The Final Frontier 8

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TF01 3,The Generation Gap 4,by Ryan Nicol THE GENERATION GAP -------------------- by Ryan Nicol --------------- "Jim, I want to help." James Kirk didn't turn towards the pleading voice of his friend; instead, he continued to stare ahead of him, at the bronzed model on the mantel piece before him. "There's not much one can do about old age, Bones." "That's not the damn point, and you know it." McCoy said, not even trying to hide the exasperation he had been feeling since he had struck up this particular conversation minutes before. "But staring at that damn model and thinking of the good old days isn't doing you much good either." The good old days. What had happened to them? Kirk wondered. After the prospects of peace with the Klingons had been announced, Kirk had succumbed to the pressures for his retirement. With the breaking of links with starfleet, he began to lose track of people; people he had worked next to for years. The last he heard, Sulu was maintaining his position as captain of the Excelsior. McCoy had recently told him that his ex-helmsman had been involved in a recent first contact that had ended very successfully. Hear-say information. And Scotty? What the devil had happened to Scotty? His old chief engineer had disappeared into the darkness of space, never to be heard from again. That had been two years ago, not long after Kirk's resignation. As for Spock, he had recently been appointed as an Ambassador. Other than that, Kirk had very little information. "Do you hear me, Jim?" The voice of the irritated doctor broke through his melancholy, forcing him back to the cold reality of his San Francisco apartment - the same one he had bought after he had first resigned from the Enterprise, before the V'ger incident. "I hear you, Bones. Now is there something new you'd like to tell me." Kirk could tell that his old friend was ready to fly into a rage. The doctor gets even more crabby with age, he had noted long ago. That still seemed to hold true. "Forget it, Jim. If you're not willing to see it, there's not much I can do for you." McCoy turned to stalk out the apartment. The door hissed shut behind the physician, leaving Kirk once more alone. He moved to the large window that looked out over the San Francisco Bay. The clouds had begun to roll in, causing a strange, yet calming, twilight over the area. No stars to be seen tonight, he thought to himself as he turned to fetch himself another drink. His chest contorted into a spasm of pain that flashed up his left side, stifling the cry that was forced from his lungs. He fell to the floor, rolling onto his stomach. Paralysis seemed to hold him there, his left elbow tightly tucked into his side. A sudden fever seemed to wash over him. Face contorted in the agony of the attack, Kirk looked up to see the comm-link meters away. If he could reach it.... Another burst of pain darted up his left side and this time the cry escaped his lips. Heart attacks were not common. Indeed, the signs were easily detectable before any such attack occurred, and the necessary precautions were then taken. But then again, Bones was never good at getting me on the diagnostic bed to begin with, Kirk thought as he crawled towards the wall communicator, his left hand clutching his side as he moved. He was mere meters away when he had a second attack. The world swam in a dizzy haze; his body was on fire. James Kirk's hand let go of his side; he let go of his life. "Oh, I say. You do give up too easily." The voice broke through the seemingly-impenetrable darkness that had enclosed him, snapping him back into the pain and fever of reality. "My dear Kirk. You should get a hold on yourself." That voice... It was familiar. Kirk pushed himself up onto his right elbow. Suddenly the world swirled violently and he was again lying face down on the floor of his apartment. "Oh, James. You look truly awful. Perhaps I could be of some help." "Trelane?" Kirk muttered through the dizzy haze surrounding him. The next moment the apartment, the pain, the dizziness vanished. Trelane followed soon after. * * * * * * * Jean-Luc Picard stared at the readout on the screen before him. It certainly wasn't the first time he had read the logs of the previous Enterprises, but something about these particular logs captured his attention more so than any others had done before. They were the last logs made by Captain Kirk before he was promoted to Admiral. And the last ones he made before he resigned. What happened to this man? Picard wondered. This man, who had been revered in his time, but whose ways and means of solving problems were now considered amateurish and brash, had vanished from the face of the Earth. What insight would he have into the dilemma Picard now faced? "I hear you're planning to leave us." Picard looked up with surprise, which soon turned to dismay. "Q." "I can't say I'm totally happy with your decision, however. Though I guess Riker as captain could provide some amount of amusement as well." Q sighed with mock despair as he lounged in the chair in front of Picard's desk. "I had hoped my memories of my last days on the Enterprise would be fond ones, Q. You should have stayed in the After-life." "Au contraire." Q smiled. "I welcomed you aboard at the beginning of your voyages. It is just as fitting that I'm here to deliver a parting gift." "What parting gift?" Picard did not like the sound of that. "A re-think, if you will. Are you really doing what is best for you?" "I've been given a promotion, Q. I've made up my mind; the decision has been made." "James Kirk made that same decision, did he not?" Q seemed to be enjoying himself; that much was clear to Picard. But where he was leading wasn't clear. "And he came to regret it. I know all that, Q." Picard replied. He knew Q had something else in mind, but whatever it was, there was no reason to rush him. If anything, Q would not be rushed. "What if I were to arrange it so that you could speak to him? You were wondering what his advice would be, were you not?" "Absolutely not!" Picard exploded. "My decision is based on my own judgement. Whatever I may have been thinking before you arrived has no bearing on the matter." "Temper, temper." Q shook his head. "Admirals must command their passions before they command their minions." "What do you want, Q? Out with it." Picard said, getting up. "I'm tired of listening to you skirt the issue, so just get on with it." Q paused for a moment. For the first time, it seemed to Picard that he seemed unsure, trying to choose the right words. "I'm offering you one final mission." Q said, slowly. "Speak to Captain Kirk, see if there is anything you can do for him. You get to reconsider your decision, I get to see you stumble around, looking buffoonish as usual." Well, his interest was piqued, Picard had to admit. He had wanted Kirk's insi... "Splendid!" Q stood up, quickly. "Shall we go, then?" "Wait!" Picard said. "What about the rest of my crew? What'll they do while I'm gone?" "Oh, they'll get on fine without you, Picard." Q shrugged the questions away. "Besides, Riker will go down in history as a better captain than you, so you needn't be concerned about them. They're in safer hands than they were before." There was a flash followed by nothing. * * * * * * * "Q, where are we?" "Oh, in a little pocket of time and space. Where and when wouldn't make much sense to you." Q replied. "What are we doing here?" Picard asked, still looking at the nothingness that stretched around him. "You ask too many questions." Q berated him, then sighed. "We're waiting for the act of creation. It took God seven days so forgive me if it takes me a little longer than an instant." "I don't believe you." Picard shook his head. "You're up to something. There's more to this than you're letting on." "You know, you've been developing quite an inferiority complex since you met me." Before Picard could answer to that, reality swelled up around him. The next moment he was standing in a long corridor. "This way." Q motioned him forward. After a slight hesitation, he followed his nemesis down the dimly-lit passage. "Reminds me of the Dark Ages." Picard said, noting the flames that breathed out of their holders along the walls of the passage, illuminating their way forward. "Yes," Q nodded, absently. "The Dark Ages were a preoccupation of mine for a while. Then I had the misfortune of meeting you. What can I say, it was love at first sight." Picard shook his head slightly, but continued to move on down the gloomy corridor. "What the devil is James Kirk doing in a place like this?" Picard finally asked, not without a hint of suspicion. Q didn't answer the question; instead, he said: "Aah, here we are." The corridor widened to a small, circular room. In it there was nothing but a stony slate. And on it lay a crumpled figure. Picard hesitated next to Q, then looked at him questioningly. "Oh, that is James Kirk." Q assured him. "As for what he is doing here, he's in Hell for his past crimes against a superior life form." "You." Picard said, slowly. "Oh, Jean-Luc, I am totally innocent in all this." Q said, quickly. "Why, I haven't even met the man until now." "You're a liar, Q." Picard said, angrily. "There's only one person sadistic enough to rip a man from his deathbed and into the jaws of Hell." "Au contraire, Captain." Q shook his head. "As you learnt from our last encounter, I belong in Heaven." Picard turned from Q, and walked to the figure on the stony slab. He could make out the grey wisps of hair, the loose, weathered skin. This was Captain James Kirk. "Q, I want some answers, and I want them now." "I'm not to blame, Picard. Would I treat such an old man with ill- respect? What kind of a monster do you take me for?" Q's mock expression of hurt fuelled Picard's anger. "The same kind of monster who threw my ship into a battle with the Borg, or who put me on trial for the crimes of humanity." "Jean-Luc, this is a devastating blow to our relationship." Picard turned to face Q once more. "Fine. If you're not involved, then return James Kirk and myself to the Enterprise." "Oh, I can't do that." Q said matter-of-factly. "I mean, this other being is too powerful for me to do that." "More powerful than you?" Picard could hardly believe Q had said that, or considered that he, Picard, would accept that. "What is with this accusing line of questions? You've known me too long to know I'd not do something like this." Q looked over Picard's shoulder at Kirk's crumpled form, a look of mock pity written across his face. "You did do this!" Picard said. This time it wasn't an accusation. It was a statement of fact. "Well, if that is the way you feel, then fine." Q pouted. "Sort yourself out. But I can guarantee you that you won't survive long without me." A flash later, and Q was gone, leaving the two Enterprise captains alone in the bowels of Hell. "Who are you?" Picard turned to the voice behind him. The crumpled form had unravelled itself to reveal a man, grey with age, and yet with a strangely resilient attitude. He leaned on the stony bed, as if in need of support. "I'm Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the United Federation of Planets. And you're James Kirk." It was more a statement of fact than one seeking confirmation. "I don't know you." Kirk answered him. Picard nodded, then said after a pause. "I come from the future. That is why my uniform is different to the ones you're used to. When, I cannot say. Nor do I wish to tell you too much, in case we get out of here alive." Kirk accepted that. He had been involved in far too many time paradoxes to argue with the newcomer, provided what the other had to say was true. He continued to watch Picard wearily. After a pause, he said: "Assuming you exist, how did you get here?" "That is quite a long story." Picard answered. He hesitated for a moment, before asking, "Do you know the Q?" Kirk looked puzzled, as if he didn't quite understand the question. "The what?" "A race of omnipotent beings." Picard elucidated, then added. "One of them brought me here." "Why?" Kirk asked. Slowly, he began moving away from the bed, but still kept his distance from Picard. He looked down the dark corridor that stretched into the distance from the tiny room. "I'm not quite sure. At first I thought it was merely to meet you. But I think it's more than that." Picard replied, then said: "For how long have you been here?" "Not long at all. In fact I don't remember anything before waking up to find you here." Kirk said, continuing to look at the cold and dark surroundings. "It's not doing us much good to stay here." Picard nodded at that. The two began to cautiously make their way down the dark passage, illuminated only by the tiny flames that flickered in their holders on the walls. "The Q I mentioned told me that you were here to pay for your crimes against a superior life form." Picard said, quietly. "Do you know what he meant by that?" Kirk hesitated. He still hadn't got a firm idea of who or what to trust. What Trelane had in mind by yanking him from his death-bed, he did not know. But whatever it was, it would require him to move cautiously. Then again, if this Picard was one of Trelane's creations, to tell him about his creator wouldn't supply Trelane with any more information than he already had. Besides, if he played along, he might learn something. "When I was Captain of the starship Enterprise, on my first five year mission, I and a few of my crewmen were captured by a strange alien who called himself Trelane." Kirk continued to elaborate, explaining how he tricked the strange creature into freeing the Enterprise, and then played a game of death, only to be rescued by the creature's parents. Picard nodded thoughtfully. By this time, they had reached a fork in the passage, as it broke off to their left, but also continued straight ahead. "Which way?" He asked, hesitating. "This way." Kirk said, moving into the left-turning tunnel. If he had to make sure he wasn't being tricked by Trelane, then he'd have to make some of these decisions by himself. Then again, he thought, if Trelane wanted him to go towards a specific destination, there was nothing he, Kirk, could do about it. Picard stood at the lip of the branching passage for a second before moving into it, following Kirk. Fifteen minutes later, they were faced with a further problem: This time the tunnel branched into three different directions. "We're getting nowhere fast." He finally said to Kirk who was straining to look down one of the three tunnels, to judge which would be a better avenue for escape. "Whoever put us here, put us here for a purpose. They won't keep us wandering these passages forever." Kirk told him, looking up from the lip of the third passage-branch. "I wouldn't put that past the Q." Picard muttered. "That's the second time you mentioned the Q." Kirk noted. "Who the devil is this Q?" A blinding flash of light flared through the corridor for a split second. When the dimness returned, Picard had to wait a few seconds for his eyes to re-adjust before he could see who was standing beside him. "Glad you asked." Q said, smugly. The smile soon disappeared. For a brief moment, Picard was almost sure Q was stunned. The omnipotent being merely stood there, staring into empty space, a look of total surprise covering his face. "What is it, Q?" Picard asked, a hint of irritation creeping into his voice. He turned to look at the spot which the now slightly- recovered Q was staring at. James Kirk had disappeared into thin air. The empty corridor stretched away from them, with no branches down which he could have run. Certainly, he hadn't chosen the three branches which he and Picard had been looking down earlier, as Picard would have been in his way. "Where is he, Q?" "You still think I have a hand in this madness, Picard?" Q asked, incredulously. "Everything about it smells of you." Picard answered. "If it isn't you, then who is it?" A look of hesitation crept over Q's features. He looked up at Picard. The hesitation quickly turned to resignation. First time for everything, Picard thought to himself. "Enjoy it while it lasts, Picard." Q muttered. "It won't happen again." The two of them disappeared in a Q-flash. * * * * * * Picard found himself drifting in space, a consciousness without a body, without limitations. "Take a close look, Picard." It was Q's voice, but instead of hearing it, Picard felt it. It was more a matter of sensing it than hearing it. The universe was splayed out before him, a large galaxy - his own, he guessed, though he didn't know for sure - blazing the heavens near him, looming in the otherwise darkness of inter-galactic space. Then it exploded. Picard was not sure how. It was as if every sun in the entire galaxy novaed. It shone to a brilliance that would have blinded his eyes, had he any, and somehow he knew this was not an isolated instance. The knowledge of every galaxy, every cluster of stars, being destroyed in a blaze of glory, chilled him as the thought of every life, every consciousness being blown to the stellar winds. * * * * * * "Oh, we will still be around, Picard. We, meaning the Q." For a moment he was unsure of where he was. One moment he was staring at the destruction of the universe, and the next he was in an area of total greyness, becoming progressively darker as it stretched off into the distance. "What was that you showed me, Q?" Picard asked, still feeling the chill at having witnessed the end of everything. "That was your universe, mon Capitane." Q explained to him. "It was just destroyed." Picard was silent for a moment. Was it true? Had Q shown him the end of his universe? It hardly seemed believable, but then again, everything that had been happening since Q had taken him from the Enterprise seemed totally preposterous as well. "Is this all an illusion?" He finally asked. "Where's James Kirk? And where are we?" Q paused for a moment, and Picard realised that this time it wasn't a hesitation, but rather for effect. "Picard, welcome to the Q-continuum." "Then we're safe?" Picard asked, suspiciously. "Oh no." Q replied, sinisterly. "This is where all the danger lies." "What danger?" Picard asked. He had had quite enough from Q by now. Thrown into the underworld to join James Kirk, thrown into who- knows-where to witness the end of the universe, and now thrown here, to what Q said was the Q-continuum. "There's been something I've been keeping from you." Q said, as if he was really sorry. Picard was actually not surprised. "It is rather personal, Jean-Luc, and this isn't quite so easy to say." "Well?" Q looked up at him, and for the first time, Picard thought he saw real concern in his nemesis' eyes, as if something had happened; something distressing. "There's been a change in power in Heaven." Jean-Luc Picard had been prepared for many things, but not this. If the Q-continuum had indeed been overthrown by something.... more powerful? "What does James Kirk have to do with this?" Picard finally asked. "And when exactly did this happen?" Q looked at the greyness that surrounded him, as if he knew and saw more than Picard did. Was that possible? Picard wondered. Was this greyness merely a veil for something else; something that Q did not want him to see? "It had been brewing for some time." Q said, finally. "It's resulted in a few policies being reversed, a few decisions being altered... and your universe being destroyed so we can start on a clean slate." "What?!?" Picard was astounded. At first he had believed the Q to be such devious and pitiless creatures, especially after his meeting with Q at Farpoint and when he tried to coax Riker to join the Q- continuum. But that had all changed after Q had "fallen from Heaven", or so to speak. In his previous encounter with Q, he had actually got the feeling that the Q wanted to help him. But now... "Not that I agreed with the policy changes." Q spoke up quickly, as if reading Picard's thoughts (actually he had). "But then again, the majority rule. Such is the nature of democracy." "You still haven't answered what James Kirk's role in all this is, Q." Picard said. "That's rather a touchy subject." Q told him after a slight pause. "In fact, I may have been wrong to bring you here altogether." Picard wasn't really listening. For the first time, he realised that he had nowhere to go. The Q had taken that from him. And he was damned if he was going to spend the rest of his existence with Q in this nether-world of grey and black. But then again, he thought, I guess I'm damned after all. * * * * * * * * James Kirk inspected his surroundings closely. To say the least, they were quite familiar. "Ah, Captain Kirk! Doesn't this bring back memories, hey?" There Trelane was lounging, looking as pompous and full of himself as ever, in the Captain's chair. "Trelane, what do you want?" Kirk moved towards him slowly, not being able to stop himself from looking around the bridge, though. It had been quite some time since he had seen it last. "I bet you miss your crew! Do you remember how much they meant to you the last time we met. You basically gave yourself up to be killed for them." Trelane shook his annoying finger at Kirk, who had just noticed he was now wearing his old uniform. "Terrible attire, though. Your Starfleet makes you dress in bloody pyjamas." A flash from the corner of his eye caught his attention. Kirk turned to see a fairly young Spock, dressed in the blue top of the science division, sitting at his old station. Looking around further, he noticed young versions of Uhura, Sulu, Scotty and Chekov, all at their respective posts. "Captain! What's happened to you?" It was Sulu's voice. "You look old!" Spinning to face Trelane, Kirk yelled: "I don't need to see this Trelane! I know they're fake." In the distance, he could see an intrigued Spock lifting his eyebrow at that last remark. Then they vanished, as did the bridge. "You're really boring, you know." Trelane said amongst the greyness that now surrounded them. "I remember how interesting you were when we last met..." "I've changed since then." Kirk told him, looking around. "Where the Hell are we, and where is that other man, Picard?" "Hell is where you were." Trelane explained. "This is the place where I come from." "The Q-continuum?" Kirk asked, remembering what Picard had mentioned before they had lost each other. "In a way." Trelane smiled. "But that doesn't mean I'm a Q." "What are you, then?" "Oh, something higher, much higher." * * * * * * * * The smoothness of his sheets covered him lovingly; the mattress gave at just the right amount. Picard began to nestle his head against the pillow, then opened his eyes in a shot. He was in his cabin. A dream? It had to be, thank God. The door to his cabin slid open with the normal whoosh and Q strolled in. "Had a nice sleep, Jean-Luc? You still look a little weary." "Where am I?" It was a stupid question, but he had just woken up... "Oh, something I conjured up to make you feel better." Q told him. "But we must get up; we have a busy day ahead of us." "How so?" Picard asked, sitting up on the side of the make-believe bed and resting his feet on the floor he knew wasn't there. "We're taking on the Q." Picard looked at him for a moment, but there was no hint of brashness or conniving on Q's face, only an unusual sincerity. "What do you mean by that?" He asked. "We're going to challenge their decision. Based on those results, we may be able to get permission to re-create your universe." Q smiled reassuringly, then, almost as an afterthought, added: "There is something you have to do, however." Of course. Picard hadn't doubted that for a second. Perhaps Q was predictable after all. "They require a little test. It isn't much; just to let them see how you react to certain conditions and situations, that's all." "I'm not a laboratory rat, Q. I'm an intelligent being." Picard muttered, indignantly. "Oh, I never doubted that for a moment, Jean-Luc. But you have to prove that to them." For a moment Picard thought he had heard a hint of sarcasm in Q's otherwise serious tone. * * * * * * * * James Kirk was irritated, and that was putting it mildly. Trelane had promised to let him go only if he would play one last game. Reluctantly, he had agreed (not that he had any choice in the matter) and now here he was, back in his command chair, this time de-aged to suit the surrounding environment. Strange being back in your old... young body, he mused. Almost as if it were not your own. "We've just achieved standard orbit around Carnais Psychma II, captain." Sulu's voice broke through his thoughts and brought him back to "reality". "Thank you, Mr Sulu. Uhura, are we receiving any hailings?" The thought that a part of him was relishing in this make-believe sent a slight chill up his spine. "Negative, captain. And no replies to all my hailings, but we are still receiving the automated distress call." The young, fake Uhura answered. "Sensors indicate the planet has been under heavy bombardment," Spock reported from his station, "of a scale never seen before." Kirk turned to the viewscreen. As the image of the planet came into view, so he could make out the massive scars on its surface. "Any sign of any ships in the vicinity?" "Negative." Spock replied, still engrossed in the readouts he was receiving. "Very well," Kirk said out loud. "We'll beam down. Uhura, tell McCoy to meet me in transporter room 3. Sulu, you'll come along." Turning to Spock, he said, "You have the con." Damn, that felt good, he thought as he strode to the elevator. It had been a long time.... * * * * * * * * "There seems to be extensive damage to the planet's surface." Data reported from his console. "Similar to the Borg, but different in design." Finally, he looked up at Picard. "I can find no match in Federation records." "What about signs of life?" Riker asked. "There seems to be a small cluster of life forms." Worf reported from his station. "Not many, and they are very weak." Picard nodded slowly. Whatever Q had in mind with this reconstruction, it was obviously intended for him to take a major role in this game. "We'll beam down an Away Team. You have the bridge, Number One." He said as he moved towards the elevator. "Data and Worf with me. Please inform Doctor Crusher to join us." Before Riker could reply he was entering the elevator. As he turned, he saw the surprised look on his first officer's face. "Not this time, Will." He said, knowing it wasn't necessary. After all, this wasn't real. Still, it was slightly eerie.... * * * * * * * * "Interesting, Q. But hardly persuasive." "Oh, no. You haven't seen half of what they can do. Give them a chance." "You'd better be proven right. This is your final report, you know." "Don't remind me. Next time, please give me a slightly more challenging assignment." "Oh, don't concern yourself about that. We have great plans for the next universe. Great plans...." The warm, gentle breeze that blew across James Kirk's face carried the smell of death. It was hard to imagine that it was a mere illusion. Now back in this young body, so different from the one he was used to, but strangely the same, he was suddenly aware that he had been feeling that same excitement that he had known with his days on the Enterprise; an excitement that he hadn't felt since that battle with the Klingon, Chang, as he tried to save the peace conference and stop an assassination attempt. "Residual radiation readings indicate that this attack happened only a day before we arrived, Captain." Sulu's voice reached him, seemingly from a great distance. He looked up to see McCoy standing over the remains of what looked like a man. The attack had not been too kind to him, and even though he knew it wasn't real, Kirk still had a sense of revulsion. As for McCoy, it felt strange to see him looking so young, especially after having seen him a few... days?... ago, just before the heart attack. He thought back to that moment, when McCoy was chiding him over spending the remainder of his existence staring at a model of the Enterprise, wishing for an imaginary world where he could relive those past, precious moments.... But now that he was here, in that imaginary world, supplied so graciously by Trelane, he wanted it taken away. Looking at the young McCoy and Sulu, the realisation of how much those fond memories had been diminished struck him. And what was Trelane's plan? Tied behind this wish-fulfillment seemed a deeper purpose, as if he were being toyed with for others to amuse themselves by watching him. As Captain Pike had been trapped by reality, in his wheel chair, so he felt trapped within this illusion. "Any evidence of what form of weapon was used, or whether the attackers even set foot on this planet?" He asked, the splendour of the illusion having waned since he had considered its true implications. He had felt a strange sense of excitement when he had found himself sitting back in the command chair, and when they had beamed down a few moments ago. How foolish, pandering up to Trelane's games. "No sign of either." Sulu told him. "Whoever did this was clever to leave no tracks." "And the survivors?" "Only a dozen or so, Jim." McCoy said, as he moved away from the dead man's body. "They've all been rushed up to sickbay, so you can question them when we beam back up, provided they're in any condition to answer any questions." Kirk nodded a thanks, and continued to stare out across the landscape. What was Trelane trying to do, and what was his game- plan? Was Picard a part of that, and if so, was he real or merely another creation of Trelane's madness? "Jim, is something wrong?" Kirk turned to face McCoy, who had a slightly concerned look on his face. Kirk tried a smile at the fake physician. "I'm fine, Bones. But thanks for asking." He turned back to look at the desolation around him, slightly aware of McCoy's continuing gaze on his back. * * * * * * * * "Oh, truly splendid! James, you're really going to enjoy this next part." "You really seem to hate him." "Oh, hate is not the right word." Trelane said. "He beat me once, I'll grant him that. And I admire him, too. But the lower forms must know their place. If they begin to act too clever, one needs to put them back where they belong." "But what about the Q? Some are petitioning for a reversal of Order." "As workers they can sulk if they wish. But they don't rule the universe; no reversal is in order." Trelane told his companion. "The Q may think differently." "Let them. But if it comes to revolution, they're in for a sorry surprise." "Coming from a Q, that's quite a statement. What are your plans for Picard?" "Ex-Q." Trelane corrected him, then added. "As for Picard, he's a three-dimensional pawn on a five-dimensional chess board. He'll amuse me for the moment." * * * * * * * * "Play it out, Jean-Luc. Your universe is depending on you." Picard looked around him, at the frozen faces of Beverly Crusher, Data and Worf. Beyond them, the smoking remains of bodies and buildings scattered the surface of the desolate world. Besides him, the only thing moving was Q, adamant as ever, and equally annoying. "You whisk me away on the basis of meeting James Kirk so we can discuss my decision about leaving the Enterprise." Picard berated him. "From there, I'm thrown into a variety of hells, and now you wish me to amuse you in a preposterous game. Well, I say no!" "Your friends must have hated you at school." Q muttered under his brief, seemingly exasperated. "What the devil is the purpose of this chaotic mess you've thrown me into, Q? Normally you make your bloody purpose plain!" "Well, maybe now I'm not in control of it all, Picard!" It was a brief outburst, but it was enough to unnerve the Enterprise captain. "Who is in control, Q? Why did you bring me here, and what is this simulation of reality supposed to prove?" Q gave an exasperated sigh. "You're here to get those now in control to change their decision regarding your universe, not to mention your very existence, Picard." Picard looked at the faces of Worf, Data, and Crusher. It seemed like aeons ago that he saw them last, real; not illusions like these artificial dummies. "How is my playing these stupid games supposed to change the opinion of something akin to God?" He finally said. "There is nothing akin to God, Picard." Q told him, wearily. At the look on Picard's face, he elucidated: "We never created anything of that nature." "You're not answering my question, Q. Do you really think this play-acting is going to change these beings' minds, or are you just going through the motions for my sake, knowing there is no way out?" Q was silent for a moment, seeming to study the destruction that surrounded them. After a few seconds, he said: "If you want the truth, Picard, there is nothing we, the Q, can do to stop this. We're talking about a very powerful species; more powerful than us." "Who?" Picard asked, in a tone that demanded an answer from this slippery alien before him. "I've been asking them for a better assignment, and they seem pretty adamant about wanting to start a-fresh; not holding on to the past - universes, ideals; the works, actually." Q continued, as if unaware of Picard's question. "You know, there is something in this idea of not holding onto the past. I believe James Kirk would agree with that; it tends to deaden the memory." "If you're referring to the Enterprise, Q, the fact that it no longer exists makes my promotion an unimportant issue at this time." Picard said, firmly. "But I'm still waiting for you to answer my question as to who these beings are." "They are part of the Q, in a sense. More of an off-shoot, rather." Q told him. "Their sense of basic morality is, shall we say, different from us - less virtuous." At that, Picard raised an eyebrow. "That's hard to believe." "A hint of sarcasm, Jean-Luc?" Q said, disapprovingly. "But why, if they're merely an off-shoot from your own species, is it that you're so powerless against them?" Picard still wasn't sure if he could swallow all that Q was saying. "If we pooled our resources, perhaps." Q nodded. "But we need to focus it on something, using it indirectly to attack them. This, of course, goes against our whole moral code of conduct." Picard almost pointed out the time Q had used the two creatures at Farpoint to further his aims, or the time he demanded a member of his crew be taken to the continuum against her will because her parents were Q. But what's the point, he thought. It'll merely bring on another pointless discussion when there was far more things of importance to discuss. "What will you need to attack them?" He asked. "Why, Picard, are you actually suggesting an armed revolt?" Q smiled. "And here we thought you had grown out of your primitive ways." "I'm suggesting anything that will get my universe back." * * * * * * * * It was his fourth day in this un-reality, and it was making him feel nauseous. He hadn't seen Trelane in all that time, even when he called out to the alien, telling him he had had enough. A part of him was beginning to think that this perhaps was reality, and all the rest was merely a bad dream. He remembered Spock's right eyebrow arching slightly as he caught him calling out to Trelane a day ago, saying that whatever Trelane was wanting, he had grown tired waiting for it. Trelane may have an eternity to wait; but Kirk didn't have that long. And now it had come to this. "Jim, it is my considered opinion as your physician and friend that you are nearing a complete mental breakdown." Kirk looked up from the non-real table he was sitting behind, at McCoy, who was standing before him, hands clasped characteristically behind his back McCoy did not meet his gaze; instead, he turned to look, head slightly lowered, towards Kirk's first officer, who stood beside him. "I've brought this to the attention of Mr Spock, who has agreed to take over command on a temporary basis." "You will, of course, be able to return to command as soon as Doctor McCoy has found the cause of your abhorrent behaviour." Unlike McCoy, Spock returned Kirk's stare, and this time it was Kirk who looked away. For a moment, Kirk didn't know if he would laugh or break down. There was a strangeness about these artificial creations of Trelane's confronting him in this manner. For a moment he toyed with the idea of telling Spock, to see the Vulcan's reaction, but he pushed that thought aside immediately. "Gentlemen, I can assure you that I am perfectly fine." He finally told them. "Thanks for the concern, but none is needed. I would rather you diverted your attention to finding out what attacked this planet than wasting your time on a non-issue." "Your health is not a non-issue, captain." Spock said, stubbornly. "As for what attacked the planet, it would appear that whatever it was has left the system. With no traces, it would be difficult, if not impossible to trace." God, he hadn't realised how much he had missed Spock in all these years. He could hardly believe it was more than two years since he saw Spock last - the real Spock. "If it would please you, I'm more than willing to submit myself to the practised hands of Doctor McCoy. I'm sure a complete physical will determine whether I am fit to command or not." He said, after a pause. The two officers in front of him looked at each other for a moment, then Spock nodded. Well, he had got out of that one, but for how much longer he could hold onto his sanity, and a command that didn't really exist, Kirk didn't have an answer. * * * * * * * * "They don't allow others so close to them that the attempt would be a success, Picard." Q shook his head. "Not even you?" "Not even me." Q nodded. "Besides, even if they did, I would hardly want to give up my immortality so that your pitiful, limited universe could come back to existence." "What if I did?" Picard asked. "They wouldn't allow you to be within an infinity of their reach, and that is possible when you're dealing with five dimensions and the Q-continuum." Q said. "Besides, I wouldn't allow it." "There must be another way." Picard moved off a slight distance from Q, staring at the sterile soil beneath his feet. "Of course, Picard." Q answered. "There are always possibilities." * * * * * * * * "Trelane!!!" "Jim, relax." McCoy turned from his friend and looked at Nurse Chapel. "Nurse, give him a shot." "No!" He yelled out, pushing McCoy's hands away from him. "Don't you understand? This isn't real!" Ten months. He had existed in this make-believe world for ten months, and what got to him was that he knew, somewhere, Trelane was watching him, laughing. "I can't take it any more!!!" "Damn fine time for a break down." He heard McCoy mutter to himself. "Whole bloody Babel conference is going to hell, and I've got two Vulcans, father and son, still in bed; as if that weren't enough." "Is it possible that this is a result of the Tellarite attack?" That was Chapel's voice. "No." He heard McCoy answer. "I've been seeing this thing brewing for a while, but I was just too damned stupid to do anything about it, or accept the possibility that it was really happening." "Trelane, show yourself!" He cried out. It was painful, listening to copies of his old friends considering whether he was suffering a mental break down or not. It was an abomination on all his most precious memories, souring them and distorting them to horrendous visions of what had seemed most treasured. He was sure that somewhere that powerful life form Picard had referred to in that Hellish tunnel was watching him, lavishing in his "punishment" for his "past crimes". But were those memories real, or was Picard merely another construction of Trelane's insanity? Kirk was unsure. And when did this all begin? Was his final meeting with Bones McCoy in his apartment the last moment of reality, or was that too a construction that he had not yet realised? Trelane's make- believe world had so intertwined with his reality that he could no longer tell the two apart. And it was that which was tearing at him - the thought that it was an illusion which may never end. Was there ever a "real" Bones McCoy, or a "real" Scotty? The thought of never knowing, of losing those memories to the idea that they were mere illusions was more than he could stand. "Spock, you've given up a lot of blood for your father, and you're weak. I don't think you should do this, especially in your present condition." "Nonsense, Doctor. I am perfectly fine." Through all this illusion, he felt another's mind, approaching his own, feeling its way through the haze that separated them, penetrating. "Spock." For a long moment there was silence; the next thing he was conscious of was Spock's voice: "All I can safely say, Doctor, is that the captain is of the firm opinion that you and I do not exist. I believe he may be correct." "What do you mean he is correct?" McCoy's voice grated. "I did not say he was implicitly correct, Doctor." He heard Spock correct the physician. "I merely stated that it is possible he is correct. It is a hypothesis I plan to test." "And how do you propose to do that?" Kirk didn't hear Spock's reply; instead he once again felt that intrusion into his mind, and that familiar mind melding with his - one. Using the same technique the real Spock had used when dealing with the Melkotian's illusions, the fake Spock reached into Kirk's mind, seeking the truth and only that. If he did not exist, so be it, all he had to do was give Jim Kirk the mental ability to use his mind, that theoretically was not an illusion, to break away from the mental fascade that had been built around him. "My mind to your mind..." It was a final moment of togetherness; and if it were not with a Spock as real as the one he had known, what did it matter when this one felt real, looked real, and was as real as the life he, Kirk, had led? What did real matter when faced with corresponding nothingness? Kirk held on to that consciousness, a familiarity he would feel to the last instant, he promised. Memories of the beginning - "I believe there is some hope for you after all" - to the end - "I have been... and always shall be your friend" - overwhelmed his existence. Live long and prosper. With a fury of the final instant of living, Kirk joined with Trelane in a mental struggle. Omnipotence surrounded him, as the creation of Trelane linked minds with his creator; a mental rape of god. The creation had colluded against the creator, and as Kirk died, so did the other two, linked in mind and soul; the spiralled into the netherworld. Of course, Kirk could not have done it without our assistance, Q thought to himself. They had given Kirk the ability to hold on to Trelane long enough to complete that task, acting in the image of Spock. It may have given Kirk a little comfort as he felt his doom, but that was not the point. It was a way at getting to Trelane, and it had worked. The Q went back to their busy task of re-ordering the universe. * * * * * * * * "Captain...." Riker looked at Picard, not without an expression of puzzlement. "Yes, Number One?" Picard asked automatically, and then realised that Riker was there in front of him. "Q...??" "What about, Q, sir?" Riker asked, concerned. Picard suddenly seemed to look slightly disorientated. No doubt because he's soon to leave us, Will thought. Picard looked around him. One moment he had been with Q on that deserted planet, with the frozen images of Data, Worf and Doctor Crusher at his side, and now he was here. "Aah, nothing, Number One. Carry on." Picard said, then got up and moved, as collectedly as he could, to his Ready Room. Once inside, he took a deep breath; then released it as he saw Q lounging in his seat behind his desk. "Q, where are we, what happened, and is this the real Enterprise?" He said, all in one breath. Q merely smiled. "Care to hazard a guess?" For a brief moment, Picard actually thought Q would disappear in his flash, leaving him here for the rest of his days to really wonder if this was all real, or merely an illusion. "What happened to James Kirk?" "By that question, I assume you accept this reality to be... real?" Q questioned. "Answer the question, Q." Picard was getting tired of this game, and tired of Q. He just hoped he would have more peace and quiet as an Admiral... "Oh, yes." Q nodded. "I leave those stuffy types alone. Not that you could get any more stuffy, Picard. As for Kirk, he died a hero's death and saved your universe. Perhaps you should take a closer look at his career; you might learn a thing or two." Q flashed out of existence, and it was only then that Picard realised he hadn't really met Kirk, except for when they were in the bowels of Hell. But he had learnt something.... "Number One," he called through over the intercom, "Patch me through to Starfleet; I have some bad news for them." To hell with a stuffy office; saving the universe was more important. * * * * * * * * "Q, this is actually rather cruel." "Okay, okay." Q replied. "I'll take him back to the real universe in a few minutes. Am I the only one who isn't as stuffy as Picard around here?" THE END.