Lately, all the new threads about universes various members here had created made me start thinking about my own universe. I began to flesh it out a bit more, and I began to change it drasticaly, to the point where they're pretty much completely different universes at this point.
With more free time on my hands lately, I began to think of getting back to writing my stories again. This time, however, it was going to be a crossover between my universe and the Trek universe. Similar to my first story, this will involve the Federation running into an enemy that is, shockingly, competant.
Anway, I thought I'd throw this prologue up here to see if anyone's interested, or if I'm just wasting my time. Enjoy.
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Prologue
In the vast depths of space, near an ancient and dying star, a Nova class science vessel blasted its way out of warp speed, dropping violently into the system. An observer watching from another ship would have been astounded that the ship was still running. Its hull was cracked and breached, flames could be clearly seen on several decks through the few intact windows and white smoke was venting out of its port nacelle.
"Warp drive just failed!" The helmsman called out urgently, fighting with the flickering control panel in front of him.
"Damn it!" Lieutenant Varroway, the highest ranking officer still alive on the crippled USS Pluto, exclaimed. "How far away from the starbase are we?"
"Not far. We should be able to get there in a few minutes on impulse."
"Thank God." Varroway muttered, wiping blood out of his eyes from a head wound he didn't recall having. He turned around to the back of the bridge to address the young woman standing at the science station. "Have you got the sensors modified yet?" He snapped.
"One moment, sir." The young woman, Ensign Jeria, responded, her voice surprisingly calm given their situation. "I've almost g- there! That should do it."
"On screen." Varroway ordered, turning to look at the cracked viewscreen. For a moment it showed nothing but the position of the Pluto and the starbase it was racing for, but then it flickered and the view zoomed out a fair distance. Now it showed a large, unidentified object moving rapidly towards them. Varroway felt his blood run cold.
"Oh God, they're following us ." Jeria gasped. Everyone on the bridge seemed unable to turn away from the sight of the object rapidly approaching them.
"Comms!" Varroway yelled suddenly, startling the others back into action.
"Sir?" The ship's communications officer asked, preparing to open a hailing frequency, but Varroway shoved him out of the way and stabbed at the controls urgently himself.
"Mayday, mayday, mayday. This is Lieutenant Aaron Varroway, acting first officer of the USS Pluto to Starbase 21. We've taken heavy damage and need immediate assistance. Are you receiving us?" Varroway paused, waiting for the starbase to reply. That base was housing two dozen warships, he knew. That was more than enough to help them.
There was no reply.
"I repeat, this is Lieutenant Varroway of the USS Pluto requesting urgent assistance. Can anyone hear me?"
Still nothing.
"Ensign Jeria, are we in the right area?" He asked, turning. Jeria consulted a sensor read-out before nodding.
"Yes, Sir. The station is right ahead of us."
"What's their status?"
"Uh, they don't appear to be doing anything right now."
"What about their shields? Are they raised? What about the warships?"
"Their shields are down, Lieutenant. The other ships are docked to it. There's a few cargo and transport vessels moving around, but that's it."
"We sent a warning to them!" Varroway yelled, thinking back to the chaos at Estruna when the Perseus had started sending out warnings to every Federation ship and starbase that was in range of their comms. "Why aren't they doing anything?"
"I don't know, Sir. Maybe they blocked the message from transmitting back at Estruna?" Jeria replied. Varroway thought about it for a moment. It was certainly possible.
"Then why aren't they responding to us?"
"Our comms were damaged in the escape." She replied. "We may need to get closer."
"Right." Varroway grunted and turned back to the comms system. He'd just have to keep trying. "Starbase 21, this is the USS Pluto, Lieutenant Varroway commanding. We need immediate assistance and have vital information with us. If you can hear us then respond now!"
There was nothing but static for a moment, and then another voice burst out over the comms.
"This is Ensign Mellya of Starbase 21. Your signal is weak, Pluto. What is your situation?"
"Oh thank God!" Varroway yelled, relief flooding through him. "Our fleet was ambushed, there was nothing we could do. I think they're tracking us."
On the command deck of Starbase 21, Mellya frowned as she tried to make out the static-laden signal. The man was clearly panicking, which wasn't helping her to understand him.
"Sir, please calm down. Did you say you were attacked?"
"Affirmative!" Varroway yelled into the comms, furious at how the woman on the station didn't seem to understand him. "We were part of the research fleet at Estruna, and then they attacked us and killed everyone else." In his mind's eye he saw the massive ship burst into existence, its shields flashing as they powered up, its weapons traversing to target the unarmed civilian fleet. "We barely made it out ourselves and have taken heavy damage. You need to raise shields and get your ships ready for combat immediately."
"Please calm down, Sir." Mellya replied, wondering what he meant by his last statement. Turning in her chair, she looked over at the large sensor screen that dominated the far wall of the command deck. On it was displayed everything in the system, and all she could see was the starbase, its attendant garrison of warships, a dozen or so cargo vessels and, further out, the crippled Pluto. "Who attacked you? Was it the Romulans?" She asked, well aware of the station's proximity to the Neutral Zone.
"No it wasn't them!" Varroway snapped. In his mind he watched as the colossal vessel opened fire, tearing the research station apart as though it were made of paper. "Why haven't you raised shields?"
"Please repeat your last." Mellya replied calmly. The last message had been obliterated in a burst of static, but it had sounded pretty angry. "You were attacked by Romulans, is that true?"
"I told you no!" He yelled, frustration getting the better of him. He saw the Freedom spinning wildly out of control, venting crewmen into the void as a bright white beam pierced its hull. "We were investigating a spatial anomaly in the Estruna system, and then they just came out of nowhere and killed everyone!"
"Who came out of nowhere, Lieutenant?" Mellya sighed, getting irritated. Why couldn't he just give her a straight answer?
"I I - I don't know." Varroway stammered, his anger giving way to exhaustion. "It was massive." Bolts and beams lashed out from the monster's hull, annihilating ship after ship. "Its weapons and shields were too strong for us to hurt it." He saw the Independence's phaser slam ineffectively into the shields of the vessel. He watched as it was swatted out of existence by one of the ship's massive dorsal turrets. "They murdered everyone." He saw, again, the young tactical officer yell that their shields had failed. He saw, again, the Captain turn to the tactical officer, a look of horror on his face. He saw, again, the port side of the bridge explode violently as something hit it, shrapnel tearing the Captain apart where he stood before decompression pulled his bloodied remains out into the void. He watched helplessly as he grabbed onto Commander Thompson's arm with one hand, his other hand clinging to a console. He felt the deck heave under his feet as something else slammed into the ship, the sound of tearing metal barely audible over the roaring air exiting the bridge. He let go, again, of Thompson's arm, instead grabbing onto the console with both hands to save himself. He saw, again, the Commander's screaming form disappear into the darkness beyond the bridge, mere seconds before the containment fields were raised.
"Understood, Lieutenant." Mellya said, deciding that she'd leave someone else to get a proper answer out of him later. "Your warp core appears to be malfunctioning. Shut down your impulse drives and maintain your current position. We're dispatching a recovery craft now."
"No! Deploy your warships!" Varroway yelled. "Do it! Launch everything you have! Now! They're coming!"
"Sir, there is no one else on our sensors." Mellya snapped, beginning to lose her temper. The sensor screen still showed nothing out there but the rapidly approaching Pluto. "You're alone out there, there's no one else. Everything's going to be fine." Even as she said it though, she watched on the screen as something strange began to flicker on and off just a kilometre or so from the starbase.
"No it isn't! You don't understand .you weren't there." Varroway moaned, but Mellya wasn't listening. She was staring at the sensor screen as the signal began to grow stronger and stronger. She looked around the command deck. The other officers, too engrossed in their work, hadn't noticed it. "I can feel them following me ."
The attention of everyone on the starbase's command deck was suddenly taken by a bright white flash from outside the windows, as some sort of massive rift in space began tearing open a kilometre away.
"Sir!" Back on the Pluto's bridge, Jeria yelled out as she too saw it.
"Oh God no." Varroway murmured. "They found us."
"What the hell is that thing?" Mellya asked, staring at the titanic vessel emerging from the rift along with everyone else on the starbase's command deck. It was massive. Just under two kilometres long, it's blocky and functional surfaces almost Borg-like in their practicality and rows of what were indisputably weapons lined its armoured hull, the monstrosity turned towards the station, its four large engines spewing gasses as they ignited. Mellya watched as the rows of turrets swung ponderously towards the station and its attendant ships.
"Raise shields!" Commander Maron, first officer of the station, yelled. "Raise them now!"
It was too late.
With a flash, four thick white beams lanced out from the prow of the massive ship, tearing the hull of the starbase apart. It turrets opened fire, blasting bolts of energy towards the docked warships and the scattering cargo vessels. A few futile phaser beams struck its shields, but it was too powerful to be troubled by such minor resistance.
"Warp drive?" Varroway yelled at his crew.
"Still offline!"
"This is it." Varroway said quietly to himself, even as his crew scrambled around the bridge, trying to find some way to escape or fight back. Accepting his impending oblivion, Lieutenant Aaron Varroway of the USS Pluto watched calmly as one of the enemy ship's heavy turrets swung around to aim at them.
* * *
Drifting serenely through the debris of the station and the unaware vessels it had destroyed, the ship's engines shut down, its crew satisfied that there was no one else to hunt down.
Deep within the armoured hull of the vessel, within the armoured bunker that was its bridge, Captain Aulsen calmly read over the sensor logs a young crewman had handed him.
"Did we get them, Sir?" His second in command, Commander Voysk asked quietly.
"Aye." Aulsen replied, nodding, after a moment. "Looks like we got the bastard that slipped away from us."
"Along with quite a bit more." Voysk observed. "Took them by surprise, it seems."
"Looks like we were successful in jamming their comms during that battle. Command'll be interested in knowing that."
"I'm sure they will. Shall I report our success back to them?"
"Yes, do." He said, lifting his officer's cap to smooth down his greying hair. Nodding, Voysk turned and strode over to the communications terminals on the far end of the command deck.
"Ensign Tyrol?" He called. "Signal Command. Inform them that Fenrir reports success. Tell them that they may now begin mobilisation."
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Well?
