Cole: comm officer hail the romulans i want to know what has happened to our officer. Also keep me posted on admiral allens progress. Let me know when admiral soval is realised and we will pick up our officer.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
As cole walks on the bridge of the avalanche a shadow class dreadgnought he simply waits for reports to come in as he is helpless right now to be at bajor or help soval. He taps a few commands into a computer in his quartres and then heads for the med bay so the doctor can make sure he is healing properly.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
Romulan Officer: Impressive, Vice Admiral Soval. Our mind probes struggle to extract any data from your mind, though I'm not sure what I was expecting from a Vulcan. I do have cruder and less comfortable methods at my disposal, but, it would make matters much easier on the 2 of us if you simply told us what we want to know.
Soval: You haven't asked me any questions yet.
Romulan Officer: You know what I want to know.
*Elsewhere in the complex.*
Romulan Officer 2: What was your mission?
Ores: Ores, Lieutenant, Starfleet. Serial Number: 1003 *Officer nods to guards, who subsequently raise their weapons at Ores and Commander Gardra* 987--
Gardra: Shut up!
*Elsewhere (again. What ever happened to public torture? jks)*
T'las: You know these mind probes won't coerce a Vulcan to break without killing them, so what do you hope to gain?
Romulan Officer 3: Medical Examination shows that you're only half Vulcan. One of your parents was Human? Name and rank?
T'las: Steven Rogers, Captain. U.S. Army. *Sarcastic*
Romulan Officer 3: Wrong. T'las Maryland, Commander, Starfleet. Serial number: 10034779033. Born in Chicago, Earth. Your Mother was Vulcan, your Father, Human. You suppressed your emotions to the same level as the average Human so you could absorb experiences from both worlds and you're--
T'las: Am I supposed to be impressed? You could have gotten that out of the ship's computer banks with relative ease.
Romulan Officer 3: And you're currently engaged in a Romantic relationship with Vice Admiral Soval, your Commanding Officer.
*T'las exhibits a state of shock on her face*
Romulan Officer 3: We have agents everywhere. Problem? Now, let's try this again. Name and rank?
T'las: Katherine Janeway, Cap-- *Is electrocuted. Cries out in pain*
Romulan Officer 3: That was level 1. The level goes as high as 55. Level 10 is enough to kill a human. Level 15, enough to kill a Vulcan. Really want to see how much DNA you have from either race?
*Back to Soval*
Soval: We were investigating Iconia under suspicions that the rebels were using it as a base from which to attack the Federation.
Romulan Officer 1: And you found something?
Soval: Yes.
Romulan Officer 1: What?
Soval: If I tell you, you must promise me you'll release my crew and ship, and to give my story a full hearing before the Continuing Committee.
Romulan Officer 1: You have my word, on the brink of my duty as a Romulan Commander.
Soval: Very well. Could you get it cleared first?
Romulan Officer 1: Of course. *Taps wrist communicator.* All teams, cease interrogation of the prisoners.
Romulan Officer 1: I have spoken to my superiors and they have agreed to your request. Your crew and the VGI observer will be returned to your ship and they will be escorted back to Federation Space. I will deliver you to Rator III aboard my Vessel to meet with the Continuing Committee.
Soval: Thank you.
*A few hours later, the Sao Paulo leaves the area with three D'Deridex class Warbirds as escort. A fourth Warbird leaves as well, heading for Rator III.*
*The USS Odyssey conference room, The Fleet Admiral pulls out a chair for Admiral Tarlon, and sits himself so he may have eye contact with the Admiral.*
Please sit Admiral.
The first question I must ask since you have come to the Federation during war time and this is only precautionary.
Romulan Officer 1: I have spoken to my superiors and they have agreed to your request. Your crew and the VGI observer will be returned to your ship and they will be escorted back to Federation Space. I will deliver you to Rator III aboard my Vessel to meet with the Continuing Committee.
Soval: Thank you.
*A few hours later, the Sao Paulo leaves the area with three D'Deridex class Warbirds as escort. A fourth Warbird leaves as well, heading for Rator III.*
lord cole looks over the report.
" computer raise ambassoder dimitry."
dimitry: cole what can i do for you .
cole: dimitry there is a federation admiral named soval i want you to work with the romulan government to make sure he gets let go.
dimitry: very well i will see what i can do.
after he closes the channel he listens to news reports and military briefings of the current sector.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
*The USS Odyssey conference room, The Fleet Admiral pulls out a chair for Admiral Tarlon, and sits himself so he may have eye contact with the Admiral.*
Please sit Admiral.
The first question I must ask since you have come to the Federation during war time and this is only precautionary.
Where did you and your race come from?
Tarlon: Our race came from a planet (what you consider Class M) in the 3rd closest Galaxy to your own. Tlachine Prime was the 5th Planet from it's Sun. 500,000 years ago we encountered a strang race who called themselves the "Iconians". They said they were driven from their own World by conquering powers who destroyed their Planet. We welcomed them to our world while we were still experimenting with Time-Warp Drive technology.
After a century, the Iconians had found their own world to colonise and stretch fourth a new empire from. Little did we know that they weren't Saints from another world, they were demons. Demons of Air and Darkness. 100,000 years ago they invaded one of our outlying Colonies. No ships, they just appeared from nowhere. We had no choice but to destroy the planet to prevent the Iconians from using it's resources against us. After the evacuation, one of our ships followed the Iconians back to their base where they found a Gateway. It was their that they learned a vital secret. The Iconians had to leave most of their technology behind, and were only now able to rebuild their Gateways. What evened the playing field was, their Gateway had a range limit, so they had to build another on any world they conquered before they could move onto the next one.
With no way of reaching one of our worlds, the Iconians tried other nearby Empires, eventually leading to 2 coalitions fighting for control. Our Alliance opted to destroy any planet the Iconians could use to bridge the gap between our Empires, unless the planet was inhabited by sentient life. If that were the case, we'd build a base above that world and defend it from the Iconians if they ever tried to conquer it.
Before long it became a Space War, with both sides fighting one another in Starships, which is where our side had an advantage over the Iconians. We were on the offensive, and had taken several sectors of the enemy's space, but then, time ran out.
The Iconians managed to build a new Gateway with a greater range that they could send probes through. We called them "Stellar seeds" because they orbited the stars of our homeworlds and slowly drove them to go nova. When we realised what was happening, we tried to evacuate our homeworld while our fleets searched for the WMDs. That's when we learned. They weren't Weapons of Mass Destruction, they were Doomsday weapons. The supernovae tore through our system at FTL speeds, by the end of it, there was little or nothing left of the Allied worlds, or the Iconians' allies. The Iconians were in complete control of the Galaxy. That was just 1,000 years ago.
Admiral, before the Cataclysm, there were over Five-Hundred-Thousand-Trillion Tlachinas, now there are only 100,000,000 of us. We grabbed any ship that could reach Transwarp Speeds and fled. To my knowledge, so did the other races, but we were never able to meet up with them. We chose a straight-line course and simulated which Galaxy we would reach first, yours.
We've been watching your alliances for the last 200 years and realised which of your Alliances would be best to seek refuge with. The Klingons valued honour above all else, but were too aggressive. The Romulans had amazing guile, but were too cautious. The Cardassians were amazing Artisans, but became far too militant. The Dominion were widely spread, but too paranoid. The Borg valued nothing about freedom. Eventually we settled on the Federation. You took all the great aspects of those Empires with very few of the drawbacks. You have unity, honour, cunning to a degree were we can still trust you, creativity, and you are spread over hundreds of worlds. Most importantly, you value freedom, trust and friendship. Our races are very alike. We'd like to join you, if you'll have us.
in deep space the vanguard ship avalanche coles new command ship of the shadow class design is traveling through the system when soon as sensor blip appears.
cole: what have we got lt.finylr
lt. finylr: sir we have an anomily much like the one we found at the romulan base that we believe the iconians are traveling through sir.
cole: red alert bring all defenses up prime weapons hot and be ready to fire if anything trys to come out. computer raise admiral allen emergency channel. allen i know you are busy but we have found another anomily like the ones the iconians where using at the base we just captured.im calling in my fleet to this poisition.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
Tarlon: Our race came from a planet (what you consider Class M) in the 3rd closest Galaxy to your own. Tlachine Prime was the 5th Planet from it's Sun. 500,000 years ago we encountered a strang race who called themselves the "Iconians". They said they were driven from their own World by conquering powers who destroyed their Planet. We welcomed them to our world while we were still experimenting with Time-Warp Drive technology.
After a century, the Iconians had found their own world to colonise and stretch fourth a new empire from. Little did we know that they weren't Saints from another world, they were demons. Demons of Air and Darkness. 100,000 years ago they invaded one of our outlying Colonies. No ships, they just appeared from nowhere. We had no choice but to destroy the planet to prevent the Iconians from using it's resources against us. After the evacuation, one of our ships followed the Iconians back to their base where they found a Gateway. It was their that they learned a vital secret. The Iconians had to leave most of their technology behind, and were only now able to rebuild their Gateways. What evened the playing field was, their Gateway had a range limit, so they had to build another on any world they conquered before they could move onto the next one.
With no way of reaching one of our worlds, the Iconians tried other nearby Empires, eventually leading to 2 coalitions fighting for control. Our Alliance opted to destroy any planet the Iconians could use to bridge the gap between our Empires, unless the planet was inhabited by sentient life. If that were the case, we'd build a base above that world and defend it from the Iconians if they ever tried to conquer it.
Before long it became a Space War, with both sides fighting one another in Starships, which is where our side had an advantage over the Iconians. We were on the offensive, and had taken several sectors of the enemy's space, but then, time ran out.
The Iconians managed to build a new Gateway with a greater range that they could send probes through. We called them "Stellar seeds" because they orbited the stars of our homeworlds and slowly drove them to go nova. When we realised what was happening, we tried to evacuate our homeworld while our fleets searched for the WMDs. That's when we learned. They weren't Weapons of Mass Destruction, they were Doomsday weapons. The supernovae tore through our system at FTL speeds, by the end of it, there was little or nothing left of the Allied worlds, or the Iconians' allies. The Iconians were in complete control of the Galaxy. That was just 1,000 years ago.
Admiral, before the Cataclysm, there were over Five-Hundred-Thousand-Trillion Tlachinas, now there are only 100,000,000 of us. We grabbed any ship that could reach Transwarp Speeds and fled. To my knowledge, so did the other races, but we were never able to meet up with them. We chose a straight-line course and simulated which Galaxy we would reach first, yours.
We've been watching your alliances for the last 200 years and realised which of your Alliances would be best to seek refuge with. The Klingons valued honour above all else, but were too aggressive. The Romulans had amazing guile, but were too cautious. The Cardassians were amazing Artisans, but became far too militant. The Dominion were widely spread, but too paranoid. The Borg valued nothing about freedom. Eventually we settled on the Federation. You took all the great aspects of those Empires with very few of the drawbacks. You have unity, honour, cunning to a degree were we can still trust you, creativity, and you are spread over hundreds of worlds. Most importantly, you value freedom, trust and friendship. Our races are very alike. We'd like to join you, if you'll have us.
I will bring you up to speed with what has gone down recently. The Iconians have made their move but have been manipulating everyone in the quadrant to war with one another. But instead of doing it themselves they manipulated the fluidic space species known as the Undine to infiltrate the leading powers causing the war between the Klingon's and the Gorn, then with the Federation. As of right now the Klingon-Federation war is now on ice as we are fighting the Romulans who have more advanced technology and strange technology that is not of their making.
soon cole walks into a dark room hidden away in the ship and enters except for a few candels burning the room is in darkness. cole walks into the center of the room and looks around.
Cole: i have done what you have asked and now i need your help in stopping this thing from brining the iconians into our space.
silence
Cole: they may not be a threat to you but they are to me and my people.if you want me to help you well you better help me know by getting up and dong something for once.
mysterious voice: you already know what to do and have the weapons you need to destroy it you do not need our help.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
soon cole walks into a dark room hidden away in the ship and enters except for a few candels burning the room is in darkness. cole walks into the center of the room and looks around.
Cole: i have done what you have asked and now i need your help in stopping this thing from brining the iconians into our space.
silence
Cole: they may not be a threat to you but they are to me and my people.if you want me to help you well you better help me know by getting up and dong something for once.
mysterious voice: you already know what to do and have the weapons you need to destroy it you do not need our help.
OOC: based on the Vorlons? "Unless your people get off their encounter-suited butts and DO SOMETHING, I've got nothing to lose!"
Alright all hands this ship and these refugees are our allies. Given that we have a situation with Admiral Soval we need to either wait for this to blow over or recover him.
Alright all hands this ship and these refugees are our allies. Given that we have a situation with Admiral Soval we need to either wait for this to blow over or recover him.
Admiral allen my ambassoder is currently working on rator trying to make sure admiral soval is free. But i do have an undercover team ready to move in to free him. I can get you to them if you want. That way it would look like mercs or rebels and not either of our govt. But i fear our time is passing quickly.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
Admiral allen my ambassoder is currently working on rator trying to make sure admiral soval is free. But i do have an undercover team ready to move in to free him. I can get you to them if you want. That way it would look like mercs or rebels and not either of our govt. But i fear our time is passing quickly.
*On Rator III, Nueva Roma City.*
Soval: Soval to Admiral Allen. Admiral, you'll be happy to know that the Sao Paulo's crew has been released, the Sao Paulo crossed into Federation Space a few hours ago. I'm remaining on Rator III to explain the situation the the Romulan Continuing Committee. I'll keep you informed. Soval out.
soon cole arrives back on vanguard as the capital is bustling with parades and excitement as the last string of victories is being celebrated. soon cole steps up and address the people.
" we have come along way. from a small spot on the galaxy to a growing and thriving people. we have had loss but we have had more gain. after current battles we control more space more resources. we continue to thrive even in the midst of terrible danger. we have shown this galaxy we can stand on our own. we will celebrate now but this war is not over. the iconians are returning but we will not be made afraide of them because we will be ready. we have already had the chance to test our new ships and technology against them and it has worked well. it will not be an easy road but then no one here has had an easy life. we all have faced our struggles but we have become stronger. now lets enoy the celebration."
fireworks soon go off as music and dancing begins the whole city is in joy as cole makes his way to the palace. he enters a private chamber.
cole:you know you should make yourself known soon. while my people may not question how we have advanced others might. and if we are to keep an edge better them think we have someone here but you dont necissarly have to let them know the extent of what you have been doing.
being: no if the iconians know we are here they will attack before you are ready we must wait.
cole: very well that is your decision and i cant force otherwise.
cole soon leaves the chamber and leaves to partake in the celebration
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
*USS Dogos Gear finds the San Paulo heading back to Federation Space.*
FLA Quale: Ross you should hail the ship and ascertain the situation.
VA Derek Ross: Fleet Admiral Quale That would really depend on if the Romulan Escort will allow us.
*Derek Ross rises from his Captain's chair.*
Open a channel to the Romulans
DG Helm: Channel open
Romulan Vessels this is Vice Admiral Derek Ross of the United Federation of Planets we will handle the transport of this vessel to Sol.
Romulan Captain: That will do Vice Admiral.. Here is your ship back with its crew. Enjoy your day and pray we are as forgiving next time.
VA Derek Ross: I will keep that in mind friend.
*Transmission ends*
Derek Ross: Alright Dexter you take a security team and some engineers I want you to comb through that vessel and make sure there were no nasty gifts left by the Romulans.
*Dexter rises and gives a curt nod*
Dexter: It will be done sir. *walks toward the turbolift pointing to a couple security detail* You, you, and you come with me.
Quale: Surely the Romulans are sincere Vice Admiral... Why would they sabotage our vessel.
D. Ross: They know we have a cloak probably better than theirs and depending if they scoured the vessel and the data banks I doubt they would have found the information they needed.
Ensign I want you to scan that vessel and give me all the details.
soon the vgi operative arrives back at the palace on vanguard. he is ushered into coles private chambers. the operative soon enters and sits down accross from coles desk.
cole stands with his back to the operative as he looks out a window into the night. " so how did the mission go? did you get the information we needed."
operative " yes sir i was able to retrieve the information i have the padd right here with me. "
cole: " good has anyone else seen this information?"
operative " no sir no one saw or nows "
cole: " very well you may leave it on the desk i will go over the info soon and have a new assignment for you shortly."
the operative soon leaves as cole soon walks over to his desk and starts going through the information he has now received.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
Ops Ensign: Sir I am detecting the entire crew minus Admiral Soval. There are also some thalaron signatures coming from the warp core.
Derek Ross: Is the crew alive?
Ops Ensign: Yes sir, they are alive.
Derek Ross: Alright ensign transmit the locations of the Thalaron signatures to the away team. I want the purpose of these found out.
Comm officer Rezin: Sir, Commander Dexter is hailing.
Derek Ross: On screen.
Dexter: Admiral it appears that the Romulans have not taken the cloaking device but they did jury rig the warp core with Thalaron emitters and programmed the computer on a course to Starbase 41 to destroy the inhabitants on the station. There is also a problem. The crew seems to have bomb collars so if we remove the crew or do something to the warp core the ship and the crew will explode. To make matters worse they have sealed off Engineering and encrypted the computers to lock out Starfleet command codes.
*The entire crew on the bridge including Quale are stunned, but Derek Ross clenches his jaw. and grinds his teeth.*
Derek Ross: Alright Commander stay put and do not do anything to compromise the ship or the crew. I am going to call in some help.
*Transmission ends.*
Derek Ross: Lt. Rezin send a priority message to Fleet Admiral Allen informing him of the situation, then quickly send a priority message to Cole requesting aid from his Black Ops and inform him of the treachery here.
Ops Ensign: Sir I am detecting the entire crew minus Admiral Soval. There are also some thalaron signatures coming from the warp core.
Derek Ross: Is the crew alive?
Ops Ensign: Yes sir, they are alive.
Derek Ross: Alright ensign transmit the locations of the Thalaron signatures to the away team. I want the purpose of these found out.
Comm officer Rezin: Sir, Commander Dexter is hailing.
Derek Ross: On screen.
Dexter: Admiral it appears that the Romulans have not taken the cloaking device but they did jury rig the warp core with Thalaron emitters and programmed the computer on a course to Starbase 41 to destroy the inhabitants on the station. There is also a problem. The crew seems to have bomb collars so if we remove the crew or do something to the warp core the ship and the crew will explode. To make matters worse they have sealed off Engineering and encrypted the computers to lock out Starfleet command codes.
*The entire crew on the bridge including Quale are stunned, but Derek Ross clenches his jaw. and grinds his teeth.*
Derek Ross: Alright Commander stay put and do not do anything to compromise the ship or the crew. I am going to call in some help.
*Transmission ends.*
Derek Ross: Lt. Rezin send a priority message to Fleet Admiral Allen informing him of the situation, then quickly send a priority message to Cole requesting aid from his Black Ops and inform him of the treachery here.
cole soon enters his quarters at the palace again after partaking in the celebrations of the day and see his terminal blinking he goes over and activates it and reads the message.
cole : allen my men are standing by what can we do for you.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
after sending allen his message cole hits his terminal " i want delta, red, and blue teams to report to the avalanche asap. once they are aboard we will head for the the coordinates supplied.this is not a drill i repeat this is not a drill."
cole soon beam aboard his vessel as he heads for the bridge his communicater beeps as he activates it he notices the channel and clenches his jaw in knowing it will be bad new.
" cole here report"
" sir this is outpost charlie we are under attack i repeat we are under attack! its the borg sir they entered our space and didnt appear on sensor till they where on top of us.we have already lost 10 vessels we cant hold out for long we dont have the guess cann......"
" we are the borg lower your shields and prepare to be assimilated."
" all hands get the fleet ready to move out now we are heading for charlie station maximum warp. ranger squad you will head to help admiral allen i will take the fleet and engage these honorless borg and drive them from our space."
soon the fleet warps out with about 350 vessels.
commander lina: sir how do we plan to stop the borg?
cole: most of our ships have two types of weapons commander. like most troops carry two weapons a energy and a ballistic. so do our ships. we will use our ballistic weapons on the borg as the shields will not protect the borg from our balistics.
turns to the weapons officer
cole: ready all guess cannons and missil tubes bring auto cannons online and get those macs ready.
sensor officer: sir im picking up a reading at charlie station sir but this cant be right these are advanced borg ships they arent from our galaxy.
cole: it doesnt matter where there from we have to stop them now before they take charlie station we have to much important intel on that staion. apprise allen about our new situation and tell him to have the feds and klingons all on alert.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
Ops Ensign: Sir I am detecting the entire crew minus Admiral Soval. There are also some thalaron signatures coming from the warp core.
Derek Ross: Is the crew alive?
Ops Ensign: Yes sir, they are alive.
Derek Ross: Alright ensign transmit the locations of the Thalaron signatures to the away team. I want the purpose of these found out.
Comm officer Rezin: Sir, Commander Dexter is hailing.
Derek Ross: On screen.
Dexter: Admiral it appears that the Romulans have not taken the cloaking device but they did jury rig the warp core with Thalaron emitters and programmed the computer on a course to Starbase 41 to destroy the inhabitants on the station. There is also a problem. The crew seems to have bomb collars so if we remove the crew or do something to the warp core the ship and the crew will explode. To make matters worse they have sealed off Engineering and encrypted the computers to lock out Starfleet command codes.
*The entire crew on the bridge including Quale are stunned, but Derek Ross clenches his jaw. and grinds his teeth.*
Derek Ross: Alright Commander stay put and do not do anything to compromise the ship or the crew. I am going to call in some help.
*Transmission ends.*
Derek Ross: Lt. Rezin send a priority message to Fleet Admiral Allen informing him of the situation, then quickly send a priority message to Cole requesting aid from his Black Ops and inform him of the treachery here.
*Rator III, Romulan Star Naval Command*
Grand Admiral Tomalon: This is accurate?
Centurion: Yes, sir.
Tomalon: Tell the Continuing Committee that I must meet with them and Admiral Soval Immediately.
*A few minutes later, the Imperial Palace*
Praetor: So, the rebels are using Iconia as their base of operations?
Soval: Correct. Senators, the Iconians, and these rebels, pose a very real threat to both our Empires. Might I suggest--
Praetor: Do you know what sparked this war, Admiral? After Empress Sela vanished, we attempted to phase out the monarchy and return to the more democratic system that existed before. One of the steps was to begin the healing process between us and your people, the Vulcans. Empress Sela ruled by keeping that hatred alive, but after all these years, many have begun to realise that your people were not responsible. We were going to pursue an alliance with the Federation.
As a result, many of our high ranking military officers and Senators tried to lead a coup, but were forced out. For the last six months we've been fighting a Civil war here in the Empire. We kept it a secret to avoid harming our political standing in the quadrant.
Now--
*Inter-comm chirps*
Centurion (Over inter-comm): Praetor, Grand Admiral Tomalon must speak to you and the Vulcan on a Grey priority matter.
Praetor: Very well, send him in.
*Tomalon enters the room and goes over events on the Sao Paulo.*
Soval: What happened?
Tomalon: Our escort Vessels left the DeForest Kelley once she reached the Neutral Zone, but Federation Comm. chatter indicates that they were with her when she entered Federation Space, and they considered the Crew "Illicit intruders" after it had been established they were participating in war theatre operations against our enemies.
Praetor: The rebels are fanatical about our territory.
Tomalon: Neck-brace explosives have been placed on the crew, they do appear Romulan in Design. Type G-958.
Praetor: Neck-Brace explosives have been illegal in the Empire for 40 years!
Soval: Really?
Praetor: Intelligence suggested it. It's hard to get information out of a prisoner if their head's blown off.
Tomalon: The Federation is blaming us for the attack!
Soval: Let me talk to them! If I explain the situation to them--
Praetor: They'll think you are being coerced.
Soval: Vulcans cannot be "coerced".
Praetor: Very well. *taps comm. panel.* Get me the President of the United Federation of Planets immediately! Code: Grey!
*Rator III, Romulan Star Naval Command*
Grand Admiral Tomalon: This is accurate?
Centurion: Yes, sir.
Tomalon: Tell the Continuing Committee that I must meet with them and Admiral Soval Immediately.
*A few minutes later, the Imperial Palace*
Praetor: So, the rebels are using Iconia as their base of operations?
Soval: Correct. Senators, the Iconians, and these rebels, pose a very real threat to both our Empires. Might I suggest--
Praetor: Do you know what sparked this war, Admiral? After Empress Sela vanished, we attempted to phase out the monarchy and return to the more democratic system that existed before. One of the steps was to begin the healing process between us and your people, the Vulcans. Empress Sela ruled by keeping that hatred alive, but after all these years, many have begun to realise that your people were not responsible. We were going to pursue an alliance with the Federation.
As a result, many of our high ranking military officers and Senators tried to lead a coup, but were forced out. For the last six months we've been fighting a Civil war here in the Empire. We kept it a secret to avoid harming our political standing in the quadrant.
Now--
*Inter-comm chirps*
Centurion (Over inter-comm): Praetor, Grand Admiral Tomalon must speak to you and the Vulcan on a Grey priority matter.
Praetor: Very well, send him in.
*Tomalon enters the room and goes over events on the Sao Paulo.*
Soval: What happened?
Tomalon: Our escort Vessels left the DeForest Kelley once she reached the Neutral Zone, but Federation Comm. chatter indicates that they were with her when she entered Federation Space, and they considered the Crew "Illicit intruders" after it had been established they were participating in war theatre operations against our enemies.
Praetor: The rebels are fanatical about our territory.
Tomalon: Neck-brace explosives have been placed on the crew, they do appear Romulan in Design. Type G-958.
Praetor: Neck-Brace explosives have been illegal in the Empire for 40 years!
Soval: Really?
Praetor: Intelligence suggested it. It's hard to get information out of a prisoner if their head's blown off.
Tomalon: The Federation is blaming us for the attack!
Soval: Let me talk to them! If I explain the situation to them--
Praetor: They'll think you are being coerced.
Soval: Vulcans cannot be "coerced".
Praetor: Very well. *taps comm. panel.* Get me the President of the United Federation of Planets immediately! Code: Grey!
*USS Odyssey*
Yes Mr. President... I know of this the Romulans have nothing to be worried about I know their situation. They are in the middle of a civil war that has dragged us into it. If they want to talk I will listen, as for the Klingons they have much to prove in that case. If anything proved the Empire was in turmoil it was this incident with the San Paulo. As of right now Vice Admiral Derek Ross is still trying to diffuse the bombs and the ship wide Thalaron weapon. If they wish to help us then they may do so.
Yes Mr. President... I know of this the Romulans have nothing to be worried about I know their situation. They are in the middle of a civil war that has dragged us into it. If they want to talk I will listen, as for the Klingons they have much to prove in that case. If anything proved the Empire was in turmoil it was this incident with the San Paulo. As of right now Vice Admiral Derek Ross is still trying to diffuse the bombs and the ship wide Thalaron weapon. If they wish to help us then they may do so.
President: Admiral, I have the Praetor of the Romulan Empire to speak to you, patching you through.
Praetor: Admiral Allen, I'm speaking to you from the chambers of the Romulan Continuing Committee. With me I have Admiral Soval of your Starfleet, and Grand Admiral Tomalon, Commander of our naval assets.
Tomalon: Admiral, it is imperitive that your men not disarm those bombs! They are set to activate a secondary and tertiary detonator in that event which will both detonate immediately! The bombs can't be disarmed without killing the victim, but they can be removed. Your technicians will find a fissure going along the back of the collar. A brief burst of Nadion Radiation causes the safety interlocks to break down. The can then be cut off along that fissure.
Soval: Admiral Allen, I've seen visual logs of these devices in use. Your engineers must be centimetre accurate or the bomb will detonate. Once the crew is evacuated, if you can't stop the Sao Paulo, Admiral Allington's orders are to destroy her before she hits Starbase 41. And, Admiral, even if the Sao Paulo's still manned, there are over 2000 people on that base. If she can't be delayed, stopped or diverted, she must be destroyed. Those are Admiral Allington's orders.
Soon lord coles fleet begins engaging the borg first using energy based arc phasers. But as the battle prolongs the phasesrs prove futile. With a single order cole orders the ships to change to balistic weapons. And soon the borg fleet is devistated by solid metal rounds and balistics tearing through there hull as the bulk of the borg ships soon jump to warp. Cole and his ships began finishing off the damaged borg ships.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
President: Admiral, I have the Praetor of the Romulan Empire to speak to you, patching you through.
Praetor: Admiral Allen, I'm speaking to you from the chambers of the Romulan Continuing Committee. With me I have Admiral Soval of your Starfleet, and Grand Admiral Tomalon, Commander of our naval assets.
Tomalon: Admiral, it is imperitive that your men not disarm those bombs! They are set to activate a secondary and tertiary detonator in that event which will both detonate immediately! The bombs can't be disarmed without killing the victim, but they can be removed. Your technicians will find a fissure going along the back of the collar. A brief burst of Nadion Radiation causes the safety interlocks to break down. The can then be cut off along that fissure.
Soval: Admiral Allen, I've seen visual logs of these devices in use. Your engineers must be centimetre accurate or the bomb will detonate. Once the crew is evacuated, if you can't stop the Sao Paulo, Admiral Allington's orders are to destroy her before she hits Starbase 41. And, Admiral, even if the Sao Paulo's still manned, there are over 2000 people on that base. If she can't be delayed, stopped or diverted, she must be destroyed. Those are Admiral Allington's orders.
I have relayed those instructions to Vice Admiral Derek Ross and to the team on the ship. I agree that the ship must be stopped.
After this I will make my way to Rator III if I am allowed as such Praetor we have much to discuss.
Vice Admiral Derek Ross you have your orders. You need to rescue the crew of the San Paulo with the plan presented by our Romulan friends. Afterwards you are to try any means of disengaging the ship from its present course. If all plans fail you have my permission to destroy the San Paulo.
Fleet Admiral Allen out.
Helm set a course for the Romulan Border but stay on our side of the neutral zone. We will adhere to the treaty and respect their sovereignty. Warp 6.
Vice Admiral Val will escort our guests to Earth for their safe haven.
Sensor officer: sir there are no life signs at all on the borg ship but im getting some odd energy readings from the cores.
Cole: what do you mean there are no life signs on the vessels and that super computers are controlling the ship. Are the energy signitures anything like we have seen the borg use before.
Officer: no sir.
Cole: alright keep the fleet on red alert i want to know whats goin on.
" Now the gate has been unlatched headstones pushed aside; corpses shift and offer room ,a fate you must abide."
Shelana: Sir there is a report from the Klingon front.
Let me take it in my ready room.
*Fleet Admiral Allen gets up and leaves for his ready room. When he enters he sits down in front of his desk and brings up the report from Vice Admirals Rei and Bat'rak.*
The Romulans have begun fighting each other and the Klingons have pushed the enemy back to Khitomer.
Comments
Cole: comm officer hail the romulans i want to know what has happened to our officer. Also keep me posted on admiral allens progress. Let me know when admiral soval is realised and we will pick up our officer.
Tarlon: Indeed. Very well, Admiral. Lead the way.
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
Romulan Officer 1: I have spoken to my superiors and they have agreed to your request. Your crew and the VGI observer will be returned to your ship and they will be escorted back to Federation Space. I will deliver you to Rator III aboard my Vessel to meet with the Continuing Committee.
Soval: Thank you.
*A few hours later, the Sao Paulo leaves the area with three D'Deridex class Warbirds as escort. A fourth Warbird leaves as well, heading for Rator III.*
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
*The USS Odyssey conference room, The Fleet Admiral pulls out a chair for Admiral Tarlon, and sits himself so he may have eye contact with the Admiral.*
Please sit Admiral.
The first question I must ask since you have come to the Federation during war time and this is only precautionary.
Where did you and your race come from?
lord cole looks over the report.
" computer raise ambassoder dimitry."
dimitry: cole what can i do for you .
cole: dimitry there is a federation admiral named soval i want you to work with the romulan government to make sure he gets let go.
dimitry: very well i will see what i can do.
after he closes the channel he listens to news reports and military briefings of the current sector.
Tarlon: Our race came from a planet (what you consider Class M) in the 3rd closest Galaxy to your own. Tlachine Prime was the 5th Planet from it's Sun. 500,000 years ago we encountered a strang race who called themselves the "Iconians". They said they were driven from their own World by conquering powers who destroyed their Planet. We welcomed them to our world while we were still experimenting with Time-Warp Drive technology.
After a century, the Iconians had found their own world to colonise and stretch fourth a new empire from. Little did we know that they weren't Saints from another world, they were demons. Demons of Air and Darkness. 100,000 years ago they invaded one of our outlying Colonies. No ships, they just appeared from nowhere. We had no choice but to destroy the planet to prevent the Iconians from using it's resources against us. After the evacuation, one of our ships followed the Iconians back to their base where they found a Gateway. It was their that they learned a vital secret. The Iconians had to leave most of their technology behind, and were only now able to rebuild their Gateways. What evened the playing field was, their Gateway had a range limit, so they had to build another on any world they conquered before they could move onto the next one.
With no way of reaching one of our worlds, the Iconians tried other nearby Empires, eventually leading to 2 coalitions fighting for control. Our Alliance opted to destroy any planet the Iconians could use to bridge the gap between our Empires, unless the planet was inhabited by sentient life. If that were the case, we'd build a base above that world and defend it from the Iconians if they ever tried to conquer it.
Before long it became a Space War, with both sides fighting one another in Starships, which is where our side had an advantage over the Iconians. We were on the offensive, and had taken several sectors of the enemy's space, but then, time ran out.
The Iconians managed to build a new Gateway with a greater range that they could send probes through. We called them "Stellar seeds" because they orbited the stars of our homeworlds and slowly drove them to go nova. When we realised what was happening, we tried to evacuate our homeworld while our fleets searched for the WMDs. That's when we learned. They weren't Weapons of Mass Destruction, they were Doomsday weapons. The supernovae tore through our system at FTL speeds, by the end of it, there was little or nothing left of the Allied worlds, or the Iconians' allies. The Iconians were in complete control of the Galaxy. That was just 1,000 years ago.
Admiral, before the Cataclysm, there were over Five-Hundred-Thousand-Trillion Tlachinas, now there are only 100,000,000 of us. We grabbed any ship that could reach Transwarp Speeds and fled. To my knowledge, so did the other races, but we were never able to meet up with them. We chose a straight-line course and simulated which Galaxy we would reach first, yours.
We've been watching your alliances for the last 200 years and realised which of your Alliances would be best to seek refuge with. The Klingons valued honour above all else, but were too aggressive. The Romulans had amazing guile, but were too cautious. The Cardassians were amazing Artisans, but became far too militant. The Dominion were widely spread, but too paranoid. The Borg valued nothing about freedom. Eventually we settled on the Federation. You took all the great aspects of those Empires with very few of the drawbacks. You have unity, honour, cunning to a degree were we can still trust you, creativity, and you are spread over hundreds of worlds. Most importantly, you value freedom, trust and friendship. Our races are very alike. We'd like to join you, if you'll have us.
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
cole: what have we got lt.finylr
lt. finylr: sir we have an anomily much like the one we found at the romulan base that we believe the iconians are traveling through sir.
cole: red alert bring all defenses up prime weapons hot and be ready to fire if anything trys to come out. computer raise admiral allen emergency channel. allen i know you are busy but we have found another anomily like the ones the iconians where using at the base we just captured.im calling in my fleet to this poisition.
I will bring you up to speed with what has gone down recently. The Iconians have made their move but have been manipulating everyone in the quadrant to war with one another. But instead of doing it themselves they manipulated the fluidic space species known as the Undine to infiltrate the leading powers causing the war between the Klingon's and the Gorn, then with the Federation. As of right now the Klingon-Federation war is now on ice as we are fighting the Romulans who have more advanced technology and strange technology that is not of their making.
We will accept you for asylum.
Cole: i have done what you have asked and now i need your help in stopping this thing from brining the iconians into our space.
silence
Cole: they may not be a threat to you but they are to me and my people.if you want me to help you well you better help me know by getting up and dong something for once.
mysterious voice: you already know what to do and have the weapons you need to destroy it you do not need our help.
OOC: based on the Vorlons? "Unless your people get off their encounter-suited butts and DO SOMETHING, I've got nothing to lose!"
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
OCC oh very good. Yes i base heavely on babylon 5 heck my fleet is even named after babylon 5
Admiral allen my ambassoder is currently working on rator trying to make sure admiral soval is free. But i do have an undercover team ready to move in to free him. I can get you to them if you want. That way it would look like mercs or rebels and not either of our govt. But i fear our time is passing quickly.
*On Rator III, Nueva Roma City.*
Soval: Soval to Admiral Allen. Admiral, you'll be happy to know that the Sao Paulo's crew has been released, the Sao Paulo crossed into Federation Space a few hours ago. I'm remaining on Rator III to explain the situation the the Romulan Continuing Committee. I'll keep you informed. Soval out.
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
" we have come along way. from a small spot on the galaxy to a growing and thriving people. we have had loss but we have had more gain. after current battles we control more space more resources. we continue to thrive even in the midst of terrible danger. we have shown this galaxy we can stand on our own. we will celebrate now but this war is not over. the iconians are returning but we will not be made afraide of them because we will be ready. we have already had the chance to test our new ships and technology against them and it has worked well. it will not be an easy road but then no one here has had an easy life. we all have faced our struggles but we have become stronger. now lets enoy the celebration."
fireworks soon go off as music and dancing begins the whole city is in joy as cole makes his way to the palace. he enters a private chamber.
cole:you know you should make yourself known soon. while my people may not question how we have advanced others might. and if we are to keep an edge better them think we have someone here but you dont necissarly have to let them know the extent of what you have been doing.
being: no if the iconians know we are here they will attack before you are ready we must wait.
cole: very well that is your decision and i cant force otherwise.
cole soon leaves the chamber and leaves to partake in the celebration
FLA Quale: Ross you should hail the ship and ascertain the situation.
VA Derek Ross: Fleet Admiral Quale That would really depend on if the Romulan Escort will allow us.
*Derek Ross rises from his Captain's chair.*
Open a channel to the Romulans
DG Helm: Channel open
Romulan Vessels this is Vice Admiral Derek Ross of the United Federation of Planets we will handle the transport of this vessel to Sol.
Romulan Captain: That will do Vice Admiral.. Here is your ship back with its crew. Enjoy your day and pray we are as forgiving next time.
VA Derek Ross: I will keep that in mind friend.
*Transmission ends*
Derek Ross: Alright Dexter you take a security team and some engineers I want you to comb through that vessel and make sure there were no nasty gifts left by the Romulans.
*Dexter rises and gives a curt nod*
Dexter: It will be done sir. *walks toward the turbolift pointing to a couple security detail* You, you, and you come with me.
Quale: Surely the Romulans are sincere Vice Admiral... Why would they sabotage our vessel.
D. Ross: They know we have a cloak probably better than theirs and depending if they scoured the vessel and the data banks I doubt they would have found the information they needed.
Ensign I want you to scan that vessel and give me all the details.
Ops Ensign: Yes sir, scanning now.
cole stands with his back to the operative as he looks out a window into the night. " so how did the mission go? did you get the information we needed."
operative " yes sir i was able to retrieve the information i have the padd right here with me. "
cole: " good has anyone else seen this information?"
operative " no sir no one saw or nows "
cole: " very well you may leave it on the desk i will go over the info soon and have a new assignment for you shortly."
the operative soon leaves as cole soon walks over to his desk and starts going through the information he has now received.
Ops Ensign: Sir I am detecting the entire crew minus Admiral Soval. There are also some thalaron signatures coming from the warp core.
Derek Ross: Is the crew alive?
Ops Ensign: Yes sir, they are alive.
Derek Ross: Alright ensign transmit the locations of the Thalaron signatures to the away team. I want the purpose of these found out.
Comm officer Rezin: Sir, Commander Dexter is hailing.
Derek Ross: On screen.
Dexter: Admiral it appears that the Romulans have not taken the cloaking device but they did jury rig the warp core with Thalaron emitters and programmed the computer on a course to Starbase 41 to destroy the inhabitants on the station. There is also a problem. The crew seems to have bomb collars so if we remove the crew or do something to the warp core the ship and the crew will explode. To make matters worse they have sealed off Engineering and encrypted the computers to lock out Starfleet command codes.
*The entire crew on the bridge including Quale are stunned, but Derek Ross clenches his jaw. and grinds his teeth.*
Derek Ross: Alright Commander stay put and do not do anything to compromise the ship or the crew. I am going to call in some help.
*Transmission ends.*
Derek Ross: Lt. Rezin send a priority message to Fleet Admiral Allen informing him of the situation, then quickly send a priority message to Cole requesting aid from his Black Ops and inform him of the treachery here.
cole soon enters his quarters at the palace again after partaking in the celebrations of the day and see his terminal blinking he goes over and activates it and reads the message.
cole : allen my men are standing by what can we do for you.
cole soon beam aboard his vessel as he heads for the bridge his communicater beeps as he activates it he notices the channel and clenches his jaw in knowing it will be bad new.
" cole here report"
" sir this is outpost charlie we are under attack i repeat we are under attack! its the borg sir they entered our space and didnt appear on sensor till they where on top of us.we have already lost 10 vessels we cant hold out for long we dont have the guess cann......"
" we are the borg lower your shields and prepare to be assimilated."
" all hands get the fleet ready to move out now we are heading for charlie station maximum warp. ranger squad you will head to help admiral allen i will take the fleet and engage these honorless borg and drive them from our space."
soon the fleet warps out with about 350 vessels.
commander lina: sir how do we plan to stop the borg?
cole: most of our ships have two types of weapons commander. like most troops carry two weapons a energy and a ballistic. so do our ships. we will use our ballistic weapons on the borg as the shields will not protect the borg from our balistics.
turns to the weapons officer
cole: ready all guess cannons and missil tubes bring auto cannons online and get those macs ready.
sensor officer: sir im picking up a reading at charlie station sir but this cant be right these are advanced borg ships they arent from our galaxy.
cole: it doesnt matter where there from we have to stop them now before they take charlie station we have to much important intel on that staion. apprise allen about our new situation and tell him to have the feds and klingons all on alert.
*Rator III, Romulan Star Naval Command*
Grand Admiral Tomalon: This is accurate?
Centurion: Yes, sir.
Tomalon: Tell the Continuing Committee that I must meet with them and Admiral Soval Immediately.
*A few minutes later, the Imperial Palace*
Praetor: So, the rebels are using Iconia as their base of operations?
Soval: Correct. Senators, the Iconians, and these rebels, pose a very real threat to both our Empires. Might I suggest--
Praetor: Do you know what sparked this war, Admiral? After Empress Sela vanished, we attempted to phase out the monarchy and return to the more democratic system that existed before. One of the steps was to begin the healing process between us and your people, the Vulcans. Empress Sela ruled by keeping that hatred alive, but after all these years, many have begun to realise that your people were not responsible. We were going to pursue an alliance with the Federation.
As a result, many of our high ranking military officers and Senators tried to lead a coup, but were forced out. For the last six months we've been fighting a Civil war here in the Empire. We kept it a secret to avoid harming our political standing in the quadrant.
Now--
*Inter-comm chirps*
Centurion (Over inter-comm): Praetor, Grand Admiral Tomalon must speak to you and the Vulcan on a Grey priority matter.
Praetor: Very well, send him in.
*Tomalon enters the room and goes over events on the Sao Paulo.*
Soval: What happened?
Tomalon: Our escort Vessels left the DeForest Kelley once she reached the Neutral Zone, but Federation Comm. chatter indicates that they were with her when she entered Federation Space, and they considered the Crew "Illicit intruders" after it had been established they were participating in war theatre operations against our enemies.
Praetor: The rebels are fanatical about our territory.
Tomalon: Neck-brace explosives have been placed on the crew, they do appear Romulan in Design. Type G-958.
Praetor: Neck-Brace explosives have been illegal in the Empire for 40 years!
Soval: Really?
Praetor: Intelligence suggested it. It's hard to get information out of a prisoner if their head's blown off.
Tomalon: The Federation is blaming us for the attack!
Soval: Let me talk to them! If I explain the situation to them--
Praetor: They'll think you are being coerced.
Soval: Vulcans cannot be "coerced".
Praetor: Very well. *taps comm. panel.* Get me the President of the United Federation of Planets immediately! Code: Grey!
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
*USS Odyssey*
Yes Mr. President... I know of this the Romulans have nothing to be worried about I know their situation. They are in the middle of a civil war that has dragged us into it. If they want to talk I will listen, as for the Klingons they have much to prove in that case. If anything proved the Empire was in turmoil it was this incident with the San Paulo. As of right now Vice Admiral Derek Ross is still trying to diffuse the bombs and the ship wide Thalaron weapon. If they wish to help us then they may do so.
President: Admiral, I have the Praetor of the Romulan Empire to speak to you, patching you through.
Praetor: Admiral Allen, I'm speaking to you from the chambers of the Romulan Continuing Committee. With me I have Admiral Soval of your Starfleet, and Grand Admiral Tomalon, Commander of our naval assets.
Tomalon: Admiral, it is imperitive that your men not disarm those bombs! They are set to activate a secondary and tertiary detonator in that event which will both detonate immediately! The bombs can't be disarmed without killing the victim, but they can be removed. Your technicians will find a fissure going along the back of the collar. A brief burst of Nadion Radiation causes the safety interlocks to break down. The can then be cut off along that fissure.
Soval: Admiral Allen, I've seen visual logs of these devices in use. Your engineers must be centimetre accurate or the bomb will detonate. Once the crew is evacuated, if you can't stop the Sao Paulo, Admiral Allington's orders are to destroy her before she hits Starbase 41. And, Admiral, even if the Sao Paulo's still manned, there are over 2000 people on that base. If she can't be delayed, stopped or diverted, she must be destroyed. Those are Admiral Allington's orders.
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
I have relayed those instructions to Vice Admiral Derek Ross and to the team on the ship. I agree that the ship must be stopped.
After this I will make my way to Rator III if I am allowed as such Praetor we have much to discuss.
Vice Admiral Derek Ross you have your orders. You need to rescue the crew of the San Paulo with the plan presented by our Romulan friends. Afterwards you are to try any means of disengaging the ship from its present course. If all plans fail you have my permission to destroy the San Paulo.
Fleet Admiral Allen out.
Helm set a course for the Romulan Border but stay on our side of the neutral zone. We will adhere to the treaty and respect their sovereignty. Warp 6.
Vice Admiral Val will escort our guests to Earth for their safe haven.
Sensors officer: sir we hhave a slight problem.
Cole: what.
Sensor officer: sir there are no life signs at all on the borg ship but im getting some odd energy readings from the cores.
Cole: what do you mean there are no life signs on the vessels and that super computers are controlling the ship. Are the energy signitures anything like we have seen the borg use before.
Officer: no sir.
Cole: alright keep the fleet on red alert i want to know whats goin on.
Let me take it in my ready room.
*Fleet Admiral Allen gets up and leaves for his ready room. When he enters he sits down in front of his desk and brings up the report from Vice Admirals Rei and Bat'rak.*
The Romulans have begun fighting each other and the Klingons have pushed the enemy back to Khitomer.