Star Trek Deep Space 9 08 Antimatter

Star Trek Deep Space 9

8

Antimatter

CHAPTER

1

SUNK DEEP IN A GIANT PIT was an Ambassador-class

starship, looking as if it was about to be swallowed

whole. An intricate network of walkways and

turbolifts spanned its gleaming hull, and workers

swarmed over the helpless ship like hungry ants. The

scene reminded Benjamin Sisko of the Lilliputians

who tied down Gulliver and crawled all over him. But

even if the shackles were removed, this sleeping giant

was not about to rise, not for another few days. It was

missing the most crucial element of its being, the

thing that would give it life and send it streaking

across the galaxy, the most dangerous substance ever

discovered antimatter.

"Isn't it magnificent?" said Kira Nerys beside him.

"It's so thrilling to see the Okana Shipyards open

again. You don't know it, Commander, but this ship-

yard has seen centuries of history. Songs have been

written about it, and plays. We're very proud of it."

"Impressive," answered Sisko. He didn't tell his

Bajoran first officer what he was really thinking, that

the shipyard was crude by Federation standards. It

had been centuries since Terrans had built starships

under normal planetary gravity--they much pre-

ferred moon-based or orbital shipyards with little or

no gravity. Of course, the Bajorans had once had a

state-of-the-art orbital shipyard, but it had been utter-

ly destroyed by the Cardassian invaders. With its

ravished economy, Bajor could hardly afford to build

a new orbital shipyard, so they had reopened the

surface shipyard. They were happy just to be building

a ship, even if it was under a Federation contract.

Sisko also didn't mention that the design of the

Ambassador, one of the workhorses of the fleet, was

an old one. Its construction kinks had long been

worked out. The saucer section was considerably

smaller than that of a Galaxy-class vessel, such as the

Enterprise, and its hull was cylindrical rather than

squat. The twin nacelles were also directly behind the

saucer section rather than under it. But the seven-

hundred crew-member starship was an extremely

economical vessel, and it could go farther and run

longer than a Galaxy-class ship on the same amount of

antimatter. It was a perfect choice for its missionma

long-range exploration of the Gamma Quadrant, on

the other side of the wormhole.

Most important, Sisko knew that this was the first

starship to be built on Bajor since the Cardassian

invasion over fifty years ago, and he was determined

to help them succeed. In one respect, he agreed with

Major Kira. The Okana Shipyards were a magnificent

sight--six monstrous pits spread across the vast

Okana Desert, each one crisscrossed by six gigantic

arches that curved to an apex almost a kilometer

above the ground.

He was standing on one of those archways now, and

the view it afforded was incredible, despite the intense

heat that made his neck crawl with sweat. He knew

that soon--after the antimatter arrived and was in-

stalled in the reactor--tractor beams along the arches

would be activated, and the giant starship would rise

out of the pit half a kilometer above the ground. The

ship's inertial damping and structural integrity fields

would have to be adjusted to compensate for Bajor's

gravity, but they would be returned to normal once in

space. The launch was an event he didn't want to miss.

Until then, he could enjoy the endless horizon and a

respite from the rigors of commanding Deep Space

Nine.

"You're smiling," observed Kira. "May I ask what

you find so humorous?"

"I'm just enjoying myself," Sisko admitted. "It's so

peaceful out here--like being at the ends of the Earth.

Or in this case, at the ends of Bajor."

"I knew you would enjoy it," said Kira with plea-

sure. "I came here once as a child, and I've never

forgotten it."

"Best of all," said the commander, "I'm pleased

that everything is going so well. Right on schedule.

Maybe a little bit later we can go down and take a

closer look at the Hannibal."

Kira wrinkled the ridges on her nose and muttered

something under her breath.

"Did you say something, Major?"

"It's that name. What does it mean?"

"Hannibal?" asked Sisko. "Why, he was a great

African general. He did incredible things, like leading

an army of elephants over the Alps to attack Rome.

It's also a town in Missouri."

Kira nodded glumly. "Terran history."

The commander smiled. "So what would you name

it?"

The Bajoran tightened her jaw. "I can think of

several worthy names. Okana would be nice, in honor

of the shipyards that built her. Or Kai Opaka, in honor

of her memory and her sacrifice."

Sisko touched Kira's shoulder for a moment.

"Don't worry, Major, the time is coming when Bajor

will build her own ships again. First, you must build

up your economy and feed your people. This is a big

step in that direction."

"I-know," said Kira, leaning on the railing. "Pa-

tience has never been one of my virtues." After a

moment's reflection, she stood erect and managed a

smile. "I'11 contact Director Amkot and see if he can

arrange a tour of the Hannibal for us."

But before she could tap her communicator badge,

an explosion rent the desert air and rocked the

walkway beneath their feet. Kira was thrown against

the railing, and only her strength and quick reflexes

kept her from plunging into the abyss a kilometer

below them. Sisko staggered toward her and gripped

her tunic, pulling her to the metal walkway just as

another explosion jarred the structure. With an awful

groan, the archway tilted, and they began to slide

across the slick metal into the empty air beyond.

Kira rolled to her back and slapped her comm

badge. "Emergency!" she yelled. "Two to beam off

arch three! Immediately!"

Sisko's Starfleet comm badge wasn't patched into

the Bajoran system, so he could do nothing but hang

on to Kira and try to place his feet against the railing

supports. He managed to brace one foot, but their

precipitous slide continued. With the crook of her

arm, Kira grabbed the handrail as her legs swung off,

and she dangled in midair, groaning from the exertion

required to hold on. Sisko let go of her but not soon

enough, because her momentum pulled his foot off the

support and started a headlong slide into oblivion. He

grasped at the railing as it passed over his head, and

his arms were still flailing as he sailed into the air...

And materialized in a crowded storage room,

stretched out on a transporter pad. Kira stood beside

h!m, her arms still twisted around a railing that was

no longer there. She let out loud gasp and sank to the

platform, and Sisko gripped his chest. He felt as if

his heart would pound straight out through his rib

cage.

A young Bajoran transporter operator stared at

them from behind his console. "I... I got everybody,

didn't I?"

"You did fine, son," breathed Sisko.

Kira scrambled to her feet and bounded off the

platform. "What by the holy orbs happened?"

"I don't know," the Bajoran answered. "We don't

keep any explosives near the arches. One of the pylons

just blew up!"

Kira slapped her comm badge again while Sisko

rose slowly to his feet. Maybe he wouldn't come back

here to witness the Hannibal being launched, he

decided. He could monitor it just fine from the space

station.

"Major Kira to Director Amkot," she barked. "Di-

rector, I need to speak with you. Now."

"Major Kira!" came an excited male voice. "Are

you all right?"

"We should be dead, but your transporter is at least

working. What happened to that arch?"

There was a pause before Amkot responded, "We

won't know until we conduct an investigation."

"You can't even make a guess?" asked Kira incredu-

lously.

"If I had to make a guess," said the hoarse voice, "it

would be sabotage. Our security around the ship has

been tight, very tight, but perhaps it wasn't tight

enough aboveground. Offhand, the only thing I could

imagine that would cause those explosions would be

timed charges planted inside the pylon. We are re-

viewing maintenance records to see who had access to

it."

Kira glanced at her commander to see if he wanted

to interject anything, and he nodded. "This is Com-

mander Benjamin Sisko of Deep Space Nine," his

voice thundered. "I think we should meet to discuss

this."

"Of course, Commander!" came the reply. "I want

to assure you that this incident had nothing to do with

your presence here, nothing! Arch number three is the

center arch, so it was the most obvious target. The

charges could have been set days ago, or weeks ago.

You know, there is considerable opposition to us

building a starship for the Federation, instead of

Bajor."

"Will you be able to repair it in time for the

launch?" asked Sisko.

"Yes, Commander. It will take some doing, but we

can move a center arch from one of the other bays.

They're not in use. If you would like to discuss this

further, I am headed to my office now."

"We will meet you there," Sisko concluded. He

nodded to his first officer.

"Kira out," she replied through clenched teeth.

Commander Sisko just looked away, deeply sad-

dened by Director Amkot's explanation. The planet of

Bajor could be a paradise, as it once was, but sabotage

and terrorism had become a way of life for too many

Bajorans. If only they could stop this insanity! Until

they did, the Bajorans were every bit as dangerous and

unpredictable as the antimatter that was headed their

way.

In his spartan, windowless office on Deep Space

Nine, Security Chief Odo continued to page through

various Starfleet reports and documents concerning

the shipment and handling of antimatter. For two

days, he had been boning up on the subject in antici-

pation of the shipment that would arrive by convoy in

about twenty-four h ours. Having never served aboard

a starship, the alien shapeshifter had little firsthand

experience with matter/antimatter propulsion sys-

tems and antimatter storage pods. He knew only one

thing for certain the more he read about the stuff, the

less he liked it.

In his analytical way, Odo summarized the most

important points about antimatter on his computer

screen. Thus far, everything he had learned was

troubling. For the hundredth time, he turned to his

screen and studied his notes

1. Antimatter is the most dangerous substance

ever discovered. When it comes into contact

with matter, both are annihilated in a devastat-

ing explosion.

2. Under controlled circumstances, this power is

used to drive a starship, but a warp-core

meltdown can result in total destruction.

3. When not in use, antimatter must be stored in a

special pod that contains the substance within

magnetic fields. If the pod is breached or

ruptured, the result is total destruction.

4. The danger to a starship is so great that the

warp core and antimatter pods are designed to

be ejected in an emergency.

5. Antimatter cannot be transported, except in

minute quantities. Antimatter storage pods

must be shipped and handled manually.

6. Antimatter cannot be replicated. It is generated

in a handful of major Starfleet refueling facili-

ties, all of them deep in Federation space.

7. The expected shipment, 2,000 cubic meters of

antimatter in 20 storage pods, is enough to

power a starship for two years.

8. Starfleet only ships antimatter in special tanker

craft that are protected by a minimum of two

Starfleet cruisers.

9. Antimatter is one of the rarest and most valu-

able commodities in the galaxy.

Odo couldn't bear to read any more. He shut off his

screen, leaned back in his chair, and stared at the wall.

Despite the lack of features in his oddly unformed

face, no one could have mistaken the look of concern

in his tightened jaw and pinpoint eyes. After the

arrival of the tanker and her escorts, Deep Space Nine

was to be the waystation for twenty antimatter storage

pods, until the Bajorans sent enough shuttlecraft to

take them to the shipyard on the planet. Between the

arrival of the convoy and the departure of the last

storage pod, he didn't want to think about all the

terrible things that could happen.

His door chimed cheerfully, and he scowled. "En-

ter."

The door whooshed open, and the cherubic face of

Miles O'Brien peered around the corner. "You wanted

to see me, Constable?"

Odo's scowl deepened. He despised that obnoxious

nickname pinned on him by Commander Sisko, but

he would let it pass today. He had more important

worries. "Yes, Chief. Thank you for coming."

O'Brien strode into the room and stood at easy

attention. After a moment, he said with concern, "Are

you all right?"

"I am most certainly not all right," snapped Odo.

"How would you feel if you were in charge of the

safekeeping of twenty containers of antimatter?"

"Oh, that," scoffed the chiefi "We had thirty storage

pods aboard the Enterprise. Never gave us a lick of

trouble." He frowned in remembrance. "Well, maybe

I shouldn't say 'never.' Antimatter is always tricky

stuff."

"Just how volatile is it?"

O'Brien chuckled. "How volatile is it? Well, let's

put it this way--a fistful of antimatter would be

enough to destroy half this station."

When he saw that his answer didn't do much to

lighten Odo's mood, O'Brien added, "But it's perfect-

ly safe, if it's contained. We have ships docking here

all the time that have antimatter on board."

"But we've never had any on board the station,"

Odo countered. He shifted in his seat, uncomfortable

to be exhibiting so much fear. "I've been reading

everything I can find about it, and I don't like what

I'm finding out. Do you have any recommendations?"

The chief of operations considered the question for

a moment before replying, "Only one thing. There's

quite a black market in the stuff, because almost every

ship with a warp drive needs it. And the storage pods

are self-contained--you could take one and leave the

rest alone. I'd be more concerned about thievery than

an accident."

"Thievery," Odo repeated thoughtfully. He stood

with determination. "Chief, may I buy you a drink

down at Quark's establishment?"

Despite the fact that Director Amkot said he was

headed straight for his office, Commander Sisko and

Major Kira sat impatiently in uncomfortable chrome

furniture for almost half an hour. For the dozenth

time, Sisko surveyed the room. Like most things

Bajoran, the furnishings were stylish, even if some of

them had seen better days. A double-paned window

looked out upon a pair of robotic arc welders, which

now sat quietly, their job over. Behind them, one of

the gleaming nacelles of the Hannibal was visible,

looking like a sleek silver fish. Natural light from

above filtered into the immense pit, adding to the

underwater illusion.

Amkot's desk looked like a slab of black epoxy,

although it was chipped and scratched in various

places, as if it had spent several years in careless

storage. His chair looked considerably more comfort-

able than the one Sisko was sitting in. At least it had

padding. A huge diagram of the Hannibal covered one

entire wall, and behind the desk were a number of

diplomas and citations, all etched on brightly colored

slabs. There were blank spaces on the walls, too,

where citations had apparently been removed.

More for the sake of conversation than from over-

whelming curiosity, Sisko asked, "What do you sup-

pose went in those blank spaces on the wall?"

Kira stiflened in her seat. "Commendations, I

suppose--from the Cardassians. It's well known that

Amkot Groell was a collaborator. But he managed to

keep this facility open, even if they didn't build any

ships. He maintained the equipment, waiting for this

day. We all had to do unpleasant things, Amkot more

than most. He is still resented for it in some quarters."

"How does the provisional government feel about

him?"

Kira smiled grimly. "That depends on how the

Federation feels about their new starship. If it brings

more business to the shipyards, he'll be a hero. If it's a

failure--" She didn't have to finish the sentence.

The door opened abruptly, and both Kira and Sisko

stood, relieved to finally see somebody. Amkot Groell

was a small man, with disheveled white hair that

made him look like a mad professor. He was followed

into the room by a distinguished older woman wear-

ing a finely tailored suit. The ridges on the bridge of

her nose looked like manicured hedges, and she wore

a jewel that dwarfed one entire ear.

"Please excuse me, please!" begged the director.

"Just as I was coming here, I heard that Minister

Roser was en route. Naturally, I had to meet her.

Excuse me again--I am Director Amkot Groell, and

this is Roser Issa, Minister of Public Works."

Sisko nodded. "Commander Benjamin Sisko of

Deep Space Nine. This is my first officer, Major Kira

Nerys."

"Of course, of course," stuttered the little man.

"How are you, Major? It's a pleasure to see you again.

The major was a student when she first came here on a

field trip, but that was many years ago. How do you

like seeing the yard in operation?"

"I thought it was wonderful," replied Kira, "until it

nearly killed me."

"Most regrettable." Amkot shook his head with

genuine sorrow. "We have doubled security, I can

assure you. In some respects, it's amazing we haven't

had more incidents."

"That's nonsense," claimed Minister Roser. "How

could we possibly know that anyone would want to

sabotage the shipyards? Frankly, I am stunned."

Director Amkot looked like he wanted to correct

the minister, but he screwed his mouth shut. She must

have control of the purse strings, thought Sisko. His

first officer, however, felt no such restraint.

"Aren't you being a bit disingenuous, Minister?"

asked Kira. "I can think of a dozen factions who

oppose building this ship, from pacifists to national-

ists, with every terrorist organization in between. And

what about the Cardassians? They're hoping that if

they bide their time, the Federation will get sick of

supporting us and just go away."

Minister Roser gave her a tight smile. "Of course,

Major, you would know about terrorist organiza-

tions."

From the way that Kira bounced on her feet and

balled her hands into fists, Sisko could tell that she

was about to explode, and he quickly interjected, "As

a representative of the client, let me say that I'm very

pleased with the progress you've made. Frankly, I

didn't think you would finish the Hannibal on sched-

ule, but you have. Now that we're so close to comple-

tion, let's not spoil it. We all want the same thing,

don't we?"

"Yes! Yes, we do," agreed Amkot. "Thanks to the

Federation, we have the raw materials we need, and

the work. That's what we need the most--work."

Minister Roser added, "We could also use a fusion

device and positron beam accelerator to generate our

own antimatter."

"Let's not push things," answered Sisko. "That

would be a very tempting target, and Starfleet is too

far away to protect it. We'll get you all the antimatter

you need--to power whatever you build."

Kira seized upon that small opening. "Commander,

does that mean we could build our own starships?"

Sisko smiled. "We have a saying 'All things come to

those who wait.' Now, let's get to practical matters.

What kind of explosive was it? Can we catch whoever

did it?"

Amkot sighed and shook his head. "There isn't

much left, but we found traces of sarium krellide,

which is a common detonator and casing material."

"I'11 send down a forensic team from the station,"

promis ed Sisko. "Perhaps they can help."

Amkot clapped his hands together and tried to

appear cheerful. "Commander, may I take you on a

tour of the Hannibal?"

"I'm afraid we don't have time now. We have our

own preparations to make. In addition to the antimat-

ter, the convoy is bringing the crew for the Hannibal's

test flights. I may assign some of my own people to go

along."

"Can I volunteer?" asked Kira.

"We'll see." Sisko managed a smile before he

tapped his comm badge. "Sisko to Hage. We are ready

to beam back to the runabout."

"Yes, sir," came the reply. "Locking on to you and

Major Kira."

"Energize when ready."

They barely had time to nod their gOOd-byes before

the transporter beams scrambled their molecules and

whisked them away in a blaze of colored lights.

By the time Sisko and Kira stepped from the small

transporter platform into the cramped cockpit of the

Mekong, the smile had vanished from the command-

er's face. It was replaced by a concerned frown,

matched by that of Major Kira.

"They don't seem to realize the danger they're in,"

said the Bajoran.

"No," answered Sisko, "and I'm not sure we do

either." He wondered if it was really a coincidence

that the arch was sabotaged just as they were standing

on it. He didn't like the fact that a relatively common-

place operation--the transfer of antimatter to a new

ship--should be a flashpoint for bitter hatreds. Most

of all, he didn't like his lack of control over the

Bajoran side of the operation.

"Shall I take us out of orbit?" asked Ensign Hage.

Sisko was stirred out of his troubled thoughts. "Let

me take the controls," he answered, slipping into the

conn seat. "I want to see if I can get us back in under

two hours."

En route to Quark's Place on the bustling Prom-

enade, Chief O'Brien heard his communicator beep,

and he stopped midstride to answer it. Odo waited

patiently beside him.

"Chief," said a concerned voice, "the level-three

diagnostic you ordered on cargo bay one has picked

up a few anomolies. They're probably just bad seals or

worn sensor arrays, but I thought you might want to

take a look."

"I'll be right there," muttered O'Brien. "Out." He

turned to Odo and muttered, "Bloody Cardassians

never replaced a seal in their lives. I'd better go check

this, Odo. That's the cargo bay where we're storing the

antimatter pods."

"Then by all means, don't let me detain you," said

the morph. "I am quite capable of questioning Quark

by myself."

O'Brien smiled. "Yeah, but I don't know when

you'll offer to buy me a drink again."

"Probably never," Odo answered honestly.

"Maybe you could give me a rain check."

Odo tilted his head puzzledly. "Why would I check

for rain in a space station?"

"Never mind," muttered O'Brien, starting off. "I'll

make that cargo bay the safest place on the station."

Odo offered him a slight smile. "If you do, I will buy

you that drink."

After O'Brien strode off in the opposite direction,

Odo put his hands behind his back and continued his

stroll down the Promenade. He passed a combination

grooming/tattoo salon, a gift shop specializing in

holographic wormhole ornaments, and a restaurant

that featured live food. All of the establishments were

crowded. Publicly, Odo often complained about the

rowdy lot who passed through the station, but private-

ly he preferred to see it bustling and busy than

deserted and comatose. He liked the stimulus of so

many visitors, even if each one presented a unique

security risk.

He could spot the tourists--the ones who had come

simply to see the only stable wormhole in existence.

And he could spot the adventurers--the ones who

were not content just to see it but had to pass through

to the little-explored Gamma Quadrant on the other

side. It was the others who concerned him--the ones

who came to this far-flung corner of the galaxy for

personal gain. Some were attracted by the lawless

elements of Bajor, a chaotic planet struggling to

Star Trek Deep Space 9 08 Antimatter

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