"Achilles' Flight"

[Cptn Elias Moore 0]

Lieutenant Commander Joshua Maynard, First Officer of the ESS Achilles, had not touched his breakfast. It sat on the table in front of him, neglected, as he stared at the nearby viewport in deep contemplation.

 

They had fled the scene of an attack on a Starfleet vessel... by a fellow Starfleet vessel, no less. Without any sort of explanation, Commander Crane, a woman he'd always trusted with his very life, ordered their departure from the Nequencia system. He pressed for answers many times, but she simply assured him that she knew what she was doing and needed the trust of her crew.

 

The ship made a brief and mysterious stop at Kappa Persei. Someone or something was transported from the surface. More questions were asked, still she left everyone in the dark.

 

And now the ship was continuing a voyage to some destination that was unknown to all but Commander Crane... and, Maynard suspected, the Bolian engineers in whose quarters she was spending quite a bit of time. One of the Bolians, Nagen, was transported aboard just as Challenger fired on Defiant. Was he responsible for the attack?

 

The crew was becoming restless. They looked to Maynard for answers, but he merely assured them that the Commander had their best interests in mind. He couldn't even be sure if he was right; his own trust in Commander Crane was beginning to slip.

 

The door to his quarters opened. He looked up as Commander Crane crossed the threshold then stepped to the side. Nagen entered, followed by his assistant, Ardyus... and a fourth person whom Maynard didn't recognize. He looked human, but he was remarkably large and shaggy. The hulking figure had an unkempt tangle of black hair atop his head and a thick beard. He wore a plain brown tunic that's low collar and short sleeves showed mats of hair on his chest and arms. A strong smell of grease preceded him into the quarters. He gave Maynard a toothy grin that showed overly large canines.

 

Maynard swept a quick glance over all four of his guests. Answers were coming. And what else, he wondered? His gaze stopped on the large figure, who stepped ahead of the others. "I suppose this is our visitor from Kappa Persei, Commander?"

 

"You've supposed quite a bit, I imagine." Crane answered. "As has the crew. They're close to a mutiny, aren't they, Joshua?"

 

"They're about ready to mutiny, yes." Maynard answered. "They're eager for an explanation that you haven't given them. But I've been holding them at bay, Lillian... if you really are Lillian."

 

Crane laughed and Maynard looked at her now. It wasn't Commander Crane's laugh. She looked quite different now, he observed... looked like some strange person merely borrowing Commander Crane's body and making no attempt to hide it anymore. But even as this strange person had been so expertly mimicking Crane's personality over the past few months, Maynard could observe the small nuances that had managed to arouse his suspicion as early as Achilles' withdrawal from the Nequencia system. Looking back... he could recall such nuances even as early as Achilles' last shore leave at Earth.

 

"You're holding them at bay, Joshua?" Crane asked. "The Captain and the First Officer must be as one. The crew recognizes that we aren't. That's why they're ready to mutiny. You haven't put your trust in me... why should they?"

 

"So why have you brought this man to me?" He motioned to the giant. "And your two Bolian lackeys? To beat some sense into me? Just like you destroyed Defiant?"

 

"Oh, we have no need to beat sense into you, Joshua." Crane circled around the giant and the table so that she was standing beside him. "We can simply create a Joshua Maynard that is better capable of backing up his commanding officer."

 

"Is that so?" Maynard kept his gaze on her, but his hand was creeping for his communicator under the table. "How are you going to do that? The same way you created a better Lillian Crane?"

 

"That's right." Crane nodded, now smiling unpleasantly. "Only, I'm not going to do it."

 

Maynard glanced at the large figure that was now moving closer to the table. He pulled his communicator off his belt and whipped it open, but Crane had been on to him; she grabbed his arm and pulled it up sharply, sending the communicator flying out of his hand. He stood and tried to pull his arm free, but his attention was suddenly diverted across the table...

 

The large man had disappeared into... what appeared to be a transport shimmer. But rather than fading, this transport shimmer moved toward him. It glided right through the table as if there was nothing obstructing its movement. With only a second to react, Maynard used his free hand to retrieve his phase pistol. But he was too late. The mass of dancing particles engulfed him.

 

"Keep it clean." Was the last thing he heard Crane say before stunning pain ripped him. It was the feeling of a million needles shooting through his body with lightning speed. There were no wounds to release the blood, but he knew that his organs were being reduced to shreds. It took a moment that felt like an eternity for his life to snuff out. The shimmer left Maynard's body with nothing but a gush of blood from his mouth to suggest what had happened. The lifeless body fell to the deck with a thump.

 

The transport shimmer drifted back over the table and hovered for a moment before it began to materialize. The body that reformed was no longer that of the shaggy stranger. It was the body of Lieutenant Commander Maynard--an exact replica of the figure that lay dead behind the table... even wearing the same uniform.

 

"Commander, do you read?" Maynard's communicator was lying in the corner. The new Maynard walked over and picked it up. "Come in, Commander."

 

"Yeah, this is Maynard." The figure responded in Maynard's exact same voice.

 

"Sensors picked up a transport signature in your quarters. We also read an attempt to use your communicator. Is everything alright?"

 

"Yes, Lieutenant Roosevelt, everything is fine. In fact, I've had an interesting chat with Commander Crane. She's finally let me in on our mission." He looked over at the smiling Crane. "It seems everything is going to be just fine. You were right to check on me, though, James. I'll be on the Bridge shortly."

 

When he closed the device, Crane looked at the Bolians. "Let's make sure this isn't found." She motioned to the dead body. The Bolians bowed and scurried around the table.

 

"Shall we proceed to the Bridge, Commander Crane?" Maynard asked with a mischievous smirk.

 

"But of course, Commander Maynard." Crane answered.

 

"I can't wait for this spacecraft trip to end." Maynard said as he stepped toward the door. "I'm really looking forward to finally seeing this weapon of yours."

 

"Silly Joshua." Crane said in a mock tone as she followed him. "You can't see it. It's only a particle..."