Q & A - Keith R. A. DeCandido [9]
She got up and stood behind him, putting her arms under his, hands resting on his chest, staring at the stars through the port over his shoulder, on which her chin rested. “You regret not being on the Enterprise when they faced the Borg.” It wasn’t a question.
“To an extent. I suppose that’s bound to keep happening every time we get a letter from someone or read a Starfleet dispatch.”
“I’m sure Captain Picard feels the same way when he reads our letters or sees our reports as we file them.”
Riker smiled. “Probably. I’m sure he’ll get over it.”
Before the conversation could be pursued, the stars stopped streaking by and normalized to twilights in the distant night sky, indicating—along with the subtle shift in the vibration of the deck plates that twenty-three years of Starfleet service had conditioned Riker to be able to read—that they had come out of warp and arrived at the Vela 3AG system.
As Riker recalled from the premission briefing, Titan was supposed to come into the system at an angle that would provide the captain with a view of the star, its fourth planet, and its ten moons from his cabin—which was the main reason why he’d awakened so early, so he could catch the vista he was promised.
Riker was surprised to see neither sun nor planet nor moons. Instead, a good portion of the lower-right-hand corner of his cabin port revealed a roiling mass of energy.
Gently disentangling himself from his wife, he touched a control on the nightstand. “Riker to bridge. Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”
Titan’s second officer, Commander Tuvok, answered. “If you are referring to the anomaly at bearing 197 mark 4, then the answer to your question would be yes.”
Smiling grimly at the Vulcan’s reply, Riker said, “Yes, indeed, Mister Tuvok. What happened to Vela 3AG?”
“Only the outermost planetoids are still being picked up by our sensors—however, both have suffered temperature losses that bring them close to absolute zero, as well as tectonic stresses, neither of which matches what our long-range sensors picked up only yesterday.”
“Can you tell me anything about the anomaly?”
“Sensors are not reading the anomaly’s presence, Captain. While it has a visual component, it is not detectable by sensors at this range.”
Riker moved over to the closet to grab a uniform, removing his bedclothes as he did so. “Send a class-one probe. I’m on my way up.”
“Aye, sir.”
“I don’t like the sound of this,” he said as he started getting dressed. “Titan has top-of-the-line sensors, and if we can’t pick this up…”
Deanna walked up to him and put her hands on his shoulders. “We’ll figure it out.” And then she gave him a passionate kiss.
Riker enjoyed the kiss for several seconds before coming up for air and finishing putting on his uniform.
“Do you need me?” Deanna asked.
Grinning, Riker said, “Always.”
She grinned right back. “I meant on the bridge.”
“I wouldn’t object, but no need to rush if you’ve got other priorities. If I do need you, I’ll let you know.”
She nodded. “Good luck, Will.”
“Like you said, we’ll figure this out.” He smiled. “We’ve come across our share of bizarre spatial anomalies. I’m sure Tuvok will have fifteen possible scenarios by the time I reach the bridge.”
Feeling a dread that belied his upbeat words—which he knew Deanna knew—Riker turned and headed for the bridge.
FIRST INTERLUDE
The Continuum
Fifteen years before the end of the universe
“WOULD YOU MIND EXPLAINING YOURSELF, Q?”
He made a tch noise. “Actually, I would mind, as I’m far too complex a being to sum up in a brief explanation, and I’m not sure we have the kind of time for a long one. The ones will be needed soon, and—”
“Enough!” Q screamed. “You led us to believe that this was a serious matter, but then when we asked you to follow some simple instructions—”
“Simple instructions?” He stared at