String Theory_ Fusion (Book 2) - Kirsten Beyer [79]
“She’s right,” B’Elanna added. “Maybe our sensors haven’t actually been malfunctioning in respect to these life-forms. Even the slightest phase variance as they move in and out of our precise phase modulation makes it look like they exist and then cease to exist from one fraction of a second to the next.”
“If we can track them, can we also count them?” Chakotay asked. “I’d like to know how many we’re up against.”
Seven rose, moved to the room’s computer interface, adjusted the sensors to account for the multiphasic properties of the organisms, and said, “There are nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety-six creatures that share this signature aboard the array.”
Chakotay and Tom exchanged a worried glance.
“Great,” Tom said. “So, basically we’re talking about an army of them.”
“An army against which we’re currently defenseless,” Harry added.
“Not entirely,” B’Elanna said. “We’ve restored the shield generators to full power and as long as the shields are up, we should be safe aboard Voyager.”
“So you believe we can remain here indefinitely?” Chakotay asked.
“In theory,” B’Elanna replied. “We might also be able to find some kind of a defense, in the event they find a way through our shields.”
“Let’s assume they will. Developing a defense needs to be our first priority right now,” Chakotay said. “Setting that aside for the moment, let’s also assume that whoever or whatever Phoebe actually is, her intentions are hostile. What was she doing here? And why go to such lengths to insinuate herself among us? What did she want that she couldn’t have simply taken by force?”
“The Key to Gremadia,” Seven said, as if everyone should already know that. When the others faced her with a mixture of irritation and disbelief plain on their faces, she elaborated. “The captain asked me to locate the Key, which was, at that time, missing. I discovered that shortly before we boarded the array, the Key was transported into our warp core. The transporter logs were deleted in a manner similar to the log alterations that Ensign Kim has described. Therefore I suspect that Phoebe was responsible for the transport.”
“Why would she have done that?” Chakotay asked.
“As we have not engaged the warp engines in several days, it was a perfect hiding place. The residual antimatter in the core provided a natural shield for the dissonance waves that emanate from the Key, which have increased significantly since we boarded the array. It appears that her primary interest is not in us, but in the Key itself, and in making sure that we are unable to discover its purpose.”
“So what does an ancient religious artifact have to do with us, apart from the fact that it was given to us as a gift?” was Chakotay’s next question.
“We found a large collection of historical records aboard the Betasis. From that data it is possible to extrapolate at least a partial hypothesis,” Seven continued. “The first and only Monorhan to ever touch the Key was the haran who discovered it, Dagan. It imparted visions to him of Monorha’s ancient past, which he integrated into their existing religious mythology. Dagan died shortly after he touched the Key, and for reasons I can only speculate about, the Key became a sacred and terrifying object of reverence. It was encased in a box, the same box in which it was presented to the captain.”
“Do you have a theory as to why the Monorhans were so frightened of it?” Chakotay asked.
“Much of the Key’s history between Dagan’s death and its retrieval by Kaytok’s family is lost to us. However, I believe it is significant that according to the calculations we did when we first encountered the Monorhan system and the Blue Eye in particular, the gravitational shift which ultimately resulted in the destabilization of the star began at exactly the same time as Dagan’s death.”
“Did the Monorhans make a connection between the activity of the Blue Eye and Dagan’s death?” Harry interjected.
“No, Ensign,” Seven replied. “They were much more perturbed