T'ran, Our Reality
Stephen faced the Nirkno. "I can't go. Take them with you."
Dana shook her head. "I'm not leaving you alone."
"I'll be with you soon."
"You'll die alone. If case you've forgotten, you're going up against a god and his stooge which happens to be an evil version of you. I'm staying."
Stephen shook his head and faced the Nirkno. "Take him. Tend to his wound. We'll need a rescue in about ten minutes."
The Nirkno tapped his belt buckle. "Two to beam up." The Nirkno and Jovani disappeared.
Stephen and Dana huddled. Stephen laid out the plan. "The key needs to lie in the Quantum Mirror. It seems to be stabilizing the ray of light shining from Pharox to the ion cloud. We need to destroy it."
Dana nodded. "I can do that."
"I'll take the stooge." He and Dana kissed passionately. They quickly parted. "Let's do this."
Stephen and Dana ran in opposite directions around the chasm. Dana ran up to Pharox. "How am I supposed to get up there?" At that moment, a group of golden flying sting rays flew by her. Dana smiled as she grabbed one by the fins and hung for dear life as it flew up near Pharox and the Quantum Mirror.
Stephen grabbed a T'rais laser sword as he ran up to Kosst. Kosst and Stephen looked at each other menacingly for about ten seconds.
Kosst swiftly removed his own laser sword from his holster and activated it. He smiled. "Let's play."
The fight began.
Earthdate: March 22, 2384
Location: Asteroid QX346, Alternate Universe "Beta"
Laurissa stood holding her mother's leg as Kat held the weapon at Jovo. "Please, let her go."
Jovo shook his head. "Why do you care so much? You abandoned them here."
"I had no--"
"No choice. Ha! You always preferred adventure. The feeling of being free. It's why you're so attracted to the loose men. Men like Arcturus. That's why you spread your legs for him." He smiled sinisterly. "And for me."
Several tears rolled down Kat's eyes. "How could you say that?" She paused. "I love you."
Jovo laughed so hard, he was forced to let go of Kara. She quickly ran to Laurissa and held her close. "You... you love me?" He became serious. "What do you mean 'love'? Is that what you said to Arcturus after he left you pregnant?" He sniffed the air. "I can smell it, you know? The stench of a pregnancy. You wreak of it."
Kat's tears were streaming now. "What?"
"Did you suddenly turn stupid too?" Jovo laughed again. "Tell me again, Kat. Why is it that everyone you get close to leaves you, huh?"
"Leaves?"
"Getting monosyllabic on me, eh? That's fine. Yeah, I said leave. Depart. Arcturus, your parents--?"
"My parents... were killed."
"And trust me, with you as a daughter, they were better off dead."
Kat aimed the gun at the floor and fired, taking out part of the floor.
Jovo yelled, "Whoa!" He laughed. "Testy!" He took a step forward. "I see we have some issues to work out."
Earthdate: November 30, 2384
Location: T'ran, Our Reality
Kosst blocked Stephen's sword again, then, he backed off. "How about a change of scenery?" Kosst dove into the chasm.
Stephen watched as Kosst dropped down and disappeared from view. Stephen then jumped in after him. He fell down, down, down, and spontaneously a gust of wind tossed him into a hole in the side of the chasm. He rolled down a tunnel and put up his sword just in time to block a blow by Kosst's sword. Stephen rolled out into the new rock chamber deep in the crust of T'ran.
Kosst chuckled. "Could've cut your head off."
Stephen smiled and shook his head. "Wouldn't have."
"Will." Kosst attacked Stephen with his sword only to be blocked.
The fight continued.
Dana pulled the sting ray to the left, evading another blast of flame from Pharox. "This is impossible!"
Dana looked down and noticed a T'rais with an automatic weapon and sword. She flew down and grabbed them both. Dana circled Pharox firing at the monster. When she got behind him, she stabbed Pharox in the back with the sword. She pulled out the sword and circled Pharox again. He blasted her again and hit the sting ray, knocking it out.
Dana fell, but was caught at the last moment by another sting ray. She flew around again to where she had left a burning hole in Pharox's back. She quickly set the gun to overload and inserted the barrel in the hole, then she went for another circle.
The gun exploded, and Pharox growled in pain as he lost concentration.
This was Dana's chance.
Stephen went to block again when his sword ran out of power and shut off. Stephen rolled out of the way as Kosst's sword slashed at his arm, drawing blood and leaving behind burnt flesh.
Stephen touched his arm and pulled back a bloody hand.
Kosst smiled slyly. "Experiencing a lot of bad luck lately? Sucks, doesn't it?"
Kosst ran at Stephen. Stephen moved to the side and grabbed his wrists. He hit them against a protruding rock and backhanded him, causing him to lose hold of the weapon. The sword fell and deactivated itself.
Kosst stumbled back. Stephen jumped off the wall and provided a tornado kick to the side of Kosst's face.
A vortex opened near Kosst. It revealed a Kazon with a phaser. Kosst took the pistol and elbowed the Vulcan, tossing him back into the vortex as it closed. Kosst fired at Stephen.
Stephen quickly grabbed the fallen sword and reactivated it, blocking five phaser shots. He saw the sword begin to glow white. Kalmar.
Stephen threw the sword at Kosst. The sword flew past him, taking his right forearm and phaser with it. Kosst screamed in pain.
Stephen smiled. "Been experiencing some bad luck lately?"
A vortex opened behind Kosst. Out came a huge praying mantis-like creature that was at least seven feet tall.
Stephen pointed behind Kosst at the mantis. "Sucks. Doesn't it?"
Kosst turned to see the praying mantis grab ahold of him. Kosst screamed as the creature seemed to twist and pull him. Then, he came apart at the waist. The mantis tossed the legs to the side and began to make its lunch from the contents of Kosst's rib cage.
Stephen began to try to climb out of the hole.
Earthdate: March 22, 2384
Location: Asteroid QX346, Alternate Universe "Beta"
Kat leveled the weapon at Jovo's chest. "Don't come any closer!"
Jovo laughed again. "Or you'll what? Shoot me? Please. You couldn't shoot me when you were my Watcher. What makes you think you could do it now?"
Kat charged the weapon.
"Oh. The bitch is back, indeed." He smiled. "You know, Kat, this whole you and I thing... I don't think it's going to work out. Being that I'm going to kill you in about a minute, I think it's best that I see other people."
Kat's voice cracked. "I'll kill you if I have to."
Jovo shook his head. "No... you won't." He began to walk forward with his hand out as if asking for Kat to give him the gun.
Without warning, the wall began to morph. They seemed to have been replaced by a beach over a purple sky and blood red oceans. Startled, Jovo moved in Kat's direction.
Then, she fired.
Jovo stumbled back as the walls returned. He looked at his wound, then at Kat. His eyes wild. He began to scream as he charged at Kat.
Kat fired again.
Jovo flew back against the wall and through the bulk head, crushing the hull of a shuttle he landed on three stories below. He lay motionless.
Kat began to sob uncontrollably. Laurissa released Kara and moved over to console her mother.
Earthdate: November 30, 2384
Location: T'ran, Our Reality
With Pharox occupied, Dana took her sword and activated it. She stood up, balancing on the sting ray. Just in time, she jumped up and ran the Quantum Mirror through with her sword.
For a few seconds, time stood still. The Mirror glowed a bright white color. Then, in a majestic flash of light, it shattered into nothingness. Dana was hit by a million shards and tossed back into thin air.
The lightning bolts that had been firing in every direction began to fire at Pharox. Lighting bolt after lightning bolt began to attack him. Pharox writhed wildly as his monstrous dragon body began to turn a jet black. With a shattering shudder that shook all of T'ran, Pharox's body exploded into a million black shards. They began to circle the ray of white light like a tornado as the ray changed into a bright red glow. The tornado began to rise into the sky and into the ion cloud as a resounding "NO!!!" seemed to echo through the skies.
When the remains of Pharox entered the ion cloud, the cloud itself exploded, sending a shockwave through space the shook the Nirkno fleet and the remaining T'rais ships.
In the place of the cloud, was an immense event horizon, sucking up the remnants of the T'rais fleet. It began to pull T'ran itself into its gullet.
Location: NCS Xillinne
The Nirkno captain directed his troops. "Clear the system! Get all our men off T'ran, now!"
Geoon directed the captain's attention. "Sir, the captain and his wife."
A Nirkno operations officer interrupted. "Transporting..." He looked up. "We've got them."
The captain looked at his helmsman. "Get us out of here! Dlim five."
Location: T'ran system
The Nirkno fleet shot out of the system as T'ran was pulled into the event horizon. Once the planet was in, the hole seemed to eat itself and disappear.
Location: NCS Xillinne
Stephen appeared in the Nirkno Sickbay. A Nirkno doctor was about to tend tohim when he noticed the badly hurt Dana on the bed next to him. He quickly got up and pushed the doctor to was going to tend to him away. "Dana? Dana!"
Dana lay on the bed badly injured.
The Nirkno doctor tending to her looked grim. "She's hemorrhaging internally. I'm afraid, even with all of our technology, there is nothing we can do."
Stephen looked frantic. "No. Dana, no. You can't. No."
Dana smiled sweetly. She held her hand to Stephen's cheek. "It's okay. I'm ready. I did what I had to do. My work here is done. You need to stay on the path. Your work is still not over."
Stephen held her hand tightly. "You can't leave me. I need you."
Dana kissed his hand. "I'll always be around." She paused. "Do you know what the Celestial Temple is like?"
Stephen shook his head sadly.
"It's so beautiful. Kalmar showed me." She giggled weakly. "We'll be together again." She whispered, "I love you." Then, she exhaled.
Stephen closed her eyes and tried to walk away. He walked two steps, then keeled over and passed out. The last thing he remembered were three Nirkno running to his aid.
~She's right, you know,~ urged Kalmar. ~Your work is not yet complete.~
Stephen shed a tear. "What do you mean by that?"
Kalmar smiled. ~You'll see.~
"Is that it? Your words of wisdom?"
Kalmar walked toward Stephen and wiped his tear away. ~She will always be with you. Not even death can destroy a love like that.~
Stephen looked into Kalmar's eyes. ~Where will you go?~
"Where the Light sends me. The universe is very large. And that's just this one.~
"Will I see you again?"
~When you return to the Light. In the 'Celestial Temple,' so to speak.~ Kalmar walked back. ~It was an honor to work with you, Stephen Maruu.~ Kalmar faded away.
Everything went black.
Earthdate: December 2, 2384
Location: SB901
A weary Kat walked into Sickbay. "How is he?"
Lt. Cherrin scanned the biobed where the unconscious body of Jovan Kalimar lay. "Still laying peacefully behind the Level 15 force field you had me put up."
Kat looked at Jovo coldly. "Will he ever wake up?"
"Maybe. I'm not sure. It could be years; it could be tomorrow. I've never dealt with Q-slash-Human-slash-wormhole-alien physiology before. In fact, I don't think there's ever been anything like this before. I really have no way of telling if or when he'll be getting off that bed."
Kat nodded. "Keep me informed." She walked out of Sickbay.
Cherrin tapped his comm badge. "She came in again."
Kitara answered sadly. [Poor woman.]
"Should she be told about the electric mice and turtles?"
[Later. She's got too much to deal with right now. We'll give her some time. Mallory out.]
Location: Bajor
"Fire!" Again, the phaser blasts shot into the sky. "Fire!"
Lt. Commander Geoon Fink and Lt. Jennifer Antilles walked forward and folded the flag over the coffin of Lt. Commander Dana Maruu. Then, Jennifer handed it to Captain Stephen Maruu. Stephen gave it to Lazarus Tara, recently implanted with a new symbiote.
Once the ceremony was over, Admiral Zultok walked over to Stephen. "You did an excellent job. You not only saved the universe, but you made us a new friend in the Gamma Quadrant. There's a promotion to Admiral waiting for you at--"
Stephen interrupted. "No, thanks."
"I'm sorry."
"I don't want it. I like my pips the way they are, thank you."
Zultok paused. "This is a big thing you're giving up."
"I know, sir, but I can't take the promotion. Not yet. There's still something left to do. Until I find out what, I need to be free of other responsibilities."
Zultok nodded. "I almost saw you grow up, and I know when you mean business." He pat Stephen on the back. "I understand."
"Thank you."
Zultok stopped as Stephen kept walking alongside Lazarus. "You know the pips will be there for you--"
"When I'm ready. Thank you, sir." Stephen and Lazarus walked off in the direction of a nearby hovercar chauffeured by Ensign Xonij Kalik. The crew of the late USS Luminance drove off into the sunset.
Location: Unknown
A man chanted in ancient Bajoran. Before long, a red mist began to accumulate into the form of a person in front of the man chanting.
The mist began to take form and solidify. Once the mist was gone, it was clear who had just appeared.
Stephen Kosst.
He looked around slightly at a loss. Then, he looked at his right hand. All there. He flexed the fingers in his right hand and formed a fist.
Kosst then noticed the man who had been chanting. "You rang?"
The man's smile shone, even through the shadow. "I require your assistance. I think that we can benefit from each other's services."
"Do tell."