Danny Amor's Online Library/Danny Amor's Online Library - Volume 1.iso/html/startrek/incomplete/whengalaxiescollide.p1-4

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From: [e-mail]
Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative
Subject: WGC part 1- A Bridge Between Universes (repost)
Date: 3 May 95 12:49:48 AST
Organization: University of Alaska
Lines: 205
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
NNTP-Posting-Host: orion.alaska.edu

Attention: This story is based on characters and situations created by the
Star Trek and Star Wars people.  The names of ships, people, ect belong to
those people.  This story was written for my amusement and (hopefully) the
amusement of those who read it on the internet, and it belongs to me, Jeremiah
Jennings.  So there.

                          When Galaxies Collide

                    Part 1: A Bridge Between Universes


Captain Jean-Luc Picard breathed deeply, set aside his book, and drained the
remainder of the earl-grey tea from the bottom of his cup.

     The brightness of the lights in his room, as in the rest of the ship, was
the only measure of day and night.  And now, the dimmness seemed wrong.  It
wasn't night yet, and Picard could tell.

     Beverly had told him, though, that tonight would be a good time to get
some rest.  It wouldn't hurt anything for him to leave the bridge a few hours
early; Riker could hold the bridge until nightwatch.

     Still, no matter what a doctor said, the captain was restless.  He felt
like he should still be on the bridge, and he knew that he wouldn't be able to
sleep in the unnatural darkness of his quarters.  Better to sit out the
remaining time until he should be asleep in a semi-normal environment to what
his biological clock was used to.

     Despite knowing how ackward a scene he would make appearing on the bridge
in his night clothes and bare feet, he didn't dare change back in to his
uniform.

     He could hear it now.  "Sir, you're off duty.  You need the rest.  You
deserve the rest."  "Jean-Luc, I told you to take it easy.  Go back to bed."

     No, if he put on his uniform, he would be inviting a barrage of unwelcome
pitty and stern advice from well meaning officers and friends.

     He stuck his glass back into the replicator for de-materialization, then
grabbed his book and stubbornly headed out of his room.

     In the long ride up the turbolift, Picard dreaded walking through the
bridge.  Most people probably wouldn't say anything, if for no other reason
to patronize an old man by leaving him alone, but he would draw looks.

     So it was patronization by admission or omission.  Was everybody eager to
help him to the point of considering him a helpless old man?  Or was it all in
his imagination?

     How awkward he was with his crew!  They were his great friends, but he
was different.  Somehow, he just wasn't, and never would be, one of them.

     When the doors to the turbolift slid open with the usual swishing sound,
he began to head straight for his ready room.  But Will caught him before he
could get past.

     "Everything is normal, sir," he said in his usually loud, authoritarian
voice.  "We are approaching the wormhole on schedule."

     Picard gestured with his hand toward the ready room door.  "I just wanted
to relax in my ready room.  Of course, if you need me..."

     Riker grinned.  It was that wide, bright-eyed smile that he gave off with
 his whole face.  "We're doing fine," he said.

     "Yes, of course," Picard said.

     The door closed behind him, and he was finally able to relax, thankful
that his short journey had been an uneventful one.

     The lighting of the ready room, as well as the room itself, was a welcome
sight at this time of day.  Although he wasn't working, it just seemed more
natural being there, like that was where he belonged at that time of day.

     Reclining in a couch, he propped up the book on his chest and began to
read.  And surprisingly, before long, he fell asleep.


     As Picard's eyes slowly opened, and his ears began to hear and recognize
the beeping of his comm badge, he slowly remembered where he was.  He couldn't
believe he had been as tired as to fall asleep on the couch, but apparently,
it was true.

     Sitting up groggily, he tapped his badge.

     "Picard here."

     "Good morning, sir," Data's voice said.

     "Good morning Data," Picard responded.

     "I noticed you had not returned from your ready room last night.  I just
wish to inform you that you are due to report for duty in an hour.  We will be
approaching the wormhole momentarily."

     "Thank you, Commander," the captain said, standing up.

     He set the book on a table and headed back for his quarters.

     An hour later, on the bridge and in uniform, he felt refreshed, and a
little thankful for the advise Dr. Crusher had given him.

     "We're coming out of warp near the wormhole," the navigator reported.

     The stars, whose images had been stretched into long lines by the ship's
warp travel, shortened back to tiny dots and eventually stopped moving.  A
large, blue, circular object dominated the viewscreen.

     "Report, Mr. Data," Picard ordered.

     "This entrance to the wormhole seems to be unusually stable," Data said
after typing on his controls and checking the display on his consol.  "This
may be the most signifant wormhole to be discovered since the one near Bejor."

     "Begin the preliminary analysis for Starfleet," the captain said.
"Ensign, move us closer to the entrance.  Maybe we can see what's on the other
side."

     As Data began typing the report, the helmsman brought the ship around.

     Picard was standing, watching the object on the screen in facination.

     Riker spoke up, interrupting his thoughts, "Sir, should we prepare a
probe to send through?"

     "Yes, of course," Picard answered.  "Mr. Worf, begin getting the probe
ready."

     "Yes sir," the Klingon said from behind the tactical controls.

     The air inside the bridge was thick with anticipation, as the officers
sat waiting to see what awaited them on the other side.

     "The probe is ready and on line," Worf said.

     "Send it through."

     At the captains orders, the torpedo-like probe flew into the mouth of the
waiting wormhole and vanished.

     "Route the probe's feedback to the main viewer," Riker said.

     Worf brought an image of the inside of the hole to the screen.

     "We may not get immediate results," Data said.  "In fact the probe may
take years to reach the end of the wormhole.  Or..."

     "Lets just wait and see," Picard interrupted.  Then silently, "And hope."

     After less than five minutes of travelling through a stream of hypnotic
blue color patterns, the probe came out into normal space, and the screen's
image showed a normal starfield.

     "Mr. Data," Picard said, "Do you know where that is?"

     "Negative, Captain," was the response.  "The area on the other side of
the wormhole does not appear on any of our charts."

     "It could be another galaxy, for all we know," Riker conjectured to
himself.

     Data replied, "That is a distinct possibility.  There is something else
unusual about this wormhole, though.  I believe it leads to another time, as
well as a great distance through space."

     "What?" Riker asked.

     "It seems to bend through hyperspace to another plane in time.  Far into
the past, according to my calculations.  I could be in error, though."

     Picard returned to his seat.  "It doesn't seem like we will be visiting
that part of the universe any time soon.  I'm sure Starfleet would object
strongly to travelling to an unknown place in the past.  I'll prepare a
report shortly," he said.

     After a moment, Data spoke up excitedly, "Captain."

     "What is it, Mr. Data."

     "I have detected a ship on the other side of the wormhole.  It has
detected our probe, and is headed for the hole's entrance."


     To be continued...



       AUTHOR'S NOTE

Well, there was the first part.  As I've said before, this isn't going to
be a statement about the Empire being stronger than the Federation.  It is my
opinion that it is, but the main reason it will be in this story is simple: If
the Federation were stronger, there would be no disaster for the good guys,
and that would be boring.  This is meant to be a Best of Both Worlds-type
mass destruction story.

This will continue to be a Federation based story, just as the Trek episodes,
just with the SW Empire to make it interesting.  As you see, they will meet
through a wormwhole that connects the "Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far
Away" to the here and now.  That may be a little trite, but it works.

Obviously, this is not cannon, for either the Trek or SW universes, but I
hope everyone can just take it for what it is and enjoy it.



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From: [e-mail]
Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative
Subject: WGC part 2- The First Confrontation
Date: 3 May 95 12:55:26 AST
Organization: University of Alaska
Lines: 576
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
NNTP-Posting-Host: orion.alaska.edu

Notice: As stated before, this story, like part one, is based on characters
and situations created by and belonging to the Star Wars and Star Trek people.
This is fan fiction, created for my amusement and that of those who happen to
read it on the internet.  It belongs to me, Jeremiah Jennings, but may be
copied along with this and all other notices attached.

                         When Galaxies Collide

                    Part 2: The First Confrontation


Captain Picard's attention shot up toward the viewing screen to catch a view
of the ship just as it was leaving the probe's line of view.

     "That didn't look like any make of ship I've seen before," Riker said.

     "I suggest we take defensive precautions." Worf added.

     "Agreed," said Picard, watching the viewer carefully.  "Raise shields,
and be ready to arm phasers and photons.  Switch the view to watch for the
ship's emergence."

     "Back the ship a safe distance from the entrance," Riker ordered the
helmsman, who complied immediately.

     Watching from farther from the wormhole, the bridge crew waited.

     Finally, something started to emerge.  First, a small section started to
emerge.  It kept coming and coming, getting wider as it came.  The Enterprise
crew stared in amazement as they began to see how large it was.

     It eventually cleared the wormhole, revealing a gargantuan wedge-shaped
form.

     "This ship," Data volunteered, "Is aproxamately four times the length of
the Enterprise, and has an even greater relative volume."

     "It's a little frightning to think someone with ships out there that size
can reach us," Riker said.

     "Yes, but first let's consider the possibility that they come in peace.
Open a hailing frequency, Mr. Worf," Captain Picard ordered.

     "Yes, sir," Worf said.  A familar whistling sound signaled that a line
was open.

     Picard stood from his chair and straightened his uniform shirt.  "Unknown
vessel.  This is the Federation starship Enterprise.  Do you read us?"

     "Enterprise, we read you," a voice spoke.  "This is the Star Destroyer
Demonhead.  In the name of the Empire, open you're landing bays and prepare to
be boarded."  There was no visual image of the speaker.

     Picard could sense the nervousness of his crew, both at the demands of
the unknown ship and the implications of whatever 'Empire' meant.

     "Negative, Demonhead.  We are a part of the United Federation of planets
and not under the jouresdiction of your Empire.  We come to you in peace."
The captain didn't appear to be intimidated.

     "Enterprise, you will either be boarded or destroyed."

     Picard glanced over at Riker, who didn't appear to have a solution on the
tip of his tounge.  "Deamonhead," the captain finally said, "Give us a moment
to contact our authorities.  They will be able to advise us on this
situation."

     There was no answer.

     "Captain," Data said, "The vessle is powering up a large number of energy
weapons."

     Picard began frantically barking orders.  "Evasive maneuvers, Ensign.
Mr. Worf, sound red alert.  Bring phasers on line and load the torpedo bays."

     The Enterprise began to bank, moving away from the nose-to-nose position
the two ships had taken.

     "Captain," Data said, "I believe we have a significant advantage over
this type of vessel in maneuverability.  I suggest trying to run a pattern
around it to evade its weapons."

     "Agreed, but first I want to keep some distance to see what they've got."

     Soon, repeating blasts of green energy began shooting from the Star
Destroyer.  The enterprise caught two of them, one directly, and one at a
glance as it gained distance, and shook voilently.

     "We have sustained seven percent damage to our shields," Data reported.

     "Turn to face the Demonhead," Picard ordered.  "Lock on phasers and
torpedos and fire."

     A phaser blast was emmitted from the Enterprise, striking the Star
Destroyer's shields.

     When they had turned, however, a thick hail of green fire rained upon
the Enterprise.

     "Ensign, run evasive maneuvers," Picard said.

     A spread of three torpedos shot out of the Enterprise, each detonating
on the enemy's shield's.  The blasts poured steadily from the Deamonhead,
many of them missing, but the rain was too thick, and the helmsman was unable
to dodge many of the blasts.  The Enterprise shook continuously under the
fire.

     "Shields are below fifty percent and falling," Data reported.

     "I am unable to get off a clear shot.  The enemy is firing too fast,"
Picard heard Worf saying from behind.

     "This battle isn't leaving us many options," Riker advised through the
ship's shaking.  "We need to get out of here."

     "Ensign," Picard yelled, "Turn us around and get us out of here, full
impulse.  Engage warp drive at my mark."

     The Enterprise continued to be shaken by the blasts.

     "Shields are at fifteen percent and falling," Data said, a hint of panic
seeming to come from his cold android voice.

     A sudden blast rocked the Enterprise.

     "Engineering to Picard," Geordi's voice rang from the captain's badge,
"Warp engines have been damaged and are off line."

     "Is there any way..." Picard said before getting cut off by Data.

     "Negative captain," the android said, "The Deamonhead is in pursuit.  We
will not last long enough against this fire to escape with impulse engines."

     The Enterprise lurched under another violent jolt.

     "We have a hull breach on decks six, seven, and ten," Worf announced.

     "Signal our surrender," Picard said wearily.  "Ensign, full stop."

     "Eye, sir, full stop," the helmsman said.

     The Enterprise slowed to a stop, and the Star Destroyer followed suit,
resting to face the rear of the Federation ship.

     "We are being hailed, sir," Worf said.  "Audible only."

     "Open a channel," Picard said.

     "Federation ship," the same voice came over the speakers again, "Are you
finished with this foolishness?"

     "We have surrendered and are prepared to be boarded at your command,"
Picard stated, not giving a direct answer to the question.

     "Good," the voice went on. "Stand by.  The rest of Lord Vader's fleet
will be arriving soon."  The channel went dead.

     Counsellor Troi spoke up for the first time, "He is very arrogant, sir.
He takes extreme pride in his position in whatever empire he's a part of."

     "The rest of Lord Vader's fleet?" Riker said.  "That doesn't sound too
good."

     Picard added, "Yes, this Empire could present an extreme threat to
Federation security.  Do you sense that he was at all bluffing, Counsellor?"

     Troi shook her head, "He has a lot of confidence.  It is apparent that
his fleet really does represent a ruling government in the area it comes
from."

     "Then our first priority should be to contact Starfleet Command and
inform them of this situation," Picard said.

     "That will be momentarily impossible," Data said, looking back from his
consol.  "Subspace communications are inoperable."

     "Go down to engineering and help Geordi get this ship running.  We need
to do what we can to help Starfleet prepare for a possible invasion."

     "Yes, sir," Data responded to his captian, then got up to head for
engineering.

     Picard tapped his badge.  "Mr. LaForge, how do the engines look?"

     "They are a little rattled, but we should be able to have them on line
soon," Geordi answered.

     The captain closed the channel to engineering, "Number One, Worf,
Counsellor, please join me in my ready room."

     The four people all entered the room and sat down.

     After a long pause, the captain spoke up.  "So, any thoughts?"

     "I agree with you," Riker said, looking around to the different members
of the group.  "We need to do what we can to inform Starfleet-Even if it means
sacrificing the ship."

     Picard answered, "If it comes down to that, yes.  But while we still have
the chance, I want to make every effort to make it into warp and rendzevous
with other ships.  That would be our best chance for setting up a defense."

     "These ships may not be capable of interstellar travel," Worf said.
"Their technology looks different from ours, and they would have been able to
traverse the wormhole with sub-light engines."

     "I don't know what kind of Empire they would be able to establish without
warp," Troi answered.

     Riker added, "And I have a hard time believing that they would need ships
of that size to control one planet."

     "At any rate," Picard said, "We will have to assume that they have the
capability to invade the Federation, agreed?"

     The senior officers nodded their assertion somberly, and he went on, "So
our only course of action as of now will be to wait for Geordi and Data to
repair the ship, and see what the boarding party wants.  We will have to
decide the rest when the time comes."

     A comm beep suddenly interupted the conversation.  "Captain, another ship
is beginning to exit the wormhole."

     "Acknowledged," Picard answered.

     The senior officers entered the bridge.  The screen displayed the
wormwole from the rear of the ship, for they dared not move.

     Another ship, identical to the Demonhead, had already exited, and another
one was emerging.

     "I wonder how many of those ships they have," Riker said.

     Picard could only sit in his chair silently, solemly watching the
procession of ships slowly exiting the hole's mouth.  The soveriegnty of the
United Federation of Planets, as well as the political stability of the known
universe, had relied on the fact that they had not encountered an
overwhelmingly more powerful civilization.

     All governments could only hope that it would never come.  Who could
prepare for the sudden appearance of an unexpected enemy?  It had happened
once with the Borg, and they had survived.  Would they be able to this time?

     It is very uncomfortable to have lived under the comfortable reliance on
a balance of power and face the prospect of having it suddely ripped away.

     Now a sizable fleet of about six ships had come through the wormhole.
They stayed in formation, but the Enterprise recieved no hail.  Finally, after
about five minutes, the nose of another vessel began to come out of the
entrance.  It was different from the other ships in shape, and had a blue tint
to it instead of the gray of the rest.

     "What the..." Riker yelled as it slowly came forth, revealing the fact
that it dwarfed even the ships that had made the journey from the unknown
realm.

     When it had finished its exit, the Enterprise was finally contacted.

     "Federation ship.  You will prepare your shuttle bays for arrivals from
our command ship.  Any aggressive action will result in your immediate
destruction.  Do you understand?"

     "We understand," Picard answered.

                    <-----------*----------->

     At first glance in the main shuttle bay, it had seemed as if the new
aliens the Enterprise had encountered might have been a race of some kind of
robots.  The armed soldiers that had exited the shuttle first were a shiny
white color, and following them was another metallic figure, this one black
and wearing a cape.  But walking out of the shuttle behind him was a group of
what looked exactly like humans in grey uniforms.

     As it turned out, they were all human-like.  The ones that looked like
robots were just wearing a kind of armor.  It wasn't too much of a surprise
that they were human and didn't have origins on earth.  Many alien races that
had been encountered looked very close to, or almost identical to humans.

     Probably thirty armored soldiers came from the shuttles, and were posted
at various places throughout the Enterprise.  All Starfleet personell, of
course, were relieved of their weapons.

     Captain Picard, Commander Riker, and Counsellor Troi finally found
themselves in the conference room, face to face with the black figure who, as
it turned out, was the Lord Darth Vader that had been meantioned before and
three of his grey-uniformed officers.

     "Why have you attacked our ship?" Picard asked.  "We never displayed any
aggressive action toward your vessel."

     Vader's deep, metallic voice responded, "You are in no position to be
questioning us, captain."

     Picard began to get angry and yelled, "You have no right to invade our
territory!  You didn't need to attack us in our first encounter.  A peaceful
encounter would be much more desireable than..." he waved his hands around
frantically to include the preceedings in one gesture, then continued, "Than
this."

     "Don't burden this discussion with your idealistic philosophy.  We have
certain demands that you must meet, if you wish to avoid destruction," Vader
explained cooly.

     Picard assumed a seat at the opposite side of the table from the dark
lord and his officers, next to Riker and Troi, and said, "And what exactly are
these demands?"

     "We wish you to arrange for your government to sign a declaration of
surrender to the Empire.  But our most immediate buisness is to examine this
ship and study its technology.  It could prove quite usefull to us," Vader
answered.

     Picard studied the shiny, evil looking mask that served as the
character's face.  It remained unmoving as a steady, artificial breathing
could be heard coming from it.  "I will contact my superiors, but first I must
know with whom I am dealing.  Are you some sort of warlord who owns this
fleet?"

     Darth Vader's face revealed nothing as he said, "I operate under my
master, the Emperor.  In his fleet, ships such as the ones you have seen
number in the tens of thousands."

     Picard swallowed hard and glanced to Riker and then to Troi.

     "What is the nature of this Empire?" he asked.  "What area does it
control?"

     "The Emperor rules over our entire galaxy.  Since this area does not
appear to be part of the Empire or the unexplored regions on the periphery,
we assume that it is part of a different galaxy," one of the Imperial officers
stated.

     The answer was startling, and more amazing than the three Starfleet
officers had expected.

     "That is all you will need to know," Vader concluded coldly.  "Contact
your government immediately.  I will be back aboard your ship in two hours to
discuss the response."

     He got up from his chair, unfolding an imposing presense, and walked out
of the room, followed by his officers.

     Picard said through the hand that was resting on his forehead,
"Impressions, Counsellor?"

     "He seems to be a demanding, imposing character.  But there is something
more.  Something, that is deep, evil, and powerful, but I can't quite put a
finger on it," Troi said.

     "Hmph," Picard grunted.

     "In my opinion," Riker said, "There's nothing about that that is going to
change our priorities.  We still have to get back to Starfleet."

     "Agreed," said Picard.

     "So how are we going to get out of here?" the counsellor asked.

     Riker looked over at Picard and said, "I have an idea that could work if
Geordi and Data can get the engines on line."

                    <-----------*----------->

     Geordi LaForge tried his best to turn around in the small engineering
access tube.  Twisting his body awkwardly, he reached for the tool kit and
grabbed a small laser welder.

     "Geordi," Data said before a contemplative pause, "Are you aware of the
situation involving the ships we encountered?"

     The engineer held the tool up to a power conduit, squinting as a small
shower of sparks shot from it.  "I managed to catch the gist of the space
battle, and I heard that soldiers had boarded the Enterprise.  Why?"

     "In order to escape, we will need to make a sudden jump to warp without
the enemy fleet being aware of our intentions."

     "Of course," Geordi said.

     Data took an unnecessary breath, then continued, "In order to keep them
from being able to detect our activity, it may be advisable for us to keep
this connection off line.  If they could detect that that our engines were in
working order, they would try to prevent us from escaping."

     "That doesn't sound like a bad idea.  I can set this conduit up so that
we could bring it on line last second before engaging the warp drive.  There
shouldn't be any way that they would know what we're up to until we're gone."

     He handed Data his tricorder that he had just scanned the conduit with
and asked, "How's this look."

     "It appears to be in adequate condition for the task, if you would just
equip this terminal to recieve commands from engineering."

     Geordi could tell that his android friend had another concern.  "What
else in on your mind?"

     "It will also be necessary to keep the troops that had been left here
from knowing what we are doing.  They may see us coming from this access tube,
so it will be necessary to fabricate a false reason for our being here."

     LaForge grinned, "You mean lie?  Tell them we weren't fixing our warp
engines?  Sounds like a good idea to me," he said as he peered at the project
he was working on.  "What exactly were you thinking of?"

     "I do not know.  I was merely pointing out that it would be necessary to
hide our intentions from the guards who may spot us."

     "Alright.  We'll tell them that we were locking down a life support
malfunction.  Sound good to you?"

     "It would be a satisfactory...  explaination."

     "Alright.  Then we're here fixing life support systems."

     "Geordi," Data said, breaking a few moment's silence, "Are you afraid?"

     "Well yeah, Data, I guess I'm scared.  But it doesn't do me a whole lot
of good to sit around worrying about it.  Especially when I have work to do."

     Paused to give a short "Hm," then gave up his contemplation of the minute
balances of human emotion and behavior, storing this incident for later
reference.

     Geordi handed Data the tricorder again.  "Can you see anything wrong with
artificial gravity on deck twelve?"

     Data looked puzzled for a second, then, in a moment of revelation, said,
"Oh.  Artificial gravity is now functioning normally on deck twelve."  Then he
added, "As are all other life support functions."

     "Good," Geordi laughed, "Lets see if we can get out of here."

                    <-----------*----------->

     Commander Riker walked through the door to the captain's ready room, and
waited for it to slide behind him.

     "Have you made the preparations?" Picard asked.

     "The best I can, but I'm not sure how well we can get it to work," Riker
answered.

     "Those guards are watching us closely," Picard agreed.

     "Yes, you could say things are a little tight around here."

     "Did you get them?"

     Riker pulled a small box from under his uniform shirt.  "Yep.  I was a
little nervous walking past the bridge sentries, but they didn't seem to
notice."  He set the box on the table and opened it.

     "Good," Picard said.  Inside were two laser welders.

     Riker managed a grin and said, "I would have gotten you phasers..."

     "These will do just fine," Picard commented.

     "They'll have to.  The weapons lockers are being guarded, and the
scanning crews that were sent aboard can tell where every plasma weapon is on
the ship."

     "There are only two troopers posted on the bridge, right?" Picard asked.

     "One at each rear corner."

     "We are going to have to time this perfectly.  Just give me the signal
when you're ready."

     "Of course.  I'll take the one on the portside, and you take starboard.
We'll want these on their highest settings so we can peirce their armor
quickly."

     After taking the welders and hiding them in the waist of their pants, the
two men walked out to the bridge.  Data gave them a quick and inconspicuous
nod from his consol, and they walked to their seats.  The stormtroopers
looked over at them as they exited the ready room, but they didn't seem
suspicious.

     Riker glanced at his terminal and noted the time.  Then, he nodded to
the captain.  After counting down from three with his fingers, he spun in his
seat and fired his welder at the port stormtrooper.  At the same time, Picard
shot at the starboard one.

     Before the soldiers could react, the laser weapons had fired a hole
straight through their helmets and heads.

     Riker tapped a few buttons on his terminal and read the results.
"Engineering has gotten rid of its guards.  Beginning phase two."

     Many of the stormtroopers didn't even notice the quick blink of static in
midair that occured near them, and others didn't know what it meant.  But all
of them soon found that they were trapped in their post area by a forcefield.

     "All enemy troops have been detained," Worf reported from his consol.

     "Good work number one," Picard congratulated Riker.  "Data, get us out of
here."

     At Data's signal, Geordi powered up the faulty conduit from engineering,
and the android engaged the warp engines.

     As the Enterprise shot away, the Star Destroyers, having just gotten the
first scrambled reports from their stormtroopers, fired a few futile
turbolaser bolts that never reached their target on time and shot out into
empty space.

     "Mr Worf," Picard said, "Put together some security teams and round up
the remaining Imperial guards."  He sat back down in his chair and said,
"Well, number one, it looks like we're safe...  For now."

                    <-----------*----------->

     The captain of the Demonhead stood on a small black disk, watching the
holographic image of Darth Vader.

     "Would you mind explaining to me, Captain, how that ship managed to
escape?" Vader asked.

     "I can't explain it, Lord Vader.  They appeared to be dead in space,
then, before we could react, their engines suddenly regained power and they
left through hyperspace."

     "Why didn't you have a tractor beam locked on to them?"

     The captain could feel himself shrinking beneath the Dark Lord's accusing
gaze.  "It didn't seem concievable that they would be able to..."  in mid-
sentance, he began to feel his windpipe shrinking, and he gasped for air.

     "Lord Vader, I..." he managed to choke out before falling on the floor
with a muffled thump.

     On the bridge of the Super Star Destroyer Executor, Darth Vader walked
down the main aisle alongside an officer.  As they passed by, each crew pit
nervously waited, hoping Vader wouldn't stop near them, but too afraid to look
up and check.

     "Admiral Piett," Vader said to the officer, "Deploy the fleet in the
aproxamate direction of that ship.  Inspect every habitable star system they
could have stopped at at their trajectory.  I want to find this Federation.
Their technology may be of some use to us, and conquering this galaxy would
allow the Empire to expand far beyond what it otherwise could."

     "Yes Lord Vader," Piett nodded.

     "And send the Demonhead back to the wormhole to contact the Empire.  We
may need more ships to subdue and hold this government."

     The admiral nodded one more affirment, then went about giving orders to
those officers under him.

     Finally, the huge vessles shot away on their course to search for the
Enterprise.


     To be continued...



     AUTHOR'S NOTE

     I hope you enjoyed this episode.  I have tried to make it more of a
Trek-like problem solving plot than a spasmatic meeting between all the
characters from SW and ST as some of the other stories have presented, which
I hope will make it more accepted as a legitimate ST story.

     The Star Destroyer's easy victory over the Enterprise may anger some
people, but it was the best approxamation of the battle that I could think of.
(Exept that the SD didn't use Ion Cannons, but I have a bull excuse for that
that will be explained in the next episode.)  If you have reasons why the
battle should have gone differently, tell me, and I will gladly shoot down
your arguements one at a time ;).  But please, I'd rather you took this story
for what it is and just have fun reading it.



Path: news.ksu.ksu.edu!news.ksu.ksu.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!uwm.edu!biosci!news.alaska.edu!orion.alaska.edu!asjfj
From: [e-mail]
Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative
Subject: WGC part 3- Rendezvous at New Brazil (repost)
Date: 3 May 95 13:01:59 AST
Organization: University of Alaska
Lines: 647
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
NNTP-Posting-Host: orion.alaska.edu

The caracters in this story are a part of the Star Wars and Star Trek
universes, which belong to the people who created them.  It was written for
my amusement and that of the people who read it.  This and the rest of the WGC
series belongs to Jeremiah Jennings, but may be reproduced if this and all
other appending material is kept intact and if it is not done for profit.
(Like anyone would pay to read this.).



                           When Galaxies Collide

                     Part 3: Rendezvous at New Brazil



        The casualty report had just been completed: Thirteen died near the
hull breach, and twenty seven more were injured.  The ship itself didn't
suffer too much structural damage, but a few systems had gotten jolted.

        The Enterprise had been cruising through warp, cautiously, at Geordi's
warning, for just under three hours.  Having just sat most for of that time,
watching the stars fly past the main view screen, Captain Picard was happy to
get the report.

        "Sir, subspace communications have been brought on line," Data said.

        "Good," Picard answered, rising from his chair, "Prepare to open a
line to Admiral Zinridge, and route it to my ready room.  Number one, you have
the bridge."

        "Yes sir," Riker answered.

        Picard quickly exited the bridge and situated himself before the
terminal in the ready room.  Having turned on the screen, he waited and
watched the Federation symbol on the screen.

        Finally it switched, showing an older man in a neat admiral's uniform.
"Hello, Picard," he greeted the captain.  "Have you found something
interesting to report?"

        Picard answered gravely, "Actually, you could say that something
interesting has found us."

        "What?" Zinridge asked, puzzled.

        "We sent a probe through the wormhole and discovered that it was very
stable, and extremely large.  One problem was that it went back in time."

        "And the other problem?"

        "It was discovered by several ships on the other side.  One of them
came through and attacked us, and was followed by another five."

        Zinridge began to look a little concerned.  "What kind of ships were
they?"

        "No kind I have ever seen before," answered Picard, "But they were
enormous, far beyond the size of any craft we produce.  Another of them, the
command ship, even dwarfed the others.  There were seven ships in all."

        "Seven ships?  I take it the battle didn't go well."

        "Unfortunately, you're right.  The first ship attacked us,and disabled
some of our systems, including warp.  After the other ships made it through,
we managed to repair our drive and escape, and now we are presently heading
back from that location."

        "Exactly what happened in the battle?"

        "Well, they were far more heavily armed than the Enterprise.  They had
numerous guns that repeated so quickly that we didn't have a chance to
respond before we were surrounded by a storm of fire, and there was no place
to go that they weren't firing.  It was unlike any form of battle we've
engaged in before."

        "Why did they attack you?"

        Picard answered, "They are part of a galactic empire on the other side
of the wormhole that is interested in the conquest of the Federation."

        Zinridge's face seemed to go limp.  "Well," he said, trying to think
calmly, "Our first priority should be to set up a first line of defense,
to protect our outposts in case they try to attack them."  he looked down at a
computer screen that was out of Picard's view, then continued, "Head to the
New Brazil colony. That is nearest your area and the one that they will most
likely reach first.  I'll send all the ships we can spare that can make it to
the colony on time.  Hopefully, we can hash out a battle plan, but from what
you've told me, it seems that it will most likely be a suicide stand."

        "Understood.  I'm transmitting the full report from the battle now,"
Picard said, typing a sequence into his console.

        "Thank you, captain.  I'd like to stay and talk, but I apparently have
some work to do.  Zinridge out."

        The admiral's face was replaced with the Federation insignia, and
Picard shut off the screen.

        As he headed out to the bridge, he said, "Ensign, alter our course for
the New Brazil colony."

        "Course laid in, sir," the helmsman said.

        "Engage," the captain said, assuming his position in his chair.

                    <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>


        The New Brazil colony, like the country after which it was named, was
a hot jungle area, covered with huge, leafy trees and steaming rivers.  The
actual area that was inhabited was a large clearing in which the thick jungle
canopy had been cut away to make room for a clean, white concrete slab and
some groups of plain cube-shaped buildings.  Some bigger, more complex
structures served other purposes besides residence.

        It was mainly a scientific community, comprised in large part
scientists who wanted to study the unique jungle area that covered a good
portion of the planet.  The rest of the colony's population had, for one
reason or another, just thought it was time to move on and had joined the
expedition.

        Alan Berringer, governor of the colony, walked out of his residence
building and onto the neat streets of the capitol sector.  On his mind was
one of the problems involving the two groups that was almost as old as the
colony itself.  It was clear to him that it was going to be the hot topic of
discussion at the colonial congress, (as some fancifully called it) where a
room full of people, each representing a group of a hundred of their peers,
would be meeting.  Berringer regretted the fact that the colony had become a
somewhat sizable political entity, but he was happy that it was at least still
on such a small scale.  However, he knew the old problems were going to have
to be put on the back burner for a while, as a new emergency needed to be
addressed.

        His house was close enough to Colonial Hall that he, unlike most
others, didn't require a vehicle or transporter to reach it, and he completed
his customary walk there in a few short minutes.  He had expecting the
auditorium to be full when he arrived, but not for arguments to have already
started, as they had.

        "We didn't come here to just to sit on this platform and stagnate!"
one man proclaimed angrily.

        "Then perhaps you should have spent more time reviewing the charter
and considering the pros and cons of coming here before you left," a Vulcan
woman in Federation science corps uniform stated calmly, bringing on a roar
from both sides of an increasingly hostile crowd.

        "Look, we all came here for the opportunities it presented," countered
another man with considerably more self-composure than the first. "We didn't
have many good economic options where we came from, and we saw this as a
chance to develop a whole new planet.  And now we are stuck out in a jungle in
the corner of Federation space, in the same position we started in.

        Another scientist rose from his seat, "The primary purpose of this
colony is to study this planet's unusual biosphere.  If you want to live here,
that is fine, but you may not develop the areas outside the colony's
boundaries until we can determine that it won't be harmful to our research."

        "Forget your research," somebody else stood up and yelled. "I didn't
move to this hot, humid hell-hole of a colony just to sit on a concrete block."

        By this time, the governor had made his way to his podium, and he
sounded a buzzer to signal the beginning of the meeting.

        As the focus of everyone in the room came to rest on Berringer, he
began, "I'm afraid I have a more urgent matter than colonial policy to bring
to your attention.

        "A fleet of warships of unknown origin has been spotted in Federation
space near here.  One of them attacked Starfleet's flagship.  They were
apparently interested in the conquest of the Federation and may be headed
here."

        A general, concerned moaning rippled through the auditorium, and
Governor Berringer signaled for order then continued, "A fleet of our ships
will be sent here to protect us.  Colonial security will keep a constant watch
over sensors to detect any ships that enter the system and is prepared for
evacuation procedures if they are necessary.

        "You are dismissed to go back to your sectors and inform everyone of
this situation.  Have them be prepared for an alarm that will be followed by
emergency instructions.  This meeting is closed."

                    <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>


Captain Picard tapped his fingers on the surface of the conference table while
the Enterprise's senior officers just sat in silence.

        "We have to have some options," the captain finally said.

        "Apparently, there are none based on the information that we have
gathered up to this point," Data answered.  "Our first confrontation with the
Empire did not reveal enough about their technology, and we will need to
observe more of it to come up with a possible solution."

        "So we have to risk capture or destruction again just for a chance at
discovering more about their technology?  I don't like to think is a very
favorable option," Picard commented.

        "Just because it is not favorable does not mean that there is another
option," Data replied.
option."

        "Yes, but lets keep our eyes open.  Mr. Worf, has security finished
rounding up the Empire's soldiers?"

        "Yes, Captain," Worf answered.

        "Then have you managed to learn anything from their weapons?"

        "They had all dismantled them when they learned they were trapped,"
the security chief said.  "The scanning teams did the same to their
equipment."

        "Apparently, they see any exchange of technology between us and them
as a major factor in our encounters," Picard encountered.

        "That seems reasonable, considering that we have been isolated from
each other and that our technologies must have developed differently," Riker
agreed.  "Anything that could be learned by either side would be a major
advantage."

        "There has been insufficient exchange by either side, as of yet, to
make a significant difference in any possible confrontation, at least that I
am aware of," added Data.

        "That's not so good," Dr. Crusher spoke up.  "From what I've heard, we
don't have much in the way of advantages against this Empire."

        "There is another problem," Worf said.  "Their vessels are very large,
and they have an advantage of sheer size and power.  I don't believe gaining
their technology would give us much of an advantage."

        Picard agreed, "That seems like a fair enough statement.  What good
will adapting their weapons do us if they just have the same weapons on a
larger scale?  So what do you suggest, Mr. Worf?"

        "I think our first priority should be to protect our own technology.
It is our only possible advantage, and the Empire seemed eager to obtain it,"
the Klingon said.  "We should also be on the lookout for weaknesses in their
technology, as has been said before."

        Picard took a deep breath then said, "Look, I know our chances in a
battle at New Brazil don't look to be in our favor.  Admiral Zinridge has told
me that a small fleet will be assembled to help us, but that probably won't
be enough to defeat the Empire's ships.  But even though there is a good
chance this will be little more than a suicide battle that is preliminary to
the Federation's attempt to repell the Empire's conquest, it will be best if
we stay optimistic and keep looking for options.  Understood?"

        Each officer nodded in agreement, and Picard said, "Dismissed."

        They all filed out except for Riker who, at Picard's request, stayed
behind.  The captain left his chair and took a more informal position on the
tabletop.

        "So what do you think, Will," he asked.

        "I don't know what to think.  Part of me wants to think that we can
somehow beat them and the other part thinks we've finally met our match."

        Picard sighed.  "We've held of every other enemy we've encountered and
managed to remain one of the greatest powers in known space.  We even averted
destruction at the hands of the Borg, which had terrorized every civilation it
discovered.  Now we find ourselves facing another enemy that I can see no
way of defeating, and I have to ask myself if this will be the time that we
finally don't make it."

        "It seemed like that against the Borg, too."

        "Yes, and we managed to find their Achilles' heel.  But what if this
Empire has no such weakness?  When I called this meeting, it seemed there was
nothing to even talk about.  We are going to try to engage their fleet head-on
when we were soundly defeated the first time, and there is no strategy I can
think of to counter it."

        "It was a good idea to have it, if for no other reason than to think
out our position in this matter, even if we have no enlightened solution at
the moment."

        "And now there is nothing for us to do but assume our posts and wait
for our arrival at New Brazil."

        With a sudden hiss, the door slid open, and Geordi began to walk in
before catching himself.

        "That's all right, Mr. LaForge, come in," Picard said.

        "I just got finished getting the warp engines in full working order,
and I didn't know the meeting was over," Geordi explained.

        "So we have full warp capabilities?" the captain asked.

        "Yes, we can reach warp nine, but I still wouldn't advise it.  At the
speed we're going, we'll reach the colony in just over an hour, and we're
going to want them in good shape if we end up in a battle."

        "Agreed.  Go make any preparations in engineering that you think may
be necessary before our next engagement.  Number one, I suggest you do the
same on the bridge."

        "Yes, sir," the two men said before leaving.

        Picard walked to the window and stared out at the stars as they flew
by.  What more was there to do?

                    <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>

        Admiral piett finally spotted who he was looking for.  The shiny,
black, faceless back of a helmet and a flowing cape that hung from broad,
imposing shoulders was all that faced him, but there was no mistaking the
Dark Lord, even from behind.  piett, now quite used to working with Vader,
strode up to him.

        Vader heard the steps coming across the bridge of the Avenger and
turned around.  "What is it, Admiral?"

        "We've searched nearly every star in the area that the Federation ship
could have travelled to, and there is just one remaining system that our
scientists believe would support a habitable planet," piett said. "Should we
send a ship to investigate it?"

        "No," Vader said, looking at a star map.  "We will send the entire
fleet there."

        "Are you sure, Lord Vader?" the admiral's soft, educated voice asked
cautiously.  "There are numerous other places they could have gone."

        Vader turned to Piett and replied, "All the systems beyond this one
would take much longer to travel to than any in this immediate area.  If we
send only one ship there, they would be given a warning."

       "One Star Destroyer should be able to hold them until..."

        "I'm not willing to take that chance, Admiral.  Have the fleet meet at
that system," Vader said, pointing a gloved finger at the star's
representation on the screen.

        "Yes, Lord Vader," Piett nodded before turning to execute the orders.
It was his job to advise Darth Vader on naval strategy, but he knew to only
push his opinion so far.  Besides, Vader had a way of being right.

                     <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>

        Picard walked hurriedly onto the bridge from the turbolift, just as
the Enterprise was pulling out of warp.  "How many ships are in the system,
Mr. Worf?" he asked.

        "Three, sir," Worf answered.  "They are all Federation vessels."

        "Which ones?"

        Worf looked at his console, "The Phoenix, the Sheldon, and the Rasno."

        "On screen," Picard ordered, assuming his chair.

        The Phoenix was a long, sleek patrol ship, the Sheldon a smaller
medical vessel, and the Rasno, the smallest of the group, was a courier ship
that carried small, specialized cargo between the more remote colonies.

        Picard stood up again and said, "Mr. Worf, hail New Brazil."

        "Yes sir," Worf said, pushing a few buttons that triggered a whistling
sound.  "Channel open."

        Governor Berringer appeared on the bridge viewscreen.

        "Hello, Governor," Picard greeted him.

        "Greetings Captain Picard," Berringer nodded gravely.  "It doesn't
look like we have much of a fleet here."

        "Yes, I was just noticing the same thing.  Have you heard from Admiral
Zinridge?"

        "Yes.  He said that too more ships, the Gallant and the Salvation,
should be here soon.  They're little more well-equipped for battle than the
Sheldon or the Rasno."

        "Yes, good," Picard answered.  "But I'm afraid we may not be able to
do much to guarantee the safety of your colony."

        "I understand.  Well, we have preparations to make down here, and I
guess you need to organize your 'fleet.'  So I'll hopefully talk to you after
the battle.  Unless you have anything else to discuss."

        "Not that I can think of at the moment," Picard said.

        "After the battle, then.  Berringer out."

        It was only a matter of minutes before the next two ships arrived.
Coming out of warp, they were a welcome sight.

        "Put me on a channel to all the ships," Picard said.

        "Channel open,"  Worf replied.

        "All Federation vessels, this is captain Jean-Luc Picard ofthe
Enterprise. We may not have much time to prepare for the arrival ofthe enemy,
but our first priority is to protect New Brazil from bombardment. We don't
know of any effective means of resisting their attack, so we will take a
position in near orbit and try to stay in between the planet and the enemy
fleet.  It looks like we may be taking a futile stand, but be prepared for
further instruction and keep a channel open."

        The ships maneuvered so that their backs were facing the planet and
they were prepared to try to hold their ground.  They sat for a few long
minutes, looking into open the open space from which their enemy was expected
to come.

        Finally, the six Imperial ships flew into view.

        Data read something on his console and began to frantically type
commands at super-human speed.  "Captain," he said, turning to face Picard,
"These ships do not use warp drive for interstellar travel."

        "What else could they use?" Riker asked.

        "From the readings I have received, they travel through hyperspace.
There is not much time to explain, but I believe they can not track objects
while they travel at faster than light travel."

        "I have an idea," Picard said.  "All ships, break formation and jump
to warp.   I repeat, jump to warp."

        "What?" demanded a voice over the intercom.

        "Just do it!" Picard yelled.

        "Where to?"

        The Star Destroyers were beginning to close in.

        "Just safely get into warp, and I will direct you from there," he
commanded almost hysterically.

        The ships split up, leaving the colony undefended, and jumped to warp.


                    <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>

        "The ships have all escaped!" the captain of the Avenger said to
Admiral Piett.

        "No matter," Piett said.  "There appears to be a settlement of some
kind on the planet.  We can get what we need from them."

        "What are the readings on the planet's surface?" the captain asked the
officer in charge of the scanning pit.

        "It is mostly untamed land, with a large area of jungle, as well as a
vast desert belt and small arctic areas at the poles, sir.  The only civilized
area is a small city with a few thousand occupants," the officer explained.

        "Here comes Lord Vader," Piett noticed, cutting off the conversation.

        "How is the battle proceeding, Admiral?" Vader asked.

        "There has been no battle, Lord Vader," Piett answered. "The
Federation vessel, along with a few others of its kind, retreated right as we
came out of hyperspace, leaving a settlment on the planet's surface
unprotected."

        "Good.  Form a blockade so that no ships can escape, then contact the
settlemnet and arrange for Imperial occupation.  I'll be in my chamber."

        "Yes, Lord Vader," the admiral complied.

        After Vader left, Piett turned to the captain and said, "Organize the
blockade."

        "Yes, sir," replied the captain.  Piett then ordered that a channel be
opened to the colony, then walked over to a communications station.

        "This is Governor Berringer of New Brazil," a voice finally said,
answering the hail.

        "I am Admiral Piett of the Imperial Fleet.  Are you amember of an
organization called 'Federation?'" Piett asked.

        "Yes... This is a Federation colony," came the hesitant response.

        "We are here to discuss terms of surrender to the Empire.  Will you
accept a landing party?"

        "What is the alternative?"

        "Planetary bombardment," Piett answered after only a second's thought.

        The admiral waited for a few moments, but there was no response.  Just
as he was about to signal for an attack, the scanning officer said, "They're
gone!"

        "Who's gone?" Piett demanded, walking over to the pit.

        "The people in the colony.  They've all just..."

        "Just what?"

        "Disappeared!"

        Before Piett could comment on the impossibility of such an event, a
proximity alarm sounded on the bridge.  After a moment, a bright red object
could be seen flying past the bridge windows and down to the planet's surface.

        "What was that?" Piett asked.

        "A torpedo of some kind," the scanning officer said as he frantically
collected reports from his crew.  "It has detonated on the surface and
destroyed the colony."

        "Where did it come from?"

        "I don't know, sir.  It just flew in from nowhere."

        piett returned to the communications console and paged Darth Vader.

        "What is it, Admiral?" Vader asked.

        "Scanners indicate that the planet's population has just disappeared,"
Piett answered, "And a torpedo, launched from an unknown source, has destroyed
the city.  Shall we resume our pursuit of the ships?"

        "First I want you to send some men down to search the wreckage.  There
may be something useful down there.  If nothing is found, then you may send
the fleet after the Starfleet vessels."

        "Yes, Lord Vader."

                    <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>

        Picard looked up from his drink and across the table to governor
Berringer.  "I'm terribly sorry about your colony, Governor."

        "Well," Berringer answered, "At least we got everyone out of there
alive.  But I'm afraid more people will suffer our fate if this Empire is not
stopped soon."

        Picard commented, "I'm not sure how that will be done, though.  They
are very powerful, and if their Empire is as big as they claim,they will
overrun us by sheer force.  But there are a few technological advantages we
may have against them."

        "Really?  How so?"

        "Well, they don't have warp drives, but according to one of my
officer's observations, they travel in and out of hyperspace to achieve faster
than light speeds.  Because they are used to this jump-point technique, they
had no way of knowing that we would alter our course and return to the other
side of the planet to transport you out.  They may also only be able to fight
at sub-light speed, which could help keep us out of their range in battle."

        "Had you done that at New Brazil, though, they could have leveled us
while you were away from the planet at warp," the governor noticed.

        "Yes," Picard agreed.  "But it is likely that we can find a way to use
it to our advantage.  Time is running short, though.  These escape tactics
have worked up until now, but the Empire will eventually find the heart of
Federation space, and we will have to take a stand against them."

        "Lets just hope that, somehow, we are successful," Berringer added.

        All around the Picard and Berringer in Ten Forward were people,
civilians and Starfleet officers alike, who relaxed as the Enterprise flew
further into the Federation.  But in the corner of all their minds was the
fact that, when they returned, it would be to defend their homes and their
government against a powerful outside force.

                    <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>

        The New Brazil Colony was now just a heaping pile of rubble.  Concrete
pieces were strewn everywhere, and twisted, broken remains of buildings laid
in piles.

        Searching through the ruin were hundreds of stormtroopers, their neat
white armor seeming out of place in the surrounding waste as they overturned
the broken pieces of the colony in search of any useful clue about the
Federation.

        As one squad leader stood talking to the officer in charge about the
lack of anything useful being found up to that point, another stormtrooper cut
in.  "Sir," he said in his echoing, helmet-distorted voice, "We have
discovered some pieces of a computer .  Our science team has managed to splice
some of it into partially working order, and we have retrieved a little
information from it."

        "Anything useful about their technology?" the officer asked.

        "No, sir, but we have found a few files that include a map of the star
systems of the local governments in this area, as well as some other
information.  Nothing scientific, though."

        "Excellent," the officer grinned.  "Have that information sent to
Admiral Piett.  There is no place for the Federation ships to hide now."


        To be continued...



                AUTHOR'S NOTES


        Well, I hope everyone enjoyed this installment as much as they
apparently did the first one.  It was not as climatic as some may have hoped,
but that is coming.  Trust me.

        On a technical note, the colony was able to be evacuated on time only
because they had the numerous transporters from New Brazil as well as those of
the ships.  So ppppllllleeeeeaaaaaaaaassssssseeeee don't mail me asking about
how they did it.

        Please do mail me telling me what you thought of the story, though.

        Thanks very muchos.           Jeremiah






apparently did the first one.  It was not as climatic as some may have hoped,
but that is coming.  Trust me.

        On a technical note, the colony was able to be evacuated on time only
because they had the numerous transporters from New Brazil as well as those of
the ships.  So ppppllllleeeeeaaaaaaaaassssssseeeee don't mail me asking about
how they did it.

        Please do mail me telling me what you thought of the e



they?"

        "No kind I have ever seen before," answered Picard, "Butthey were
enormous, far beyond the size of any craft we produce.  Another ofthem, the
command ship, even dwarfed the others.  There were seven ships inall."

        "Seven ships?  I take it the battle didn't go well."

        "Unfortunately, you're right.  The first ship attacked us,and disabled
some of our systems, including warp.  After the other ships made itthrough,
we managed to repair our drive and escape, and now we are



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From: [e-mail]
Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative
Subject: WGC part 4- Our Last Hope
Date: 3 May 95 13:08:33 AST
Organization: University of Alaska
Lines: 607
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
NNTP-Posting-Host: orion.alaska.edu


The caracters in this story are a part of the Star Wars and Star Trek
universes, which belong to the people who created them.  It was written for
my amusement and that of the people who read it.  This and the rest of the WGC
series belongs to Jeremiah Jennings, but may be reproduced if this and all
other appending material is kept intact and if it is not done for profit.
(Like anyone would pay to read this.).



                         When Galaxies Collide

                         Part 4: Our Last Hope



          ----------------------------------------------------
         |               Top Priority Message                 |
         |----------------------------------------------------|
         | To: Lieutenant Commander Data                      |
         |                                                    |
         | From: Starfleet Headquarters                       |
         |                                                    |
         | Subject: Emergency Transfer Orders                 |
         |----------------------------------------------------|
|
         | Upon recieving this notice, you are to proceed     |
         | directly to the U.S.S. Hudson for a mission        |
         | involving the closure of the wormhole responsible  |
         | for our contact with the entity known as the       |
         | "Galactic Empire."                                 |
         | Your mission will be explained in depth at your    |
         | boarding of the Hudson.                            |
         | According to the account given by the Enterprise   |
         | upon its arrival at Earth, this mission is of the  |
         | utmost importance to Federation security, as is    |
         | your participation in it, since you are the best   |
         | observer to have witnessed the events surrounding  |
         | the wormhole.  Your reflexes and scientific        |
         | knowledge will also be a great help.               |
          ----------------------------------------------------


        Data materialized on the transporter pad of the Hudson to see Captain
Howe walk up and extend a hand, saying, "Welcome to the U.S.S. Hudson,
Commander."  He wore a friendly smile that made his whole face seem to
radiate, despite its wrinkles and other signs that he wasn't exactly fresh out
of the academy.

        "Hello, Captain," Data said, taking Howe's hand.  The captain was a
large man, and, despite his obvious age, he gave a hearty and powerful shake.
Data, who could have ripped the man's arm off if he had been so inclined,
wasn't exactly overcome by it, though, but still allowed his hand to be shaken
up and down at the right strength to simulate a human response.

        "If you'll follow me," Howe said, gesturing to the door of the cramped
transporter room.

        "Of course," said Data, as the two men walked out into the hall.

        "You don't know what a pleasure it is to have you aboard, even if it
is under dire circumstances," the captain said.  "I've heard about you and
have been facinated by the idea of an artificial life form."

        The dark, narrow corridors that lead through the ship could not lead
too far, because the Hudson was much smaller than a Galaxy Class ship like the
Enterprise, and before long, the men came to a meeting room, which was devoid
of all but the bare essentials, including almost exclusively a small table
with chairs arranged tightly around it and a viewscreen.  There weren't even
any windows.

        As the officers entered, Captain Howe put it best, saying, "As you
have noticed, this is a reletively small ship, and everything has a functional
purpose."

        "Yes," Data agreed, "This ship is certainly more...  efficient than
the Enterprise in its use of space."

        Howe smiled at Data's search for word that would compare the Hudson
favorably to the Enterprise.  But the excitement he showed at interacting with
the Federation's only android subsided as he took a seat and said, "We may
have some time to chat while we are travelling, but we have buisness to
discuss at the moment.  Do you know the nature of this mission?"

        Data answered, "Yes.  It is to try to seal off the wormhole to the
other galaxy in order to prevent more of the Galactic Empire's ships from
entering Federation space."

        "Right," Howe said.  "If we could cut off the flow of traffic, there
would only be a small number of them here, and they wouldn't be anything we
here in the Milky Way couldn't handle.  There are only what, seven ships?"

        "Correct.  But only six attempted to attack New Brazil."

        "Yes, that's what Starfleet told me was in your report.  Do you have
any idea where the other ship was?"

        "I do not know.  Although I see no reason why only six out of seven
vessles would be involved in the second attack."

        "Yes, it does seem unlikely that one would be left behind.  I could
imagine the party spliting up, but I would think that the groups would be
divided a little more evenly.  What job would they see fit for one lone ship
that they wouldn't have any reason to send along more with it?"

        "If they wished to inform the rest of the Empire of what they had
found, they would only need to send one ship back through the wormhole."

        "Yes," Howe agreed, "That's what we are afraid of.  By the time we
reach the hole in an attempt to seal it off, there may already be a much more
sizeable fleet in our galaxy than was originally sent through.  But even if
this isn't likely to succeed, it is our last hope for avoiding conquest at the
hands of this Empire.  Or our last realistic hope."

        Data looked a little puzzled and inquired, "If it is so urgent that we
destroy the wormhole, why did Starfleet not order the Enterprise to return and
try to do so while it was still in that area?"

        "There are a couple of reasons.  First, it took Starfleet command a
certain amount of time to reach this decision following the initial reports
sent to it by the Enterprise.  They are a full-blown bureaucracy, and it was a
while before they met, considered the situation, and thought of a possible
solution.  They weren't exactly sitting on the edges of their seats waiting
to prepare for a possible invasion, which surprises me after the encounter we
had with the Borg.  With this level of preparedness, it's a wonder Starfleet's
survived this long.  Between you and me, of course."

        "Of course," echoed Data.

        "At any rate, by the time this decision had been reached, the
Enterprise had come close enough to Earth that we thought it would just be
best to have it come and report more thoroughly."

        "And the second reason?"

        Howe took a deep breath.  "The second, which was more responsible for
the delay, was that we needed time to refit the Hudson with a cloaking
device."

        Data looked a little confused.  "But what about the treaty between the
Federation and the Romulans?"

        "This is where it gets a little sticky," the captian explained.  "We
thought it would be necessary to have a cloaking device in case there are any
Imperial ships waiting for us at the entrance, and this was considered a more
immediate and urgent matter than the treaty."

        "How were we able to develop the device so quickly?" asked Data.

        "Have you heard of a ship called the Defiant?"

        "Yes.  It is a ship that was developed to counter the Borg attack."

        "That's correct.  But recently, it has been fitted with a cloak under
Romulan supervision, due to an exception they allowed to be made to the
treaty.  It is to be stationed at Deep Space Nine, and used exclusively for
operations on the other side of the Bajoran wormhole.  At any rate, many of
our scientists had been ordered to Earth to work out a cloak for this ship,
since the Romulans are still keeping a close eye on the Defiant."

        "Would it not have been more..." Data searched for the best word,
"Ethical to have informed the Romulans of our situation and request the use of
one of their ships?"

        "Yes, but we didn't have time to worry about the problems that would
arise in negotiation and trying to convince them of the reality of this
threat.  Starfleet has been one of the most up-front, honest governments when
it came to dealing with other races and civilizations, but that was a luxury.
Sometimes, emergency situations can force us into actions that are, well..."

        "Corrupt?" Data said, trying to help the captain finish his sentence.

        "No, it's not corrupt.  It's just that anyone can be reduced to what
they would have previously considered barbarism under certain circumstances.
The only reason the Federation has been able to act on its word so
constistantly is that doing so never would have caused it to be destroyed. Do
you understand the concept i am talking about?"

        "Yes, I understand," the android answered.

        "Good.  I just thought that I should lay everything out for you early
in the mission.  So let me give you a quick tour of the ship, starting with
your quarters."

                    <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>


        The tour was over rather quickly.  It included a small room that Data
would be sharing with Captain Howe and two other officers, the Engineering
room, which wasn't close to being the large open area that the Enterprise's
Engineering section was, and ended with the two officers entering the bridge.

        It, like the rest of the Hudson, was reletively dark and metallic in
comparison to the appearance of many larger starships.  A long control panel
stretched across two seats just a couple of feet in front of the captain's
chair, behind which a short wall came up to form the consol that housed the
science and tactical displays.

        "Commander," Howe said, guesturing around the bridge with a wave of
his hand, "This is our main bridge crew.  Lieutenant Nelson there is our
helmsman and Lieutenant Perran is in charge of operations."  The two officers
who manned the front stations nodded a greeting to Data.  Nelson was a middle
aged human man, and Perran was a Bajoran woman who looked about the same age.

        "You have been temporarily assigned a position as first officer for
this mission, and you will run the science station back here."  He showed the
android to one of the rear seats, which was hardly a step out of the turbolift
door.  "Ensign Jenks will assist you with science operations, along with being
our primary tactical officer."  Data took his seat next to the young ensign
and shook the hand that was offered to him as the captain walked up to take
his chair.

        "We won't have a lot to do for our trip, but we want to make sure we
are operating smoothly when we reach the wormhole," Howe anounced to the
bridge crew.  "Commander," he turned back to say to Data, "Why don't you run
a few tests and diagnostic routines on our sensors and all other science
systems."

        "Yes sir," Data answered before turning to begin typing commands on
his consol.

        "This is mainly a straight flight exept when we stop at Starbase 164
to give our cloak one last test, and we will always have officers running the
helm and operation keeping the ship at cruising speeds.  However, we will have
a good deal of free time on our hands in this very small vessel, so lets do
what we can not to let each other get to us.  Understood?"

        The officers gave their agreement, and, introductory speeches
finished, the crew began its watch as the Hudson cruised along the course to
the wormhole.

                    <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>


        Captian Howe laid on his bed, throwing a small pillow as far as it
would go before hitting Nelson's bunk above and catching it.  Jenks sat across
the small walking area that seperated his and Data's bunks from Nelson's and
the captain's, going over his report on the ships sensor functions to make
sure he hadn't missed anything.  Data just stood near the back wall into which
the personal storage compartments had been built.

        "I'm glad we're almost done with this trip," Howe said.  "I don't know
how much more of this sitting around I can take."

        Jenks looked up at Data and asked, "Does it even bother you?  I mean,
could you just stand there all day like that?"

        Data, who had grown accustomed to the different questions his curious
new crewmates usually asked him, answered, "I do not need the constant
stimulation humans do to be kept from getting bored.  Being motivated to
engage in various activities instead of remaining idle is part of my
programming, but it does not bother me to do otherwise, especially since it is
necessary for this mission."

        "I've seen that you don't just sit there all the time, though."

        "Correct.  I could find certain activities, such as what Captain Howe
is now doing, interesting for exploring the cause and effect of throwing an
object into the air, much as humans do.  However, since my senses, memory, and
throwing are perfectly precise, I am not as easily entertained by it."

        Howe caught the pillow one last time and set it on his bed, causing
Ensign Jenks to laugh a little at that reaction to Data's comments.

        "Alright, wiseguys," the captain said, grinning "We're due to reach
the wormhole pretty soon, here, and I suggest that we get to the bridge."

        They walked to the bridge to join Perran, who was running operations,
and to relieve the officers who had been taking the shift at helm and
tactical.

        "What's our estimated time of arrival?" Howe asked the exiting
helmsman.

        "We should be arriving at the wormhole in twenty minutes, sir," the
officer answered.

        Howe nodded and took his chair.  "Well, folks, we may not ever feel
like it, but we are as prepared as we are going to get.  Anybody got anything
that needs to be discussed before it is time to drop out of warp?"

        The crew glanced around to each other for a few moments before the
captain said, "Alright, then lets just relax and wait out the last few minutes
of the trip."

        Finally, Nelson reported, "Captain, we are approaching our
destination."

        "Alright, drop out of warp and engage the cloaking device."

        The Hudson cruised into place, totally invisible.  The wormhole, along
with twenty Star Destroyers, dominated the viewscreen.

        Howe stood up.  "My lord!" he exclaimed.  Although he had heard of
them, he had never seen such ships before.  And it was obvious that they were
too late to stop any other ships besides the origional fleet from entering.

        Keeping his composure very well, he ordered Nelson, "Bring us in a
little closer at half impulse."

        "Yes, sir," Nelson said, punching the necessary commands into the helm
consol.  As the Hudson approached the hole, the Imperial ships stayed in their
formation, not seeming to respond.

        "We managed to run a few circles around the starbase without being
seen.  Lets hope they can't track us.  Commander, are you reading any sort of
response?"

        "No sir, the ships are in their origional positions, and sensors do
not show any changes that indicate that they know we are here," Data replied.

        "Alright.  Bring us right up to the mouth, then, but be ready to break
out of here at a moment's notice."

        Under cloak, the Federation ship flew straight up to the blockade,
approaching the nose of one of the Star Destroyers, then carefully banking to
the side to weave its way through the fleet.

        The crew's nervousness in the face of the monsterous armada was
apparently wasted as the ships continued to sit, ignorant of the enemy in its
midst.  There was a greater variety of vessels than before, as the Star
Destroyers were accompanied by many smaller class ships, some no bigger than
a Galaxy class ship, and some even smaller.

        As the Hudson continued to silently float along its course, Howe asked,
"Have you gotten any readings, Commander?"

        "No sir.  I have not had sufficient time to gather more information
than I did aboard the Enterprise," Data answered.  "Once we move a little
closer, though, I should be able to run a few more in-depth scans."

        "Good," said Howe.  "Lieutenant Nelson, maneuver between those two
ships there and set us right at the face of the wormhole."

        "Yes sir," Nelson answered.

        The Hudson rolled and slid neatly between two Star Destroyers, then
pulled up and came to a position facing straight into the mouth.

        "Captain," Data said over the soft beeps of the contacts he was
tapping on his panel, "This wormhole is a perfect gravity well, as stable as
that of a star or a planet.  The only thing keeping the fold in space from
coming apart is the fact that it is connected to the space that is folded from
the other side."

        "So what does that mean?" the captain asked.

        Data answered, "I do not know.  I have never seen such a wormhole
before, and the only other gravitational phenomenon of this type involves a
stellar mass at the trough."

        "In other words, you have no idea how to deal with this?" Howe asked,
resisting the urge to leave his chair and pace.

        Data thought for a second, then came up with an idea.  "I believe that
if we could find a way to disrupt the gravitational field, the wormhole should
collapse since this is an artificial well that does not involve a large mass
at the center."

        "Gravitons!" Ensign Jenks burst out.

        "Excuse me?" Howe said, turning around.

        Jenks went on, "If we sent gravitons into the wormhole, they should
disrupt its gravitational pattern."

        "Would it work?" Howe shifted to Data.

        "If the four dimensional tunnel were disturbed by the effect of
gravitons neutralizing the gravity, the loose ends of three dimensional space
fabric should come apart, causing them to become unstable and collapse the
wormhole," the android answered.

        "Then make the necessary preparations," Howe ordered.

        "Yes, sir," Data complied before he and his young partner began
starting the initial sequence.

        "We are now ready to send the gravitons into the hole," reported Data
after a few minutes of work.

        "Alright," Howe said, exhaling deeply.  "Start the graviton stream."

        Data and Jenks put the command into the computer, and the invisible
particles began their work in the wormhole.

        "Scanners show the hole's gravity beginning to lose stability,"
reported Jenks.

        Data looked over his readout and ordered, "Increase the flow by
fifteen percent."

        The ensign nodded and entered the correct command.

        "Sir," Lieutenant Perran suddenly interjected, "Two ships are changing
position."

        "Do you know what they are doing?"  Howe asked.

        "It appears they have detected the gravitational disturbance around
the wormhole," Data cut in.

        "That's just great," Howe said.  "Lets just hold our position here and
see what they do.  Commander, keep the graviton stream going."

        The two Star Destroyers that had begun moving stopped near the hole's
entrance, just a breath away from the Hudson.  Nothing about their position
indicated that they knew it was there, though, as one floated alongside it and
the other began scanning the wormhole.

        "I can not be sure from these readings, but they seem to have detected
the graviton stream.  They may easily be able to trace it to our position,"
reported Data.

        "A number of ships have powered up their weapons and are firing!"
Perran exclaimed.  After checking another reading, she added, "None of the
shots seem to be aimed at us, though."

        The viewscreen, which had been switched to that position, affirmed
what she had said.  A brilliant display of green bolts flashed through space
as a few ships were sending shots off into the emptyness, and it appeared that
they were sweeping for the location of whatever was causing the disturbance.

        "Some of those shots are getting uncomfortably close to us," noticed
Howe.  "How much longer will it take to collapse the wormhole?"

        Data answered, "I do not know.  I was not sure about the most
effective means of conducting this operation, and we have required a certain
amount of time to adjust the graviton stream to the most effective pattern for
collapsing the wormhole.  I will probably need as much as ten minutes."

        "But we probably won't survive even a single hit with our shields
down, and judging from how those shots are going, our odds aren't looking so
good," Howe replied.

        "A shot has come within a hundred meters of our hull," Jenks suddenly
shot out.

        "We've got to get out of here," said a captain that was almost
frantically trying to remain seated and think of solutions in the face of the
adrenalin rush brought on by the situation.

        "This is our only chance at closing the wormhole and keeping the
Empire away," Data reminded him.

        "I know, but we don't have much of a chance of surviving very long
without shields, and our odds of succeding aren't good enough to risk losing
a ship to the Empire.  Lower the cloak and bring up shields.  Lieutenant, get
us out of here as soon as we are visible."

        With a smooth wavey motion, the small scout ship suddenly appeared in
space and swung around quickly, pushing its way through the blockade at full
throttle.  Upon seeing them, the Imperial fleet began firing on the, but the
small ship had the element of surprise on its side, and it managed to dodge
what few good shots were taken.

        "Just keep pushing us through, Lieutenant," Howe coaxed.  A few blasts
rocked the Hudson, but Nelson gracefully glided the craft around much of the
heavy concentration of turbolaser bolts, at the same time forcing his way
forward.

        A shot glanced off the shields, then another hit them straight on,
pushing the little ship off like a child batting a helium ballon, but the
helmsman skillfully guided it back on course.

        "Shields are at forty one percent," Jenks announced.

        "We're almost there," Howe encouraged his crew.  "Nelson, jump to warp
as soon as we are clear."

        "Yes sir," Nelson said.

        Finally, after a few wild and confusing seconds, the Hudson was
through the blockade, and Nelson engaged the warp drive.  The small ship
seemed to stretch into space for a moment, then it zoomed away, leaving a
confused Imperial fleet behind.

                    <=-=-=-=-=-=*=-=-=-=-=-=>


        "We've just recieved word from the Hudson," Commander Riker told
Picard as the latter entered the bridge of the Enterprise.

        "Were they successful?" asked Picard.

        "I'm afraid not," Riker answered.  "A sizable fleet was guarding the
wormhole, and it apparently detected a graviton stream that Data was using to
collapse it.  Some of the ships began to fire around that area, and they had
no choice but to leave."

        Picard, who had become accustomed to bad news, just sighed and sat in
his chair.  "I was just briefed by Starfleet concerning the Imperial
advancement.  They have sparatically attacked several of our outposts,
seemingly in great numbers.  A few ships have been fairly successful in
engaging their ships, but there are just too many of them," he announced to
the bridge crew in general.

        "Any report on the 'magical weakness?'" Riker asked.

        "Long range warp engagements have worked rather well, but the process
has been proving too slow against the enormous number of powerful ships they
have been sending at us.  And if too great a threat is presented, the enemy
jumps away into hyperspace."

        "Captain," Worf suddenly interrupted, "A ship has entered the solar
system near Earth."

        Picard jumped from his seat.  "On screen!"

        A small vessel was shown on the viewer.

        "It is only a few meters across," Worf said.  Puzzeled, he added,
"And there are no life forms aboard."

        "It is scanning Earth," said the operations officer.

        "Numerous other ships like this one have entered and are scanning as
well," added Worf.  "They entered from hyperspace in a manner similar to the
Imperial ships."

        "Are they armed?" asked Picard.

        "They have no significant weapons," answered Worf.

        "Lock on a tractor beam," Picard ordered.  "Maybe we can see exactly
what this thing is."

        "Yes sir," Worf complied.

        A blue beam shot from the Enterprise and held the ship in place.

        "It is beaming information through hyperspace," said Worf.

        Suddenly, flashing brilliantly on the Enterprise's screen, the ship
exploded.

        "What happened, Mr. Worf," demanded Picard.

        "The ship just exploded for no apparent reason," the tactical officer
answered.

        "A self destruct mechanism?" Picard turned to ask Riker.

        "Your guess is as good as mine," was all his first officer could say.

        "Get me Starfleet headquarters on the main viewer," the captain
ordered.

        Worf opened a channel, and a man in a Starfleet Admiral's uniform
appeared, replacing the starfield.

        "Admiral," Picard began, "We have encountered a ship of some kind that
seems to operate without a crew..."

        "Yes, we have gotten a few of these reports.  It seems they are some
sort of scouting equipment, as they have scanned us and beamed away
transmissions," the admiral stated.

        "Aside from my second officer, I've never seen a machine with the kind
of decision making capabilities that these computers possess," Picard noticed.

        "Yes," said the admiral.  "It is fairly obvious that they were sent by
the Empire, and that it knows all about Earth and its location.  But if you'll
excuse me now, we are rather busy down here."

        "Of course," Picard answered before the admiral vanished.


        To be concluded...



        AUTHOR'S NOTES


        First of all, I hope this wasn't a letdown for anybody who was
expecting a big battle.  As you may have noticed, this one said "To be
concluded" instead of continued, so you can probably gather from that one that
a lot of fun stuff happens next time.  I hope nobody got too tired of seeing
nothing exept Federation ships getting chased around, but remember that they
have never really assembled much of a task force.  In my opinion, this is more
realistic.  One reader (Fritz Verduin-hope I spelled it right) told me that he
thought that was better than stacking a big battle at first, so maybe I am
doing something right.

        But about the Hudson getting away from the fleet, understand that the
part of the story in which it escapes only takes a couple of seconds, and it
had a major jump on the Star Destroyers unlike the Enterprise, which got
caught off guard.  Also, it was a much smaller ship that didn't absorb as many
hits as the more massive flag ship, which caught turbolaser bolts left and
right when the green fire filled up empty space.  Finally, the Star Destroyers
were firing on the Hudson much more carefully, since they didn't want to hit
each other.

        I hope everyone liked the Hudson and its crew.  It may have been
harder to visualize than the familiar Enterprise, but I hope it wasn't too
bad.  Well, I'll prepare to work on part 5...



                                          Jeremiah