Danny Amor's Online Library/Danny Amor's Online Library - Volume 1.iso/html/startrek/old-incomplete/st-sw-anewenemy.p4-5

Internet Message Format | 1995-08-20 | 14KB

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From: [e-mail] (William Gracie)
Date: 16 Jan 95 12:14:38
Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative
Subject: star trek/wars:a new enemy-pt(4)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
X-FTN-To: William Gracie
Organization: Soft-Tech [phone]
Lines: 108
Xref: tivoli.tivoli.com alt.startrek.creative:4601

Note that the story, some characters and colonies are copyrighted (1995) to
Raymond N. Cooper.  I don't care where this story is sent, so long as I am
credited as author, and this tag remains here...

   Star Wars: A New Enemy(pt3)
   by Raymond N. Cooper.


   "I am Captain Jean-Luc Picard, of the Federation starship USS Enterprise. I
welcome you to Federation space.  Our intentions are non-hostile." He stopped
suddenly, in the middle of his prepared speech.
   The figure that had appeared on the screen was dressed in grey military
uniform.  Medals hung along his chest, giving the impression of a great many
victories.  But it wasn't the uniform that made Picard stop.
   The face was hard, seemingly carved from stone.  Piercing blue eyes searched
the screen, the gaze sweeping around the bridge.  Blond hair was pulled back
under the military-like cap, revealing even more of the sharp face.  This
wasn't what made Picard stop.  It was the look on the face.  The man was human,
at least that's what he appeared, and he looked around the bridge of the
Enterprise with undisguised wonder.  This was nothing new to Picard, but this
was not the expression one got from a human, most of whom had seen a Federation
starship.  This person, evidently, hadn't.
   "I am Admiral Jan Tyran, of the Empire.  I represent the Imperial Fleet in
your part of the galaxy.  You will surrender your vessel at once.
   "Or, quite simply, we shall blast you from space..."
   The screen closed down.
   "Shields up, Mister Worf," Riker called out.  Picard returned to his chair.
"You seem surprised, Captain."
   "I am, Number One.  But this isn't the time for it."
   The lead Star Destroyer pulled around in a tight curve, presenting its
starboard side.  The other two took up position just behind and under the
first.  Both turned to face away from one another, one preseting its
portside,the other, starboard.
   The lead Star Destroyer fired.
   The Enterprise rocked to one side.
   Picard's ears rang.  In the distance, he could hear Worf yelling that the
shot had cut right through the shields, and Data speaking calmly, informing
everyone that the enemy vessel's cloaks were down, and they were disgorging a
multitude of small attack fighters...

                         CHAPTER 3

   Captain Ivan Chekov's mouth gaped open as the starship Copernicus slowed to
impulse.  On the main screen, three massive ships launched barrage after
barrage of green weapons fire at the Enterprise.  The enemy vessels were long,
angular, with a coning tower-like bridge, raised above the rest of the vessel
at the rear.
   "Why doesn't Picard run away?" he wondered aloud.  His science officer
overheard.
   "It appears that the Enterprise is caught in a tractor beam." The Vulcan
turned to his Captain.  "It is of a type I have never seen before, Captain."
   Lieutenant Rrsk, a Gorn, reported from Tactical.  "They arre being firred
upon by lasserrss, Captain."
   "Lasers shouldn't penetrate the Enterprise's navigational shields," Chekov
muttered as he turned to face Rrsk.
   "Thesse lasserrss... I have sseen nothing like them beforre.  Theirr energy
rratings have jumped off the sscale."
   "I am attempting to alter our shields to compensate for the weapons'
magnitude," the science officer reported.  "Shields should hold for a few
minutes before we burn out our generators.  Then we shall be helpless."
   "How so?" Chekov asked.
   "I am draining energy from the warp core to build a more powerful shield. If
they collapse, we have no warp escape route."
   Chekov considered.  "Is there anyway we can get power from anywhere else?"
   "Negative, Captain.  There is not enough power in a craft this size for us
to safely drain power from elsewhere.  The shield modifications should be ready
in a few moments..."  The Vullcan's fingers flew over his console. Finally, he
turned to Chekov.  "Shields are ready, Captain."
   Chekov turned back to the main screen.  "Raise shields, ready phasers and
photon torpedoes.  Take us in there, Ensign."
   "Aye, sir."
   The Copernicus joined the battle.
                       ******

   The Enterprise was badly damaged.  Life support had given out in several
decks, one turbolift was immobile, shields were not holding up, and now
Engineering reported that the warp containment fields were beginning to fail.
   "Mister Data, bring us around to bearing 154 mark 3." Captain Picard turned
to Worf.  "Fire photon torpedoes, Mister Worf."
   "Aye, sir.  Torpedoes fired."
   They watched the main screen as the Enterprise came around again.  The
volley of five torpedoes turned into fireworks on the lead enemy vessel's
shields.  A volley of turbolaser fire was returned.
   "Shields down to 14%, Captain," Data reported.  "The lead ship is moving
closer."
   "Change course to bearing 003 mark 15, and fire a spread of torpedoes,Mister
Worf."
   "Aye, sir."
   Commander Riker leaned in closer to Picard, whispering, "We're going under
them?"
   "Yes, Number One.  That may be our only hope."
   "You realise... we can't take much more of this..."
   "I know, Will.  Trust me.  The Copernicus should be here by now.  But we
won't see them, not after our long range sensors went down."
   Another turbolaser blast rocked the ship.
   "Damage report, Mister Data," Riker yelled over the whine of emergency
klaxons.  An explosion behind Riker, near Tactical startled him.
   "We have lost full impulse engines, Commander.  That last hit also took out
the bridge's Tactical controls.  Essentially, we have no weapons nor shields."
   "Suggestions, Mister Worf," Picard asked quietly.
   "I believe we should relocate to the battle bridge, Captain.  That should be
undamaged."
   "Agreed."
   "I also believe that, since the enemy is targeting the primary hull, we
should evacuate the saucer section."
   "Make it so.  Number One, gather the crew with the most battle experience.
Order them to the battle bridge.  I shall be waiting there."
                       ******
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From: [e-mail] (William Gracie)
Date: 16 Jan 95 12:16:06
Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative
Subject: star trek/wars-A New Enemy-pt(5)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
X-FTN-To: William Gracie
Organization: Soft-Tech [phone]
Lines: 115
Xref: tivoli.tivoli.com alt.startrek.creative:4602

Please note that the story, some characters and colonies and all situations are
copyright (1995) to Raymond N. Cooper.  I don't care where this story goes, so
long as my name as author and this tag stays here...

A NEW ENEMY - pt5

   "Ready for firing, Admiral."
   Tyran looked down into the pit at Lieutenant Gerld, one of his aides. "Fire,
then, Lieutenant."
   Gerld gave the order as Larod walked up to Tyran.  He saluted
smartly,clicking his heels together as he did so.  The thrill of combat...
   And this time, the Emperor wasn't controlling them, as Tyran had proved to
Larod's satisfaction.
   But this wasn't a fight.  One ship, one third the length of a Star
Destroyer.  The Deathwing was the only Destroyer firing now, using the
Federation ship as much-needed target practice.  After all, when they got back
to where they came from, the Deathwing's crew would have to fight Rebels who
might be dug in to Coruscant something fierce.
   "Admiral!" an Ensign called out from the front of the command pit.  "We have
sensor readings indicating another ship in the immediate vincinity. Smaller
than this, but the shields approach something like our own!"
   "Excellent," Tyran told the Ensign.  To Larod, he muttered, "Order the
Cerberus to break formation, and attack..."
   "Aye, sir."
   Larod hurried off.  Tyran returned his attention to his viewscreen.  He
tapped a button, watching the screen show a schematic of the new intruder. The
main life-form readings were humanoid. with a good chance of being human, and
were concentrated mainly in the saucer-like section up the top of the ship.
Twin engines of an unknown sort swept back from the saucer, and pylons rolled
underneath the main part of the hull, joining the saucer to a long, pointed
secondary hull.  Like the first enemy, this ship had its name and registration
painted on the top of the saucer: USS GRISSOM NCC-59314.
   The ship would be absurdly easy to destroy once the shields were down, and
the Cerberus shouldn't have any trouble with that...
                       ******

                         CHAPTER 4

   The Cerberus engaged the USS Grissom, firing its forward turbolasers at the
intruder.  The Grissom rocked, but was unharmed.  Captain Terrius of the
Imperial Star Destroyer was surprised: he had been told that the enemy's
shields almost matched the Star Destroyers' own, but he hadn't expected a full
barrage of turbolaser fire to just...bounce off the ship, leaving the vessel
unharmed.  The paint hadn't even been scratched...
   Captain Chekov swivled round to his science officer, giving him an
expression of thanks and surprise and admiration.  His Vulcan officer never
ceased to pull rabbits out of his hat.  He turned back to the main screen.
   "Bring us around to face that, Ensign," he murmured, realising the bridge
had gone quiet.  Chekov found his mouth suddenly dry; he had fought the Borg at
Wolf 359 on the Saratoga, and he now wondered if this battle would be a repeat.
   "Fighterrss arre being launched in ourr dirrection, Captain," Rrsk reported.
 "The enemy iss powerring up forr anotherr volley..."
   "Fire when ready, Mister Rrsk.  If this shot has no effect, I want you," he
pointed at his science officer, "Mister Sulak, to find us a phaser frequency
that will."  He turned to face his bridge crew.  "Now, the Enterprise is
depending on us.  Let's show them what a ship this size and age can do..."
   "Phasers and photon torpedoes ready, Captain," Rrsk informed Chekov.
   "Fire."
                       ******

   The phasers bounced off the Cerberus' shields, and the photon torpedoes
detonated just before striking the bridge.  Inside, Captain Terrius looked
around at the bridge crew.  He was just regaining his feet, as was most of his
crew.  The impact had sent everyone flying.  For some reason, hitting the
bridge with those torpedoes had rocked the super-dreadnought-sized vessel. He
called out to Tactical.
   "Shield status!"
   The Ensign there studied his consoles for a moment.  "Sir!  We have lost one
of our deflector shield generator towers!  Bridge shields are down!  Rear
shields are down!  We have lost power to port weapons momentarily; Engineering
is getting on that problem now."
   Bridge.  Shields.  Down.  The words rolled around in a jumbled mess in
Terrius' mind.  He had once fought a Mon Calamari cruiser with his forward
deflectors down, and hadn't liked the loss of five thousand crew, nor the
extensive damage to the Star Destroyer he had been commanding.
   But even a Mon Cal cruiser couldn't drop a Star Destroyer's bridge shields
with one shot.  But this tiny ship had.  The enemy didn't even reach four
hundred metres in length!
   And it had just about rendered the Cerberus inoperable.
   "Intensify all forward firing weapons to cover the bridge!  And when are
those TIE Fighters and Bombers getting there?"
   "About thirty seconds, Captain," came the reply from the pit.
                       ******

   "TIE Fighter group Alpha, we're going in.  Check in."
   A young pilot moved unsteadily in his spherical cockpit.  "Alpha 2, standing
by."
   "Alpha 3 standing by," a female pilot answered.  She shifted her helmet to a
slightly more comfortable position on her head.
   "This is Alpha 1.  Alpha group, pick your targets carefully; we don't want
to fry ourselves.  Remember, we're here as interference for the bombers."
   "Copy that, Alpha 1."
   "Alpha group, report in with targets..."
   "Alpha 1, this is Alpha 2.  I'm taking the left pylon on the primary hull."
The TIE Fighter swung around to face the Grissom's left warp nacelle.
   "Alpha 1, this is Alpha 3.  I've got a positive target lock on the energy
weapon's discharge point.  I'm going in."
   "Okay, May The Force Be With You."  Alpha 1 chuckled silently to himself. No
one would need the Force to do this...  He targeted the primary hull, and began
to fire, then pulled away at the last moment before plastering himself across
the enemy's shields to draw fire away from the incoming TIE Bombers.
   It was so quick, Alpha 3 hardly saw the Grissom fire several beams of energy
at once, catching Alpha's 1 and 2, and the lead TIE Bomber.  The other Bomber
pilots, blinded by the close flash of light, drove their vehicles into one
another's.
                       ******

   "We have one of those... fighters... you wanted, Captain, Ops reported.
   "Thank you, Ensign.  Bring it in with the tractor beam.  Store it in the
forward shuttlebay, and get our best xenoengineers down there, right away."
   "Aye, sir."
   Chekov strained his eyes, looking for the Enterprise.  Ah, there it was,all
alone out there, just drifting, now that its impulse engines were out of
operation.  He wished he knew what was happening...
                       ******