Gateways 07_ What Lay Beyond - Diane Carey [133]
“But, but,” Robin stammered, looking at her mother, who acted unperturbed by both the storm outside the vessel and inside the bridge.
“We’ve lost about five minutes from our schedule,” Morgan reported without turning around. She seemed totally absorbed by the board below her fingers.
“I can fix that,” Burgoyne replied. “Bridge to engineering. Time to heat up the engines. Give us warp nine point eight until I say otherwise.”
And the ship surged forward, heading to a world that once proudly flew the flag of the Thallonian Empire.
“Helm, status,” Vaughn said.
Ensign Prynn Tenmei said, “On course, ETA seventeen minutes.”
For Vaughn, all seemed to be performing according to plan. Europa Nova had been successfully evacuated, Ro’s covert mission to Farius Prime had been successful, and Dax had just called in reporting that Kira was not dead as previously reported, and had returned safely to the station. He looked forward to discussing her odyssey when he returned. But for now, they had to arrive at Dinasia and find the gateway. He intended to go down with Ensign Thirishar ch’Thane, leaving Lieutenant Nog in charge. Normally, he would be wary of leaving so inexperienced an officer in charge of the Defiant without backup. But the ship’s previous commander, Worf, was on board, even if he wasn’t strictly speaking Starfleet anymore, in case things got out of hand. Besides, Vaughn admired Nog’s style.
“Ensign ch’Thane,” Vaughn said, “you and I’ll beam down with the Resonator. If I encounter any problems, you can help me with the equipment.”
Shar looked mildly apprehensive. “My technical skills are not the best, sir. Perhaps Lieutenant Nog”
Vaughn knew that the young Andorian had a reputation as being something of a klutz with equipment he was a science officer, more comfortable with theory than practice but Vaughn also knew that he wouldn’t get any better without experience. “I have faith in you, Ensign. Mr. Nog, you have the conn in my absence.”
Nog, Vaughn noticed, gave Shar a look of encouragement.
Minutes later, the ship achieved orbit and Shar quickly found the operating gateway on a remote island. It was devoid of Dinasian life-forms and Vaughn suspected they shunned it given the planet’s Iconian roots. Whatever the reason, it meant they could move freely, which gave him confidence.
Within minutes, he and Shar materialized on the island, the tangy smell of the sea greeting them immediately. Wind blew water onto the rocks, causing high surf, trees swaying with the force. It was small, with no other island in sight, totally isolated. An odd place for a gateway, Vaughn mused, but who knew what the topography had been like two hundred millennia ago?
Shar spotted the cave entrance first and led the duo toward the island’s one and only hill. The entrance was wide but low, forcing them to crouch to get inside. It was damp within, with lichen growing thick on the walls. About ten feet inside the cave stood the active gateway, the control mechanism to the left, closer to the men. Cautious, Vaughn withdrew his tricorder and took readings, noting it was functioning as expected. No surprises as yet. Within the aperture, the rotating images were of three different interior destinations, none of which looked vaguely familiar to Vaughn. He glanced over at Shar, who shook his head.
The commander was holding the Resonator and recognized there was no reason not to place the device atop the control panel. The tricorder chronometer said he was running about ten minutes early from Data’s elaborate plan. Still, he had no way to communicate with the thirteen other people doing the exact same task. As a result, he had to have faith and act.
The Resonator fit snugly atop the controls, as Picard had described. And just as expected, the machine acted accordingly, and the light show began….
…a map of the universe began to appear before Captain Grekor, who stood alone on a desert planet that had been conquered by Kahless’s son in one of the earliest additions to the Empire. The lights shifted