1995 I was approached by Jon Dalton. Jon was a professional musician who had put together a group of musicians called 'The Crew' to play at Sci-Fi conventions. His aim was to play at Star Trek conventions and wanted a series of short stories to be available following the exploits of 'The Crew' aboard a Galaxy Class Starship. The premise was that in its search for new life and new civilizations, Starfleet had missed several opportunities to meet intelligent life-forms as they communicated via organised vibrations similar to what we call music. I was tasked with developing a plausible story to go along with this. Unfortunately although Jon had strong support from the Star Trek community in the UK he was never granted a license by Paramount to put his project into practice. As such 'The Crew' were unable to play at Star Trek conventions and the stories were never published. Jon has gone on to become a successful jazz guitarist and music writer. He has produced several CD's which have been a commercial success.
The Crew line up and their corresponding Starfleet ranks were:- Cmdr Jon Dalton - acting Commanding Officer in lieu of Captain, Lt Cmdr Dave Savage - Executive Engineer and acting First Officer, Lt Glos Garrett - Chief Tactical Officer, 2nd Lt Carl Coburn - Pilot Officer and Ensign Satin Fini - Meta-Communications Specialist.
Below is the first of the stories that I created. It is important to point out that there is a lack of description regarding the starship and its interior. This is because this was written especially for Star Trek fans and they know exactly what a Galaxy Class Starship looks like. Excepting the references to Star Trek, the story content remains Copyright © 1995 Steve Lauritson.
THE CREW 'OPUS ONE'
Admiral Chai Li sat behind his desk outwardly looking calm, inside he was controlling a growing impatience. He reached out and touched his desktop terminal.
"Computer!" He said, the impatience showing in his voice, "how long until Commander Jon Dalton arrives at Utopia Planitia Dockyards?"
"Commander Dalton is in transit aboard USS Orion." The computer replied. "He will reach Utopia Dockyards in twelve hours, fourteen minutes."
"Inform me the moment he arrives," said Li and blanked the screen.
The launch date of the Sonorus was still a week away, and he felt that control of his project was slipping away from him. In his position as co-ordinator of intelligence from Starships past and present, he had noticed a pattern emerging from reports of 'no intelligent life forms' on planets that had seemed ideal for exploration. In each report was a reference to unexplained harmonics on subspace channels. These reports were few and had gone almost unnoticed. He had however found too many instances of the same nature to be dismissed as chance. After he had considered the various data on file, he felt a chance was being missed of possible contact with unique forms of intelligence. None of the Starships in the fleet were adequate for the specific mission he was proposing. It would take a modified Galaxy, Odessy, Yamato or Enterprise to undertake the task. These were the only Galaxy Class Starships in existence and none of them, would be available for the mission he was planning.
After the Odessy had been completed, the Galaxy Class project had been shelved. Because of Starfleet's ever increasing sphere of operations, and the increasingly unstable political climate, it had been decided to concentrate on smaller ships as a more cost effective way of continuing Starfleet's expansion.
Li had since campaigned long and hard to get another Galaxy Class Starship commissioned. He then had to fight even harder to get Starfleet to accept his revolutionary idea for contacting new lifeforms.
He sighed. Now with the Sonorus almost ready to leave the dockyard, his plans were beginning to falter, and come the the launch, the ship might not yet be spared for his new mission.
The USS Orion entered orbit around Mars. Commander Dalton thanked Captain Devery for his transport and beamed aboard the Sonorus.
Standing in waiting was Lieutenant Commander Dave Savage.
"Welcome aboard Commander," he said. "Lieutenant Commander Savage handing over sir."
"Thank you Mr Savage. How are things shaping up?"
Before Savage could answer they were interrupted by a communication. "Incoming message for Commander Dalton from Starfleet."
"Go ahead," said Dalton.
"Commander Dalton. This is Admiral Li. I will be arriving in my personal shuttle in ten minutes. I want to see you and your senior staff in the observation lounge on my arrival. Li out."
Dalton turned to Lieutenant Commander Savage. "Now what's all that about?" He asked.
Savage shrugged. "I'll inform the staff sir."
"OK," said Dalton. "I'm going to have a look around the bridge. I'll see you and the others in the observation lounge in five minutes." With that he left the transporter room and made his way to the turbo lift. As he stepped through the doors, he felt his initial exhilaration dying away. When he had materialised aboard the Sonorus, he had felt a sense of returning, not only was he back aboard a Galaxy Class Starship but once again serving as her First Officer. After the Admiral's brief communicae he was disturbed. Although nothing specific had been said, he was beginning to think that his stay might be brief. Why else would the Admiral be coming to see him in person?
"Main bridge," he said and waited.
The turbo lift reached the bridge and the doors opened. Dalton stepped onto the bridge and smiled grimly. Whatever may happen in the next twenty four hours, for the moment he was temporarily in command. The bridge was empty but this was no surprise as the ship was not yet on active duty. This would change over the next few days as the remaining personnel arrived. He stood for a moment taking in the atmosphere. For a while he felt good but then old memories started to fill his mind as he surveyed the empty bridge. He saw his place beside the Captain's chair as it had been on the Yamato. For an instant he could see all of his old crew mates at their respective stations. He pushed away such thoughts before they could take a hold of him. He shook his head and wandered over to the tactical station. He activated the console and looked at the main view screen.
The Admiral's shuttle was visible and closing rapidly. He activated his communicator. "Main shuttle bay, prepare for incoming shuttle." He waited but there was no response. "Commander Savage this is Dalton."
"Yes sir!" Came the reply.
"The Admiral's shuttle is nearing the Sonorus and I can't get a reply from the main shuttle bay."
Savage replied. "I'm just on my way Commander. With the small number of staff on board we're spread pretty thin and we weren't expecting an arrival."
With a final glance around Dalton deactivated the screen and made his way to the shuttle bay. He welcomed the Admiral aboard and escorted him to the observation lounge. As they made their way the Admiral broke into brief conversation.
"I'm sorry to impose myself on you before you've had a chance to get your feet on the ground but this is very important!"
Dalton interrupted. "Sir. There's one thing I've got to ask before we go any further."
They stopped walking and the Admiral turned. The Commander looked straight at Li. "Am I being relieved of my Command?"
A brief smile crossed the Admiral's face. "No Jon. If that had been the case I would have informed you in private. I want you to hold the fort for the time being, but to ensure things stay that way I have to talk to you and your senior officers immediately."
They entered the observation lounge. It was empty apart from one man. He stood as they entered.
"Lieutenant Garrett, Chief tactical officer Sir!"
Dalton nodded a greeting gesture and sat down. The Admiral followed and sat at the head of the table. The doors opened and Lieutenant Commander Savage entered the room.
Dalton looked at the Admiral. "We're the only senior officers on board sir. The others will be arriving in the next two days."
The Admiral stood. "Gentlemen," he said. "I'm sorry to tell you but Starfleet's opinion of this whole operation is changing."
"Jon," he turned to the Commander. "Are you fully aware of the condition of this ship?"
"Well sir I've kept up with communiques while I was in transit aboard the Orion," the Commander replied, "but I've not had a chance yet to examine the situation fully. You would be better talking too Commander Savage about the latest specs sir."
"Forget the formality Jon. This conversation is strictly off the record." He sat down and looked at Savage. "What's the latest situation Dave?"
"We have two major problems Admiral. During Warp trials, the Sonorus entered warp without difficulty. However we have only been able to achieve sixty eight percent efficiency with the engines. This means that with all the stops out we still cannot attain speeds above warp seven." He paused.
"Do you have any idea what the problem is?" Inquired Dalton.
"It seems there is something wrong with the plasma injectors," Savage continued. "At low warp the firing sequence is correct. As we increase the drive, the injectors begin to go out of sequence. We're currently investigating the program that controls that."
"And the second problem?" Asked the Admiral.
"It's the computer cores Admiral," Savage replied. "They were installed, programmed and tested without any major problems as you know. However, yesterday we simulated failures of each core. With one core down there were no problems, but when we simulated cascade failure, we came across something that we've never experienced before. With the port and starboard cores off line, the computer in engineering handled all systems without any noticeable distress, as it should. The same went for the starboard unit. The problem arose with the port core. When we failed the others simultaneously, the port core followed and closed down. We had a complete system's failure. Nothing worked, we only had minimal life support. We had to manually bring the starboard core back on line. We then started running diagnostics on the port core. Every link checked out okay, synchronisation was fine and the main program showed no deviation from standard. We repeated the test, again with the same result. With one other core on line everything functions perfectly. By itself the port core will not operate."
There was silence for a moment. Then the Admiral spoke.
"How much time do you need to cure the problems?"
Savage replied hesitantly. "I would say we will have to delay the launch foe a minimum of a week, maybe two."
The Admiral paused for effect.
"That cannot be allowed to happen. I will tell you now that from the very start i have had opposition from all quarters regarding the special purpose of the Sonorus. Now as the ship is almost ready for launch, certain other high ranking Starfleet officials are beginning to band together to get the Sonorus used for standard operations. Not only that but Admiral O'Hare is demanding that Lieutenant Coburn be transferred to a scout ship under his command for verification of his scans into Romulan space. Starfleet are again worried about the threat of war from the Romulans." He stopped speaking, stood and walked over to the windows. For a moment he gazed vacantly into space. He turned back.
"I have a few allies in Starfleet but with the increasing pressure put on them, some are beginning to waiver. I am pretty sure I can hold off the opposition until the launch. As you know, once a Starship has embarked on a mission, it takes a matter of great importance to have that ship recalled or reassigned. This is why I want the Sonorus to launch on time. If the launch is delayed, I can guarantee that key staff will be reassigned to other duties and the Sonorus will be utilised for a different purpose all together." He drew a deep breath. "I have spent years bringing this project together, and I don't want it to fail now."
He turned to Commander Dalton.
"The final decision regarding the launch will be your's Jon, but unless you feel there is danger to your crew, then I urge you to launch on time and sort out any remaining problems on route."
He looked at the other two officers.
"I'm not asking you to risk your careers for me. My purpose in speaking to you has been to emphasise the importance of this mission. I wholeheartedly believe that this specific mission will be of great benefit to Starfleet, and as such I feel I am acting in Starfleet's best interests. I must now return to Starfleet Command. I only hope in my abscence, no one has gone over my head and cancelled the mission. Good luck gentlemen." With that the Admiral turned and left the observation lounge.
Commander Dalton stood and addressed Savage and Garrett.
"I'll see to the departure of the Admiral's shuttle and we will meet back here at thirteen hundred hours." He turned and followed the Admiral out.
The launch of the shuttle was routine and Commander Dalton was soon back in the observation lounge.
"Dave. How serious is the problem with the port computer core?"
The engineer replied. "Although it is worrying, if we had a saucer separation we would still have the starboard core with which we have no problems. I would think that the chances of some incident leaving only the port core available are minutely small. In the history of the Galaxy Class Starships, none has ever been reduced, whether through battle or circumstance to a single computer."
Dalton felt waves of bitterness flooding through him.
"What about the Yamato?" He stated forcefully, emotions brought to the fore with memories of his lost crew mates. "The computer on that ship destroyed everybody on board. I'm the only survivor."
He stood, his hands knotted into fists, a slight perspiration on his brow. He could vividly recall that last moment exactly as he had heard it through the comms link. The complete pandemonium on the bridge before his former crew, his friends, met their oblivion.
Savage's voice brought him back.
"I'm sorry sir but that was a different problem. You know that it was information that had been downloaded that contained the seed which destroyed the ship. As soon as one core was infected the other's were infected simultaneously. It was not a computer failure that destroyed them, it was an unfortunate and unprecedented accident!"
"An accident I don't want to relive thank you!" Dalton's tone was icy. He shrugged and continued, bringing emotions under control. "What about the warp engines?"
Commander Savage had been staring at his hands. He looked up.
"I'm pretty certain that the problem is with the program controlling the sequencing of the injectors. Once I have more staff it should only be a short time until we've modified the software. As it is, apart from our higher warp capability, the Sonorus is ready to go."
Dalton looked at him for a second.
"Well unless anything major occurs, the Sonorus will launch on schedule." He paused. "It looks like we have got our work cut out gentlemen. Lets get to it."
Within two days the ship was fully crewed. The Sonorus now had the feel of a fully functional Starship.
Commander Dalton called Ensign Fini into his ready room.
"At ease Ensign," he said. "If everything goes according to schedule we shall be leaving Utopia the day after tomorrow. I'm not releasing our destination at the moment. I don't want anyone having preconceived ideas about who or what we are going to be dealing with."
He smiled.
"Fortunately you are going to have work to do, because I'm assigning you the task of developing a new method of contact. We think we can communicate accurately with certain species using music as a medium."
The Ensign smiled knowingly as the Commander continued.
"Obviously we will all have a part to play but you are the best qualified to actually try and develop this."
Satin beamed as if this was something she had been expecting.
"How much time do I have Commander?" She asked.
Dalton smiled back at her. "I want a working idea we can practice with, say within five days. This will then give us ample time to fine tune before we reach our destination."
He stood and gazed out of the window. The body of Mars filled half of the view, the space above jet black. No stars were visible due to the rusty brightness of its aura. The Commander turned back to Ensign Fini.
"I cannot stress enough the importance of this first mission. That it is successful is paramount. As you know, the crew aboard the Sonorus have been chosen especially for this task. You are quite welcome to consult me or any of the other senior staff on any point and at any," he emphasised the 'any', "any time whatsoever. I don't envy the enormity of your task but good luck!"
"Thank you Commander." She said and left.
Dalton laid back in his chair and closed his eyes. The problems with the warp engines were still evident although efficiency had been improved a couple of percent. The port computer core was still in the same state of repair. He had assigned every available person to assist Savage, but so far no explanation for the fault had been found. Apart from his visit to the Sonorus there had been no communication from Admiral Li. This only served to heighten the tension the Commander was feeling. He had been kept very busy from the time of his arrival, but every now and again he found his thoughts wandering back to the Yamato. The feeling of helplessness he had felt on Rana One as the communications ceased only seconds before the Yamato exploded was still with him but the intensity was fading. He sighed. He would be glad when the uncertainty was out of the way and the new mission had begun.
The day of the launch arrived. The warp engines and the computer problems had not been sorted out, but with the risk negligible, Commander Dalton had decided to proceed.
Dalton walked from his ready room onto the bridge, it was completely different from when he first arrived. Then it had been silent while now it was full of life, all stations manned and functional. The Commander walked over to his seat and took position. Activating his comm panel, he asked. "All systems on line Lieutenant Commander Savage?"
Down in engineering Commander Savage made pre-launch checks.
"You have a green light Commander. All systems functional."
Dalton looked around the bridge. The mod was expectant. He looked at his display on his arm rest. Six minutes to launch.
"Incoming message from Starfleet Sir!" Said Lieutenant Garrett.
"On screen."
The image of Admiral Li appeared. For a moment Dalton felt a surge of anxiety. Were Starfleet going to cancel the mission at the eleventh hour? His fears however were groundless.
"Congratulations Jon," he said. "I'm glad to see that you have managed to get the ship organised on time. I thought there might have been some delay."
Dalton knew the purpose of the Admiral's last comment was to satisfy observers from Starfleet that the ship was fully functional.
"We are ready for flight Admiral!" He replied.
The Admiral smiled. Take her out Jon and may I wish you a safe and successful voyage. Good luck. Admiral Li out!"
The Admiral's image disappeared giving a clear view ahead. With the usual drama of a launch the lights at the assembly facility went out.
"All hands ready," said Commander Dalton. "Ten seconds to launch."
The external navigation lights came on. The only other light was the reflection from the planet's surface, giving the hull a slight reddish glow. Dalton watched the seconds count down. Coordinates had been input. The crew were waiting the command. The final second ticked by.
"Take us out Mr Coburn, thrusters to clear space dock then one quarter impulse."
"Yes sir," replied the Lieutenant as he keyed in the command on his station.
A dull throbbing pervaded the ship as the engines came on line. The mooring tractor beams severed and the Sonorus pulled slowly and grandly clear of her reins. Clearing the assembly facility on her course out of the Solar System, the Sonorus was underway.
Dalton relaxed although from the outside he had not appeared tense.
"Half impulse Mr Coburn."
"Half impulse sir."
Their heading took them above the plane of the Solar System and clear of any planetary obstacles in their path.
Lieutenant Garrett checked his instruments. "The way ahead is clear Sir."
"Warp two Mr Coburn." Ordered the Commander.
"Aye Sir."
An anxious atmosphere pervaded the bridge.
"Engage!"
The Sonorus made the transition to warp effortlessly. Apart from the visual display, the only other sign that they had achieved warp was a slight increase in the underlying throb from the engines. The inertial damping field had operated perfectly with no feeling of acceleration. Within no time the ship had left the Solar System far behind and was approaching the edge of the heliosphere. As she did so the Sun became indistinguishable from the myriad stars behind her.
It was five days into the mission when the first attempt was made to push the Sonorus to its maximum warp. Commander Dalton was on the bridge and Savage, who had been acting first officer, was in engineering with his new staff. Commander Savage finished checking his adjustments and hailed the bridge.
"Commander Dalton, we are ready to proceed." He said.
"Okay Dave, it's in your hands now!"
Dave checked his instruments for the last tome and initiated the acceleration. The background throb of the engines began to rise in frequency as the Sonorus increased its speed.
On the bridge Carl Coburn kept his eyes on the read out.
""Warp six Commander.... Warp six point eight.... Warp seven."
As they reached warp seven a slight tremor was felt throughout the ship.
"Warp seven point two Commander."
The tremor now turned into a constant vibration.
"Warp seven point three Commander."
The vibration was getting worse.
"What's happening down there Number one?" Queried Dalton, having to raise his voice slightly above the sound of the vibration.
"It's the mis-sequencing again Sir. I'm trying to reprogram as we go." Came the reply.
"Warp seven point five Commander." Said Lieutenant Coburn.
The vibration was now getting serious. The computer's voice broke in. "Warning. Structural Integrity Field failure in forty seconds."
"Our speed Mr Coburn?" Asked Dalton.
"Holding at warp seven point five Commander."
"Dave, how is it going down there?"
In engineering Savage's fingers were flying over his terminal.
"I don't think I can re-program in time Sir!"
"Warning. Structural Integrity Field failure in twenty five seconds." Came the computer's voice.
"Dave," said Dalton. "Drop back to warp two. Now!"
The vibrations ceased as the Sonorus resumed it's original warp speed.
"Damage report Mr Garrett!"
"Some minor damage to the secondary hull Sir." Replied the Lieutenant. "Estimated repair time three hours."
Dalton clenched his fists momentarily. The problem with the warp engines was now beginning to annoy him........ Greatly!
During the next three hours, much repair work was carried out. Commander Savage used this time to go over the modifications he had effected to the engines. As he studied his efforts and the results they had brought, he found himself thinking a radical idea. He used his terminal to run a simulation and the results were promising. He contacted the bridge.
"Commander."
"Yes Mr Savage.?"
"I have studied the firing sequence of the plasma injectors and I'm sure that if we accelerate to warp six point four, we can then make a jump straight to warp nine point six."
Dalton paused for a moment. "What is the probability of success?"
"Ninety five percent according to the computer simulation Commander." Came the reply.
"And what happens if we fail?"
There was a pause. Then came Savage's ominous reply. "It's possible that we will simply revert to warp six point four, but it's just as possible that the ship will tear herself apart!"
Dalton considered this for a moment and then keyed the intraship comms button. "Senior officers to the observation lounge now please."
He turned to Lieutenant De Causo. "You have the bridge Lieutenant. Contact me immediately if anything comes up."
"Yes Sir." She replied, and took her station.
Jon entered the observation lounge and with a quick glance saw his officers present. he took his seat at the head of the table.
"After the failure to sort out our engine problems," he started, "we are now facing an even more serious dilemma," he paused. "According to our mission schedule we should reach our objective in the next ten days. Unfortunately, due to our warp problems which I had hoped would have been cleared by now, we can only make it on schedule by cruising at warp seven point six. This as you know is out of the question at the present time." He stopped.
"We still don't know our destination Sir," said Garrett breaking the silence. "At our present heading, we don't come into range of any system that we can reach at the warp you specified."
"As I said before," answered the Commander. "It is important you remain unaware of our heading. This is so that there will be no preconceived ideas that might interfere with our objective. We will be making two course changes before we reach the system. After the second change our heading will become evident. Before that happens, I want a working system of communication. I have assigned Ensign Fini to this task." He looked at each of his officers in turn before continuing. "This will all prove irrelevant if we don't arrive on schedule. You all know the importance of this first mission. If it looks like we can't make it on time then it is possible that we will be recalled. If this happens we will not set out again as a team. Mr Savage explain your plan for higher warp."
Savage told the others exactly what he had told the Commander. He explained the chances of success and failure and the risks involved. When he had finished Commander Dalton took over.
"Before I make a decision I would like to hear your views."
Gloss Garrett spoke. "I would think that it is worth the risk considering the odds Sir."
The other officers nodded in agreement with him.
"That's what I had hopped to hear. Thank you." He looked over to Savage. "When will we be ready for the attempt. Dave?"
"I am ready now Commander."
"Good. Make it so. Time is our enemy. Just one thing Dave."
"Yes Commander?"
"Before you initialise the jump, I want all power from non essential systems diverted to the Structural Integrity Field."
"Understood Sir."
Commander Dalton nodded. "To your stations everyone." And made his way back to the bridge.
Back on the bridge Dalton resumed command. Garrett took up his position at tactical. The Commander accessed the intraship communications.
"This is your Commanding Officer speaking. We will shortly be attempting a jump to maximum warp. There is a negligible risk and I want you all to secure yourselves as it might get a bit rough. Dalton out."
He looked around the bridge. Everything was ready.
"Warp six point four Mr Coburn, engage!."
The Sonorus easily achieved this speed. No vibrations as they were still within their limited capability.
"Ready Mr Savage?"
"All set down here sir. All non essential power now diverted to the Structural Integrity Field."
The atmosphere on the bridge was electric. Commander Dalton drew a deep breath. "Make the jump Mr Savage."
Down in engineering Savage executed the command. For a brief second nothing seemed to happen. Suddenly there was a huge tearing sound and a terrific shudder ran through the ship, then as soon as the excitement had started it was over.
Dalton's voice came over the communicator. "Report Mr Savage."
"It worked Sir. We are now at the higher warp," he paused as he looked at his terminal. "Warp nine point seven six to be exact Sir."
On the bridge Dalton spoke to the pilot. "Can you confirm that reading Mr Coburn?"
"Confirmed Sir. We are at warp nine point seven six."
Commander Dalton returned to speaking to Lieutenant Commander Savage. "How so Mr Savage?"
"I'm not sure Sir. With the sequence at the moment there is no way we should be beyond warp nine point six. it must be to do with the program again. However I can analyse it in operation. The Structural Integrity Field is showing sign of strain but it is within normal operating parameters."
"Very well Mr Savage," said the Commander. "Maintain this speed as long as possible, but if there is any increased strain, or sign of damage to the engines, then drop to warp two immediately."
"Understood Sir. Savage out."
"Commander," said Lieutenant Garrett.
"Yes Mr Garrett."
"During the jump to our present warp, the sensors picked up an object behind us. There was nothing in the vicinity at the time and there was no malfunction of the sensors."
Dalton paused for a moment. "How do you read it Mr Garrett?"
"Unclear Sir. The possibility exists that we were being followed. Maybe a cloaked vessel? I can't be sure."
Commander Dalton considered the scant evidence. "Keep scanning aft for any deviation from the norm. Inform me at once of any change in the situation."
"Yes Sir."
The Commander arose from his seat. "If you need me I'll be in my ready room."
He had been there for about ten minutes when he heard the entry chime.
"Come." he said.
The door opened. Ensign Fini stood nervously outside.
"Come in Ensign."
The Ensign walked over to his desk but did not sit down. She wanted to get straight to the point.
"I would like permission to convert one of the Holodecks Sir."
"For what purpose Satin?"
"I have an idea for the beginning of a communication sir. Using harmonics from our music I want to try to get our system of numbers across. Then through varying the rythmn and octaves, to try and communicate prime numbers, square and cube numbers and develop things from there."
Dalton nodded an approval. "How long do you think it will take Ensign?"
"We should be ready for our first rehearsal in two to three days. The holodeck conversion will not take long, it's the development of the music that's going to take the time."
"Permission granted Ensign. Do whatever you need."
"Thank you Sir," she said and left his room.
Dalton accessed his terminal and started computing their arrival time. Happy with what he saw, he contacted Commander Savage.
"How are the engines holding up Dave?" He asked.
"They seem to be doing fine Sir." Came the reply. "The strain on the Structural Integrity Field is increasing slowly, but we should be able to hold this warp for another fifteen minutes."
"Good," said Dalton. "We only require another five minutes and then you can resume normal speed."
"Okay Commander. Warp six in five minutes."
Dalton broke contact and made his way to the bridge.
The Sonorus resumed warp six. It eventually reached its first waypoint and made its course change. There was no further evidence of the anomaly the sensors had picked up during their leap to maximum warp. They were approaching the second waypoint when Satin announced that they were ready to start their rehearsals. They assembled in the newly converted holodeck and began to try and work with Satin's score. The theory of the first rehearsal was simple. Gloss would start with a steady drum beat. Commander Savage would then come in on the bass and run a simple scale from the lowest to the highest octave of his instrument. Commander Dalton would then take over and continue the up the octaves to the limit of his, and then Lieutenant Coburn would take over on the keyboards and push to the highest discernable octave. Once this had been done ten times then they would use a combination of all instruments to produce the harmonics to use as the first building blocks of a number system. Although it was very elementary stuff for these accomplished musicians, it made a welcome break from their normal duties.
Once they had become used to using the holodeck in this way, they ceased and left until they were ready for their next rehearsal.
Commander Dalton looked around the bridge. They had reached the second waypoint. "Mr Coburn, new heading 245 mark 045."
Pilot Officer Lieutenant Coburn entered the coordinates and the Sonorus assumed its new heading. Lieutenant Coburn looked up.
"Commander, this puts us on a heading for the sigma sector."
"Yes it does." Replied the Commander saying nothing further.
A few glances were passed around the bridge. Although nothing had ever been officially declared, there had been strange rumours surrounding the star system at its centre. It had originally been scanned by a Constitution Class Starship 'The Drake'. Before the Drake had completed its first scan, the ship began experiencing systems failures. It was forced to withdraw from the system and return to the nearest Starbase where no obvious problems could be found. No other ship had since been sent there, although freight ships that had passed near that system never used that route again.
Commander Dalton, Lieutenant Commander Savage, Lieutenant Garrett, Lieutenant Coburn and Ensign Fini had worked hard since their first rehearsal. With each session the intricacies of the harmonies grew ever more complex. The score as it now was bore no resemblance to their first effort. Now two days out from the system they assembled for their last practice before contact.
Ensign Fini walked up to Commander Dalton.
"Here's the final version Sir. Ready to give it a try?"
Dalton studied the score. "Everyone ready?" He asked.
There was a chorus of agreement.
"Right, on a count of three. One. Two. Three."
Dalton led them in and started a riff that was the initial building block. Coburn followed, with Garrett and Savage immediately behind. This rythmn was even more complex than those that had gone before.
Jon smiled. This was going well he thought. Suddenly Lieutenant Coburn missed a beat, he tried to find the rythmn again, for a moment there was complete discord. The image in the holodeck flickered. The next moment the alert was sounding. Red Alert. Commander Dalton placed his guitar down and hurried to the bridge, quickly followed by the others. As they neared the bridge in the turbo lift, the alert was silenced. The turbo lift doors opened and the Commander entered the bridge.
"What happened?" He asked Lieutenant De Causo.
"We were suddenly surrounded by some sort of force field." She replied as Lieutenant Garrett took over tactical.
"Our shields raised automatically but it seemed the force field just drained the energy out of them. Once they were down to sixty percent, the force field seemed to vanish."
Dalton turned to Garrett. "What do you make of it Mr Garrett?"
"The field was of a pattern unknown to us Commander. From the readings we recorded I would say that if harm had been intended, it was well within the forcefield's capability to do so. I would say that it was more of a push than an attack."
"Thank you," said Dalton as he took his seat. He mused for a moment. After a while he continued.
"It seems strange that this happened exactly when we messed up on that tune. How far away are we from the centre of the sector.?"
Coburn answered. "About half a light year Commander."
Commander Dalton thought for a moment. If the 'push' was related to their music, then at this range, and as they had not been transmitting, they must be dealing with a very capable lifeform.
"Reduce speed to warp four Mr Coburn. I think we should give ourselves a little more time."
The music program was suspended, while they checked and double checked their original theory. Eventually finding no flaws they decided to attempt their original scheme of first contact. They were now within half a days travel of the star system. Again they assembled on the holodeck. So as to make sure there were no mistakes, they had all practised in private, and as such were confident that there would be no mistakes.
The Commander led them in again. All were tense but as they started playing, the tenseness was forgotten and they became completely absorbed in their music. This time there were no errors. As they played Commander Dalton felt a feeling of exhilaration building up inside him. This was what he liked to do, not only that but he was good at it. Very good.
The transmission went off without a hitch. There were no interruptions, everyone played flawlessly. The intricacies of the melody were beyond current human understanding and although beyond their understanding, they felt that they were living it. As they were playing they sensed undertones that had not originated from themselves. It did not matter. They were at one with their music. They continued playing, now far beyond the score that Ensign Fini had devised, the music shifting to envelope the new undertones that were emanating seemingly from nowhere. Completely enthralled they carried on.
The music ceased without a word being spoken. They had finished on a climax and now stood there, perspiring, exhausted but at the same time fulfilled.
The Commander looked around at the others. They seemed to be amazed as he was.
"So what happened back there?" He asked, to no one in particular.
It was Fini that answered. "I think that we have been in direct communication with something." She said. "I felt as if we were being communicated to through our emotions. Whatever it was it felt good."
Dalton had to agree with this. Although exhausted he had never felt better.
"Lt's call it a day and return to the bridge," he said, stopping the program. They packed up their instruments and left the holodeck.
They entered the system without any hinderance.
"The fourth planet out is class N Commander," reported Lieutenant Garrett.
"Drop to half impulse Mr Coburn," ordered the Commander. "Enter standard orbit around that planet."
Soon they were orbiting the planet. It had very little land mass, and their sensors could not detect any life-forms upon its surface.
"Incoming transmission Commander," said Garrett. "Audio only."
"Let's hear it," said the Commander.
Short staccato bursts filled the bridge. Dalton turned to Ensign Fini.
"Can you analyse those Ensign?"
"I'm working on it," she replied.
The bursts were repeated a number of times and then ceased. Dalton got up and walked over to Fini's station.
"Any luck?" He asked.
"Just a moment Sir," she replied, completely absorbed at her terminal. Eventually she answered.
"As far as I can make out, something has transmitted transporter coordinates for us to beam down to Sir."
Dalton looked over to Lieutenant Garrett.
"If we had been intended harm, I'm sure that the life-form could already have destroyed us." He stated. Turning to Lieutenant De Causo he said. "You have the bridge Lieutenant. Savage, Garrett, Coburn and Fini, we're beaming down. No phasers, just tricorders. Follow me to transporter room two." He walked to the turbo lift and left the bridge.
As the others entered the transporter room, Dalton was issuing orders to transporter chief Svensen. "Keep a lock on us just in case we have to leave in a hurry."
Svensen nodded. "Sir!"
Dalton took his place on the transporter pad as did the others.
"Energise."
Svensen activated the transporter and the crew dematerialised.
As they materialised the first thing Dalton was aware of, was a feeling that he was sinking. The feeling passed as soon as it had began. Looking down at his feet he saw that they were buried about four centimetres below the surface. Looking around he saw that his team were near the shore. They seemed to be standing on a beach. The sand was made of strange crystals. He walked forward and as he did so, he sunk to the same depth with every stride. The crystals seemed like ice, melting as he walked upon them. Turning around he saw that there was no trace of where he had walked. As soon as the pressure was off, the liquid once again became crystalline. He took in his surroundings.
The sky was a deep mauve colour, similar to the water by the shore. In the sky the sun shone a warm red. All along the beach were lattice type structures in the shape of pyramids, stretching as far as the eye could see.
"Commander look!" Said Ensign Fini pointing.
Just off shore, three fins were protruding above the surface. Slowly reaching the shore three figures raised above the water line. They walked towards the landing party.
Dalton stared at them. They were humanoid in appearance, standing about seven feet tall. Their skin was silver. Their heads resembled that of Dolphins back on Earth, with a protruding snout and a blow hole on top. There the resemblance ended. The creatures had a large dorsal fin on their backs, arms ending in a long five fingered hand with webbing joining the second knuckle of each digit. Their bodies were sleek in appearance, finishing with two legs, the toes completely webbed.
Ensign Fini stared amazed. "Their beautiful." She said.
Gracefully one of the beings walked towards the party. Images formed in the Commander's mind. He glanced at the others and by the expressions on their faces, he could tell they were experiencing the same thing. The lattice structure he learned, were devices to nullify sensor scans, and, if necessary, to repel unwanted visitors.
The images suddenly ceased and at the same time a crackling issued from the structures. Looking around Dalton saw green streaks of energy curling around the four corners of the pyramids, racing up to an apex where they formed into a single bright beam that issued forth and struck out up into the sky. Concerned, Jon tapped his communicator.
"Sonorus come in!"
There was no reply. Lieutenant garrett carried out a scan with his tricorder.
"I can't pick up anything Commander. It's as if the universe ends at the upper atmosphere."
Dalton was pensive. Was this a demonstration, or were they trapped, cut off from their ship.
Onboard the Sonorus Svensen saw the transporter lock flick off.
"Bridge," he said. "I've lost the transporter lock and cannot re-establish."
On the bridge, almost simultaneously, the tactical officer reported information being picked up from the sensors. "Lieutenant. There is an energy beam emanating from the planet."
"Shields up, yellow alert." Ordered De Causo.
Nothing was visible on the main viewer.
"The energy beam has passed us Lieutenant. It is focusing on a point two hundred kilometres behind us."
"Main viewer aft!" Commanded De Causo.
On the screen appeared an image of a spherical cloud of energy. Through it they could make out the shape of another ship.
"It looks like a Romulan scout." Reported tactical.
De Causo continued to monitor the main viewer. The cloud of energy slowly dissipated revealing the scout uncloaked.
"Status of the scout." She ordered.
The tactical officer studied his display panel.
"They have raised their shields and have powered up their only weapons array." He reported. "They are also issuing a communication directed towards the neutral zone."
"Inform me at once of any reply. Meanwhile can you locate the landing party?"
"Our sensors show no life forms on the planet."
"Continue scanning." She said. "Ensign, bring us about and confront that scout ship."
The Sonorus came about and closed in on the Romulan.
"Hail them." She ordered.
The tactical officer sent out the hail, but there was no response. Suddenly the scout was once again enveloped in an energy field. This time violet in colour and seemingly more intense. Although the Sonorus was unable to penetrate the energy field with its sensors, it was apparent just by watching that the Romulans shields were collapsing. Within the energy field the Romulan changed its direction. The energy field disappeared just as the Romulans shields collapsed. The scouts engines cut in and it fled from the planet. The Sonorus continued to monitor the scout until it entered warp and left the system.
"Sonorus," came Dalton's hail. "Is everything allright up there?"
De Causo gave him a brief account of what had occurred.
"How are things down on the planet Commander?" She inquired.
"Everything is fine." Replied Dalton. "We were concerned initially when we lost contact with you, then we were reassured by the Dolphins that we were under no threat."
"Dolphins!" Exclaimed De Causo.
"Well that's our nickname for them. We don't know what they call themselves." He replied. "They communicate with a method that is similar to musical telepathy, although we only get impressions from them. No actual speech. We sense they want us to transport to another location. The signal is now being transmitted. If you access Ensign Fini's log you should be able to determine the coordinates from our last communication. I would also like our instruments beamed to the same coordinates. Dalton out."
De Causo herself interpreted the communication. Now that the Romulan ship had left, their sensors were able to scan the planet.
She hailed the Commander. "Sir, the coordinates transmitted put you two and a half kilometres below the planet's surface. Our sensors show a complex at that point. The atmosphere within is the same as that on the surface."
Dalton's voice came back. "We are ready Lieutenant. Energise."
"Chief Svensen," she said. "You have the coordinates. Energise!"
On the planet's surface Commander Dalton and his team dematerialised. As they rematerialised Dalton took in his surroundings. Here as on the surface were the same pyramid like structures. Looking up he could see no visible barrier between them and the ocean above. The waters were supported by some kind of magnetic architecture. For a moment the Commander experienced a slight feeling of claustrophobia. He could only liken it to being aboard a Starship with only shields and no hull.
Their instruments materialised beside them. Before them were the same creatures that they had met on the surface. One of them turned towards another of its fellows and emitted a series of short staccato squeaks. Its companion nodded and left. This was the first time that Dalton had heard the creatures communicate by sound. he looked toward Ensign Fini and saw by her expression that this greatly interested her.
The creature before them motioned for them to follow. As they did so Dalton was aware of a complete absence of activity around them. There was a sense of apprehension. The away team passed many of the same creatures, some of them accompanied by strange looking crustaceans. These were similar to crab, a hard exoskeleton covering the main body. here the similarity ended. The beings possessed six amphibian legs and walked with a forward motion. At the front of the body were two long tentacles culminating in six smaller digits similar in their function to human fingers.
"Commander," said Fini. "Do you get the impression that these are some kind of pet. They serve a purpose that I cannot ascertain."
Dalton looked at her and was pleased to see that she was deeply engaged in her work. He knew she was up against a challenge in her own speciality, but he had little doubt that she would ultimately succeed.
They eventually arrived at a smaller area. This time the creatures did seem to be busy. Although there were no control panels of any sort, Dalton instinctively knew that this was the command centre from which the complex was governed.
One of the Dolphin-like creatures stepped forward and addressed the away team. Opening its mouth it emitted a complicated series of squeaks. Ensign Fini analysed the pattern with her tricorder.
With the energy beam no longer emitting from the planet's surface she was able to access the computer onboard the Sonorus. Soon she was able to translate.
"Commander. These creatures have been aware of our existence long before we ever tried to explore their system. They knew our intentions were peaceful and they knew we were unable to communicate with them. They decided to wait until we had developed similar capabilities, and they sensed as we approached them that the time had come for first contact. Their sensors are much more powerful than our own, and they detected the presence of another vessel following us as we left Utopia Planitia. At first they were under the impression that the other ship was a form of escort, but as we approached their system they were able to ascertain that the intentions of the following ship were far from benign. With this planet so close to the neutral zone it's no surprise that the Romulans would take a very active interest, especially considering the diversity of this technology. These beings realised how closely our spiritual development was linked to our music and that is the sole reason that they chose to communicate with us and not the Romulans."
The Commander replied wryly.
"Seems like a very lucky break Ensign, but my guess is that the Romulans will be back before too long."
Dalton glanced from Fini to the creature and back again to Fini.
"Can you translate our speech into their language?" He asked.
"Yes Sir I think I can," she replied. "But a quicker alternative is to replay our original music. While we do this, concentrate on what you want to convey to them. Trust me Commander, it will save a lot of time."
Dalton smiled and nodded. "Let us proceed."
Additional equipment was required and beamed down from the Sonorus. Dalton assembled the band on a dais, near the end of the room. Here the ocean was only a few meters above their heads. Dalton was still awed by the invisible energy field that kept the waters above them. From this closer viewpoint, Dalton was able to see many different species of aquatic life, attracted to the light emanating from their remarkable biosphere in the depths of the ocean.
"We're now ready Commander." Reported Fini.
"Right ," replied Dalton. "Let's make this good. On three. One. Two. Three."
As on the holodeck Jon led them in and started playing. The others joined in, their timing perfect.
Soon they were completely absorbed in their music, again being lost in the intricacies of the melody that defied understanding. As before new undertones developed, this time making the music take on a new dimension that they had not experienced before. For a while Dalton found it difficult to concentrate on his playing while at the same time, trying to form questions in his mind. Gradually as the theme developed he found he was able to let go of his normal way of thinking. As he continued to vary the harmony of his playing, he felt as if part of his mind was becoming detached from his physical self. A new sound came to his ears. He knew that Ensign Fini had joined in with the music, her voice, while not singing words, was complementing the intricate melody and providing an added yet different dimension to the overall polyphony.
Commander Dalton's feeling of detachment became more enhanced. He continued to let himself go. With a shock, that he was only later able to describe as a feeling of intense power entering his psyche, he felt himself to be at one with the chosen leader of the creatures. With sudden insight, caused by the extraordinary mind contact, a pattern of clarity emerged. Dalton understood how they were able to communicate with the beings. The music acted as a carrier wave with which their thoughts were able to overlay, modulating until eventually a common energy band was found.
Exhausted he brought the playing to an end. Looking to his side he saw Savage, Garrett, Coburn and Fini covered with perspiration, slightly shaking after the immense effort they had put into the performance, yet all highly elated.
Dalton, regaining his breath, addressed them.
"our hosts call themselves Delphinians. They are happy with the way in which we were able to understand how to initiate contact with them." He stopped speaking for a while, still slightly breathless.
"We are welcome to stay here as long as we choose. They have technology that may be of benefit to us, although before any mutual exchange of technologies can take place, they wish to arrange a meeting with an Ambassador from the Federation." Dalton laid his guitar on the ground.
"The Delphinians will contact the Sonorus when they are ready," he continued. "Until then they will not reveal their whereabouts to any other species."
For the remainder of the day the away team toured the Delphinian's underwater domain. When it came time to leave, they performed another, shorter session. Through this they conveyed their thanks for the hospitality that they had received. With great hope for future contact with the Delphinians, they beamed back aboard the Sonorus.
On the bridge, Commander dalton settled back into his seat. he could not help smiling to himself. This first mission had exceeded all of his expectations. Together for the first time, he and 'The Crew' had proved themselves of taking on the unusual and succeeding. Satisfied he left the bridge and filed a report to Admiral Li.
The Sonorus was just leaving the system when Lieutenant Garrett reported. "There is an incoming message from Starfleet, Commander."
"On screen." Replied Dalton.
"The message is on a secure channel Sir!"
Dalton arose from his seat.
"I'll take it in my ready room." He said leaving the bridge.
He sat behind the desk and activated his terminal. An image of Admiral Li appeared.
"Good work Jon," he said. "I have studied your report and I am impressed with your work. Give my thanks to the officers involved."
"Thank you Admiral." Replied Dalton. "I will pass on your regards."
The Admirals face grew serious.
"The situation here is not so good," said Li. "The pressure for the Sonorus to be diverted to other duties is increasing. This was compounded by your report of the Romulan Scout penetrating deep into Federation space."
"The Sonorus will be required for further contact with the Delphinians, Admiral." Replied Dalton.
"I know that Jon." The Admiral paused. "You have exceeded my expectations on this first mission, however Starfleet is watching your every move. We will need more than this one result to prove the viability of the project. I wish you success in your next encounter. Li out."
The screen went blank. Dalton stretched and sighed. So the battle had not yet been won. He felt the resolve growing within him. They would not fail.
He was interrupted by a communication.
"Sir this is Commander Savage. I am happy to report that we have repaired the problem with the warp drive. and we are on line to complete work on the port computer core in forty eight hours. Will you be wanting me to take over night watch now Sir?"
"Roger number one and by the way, good work Dave."
Dalton allowed himself a brief moment of satisfaction before he was once again interrupted.
"Yes!" He answered wearily.
"This is Counsellor Salmon reporting for duty Sir."
The Commanders mood lightened.
"Rod! how are you. I knew you'd been assigned to the Sonorus but things have been so hectic around here since we launched and I haven't had time to stop by. The last time we spoke you'd just left the Academy. What happened to the ambitious young Ensign who was going to make Captain in three years?"
They laughed as Salmon attempted to reply.
"Well Jon...."
He was interrupted by the Commander.
"Don't tell me, your mother couldn't stand the thought of you in red!"
They laughed again. They were very old friends.
The Commander interjected.
"I get the feeling this isn't just a social call."
There was a moments silence before the Counsellor replied.
"It's been nearly a year now since the Yamato disaster. You must be getting over it by now."
Dalton saw through the counsellor's carefully chosen words in an instant, but the trick had worked. The gentle throb of the Sonorus's warp drive faded from his consciousness as he remembered the horrified screams of his former crew before their last communication broke to an empty silence. He shed a solitary tear.
"Your quarters or mine?" He muttered.
The reason for the Salmon's career change quickly became apparent by the sensitivity of his reply.
"Why not let's keep things informal Jon, maybe you should meet me in the Advance Bar for a drink before you call it a day."
"Confirmed." Said Dalton, the authority finding its way back into his voice.
He left the ready room and on entering the bridge issued Commander Savage with the order to commence night watch. The computer confirmed the command.
Dalton walked, head bowed, to the turbo lift.
The Sonorus soared towards a distant star.