Four Years War

STAR TREK

THE FOUR YEARS WAR

Volume IV

A novel by

Stephen Fender

Edited by

Lynda Dietz

Published by

JRP

Jolly Rogers Productions

Star Trek: The Four Years War, Vol. 4

www.jollyrogersproductions.net

Seattle, WA.

First Edition: 2015

Published through Jolly Rogers Productions (JRP) ©, a subsidiary division of StephenFender.com

Contact:

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Cover art layout and rendering by Stephen Fender ©.

Background image by Ali Ries ©. Used with permission.

Star Trek © is a registered trademark of CBS. I’d like to personally thank CBS for not shutting my project down.

I’d like to thank my family, friends and fans who have been there through this process. I’m grateful for all of you, and each of you has a special place in my heart.

I’d also like to thank my editor, Lynda. She spent countless hours going over this text, and it was time well spent. This novel is the culmination of a lot of hard work, and I’m exceedingly grateful for her assistance.

I want to extend a very special thanks to my wife. Your support has been nothing short of amazing. I love you, angel.

Acknowledgements:

I’d like to thank the following individuals who backed the Kickstarter campaign to get these books produced. Without each of you, this would never have been possible:

Adam Dinnes / Lawrence Nelson
Adam Poulsen / Lee Horrocks
Alan Zukof / Leigh Hennig
Amy Eller Beer / Lina Prz
Andrew J. Buse / Lisa Lyons
Anthony Alan Fenton / Lloyd Duggins
Anthony Richards / Marc Steinijans
Arne Radtke / Marco Boersma
Axanar Productions / Margaret St. John
B Walaardt / Mariano Di Murro
Barbara Sach / Mark Canty
Ben Ames / Mark Donnelly
Bjørnar Årvik / Mark Newman
Blair Nicholson / Mark Williams
Bob Griffing / Martin Glassborow
Brendon Goodyear / Martin Hirst
Brian D Lambert / Martin L. Collins
Brian Kreuzinger / Martin Stringer
Brian Webber / Matt Lee
Brittany Dudas / Matthew D. Luxa
Bud Keegan / Matthew Dempsey
Carl Chambers / Matthew Whiteacre
Carolanne L / Michael Blanchard
Carrie Heyen / Michael Bradford
Cassandra E. Deluisa / Michael Hoffmann
Catalino / Michael J. Kulaga
Charles Lewis / Michael J. Lai
Charles Todd Gwynn / Michael J. Medeiros
Michael Rabb
Chasin R. Durbin / Michael Rooney Jr.
Chris Jernigan / Michael Schaeffer
Chris Roby / Michael Thompson
Chris Settecase / Michael Waack
Chris_JS / Nathaniel
Christian Laroche / Niall Johnson
Christopher Nowell / Nicholas S. Shanayda
Christopher Sneeringer / Nick Fajardo
Craftmom68 / Norman Jaffe
DakotaSurfer / Olivier Mondor
Dan Balkwill / Pat H
Daniel Attard / Patricia Jaderborg
Daniel Hippensteel / Paul Janssens
Daniel J. Balkwill / Paul Prulhiere
Daniel Ohana / Paul Scollon
Darren Keith / Philip Devine
Dave Keeshan / Phill Harris
David Alexander / Pyth0n
David Heath / Ralph Severson
David Shuford / Randy Anderson
Dayne Creveling / Reinhard Tlustos
Dennis Persson / Rich Chang
Derek Freeman / Richard Eyres
Dewitte Baisch / Richard Gable
Diana Paprotny / Richard Todd
Dominic Merz / Richard Tongue
Don & Karen Albares / Rob Beck
Donald Edwards / Robert Jr Riddle
Doug Eckhoff / Robert Spurr
Dwayne Day / Robert Symons
Ellis Coombs / Robert Taylor
Emilio Desalvo / Roland Schreiner
Eric Dieter / Rom Walton
Eric Welsby / Ron Bridgemon
Erich Tauschmann / Ronald Blocksom
Erik D. Burnett / Ronald E. Kendrick, Jr.
Erin Grooms / Ryan Patrick
Esteve T. Freitas / Scott Brummundt
Eugene Alex / Scott Cook
Fred Davis / Scott Early
George Lukach / Scott Luke
Graeme Cochran / Sean Allaire
Gregory Clark Rozier / Sean Barrett
Gretchen Williams / Sebastian Kempinger
Hans Gonzalez / Serena Nelson
Harry Schurr / Seth Straughan
Hunter Schoumacher / Shane Rose
Ian H. Weiger / Sonia Koval
Ivar Bardie / Stephen Dryley-Collins
J Lee Watts / Steve Firestine
Jacques Pelletier / Steven Baker
James Goodwin / Steven Butler
James Keener / Steven L. Geyer
James Walter Lutsch / Steven Lord
James Webb / Steven Rowley
Jamie Dent / Sven Proboszcz
Jan Rodich / Teresa Ramos
Jared Bronson / Theodore T. Geib, III
Jarrod Frahm / Thijs ter Horst
Jasiha Welch / Thomas Allen
Jason Fowler / Thomas Mooney
Jason Genser / Thomas Perry
Jeff Doubleday / Thomas Zilling
Jeffrey Harlan / Tim Aukett
Jeffrey Webb / Tim D'Allaird
Jim Traina / Tim Knight
Jirod Devlin / Tim Mushel
Joel Gates / Timothy Houser
John Miles / Tobias Schwarz
Todd Cooper
John O. Edgeworth / Tom Becker
John Rezendes / Tom Boucher
John Sponheimer / Tom Combs
John T. Moss / Tom Ericksen
John Villanueva / Tom Tiernan
John Wenskovitch / Tony Fling
Joseph Stiles / Treehugger
Judith Waidlich / Troy J. Acevedo
Justin Malone / Tyler Thomas
Kay Aleksic / Vernon Vincent
Kevin Gong / Vijay Varman
Kevin Phillips / Walter Lutsch
Kory Victoriano / Warren B. Rogers
Kyle Gross / Will Grafius
L. John Ribar / Will Stapleton
Larry J. DeStefano / YiZhong Tan
Lawrence Amrose / Zak Guder

All characters, settings, and events depicted in this novel are the intellectual property of Stephen Fender. Characters in this novel are not intended, nor should they be inferred by anyone, to represent actual living beings—either now or in the 24th century. Unless, of course, you want to infer it. I won’t stop you.

This is a derivative work of fiction, based on information that may or may not be copyrighted by other parties. No infringement on these rights is intended. This is purely a work of fiction, produced not for profit, and may not be resold to other parties, either alive, dead, or on a plane of existence somewhere between the two. There are elements of this story that are expressly the property of Jolly Rogers Productions (JRP), a subsidiary company of StephenFender.com. No copies of this material may be made without their prior consent. There is a whole litany of other legal jargon that could be used to fill this space, but I won’t bore you with it.

LLAP!

Chapter 1

January 2255

Stardate 4301.20

The Argelius Approaches—a beautiful respite in a violent plasma storm that stretched for nearly three parsecs in every direction. Little more than natural ruptures in the immense Argelian Nebula, the Approaches were a conduit that led directly to the only habitable planet in the system. Narrowest in the middle and open wide at either end, it was the only way for anyone outside the system to get to the mineral-rich planet, and the only way out into open space. A dangerous bottleneck, easily capped off by a waiting flotilla of Federation starships, it was almost a complete mystery why the Klingons had suddenly taken an interest in the hard-to-hold planetary system inside the nebula.

However, “almost” was the key word. In the last several weeks, Vice Admiral Max Zukof, the stout and deep-voiced Russian commander of the 19th Defense Squadron, had taken a keen interest in the message traffic being relayed from Starfleet Intelligence concerning the Klingons’ movements inside Federation space. Since their defeat at Thranstor—not to mention the decisive victory Starfleet scored during the Battle of Sire Yopat two weeks ago—the Klingons’ activities could be defined by some as desperate. In fact, as Zukof attempted to put the pieces together himself, he found himself agreeing with that assessment more each day.

The latest report as of stardate 4301.05 was showing that the influx of Klingon forces into Federation space had all but come to a halt. In fact, a handful of the enemy squadrons currently engaging the Federation had been either surrounded or forced to flee to other systems closer to Klingon-held territory. The scuttlebutt was that the Federation had succeeded in cutting off a majority of the Klingons’ supply lines into Federation space, and the invaders were becoming increasingly frantic for raw materials to feed their never-ending war machine. And Argelius, rich in metals and dilithium, was seen as a potential target. Thus, Zukof and his forces had been ordered to blockade the only entrance to the system.

On the view screen of the Bonhomme Richard-class USS George Patton, Max Zukof watched the undulating mass that was the Argelius Nebula from the comfort of the central command chair. Standing to his right, Commander Doug Eckhoff looked on with wonder.

“It’s amazing, isn’t it,” Eckhoff said as he nodded to the turbulent, glowing mass swirling around the wide opening to the Argelius system.

“What’s that, Commander?” Zukof said in his Russian dialect.

“That an aperture so small could remain open for so long in all this mess.”

“Small is relative, Mr. Eckhoff,” the admiral said as he, too, examined the outer fringes of the Approaches. “That opening is over 1200 meters wide.”

“True, but it narrows to only a few hundred near the center,” the ship’s science officer agreed. “That the nebula wouldn’t just absorb it . . . it’s quite—”

“Fascinating?”

Eckhoff smiled and turned to face the admiral. “If I were a Vulcan, I might agree with that. I think I’ll just say that it’s quite remarkable and leave it at that.”

Zukof smiled with understanding. “There’s a lot of gravitational force in there, Commander. You of all people should be aware of that.”

“What science officer in the fleet isn’t? We’ve all studied this phenomenon in the textbooks at one point or another in our careers.”

“But how many of them actually get to experience it as you are right now, yes?”

The commander beamed at the nebula on the screen. “Exactly my point, Admiral. I know a dozen officers who’d give anything to be where we are right now. To see this . . . to study it.”

Zukof grunted in approval. First and foremost, the admiral fancied himself an explorer. The strange forces at work in the Approaches—although studied by many—confounded all of them. Space, it seemed, would keep her secrets of this area to herself for the time being. Zukof wished he had the time to turn the Patton’s powerful sensors at the nebula and see what his ship could glean from it, but that was not to be. Not now. And if the Klingons were intent on taking this area, not anytime soon.

“Sir, message coming in from the Gettysburg,” a Hispanic-accented voice came from behind the admiral.

Zukof turned to face Lieutenant Citlalmina Serrano, the slightly overweight, jovial communications officer. Although she could stand to spend more time in the ship’s gymnasium, it never impeded her performance on landing party missions. “Very good. Put Captain Bridgemon through immediately.”

The screen faded to show Ron Bridgemon in the command chair of the Larson-class destroyer that was just pulling alongside the George Patton. “Greetings, Admiral Zukof.”

“Likewise, Captain. Thank you for making the long journey so quickly.”

Bridgemon raised a hand and nodded. “Don’t mention it, Admiral. Gettysburg is more than happy to assist in the blockade. Besides, mandatory shore leave was getting a little tedious.”

“I know you’re bending regulations by being here,” Zukof said, referring to the recent order by the commander of Starfleet that all crews be ordered to partake in mandatory rest between engagements. “It’s appreciated, Captain. I trust you and your crew are well rested, then?”

“We’re more than ready to handle anything the Klingons can throw our way, sir.”

“Excellent. I’d like the Gettysburg in quadrant 4-J. That should allow you to provide excellent cover for two cruisers in adjacent areas, as well as an excellent field of vision for your long-range sensors. Please align them along a heading of 42-mark-3.”

“Understood, sir,” Captain Bridgemon acknowledged. “We’ll get underway now. Gettysburg out.”

The image of Bridgemon faded, to be replaced by the Argelius Nebula once more.

“Two more ships coming in now, Admiral,” Commander Eckhoff said from the science console. “The Proxima and the Tolstoy.”

With the addition of the two starships, Zukof’s fleet of fifty-seven vessels was now complete, and well before the Klingons arrived. “Very good. Lieutenant Serrano, hail the Proxima. I’d like to speak to Captain K’ren.”

* * *

On board the Loknar-class frigate USS Proxima, Ensign Jonathan Thompson placed a hand to his earpiece receiver as the ship was hailed. “Captain K’ren, there’s a message coming in from the George Patton. It’s Vice Admiral Zukof.”

K’ren, the Vulcan captain of the Proxima, had taken over the ship from Paul Prulhiere when the latter was promoted to commodore and assigned to Starbase 10 five months ago. Since then, the science-minded captain had taken it upon himself to train the ship’s science officer, Commander Dewitte Baisch, in how to properly relay data to his Vulcan captain. Although Baisch initially seemed happy with the offer, it’d quickly turned into a monotonous routine, and the science officer was glad to have K’ren’s attention diverted elsewhere for the time being.

K’ren, with typical Vulcan stoicism, moved out from looking over Dewitte’s shoulder to face the view screen. “On screen, please.”

The image of the Patton was replaced by the silver-haired vice admiral. “Greetings, Captain. It’s been too long.”

K’ren, Max Zukof’s former aide at Outpost 5, had served with the admiral when he’d held the rank of lieutenant commander. Zukof, a newly promoted captain at the time, had worked closely with the Vulcan as the two were tasked by Starfleet Intelligence to covertly monitor activity in Romulan space. When Operation Burgundy was deemed a complete failure, each had been reassigned to other duties. Now, light-years away from Romulan space, the two looked upon each other for the first time in two years. K’ren nodded slowly to Zukof, the two of them the only ones in their respective crews to know of the highly classified nature of their past association.