CHAPTER SEVEN

                "Entering Forever World's system."

                "Thank you, Mr. Chekov. Uhura, raise the Enterprise."

                "Yes, Sir. Captain Picard on screen."

                The captain of the future appeared. "Yes, Captain Kirk."

                "We're almost there. Are your people ready?"

                "Indeed so, Captain. We've had to go through some computer security protocol to get to your reports concerning the Guardian. The Federation has them classified at the highest level even in our time."

                Kirk nodded. "I'm not surprised. The dangers involved with using the Guardian are cataclysmic. But, in our present situation I don't see what we have to lose."

                "Standard orbital approach, Sir?" said Chekov and, on the screen, Ro at the same time, both gazing quickly at the other and then turning to their respective commanders.

                "Affirmative," Kirk said.

                "Make it so," responded Picard.

                Then they both said, "Good luck, Captain."

                "See you below," Kirk added before the communication ceased.

                The young lieutenant tossed and turned in his bed, on the verge of sleep. Days after being assigned to the Enterprise, hand picked by the captain, the ship and crew were flung into a situation in which he felt helpless. 'Damn,' he thought in a half-conscious haze. 'I can't let this ship or this captain down, not like when...' Sleep captured him finally, cutting off all conscious thought.

                The familiar beeping broke through his dreams. The lieutenant sat up quickly, drenched in sweat, unaware of how long he had been resting. The beep recurred. Someone was at the door to his quarters. A glance at his chrono indicated his shift was still ninety minutes away, but in their present situation... "Hold on a moment."

                He jumped out of bed and wrapped a robe around himself. Stepping forward, the sensor automatically detected his presence and opened the door to reveal ... the captain.

                "Sir?," he said fumbling at his half-open robe.

                "At ease, Castillo." She said glancing at the blushing officer. "May I come in?"

                "Of course," Richard Castillo replied, regaining his composure.

                Captain Garrett walked past him and sat down on the nearest chair.

                "Can I get you anything, Sir? Coffee, maybe or..."

                "No time, Lieutenant."

                Castillo blinked in surprise. "Of course, Sir."

                "I realize you have logged very little time on a starship, but as you know, I chose you for your excellent academy credentials. You had more than your fair share of crises as a cadet. You know our current situation?"

                "Yes."

                "Then you are aware we are preparing to re-engage the Cardassians. You also know we have no backup support save a rickety space station and a starship that belongs in a museum. There is no guarantee that the other Enterprises will succeed in their mission. I need my best people in positions where they will be of the best use. Therefore, I am promoting you to the bridge as helmsman."

                "Sir?," Castillo was genuinely taken aback. Garrett was leapfrogging him over a dozen officers.

                "You would have made it there eventually, but I don't have time to put people through the ranks. The Cardassians and our other enemies aren't giving us such luxury. I'm just sorry your new duties will have to be performed in a situation such as this one. Your shift starts in thirty minutes, helmsman. See you on the bridge."

                And she was gone, leaving a flabbergasted man in her wake.

                "We should land near the arboretums adjacent to the Vedek Assembly," Kira said.

                "If they exist," Dax countered.

                Kira shot her a vexing glance.

                Number One, from the original Enterprise, stood and walked toward the front of the runabout where the two DS9 officers were seated. "It is logical to assume the conditions of the planet in which you are familiar will vary with those on the planet below, Major Kira."

                "I understand, Sir," Kira responded in a fluster. "But we have no choice but to assume we can accomplish our mission."

                "I agree," Number One concurred.

                Spock monitored the science console. "Sensors indicate Bajoran life forms in the area designated by the Major."

                "Bingo," Kira cried out, clenching her fist. "Everyone prepare for descent."

                The sounds brought back the agony. Kirk watched as the landscape that is forever burned in his memory materialized around him. Kirk turned to see Spock standing next to him. Moments later, a nearly familiar sound filled Kirk's ears as the Enterprise-D's transporter deposited Picard, Riker, the android Data, the Klingon security officer Worf (Kirk caught himself tense and quickly regained composure), and Q on the planet's surface.

                "Well, well. Could use a good cleaning service," Q said as he bounded toward the Guardian. "Come along everyone."

                Worf grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

                "Caution is warranted, Q," Picard said.

                "Get your Neanderthal off me, Jean-Luc."

                "Worf is mainly here to keep you in check, Q. I commend him for his quickness."

                Kirk and Spock stepped toward the away team. "Captain," Kirk said, "I know this is cliché, but time is of the essence."

                Q groaned.

                "Right then, Captain," Picard said. "Shall we?" he gestured toward the Guardian.

                "That's where I was going," Q gasped. "I see. One of the headliners has to move the plot along. Well, let me just say... Owww, Microbrain, that hurts. Stop squeezing so hard."

                Until now, the Entity monitored the last vestiges of the two species with curiosity and humor. It enjoyed watching them flop around the galaxy like fish out of water. But, it started feeling something more, restlessness and annoyance. It was almost time to move on, which meant squashing the last of the bugs...