The USS Athena Pt 7

When an animal is cornered, it is at its most dangerous. The Athena made a full turn, engaged warp straight on against the oncoming Romulan fleet. Athena ran scans. There is a wing of three Talon scouts, then a wing that comprised the commandeered Colt, Gemini and Sakura, the two Shrikes and finally the Shadow itself. Like the Shadow, the pair of Shrikes were a Tal Shi'ar trademark, fast destroyer ships, which the Tal Shi'ar favored for their speed and stealth.

A spread of five photon torpedoes was too much even for the front shields of a Talon. The Romulan scout blew up in a brilliant flash of light and gas, a shockwave emenating from the center, pieces of itself spreading out in all directions. The shockwave was still expanding when the Athena dived upon the last Talon scout, main phasers arc chewing its shields to zero, followed a furious volley of pulse phasers that quickly devoured its armor. The burning Talon limped away, directional controls fatally damaged. As the Athena swept to the back of the Romulan formation, two photon torpedos came screaming out from the aft tubes, and the last Talon shared the fate of its comrades.
Inside the bridge, Athena the hologram held two of her fingers out to Garret and shook them.

It was unusual and rare for a Romulan to show emotion, but Riana unleashed an unholy scream of fury and anger. All three of spotter scouts have been eliminated, two of them in a single pass from this infernal ship. They still have the commandeered Nova class ship. If it goes, they would all be even in their phasing cloak capability. The problem is, the even situation favors the hunted more than the hunter. It would mean the Athena could effectively escape. Hurriedly, Riana ordered the Gemini to disengage and with the two Shrikes escorting, to seek quarters to the rear of the Shadow.

"The Colt and the Sakura are turning to engage us, Captain."

There may still be Federation prisoners alive in the two ships, but Garret could not take any chance to risk his own crew and ship. There is not time either for moral debate. The Colt and the Sakura had to be destroyed like enemy ships. There is no other choice.
The Defiant and Sabre class ships banked and turned in formation in pursuit of the Athena. The Athena kept her distance from the two, but with damaged engines, she lacked the speed to overhaul them. But all she needed was enough time to recharge her weapons, and when the time came, she executed a hundred eighty degree loop---an incredible sight and feat for a four hundred meter ship like the Athena. She was now headed towards the two captured ships. She singled out the more damaged of the pair.
The Sabre and the Defiant unleashed screaming torpedoes towards the Athena. The Athena rolled, and maxed its ECM. Three of the torpedoes whizzed by the Athena's belly. One hit the stout and dense forward shields. Athena winked but one torpedo could only dent the shields. Six photon torpedos lashed out from the Athena in a chain, and like a chain, they consecutively slammed against the weaker Colt. As the Athena flashed over the Colt , the Colt was leavimg a trail of burning gas from a fatal wound. The Athena slammed three photon torpedoes from her rear, and the Colt broke up.

Inside the bridge, Athena the hologram raised her forearm and shouted "Yes!!"

"Don't be too overconfident," Garret warned, "it's far from over yet."

The Sakura turned around, a smarting, angry animal. It's battery of pulse phasers chewed at the Athena's shields like a hungry predator trying to break through a turtle's shell to get to the meat inside. As the Sakura flashed over the Athena, its wide arc phaser strip burned against the Athena's rear shields. The Athena replied from her rear defensive phasers, but the punches did not break the Sakura's aft shields.

Like two Samurai on a Kurosawa movie, the two ships turned to face each other. For a moment they glanced at each other, wondering what is on the mind of the other combatant. As weapons charged, they charged to each other. Four torpedoes flew out from the Sabre, while six lashed out from the Athena in a deadly chain of fiery pearls. Front defensive phasers from the Athena extinguished one torpedo, and ECM made another miss. But two torpedoes slammed against her front shields, cutting it by a clear one third.

The Sakura's defensive phasers knocked out one torpedo, and one missed, blinded by ECM. Three torpedoes blew a gaping hole through the shields which let a final torpedo through. There was an explosion as the Sakura's shields and weapons systems were knocked out.

A stream of rapid pulse phaser fire burst out from the Athena and raked the burning Sakura. As the Sakura slipped beneath the Athena's belly, the Athena's multiple phaser strips followed the helpless Sabre and sliced it from fore to aft.

The Sakura was burning from her wounds. There was no way to tell if there was still any Federation prisoners on board. The interference was too high or there really was no more life signs. There may still be a way to salvage the ship with a tractor beam but the Sakura ended her life with an explosion.

Riana watched the debacle and saw the Shrikes rejoined the Shadow's formation. One cannot stand on their ground and win over the Athena by firepower and speed alone. There is only one way to win this. The Shadow and the Shrikes engaged cloak, as the Gemini turned to face her new targets, the two crippled destroyers that still had survivors.
Athena spotted the Gemini about to make a firing pass on the crippled Kiev and Manila. There were still survivors in those ships, knocked out by the gas to prevent themselves from harming each other. How could they? The Romulans were willing to murder unconscious people. Athena could not leave them vulnerable even if she finally had the chance to escape.

"Be careful, Athena, they could be drawing us into a trap," Garret warned.

"Aye, Captain."

There could still be Federation survivors inside the Gemini, Garret thought. But he cannot afford to take chances. The number of survivors in the two helpless and shield less destroyers may far outnumber whoever was left inside the Gemini---if they were still alive at all. He cannot let the Gemini fire on the crippled ships. The Athena was already in a high speed intercept course headed for the Gemini and charging her weapons.
"You can't get her in time!" Garret warned. The Gemini was in full warp toward the crippled Manila and her weapons are charged. There is only one thing to do.

"Head for the Manila!" Garret ordered. Athena looked puzzled. "Do it now! Athena, and get your transporters ready!"

The Athena strained as her damaged engines poured every ounce for speed. "Lock on to all signs of life within the Manila and prepare to transport on my command!" Garret ordered.

"Aye, Captain!"

The Gemini fired three photon torpedoes, each menacingly sizzled towards the crippled Steamrunner.

"Now!" Garret ordered.

The three torpedoes slammed against the USS Manila, and the great Steamrunner destroyer turned into a brilliant ball of light, a shockwave spreading in an ever growing circle.

"Did you get them?" Garret asked.

"Yes I got them. They're in the cargo hold right now," Athena said.

Garret breathed a sign of relief. "Is Admiral Hurst and Captain de Witt among the survivors?"

"Both of them are lucky, Captain."

The comlink came alive with another transmission. "This is Ka'nal. We believe we got the Romulan boarding party under control. There are still pockets of resistance though."
"Thank you Number One, we just beamed survivors off from the USS Manila. We need people to tend to the survivors and their injured."

"Right away, Captain."

"We got energy readings from the USS Kiev. She just fired up her engines, shields and weapons," Athena said.

"That's good news. That means they're operational," Garret said. "Hail them. Get them on screen."

A blonde appeared on screen.

"Commander Shelley!" Garret exclaimed. "Where is Captain Wu?"

"I am afraid he's seriously wounded. What happened?" Shelley herself appeared shaky, having not fully recovered from the effects of the knockout gas.

"The Romulans attacked your ship and the USS Manila using a psychonic blaster. Don't ask me what it is, we will explain everything later if we get out of this alive. I also have to mention we have to borrow your torpedo inventory. Right now the Manila had been destroyed and you're the next target. The Romulans had taken over the USS Gemini and is using it to attack you next."

"Understood, Captain," Shelley said. "We'll take urgent measures right away."

"Captain, I got the Gemini and she's turning to make another pass," Athena said.

"We're tracking the Gemini too," Shelley affirmed. The Kiev turned towards the Gemini's attack. "Reinforce forward shields!" she ordered. "Point defense phasers ready!"

"What's our time to intercept?" Garret asked Athena.

"Not soon enough," Athena said.

Three torpedoes screamed out of the Gemini's forward tubes. The Kiev set its ECM to the max, and two of the torpedos missed. One slammed against the forward shield and the shields held.

"Open fire!" Shelley ordered. The Kiev unleashed its pulse phasers toward the Gemini, which banked away.

"We need to disable the Gemini," Athena said.

"I know, but be careful---they still got three ships hiding, most likely in cloak and waiting to trap you," Garret warned.

"Aye, Captain!"

The Athena had turned to pursue the Gemini with whatever she had left on her engines.

Both headed towards deep space.

Like a bait to the angler, the Shadow, the two Shrikes decloaked right in the Gemini's path, plasma weapons charged and aimed at the Athena.

There was horror and pain in Athena's eyes, as plasma torpedoes and cannons devoured her shields, leaving her front shields open and vulnerable. Several shots hit her naked hull, causing internal damage on her weapons and sensors. She quickly contained a hull breech, but a plume of fire and smoke escaped from the large hull crack. Ahead of her loomed the huge Shadow, and instantly she knew what the Shadow is about to do given the energy readings off the Shadow's deflector dish.

Athena quickly poured her last reserves of energy to her deflector and activated her experimental Corbomite Reflector. Just then the Shadow fired her Psychonic blaster.
The Reflector absorbed then reflected back the part of the psychonic beam to its source. The reflected part hit back at the Shadow. Soon effects were felt in parts of the Romulan ship as fighting broke out. But the effect was only partial. The bridge was hardly touched and Riana easily regained control. She quickly ordered crack teams and marines to subdue the uprisings.

But the Athena herself was not so lucky. Part of the beam had hit the ship. Athena looked at the captain's chair to find Garret wide eyed, losing his senses, crying out in tears in one second, raging like a murderous lunatic in the next.

"Oh my god!" Athena cried. If she wasn't that overconfident, if she wasn't that gung ho, if she wasn't that reckless, if she heeded his advice, this would not have happened. The Captain would still be sitting on his chair, sane and smart, smiling in one second, deadly serious the next. She called to the comlinks but there was no answer. Instead she heard groans and cries, and people fighting.

"Oh my god, oh my god...."

It was time to act what Garret had told her. It was the only way, even if she is left all alone now. The anesthetic gas began pouring out of the tanks and into the main vents. Before the crew could hurt and kill each other, the gas quickly and mercifully knocked them out. Now, there was only silence and the hum of the ship's engines.

Athena the hologram knelt down on the fallen figure of her captain. For a moment her weakness shone through, the varied humanlike emotions that were built into her program raged in sadness and insecurity. These were the same emotions that were supposed to help her decide creatively and intuitively, to create moral judgements that one inevitably faces in war or in dealing with alien civilizations. She was supposed to know what to do. It was all programmed in her. But she had relied a certain sense of affirmation of her decisions from her crewmates and captain. They had a sense of inner confidence---call it faith or trust---that seemed to intuitively back their decisions regardless of the fallibility of their logic. She had learned to trust that in a short time. Now that pillar is gone.

She lifted Garret's unconscious body and propped it on the Captain's throne. It was only right.

The Shadow vessel is hailing her ship. Maybe they're checking if all her crewmen were dead. She had to respond, or they will board her.

A face came onscreen. It was that same Romulan, as beautiful as she was menacing.
"Well, well, I thought all the crew should have been insane or dead," Riana said. "I see all of them are unconscious instead, and a single human still standing. Hmmm...." A graceful line by itself, her left eyebrow rose with her interest.

Riana heard a few comments from her Operations officer. Then she turned to face Athena again. "Apparently this human isn't a human at all, but a hologram... Interesting.... Two holograms were responsible in the failure of the Prometheus heist. Is this a recurring pattern? Who are you?"

"If you wish to know, my name is Athena."

"We have determined that the Athena is the name of this new enhanced Prometheus class destroyer," Riana said. "This ship has capabilities that were not present in the original prototype. Are you another emergency medical hologram? Why are you called Athena?"

"I am the hologram personification of the USS Athena. I am the ship."

"Impossible! Wait..." Riana bent over to consult her Operations officer once again. Then she turned back to Athena, raising her left eyebrow.

"Apparently after scans of your ship, you are telling the truth," Riana said. "We have detected stage 2 evolution bio-neural circuitry in your ship, the most advanced the Federation has. Your pathways are not centrally linked to the medical computer subnode, and instead to the main computer core. Fascinating. A true sentient starship. I never thought it would exist. All built into a Prometheus class hull with the latest Federation weapon technology advancements. The military implications of such a starship is immense."

"You are more than what we bargained for in this mission," Riana concluded. "We were originally meant to destroy or capture you depending which alternative becomes feasible during the operation. Now, I believe it is far more important for you to be captured and examined by our scientists. The Romulan Star Empire has much to gain from learning your technology, especially in particular, your AI program and your bioneural circuitry."
"I have an excellent proposal for you Athena. As far as I can see, your ship has been damaged. You got no more crew who is awake and conscious. You have both your crews and the survivors of the USS Manila, a lot of living people whose lives you are now personally responsible for. Despite your impressive efforts, you cannot sustain combat and risk the lives of these people. If you submit yourself to our capture without further violence, I will be lenient. You will be allowed to release your crew and that of the USS Manila alive without further injury and death to the USS Kiev. The Kiev will be allowed to return to her base without further attack and harassment. After that you will comply with our demands and peacefully surrender."

"Hmm, let me think about it, Romulan." Athena turned around and figured her options. The Rommie was right; she had considerable damage which makes continuation of the battle unfavorable. The Psychonic blaster's subspace wave had various side effects that caused further damage to parts of the ship. There was a strong urge in her to face the Romulan and present her middle finger as her answer, but there were lives at stake here.
Suddenly she screamed with pain as the Shrikes deliberately fired against her ship without shields. Soon several decks were on fire before automatic containment systems stabilized the damage. The damage against her internal systems have become more severe.

"I can see that you can feel the pain in your ship. You are truly linked to your ship," Riana observed. "This is just a warning to show that we are indeed serious with our proposals."

"How do I know that I can trust you?"

"This is humorous, a hologram questioning my credibility. The answer to your question is that you simply don't. You got no alternative. But you can truly trust me that I am not the treacherous cur that you think I am," Riana said.

"You seem to have trapped me into a corner, Romulan. I have to congratulate you for your cunning and strategy," Athena said.

"And to you with your wise choice and gallantry in battle," Riana replied. "My Shrikes will escort you as you transport the crews to the USS Kiev and back. But just in case, so that you won't try any treacherous behavior..."

The two Shrikes latched on the Athena with two powerful tractor beams. The hull of the Athena shuddered and groaned with the stresses from the tractor beams.

"Hey!" Athena shouted, displeased with the awkward arrangement. "Don't you think I can do it myself?"

It was hard to tell who was towing who. but the trio cruised to an encounter with the USS Kiev on a decided halfway point.

* * *

Athena had to explain to Commander Shelly---the highest Star Fleet officer in the area who is still conscious---who and what she was, and what the circumstances are. Then she beamed every living person from her ship to the Kiev. Finally there was really no person left on the Athena. She was truly alone.

Commander Shelly had objected to the surrender of valuable technology to the Romulans. She was firm---the technology in the Athena may be valuable enough for the sacrifice of all the Federation Star Fleet lives involved in the incident. Athena disagreed.
"Your program is flawed. If Romulans acquired your technology, the loss of Federation lives can be much greater than the loss of lives sacrificed here," Shelley said, the completely dedicated Star Fleet officer.

"I have made up my mind," Athena said. "I have made a stand here to protect my captain and my crew---even if I still think they're idiots. I got every directiveYou got to trust me." She winked. "It will all work out for the better."

Shelley knew the Romulans were monitoring their conversations. She felt that Athena was up with something. It was a risk to trust a hologram for a matter of the highest Federation security, but Athena was asking her. The Kiev could barely fire. It could not destroy the Athena if she wanted to, or take on the Romulan fleet. Athena was right. She had to trust her.

"Tell Captain Garret good bye for me, Commander," Athena said. "Tell him he was a good captain, if only for a day."

"Athena, why don't you tell him yourself, when he wakes up?" Shelley said.

There was no answer. Shelley watched the USS Athena being hopelessly towed by the two Romulan Shrikes, like the prized trophy of a hunt.

The Kiev's own EMH and medical staff was quick to respond tending to the needs and injuries from the crew of the Athena and the survivors of the Manila. By the time Captain Garret woke up, the Athena was a distant point in the Kiev's sensors.

"What happened?" Garret demanded. He was pleased to see the face of Commander Shelley, but the grim expression in her face was an immediete concern. He looked around him. Despite the chaos, the surroundings were more than familiar for him. This was his old ship, the Norway class USS Kiev. The familiarity was assuring, but what was he doing here?

Shelley confirmed where he was. "You are in the Kiev now. You have been hit by a psychonic blast. The Athena had deposited you, your crew and the survivors of the Manila here."

"Athena! Where is she now!" Garret demanded.

"Take it easy, Randall, or I should say, Captain," Shelley said. "She's surrendering to the Romulans, in exchange for all our lives."

"NO!" Garret screamed. "She should not leave me like that. She's my ship..."

"...and you need to go down with her?" Shelley asked. "To hell with that tradition. She's one hell of a ship, but she's still a ship. There will be others, Captain. To live is to fight tommorrow. Let the medic tend to you. You are obviously not well. I am not obviously well too. We're lucky we're still in one piece."

Shelley continued. "Athena said to trust her. I sense she had a plan of her own."
"Plan?" Garret said. "If there is a plan, I think she's planning to blow herself up. Damn you, Athena."

"Athena left some words for you," Shelley said. "She says good bye. You have been a good captain."

Garret pounded his fists against the floor. "Damn you, Athena. We're supposed to be a team. We should fight together and go down together."

"Damn your macho bullshit traditions, Garret," Shelley rebuked him. "She's sacrificed herself for you. It would help if you show some appreciation."

"You're right, Shelley," Garret said, nodding his head.

"If you're feeling alright now, Randy, we need a captain. David is severely injured. You're the highest ranked now. The Kiev is yours for the meantime," Shelley said. "I suggest we get organized and get home to the shipyard."

* * *

The Shrike and the Athena had returned to the Shadow. Riana's face flashed onscreen at the Athena's bridge. "Again I must complement you for your wise choice. Be prepared to be boarded."

"Alright," Athena responded.

The Romulans, including Riana, materialized on her bridge. Riana stared at the Athena hologram from head to toe with a suspicious, examining eye, then turned to the gloating smile of a victor, or a hunter that captured her prey.

The Romulans, eager and hungry, rushed to her consoles and started tapping the controls. "Gael Riov Riana, we got helm control of the vessel. Navigation, operational. Engines operational. We are ready to return."

They have moved a considerable distance on impulse and was preparing to warp, when suddenly the Romulan officer who took over at the Operations console looked troubled. "Gael Riov, we have a problem here. There is something here....it appears to be a countdown...warp core has begun an overload procedure, a self destruct sequence...we can expect warp core breech in ten minutes..."

Riana turned around to face Athena, who was now laughing.

"You treacherous cur..." Riana said. Turning to the Romulan officer, she ordered,

"Override it!"

"I cannot, Gael Riov Riana. The sequence is locked and irrevisible. There is no way to access the system and override it on time."

"You override it, Athena! I command you!" Riana demanded.

"I'm sorry, the self destruct sequence is irreversible," Athena explained. "It began when the ship's sensors detected no living Federation personnel on board and the presence of your Romulan party handling the bridge controls. That triggered a failsafe mechanism aboard the ship intended to prevent its capture and compromise of Federation technological secrets. Even I cannot stop it."

"That was surprisingly naive of you, Miss Riana, to assume that we will just hand over everything to you that easy..." Athena continued. "I got a particularly powerful warp core, and a core breech can create massive damage with a very big radius I am leaving you to guess. If you want to stay alive and keep your ships, especially that big Shadow of yours, intact, I would suggest it's time to kit and kaboodle outta here like there's no second to waste."

"Don't think you have outsmarted me, hologram," Riana said. "If I can't have you, then no one will. I still win would have won and have accomplished my mission with your destruction. It was a pity, that you're my trophy even for a short time. I would have let you live in our laboratories."

"Miss Riana, there is something I am dying to show you ever since I met you. Since you're Tal Shi'ar I bet you're familiar with human customs," Athena said. "I bet you know what this is."

Athena raised her middle finger out to the Tal Shi'ar Fleet Commander.

Riana raised her left eyebrow. �Your obscene Earth gesture has no significance for me.�
She stared at Athena for the last time, and then ordered the D'PakThau to beam them all out.

The Romulan vessels, taking the Gemini with them as a trophy, assumed formation and quickly warped out of sight.

As soon as they were gone, Athena knew she didn't have much time. She focused all her transporters on the warp core and quickly beamed it out in space. Then with her shield deflectors, she pushed the warp core as far as the deflectors could. She quickly turned the ship around, and engaged full impulse, trying to put as much distance between the ship and the warp core. With only impulse, it may not be enough.

The warp core erupted like a small nova, an explosion so powerful it could sweep an entire star system, and yet in space, the explosion was deathly silent. The brilliantly burning shockwave swept rapidly outward in a ring from its epicenter. Athena braced for impact, maximum reinforcement on her rear shields.

The USS Athena was engulfed in a wave of brilliant whiteness, and tumbled, tumbled, out of control...

From a distance, Garret saw a brilliant flash of light, and the point of light burned like a new star. It was in the direction where the Athena was last seen with her Romulan escorts. She was her first command, and it was all over in one day. It was irony that he was now in command of the ship he left for Athena. He sighed, before he gave the order for the USS Kiev to engage warp.

* * *

Damn, she thought, it had taken them days to respond to her distress signal, and she was bored to death here. The millions of stars set on the cosmic blackness were terrible listeners, and they make even worst talkers.

In the meantime between repairs on the ship from the outside, she---her hologram form---would lie in a bikini outside of the ship's upper triangular hull, bathing in the sunlight, as the broken ship orbited a star.

The Miranda IV class USS Titus was a dedicated tow and tractor tug vessel packing powerful tractor beam equipment. It had been assigned from the Taciticus shipyard to respond to the distress signal. The Miranda class was a venerable and common design from the 23rd Century, a rather popular ship. It had undergone three major revisions in its long lifetime, but in the last few wars against the Borg and the Dominion, it began to show its age. But the venerable and reliable design refused to go away. Retired from combat duties, Mirandas began to fill a variety of utilitarian duties from transport to hospital ships to search and rescue to tow and tractor tugs. So popular was the versatile class on these roles that production was resurrected with the new Miranda IV class, which featured increased areas for storage and equipment. The TTTs as they call them, roam space for immobile, abandoned or derelict ships, then tow or tractor them to the nearest base or shipyard. Sometimes their duties would include towing a resource rich asteroid to a processing base.

The scanners aboard the Titus came alive. "We have contact!" said the cperations officer. "I believe we have found the source of the distress signal."

"Onscreen, identify," the captain ordered.

"I believe we found what we're looking for. It has to be the USS Athena," the operations officer said. "It looks like it's in bad shape. Severe damage everywhere. All four warp nacelles broken. She's probably drifting with her hull impulse engines as her only propulsion."

"Then prepare to tow it back to the shipyard," the captain said. "Is there something wrong?"

"Well I...uh...I...uh...I'm not sure," the operations officer said. "If I have to believe my sensors, there is a girl standing outside on the surface of the hull waving at us."
"Ha ha ha, maybe its about time you need to get a girlfriend or pay for one," the captain said. "The next thing you'll tell me she's some scantily clad cute blonde. In the cold vaccum of space? When we get home, we need to test and recalibrate the sensors, okay?"
"But sir," the cperations officer pointed to the screen, "she does look like a scantily clad cute blonde and she's waving at us..."

The cigar fell off from the captain's mouth.

(to be continued)