The Mirror Crack'd
Title: The Mirror Crack'd
Genre: Sci-fi/Adventure/Star Trek
Summary: When Captain Jane T. Kirk and her crew investigate the far reaches of Federation territory, they find something more than they bargained for.
Warnings: None
Chapter One
Captain's Log
Stardate [1403.2]
We have been directed to explore the outer reaches of the Beta Quadrant, bordering on the Delta Quadrant, an area which the Federation has never studied. We will be a long time in extending our reach to the Delta Quadrant, for even at maximum warp it would take nearly a century to travel from one end of the galaxy to the other. We are days - nearly a week - from the nearest Starbase, and even the nearest Federation outpost. The area we are exploring is largely uncharted. Who knows what we will find out here?
Captain Jane T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise leaned forward in her chair, one elbow resting on her thigh as she cupped her face in her hand, studying the viewscreen in front of her. A field of stars stretched out in the endless abyss of space, a myriad of pinpoint lights dotted across a field of black. Her attention was focused on the lower left-hand corner of the screen, where it seemed that a ripple of sorts disturbed the image before her, causing the stars to ripple and dance as though viewed through a planet's atmosphere. "Spock. Report."
"I have never encountered anything like this, Captain," the Vulcan officer replied, her voice low. "I am picking up an anomalous reading unlike anything I have seen before."
Kirk narrowed her eyes at Spock's tone; the Vulcan sounded almost… embarrassed. "Explain."
"I am detecting an unusual amount of spatial and temporal flux, Captain. It seems as though time and space do not operate here the way we perceive it to operate," Spock clarified. "I confess I do not know what to make of it. The scanners have sensed something else, Captain, but I do not have a full report at this time." Though the Vulcan didn't come right out and say it, Kirk could tell that the lack of information troubled her.
"Let me know when you do." At Spock's affirmative, Kirk turned her attention back to the field of stars, settling back in her chair. "Uhura, all levels on Yellow Alert, please."
"Yes, Captain."
"Sulu, I want to get a closer look at this thing. Plot a course and move ahead at Warp Three."
"Aye, Captain."
"Is that wise, Captain?" Spock asked, turning from her console to peer at Kirk. "If there is a disturbance in the space-time continuum, as seems to be the case, we could very well be heading in the direction of an unusually large wormhole. And Captain, I need not tell you that there is no way to be certain where that wormhole will lead, if anywhere."
"Yes, Spock. I know." Kirk shook her head, still eyeing the viewscreen. "But whatever it is, we've got to inform Starfleet Command of its existence. You do agree with me on that point, yes?"
"As we are the first starship to explore this particular area of the galaxy, I do agree that it is highly improbable that the Federation - and Starfleet - are unaware of this wormhole's existence, Captain. However, I-"
"All levels report Yellow Alert, Captain," Uhura interjected. "And Captain… We're being hailed."
Kirk glanced over at the communications officer sharply, frowning. "There's not another starship in sight, Lieutenant."
"If I may, Captain," Spock broke in, rising from her seat. "It is possible that this wormhole is responsible. These fluxes in time and space could perceivably be carrying us a message through not only space, but through time as well. It is entirely possible that we are receiving a message from the past, possibly even the future."
"It sounds impossible, Spock."
The Vulcan clasped her hands together behind her back, inclining her head slightly. "I think, Captain, the word you intended to use was 'improbable'."
"Uhura, see if you can open a channel with… whoever they are," Kirk instructed. "A starship from the past… Can you imagine it, Spock? A signal from a starship existing years… maybe centuries… before our time. Incredible."
"Incredible but not impossible, Captain."
"I'm not receiving an answer, Captain," Uhura said, removing his earpiece. "Shall I continue attempting to establish contact?"
"No. If they want to talk to us, they'll attempt to hail us again. Keep an ear out for anything that might be out there. Sulu, how long until we arrive?"
"Approximately one hour, Captain."
Kirk nodded, leaning forward again. "Is it possible that the signal we detected from this mysterious, non-existent starship came from a ship equipped with a cloaking device? Something that… we could not detect?"
"It seems unlikely to me, Captain, that a cloaked ship would hail us and then refuse to answer our reply," Spock said, arching an eyebrow. "It would be a most illogical course of action."
"But we can't rule it out," Kirk argued. "Just because we think it would be illogical doesn't mean they would, does it? Scan the area, just to be certain. I want to know what's out there."
"Yes, Captain." Spock returned to her post and set to work, concentrating all of her attention on the console in front of her. "Captain, scans detect nothing that might indicate a ship in our vicinity."
Kirk sighed, and pushed herself up out of her chair. "I'll be in my quarters. I'd like to start putting together a report to send to Starfleet. Let me know if anything changes."
Once in her quarters, Kirk set to work putting together the combined information that her crew had assembled. So far, it didn't amount to much, but it was better than having nothing at all to report. This far out, however, it would take days for a message to reach the nearest Starbase, but on the other hand, Starfleet needed to be informed of this wormhole so that it could be more fully investigated by a scientific team.
Kirk had just finished putting together the beginning of her report when the door to her quarters alerted her to the presence of someone outside. "Permission to enter, Captain?" There was no mistaking that gruff tone.
"Come on in, Bones," Kirk called, turning back to her computer. The doctor entered, arms crossed over her stomach, her face a veritable thundercloud. "What can I do for you, doctor?"
Lena McCoy, ship's Medical Officer, leaned forward, gripping the edges of Kirk's desk. "Jane, what in the name of Orion's belt is going on out there? I was down in sick bay and all my scanners started going haywire. Readings all over the place!" She let go of the desk and straightened, waving a hand as she continued her rant. "Either Yeoman Carey is a Vulcan in disguise, or something has tampered with my equipment."
Kirk glanced up, a smile on her lips. "Yeoman Carey. The same Yeoman Carey known aboard this ship to be something of… a practical joker. A Vulcan?" She laughed softly, and passed over the report she'd been working on. "What do you make of that?"
"You're asking me?" McCoy replied, shaking her head over the report's content. "Jane, when are you going to stop asking my opinion on matters I know nothing about? I keep telling you, I'm a doctor. That's it. Just a doctor."
"Yes, Bones, I know," Kirk replied, holding a hand out to take the report back. "In layman's terms, Dr. McCoy, we're traveling through an area where space and time are… Well, given to random changes, I suppose. Have you, by any chance, entertained Miss Spock in your sick bay recently?"
McCoy frowned slightly, and raised a hand to her mouth, thinking. "Now that you mention it, I did. She was due for a routine check-up." At that, McCoy cocked an eyebrow in Kirk's direction and added, "And that reminds, me. Jane, I'll need to see you down there at your earliest convenience. You're overdue for a check-up yourself."
"I'll be there, Bones, just as soon as we're finished with this wormhole business. Now then, as I was saying, it's possible that due to the amount of spatial and temporal displacement we're experiencing, your medical tricorder began to exist in the past, even as you were holding it in the present. And since you used it on Spock yesterday, today it told you that Yeoman Carey is Vulcan - a fact which we can both agree is incorrect. I would suggest, Doctor, that you hold off any more check-ups until we're clear of this particular sector."
McCoy nodded, and crossed her arms again, shrugging as she replied, "I'm going to see if I can't do anything to fix my read-outs. I'll be down in sick bay if you need anything."
Kirk waved a hand, returning her attention to her report. As McCoy turned to leave, she glanced up and added, "Oh, and Bones, you should know that the chronometer has been jumping all over the place. It's impossible to say how long it's been since any of us have last slept. I'm counting on you to keep an eye on the crew, and see to it that they get whatever rest they need."
When McCoy had gone and Kirk had gone over her report and gone over it again and found nothing to be lacking, she returned to the bridge, feeling a bit worn-out. She suppressed a yawn as she took up her post, shaking her head to clear it. She'd not been lying, when she'd told McCoy that the temporal fluxes were affecting not only the chronometer, but the flow of time itself within the Enterprise, and she was beginning to think that it might have been a good idea to stop by the galley to grab a cup of coffee from the duplicator.
Another suppressed yawn, and she opened a link to the engine room. "Bridge to Engineering. How are we holding up down there, Scotty?"
"I don't like the looks of it, Captain," Scott replied, her voice grim. "This temporal flux, it's mucking up all my readings. I dinnae know if I'm looking at the readings from today, yesterday, or tomorrow, Captain! Our power supply seems to be jumping all over the place, without rhyme or reason, and I dinnae know what to make of it. Are we losing power? Gaining power? Impossible to say, Captain. The sooner we warp out, the better, if you ask me."
"Thank you, Scotty," Kirk sighed, tapping her fingers on the arm of her chair. "Let me know if anything changes."
"Aye, Captain," Scott replied. "The poor lass is doing the best she can, but I'm worried about her, Captain. I'll keep you posted. Engineering, out."
"How much further, Miss Sulu?"
"Almost there, Captain."
"Stop about twenty thousand kilometers out. We'll magnify the image if we have to. I don't want to get too close until I know exactly where that thing leads."
"Aye, Captain."
Before too long, the wormhole appeared in the viewscreen, little more at first than a tiny pinpoint, though it seemed to grow steadily larger as the starship approached. A bit breathless by the sheer immensity of the wormhole, Kirk leaned forward, eyes shining with the light of new discovery. Though the Enterprise was still well over two hundred thousand kilometers distant, the wormhole seemed to have grown to engulf nearly half the viewscreen, blotting out the stars and solar systems beyond.
"Magnify the image please, Miss Chekov."
The young Russian ensign bent over her console, fingers flying. "Magnifying image, Captain."
"Intriguing," Spock murmured, as the massive hole through time and space jumped into focus. "Most intriguing." Kirk was about to ask what the Vulcan was talking about, when she noticed it too - a starship, drifting near the edge of the wormhole.
"And where do you supposed that came from?" Kirk questioned aloud. "We're the only starship in the sector."
"A statement, Captain, that is contradicted by the evidence at hand," Spock replied.
"Lieutenant, open hailing frequencies," Kirk instructed. "I want to know who they are and what they're doing out there."
"Yes, Captain." Uhura set to work, his brow furrowed as he waited for a response. "Incoming transmission, ma'am. Shall I put it on visual?"
"Yes, please do." The viewscreen flickered for a moment, the image unclear, and then it resolved itself slowly. A young captain leaned forward, his posture a near mirror image of Kirk's own. She didn't recognize him. "This is Captain Kirk, of the Federation Starship Enterprise," she stated crisply. "Identify yourself, please."
The young man's eyes widened in surprise, and he leaned forward even more, staring incredulously. "Impossible," he replied, his tone tight. "I am Captain Kirk, of the Federation Starship Enterprise."
Genre: Sci-fi/Adventure/Star Trek
Summary: When Captain Jane T. Kirk and her crew investigate the far reaches of Federation territory, they find something more than they bargained for.
Warnings: None
Chapter One
Captain's Log
Stardate [1403.2]
We have been directed to explore the outer reaches of the Beta Quadrant, bordering on the Delta Quadrant, an area which the Federation has never studied. We will be a long time in extending our reach to the Delta Quadrant, for even at maximum warp it would take nearly a century to travel from one end of the galaxy to the other. We are days - nearly a week - from the nearest Starbase, and even the nearest Federation outpost. The area we are exploring is largely uncharted. Who knows what we will find out here?
Captain Jane T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise leaned forward in her chair, one elbow resting on her thigh as she cupped her face in her hand, studying the viewscreen in front of her. A field of stars stretched out in the endless abyss of space, a myriad of pinpoint lights dotted across a field of black. Her attention was focused on the lower left-hand corner of the screen, where it seemed that a ripple of sorts disturbed the image before her, causing the stars to ripple and dance as though viewed through a planet's atmosphere. "Spock. Report."
"I have never encountered anything like this, Captain," the Vulcan officer replied, her voice low. "I am picking up an anomalous reading unlike anything I have seen before."
Kirk narrowed her eyes at Spock's tone; the Vulcan sounded almost… embarrassed. "Explain."
"I am detecting an unusual amount of spatial and temporal flux, Captain. It seems as though time and space do not operate here the way we perceive it to operate," Spock clarified. "I confess I do not know what to make of it. The scanners have sensed something else, Captain, but I do not have a full report at this time." Though the Vulcan didn't come right out and say it, Kirk could tell that the lack of information troubled her.
"Let me know when you do." At Spock's affirmative, Kirk turned her attention back to the field of stars, settling back in her chair. "Uhura, all levels on Yellow Alert, please."
"Yes, Captain."
"Sulu, I want to get a closer look at this thing. Plot a course and move ahead at Warp Three."
"Aye, Captain."
"Is that wise, Captain?" Spock asked, turning from her console to peer at Kirk. "If there is a disturbance in the space-time continuum, as seems to be the case, we could very well be heading in the direction of an unusually large wormhole. And Captain, I need not tell you that there is no way to be certain where that wormhole will lead, if anywhere."
"Yes, Spock. I know." Kirk shook her head, still eyeing the viewscreen. "But whatever it is, we've got to inform Starfleet Command of its existence. You do agree with me on that point, yes?"
"As we are the first starship to explore this particular area of the galaxy, I do agree that it is highly improbable that the Federation - and Starfleet - are unaware of this wormhole's existence, Captain. However, I-"
"All levels report Yellow Alert, Captain," Uhura interjected. "And Captain… We're being hailed."
Kirk glanced over at the communications officer sharply, frowning. "There's not another starship in sight, Lieutenant."
"If I may, Captain," Spock broke in, rising from her seat. "It is possible that this wormhole is responsible. These fluxes in time and space could perceivably be carrying us a message through not only space, but through time as well. It is entirely possible that we are receiving a message from the past, possibly even the future."
"It sounds impossible, Spock."
The Vulcan clasped her hands together behind her back, inclining her head slightly. "I think, Captain, the word you intended to use was 'improbable'."
"Uhura, see if you can open a channel with… whoever they are," Kirk instructed. "A starship from the past… Can you imagine it, Spock? A signal from a starship existing years… maybe centuries… before our time. Incredible."
"Incredible but not impossible, Captain."
"I'm not receiving an answer, Captain," Uhura said, removing his earpiece. "Shall I continue attempting to establish contact?"
"No. If they want to talk to us, they'll attempt to hail us again. Keep an ear out for anything that might be out there. Sulu, how long until we arrive?"
"Approximately one hour, Captain."
Kirk nodded, leaning forward again. "Is it possible that the signal we detected from this mysterious, non-existent starship came from a ship equipped with a cloaking device? Something that… we could not detect?"
"It seems unlikely to me, Captain, that a cloaked ship would hail us and then refuse to answer our reply," Spock said, arching an eyebrow. "It would be a most illogical course of action."
"But we can't rule it out," Kirk argued. "Just because we think it would be illogical doesn't mean they would, does it? Scan the area, just to be certain. I want to know what's out there."
"Yes, Captain." Spock returned to her post and set to work, concentrating all of her attention on the console in front of her. "Captain, scans detect nothing that might indicate a ship in our vicinity."
Kirk sighed, and pushed herself up out of her chair. "I'll be in my quarters. I'd like to start putting together a report to send to Starfleet. Let me know if anything changes."
Once in her quarters, Kirk set to work putting together the combined information that her crew had assembled. So far, it didn't amount to much, but it was better than having nothing at all to report. This far out, however, it would take days for a message to reach the nearest Starbase, but on the other hand, Starfleet needed to be informed of this wormhole so that it could be more fully investigated by a scientific team.
Kirk had just finished putting together the beginning of her report when the door to her quarters alerted her to the presence of someone outside. "Permission to enter, Captain?" There was no mistaking that gruff tone.
"Come on in, Bones," Kirk called, turning back to her computer. The doctor entered, arms crossed over her stomach, her face a veritable thundercloud. "What can I do for you, doctor?"
Lena McCoy, ship's Medical Officer, leaned forward, gripping the edges of Kirk's desk. "Jane, what in the name of Orion's belt is going on out there? I was down in sick bay and all my scanners started going haywire. Readings all over the place!" She let go of the desk and straightened, waving a hand as she continued her rant. "Either Yeoman Carey is a Vulcan in disguise, or something has tampered with my equipment."
Kirk glanced up, a smile on her lips. "Yeoman Carey. The same Yeoman Carey known aboard this ship to be something of… a practical joker. A Vulcan?" She laughed softly, and passed over the report she'd been working on. "What do you make of that?"
"You're asking me?" McCoy replied, shaking her head over the report's content. "Jane, when are you going to stop asking my opinion on matters I know nothing about? I keep telling you, I'm a doctor. That's it. Just a doctor."
"Yes, Bones, I know," Kirk replied, holding a hand out to take the report back. "In layman's terms, Dr. McCoy, we're traveling through an area where space and time are… Well, given to random changes, I suppose. Have you, by any chance, entertained Miss Spock in your sick bay recently?"
McCoy frowned slightly, and raised a hand to her mouth, thinking. "Now that you mention it, I did. She was due for a routine check-up." At that, McCoy cocked an eyebrow in Kirk's direction and added, "And that reminds, me. Jane, I'll need to see you down there at your earliest convenience. You're overdue for a check-up yourself."
"I'll be there, Bones, just as soon as we're finished with this wormhole business. Now then, as I was saying, it's possible that due to the amount of spatial and temporal displacement we're experiencing, your medical tricorder began to exist in the past, even as you were holding it in the present. And since you used it on Spock yesterday, today it told you that Yeoman Carey is Vulcan - a fact which we can both agree is incorrect. I would suggest, Doctor, that you hold off any more check-ups until we're clear of this particular sector."
McCoy nodded, and crossed her arms again, shrugging as she replied, "I'm going to see if I can't do anything to fix my read-outs. I'll be down in sick bay if you need anything."
Kirk waved a hand, returning her attention to her report. As McCoy turned to leave, she glanced up and added, "Oh, and Bones, you should know that the chronometer has been jumping all over the place. It's impossible to say how long it's been since any of us have last slept. I'm counting on you to keep an eye on the crew, and see to it that they get whatever rest they need."
When McCoy had gone and Kirk had gone over her report and gone over it again and found nothing to be lacking, she returned to the bridge, feeling a bit worn-out. She suppressed a yawn as she took up her post, shaking her head to clear it. She'd not been lying, when she'd told McCoy that the temporal fluxes were affecting not only the chronometer, but the flow of time itself within the Enterprise, and she was beginning to think that it might have been a good idea to stop by the galley to grab a cup of coffee from the duplicator.
Another suppressed yawn, and she opened a link to the engine room. "Bridge to Engineering. How are we holding up down there, Scotty?"
"I don't like the looks of it, Captain," Scott replied, her voice grim. "This temporal flux, it's mucking up all my readings. I dinnae know if I'm looking at the readings from today, yesterday, or tomorrow, Captain! Our power supply seems to be jumping all over the place, without rhyme or reason, and I dinnae know what to make of it. Are we losing power? Gaining power? Impossible to say, Captain. The sooner we warp out, the better, if you ask me."
"Thank you, Scotty," Kirk sighed, tapping her fingers on the arm of her chair. "Let me know if anything changes."
"Aye, Captain," Scott replied. "The poor lass is doing the best she can, but I'm worried about her, Captain. I'll keep you posted. Engineering, out."
"How much further, Miss Sulu?"
"Almost there, Captain."
"Stop about twenty thousand kilometers out. We'll magnify the image if we have to. I don't want to get too close until I know exactly where that thing leads."
"Aye, Captain."
Before too long, the wormhole appeared in the viewscreen, little more at first than a tiny pinpoint, though it seemed to grow steadily larger as the starship approached. A bit breathless by the sheer immensity of the wormhole, Kirk leaned forward, eyes shining with the light of new discovery. Though the Enterprise was still well over two hundred thousand kilometers distant, the wormhole seemed to have grown to engulf nearly half the viewscreen, blotting out the stars and solar systems beyond.
"Magnify the image please, Miss Chekov."
The young Russian ensign bent over her console, fingers flying. "Magnifying image, Captain."
"Intriguing," Spock murmured, as the massive hole through time and space jumped into focus. "Most intriguing." Kirk was about to ask what the Vulcan was talking about, when she noticed it too - a starship, drifting near the edge of the wormhole.
"And where do you supposed that came from?" Kirk questioned aloud. "We're the only starship in the sector."
"A statement, Captain, that is contradicted by the evidence at hand," Spock replied.
"Lieutenant, open hailing frequencies," Kirk instructed. "I want to know who they are and what they're doing out there."
"Yes, Captain." Uhura set to work, his brow furrowed as he waited for a response. "Incoming transmission, ma'am. Shall I put it on visual?"
"Yes, please do." The viewscreen flickered for a moment, the image unclear, and then it resolved itself slowly. A young captain leaned forward, his posture a near mirror image of Kirk's own. She didn't recognize him. "This is Captain Kirk, of the Federation Starship Enterprise," she stated crisply. "Identify yourself, please."
The young man's eyes widened in surprise, and he leaned forward even more, staring incredulously. "Impossible," he replied, his tone tight. "I am Captain Kirk, of the Federation Starship Enterprise."