Tarik reported to the command deck and received Paul Deveraux's excited report. "Zhere seems to be a subspace anomaly forming approximately 10,000 kilometers from ze station. Eet ees stationary but growing."
"Does it pose an immediate threat to the station or the colony?" Tarik asked.
"Eet eez 'ard to say. Ze anomaly only appeared wizhin ze last few minutes. We are just beginning to get useful data on eet."
"Stay on station, Mr. Deveraux," Tarik said. "Monitor the anomaly with all available resources. I need to get caught up on station business."
Tarik looked over the watch reports. Everything was more or less routine; Tarik noted with disgust that Wayne Balmer had posted bail and was released from Security's custody. Hopefully he'll stay clear of Loomis--I really don't like punching out civilians if I can help it. The clown at MacDonnell's had gone missing again and Angus MacGyver had filed his usual complaint. I wonder where that thing will turn up now? he thought.
The station began to rock. "Paul, what the hell was that?" Tarik yelled from the open office.
"Ze anomaly ees starting to exhibit a gravitational pull on ze station! New Canada ees reporting minor earthquakes."
Tarik activated the comm system. "All hands, yellow alert. Engineering and Operations, report to command deck."
[Engineering here, sir. All systems are nominal, but we are going to experience a power drain keeping the station in position over the colony.]
[Operations here. We're experiencing some minor superstructure stress but well within tolerances. We are monitoring the situation.]
"Ze anomaly's gravitational pull eez increasing geometrically!" Deveraux announced excitedly. "Een twenty-four hours both ze station and ze planet could be destroyed!"
While the station's sensors were busy monitoring the anomaly, a small, cloaked Mulluran shuttle escaped its gravitational pull. Vincent Kelly had managed to double-cross the Mullurans as well as the Federation; he killed the shuttlecraft pilot and attempted to escape with the vehicle. Unfortunately, having a poor knowledge of the Mulluran's systems, Kelly was unable to escape the spacetime rift that their interdimensional transporter system used. The station stood before him, looming large in his viewports. This is the last place I need to be, Kelly thought. Better to accomplish my mission and make myself scarce.
"Sir, I'm picking up something at 220 Mark 4," an ensign at Tactical informed Tarik.
"Can you get an ID on it?"
"It appears to be using some sort of cloaking system, sir. Not a very good one, but enough to obscure its profile and energy system. If we weren't monitoring the system for gravitational and mass anomalies I wouldn't have found it at all!"
"What course is it following?"
"That's the thing...it appears to be maneuvering!"
"Open a channel!" Tarik ordered.
No, I musn't answer the hail! I need to get the hell out of here as quickly as possible! Kelly thought as a control panel suddenly turned purple. From what little he knew of the Mulluran systems, purple was a very bad sign!
"The cloaking device on the object has failed. I'm reading it as a Mulluran light transport, displacement 16 tons. One lifesign on board. It's human!" the Tactical ensign reported.
"Can we get a tractor beam on it?" Tarik asked.
"Tractor beam established. This guy doesn't know how to fly this ship. He's barely even trying to get out of the way!" the Engineering station reported.
"Bring him into Bay 3. Security, send a detail to Bay 3. Paul, you're with me."
Moments later, in Bay 3, Paul and Tarik arrived with three Security officers as the Mulluran shuttle was secured in its moorings. Paul was able to access the panel controlling the outer hatch. He held a hand phaser at the ready and, covered by Tarik and the Security men, opened the hatch.
Inside was a dead Mulluran officer and Lieutenant Vincent Kelly. Kelly knew he was beat and put up his hands.
"You, mister, have a lot of answers to give," Tarik said.
"In your dreams, Tarik!"
"Get him to the brig," Tarik said, not even willing to look the traitor in the face. "Paul, pick some people from Engineering to tear this shuttle down and get this body to the morgue."
"Okay, any theories as to how Kelly ended up on a Mulluran vessel when he stole a runabout from the station?" Tarik asked.
"I do nae know. 'E must 'ave made contact with ze Mullurans. But zhat does not explain 'ow 'e got a shuttle from zhem!"
"I suppose we'll have to ask Kelly that."
[Cherrin to Tarik]
"Go ahead, Doctor."
[I examined the prisoner in accordance with procedure. He's identical in every respect to our Vincent Kelly.]
"What do you mean, 'our Kelly'? Please elaborate."
[He's got a peculiar quantum signatue. Physiologically he's identical to Kelly. But if you tried to put him through a transporter it would kill him!]
The station shuddered once again. "Ze anomaly ees getting more powerful!" Deveraux announced. "New Canada reports a magnitude 5.4 earthquake near ze mine site. No casualties, but zhree tunnels 'ave collapsed."
"How long until the situation gets critical?" Tarik asked.
"Seventeen hours."
"Keep monitoring the situation. Contact Starbase 732 and Captain Wallace with our situation. I've an interrogation to conduct."
"Aye, sir."
Tarik stood in the cell with the disgraced Lieutenant Kelly. Two Security officers stood watch outside with two more at the door to the brig. No chances were being taken this time with Kelly!
"Do you care to explain why you returned to this station after nearly blasting it to bits?" Tarik asked.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Kelly said. "The station was intact when I left it."
"Do you mean to tell me that you deny blowing up the Commerce section, resulting in fifteen deaths?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about! I'll confess that you have me on the arms deal and framing Deveraux but I did not harm the station!"
Damn, I wish Kassia were here to read him! He's hiding something! "All right, how did you come by a Mulluran ship, after stealing a runabout from the station?"
"I don't know what you're talking about, Tarik. I didn't steal a shuttle! The Mullurans used an interdimensional transporter to free me."
"When you feel like telling the truth, we'll be here to listen to it. In the meantime you will find that your little tricks to get past our shields and sensors are no longer effective. We're ready for you this time, Kelly!" Tarik said as he left the cell.
Kelly looked very puzzled. What the hell is he talking about?
"Starbase 732 'as acknowledged our message," Paul reported. "Ze Galaxy-class vessel Prometheus an' ze troop transport Basilone are en route een case we 'ave to abandon ze system!"
"Very good, Paul. Have we found out any more about this thing?"
"Eet appears to be a gateway to anothair dimension. I launched a Class 4 probe into ze anomaly; it reported zhat ze fundamental forces are inverted in ze other universe. Gravity eez ze strongest of ze fundamental forces zhere!"
"Gravity is the weakest of the fundamental forces in this universe," Tarik remembered aloud. "Kelly said something about an interdimensional transporter used by the Mullurans."
"Kelly eez a damn liar and a murderer!"
"Quite true, but given what we're observing, and the quantum signatures Dr. Cherrin noted, there may be something to this. What have the Engineering team learned about the Mulluran shuttle?"
"Metallurgy and propulsion systems are fairly standard--warp drive with impulse engines az backup. Ze computer eez positronic--a definite advance over similar Federation models. Zhey report zome strange equipment associated wit' ze transporter."
"I think we have our answer, Paul."
"Eh?"
"The Kelly we have in custody is from an alternate universe, where he was freed by a Mulluran shuttle using an interdimensional transporter. Our Kelly escaped as per the logs, by overpowering his guards and destroying a substantial portion of the Commerce section."
"And 'es a bastaird een any universe, if you ask me!" Paul said. "Now to work on ze anomaly! Zhat answers a lot of questions!"
"Let me know what you come up with."
Three hours later, a tsunami wiped out a small fishing settlement on the coast south of the main New Canada colony; Tarik dispatched the station's shuttlecraft to evacuate the survivors. The dilithium mines had been shut down due to the incessant tremors, and the civilian government of New Canada was demanding answers.
"We are doing our best to contain the problem, I assure you. If the situation escalates beyond our control, Starfleet has vessels en route to assist with evacuating the system."
[Will there be time?] the colony administrator asked. [We've got a couple thousand people down here!]
"The Basilone is a heavy troop transport, capable of transporting as many as five hundred people at a time," Tarik said. "We could evacuate the entire colony in a matter of minutes." The fact that the transporter system on the Basilone was still in the experimental stages was something the colony administrator didn't need to know just now. Dead was dead no matter if the cause of death is the disintegration of a planet or a transporter malfunction. "Have your people ready just in case."
[I hope to God you can get this thing under control! This colony's been through too much!]
Tarik hoped so as well.
"I 'ave ze answer!" Paul announced suddenly. "Ze anomaly was triggered when Kelly was transported with zhe Mulluran interdimensional transport! Ze anomaly eez attracted to Kelly, trying to draw 'm back in! Eef we transport zomeone with Kelly's mass back into ze anomaly, we can seal eet up! Ze law of conservation of mass-energy still applies in ze other universe!"
"But to transport a living being--even Kelly--like that is abominable! Can't we use the dead Mulluran?"
"Ze Mulluran weighed twenty kilograms less zhan Kelly. All zhat would do eez delay ze inevitable."
The station shuddered again. An alarm warned of an impending hull breach.
"That's it. Kelly--no matter what universe he's from--isn't worth the lives of the people on this station or the colony," Tarik said. He tapped his combadge. "Tarik to Security--escort Kelly to Bay 3." Then, after that, Tarik sent another message.
Kelly was led out of the cell in restraints to the Mulluran shuttle by three armed Security officers. Tarik, Deveraux, Cherrin, and Kassia met him at the shuttle. "I can't say I agree with this, Colonel," Cherrin said. "It goes against every fiber of my being to do this."
"You're preventing pain," Tarik said. "If we don't, Kelly will be responsible for the complete destruction of both this station and New Canada, in addition to his previous atrocities. He has committed treason. Execution is a valid and legal outcome. . If my death would save the station and the colony, I'd step into that transporter myself. But Kelly's the man. He's responsible for this, and he should pay for it."
"Do you 'ave anyzhing to say for yourself, you son of a beetch?" Paul asked.
"Up yours, Deveraux!"
Kassia, very tentatively, stepped toward Kelly and slapped him hard across the face. "Why did you do it?" she said, amazingly holding back from the tears. "Why me?" she whispered. The others stood back. This was her moment.
"You compromised my cover. Your telepathic skills were too powerful for the blocks I'd learned. I couldn't afford to let you live."
"But--everything else..." Kassia was beginning to lose her composure.
"Because I could," Kelly said, smiling as his cheek began to show a red handprint.
Just then Kelly's face began to contort in pain as he began screaming. "Stop! Stop! STOP!!!!!" he yelled, trying to grab at his temples in spite of the restraints. Blood began to run out of his ears and tearducts as Kelly started to convulse.
Kassia just stood there, staring at him. Cherrin, Deveraux, and Tarik all tried to break her connection. But Kassia was completely unresponsive. Whatever was happening was well beyond her conscious control. Soon Kelly collapsed, his mind having been reduced to a vegetable state.
Tarik removed the restraints. They were quite plainly not needed anymore. After that, he activated the interdimensional transport, setting it for the coordinates of the spatial anomaly.
Outside the station, the anomaly began to collapse on itself, the need to balance its spacetime continuum satisfied.
Kassia slowly recovered her senses. "What--what happened?" she asked.
"You do not remember anyzhing about what happened to Kelly?" Deveraux asked.
"Isn't he supposed to be here? I thought Kelly was going to be transported to the anomaly."
Tarik, Paul, and Cherrin looked at each other. Whatever had happened, Kassia had no conscious memory of it.
The group left the docking bay in silence, nobody really willing to talk about what they had just done. The station and the colony had both been saved and at least one incarnation of the traitor Kelly had met justice. It had only cost them a piece of their souls...