Tiger- These are the Voyages
Page 40
‘Ah! Well! Ironically,’ giggled one O’Mara ‘it sort of works the other way around. Because we’ve moved into the hole, we’ve forced space-time into existence. Our presence here has given the gap dimensions. We’ve sort of become creators. How does it feel to be god-like?’
The Captain nodded thoughtfully. ‘Ok, if we take that as read then, two questions come to mind. Firstly, how do we get out of it? And less importantly, but probably more interestingly, what’s caused it in the first place?’
The two Science Officers looked at each other and one said ‘Ah, now that is a different question. With regard to getting out of it, we’re still moving at . . . ‘ she checked the sensors ‘point four of light speed. We’ll have created a wake of space-time behind us, so if we turn about there should be something for the engines to warp. We’ll have to reconfigure them because there won’t be any free hydrogen for the bussard ram-scoops to collect . . . ‘
‘Yeah, already done that. Apparently’ mumbled the Captain.
‘ . . . so as long as we take it easy, just warp one, we should be out in a matter of minutes!’
‘Ok Crash, you heard the lady. About turn!’
‘Aye aye, Captain’ said Crash and set about reversing course.
As he did, the other O’Mara tackled the second question.
‘As regards what caused the hole in the first place, well I can only speculate really’ she sighed.
The rest of the crew waited with bated breath while O’Mara thought her way through it. ‘Well, defects in subspace aren’t unknown, but normally they’re the result of extremely high energy events, mostly the sort of thing that occurs on a stellar scale. Finding one within a star-system is really, really weird. The only time I can think we’ve come across . . . oh. Of course. The war.’
She nodded at her other self as the pieces of a puzzle came together in her mind. ‘It’s not a hole. It’s a crater. We’ve all heard Vainatolo’s tales of a great war in this area, and how the one side used some kind of uber-weapon.’
She sighed. ‘That’s what this is. The crater left where there used to be a planet. The crater left by the sort of sub-elementary particle weapon we saw used in that alternate universe.’
The Bridge crew all remembered the frightening devastation they’d witnessed as a new and terrible weapon tore quarks into nothingness in a different universe.
Crash couldn’t even begin to imagine the vast quantity of energy needed to tear a massive hole in space and time. All he could think was that he was glad the war was over and done, but in the back of his mind he wondered how many poor souls had perished along with their planet. How many had been blasted into non-existence in this horrific hole in space and time?
The silence continued until the Captain remembered his duty. ‘Lieutenant Dolplop, log these co-ordinates as a navigation hazard and launch a warning buoy. O’Mara . . . either of you . . . work out a way of determining the size of the hole.’
With a deep sigh he added ‘Crash, just get us the hell out of here.’
Epilogue
Captains Log: Captain David Hollins
Stardate 9565.6
It’s been a busy and sometimes fraught period of activity.
I’m really pleased with the way the crew have settled into their role as explorers, and I think I can honestly say we’ve performed as well as Head Quarters could possibly expect.
That said, our voyage so far has not been without a downside. It’s been brought home to us that even within Federal territory, exploring is an inherently dangerous business, and all our lives have been at risk on several occasions.
I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t considered the ‘what if’ questions. I can’t help but dwell on the fact that at any time a mistake in judgement on my part or perhaps any of the crew might lead to loss of life, or possibly the loss of the entire ship.
The spectre of USS Magellan hangs over us all.
Now I think of it, it seems this is an entire star-scape of ghosts. The unknown fate of USS Magellan, the wrecks of hundreds of other vessels, the temple of the long-lost Thetans, the crater left by a doomsday weapon . . . everything in this sector seems to be rooted in the distant past.
And here we are, stumbling through it all with bright-eyed enthusiasm and only the tiniest inkling of what’s gone before.
Professor Hubert is still reluctant to share what he knows, and I suspect he knows an awful lot more than he’s admitting to. Weirdly he seems reluctant to leave the ship, which is really bugging me: if he won’t share what he knows, I’d really rather not have him aboard Tiger. I can’t shake the feeling he’s like an albatross, some kind of harbinger of bad luck.
I’ll keep trying to get him to share what he knows as it might be crucial to the survival of the ship. It seems this whole sector is full of relics of a war that ended a thousand years ago, and we’ve already found that some are no less dangerous because of their age.
Ironically the risks of the past in some way add to my determination to succeed in our mission. There’s a mystery to unlock here that will dictate whether the Federation can successfully colonise and exploit the undoubted potential of the star-systems in this sector.
It’s a challenge I am determined to meet.
Captain David Hollins,
Commanding Officer, USS Tiger
The Crew of USS Tiger will return in
Tiger: Eye of the Storm . . .