*****A NEW BEGINNING*****
~The VAXMigrator, nearly destroyed in the devastating effects of the continuum rift caused by the merging of Fourspace, Cyberspace, & Reality, was finally nearing its completion. It had been many long years since the vessel had been spaceworthy, silently floating in her drydock undergoing major refits and repairs. Her crew and passengers had been elevated to heroes among the New Dwellers, even though less than half of them had survived the rifting. Many were believed to be alive still, cast to the far corners of reality & time, awaiting the impossible moment when they would travel to the places they had long ago forgotten. Waiting to go Home. Now, during the final stages of reconstruction, someone had arrived and began asserting technical knowledge on the schematics--had begun overriding command codes and programming back doors into the vital systems. The best slicers couldn't even get through the new codes which were being implemented. They had the highest military clearance & a programming structure unlike anything they had ever seen before. There was, however, one unsettling fact which made the whole situation tenuous at best. All the codes being used were those of Admiral Jayson Lynxor--the man who was responsible for the rifting, as well as the salvation of all the survivors. Without him, nobody would have survived. And now, Greyfox (or his ghost) had returned, & for whatever reason was altering the outcome of the new ship...

By Bryan R. Cummings (Houdini) on Unrecorded Date:

Samuel Jarrah rested his eyes. A month of vaction gave him plenty of time for rest. He loved the peacefull quiet his ocean-side bunglow provided. Complete rest was the doctors orders had been. He had suffered a stress attack and had fainted: "acute anxiety disorder" the doctor had called it. Sam after the service with the vaxmigrator as ships councelor, had gone to the private sector and opened up his own theropy practice on Earth.He had turned into a regular Dr. Katz, with a patient list chok full of the rich and famous. He was slowly becoming wealthy himself, and the truth was he hated it. He missed working for starfleet. He wanted to back where the
action was: as a ships councilor. Part shrink, part strategist, part diplomat, such was the life of a telepathic ships councelor.

Soon, however, he would get his chance...

By Tony Lenzo (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

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"Ahhh. The modifications are complete." The Engine Room buzzed with activity as dozens of people worked. Data smiled, feeling genuine pride as his emotion chip whirred in his positronic brain. The supervisor of the reconstruction efforts, Mr. Data enjoyed his handiwork. Had this been any ordinary ship, had this been any ordinary situation, Data could have overseen completion of the project over a mere matter of months. But this was no ordinary situation.

The workers who had completed the task were well over 80% out-of-time... no knowledge of the VAXMigrator's systems, many of them straight out of Criosleep. Training them to merely understand Hyperspace Physics and Engineering had been a momentous task. With the equipment all-but destroyed, the task had seemed impossible. But in the strange Cyber-realm of the WEB, time loses all meaning, surfers trapped in the electron flow. The task was completed, the information was downloaded, the survivors did learn, and the ship was repaired.
Data's past six months had been occupied charting the dips and eddies of Cyberspace, charting the pockets of Four-space that had somehow, inexplicably become lodged within the vessel's engine core. Unable to dislodge them, Mr. Data had actually been forced to Re-Engineer the Engine -around- the disturbance, preserving the Four-Space Engines, but with a bizarre and wonderous twist: the ship could now focus its energy to erect a Gateway - not mere hyperspace, but a 5th dimensional Door which could allow the vessel to travel distances vaster than ever before imagined.

The pockets of spacetime now hovered within the core, humming as they strained against the barriers that contained them. Data seemed to admire them, then tapped his com-badge.

"Reading all clear in the Engine Room," he said.

By Tony Lenzo (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"Affirmative Sir." a digitized voice replied. "All other systems reporting in at operational status. Are we ready for a system-wide test?"
"Yes, Lieutenant. Might I suggest making a ship-wide announcement before activating all the systems? The crew will need to be informed of such events," Data answered. He allowed himself a smile, only now discovering the subtlety of humor--now that he was senior officer on the VAXMigrator. He had had command of another ship once, but that was only due to a dire situation. Now, however, he had been assigned to oversee the completion of this Battlestar--a task of great responsibility, to be sure...
"Attention all decks. Attention all decks. General Quarters, repeat, general quarters. All hands to prepare for systems-wide test and activation of the new Quantum-Thrust Engines. Upgrading status to code yellow." As the announcement died away, Data saw crewmen scurrying about, rushing to get to their proper places to perform their various duties.
"On my command, Lieutenant," Data ordered. He looked around, seeing everyone in place for the test. Nothing, however, could have prepared them for what happened next. "Activate systems... Now," Data commanded, and as the words left his voice modulator, a low tremble could be felt throughout the ship, as the systems slowly came online. A dull, whispering roar built up throughout all the bulkheads--not loud enough to deafen a man, but just loud enough to be noticeable. Data scanned his engineering console, and watched as the systems indicators shifted from red, to yellow, up to green. All the status bars were functioning normally. All except the Fourspace Gateway generators. Data tapped on the display, & after finding no result, queried the computer.
"All ship systems are functioning within normal operational parameters."
"Computer, what is the exact efficiency of the systems?" Data asked.
"All systems are functioning between 97-100% efficiency."
"Computer, run full diagnostic on Fourspace Gateway Systems," Data requested.
"No such system exists."
Data raised an eyebrow at this. "Hmmm. Interesting."

By Bryan R. Cummings (Houdini) on Unrecorded Date:

**Samuel Jarrah Returns**
Sam's sub-etha band two-way radio chirped.

"Samuel Jarrah here, how can I help you?"

Ahh, Sam! So good to hear from you! How are things on Earth? Enjoying your vaction?"

Sam did a double take, he hadn't heard that voice in a very long time.

"Admiral Nimitz ? Is that you? Heh, yeah, I'm really enjoying it here. But from the tone of your voice it doesn't sound like a social call."

"You allways did know how to cut to the chase Sam, your right, this isn't a social call. I have been asked to inform you that you are being drafted back into starfleet." Nimitz replied.

"Why me? I haven't served aboard a starship in over four years. You know I have a civilian medical practice now. Besides if I remember correctly those starfleet burrocrats were the ones who handed me my 'voluntary' retirement package. Heh. Voluentary my arse. I won't do it." Jarrah looked pissed.

"Hey, take it easy Sam, I know what a bum wrap the council gave you and some of the other crew members of the Vaxmigrator. They had a scandel on their hands and.."

"And they needed some poor smuck to play their scapegoat while they covered the whole thing up.." Sam interjected.

"Look Sam, the Starfleet council is prepared to fully and publicly exonorate you and the other former crewmembers of the vaxmigrator. Your commision will be restored as well as your full pension. But you must return to starfleet. Deal? I can give you just 2 days to take care of your affairs on Earth, at that time a shuttlecraft will be by to take you to the ship you will be serving as Executive Ship's Councilor"

"Thats plenty of time sir. Thanks. What is the name of the ship?"

"The Vaxmigrator. Glad to have you back Sam. The council will be pleased. I'll send you the new crew manifest tonight. Nimitz out."

Jarrah quickly called his secretary in Beverly Hills. "Hey Missy. Yeah, its me. Tell Dr. Barclave that he is going to be getting all of my old patients. Heh, yeah I 'll be carefull don't worry. Take care." *click*

-Samuel Jarrah & Admiral Nimitz

By Jeff Montgomery (Jeff) on Unrecorded Date:

A ship appears on all sensors for a brief instant, then disappears. All data banks confirm that they had been copied; but by what means, none can say.

Every living being believes they heard a voice speak, in their own tounge, "Underdeveloped..." -- but from where, they know not.

Suddenly, the computer banks are filled with information from across the galaxy, and in fact the universe, that essentially says "I was here... where were you?"

Once the blip disappears, all goes back to normal... or did it...?

- Jeff

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Commander Data tilted his head with a puzzled expression. "Computer, Self-Diagnostic, please."

"I am functioning within normal parameters."

"Computer, the fielding amd design is flawless. What is wrong with the Gateway Generator?"

"This system does not exist."

Data accessed the computer log for the past several months. "According to the project log, this system has been present for the past 11 months."

"Correct."

"It was present at 0800. Correct?"

"Correct."

"It was present before the systems were run through their testing five minutes ago, correct?"

"Correct."

"What has happened?"

"The Gateway Generator does not exist. No further information is available."

"Fascinating," said Data as he looked straight at the Core. The Generator was right there. It appeared exactly as it always had.



"Computer, using your knowledge of Fifth Dimensional Physics, postulate a cause for the disappearance of the Generator."

"Accessing... my knowledge of the Fifth Dimension is insufficient to answer your query."

Insufficient thought Data. Much of the science needed for the task was invented by him during the project. The computer simply could not grasp these new concepts AND exercise android intuition at the same time. Unless...

"Ensign, please take the Gateway off-line. I will be uploading a program from my quarters... Carry on."


Data

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Underdeveloped thought Data, Underdeveloped. Perhaps the problem could be corrected, however.

Data

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Blood runs down the walls. The Solenoid hangs suspended in the air by a circle of electrodes. The sweat runs down his chest as the scans continue, unceasingly. He moves his robotic eye left and right for his head is locked in place. His arms and legs are pulled taut in each direction. Even so, he refuses to yield. There is a sharp pain, and he realizes that spears are being driven through each of his chakra light centers... he winces as the first cracks through his spine and out of his stomach. The second through his heart, the third breaks inside him, the splinters forced into his larynx. Backup power coming on line intoned the Solenoid. Microscopic robots swarmed out of Sol's wounds, some literally dragging blood cells back into his body, others fast at work to disintegrate the splinters.
Chunk- CHUNK
Two more electrified spears pierced Sol's organs.
Sol tried to get a glimpse of his assailant, but his head would not turn. Looking up and feeling pressure, he realized that a shimmering silver-red point had emerged from his forehead. One last chance... he focused his psychic powers, trying to get an image of his attacker, his captor. Through the waves of pain he focused, focused. A blurred image began to emerge, condensing, he fought to maintain and sharpen it.

Then his mind short-circuited as a lightning-bolt fried his gate-center.

* * *

Sol sat up in his bed, in a cold sweat. phew! he said, jumping to his feet and throwing the silver blanket aside. He stared into the mirror, thoughtfully, and took a drink of water.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

The Gateway system sat idle, no power running through it at all, no data being transferred. It was peaceful, serene--relaxing. The entity within enjoyed its privacy, becoming annoyed when all the 'lights' flickered on in its abode and things started humming and busily working. It was bound to happen sooner or later--other entities would eventually find this one. It was inevitable. However, the entity in the Fourspace Gateway Generator didn't want to be bothered yet, so it simply froze the system in time. 'That should give me a few more millennia to snooze' thought the entity. What it didn't know, however, was that Commander Data was over-seeing the work on the Gateway Generators. So now, resting comfortably in its four-space pocket, the entity felt a sharp jab and a bright flash of data as a new program was uploaded into the seemingly-offline device. The code was mesmerizing--complex, yet simple. Beautiful in structure, yet free of form. The entity was drawn ito the data-stream, realizing too late that it was trapped. It screamed. Power surged. The entity disappeared...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

What can only be described as a scream emitted from the computer--a digitized, electronic scream. As Data watched, a shadow formed in the midst of the light. It grew larger, became tangible. It resembled a slumped-over humanoid--no, a man...

* * *

As Greyfox came around, Data stood over him running the tricorder back and forth. Strange, though, it was not a medical Tricorder...

"Where am I?" he said, his head throbbing, "What happened?"

"I uploaded a program into the Engine Matrix. Although this was not the expected result, Admiral, you have somehow absorbed the program."

"Program? What program?" choked Greyfox.

"The computer was unable to compensate for the inconsistancies in the Gateway System. It lacked a certain... finesse which was required to complete the task. A living analysis of the system was required... an android analysis. I could not upload my consciousness into the matrix and maintain surveyance simultaneously, so I uploaded Lal's consciousness into the core. The program has become imbedded somehow, inexplicably into your being."

"Commander, what are you saying?"

"Admiral, you have killed my only daughter."

Data

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"What?" Greyfox stammered. His head was pounding, his consciousness still reeling from this most recent 'belch' of the space-time continuum. "I-I don't remember..." His voice trailed off, almost reminescently. After a moment of blankly staring at the carpet, he pinched his eyes shut harshly and massaged the bridge of his nose. Blood flowed from his nostrils.

"Sir, you require medical attention. Allow me to escort you--" Data began to help Greyfox up.

"NO! I mean, no--thank you, Data," Greyfox managed a weak smile. "I think all I need right now is some sleep. I've had a very rough day." Greyfox sat up and leaned on his hands. "Oh, and Data--I doubt that it was me who killed Lal. If I did somehow absorb her consciousness, I would be able to access it and let it channel through. I sense no such consciousness within me right now. We could have passed each other in the--" Greyfox stopped short, rememberance slamming him in the chest like a 20-ton cargo container. "Lal's consciousness is trapped in the Negative Dimension," Greyfox stated gravely. As the words escaped his lips, another blinding flash of pain erupted in his head, and he collapsed once more, blood trickling from his ears, nose, and eyes. He lost consciousness before his head hit the floor...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

"Most bizarre," shrugged Data, "My initial readings were incomplete." Data scans Greyfox's unconscious body, almost without emotion. How very strange. Lal's program was only partially present... but where was the rest of it? Data scanned continuously, reading multispacial residuals.

What was strangest was that her program was still functioning.

"How can this be?" Data asked himself. Obviously, half of a program cannot function alone... unless... yes! the program was, in fact, completely whole. Half of it was residing in Greyfox and half of it was somewhere else... but where?

Wherever that somewhere was, whatever or whoever, Lal's program had tethered Greyfox to it.

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

"Please State the Nature of the Medical Emergency."

"Doctor," said Data, "This man needs your immediate attention."

"Very well. I am transporting him to Sickbay now..."

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

As the transporter energized, Greyfox's form shimmered in a shower of familiar, blue-white sparks, then faded away, out of Data's quarters. This most recent turn of events was quite pondersome, but at least the new Fourspace Gateway generators were functioning normally--that is to say, within acceptable boundaries set forth in holographic simulations. Data was looking froward to a successful test of the new system, since the recent troubles had made that all but impossible. Now, however, Data had a working knowledge of at least a small portion of what had transpired, so he believed he could indeed successfully utilize the new system. He set off to engineering to do just that...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Greyfox found himself walking through a lush garden, all manner of plant and flower surrounding him in an endless array of beauty and color. The fragrances and sounds assaulted him, made him feel comfortable, at peace... Home.

By Bryan R. Cummings (Houdini) on Unrecorded Date:

Fleet Admiral Malcoln Nimitz looked out of his executive office window at Starfleet HQ. He had an excelent view of the Golden Gate bridge, its steel cables streching across the bay. A sailing yacht was passing underneath the great structure. He smiled as he admired the sheer simplicity of the craft. It was crafted in the style of the ancient
shipbuilders of the past. No motors, just the wind
at your back and the stars to guide you. The admiral was lost in thought..

"Admiral Nimitz, you wanted to see me sir?", a familiar voice asked.

"Yes, of course Lieutentant. Close the door behind you and have a seat."

The door closed, and the man took a seat.

"Sam, its good to see you back in uniform. Now that you are back in I can fully debrief you on the situation."

"Go ahead sir, you have my full attention." Jarrah
offered.

"First, I'd like to say I'm sorry for the way
the Starfleet council handled the Vaxmigrator
incident."

"What is their to say, you guys had a top-secret ship with a top-secret drive system that nearly
fell into enemy hands and almost wiped out this entire region of space. The council did the only
honorable thing it could do for loyal crew members who had pledged their lives to starfleet and who had allready taken an oath of secrecy upon starting service abord the vaxmigrator. It threatened to jail anyone who spoke about the Vaxmigrator and forced ALL of us to retire from
active duty, with no pension and dishonorable discharge of course. Why, sir if I didn't know better, you gave us the red carpet treatment. I especially like the way you erased the service records of Admiral Lynxor. He was your best shadow
ops commander ever, and yet I'll bet your latest cadets have not even heard of him. A fine way to treat the memory of man who gave his life to save his crew. You can take your apology and shove it where the stars don't shine... SIR.".

"I don't like your tone Liuetenant, like it or not I am still your senior officer. Look Sam,
I know how you feel. I really honestly do. But if you wish to get your career moving again you are
going to have to let this thing go. I mean, I've restored yours and the other officers commisions.
Your record is clean. What else do you want?"

"I want Admiral Lynxor's service record restored and for him to have the proper starfleet funeral
he deserved."

"You know I can't do that Sam. Lynxor will and must always remain a faded memory. I don't want the press to know that starfleet trained some
of their cadets to mentally manipulate space-time.
Not when we spend so much of our time preaching the temporal prime directive. Starfleet doesn't want any dirty laundry aired in public."

...PRIORITY ONE MESSAGE FROM Lt. Cmdr. Data sir..

"Greetings Admiral Nimitz. I have some news that may be of intrest to you."

"Go ahead comander. I'm all ears." Nimitz responded.

"I don't belive I am familiar with that expresion sir is that.. "

"Cut to the chase commander."

"Very well sir. It appears that Admiral Jason Lynxor has... returned. I formaly request that he be restored to his command of the vaxmigrator
once he has recovered."

"Yes, well, uhh, thats good news Data. Nimitz out."

"Sam, now, you listen to me and you listen
good. I don't give a rat's arse what you think
of me. You are to report to the vaxmigrator
as planned. You answer to me from now on, you hear me? I want daily status reports. Oh, and don't breath a word of this to Lynxor."

"Or else what? You will force me to resign again...SIR." Jarrah.

"It would be a shame if your niece suddenly suffered a heart attack. I mean she is so young and bright and all. I hear she is applying for starfleet academy next spring." Nimitz threatend.

If you or your black ops cronies harm her in any way i'll.. Jarrah immediately realized he wasn't speaking anymore but was using telepathy.

"Good day, Admiral. I will comply, for now."

Sam left the office and headed for San Fransico spaceport.

"Yeah, Mike, this is Malcolm. Keep an eye on Jarrah, and his niece. Yeah, I think we can control him for now, I'll need his telepathic
abilities to do periodic scans of Lyxnor."
"What if he refuses to cooperate?"
"He will Mike, he will. Alana Dale is like a daughter to him. Jarrah may be loyal to Lynxor, but he won't do anything to jepordise Alana's saftey. Trust me, the kid will come through with any on site intel we need and he will do it right under the nose of Lynor thanks to the quantum neural disihibitor that was placed in Jarrah's head without his knowlege. When I want him to scan I will enable it. Jarrah won't even be aware that he is scaning."

"Boss, why don't we just elimnate Lynor? Why
all the cloak and dagger stuff?"

"Because, my dear friend. It is all part of myplan. The time will come soon when the Cylons will rule this entire system again, and the vaxmigrator will be nothing more the a scrap of metal."

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Jayce Brilliam maneuvered his Sabre class starfighter through the drydocks and orbital stations surrounding Earth. He hated garrison duty, but didn't want to give Starfleet the satisfaction of forcing him into retirement. He was the best starfighter pilot they had ever seen, and had flown over 50 combat missions with a 98% success rate. And then, it happened. He was on a stealth ops mission with his squadron, when a time-space anomoly swept through the fighters from nowhere. It was all he could do to evade the string of energy as it tore through the fragile hulls of the small ships, ripping them apart like driftwood in a tidal wave. Brilliam watched as his entire squadron died. He aborted and returned to Earth, and was immediately blamed for the incident. He was given a choice, due to his outstanding record: Stay on in Starfleet, never holding rank of that above Lieutenant, with a revoking of ALL security priveleges--OR, retire with no pension and no military record. Jayce loved flying, so...

As he circled around the floating installations, he noticed the shuttlecraft approaching the drydock of the VAXMigrator. Standard Operating Procedures dictated he challenge the shuttle.
"Shuttlecraft Lambda-Tau, state your business and destination."

"Lieutenant Samuel Jarrah, en route to the Battlestar VAXMigrator for assignment." Brilliam scanned the shuttle, finding everything in order. His scan showed a pilot and a male passenger, the passenger meeting the personnel record of Jarrah. Funny, though, the scan showed cybernetic implants in Jarrah's head. Brilliam thought for a moment, wondering why a telepath would even -need- implants, then he dismissed it as none of his business.

"Carry on, Shuttlecraft Lambda-Tau. Your manifest and destination check out. Hold your course and speed. Safe journey, Lt. Jarrah," Brilliam swept his fighter off to starboard, and continued his orbital patrols...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

The Doctor continued his observations of Greyfox, who was now encased in a full-body neural inhibitor, as well as a multi-phasic emitter field. The Doctor was not going to allow another incident to occur. The Doctor was currently engrossed in the neural scans he had performed earlier.
"Fascinating," he stated as he began his audio report. "The subject appears to have a unique ability to actually manipulate time-space. Upon further investigation, I discovered the subject seems to exist in multiple phases and dimensions at once. All neural patterns indicate the subject is still completely interactive with his surroundings, even though I have disconnected him from all outside stimuli. Logic dictates that if he is not interacting with this environment, he must be interacting with another. I will attempt to 'fine tune' the multi-phasic emitter to display exactly what it is the subject may be interacting with. Further reports to follow." The Doctor began readjusting the emitter to perform his specified task, when he noticed Greyfox's form begin to shimmer and fade. "Subject is apparently attempting to repeat his previous escape attempt. I am enhancing the multi-phasic emitter. It appears to be working... Subject appears to be--aging--now he seems to be growing younger... Readjusting emitter sequences... Subject is returning to normal. Life signs indicate stability. Checking for neural activity... Fascinating..." As the Doctor watched, the neural activity monitors displayed a level of activity beyond all human comprehension. In fact, the meters were topped out, red, and solid. It was as if ten million brains were working all at once, each one surveying possibilities unique to itself, yet striving toward the same goal. "What are you thinking about, Admiral?" the Doctor said quietly...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Jayce Brilliam continued his routine patrols around Earth, everything appearing as it should. Patrols were set up in interlocking sectors, with a total of 12 fighters in various orbits at any time. They were set in a way, however, that no ships could even see each other at any given time. If one ever got in trouble, response time was over 2 minutes... Not a very long time as far as civilians were concerned, but an eternity for a pilot. And now, Jayce thought he smelled some trouble. A small freighter was approaching his sector straight from warp-space. Nothing out of the ordinary, except for the fact that the vector it flew in on was not common, and it wasn't listed on the day's manifests. Jayce decided to challenge it.
"Gold 6 to Gold Leader. I've got an unexpected visitor in sector 8a. I'm flying intercept, stand by for backup."

"I copy, Gold 6. 2 & 9 are closest, they've got your back if you need 'em."

"Roger. Switching to open frequency for challenge." >click< "Unknown freighter, this is Earth security patrol. Please transmit your clearance codes and cargo manifest, you're flying into a controlled area." The transmissions flowed in to Jayce's flight computer, being translated and displayed on his HUD. Something wasn't right. He could feel it. The manifest showed computer components and magnetic storage devices, but something about the ship's transponder codes didn't match with it's classification... Nothing major--just wrong. The communicator came to life.

"Gold 6, the codes check out, let them through," came the voice of Jayce's C.O. Then it hit him... The codes the freighter was using were old shadow-ops codes. It was the code used to crack all the other codes. The Rosetta Stone of transponder frequencies, if you will.

"Negative, Gold Lead. It doesn't feel right. I'm going in for a closer look. They may not like that, so be on your toes," Brilliam replied. Then, addressing the freighter, "Light freighter Tempestuous, slow to quarter-speed and prepare for fly-by. Come to heading 0-niner-5 and power down non-essential systems." As he said all this, he snap-rolled to port and began his approach on the larger ship. As he drew nearer to scanner range, he noticed the 4 quad-laser emplacements on the hull--definately not Starfleet sanctioned. Jayce's gut began to flutter, then his sensor readings confirmed his suspicions--no life forms aboard, and a cargo hold filled with neuro-toxin. "Tempestuous, come to bearing 1-Five--" Jayce was cut short when laser fire streaked across his viewport and the freighter kicked in its sublight engines.
Jayce snapped his control stick to the right, punching his accelerator to full. Counting to three, he cut thrust to nothing and snapped back to the left, bringing his ship into a slide to starboard, with the nose pointing at the engines of the freighter. 10 seconds had passed. Jayce opened up with his twin vindicator laser batteries, spraying a blinding stream of energy into the freighter's aft. His targetting computer began the locking sequence as the rest of the squadron communicated.

"D@MN! Raptor, I'm on my way! Be there in 1:45!" Other similar reports flowed in.

Jayce watched as 80% of his blasts splashed harmlessly on the freighter's shields. As it's turrets came to bear on him once more, Jayce punched in the after-burners, dipping his nose down slightly, flying under the freighter at about 5 meters. Manually targetting the turret on the belly, Jayce opened up with his lasers, strafing the entire underside, finally erupting the turret in a gout of flame. 30 seconds had passed.
Jayce's ship shot out in front of the freighter, which must have been a surprise for the pilot, who began to pull the nose up into a steep climb. Jayce cut his engine completely, pulling his nose up to match the climb of the freighter, and as the freighter pulled perpendicular to its previous vector, he was aiming straight at its belly. Again, he opened up with his lasers, cutting into the hole where the turret used to be. He was satisfied when he saw a dull flash in the interior of the ship, and it began to slow. 45 seconds had passed.
The freighter came to a halt, and as Jayce circled around towards the cockpit, it exploded. That was the worst thing that could have happened, since without power or control of any sort, the freighter would plummet into the Earth's gravity well and explode with a cargo hold full of neuro-toxin...

"Gold Lead, this is 6. We have a problem. I need tractor beams and a containment craft in sector 6b."

"What's the problem, 6? Don't want your freighter to get away?"

"No, ma'am, I don't. It's carrying 250 tons of neuro-toxin. The pilots scuttled after they decided to fire on me."

"Affirmative, 6. Containment in progress. Maintain course and speed, Gold Lead out."

Jayce watched as 5 space-tugs lumbered away from nearby drydocks and set up a tractor-beam field. They stopped the derelict freighter and towed it into one of the stations.

"Holy God! Those were Cylons!" came the static-filled voice of one of the tug pilots. A cold lump wedged itself into Brilliam's gut, as he returned to his patrol...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Data began walking to Engineering. What had just transpired was curious indeed. His daughter was gone, absorbed somehow into Greyfox... but that wasn't all, part of her was missing. "She's lost in the negative dimension," Greyfox had said. Odd. Data had to find a clue, somehow, to discover the truth.

Data emerged into Engineering where the others were ammassing information and computer reports from the recent instrument. Data descended into the Turbine Pit where Khan and Lincoln were toiling. Lincoln beat on one of the great, large bolts with a gigantic wrench, shirt off, hat on, his huge muscles pounting at it as if he was working a railroad. At last, the bolt broke off and the NAV-Chamber opened, the panel falling to the ground with a loud CLUNK.

"Why, yes," said Lincoln, wiping his brow of sweat, "the information you requested Commander Data, couldn't be retrieved from the main computer. Something to do with that Natural Science Theory you explained to us. You should be able to find what you need in the NAV-core, though."

"Thank you, Mr. President," said Data politely. Lincoln had been rescued from death by a bizarre time-rescue 4 years ago. Amazingly, he had learned the basics of modern physics most readilly, and he had developed a strong back and bulging muscles from working at the heart of the reconstruction project. After the VAXMigrator was sucked into the Portal during the Great Paradox, the ship crashed here on LEV-World, a planet in a whole new sector of CyberSpace known as the WEB. For years, Data and his team fought to bring the vessel back on-line, back into shape. Finally, it was launched into orbit, and now at last, the engines had been restored. It was no longer the ship that it once was - familiar on the outside, but the inside had to be completely redesigned with new technology as well as plain old hack-and-weld know-how and good old-fashioned American Enginuity.

Data took the core in his hands and removed his thumb to reveal an interface jack. He plugged into the core and searched the database.

The new 5-space Gateway actually operated in multiple Time-Dimensions at once, so as Data searched the records, he had to scan each of these one at a time. so that is why the computer scanned nothing, thought Data, the computer was only capable of reading information from our own 3-space dimension. It was unable to properly translate this extra information when the pocket was frozen in time. By extrapolation, and with peripheral information gleaned from the records of the other 2 dimensions, Data was able to reconstruct the truth of what happened...

The device was activated... Data had run the engine tests... and then, a blip. There was a presence sleeping almost embryonically inside the contingency bubble. One heartbeat, one brain-pattern, comlex yes, but...

Then Data had uploaded Lal into the matrix, and something bizarre happened. The patterns somehow merged with each other, causing a disruption, but wait! Data was sensing another presence in the time-stream, another presence that had been somehow merged with Greyfox. Lal's program was torn in two as the Greyfox-alien whole separated from each other. The other presence retreated, back into the 5th dimension, alien, so incomprehensibly alien, and yet...

Data tried to extrapolate more about the being, but was cut off. Father! Father!

Data looked up abruptly from his work. "Lal?"

Father, it's me! You must get out... get out of Engineering. Someone... someone's coming... he wants to leap through the contingency bubble.

Data turned his head toward the door, a yellow burning in his eyes. With the speed that only an android can accomplish, Data sent his reassurances and instructions to Lal, then disconnected and marched toward the door and into the corridor.

* * *

As Data moved in the direction Lal had indicated, he kept a close eye out. Then he could see Admiral Greyfox - a glazed look in his eyes, intent on only one thing, maddened beyond belief as he pursued that and only that goal. Data pressed himself against the side of the wall. The Admiral would not even see him... Lal would ensure that. Now! thought Data, and through the neural interface on her head, Lal received his silent command.

* * *

As if in a dreamword, Greyfox stumbled forward through the dreamlike halls of the VAXMigrator. He paid barely any mind to his senses, relying on instinct to find his way. Reality seemed to fade in and out as he fought for control of himself. "You must stop," came a female voice from somewhere in front of him. He squinted through the haze and saw her, a strange being that looked like a woman, but oddly, it was as if only her left half was visible... one arm, one leg, one eye, and where her right half would have been, he could see her cross-section which contained half-pieces of various android technology, and from the cross-section streamed a trail of gold-speckled mist. Greyfox tried to push past the nightmare image, but she continued to step into his path. She moved easilly despite the fact that half of her was not there. Finally, Greyfox pushed her aside and continued to step forward. Then Lal had a vision, something from deep inside her creative mind... not her father, it was as if a great, grey iris was staring into her. She felt pinned, unable to resist it, the force of it was tremendous. Her eyes glazed over, and with clarity, she said, "This is not your time. This is not your reality. Be patient. All will be revealed." She lifted her small woman's fist and pulsing green energy erupted from it. Greyfox took notice, somehow recognizing the awesome power she now wielded. "Revealed? Reveal yourself now! Reveal yourself!"

"In time," she said soothingly, "in time." Her hand descended onto his forehead as he turned around to see her, and, focusing, she channeled the pain from the 'fox in the garden deep into this 'fox's head. He could feel his temples pound as the throbbing increased...

* * *

Greyfox staggered about in the hall, clawing at the walls and instruments, his face completely blank with an inaudible no escaping his lips. Data moved around behind him, completely unseen as Greyfox fell to his knees. Data punched his hand straight into a makeshift hi-voltage conduit on the wall and pulled out a live cable. Data's construction insulated him from hi-voltages of pure energy, but especially in this weakened state, Data surmised that the Admiral could not.

"Forgive me, Admiral," said Data to Greyfox's unhearing ears, "but I cannot allow you to leave the ship." Data placed the wire at the base of Greyfox's skull and watched without feeling as he convulsed and smoked, his teeth involuntarilly clenched shut. just like a puppet thought Data as he considered the fact that Greyfox was all-but unaware of his surroundings. As Data removed the live wire, Fox shook his head, placed his hand on his chest, and slumped down onto the deck.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Priority Message, Starfleet Command:
Lieutenant Commander Data, officer in charge of ship reconstruction for Battlestar VAXMigrator...
You are to continue reconstruction efforts according to the schedule set forth by Fleet Admiral Nimitz. It has become urgent that you begin upgrading the weapons systems and bringing them online. Continue to this next phase of construction before leaving drydock on your maiden voyage. Crew manifests are being uploaded to you, commander Data. You are to keep Jayson Lynxor under careful observation--it may be an imposter and a security risk. Delete all records of Greyfox, Admiral Lynxor from all ship systems. Consider this a priority order direct from Starfleet Command. Succeed in this task, and commission as a full Commander is yours.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

The Doctor continued his modifications of the Multi-Phasic emitter array, when an image abruptly appeared on his viewscreen. Upon closer inspection, The Doctor noticed it was multiple images superimposed on each other. It resembled a multi-colored, fractal array swirling around itself in a constant flux. "Interesting," stated The Doctor. "I seem to have tapped into what the subject is interacting with--but it appears to be some sort of interferance pattern. I will attempt to filter the image in order to get a clearer picture..." The Doctor worked feverishly on filtering the images, but no matter what he did, the image remained. Then, he got an idea--holographically speaking, of course. "I will attempt to filter the image through the holo-emitters, using holographic sequencing and transporter codes to filter the multiple images each into their own, separate holographic projections. I shall begin work immediately, and hope to be finished within the next several hours." The Doctor stopped ammending his records and set his plan into motion. The fractal image on his viewscreen simply pulsated and swirled, mesmerizing yet challenging. The Doctor successfully filtered one of the colors from the image, removing a tiny swirl with it. The Doctor watched the holo-emitters begin processing code. He programmed a filtration array, and stepped back to watch his little bit of holographic ingenuity... He started becoming horrified when he saw 5,287 different holographic programs come into existance, with at least 5 more being created every second. The Doctor turned his head and gazed incredulously at Greyfox, who remained lying peacefully in the medical apparatus adorning the center of sick bay.
"All of this from the mind of one man? Fascinating. What other surprises do you have for me, Admiral?"

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

That evening, Data enjoyed a cup of joe with his comrades in the mess-hall. He was just about to tell a funny story when he was paged over the ship's PA system.

"Mister Data, please report to the Telecom room."

"Excuse me," said Data, "I am needed."

* * *

Data walked into the darkly-lit room which smelt of oil and rubber. In the center of the room was a large metal pod. The top half raised to the ceiling with a hissssss and an eerie death-blue light shined out. Data peered curiously into the gloom and an image emerged as Data stepped inside.

"Commander Data," smiled the old man, "it is good to see you again."

"Admiral Nimitz," acknowledged Data.

"I received your status report earlier and read it with interest."

"Yes, sir - the reconstruction is proceeding according to plan."

"I'm not interested in the reconstruction," said the image of Nimitz as he paced around the commander, "but your report had some interesting information about Admiral Greyfox. I understand that you assaulted your senior officer and... do I have this right... electrocuted him?"

"Yes, sir. Commander Greyfox began behaving... erratically. I have reason to believe, as I outlined in my report, that Greyfox posed a danger to himself and this vessel. Had he succeeded in escaping somehow through the contingency bubble, not only would the engine be destroyed, but the original Paradox that brought us here might have flared up again... I could not place my crew in danger..."

"And Lynxor is a dangerous man," said the Admiral somberly. "Look, I like 'fox. He's a good man, like a son to me. In fact, most of what he has today he owes to me and the decisions I've made. But mark my words on this - all that time in the void has done something to his mind. War can do that to a man. Life can do that to a man. For the sake of the Star Fleet and all that is good in this universe, Lynxor cannot be allowed to reach Earth or any of our colonies back here in VAX-space. There's simply no telling what a man with Jayson's power would do here. I have an empire to protect."

"I understand."

"A rendesvous with the flagship has been arranged, and when that happens, they are going to request a complete log of all the time that your ship was lost in the WEB. You have to remember that back here on Earth, we thought that the VAXMigrator was destroyed. Before your triumph can be made public, however, there will be questions to be answered. And until we know how to answer them, this whole Paradox affair is classified at level Silver-Magenta... 5 levels above Top-Secret. And it has to stay that way. Tell me, Mr. Data, is your program, hmm, how do I put this, are you flexible when it comes to... telling the truth?"

"If you are asking me to cover up the truth, Admiral, which is, I believe what you are asking, I am programmed to follow orders whenever the need is great enough."

"Oh, it is great," nodded Admiral Nimitz, "It is. The Paradox Effect must never leer its head again. Until we can get this straightened out, I need you to keep things under control over there. Have you erased all files on Jayson Lynxor as I asked?"

"Yes sir. And the weapons upgrades are complete as ordered."

"Good. I am transmitting coordinates to you via secure line. You are to take the VAXMigrator on that heading as soon as repairs are complete. Even with the jump-point from VAX-Space to the WEB, our ships will still need quite some time to reach you, however."

"Understood."

"Oh, and one more thing, Mr. Data."

"Yes, sir?"

"I've sent ahead an old familiar face, Counsellor Jarrah. You're familiar with him?"

"Yes, sir."

"I hate to be the bringer of bad news, but these last few years have been rough on him, seeing the ship destroyed in front of his eyes and all. Although he's been briefed on the plan, I have concerns about his state of mind. His psychological profile suggests that his personal involvement in the Paradox Affair would prevent him from carrying out his duty with a clear head. If he behaves... erratically, or in any way tries to jeopardize this mission, for the safety of the Star Fleet and your crew, we may be forced to..."

"Yes, sir?"

"Well," chuckled the Admiral, "We'll just have to cross that bridge when we come to it. Just keep an eye on the boy. Admiral Nimitz out."

The image faded, leaving the room completely dark.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

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By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Greyfox felt as if he were floating amongst the deep grey mists that swirled around his prone form. Even in the depths of his own mind, he could not move. He felt trapped, separated, isolated, and alone. As he peered around the prison of his own mind, he noticed yellow grid-lines materialize--almost like he was inside a great, hollow cube. Then it dawned on him--a holodeck. He tried to speak, but could not even move his mouth. Then the voice in his head spoke again, soothing...
"Remember... Many parts make up the whole--yet each part is complete unto itself..."
Greyfox remembered. He was NOT alone. ALL beings are multi-dimensional, and he was no exception. Concentrating on his light center, he envisioned a great, shining point of light. It grew in his being, expanding to encompass all of his consciousness. He saw other aspects of himself, each trapped in its own prison-like apparatus. He called out to them, and they all seemed to take notice.
"You are not trapped! It is merely your perceptions being fooled. Look inwards, and you will see The Light!" Greyfox exclaimed as he saw all of his mirror-selves turn to face him. They all started to shimmer and glow as they strode toward him, slowly at first, then speeding up as they neared their own inner Light Centers. As they converged, new consciousness awakened in Greyfox. He saw everything... Knew everything... In that one moment in time, he was One with the Universe...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"Gold Squadron, this is Starfleet tactical HQ. Starfleet command is requesting you ground your ships and report directly to your C.O. for a full debrief," came the open transmission over Jayce's comm unit.
"Gold 6 to Lead, I'm heading in..."
"Negative, Six," came the reply from the tactical officer who was dispatching the transmissions. "You're reporting to Starfleet HQ in San Francisco. Admiral Nimitz would like to speak with you."
'Great. Just what I need. Another run-in with Old Ironsides,' thought Brilliam. "I copy, Dispatch. Gold 6 requesting leave of squadron coherency," is what he said out loud.
"Affirmative, 6. Good hunting," was Gold Leader's reply. With that, Jayce uploaded the auto-nav coordinates for Starfleet HQ and punched the autopilot button. 'This is the easy part,' he thought as his sabre class starfighter glided easily into Earth's atmosphere.

Malcolm Nimitz sat behind his desk, poring over Data's most recent status reports, when there was a knock on his office door. A guard poked his head in, saluted, and stated, "Lt. Jayce Brilliam of the starfighter corps, here to see you, Sir."
"Send him in," Nimitz replied, not even looking up. When he heard Jayce walk in smartly, snap to attention and salute, he just motioned to the chair across the desk from him. "Sit down, son," he said gravely. Brilliam sat.
Nimitz examined the pilot sitting before him. "Do you know why I sent for you today, son?" Nimitz began.
"No, Sir. Unless it has something to do with the incident in sector 6b earlier, sir."
"Yes, son. It does. You shot down an unmarked freighter whose clearance codes checked out. Would you mind explaining this action to me?" Nimitz peered at Brilliam's face as he asked this, trying to intimidate the younger man.
"Well, sir, I approached and challenged the craft, as per standard security procedures. They sent their codes over the open channel, but something about them didn't match up with my code list," Brilliam started.
"Lieutenant, were you using a different list of codes than the rest of your squadron?"
"No, sir. I recognized the transponder code of the freighter as a sliced code."
"So, you're an encryption specialist, as well?"
"No, sir. The code the freighter used was the Quicksilver-7 universal Black Ops code crack. I recognized it from when I was still flying with Wraith Squadron." Nimitz seemed startled by this fact.
"You flew with Wraith Squadron?"
"Yes, sir, I did."
"Lieutenant, did you know any of your commanding officers at the time?" Nimitz asked seriously.
"Only my squadron leader, sir. All the other officers were kept anonymous for security reasons. Standard Black Ops chain of command, sir." Brilliam was confused by the direction this meeting was taking.
"Son, we all know what happened to Wraith Squadron. It was a tragedy and a mistake that Starfleet ever tried to keep it quiet. I'm prepared to reinstate your commission as Major, with full security clearances, etc. There is a catch, though."
"What catch would that be, sir?"
"Re-assignment. Full combat duty. Squadron command has already put together a full flight group at Saturn's Rings starbase. You're to rendezvous with them for a transfer to a deep-space carrier... A Battlestar."
"Excuse me, sir? A Battlestar? I thought we didn't have any of those left since the VAXMigrator disappeared."
"The VAXMigrator never disappeared, son. It only went covert for a while. You know, Black Ops. By the way, you'll be the only pilot from the flight group with top clearance. I expect full reports, according to procedure, and with the utmost of discretion. You're going to be my eyes and ears out there, son. You're dismissed, Major." As if to add to the finality of his statement, Nimitz spun his chair around to face the windows of his office, gazing once more into Golden Gate Park.
The guard handed Brilliam a folder as he left Nimitz's office. It contained his orders, a full mission briefing, some transmission codes, and a list of other contacts on board VAXMigrator, in case his cover was blown. Among them were Commander Data & Lt. Jarrah.
"What the hell is going on that's so d@mn important out there, anyway?" he thought as he walked back to his ship. 'Why would Nimitz need 3 operatives on one ship?' Brilliam stopped dead in his tracks. He stared down at the personnel file he was holding, his mouth open and his mind numbed with disbelief. 'It can't be him! He died with Wraith Squadron 10 years ago!' Brilliam looked again at the picture he held in his hand. The likeness was unmistakable. "Greyfox," he said out loud, remembering how his squadron leader sacrificed himself to save Brilliam those ten years ago. It never came up in the hearings. In fact, the hearings almost seemed to regret the fact that there were any survivors of the incident at all. The only thing Starfleet wanted to do was cover up the Temporal Anomoly's existence. 'Dead men don't tell tales' Brilliam thought. He gazed down at the photo of Greyfox once more. 'Or do they?'

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Samuel Jarrah sat comfortably in his shuttle as it made its way to Saturn's Rings Starbase. It was to rendezvous with a light carrier, the TCS Talona, which was to take him the rest of the way to the VAXMigrator, by way of hyperpoint jumps. Jarrah sat back and watched the stars go by as the shuttle continued its 5 hour journey.

"Just a few more hours," he thought as he picked up a newspaper and began reading it. Again...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

As Jayce Brilliam's transport neared Saturn's Rings Starbase, he found a computer terminal and keyed up the technical readouts for the ships in Flight Group Orion:
The Talona, Midway Class Carrier
36 Banshee Medium Fighters
36 Bearcat Heavy Fighters
24 Longbow-A Bombers
24 Longbow-B Bombers
48 Vindicator Superiority Fighters
36 Wasp Missile-Defense Craft
24 Dragon Assault Fighters
24 Excalibur Strike Interceptors
12 Devastator Torpedo Corvettes

Jayce was extremely impressed. Not only was this a versatile flight group based on an extremely capable super-carrier, but ALL the ships were slated to be transferred to the VAXMigrator... 252 fighters and 12 larger corvettes. He glanced out the viewport at The Talona... It was the biggest carrier he'd ever seen. And all the signs pointed to the VAXMigrator being even bigger. He was sure he was going to be impressed with it when he finally saw it...

By Reflection Surprise Terror For the futur (Smokeduster) on Unrecorded Date:

"Meridia outpost 274 to Andromeda. Confirm transfer of 1 passenger and his gear."

"Confirm 274. We'll be heading back to Saturn's Rings."

"Just a quick run around the block, eh Andromeda?
By the way. Why did they send a diplomatic cruiser to pick up a security officer?"

"Just a test of the sub-light engines. Besides we were available and the Commander is good friends with this guy."





------ in the shuttle bay

A stocky built, 6 foot 2 in tall, 42 year old Lt. Commander, dressed in casual dress exits the shuttlecraft which immediately heads back out to return to the outpost. As he is then led out of the shuttle bay, he asks,"What is that noise?"

"'Tis the baby's cry. Ne'er been on board one of these when they new, eh sir? Just be happy the
blasted chemical smell is finally out of the air.
By the time we reach Saturn the sublight engines
should have dropped their tone, otherwise something be a miss."

"That's why they sent this thing. To test the
drive system before heading back towards Earth."

"Well here be yur quarters. The Commander said she'd be by after her bridge shift to show ya around." He opens the door to the diplomatic quarters. "Don't think I caught your name."

"Lieutenant Commander Gunthar Kell. You?"

"Chief Engineer Sam Colton."


---- Darren

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Jayce Brilliam tossed his duffle bag onto his cot, and inspected his wall-locker and foot-locker. He was now a senior officer, but due to the overflowing crew manifest for The Talona, he was to share this room with three others. He glanced at the two sets of bunk-beds, perfectly made, with clean linens folded on each one.
"Major Brilliam?" came a female voice from the doorway. Jayce turned, and saw a beautiful, petite red-head, wearing a flight uniform and a colonel's bird on her collar.
"Yes, Ma'am?" Brilliam said, snapping to attention as he replied.
"No need for formalities, Major. I'm your new Wing Commander. I'm Colonel Amanda Stevens. You can call me Quicksilver." She extended her hand and smiled as Jayce fumbled for words.
"Ummm, Jayce Brilliam. Raptor's my callsign." Jayce smiled back as she withdrew her hand.
"Well, I'm supposed to familiarize you with the rest of the flight group. Actually, you pretty much fall into the vacated slot of our former operations officer. Fleet Command transferred him out under suspicion of treason, so," Quicksilver glanced around nervously, then nodded her head as if to say 'follow me.' Jayce followed her into the corridor, where she started showing him around the pilots' quarters. "These quarters are unusually cramped, but that's because of the overpopulation necesarry to house all the transferring personnel. Duty shifts get posted every day at dinner--that's actually going to become one of your responsibilites. Also, as Operations officer, you'll be in charge of 1/3 of the fighters in the group. When we finally get to The VAXMigrator, that will be a total of 8 squadrons. There's a general staff meeting in 45 minutes, where you'll have the opportunity to meet your squadron leaders. You'll be in 3rd squadron, The Black Knights. I took the liberty of pulling personnel files for you to look at, to familiarize you with some of our 'personalities.' Your temporary office is right through here..."
As Quicksilver talked, Jayce zoned out, remembering the responsibilities of squadron command. He knew how to be an operations officer--hell, he was O.O. for Wraith Squadron. Just, nothing this magnitude before. He was now responsible for the well-being of 96 lives. 8 groups of 12 pilots. One group being directly under his influence. He wasn't sure if he could handle that...
"Raptor? You still with me?" Quicksilver asked.
"Yeah. Ummm, Yes Ma'am," Brilliam replied groggily.
"I told you to forget formalities. That's an order. We're just a happy family here," she replied, chuckling.
"Awful big family. Get-togethers must be a pain," Brilliam replied. They both shared a laugh as they neared the flight deck.
"And, here she is. The Banshee class starfighter. Capable of autoslides as well as jump capable. Fair armor, about 50cm equiv. and good shields, about 250cm equiv. She's fast, agile, and strong. Weapons load-out is 6 reaper cannons, capable of linked-fire, and 4 missile hardpoints. Standard missile load is Friend-or-Foe missiles, but you can drop that load-out in favor of capital-class torpedoes. And the good part is--She's all yours..." Quicksilver smiled as Jayce looked from her, to the ship, back to her.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

At the general staff meeting, which was held in the flight group's tactical room, introductions were made and mission objectives put forward. Jayce sat through it all, listening, thinking that all this sounded pretty normal for a front-line combat group. The only thing that disturbed him was the fact that the quadrant of space they were heading to wasn't considered 'front lines' at all. In fact, it was well-established within the Terran Confederation's borders. He made a promise to himself to find out what was happening later.
"And now, let me introduce our new Operations Officer and Squadron Leader for The Black Knights, Major Jayce Brilliam," Quicksilver said, after finishing off the official business for the flight group. Jayce stood, and everyone kind of mumbled 'hello,' then he sat again. "Don't give him too much of a hard time--yet." The room broke into chuckling laughter, and then Quicksilver dismissed the group for squadron meetings. Jayce saw somebody wave him over.
"Hey, Major! I'll bet you don't even remember me, do ya?" the blonde-haired, california surfer-looking pilot asked, a broad smile plastered on his face. Jayce recognized him immediately.
"Maniac?! How'd YOU end up out here?" Jayce asked, genuinely amazed. Maniac was one of those all-too-common ego-driven fighter jocks. Actually, he made the other fighter jocks look humble.
"Well, you know, Major--I guess they just liked my perfect flight record. Ever since I graduated above you at the Academy, I've simply been the best pilot there ever was." Maniac smiled smugly.
"Oh. I see. That's why they made you a Lieutenant, and me a Major. It makes sense." Brilliam smiled back.
"That's not fair, Raptor. They just don't appreciate my style, is all," Maniac replied, almost whining.
"Well, hitting on an admiral's daughter by regaling her with your past exploits could put a damper on your carreer, you know," Jayce countered, adding a wry smile to the statement. Maniac looked hurt.
"How was I to know she was an admiral's daughter? I thought she'd be impressed with how I handled that entire squadron of Kitarn single-handedly--" Brilliam interrupted at this point.
"You mean, the fight where you had to bail out after getting taken down in a cross-fire, and I had to save your sorry butt in a rescue shuttle? I will admit, you did fly rather well--for the first 2 minutes or so." Maniac just stood, shocked and dumbfounded, the rest of his squadron-mates looking at him, grinning. Jayce smiled.
"Well, Raptor. We'll just have to see who's the better pilot here. I whooped you in the simulators at Academy, and I'll whoop you out here, too." As he said this, he turned and stormed off. Jayce just shrugged and looked at the rest of his new squadron.
"Sorry," Brilliam said to them as the meeting began.
"For what?" somebody replied.
"For you all having to put up with Maniac for so long. I had to request a transfer just to get away from him," Brilliam said with a smile. Everybody laughed. "Alright, you all know me. I'd like to know you," Jayce said as he opened the meeting. He smiled as the pilots introduced themselves and welcomed him to the squadron. Jayce already felt like he belonged here...

By System Administrator (Admin) on Unrecorded Date:

After almost a day's worth of inter-solar space travel, Lt. Samuel Jarrah's found himself in the primary shuttlebay of the Tacoma where he was greeted by the Tacoma's bridge commander Louis Kebron.

"Well if it isn't the ship's shrink himself! How the hell are ya Doc?" Louis Kebron

"You are the only one that still calls me that. It's good to see ya buddy." Jarrah smiled and continued, "When did you get assigned to this beauty of a ship?" Jarrah said as they walked out of the shuttlebay.

"Two years ago Doc, wow has it been that long? Anyways, Major Jayce Brilliam would like to meet with you. He's down this way."

-Houdini

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

"Security!" shouted the Doctor, "stand down, I repeat, stand down. False alarm." The Doctor checked his medical logs...

"Funny," he said, "your exploits on board this vessel are well known, but for some reason, there doesn't seem to be any record of you anywhere. Curious." With a wry eye, he says, "I suppose it is a good thing, too. I don't appreciate being shut off in the middle of a compliment, even if it is by a ranking officer, Admiral."

Greyfox stands up to leave, but the Doctor intercepts him. "Hold on, now, you had what I can certainly compare to a total system failure, I don't know how else to describe it. Since you arrived in my sickbay, you have not stayed on that table as you should, instead you have been trying to escape every chance you get."

"I'm fine, Doc, really," smiles 'fox reassuringly.

"Oh no you don't, if you think I believe that for a minute, you're nu..." The Doctor scans Greyfox and finds him to be completely healed. "This is impossible. There's no sign that there was ever anything wrong with you. But I..."

"Thanks, Doc, for putting me up for the night, now if you'll excuse me..."

Greyfox was almost completely out that door, almost, but not quite when he heard the Doctor say, "...except... I am still reading multiple neural patterns in your cerebral cortex."

Greyfox turned around. "All part of being a 4th-dimensional Ninja."

"No, it is more than that. While you were in, shall we say, lala land, I had quite a lot of time to study your so-called 4-D physiology. I am aware of the contact you have with the near-infinite aspects of your personality, with your other you's. No, this is different. These patterns are completely unlike your own. In fact, I am willing to suggest that it has something with the fiasco that happened as you decided to waltz out of sick bay to Engineering."

Greyfox stands silently, listening, but inside he has no idea what the Doctor is talking about. The images seem foreign to him as the Doctor plays back the entire scene with Data in the corridor - Greyfox fumbling down the hall in a dazed rage, Data bringing him down with sheer android resolve, and the battle to drag the half-conscious body all the way back to sick bay including Data and 4 others.

"I suggest," smiled the Doctor, tightly, "that you stay for a while, at least until we know what is going on. Commander Data's orders, and as Chief Medical Officer, mine, too, I'm afraid."

As he motions to the chair, the hatch opens with a hiss and Data walks in.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"Commander Data, what, exactly, is going on here?" Greyfox asks, a slight tone of annoyance in his voice. Data simply raises an eyebrow and motions for the admiral to sit in a nearby chair.
"Admiral, I believe I can explain a few details about what has transpired in the past several days. While I do not as yet have all the details, I am sure I can be of at least some assistance in clarifying some of your apparent confusion." With usual android efficiency, Data sits in a chair across from Greyfox and begins to explain what happened...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Priority Message: Commander of TCS Andromeda

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

At Jupiter II Observation Post:


Captain Harris walked into the Telecom room and waited for the black sphere to open. It did so with a >snap-hissss< sound, and the image of a man appeared.

"You wished to speak with me, Admiral?" Harris asked.

"Yes, Captain. I have a new task for you. Operation Pearl Harbor was interrupted by a resourceful starfighter pilot. It is time to advance to our fallback plan. You are to meet with a starship, The Andromeda, which will transport you to Saturn's Rings Starbase. From there, you will oversee the activities of Task Force Omega. I need you to 'regulate' the activities of Major Jayce Brilliam. He is not to fly on any missions involving contact with the Cylons." Nimitz paused for a moment.

"Sir, shall I rid you of this nuisance--this Major Brilliam?" Harris asked purposefully.

"No. Let him live. I want him to be broken when The VAXMigrator is destroyed. Make it seem like his fault. He is a good pilot. We may need his skills when the new alliance is made and we face the new enemy. Be fore-warned: there is a Cylon task force using cloak technology beyond the asteroid belt. They are waiting for Task Force Omega to leave Saturn's Rings before they move on Earth. You are to avoid them at all costs. Do you understand, Captain Harris?"

"Yes, Sir. Your will shall be done."

"Good. Do not fail me, Captain. I hear the Tritanium mines in the asteroid belt are rather inhospitable. You wouldn't like it there very much. Nimitz out." The image of the admiral faded, and Captain Harris turned and walked out of the room...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Captain Harris, after preparing for his new assignment, studied the personnel files of everyone of importance in task force Omega & Flight Group Orion. After familiarizing himself with the faces and names, he looked over the listing of ships assigned to escort The Talona to its rendezvous with The VAXMigrator. It was an impressive list, indeed:
The Vesuvius; Dreadnought: Flagship of Starfleet
2 Sheffield Class Cruisers; The Sheffield & The Essex
2 Ajax Class Destroyers; The Ajax & The Apollo
4 Hades Class Strike Cruisers; The Hades, Inferno, Dante, & Flamestrike
1 Midway Class Carrier; The Talona

Harris was impressed. The most powerful warships in Starfleet were in this task force. Now he knew why Nimitz was having it leave the system before the Cylons attacked. It was a beautiful plan: With the most powerful ships off catering to The VAXMigrator, the Cylons could easily win a battle at Earth. Then, humanity could use The VAXMigrator as a scapegoat for the Cylon attack. Once the task force returns to Earth, The VAXMigrator becomes vulnerable to attack, and could be easily destroyed through sabotage. Earth would then surrender to the Cylons, increasing their powerbase to fight the new enemy. A work of beauty, indeed...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

"Admiral," said Data, curtly, "I'm afraid the footage that the Doctor is now displaying is wholly accurate. You appeared on the VAXMigrator after being vomited onto the ship by a 4-space pocket. This event was triggered due to an upgrade I was conducting on the ship's engine core."

"vomited?" wheezed Greyfox.

"It seemed an apt analogy. In any case, you have been behaving... erratically ever since your return to the VAXMigrator. You attempted to jump through the fourspace apeture in Engineering. You must understand that I could not allow that. If you had succeeded..."

"I would have shattered the Engine and destroyed the ship," said Greyfox gravely.

"Precisely. The fourspace Energy inside the Engine must remain inside the core. Admiral, as acting Captain of this vessel, I must demand an explanation."

"Well, you're not going to get one, Mister Data, because I don't have one for you."

"Sir?"

"I don't know who that was trailing along through the corridors, but it sure wasn't me."

"You're forgetting," grinned the Doctor with that know-it-all smile of his, "that I saw you leave sickbay. And that there were multiple witnesses to your crime."

Greyfox stared at the computerized crewmembers silently.

"VAXMigrator crashed on LEV-World 3 years ago," said Data, changing the subject, "and just 2 days ago I was able to complete the repairs to the vessel. As you have seen, the operation was a success. However, when I contacted Earth, I discovered that our return was considered a shocking surprise to everyone. You see, when the VAXMigrator was lost, the Paradox Effect generated was not only enough to blast the VAXMigrator into several different Universes, and enough to hurl us outside the confines of normal VAX-Space to the Web, but it also created various unforseen side-effects in our home universe. Starfleet was forced to cover up this incident in order to protect the lives of millions, and to prevent anyone from ever initiating similar dangerous activity in the future. We will depart from LEV-World shortly, and make our return to Normal Space through use of a prototype Engine I have designed. We will do so, however, under absolute tactical silence. Our existance is to remain a secret until we rendesvous with ships from Starfleet at which time we shall receive our new orders."

"Mister Data," says Greyfox, "I believe I have just one more tiny question. Why am I no longer in the ship's systems?"

"All details regarding you and your return have been classified beyond access - no one aboard has the authority needed to access information of any kind relating to the Paradox."

"And that means that all my files were wiped, too?"

"That is correct. Further, I have decided to restrict you to sickbay for the undetermined future until we are able to determine what is wrong with you."

"I see."

"I have one additional question, Admiral... have you seen my daughter?"

Data

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Sol stood atop the roof of the Towne Pub, and the crowds had gathered 'round. At last, the time had come for the VAXMigrator to depart. Yes, three years ago, the VAXMigrator had crashed here on LEV-World, and at long last the people aboard were able to build for themselves a new world, one where they at last found a haven for their style of posting, without persecution, without ridicule. At last, they found their paradise, and no one could take that away. Lev-Towne had grown so since that long-ago time, the new LEV was stronger and more secure than the original had ever been. Sol eyed his work and smiled. Friends smiled back, everyone was respected here. Sol could live out the rest of his days in contentment just knowing that such a haven existed.

"My friends," said Sol, "The day has come for the VAXMigrator to return home to Earth. Each of you must look in your hearts and decide whether you will stay and continue to build the paradise which we hold so dear, or sign on as commissioned crew aboard the VAXMigrator. We were lucky to make it alive to the LEV-Planet, but we also know that there are many peoples still in the void who may have need of a guardian to bring them home. To this end, my friends, I shall be leaving LEV-World aboard the VAXMigrator as their Ambassador of Peace. I shall one day return to you, in the meanwhile, remember all that we have learned. Peace, Unity, Harmony, and levity. Keep the LEV!"

Sol thrust his fist into the air and the whole crowd cheered. Then, Sol looked into the sky as a tiny shuttle descended to where it hovered above the roof of the Pub. The landing lights whirred across the bottom of the craft, and gasses popped and hissed as the boarding ramp extended. Of the LEV-Towne, only a brave few climbed aboard with Sol, and the rest merely waved, some even cried at the beautiful scene.

"Da'at vaas one good man," snuffled Professor Einstein, "May he bring our friends home."


And with that, the shuttle took off into the sky to meet the VAXMigrator, seen high above in the night sky.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"Well, Data. I'm not entirely sure. What does your daughter look like?" Greyfox asked. Data described her to Greyfox, who simply nodded. "I dreamed I was in a garden, and she sat on a bench and spoke to me. She told me that 'this is not my time. This is not my reality. Be patient. All will be revealed. In Time.' Then she disappeared. The next thing I knew, I was standing right there, near the door." Greyfox looked confused for a moment, his face twisted in a concentrating scowl. Then he shrugged, and looked back at Data.

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

As Jarrah walked the halls of the Talona he was awestruck at what he saw - such efficiency, such sheer spaceworthiness. He liked it, and it made him cry inside when he reflected on the piece of space-garbage he had flown in on.

"Mister Jarrah?" asked a tall, thin, woman, "My name's Ensign Bean. I'm assigned to you as one of your body-guards for the remainder of this mission." Jarrah realizes that she is very beautiful, short jet hair, deep lavender eyes... hmmm, not quite human, but her subtle inhuman qualities only seemed to add to her attactiveness. She seemed very serious, and although he didn't make it a habit of probing people's minds, he realized that her seriousness ran far deeper than the surface. What struck him, though, was the deep black R which had been branded over her left eye, no, burned on. It actually covered most of the left side of her face. He also noticed that she had a few cybernetic implants, a tranceiver implanted above her right ear, a line of flat-headed pins along her neck, no doubt several others hidden under her skintight uniform. She carried a heavy blaster-rifle which fit snugly into a holster on her hip when not in use, and he could see that she had two smaller guns attached to her body as well.

"Well, nice to meet you," smiled Sam, always the lady's man, but she didn't extend her hand in response, only briefly nodded an acknowledgement. Okay he thought to himself as they went to the debriefing room...

Ensign Bean

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

"As I suspected," said Data, "Lal's program has somehow become lodged in your cerebral cortex, Admiral. Indeed, her program existed inside my own Neural Net after her cascade failure where she ran as a secondary program for years. I did not believe that her program could function from within an organic being. It seems my assertation was incorrect."

Data shouts intrusively into Greyfox's ear. "Lal? Lal? Can you answer me?" Greyfox just pushes him away. "Hmmmm," muses Data, "Apparently this is not the most effective way to make contact."

"Apparently," smirks Greyfox, using his index finger to plunge the android saliva from his ear...

Data & Greyfox

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

>In the flight deck of The Talona<

Jayce Brilliam finished up his squadron meeting, just as a general announcement echoed over the PA system...

>All personnel report to duty stations. Prepare for separation from starbase docking clamps. We will begin free orbit of Saturn, and remain there for 36 hours. After that, we will rendezvous with task force Omega for the trip out-system to meet The VAXMigrator. Standard patrols to commence in one hour.<

Jayce was amazed that the ship was leaving so soon. After all, Admiral Nimitz had told him that he'd be spending a week on board before departure. And, he had no clue about the other ships they were to meet. He decided to go with the flow, however, and did not attempt to contact Nimitz.

"Hey, Raptor. The Knights are up for first patrol. Go prep your ship. We're airborne in 2 hours," Talon said. Jayce nodded and walked to his berth to get ready for his first patrol on board The Talona. He hoped it would be quiet.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"Wait," said The Doctor. Greyfox and Data both look at him. "I believe I have a solution." The Doctor moves over toward the video display panels. "Earlier, I was able to view the different environments with which Greyfox was interacting--neurologically, of course. If Greyfox were to re-enter, well, where-ever it was he went earlier, then whatever he sees will be displayed here on the monitors."

"Yes, Doctor, but I normally phase completely into whatever dimension I visit," Greyfox responded.

"Well, you certainly didn't go anywhere physically on your last 'journey.' You were in a multi-phasic inhibitor field. It disallowed any alternate phasing to occur. Yet, you still managed to travel elsewhere mentally while you remained here physically." The Doctor was on a roll. At that point, Data jumped in.

"Doctor, how did you manage to display the Admiral's perceptions on the monitors?" Data asked.

"Well, the multi-phasic emitter just seemed to pick it up. I simply tapped into the array so I might observe neurological patterns that might arise. The image was apparently distorted with interference, so I ran a filtering protocol through the holographic imaging system. Then, the images just appeared on the monitors." Greyfox nodded slightly.

"The interference was probably my multiple aspects clashing, trying to maintain control. Interesting. If I do this, only one image should appear, since I will be focusing on my journey," Greyfox added.

"Yes. And we could communicate with you via a neural inducer, with the proper modifications. Doctor, you mentioned the holographic imagers? I believe it would be possible to 'rescue' Lal," Data began. He had everyone's undivided attention. "First, we prepare a neural inducer for Greyfox and reconstruct the multi-phasic environment he was in before. At that point, we will be able to see what he perceives on the monitors. If I were to write another holographic processing protocol, the images would automatically be recorded into the computer for future holodeck use. I believe, with proper timing and modification, we could literally 'capture' Lal as a holographic projection." Everyone thought for a moment, then nodded. The Doctor spoke first.

"Provided, of course, Greyfox actually manages to find her," chided The Doctor.

"Oh, I don't think I'll have to find her at all," said Greyfox with a smile. Data & The Doctor looked puzzled for a moment. "I have a feeling that she'll come and find me..."

Data nodded in agreement with Greyfox's last statement. "You are correct, Admiral. I believe that only half of Lal is in this other dimension. The other half has somehow manifested itself in your psyche. Your mere presence in the other dimension would draw the two halves together, at which time we can download her full program."

"Great. Let's do it," Greyfox said, hopping up from his chair and moving toward the central table. The Doctor & Data began making their respective preparations for the rescue mission...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

"All clear," smiled the Doctor, "Sweet dreams." He tucked a teddy under Greyfox's arm. "I am attaching a neural monitor to your forehead just as before to examine the goings-on in that 4th-dimensional head of yours. I've also plugged Mr. Data into the aparatus so he can send you messages as you go."

"Yes," said Data, "I was also able to contact Lal this way earlier through an electronic interface."

"Are you ready, Admiral? I am going to yank you out of there at the first sign of trouble."

"Yeah yeah," he said.

"You're getting sleepy... sleepy... 3...2...1...

* * *

Greyfox found himself at the center of a vortex... swirling energy and magnetic resonance. This was nothing like the peaceful garden he had experienced earlier, but a malstrom of psychic energy and disturbance. Data's voice echoed, helplesly far away in the void, "Admiral, Admiral..."

Greyfox squeezed his eyes shut, staring into the force of the storm. He forced himself to concentrate, and by force of will, he drifted, drifted to the eye of the disturbance. The turbulence ended, and there he stood, on nothing, staring as the very stars blew around him on all sides, lapping against him with their heat as they passed.

"Lal!" shouted Greyfox, "Where are you?"

"I'm here," she said, suddenly behind him. He turned, and there she was, just one half. "Father is with you."

"Yeah," said Greyfox, watching electricity melt off her from the side as blue and red light, "Yeah, he's here. Where's the rest of you?"

"I do ... I do not know what you mean... I am all here," she says looking at herself.

"Admiral," comes a booming Data, "the Doctor and I are picking up another environment in your mind. Lal is, indeed, whole, but there exists some kind of inter-neural gateway inside her body. It is as if she has one foot standing on either side of a stargate. She only looks strange to you and I."

"What's on the other side of that gate?" asks 'fox.

"Darkness," comes the voice of the Doctor, "Void, despair, evil..."

"Admiral," cuts in Data, "we are only able to retrieve 1/2 on Lal's program at this time. To retrieve the other 1/2, you must push Lal out of the gate which is imbedded inside her... further, you must do this from the other side..."

"Father?" calls Lal, "Father!"

Greyfox feels a deep pit forming in his stomach, and an eerie familiar feeling. He does not like it, there is something very alien within, without, and the thought of facing it brings terror to him.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"All right! All right... I'm going to find the gateway and step through," Greyfox yelled through the turbulance around him. Looking at Lal, he tried to envision her standing in a gateway. As he concentrated, he saw a circular portal, bisecting her where the missing half should have been. As he moved around to her visible side, he saw that the portal appeared to be a large mirror, with Lal imbedded in it half-way. "OK! I see the portal, but it looks just like a--" Greyfox was cut short when his reflection moved on its own. It grabbed Lal's now-visible right arm and pulled. Greyfox watched as she stumbled into the mirror, and it began to shrink. The other him just held her there, smiling. The portal grew smaller, smaller, and smaller. Greyfox felt fear. And then, Lal's voice again...

"Fear is the Little Death! To fear something is to be slain by it! Do not fear!" she shouted. It echoed in Greyfox's head, repeating itself into a chant. And then, Greyfox dove into the portal, headfirst, grabbing Lal away from the other him...

Back in sickbay, The Doctor & Data watched and saw what Greyfox saw. Except when Lal was pulled through the portal, she disappeared. The data for the program was also lost. Oddly enough, when Greyfox leapt through the portal, he also disappeared, but the environment remained. The Doctor began counting the seconds, each one seeming to last an eternity. Then, it happened...

They both watched as Lal appeared, being thrust through the portal by some unseen force. A single, gloved hand grabbed the edge of the shrinking portal, apparently holding on for dear life. Lal reached back and grabbed the hand, yelling Greyfox's name as the portal shrank considerably. Then, a second hand appeared, this one ungloved, and it was trying to pry the gloved hand loose. The portal shrank down to about a 1-foot diameter, and Lal appeared more desperate. She kept shaking her head and saying 'no' urgently. Then, the gloved hand just let go, bringing the ungloved hand with it, causing Lal to tumble backwards in the maelstrom.

"Commander," said The Doctor urgently, "Greyfox's life signs are growing weaker. We must end this now." Data's left hand moved at a blinding speed, pressing button sequences and programming code.

"I am done. Proceed, Doctor," Data announced. Lal materialized for a moment, flickered, then grew stable. She fell to the floor. The monitors went black. Greyfox's body shook.

"Greyfox?" asked The Doctor. No response. Life signs were present, in fact, they had stabilized and even grown stronger. "I will attempt to send a neural surge through the inducer on his forehead," said The Doctor. Again, Greyfox shook. The neural readings on the monitor spiked, then crashed down to flatline. Nothing. "I'm not getting a neural pattern at all," said The Doctor. Data just looked at him. "I'm sorry Commander, but it appears that Greyfox is... Dead."

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Somewhere, deep in the void, Greyfox stood up and shook his head. Across from him, he saw his exact mirror-image. Both stared the other down, as if waiting for him to blink. High above them in the twinkling aether was a point of light. Each 'fox instinctively knew that it was a portal out of unconsciousness, but neither moved to reach it.

The currents of thought passed thier ears, sounding like the seashore. Spheres, transleucent green and blue and gold passed in the wind, each holding fragments of long-forgotten events, people, places, lives.

Suddenly, Greyfox lunges, sprinting toward the other with the speed of thought. He catches the other by wrapping his massive arms around his waist. Greyfox digs his heels into the grey surface and changes to a power-stance, countering the assault and then escaping it with a fast twist and throw. The first lands on his feet, and each takes up a defensive stance, circling at 3 feet apart.

"Since the birth of your universe, I forsaw this day," comes an echoing boom. The two realize that they are actually standing upon two massive grey hands which have been cupped together, holding them. Far above, a great, grey eye stares down. Greyfox is puzzled only for an instant, realizing that it was Naenor who had cradled him in the negative Universe, Naenor who had somehow, impossibly bonded him with the one being who could sustain his life for years in a completely alien environment, dormant yet alive for so very long.

"To survive, for your body to live, this was no challenge for a Shadowknight. The impact of destroying a Universe through Paradox I knew would drive you insane. This I could not allow, for the effect would mean the nullification of my study. Your soul needed to prepare for the reconciliation of this sin. Subconcious, gestated in the void, your essence has already served much of its sentence. But I can prepare you no more. It is time to face what and who you are. The cleansing must occur. The result will likely be your destruction, but the alternative is unconditional negation of all you stand for."

Greyfox eyes himself, uncertain at first at the meaning of this, but then, as if pulled by an irresistable instinct, lunges again and locks in combat.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Greyfox moves to punch his twin in the head, but watches as the twin moves with the grace and speed of a great cat, and grapples Greyfox's arm. Greyfox changes momentum, trying to reverse the grapple, but feels a foot in his solar plexus as the twin lands a side-kick. Greyfox crumples, his arm still captured, and as he falls, the pain and popping in his shoulder is intense. With willpower alone, he rolls forward, completing the twin's technique prematurely, catching him off balance. Greyfox then strikes, executing a perfect scissors-kick leg sweep, bringing the twin crashing down. Greyfox uses this momentum to swing himself back up to a standing position, where he stomps on the twin's chest.

Flailing in pain, the twin feels his right arm being raised above him, grappled at the wrist by Greyfox. He surmises that the burning pain he now feels in his shoulder must be equivalent to the pain he caused Greyfox moments ago. As Greyfox drives his heel into the twin's armpit and twists his wrist viciously, he lets out a gutteral growl...

"An eye for an eye!" he mutters, finally feeling the twin's shoulder pop. It was actually quite satisfying. Releasing his grip, Greyfox leaps backwards, waiting for the twin to stand again. Naenor chuckles--a loud, booming, ominous noise...

"Naenor! I should have known it was you behind this all along!" the Greyfox twin yells up from his prone position.

"Master! What cleansing do you speak of? I do not understand!" Greyfox yelled up at Naenor. Both Greyfoxes looked at each other, a look of utter revulsion on both their faces. Naenor chuckled once more.

"You call that fiend master?!?" the twin shouted at Greyfox, incredulously. "That is A'akra Naenor--Destroyer of Worlds! Eater of Souls! He has had me tortured my entire existance! Since I refused to accept his dark ways as his pupil," the twin explained, almost pleading for Greyfox to understand him.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" yelled Greyfox back at him. "A'akra Naenor has saved my life many times! He has taught me about my gifts--my powers! He has helped me to save entire universes from destruction in paradox! It is you who is misguided," Greyfox pointed at the now-kneeling form of his twin.

"It is time for both of you to learn of the duality of all existance," boomed Naenor from above, chuckling once again. "I had such high hopes for both of you. Greyfox, ever the martyr. Ever the lonely hero, taking on the weight of entire universes. Trying to put his powers to good use for a people who never asked his help. You helped honestly. Your help was needed--but never asked of you. How that must have weighed on your soul..." Greyfox lowered his gaze to the ground. Naenor spoke true.

"You, Darkfox. Ever the insubordinate pupil. Never accepting my lessons as true--always challenging. Always seeking the better way. Never could you see the truth behind why I allowed universes to end. Never could you see the balance of existance, the ebb and flow of time. You were concerned with finishing your studies--to become a master--but never with the intent of keeping the balance. Self-centered child, even now you do not comprehend what has happened..." Darkfox stood with a surge of rage, screaming incoherently at the darkened 'sky' above him. A'akra Naenor chuckled again.

Greyfox looked at his counterpart--his reflection, and thought he might be starting to understand. "In the paradox I caused, by tampering with the time-line, a universe was created!" he shouted at Naenor. "When this happened, during the rifting, they actually collided--they merged with one another! I was trapped between worlds!"

Darkfox spoke next, shouting, "A universe came into being through the mistake of one man, who thought he was a god. As the history of the universe was being written, it had no god to give it order. A'akra Naenor became that god, doing as he pleased to form it in his own image. Because you were absent, Greyfox, an entire universe became twisted and evil! I studied your actions--even idolized you. But you are a failure! I will not fail to bring light back to my world!"

"Do you begin to see where you are wrong, Darkfox? Do you understand why it was I kept Greyfox out of your universe as I did? Of course not--you are but a shard of the potential Greyfox possesses. You could never understand the things he could," Naenor bellowed at the two.

"What are you saying, Naenor? I thought the timestream was set right when I piloted the VAXMigrator through the portal?" Greyfox yelled.

Naenor again laughed. "Behold, Greyfox, your worst enemy... And your closest friend. During the paradox you were rent in two. Each shard possessing the skills and knowledge of the other. You, Greyfox, were the first-formed, so of course, fate instilled you with more potential. But this one--he never could see what you were able to see. So I separated you. I sent Darkfox to the negative universe--the universe you created--in the hopes he would find the potential he lacked. He did not. And now, in his jealous rage, he comes for you. To gain your potential through treachery. I have done all I can to save you. To teach you. It is time for your lessons to be put into practice..." Naenor sounded more serious now than ever before, and Greyfox was inexplicably compelled to destroy this other self once again...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

And with that, the Eye of Naenor faded from sight. Both foxes screamed at the heavens, all their questions unanswered. In sheer frustration, the two locked hands, each trying to force the other down. Each tightened their hands, daring the other to break the lock. Darkfox crumbled first, and Greyfox kneed him in the ribs, 2, 3 times. Darkfox plunged forward, his hands still locked with Greyfox's, and flung his legs backward in an arc, over his head, and then locked his knees around Greyfox's ears, bringing them both down.

Greyfox stood up, a pain in his head, as the other wrestled his other arm behind his back. Greyfox came down into a perfect sweep, taking Darkfox totally off his feet.

"Favorite!" screamed Darkfox, "Ingrate! Failure!"

Greyfox cooly ignored the taunts, although his attitude toward his twin was just as fierce. He prepared himself as his adversary loosed a field of pressure. Greyfox pushed back as the air itself worked to crush him... 50 pounds per inch... 100... 500...

For a split second, Greyfox realized that he had the power to short-circuit Darkfox's mind, overloading it with a blast of electricity. This was a trick he'd gained through his intimate repoire with Lal. But no, to kill his adversary would be wron...

AAAuuggh! In the split second that Greyfox took to decide, his alter-ego had also decided. Currents of energy surged into his mind, and Greyfox could feel his thoughts going blank as section after section of his brain was electricuted shut. He made eye contact with his alter-self one last time, from his knees, and then, like a limp doll, Greyfox fell into the ravive as Naenor's hands came apart. Darkfox laughed, a terrible and horrifying laugh. He knew not if he laughed because of victory, or vanity, or out of the fear he had at having to fill Greyfox's shoes. His face became solomn. He stared down into the pit, and for a moment, just a moment, lingered. Then he hardened his chin and began his long flight upward toward the portal...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Data & The Doctor stared quizzically at the conflicting monitors in sick-bay. The life signs on the physical monitor showed strong and healthy, while the neurological scans all came up flatline. Not even instinctive activity. The holographic monitors were black, not hinting at any sort of environment at all. The Doctor shook his head, reaching to switch off the multi-phasic emitter.

"Wait!" cried Lal abruptly. "Greyfox is still alive!"

"How can you be certain, Lal?" Data asked.

"I... I don't know, Father. I just know it somehow. He's alive. Look!" Lal pointed at the neurological scanner, which suddenly spiked--as if electricity had just surged through it. Then it slowly faded away once more... Only this time, it was no longer flat-line. The Doctor moved to position near his control console, and began to work feverishly at resuscitating Greyfox. "You see, Father? He is still alive!" Lal said exuberantly. Data just nodded, then began assisting The Doctor...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

As Data and Lal step through the door, Lal suddenly starts to fade.

"Back! Back inside," says Data, and she steps back into the sickbay, becoming suddenly fully whole. "Father, what has happened?"

"Lal, your body is holographic now. You must remain in Sickbay where the emitter is - at least for now. Besides, you may give the Doctor a hand with the Admiral."

"Very well."

Data returned to the bridge, eager to see if the VAXMigrator had, indeed, passed the first marker on its way to the rendesvous point.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"Doctor?" asked Lal quietly, as she approached him from the doorway.

"Yes?" he answered absently, not even looking up from his work.

"Father says I can't leave sick bay. He says it's because of the holo-emitters?"

The Doctor looked up sharply. "Oh? Oh! Yes, of course." The Doctor opened up a desk drawer. "Have your father replicate another one of these portable holo-emitters. You may have this one. You wear it on your arm, like this..." The Doctor places the patch-looking device on Lal's left arm, and her image flickers slightly, then stabilizes. "You can directly modulate any portion of your existing program through this patch. Now, you may travel anywhere on the ship." The Doctor turned and continued his work.

"Thank you, Doctor," Lal said, as she turned slowly and walked out the door timidly. She looked both ways down the corridor, cautiously, then took another step. The door closed behind her, and she turned with a start. Nothing happened. She took another step. Then another... Soon, Lal was running down the corridors of the ship, laughing and skipping every now and then, happy to be 'alive.'

By System Administrator (Admin) on Unrecorded Date:

*****END OF STORY ARCHIVE*****