Sky Trek: The Time Capsule

World Map and Glossary

In a place of golden yet dimly lit architecture, of cluttered counters where flasks and graduated cylinders congregated, a terrific whirring sound echoed through both it and the many corridors surrounding it. Like a ghost not sure if it really wanted to pop in from the afterlife, it appeared then disappeared several times, before finally settling on the latter. Yet this was no ghost, it was a simple, blue, police box.

Out of it stepped three figures. There was The Doctor, of course, his 'youthful' perkiness and cat-like curiosity immediately apparent. Then came Rose, a blonde-haired, enthusiastic young lady. Finally, there was Captain Jack Harkness, the newcomer of the Doctor's companions, who wore the uniform of a war that wouldn't be fought for many years.

None of this seemed to surprise the middle-aged, lab coat-sporting man who approached them.

"Doctor!" The Doctor grinned.

"Doctor!" the man grinned back.

"Seriously?" Rose smirked.

"It's our thing," The Doctor shrugged. "Don't knock our thing."

"Hey, I won't," Jack smiled, eyeing the other doctor over. "It's cute. And speaking of cute…" He approached the man for a handshake, a peculiar look in his eye. "Captain Jack Harkness. I like the title, but is there a name after it?"

"Jack…" The Doctor groaned.

"Just saying hello," he said, smiling innocently.

"Uh huh."

"Oh, I don't mind," the man replied, gripping the ‘captain’s’ hand. "I'm Noonian Soong, by the way. Welcome, all of you, to my…" He took a deep breath, before proclaiming in a dramatic tone: "LABORATORY UNDER THE SEA!"

"YES!" The Doctor grinned, fully onboard with Dr. Soong's hamminess. "I love it when you do that."

Rose and Jack looked at each other, then grinned. 'This is going to be a fun adventure,' the latter thought.

"Just my way of saying thank you for coming," Dr. Soong said. "Who are these new companions of yours?"

"Oh, shoot," The Doctor said. "That was rude of me. This is Rose Tyler and… well, I believe you know Captain Jack."

Jack shrugged.

"Intriguing," Dr. Soong said, examining them. "Your clothing, it's unlike anything I've ever seen. Tell me, are you from the ancient past or the distant future?"

"Good question," Rose said, glancing at the Doctor. "You never did mention where we were going."

"Or when," Jack added.

"Didn't I?" The Doctor said whimsically. "This is Vault Omicron-Theta of Gallifrey, around a thousand years before the Fed-- er, I mean your time."

"Wait… Gallifrey…” Rose said, her eyes widening. “Your people?”

"That's right," the Doctor said. "I don't usually like to hang around these parts, but for Dr. Soong, I'm making an exception."

"If you would stop messing around with time travel you could visit more often," Dr. Soong huffed. "The Ancient Ones tasked us with maintaining the timeline, not making it all wibbly wobbly."

"Yet you haven't narced on me yet," The Doctor smiled.

"Only because I trust you to be careful," Dr. Soong said, raising a finger. "And not do anything too stupid."

"Fingers crossed," The Doctor chirped. "So, what's up? You sounded sort of… distressed in your call. Almost like it was a… distress call! Hah!"

"Forgive me," Dr. Soong sighed. "I was still reeling from the shock of it."

"Shock from what?" Rose asked.

Dr. Soong glared at no one in particular. "Gallifreyan High Command believes the war is drawing to a close. I've been asked to seal this vault and leave its fate to time."

“The war?” Jack said. “Which war?”

“The war, my historically challenged friend,” Dr. Soong said. “One that the High Command would do anything to win.”

“We both know what that means,” The Doctor said darkly.

“Indeed,” Dr. Soong said. “But I for one am not just about to let everything here go to waste. At the very least, I’d like to guarantee my greatest creations will be safe."

"Greatest creations?" The Doctor asked. "Wait… you're not talking about--"

"I am," Dr. Soong said, a twinkle in his eye, before taking yet another deep breath: "And I don’t care what any visionless fools will say: they are ALIVE!”

--

Over a millennium later, The Federation Skyship Enterprise roared over rolling waves. With her engines at warp speed, they blared as brightly as the distant sun.

Captain’s Log, SFD 62.1932

To my dismay, our mission to chart the rest of the Arcturian Sea has been put on an unexpected hold. Instead, we have been dispatched on a Priority One mission by Skyfleet, who in turn are acting on a request from the Federation president herself. Given the unusual nature of what we’re being asked to do, I’m contacting the president to elaborate further on this matter.

In his ready room, Picard stood in front of a device the Federation had barely been able to get ahold of through trade: a megascope. Despite being from a relatively less advanced civilization, this strange piece of magitek still intrigued Picard due to what it was currently producing in front of him: a hologram.

It bore the resemblance of an older, but still marvelously perky woman in old-fashioned, gothic clothing. A cat-like smile adorned her face as she explained the situation with great enthusiasm.

Enthusiasm Captain Picard did not share.

“It’s not that I don’t understand the importance of what you wish us to do,” he said. “I’m merely concerned about the safety of my crew.”

“Oh Jean-Luc,” the hologram cooed. “Do you really think I’d put my favorite captain in such a position? I can assure you, the radiation levels of that area are quite harmless.”

“Ms. President…” Picard groaned.

“How many times must you make me say it?” She chided playfully. “Call me Missy; everyone who matters does.”

“Fine, Missy--”

“See? Rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it?”

“Ms. President!” Picard said, his voice dangerously close to a shout. “I am still curious as to how you even received the whereabouts of this… this Gallifreyan vault in the first place.”

“See, this is why I like you,” the President of the Federation beamed. “Infinitely curious.”

“I’m… flattered, of course,” Picard sighed. “But that doesn’t exactly answer my question.”

Missy smirked. “If I told you it was ‘classified’, what would your first course of action be?”

Jean-Luc studied her gaze, thinking carefully about his response.

She merely chuckled. “Oh, don’t bother. We both know you’d start making inquiries. With your influence, you’d probably find out eventually. So, why don’t I save you and many others the trouble. I assume a man as fascinated in archeology as yourself has kept up with the latest findings, yes?”

“I… dabble.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Then you most likely know of what Dr. Jones discovered in the Arawak Rainforest.”

“Mmm, yes,” Picard nodded. “An apparent colony of a non-Terran Continent civilization, if I remember correctly.”

“Not the first, and most certainly not the last to be discovered,” Missy stated. “However, unlike many others, this was not so unknown. Care to take a guess as to who it belonged to?”

Picard folded his arms, thinking to himself. There were only so many non-Terran ancient civilizations the Federation knew about so far. So, he took a guess: “Was it… Gallifreyan?”

Missy smirked, a whimsical look coming over her. “Oh, he really would have liked you.”

“May I ask who it is you’re referring to?” Picard asked.

The president merely laughed. “I have no qualms with giving away some of my innumerable secrets to you for free, but for that particular one, you’re going to have to earn it.”

Picard folded his arms. “I see.”

“All in due time, dearest,” she continued in a sing-song tone. “Now then - I leave you to put two and two together as to how we came about the vault’s location. Not that it matters, anyway - it won’t be around for anyone else to find out about after long.”

“You’re saying there’s a ticking clock element to this?”

Missy bobbed her head back and forth. “Yes and no. For anyone else looking for it, perhaps. The length of said clock is entirely dependent on your expedience.”

Picard puzzled over that, before finally blinking in surprise. “You want us to destroy the vault?”

Missy smiled. “Another gold star for you, captain. Well done. I am a bit surprised at your surprise, however. What else did you expect to be sent there for?”

“You stated it was a vault of technology,” Picard said. “I only assumed--”

“If it were any other time and if we were any other nation,” Missy said. “Don’t get me wrong, if it wasn’t for democracy we wouldn’t be standing here having this conversation. However, the freer the people, the looser the lips, the easier to ease-drop.

Federation security has and never will be tight enough to keep it from being infested with spies. As we speak, other nations are likely being informed about the vault. They will undoubtedly begin deploying assets to its location very soon. The Galactan Empire, Nilfgaard, the United North, the Goa'uld, and even our BFFs the Klingon Orcs are all close enough to beat you to the punch. That or intercept any sort of shipment."

“And if they did …” Picard continued.

“They could be given a decisive advantage,” Missy stated. “You know as well as I how advanced the Gallifreyans were both technologically and mystically speaking. If only they weren’t stupid enough to wipe themselves out, they’d probably dominate the known world at this point.”

“It is still heavily debated whether they actually did so,” Picard said bluntly.

“Quick as a whip but still disappointingly optimistic,” Missy chuckled. “A true personification of the Federation. Come now, captain - we both know in our heart of hearts what happened to them. They were infants who tried to run before they could crawl. And that brings me to my next point: even if we got ahold of the technology before the other nations, there’s no guarantee it would stay in our hands, nor that we would be ready to use it anymore than the Gallifreans were. I will not allow their own hubris to destroy us.”

“You’ll hear no argument from me,” Picard stated. “I’ve long since been of the mindset that one’s technology should never outpace one’s culture. The Federation is, after all, still in its relative infancy. With that in mind, however, there may be factions within it that will take objection.”

“Let them cry,” Missy said nonchalantly. “I can handle the political blowback. Besides, it’ll likely stay behind closed doors. I don’t think they’ll want to try to rally the public on their side. No public support and Missy is on easy street.”

Picard raised an eyebrow. “Third person?”

“Never claimed not to have an ego,” Missy winked. “Now then: you have the coordinates. So mon capitaine - that’s Gallian for ‘my captain’, by the way - make mommy proud.”

Before Captain Picard could say another word, the hologram blinked off, and the light droning noise of the megascope drew silent. Picard shook his head in bafflement, silently uttering to himself: ‘mommy?’

--

The absolutely clear skies surrounding the Enterprise beckoned through her bridge's windows, offering an unusually beautiful view. This came with a bountiful supply of sunlight, enough to put anyone in a good mood. Despite this luxury, the crew were still tense when Picard stepped into the saucer-like room.

“Captain?” Riker asked, an apprehensive look in the (newly) bearded man’s eyes.

“Maintain course, Number One,” Picard sighed. “I just spoke with the president herself - whatever environmental hazards may be present, we are to complete this mission.”

“It must be pretty damned serious, then,” Riker said.

Picard nodded. “When both Skyfleet and the president agree on something, you bet it is. In fact, she seems personally invested in seeing this through. She views it as vital to the security of the Federation.”

“So the Federation is actually being proactive for once?" Leia smiled. "No argument from me."

"I still think this is a bad idea," Victor grumbled. "We really don't want to mess around in that neighborhood."

“Mind your post, ensign,” Mr. Worf grunted. “The honor is to serve, no matter the task.”

Victor raised his human eyebrow. "Hey, I'm not the one who is gonna be the most at risk."

“Can’t say I don't see your point, Ensign Stone,” Command Shepard stated. “The last time a ship was ordered into the Atomic Sea, half the crew died two weeks afterwards.”

Picard turned to her. “The president has... assured me that radiation levels of the particular area in question are perfectly safe.”

The battle-hardened woman folded her arms in skepticism. "I heard the same thing from officers about to order kids into a mustard gas-filled trench. 'Don't worry, it's safe.'"

"This isn't the Great War, commander," Picard said with a slight shiver. "Though I can’t say I don’t understand you.”

“Did you manage to get ahold of Dr. Crusher?” Riker asked. “Would have been nice to hear her opinion on this …”

"Dr. Crusher?” Luna asked curiously.

“An old friend,” Picard said. “We served together on the Seagazer. And no, unfortunately Skyfleet Medical reported she was out doing field work. Dr. Kelso was there, however. He gave me the same response as the president.” Picard raised a finger, turning back to Riker. “Nonetheless, I believe everyone’s concerns are warranted. I would like Dr. Cox to supply a small amount of Potassium Iodide supplements to all crew members who need them, just in case.”

“Aye, captain,” he said, a hint of appreciation in his eyes.

He then turned to Deanna, sitting in a chair adjacent to the captain’s. “Counselor, both this order combined with the nature of the mission may cause a certain amount of unrest among the crew. I’d like you to proactively monitor their stress levels and intervene at your discretion.”

“My staff and I will be on the lookout, captain,” she said. “You’re right, though: radiation is still something barely understood by modern science. Many have an almost primordial fear of it.”

“Something that could kill you without you even knowing it’s there?” Tasha stated. “Can’t say it doesn’t freak me out a little.”

“I still think this is going to be worth it,” Princess Leia said. “Buuut…I do see where everyone’s coming from. Before joining the Federation, New Republic Intelligence had suggested the Empire was working on dirty weapons using radioactive elements. Then, it suddenly stopped. From what we learned later, the entire Imperial science division tasked with it had died of radiation poisoning.” She narrowed her eyes. “The Empire’s regard for life never extended beyond the Emperor’s himself.”

“Maybe that’s what happened with the Gallifreyans?” Riker said. “What if those sorts of weapons are the reason the whole place is a deadzone?” He then looked at Luna. “You wouldn’t happen to know, would you?”

“Don’t look at me,” the former princess stated. “As I've said to others, back when the Gallifreyans went extinct, my people were just starting to build wooden houses. We weren’t even aware of a world outside of our home continent.”

“If given the time, perhaps we will have a chance to solve this mystery, then,” Picard mused.

“Given the time?” Riker asked.

“Indeed. Our primary mission is to destroy the vault, whatever form it may take,” the captain said.

Naturally, this was enough to cause the bridge crew to break into murmurs.

“Destroy it? And all the tech goodies that might be there?”

“Has the president lost her mind?”

“Pffft… we already know she’s lost hermind. I just can’t believe Skyfleet’s going along with it.”

“Everyone, please,” Riker interjected, silencing the crew.

Picard nodded his way in thanks, before continuing. “There is reason to believe other factions may be aware of the vault. They may even be heading to it as we speak. We are not to allow such advanced technology to fall into potentially hostile hands.”

“Any in particular?” Victor asked.

“All nearby nations are suspect,” Picard stated.

"The Empire wouldn’t be above using that type of tech to create more superweapons," Leia said.

“My people would also have no issue using it,” Worf stated. “Even if it meant straining relations with the Federation.”

“What happens if someone gets there before us?” Shepard asked. “How far are we willing to go to keep things buried?”

“I’d prefer keeping our mouths open and our guns silent,” Picard said. “Though anything up to starting a war is on the table.”

“I’ll have Mr. Garrus calibrate the main cannons then,” Worf said, a slight hint of eagerness in his eyes.

Picard nodded. “I’d like all systems and crew ready for combat - again, just in case.”

“What about away teams, captain?” Shepard said. “Should we be strictly demolitions?”

Picard shook his head. “No, get a decent mix of specialists. I’d like to at least document as much as we can before we’re forced to destroy it.”

“Kill two birds with one stone,” Riker suggested.

“Indeed, Number One. Oh, and Commander Shepard, that includes one or more of our archeologists. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind the opportunity to finally get their hands dirty.”

“Aye, sir, will do,” Shepard said.

Picard took a deep breath, taking his seat in the middle of the room and habitually adjusting his uniform. Riker took a seat next to him.

“So much for just exploring - eh, captain?” he asked.

“Mmm, it would certainly seem so," Picard mused. “Though if someone beats us to the punch, I don't believe exploration will be on the menu for a very long time. Let’s just hope the president's fears are unfounded."

--

“Disconnect safety locks from our Long Engines,” a cool, calm voice ordered. “And have our jedi ‘friend’ continually monitoring for any unexpected surges.”

“But Grand Admiral Thrawn, if it overloads…”

“It will be a long voyage home,” Thrawn spoke. “I know, Captain Pellaeon. However, it’s a choice between possibly making it there in time or not making it there at all.”

“I understand,” Pellaeon sighed, turning to his communications officer. “Relay the admiral’s orders, ensign.”

“Aye, sir.”

Above distant waters, on the bridge of the Imperial Sky Destroyer Chimera, Grand Admiral Thrawn was juggling between reading through various ship status reports and strategizing. Captain Pellaeon stood by him, hoping the Imperial leader wasn't detecting the worry on his face.

“We should assume the Federation will make no delay in dispatching a ship to the vault’s location,” Thrawn spoke.

“Do you think they know about our spy ring?” Pellaeon asked.

“Know? No,” Thrawn said. “Suspect? Almost certainly.”

“Then they’re definitely going to make haste,” Eli Vanto, Thrawn’s aide stated.

“That, too, is a certainty,” Thrawn acknowledged.

“How many ships do you believe they’ll send?” Pellaeon asked.

“Just one,” Thrawn said, no hint of doubt in his voice. “The Enterprise. It’s all they’ll need to end the vault’s long existence. It’s also the only ship that could reach it before rival vessels could. Or at least the vessels they're aware of.”

“Even so, I still have misgivings with you leading this mission personally,” Eli said. “You’re the leader of the Galactan Empire now - if something were to happen to you…”

Thrawn shook his head. “The menial risk to my life is well worth the benefits such ‘lead by example’ maneuverings afford me.”

Eli raised his eyebrows. “And I’m sure this has nothing to do with wanting to test the Federation’s mettle personally, either, right?”

Thrawn threw him a rare, bemused look in response. “We’ve already gained quite a bit of information on the Federation, but Picard… I want to see how he’ll react. He seems to be a somewhat unpredictable variable.”

“How can you be certain he’ll destroy the vault, then?” Pellaeon asked.

“Because there is one constant he has shown: Picard truly believes in the ideals of the Federation.” Thrawn said. “All they are is what they wish to be. You can see it in their art: every detail, every stroke of the brush shows a culture that wishes to be called enlightened. Their only concern in regards to defense is to ‘keep a level playing field’, so to speak. They believe that as long as that stays true, peace is always on the table.”

“I wish they were right,” Palleon sighed.

“As do I,” Thrawn said. “I’m actually more concerned with dealing with third parties - or rogue Federation elements.”

Palleon raised his eyebrows. “You believe they might get involved?”

Thrawn narrowed his blood-red eyes. “If they know about this - and they almost certainly do - then it’s without a doubt. The puzzle is how they’d plan to go about such an operation.”

--

Thousands of miles away, in a rare clearing among Farpoint Island's jungles, a group of individuals stacked supply crates in front of a large, upright circular ring. Directing them was a man whose face was entirely obscured by bandages. Seeing a spare moment, he slipped out a semi-automatic pistol from his vest, popped out its clip, and inspected the glowing bullets from within. Seemingly satisfied, he then slipped it back in just as a young, Xinian woman approached him.

"Is that everything, Ms. Sato?" he asked, his voice deep and calm yet laced with a smoldering fire.

“Yes, Joshua. We’re all set here,” the woman said. “Just need to wait for the Captain to send us the coordinates.”

“God be willing,” Joshua nodded, before clearing his throat and grabbing the attention of the four other individuals around him.

“I don’t think I need to tell anyone here that The Federation is the greatest miracle the almighty has ever bestowed upon this blasted world.

Its greatest flaw, unfortunately, is that its people don’t recognize this.

It’s hard to blame them when the memories of what came before have rotted away, but reality itself is never so easily eroded. Thus, we few who know what lies outside its stone walls must safeguard it from the terror that lingers just out of sight. We will be the fuel that allows its flame to burn in that darkness. And once we seize the technology of the ancient ones…”

The only visible features of his face, his eyes, narrowed.

“It will keep burning for a thousand years.”