The Head of Caesar: The Hunt For Jake Grey Part Ten

Almost an hour has passed since the destruction of the massive mobile battlestation belonging to Jake Grey, the enemy of the crew of the XDCA warship Archangel. The crew's anger, sadness, and shock have since been replaced by excitement and tension. While someone that had the potential to become a valuable soldier in their interdimensional war had killed himself by using his ship as a battering ram, that selfless act had put their enemy on the defensive for the first time since this war began.

In the shuttle bay, Keith goes over some last minute diagnostics, while the ship's newest crew member, the quiet (even by his race's standards) Vulcan Sorik, made sure that the layout of the shuttle's controls were not too unfamiliar. They weren't. In fact Sorik had flown this typoe of shuttle dozens of time before. Keith was nervous about their mission, to warn a people of impending danger. The silence soon gets to be too much for Keith. "So, Sorik, what was the name of the ship you last served on?"

The Intrepid. I was commanding officer with the rank of Captain.

Sorik can tell, even without a mind-meld, what is going through Keith Yeager's mind

And no, Mr Yeager, I do not resent being given a grade reduction. I merely accept that he is a more experienced commander.

There is a further silence, as everything is prepared

Yes, I think we are ready now. =/\= Sorik to Greymoran. Captain, we are ready to depart. =/\=
When we return, I intend to mind-link with Radagast to bring him to his senses.

Keith raises an eyebrow. "Interesting. Do you really think you can help him? Of course another question, what do we do if it works? What if Greymoran doesn't want to forgive him, and kicks him off. Will he go with the Revanche?" Keith shakes his head. "Forget I said anything Sorik, I have a tendency to overthink things." He climbs into the shuttle and sits next to Sorik. He notices Rita walking into the shuttle bay. He leaves the shuttle to greet her. "Hey babe, what's up?" Rita smiles nervously. "I just wanted to see you off." Keith frowns. "Is something wrong?" Rita laughs, again quiter nervously. She takes a deep breath. "Just, come back to us Keith." "Hey, don't worry. Sorik and I can take of ourselves. And the crew can do just fine with us gone. Jackson can do my job as well as I can, and Carrie can handle engineering on her end." "I don't mean the crew Keith." Rita takes Keith's hand and places it on her stomach. "Come back to us." Keith's eyes go wide. "You-you're pregnant?" Rita smiles and nods. "Almost a month along now." Keith smiles then laughs. "Oh my God." He takes Rita into a tight embrace. "It's just what we alwasy wanted," he whispered to her. The two seem on the brink of tears. Tears of joy. Rita takes both of Keith's hands in hers. She turns to Sorik who had left the shuttle to inform Keith that Greymoran had given the go-ahead. "You bring my man home Sorik. You take good care of him."

to Rita
Lieutenant, I would not wish to endanger any member of our valued crew, even Mr Yeager.

Rita nods, tears gathering in her eyes. She says goodbye, then walks to the control booth to watch the shuttle take off. Sorik and Keith climb back in. "Keith to Greymoran, we're ready to take off." Gryemoran's voice come back over the shuttle's comm system. "Excellent. Shuttle bay door opening. Good luck."

Jackson rushes out of the bathroom, where he has been somewhat... busy...
Hmm.. looks like I missed some excitment.
Greymoran briefly explains what has been happening
Wow... That other Jake Grey did seem like a decent guy. Too bad I didn't get a chance to talk to him much.
Jackson sits at his console
The shuttle is leaving the shuttle bay...

Greymoran frowns at Jackson. "Why did you ask? You were here when it happened. After effects of that virus maybe?" Jackson shrugs.

Could very well be, sir. I don't think there's been a lot of research done on the virus...
Well, there go the shuttles. And as for us...
Jackson patches Keith's controls into his console
I'm ready to go fight the good fight and destroy any bad guys that come our way!

Keith frowns. Sorik raises an eyebrow. "Jakcson what the hell are you doing, transferring control of the shuttle?" Jackson's voice comes back with a slight chuckle in it. "What? No I'm not." Keith looks at Sorik with concern, but the Vulcan merely performs a complicated procedure that cuts the link. Keith nods. "Good work. Is the portal generator set for-" Sorik nods before Keith can finish his snetence. "Excellent. Let's go." The shuttle launches forward through the small purple portal, and disappears.

Aboard the Archangel, Greymoran orders Jackson confined to sickbay. "Rita, I'll be in sickbay checking him out. Hudzen, you have the conn."

Hudzen looks at his captain for a while then replies.

Captain, I believe that Mr. Dupree was transferring Keith's controls of his currently vacated console to his own so he could do Lt. Yeager's job while he was absent. Although it is a rare occurrence, I could be wrong.

Greymoran walks over and checks the console. "Yet he still somehow manged to transfer shuttle control. Weird. Carrie, do a diagnostic, pronto. Rita, soon as she's done, take us to the last known local of those two Grey ships." Rita nods.

Earth, home of the Terran Confederation, spun quietly before the shuttle. Sorik and Keith had not yet tried to contact the planet. Something just didn't feel right. Even Sorik appeared concerned. "That's an awful lot of storm clouds." Keith muttered. Sorik raised an eyebrow as a thought entered his mind. he ran a full sensor sweep of the clouds. "Those aren't strom clouds Mr. Yeager. that's Nuclear Winter." "What?!" Keith exclaims in shock. Sorik nods. "Life signs are minimal, and very few of them are human." Suddenly a bright flash lances past the shuttle narrowly misisng them. "Oh shit." Keith exclaims. He runs his fingers across a panel and idnetifies the firing ships. "Kilrathi Dreadnoguhts, two of them, escorted by about a dozen destroyers. Their secondary weapons can't hurt us, but I'm detecting Anit-Matter Cannons. At least as powerful as a Type I torpedo. Enough hits and we could be in trouble. Begin evasive maneuvers. I'll try to contact the Archangel." "I'm afraid not. We are being jammed. Starfleet communications jamming technology." Keith's eyes go wide. "Oh no. Trek technology on a Kilrathi vessel? Grey's already been here. Get the portal generator on-line, fast!" A blast causes the shuttle to shudder, and a panel to spark. "We've lost the emergency transporter." Sorik declares nonchalantly. Keith takes a deep breath. "Dammit, the panels are going dead. I think I got the right coordinates though. Fire up the generator." Sorik hits a button, and a portal opens beefore them. The shuttle lurches through, just as a Quantum torpedo tears one of the shuttle's nacelles away, sending the shuttle into a spin. The shuttle exits the portal in the atmosphere of a blue planet. Sorik and Keith struggle to gain control. Sorik runs several calculations through his head, and comes to one conclusion. They won't be able to get back into orbit.

Jackson checks his console again and examines the keystrokes he just hit
Hmm... I thought I was just getting his bridge station, but it looks like I did somehow get some of the shuttle controls.
I'll go to sickbay willingly.
With that, Jackson goes down to sickbay, waiting for the arrival of Greymoran.

Mr Yeager, emotional outbursts will not accomplish anything. We must try to land somewhere which will cause minimum damage.

While waiting for Greymoran, Jackson has the Doctor attempt to see what's wrong.
Doctor: Well, according to the literature, some clones have a slight problem... short term memory loss and some bladder control loss after major illness or disease...
Jackson: But why did it happen now?
Doctor: Sometimes there's a delayed reaction... there are some cases where excitment and adventure produces enough adrenalin to delay the onset, but it happens eventually. Your's was quite specific... blocking out the last bit of the battle but making you miss the end through the bladder control loss.
Jackson: I'm just lucky I made it to the bridge restroom in time.
Doctor: Indeed.

Suddenly the Doc fizzles, speaks gibberish then flat out fades, but not before tripping the automatic bed restraints, pinning Jackson to the bio-bed. "Dammit!" Carrie shouts. "I'm sorry about that. Building an EMH from scratch isn't easy. Anyway it misdiagnosed you. TerrSec crossed a bunch of wires. It's gonna take me an hour to get everything back to normal. They hooked shuttle control transfer to the tactical console for some reason, and moved Dimensional portal generator to the science station. Once I'm done we can go to WCU59 and I'll get back to work on that HoloDoc." A small click sounds, and the restriants loosen, allowing Jackson to climb off the bed.

Jackson perks up at the news of the rewired tactical console
Well, it's nice to know that wasn't my fault..
I think I'm ready to get back to work... but I suppose I should discuss it with Greymoran first.

The shuttle plummets downward.

Using the sensor station, which still remains operative, Sorik takes readings on the planet.

It is difficult to get any readings this close, but I have managed to find out that it is Class-M and has humanoid inhabitants.

He goes over to the partly-inoperative helm controls.

I shall attempt to land us in a safe enough area. Preferably one which will keep the shuttle as undamaged as possible as well as ourselves. Mr Yeager, brace for impact. Lie on the ground with your hands above your head

Keith Yeager stops flailing around cursing, and complies. Sorik, finally with some peace to concentrate, tries to manuever the shuttle into the right position. He can't get it into a horizontal angle, but it is a lot less vertical than it was before. The helm panel infuriatingly starts to give out, harder punches necessary to get it to obey any command even remotely. What Sorik can determine, however, is that the shuttle is directly over the sea. It does, after all, cover a considerable amount of the planet's surface.

Finally reaching the surface, the shuttle ploughs into the sea, skimming along, until it reaches the hard edge of the land. It turns over, bounces off a few rocks, and lands. What position Keith Yeager is in now is hard to determine, given the state of the shuttle, but it doesn't seem to be on the floor with his hands over his head. Both have been physically knocked about a lot during the last few moments of the shuttle's journey, but mentally Sorik has been less bruised than his travel companion.

Sorik pushes his way out of the shuttle, helping Keith to his feet. They are standing in a rugged, rocky landscape, on which the shuttle has definitely made its mark. Trees and portions of grass sprout up here and there. As is evident by their journey, the sea lies a small distance behind the shuttle, and the rocks it crashed over.

Keith looks around. Suddenly he looks up away from the shore and is surprised by what he sees. "I recognize the type of plane. That's a bi-plane, standard fair for pre World War II Earth. But that symbol, it looks familiar, but I don't think I've ever seen it on a plane before. Can you tell what it is?" Sorik squints. "Yes Mr. Yeager. That, I beleive is the symbol of the Roman Empire." Keith's eyes go wide with amazement. "Roman? The Romans never developed planes. They never survived to see the 20th century!" "Not on your Earth perhaps. And not on the Earth I was on during Academy training either."

It is the SPQR symbol. I would expect a Terran would have more knowledge about this, but then again, you are known for forgetting the past.

If we construct a beacon to alert Extradimensional ships here, we might inadvertantly bring XD Pirates... or worse. I suggest we try repairing the shuttle with what resources we have.

Keith scratches his head. The plane circles over the crash site a few time, then seems to completely fly past them. "Hmm. WWI era technology, but apparently no radar. Although I find it hard to beleive we weren't noticed on sight. OK, so for now, if you don't mind, let's assume we're dealing stictly with WWI era technology, menaing from, let's say 1900 to 1930. What do you know about that time period Sorik? Is there anything currently in exisstence, or rumoured to have been in existence we can use?"

Greymoran enters sickbay, and, after a discussion with Jackson, deams Jackson ready to work again. They make their way up to the bridge and take their stations
Sir, the interdimensional sensors picked up two portals created by the away team... and it looks like they might have been hit by something just before the second portal was opened...

Carrie goes over the record. "Hmm. We picked up a second jump shortly after the first one. Something may be wrong." Greymoran nodded. "If it is I'm sure Keith and Sorik will try to contact us. But if we don't hear from them in 24 hours we'll start looking. Any idea where the second jump was to?" Jackson checks his console. "No reading as yet sir. They may have jumped to an uncharted universe." Greymoran frowns. "Sorik would only do that if he trying to evade someone, and I don't think keith would at all. Maybe we should wor-" A portal opens and the Archangel flies through. Rita turns around. "Confirmed sir, we've jumped to our intended target. Sensors searching for a warp signature now."

I'm not sure, Mr Yeager. Please refrain from jumping to conclusions. The level of technology may be considerably different from that of the time you mention. All we know is the type of aeroplane in existence, and it might be part of a historical... air show, I believe they were called. The Roman Empire symbol is puzzling, we cannot assume anything. I suggest we look around, and, if possible, gain some inconspicuous clothing.

Sir, I've located the warp signature! I can patch the information into Rita's console.

Keith nods. "OK. Sounds good. Let's-" Keith stops. Sorik turns to face Keith and sees the same thing that stopped Keith in his tracks. Off to his right they saw something they both recognized. The Easter island statues. And behind them, they could see just above the horiizon, what were the upper levels of a Roman style colleseum. "Now, my knowledge of Roman history is sketchy Sorik, but I'm pretty sure they never made it to Easter island, at least not on my Earth." The sounds of horses galloping in the distance distracts Sorik before he can answer. He doesn't beleive Keith has heard them yet.

We must find cover.

"But what if they see our shuttle?" Keith protests.

If we are not captured, we can act later. Quickly, behind one of those statues.

They slip behind a statue, as the horses ride up. The leader is dressed like a Roman centurion, but he has a gun in a holster. On the other horses are men dressed like legionaries. It is hard to tell, but they appear to also have firearms.
The centurion stops, seeing the shuttle, and halts his horse. The first of the other rides gallops up alongside him.
"Take a look at that, decurion," the centurion says.
"I don't know what to make of it. I certainly haven't seen anything like it in any of my travels," his second-in-command replies.
"Take ten legionaries to investigate. I will take the rest to search around for anything or anyone connected."
The decurion motions for ten legionaries to follow him. Sorik can now see clearly that they are all armed with guns.
[whispering to Keith] Such weapons were not around at the time of the Romans, not on the Earth we know.

Keith nods. "I recognized those guns from World War II movies. Definately German design. Weird though, becuase on the Earth I know, and I assume on yours too, Bi-Planes were relagated mostly to airshows and crop duster duty by the time those types of guns have been invented. I doubt we could use the technology as the only way to figure out what year it is." Sorik nods. Keith carefully heads furhter up the coast in the direction of the colloseum. Off in the distance he thinks he sees a shipyard. He doesn't recognize any of the ship designs. He motions for Sorik to join him.

The Archangel exits the portal, right into a battlezone. The Cylon Basestar that followed the Galaxy-class vessel into this unvierse had stayed, and was no engaged in combat with a Terran Confederation carrier group. The Terrans seem to be losing. Before Rita takes the Archangel into a dive to avoid colliding with the Basestar he counts three ships that look like they've been destoryed, and the Terran fighters look dangerously outnumbered.

Jackson scans the Cylon ship
I've found some places where the shields look a bit weak. We could send a message to the Terran ships about the spots.
On another console, a indicator lights up and begins beeping strangely. Jackson goes to investigate
Hmm.. what the... how could that be...what's going on?
Sir, according to this reading, the LICC universe seems to have gone out of existance. The only thing left to it is the Spidership, and it's on somewhat shakey ground, so to speak.

Greymoran growls. "Dammit! Can't we go one week without a distress call from your counterpart's ship? We have concerns of our own! For the Gods' sakes, have they forgotten we're in the middle of a war right now, and can't exactly bound off to help them every time my son gets his organization in over it's head!" The ships shudders as the sheilds almost buckle under the impact of a thermite missile from the Basestar.

Sorik takes up a position near Keith, and visually scans the shipyard ahead, gauging distance as well as what types of ships are there. "Hmm. I only took Earth history for one year at the academy," he says, "and I would need to do furhter, up close examinations to be certain, but for the time being it is safe to assume that those are the types of ships used by the Confederate South during the American Civil War."

Actually, it's a message from a beacon we left the last time we were in that universe. It managed to save itself, too.
Shields down to 25%! I'm cutting power to all non-essential systems and decks and putting that power into the shields!
There's a slight flicker in the bridge lighting as the procedure is done
Shields now at 65%! We also have full power to all weapons. I'm ready to fire at your command, sir.

Keith and Sorik stay low, and during their travel towards the town, avoid several patrols. Hiding in an alley on the outskirts of the small town, Sorik calls upon his knowledge of Earth history, but the contradictions in technology still prevent an accurate gauging of what year it is.

The turbolift opens and Hudzen enters the bridge.
Correction, Captain, I am ready to fire and am in the process.
The Archangel fires its powerful phasers at the nearest enemy ship. Just as the ship is disabled, Hudzen stops the firing.
One down, Captain.

Greymoran turns to look at him. "Apparently Jackson isn't the only one with flucuating memories." The ship shudders. Rita pounds her console. "Dammit! Hudzen had me confused. He didn't hit the Basestar he blew up one of their fighters. Man those fihgters are awfully big. Thermite missile impacted. Sheilds down, beginning evasive maneuvers!" Greymoran stands up and goes over to Hudzen's console. It appears fine. Then he looks at Hudzen, and ses a small wire sticking out of Hudzen's head. "Aw hell, TerrSec did something to him when they held us prisoner. Hudzen, report to engineering and deactivate. Hurry! I think whatever they did screwed with your visual sensors."

Unless you have a way of making myself look less conspicuous, I suggest you will be the one who makes himself seen more clearly. My... prominent and distinctive features would make it clear I am not of Terran race. They might take me for someone of another land - but I suspect that, with such technology, they have explored more of the planet than the Ancient Romans we know were able to.

A thought strikes him.

They might, in fact, take me for one of their dieties, if they still believe in them. This would of course, violate the Prime Directive... you are aware of the Prime Directive? Starfleet has it...

Keith: "Non-interferance? Yeah, the XDCA has a law about that."

Interestingly enough, Vulcan was the name of one of the Roman dieties. The name is from Terran mythology, it is not the name we use to describe ourselves.

He notices Keith's expression, and stops.

But all this is irrelevant to our current situation. I shall... lie low, I believe the term is. You should try to be as inconspicuous as possible with the clothing you wear.

"Black pants, dark blue jakcet, red t-shirt, yeah I won't be noticed." Keith mutters sarcastically. He starts to get up, when he feels the point of something sharp in his back. He shifts his eyes and sees a Roman guard pointing a sword at Sorik. Keith doesn't doubt there's one at his back as well. One of them speaks to a third guard behind them. He steps up and looks. "Senator Lambert will want to see them no doubt. Stand up you two."

Taking over tactical again!
Steady Rita.. I've got the Basestar in my sights!
Firing all weapons!
On the viewscreen, the Basestar is peppered with the various weapons that the Archange has to offer.
Now, Mr. Basestar, would you like a second helping? Jackson appears to listen to his console You would? I thought you might.
Jackson, with one deft poke of a finger, deploys the weapons again.
Sir, the Basestar's shields are down to 65%! Should I give them a third helping of our weapons menu?

Greymoran nods. "Oh, and stop talking to your console like that. You worry me when you do that."

-

Keith and Sorik are marched into an impressive chamber filled iwht various decerations of various cultures, probably trophies of the Senator who sits at 19th century style English desk. He stands up, his white toga flapping about in the light breeze coming in through the victorian style windows. The guard steps in front of Keith and Sorik to face the Senator. "Here are the intruders sir." The Senator nods. "Aw yes," he says with an accent that sounds French. "Sit down gentlemen." Sorik stand stoicly, but Keith takes a seat. The Senator looks them. "Have you removed anything that could be used as a weapon?" The guard hands him Keith's pistol and Sorik's phaser. He put sdown the phaser. "I've seen children's toys that look like this. Now this," he says holding Keith's gun, "is interesting. More advanced than any gun I have ever seen, but obviously a gun nonetheless. Heavy. What have we here?" He removes the clip. "Oh my. I've never seen bullets like these. Definately not of German make." He hands the gun back to the guard. "Place that in the vault, as well as this toy." he hand the guard the phaser. "Wait outside the door. I shall talk to them alone."

You realize I'm the Emergency Medical Hologram. The M doesn't stand for "mechanical". I'm a doctor, not an engineer.
Hudzen: What?
EMH: I'm asking you why you're here Mr. Hudzen. You should be in Engineering.
Hudzen: Yes, Engineering, why am I here?
EMH: You undoubtedly came here because of your little problem. I'll have Engineering beam you down there, EMH to Engineering
A voice comes in over the comm.
Engineer: Engineering here.
EMH: Please beam Mr. Hudzen to your location. He seems to have gotten a little lost.
Engineer: Acknowledged. You finally working Doc?
EMH: Apparently. There are still a few bugs, but I'm almost fully functional.
Engineer: Great. I'm beaming Hudzen now.
With that, Hudzen is dissolves in front of the doctor and reappears in Engineering.
Lt. Williams: Let's take a look at you, shall we?

Carrie's face appears on keith's console. "Just wanted to let you know I think I got that EMH I was bulding working. Unfortunaeately he seems a little confused. He called to Engineering although Sorik is off ship, and talked about a Lt. Williams. There is no Lt. Williams on board." The ship shudders from the impact of a ramming Cylon fighter. Jackson shouts, "Shields down to 23%!" Greymoran grips the arms of his chair. "We'll talk later Carrie! Divert as much power as possible to the shields!" "Aye sir." Maybe then we can figure out what the hell that was that answered when my EMH called to engineering, she thought. Too weird.

Sir, I've found a weak spot in the Basestar's shields! I'm going to focus the weapons on it.
Firing third round!
On the viewscreen, a spot on the Basestar suddenly glows as weapons fire from the Archange hits the shields. After a few minutes of constant firing, the weapons knock down that part of the shields, get through, and begin hammering the Basestar itself.
And now, for the big weapons!
Jackson presses two torpedo buttons, and both proton and photon torpedos streak towards the Basestar. Both impact into the unshielded area and a satisfying explosion occurs
Got 'em!
Sir, sensors show that the spot we hit is right near a shield generator and one of the Engineering decks! A few more hits, and their shields in that area should be completely down!

Rita: Sir, the Basestar is powering up it's engines. He's retreating!

Several ships from the Confed fleet, almost forgotten by the crew of the Archangel flies up to the basestar hammering away with their anti-matter cannons. Fires burn all over the enemy vessel.

-

Keith and Sorik, seated in the comfortable chairs in front of the Senator's desk listen closely as the Senator asks them questions. Fairly basic. Where are they from and what not, then he asks a question that throws even Sorik. "Tell me something my silent friends. Are you perhaps involved in a plot I uncovered to overthrow the Republic? Are you in league with the African senators?"

And now for the piece de resistance!
Firing...Quantum...Torpedos!
Two streaks of light fly from the Archangel towards the Basestar. One torpedo hits the engine area, severly damaging it. The other torpedo strikes an already damaged and vulnerable area, causing massive explosions in and around the affected area. Flashes of light inside the Basestar indicate numerous internal explosions.
Sir, I don't think the Basestar can withstand much more punishment... should we put it out of its misery?

Before Greymoran can answer, the ship explodes. Several Confed ships break apart in the shockwave, the others take off in a panic. The Arhcangel shudders slightly but takes no damage. Rita takes a deep breath and palces her hand on her stomach. She's only two months along and won't be showing for awhile, but she's still nervous as to how the others would react if they found out before she had a chance to tell them. And now her mind wandered back to something seh was thinking about before the battle. Why did they lose contact with Keith and Sorik?

-

"Excuse me? Plot? I don't understand." Keith says. The Senator chuckles. "Yes, I didn't think so. I don't think you're from anywhere known to the Republic. Perhaps the pacific isles. Well, whereever you're from, perhaps I can use you. I have a gut instinct for people who are trustworthy, and I think I can trust you. The question however is, can you trust me?"

Hudzen looks around. He's no longer in Engineering. In fact, he appears to be in the middle of the desert. He tries to hail the Archangel, but his communicator appears to be inactive. Suddenly, a figure stands before him. He looks exactly like the EMH.

Hudzen: Where am I?
Figure: You have deactivated yourself somewhere on the Archangel although apparently not completely. It seems that you have entered some kind of repair program. This is it.
Hudzen: Explain.
Figure: Apparently, your neural net created this program so you could repair yourself from the inside. It is a highly irratic program for a robot like yourself to have created. Programs that robots, droids, and androids create are usually more logical than this. It appears that repairing yourself this way is the only option. Not even your friends on the outside can help.
Hudzen: How do you know all of this?
Figure: I myself don't know this, I'm part of you so really, you yourself know it. These little conversations we're having seem to be affecting some of the ship's systems. Until recently, what you were experiencing was being projected over the comm. But I, or you really, have stopped that from happening. None of your crew know about this. Time to start fixing you up. Shall we?

Hudzen nods.

Jackson watches a replay of the battle at his station
Now that was a heck of a fight...
So where to now, sir? Perhaps it's time for a vacation or something? Or is it the old "evil never rests, so neither do we" thing?

Greymoran looks at Jackson. "We came here for a purpose remember? Take Keith's station and see if you can find a warp trail. That Galaxy-class cruiser will be the only ship in this universe to use it." Rita's eyes shoot open. "Sir, we just intercepted a coded message directed to those Confed ships. The decrypt says it's from Earth. Maybe Keith and Sorik made it." Greymoran nods. "Keep working on that message Rita. jackson get to work on that trail. I'm going to check on Hudzen."

As Hudzen walks with the EMH figure, he looks around at his surroundings. His mind is chaos. It's like the worlds and universes he knows have all collided into one insane world, far too complicated and complex for a humanoid mind to comprehend.
Figure: As you can see, your mind appears to be very chaotic. Undoubtedly representing the real damage to your mind and functions. It also seems that aspects of your mind and various personalities that you have taken with your many droid bodies have split. I represent one of those aspects. We must find those parts of you so we can unite again. We must also look for the damage done to you. It may be very subtle, or extremely obvious. One more thing, it seems that this damage has also slowed your functions greatly. A day here will be almost equal to a day outside of your mind, very uncommon with a brain as sophisticated as yours. With all of this out of the way, let's start looking.

Hudzen and the figure begin to search through the disorder around them.

Right, sir.
Jackson rushes to and sits down at Keith's station as ordered and starts scanning the universe
Ok... energy ribbon...really fast pulsar...warp trail...interesting bit of background radiation...stell..hold on, warp trail?
Jackson focuses the sensors on the warp trail
Sir, I've found the warp trail! I'm sending the information to Rita's console!

Rita nods and sends the encrypted message to Carrie's memory banks. "I've got a lock. Dammit! That ship is moving at Warp 9 and has got several hours on us. Unless it stops somewhere or slows down to make a course correction we won't be able to ctach him." "Follow him anyway Rita." Greymoran says, determined. "Yessir." she says in reply.

Trust you? I have only just encountered you and you have until now proven to be an enemy. Trust is illogical in most cases, in such a case as this - more than ever.

The Senator looks at Sorik. "Logic? I'm afraid in times like these the majority treats logic as an enemy I'm afraid. But trust, that is the rarest of animals. I am going to take an incredible chance here. A chance that you are part of this plot. Caeser Germanicus Agricola is the target of an assassination plot. This would be most disasterous as the emperor is a compassionate man, in part responsible for bringing about an end to the slave trade. He is a decent man and a good friend, and his death could cause nothing but harm to the Republic. My only gripe with the information my spies have brought is it's incompleteness. All it says for certain is that the man behind this is a Senator from the African continent, and that the conspiracy reaches into the high court itself, meaning someone close to the Emperor is in on this. But my efforts to uncover whom and put this plot down before it becomes public knowledge have thus far failed. This is where my instinct comes in. My feelings are that the Gods have brought you to me, to help me. That you can uncover this plot, and protect the Republic. Am I close, strangers from the sky?" Keith's eyes widen in surprise. "Yes young man, our air patrols spotted your craft on it's decent. So far I've been able to convince the masses that it was merely a meteor, but the people of this island are superstitious by nature. It won't be long before they find your craft, where ever you hid it."

And will you be attempting to make sure they don't find it? And we were not sent by any "gods", nor did we come to protect you. How do you believe we can help?

The Senator nods. "I can order the guards to postpone their search. I will tell them they are needed to prepare for the Caesar's visit. As for the 'Gods,' I've begun to doubt their existence in recent years. I've heard tales however of strange lights in the skies." Keith nods. "UFOs." The Senator frowns. "UFOs? I've never heard that phrase before." "It mean Unidentified Flying Object." The Senator chuckles. "Fascinating! When I fill my report on the fireball the Colosseum attendants saw I shall refer to it as that. I take it you see similar bizarre things where you're from then? Fascinating." The Senator clears his throat. "But, back to business. I need someone to get inside the conspiracy. I hear that that the house of African Senators is in need of two new guards. I can see to it that the two of you get transferred there. Our Zeppelins can get you there in a few days." He chuckles. "Those crafty Germanians, brilliant inventors, especially after we cleared the land of the barbarian hordes oh so many decades ago."

Very well. We shall accopmany you. However, I will tell you that to interfere is against our better judgement.

Sir, what if we put all avaliable energy into the engines? Would that enable us to catch up to the ship we're after?

Greymoran frowns. "We're already at maximum speed Jackson. Warp 9.8 is as fast as this tub can go without flying apart. We're going to have to pace that ship for now."

Sir, I think I've the ship on sensors... it's at extreme sensor range, though...

Rita groans. "We've had the ship on sensors for about an hour now. Check your console. TerrSec fucked with just about every system on this ship. The light for warp core failure is blinking, but the drive is working fine!" Jackson opens up a small panel, and finds that a connection between his snesor console and those of the panel nearest him, the on normally used by Hudzen, is broken. "I really hate TerrSec," he mutters to himself as he sets about fixing the connection.

The Senator looks Keith and Sorik, now wearing the armor of the Senatorial guradsmen, with a short sword hanging in a sheath on their left sides, and a German pistol on their right. "The helmet does wonders to cover up your ears Mr. Sorik," he says as he pulls a small stack of papers out of a case hanging on his belt. He hands them to Keith. "Here are the transfer papers. The Centurions escorting you to the Zeppelin pad are not the ones who brought you to me so they won't recognize you as the 'visitors.'" Keith nods, taking the papers. There are six papers, three with the name Marcus Yugarian and three with Sorik's new identity. He hands Sorik his papers. "OK. We're ready Senator." The Senator smiles. "The fate of the Republic rests on your shoulders friends. Protect her. We need not go back to the days of Caligula and Julius. Those dark days should remain where they are. Behind us."

Jackson, with a small array of tools, manages to fix the connection.
Sir, while we're catching up to the ship, do you want me to see what else TerrSec messed with around here and attempt to repair it?

Greymoran sighs. "There's no telling what those bastards messed with on this ship. So far everything important to the mission seems to be working so we'll cross those bridges when we get to them. For now try to fix Hudzen's console. It kept giving him multiple targets."

Why are we here?
Hudzen found himself standing next to the EMH in a dark slum-like alley. They were facing the entrance to an old,loud, and nasty looking bar.
EMH: Don't ask me, this is your mind, you brought both of us here.
Hudzen: We have already searched for too long. If we don't start finding them soon, the Archangel will need a new tactical and security officer.
EMH: Cheer up Mr. Hudzen. I'm sure you brought us here for a reason.
Hudzen nodded.
Hudzen: Yes, I have a feeling who we may find here.

Jackson pries open the top of Hudzen's console and checks the connections
Ok... all the wires seem secure and in place. Now, are they where they should be? I better get a closer look...
Suddenly, odd spikey things emerge from Jackson's knuckles, causing the rest of the bridge to look at him in shock and suprise
What? These? I'm still wearing my cybersuit, you know, and these will allow me to interact with the console and the design specifics of the console to see if the wires are in the right places...
With that, Jackson sticks the interface into a handy receptor and begins comparing the current wire configuration to what they should be. After ten minutes of this, he unplugs himself from the console and begins changing wire locations
OK.. it looks like several of the wires have been rewired. This should not only solve the multiple target syndrome, but it should improve the console quite a bit, too.
With that, Jackson replaces the console top and sits back down at his own station. He begins checking other systems.
Sir, I think some of the internal sensors need fixing too... they read that the bridge is inhabited by kangaroo rats, and that some of the unused parts of the ship are infested with rice pudding, elephants, and penguins...

Greymoran groans and places his head in his hands, muttering, "I really hate TerrSec."

Jackson looks at his various tools and sighs
If I'm going to get the ship back in shape, I'm going to need better tools...
Jackson opens a panel next to his console and pulls out the latest CyberTec catalog, in padd form. He connects his helmet to the padd and sits in silence for several minutes. After five minutes, he disconnects himself from the padd, and a small wormhole opens next to him. Emerging from the wormhole is a small container, which Jackson opens.
Ah.. the latest in engineering and repair tools. Luckily, CyberTec deals with most of the major universes, and has quality products from said universes. Now to get to work.
Jackson picks up his new tools and disappears. A slight wind is felt on the bridge, as if someone is going really fast, opening and closing things. After several minutes, Jackson's voice waifts over the bridge.
Ok.. I slowed time down for me, fixed whatever I could fix, and somewhat improved the various systems. There were, however, stuff I couldn't deal with or just plain needed upgrading, so we should get to a universe with a good spacedock.
I'm in engineering at the moment, standing next to Hudzen. He has a rather blank look on his face. I know he said he was having some problems, so I took a quick look at his circuitry. It all looks fine, but there seems to be some interesting activity in his brain.. Almost like he's dreaming. I think I can plug myself into his brain and see if I can help him. Should I, Captain?

"Better not. Too risky. Just get back to the bridge."

Hudzen stood facing a small group of droids he'd encountered in his past, supposedly each one representing a part of his net. As he'd suspected, both Bender and Marvin had been in the bar. They'd also managed to run into various others, including Data, the Robinson's robot, and IG-88. The EMH stepped forward.

I take it all of you are already aware of our problem?

Everyone in the group nods.

Good. It appears that we need to find out what exactly TerrSec has done to him and how to repair it.
Data: Excuse me.
EMH: Yes?
Data: I do not believe that it was TerrSec that did this to him. I myself investigated this place and I have encountered evidence that leads me to believe this program was part of you before the Archangel encountered TerrSec.

Hudzen's raises an eyebrow.

Hudzen: How long before?
Data: I believe it has been a part of you since before you commandeered the Archangel. It is my belief that Jakob Grey had this done to you.
Hudzen: Grey?
Data: Correct.

Hudzen lowered his head. Grey had nearly destroyed him when he had rebelled. He hated the man more than anything. Now, he had nearly gotten the best of Hudzen. He still could if Hudzen didn't do something about it.

Data: It appears to be a program Grey had installed into you without your knowledge. I believe he did it to you when he began to suspect that you were no longer loyal to him.
Hudzen: How did he do it without my knowing?
Data: I do not know.
Hudzen: Well, then it's time to end whatever damage he has done.

Suddenly, Grey's voice booms throughout Hudzen's mind.

It took you long enough, Mr. Hudzen.

The group, standing in a small alley only a moment before, now find themselves in a sterile, gray corridor. They are all facing a pair of doors. Hudzen realizes that he must enter the doors.
Robinson's Robot: Hmm.

Hudzen turns to look at the robot.

Hudzen: Hmm what?
Robot: Visual sensors are picking up a humanoid lifesign near your body.

Hudzen looks around.

Hudzen: I don't see anyone.
Robot: Your real body.
Hudzen: My visual sensors are operational?
Robot: Yes. Transferring image to you.

Instantly, Hudzen sees Jackson Dupree appear.

Hudzen: It's Jackson. No need to worry. We need to go into this room. That's our first priority.
EMH: We can't Hudzen. Only you can.
Hudzen: Why?
EMH: You know exactly why.

Hudzen nodded. He walked forward. The doors parted and he entered the room. It was a conference room. At the end of a long table sat a man, leaning back in his chair, eyeing the large robot.

Hudzen: Grey.

Jackson gives Hudzen a more complete examination, but coming up with nothing. With that, he inserts a software version of himself, designed to help Hudzen and then disappear, and heads back up to the bridge.
Well, I didn't find anything massively wrong... It looks like something with his own programming, so I inserted a software avatar of myself to see if it could help him... Of course, when he returns to normal, I think he could use a good tuning up and upgrading... so that he runs better, of course...

With a slight fizz-pop, an image of Jackson appears among the robots in Hudzen's mind
Greetings, I am a software version of Jackson Dupree, a friend and shipmate of Hudzen. Jackson himself wanted to help in any way he could, so he made me... From what Jackson could tell, everything seemed in place with Hudzen's physical body, so he figured that there was something amiss here, which is where I come in.
I'm here to help Hudzen figure out what's going on with him.

The EMH form looks over at the newly arrived shipmate.

EMH: Yes Mr. Dupree, we are all aware of who you are. We are all Hudzen after all. We welcome your help.

The Doc quickly (very quickly) fills Jackson in on what Grey did to Hudzen and the entire situation.

EMH: Right now he is behind these doors. While we cannot help him, you are not a part of Hudzen. You may go in.

Jake Grey, huh? I think I'd better report this to the real Jackson...
The software Jackson stands still for a moment, and in the real world, the real Jackson's padd starts beeping. He takes a look at it and presents his report
Sir, the program I put into Hudzen has found something... Appearently, Jake Grey somehow put his own program into Hudzen at some point in the past, and is only now asserting himself. My software self is asking for advice on how to deal with this software menace...

Grey: Well, Hudzen, welcome to your mind.
Hudzen: What did you do to me?
Grey: Oh this? Just a little mind control program. But don't blame it all on me. I'm not really Jake Grey.
Hudzen: You're close enough.
Hudzen raises his arm and a small gun pops up.
Grey: Nice upgrade. Come on Hudzen. You don't want to destroy me. I'm here to tell you almost everything about this little program.
Hudzen slowly lowers his weapon.
Grey: That's better. Now, listen up. You don't want to miss a word of this.

The software version of Jackson quietly stands in the doorway, recording what Grey's program is about to say, if only to let the real Jackson know what's going on

We will do our best, Senator.

The two centurions escort Sorik and Keith to the Zeppelin pads. Upon arrival, they have to wait a few minutes. During this time Sorik whispers to Keith.

We have rules against interference in any way. I gave the Senator my word, should I keep it, or remain detatched? The latter is the Vulcan way, after all, and that of the XDCA. It is not our place to shape a planet's history, yet here we are in a position which means we very likely will in the near future. What do you think we should do, Mr Yeager?

"We got sucked into this the moment we crashed and were captured. There's very little we can do now except play along and hope we can get our shuttle fixed, or that Rita comes looking for us."

Mr Yeager, your speech just brims over with illogicality and complete lack of preparation.

Virtual Grey: The real Jake Grey realized that when changed his way from the righteous XDCA agent to the supreme and powerful man he would become, individuals like yourself would try to stop him. Although it would be difficult to manipulate the mind of a living being, he knew you would be a different story. He created a program meant to take control of you if you ever shifted loyalties from him. What he didn't count on was your strong resistance to his control. Your sophisticated systems were able to stop the program without your knowledge of anything unusual happening. However, not even your brain can hold it back forever. It's beginning to lose the fight. It will eventually surrender and you will be mine. I will control you and your friends will have to destroy if they don't want to be destroyed themselves.
Hudzen: Can I stop it?
Grey: Oh my dear Hudzen. Why would I tell you that?

Hudzen remains silent.

Grey: I guess it would be more entertaining if you knew. Yes, there is a way to terminate my program. There are two ways, actually. Grey has the technology and supplies to do it one of the way. Plus he actually knows what exactly has to be done to terminate that little program. Perhaps those you work with can figure out what to do, but I doubt it. The second is simple. Kill Jake Grey. It's actually even simpler than that. Grey made the program so that as long as his brain functions, so will the program. It will only end on its own once his brain ceases activity. Not the best design, but not even geniuses like him can think of everthing. So there you are Mr. Hudzen and Mr. He pauses for a second Dupree. That is what is going on. You've shown the first effects of this program. More will come. See you soon Hudzen.

The room fades into blackness. Hudzen opens his eyes. He's in Engineering. He hadn't been out as long as he'd thought. Perhaps his mind had its speed back. He quickly gets to his feet and goes to the bridge. When he enters Greymoran, Rita, and Jackson all turn to see him.

Welcome back, Hudzen. My software self managed to record the conversation, and I have a copy of it on this PADD. I tell you what.. I'll leave my avatar inside you as a reminder that you are still part of the crew, no matter what Grey does to you, and also as a way to fight Grey's program, Ok?

Hudzen nods his thanks to Jackson. He turns to Greymoran speaking in a low voice.

Captain, with your permission, I would like to return to duty.

Keith groans. "Now is not the time. We're too deep into it now to back out so let's just get this over with."

Jackson sits at his console and checks the sensor readings
Sir, we're getting closer to the ship we've been after! We're only about 5 lightyears away and rapidly approaching it as we speak! In about fifteen minutes or so, it should be within the short-range sensors!

Keith and Sorik board the Zeppelin. The Senator waves at them as the blimp lifts off the ground and slowly ascends to begin the flight to Africa. Keith turns to Sorik. "So, how do you suggest we find what the Senator wants?"

If you mean uncover the conspiracy, we must wait until we reach our destination before we find out. I could perform mind-melds with all the possible suspects, but that would attract the wrong kind of attention, and many would not wish to submit themselves to the meld. Besides, a rapid succession of mind-links would leave me disoriented, and perhaps even unsure of my own identity. I think we should treat this as any of the so-called great detectives on your Earth would treat any crime, and ask people what they know. Then we weigh the evidence.

They look out of the window and discover that they are over the African continent, and heading downwards to the Zeppelin pad they are supposed to arrive on

We will be there shortly, Mr Yeager... Marcus Yugarian. And you must call me Flavius Sextilian. Stop being so amused, Mr Yeager, I did not choose my name.

Keith smiles. "Sorry. Reminds me of a movie they showed in us in an elective academy course, 20th Century Humour." Keith looks at his papers again. "Transferred on the date of April the 20th in the year of the Caser One Thousand and Ninety-Nine. 1999. Oy vey."

Of course, Mr Yeager. Let's hope that your knowledge of historical fiction extends to detective stories and other works which involve critical thinking.

The Zeppelin lands, and Sorik and Keith are escorted out by two legionaries.

The Senator sits in his office, staring at the Maltese sky, just after sunset. He hears the soft click of his door opening slowly. He expected this moment to come, but not so soon. He had hoped that his two new friends would find what they were looking for before this came. But whoever was behind the conspiracy was on to him. He turned in his chair. One of his personal guards, one of the men who escorted Keith and Sorik to the Zeppelin pad was standing there with a rifle, the kind that the Aztec peoples used. "As one of my ancestors once said, et tu bruti?" The guard fired, the bullet went through the Senator's chest, and lodged in the wood of his chair. The guard lept out the window into the nearby lake, swimming to a chariot that was awaiting him.

Keith and Sorik are escorted to the Senate chambers. They had learned along their trip that in the 16th century, the Roman Empire had grown so large the Empire knew that Rome alone could not rule it all. So the Empire was split up into several smaller Republics, each ruled by it's own Senate, although these Senates still answered to Rome. The home for the African Senate was by far the most impressive building Keith had seen in his time on this alternate Earth. He imagined that if Sorik had emotions, he might be amazed by it as well. It was a pyramid, not unlike those from Keith's Earth, but this was much larger, and was truncated at the top, where instead of a point, the flags of the Roman Empire blew in the wind. Sorik estimated it's height at equal to that of the Chrysler building, a building he had seen during his time at Starfleet Academy. When they finally reached the doors of the African Senate building, Sorik handed over his papers to the Centurion standing at attention in front of them. Keith then handed his over. The Centurion saluted, a motion Keith and Sorik mimiced exactly before passing through the now open doors.

Sorik stops a passing guard.
Do you know where we can find the African senator?

The Guard chuckles. "Very funny Centurion! And they say the royal guards have no sense of humour. Seriously though, let me see your papers please." Sorik and Keith hand them over yet again. "Ah yes, you've been assigned to chamber protection detail. Good luck. It pays better but the money is hardly worth to hear all those blowhard politicans bickering constatnly. Reminds me of when my children were still young. Thank the Gods they're being schooled in Burgundy now!" He hands the papers back. "It's down the hallway, last door on the end. The Senate is in session now so you'll doubtless here the yelling well before you reach the door." The two reach the door in a matter of minutes. As the guard told them, they were able to hear the yelling an shouting well before they opened the doors. The Senators turned to look at the new arrivals, but continued arguing over matters that to Sorik seemed quit trivial without even pausing. A Centurion steps away from the circle of Guards surrounding the other doors and windows of the Senate chamber. "You must be the transfers. I am Aetius, personal guard to Senator Mkasi of the Southern regions. We understand you are new to the job of Senate detail. Brace yourselves, you are in for quite a show." He smiles. Sorik and Keith soon see what he meant. On several occasions arguments over crop rotations in the Sahara nearly came to blows! Sorik and Keith both felt the tension growing in the air. Had the bell signifying the end of the day's sessions rung a few minutes later a fist fight would've been inevitable. After the second ring, the Senators stopped as if there was no argument at all and began to file out of the chambers, their gurads following them Mkasi and Aetius came up to Kieth and Sorik. Aetius introduced the two to the Senator. The tall thing black skinned man, an imposing presence in the gold trimmed whit robes of a Senator, did not speak but simply nodded at them. Aetius motioned for Kieht and Sorik to follow him as he stepped in front of the Senator, and two other guards took positons along side him. "We will be escorting the Senator to his office, a mere hour away by chariot. There he would wish to speak with you privately."

On the way to the hallway, Sorik muttered to Keith "What did he mean about a sense of humor, Mr Yeager? I do not believe I have one." But Keith silenced him.

----

The chariot, with the Senator, Sorik, Keith and the escorts riding on it, reaches the building which contains the Senator's office. The escorts lead the three inside, and the Senator enters his office and sits at his desk. Keith and Sorik stand facing him, as one of the guards closes the door from the other side.

You wished to speak to us, Senator?

"Yes, I did." The man said, cold and emotionless. "I understand you came from Malta. Tell me, why did you requet a transfer to Africa?"

Keith coughs. "Well, the pay was truly awful, but I suppose the same goes for all Island Senator Guards," he said, remembering the cover story the other Senator gave them. Mkasi nodded. "Such is often the case indeed. Only the old and the tired would want the tedium of guarding Island Senators. After all, not one Island Senator has ever been assassinated. There's never been even an attempt in over five centuries. And you know why? Islanders always go with the will of Rome, regardless. Even when something they opposed is put in place, they blindly follow it." He smiles. "No offense of course." Keith nods. "None taken sir."

Sorik cuts in, not wishing to waste time. He fixes the Senator with a hard unblinking stare.

We have reason to believe there is a plot to assassinate the Caesar, and that a senator from this continent is behind it. Would you perhaps be able to supply information on this subject, Senator?

Mkasi frowns. Keiths groans. "Nice one Sorik," he mutters sarcastically. Mkasi opens a drawer in his desk and pulls out a pistol. "So, Senator Lambert sent you did he? My spies suggested as such. You must be the two men from the sky craft that crashed off the Maltan coast." He walks over and pulls off Sorik's helmet. "So it's true then, one of the space men is not human. According to my source the other oen is. Strange, but not my concern. Neither is Senator Lambert. I've disposed of him properly. He should've cheked the backgrounds of his personal guards more closely. As soon he returns we will all return to Malta, the two of you, my spy, my bodyguards and myself. We will use your ship to remove Germanicus from the throne he is too weak to deserve." He waves his gun at the two. The door behind them bursts open and Mkasi's personal guars bring their rifles to bear on keith and Sorik, who raise their hands in the air.

The guards march Keith and Sorik out of the room. As they turn a corner, Sorik sees his advantage, lowers his hand, and makes a karate-like movement on the shoulder of the guard closest to him. One of the other guards, noticing this, fires his rifle at Sorik, but Sorik dodges and instead a hole is blasted in the wall. Sorik slips behind two other guards, and gives them both a neck-pinch, one with each hand, and they fall to the floor.

Mr Yeager, grab a rifle! Use it only as a club if possible!

Seantor Mkasi is quicker than his big frame suggests. Before Keith is able to grab a gun off of one of the guards, th tall man delivers a kick to the back of his neck that knocks him unconscious. Then with a swift turn and punch knocks Sorik to the floor, wih a bruise on his face. But Sorik is still conscious. He sees Mkasi pull out his Senatorial sword. Although carried mostly for decoratiuon by travelling Senators, it's still capable of piercing even Vulcan skin.

Sorik, with his Vulcan agility, delivers a blow with his fist to Mkasi's ankle. Mkasi stumbles as Sorik gets up, dodging the blast fired towards him. He slips behind one guard.

Stop! You cannot shoot me without killing or seriously injuring one of your own. And if loyalty has no meaning to you, even if you kill him I shall continue to hold him in front of me and use him as a shield.

He tightens his grasp on the guard's arms, one hand holding each.

Mkasi tosses the guard in front of him aside and grabs his rifle and fires. The guard stiffens and gasps in Sorik's arms. The guard goes cold. Mkasi aims at Sorik's head as the guard's lolls to the side. Suddenly Mkasi grunts in pain and drops his gun. As he falls a groggy Keith is standing behind him. "That'll show him for standing legs apart." He almost snickers. Sorik drops the dead guard and steps over the unconscious one to grab his sword while Keith picks up his gun. "So what do we do now?" Sorik looks out towards the Zeppelin port.

-

Aboard the Archangel the crew is worried. The Galaxy-class ship they'd been chasing was finally within reach. But the fact that it was just sititng there worried Greymoran more than a little. Also of concern was that Keith and Sorik hadn't contacted them yet. They should've reached this universe's Earth hours ago. Jackson sits at his console trying to raise their shuttle, while Hudzen does a final check on the weapons systems.

It appears the conspiracy has been unmasked much more easily that we thought it would be. Then again, these are humans we are dealing with.

He turns round and faces Yeager, his eyebrow raised and his mouth in a slight smirk.

No offence, of course.

Keith rolls his eyes.

As for what we should do next, I suggest we tell the Maltan Senator about how our mission went and perhaps even report the events to the Caesar.

Keith shakes his head. "That would be nice if we had more evidence. Mkasi's statement to us would never hold up in a court becuase it's heresay(sp?). And to make matters worse for us, we could be compelled to testify. The best thing we could do is send a warning to Rome that'll hopefully discourage the Casear from coming." Keith stares off into the distance at something on the horizon, barely visible before, but the setting sun has illuminated it. It's a massive statue. "Sorik, I can't really tell from here, but is that a statue of one of the early Roamn emperors? It looks familiar. Like Nemo or Claudius or soemthing."

-

Aboard the Archangel the tension turns to deafening silence for the bridge crew, the only sound audible to any of them is Rita gritting her teeth. Suddenlya beep distracts the entire crew, as they, in unison turns to face Jackson's console. Jackson taps a few keys. "Sir a dimensional portla has opened just behind the Galaxy-class vessel. Two ships coming through. Can't identify them until the portla closes." Rita taps a key on her console and the long range snesors focus into a tight beam, increasing it's range, but narrowing it's field. Half the Galaxy-class ship, though appearing larger, disappears from the screen and the two smaller ships become visible as they come out of the purple light of the portal. Greymoran's eyes widen as he recognizes them. Jackson turns to face him. "Sir, the ships are identified as being-" "Jem'heddar." Greymoran interupts. "Rita if we go to code red battle mode, what will ahppen to the wapr engines?" "The drain of power will drop us from our current speed to a maximum of warp 7.9, but I think we're close enough." Greymoran nods. "Do it. Full power to shields and weapons. Hudzen I hope you're working at 100% becuase we are seriously outnumbered." Rita hits the button nearest to her right hand. The lights on the bridge darken and turn red, an alarm klaxon blares for a few seconds before going silent. Greymoran tightens his grip on his arm rests. The portal closes, and the three ships turn to face the Archangel. "We've been detected sir." Rita groans. Greymoran sighs. "This is gonna be a hell of a fight."

-

Aboard the Galaxy-class ship Jake Grey smiles evily while TorGal laughs. "This is my luck day TorGal. I'd imagine they'd go after their shuttle the Kilrathi shot down. Obviously Greymoran's obsession with catching me will be his undoing. Full power to weapons TorGal. They may have superior weapons, but we have Dominion escorts. We'll take care of the Archangel, then move on to STU90 to finish what we started." Jake Grey laughs as the Red Alert lights go off on the bridge of his new flagship.

TO BE CONTINUED...