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-copied from MS word. should have italics and a romulan font in it, but i edited the romulan bit out. and i cant be arsed with the italics-


STAR TREK
CHAOS TO ORDER
KIERANN WATERIDGE

CHAPTER 1

The USS Southampton, an Ambassador Class starship, drifted into orbit around Dantara IV. She had been called there by a small troupe of Colonists that had set up a minor colony on the world. 500 of them had come to the planet about 2 years ago, and made what is now known as Ascension city. It certainly wasn't a city as most would understand it. Some still lived in tents. But it was the capital city all the same.
The Southampton had received its transmission about 7 hours ago. It had said merely that the Colonists needed immediate assistance. It did not specify why, but it did have the unique encoding of the colonies transmitter. Something was amiss, that was for sure. As to what it was, Captain Ulysse could only guess.
Adrian Ulysse looked at the dark, uninviting world on the view-screen. Even in the sunlight, it was a dark world. Dantara as a star was a relatively weak one, and Dantara IV was the outermost of the M class planets. It peaked temperatures at 10º Celsius and averaged at 1-2º. It wasn't for the faint hearted.
"Captain, I am detecting the colony on sensors. Nothing seems amiss from up here," Lieutenant Jude Kilkenny, the science officer, reported. Well. That meant the colony passed the first test. But Ulysse couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. And the captain's danger sense is normally something you can trust.
"Morgan, hail the colony. Try and get me the colony commander if you can," He ordered. Morgan Biggen keyed in the comm. Sequence, and began transmitting the hailing signal. He waited, along with the rest of the bridge crew. Nothing. No reply at all.
"Open frequencies," Ulysse said, followed by the characteristic synthetic chirp of the computer. "This is the Federation starship Southampton. We are here as requested." Nothing. "Ascension colony, this is the Southampton. Please respond."
"No sign of any response, Sir."
"Are their life signs down there?"
"Aye sir. 516 sir, all clustered around the colony....wait...Thats odd." Jude said, scowling at the panel. "There's no-one at the hydroponic farms about a kilometre from the colony. I would imagine someone would be down there in the middle of the day." She had grown up on a colony much like this one, and was familiar with the day to day running of such a location.
"I don't like this," Commander Ingrid Neumarghen said to herself. Ulysse heard it, and had to agree. Something was wrong, Definitely wrong.
"Keep scanning, Lieutenant. Commander, your with me. Mr. Sh'Caran, you too. Have a security team meet us in transporter room 1. Time to find out what the hell is going on."
The three officers walked into the turbolift, and remained silent as the doors slid closed.


6 Figures materialised on the planet's surface, right in the centre of the colony. They were all in heavy standard issue winter clothing to compensate for the painfully cold temperatures. Commander Neumarghen extracted a tricorder from its holster and began scanning. The readings were perplexing to say the least.
"Captain, according to this, we should be surrounded by colonists. And yet...we are not," She said in her thick German accent. Lieutenant Commander Sh'Caran scanned the colony, looking for anything that might need to receive a blast of rapid nadions from his outstretched phaser. Nothing he could see. He did not detect any unusual signals with his antenna either.
"hmm....Peculiar indeed. Right, let's move out. The colony's administrative building is about 400 metres the east." Ulysse said, fiddling with his beard as he went.
Upon reaching the building, there was conclusive evidence that something was most definitely wrong. The small door had been blasted off by an energy weapon of some form, leaving the open doorway and the internals exposed to the elements.
"May I suggest I lead the way?" Sh'Caran said, already walking forward.
"Very well," Ulysse replied, falling into position behind him. The inside of the relatively large building was a labyrinth of nameless and unremarkable corridors, no way of identifying them from each other at all. Only due to Neumarghen's constant scanning did they find the control centre, placed at the very top. It was almost perfectly circular, with windows on all of the surfaces. Fully functioning arrays of panels were mounted upon the wall, and the command desk was in the centre, circular just like the room. There were seats in an octagonal pattern around the desk. And placed in the centre of the desk was a peculiar item. It was a deep green, contrasting against the dull monotone beige of the colonies internal walls. It had a pulsating beacon on the top, which shone with a vibrant green light. It was not Federation, that's for sure.
"the power source, Captain," Neumarghen said, showing the tricorder's display. "It's of a type we've, or at least I have never seen before."
He looked at the device. It was smooth and well carved. There was definitely something...alien about it. It was almost ornate. If he was asked to say as to the design principles, he would have said it had the trademark of the lost civilization of the Romulan Star Empire, Which could not bode well, if the history books were anything to go by.
"Ulysse to Southampton. Any sign of any other life signs or camps? There's nothing down here except some strange device."
"None captain, only indigenous life forms, although there is a small island that sits upon the equator that is heavily forested. Our scanners are unable to penetrate the thick layer of trees."
"Roger that. We're going to beam up with the device once we've deactivated it. Standby, Ulysse out."
Sh'Caran walked over and looked at it closely. There was a small panel on the side of it, with a completely alien language inscribed upon it.
He had no idea as to what it said. Nor did he care. All he needed to do was somehow remove the panel.
He placed his hands on the edge of the panel, and found a small seam line. Sliding his long nail into it, he gently began trying to pull it open. Just a little...click.
The panel opened to reveal a complex nexus of circuitry, interconnected and infinite. To the uneducated, it would have been impossible to even begin deciphering the maze of isolinear chips and small linkages that inhabited the internals of the device Sh'Caran was not uneducated.
The device bore a structural resemblance to Vulcan engineering. Based on what he had seen of the Apollo class ships the Vulcan's utilised, the power relay should be...there. He plucked the isolinear chip from its holding position.
And the beacon powered down. A satisfied smile played across the Andorians blue lips.
"I take it you disabled it then?" Ulysse said, chuckling to himself at the smile Sh'Caran was portraying.
"Captain, we've lost the lifesigns bar your own."
"That was Commander Sh'Caran, Lieutenant. The device is offline. Standing by for transport," He said as the group, plus the device, moved or were moved into position.
"Energizing."
The party were enveloped in the characteristic sparkling light. And where gone.


Aboard the Federation Starship USS Solstice NCC-72145
Edge of Federation claimed territory

The Solstace ploughed through the asteroid field at half impulse, swooping in and out of the complex spread of rocks. Some were easily bigger than the ship itself, while some were barely the size of an average human's hand.
"Anything even remotely useful to you?" Captain Caoimhín Mac Lochlainn said, lazing in his chair. Characteristically, this mission was a "drag" to put it in the terms of the helmsman.
"Not as yet, Captain," Lieutenant T'Paar replied, standing rigidly over the science station.
"Keep scanning then. Mr. O'Donall, lay in Another pattern, half impulse. Use the computer, no use doing it manually." The helmsman did as he was told, and brought the sleek grey ship into yet another pass.
"Captain...I'm detecting a small craft, 90 metres across." T'Paar said, shifting the view screen to show the craft approaching. It was sleek and crafted, almost birdlike in its shape. The hull was of a bright purple. The wings were staggered, slanting just to the area that would be the bridge set into the nose. The warp engines were built into the internals of the wing, much like the planes of a Cardassian warship.
"Armaments consist of two high power disrupters and a medium plasma torpedo."
"A lot of firepower for a ship of that size. Hailing frequencies," The captain said.
"No Response."
The alien craft continued to approach the Solstice, drawing closer and closer. The details were more visable. It was an intricate lattice of carvings and symbols, all across the hull.
"She's charging weapons!"
"Red alert, shields to full!" the characteristic klaxon sounded as the light dimmed to a deep red. The normally neutral yellow display shifted to an aggressive and angry red as the shield generators droned into life.
"Open a channel." He waited for the synthetic chirp. Bleep. "This is the United Federation of planets starship USS Solstice. Stand down." He said. There was nothing for a minute. Then the ship shook as a bright green disruptor bolt slammed into the shields, followed by a two more.
"Power to the shields, Evasive manoeuvres! Mr. Colt, Open fire, All phasers!"
The type IX phaser mounted on the bow sprang to life, streaming a yellow burst of fire at the incoming craft, tearing at the shields. Two more disrupter blasts shot out, followed by a plasma torpedo.
"Enemy shields down to 71%, ours are ay 75%," lieutenant commander Colt Reported. That meant that their shields were considerably weaker than the Solstice'.
"Brings us about, heading 214 mark 5. Target their engines....Fire!"
The Solstice swung about just as the ship made its pass, letting loose a final disrupter blast from its all forward facing armament. The phasers opened fire, ripping into the vulnerable aft shields, and striking the impulse engines. The enemy craft span about on her thrusters, and let loose a torrent of fire at the warp engines. The fire managed to get through, damaging the port warp nacelle and making the Solstice incapable of warp. The ship then leapt to warp after receiving a single phaser blast just behind the bridge.
"Get me the warp signature!"
"Got it!"
The Captain sighed.
"Stand down red alert. Damage control teams to all affected areas. Get me a channel to Starfleet command."

CHAPTER 2

Starbase 524, Edge of the Falcontador sector, Border of Federation space

The Southampton slipped into normal space, leaving the infinite complexities of Faster-than-light travel behind. Before her, in orbit of the planet Halsafa XI, a dazzling blue gas giant, laid the mammoth starbase structure. It was gigantic, dwarfing even the largest Galaxy class starships of the federation, even making the famed Borg cubes look insignificant in its mighty shadow. The huge docking bay doors were slowly opening, ready to swallow the Southampton up, like nothing more than a meagre ration of food.
"USS Southampton, this is Starbase 524. Welcome to the Halsafa system. We have a docking bay standing by." Came the comm. Officer of the facility.
"Thankyou, Officer. Stand by for our arrival. Mr. Judge...take us in, ¼ impulse power. Once inside reduce to standard thrusters."
"Aye sir," The English helmsman replied. The majestic starship swung over the mushroom like dome of the starbase, drifting above countless windows and orifices, providing an element of excitement, awe and surprise to the crew members that were in position to see her.
She swung about, and drove into the foreboding spacedock doors, greeted by the blue-tinted grey of the inside.
"So, Jude...What have we got for company today then?" The captain asked.
"It looks like we got the Science ship USS Bell, Oberth class; the USS Campbeltown, Constellation class and the USS Solstice, Solstice class. Looks like she's taken a beatin', sir," She replied, flicking the monitor to show the Solstice.
She was right. The sleek lines of the port nacelle had been abruptly interrupted by a small hull breach which glistened with an electrical light. There were small marks and scores all along the hull where the ship had taken damage, and small blasts that looked to have come from a concentrated weapon of some form.
"Any theories?" Ulysse said as the Lieutenant Judge swung the ship about on thrusters, and onto its final approach to its mooring point, right next to the aging USS Bell. The Southampton swept over the tiny science craft and into position for mooring.
"Looks like battle damage to me."
"We're in position," Mr. Judge reported.
"Good. Connect with the Umbilical systems and begin the power down. Shut down the warp core and drain the impulse manifolds. The relief crews from the starbase will be over soon. As of now, everyone is on shore leave...well station leave....you know what I mean."

"Captain Ulysse!" Mac Lochlainn cried. Ulysse span about and spotted the Irishman, smiling.
"Ah Caoimhín. I noticed your ship took some damage. What happened?"
"That's why I'm calling after you. Your presence is requested for a briefing in 4 hours at the starbase's command centre. It'll be explained there."
With that, the Irish captain withdrew from the crowd and into a turbolift. That was odd thought Ulysse. Well. It'll all have to wait for the briefing. Until then, he was going to have a good and enjoyable conversation with someone from the past.
The ornately styled sign of the reputable "Rochelle's café" hung from its support struts, garnishing the monotone grey doors that lead to the place inside.
Upon stepping through the threshold, he was greeted by the familiar oaken wood finish and the slight aroma of coffee.
Every starbase had these shops. Not always in the same place. It often varied from station to station. But there was always what was known by the designers as the "commerce sector". It was roughly 3 decks in size, a series of shops and other retail locations in the mushroom area of the station. Each station normally had its own commerce sector name, this one being being "The Falcontador cascade". Quite why it was named that is a mystery, but that was its name.
"Ah, Captain. It is good to see you once more," The owner of the establishment, unsurprisingly named Rochelle called as he walked through the assortment of tables and chairs. He looked over her ebony skin and long curling hair.
"Rochelle, my dear, what have you been up to?" he replied, smiling. He'd always had a soft spot for the taskmaster bar-maiden. Although today's attire was not up to usual standard. It was a simple monotone one piece dress that went from shoulder to ankle, with light frills at the bottom. There was a good side, it did reveal her voluptuous figure capable of tingling the sense hidden deep inside a man. Well, a man of his type anyway.
"What do you expect? Serving this, serving that, screaming at a transport captain for damaging my Andorian ale shipments. Yourself?"
"I can't really talk about it, which no doubt you expected, but I've been...picking things up."
"Huh. Blasted Federation rules and regulations twisting Starfleet into little more than a freight service. It's despicable if you ask me."
"No-one did ask you. Not that that has ever stopped you," He joked, smiling. She giggled slightly in her deep voice. She went over to the replicator and ordered a cup of spice tea. She grasped the glass that had miraculously appeared on the table, one of the many technological marvels the Federation had at its fingertips, and placed it on the bar in front of the seat Ulysse had said.
"On the house," Rochelle said. He looked at her with a suspicious look.
"Okay...what's the catch?" Her face made her look all hurt. He suspected something more.
"There is none! You're a friend and get one free." She winked. He gave her one last glance as he turned to his drink. I suppose life can't be all bad can it?

Ulysse walked through the doors and into the briefing room. Commodore Al Fawahri sat at the head of the table, along with Caoimhín as well as the captains of all the other ships present at the station. Ulysse took the seat reserved for him next to Caoimhín and waited for the briefing to begin.
Al Fawahri stood up.
"Ladies, gentlemen, this briefing is classified. Anything mentioned in this briefing is to remain here unless expressly told otherwise. Right. Thats the legal rubbish dealt with on to business." He said as he moved to the large wall monitor. He keyed in a short sequence on the control panel, and an image of the ship that had attacked the Solstice appeared.
"A couple of days ago, this vessel attacked the USS Solstice when she was on asteroid mineral survey. No identification, No response to transmissions. In fact, we know almost nothing about it, save its warp signature. The craft was armed with a pair of High power disruptor cannons, plus a single plasma torpedo weapon of medium output. Her shields appeared to be weaker than those of the Solstice but she was highly manoeuvrable. The Solstice sustained moderate damage to her warp nacelle, the damage I'm sure Ulysse noted on his way to dock. We know very little about this race. But all indications specify that it was a design of the Intrazi." He shifted the image to show an Intrazi man and their homeworld. They were humanoid with pale blue skin. It tapered to a scrunched point at the back of the head, and they were devoid of hair. The image had crystal like formations set into the forehead, above the dull grey eyes.
"We encountered them a long time ago, one of the Original Daedalus missions. They shunned as away, and we never heard from them again. But intelligence we have gained from free-traders that were willing to assist suggests that they have worked directly in collaboration with the Romulan Star empire. This is the first and only case where the Romulans coexist with another race on a world, instead of invading. We think it's due to the complex orbital defences the Intrazi operate in orbit of home world, Intra III. The Romulans couldn't beat them. Can't beat 'em, join 'em and all that."
"Now For your orders. All starships that are stationed at this base are to be given the full details of the Intrazi, and are to begin actively searching for them. Warp signatures, trader information, anything. We have to find them. The USS Southampton and the USS Solstice will take the point. You're doing the scouting and exploration. The Bell will conduct detailed planetary analysis of any planets you specify as needing a closer look. Finally, the Campbeltown will remain on hot standby for anything new to come up. She's not the fastest we have, but she should be able to respond relatively quickly. Starfleet command has notified me that 3 more ships are on the way from the Sol system. The USS Hokkaido, Nebula class; USS Dionysus, Centaur class and USS Hathor, Olympic class. The Olympic is here purely because of another incident, a medical catastrophe on Machiava III. But she is capable of large scale evacuation and such like if necessary.
All ships shall depart tomorrow. I will contact you directly when you are to leave."
The room was silent. Ulysse looked out of the window. He had never been in a situation like this. For the most part, he simply cruised Federation territory on border patrols and running meaningless errands. But now....he pushing his aging and incapable starship into the very heart of active duty.
He looked at his ship. The deflector possessed a sullen glow, a dull and dirty red signifying the low power status of his ship. For the first time since he took command of the Southampton....he felt confused, unsure of himself.
"Are you up to it?" the Commodore said. He looked at each captain in turn. Each one nodded. Finally he looked at Ulysse. He made no movement for a second...then nodded yes.
"Good. Good luck captains. Dismissed." He said, lifting from the chair and walking swiftly out.