Star Trek: Lineage Ch. 02

"Klingons? Are you sure?"

"No. They were speaking Klingon, but I could not make visual confirmation."

"They spoke Klingon, and we are on the Klingon border. I think it's safe to assume their Klingons, sir," Black said.

"Agreed," said Sahar. "Suvak, we are going to Main Engineering. You should come with us. We may need help making sense of what we find there."

"Very well." Suvak said. As Suvak retrieved armor, night vision equipment, and a phaser from the rack, Sahar turned to Walsh.

"Am... am I coming with you, sir?" he said in a breaking voice. Sahar raised her eyebrows.

"I think not." She said.

A few minutes later, Sahar, Black, and Suvak left the Armory for Main Engineering. They moved quietly down the corridor with Sahar leading, followed by Suvak and Black. Main Engineering was on the far side of the deck, forcing them to move quickly. Almost immediately after leaving the Armory, however, Black stopped. "Sir, I hear something."

Suvak and Sahar stopped. "What is it, Crewman?" Sahar asked as she moved up next to him.

"It's a squeaking sound, coming from the Jeffries tube," he said, pointing to the hatch. Sahar forced it open and peered inside. She could see into the junction room, and heard the squealing sound. It was getting closer. Then, a figure dropped from vertical tube, landing on the floor of the room. Sahar heard giggling. There is only one person who could giggle at a time like this.

"Casana!" she called into the tube as she turned on a light.

"Huh? Harry! Oh, am I glad to see you," Casana smiled, crawling through the Jeffries tube towards them.

"Stop calling me that, Casana. What are you doing?"

"I was in the lab when we lost power. Dr. Collins is still there. She needs medical attention," she said as she crawled out of the hatch. "Hey, Jeffy! I'm so glad you're okay," she cried, throwing her arms around Black.

"I was worried about you, too, Cassie," he hugged her back.

"Oh, I can take care of myself," she said. "So, where are you guys going?"

"Main Engineering," Suvak answered.

"Hey, Sue, I didn't see you there! Main Engineering, huh? Well, I'm coming, too." Casana ran into the Armory, emerging a few minutes later with security armor, night vision, a phaser, and two straps of grenades across her chest, one over each shoulder.

"Holy shit, Casana, you look like a fucking pirate," Sahar laughed. Casana looked at her in confusion. "Never mind. Let's get going."

******

Deck 19, 0910 hours

They moved quickly through the ship, trying to reach Main Engineering as quickly as possible. Sahar led the group, followed by Suvak and Casana, with Black behind them. Having the night vision visors greatly improved their ability to move quickly, but Sahar was still concerned about ambushes.

As they closed in on Main Engineering, Sahar could hear voices down the corridor. Motioning for the group to stop, she called for Casana. "Do you know any Klingon?" Sahar whispered.

"A little."

"Okay, come with me." Sahar crept forward on her hands and knees and Casana followed. They came to a corner, and Sahar peaked around the corner. She could see the door to Main Engineering, and almost a dozen Klingons. She ducked back behind the corner and turned to Casana. Sahar brought one hand to her ear, pointing around the corner with the other. Casana nodded and removed her helmet. She slid up to the corner as Sahar moved back.

"They're arguing," she said. "They can't get through the door. The leader has called for a cutting laser. More arguing. Very foul language. They're threatening each other. They're coming this way."

"Let's go," Sahar whispered as she pulled Casana back. They hurried back down the corridor to Black and Suvak. Sahar moved them around a corner just as a pair of lights lit the corridor. The four of them waited silently, holding their breath as the lights drew closer. A pair of grumbling Klingons passed by, not noticing them. Once they disappeared down the corridor, Sahar turned to the others.

"What's the deal, sir?" Black asked.

"Just under a dozen Klingons are trying to get into Main Engineering. We're going to take them down," she said, looking at Black.

"I will assist you," Suvak said.

"I'm coming, too!" Casana added.

"No, this is not your job. You two-"

"Actually, Ensign," Suvak interrupted, "according to Starfleet regulation-"

"Please don't quote regulations again. Fine you can come along, just do as I say," Sahar relented.

"Plan of attack?" Black asked.

"Hit them with grenades, then finish them off, two man sweep," Sahar said. "You two watch our backs," she told Casana and Suvak.

"Got it," Black said.

"Alright, let's go." Sahar led them down the corridor. At the corner, the four of them lined up, backs to the wall. First was Sahar, then Black, Suvak, and lastly Casana. Sahar glanced around the corner, getting one more look at the Klingons. She turned to Black and he nodded, pulling a grenade from his belt. She did the same, and held her hand up. Sahar silently counted down with her hand from five. On three, they both clicked a button on their grenade, and when Sahar reached zero, they tossed the grenades around the corner.

There was a deafening blast, and a blue light lit the corridor for an instant. Sahar turned the corner, raising her phaser. Black followed immediately behind her, placing his left hand on her right shoulder. As she came around the corner, Sahar found herself face to face with a Klingon warrior. She fired at point blank range, sending him down. Black fired over her shoulder, hitting another Klingon a few meters away. He staggered, but raised his disruptor. Sahar fired first, striking him in the forehead, and the Klingon slumped to the ground as well. The rest of the corridor was filled with smoke, obscuring Sahar's vision.

"Sweep!" she yelled, and Black moved out from behind her. Sahar moved slowly down the corridor, her left shoulder against the wall. Black did the same on the far wall, and they advanced down the corridor. Sahar's heart raced, and her breathing was rapid. Smoke filled her eyes, and the corridor was silent. She carefully stepped over the bodies of several Klingons, not looking down.

Without warning, a metal object swooped out of the haze and Sahar ducked instinctively. There was a loud "thunk" as the blade of a bat'leth buried itself in the wall. Her instincts took over, and Sahar rushed forward, catching the Klingon in the stomach with her shoulder. She pushed forward with all her strength, driving the Klingon back and into the door to Main Engineering. They hit the door with a crunch, and Sahar felt a sharp pain in her shoulder.

She reached to the Klingon's hip and felt a handle. Sahar pulled the dagger from its sheath and drew it back before burying it in his side. She pulled the blade back, and sunk into the Klingon's flank again. Feeling his body go limp, she fell back, letting the body of the Klingon to slide down the door and slump to one side. Sahar stared at him for a moment, her mind totally blank. Finally, her body relaxed. "Holy crap," she muttered to herself.

"Sir! Sir, are you alright?" asked Black.

"I'm fine. Let's get this door open," she answered, her body shaking. Suvak walked past her, but she took no notice. As Sahar sat, staring at the Klingon, Suvak pounded on the door.

"Who goes?" said a voice on the other side.

"Ensigns Suvak, Olan, and Tehrani, and Crewman Black."

"Hang on, it's going to take a minute to get the door open."

Sahar heard none of this. She simply sat, staring at the body in front of her. He's dead, she thought. He's dead, and I killed him. I killed. The thought continued to repeat in her head. Sahar had trained for this, practicing combat endlessly at the Academy. She had killed simulated targets thousands of times. But now, it was real. He was real. And she had killed him. Sahar looked down at her bloody hands. Sahar started to panic at the sight of it and tried to wipe her hands on the floor. Her pulse raced and her breathing became ragged again as she franticly tried to remove the warm, wet liquid from her hands.

She felt a hand on her shoulder, but Sahar ignored it, continuing to try and clean her hands on the floor. "Sahar, are you okay? Sahar?" The voice echoed meaninglessly in her mind. Sahar only stopped when hands grabbed her wrists, holding them tightly. Sahar's breathing slowed, and her hands were released. The visor was pulled from her head, and she looked up into beautiful, bright gray eyes. "Hey, you in there, Harry?" Casana's voice snapped Sahar back to reality.

"Don't call me Harry," she smiled. Casana looked at her suspiciously, then shrugged her shoulders and stood.

"Come on, door's open," Casana said, handing Sahar her phaser.

"Right. Let's take a look." Sahar followed Casana into Main Engineering. Debris was scattered around the entrance, as well as a few bodies, both Klingon and Federation. The anteroom was small and rectangular, the walls lined with consoles. In the middle of the room was a large table displaying a schematic of the ship. Many of the consoles still had power, and the room was well lit.

On the far side, the room opened up into a large, semicircular room with two floors. Sahar could see consoles around the walls of the bottom floor. Both areas were crowded, with more than twenty people in all, and Sahar didn't recognize any of them. At the center was the core, a tall, ribbed pillar, towering above her, now totally dark. The reaction chamber itself was on the bottom floor, encased in a large metal box through which the dark cylinder ran. An access panel was visible on the chamber housing, and two large tubes ran back at 45 degree angles from aft. They were dark now, but normally carried warp plasma to the nacelles. Sahar stepped next to the core and looked down. The core sat in an enclosed, hollow tube, extending several decks up and down, open only on these two decks.

"Ensign Tehrani," said someone behind her. She turned, and found herself facing Lt. Tokada. "Ensign, what are you doing here?"

"Sir, Black and I were in the turbolift when we lost power. We climbed down the shaft to this deck, ensured the Armory was secure, then came here."

"Well, it's a good thing you did. We're going to need everyone we can get for this."

"For what, sir?" Sahar asked.

"Speak to Commander Kolarov. I still need to prepare my team," Tokada said and walked away.

"Aye, sir." Sahar said, mostly to herself. It occurred to her that she didn't know who Kolarov was. "Which one's Kolarov?" she asked Suvak.

"This way," she answered. Suvak led them over to a tall, thin man with scraggly grey hair and a short beard. He was hunched over the ship display table in the anteroom, one hand behind his head, while the other moved over the display. He saw them approaching and stood to face them, greeting Suvak.

"Ensign Suvak, glad to see you're alright," Kolarov said. "Report."

"Sir, Klingon boarding parties appear to be scattered around the ship. The Armory is secure, but the status of the rest of the ship is unknown."

"Who's with you?"

"Ensign Olan, Exobiology, and Ensign Tehrani and Crewman Black, both Security" Suvak said gesturing to each in turn.

"Good, we're going to need Security personnel for what we are planning."

"What ARE you planning, sir?" Sahar asked. Kolarov gestured to the schematic of the ship.

"We have figured out how the Klingons shut down the warp core. They have taken up positions here and here," he said, pointing to sections several decks above and below Main Engineering. "These sections contain the Matter and Antimatter Fuel Injectors, which feed matter and antimatter into holding compartments before injection into the reaction chamber. The Klingons have sealed both ports. We are going to open them."

"You are going to retake those sections?" Suvak asked.

"Yes."

"What do we know about their forces and disposition?" Sahar spoke up.

"Basically nothing." Sahar just nodded, looking at the schematic.

"Wait, how many trained security personnel do you have?" Black asked.

"Including the two of you and Lt Tokada's team, six," Kolarov answered.

"Six? You are going to attack a Klingon position of unknown strength with six men?"

"No, Crewman. We are going to hit them with three security officers each, leading more, non-security personnel in two simultaneous attacks on the Klingon positions."

"I think we can make it four," Sahar said evenly.

"Really? How?" Kolarov asked.

"Wait," Black said before Sahar could answer. "We are going to divide our force for this? We can't take three security officers and a handful of engineers and attack a fortified position held by experienced Klingon warriors!"

"Crewman!" Kolarov yelled, but was cut off by Sahar.

"Sir, please," she said softly as she raised her hand. "Jeff, we are going to do this for one reason: we don't have a choice. If we do nothing, they can secure the key areas of the ship, then hunt us all down at their leisure. If we attack only one at a time, they warn the other, and allowing them to destroy the fuel ports, or the ship."

"So, we attack both at the same time. But we have a couple of advantages. First, they will not expect us to attack. They think they have us confused and disorganized. Starfleet's standard reaction to a situation like this is to retreat and gather more information for a full counter-attack. So, we are going to do no such thing. Second, they are in a fixed position that they cannot abandon, so we can attack how and when we choose."

Black was quiet for a few moments. "Okay," he said softly. "Let's do it."

"Commander," Sahar said, turning to Kolarov. "The rest of my team is stationed at the Main Torpedo Bay on deck 15. If we can link up with them, we can send four security officers to each port."

"Have you had any contact with them?"

"Not since the attack."

Kolarov looked at her for a moment, weighing his options. "Alright, Ensign. You and Crewman Black will take a small team up to deck 15 and meet up with the rest of your team. Then, proceed to deck 12 and retake the Matter Injector Port."

"When?"

"Leave as soon as you are ready. Begin your attack at exactly 1200 hours."

"And who is coming with us?" Black asked.

"Take Ensigns Suvak and Olan, as well as Crewman Hall, Crewman Falk, and Crewman Taylor."

"Aye, sir," Sahar said.

******

Deck 16, Jefferies Tube, 1045 hours

Sahar paused looked down at the chronometer on her wrist. 1045. Got to pick up the pace, she thought. "Double time it," she called down the tube before she started climbing again. Sahar and her team were climbing up a Jefferies tube, passing deck 16. They hurried up the tube, reaching deck 15 quickly. They reached a junction room, and crawled down another tube to an access hatch. Sahar opened the hatch and poked her head out. Looking around, she didn't see any movement and crawled out the hatch. Sahar was quickly joined by the others.

"All right, we need this position held," she said. "Casana, you, Black, Hall, Falk, and Taylor will stay here. Suvak and I will find Zula and Sedaris. Go back into the junction room and seal the hatch. When we're back, I'll knock twice on the hatch."

"Got it, Harry," Casana said.

"Goddammit, Casana, stop calling me 'Harry'!" she snarled. Casana snickered at her.

"Okay, fine. But only 'cause Klingons are trying to kill us," she smiled. Sahar smiled despite herself.

"Thank you," she said. Sahar then turned to Black. "Keep them safe, Crewman," she said pointedly.

"Aye, sir," he said, glancing at Casana.

"Good," Sahar responded, glad that he understood what she meant. "Suvak, let's go." Suvak and Sahar headed for the Main Torpedo Bay. They moved as quickly as possible without making much noise, and reached their destination in a few minutes.

"Slow down, we need to be careful here," Sahar ordered as they closed in on the torpedo bay. She stopped at a corner, peeking around it. Seeing no one, she signaled Suvak and continued on down the corridor. Just one more corner. She came up to it slowly, stopping next to the corner. Sahar looked back at Suvak, and then peeked around the corner.

Sahar found herself looking directly into the emitter of a Federation phaser. Looking past it, she saw Zula. "Chief, please lower your weapon," she said calmly.

When Zula realized who it was she lowered her phaser. "Good to see you alive, sir," she said.

"You, too, Chief. Report. Where's Sedaris?"

"He's down the hall, sir. We were waiting for you to show up with Black when we lost power. We heard weapon's fire, but stayed at our posts," Zula said. "What the hell is going on?"

"Klingons have boarded the ship. They took the Matter and Antimatter Injector Ports and shit down the warp core. I am taking a small team to retake the matter injectors. I came to get you two before the attack."

"How many men do we have?"

"Counting you two, nine."

"Alright, I'll get Sedaris."

******

Deck 12, 1140 hours

Lying on her stomach, Sahar poked her head around a corner. A few meters away, two Klingons stood in front of the door to the Matter Injection Room. She quickly pulled back, slowly crawling backwards down the corridor. After about 10 meters, she stood and backed the rest of the way down the corridor to the rest of her team.

"The door is closed with two guards," she said as soon as Suvak and Zula returned. "What did you find?"

"The Jeffries tubes that connect to the Matter Injection Room have been welded shut. I cannot find any alternative access point," Suvak said.

"I didn't see any other Klingons in the area," Zula reported.

Sahar thought for a few minutes as the others sat, waiting for her to decide on a plan of attack. "Okay, here's the plan," she said. "Team Alpha, consisting of Zula, Black, Sedaris, and myself, will take the Klingons at the door. As soon as we fire, Team Beta, Suvak, Hall, and Falk, move up and place the actuators on the door while Alpha stacks up to clear the room. When we are ready, Beta will crack the door about 10 centimeters. Casana and Taylor will roll two grenades at minimum power into the room. The moment the grenades go off, yank to door open and Alpha will enter and clear the room, with Beta following in for support. When the room is clear, Alpha will secure the entrance, Beta will assess the status of the injectors, and Casana and Taylor will search the Klingons," she paused, looking at each person in turn. "Any questions?"

"How many do we expect inside the room?" Sedaris asked.

"No idea," Sahar answered.

"Given the size of the room, no more than a dozen," Suvak added.

"Will they hear the attack on the guards?" asked Black.

"There's a good chance, which is why we need to be fast."

"Hey, Har... Sahar, I have an idea," Casana spoke up. "We plant grenades on the sealed access hatches, and detonate them after we take the guards down."

" Communications are jammed. We have no way to detonate the charges remotely," Suvak pointed out.

"We set them on a timer to detonate exactly at 1200 hours. Then, we can bring down the guards without the Klingons inside realizing were the attack is coming from."

"Suvak?" Sahar asked.

"Assuming the grenades detonate on time, I see no flaws in the plan."

"Very well. Chief, I wa-" Casana cut her off.

"I'll set the grenades!" she chirped.

"Okay, you got way too excited about that," Sedaris said.

"Give your night vision to Sedaris and set the charges," Sahar ordered, checking the time. "Suvak, give yours to Zula. We have 10 minutes."

Casana left, and the rest of the team moved into position. Sahar, Zula, Black, and Sedaris waited around the corner from the Klingons, phasers in hand. The others waited father back down the corridor. Finally, Casana returned, nodding to Sahar, who checked the time again. 1158. "Get ready," she whispered to Zula.