Star Trek ANDROMEDA - Chapter 10: The Struggle



Joanna? Hello, Pierre! Uhm… he stammered. I wasn't sure how you'd prefer me to contact you now? he asked softly, almost afraid of how she would react. Why, whatever is convenient, Joanna laughed. What is it? She sounded so happy to hear him in her thoughts, it grieved his heart to disappoint her. Well, the captain ordered me to supervise your computer training for this semester... I see... What does it involve? she asked after a pause. I will be designing some exercises for you in the holodeck and then you will work two Gamma and Delta shifts on the bridge. Sounds like fun, Joanna acknowledged rather flatly. But you'll need a lot of preliminary reading, first. How would you like the material arranged? Shall I prepare separate padds for each topic or would you rather search the system on your own? Oh, she brightened up a little. I remember during my first days here you taught me so much just by chatting with me... he didn't reply immediately.* Pierre?* she called out. Ah, yes. Well, he pulled himself together. Higher math is not easily taught by chatting... I see, she said again. Well, I guess the padds will be fine, then, she finished in a cool voice. Alright. Here's the first portion, Pierre materialized them on her table. You should be done with it by the end of the week. Contact me when you're ready for more, please. Aye, Sir. Her voice sounded really cold. ** "It's not that I really don't believe I will manage," Timothy Rex sighed, trying to explain his doubts as best he could. His new assignment as the Explorer's first officer caught him a little off guard. "I just don't have Kowalsky's..." "Arrogance?" the counselor offered, innocently. "No, it's not what I..." Tim smiled, realizing the joke. "Well, he does have some finer qualities, too," he finished. "No one is saying he doesn't," replied Aleyah gently. "Other than that, he could be very competent and hard working. Not unlike you, Tim." Freshly brewed Commander Timothy Rex looked around the counselor's office. He had always liked the subdued design of the room. The walls and floor in gray and warm beige, two soft armchairs situated comfortably in the corner of the room under a huge plant. It gave one a sense of seclusion, distance from all the everyday problems. "You're probably right, Counselor," he said indecisively. "It's just that..." "Tim," Aleyah interrupted him. You have been serving with Anthony for how long exactly?" "Uhm... eight years? Yeah, two years on the Eagle, when he was the first officer." "Right," nodded the counselor. "And do you remember what I told you when he had you assigned to the Explorer as chief engineer?" Timothy smiled. He remembered perfectly. "That I would manage much better if I stopped worrying and got to work..." "Well, was it a bad advice?" "No. No it wasn't. But this is different..." "How? Tim, as a chief engineer, do you actually run the ship?" "Well..." He looked away. "No, I mean, physically. Do you push the engines manually or something?" "No, of course not." "Then what does your work consist of?" "In the broadest words..." he thought for a minute. "I'd say I just oversee them. Make sure every device is working smoothly?" "That's right. And, in that respect, the job of the first officer, or even the captain, is not much different. They don't run the ship, either. They just oversee it. Make sure the crew is working smoothly." "Well, yeah," Tim agreed. "If you put it that way... but people are not machines, it's very different." "Not by much, really." * Commander Liana Rex had every reason to be proud. She was now not only the chief science officer aboard the USS Explorer, but also its first officer's wife. Her Bajoran husband, Timothy Rex, was promoted to full commander after the recent, infamous incident with Jerry Kowalsky. Presently Lieutenant Kowalsky, posted in Liana's division. She honestly loathed him, like just about everyone else. Kowalsky's behavior was a real shock to all these people originating from various races and cultures. As Starfleet officers, they had all been taught to respect and admire all life and sentience. To intentionally hurt, torture even, a sentient being was far beyond their comprehension. These same values, however, prevented Commander Rex from treating Lieutenant Kowalsky with any less respect than she would show to any of her subordinates. On a personal level, it cost her a lot but the only person who may have had any idea about that was her husband. And only because they shared their life together, not because he was now her superior. The Explorer was continuing its mission to explore the Andromeda. While cruising at transwarp, still at the outskirts of the galaxy, the ship's sensors picked up enormous amounts of invaluable data. All this information was primarily filtered by Pierre IV, the ship's TCS, and stored for further study. Just when studying such preliminary data. Something caught Liana's attentions. She asked Pierre to bring up the sensor display of a particular star system they had passed on their way a few days ago. Yes, that was definitely something worth investigating. "Rex to Anthony. Captain, do you have a minute?" "I understand you expect to find something really unique?" the captain asked when she reported to his ready room. Archeology was not one of passions. While he certainly appreciated the opportunity to explore 3000 years old ruins on a planet in another galaxy, he still thought that the scans taken from standard orbit would have been sufficient. After all, they were only the first line of Starfleet exploration in this part of the universe. They could not be expected to devote a lot of time to any one discovery. Besides, their main goal was to seek out new civilizations. Literally. Establishing the first contact with as many races as possible was their unquestionable priority. After all, if they failed to engage in friendly relationships with the main powers here, any further exploration would be at risk. "Of course it's unique, Sir!" Liana didn't even try to hide her excitement. "If you could take a look at these bio scans, you'll notice their striking resemblance to primitive humanoid life forms." "What?" Anthony looked up from the padd she had just handed him with his eyes wide open. "Are you telling me you have found traces of humanoid life forms dating back to 3000 years ago here in Andromeda?" "That's right, Captain," Liana beamed at him as if the very existence of such traces was her own, personal achievement. "In that case... Pierre, alter the course back to the system..." he looked at the padd. "M-14 A/12. Transwarp 9." "Aye, Sir." * "Hello, Pierre," Yoko beamed at him when she entered the room. "Hi there!" Pierre jumped up eagerly to greet her. He crossed the room in two long strides and bent down to kiss her but she evaded him with a giggle and walked up to her armchair. "How was your day?" she asked casually. "Oh, thanks," she added when Pierre materialized a cup of hot raktajino for her. "That's just what I need." Pierre reclined on the sofa, propping his elbows on the armchair and caressed her hand. "Usual," he smiled, answering her question. "But you know all about it." Yoko laughed at that. He was right, they had spent most of the day in constant telepathic contact since her duty was on the bridge. He took her hand and began sensually kissing the inside of her palm; slow, delicate kisses... "Pierre," she shivered. "Mhm...?" "Don't..." "Why?" he asked hurtfully. "Why do you keep me at a distance all the time?" Yoko withdrew her hand and reached for the cup of her raktajino. "I'm not keeping you at a distance," she said. "Yes. Yes you are. Why, Yoko? Tell me. I won't know unless you tell me," he pleaded. He had such an earnest expression, his eyebrows raised high, his white eyes opened wide, like a small boy begging for a candy. She couldn't help but smile at him. "You can always read my mind..." "You know I can't and I won't. I need you to tell me. Why?" he paused. "Is it because I'm artificial?" "No, of course not! Don't be silly!" Yoko almost spilled her coffee. How can you even say that?! "Then what's wrong?" Pierre insisted, still leaning so close to her that she could see every strand of hair on his head. "Nothing," she shook her head, avoiding his eyes. "But we agreed to wait a little, didn't we?" "It was two weeks ago!" Yoko put her cup away and braced herself to look at him. "Do you think that's enough?" she asked slowly. "So, you want to wait longer?" Pierre moved away, sitting up stiffly on the sofa. "Fine," he nodded at her. "I'm not getting any younger but, come to think of it, I'm not getting particularly old, either. I can wait." He always knew how to make her laugh. "Look, Pierre," she stuttered finally. "I just think we need more time. You need more time," she added, more seriously. He gave her a long look. "Here we go again." "I'm sorry," she retreated. "But you said you turned Joanna down because you didn't want to be hurt anymore. I guess I don't want to be hurt, either..." "Yoko!" he leaned closer again. "I would never hurt you!" "But you may hurt yourself," she shook her head. "Why don't you trust me?" "I trust you. I just know you. And I know how complicated such emotions can be. You know, I saw Jerry today?" "You did?" Pierre tensed at the sound of this name. "We passed each other in the corridor. He said 'Hello, Lieutenant' and..." "And?" "Well, it hurt." "I know what you mean," he nodded sympathetically. "The point is, I wouldn't even consider dating him now, that I know what kind of person he really is," she continued as if she hadn't heard him. "But it still hurt." "Yeah, I know," replied Pierre softly. "I talked to Joanna today." "Oh?" Now Yoko looked up at him. "The captain assigned me to supervise her computer training." "I see. And I don't suppose you're looking forward to it?" "Nope," he said simply. "Well, why didn't you ask the captain to get someone else, then?" "Because I promised him that I'll never allow my personal problems interfere with my duties again. We've had enough of this already," Pierre explained in a sad voice. "But it wasn't your fault!" "Nevertheless," he sighed, laying his head on her lap. They remained like that for a long while. Yoko forgot her raktajino; she ran her fingers through his hair in silence. * The away team materialized at some distance from the ancient ruins. From the landing site, they were only able to see protruding shapes, like single walls, still pointing high up the skies. The terrain was rocky. The air was extremely dry and the temperature barely classified for an M-class planet. Probably only the Vulcans would feel comfortable under this scorching sun. There were, however, no Vulcans currently on the away team. It consisted of the first officer, Tim Rex, his wife Liana, Pierre and Arak. Per the captain's decision, Joanna Kruk became the fifth member of the team. As a first year Starfleet Academy cadet, she needed the experience and, as an acting nurse, she was there to provide medical care. "Alright people," said Commander Rex. "We will pair up. I'll go with Liana from the West. Pierre and Joanna will go North-East and Arak, you'll go straight North, to the ruins. Think you can fend for yourself?" he winked. The Jem'Hadar only barred his teeth in a wide smile. "Scan for biological tissue," Timothy reminded them. "And immediately report any findings. We will meet in about 40 minutes here." He pointed at the map they had all displayed on their scanning devices. "Everyone has their water supply?" Except for Pierre, they all nodded. He didn't carry a flask since he needed no water. He was also the only one still dressed in uniform. The rest of the officers were wrapped in light, hooded cloaks for protection against the sun. "Let's go," the first officer finished and they moved on. Pierre waited for Joanna who was still calibrating her scanning device and they set off, too. Before they reached the first stones, however, Arak was already far in the lead. Joanna moved on in silence, concentrated on her scans. After a moment of hesitation, Pierre decided it was better that way. And this point, he wouldn't probably know what to say to her. They went from one rock to another, recording all the readings but found nothing so far. It wasn't surprising, since Pierre already estimated that the actual remnants they had picked up from the orbit were probably located on the other side of the ancient settlement. Still, they wanted to carefully chart the surroundings. Joanna tripped. Pierre was too far away to help her but he noticed. "Would you like to take a rest?" he waved at her. "I'm okay," she shouted back and moved on. Pierre shrugged. Suddenly, he heard a shot and saw a blast of energy in front of them. And another. "Get down!" he yelled but it was too late. Without thinking, Pierre darted towards Joanna. She had been hit. He only managed to catch her when she started falling. Pierre supported her with one arm and half turned to where the shot had come from. He fired furiously, setting his phaser higher with each bolt, until he vaporized every rock in the vicinity. After a few seconds, he realized that Joanna wasn't moving. He lowered her to the ground. She was unconscious and his uniform was already soaking with her blood. "Oh, no!" he thought in despair, working furiously to open her cloak and inspect the wound. She had been struck in the chest and it looked like a deep plasma burn. The shot must have missed her heart but he wasn't sure about the lungs. He fumbled for the med kit she had been carrying but it was burnt. It must have shielded Joanna from the first shot. Emergency transport! he thought but nothing happened. He tried again. Still nothing. No computer he could connect to. He tapped at his commbadge. "Pierre to Commander Rex!" "Lieutenant, do you read me?" "Arak, please respond!" Nothing still. He didn't have time to think about that. He needed to help Joanna. They were still about three hundred meters from the meeting point in the ruins. He scooped her up gently and carried her. No matter how delicate he was trying to be, she moaned with his every move. "Shh..." he tried to calm her down. "You'll be alright. Don't worry, everything will be fine," he repeated, running through the stone field as fast as he could. He stopped at the exact coordinates. There was nobody there. "Commander! Tim! Arak!" he shouted. No one answered him. Joanna got restless in his arms so he turned back and laid her down under a huge rock. Not much shadow but it was the best he could find. She regained consciousness and looked at him with pain. "What..." she tried to say but only winced. "That's alright,' whispered Pierre, kneeling down next to her. "You've been shot but it's not all that bad. We'll get you up and running in no time," he lied, wanting to believe it with all his heart. "Hurts," Joanna managed to complain. "I know," he whispered sympathetically, raking the sand to form a pillow under her head. "Lay still." "Water," Joanna moaned again. "I have no water," he replied helplessly. Joanna must have lost her flask somewhere along the way. "Wait here, I'll go find some..." "No!" she protested feebly. "Don't leave me..." She wanted to say something else but she only coughed and the wound started bleeding terribly. Joanna turned pale and closed her eyes. "Sunshine!" exclaimed Pierre but she couldn't hear him. He tore his jacket off and folded it to make a dressing. He pressed it to her wound and she moaned again. "Help!" Pierre shouted. "We need some help! Anybody?!" * "Raise shields! Red alert!" Captain Anthony took a quick look around the bridge. He was surprised to see Lieutenant Kowalsky at the science station but he realized that, with Liana on the surface, he was the senior officer. "Status!" he demanded, wasting no time. "We've been hit by a highly phased polaron beam. The shields are failing," reported Tanaki immediately. "On screen." The ship they saw was sleek and elegant, half the size of the Explorer. "Can't we compensate?" "Negative," Kowalsky shook his head, working as fast as he could. "This is cutting through our shields like..." he stumbled when the ship shook hard under another volley. "Shields down to thirty per cent!" Yoko's voice was calm but alert. "Hail them!" "No response." "Evasive maneuvers. Helm, get us out of here!" "I can't! We are being held by some kind of a tractor beam, we can't break away!" "Sir, they've penetrated the saucer section!' "Target their emitters, fire phasers." "No damage." "Launch torpedoes." "Sir, they are moving away..." The alien ship turned around gracefully and slowly veered away. "Captain," Yoko reported. One crew member is missing. They beamed her off the ship. It's Vort..." "Beam the away team up immediately and follow that ship. Keep hailing them." "Sir, we can't beam the away team. There is some kind of dampening field around the whole continent now. I can't even tell if they're still there..." This time Yoko's voice trembled a little. "They may have taken them, too," offered Kowalsky. "Follow the ship. We'll be back to check on them later," the captain decided. "I want continuous scans and full damage report in half an hour. I'll be in my ready room." * The fluidic space of her homeworld was much more comfortable but Vort found the atmosphere around her quite satisfying. She had missed the density and the colors and a lot of other qualities not easily described in Federation Standard. After all, most of the other races, simply didn't possess the necessary senses to feel all the richness of her native environment. Where am I? Vort thought, realizing this could not be the Explorer. Starfleet ships were not equipped with atmosphere controls capable of creating these conditions. You are with us, she heard in response. And who are you? We call ourselves Cronians. You have invaded our space. Why? Why did you bring me here? Vort replied with a question. Show yourselves, she demanded. From a rift in space, appeared three silver shapes. They were very slender and moved gracefully towards her. You were the only one we could talk to, one of them said, floating closer. It wasn't bigger than Vort's arm. What do you want to talk about? Vort remained motionless now. The creatures looked so fragile, she was afraid to hurt them if she created a smallest wave. We want you to leave this system. It's ours. We're not here to take it away from you, Vort started slowly. We are explorers. We seek out new lives... No! This came from another creature who had moved even closer and was now hovering over Vort's head. You will leave immediately. No exploring. Vort did not belong to the senior staff aboard the Explorer, nor had she been authorized to conduct negotiations. She was, however, a trained Starfleet officer. She knew the procedures. Under the circumstances, the captain would do his best to fulfill any promises she'd mak,e provided that they didn't endanger the ship. Will you let us go freely if we agree? she asked. Yes. Will you be willing to communicate with us again once we comply? No. Short and sweet. Not much room to wiggle. Vort remembered how easily they had cut through the Explorer's shields. There was, however, one more thing she needed to negotiate. We have our people down on the planet. I'm not sure if they were beamed back. Will you allow us to retrieve them? They are dead. *** "Commander?" Pierre turned around, startled. Ensign Arak approached them, breathing heavily. "What happened? I thought you'd be here first!" Pierre asked with relief. He didn't know how long he had been sitting there, holding Joanna in his arms. At least he had managed to stop the bleeding for now. "Where are the Rexes?" "I don't know, Sir," the Jem'Hadar shook his head. "I was attacked. These rascals are good." "Have you seen them?" Pierre got up slowly, removing his arm from under Joanna's head. She was still unconscious. He let her down gently and briskly came up to Arak. "The comm link is down," he added. "I can't reach the Explorer." "I know," Arak nodded. "I tried, too. What happened to her?" he asked, pointing at Joanna. "We were also attacked. I didn't see anybody but she was shot. She'll die if we don't take her to sickbay soon." Pierre lowered his voice as if afraid she could hear him. "Have you seen the Rexes?" he asked again. "No, but I saw these creatures that attacked us. They look like small, silver fish and I'll be damned if I know how they can shoot." "It may be some kind of automated weapon," Pierre folded his arms, thinking. "I saw nothing. It was like the shots came out of the blue sky..." "What should we do now?" "I'll stay with her. You go take a look around. We need to find the others and maybe you'll manage to spot these creatures and communicate with them? I'd like to know why they shot at us," Pierre explained his orders slowly. "Do you have any water?" he remembered. But Arak only shrugged. "I must have lost it in the shooting," he replied lightly. The Jem'Hadar may have been altered since the Dominion war but not that much. They were still the first to risk their lives and the last to be bothered about any comfort. Alright," sighed Pierre. "Don't go too far away, I need you within a hearing distance." "Aye, Sir," Arak nodded and turned away. Pierre got back to Joanna and sat at her side again. He looked at her pale face and sighed again, frustrated. Without the ship's computer, he could do nothing to help her. * * * Captain Anthony looked up from the computer display he had been studying when the door to his ready room opened. He was sure Counselor Purr must have overridden the lock because he didn't remember saying 'Enter.' "Allie..." he started but the counselor ignored him completely. Without so much as a glance in his direction, she walked up to the replicator. "Plomick soup, extra spice," she ordered. When the food appeared, she took the bowl and placed it in front of the captain. "Don't tell me how busy you are," she bent down to look him in the eyes. "You still need to eat." "But..." Anthony wanted to say something but he changed his mind, resigned, and moved the computer panel aside. "Thanks," he said, without a smile. For the last two hours he had been studying the scans of the alien ship in the hopes of finding something that would give them an advantage. No, not an advantage even, a smallest chance at least. No such luck, though. There he was, sitting like a duck with five people trapped down on the planet and one kidnapped by the aliens. Or maybe all six of them kidnapped? He couldn't establish even the basic facts. He felt helpless. "It's getting cold," Aleyah's gentle voice snapped him out of his gloomy thoughts. He finally gave her a rather forced smile and drew the bowl nearer. "Are you going to guard me to make sure I eat my soup?" he asked sourly. "Someone should," Aleyah shook her head in fake disapproval. "You need to be strong now." "I am strong," he replied between spoonfuls. He hadn't realized how hungry he was. "I just have no bloody idea what to do! "Well, what can you do?" asked Aleyah conversationally. "Nothing!" he choked. "They're ignoring our hails and don't give a damn about our phaser fire!" Even if the counselor didn't know him as well as she did, she would have realized how distressed he was by his choice of vocabulary. She sighed discreetly. "I may launch a full frontal attack," Anthony continued gobbling his soup now. "But you know, something tells me this would be suicide." "How about doing nothing then?" Anthony almost dropped his spoon. "Are you serious?" he asked, wiping his chin. Aleyah nodded. "Think about it. If they intended to kill us, they could have done it immediately. They took our people instead. Doesn't it look like they want something from us?" "Like what?" "I don't know. Maybe it's just their way of communicating? Through 'representatives' of some kind? I don't need to teach you about cultural differences, do I? Or, perhaps, they took them hostage because they want us to do something for them?" "Well, why are they ignoring us then?" It wasn't as if Anthony hadn't thought about these things before. Somehow, Aleyah must have sensed that talking about it would help him focus and he was grateful. He used to have Pierre for such back-and-forth discussions and he had gotten used to having this sort of a sounding board to his thoughts. Now, however, Pierre was missing, too. "We know nothing about these people," Aleyah replied patiently. "They may be following some kind of rituals or, perhaps, time feels different to them? Maybe they feel like it's only been a few minutes and they are giving us time to acknowledge what happened?" Anthony finished his soup and put the bowl away. He gave Aleyah a deep look. "Thank you," he said simply but she understood. "Anytime." * It was getting dark when Commander Rex and his wife appeared at the meeting point. They were both tired but otherwise unharmed. They claimed to have lost their way, which sounded improbable, given the relatively small distances they had to cover. It turned out to be true, however, when they compared their maps. Their scanning devices had been tampered with. No wonder the Rexes were going in circles for almost three hours. "What now?" asked Pierre impatiently. He had been keeping watch at Joanna's side while Arak circled the area looking for the aliens and water. He had found none. Fortunately, Liana still had some left in her flask. It wasn't much but enough to wet Joanna's lips. Pierre raised her head gently and sprinkled some on her face, too. She gasped but didn't regain consciousness. "We need to find shelter for the night," Tim said, looking around. The sun was going down, although the temperature was still very high. "It seems the Explorer is having some problems of her own, or they would have beamed us up a long time ago." Pierre's heart sunk. Not that he had expected some miracle idea from their new first officer but he was terrified that Joanna might not survive much longer. For the first time in his life, he was absolutely scared. "Have you seen any place we could use?" asked Rex turning to Arak. "Over there," the Jem'Hadar pointed towards the setting sun. There are no roofs but there is a fairly secluded area between the walls." "Alright then," Timothy got up with a silent moan. "Let's set up a camp as best we can. Tomorrow, we'll try to raise the Explorer again and communicate with these creatures that attacked you." "I'll keep watch through the night," Pierre offered, already improvising a stretcher for Joanna from Arak's cloak. "I can see in the dark and I don't require sleep. Maybe they'll come again," he added to himself with hope. At this point, he wasn't sure if he'd rather kill them or interrogate them but one way or another, he wanted to face their mysterious foe. The away team made their way through the ruins. In the last rays of the setting sun, everything had an orange glow. The air was still dry and hot. Joanna didn't regain consciousness when they gently placed her on the stretcher. Pierre was glad she wouldn't suffer. He and Arak carried her as carefully as they could while Tim and Liana followed them, looking around. "What I don't understand is why they didn't even try to talk to us first, before they started shooting," Liana mused. "Whatever wrong we did to them, they must have realized we had no idea they even existed. Our instruments never picked any life signs here." "Maybe they did try to talk," Tim replied, taking scans of the area. We may have not received it because our comm links are down... and I know why," he finished suddenly, checking his latest readings. "There is some kind of dampening field in place. I have never seen anything like it." "Let me see." His wife took the device from him. "Interesting," she muttered after doing some quick calculations. "It's possible that the comm block is just a side effect of the polaron radiation... you're right. They may have tried to contact us and when we didn't reply, they decided we're ignoring them. They sent the troops down to make a point." "With no equipment down here we can't do much about the field," sighed Tim. "But I'm glad to hear it may only be a misunderstanding..." "That's some misunderstanding," Pierre interrupted sarcastically, without turning back. "They almost killed Joanna! How far are we?" he asked impatiently. "Right here," Arak pointed with his head. In front of them, the ruins formed a three wall chamber. Each wall was different height and one ended steeply almost at the ground level. "At least it will give us some protection," Pierre acknowledged, looking around for a place to put the stretcher. "I'll clean it up here," he added, seeing all the stones and rocks scattered around. It was almost dark. * "Captain, may I talk to you?" Chris stuck his head through the door to the captain's ready room, hesitant to come in. It's been three hours since the attack. Anthony was still pondering his options. They had scanned all they could and found no way of breaking through the shields. "Come in," he said in a tired voice. "Is something wrong?" The boy looked seriously worried. Anthony knew he wouldn't have bothered him if it wasn't serious. "What is it?" he repeated. "I was able to sense the away team, Sir," Chris said. "They're still on the planet." "Good," the captain smiled encouragingly as the boy sat on a chair. "One of the is dying, Sir," he added softly. "Why do you think it's Pierre?" asked Yoko half an hour later. The captain had called a staff meeting to come up with a plan. "He is a trained telepath," Chris explained. "Even without the computer systems, his mind is most easily recognized. I can't explain it. It's like... readiness to communicate. We are too far away and this... dampening field is interfering but I believe it's him." Yoko's heart sank but she didn't give up. "He's an android," she said quietly. "How can he be dying?" "He may be an android but he is not indestructible," the captain replied sympathetically. Yoko bit her lip. Of course, the captain was right. But Pierre or not, someone was dying down there and she needed to concentrate on her job, not give in to her fears. Especially not with Kowalsky sitting on the opposite side of the table. But Lieutenant Kowalsky wasn't paying attention to her. "Captain," he said, looking up from the padd he was holding. "I may be able to penetrate this field. I've been studying it and..." "Good," the captain cut him off. Right now he didn't want any technical discourses. "Let me know when you have something that will work." "Aye, Sir." "Chris," Anthony turned to the boy. "There's one more thing I don't understand here. How come you could sense the away team but you cannot reach Vort on that ship? We're very close to them?" "I don't know, Sir," Chris replied meekly. "The interference is much stronger here. I'm not even sure she's aboard." "I am," Yoko interrupted. "I traced the transporter signal. They beamed her to the aft section of the ship." "Is this the same kind of field?" asked Anthony. "The one on the planet and the ship's shields?" "It's the same technology," confirmed Kowalsky. "They are using polaron radiation to compensate..." his voice trailed off under Anthony's scowl. It wasn't that the captain wasn't interested. In emergency situations, however, he didn't like to waste time for technological lectures. He wanted action, not speculation. Kowalsky promised himself that the next time he opens his mouth, it will be to give the solution. "Keep working on that field," the captain ordered. We will wait another three hours. If nothing happens by then, we will open fire. Dismissed." * Pierre was about to start removing the stones to make room for the others to rest during the night when they noticed a strange illumination on one of the walls. It looked like someone was approaching the, with a torch. "Stay put," Commander Rex ordered quietly, drawing his phaser. "Set to kill" whispered Arak, doing likewise. "Stun setting doesn't do anything to them. Timothy nodded and the four of them took a stance, preparing to meet the aliens. For a while, nothing happened. Their heavy breaths were the only sound in the air. Then, all of a sudden, a shoal of silver fish streaked though the chamber. Before any of them could react, the aliens surrounded Pierre. "Don't move," said Rex. The aliens circled Pierre, almost covering him from their sight. Then, they formed a halo around his head. "Commander?" He didn't reply. "Pierre!" "Shoot... them!" They finally heard the android's rasping voice. The alien creatures were glistening in the dark and they could see Pierre had his eyes closed. He was shaking. He clenched his fists so hard, the skin on his knuckles cracked. "What's happening?" "They... are doing some... thing to me," he managed with enormous effort, sinking down on his knees. The aliens lowered after him, still circling his head. "We can't shoot them, we'll harm you," Rex hesitated. "Can't you communicate with them?" "Shoot!" Pierre shouted with pain. "It can... be... dangerous!" Commander Rex signaled for the others and they started firing, picking their shots very carefully. The creatures were moving too fast, though, and a few shots reached Pierre. One scorched his temple, another brushed his arm. However, after the first volley, the aliens raised higher, like a swarm of bees and retreated. "Are you alright?" Liana jumped up to Pierre. "What happened?" With her help, he slowly raised to his feet, still shaking a little. "I don't know," he replied with relief. "They were trying to access my systems but I couldn't tell without the computer." "Do you think they were trying to communicate with you?" Timothy asked, scanning the android carefully. Liana inspected his wounds. It looked like he had been very lucky. "Possibly," he nodded. "Communicating or reprogramming me. I cold not defend myself." "Oh!" Liana exclaimed, startled, when he looked at her. Pierre's eyes were now dark gray. * "Vort!" Anthony almost jumped in his seat when the Scythiaan suddenly materialized in his quarters. "What happened?" Vort reported her conversation with the aliens and relayed their unconditional demand that the Explorer leaves the system immediately. "We need to beam the away team, first," the captain protested. Vort was relieved to hear that their alleged death had been a premature assumption. At least, for the most part. "Chris was able to sense them," Anthony explained. "He believes he managed to reach Pierre's mind but he couldn't get through to him. Perhaps, if you combined your efforts.." "It's worth a try," Vort agreed. The Explorer got back to orbit around the planet. The sun was already down in the area where the away team had landed. Vort and Chris sat together in the conference room. Anthony, Yoko and Kowalsky were observing as they concentrated. The Scythiaan, perched on a stool, simply froze. Chris curled up in a chair with his eyes closed tight. They sat like that for almost half an hour. Nobody dared to even flinch. Finally, they both opened their eyes simultaneously. "Nothing." "I'm sorry, Captain," Chris whispered, disappointed. "Could you sense him?!" Yoko prodded nervously. "No..." Vort looked her in the eyes. Yoko suddenly felt a cold streak going down her spine. "Is he..." she couldn't finish. "We don't know," Vort replied slowly and the translator sounded sympathetically. "We couldn't sense anything. Either the field was strengthened or..." "Or?" Yoko swallowed. "They're not there anymore." * Despite his apparently weakened condition, Pierre managed to clean up enough of the area for all of them to sit down in relative comfort. Arak helped him while Liana and Tim kept watch. The aliens, however, seemed to have vanished for now. "Do you have any idea what they wanted from you?" Timothy asked again when they settled down under one of the walls. Joanna was laying motionlessly close enough so that they could hear her breathing. "I can't access my self-diagnostic program," Pierre replied in a tired voice. "I tried but I can't." "I wish I could take a look," Tim shook his head sadly. Scanning him with only the standard equipment didn't reveal anything. "How do you feel?" "I'm fine. I'm just... drained." Remembering his recent experience as a human being, Pierre was able to describe his state in more precise terms. "Maybe you should deactivate yourself for a while?" Liana asked, worried. Pierre smirked at her. "Deactivating won't make me rest," he told her. "I'll be alright." "Aaah!" Joanna moaned, suddenly, waking up. "Shh... stay calm," Pierre jumped to her immediately. He kneeled at her side and stroked her cheek gently. "We'll take care of you. Don't worry, Sunshine." "It's cold..." Joanna's eyes crossed and she shivered uncontrollably. "She's going into shock! We need to keep her warm!" He had already torn his jacket. "Give me something!" he yelled to the others. Tim handed him his cloak. Pierre grabbed it and wrapped Joanna carefully. She had already lost consciousness again. "She won't survive much longer. We need to do something!" Pierre turned to Tim. "I'll go out, try to find these aliens again and talk to them. They're our only hope!" "No," Tim shook his head. "You will get yourself killed this time. Look what they've done to you already. We will wait until dawn and try together. Or, hopefully by then, the Explorer will have been back for us." "We can't just sit here and wait for her to die!" Pierre cried in despair. "We've got to help her!" "I'm sorry, Pierre," Tim realized what must have been going on in the android's mind and he spoke very calmly. "I can't risk your life, too..." "Tim!" "That's an order, Commander," Rex said even softer. Pierre opened his mouth but closed it again. He knew that Rex was right. He couldn't communicate with the aliens the first time, why would he succeed now? In the morning, they could all go and, if the situation repeated, he'd have someone to protect him. It was impossible for them to shoot in the complete darkness without killing him. But if Joanna didn't manage... he shuddered at the thought. Right or wrong, it was unbearable to be stuck there and just watch her agony. He felt his fists clench in desperation. If only he could connect to the computer. If only there was something that he could do. Anything... Pierre slammed the wall with his hand hard enough to shake it and sank helplessly to the floor, hiding his face in his hands. Liana came up to him and sat beside. She touched his shoulder but he shook her off. "Don't!" he said through gritted teeth. "Pierre," she said nevertheless. We need to stay calm..." "I am calm," he growled. "Just leave me alone, please..." * "I need your help." It was short and impersonal. Apparently, Lieutenant Kowalsky was able to keep his personal feelings to himself. At least in an emergency. Yoko fought to do the same. "What can I do?" she asked hoping her voice wouldn't tremble. When they left the conference room after the failed attempt to contact the away team telepathically, she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. She knew she shouldn't give up hope until the end but it was proving more and more difficult. The very thought that something may have happened to Pierre was just too terrifying. "I want to run a few simulations," Kowalsky replied matter-of-factly, paying no attention to her emotional state. "I'll need you at tactical." "Alright," Yoko whispered and followed him to the engineering. * * * "Increase the antigraviton flow by ten per cent," Lieutenant Torres ordered. "The beam is dispersing," warned Yoko. "Compensate!" The three of them were working furiously for the last two hours, trying out every possible theory to neutralize the field around the planet. "No effect." "Okay, switch the deflector grid to polarize the field," Kowalsky shot from his console. With Pierre away, they were using the LCARS system for their simulations. "Lieutenant," Torres protested, as this threatened an explosion. "Just do it," Kowalsky insisted. "I have stabilized..." "Senior officers report the bridge," they heard the captain through the comm link. "Damn!" Kowalsky shut down his console and they went to the turbolift. * * * "Red alert," Anthony ordered as the alien ship appeared on their view screen again. "They want us to leave now," hissed Vort, who had been summoned to the bridge as well. "Are you in contact with them?" Anthony asked with renewed hope but the Scythiaan shook her head. "Only receiving. They want us to leave now or they will destroy the Explorer." Anthony sighed heavily. "Launch photon torpedoes..." "Captain," Kowalsky interrupted. "We haven't finished the simulation but we may have something..." "Do it!" "We need to get a little closer to the surface." "Helm, bring us about," Anthony ordered immediately. If this was their last chance to retrieve the away team, he intended to use it. "Lower the orbit." As the Explorer maneuvered, Kowalsky shot Yoko a meaningful look. She knew they hadn't had enough time to verify the conditions but it was now or never. She smiled at him gratefully and prepared her console to operate the particle emitters. "They are powering up weapons," warned Ensign Natashi, who took over the tactical. "Torres?!" Kowalsky shouted through the comm link. "Ready." "Now!" The Explorer emitted a wide beam of antigravitons towards the planet's surface while its deflector grid polarized the particles. For a moment it looked like it didn't work but then they saw a hit wave forming in the atmosphere and slowly encompassing the continent. "Yes!" Yoko couldn't hide her excitement. "Beaming them up," reported Natashi. "Raise shields, full impulse!" the captain ordered and the Explorer left the system at the last possible moment but with full crew compliment. *** Pierre stumbled, when leaving the transporter pad. He was hurt and apparently some of his mechanisms had been damaged. He was bare-chest and a slice of his artificial skin was dangling loosely from his arm. "Pierre!" Yoko jumped up to him. "I'm so happy to see you!" "Hi, there," he smiled and kissed her briefly on the head. She touched his skin and said. "You're injured, you need to go to engineering." "Later," he replied impatiently, already freeing himself from her hug. "Excuse me now, I'll see you later," he gently pushed her aside and quickly left the transporter room. Yoko looked after him, surprised. Three hours later, he was sitting at Joanna's bed, holding her hand. She had just come around after the operation. The prognosis was good. "See, I told you we'll get you back on your feet," he smiled with relief, seeing her open her eyes. "You saved me," she breathed with effort. "Actually, it was Kowalsky. He managed to penetrate this damned field..." "You were there with me," she interrupted. "You took care of me." "Of course I did," he replied, placing a kiss on her hand. "That's what I'm for." "Pierre... I love you," Joanna whispered softly. Yoko, who had been standing in the door, turned around quietly and sneaked out of the sickbay. The only person who heard the rest of the conversation was Vort, working across the room. "You need to rest now," Pierre shook his head. "We'll talk about it when you're stronger. The doctor said you should be alright in a few days..." Joanna closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, they were full of tears. "I lost you, didn't I?" she asked. "Sunshine..." "No, tell me," she demanded. "I can feel it anyway, just need to hear it from you. It's Tanaki, isn't it?" "Yes," Pierre was unable to lie, even though it broke his heart. "You love her?" "Yes," he said again. Joanna swallowed the tears that were building up in her throat. "Thank you," she whispered. Pierre looked at her but he honestly didn't know what to say to her now. The silence grew more and more uncomfortable with each passing second. Finally, Joanna pointed at his arm. "You should go take care of yourself," she said. Pierre shrugged. "It's nothing." "I'll be fine now," Joanna said gently. "You can go... to her," she added softly. "Joanna..." "Just go," she closed her eyes. Pierre wanted to say something but he couldn't. He got up slowly and left the sickbay. TO BE CONTINUED...