Star Trek: Enterprise

Event Horizon

 

Prologue

 

“To boldly go where no man has gone before.” The words echoed in Captain Jonathan Archer’s mind as he sat staring out of the viewport in his quarters. Stars streaked past at warp speed and Archer felt completely at home. His mind drifted back to Earth’s new space station just a year and a half ago when he was walking through Enterprise’s corridors checking out how the ship was coming together. Spacedock it was called and that’s what it was. Docking berths for Starfleet’s handful of warp-capable vessels and the cargo ships that were always flitting in and out of the system. Archer had been allowed to sleep in. Admiral Forrest had given him a lot of leeway when Enterprise had been nearly ready. She had been named before she had been built. It was a name that went back to the American War of Independence, the Cold War of the mid 1900s and the Space Race. The space shuttle Enterprise had been the first true spaceship and. The name Enterprise was in the thick of things on the front lines in every war ever fought, including the Eugenics War and even the nuclear third world war.

Archer strolled through the empty corridors and stopped every now and then to put a hatch back in place or close a box of tools that one of Enterprise’s or Starfleet’s engineers had left when their shift was over. The engineers were working hard and he knew that they often became absent minded. The Enterprise was to be the flagship of the warp-five fleet (especially as it was the only one there was for the moment) so it had to be in top condition. He walked into engineering and was surprised to see Commander Charles “Trip” Tucker working as if Enterprise was launching the next day. Tucker was neck deep in the control panel of the antimatter injectors and a shower of sparks suddenly erupted from it and Tucker jumped back, cradling his hand. Archer heard a curse.

Do you mind not blowing my ship up before we even get it out of Spacedock,’ Archer said with a chuckle.

‘Cap’n? Didn’t think you’d be working this late.’

‘I’m not; I couldn’t sleep. I’m just wandering around admiring my new command.’

‘Well I’m trying to get her working. The warp engines stalled earlier today and I’m trying to figure out why. We wouldn’t them to do that when we’re travelling at warp four.’

‘Go and get some sleep. You’ll blow her up before you fix her at this rate.’

‘I won’t be able to sleep without her running.’

‘You sleeping on board already?’

‘Have been since the impulse drive came on line last month. If I’m happy with her then we can go when we’re ready.’

‘You’re forgetting about Ambassador Soval, he won’t let us go until we’re as grey as he is.’

‘Humph,’ Trip replied.

‘Go to bed Trip, that’s an order.’

Archer had left Trip working on the engines. He didn’t care whether his chief engineer slept or not. He could do that when the hull plating was being attached.

He suddenly stopped his reverie and realised that Porthos was trotting along beside him and jumping up to nudge his left hand. He’d momentarily forgotten that he wasn’t touring a dry ship but one that was actually travelling through space.

‘Okay boy, come on. Bed time,’ Archer said as he walked toward his quarters.

He always kept thinking back to that night when he walked the near silent corridors of the ship, three weeks before they had launched. He’d just got off duty and was looking forward to relaxing for one night since having Surak’s katra in his head. The Vulcans as a people were re-evaluating their beliefs now that the mythical Kir’Shara had been found, by him of all people, and the High Command had been disbanded. Archer knew that he needed some private time. He drifted off to sleep thinking about his colleague (and part time lover) back home. The Captain of the Columbia NX-02 had been sad to see him go but they both knew that if anything did happen it would be on the quiet. The Captains of the only two warp five ships in the fleet, tut, tut. Archer smiled as he re-entered his quarters and settled Porthos into his bed. Archer climbed into his own bed and drifted off to sleep as he remembered that night on the mountain.

 

Commander Charles Tucker the third, Trip to his friends, was in engineering for the third straight hour after his shift had ended. He wanted to make sure that the engines hadn’t suffered any major damage after the battle with the Vulcans. She’d been repaired since that battle but there was something wrong with the intake manifolds and the sensors told him nothing was wrong. Even a visual check found nothing. Trip was still annoyed about pushing Enterprise to warp five and holding her at that speed for too long. He was tired but had no intention of sleeping until everything was right again. Archer knew what he was like. They had been friends since the NX programme began. Trip checked the whole engine over and was finally satisfied.

‘She’s all yours Jones, take good care of her.’

‘Yes sir.’

Trip went to bed and dreamt of taking apart the engines of a Klingon ship, they were real beauties, even if the Klingons themselves were bullies and barbarians. He thought of what it was like on a Klingon vessel, the one in the gas giant was absolutely terrible, so Malcolm had said and Hoshi pretty much backed him up. Live food and a terrible smell. Only T’Pol had something different to say. Mainly that they shouldn’t judge other species by their eating habits, she was picking up sarcasm and irony pretty well. Trip had used that same line on her when they left the Spacedock more than three years before.

Trip then sat bolt upright and donned his uniform. Something was wrong with the engines. He knew that because the usual hum had changed pitch. That probably meant that something needed realigning and he didn’t trust anyone to do it for him. He was the man in charge of Starfleet’s only working warp-five engine and he intended to return it to them in one piece. He almost ran down the corridors to engineering.

 

Something wasn’t right. No matter how Lieutenant Malcolm Reed fiddled with the phase cannons he just could not get them to target automatically. There was nothing physically wrong with them, the controls were working at Starfleet specifications and he had made a visual inspection and that had proved nothing. There was still something wrong. Reed didn’t want to wake the Captain or Commander Tucker but if he couldn’t find the answer soon he would have no choice. The Captain would not like travelling far without weapons. He tried the targeting scanners again and they worked the same as usual but the cannons wouldn’t budge. He opened up the hatch to do another manual check and when he was crouched beneath the cannon itself he noticed something that he hadn’t seen before. This was outside his expertise. He needed help.

‘Reed to Commander Tucker.’

‘What can I do for you Lieutenant?’ Trip sounded wide awake and Reed was surprised but didn’t push the issue. He needed help.

‘I’ve found a problem with the phase cannons. There’s something here that shouldn’t be.’

‘Like you for example,’ Trip replied caustically.

‘I was thinking more like an item of hardware that isn’t in the specs. Its preventing them from automatically targeting and I don’t want to remove it without knowing what it does or what its there for.’

‘I’m on my way.’ Trip said and put his tools away. The phase coils had been two microns out of alignment, nothing major.

Minutes later Trip crouched beside the armoury officer and looked cock-eyed at the thing on the forward phase cannon.

‘It’s definitely not supposed to be here,’ Trip said and reached for it.

‘It’s the on the others too, I checked.’ Reed added and it started to hum.

Reed suddenly became very uncomfortable. The hum got louder as Trip got closer. He pulled his hand away and the hum stopped. ‘I think we should wake the Captain.’

‘I was thinking the same thing.’

 

Ensign Hoshi Sato could hear the assorted beeps, clicks and whirrs that the on-board computers made as they were doing they jobs. She could hear the whine of the warp engines, the hum of the air recycler and the sounds of the metallic stresses caused by normal space flight. Hoshi was discomforted by it. She had a delicate ear that picked up every single sound and vibration made by anything. It had taken her several years as a teenager to hone the skill/gift/curse, she had often called it all three, but she was now able to sleep at night without being aware of the vibrations of the deck plates or warp engines. It gave her a large measure of comfort and she was able to do her job properly.

She had recently been working harder than ever before on the translation of a language that did not seem to conform to any linguistic or mathematical rules, not even the mathematical language used on that alien creature that tried to integrate the Captain and four others into itself was helping, she was constantly exhausted and it had taken Commander T’Pol’s insistence to get her to go to bed at a reasonable hour several days running. They had no idea where the language had come from but still she worked on it, only in her spare time. As it was she had only just crawled into bed, three hours after going off duty, and was only just drifting off to sleep. She was thinking that as they were well past that region of space and the Captain probably wouldn’t want her working on it any more so she made herself a mental note to work on it when she had nothing to do. So she probably wouldn’t look at it again for months.

‘All senior officers report to the bridge,’ said Commander T’Pol in her emotionless monotone over the intraship communication system. Well, not quite emotionless, mused Hoshi, there was some edge to her voice – there was something wrong and she wondered if the Captain could detect the differences in T’Pol’s tone, she doubted it. T’Pol had been different since the year in the Delphic Expanse, but couldn’t understand why. She was closer to Trip than she had been before and a little more distant, not quite as much as she had been when she first joined Enterprise, but Hoshi thought that was probably due to the Kir’Shara. T’Pol had been reading it ever since it had been discovered.

 

Chapter One

 

Within two minutes Hoshi was in uniform and seated at the communications console on the bridge. When she arrived on the bridge Reed was at his station with Trip looking over his shoulder, most likely checking on the status of the Enterprise’s weapons systems, hull plating and whether there were any enemy vessels nearby. Mayweather had his hands on the controls but he wasn’t looking happy. He looked like he was concentrating on trying to keep the ship in one piece as he had successfully done so on numerous occasions. Archer emerged from the turbolift. He had probably been watching water polo or been in bed. He looked to T’Pol for explanation.

‘Well?’ he asked when she said nothing. She still had to master reading the body language that humans used to communicate with.

‘We are approaching a black hole,’ said T’Pol blankly.

‘Not the first one that we have seen,’ replied Archer stoically and wondering just what exactly the problem was.

‘This one has us caught in its gravitational pull,’ T’Pol told him.

Hoshi guessed that that was the reason Travis was having trouble.

‘Would reversing engines do anything to help our situation?’ asked Archer knowing the answer before T’Pol gave it.

‘No Captain,’ she answered. ‘The gravitational force acting on us is too great.’

‘Is there anything we can do?’ asked Trip. He was not as cheerful as he usually was.

‘Trip? Is there something else I should be aware of?’

‘There’s something attached to the phase cannons. I tried to remove it and it emitted a high-pitched hum,’ Trip answered. ‘I was going to deal with it later but it looks like we have another problem.’

‘Whatever it is, it’s preventing us from automatic targeting,’ Reed added.

‘Unless we find a way to disrupt the gravitational pull within the next eleven hours the ship will be crushed,’ said T’Pol looking in her viewer rather than at the Captain. She was aware that her information was not very pleasant and that Archer was likely to be pessimistic when faced with the information.

‘Commander, do the Vulcans have anything that may be able to help us?’ asked Archer. This could be one problem that he may very well need their help with. ‘And pray tell why we did not detect it until it was too late. Trip, Malcolm, look at the phase cannons now. We may need them.’

‘I do not believe that the Vulcan Science Directorate has ever encountered a Class 15 black hole,’ replied the science officer.

‘Great, two big problems to deal with. One at a time. T’Pol, you and Hoshi try to contact the Minister T’Pau to ask for help and try to figure a way out of this . I’m going to the armoury to have a look at this mysterious device. I don’t want something else to blow us up. Mines I don’t like but I can handle. Alien devices make me jittery.’

Hoshi’s Oriental features contorted and she furrowed her thin brows as she tapped out a sequence of commands at her console. ‘There’s something preventing me getting a signal out. I can’t contact the Vulcans.’

‘T’Pol?’ said Archer looking at the Commander whose gaze was intently focused on the information shown in the viewer that she was staring into.

‘The radiation that the black hole is emitting is scattering the comm signal,’ T’Pol replied moments later. ‘There is also another energy signal that I am detecting, it could be another vessel caught in the event horizon.’

‘I thought black holes didn’t emit anything,’ said Tucker by the helm, helping Mayweather keep the ship from being completely pulled into the event horizon of the black hole.

‘Black holes emit gravitational forces in excess of that of ten trillion Class M planets,’ replied T’Pol. ‘Although why we didn’t detect this one I’m not sure.’

‘Where is it?’ Archer asked, the danger to his ship all but forgotten and his mind shifting into a higher gear – his ingrained responsibility to all species in danger snapped into effect. He knew his crew, perhaps even T’Pol, was also engaging in the activity to save the unknown aliens. If indeed they needed it – if not, he would concentrate on getting his own ship out of there.

‘Approximately four thousand kilometres ahead, bearing 342 mark 56,’ answered T’Pol.

‘Modify the viewscreen,’ said Archer seating himself in the captain’s chair, it felt a little uncomfortable. He’d get Trip to have a look at it later.

The screen shifted from the slow-moving swirls of energy toward the immense darkness at the centre of the black hole to a tight view of the swirling energy where a small ship could just about be seen being buffeted by the gravitational forces much closer to the centre of the black hole. The image was quickly magnified to show the ship at a more realistic view. Archer didn’t recognise it and it seemed to him that no one else did, not even Travis Mayweather, his space boomer helmsman or the non-exploratory Vulcan.

‘T’Pol, do you recognise the configuration?’

‘No Captain, the ship is not in the Vulcan database.’

‘I don’t suppose we can hail them, the scattering effect of the energy will affect it.’

‘Affirmative,’ said T’Pol.

‘Can we send a shuttlepod?’ asked Archer.

‘Not a good idea, the gravimetric shear would tear the pod to pieces in a few minutes,’ said Trip looking at the pod’s quantum tolerance levels at one of the monitors by the tactical station. Archer studied the image on the viewscreen and remembered a problem he had had with his model ship when it was caught in the sea. His father had waded out almost up to his neck to retrieve the model, a young Archer had been grateful and never forgot that; it served him well now.

‘Trip, can you modify a shuttlepod to ride the gravitational eddies that are swirling around out there?’

Trip looked at him with a twinkle in his eyes akin to awe, he would never have come up with that one – then his engineering brain kicked in and he slumped. ‘The pod couldn’t withstand the shear of the gravitational eddies, it’s too small,’ Trip answered but a mischievous gleam appeared in his eye. ‘Enterprise could!’ he added.

T’Pol raised her eyebrow in the Vulcan expression of surprise, Archer stifled a guffaw; he had expected that response from her. ‘Get started on any modifications Trip. Hoshi, would Morse code reach the stranded ship?’

‘Aye sir,’ Trip said. He nodded at Reed to follow him.

‘It might, I’ll try,’ she answered as her hands practically flew across the communications console. ‘Commander, will radio waves also be affected by the gravitational shear?’

‘Yes Ensign, they would, but it was worth a try. Captain, if you are planning what I think you are, bear in mind that we are also in danger of being crushed by the gravitational forces,’ said T’Pol unwaveringly.

‘I am planning what you think I am and we won’t be crushed. I have faith in my ship and my crew. Anything I can get us into we can get us out of.’

‘That is not logical.’

He waved her off with a hand as Tucker and Reed reappeared on the bridge. Reed sat at his station with an air of superiority, not in keeping with his usual British reserve, and Tucker moved to stand by him.

‘We reinforced the Structural Integrity Field and the hull plating as best we can manage. It didn’t need too much tampering Captain,’ said the engineer with a grin. ‘Inertial dampers are set to absolute maximum.’

‘Are we ready?’ Archer asked the rest of the bridge crew. ‘Bridge to Sickbay.’

‘Phlox here,’ replied the doctor with his usual ineffability.

‘We’re caught in black hole, prepare for casualties.’

‘Right away,’ Phlox replied and the comm line closed.

‘Travis, check the thrusters,’ said Tucker wanting to make sure, ‘you got enough power?’

Mayweather did a double take as he saw the power levels. ‘I can outmanoeuvre an inspection pod with these thrusters.’

Archer smiled and wondered how Trip had managed that in a few minutes.

He knew how good the inspection pods were and this gave him plenty more confidence. His face took on the “look,” his features hardened into the expression that things were moving along. ‘Polarise the hull plating. Travis, take us toward that ship – straight and steady.’

‘Aye sir,’ he replied absently. His attention was on the energy eddies appearing on his console.

T’Pol changed the image of the screen to help him and she sat back and held on, it would be rough. Hoshi did the same. Reed held on and Trip moved to the tactical station to hold on to a grip but Archer stood up proudly, his ship was the best. The sly grin on his face made Trip remember why he had been only too happy to sign on with his friend.

Enterprise bucked as she found herself a wave front to ride toward the stricken ship. Travis’ brow had sweat pouring off it as he kept his hand steady and adjusted the inertial dampers manually every few seconds to stabilise the ship. Archer finally gave in to gravity and sat down, he had no idea how much time was passing – time was relative in the vicinity of a black hole – so he just sat back and watched as Enterprise got ever closer to the vessel.

All of a sudden time seemed to slow perceptibly, it reminded Archer of the pre-echo in the Suliban Helix’s time-room, and even Travis lost concentration for a fraction of a second. Time should have been normal for them, only observers were to supposed to feel the time dilation effects. The momentary lapse was enough to send Enterprise off course and tumbling into the event horizon of the black hole. Within seconds – or was it hours? – the ship had stopped tumbling and the crew were sitting in their places once again.

‘What happened?’ asked Archer, time seemed to have returned to normal but what he understood about temporal mechanics told him that this was only an illusion.

‘We are stranded in the event horizon of the black hole,’ T’Pol said and Archer slumped in his chair. She continued, ‘but we are within eight metres of the other vessel.’

Tucker looked at her and couldn’t help but smile, bad news first and good news second, she was learning. Maybe marriage was a good thing, then he remembered that the marriage had been annulled or something. She was single again, but unavailable. He remembered her sitting in the back of the room at the last movie screening and thought that she was becoming a little more human, but she would dispute that of course.

‘How big is it?’ asked Archer sitting up.

‘A little smaller than our shuttlepods,’ answered T’Pol. ‘And they appear to be three of them clustered together.’

‘Will they fit in the launch bay?’

‘Yes.’

‘Will the grapplers work?’ Archer asked, turning to Reed.

‘They should, but it might take a while,’ he answered.

Archer ignored his attempt at gallows humour, which was right on the money, and nodded at him. ‘Do it. Bring that ship into the launch bay.’

 

Chapter Two

 

The grapplers did work and the ship was in launch bay two within an hour (ship-time, it could have been a month or two later) and Archer was there with T’Pol, Reed, Tucker and Phlox – just in case there were casualties. Hoshi entered the bay carrying her Universal Translator padd. They waited a for a few minutes before a hatch opened in the larger of the three vessels. A humanoid figure peeked out, it looked male but that was only a human observation, Archer knew of several species that had more than two genders, the Andorians had four.

A body followed the head; it was definitely male. Two other people exited the craft behind of the male, they were both female. The male stood to one side and the taller of the two females stepped forward and spoke.

‘Tyuo dryunqi gtyunop?’

‘I’ll need a little more,’ said Hoshi quietly to Archer.

‘I am Captain Archer of the Starship Enterprise. Do you need assistance?’

‘Fryu zhujik iojke fvno hole, we are explorers.’

‘Can you repeat that?’ Archer asked; the UT was working.

‘We’re scanning the black hole; we are explorers. Our ship was damaged, usually the gravimetric shear does not affect us so badly.’

‘Is there anything we can do to help you repair your vessel?’

‘Everything is working except our gravimetric generator,’ said the shorter female.

‘I’ll help if I can,’ Trip told the woman and Archer, looking from one to the other.

The taller female glanced at Hoshi and said a number of phrases too quickly for the UT to translate fast enough. Hoshi understood them.

‘Tsfy uodfge drdfhy udfhrth gbhrthnth fnbhdfg hsqgis bggdfhethbh sdgs yunop,’ Hoshi told her as best she could. She was sure that she garbled a couple of words but the woman seemed to understand.

The woman seemed to accept what was said. The two females were dressed in what appeared to be uniforms of some kind whereas the male was dressed in what was obviously an overall, caked with grease.

‘Trip, help them with the generator; the male will direct you to them,’ Archer said. ‘Lieutenant Reed, there doesn’t seem to be a need for your services here,’ he added. ‘T’Pol, Hoshi, over here.’

Both followed Archer to secluded section of the launch bay.

Hoshi explained. ‘They call themselves the Yreni, they are a matriarchal species and did not understand why you had spoken to them. Their males do not speak unless addressed by an older female. I explained that we are a patriarchal species and she understood. However I think that it would be best for Commander T’Pol to speak with them for now on, it would be easier for them.’

‘Good idea Hoshi, Commander, keep me posted.’

T’Pol nodded and returned to the older of the two women.

 

Archer and Hoshi returned to the bridge.

Reed was seated at his post and frowning at the screen in front of him. Hoshi took her seat and Archer sat in the captain’s chair. Mayweather was trying to keep the ship on a gravimetric wave, the energy currents that swirled around the event horizons of black holes. It was the gravimetric waves that put out much of the hole’s gravitational pull and Travis was trying to take Enterprise round and round, rather than heading straight for, the black hole. They were all noticing the temporal displacement now and it was disconcerting, especially as there shouldn’t be any. There was no pre-echo now like Archer had experienced in the temporal chamber on the Suliban Helix nearly two years ago but time had slowed even further. The energy swirling around them was still the same but he knew a little temporal mechanics and knew that time was passing normally outside the black hole’s influence but inside, where they were now, time was passing very, very slowly, he didn’t need the sensors and chronometers to tell him that.

‘Archer to Commander T’Pol.’

‘T’Pol here, go ahead,’ she said in her best captain’s voice.

‘Ask them if they can help us get out of here, please.’

‘Acknowledged. T’Pol out.’

‘Typical Vulcan,’ said Reed though his attention was not on the comment.

‘Lieutenant?’ asked Archer picking up the distraction in his armoury officer’s voice.

‘I’m picking up some strange energy signatures on the sensors. They’re coming from within the black hole. There is something that seems to have slipped in and not been destroyed.’ said Reed in a strange tone.

‘Hoshi, get T’Pol up here now,’ said Archer standing up from the seat and peering toward the screen, trying to see if he could spy something within the great blackness of the black hole’s centre.

‘Aye sir.’

‘Captain, I’m picking up some unusual energy readings from the black hole itself,’ Reed added.

‘What is it?’

Reed looked up at him. ‘There are none of the usual stellar composites that you would find in a natural black hole.’

Archer stood at the centre of the bridge, in front of the captain’s chair but before he could say anything to Reed’s implied statement T’Pol arrived and went straight to her science station. The others were already seated at their posts except Trip who was helping the aliens with their gravimetric generator, whatever the hell that was. T’Pol was running a sensor sweep when the taller female Yreni walked in and surveyed the bridge, she took in the apparent lack of females and looked at where the females were sitting determining that they were not in command positions, or very high up in the command hierarchy, except the Vulcan whom the she knew to be the second in command of the powerful vessel.

‘What is happening?’ she asked T’Pol, completely ignoring Archer, which was fine by him because he was looking at the very edge of the centre of the black hole where the barest glimmer of some type of vessel could be seen. Or he could be imagining things, he wasn’t sure.

‘There are unusual energy signatures emanating from the black hole, apparently there is a vessel of some kind that was not destroyed by the gravimetric forces,’ she didn’t sound like she believed it and they could all sense that but she did scan for the vessel all the same, she could see that something was there.

‘We need to leave now,’ said the woman, slightly agitated and trying not to show it.

‘Why should we do that?’ asked Archer turning to face her, he could tell that she was hiding something and trying to mask her agitation, he often did it himself but he was better at it.

‘That vessel is what damaged our generator, it is a non-corporeal life-form that wishes to absorb other life-forms to promulgate its species,’ the woman answered – to T’Pol. ‘We have lost several vessels in our exploration of this sector. But we need to complete our scans and all data is lost when the creature approaches our vessels, that’s why we have to keep coming back.’

‘T’Pol?’ asked Archer, looking for her support or denial and wondering which he was likely to get, her answer surprised him.

‘The Driuyte?’ asked T’Pol knowledgeably.

‘You know of them?’ asked the Yreni woman looking shocked, her features contorted into a weird shape when she was surprised by something, Archer had seen her face do that twisting before when Trip headed off to look at that generator.

‘Captain, we should leave,’ said T’Pol. ‘The Vulcans have tried to make contact with them. They have destroyed three Vulcan cruisers, that was also in the vicinity of a large black hole.’

‘Malcolm suggested that this black hole might not be…natural,’ Archer said to her.

T’Pol looked at them and then back at her scanners.

‘Travis, get us out of here.’

‘We can’t go anywhere sir,’ replied Mayweather dejectedly. ‘Our engines are still off-line. I’ve just about got the thrusters.’

Before Archer could say anything else the strange ship that was inside the black hole emerged at speeds Archer would have thought impossible and headed straight for them, Travis used the thrusters without even being asked to try and put Enterprise in a different position but it was too late. That type of manoeuvre would have knocked them off the gravimetric wave anyway. The Driuyte vessel barely slowed as it approached the ship and then there was a blinding blue-white light that hurt everyone’s eyes as the light got close.

‘We were scanned Captain,’ said T’Pol. ‘Lieutenant Reed is correct. This black hole is not a natural phenomenon. It appears to have been artificially generated. There was no star system here before, nor was there a supernova.’

‘I gathered that,’ replied Archer blandly. ‘Where is that non-corporeal ship?’

‘It’s gone,’ answered the woman with a superior tone. ‘They have infiltrated your vessel.’

‘Hoshi, ship-wide communication,’ said Archer giving the woman a scathing look that she recoiled from, her face contorting again.

‘Channel open sir,’ she replied without batting an eyelid.

‘This is Captain Archer of the Starship Enterprise to whomever just infiltrated this vessel. If you can access our databases may I advise you to access our linguistic database in order to communicate with us.’

Seconds later: ‘You have trespassed in our territory,’ was the response, the vocalisation was almost harmonic, and it sounded like a song. Hoshi was already fiddling with the universal translator.

‘Captain, this is the first time that anyone has communicated with them properly. They travel the galaxy absorbing vessels and people, the last ship we lost to them was nearly two hundred years ago,’ said T’Pol without looking up from her viewer.

‘Hoshi, is the channel still open?’

She nodded without taking her eyes of her instrument panel. She knew Archer would be looking in her direction.

‘I know that you belong to the species Driuyte. We did not know that you had a claim to this phenomenon. You have infiltrated our vessel and we consider this an act of aggression. However, if you leave this vessel I will overlook your transgression and we will try to leave.’

‘Your engines are damaged and you are harbouring criminals. These aliens have violated our territory several times and destroyed a number of our vessels. Release them to us and you will be allowed to leave without injury.’

 

‘Captain,’ said Trip from the launch bay. ‘Our engines just came on line.’

‘Don’t worry Trip, how is the gravimetric generator coming and what exactly does it do?’ Archer asked over the comm.

‘Not good sir, I’ve never seen a configuration like this before. There seems to be some kind of energy spike in the generator’s reaction chamber, as far as I can tell. I can’t pin it down. As near as I can tell the generator creates an artificial gravimetric wave that the Yreni use to ride toward the event horizon while at the same time it neutralises the effect that the other waves have on the vessel. It’s very complex but it obviously seems to work.’

Archer looked to the woman and then to T’Pol. ‘Commander, see if you can help Commander Tucker. This could be important.’

She nodded curtly and headed for the turbolift swiftly followed by the Yreni woman. That woman did not like being around Archer and he felt the same way. They were even worse than the Vulcans when it came to acting superior. Archer slumped in his chair and decided to try and make good with the Driuyte.

‘We are helping them repair their gravimetric generator and then we will all leave,’ he said after getting the affirmative nod from Hoshi that the channel was open again.

‘You cannot allow them to leave. This is the seventy-third time they have violated our territory and we cannot allow it to continue, they are damaging our species.’

‘What do you mean damaging?’ asked Archer having no clue as to what the creature or entity was going on about. A knot was beginning to develop in his stomach, which only meant bad news. And he thought that he knew what the alien’s answer was going to be.

‘Our life force is similar to what you use in your engines. They discovered this and have been using our population to decrease their own energy consumption.’

‘I was unaware of this. Please allow me to speak with them.’

‘As you wish. We will be listening.’

Archer looked around the bridge and noticed his senior officers looking at him. ‘Lieutenant Reed, the bridge is yours,’ with that he strolled to the turbolift and left the control centre of the ship.

‘Those aliens are in for it now,’ said Reed with satisfaction.

‘He’s not going to be pleased with them,’ added Mayweather with a grin.

‘He’s gonna give them hell,’ rejoined Hoshi, ‘he doesn’t like stuff like that.’

‘None of us do Ensign,’ said Reed with a frown. ‘None of us do. I’ll have to wait until he returns to go scanning the device on the phase cannons. I need Trip’s help.’

‘Is it anything you recognise?’ Travis asked.

‘Nope, Trip doesn’t either. It emits some kind of subspace signal but as for how it got there, I have no idea.’

‘Or who put it there,’ Travis added.

‘Just what I needed, another security breach,’ Reed said with a grimace.

 

Chapter Three

 

Archer had worked out some of his anger by the time he reached the shuttle bay but his righteous indignation was in full swing. He was only going to let that dissipate in exactly the right way, these matriarchal Yreni aliens had just messed with the wrong man. He disliked bullies and that’s what they were. He strolled into the launch bay and T’Pol looked away as soon as she looked at him. She knew what was coming and backed away, she would hear everything but not be the brunt of anything, not this time, she had learnt from previous encounters with an angry Captain.

He walked right up to the woman and spoke in a shout. ‘You have kidnapped one of these creatures and are using it for your engines!’ it was a statement and he wanted her to argue, she generously obliged him and T’Pol raised an eyebrow.

‘They have killed our captain,’ said the woman angrily, ‘and we are holding them in the generator reaction chamber as prisoners.’

‘Who are you to play judge, I assume that your captain was also in the habit of kidnapping and killing the Driuyte and therefore you decided to hold them hostage for trying to get their own back. Where we come from that is considered to be a very…illogical…method of justice and serves only to exacerbate the situation.’

‘This is nothing to do with you male, this is our problem.’

‘Wrong. They are in my ship and they have more of a right to be here than you do right now. My crew and my ship are in danger because of you and that makes it my problem. Now you are going to release them and not kidnap them again, right?’

‘You can’t do this.’

‘Watch me.’ Rapping on the hull of the ship he poked his head inside. ‘Trip?’

‘Captain?’ he asked, he had heard every word.

‘Is there shielding protecting the generator chamber?’ asked Archer

‘Yes sir.’

‘Deactivate the shielding.’

‘Captain, we don’t know what could happen, the aliens could attack us, I’ll have to deactivate the entire power grid on the ship, the shielding will only go off line when that happens.’

‘They won’t attack, just do it and don’t argue.’

‘Aye sir,’ said the engineer somewhat hastily, he didn’t like Archer in this mood and knew what would happen if he pushed his luck so he did as he was asked.

‘Driuyte, we are releasing your companion.’

‘We can see,’ was all the response he got from the harmonic voice.

Archer heard the familiar whine as power systems shut down. The gravimetric generator was deactivated as the power systems went off line and Tucker shut down everything on the Yreni vessel. The shielding to the generator went off-line and the woman, Archer, Trip and T’Pol all saw three blue lights float free of the chamber. It hovered for a few seconds and two other blue shapes entered the room. The five forms joined together and left the launch bay. Trip just shook his head and walked from the launch bay to engineering to check on the engines that were miraculously on line. Archer looked at the woman and she could not help but hold his stern gaze, T’Pol was making notes from her instruments when the Driuyte voice spoke.

‘You have kept your end of the deal Captain Archer of the Starship Enterprise and so we shall keep ours. This spatial phenomenon and others like it are gateways between our universe and yours. We have kept open these gateways to explore your universe but it would seem that most species here are too primitive to accept us. You have given us reason to believe that one day we will be welcome here. Until then Captain, thank you again for your assistance. Starfleet will be remembered, you have made friends here today.’

The single large blue light floated away from the Enterprise and became a vague vessel-shape again. The vessel headed into the black hole and it appeared to collapse in on itself to the amazement of the entire crew, even T’Pol raised an eyebrow in appreciation for the alien race that could control the power of a black hole. The energy waves generated by the black hole also diminished and the gravimetric pull completely dissipated.

Archer stood on the bridge and watched, before long the Enterprise appeared to be in an unremarkable area of space surrounded by a handful of stars. He turned to face another problem, the Yreni woman who seemed to have undergone a change. She looked him directly in the eye.

‘Captain, I’m sorry that we put your ship and crew at risk.’

‘So you should be,’ he had no intention of letting up. ‘I’m taking you back to your homeworld for them to deal with you.’

‘Several other starship captains have also used this practice,’ she said trying to transfer the blame and get him to change his mind, Trip would have told her that it was like talking to a brick wall.

‘Then you can give their names as well,’ said Archer. ‘You will have a security detail on you at all times until we reach your homeworld.’

‘Got the coordinates from their vessel Captain,’ said Mayweather at the helm. ‘Trip powered it back up.’

‘Warp four Travis,’ said Archer gesticulating to the woman that should get herself off his bridge.

She obliged and for that Archer was glad.

‘How long?’ he asked.

‘Two days at warp four,’ Travis answered.

‘I hope it’s not a long four days.’

‘Captain,’ Reed said, ‘with your permission I’d like Commander Tucker’s help with those devices attached to the phase cannons.’

‘Go ahead,’ Archer replied as he sat back in his chair.

*          *          *

Trip and Reed were both crouched down by the port phase cannon and Trip was scanning it.

‘I thought it might be those aliens that tried to blow us up a couple of years ago, but the power signature doesn’t match,’ Trip said.

‘So some other alien race put it here?’ Reed asked. ‘Some chief of tactical operations I am. I can’t even stop aliens getting into the ship. Whoever these are, the Suliban, at least two non-corporeal life-forms.’

‘Don’t be so hard on yourself. I’m sure that you’re doing your best.’

‘I’m going to rig the internal sensors to detect any abrupt changes in environmental systems and trigger an alarm on the bridge.’

‘If it doesn’t effect the environmental systems?’ Trip asked as he continued scanning.

‘I’ll think of something.’

‘I’m sure of that. Give me a hand here will you, I want you to scan as I get closer.’

‘Are you sure that’s safe?’

‘No, that’s why you’re here.’

‘Thanks.’

The hum started again and Reed noticed the power fluctuations in the alien device.

‘Careful.’

‘I am.’

‘I know, I’ll rig the all sensors to detect energy changes on or in the hull, triggering an “intruder alert” alarm ship-wide,’ Reed said as Tucker touched the device.

He disappeared and so did the device.

‘Reed to Captain. Trip just vanished, the device too.’

‘What happened?’

‘He touched it, the scanner showed an energy spike and he vanished.’

‘A transporter,’ T’Pol replied from the bridge.

‘Where did he go?’ Reed and Archer asked simultaneously.

‘I don’t know,’ she answered.

‘All stop,’ Archer ordered. ‘All sensors, I want to know if there are any ships in the area, and match their warp signature to the energy signature from that device.’

‘It might not be possible to do that,’ T’Pol advised.

Archer looked at her darkly.

‘No ships,’ T’Pol added.

‘Scan for Trip’s bio-signs,’ Archer said suddenly. ‘We might get lucky.’

‘Nothing,’ T’Pol replied a moment later.

‘Captain, there’s a ship dropping out of warp,’ Travis said,

‘Great, more trouble.’

‘They might not be hostile,’ T’Pol told him.

A massive vessel appeared in front of them. It matched nothing in the Vulcan database and Archer feared the worst for his friend.

 

 

 

After two days at warp four the Enterprise slowed to impulse as it entered the system that the Yreni species called home. Yren Prime was an Earth-like world and Archer felt a pang of homesickness but it passed quickly as he soon realised that space was his true home, it always had been and it always would be. He had always wanted to be in space and now that his father’s engine was flying his ship he never wanted to leave, didn’t want anything to take him off the bridge of the fastest, most powerful starship the people of Earth had to offer. The power of Starfleet was in his hands and he wasn’t going to disappoint them. He had learned a lot over the last three years. How to get on with Vulcans, and numerous others species; diplomacy was usually the best option, as it had been with the Xindi; but most of all he had learned that he couldn’t help everyone. But he was going to give it a damn good try.

‘Put us in orbit Travis. Hoshi, contact their government.’

‘Aye sir,’ they replied in unison.

It took a long time but they did get a reply. The government official looked surprised to be greeted from a space vessel. ‘I’m sorry Captain Archer, we have no facilities to deal with criminals. It is only a small group of our population that show these tendencies and we send them into space to fend for themselves,’ said the official offhandedly.

‘That doesn’t seem to be very nice to the rest of the interstellar community does it?’

‘What else can we do. We are a peaceful people Captain, we do not believe in punishment and we have no legal system to deal with it. We are aware that other cultures do, but we have had no problems in the past with this method.’

‘Well you do now. The reason that you have most likely not had a problem is because the Driuyte destroys the vessels or your people die out in space. I do not like the idea of criminals roaming space looking to cause trouble.’ Archer became aware of T’Pol and quickly realised what she was getting at. She still somewhat believed that humanity didn’t belong in space and in any case he also thought that if he stayed to help them he might still be here in a hundred years time, he didn’t want that kind of timetable.

‘I’m sorry Captain, I do not have an alternative to give you.’

‘In that case under interstellar law I will destroy the vessel myself as it is a hazard to other space-faring races. Lieutenant Reed, open launch bay two to release the Yreni vessel and charge the phase cannons.’

‘Aye sir.’

‘You can’t do that!’ screeched the official. His reaction didn’t seem to be the right one if there was no legal system to deal with prisoners.

‘Why not? I don’t want them in space causing trouble for innocent people and you can’t do anything about it. Unless you would like to tell me the truth?’

‘We have an energy drain on our planet and we send ships out to find new energy sources and new races with new energy sources. Who is the captain of that ship?’ asked the official seeing that his approach wasn’t working and realising that this could be bad for him and his people if he upset this uniformed man who seemed rather important and very angry.

‘The captain is dead and the acting captain is continuing on the same premise, kidnapping aliens to make their engines work better.’

‘Who would that be?’

‘Ujhi,’ supplied T’Pol.

‘Please inform her that her space licence has been revoked and she will be required to turn over her vessel, her crew and herself to the Yreni Hegemony’s Judicial Command for trial.’

‘I will do that. Do you have holding facilities?

‘We do, the second moon has a penal colony and judgement facilities. Could you take them there, we will impound her vessel as well.’

Archer finished the conversation and the screen returned to the image of the planet turning slowly beneath them. They dropped off Ujhi, her crew and ship at the penal colony and gave the Yreni some information about Starfleet that was requested. The Yreni wanted to know what Starfleet was. T’Pol had no objections so Archer provided them with some basic information. In return he received a large amount of provisions that made Chef rather happy. After several hours they resumed their course into the unknown and Archer decided on having a good meal, T’Pol and Trip joined him.

‘It would seem,’ said T’Pol, ‘that Humanity is not so primitive after all. Maybe there is hope for you yet.’

Archer smiled, ‘I did not expect two successful first contacts but that is what we have accomplished today. Admiral Forrest will probably be surprised and I’m sure he’ll inform Ambassador Soval that the Driuyte will not be bothering them anymore.’

‘That will be…a shame,’ said T’Pol, ‘we could have learned a lot from them.’

‘Haven’t you considered,’ said Trip between mouthfuls, ‘that maybe they thought that Vulcans were primitive too?’

‘Lieutenant Reed to Commander Tucker.’

‘Reed here.’

‘Lieutenant, I’ve found out what that device is on the phase cannons,’ Trip said.

‘What is it?’

‘I checked the power signature and it matches the aliens who attacked us on your birthday two years ago.’

‘Trip, is it connected with all our systems?’ Archer asked.

‘Yes sir.’

‘So they all about the Driuyte?’

‘That’s a good bet sir.’

Archer refrained from uttering a string of expletives but he took it upon himself to deal with the situation. ‘All senior officers to the situation room, immediately.’

They were all standing around the table and Archer was waiting for Hoshi to finish something. ‘Done.’

‘Right. Travis, set a course for the nearest black hole but stay out of its gravitational pull. Hoshi, see if the Columbia is within range and contact the nearest Vulcan ship to see if they can help.’

‘Sir?’ asked Reed.

‘I’m going to disable the ship this time, and then extract a promise that they will leave us alone. I want to know how and when they sneaked aboard to place those devices.’

‘Aye sir,’ Reed said.

‘Dismissed.’

The senior officers scattered and Archer returned to his chair. Mayweather went into the Vulcan database and found the nearest black hole to their position, then set a course for it. He looked back at Archer who nodded. Mayweather engaged at maximum warp. The Driuyte might well be in severe danger and Archer was the only one who could save them.