Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Ascendance

by David R. George III

  Finally, she addressed Taran’atar. “Have you been searching for Ghemor since you left the station?” Kira had given the Jem’Hadar the choice of remaining on DS9 or taking a decommissioned Bajoran scoutship wherever he chose, to do whatever he chose. For his own sake, she had wanted him to stay, but he hadn’t; he had boarded the old space vessel and immediately taken it through the wormhole into the Gamma Quadrant. She assumed he intended to return to the Dominion, likely to face the punishment he believed he deserved for failing in the assignment Odo had set him.

  “No, I have not pursued Ghemor until now,” Taran’atar said.

  “How did you find her?”

  “I didn’t,” Taran’atar said, as though speaking in riddles, but then he offered an explanation. “I was just informed by a reliable source that she is leading the Ascendants. I was also told that the fleet possesses a subspace weapon.”

  “What?!” Kira said, alarmed. “What kind of subspace weapon?”

  “I do not know,” Taran’atar said. “I only know that Ghemor and the Ascendants are taking it to Bajor, presumably to launch it against the population there.”

  No, Kira thought, and on the heels of that, Why? But she knew why: Ghemor held Kira responsible for all the miseries in her life, and she sought to avenge herself upon the captain. Clearly, the deranged woman counted a devastating assault on the people of Bajor as the beginning of her retribution.

  And something else occurred to Kira. The Prophets had called Ghemor the Fire. That name took on a new meaning when juxtaposed with the possibility that she would detonate a subspace weapon on the surface of Bajor.

  “Will more Ascendant ships be arriving through the wormhole?” Kira asked.

  “No,” Taran’atar said with welcome certainty. “Long-range sensors revealed no other ships anywhere near the Idran system.”

  Kira nodded, then posed a critical question: “Can you stop Ghemor?”

  “I do not know,” Taran’atar told her, “but I will not rest until I have done so or died in the attempt.”

  Kira’s path seemed obvious. “Take me with you,” she said.

  “Captain—!” Dax started, but Kira raised a hand to stop the tactical officer before she could say more.

  “Whatever Ghemor is doing, she’s doing it to punish me,” Kira said. “If I can get close enough and get her attention, maybe I can redirect her anger away from Bajor and toward me.”

  Kira waited as Taran’atar regarded her stoically. She didn’t know what to expect from the Jem’Hadar. He’d been gone from Deep Space 9 for almost a year—for longer, in fact, than the amount of time he’d spent on the station. She thought that she had come to understand him, at least to some degree, and she had even come to like him, but she had no illusions about being able to accurately predict what he would do.

  At last, he said, “Ghemor is my responsibility.” Then he reached to a control panel on the bridge of his ship. The screen blinked, reverting to an image of the boxy vessel, on its way past the station and toward Bajor.

  “Dax,” Kira said, “what’s his course?”

  “The ship is following the path of the Ascendant fleet,” the lieutenant said.

  “Get me the Defiant,” Kira said.

  “Channel open, Captain,” Candlewood said.

  “Deep Space Nine to Commander Vaughn.” In the moment before her first officer responded, Kira felt torn. With the Ascendant fleet having bypassed DS9, and the station not under attack, she wanted to recall Defiant so that she could board it, take command, and defend Bajor—but she also did not want to waste any time by diverting the ship away from the invaders.

  Defiant’s bridge appeared on the main viewscreen. “Vaughn here,” said Kira’s first officer. He sat in the command chair. His daughter, Ensign Prynn Tenmei, crewed the combined conn and ops console just ahead of him. Kira also saw Nog at an engineering station, and Bowers at tactical. “Go ahead, Captain.”

  “Commander, we’ve just learned that Iliana Ghemor is leading the Ascendant fleet,” she told him, “and that they have a subspace weapon at their disposal.”

  Vaughn thought for a moment, and then asked, “Is that the torpedo being towed by the first ship?”

  “Unknown, but you should assume that it is,” Kira said. “Can you overtake that ship before it reaches Bajor?”

  “Not if they maintain their present speed,” Vaughn said. “We’re pacing the ship, but not gaining on it.”

  “We’ve heard back from the nearest Starfleet vessels. The Mjolnir and the Bellerophon are on their way, but they’re both a day out,” Kira said. “What if you left the system and went to warp?”

  Vaughn looked to his daughter. “Ensign Tenmei?”

  The flight controller worked her console, obviously calculating the projected course. Without looking up from her station, she said, “It’ll take some time to climb out from the plane of the ecliptic to be able to go safely to warp, and then to descend back into the system to Bajor. It will necessarily lengthen the distance of our journey, but we should be able to arrive much closer to when the first Ascendant ship reaches the planet.”

  “Do it,” Kira ordered.

  “Go,” Vaughn told Prynn, and the ensign set to operating her controls with a fluid ease.

  “Commander, it is imperative that you locate and neutralize the subspace weapon before it can be detonated,” Kira said. “Push the Defiant if necessary, but you have to stop Ghemor.”

  “Understood.”

  Kira then informed her first officer about the arrival of Taran’atar. Though usually unflappable, the redoubtable Vaughn looked surprised. He wondered aloud about the timing of the Jem’Hadar’s reappearance, and its possible significance, but Kira had no answers for him.

  When the captain finished speaking with Vaughn, the image of Defiant’s bridge disappeared from the view­screen, replaced by that of Taran’atar’s ship, receding into the distance. As the Jem’Hadar and Vaughn raced toward Bajor, chasing the Ascendant fleet and the specter of Iliana Ghemor, Kira felt helpless. She knew that she had a responsibility to remain on the station to help ensure its defense, but the captain genuinely believed that she alone might hold the key to stopping the former Obsidian Order operative. In addition to the Cardassian seeking vengeance against her, the Prophets had on two separate occasions referred to Kira as Their Hand; that made her think that They meant her to act on Their behalf in the current crisis. Specifically, she thought that she might be able to offer up her own life in order to prevent a devastating attack on Bajor.

  Kira left the situation table and mounted the steps to the raised outer level of Ops. She stopped beside Dax at the tactical console. “Have Lieutenant Chao and a security team take a runabout into the Gamma Quadrant. Verify that there are no more Ascendant vessels approaching the wormhole. If they detect additional ships, they are to return at once. Otherwise, the lieutenant is to assess the communications relay, and if possible, repair it. Once that’s done, I want them to check on the status of the Eav’oq, as well as the kai’s delegation on Idran.”

  “Yes, sir,” Dax said.

  “You’re in command.”

  Dax peered at her with a look of confusion. “Captain?”

  “I’m taking a runabout to Bajor,” Kira said. “Putting myself in Ghemor’s path may be the only way to stop her. Contact First Minister Asarem, apprise her of Taran’atar’s information, and tell her I will shortly be contacting the Emissary.”

  Dax looked as though she wanted to say more—no doubt to protest the captain’s decision to leave the station. Kira didn’t give her the chance. Instead, the captain turned on her heel and strode toward the lift.

  * * *

  As she neared Bajor in the Grand Archquester’s ship, Iliana Ghemor examined the sensor readouts. Scans showed several weapons platforms in orbit, along with a collection of Bajoran assault ships distributed above the planet—but no obstacles of any real consequence to her. She did see a Federation starship rapidly approaching, but it woul
d arrive too late to interfere with her plans.

  As she expected, the communications panel indicated an incoming transmission from Bajor. Ghemor accepted the audio portion of the message, and a man’s voice delivered a warning. “To the Ascendant vessels approaching our planet, this is Overgeneral Manos Treo of the Bajoran Militia. Do not enter orbit. You are not authorized to remain in this system. Withdraw at once or we will fire upon you.”

  It surprised Ghemor to learn that the Ascendants had been identified. As far as she’d known, the Bajorans had never had any contact with the zealous aliens—as evidenced by the continued existence of a civilization on the planet. Ghemor could not imagine the Grand Archquester and his people allowing the devout Prophet-worshippers to survive. Obviously, the Bajorans had somehow learned about the Ascendants, but she deemed the fact irrelevant.

  Ghemor navigated toward the planet, two of its five moons visible beside it. She settled Votiq’s ship into a high orbit, then ran a status check on all systems. As Overgeneral Manos reiterated the Bajorans’ threat, the Cardassian confirmed the optimal operating condition of her vessel. She paid particular attention to the powerful shields she’d erected around both her ship and the metaweapon she towed behind it.

  A chime sounded on the main console, signifying incoming fire. Ghemor ignored it. Instead, she accessed a control panel for the metaweapon.

  The ship suddenly quaked beneath phaser fire. The shields readily dispersed the main force of the blast, and the inertial dampers quickly stabilized the hull. Ghemor noted that the phaser had been fired from the closest of the orbital weapons platforms. Sensors also showed a squadron of the nearest eight Bajoran assault vessels bearing down on her position.

  Unconcerned by the capabilities of the Bajoran Militia, Ghemor operated the control panel she had just configured. She initiated the arming sequence for the metaweapon before she scanned the surface of Bajor. She searched for the largest city she could find. She knew that the yield of the isolytic subspace weapon would be considerable, and liable to obliterate a significant portion of the planet’s surface, but because of the unpredictability of such devices, she wanted to target the most populous area in order to ensure the greatest possible loss of life.

  A second phaser blast rocked the ship. Ghemor again checked her shields, which remained essentially unaffected by the attack from the weapons platform. A moment later, the Bajoran assault vessels closed to within firing range and initiated a fusillade. Phaser beams pounded into Ghemor’s ship. Confident in Ascendant technology, she ignored them.

  Ghemor completed her scans of the planet’s surface and selected the capital city as her target. She quickly programmed it into the guidance system of the metaweapon. She also set the course of her own ship to take her away from the planet and back to Deep Space 9, where she would bask in Kira’s anguish before finally ending the Bajoran’s miserable life.

  As Ghemor’s hand hovered over the launch control, she once more examined the sensors. The eight Bajoran vessels continued to fire, but she knew that even a coordinated assault on the metaweapon would not be sufficient to penetrate the torpedo’s shields before it reached the surface. Nor would phasers—whether ship-, platform-, or planet-based—trigger the device on its descent through the atmosphere, though even if they managed to do so, Bajor would still suffer tremendous destruction.

  On the verge of exacting her vengeance, Ghemor felt more than satisfied. By virtue of all that she had suffered, all that she had endured, she had finally become the answer to her own piteous prayers, the fulfillment of her own dark desires. Unexpectedly, she had truly transformed herself into the Fire.

  Ghemor launched the metaweapon.

  * * *

  Raiq tracked the Grand Archquester’s vessel on sensors as it maneuvered toward orbit. Scans showed weapons platforms and ships protecting the planet below. None of the defenses appeared particularly formidable.

  As Raiq continued on her intercept course, at last making up distance as the Grand Archquester’s ship decelerated, she detected a transmission from the planet’s surface. She activated a display on her control console, and the image of a pale, dark-haired humanoid appeared. “To the Ascendant vessels approaching our planet,” he said, “this is Overgeneral Manos Treo of the Bajoran Militia. Do not enter orbit. You are not authorized to remain in this system. Withdraw at once or we will fire upon you.”

  The words meant nothing to Raiq. Her sensors revealed torpedoes and emitters for energy weapons on the platforms and Bajoran ships, and similar emplacements on the planet’s surface, none of which posed much of a threat to her vessel. Instead, she focused on her communications display, and the face of Overgeneral Manos Treo. He looked like any number of other fleshy humanoids whom Raiq had encountered on the Quest. He had small eyes, blood-veined whites around brown irises, and ebon pupils. His mouth cut across his countenance like a jab from a knife: short, straight, and sharp. Black hair crowned his head.

  Raiq ignored all of that, and more. She stared exclusively at his nose—more specifically, at the bridge of his nose, which showed a series of horizontal ridges. Raiq had seen such a physical feature before, on an alien woman, on a world where the Ascendant had once crash-landed.

  Opaka Sulan.

  The woman and her wards had seen to Raiq’s medical needs, ultimately restoring her to full health. As a consequence, the Ascendant had generously declined to eradicate them, despite that Opaka Sulan spoke of worshipping an order of false gods she called the Prophets. Looking back, Raiq had come to believe that the woman had lied to her, that she had willfully hidden that her people actually dared devote themselves to the True—and further, that Opaka Sulan belonged to a strain of heretics newly discovered by the Ascendants.

  And here is more evidence, Raiq thought. The Fire had spoken of the Unnameable demanding that the Ascendants vanquish a last race of violators. At first, the thousand or so remaining Eav’oq seemed a natural target, but Raiq’s sensors showed billions of the wrinkle-nosed unclean on the world below—a far more impressive tally to deliver as a final offering to the True.

  Up ahead, the Grand Archquester’s vessel slowed further as it achieved orbit. The Bajorans plainly took note. They repeated their warning, then punctuated it by firing an energy weapon from a defense platform. The shields protecting the Grand Archquester’s ship—and the torpedo hauled along behind it—endured the blast with ease.

  As Raiq studied her scans, she saw a power increase on the metaweapon, indicating that its arming process had begun. A feeling of dread gripped her. She wanted to believe that the powerful device should be utilized against the planet of heretics ahead, that the immolation of its blasphemous population would serve the Ascendants well as the ultimate sacrament before they submitted themselves to their gods for judgment.

  But why use the metaweapon? Raiq asked herself. Why not just send the Ascendant armada down to attack the planet’s surface? The thousands of ships could readily leave the Bajoran civilization in ruins.

  Aniq had modified the metaweapon so that it would not only destroy, but transform. Raiq had heard her describe it as a means of initiating the Final Conflagration. Surely the destruction of yet another heretical species did not count as important as the facilitation of worthy Ascendants joining with the True.

  Another red-yellow streak flashed through space, followed by a prolonged salvo from an approaching squadron. The energy beams slammed into the Grand Archquester’s vessel and the precious cargo it towed. Raiq again checked her sensors to verify the ineffectiveness of the attack. When she did, she saw the guidance system in the metaweapon had been activated—probably to accept a programmed target.

  Panic threatened Raiq. Her people had at long last arrived at the End Time, and they stood on the brink of the Final Conflagration, and beyond it, the Final Ascension. She could not risk losing the tool that would bring them there.

  Raiq quickly worked her console. She remained just out of range for what she intended, and although she could neve
r have imagined taking action against the Grand ­Archquester—much less against the Fire—she would do what she had to do for her people. She only hoped she would not be too late.

  Time seemed to pass with interminable slowness. Raiq could do nothing but wait as she approached the Grand Archquester’s ship. She could see the shape of it against the blue-green world below. She anticipated seeing the torpedo dropping away and soaring toward the planet’s surface.

  And then her ship had drawn close enough to that of the Grand Archquester. Raiq operated her console, then examined the sensors. At that moment, the engines of the torpedo carrying the metaweapon engaged.

  The subspace device didn’t move.

  The tractor beam Raiq had deployed held the torpedo fast. She continued scanning the metaweapon, and saw the power to its drive system increase. She adjusted the strength of her tractor beam accordingly.

  A hum rose in her ship’s cockpit. The countervailing force of the metaweapon’s engine taxed her tractor emitter. Sensors showed the torpedo’s drive straining as it fought to free itself and begin its destructive run toward the planet. If the engine failed catastrophically, the explosion would not trigger the subspace weapon; it would only destroy it.

  An indicator suddenly glowed on Raiq’s panel. She tapped the control beside it, accepting the incoming transmission. It originated on the Grand Archquester’s ship.

  “Release the metaweapon!” The voice, filled with fury, did not belong to Votiq, but to the Fire.

  Raiq opened her mouth to speak, but words failed her. How can I defy the Fire? It suddenly occurred to her that in her attempt to ensure that her people would burn beneath the gaze of the Unnameable and join with them, she might instead affirm her own lack of worthiness, and in so doing, forever bar herself entrance into the Fortress of the True.