Chapter 40: Collateral Damage
March 2414
“Come on, Kids!”
The two blue children ran past the slender Andorian man in Starfleet enlisted uniform, prompting their mother to shriek, “No running in the docking bay!” Their father laughed quietly.
“We’re going on vacation, let them have a little fun.”
“They’ll have plenty of time for running around when we beam down to New Romulus. What if they trip on a power conduit or fall into a-”
“You worry too much, Thani!”
The two held hands as they walked up the ramp into the transport. Inside the partially boarded ship people bustled around the aisles, stowing away their luggage and locating which row they’ve been seated in. The Andorian children had already made their way to their assigned row of seats. The girl, clearly the younger of the pair, was jumping up and down on the window seat, singing a recently released pop song. Her brother sat quietly on her right, playing a game on his PADD while obviously trying to ignore the singing.
“Jaina zh’Kerria! You sit down this instant! That’s not even your seat!”
Thani’s authoritative scolding earned her an exaggerated frown from her daughter, “But moooooom, I wanna sit in the window seat!”
“You should let her,” her brother chimed in, without so much as glancing up from his PADD-game, “Maybe she’ll fall out when we go to warp.”
The boy’s snide remark was met with a shove from his younger sibling, before their father stepped in, “Jaina, stop acting like a Klingon. Neni, stop antagonizing your sister. Now both of you slide over. That’s somebody else’s seat and we don’t want to be rude.”
The girl complied with a huff, and the boy looked quite pleased with himself. While they got settled into their proper seats and their mother sat down beside them, Dad got to work hefting the family’s luggage into the overhead compartment. When he’d finished, he set himself down in the fifth seat in the row, beside the aisle. Several minutes passed uneventfully, the kids entertaining themselves on PADDs and the parents thumbing through an informational brochure about the newly opened resort in the Vastam Peaks.
Amid casual conversation about what tourism attractions exist on New Romulus, a small woman with short red hair approached the family’s row carrying nothing but a small trunk. The Andorian father looked up and smiled, “You must be our neighbor, please…” He motioned to the empty seat and tucked his feet in so that she could pass.
The redhead smiled ever so slightly as she placed her trunk in the luggage compartment but, before she was able to move towards the window, the little girl blurted out, “Excuse me miss, can we switch seats?”
“Jaina!” the mother hissed before looking up at the stranger, “I’m so sorry, I don’t know what’s gotten into her today.”
The woman smiled in reply, “I always used to like the window seat too.”
“See?!” Jaina insisted.
“Enough!” her mother replied.
“I could take the aisle seat, if you all want to move one over.”
“PLEASE Mom, can we?”
“Are you sure you don’t mind?” the father asked the stranger.
“It’s no trouble.”
Taking this as permission, Jaina threw herself over to the window seat, “Wheeeeeeee!”
“You’re a godsend,” the mother declared of the newcomer with a chuckle, as the Andorian family began to take their new and improved seats. “I’m Thani sh’Kerria. My husband Oros, and my children Neni and Jaina. It’s very nice to meet you.”
The woman smiled again, “The same to all of you. I’m Kathryn Janeway.” Oros, still in his Starfleet uniform, looked over at her, eyes narrowed. She smirked and simply said, “no relation.” Any potential lingering questions were thwarted by the chime of the ship’s intercom.
Nearly eight hours had passed since the Eastland undocked from DS13 and set course for New Romulus. ‘Kathryn’ and the Kerria family had become fast friends. They talked about Romulan culture, and the beauty of the new homeworld. Kathryn, who had apparently visited previously, offered some tips on where to find the best food, and what activities the children might especially enjoy. In return, the Andorians indulged her curiosity about their home planet. The five even shared a meal from the ship’s replicator.
Even the most interesting people in the universe wouldn’t be able to keep up conversation for a flight of this length though, so it was no surprise that by the eighth hour the children had long since fallen asleep while the adults quietly read from PADDs or rested their eyes themselves. In fact, most of the compartment was quiet. A group a few rows back was laughing and a Tellarite two aisles over was snoring loudly, but otherwise the atmosphere was peaceful and relaxed.
Oros slowly opened his eyes as he awakened. At first he thought he’d been dreaming, but the sound was unmistakable. As confirmation, at the front of the compartment the distinctive red shimmer of a Klingon-made transporter beam reflected around the cabin. A murmur propagated through the passengers as they waited to see who would materialize. A few scattered gasps and a single scream were heard as, to the passengers’ horror, four Nausicaans and an Orion appeared before their eyes. Each of the invaders carried a rifle, which they pointed out in the direction of the passengers.
The woman in the front row who screamed was promptly vaporized. As intended, the compartment grew immediately deathly silent.
“Most of you are of no concern to us,” the Orion called into the crowd, “but I dislike loud noises and heroes. If we encounter either, you will all die.”
The Nausicaans began to spread out, walking down the aisles. They were obviously searching for something. One passenger muttered something unkind under his breath and received a rifle-butt to the face for his trouble. It didn’t take long for the pirates to come to stand beside the row that housed Kathryn and the Kerria family. Jaina squeaked in fear when the towering alien stopped nearby, but quickly covered her mouth. Thani was trembling, and Oros looked poised to try to tackle the terrorist. Kathryn just quietly kept her head straight forward and closed her eyes.
A second Nausicaan and the Orion made their way over as well. The Orion scanned Kathryn, and then nodded. One of the Nausicaans barked, “You. Come with us. Now.”
Kathryn slowly opened her eyes and prepared to comply, but Oros wasn’t nearly as calm. “What do you want with her?!” he exclaimed. In retaliation, one of the thugs stepped forward to hit him. The rest of the family gasped, but the blow never came. Kathryn had delivered the tip of her boot to a strategically significant portion of the Nausicaan’s anatomy. Oros capitalized on the chance, grabbing the thug’s rifle and firing at the Orion. He watched the large green-skinned man disintegrate before turning to bring the weapon to bear on the other invaders.
But he wasn’t fast enough. Before he could fire again, the momentarily incapacitated Nausicaan jumped on him in an effort to reclaim his weapon. Seconds later, a few meters away, Kathryn slumped to the ground amid a steadily expanding puddle of green. Oros managed to fire the rifle, and with that, he was free of his attacker. He looked over just in time to watch the second nearby thug pull the blade out of Kathryn’s abdomen.
The compartment was now filled with the terrified screams of the passengers, and looking past his eviscerated friend, the reason became horribly apparent. With their leader vaporized, the thugs had begun firing wildly into the crowd of passengers.
“TAKE THEM NOW!” was the rally cry from somewhere on the starboard side of the ship, and with it, the passengers swarmed the invaders. His aim obstructed by rioting passengers, Oros watched through the crowd as the nearest Nausicaan grabbed Kathryn by the throat and activated his communicator. A few seconds later, they were both gone in a shimmer of red light.
An explosion rocked the ship, and vibrations rippled through the compartment. The lights dimmed and a distinctive alarm sounded. Several of the passengers ran for the turbolift, but Oros knew that sound. And he knew what it meant. He dropped the rifle and sat with his family.
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