, why can we see it now? Is it some kind of wormhole?”
        “The closer we are, the easier we can pick up the standard emissions,” Joh explained. “As for it being a wormhole, no it is not. It merely is an unstable nebula, interacting strangely with the layers of space here.”
        “I see. Well, looks like we’ll have to go inside if we want to find the source of this signal,” Johnson sighed.
        “I have to caution you, captain, that once we enter the nebula, we’ll be subject to extreme electromagnetic fields and radiation. Sensors will be severely compromised.”
        “How bad?”
        Joh turned to glance at the science station’s readout. “Sensors will be functioning at under 15% strength.”
        “That’s very severe, allright,” Johnson mused. “Well, see if you can boost sensors, cut through some of this interference?”
        “I shall begin working on possible solutions,” Joh nodded.
        “Allright.” Johnson turned to look at the nebula undulating on the viewscreen. “Until then, we’ll just have to feel our way through. Helm, take us in at one-eighth impulse. Bogarde, find us that signal.”

SECTION ONE | SECTION TWO | SECTION THREE | SECTION FOUR

 MISSIONS | PERSONNEL | SHIP SPECS | COMMENTS | CREDITS | MAIN