Synthesis - James Swallow [86]
“It could be the Null,” Melora said quickly. “It’s putting out so much energy, it’s possible some could have psionic properties.”
“You have an idea what that thing is?” said Vale.
And suddenly, she was on the spot. The Elaysian gestured with the padd. “The readings from the sensors are confusing,” she admitted. “I’m still theorizing, but I know for certain the Null matches the subspace distortions we first encountered, no question about that, but the form itself is hard to pin down. It resembles a kind of exotic matter, something that exists in a malleable phase state somewhere between conventional matter and an energized matrix.”
“You’re talking about protomatter.” Fell gasped. Everyone on the bridge knew the significance of the term; protomatter was a highly unstable and utterly lethal form of energy matrix prohibited by almost every starfaring culture in existence.
Melora nodded. “But more than that. The physiology of it, if you can call it that…” She trailed off for a brief moment, looking back at the thick, oblate mass before them. “It’s almost like a virus.”
“It’s alive?” said Vale.
“I think it could be. Don’t ask me how. This is beyond anything we’ve seen before.”
“Lieutenant Pazlar’s analysis is intriguing,” agreed the avatar, her gaze briefly turning inward. “Starfleet’s databases bring up a number of comparative examples. The mellitus cloud creature, a nonsentient life-form from Alpha Majoris, which exists in either solid or gaseous state. The Shedai, a precursor civilization from the Taurus Reach, capable of reordering the nature of their atomic structure on the particle scale. The—”
“Whatever it is, I think it’s noticed us,” Ranul Keru broke in, standing at Tuvok’s post behind the tactical console. “I’m detecting smaller chunks of the mass disconnecting and moving this way.”
“We should retreat,” White-Blue insisted.
Melora glanced at her commanding officer and wondered what he had to be thinking at that moment. Are Tuvok and the others already dead? Are the remains of the Holiday out there among that slick of wreckage and radiation, or has it already been chewed up by the Null?
But before Riker could utter a word of response, Aili Lavena at the helm called out. “More Sentry ships approaching to our stern. They’re on an attack vector.”
Melora saw four craft of different designs rush past and race into the fray. One of them, a bone-white thing resembling a diving bird, roared in blazing green fire from cannons on its nose. It missed the spinning lash of a Null fragment and banked sharply but not fast enough. The cord of alien matter looped and wound itself around the AI warship, pulling tight and strangling the mechanoid vessel.
Horrified, she watched the process of consumption begin on the science monitor screen. “Molecular conversion,” whispered Fell. “It’s altering the phase state of the ship into line with the rest of the Null. Absorbing it.”
Melora was suddenly struck by disgust and understanding in equal measure. “I’m wrong,” she said aloud. “The Null isn’t a virus. It’s a cancer.”
On the viewscreen, the other new arrivals moved to form an attack pattern with another group of shipframes showing signs of heavy damage. The Elaysian recognized one of them as the rods-and-cylinders shape of the vessel holding the consciousness of Cyan-Gray.
Riker leaned forward in the center seat. “We didn’t come here to turn away.” He looked toward the two women at the science console. “Peya, keep scanning for the shuttle. Melora, work with Ranul. Give him all the data you have.”
“We’re going to lend a hand?” asked Vale.
“Lives are under threat. We won’t stand by and do nothing.” The captain gestured to Lieutenant Lavena. “Helm, take us in, attack pattern April-Bravo-Six.”
“Aye, sir,” replied the Pacifican, and the view on the screen rushed closer as Titan entered the conflict.
Following the Sentry ships in on a sharp upward arc, the Starfleet vessel brought up the rear as the faster, more maneuverable