CHAPTER
ONE:
“Captain’s Log, stardate
53125.7. The USS Haymaker has completed
its first mission and is awaiting further orders. To conduct repairs, and to kill some time, we have parked
ourselves in front of the Denbini Cloud, a Class-4 nebula.”
Captain Bobby Halloway whistled as
he strolled through the halls of the Haymaker towards Main Engineering. He was just about to go off-duty when Chief
Monty had asked to see him. He nodded
to an ensign passing by as he turned the corner and entered Main
Engineering. “Captain, so nice to see
you!” remarked the hologram as he approached Bobby.
“You wanted to see me, Chief?” asked
the captain as the engineer enthusiastically shook his hand.
“No, I didn’t call you,” said Monty,
with a look of puzzlement on his face.
“But, you just called me down here a
few…”
“I’m just kidding, Captain! The
antimatter injector assembly seems to be sticking a little, I’d like to shut
down the core temporarily to fix it.”
“Estimated time until repaired?”
“Oh, about five hours or so.”
“Go ahead then.”
“Thanks, Cap!” Monty then placed two
fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly.
“HEY, ABBOTT!!!” he yelled up to the second level with a grin. Lt. Bud Abbott sighed and leaned over the
rail.
“What is it, Chief?”
“We’re going to fix the injector
port. Shut off the drive, will ya?”
“Sure
thing, Chief,” muttered the assistant engineering chief. Halloway smiled and left. Lt. Abbott wished that he had never been
born and started work.
Dr. Scott Clinton was sitting in his
office, reading the latest paper on interstellar gastronomical plagues when he
heard a knock on the glass window.
“Hey, doc,” greeted Lt. Jenna Benn as she strolled into his office and
took a seat on his desk.
“Jenna, how…how are you?” stammered
the shy doctor. The Trill just smiled
and patted Scott on the back.
“Oh, just fine, thanks for
asking. I was just getting off duty and
wanted to say ‘hi’. Hi.” With that, she left, leaving a very confused
Clinton. He scratched his head and got
up from his seat and headed for the door.
“See you tomorrow, Mr. Jessing,”
said Scott to the nurse as he turned to leave. As Jessing watched, a smile crept over his face. A piece of paper with the words ‘Kick me, I’m
stupid’ was taped to his back. As soon
as he left, the nurse erupted with laughter.
Commander Rachel LaCroix smiled
seductively to a passing crewman as she headed for her quarters. The crewman stared at her with a gaping
jaw, long enough for him to walk straight into a bulkhead. He fell to the ground, knocked out
cold. Rachel continued walking,
laughing to herself. She passed two
more crewmen before spotting Ensign Blake Bannon studying the ship’s schematics
on a wall panel. She walked over to him
and stared at the panel, trying to see what he was looking at. “What are you looking for, Ensign?” she
asked after a minute of searching.
“I can’t remember where my quarters
are,” said the science officer as he continued searching on the
schematics. Rachel rolled her eyes and
grabbed Blake’s arm.
“Follow me, Ensign,” ordered the
commander as he was pulled along. They
turned left at the next corridor and stopped at the first door. “Here, it’s right here.” Blake squinted his eyes to read the words
‘Ensign Blake Bannon’s Quarters’ on the door label, next to the room
number.
“Oh, here it is. Thank you, Commander.”
“No problem. Just ask the computer next time to show you
where it is, okay?”
“Where what is?”
“Your quarters.”
“Yeah, that’s what I’m looking for,
my quarters.” LaCroix growled and
pushed Bannon into his quarters. As the
doors closed, she could hear him say “Where am I?” to himself. The commander sighed and resumed walking.
“Bite me, Gabriel.” Lt. Comm. Kerry Halvox glared at the 7-foot
tall Security chief as he sipped his drink.
“Is that an offer?” he asked,
displaying his sharp canines. Kerry
just sighed and crossed her arms. She
glanced out the window at the brilliant purple-green nebula that filled her
view. The two were playing a game of
five-card stud in the mess hall, and Kerry was losing. Badly.
Gabriel picked up the cards and began to shuffle.
“So, what do you think about our new
captain?” asked Halvox as she downed her scotch on the rocks.
“Different,” stated Gabriel in his
deep voice.
“Thanks for the elaboration, big
guy,” muttered Kerry as Gabriel dealt another hand. She looked at her hidden card and ordered another drink. She had an ace in the hole.
“2 for the ops officer,” said
Gabriel as he laid down a card. “Queen
for the tactical man. A three for
you…a pair of ladies for me. A four
for you, and another queen for me.”
Gabriel laid the last two cards down.
Kerry took a sip of her new drink as she looked at her final card. It was another four. She flipped it over in disgust and took
another sip. It was going to be a very
long night.
=Starfleet Command, San Francisco,
Earth=
Admiral Jack Crane’s grin spread
across his face from ear to ear. He
sat in his office, delightfully sipping a cup of rich Irish coffee. He swiveled around in his chair like a
schoolboy, whistling and laughing to himself.
He soon regained his composure and opened up communications with the USS
Haymaker. A picture of the Haymaker’s
bridge was displayed with a young female officer standing in the
foreground. “I’m Ensign Smith of the
USS Haymaker, what can we do for you, Admiral?” she asked.
“What shift is it there?”
“Gamma shift, sir.”
“So the captain has gone to bed?”
inquired the admiral. His giddiness
almost destroyed his stern expression.
“I assume so,” guessed Smith with a
puzzled look on her face. “Do you want
me to patch you to his quarters?”
“If you would be so kind, Ensign.”
“One moment.” Smith’s face, along with the background of
the Haymaker bridge, disappeared and was replaced by the Federation symbol, a
galaxy surrounded by two olive branches.
‘Revenge is oh, so sweet…’ pondered
Crane with a content smile.
=USS Haymaker, Near the Denbini
Cloud=
The steady beeping of the computer
awoke Bobby from a deep, sound sleep.
He wiped the drool from his chin in an effort to compose himself. He mindlessly got out of bed, eyes half
shut, and headed for the screen. On
his way, he stepped on a misplaced Rigellian bloodhound chew toy and hurt his
foot. He grabbed his foot and hopped
the rest of the way, futilely rubbing the sole in an effort to decrease the
pain. He tapped the monitor on the
wall. “This is Captain Halloway,” he
yawned. In his stupor, it took a
moment to recognize the all too familiar face of Admiral Crane. “Admiral, with all do respect, do you have
any idea what time it is?” grumbled Halloway as his eyes adjusted to the bright
screen.
“I’m sorry, Captain, did I wake
you? I do apologize for the
inconvenience. However, I have an
urgent mission for you. Are you
familiar with the Jyinion Assembly?”
“No.”
“Well, you will be. The Jyinion Assembly, a militaristic empire
that has been in existence long before the Federation, has collapsed. We have reports of terror and strife running
rampart throughout the former empire.”
Bobby could tell that Crane was overacting a bit, but it would look good
on tape, if anybody were to watch the message ever again.
“Terror and strife, huh?”
“Terror and strife, Captain. We need a vessel to establish a Federation
presence within the Assembly.”
“Are we free to give aid?”
“You are, as long as you don’t
violate the Prime Directive.” Bobby
suspected that the last comment was also for the record.
“So, where is this ‘Jyinion
Assembly’ located?”
“Sector 66-F. I’m sending a complete mission dossier
along with this message, which gives the details of your new mission.” Bobby rubbed his forehead and pinched the
bridge of his nose.
“I suppose that there is no other
ship available for this assignment?”
“To tell you the truth, Captain
Halloway, you were my first pick,” said Crane with a wide grin.
“Oh, was I?” inquired Halloway
sarcastically. It was lost on
Crane.
“Yes, you were. Good luck, Captain, and be careful.”
“Yes, God knows that your daughter
would miss me if I were to never return,” shot Bobby as broke
communication. The last image he saw
was the admiral’s expression change from pleasant to furious. He laughed to himself sleepily and headed
back to bed, again stepping on the chew toy on the way.
CHAPTER
TWO:
Jenna Benn hummed to herself as she
walked into the conference room; she was the last to arrive. She took her usual seat farthest from the
captain’s. Halloway was standing by
his chair with a jaded look to him.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new mission,” he stated simply as he
walked over to the computer screen mounted into the wall. A star map was displayed of Sector
66-F. “This is Sector 66-F. Until recently, this entire area was ruled
by the Jyinion Assembly, which held an iron grip over all of its subjects.”
“What do you mean, ‘until
recently’?” inquired Lt. Halvox bluntly.
“If you would wait, Lt., I was just
getting to that.” That remark shut the
Ops officer’s mouth, although she still glared at everyone. “The Assembly has collapsed, and Starfleet
wants us to represent the Federation and give aid to the occupants of Sector
66-F.”
“Speaking of occupants, I heard this
incredibly funny joke down in Engineering,” interrupted the engineering
hologram with a grin. “Anybody wanna
hear it? Okay, these three salesmen walk into this hotel, right, so…” Monty’s
voice droned on in the background as Halloway continued his speech.
“There are reports of different
factions vying for control over the sector, so we must be prepared to defend
ourselves if necessary. Halvox, you
and Lt. Gabriel work on securing the ship for battle.” Both officers nodded in reply.
“Mr. Bannon?”
“Yes, Captain?”
“Find out everything you can about
the Jyinion Assembly, and I mean everything.”
“Sure.”
“Doctor, we are surely going to be
taking on wounded, so prepare sickbay for massive amounts of people. Most likely we have never met any of these
races before, so keep you wits about you.”
Scott nodded nervously, and looked away in thought. “Lt. Benn, plot a course to the border of
Jyinion space. The rest of you, keep
doing what you do. Are there any questions?” Bannon raised his hand.
“Yes, Ensign?”
“Um, what am I doing again?”
“Miss LaCroix…?” said Halloway as he
looked at his XO. She sighed, and after
checking her makeup, explained Blake’s job to him again. “If that is all, you are dismissed.” The senior staff quickly exited the
conference room, leaving only the hologram.
“And so the third guy says to the
clerk, ‘now that’s what I call ‘occupants’’! Get it? Hello? Anybody here?”
Ensign Blake Bannon sat at his
terminal, examining the data he had found about the Jyinion Assembly and Sector
66-F. Commander LaCroix swaggered over
to him and leaned over his shoulder.
“What have you found, Ensign?”
“Read for yourself.” She took a seat next to Bannon and began
reading the two entries on the screen.
“Jyinion Assembly: See Sector
66-F. Sector 66-F: See Jyinion
Assembly,” she stated. “What the HELL
kind of entries are those!?!”
“It’s the only thing in our
computer, Commander. I even requested
files from Memory Alpha.”
“And…?”
“These are the files from Memory
Alpha.”
“Great, just great. Looks like we’re flying blind into this
one.”
“It sure looks like it,” echoed
Blake as he stared at the screen.
“Well, my job is done. I’m
taking a break.” The science officer
began to get up when he was pulled back down by LaCroix.
“I don’t think so, Mr. Bannon. Are you sure that you looked everywhere?”
“Completely sure, Commander. This ‘Jyinion Assembly’ is incredibly
mysterious, even more so than the Thallonion Empire in Sector 221-G.” LaCroix frowned at the screen. Bannon just shrugged. “Can I go now?”
“Yes, go ahead,” said LaCroix, with
a hint of annoyance in her voice.
Bannon stood again and walked into the turbolift, leaving the annoyed
commander alone at the science station.
“Computer,” inquired Rachel, “show
me all entries under ‘make-over’.”
CHAPTER
THREE:
Bobby Halloway watched the stars
streak by as he sat in his ready room, sipping something out of a glass sand
reflecting on the current assignment.
They would be lucky just to make it out of there in one piece. Crumbling empires and pissed-off citizens
do not bode well for starships and their crews. He took a sip of his beverage of choice, a bitter, carbonated
drink known as ginger ale. Bobby’s
mind wandered aimlessly as he continued watching the stars.
=Jyinus, Homeworld of the former
Jyinion Assembly=
“I hate it here,” remarked the young woman. She was chained to a wall underneath what
used to be her palace. The only other
person in the room, an old man with a long white beard, nodded in
agreement. The woman, only 23, was
Jyinion. Her usually clean blonde hair
was dirtied up with the grime of the dungeon, as were her auburn skin. Her torn and tattered pink dress was
hanging on her slender frame. Even in
chains, she held her head high. “I
really hate it here.”
“Sorry, Princess, but there’s
nothing we can do,” remarked the old man as he hung from the wall. The princess snorted and looked away.
“This would have never happened if
Daddy hadn’t disappeared. Oh, I miss
him so.” The princess began to sob
softly and quietly, as was taught to her in princess school. Her tears helped to clean some of the grime
off of her cheeks. The opening of the
dungeon door interrupted her crying.
She immediately composed herself and tried her best to look down at the
advancing man.
“Your Highness…” offered the man in
contempt.
“Fallow, you disgust me, you
miserable swine!” spat the princess.
“Sticks and stones, Princess
Cimorene, sticks and stones…” said Fallow with a devilish grin as he released
Cimorene from her chains. She rubbed
her wrists and glared at him. He looked
back with his one eye and laughed silently.
He grabbed her and took her out of the cell, locking the door behind
him.
“I demand to know where you are
taking me!” she yelled in a prissy tone.
“It seems that some of your devoted
followers have been storming the palace.
I’m going to make sure that they never find you.” Cimorene smiled satisfyingly. “Well, find you alive, that is.” Her grin disappeared as quickly as it had
come. They started down a long
corridor towards a gate made of some exotic metal. Halfway there, Fallow stopped and forced Cimorene to do the
same.
“What is it now?” she complained.
“Shh!” ordered Fallow as he
listened. Seconds later, a light shone
through the bars at the two. Cimorene
squinted to make out the outline of a large group of people.
“Damn…looks like we’ll have to leave
from here,” he muttered as he pulled out a communicator and tapped a few
buttons. They both shimmered away in
two flashes of light. The mob broke
its way through the door and ran to the princess’ previous location. They stopped and looked around.
“Can somebody please help me?”
groaned the old man in the cell.
“Who is that?” asked one of the
peasants.
“I’m the Grand Judge of the Jyinion
Royal Family,” moaned the old man.
“Leave him in there; he once
convicted me of trespassing on my own land,” said another of the mob with a
frown.
“Yeah, he wasn’t a very good judge
at that,” agreed another. The mob
turned and left the dungeon, leaving the old judge trapped in his cell.
CHAPTER
FOUR:
Halloway exited his ready room and
entered the bridge. “ETA, Miss Benn?”
he inquired as he took his seat next to Commander LaCroix.
“At our current speed of warp 6, we
should be there in about 2 hours.”
“Good. Commander,” said Halloway as he turned to his XO, “What
information do… is that a new hair style?”
Rachel looked up and feigned surprise.
“Why, yes it is. How kind of you to notice, Captain,” she
said sweetly as she batted her eyes.
“Do you like it?”
“Looks like targ sh*t to me…”
muttered Lt. Halvox. LaCroix glared at
her, then returned to her innocent expression for Halloway.
“Looks nice…” said Bobby
half-heartedly as he quickly changed the subject. “What information did you find?”
“Ensign Bannon found it, sir. He’s the one you should be talking to.”
“Fine.” Halloway turned to look at the empty science station. “Is the ensign taking a break?”
“He did earlier, why?” asked Rachel
without looking.
“Because he’s not at his post. Computer, how long has Ensign Bannon been
on break?”
“2 hours, 37 minutes.”
“Computer, where is the ensign?”
“Holodeck 1.”
“Patch in the visual on the main
viewer,” ordered Halloway as he gestured at Halvox. She nodded and the streaking stars were replaced by a view of the
bridge. Halloway arched his left
eyebrow in confusion. “Lt.?” asked
Halloway.
“That’s what he running,
Captain.” The holo-bridge was
populated with the entire senior staff, except for one.
“Where is the captain?” inquired
LaCroix. Suddenly, Bannon ran into
view, wearing a captain’s uniform and looking very pompous. His mouth was running as he barked out
orders to the holographic crew. He was
clearly imitating Halloway, in both the way he walked and the way he
talked. Jenna started giggling
uncontrollably. Soon, the entire bridge
crew started laughing, except for Halloway, who was clearly peeved at the
unflattering imitation. LaCroix ceased
laughing when her holo-double walked up to Bannon and passionately kissed
him. “Halloway to Bannon.” The ensign stopped on screen and looked
up.
“Yes, Captain?”
“What are you doing right now,
Ensign?”
“Um, just finishing up some reports,
Captain.”
“On the holodeck?” Bannon looked flustered, and bit his
lip. Jenna stifled a laugh, but a
giggle slipped its way through her lips.
“Uh…yes. I was just examining a three-dimensional chart of Sector
66-F.” Everyone on the bridge grinned,
even Halvox, who let go of her gruff demeanor long enough for a chuckle or
two. Halloway pinched the bridge of
his nose and groaned silently.
“Ensign, we can see you.” Blake looked around the holodeck in
embarrassment, trying to find the hidden camera. “And by the way, I don’t walk like that. Nice try,” he added plainly.
“Sorry, Captain. I’ll be right there.” The holo-bridge dissolved around the
science officer as he moved out of view.
“Screen off,” ordered Halloway as he
scratched the back of his head in irritation.
He barely knew this crew and already they were making fun of him. Jenna let loose with another volley of
laughter as she swiveled around in her chair.
A few minutes later, a very red-faced Ensign Bannon joined the bridge
and sheepishly returned to his station.
Halloway tossed him a glance of irritation. The ensign’s face got redder as he quickly turned to his
duties.
“Captain, to tell you the truth, you
do walk a little like that,” whispered LaCroix to Halloway. He sighed as he turned his attention on the
viewscreen.
=Jyinion warship orbiting Jyinus=
“I will not stand for this!!! Return me to Jyinus IMMEDIATELY!” yelled
Cimorene at Fallow as he activated the forcefield to her cell. He just looked at her and grinned.
“Then take a seat, Princess. Get used to being in there, because that’s
where you’ll be until we have control of the Jyinion Assembly.”
“Until you have control of it, you
mean.”
“How astute, Princess. And now, I must bid you farewell,” mocked
Fallow as he bowed low and left. She
sat on the bed and crossed her arms, frowning.
“Just you wait. My people will come to get me, you’ll see…”
grumbled Cimorene as she continued to frown.
She looked around the bare, empty cell. ‘This place isn’t much better, either…’
CHAPTER
FIVE:
The USS Haymaker slowed to impulse
and parked itself just outside of Sector 66-F. “We’re heeerrreee!” proclaimed Benn with a musical tone. Halloway stood and walked towards the viewscreen.
“Sector 66-F.”
“Sector 66-F,” echoed LaCroix as she
stepped beside her captain. The
blackness stretched on into the void, being broken only by the glitter of
starlight.
“What a dump,” commented
Halvox. Both Halloway and LaCroix
turned and took their seats.
“Well, here goes nothing. Lt. Benn, take us in, full impulse,”
ordered Halloway.
“Aye, sir. Full impulse,” confirmed the Trill conn officer as she piloted
the Haymaker across the border and into Jyinion space.
“Well, that wasn’t so bad, was it?”
asked Halloway rhetorically after a tense moment of silence. Suddenly, the red alert klaxons started to
wail. “Never mind.”
“Captain, two unidentified ships are
entering the area, running with weapons hot,” reported Gabriel over the howl of
the sirens.
“On screen, and turn off those
damned alarms while you’re at it.” Two
crescent-shaped spacecraft popped on the viewer. They were muddy red in color, and were had a series of layers
cascading down both tips. “Looks like
a couple of croissants…” said Halloway.
“Speaking of croissants, I heard this
delightful pun in Sickbay the other day while I was repairing one of the
biobeds,” said Monty as he shimmered onto the bridge. “But I see that now is not the time.”
“Halvox, hail them,” ordered
Halloway She nodded and attempted to
do so.
“Sir, the lead ship is
responding.” Halloway motioned at the
screen, and a second later, a tall man with a thin, black moustache replaced
the two approaching ships.
“I am Commander J’Son Laru, of the
Jyinion Assembly Guard. You are
trespassing, prepare to die,” said the man as he glared at Halloway with two
beady black eyes.
“Is the universal translator working
properly?” whispered Halvox to Gabriel.
“Because he sounds French.”
“I hate the French,” stated the
tactical chief with a frown. Halvox
nodded in agreement.
“I am Captain Bobby Halloway of the
Federation starship Haymaker. We heard
that the Jyinion Assembly had fell, and we are here only to render assistance,”
said Halloway as he stood.
“I do not believe you.”
“You don’t believe me? Why not?”
“Because the Jyinion Assembly is
doing just fine and dandy, thank you, you sons of a silly person. Now go away, or I shall taunt you a second
time!” Halloway turned his head to
look at LaCroix, who shrugged in confusion.
He mouthed ‘what the hell?’ and turned back to face Laru.
“I intend to enter this space, and
things would go smoother if you allowed us to help.” Laru ignored this and stuck up his nose.
“You’re mother was a hamster, and
your father smelt of elderberries!” the holographic engineer shot at the
annoying Commander. He was taken
aback. Laru quickly composed himself,
and glared at Halloway.
“You, silly Captain Halloway, are
about to die. Farewell.” The Haymaker shook as the viewer revealed
the two Jyinion ships attacking.
“Shields are holding at 78%,”
reported Gabriel as the ship shook.
“Return fire. Jenna, evasive maneuvers,” ordered Bobby as
he returned to his seat. Another blast
rocked the ship, followed by two more, which caused one of the EPS conduits on
the bridge to rupture.
“Damage reported on decks 13, 6, 5,
and 1, shields down to 60%,” said Halvox as her hands darted across her
station. The Haymaker continued to
return fire at the two ships as it tried to wiggle out of their attacks. A phaser blast bore a hole into one of the
ships, causing an explosion.
“Direct hit on the vessel’s primary
power core, their shields are gone,” said Gabriel. “They are fleeing, Captain.”
“Discontinue red alert. Leave them be,” said Halloway. “Damage report.”
“The warp drive has been damaged,
but not much. You’ll have Warp 4 until
we get it repaired,” said Monty as he checked the engineering station. “I’ll be down there if ya need me. To the warp core!!!” he proclaimed before
he disappeared.
“Lt. Benn, warp factor four.”
“Aye. Heading?”
“Anywhere, Lt.” She grinned and began to type in her
destination. “Anywhere in Jyinion
space, Miss Benn. Not Risa.” She frowned and readjusted their
course. “Let’s get this over with,”
sighed Halloway as the USS Haymaker streaked further into Sector 66-F.
=Jyinion Warship ‘Le Baron’,
Somewhere in Sector 66-F=
Fallow sat comfortably in the
command chair on the bridge of the ‘Le Baron’. He stared straight into the viewer. His second-in-command, Mennol, casually scanned Fallow’s
mind. ‘I’ve got a lovely bunch of
coconuts, diddle-ly dee…’ Mennol sighed and faced forward as well.
“High Admiral Fallow, sir?”
stammered a young officer at the conn.
“Yes?”
“There is a ship on sensors just
entering Assembly territory. It is of
an unknown configuration.”
“Let me see,” ordered Mennol as he
stepped forward to study the sensor readings.
“It’s a Federation starship, Intrepid-class.”
“Federation? Your Federation?” asked Fallow. The Betazoid nodded with a frown. “It’s just one ship?”
“Affirmative, Admiral. Intrepid-class starships are small, but
tough. Should we come down to a fight,
we would need four or five of our best warships. No doubt that her crew is one of the finest in the fleet.”
CHAPTER
SIX:
“Damn it all to hell!”
“Calm down, Chief!” yelled Lt.
Abbott to the fuming hologram.
“I can’t believe this! Of all the stupid, unbelievable…! Monty to Captain!” stammered Monty as he
tapped his comm badge.
“Halloway here.”
“We’ve got a problem. I just found another sub-standard part in
the EPS relays! Did Starfleet use an
outside contractor on us, or what?”
Lt. Abbott groaned and rubbed his head as Monty reemerged from the
jefferies tube.
“Let me check the construction
logs…” There was a brief period of silence.
“According to this, 85% of the ship was built by…LaGuarde Shipmakers,
based in France, on Earth.”
“Damn French! I KNEW something was wrong when the
computer kept placing all of the holo-mime programs next to mine!”
“So what’s the time table on this
one, Chief?”
“Well, to replicate good parts to
replace the failing ones and to install them, about 3 hours. However, at this rate, we may get stuck in
Sector 66-F if something like the engine or the replicator fails.”
“Just fix what’s broken now and
we’ll have a meeting tomorrow. Halloway
out.” Monty grumbled and ducked back
in to the jefferies tube.
“The only good thing the French ever
invented was the French kiss, eh chief?” asked Lt. Abbott, as he tried to make
Monty crack a smile. He
succeeded.
“That, and whores…” responded the
chief as he returned to his work.
“Speaking of which…Chief, Commander
LaCroix is coming,” said Lt. Abbott to the hologram quietly as the XO approached. The hologram ducked back out of the tube
and brushed some of the dirt off of his holobody.
“Commander, to what do I owe the
pleasure?” asked the chief.
“Actually, I wanted to talk with Lt.
Abbott here,” said LaCroix with a sexy grin.
“Me?” asked Abbott. LaCroix nodded and grabbed him by the
uniform and lead him away. Monty just
shook his head and got back to work.
“You’ve heard about the good time
had by all, ladies and gentlemen,” said the hologram to nobody in
particular. “And there she goes.”
Lt. Gabriel walked silently towards
his quarters, with a look on his face that would have stopped a Klingon warrior
in his tracks. Of course, this was the
expression he always wore, and the crew had gotten used to it. He entered his room and locked the
door. His room was spartan in décor,
with only a potted plant and a rock on his nightstand. He sat on his bed and pulled out a box that
was under the bed. Gabriel opened it,
and removed his stuffed teddy bear, Fluffy.
He smiled and gave the tiny bear a hug as rocked back and forth. “Computer, play file Gabriel-045.”
‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’ started playing softly as Gabriel continued to
hug the small teddy bear. He reached
into the box again and grabbed a tiny piece of blue fabric, which was tattered
and torn. There was a picture of a
bear embroidered in one of the corners.
He wrapped Fluffy in it and laid the bear on the bed, with its head
resting on a pillow. Suddenly, the
doors whisked open. Gabriel growled loudly
at the intruder, as he jumped up to attack.
“Lt. Comm. Gabriel??? What are you doing in my quarters?” asked
Ensign Bannon. “The lock you put on
the door was a little tricky to break, but…why is there a teddy bear wrapped in
a blanket on my bed?”
“This is MY quarters, Ensign. Yours are two decks down, same spot.”
“Oops, sorry Commander.” Bannon turned to leave, then stopped. “Commander, why is there a teddy bear
wrapped up in a blanket on your bed?”
Gabriel pushed the science officer out the door and re-locked the
door. He let out a ‘grrr’ before he
rejoined Fluffy on the bed.
Captain Halloway sighed as he stared
out into the barren expanse that was Sector 66-F. He was sitting alone at a table in the mess hall, diving into a
plate of replicated prime rib, with a side of mashed potatoes and gravy. For some strange reason, it tasted just
like lemon chicken with asparagus.
“Monty to Captain, the replicators are starting to go,” reported the
engineering chief.
“So I’ve noticed,” he responded as
he chewed thoughtfully on another bite of beef.
“Sir, I recommend that we turn
back. I, for one, do not want to be
stuck here all my life.” His voice
bellowed through the comm link.
“Chief, you’re a little loud, people
are staring.”
“Sorry, the comm system must be
going too,” he replied, at almost a whisper.
“I’ll get right on it. And by
the way, Captain…” The volume continued to drop until Halloway couldn’t hear
him anymore.
“Chief, speak up. I can’t hear you.”
“COMMANDER LACROIX IS SHACKING UP
WITH LT. ABBOTT!” screamed Monty as the volume was suddenly restored to
normal. The entire mess hall turned
and stared at their captain. After a
brief silence, snickers and hushed voices were heard, as the rumor mill began
to work. Halloway rubbed his forehead
and sighed. “Oops. Um, I’ll talk with you later, cap. Monty out.” Halloway placed another piece of lemon beef in his mouth and
sighed again. A tray of food was
plopped down with a ‘clang’ across the table from Halloway. He looked up to see Lt. Halvox sit down and
began to eat her dinner.
“Good evening, Miss Halvox,” greeted
Bobby with a grin. The ops officer
mumbled a reply and continued eating.
Bobby sighed and joined in.
“Permission to speak freely sir,”
requested Kerry as she dropped her fork on her tray loudly.
“You’re not going to yell at me, are
you?” inquired Halloway. If it was one
thing he had learned about his Chief of Operations, it was that you did not
want to be on the short end of her stick.
“Not this time, Captain.”
“Oh. In that case, go ahead.”
“Captain, I don’t know how to say
this, but…”
“You want a transfer?” guessed
Halloway. Halvox glared at him
slightly.
“No. Where did you hear that?”
“Word travels. I guess that it was just a rumor.”
“Hmmm,” she thought with an evil
grin. Whoever had started that rumor
was probably going to regret it, thought Bobby. “Anyways, I just wanted to say that you are the first captain I
have ever had that has not thought any less of me because of my…condition.”
“Condition?”
“Yes. I’m half-Hellian, and human/Hellian hybrid females have a surge
of estrogen constantly flowing through their body, creating hormonal problems,
which leads to general…unfriendliness towards others.”
“Ah, yes. Terminal PMS,” stated Halloway matter-of-factly. Kerry’s glare intensified as her eyes bored
into the young captain. She tried to
compose herself and pushed ahead.
“All that I wanted to say is, ‘thank
you’. Now, don’t stare at me so much,
you bug-eyed fool!” With that, Kerry
dove back into her dinner and didn’t say another word until she had finished
and left. Bobby shook his head and almost
laughed as he finished his meal.
CHAPTER
SEVEN:
=Jyinion Warship Le Baron, Somewhere
in Sector 66-F=
Princess Cimorene sat with her arms
crossed and a scowl on her face as she stared at the cell wall. She wished that her supporters would hurry
up and rescue her. Then, with her
leading her people, they could find her father. Or at least, that’s what Cimorene wanted to happen. “Oh, bother…” she mumbled as she tried to
look her best. Going four days without
a shower was bad enough, but the food on the ship tasted like mush, which,
essentially, it was. Suddenly, she was
thrown down the floor by the rocking of the ship. She heard the attack alarm go off as she tried to get to her
feet. The ship continued to be pounded
by some outside attacker. Cimorene ran
into a wall as the lights went out in the cell. As she adjusted to the dim light she realized that she had
fallen out of her cell. ‘The power
grid must be offline…” Cimorene
straightened her hair and darted out the door.
“Helm, hard to port! Torpedoes away!” ordered Fallow as he tried
to hold on to his seat. Two warships
like his and a number of smaller, shuttle-sized red craft were displayed on the
viewer.
“Admiral, the lead ship is hailing
us,” reported Mennol.
“On screen.” A young man in military clothing was on the
viewer.
“I am Tan Omar of the People’s
Assembly of Jyinion Space. I demand
that you turn the princess over to me.”
“I don’t think so, Omar. I’m keeping her, for as long as I need
her. And by the way, I have a better
name. The New Jyinion Assembly, ruled
not by aristocrats, but by the military.
MY military. Join us or
die.”
“Is that a threat?” Omar looked like he was about to crack
up. “Release the princess now, and
I’ll spare your crew’s life. They shouldn’t
die for your mistakes.”
“Nor should your people die for
yours. Goodbye, Omar.” The young officer’s face disappeared. The ship rocked again as the small armada
continued its attack.
“Where’s the closest loyal ship?”
inquired Fallow.
“Four hours away,” said Mennol, as
he checked the sensors.
“Engage warp, get us out of here.”
“Course, sir?” asked the conn
officer.
“Typhoid System, we’ll hide in the
asteroid belt.” The officer nodded and
plotted the course. Suddenly, the conn
exploded, sending the officer flying across Fallow’s bridge.
“Warp drive is inoperable!” yelled
Mennol. “We’re sitting ducks!” Another blast rocked the ship.
“Reroute all power to shields and
set the ship to self-destruct. We’ll
be leaving with the princess in my yacht.
Get her and meet me in the main shuttle bay.” Mennol nodded and headed towards the brig. “Computer, set ship to self-destruct in
five minutes.”
“This ship will self-destruct in
five minutes and counting.” Fallow set
the ship to fly into the center of the armada and left the bridge.
Mennol forced the doors to the brig
open with his bare hands. Gas hissed
out of a ruptured power conduit. The
lights flickered on and off incessantly.
“Come on, Princess, it’s time for a little trip,” called out Mennol as
he approached her cell. “Princess,
where are…” Mennol fell silent as he discovered that Cimorene was not where she
was supposed to be. “Mennol to Fallow,
we have a problem,” he said as he accessed the communications system.
“What sort of problem?”
“The princess is missing.” There was silence.
“Then leave her. This ship is going to explode in less than
three minutes. I suggest that you meet
me at my yacht as soon as possible.”
“But, sir, without the princess…!”
“Forget her! There are other ways of securing the
people’s cooperation. Fallow
out.” Mennol cursed under his breath
and ran out of the brig as he headed for the yacht.
“Hurry up, you stupid piece of
metal! Oh, drat!” cursed Cimorene as
she tried to pilot the tiny shuttle away from the Le Baron. The tiny craft shook as two members of the
attacking armada began firing on her.
She squealed in fright as she attempted to power up the warp drive. “Oh, please work! Please, please, please,” she pleaded.
“Warp drive operational,” reported
the computer. “Please input
destination.”
“I don’t know how to fly a
ship! Just take me away from
here! Now!!!”
“Select destination vocally.”
“Anywhere!” The shuttle shuttered again from phaser
blasts.
“Warning, shields down to 13%.” Cimorene screamed as sparks shot from a panel on the wall. She started to randomly press buttons.
“Please do something!!!”
“Destination selected. Thank you for flying Jyinion Air.” Cimorene was suddenly pushed back into her
seat as the tiny shuttle accelerated to warp speed and disappeared. The Le Baron continued its flight into the
heart of the armada, finally stopping when it had reached its center. The attacking ships continued to pound on
the warship, ignoring the small yacht that was fleeing the battle. It entered warp just as the Le Baron’s warp
drive reached critical and exploded, taking out the armada with it. The wreckage of the fleet was spewn all
over the area, flying aimlessly into space.
=USS Haymaker, Somewhere in Jyinion
Space=
“Oh dear,” remarked Halloway as he
looked upon the wreckage before him.
“Sensors show that what ever was
destroyed was destroyed recently,” reported Halvox.
“How recently?” asked LaCroix,
sharing in the captain’s concern.
“I’d say about four to six hours
ago. The sensors also show that it was
more than one ship that was destroyed.”
“Any survivors?” asked Halloway.
“No life signs detected, Captain,”
stated Bannon as he surveyed the sensor readings. “It seems that a warp core blew and took some other stuff with
it, at least, that’s what I would guess.”
“Sir, there are two warp trails
leading off from here, in two different directions,” reported Jenna.
“How long ago, Miss Benn?” said
LaCroix.
“About the same time that the explosion
occurred. The first warp signature
heads towards a system 2.3 light years away, it contains a dense neutron star,
three planets, and a very thick asteroid field.”
“With our ship falling apart at the
seams, I wouldn’t recommend going in there, not if our deflector fails,” chimed
in Monty.
“And the other…?” inquired Bobby.
“The other ship seems to be headed
for…a star about 7 light years away.
No planets, no asteroids, no nothing.
Just a run of the mill star.”
“Well, that’s a no brainer. Plot a course to the second vessel, maximum
warp.” Lt. Benn nodded and typed in
the new heading. Halloway smiled
slightly. “Here’s where things get
interesting. Engage.” The USS Haymaker took off and disappeared
into the expanse of Sector 66-F.