PHALANX - The series

Episode Twelve: The great voyage home.

 

Daphnix and Jennifer were staring at a small ship filling the main viewer of the Battlecarrier Ortega. The small ship shook its wings in greeting, and took of at full fusion speed.

"Follow the Daedalus at 25,000 kilometers." Jennifer said, sitting in the command chair.

The holo-officer sitting at the engine station followed her orders. Daphnix, now manning science for a change, reported no anomalies in the smaller vessel.

 

"How's the mobile emitter going?" Jennifer asked over the FTL radio.

"It's doing fine." The beautiful blonde woman manning science said. A small device was connected to her right leg. She said so without looking at the screen, her eyes staying on the console.

"Linda, when we get back, you should take a look at your human skills. Remember, you're no longer an artificial life-form without a body." Frederic said to the woman.

"Sure thing." She said, her eyes staying on the console. Frederic shrugged, and refocused on the viewer.

"Are you ready?" Frederic asked, his face filling the main viewer.

"We are. Good luck, love." Jennifer said, having taken over on science now. Daphnix had taken over command, enabling Jennifer to concentrate fully on her scientific duties.

"Thanks. If this quantum-wormhole drive works, we'll be able to do deep space exploration without having to jump dimensions all the time, and running the risk of getting someplace we shouldn't. Which happens more than we get where we want to be." Frederic said. "I'll see you in ten minutes, if everything goes as planned."

"See you in ten minutes. Good luck." Daphnix said.

"You'd better get back to me." Jennifer smiled.

"Thanks. And I will." Frederic grinned and cut the transmission.

Jennifer's hands raced the consoles in front of her. "Telemetry is operational. Sensors are at 100%, and data is running in." she reported.

Frederic wiggled the Daedalus' wings again, and righted the ship.

"Is everything going ok?" he asked the blonde hologram manning science. She just nodded, and continued tapping. Frederic grinned at the speed at which she adapted to her newfound human body. 'She IS my daughter after all' he thought to himself. He sat back in the chair, and started tapping.

"We have created one energy particle." Linda reported. "Containment is at 100%."

"Let's get the show on the road." Frederic said, nudging the new drive into operation.

A blue-white vortex appeared in front of the ship, which lunged forward.

Jennifer's head snapped up. "He's gone beyond our sensor speed. He accelerated to 25000 lightspeeds in less then a second."

"Damn, that's fast." Daphnix said. "I hope he's going to be alright."

"As do I, D." Jennifer sighed trembling.

Daphnix looked at her, and stood up. He walked over to her, and put an arm around her shoulders. "I'm sorry, Jen. I shouldn't have said that. I'm sure he'll be fine."

Jennifer nodded, and gave him a weak smile.

 

"We're at 50,000 lightspeeds and accelerating." Linda said staying focused on the console.

"Thank you Linda." Frederic said, his hands once more going over the console in front of him. "60,000. 70,000. 80,000." He mumbled. "This is incredible! We never thought the speeds would be this intense! Simulations never predicted anything like this!"

"The wormhole threshold is approaching. Prepare for level-2 propulsion." Linda read from her console, she was trying to keep the emotions from her voice and was succeeding remarkably well.

"Level-2 in 3…2…1…Now!" Frederic shouted. The ship lunged forward, and he was pushed back in his seat again, the G-dampers unable to cope with the massive acceleration.

"We have reached Wormhole speeds." Linda said, awe slipping into her now Human voice. "Our speed is approaching infinite."

Frederic sat up, now that the acceleration had stopped, and he checked the stations. The sensors reported that they were in a wormhole. "We did it! We've created a wormhole drive!" he shouted in complete euphoria. Linda mimicked his feelings.

The ship emerged from the swirling vortex, and made a 180° turn, facing back into the direction it came from.

"Linda, what's the distance we crossed?" Frederic asked the AI.

"We traveled over 15,000 light-years. This thing is amazing!" Linda was mimicking Human behavior closer and closer.

The happy tone in Linda's voice was truly apparent, and Frederic smiled. They high-fived each other. "15,000 light-years? We really outsmarted ourselves this time. Linda, plot a reverse course and prepare to engage the quantum wormhole drive."

"I've plotted the course, and engines are standing by." She reported, after settling back into her seat.

Frederic engaged the course manually, and did the same to the level-2 propulsion some time afterwards. The Daedalus shot back towards the Ortega at tremendous velocities, velocities no ship ever reached on its own before.

 

"Both the quantum wormhole drive and the mobile emitter have worked admirably." Frederic said, looking at his friends. The mobile emitter was lying on the table, in front of the three people.

"Good to hear. We put a lot of effort in creating them."

Hey! And I put a lot of effort in writing a program of myself that would do in a holographic environment.

"Linda's right. She wrote the program for the mobile emitter, and she helped in the design of the new drive as well." Jennifer said. Both Frederic and Daphnix agreed.

"I still can't believe it. Speeds nearing infinite. That is incredible!" Daphnix said.

"All we have to do now is adapt it for the battlecarriers. We don't want them to run behind now, do we?" Frederic smiled.

"Right. But at the moment, I think there are some people waiting for us to report." Jennifer said.

"You're right. Linda, can you open a general broadband interdimensional transmission?" Frederic asked.

Will do. Transmission is active.

"Good news, everybody! Our tests on the quantum wormhole drive have been completed, and the system is operating at peak efficiency. We will now be working on the larger version, to integrate in the battlecarriers. That is all." Frederic cut the transmission to the various dimensional communicators scattered all of the different universes.

The three people chattered for hours, discussion various modifications to systems now in use, estimated times, and so on. The Daedalus, being a small vessel was easily adapted, but a vessel the size of the Ortega would take a lot longer. They came to the conclusion it would take at least 2 months to get the Ortega up to wormhole standards.

 

The three people were having a break on the Ortega Bridge. Linda, preferring her bodiless state while on the Ortega, was running more simulations on the new systems, or the ones that had been improved. They had been working for a week now, at ten to twelve hours a day. Even though their immortal bodies could take more, they wanted to take it slow, never knowing when the next threat would be and they had to be in shape when it came.

There is an incoming transmission from Starfleet.

Frederic sighed, and asked to put it on screen. Captain Picard's face filled the main viewer.

"Hello Captain. To what do we own the pleasure?" Frederic asked.

"Starfleet command has received your message about the quantum wormhole drive, and they wanted to ask you a favor." Picard said.

"So, they made you do the dirty work. What request is it?" Frederic asked, intrigued now. What importance would a wormhole drive be for the Federation? They knew he wasn't going to give them the technology.

"A ship of ours has been stranded in the Delta Quadrant for over six years now. She disappeared in a region called the Badlands, and we believed her destroyed. That was until we got a message from them, over an alien communications network, telling us where they were." Picard said.

Frederic got up in his chair, and asked: "And you want us to get her back, right?"

"I'm afraid that is what Starfleet would like."

"We'll be at your Earth in a couple of hours. Tell Starfleet to get all the files together. We'll see what we can do for the ship." Frederic said, after discussing the topic telepathically. Both his friends agreed immediately. This might be fun after all.

A couple of hours later, everything in universe001 had been taken care of, and the Ortega crossed over. After being briefed by Starfleet, the Ortega blasted towards the last known location of the ship named Voyager, the Badlands near space station Deep Space nine.

 

"Ops to Sisko." Major Kira's voice sounded in Captain Sisko's ready room.

"Sisko here. What is it major?" he asked, tapping his communicator.

"Starfleet has informed us that the phalanx is underway here, to help retrieve the Voyager."

"What's his ETA?" Sisko wanted to know.

"They'll be here in a couple of hours." Kira responded.

"Very well. Get everything ready for their arrival. I'll be right there. Sisko out." He terminated the connection, and waked down the stairs to Ops, where Kira was busy to brief the necessary people of Frederic's arrival. Sisko had seen how Frederic had dealt with an army of undead warriors, and he was convinced, now more than ever, that he and his two companions were the most dangerous people he had ever met.

 

A couple of hours later, the Ortega emerged from the quantum tunnel and approached DS9.

"Frederic to DS9, come in, please." Frederic sent to the station.

"Welcome to DS9, Phalanx." Sisko's face on the main viewer said.

"It's good to be here." Frederic said. "Captain, could you send us every bit of info you have on Voyager's last route, location, and so on?"

"It'll be there as soon as possible. Aren't you coming on board?"

"Maybe on our way back. Right now, we have a region of space to scan, a ship to find, and to get it home safely. I hope you understand that we can not be distracted at this point." Frederic said.

"Of course. Ah, here comes the data you requested."

Data received. Suggested course has been programmed.

"Thank you Captain, and see you when we get back."

"Until then." The Captain said, and Frederic broke the connection.

"Thanks for the course, Linda. Get us underway." Frederic said, sitting back in his command chair. The huge battlecarrier set course for the region of space called the Badlands. The ship's three human occupants soon found out why it was called that way: swirling vortexes of ochre-brown plasma alternated with energy discharges of immense proportions.

"It's as deadly as it is beautiful." Jennifer said, reading her science console. "I wouldn't suggest going in there with the Ortega. The ship won't fit."

"You're right. Linda, can you program the computer to guide the ship back to DS9, and then transfer yourself to the Daedalus' mobile emitter?"

Will do. Computer programmed.

"And she's transferred to the mobile emitter." Jennifer concluded. "We're set to go."

"Right. D, Jenny, let's go. Ortega, engage as soon as we've cleared the displacement radius." Frederic said. The now non-sentient computer system responded positively.

Not five minutes later, Frederic, Jennifer and Daphnix were sitting in the Daedalus. The ship's own Linda system was operational, so the mobile emitter remained deactivated. The ship slowly cleared the massive battlecarrier's field of influence, and set course into the Badlands.

The ship dodged beams of energy, plasma vortexes that appeared out of nowhere and so on. All the while, its sensors remained at the highest level, scanning for any possible traces as to where the Voyager may have disappeared. Starfleet's message had included a location, but it was better to do all the possible here first before going flying to an unknown part of the galaxy.

Finally, they had concluded all the scans they could, and set a course away from the Badlands.

"So, they were transported by an unknown type of energy field. At least that shows us the message puts them in the right part of the galaxy. What I don't understand is, how in hell have they come that long a distance, with only warp-drive?" Frederic grunted, looking at the science readouts.

"Maybe they had help from other beings. After all, there's not much we know about that region of space." Daphnix offered. Jennifer nodded her head in agreement.

"Right. So, what's the plan now?" Frederic asked. "They won't be at the position they transmitted to Starfleet, and the communications network they used has been destroyed. We can't go searching that entire region. Our sensors don't work while in the wormhole, and hopping in and out will burn the system in a matter of days."

"Maybe we get lucky. Let's go to their last known position, and see from there." Jennifer said.

"I agree. It's the best lead we have." Daphnix joined in.

Frederic nodded. "Agreed. Jennifer, prepare the quantum wormhole drive. Begin the creation of one energy particle." He said, sitting back in his chair. Daphnix sat back at tactical, while Jennifer started tapping her console.

 

At space station DS9, pandemonium broke loose. All sensor systems locked out, and all they got was this Greek letter omega on their screens. Captain Sisko tapped in an access code, and looked flabbergasted.

"What is this? Why can't we access our computers?" Kira asked, almost screaming.

"I don't believe it." Sisko shook his head, and looked at his crew. He sighed, and knew he would have one hell of a time explaining this.

 

"We are at level-two. Speed is nearing infinite." Jennifer said, a wide grin on her face. The three people high-fived each other, and settled back in their seats. All three of them were too much of a professional to let their emotions take over for too long.

After a couple of minutes in the wormhole, the ship automatically came to a stop.

"We've reached Voyager's last known position. Too bad that's almost a year old." Jennifer said, checking her sensors.

"Anything on the ship, or its occupants?" Frederic asked.

"Their warp trail has decayed long ago. Long-range sensors are picking up nothing. We'll have to ask around. And with our top speed that's ten time higher than theirs, we should have caught up with them in no time." Jennifer said.

And so they proceeded. It took them one week to finally find Voyager's warp-trail. It was still fresh, only three months old. The wormhole drive was engaged once again as soon as the Voyager had been found on extreme long-range sensors.

 

On Voyager, Harry Kim, science officer, got the scare of a lifetime. Again.

"Oh god, not again." Kim said, after all the sensor readouts blanked out and replaced themselves with the Omega symbol.

"It seems sensors have encountered another Omega particle." Tuvok, the dark skinned Vulcan at Tactical Operations said.

Captain Kathryn Janeway, commanding officer of the USS Voyager, strode form her ready room, and entered her access code. The screens became visible once more. Her bridge crew had been briefed on the dangers of the Omega molecule. The molecule contained enough energy to rip the very fabric of space-time apart, creating a disturbance in subspace, making warp-drives useless.

The computer had detected an Omega molecule somewhere, and was now operating under the 'Omega directives'. All other directives have been suspended, and Captains have the orders to destroy every molecule of Omega they encounter.

 

The Daedalus III emerged from its wormhole, made a turn, and was now flying directly next to the Voyager.

"We're being hailed." Jennifer said, looking up from her console.

"What's the status on the energy particle?" Frederic wanted to know first.

"95% depleted. We're dispersing the rest now. They're hailing us again, more urgent this time." Jennifer responded.

"On screen." Frederic said. The large window in front of him took on the view of the Voyager's bridge.

"I am Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Federation starship Voyager." She identified herself. "Our sensors indicated you were carrying a molecule we call Omega. We must ask to surrender your ship and your technology, so we may dispose of it."

"That is quite a directive Captain. And as for destroying our wormhole drive, it would not be wise to destroy your means of getting home faster." Frederic grinned. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Phalanx Frederic Fromthefield of the Earth Strategic Mental Forces. I have been asked by Starfleet command to bring you home."

"And why should we believe you? We have had con artists convincing us of a faster way home before."

"I will transmit the orders of Admiral Donnelly, ordering you to place Voyager under my command in case of an emergency, and to ignore any and all unknown technology you might encounter." Frederic said, giving a telepathic command to Jennifer, who sent the message in question.

"We've received the message. Give us some time to get back to you." The semi-transparent viewer turned back into a window.

"Happy and trusting bunch of people. I wonder what they'll do once they're briefed by Donnelly." Frederic said. "At the mean time, let's get into proper Starfleet uniforms. If we're going to assume command, we have to be dressed properly."

The three warriors changed into red Starfleet uniforms, indicating they were command crew. Frederic had six pips on his collar, indicating a fleet marshal rank. Jennifer and Daphnix both had five, indicating admiral ranks. In addition to the normal Starfleet uniforms, the three warriors did continue to wear their Swords.

"We're being hailed by Voyager again." Jennifer said.

"Let them wait." Frederic said, reclining in his seat, and putting his arms behind his head. "Let them sweat. We come from the other side of the galaxy to help them, and the first thing they do is tell us to surrender our new engine, and then they put us on hold. Nobody does that."

"They're hailing more urgently." Jennifer grinned. "Do you think they're getting cold feet?"

"Most definitely. Put them on screen." Frederic said.

The Captain looked strangely at the now changed three people. "We have seen the message, and we've received the orders. Please, we'll open our shuttle bay and welcome aboard."

"Thank you Captain. I promise it will take the least amount of time possible to get you home." Frederic said, cutting the transmission. Both ships slowed to impulse speeds. Frederic kicked in the fusion engine, and blasted forward. He then did a 180° flip, roared towards the Voyager's front, and banked to the right at the last possible moment. The small ship roared past the fuselage at incredible speeds. Again, the ship did a 180° flip, and blasted towards the open shuttle bay. At the last moment, the Daedalus III made a full brake and touched down safely.

Dignified, the three people locked down the ship, and went out in the now closed and pressurized shuttle bay.

"Who did those stunts?" the Captain came blasting into the bay, emerging from a turbolift.

"I did." Frederic said. "Is there a problem, Captain?" he asked, righting himself, the six pips on his collar showing clearly.

"No sir." She said, her voice betraying otherwise. She introduced Tovuk, her tactical operations officer, Harry Kim, her science officer, and Chakotay, her second in command.

"I am Frederic Fromthefield, Phalanx of the ESMF, this is Admiral Jennifer Fromthefield, my wife, and this is my third in command, Admiral Daphnix Smith. We have been sent here as a special delegation by Starfleet command to get you back. I have been given the temporary rank of fleet marshal." Frederic said.

"I see. We do have some questions. Why have I never heard of the ESMF, or about you for that matter?"

"Because we are from a different dimension. The ESMF and Starfleet help each other when necessary. But, since the ESMF was founded to protect the Human race, we can only interfere when Earth or the Human race is at stake. It took until we got the wormhole drive operational for Starfleet to contact us." Frederic said. "Where is your chief engineer? We need the specification of any alteration made to the system."

"B'elanna Torres is in engineering." Captain Janeway said, looking strange at her people. 'Those kids? What is Starfleet thinking?' her thoughts showed clearly on her face.

"Good. Jenny, go there, and start gathering info. D, go to the bridge, and begin gathering info on all tactical systems. I will check the computer for any anomalies that did not show in our reports. They are six years old after all."

"Sure. When do we reconvene?" Jennifer asked.

Frederic looked at his mental amp on his arm. "We reconvene in 3 hours, conference lounge on deck 1, behind the main bridge." Frederic said.

"Got it. See you." Daphnix said, and took off. At a sign of Janeway, Tuvok trailed him. Jennifer gave Frederic a small kiss, said goodbye, and left as well. As soon as his two friends had left, Frederic looked at Janeway and her two remaining people.

"Is there a fast computer terminal I can use? Preferably the one in the central computer core." Frederic asked.

"Sure." Harry Kim said, at a sign of Janeway it was okay to disclose the info. "The computer core is this way."

"Of course." Frederic said, following the young man. "Linda, level-one lockdown. Full perimeter scans. Use of non-lethal force is authorized. Lethal force is discouraged, but not prohibited."

Acknowledged. Warning! Intrusions detected. You have ten seconds to remove yourself from the security perimeter before force will be used.

"I suggest you do as Linda says, Captain. She's known to fry people for less than a level-one intrusion." Frederic warned, getting into the turbolift after Harry Kim. The doors shut close.

Janeway decided to get away, with Chakotay directly behind her.

 

"Torres to bridge. Captain, who is this kid that's snooping around the place, asking questions?" the chief engineer asked.

"Do as she asks, B'elanna. They're here to try to get us home."

"You can't be serious, captain! I don't have the time to answer questions from some school girl!"

"B'elanna! The orders of Admiral Donnelly are quite clear. We do as we're told, or they leave us here."

"Yes, captain." B'elanna cut the connection.

 

Meanwhile, Daphnix's fingers raced the tactical station, his mind making notes as he read the info that flickered on the screen. Tuvok was looking over his shoulder, one eyebrow raised in surprise at the speed at which Daphnix gathered info on shields, and so on.

Captain Janeway, having noticed Daphnix's speed, looked on as well. Her face showed the surprise Tuvok was repressing.

Daphnix noticed nothing of the commotion he was creating. His mind was in full absorption mode, his eyes reading at the speed of his mind, not the speed of speech. He simply absorbed whatever he came in contact with.

"Shield modulations… phase variance…power distribution on deflector grid…" he mumbled as his mind set up a second string of thought: one serving the purpose of improving whatever was present.

 

Frederic's mind connected directly to the main computer, through the fastest interface on the ship. The displays simply gave an error message, indicating their refresh rates couldn't cope with the massive streams of data.

Harry Kim looked on in surprise as Frederic's hands hovered mere centimeters above the keyboard, never touching it, but the bleeping of the computer indicated that actions were being performed.

His mouth hung open as Frederic's eyelids trembled in coordination with his chin, along with small gasps erupting form his mouth. As suddenly as it started, Frederic's hands pulled back, and a large gasp came from his mouth.

"I got what I came for. Let's get back to the bridge." Frederic said to the astonished ensign.

"How did you do that?" Kim asked as they walked back into the turbolift.

"My mind has mastered a direct neural link to any computer system, as long as I have an interface that's fast enough. Don't ask more, the rest is classified Omega-nine." Frederic said, stepping of the turbolift as its doors whooshed open on the bridge.

Frederic cast a look at Daphnix, and said:

"Hey, D! No goofing off! We have a job to do, remember?" his eyes twinkled and a small smile was visible on his face. The furious tapping ended.

"You try to bypass security, absorb data AND keep an improvements list at the same time." Daphnix said to his friend.

"Show me." Frederic said. He received the list, the already assimilated data and the security bypasses.

"Right, Frederic said, opening his eyes after a ten-second period of being closed. He ignored the questioning looks of the people around him. "Step back, and let a pro do this."

"Alright, big shot. Finish the job." Daphnix said, stepping back. Frederic stepped in his place, cracked his knuckles for extra effect.

"You have to watch this captain. It is incredible." Harry Kim whispered to his captain. She nodded, and looked at Frederic. His fingers assumed the same position Harry had seen mere minutes before. His eyes closed, and his eyelids stared trembling again.

The data streams were soon too much for the monitors, which started displaying error messages again. Fifteen minutes later, Frederic opened his eyes.

"You cheated." Daphnix stated.

"I took a shortcut." Frederic grinned. "The results are all that count, D. You know that."

Daphnix grinned as well. "Yeah, well, you could have said so before you said I was goofing off."

"Sorry. Frederic to Jennifer. Status?" he asked the device on his arm.

"The chief engineer is a little hostile, which slows down my work considerably." His wife's voice came out of the device.

"So? Override her. Do your job, and don't let anyone stop her. We have more to do than follow Starfleet bureaucracy."

"Affirmative, Fred. I'll be done in about half an hour."

"Anything we can do?" Frederic asked.

"Nope. You two start without me. I'll be there as soon as I'm finished here." She said.

"Affirmative. See you then, love." Frederic terminated the connection.

"Conference lounge?" Daphnix asked.

"Conference lounge." Frederic agreed. "Computer, execute program Frederic-one. Scan conference lounge."

Program executed. Conference lounge has been secured.

"Execute program Frederic-two on Conference lounge."

Frederic-two has been enabled.

Frederic and Daphnix stepped into the conference lounge. When Janeway wanted to follow, she bumped into a force field.

"Don't try it, captain. The conference lounge is inaccessible for anyone without level-one clearance. Only me and my two companions have level-one." Frederic said, stepping back. The doors slid shut, and refused to open.

 

Janeway was furious!  No amount of tapping on the membrane keypad next to the door, or barking orders at the computer opened the doors. Harry Kim tried to bypass the door's controls, only to find out that they were protected by force fields as well.

"Seven, don't you have any Borg algorithms that could open the door?" Janeway asked a blonde woman. Seven of Nine had been a Borg drone, but the crew of Voyager had been able to free her, and bit-by-bit, she had regained her Humanity.

"I can try." Seven said, beginning to tap on the science console. "Intriguing. These codes are very tough to break. This is most disturbing." She said, looking in what can be described as sheer and utter astonishment at the readouts. 

"I got an encryption algorithm, but it erased itself as soon as I tried to use it, and upgraded itself by orders of magnitude. It seems to be impossible to break these codes." Seven said, looking at Janeway. Then, Jennifer strode up on the bridge.

"Excuse me." Janeway said, stepping in front of Jennifer. The girl stopped and smiled at Janeway.

"How can I help you, captain?"

"Get us in the Conference lounge. Your husband locked us out."

"He did? Thanks for the warning." Jennifer said. "I would have looked quite the fool otherwise." She grinned. Jennifer stepped up to the door.

"Computer, level-one clearance, Jennifer Fromthefield. Code is …" she gave a series of numbers in Oech-anya, followed by a name in the Divine language. The doors slid open, and Jennifer stepped through the force field. It flickered around her as she entered the room. The doors slid shut as soon as she cleared the force field.

"Now what do you think of that?" Janeway said, dropping into her command chair.

"I suggest we let them carry on. They did nothing harmful." Seven said, looking at the closed door.

"I agree, captain." Tuvok said. "Whoever they are, they clearly know what they're doing, and Starfleet has agreed to their way of handling things."

"I don't like it. Those three come here, take over my ship, and subvert my own computer system in less than three hours. When we get back, I'm going to file an official report with Starfleet command."

 

Frederic, Jennifer and Daphnix were sitting in the conference lounge, their bodies slumped back in the chairs. Their minds however, were not resting. They were locked in the most intense telepathic communication they had had since they were stranded on the enterprise-D, when their Displacement drive had thrown them over the first time.

They broke off communications when they reached a decision.

"Linda, what's the status on the mobile emitter?" Frederic asked.

Fully charged and operational.

"Beam it over here, and activate." Frederic said. The mobile emitter appeared on the table. The object righted itself over the floor, and Linda appeared, the object clipped to her right leg. This time, however, her uniform pants covered it. It was barely noticeable.

"We'll need your help to get this ship ready as soon as possible." Frederic said, addressing the hologram.

"Of course, dad. Where do I help?"

"You'll start out with Jennifer in engineering, and when she's finished, we'll review what else needs to be done." Frederic said, his two companions nodding in agreement.

"Sure. I'm glad to help." The sentient hologram said, sitting down at the table. "Now, would you mind filling me in?"

Frederic smiled. "I forgot. Sorry." He extended his hand, and downloaded all the data he and his friends had accumulated, and a rundown of their recent telepathic communication directly into the mobile emitter.

"That helps a lot more." The artificial life form grinned, after opening her eyes.

"So, it's decided then. We start first thing tomorrow morning. Jennifer will start adapting Voyager's engines to boost the wormhole drive. Daphnix will start on the Daedalus' engines, preparing them for extended above-normal operation. I will start with the Voyager computer, enabling control from the Voyager bridge." Frederic said.

"Right." The three others said, getting up from the table, following Frederic's example.

"Computer, lift Frederic-one and Frederic-two programs from conference lounge.

Programs lifted. Conference lounge has been released.

The three humans and the AI walked up on the bridge. All eyes drifted immediately towards the stunning blonde female form of Linda. Frederic's stoic appearance disclosed nothing of the mental grin he had. Linda had made a good choice in her appearance. She being a hologram meant she could have whatever form she desired.

"We will start turning your ships upside down and inside out tomorrow, captain." Frederic said. "All the information we require has been acquired and processed. Please notify your crew not to interfere with whatever we're doing, as the slightest misalignment can have dire consequences."

"I'll do that." Janeway said, glaring at the four people.

Then, a woman caught Frederic's eye. "A Borg? You have a Borg on board your ship?" Frederic asked.

"This is Seven of Nine, she's part of our crew now that we've disconnected her from the collective." Janeway said.

"Seven of Nine, tertiary adjunct of Unimatrix 01, do you know who I am?"

"How do you know my full designation?" she asked.

"I got to know a lot more than just your designation when I destroyed four cubes, and accessed the fifth before destroying that one as well." Frederic said, his face dark.

Seven's appearance changed. "You are the Unknown?" her voice trembled, as did her body.

"Is that how the Borg designated me? Oh well, it beats 'Butcher'. But yes, I was the one who came to the rescue of the Federation. The Borg's inferior technology was no match for the Enterprise class battlecarrier we sent to the rescue of our friends. As there were no further attacks, I assume the Collective learned its lesson?"

"It was decided that you needed to be assimilated at all costs, but the strength of your weapons made it impossible to determine the number of ships required. And then species 8472 demanded all of our attention."

"Glad to hear the Borg got what was coming to them. Do you remember the warning I sent through the Collective before I severed the connection?"

"I am Borg." She stated, as tough that was an answer. "The message was encoded into all the drones, enabling us to find your voice if required." A voice came from one of her implants.

"I am a friend of the United Federation of planets. Attempts to assimilate the Federation in the future will result in me hunting you down full time, until the entire Collective has been laid to ruins. End of message."

It was Frederic's voice and intonation to the letter.

"You where the first time the Borg came close to feeling fear. The second time was when species 8472 invaded. How did you destroy those cubes?" Seven asked.

"Irrelevant. You are Borg. Report to the computer core, tomorrow at five-hundred and thirty hours."

"You do not have the authority to command me. I am not Starfleet."

"Authority and Starfleet are irrelevant. You must comply. Resistance is futile." Frederic said, his voice taking on the multiplicity of the Borg Collective. Seven's appearance displayed fear.

"I will not…" she never got to finish her statement.

"I can not force you. Comply, or be left behind. Everybody who is called upon will assist. Resistance to assist will result in being left behind. AM I CLEAR?" Frederic's voice carried the authority of a dozen generals.

"Yes sir. 0530 hours, I'll be there." She said.

"I knew you'd see it my way." Frederic said. He and his three friends disappeared into the turbolift.

"Damn lazy bastards. This is not going to be a joy ride." Frederic grunted.

 

"Seven, what was that all about?" Janeway asked the woman.

"He…I know this will sound strange, captain. He assisted the Federation when the Borg sent 5 cubes to assimilate it. He intercepted, and destroyed four out of five cubes in less than ten minutes. A fifth was disabled. He beamed aboard, and accessed the Collective through one of the drones. After he had accumulated all the data the Borg had to offer at the time, he sent the warning though the Collective. He then destroyed the fifth cube. The Borg never managed to determine the strength of the shields, or any possible defense against the weaponry that was used against us." Seven said. "He is without a doubt capable of leaving us here if we do not cooperate."

"Five cubes? He destroyed five cubes?"

"Yes, captain." Seven said, her voice shaking. "And his actions here indicate that the level of technology has increased even further."

 

"Computer, what is there to do for fun around here?" Frederic asked, after he and his three friends had changed into civilian clothing.

There is a bar simulation running on holodeck one.

"Thank you. What do you three think?" Frederic asked his companions. Jennifer and Daphnix shrugged. Linda nodded, claiming that she wouldn't mind getting some new info on human behavior.

That issue being decided, the three humans and the hologram walked to the holodeck. The moment they entered, the chatter of the human occupants ended. The holographic people continued their business, undisturbed. The eyes of every living being in the bar were trained on the newcomers.

"We're just here to have fun." Frederic said. "Carry on." he and his three companions sat down at an empty table, next to a small stage where a holographic man was playing the piano. Soon, the four people where in a merry conversation, just having a good time. Most of the talk went on about everything and nothing, about the Delta Quadrant, or just reliving memories.

After spending a few hours there, the three went back to the quarters assigned to them, dropped into bed and slept for a couple of hours. They didn't really need to, but it was always best to start fully rested on a new task. Linda was put on stand-by, her mobile emitter tucked safely away in the Daedalus III.

The next morning, the three people got up, washed, dressed, and got to work. It was only 5 in the morning, so they basically had the place to themselves. Linda was activated as soon as the three warriors strode into the shuttle bay.

"Linda, I suggest you work over here, connecting the Daedalus to the Voyager. Jennifer can work in engineering, Daphnix can work up on the bridge, and I will be the roving worker." Frederic said. The 'roving worker' was a concept they had come up with on the Ortega. Basically, it was a person who pitched in wherever he was needed, or double and triple checking the work that had already been done.

Frederic nodded in satisfaction as the three people in front of him nodded their consent. The four people broke up and went to the different parts of the ship, beginning their tasks of modifying both the Voyager and the Daedalus.

 

Frederic first went down to engineering with Jennifer, thinking she might need him most. He was right. Soon, he found himself running all over the place, running systems checks and monitoring the readouts while Jennifer modified the matter/antimatter reactor to boost power to the Daedalus' engines.

Before they knew it, daytime began, and they had another problem to worry about: the ship's chief engineer: B'elanna Torres. She continuously hovered close by, interrupting.

Finally, Frederic couldn't take it no longer.

"Please, step back and let the professionals do this." He told her as she had interrupted him for the umpteenth time. She shot into a rage and almost attacked him. Actually, she started to punch, but never finished it. She found herself ejected against the far wall.

"Admiral Fromthefield to Bridge." Frederic called into his Starfleet communicator. Daphnix responded.

"Bridge here."

"Give me Captain Janeway. Her chief engineer needs medical attention."

"What happened?" Janeway's voice came through.

"Your chief engineer had the stupid idea of trying to attack me. She now has two broken ribs, a hairline fracture in her spine, some bruises and a concussion."

"What did you do?" Janeway's voice sounded outraged.

"I ejected her against the wall. Captain, I propose you either keep your crew in check, or I will!" Frederic cut the connection before the captain could respond.

Now in piece and quiet, the engineering crew staying away from the two people, they continued their work. Not a minute later, a medical hologram strode into engineering, to collect B'elanna. He glared at the two, then left. Frederic just shook his head, and continued working.

"Got it!" Jennifer called.

"Read outs are within tolerances. Linda, what's your status?" Frederic called into his communicator.

"I'm still working on it. we use a far more efficient energy conduit system. I'm having problems interfacing them. our grid keeps threatening to blow this ship's power distribution!"

"Damn. Need any help? Jennifer can handle the rest alone."

"Sure. Come on over." Linda said.

"I'll be right there." Frederic closed the connection. "Frederic to Daphnix. I'll be in the shuttle bay assisting Linda in setting up a power interface, if you need me."

"Sure." Daphnix said. The connection closed.

For hours, the four people worked. Voyager's crew looked on as the four went on without food, drink, or rest. The good fortune didn't last. Somewhere in the afternoon, Daphnix called Frederic, Jennifer and Linda to the bridge. Not knowing what it was, the three complied.

Frederic, Jennifer and Linda emerged from the turbolift together. A strange and unknown vessel filled the main viewer.

"What have we got, D?" Frederic asked.

"That is the time ship Relativity. She claims to be from the 29^th century Federation, here to prevent us from bringing Voyager back." Daphnix said with a smirk.

"What's the commanding officer's name and rank?"

"Captain Braxton."

"Begin implementation of all the adaptations you can thin of. I want this ship ready for combat if this turn sour. Jennifer, take science. Linda, take conn. Computer, on this time, this ship is under Phalanxial supervision."

"The ship is now under Phalanxial supervision. Official name has changed to PSS Voyager. Transferring Artificial life-forms."

Borlan has been transferred. Ready for war. For the first time since long, Holst's Planets alerted crews to their battle stations.

"Borlan, set Defcon 2. put weapons in hiding. Daphnix, disengage any technological aides that I'm sure they put on this ship."

Daphnix felt under the console, pried open a panel, and ripped some cables out. "Aides disengaged.  We are ready for war as soon as I'm finished upgrading these shields and weapons."

 "Put Braxton on screen."

Braxton's face filled the viewer. "I am here to stop a time-line disruption. You are to stop your efforts, and return to your own universe immediately."

Frederic looked at him, sweetly. "Captain Braxton. I am not sure what knowledge has been retained in the 29^th century, but allow me to fill you in."

"Don't bother. Frederic Fromthefield, Daphnix Smith, Jennifer Fromthefield. You three are from an alternative universe."

"Correct. You forgot Linda." Frederic said, making a hand motion towards the AI manning conn. This elected a snicker from Daphnix and Jennifer. "We four, along with the AI manning the computer, have been responsible for billions of deaths, a genocide, amongst a race threatening Earth in our universe. What makes you think I'd have any quarrels about killing you and your crew?" Frederic's look didn't change. He still looked as innocent a child.

"You couldn't. My 29^th century technology is vastly superior."

<<D, weapon status?>>

<<weapons supercharged. Phasers at 175%, Photon torpedoes reconfigured to have a yield of 150%. Shields reconfigured to multi-layered metaphasic shielding.>>

<<meaning?>>

<<Phasers at 0.7 Fromthefields. Torpedoes at 0.8 Fromthefields. Shields capable of deflecting 25.3 Fromthefields.>>

<<Damn. That's not much. Make every shot count.>>

The telepathic conversation had lasted less than a second.

"My technology my be inferior, but I have the best of the best here with me. I have the greatest tactical genius, a superior artificial life form and the best in every field of science here with me. Not to mention that I carry the blessing of the Gods of the Universe themselves with me. Borlan, sound Defcon 3."

Warning! Defcon 3! Defcon 3! All crews, Battle stations. All crews, Battle stations. This is not a drill

"I would suggest you turn tail. This ship will fight with a might beyond its capabilities. D, bring weapons out hiding."

"You can't be serious! The time-line…" Braxton's voice cut off as Frederic literally threw himself up from the command chair. He landed two meters in front of it. the innocent look had disappeared. What was now talking to Braxton was a full-blown warrior who has seen the depths of Hell, and came out stronger.

"The time-line? You think I give a damn about your stupid temporal prime directive? If I had, then my home world would now be ruins, conquered and burnt to the ground by Ketari weaponry. I saw into the future, and used the knowledge to change the present. I don't care, as long as I save people in the present by screwing with the timeline. The future is not written yet, and should not be considered." Frederic ended his monologue.

Braxton looked pale, and was stammering. Frederic ordered the contact severed.

"Borlan, sound Defcon 5. D, begin plotting a firing solution. Jenny, scan for weaknesses. Linda, being attack pattern Ketari-Delta as soon as Daphnix completes the firing solution."

"Affirmative"

"Yes, sir."

"Acknowledged."

Warning: Defcon five! Full blown war! Defcon five! Full blown war! All crew, go to your damage control areas, and secure the main hallways.

"Jen, as soon as Defcon five has been completed, turn off life-support to main hallways, and non-essential decks."

"Already on it." Jennifer responded.

"We have a primary and a secondary solution. Ready for implementation." Daphnix said.

"Linda, are you ready for coordinated Ketari-delta?"

"I am, sir."

"Jenny, give me Braxton one last time." Frederic was still standing halfway between the command chair and the helm. Braxton's face filled the main viewer.

"Captain Braxton, I am giving you one last chance. Our ship is ready for war, our weapons supercharged, our shield in multi-layered metaphasic mode. We have a firing solution, and are ready to implement it. stand down your weapons, and return to your own day and age."

"I have orders from Starfleet to stop you from returning Voyager at all costs. We needed your space-time coordinates to get us hre, otherwise we would have stopped you before you even got here."

"I take that as a no." Frederic's eyes narrowed, giving his face an even more dangerous look. He turned his back to the viewer, and walked to the command chair. He sat down in it, and Jennifer cut the transmission.

"Implement." Was all Frederic said.

Daphnix and Linda started tapping at the same time. Jennifer just kept reading her consoles, relaying tactical info to Daphnix, and navigational data to Linda. The now PSS Voyager shot forward in a standard attack pattern. As Daphnix had predicted, Braxton opened fire, thinking them easy targets. He fell for the same trap that killed countless Ketari.

The Voyager made a sharp roll to the right, avoiding the automatically locked on phaser fire. Daphnix took this as his signal to open fire with his manually targeted phasers and torpedoes. The benefit of human targeting was this: a Human always compensates for what he knows is coming. So, Daphnix was able to fire when the Voyager was still executing evasive actions, while Braxton's crew was stil trying to get a lock-on with their computer targeting.

Linda executed the Ketari-Delta maneuver, flipping the voyager a full 360°. Daphnix fired the front phasers and torpedoes when they pointed towards the Relativity, and the back ones when those were pointed towards it. Voyager went to full impulse the moment its front was turned towards the Relativity. It shot right over the ship, made a 180° turn, and hid under it.

"Time for recharge?" Frederic asked.

"1.5 minutes." Daphnix said, his mind reeling in activity. "Their shields have dropped 20%, but they are recharging faster than I calculated. It will be very difficult to beat them with these limited weapons."

"I'm way ahead of you." Frederic said. "I know." Daphnix didn't doubt for a moment that Frederic had indeed known the moment the weapons impacted the Relativity's shields, like he didn't want to know where the info came from.

"Jennifer, take command. Borlan, assume Defcon 6 status."

"Borlan, I assume command."

Defcon 6. Mental War. Mental War. Admiral Jennifer Fromthefield has assumed command of the PSS Voyager.

The Relativity, no longer confused, attacked with weapons unknown to Frederic and his crew.

"Metaphasic shielding dropping! Now at only 70%! 50%!" Daphnix shouted over the howling of warning claxons, and through a dense smoke coming out of blown consoles.

Frederic shouted over this mess. "By the powers of the Ancient Oech-anya, I will now allow you to interfere with our mission! I will stop you!"

His body assumed a meditative position, in mid-air. A strange green glow surrounded his body. "Now you shall see why I will not be stopped by any normals, from any age." His body shouted, with mouth unmoving.

His eyes were fully green, indicating the activation of the Necklace's powers.

"Sir! The Relativity's shields are dropping! Its engines have malfunctioned! Its warp drive has destabilized, and they ejected the core. The ship is suffering major breakdowns in 75% of its systems." Daphnix reported from his console.

"Yes, I see. If Fred gets angry, he does it with style." Jennifer grinned. The grin disappeared from her face. "The Relativity's temporal core is destabilizing! The blast will take everything in half a light-year with it!" she yelled. "Linda, prepare for an emergency quantum displacement, overdrive speed."

Linda nodded. "That's dangerous." She said, tapping in the commands. "The Daedalus has not been properly connected."

"I know. Engage." The Voyager blasted into Quantum Displacement. Frederic opened his normal eyes the moment his legs touched the ground. He looked at the Quantum Displacement tunnel on the screen.

"I guess I did a little too much damage." He said, without flinching.

"You destabilized the ship's temporal core. It will take half a light-year of space with it as it goes." Jennifer said, her concentration still on her console. Then, a blast shook the ship, and it tilted to an obscene angle.

"We have an unwanted Red-shift!" Jennifer exclaimed. "Emergency shut down!" The Voyager came to a sudden stop… in the solar system of Earth.

"We're home!" Janeway exclaimed.

"That's not certain. There are no satellites, no space debris… Jenny, scan time." Frederic said.

"This is the late 19^th century. An educate guess would be late 1870's, early 1880's." Jennifer said, looking up. Her voice shook a little. "That damn temporal core threw us over the time barrier!"

"Damage report?"

"Nothing major. Most of the damage is superficial."

"Borlan, secure from Defcon 6. This ship is no longer under Phalanxial supervision."

Understood. Ship's name transferred to USS Voyager. Captain Janeway has command.

"Right. We should get working on getting this thing to the right time. We have the place, now the time. Resume previous positions."

"Fred?" Daphnix asked the moment Frederic walked by the Tactical station.

"Hmm?" Frederic looked up from his thoughts.

"I'd like to go down there. I always wanted to visit Japan in that age."

Frederic seemed to think for a moment. "Sure," he said finally. "Have fun, and enjoy yourself."

Daphnix nodded, and tapped his communicator. "Daedalus, clothing beam. Give me normal clothing for 1880's Japan. Include a normal length Japanese sword, made of duranium."

He disappeared and reappeared almost instantly, then called for a transport down as soon as Frederic gave him the 'thumbs up'.

"You're just going to let him leave? While under this kind of condition?" Janeway asked Frederic. She was the first to regain her senses after the dazzling display Frederic had shown them during the battle.

Frederic shrugged. "Why not? The damage is easily repaired, he fills no vital station unless there is war, and he is free as long as we don’t have to operate as an army." He answered, and disappeared into the turbolift along with his two companions.

"How about that? That guy just left." Tom Paris said.

"As long as they get us home, it's fine with me." Harry Kim said, having resumed his station.

"Captain, you should see this." Tuvok called from his station. Janeway rushed over, and stared at entire blocks of data erasing themselves.

"What is that? A virus?" Janeway asked.

'Tactical reports. They are being deleted by a back-up program, which is deleting the entire battle from records, along with every modification they made to the weapons and shields." Tuvok said, staring at the screen, now returned to normal.

Linda returned to the shuttle bay, and resumed working the establishing a working link between the Voyager and the Daedalus. Now that the wormhole drive is no longer going to be used, all they had to do was create a solid link for the QDD.

Jennifer and Frederic returned to main engineering, and continued establishing a more solid link for the QDD. Going across dimensions is one thing, but time travel requires an enormous amount of energy. The only way they could have ended up here in the first place was because of the temporal core exploding on board the Relativity. The Voyager, traveling closer to the temporal barrier due to the quantum displacement, was thrown across. Now, Frederic and his team had the job of drawing enormous amounts of power from the Voyager to get the QDD supercharged and ready for time travel.

After a couple of hours of work, both Frederic and Jennifer clutched at their heads, jabs of pain coursing through their brains. As sudden as it had started, it stopped.

"What was that?" Jennifer groaned groggily.

"A disturbance in the Force. It must have been massive. Frederic to Daphnix, have you felt that as well?" Frederic asked in his communicator. No reply.

"Frederic to Daphnix, come in." Again, no reply. "Frederic to Linda, can you raise Daphnix?"

"His communicator is in emergency mode. What's happened?"

"Oh, no." Jennifer groaned. "A communicator only goes into emergency mode if…"

"Daphnix is either dead, or unconscious. Linda, report to bridge ASAP." Frederic shot up, followed by Jennifer. The astonished crew of main engineering looked at them in surprise. First, they had watched both of them go down, and now they raced like their lives depended on it. the two immortal warriors shot towards the door.

Jennifer and Frederic raced up on the bridge. Linda came mere second later.

"Jennifer, assume Science. Do a pinpoint life-form scan. I want to know where Daphnix is, and what he's doing. Linda, begin preparations to load the emergency command protocols. Captain Janeway, I'm sorry for this intrusion, but it is urgent." The Captain could only nod as Jennifer moved to Science, and barked a "MOVE!" at the young ensign. Linda just closed her eyes, and began retrieving data from the Daedalus' main computer core.

Jennifer's hands raced the console, and then let out a breath of relief, followed by a gasp.

"I've found him. He is alive, but barely. He appears to be unconscious, his body unable to heal by itself. It has dropped to emergency regeneration just to keep him alive." Jennifer said, her voice shaking.

Frederic looked at her, his face broken by worry as well. Both their eyes lit up green for a mere second, then they calmed down again.

"Linda, emergency command protocols, authorization Phalanx-omega-three. Jennifer, you and me are going down there. I want to know who and what is responsible for this."

Linda's form shimmered, then transformed. Her face was no longer that of a young woman looking in curiosity at the universe, but a battle-hardened commanding officer. Her uniform changed to that of the ESMF, a quantum pistol at both hips, and a normal sword on her back. Her collar showed five swords, indication of her commanding role. She strode to the command chair and sat down.

"We'll be back as soon as possible. Linda is in command until then. No offense captain, but she's the best. Daedalus, clothing beam." Frederic said. Both warriors changed into Japanese clothing. Their Swords, now deactivated, were stored into hidden pockets.

"When this is done, you have to dress up like that some more. I like it." Frederic said, looking at Jennifer's clothing. The dress came down to her feet, and was tied together with a large bow on her back. a blue ribbon tied back her hair. "Daedalus, transport us to Tokyo, secluded area. Load all info on Daphnix's activities into the hidden mental amp."

The two people disappeared into the shimmering transporter beam.

 

Frederic and Jennifer walked into the Tokyo suburb Daphnix had been located in. First thing on their agenda was locating where their friend was. Striding down the street, they picked up talk about a fight in a local restaurant. Thinking that a small lead is better than no lead at all, they walked to the restaurant in question.

One look at the place confirmed the two warriors' ideas. The whole place still radiated mental energy, indication that Daphnix's shields had collapsed completely, leaving his mental abilities open for every Mental to detect.

Still, he was too far off for them to find him, so their best choice was to follow the trail of decaying mental energy residue. They walked from the restaurant to a hospital, and found out their friend had moved been moved again, still unconscious.

By now, both Frederic and Jennifer had realized that no one carried swords, and that a lot of people looked at them in suspicion, as soon as they noted the swords. Shrugging, they continued their way. A more important job was at hand than trying to fit in perfectly. Since their beam down, neither of them had spoken a single word. The situation was that grave that they didn't even realize their minds were speaking directly to each other, through the link.

The trail stopped at a Dojo. For the first time, Frederic spoke.

"The Kamiya school of the Living Spirit. What did Daphnix get himself involved in?" Frederic grunted.

"I have no idea, but he's definitely here, and he doesn't seem to be in any trouble."

"Except that he's still in emergency regeneration, and the fight's a stand-off." Frederic added. He knocked on the door, and readied his knowledge of the Japanese language of the time.

A man opened. His hair was red, he wasn't overly large or wide, but the most distinct feature was the large cross-shaped scar on his face. His eyes seemed friendly, but Frederic's mind warned him: 'this man is capable of more than he looks like, be careful'!

"Can I help you?" the man asked, using polite verb forms, and referring to himself as 'this unworthy person'.

"We are friends of Daphnix." Frederic said, smiling at the man. When he didn't seem to recognize the name, Frederic added: "The man who was injured at the restaurant earlier today?"

"Ah, yes. Please, follow me. I'm sorry to tell you, but your friend is in bad shape. He still hasn't woken up, and we are fearing he never may."

Subconsciously, Jennifer walked closer to Frederic who, just as subconsciously put an arm around her waist. The man noticed, but decided not to say anything about it. the two warriors and their companion stopped at a door in the dojo. A woman was just emerging from the room.

"I never asked for your names…" the man let this remark trail.

"Oh, sorry. I am Frederic, and this is Jennifer." Frederic said. The two people looked strangely at these names. "We are from very far away." He explained.

"I am Kenshin, and this is Kaoru." Kenshin said.

"Thank you for taking care of our friend." Frederic said, gently pushing open the door. Both Frederic and Jennifer poked their heads inside, and looked at their friend's unconscious body. Slowly, they got in the room.

Kneeling on either side of the sleeping mat, Frederic and Jennifer sat by Daphnix's unmoving body. Sadness broke on their features.

"We have to do something." Jennifer said in English.

"You're right, my love. But, I am scared that there might be some complications." Frederic said, nodding his head.

Jennifer realized immediately what Frederic meant. In order to save him, Frederic and Jennifer had to link up with Daphnix completely. Frederic was scared that Daphnix might try something stupid again, like when Frederic was helpless.

"Fred, love. He's helpless. Chances are he'll stay like this forever, or for a very long time at least. We can't do this."

"You're right. We'll form a share link." Taking each other's hands, Frederic and Jennifer formed a triangle with Daphnix. They closed their eyes, and let their own powers flow to strengthen and complete the triangle.

The natural ways of their powers are quite simple: they try to perfect whatever it comes in contact with. Frederic and Jennifer felt their powers flow to the weak link in the triangle: Daphnix. His beaten body was supercharged with powers and energy of two creatures, each more powerful than he was.

It took ten minutes for Frederic and Jennifer to destroy the magic causing havoc in Daphnix's body. When that was done, his own energy was able to heal him, and the two others broke the triangle of power.

Getting up, they looked at Daphnix's features, now more relaxed. They left the room, and spoke softly to the two people looking strangely at them.

"We shared our life forces. Don't worry, he's sleeping now." Frederic said. The two people looked even more strangely at him now, but Frederic and Jennifer paid no further attention. Their own energy had been thoroughly depleted.

"Please excuse us… we need some time to recuperate. This has been extremely draining." Frederic said. Jennifer and he walked down the corridor to the outside, literally supporting each other. Once outside, they collapsed next to the house. Their bodies, conditioned and trained, found meditative positions by themselves, and their minds regenerated.

"What happened?" Kaoru asked Kenshin. "Have you ever heard about something like that?"

"It is only a rumor, but it is said that people whose ki (life-force) is larger than their body's need, can share it with others. I felt their kis were extremely strong when they were at the door, but this is not something I would have believed, if I hadn't seen it for myself." Kenshin said. "Maybe, once they're rested, they can tell us more. For now, I think it is prudent to let them sleep."

"Alright." Kaoru said.

 

Nightmares plagued Daphnix's troubled mind. He kept seeing the magical sword flash towards him, cutting open his stomach horizontally. He could feel his control slipping, as his body was unable to repair the damage. What was even worse, the magic seemed to have a poisonous effect. In order to stop it, he has to use every bit of his mental energy. He raised his normal sword, and tried to launch a coordinated attack towards the unknown man, and failed miserably. It was then that he felt the second slash, right below the first one. His mind retreated, and his body shut down to conserve energy. Briefly, he had felt the boost of energy, so familiar, and yet so unfamiliar in another. It has boosted him, allowed him to heal.

Slowly, Daphnix opened his eyes. he was hungry, and his body felt devoid of energy. He slowly rose from the sleeping mat he was on. Totally disoriented, he tried to remember where he was. He failed miserably, but managed to get up on his feet and stumble to a wall. He gently pushed open the door, and looked into the hallway. First right, then left. He saw nobody. His mind was numb, his powers useless. Now he knew how Frederic had felt: helpless, blind and deaf.

He stumbled further down it, thinking it was the way out. He followed his instincts now. He, quite literally, didn't know what was surrounding him. Stumbling, he made it outside.

Frederic and Jennifer were awoken from their sleep by heavy breathing, and labored footsteps coming from inside the building. Their keen senses had warned them: Daphnix. The rose, and were just in time to catch him as he tumbled outside.

Sitting him gently to the ground, Jennifer and Frederic looked worriedly at Daphnix.

"D, you shouldn't be up. You need your sleep." Frederic said. "We just helped you conquer the magical poison, you had to heal the rest by yourself. You need your energy."

"…know. Needed to know where." Daphnix's mind was still not able to think coherently. He was like a drunk trying to think straight. Frederic understood him.

"You are in a dojo. I have no idea why these people helped you, or who they are, except for their first names. The woman is named Kaoru, and the man is named Kenshin." Frederic said. "Now, would you mind telling us what happened?"

Daphnix closed his eyes as he nodded. "I was in the restaurant, eating, when this guy walks up to me, and says it's forbidden here to wear a sword in public."

Frederic nodded. "We know. Go on."

"So I say I'll put it away. I hide the thing under my clothes, and continue eating. The man starts bullying me, saying that its not enough and stuff like that. I have no intention of fighting him, and I say so. That really ticks him off, and he draws this really strange sword. And I mean strange. I've never seen anything like it before, and I couldn't find any references to it in my memory either. Because I don't want to ruin the restaurant, we go outside. He barely gave me time to draw my sword before he lashed out. I managed to block the first attack, but I never saw the second one coming. That guy moved with incredible speed!"

"You're telling me that there is some nutcase out there, with a magical sword, who is able to move faster than our senses can detect?" Jennifer almost yelled.

"There is. This IS Japan, just after the era of warriors. Those people were highly skilled, fast as lighting and strong as thunder. But I will get him, and kill him. Nobody messes with my friends." Frederic says, and gets up. He calmly walks out the dojo.

Daphnix wanted to get up and follow him, but Jennifer holds him down and shakes her head. "He needs some time alone."

Daphnix didn't need more. When Frederic wants some time alone, it's major. Jennifer and Daphnix went to a spot more out of the way, and started meditating, their minds dealing with the problems they each had.

Two people came in a couple of hours later, and both looked strange at the two statue-like warriors as they went into the building.

"Hi Sano, Yahiko. How was the trip?" Kaoru asked as the two walked into the room where she and Kenshin were talking about the strange events.

A man of about 20 years old answers: "It was fine. Who are the two statues?"

"Yeah! They just sit there. For how long have they been like that?" the young boy asks.

"Only two?" Kenshin looks outside, and comes right back in. "The man was injured terribly earlier, and we decided to help him. I don't know why, but something compelled me to do it. The woman is a friend of his, coming a couple of hours later. She had a man with her, but he seems to have disappeared."

 Outside, Daphnix and Jennifer sat, locked in meditation, side by side. Their minds are empty, their emotions non-existent. A sudden gasp for breath startles Daphnix out of his trance. Jennifer's eyes have opened, and she has gotten up.

He gets up as well, ignoring the protest of his aching body. "What is it, Jenny?"

Jennifer's eyes lit up in a ghostly green light, almost making Daphnix jump. She removed the deactivated handle from her hidden pocket, and raises it above her head. Her head drops back until her face is turned towards the skies, and she says:

"I give them back, my husband." The handle is engulfed in green energy, and launches from her hand. It describes an arch, until it disappears from Daphnix's vision. Jennifer sunk back to the ground.

"What happened?" Daphnix asked, although he had a pretty good idea.

"Frederic wanted his powers back. I think that now we'll see what a true Phalanx is. He is activating all the forbidden knowledge, of every race. Last time he didn't have the time to do it, and it hasn't been necessary since. I guess that he finally wanted it over with." Jennifer said, resuming her position for meditation.

Daphnix's eyes open up, as his mouth drops. It takes him only a few second to compose himself, and he too resumes his meditation.

The green light coming from the outside had alerted the four people inside the building, and they came rushing outside. When they saw nothing out of the ordinary, except for the two statues, they finally wanted to know what was going on.

The moment they went within the three-meter security radius, Jennifer and Daphnix raised from the trance. Both their eyes flashed open, and their bodies righted themselves on their feet.

"Did you see a green light about a minute ago?" Kenshin asked the two people.

"We didn't." Jennifer lied.

"Maybe you were in too deep, although I find that hard to believe, given the fact that you came out of it as soon s you heard us come too close." Kenshin persisted.

"Maybe, but that still doesn't preclude us seeing the light." Jennifer said. Suddenly, she feels Frederic. His mind was…different. Even though her shields were still partially up, she could feel the coldness that now radiated from his mind. It was a powerful presence, no longer gentle and caring, but cold and hard as steel, the mind of an inhumane assassin. She almost lost total control, but it still caused her to close her eyes, and put both her hands against her head.

"What is it?" Daphnix asked, supporting her.

"Fred…so cold." She grunted. "Don't know what it is…" she whispered. The four people had no idea what was going on, due to the fact that both Daphnix and Jennifer had returned to English, but they still could see it was something important. After only ten seconds, Jennifer righted herself, having adjusted to the coldness on the other end of the link.

The same moment, the front door to the dojo opened. Frederic strode in, and walked briskly to his two friends. His face had undergone the same transformation his mind had. His eyes were cold as steel, and the harshness in his features spoke volumes.

"Fred? What the hell happened?" Daphnix asked, almost shouting.

"Nothing." Cold shivers ran down the spines of everyone there. His voice was as cold as his eyes. "I need your data on your attacker."

"Go…ahead." Daphnix said. Frederic raised his hand, and extended one finger. The finger touched Daphnix's forehead, and instantaneous, the entire even was duplicated into Frederic's mind.

"Don't try to follow me. You won't like what you see." Frederic said, in Japanese so the rest understood it as well.

"Fred, please. What did you do?" Jennifer asked, also in the same language.

"I trained. Don't worry, my weaker self will return. When this is over." Frederic said. The same moment, he turned on his heel, and walked out the door.

"I am going with him." Jennifer said, snapping loose from Daphnix and walking after Frederic. The rest of the people shrugged and followed as well.

Frederic walked crisscross through the town, and finally seemed to find who he was looking for. At a house, he halted. He gave a final warning to the people who had followed him, and placed his hand on the door. It exploded into a million pieces. Without hesitation, he walked inside.

The house obviously doubled as a storehouse of some kind. Furniture, some covered, some not, littered the hallways and the rooms. Dust had accumulated on them, but Frederic totally ignored it. He just looked around. At a door, he halted. again, the door blasted to shreds the moment he touched it.

"Amaya, your time has expired." Frederic said, his voice dropping below freezing. The man was the same who had attacked Daphnix. Slowly, he got up, and towered above Frederic, who was not impressed.

"Shall we do this here, or by the river, where we have more room to maneuver?" Amaya asked.

"I do not need room, but feel free." Frederic said, not budging from the door opening, however.

"Will you let me pass, or shall I make you?" the man snickered. His snicker soon died out as Frederic's face didn't show the slightest hint of humor.

"You're cold, kid. Doesn't matter. Soon you won't be anymore when I make you beg for the life of those bitches you've brought with you."

A cold, humorless smile played on Frederic's face. "Amusing. You obviously have no idea who or what I am. The river it is." Frederic made two gestures of his hands.

The next moment, the entire group was standing on a clearing, not far from the river. Kenshin and his group looked around in astonishment. Amaya was as astonished as they were.

Jennifer and Daphnix were not astonished, but they were surprised that Frederic would use a teleportation spell so openly. Frederic threw his normal sword away, and took a deactivated Sword handle. His friends had no idea which one.

He activated the blade. "Your sword is magic as well, so I thought I would make this match even." The same cold smile.

The same moment, the man launched himself towards Frederic, the blue-glowing blade in hand. Frederic disappeared in front of him.

"Where did you go, you coward?" the man bellowed.

"I have mastered every single technique for sword fighting ever conceived." Jennifer shuddered at those words. Frederic wasn't boasting. "I have speed you can only dream about. I could have killed you in a single stroke. That technique I used was from a school called Hiten Mitsurugi, the Flying heaven's honorable sword flow." Frederic said. The man turned around, and faced Frederic's sword, not even a centimeter from his throat.

"However, I will give you a second chance. Assume your best position, and prepare yourself for battle." Frederic said, raising his sword in a salute. His eyes lit up black, and the glow around the sword matched the color.

"You made a mistake kid. Fancy tricks won't scare me off." The man attacked, and Frederic just blocked. One attack, two attacks, three attacks. Amaya attacked with his best moves, but Frederic blocked them all, without even the slightest hint of trouble.

After at least two minutes of relentless pounding, the man broke off. "Alright, kid. Move." The man challenged. Frederic moved, blurred, and disappeared.

Suddenly, a sword flashed, and cut a neat 'Z' in the mans clothes. Frederic came to a stop again, in front of the man.

"Now you will face the single most powerful martial arts technique ever devised: the Oech-anya War Dragon technique." Frederic said. He let out a howl, which seemed to be pure emotion. He blasted off, and rose high into the skies. Amaya looked on in astonishment.

"That's impossible." The man said.

"Dear God. I hope he knows what he's doing. Only three people in Oech-anya history have been able to pull it off. Not even their Phalanx could do it." Jennifer said, her voice shaking in worry.

By now, Frederic had reached the summit. His powers had kept a tag on Amaya, who still hadn't moved. Frederic set course for him. During the trip down, his body started spinning, faster and faster. It first created a vacuum vortex, starting at his outstretched hands along his body. Frederic didn't breathe, since the vacuum vortex made sure he had no breath. Then, the intense energy caused the air around the vortex to spontaneously combust.

Fire engulfed the vacuum around Frederic's body, drenching him in sweat and leaving a fiery trail behind. Frederic now could no longer see, hear or feel due to the flames surrounding his body. His powers were all that made sure he was still on target.

Amaya, having realized that he was the target, tried to run. The flaming dragon followed his every move. Closer and closer Frederic came to the man. Faster and faster he tried to run. Then came the discharge. Frederic's flaming vacuum vortex hit the man, full force. Amaya disintegrated, never to be seen again. Frederic's body emerged, unscathed.

The next moment, the black glow in his eyes died out, and the Sword resumed the normal green glow. Frederic sunk to his knees, and Jennifer rushed towards him, holding his quivering body in her arms.

"I'm sorry… I didn't know this would happen." Frederic whispered. "I should have been more careful."

"Shhh. It's okay now. We'll have a lot of explaining to do, but you didn't hurt any of us. Shhh… it's okay now, everything's fine." She said, holding him in her arms while his emotions run rampart through his mind. Daphnix looked on in quiet contemplation, while the normals had a more open look of fear in their eyes.

As soon as Frederic had regained his composure, he slowly got up. He made another motion, and the entire group found themselves in the Kamiya dojo.

"I owe you all an explanation." Frederic began.

"Like hell you do! How did you do that? And how do I learn it?" the 20-year old man began.

"First of all, this is Sanosuke" Kenshin pointed to the man, "And this is Yahiko." He pointed to the boy.

"I am Frederic Fromthefield, this is my wife Jennifer, and our best friend Daphnix." Frederic said. "And now, allow me to explain what that was all about."

For the next couple of hours, Fredric told them all about what had happened, what he was, and what he did. He tried his best to explain all about airplanes, spaceships, and interdimensional travel to the 19^th century people.

They were confused, to say the least. They knew the stuff he told them about couldn't exist, but the display of power they had just witnessed claimed the truth of at least the divine part.

"There will be only one way to convince you. But please, none of what I told you or what I'm about to show you is ever to be told to anybody unless you're 150% sure they'll never reveal it." Frederic said. When the skeptical normals nodded their consent, Fredric called for transport.

The seven people disappeared into a transporter beam. They materialized in the transporter room. The four normals were flabbergasted.

"You were telling the truth!" Kaoru shouted. "What is this?"

"This is the transporter room of the USS Voyager. The transporter is our way of traveling long distances." Frederic explained. B'elanna Torres, manning the transporter console stepped forward immediately.

"What are you doing? You know that you can't bring those people up here!" she shouted in English. The four people looked at her like she was the devil in person.

"I can do what I want, this is none of your concern." Frederic said, escorting the four others out the transporter room. B'elanna stayed behind, dumbstruck.

 

"And this is the bridge." Frederic said, escorting the four normals up on the command center. Linda stood up as she recognized the voice of a superior officer.

"Linda, stand down from ECP." Fredric said, in English. Her form shimmered a little, then reverted back to the 'normal' Linda, in Starfleet uniform. The four normals looked like they had seen a ghost.

"That is Linda, she's a hologram, created by machinery. But I assure you that she is very much as alive as you and me." Frederic explained in Japanese to the four. Linda greeted them n their own language.

Janeway, along with the rest of her bridge crew, had no idea what was going on. she tried to intervene.

"The Prime Directive…" she began. Fredric cut her off with a motion of his hand.

"As I've told you, Captain, I am not Starfleet, therefore I am not bound by its idiocy. These people are my friends, and are therefore entitled to know the truth." He resumed in Japanese.

"Unfortunately, some of my subordinates are not too happy I told you anything about this. I don't care, I trust you and we'll be gone soon anyway." He grinned.

"Now, there is something I want to know about you." Fredric said, looking at Kenshin. "There is something very odd about you. You are very strong, yet you do everything you can to disguise it. Why?" the man looked at the floor, unsure of what to say.

"I understand." Frederic said. "It is something you'd rather not talk about. I respect that. You don't have to tell me. Now, shall I bring you back to the surface, or is there something else you'd like to see?"

"You trusted us. Now it is my turn to trust you." Kenshin said. Fredeeric smiled and nodded gratefully.

"We can talk when we get you back to the dojo." Frederic suggested. Everyone agreed, and the seven people walked to transporter room one and they beamed down.

 

"So THAT is what you're hiding from. You were once an assassin known as Battousai, and you killed to bring forth a new era. I see how troublesome that is… and I also understand why you took a vow never to kill again. You are afraid to become him again." Frederic said. "I didn't want to drag up painful memories. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. That is all part of my past, and I have accepted it." Kenshin said. "By the way, you used one of the techniques of my school, Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu. I never saw it executed so flawlessly before."

"As a Phalanx, I have an inherited ability for combat. Too bad my wartime personality lost it completely, and used the single strongest fighting technique ever." Frederic said.

"That reminds me, you never told me what happened. How did you become that person, love?" Jennifer asked.

"When I was near the river, I accessed the Forbidden Knowledge again. Last time, I didn't have enough time to learn it all, so I just used the forces of nature. This time, however, I assimilated it all, and this somehow triggered a hidden memory, a really ancient memory, older than humanity and older than the Oech-anya. I can't describe it. It is almost like becoming the Phalanx in pure essence: a warrior in pure blood, stopping at nothing to achieve his goal. And in my case, the goal was eliminating the man who hurt my friend." Frederic said.

"How did you become you again?" Daphnix asked.

"He retreated as soon as he had made sure his goal had been achieved. It feels so strange, knowing he's waiting for the right time. But it strengthens as well. I know that the next time I go into battle, he'll be there to help me, to guide me, to lead me if necessary. I know he's not a pleasant personality, but he's better than I can ever be." Frederic said. "I always have doubts about killing my adversaries. He doesn't. he kills without a further thought, as long as he has decided beforehand the adversary deserves it."

"I see. So, he just comes, or do you have to call him?"

"I don't know. I guess he comes when he thinks I need him." Frederic said.

Frederic and his two friends stayed until late at night, talking to their new friends. Sensing no dark forces from orbit, they decided that this world was not in need of Master Slayers. Frederic did leave a communicator behind, however. If their friends were ever in trouble, they could contact Frederic and the rest. After thanking them very heartily, Frederic and his two companions beamed back up to the ship.

It took them two more days to get a direct connection between Voyager and the Daedalus. All the time, it was 'cold war' between Fredric and his team and Janeway and her crew. They couldn't understand their unconventional way of working.

"Linda, begin warm-up of the Daedalus. Jennifer, run diagnostics on the new computer modules. Daphnix, transfer weapons power to integrity fields and the Daedalus. Attention all personnel: in five minutes, we will begin the start of the Daedalus' Quantum Displacement Drive. Everyone is advised to take seats, and prepare for a bumpy ride. A temporal crossing is NOT a smooth ride. Frederic out."

"Warm-up complete. Begin start sequence. Accepting power from weapons." Linda said.

"Shields holding at 31.9 Fromthefields. Structural integrity is at maximum. Weapons grid deactivated." Daphnix said.

"We could use more shields. The Daedalus can create that much shields. The Ortega can generate 100 Fromthefields." Frederic grunted. "Jenny?"

"Diagnostics complete. Everything checks out."

"All personnel, this is Frederic. Prepare for temporal crossing. Out." Frederic said. "Linda, engage."

The Voyager lunged forward and went into the Quantum tunnel. Then, it turned red and the Voyager started shaking. The entire ship groaned under the strain, as the lights went out to transfer more power to the shields and the integrity fields.

"Shields at 5 Fromthefields and failing! Structural integrity had dropped to less than 75%. The ships is breaking up!" Daphnix shouted form his console.

"Computer is running overtime on adjustments. There is nothing more that we can do." Jennifer said.

"QDD ends in 20 seconds. Hang on!" Linda shouted.

"Shields down! Structural integrity failing! We won't survive this!" Daphnix shouted. Frederic slid from his chair, and closed his eyes. the groaning and moaning in the ship's hull lessened somewhat.

"QDD end in 5…4…3…2…1…NOW!" Linda shouted. She ship stopped groaning. Frederic gasped and opened his eyes.

"Thank God! I don't think I could have kept it together much longer. Where and when are we?" he asked, getting back in the command chair with a splitting headache.

"We're in the solar system. And we're… in the correct time! We made it!" Jennifer shouted.

Frederic pressed the intercom button. "Welcome home." he said, the crew started cheering.

 

Captain Janeway waited at the office of Admiral Donnely. The secretary waived her in. nodding, the Captain walked into the room. To her surprise, Fredric was sitting in front of the desk, talking to Donnelly.

"That weasel!" she thought. "Now he's gotten his revenge."

"I'll be leaving as soon as Jennifer and Daphnix have returned with the Ortega. Using Wormhole speeds, it would take them not very long to get there. Getting back will take slightly longer." Fredric joked with the Admiral. Turning to the Captain, he said: "Have a seat, captain. We called you here to discuss some matters that happened while I was on board the Voyager."

"The little weasel has gotten his revenge alright." The Captain grunted. She had always thought she could keep her crew together somehow, but with this happening, that chance was very slim.

"The Phalanx has provided me with a full report on everything that ahs transpired while he and his team converted Voyager to come home." The Admiral began. Cold sweat broke out on Janeway's forehead. "He told me that you and your crew behaved admirably under the most trying of circumstances. He spoke very highly of your abilities as a commander, and of the abilities of your crew. Therefore, I am going to fulfill his request. All former Maquis members of your crew are pardoned, and hereby placed onboard Voyager. The Borg you have onboard will also remain part of your crew. Furthermore, I am granting you 6 months of shore leave."

Janeway was dumbstruck. She had expected to be yelled at, to be demoted, to be thrown out, but not to be commended, let alone to be told she could keep her crew together.

"Thank you sirs." She said to the two people present in the room.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, Admiral, Captain, I have been promised a tour of your facilities here on Earth." Frederic said, nodding to the Admiral, and shooting a grin at the captain. He walked out the door, which closed automatically behind him.

As Frederic had expected, Janeway followed him not a minute later.

"Permission to speak freely, sir?" she asked when she had caught up with him. He looked at her, and said:

"Of course."

"What game are you playing?"

"No game. I think highly of you and your crew. I know I was harsh on them, but I am no harsher than I am with my own people, and that includes my friend and my wife. And under those conditions, you and your crew behaved well "

"But why are you so harsh, even on the people you like?"

"Because I want people to fulfill their fullest potential. My crew expects that of me, and I expect it from them. I am just as harsh on them as I am on myself." Fredric explained.

After talking some more with captain Janeway, Frederic took the tour of the Starfleet facilities on Earth. After the tour, he went back to the Ortega, and blasted back to one of the many alternate universes, to finish the upgraded drive system of the battlecarrier.