Chapter 4 - Alliances Of Opportunity

Nine hours later, as his ship sailed toward the Ninaz system to answer a distress call from the U.S.S. Sirona, Jack McCall sat in a small room keeping a promise he had made more than a day before.

"Do you think your wife blames you for the death of Robin Nelson?" Akala Wilmarza asked seated across from Jack.

"No. We've talked about that," he replied.

"Wasn't Robin your wife's best friend? They knew each other from the Academy, right?" Akala asked as she checked information on the PADD in her right hand.

"Yes, but I know Mei doesn't blame me for Robin."

"But you do blame yourself for her death don't you?" the Chamberlain's Chief Counselor asked.

He thought back to Robin Nelson's eyes--- how they cried out even after her voice lost the breath to do so, how they'd haunted him nearly every day since she died at the brutal hands of the Glazyalans.

"If I had told the camp commander what he wanted to hear," Jack started, "Robin would be alive now. And it wouldn't have harmed anything. The war ended five days later."

"But you didn't know that at the time."

"No."

"You thought that information would cost thousands, perhaps millions of Federation lives."

"Yes."

"Then you did the right thing."

"But she died for nothing."

"I was in command of the away team when she died."

"But she was different, you loved her."

"Yes," he said in a whisper.

"Losing someone close to you and blaming yourself for it is a way of taking control of the situation," Akala said. "So you don't feel powerless."

"I could have done something," he said, though for twenty years he hadn't figured out what that could have been.

"Despite what starship captains are told, they aren't gods, Captain," she said warmly, getting him to grin.

"I know, but..." he remembered Larissa, her warm smile and how great life had been with her. He'd always thought they'd end up together.

Jack caught himself smiling.

"You must have cared a great deal for her," Akala said.

"Yeah, I did."

"We all have to be able to accept loss, Jack," she said. "The thing you have to be able to accept is people will die under your command following your orders, even people close to you."

She leaned forward in her chair. "If you can't find a way to live with that, then you can't sit in the center seat."

He looked at her intensely for several seconds. He knew that wasn't just a Counselor's good advice, but a warning about what might happen in the very near future if he couldn't work past this.

***

Eleven hours later, after trying to get some sleep and failing, Jack entered the bridge of his ship just as it was about to drop out of warp.

"Raise shields," Lak Negev ordered as his captain sat down.

Jack looked around the bridge at his officers and thought about his session with Akala. Who will I ask to give their life next? he pondered. Will it be something I see or something simple that no one imagines could be dangerous? Can I live with it?

"Coming out of warp," Negev announced.

"Begin scans of the system," Jack ordered. "Tactical?"

"Give me a second," Hank complained bringing a grin to Jack's face.

"There's a lot of electromagnetic interference about the inner planets, sir," Blackwell said. "I'm trying to clear it up."

"I've found the Sirona," Hank said as he checked his scans. "It's drifting."

"Information on this system, Mr. Blackwell?" Jack asked.

"The fourth planet, Class M, is home to a heavily industrialized humanoid civilization that according to Starfleet observations is about five years from inventing warp drive. The Sirona, an Akira class starship, was assigned a year ago to monitor their progress."

Jack stood from his seat and stepped up behind Mr. s'Felis at the Conn Station. "A little advanced for Osmand, don't you think?"

Hank smirked. "Maybe he ran out of primitive worlds to screw up."

Jack chuckled as he watched the viewscreen.

Suddenly Hank Evans Tactical station erupted in a cacophony of warnings.

"Eight Skorr cruisers decloaking near the Sirona!" Hank shouted.

"Red Alert!" Negev commanded. "Standby weapons!"

The alert klaxons sounded on every deck of the Chamberlain bringing the ship to battle ready conditions.

"Have they armed their weapons yet?" Jack asked loudly.

"It's hard to tell with all of the interference," Hank stated. "But I don't think so."

Jack turned and walked back to his command chair. "I need a definite answer, Hank."

Evans shook his head. "No. They have not armed weapons."

Jack sat down and observed the sweeping design of the Skorr vessels, built to reflect the winged shape of their builders.

Arthur Conrad turned to Jack from communications. "Sir, we are being hailed."

Jack paused a moment. "Hank, does the Sirona show evidence of having been boarded?"

"The best I can tell, no, but I don't get any power readings of any kind from the ship," Hank said.

"And there are no lifesigns either, sir," Blackwell reported.

Jack considered a number of possibilities from sensor jamming by Osmand to the crew of the Sirona having been taken captive.

"Let's see what they want, Mr. Conrad," Jack said.

Several seconds later, the image of the sixty-five year old former Academy professor filled the Chamberlain's viewscreen. He did not appear happy.

"Disarm your weapons, Captain McCall. You and I don't have time for this stupidity," Osmand shouted.

Jack forced back a chuckle. He didn't think very highly of Osmand, but he did have eight Skorr cruisers at his disposal. While they couldn't defeat the Chamberlain in battle, Jack didn't see much point in starting a fight if he didn't have to. But if the crew of the Sirona had been harmed by Osmand things would not go well. However, Jack did have his orders to consider.

"Janus Osmand, you're a wanted criminal. I have orders to use all the power at my disposal to apprehend you for trial by the United Federation of Planets for multiple violations of the Prime Directive," Jack said with the slightest of grins.

Osmand rolled his eyes. "Are you a complete fool, McCall?! Haven't you noticed what has happened here?!"

Jack's brow tightened. "You're not going to talk your way out of…"

Timothy Blackwell motioned to Jack. A second later Arthur Conrad nodded, indicating he had muted the communication channel.

"What is it?" Jack asked Blackwell.

"I get no life readings of any kind from the surface of the planet, Captain."

"More interference?"

"No. I finally filtered it out. All life on the surface has been extinguished," Blackwell said with an overwhelming sense of foreboding in his voice.

Everyone on the bridge jumped to the same conclusion Jack had--- whatever attacked the Venture, the planet Cajma, and destroyed the Hel'yra system had rained down its destruction upon the pre-warp civilization of Ninaz Four. The poor inhabitants would have had no idea where their deaths had even come from or why.

And it was the why that now burned more than ever in Jack McCall's mind.

He motioned to Conrad to reactivate the comm channel.

Osmand smiled. "I take it your science officer informed you of the condition of the planet."

"Yes," Jack replied. "What information do you have about what took place here, Osmand?"

"I'll turn over everything I have on one condition," Osmand said.

Jack let out his breath as Negev looked at him sternly. "Let's hear it."

Osmand smiled. "That I get your word as a Starfleet Officer you will in no way attempt to take me into custody while we're in this system."

All eyes on the bridge turned toward Jack. Their orders concerning Osmand left them little leeway. He was to be apprehended. But if Osmand did have information that would help them stop these attacks Jack had to accept letting Osmand go as the price.

"All right," Jack said. Several of his officers reacted with widened eyes, but he went on. "How do I know your information is worth the price I'm paying?"

Osmand thought for several seconds then glanced away as if listening to something nearby. He turned back to face forward. "The planet Hel'yra is gone, isn't it?"

"How can you know that?" Jack asked. "We just came from there."

"I have people on over three hundred worlds in the Kel-j'na Region, Captain. That information network can work for you if you agree to my terms."

Jack thought for almost a minute before answering. Osmand obviously had resources far beyond what Starfleet had in the Region. Perhaps they could give him the piece of information he needed to stop these attacks. "I agree to your terms, Osmand," Jack said. "You have my word."

The face on the viewscreen smiled at Jack. "And in case you or any of your officers considers violating our agreement… "

Hank Evans panel again blared with numerous alarms. "New contacts! Vessels decloaking!"

Jack stood to his feet. "External view!"

Osmand's face was replaced by the earlier image of ships in space being joined by more craft that faded into view. Nearly forty ships now filled the display.

Osmand's voice came over their speakers, "I think you understand the situation now, Captain. As you know, the Skorr don't look on betrayal very kindly."

"Don't worry," Jack said. "I won't be the one to violate our agreement."

Osmand appeared again on the viewscreen. "Excellent. Since the lack of trust between us requires such displays of raw power, I think it best we meet on neutral ground. I am sending you coordinates where several of my people and myself will be in half an hour. We shall be unarmed. I suggest you and your team do likewise."

He hesitated a moment. "And McCall, no counselors, empaths, or telepaths. I will be able to tell."

The display changed again showing the large number of ships between them and the planet.

Negev turned to Jack. "Captain, normally I would never contradict you, but…"

Jack smiled. "Look, everyone, I know that I'm now doing more than violating Gann's orders. I'm violating direct orders from Starfleet Command and the Federation. I won't ask you to go along with me on this if you don't feel you can, but I feel the destruction of billions of lives is far more important."

Negev remained silent.

"I'll understand if any of you decide to remain off duty for the next day or so," Jack said softly.

He watched as several of his officers looked at each other and then at him. Jack thought he noticed some uncertainty in Timothy Blackwell, but the science officer remained at his post.

Hank Evans stepped from behind his Tactical Station and walked up to Jack. "Now that that's settled," he said. "No arguments, I'm going down there with you."

"Me too, sir," said Melissa Vargas as she stepped up to Jack with a wide smile.

"You don't think you'll violate his restriction against empaths and telepaths?" Jack asked.

"I've got the telepathic abilities of a rock, sir," Vargas replied. "My father's human DNA made certain of that."

Jack hesitated and turned to Hank. "I think we'll need one other person to come along."

***

A Starfleet runabout cruised down through the atmosphere of the once thriving world of Ninaz. Where various species of flying creatures used to soar through the clouds, now only the small craft from the Chamberlain flew.

After a ten minute descent, the vessel came to a rest at the far edge of one of the planet's major cities, near a government building where a once proud scientist walked thinking he would change the lives of his people. Those thoughts were now as dead as the seemingly endless number of bodies that littered the streets of the formerly bustling city.

The door of the runabout opened and Jack McCall exited onto the pavement of a street. In the distance a number of fires burned, the smoke from them rising high into the calm sky.

Calm applied to everything on this world. The calmness of complete death.

Jack and his party didn't hear any of the sounds found where life was present. No insects, birds, or small animals could be heard. There was only the utter silence of a billion dead souls. The only disturbance in that morbid peace was from the systems of their craft shifting to standby mode.

Jack wasn't happy with having to come down in the runabout, but the electromagnetic interference made use of the transporters impossible. Blackwell had told Jack before they left that he would try to find out what was causing it and hopefully find a way to make the transporters operational.

Behind Jack, Hank Evans left their craft followed by Melissa and finally by Mei-Wan. She knew Osmand better than anyone else aboard the Chamberlain and Jack felt he needed to have her insight into the man's mind and motives. Jack also felt there was a slim chance that Mei-Wan might actually be able to get through Osmand's insanity and convince him to turn himself in. He didn't want to be left telling Starfleet he'd done nothing to bring in the Federation's most wanted criminal.

"Notice anything?" Hank asked.

Jack, Mei-Wan, and Melissa looked about.

"There are probably a million dead bodies in this city. The stench after even a day should be nauseating," Hank said.

Melissa pulled out her tricorder and scanned the area. "There are no bacteria present, sir. No microscopic life of any kind. Everything here is dead."

"Just like Cajma and Hel'yra," Mei-Wan whispered.

They all looked out at the large complex of structures directly ahead. Amongst the scattered bodies of the inhabitants of the now dead world, Jack noticed three figures using scanning devices to examine the multitude of corpses. One of those figures turned and looked their direction. It was Osmand.

Mei-Wan's former Academy professor motioned them over.

"I'm pleased to see you took my conditions seriously, Captain," he said with a wide smile.

As the group from the Chamberlain cautiously approached the others, Hank Evans opened his own scanning unit and activated it. Jack heard the faint sounds from the device and looked at it, but couldn't place the design. He decided it must have been something Hank picked up on one of his past adventures in the Kel-j'na Region.

"They're clear," Hank said as he closed his scanner. "No weapons."

"You see, I'm not the maniacal criminal the Federation seems to think their propaganda must paint me as," Osmand said. "I know how to keep an agreement."

"The jury's still out on that, sir," Jack replied.

"I understand you're not one for following orders, McCall," Osmand stated. "I hear a certain Captain Gann has been insisting you return your ship to Cajma."

"Just a little misunderstanding," Jack said.

Osmand smiled. "Perhaps you'd feel more at home if you joined me and my companions."

"Not likely," Jack chuckled.

"You think I'm only interested in building some sort of personal empire, don't you?" Osmand asked.

"All I have to judge by is what I've seen," Jack replied.

Janus Osmand shook his head. "I won't live to see it in my lifetime, but one day this Galaxy will come together in common purpose and for the common good of all humanoids."

"Non-humanoids might have a different point of view."

"They will be cared for," Osmand stated softly.

Jack looked up into the cloud filled sky. "How about we leave the future to those who'll live it and you and I get to the issue at hand," he said. "I didn't come down here for some recruitment speech."

"Down to business then," Osmand said. "The starship Sirona was drifting in space when we arrived twelve hours ago. No one on board was left alive. One of our ships was found in the same condition."

"Have your scans revealed anything beside the lack of life?"

"Other than some odd subspace field signatures, no," Osmand replied. "It appears whatever did this causes all biological processes to cease upon contact."

"We'll want detailed reports of the scans you've taken," Jack said as he watched the others present with Osmand go about taking readings from dead animals and plants.

"Of course," Osmand stated flatly. "We have a common foe here, Captain. I do hope the transfer of information goes both ways."

Jack considered his options and didn't want to take the chance that Osmand and his eclectic bunch of followers might come up with something Starfleet didn't catch. He turned to Melissa.

"Ms. Vargas, once we return to the ship, I'd like you to prepare the data we've collected on these attacks and send it to Mr. Osmand," Jack said.

"Excellent," Osmand said as he smiled wide. "Now I can tell you the rest."

Jack frowned. "There's more?"

"We found a survivor."

"Is he still alive?" Jack asked quickly.

"Yes," Osmand said. "At the time of the attack he was within that large structure behind us working on a warp field generator. Somehow he lived, but has no information about who or what did this."

"I'd like a chance to speak to him," Jack said.

"Wouldn't that violate the Prime Directive, Captain?" Osmand asked with a snide look on his face.

Hank leaned toward him. "He's right, Jack."

"I wouldn't want you to get into any more trouble on my account than you already have, McCall," Osmand stated.

Because of the oppressive silence of the world they stood on, everyone was startled when two eight feet tall Skorr warriors exited the nearby building escorting a five foot one human looking young female wearing a dark gray-green bodysuit.

Hank Evans quickly pulled out the device he had used earlier to search for weapons. "Hold it right there," he demanded.

The two Skorr unfurled their broad wings and brought their long pointed talons to bear. The mop-headed girl, who Jack decided couldn't have been any more than sixteen years old, stared directly at him with wide eyes.

Not yet! the young girl told herself as she regained her composure. This was the first time she had been so close to her goal, the first time they had been face to face. It's not the right time or place! I have to remain patient or I'll destroy everything!

Osmand stepped between the two groups holding his hands up. "No!"

The Skorr looked at him, but remained alert. "They have a weapon!" One of the warriors shouted.

"It is only a device to scan for weapons," Osmand said as he turned to calm the tall creatures. "They have not betrayed us."

"They're clean too," Hank said as he let the worried breath out of his lungs.

The Skorr opened their wings and took flight. Everyone watched as the two warriors soared high into the air and flew off deeper into the city.

"Where are they going?" Hank asked.

"To search for more survivors," Osmand said. "With the disruption of this planet's magnetic field, we don't want to rely solely on our sensors."

Jack returned his gaze to the girl who had approached. Osmand stepped next to her and smiled.

"Have you had any luck decoding the message from the Ancient Progenitors you found on Hel'yra, Mei-Wan?" Osmand asked.

"Not much of it," Mei-Wan said. "Susan Tanega from the Ravenscroft was getting somewhere with it until their ship was attacked."

"We intercepted those translations," the girl said as she brushed her unruly hair out of her eyes with the wave of a hand. "They weren't getting very far."

"You decoded their transmissions back to Starfleet?" Mei-Wan asked.

"That idiot Hoffman made it easy. He used only a single level of encryption."

Osmand pointed to the girl. "On numerous occasions, Mei-Wan, I've told you that you were one of my best students," he said. "Meet my best student, Ahwi Dasari."

The girl crossed her arms across her chest and looked smugly at Mei-Wan.

"You get a thrill comparing your students Osmand, that's your problem," Hank said. "But unless it has something to do with why we're here standing on one of the biggest mass graves I've ever seen, then perhaps we can leave it to another time."

"That message has everything to do with what has happened here, Mr. Evans," Osmand said. He looked directly at Mei-Wan. "Would you like to see Ahwi's translation?"

"This girl translated a message that the best archaeologists and linguists in the Galaxy couldn't break?" Melissa Vargas asked with a condescending smile.

Osmand grinned. "Well, Mei?" He handed her a PADD.

Mei-Wan quickly looked through the material on the device's display and then turned to the young woman.

"You did this?"

"If you didn't spend all your time maintaining that image as 'the greatest Archaeologist in the Federation' you might actually get some work done," Ahwi nearly spat.

Mei-Wan read more of the text on the PADD and quickly lost herself in the sheer volume of it.

"How about giving the rest of us the bullet points," Hank said with a sour look on his face.

Mei-Wan looked at Osmand. "Oh, my god," whispered past her lips.

"What is it, Mei?" asked Jack.

Ahwi's brow raised. "The end of the message goes something like, 'We will stop the transfigured enemy of all life both present and future here on this world. We shall end the desolation they wish to bring and secure for all time the existence of our progeny. If Hel'yra's prison is unsealed, then all will again be at risk from the Ladeo Jutamfa; the enemy. Forgive us for not finishing our work. We hope our sacrifice will be enough.'"

Ahwi paused and closed her eyes before resuming. "Fada gego-ru go zere fada ludi tefwu remece egu zahu loleo jugu ufeida cemefwomekwo lilo wudhu."

She turned to Jack and stared at him with an odd look as if she were remembering something she had heard hundreds of times. "Do nothing to disturb this place or the great mechanism which holds our adversaries captive."

Mei-Wan's eyes widened as she remembered the holographic recording she had listened to over and over again. She had grown used to hearing those unknown words spoken by the Ancient Progenitor from billions of years ago, but now hearing them given voice by this girl, Mei-Wan felt uneasy. She looked at the troubled child speaking in that alien tongue--- and troubled she must be, Mei-Wan concluded, for she stood at Osmand's side.

Poor Janus Osmand, Mei-Wan thought. What has brought you to this madness of leading Skorr warriors across the Galaxy and twisting the mind of a child?

"Utuimiula cemefwo," Ahwi said softly finishing her recitation. "Remember us."

The others looked at her waiting for more. Instead she took a breath and raised her voice.

"The Ancient Progenitors struggled against them for more than a thousand years before finally trapping them on Hel'yra," Ahwi declared. "The Ladeo Jutamfa are the ones who destroyed that system and killed everything on this world. They were the cause of the subspace wave you encountered."

"And now we must stop them," Osmand stated.

Mei-Wan looked at him. "Janus, you know the Ancient Progenitors were far more advanced than us. If they were barely able to defeat these beings, then how can we hope to?"

"Technology isn't the issue, Mei," he said with a warmth Jack hadn't seen before. "We are their children. We have the same strength of heart and spirit as they did. We can rise to this challenge. We must."

Hank Evans shook his head. "A whole hell of a lot of good that'll do us if these, whatever they are, can wipe out entire worlds."

"They were the enemy of the Ancient Progenitors and now they are our enemy," Osmand said with a deep look of certainty across his face. "The duty to stop them falls to us--- all of us who descend from the Progenitors."

Hank rolled his eyes and looked at his commanding officer with a grin. Jack McCall knew what Hank was thinking, This guy's a lunatic. Jack was in full agreement, but they needed the information Osmand had access to.

"I suggest we go back to our ships and share what we have and see if we can get some handle on the situation," Jack said with as much conviction as he could muster--- which was smaller than he wished. He just wanted to get off the dead world he now stood on and as far away as possible from Janus Osmand.

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