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Star Trek: Mirror Wars "Acta Sanctorum" Episode 203 By James Earl Part 1 January 5th, 2603 1400 hours Frank could only stare. As James finished explaining what had happened as he attempted to get back to the first fleet, Frank didn’t hear a word. All he could do was stare at the son he thought was dead. Suddenly, Frank realized that the room was now quiet, as James sat back down, finally finished with his report. Now, both Deker and James were staring at him, waiting to see what he would do. Aaron sat and looked back at Frank, knowing what his father was going through and waited the Admiral to make the first move. Finally Frank spoke. "Can…" Frank paused, seeming still a little speechless. "Can I have a moment alone… with my son." James and Deker both hesitated for a moment, but eventually they slowly got up and left, leaving the Rikers alone. Aaron still remained quiet, staying still under his father’s gaze. Frank stood up. "I thought you were dead," he said, emotion flowing through each word. Aaron also stood up and walked to his father. "I know. I can hardly image what it was like. But I’m back now" Frank look at his son, and as their eyes met, Frank finally realized that his son, that he had seen die on that damned transmission so many times, was back. He quickly moved forward and embraced his son. Both stood, locked in each others’ arms. The Rikers never been ones for emotion, it wasn’t in their nature. But Frank had his son back, and that was all that really mattered. Part 2 January 5th, 2603 1415 hours James walked next to Deker as they wove their way through the Unlimited’s corridors, heading towards the transporter room. Finally, Deker broke the silence that had followed them from the conference room. "I can’t believe he’s back. I knew him… we… we were close. It was almost unbearable to hear what happened to him. And when I had to tell Frank…" James nodded. He had had to tell many families why their child, brother, or sister was never coming back. But for it to have been a friend… "I never met him, except a few times in battle. And only then, I never actually saw him in person. Or spoke to him actually." Deker didn’t reply but continued onward. But James had to say something. He had to speak with someone about it. "Admiral… I need to talk to you about something. Personal." "Alright," Deker said. "That man came back in time to kill me, if his story is to believed… And if its true, that means someone in the future wants me dead." Deker looked at James, a calm and comforting look on his face. "Its impossible to know what to do. We can’t go into the future. All I can truly say without contacting Starfleet HQ is that I will make sure that we use all our resources to help you. But with the war… " Deker hesitated before continuing. "I don’t know how many resources we have left to spare." Part 3 January 5th, 2603 1500 hours James sighed as he finished his report to Starfleet about his encounter with Jacob. As he learned back in his chair, he let his mind think about what had happened to him. He was being targeted for assassination by the future! Why, of all people, was he so important. And why now? Why didn’t they just go into the past, and kill him when he was a child? So many questions raced around in his mind that he had to stop. When his mind finally cleared, he remembered what his temporal physics teacher at the academy had said. "Never think too hard about the exact rules of time. We know so little about how it really works, it can boggle the mind." How true he had been. Although James had taken the course out of interest, he never thought he would have to apply what he learned from it during his Starfleet career. But here he was, seemingly caught up in the agenda of some unseen force from the future, right in the middle of the biggest war in Starfleet’s history. Heck, he didn’t even know that what Jacob had told him was true. Maybe the man was just a lunatic. It certainly seemed very possible. But the fact that he had people from all over history and his usage of temporal energy seemed to dispel any thoughts of the new theory. "WHY ME!?" James yelled. It was so frustrating. All he could do is sit and wait for the next attack to happen. The only thing he knew for certain was that he could expect another attack. What he didn’t expect, though, was a response to his question. "Because you are going to do something very important Captain," said a voice behind James. James sprang to his feet and spun around. In the corner of his room, a dark figure stood, clocked by a hood and darkness of the room, which seemed to be attracted to him. James pressed his com, but he when he pressed it, it did not chirp. "I have disabled your com for the moment Captain. Don’t worry, I am not your enemy." "Then why are you here," James demanded. "I’m not really here. I am in the future, sending you this message via a hologram." James tested the man’s statement. James moved his hand forward and it passed right through the figure. Satisfied, James asked another question. "Why are you contacting me." "I can’t tell you much Captain, just a few things. First of all, you need to stay alive." James laughed. "Well, we have one objective in common… But why am I being targeted." "All I can say is that there is a group out there trying to prevent… an event in your future. If you succeed, the fate of the entire galaxy, maybe the universe, could be changed." "What? What am I going to do?" "Sorry Captain, but that’s all I can say. I don’t have much time. My group and I are doing all that we can to make sure you are protected but… we are not a strong as we used to be. They will attack you from everywhere Captain. They will hide in your crew, in the enemies ranks, and even infiltrate your closest friends. Be careful captain. Be careful of everyone. Don’t let your guard down." James nodded, his mind racing from the new information. "I can only tell you one thing. Trust Blake Terval. He may be the key to your survival. He may not seem like it when you meet him, but he will become one of the biggest assets you have." "But who his Blake Terval? I’ve never heard of him." "You will Captain, and soon to." The figure turned around, it’s back now to James. "I will contact you again. And remember captain… the enemy can be anywhere." And with that last remark, the hologram disappeared, leaving James, once again, with his thoughts to keep him company. Part 4 January 5th, 2603 1530 hours James stepped out onto the bridge and looked around. His head was still going over the information he had just received from that mysterious figure. He was still unsure if he should tell anyone. "It may lead the traitor, spy… whatever he is… to learn that I know he is her. If he even exists," he thought. Ferby stood at his consol, looking over some scans of the area. Periodic, long range scans had become normal in the ships day-to-day routine, so that the fleet could make sure they got a warning if another ship or fleet happened to be nearby. Sarah stood next to Ferby, looking over his readings, double-checking for anything unusual. Henry sat at his console, going over some reports he had to make, as the ship had been put on autopilot, as they were heading to Starbase 453 for supplies and their next orders. Just as James sat in his chair and Henry finished his final report, a beep came from Ferby’s console, and both he and Sarah were alert. "Sir, we’ve detected a large fleet coming into the system. They are heading directly for us," Sarah updated. James stood up. "Contact the Unlimited and rest of fleet. Inform them of the attack." A junior officer nodded and quickly walked to the science station, usual stationed by Jake Demari, who was off-duty. The junior science officer quickly pressed a few buttons before saying "All done sir." "Shields up, charge phasers. Red Alert," James said to Ferby as Sarah sat in her chair and the Red Alert klaxon started to blare. "We’re getting orders from the Unlimited. We are to form up in a defensive position with the rest of the fleet," Ferby informed. "Proceed." Part 5 January 5th, 2603 1545 hours Aaron walked onto the bridge of the USS Unlimited, just as the entire ship took a hit, making Aaron fall forward and land on his stomach. As he stood up, he looked around and saw his father giving orders in the captain’s chair, but couldn’t make out any sound. The fall had momentarily stunned him. Deker sat to his father’s left, leaving the chair to the right empty. As he sat down, his hearing slowly came back and he watched the battle continue, ready to give help when and if it was needed. "Get behind that ship and hit one of it’s thrusters with a torpedo," ordered the elder Riker. As Aaron sat down, he noticed the similarities between Federation and Terran Empire ships. While they looked almost identical on the surface, small differences differentiated the two groups of ships. Slight design changes, such as moved nacelles and different markings identified the attackers. Aaron also noticed that the enemy ships seemed to have been built for combat, unlike the Federation ships, which had been made in a era of peace. Of course, Aaron had expected all of these differences, it was a lot different to think about it then to actually see one in person. As the Unlimited fired a torpedo, Aaron noticed most of the ships rallying around lead ship. According to the sensors on Aaron’s armrest, that ship was called the ISS Xerxes. As he continued to look, as Frank gave more orders, he saw that all of the ships seemed to be protecting the Xerxes. Finally, he realized. "Admiral," Riker started, using his father’s proper title, "that lead ship, the Xerxes, isn’t firing or maneuvering very much. According to my readings, he it using a lot of power, and the others seem to be protecting it." Frank looked at the screen, and saw the same thing, especially when he looked at the readings. "Good job," Frank said as he turned to the tactical officer. "Tell the fleet to focus all of their attacks at the Xerxes." "Aye sir." Several minutes later, the surviving ships had maneuvered to attack the Xerxes. As the ships rained down fire on the Xerxes, it still didn’t move. "Sir," said the tactical officer, "the enemy ships are moving into our line of fire. They must be trying to stop us from hitting the Xerxes." "So there is something important on that ship…" Frank concluded. "Signal the fleet to keep concentration on the Xerxes, no matter what." As the battle continued, numerous ships tried to block the rain of phaser fire and torpedoes. Many were damaged in the attempted, but succeeded in stopping most of the ships from making a direct hit, but the Xerxes still took a lot of damage. The remaining members of the Federation’s fleet were also taking hits, due to their limited maneuverability in such tight quarters with other ships. "Sir, we only have one more torpedo available," said the Unlimited’s tactical officer. "Fire at the Xerxes’ one more time." "Aye sir," replied the officer. As Aaron and the rest of the bridge crew watched the torpedo leave the Unlimited and hurt towards to Xerxes, another ship moved in front of the torpedo, attempting to block the shot. But as it attempted to get in the way, it missed the torpedo, by inches to Aaron’s eye, and struck it’s intended target. As the bridge crew watched, the torpedo broke through the shields of the lead ship, and hit home. Explosions filled the main view screen. "Sir, the enemy ships are retreating, along with the Xerxes. Should we chase them," the tactical officer finally said. "No," Deker said, standing up. "Tell the fleet to regroup." "Any survivors," Frank asked. The tactical officer remained silent for a moment as he checked his readouts. "Yes sir. I can detect one life sign on the nearest enemy ship." "Beam him aboard to the brig." Part 6 January 5th, 2603 1600 hours Frank punched again but the prisoner continued to laugh. "Its not like Starfleet to use torture in interrogations," laughed the prisoner through a bloody nose. "I will ask you one more time…" Frank said. "If you don’t tell me how you knew where we were, and how many of you will come back, I will shove you out an airlock." "O don’t try to scare me. It doesn’t suit you." "If you don’t tell me, we managed to capture twelve of your people. I’m sure one of them will tell me what I want," Frank warned. The prisoner spit on Frank. "They would rather die." "Wrong answer." Frank grabbed the prisoner and dragged him out of the brig, two guards following the men out. A short walk later, the prisoner lay in the middle of the shuttle way, and Frank stood in the control room. "You have five seconds to tell what I want to know, or I will open the bay." "You wouldn’t," the prisoner laughed, but Frank heard the fear behind it. "One… Two… Three… Four…" Frank counted, but the prisoner didn’t say anything, just looked at Frank with a fire in his eyes. "Five." Frank pressed a button, and the bay started to open. Deker came rushing in behind Frank, reaching for the controls. "What are you doing! If you kill him, we won’t be any better then they are." "Don’t worry Deker. A human can survive for a few seconds in space. If he doesn’t say anything before he leaves the shuttle bay, I have ordered the transporter room to beam him back aboard." Deker stepped back, a look of anger on his face. "I don’t like it… but… we have no other way." As the prisoner looked in horror as the doors finished opening, he looked at the final barrier between him and space. The force field. "You have one last chance." "Go to hell," the prisoner said. Frank pressed the button and the force field slowly fell. The prisoner rushed towards the door and screamed one last thing before his body flew into space. "I’ll tell you everything." Part 7 January 5th, 2603 1630 hours Frank looked across the room at the captains collected before him. Frank had called a meeting between all of the fleet’s captains when he had heard the information from the prisoner. Deker sat on his left, while his son sat on his right. James Obeska was sitting a few seats down from Deker. As Frank looked around at the twenty men before, representing some of Starfleet’s remaining best, he felt pride flow through him. Pride in the fact that he had led these men to battle. Through victory, through failure, though happiness, and the depths of despair. It was an honor to have led them so far, as see them prevail every time. "By now, most of you have heard what our prisoner has divulged" started Frank, "but for those that didn’t have time to read the report before coming to the meeting, I will explain." Frank stood up, and slowly walked around the table. "The enemy has a new type of weapon. That ship we attacked, the ISS Xerxes, was building up power a sort of… pulse that would whip out all of our technology." "Like an EM pulse from that worked on twenty-first century technology," asked Captain Chell, a Bolian captain. "Correct," Frank affirmed. "If it had been able to release the pulse, all our of ships would have lost shields, weapons, everything. We would have lost our lives. We were lucky." "We need to stop them," James added. "Fortunately for us, this technology is in a prototype stage. We destroy the Xerxes, we destroy the problem… at least for the moment. The Xerxes is the only prototype currently online, at least to our prisoner’s knowledge." Aaron spoke. "Do we know where their fleet went?" Frank sighed. ‘No. But our prisoner said that they are most likely regrouping to come back and hit us again. They know that we would be prepared for them, but we are the closest and easiest targets for them to test the weapon on. They need to get results, and fast. So rest assured, they will be back… and soon." Frank finally reached his seat once again, having finally circumnavigated the entire table. As he sat, he once again looked at the fearful, but determined faces of all the men before him. "As you know, Captain Greg Neilmen didn’t survive the attack. We need all available men and ships at full operation for the battle. Therefore, I am sending my son, Aaron, to command the USS Augustus." As the silence fell across the room, more in respect for Captain Neilmen, then in disrespect for Aaron. "If there are no questions, we need to prepare for battle." Part 8 January 5th, 2603 1945 hours James sat in his chair, looking at the main view screen. Before him, the stars shimmered, unmoving in the screen. He thought back to when those stars had meant adventure and excitement for him. It was hard to imagine that it had been just a year ago. Now the stars harbored fear, death, and destruction. Even though he still hoped for his future, he had to admit that it was starting to fade. With what he knew about the people trying to kill him, it looked like the future might not be something to look forward to anymore. He looked around the bridge, wondering if anyone here was a traitor or spy, looking for a way to end his life. Could he trust anyone? It would drive him insane, he knew. He would have to be alone, utterly alone. There must be someone he could talk to. But who? Maybe he could trust that Blake Terval person? But how long would it be until he met him. For all he knew it could be days, months, or even years before their path’s crossed. And for that matter, how did he know to trust a strange figure that appeared in his room and said that he was from the future, but on his side. It was all too confusing. For the moment, though, he had a job at hand, and had to stay focused. Just at that moment, James heard a beep, and he knew that it was the tactical station picking up incoming ship, even before Ferby could announce it. "Ships coming in sir." "Shields up, red alert. Charge phasers. Scan for the Xerxes and follow the Unlimited’s lead." As the fleet began to form up, the Unlimited in the lead, James braced himself for the incoming fire. The future had to be forgotten for the moment, as it was now the present that he had to worry about. Part 9 January 6th, 2603 2000 hours Aaron stood on the bridge of the Augustus, as it shook from another hit. As he watched the view screen, he saw the ISS Xerxes take yet another hit as the fleet once again focused all of its attacks on the lead ship. The Xerxes had been slowly gaining more and more power as the battle had raged on. The Augustus’ tactical officer had informed him that this time, the Xerxes had more shield power then before. "Our shields are at 25% sir. The Xerxes’ are holding at 35%. "Keep firing," Aaron ordered. This time, several ships had been able to provide backup for the fleet, keeping fire off the ships attacking the Xerxes. Suddenly, the ship shook. "Sir, I’m ready a massive power surge from the Xerxes. It looks like their weapon is almost ready to fire," warned the tactical officer. "Fire everything we’ve got. Try to hit where the power if coming from." Aaron watched as a torpedo left the Augustus, and saw it hit it’s mark, hitting the Xerxes. But just as it hit a weak spot in the shields, Aaron saw a giant pulse leave the Xerxes. As the torpedo exploded, the pulse shimmered, and it looked like it had weakened, but still continued its way towards the ships. As the wave hit the Augustus, the entire ship rocked from the impact, and all the lights went out. "What happened!" Aaron asked. "Sir, our torpedo messed with the pulse, but we lost weapons and propulsion, but we still have life support, communications, and shields… Also sir, we don’t have enough power to transport people off the ship to safety. Most of our ships escaped the pulse, and are continuing to fight the enemy fleet… SIR! The Xerxes is building power again! It looks like its building up more power for another pulse. We won’t survive another hit!" "How many transports do we have?" "Enough auxiliary power for just one transport sir." Aaron quickly thought about his options. "Hail the Unlimited, before the enemy ships have time to regroup and attack us." A few seconds later, Frank Riker’s face appeared on the viewscreen. "Aaron, we don’t have time to talk. The enemy is regrouping…" "Sir, I’m going to transport over the Xerxes. It’s building up power for another attack. If it does, we won’t survive another attack." Frank interrupted. "I wont let you transport over there." "Father, you know I can handle myself. Our ship is the only ship in range that can transport." Frank studied his son’s face. "Alright… transport over." "Thank you sir," Aaron said, as his father’s face disappeared from the screen. Part 10 January 6th, 2603 2015 hours Aaron waited for the blue shimmer to die, and quickly ducked and looked around, aiming his phaser rifle. When he saw no one in the corridor in front of him, he quickly ran, looking for the nearest Jeffery’s tube or turbolift, trying to find a way to engineering, where the weapon would mostly likely be held. After a few minutes of hurried running, he saw a hatch in the corridor. He quickly opened it and climbed in. Nearby, a small ladder led to the next deck. He started to head for it, when he saw two men repairing some console further down the tube. Raising his rifle, he took aim, and fired twice, killing both the men before they could see their attacker. When he reached the bottom of the ladder and reentered the corridors, he looked at a nearby ship blueprint to find the way to engineering. Once he had oriented himself, he headed off in the right direction, running for engineering. As he neared the door, he leveled his rifle. As he approached, two engineers came out of the door, and Aaron fired before they saw him. Already he knew the shots had alerted the rest of the engineering staff. He turned into the room to realize his assumption was correct. Three engineers were leveling phasers at him, but he fired at one before he could fire a shot, and quickly dove behind a console as another shot streaked towards him. As sparks flew from where Aaron had just be standing, he quickly came out of cover, and dropped another engineer, but another shot grazed his shoulder before he could retreat behind the console. He fell in pain, but didn’t drop his weapon. As the last engineer approached his victim, Aaron waited for his assailant to come closer, to check if Aaron was still alive. As the man reached to check his pulse, Aaron moved his hand, raised the rifle, and fired without looking at his target. When he heard the man fall to the ground he stood up and ran towards a console. Looking around, he saw the controls for the pulse weapon, and started to disable it, his hands flying across the board. Before he finished, he took out a small data disk from his pocket and placed it into the underside of the console, and watched as the small device lit up. As he waited for the device to fore fill its purpose, he heard a voice behind him. "What is that?" Aaron quickly picked up his rifle and turned around, and saw his father looking at him. "What are you doing here? I though your transporters were down," Aaron questioned. "They were, but we got enough power back for one transport, just like your ship…, but you didn’t answer my question," said Frank, still holding his weapon at Aaron’s chest, while Aaron did the same to Frank. "Its just a data device. It’s downloading all the ships information so we can analyze the weapon." "I’ve never seen that kind of technology before," Frank still said. Aaron lowered his weapon, smiling. "Father, lower your weapon. We’re both on the same side here. I’ll explain everything once we get back to our ship." Frank still looked unbelieving, but he lowered his weapon. Then, he laughed. "I’ve just gotten a little distrustful in my old age. Besides, you’re my son…" Aaron smiled as well, but quickly raised his rifle again. "Just one problem," Aaron said, as Frank’s stood in surprise. "I’m not really your son. I just look a hell of a lot like him." "But then who…?" Frank started to ask, still in shock. "You see, Admiral, I’m not really your son. I’m actually from the future. And I have a mission to complete." Before Frank could raise his weapon, Aaron fired, and Frank fell, the shot hitting him right in the chest. The fake Aaron didn’t need to check to see that the shot had disintegrated the man’s major organs in his chest. The heart, lungs, and everything else that had been there. Admiral Frank Riker was dead, just like his real son had been for months. "Rest in peace," said the fake Aaron, smiling to himself. He quickly checked the data device, and pulled it off the console, seeing that all the information had downloaded. He then quickly stopped the weapon charge, but as he did so, he redirected the power to the rest of the ship. The imposter knew that that amount of power would overload the ship, causing the ship to explode. He hit his combadge. "Aaron to Augustus, do you have enough power to beam me back?" "Yes sir," came a voice. "I don’t know how well it will work though." "Energize…" the imposter ordered, and the blue glow took hold of him as the Xerxes shook around him. As he rematerialized on the Augustus‘ bridge, he felt the ship rock from the explosion of the Xerxes. As he watched the fire die in space on the viewscreen, he noticed the entire crew looking at him. "Sir… the other ships managed to force the enemy into retreat but… Admiral Riker transported over to the Xerxes just after you left. We didn’t hear from him…," said the first officer. Aaron fell into the captain’s chair. "I saw… the admiral. We met in engineering… As we tried to… to stop the machine… he was shot in the back by one of the security teams." The imposter heard gasps from some of the crew, as they took in the information. "He… didn’t…make it," the imposter said, a tear falling down his cheek, as he laughed to himself on the inside. Part 11 January 9th, 2603 1800 hours Deker sat down. It had been three days since Frank had been killed, but he was still recalling from what had happened. He still didn’t believe it. He had always felt that Frank was invisible. He had always looked up to the admiral. They were best friends, despite Frank being older then himself. To lose him had become… unthinkable. But now the unthinkable had happened, and Deker felt alone. He had known many people that had died during the war, but this death was the first that actually got to him. He had been so close. Deker knew that he had needed a break from his own thoughts, and had decided to come down to the rec hall to listen to a concert in Frank’s honor. A memorial service would be taking place tomorrow, with he and Aaron give a speech. It was the least Deker could do. But he felt that it wasn’t enough. The man had been so great, it seemed to be an insult to him to just say a few words about him. He deserved better then to die on an enemy ship. But Deker knew that was the way he would have wanted to go. Saving the lives of many people. And at least, in the end, Frank had got his son back. At least that was some comfort to him. At least he knew his legacy would continue. As the flute played a sweet melody, Deker felt a tear fall down his cheek. The music flowed through him, as his thoughts began to shift away from his friend’s death, but to his friend’s life. He wouldn’t want to Deker to get upset over his death. He would want him to remember him they way he had always been. Strong, intelligent, quick… and he was never, ever dull. A small smile spread over Deker’s face as he remembered the good times he had with Frank, as the music continued to play. Part 12 Year 3034 Darkness permeated the room as the figures gathered around the table. What little light that managed to come through the window was barley enough for the figures to see the room, but not enough to see the faces of the other men. "Are the plans continuing as scheduled?" asked the figure at the head of the table. A smaller figure at the tables end hesitated before speaking. "Sir… we have discovered a problem." "What kind of problem," the head figure asked, not hiding the anger in his voice. "It seems that someone is attempting to stop our plan from… succeeding. James Obeska was not killed at the accident as originally planned." "WHAT!" yelled the head figure, standing up and slamming his hands on the table. The small figure cowered at the sudden movement and anger. "We… we are… attempting to fix… the problem. We have sent our… our best man to make sure everything is put back on track. Currently, he has infiltrated the ranks of Obeska’s fleet." The head figure sat back down. "If he doesn’t succeed, it will not only be him who will pay the price… but you as well," the figure said. The small figure nodded. "He has already completed his secondary objective. Frank Riker now died on January 6th, 2603 saving the lives of his fleet." The lead figure smiled. "Good. From now, we have to be careful. And make sure Obeska dies before its too late." The man now spoke to the rest of the group at the table. "For now… time is on our side." |