Artoo's Encounter, Chapter Two (standard:Fan Fiction, 2444 words) [3/7] show all parts
Author: Tanada	Added: Dec 16 2002	Views/Reads: 2612/2038	Part vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
The Federation accepts Luke's proposal and Leia meets a new mentor.

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

"True Mr. President, but the Hyperdrive Motivator engines will allow us
to travel at 127 ly per day, equivalent to Warp 9.99996! Only a 
wormhole could move you faster from place to place. I am given to 
understand that these Hyperdrives could be installed on our fleet 
vessels as well, giving us a significant strategic advantage over the 
Dominion. With the Hyperdrive in our possession we will be able to 
attack their empire without transversing the wormhole." 

"And Commander Skywalker is willing to license this design to us in
exchange for supplying fighters and pilots to his Alliance?" 

"And the R2 androids Mr. President, they are called Astromech droids by
Commander Skywalker. I saw with my own eyes his R2 unit repair an 
impulse engine nacelle that had been sliced into two pieces. 15 minutes 
after it started working the Impulse engine was certified by a 
Starfleet engineer as fully functional!" 

"Astounding! You mean to tell me that these Astromech droids are able to
repair damage even during the course of a battle? We have lost several 
ships because they were damaged too far from a starbase to be  
recovered and we had to scuttle them!" 

"Yes Mr. President, Commander Skywalker assures me that these R2 units
have been undergoing refinement as damage control and repair 
specialists for 4,000 years of spaceflight! If we can install a few of 
these on every starship that alone would improve our odds of winning 
this war with the Dominion significantly." 

"I begin to see why you are so eager to accept this deal Captain, the
only thing that worries me is the consequences of joining this Alliance 
in their war against the Empire once our Dominion troubles are over. 
Will the public accept the need to aid this Alliance once our own 
immediate threat is ended?" 

"Mr. President I know you are a being of peace, but you have to have
seen the reports, you know we are loosing this war and that it is only 
a matter of time before the Cardasians manage to reopen the Wormhole. 
Any time they get desperate enough they will start using it for 
reinforcements despite the inevitability that they will loose ships to 
the cloaked mines that were set around it." 

"Very well Captain, I hereby authorize you to accept this arrangement on
the behalf of the Federation for evaluation purposes. The Hyperdrive 
makes it worth the risk." 

"Thank you Mr. President." And on that note the UFP symbol appeared on
the viewscreen with the words TRANSMISSION TERMINATED printed across 
it. 

"McDonnell to Admiral Gingerbeard!" 

"Go ahead Captain." 

"Admiral the President has approved the arrangements to license the R2
and X-Wing designs as proposed by Commander Skywalker for evaluation 
purposes." 

"Good work Captain! I want you to replicate a dozen of those R2 units
and take them on a test flight in the Galaxy. While you are doing that 
we will set to work modifying the X-Wing to our specifications and 
start training pilots to take full advantage of there tactical 
superiority to Jem'Hadar fighters!" 

So it began. A minor hitch occurred when the first R2 units replicated
failed to function, the problem was traced to the molecular level 
pattern used to duplicate them, it just wasn't detailed enough for the 
ultra sophisticated power cells and positronic brain pathways of R2D2, 
used as a pattern. The only fast solution was to use Quantum resolution 
scanners and patterns to make the copies, in essence using a 
Transporter pattern instead of a Replicator pattern. Storing a quantum 
resolution pattern required an entire starship quaility computer core 
be linked to the replicator due to the fineness ratio of the data 
needed for this operation. Due to the circumstances one was made 
available by stripping it from the Enterprise 1701-E which had  nearly 
completed repairs at Utopia Planitia shipyard. 

"Captain McDonnell, Captain Picard for you on subspace." 

"Thank you I will take it in here." McDonnell said, from his ready room
aboard the Galaxy. 

"Ah Captain Picard, what can I do for you?" He asked politely. 

"Captain McDonnell, my crew informs me that you have requisitioned our
third computer core and had it rerouted to Spacedock. Surely you know 
we need it as soon as possible, we are almost ready to make our 
shakedown cruise." 

"I'm well aware of your status Captain Picard, and I'm sorry for the
inconvenience, but a maximum priority program has begun here at 
Spacedock and we had to have a computer core ASAP. Your replacement 
core will be ready in 10 days, I assure you." 

"Tan just what is going on, surely a 10 day delay is acceptable, but we
should have been told ahead of time." 

"I'm sorry Jean-Luc, I can not discuss it over subspace, but rest
assured that the need is real and immediate." 

"Very well  Tan. Perhaps we could entice you to come to dinner?" 

"I'm afraid not Jean-Luc, but if you and Commander Data would like to
join me for a hand of Poker Tuesday night I would be available then." 

"You're on Tan! See you then." 

Well that went better than I expected McDonnell thought to himself. His
first officer was being re-assigned to recover the Pegasus and be her 
Captain and after seeing R2D2 at work he was more convinced than ever 
to recruit Commander Data to be his new first officer. 

"Computer where is Commander Skywalker of the Alliance currently
located?" 

"Commander Skywalker is in Holodeck 2 giving a piloting class." 

"Computer display Holodeck 2 imagery on this terminal." 

There was an infinitesimal pause and the screen filled with a starscape
and a squadron of 12 X-Wing fighters. Commander Skywalkers voice-over 
was clearly audible as well. 

"Your fighter is equipped with standard Incom flight controls and is
very responsive to her pilot, this will allow you to maneuver radically 
in dogfighting situations to evade enemy fire. Your ship is armed with 
4 heavy Laser cannon for strafing surface, or spaceborn targets and 
dogfighting opposition fighters and small craft. For purposes of this 
simulation you will be engaging a Corellian Corvette." 

On the screen before Captain McDonnell's astounded eyes the flight of 12
X-Wings rapidly closed upon a 150 meter long ship, reminiscent of a 
hammerhead shark. Closing in on the port side the skies were suddenly 
illuminated with turbolaser and laser bolts at the two twin Turbolaser 
turrets and the two port Laser turrets opened fire on the approaching 
X-Wings. One, then a second X-Wing exploded before they could evade and 
return fire. 

"X-Wings, evade and return fire! Two members of your squadron have been
annihilated without so much as scratching the paint on that Corvette!" 

The surviving 10 X-Wings broke into mutually supporting pairs and spread
out, dividing the fire from the Corvette and performing radical evasive 
maneuvers. Laser splashes began scoring on the Corvettes shields, and 
then another X-Wing exploded! 

"Try to hit the Corvette in the belly, only one Turbolaser can be
brought to bear on that vector, but remember if you all attack her 
there at once she will roll and present her dorsal surface too you." 

Despite these words of wisdom the Federation fighter trainees were down
to 4 ships when they finally broke the shields of the corvette down. 
When the Corvette finally exploded 3 X-Wings were left, all of them 
damaged to one extent or another. 

"Computer end simulation, Pilots to the briefing room for debriefing." 

"Captain McDonnell to Commander Skywalker." 

"Go ahead." 

"Commander I just observed your training session, was that one of the
Corellian Corvettes you mentioned licensing to us?" 

"Yes it was Captain, Artoo programmed the simulation to be as realistic
as possible." 

"I see Commander. We are leaving in two days to transport a salvage crew
to the Pegasus, would you be willing to remain aboard until we return 
to keep working on my pilots?" 

"If you wish Captain. How many are you transporting?" 

"Current plans are to transfer 70 crew plus 17 Astromech droids, fuel
and supplies. We know from a prior salvage mission that several Fusion 
reactors remain operational on the Pegasus but have long since run out 
of fuel. If the engines cannot be repaired in the field we will be 
towing the Pegasus back here for repair." 

"I see, from your tone Captain I take it this will be an ultimate level
test of the R2 units damage control and repair function." 

"You might say that Commander Skywalker. If you accept I will be glad to
fill you in after your done debriefing the pilot trainees." 

"Very well Captain you have my curiosity firmly on your side, I will
accept your offer of a training tour on the Galaxy." 

The next night at 19:00 hours in the Captain McDonnell's quarters the
Poker quartet was playing, Captain's McDonnell, Picard and Shelby, and 
Lt. Commander Data, with Commander Skywalker and R2D2 observing. 

"Jean-Luc," began McDonnell as he dealt, :"I believe you know Captain
Shelby? She has been promoted and approved for her own command. I need 
a new First Officer and I want Commander Data for that position." 

"Data? He has been an excellent 2nd officer to me, of that you can be
certain. I would hate to loose him, but by the same token I agree it is 
time for him to move up, if he is willing.", Picard replied. 

"Thank you sir. I too have enjoyed our service together. I am curious
however as too why Captain McDonnell has chosen to ask me to serve as 
his Number One." 

"It's quite simple Commander Data, I did a records search to find the
most eligible 2nd officer in Star Fleet and your name came out on top 
of the list. You have served with distinction as second officer on both 
the Galaxy and Sovereign class Enterprise's for 10 years and had an 
equally distinguished career before that. And best of all I believe you 
will find the Galaxy's new R2 units to be a refreshing project to work 
upon. One of our goals during this trip is to come up with Star Fleet 
protocol's to integrate these androids into Starfleet in a damage 
control and repair capacity." 

"Intriguing. With Captain Picard's permission I accept." 

"Granted. I hate to loose you Data but if half the things I have heard
about these R2 units are true you are the perfect man for the job of 
integrating them into Starfleet, and we need them badly." 

As the poker game continued across the void in a neighboring Galaxy the
Millennium Falcon was in orbit of Dagobah. 

"Sensors aren't picking up any concentrations of humanoid lifeforms
Leia, it appears to be a world circling swamp with no cities to speak 
of." 

"If we land to make repairs will we be able to take off again?" 

"Sure, we can use the refiner to make more fuel, but what's the point,
there isn't anyone home!" 

"Han last night I saw this planet in a dream, Obi-Wan Kenobi was
pointing at it and trying to tell me something but I couldn't make out 
his voice." 

"So what if he was saying 'Avoid this planet at all costs, it will be
the end of the rebellion if you go there!'?" 

"I didn't feel any fear Han, only a kind of anticipation." 

"You sure you want to land there? I could send out a coded distress
signal and we could wait here for an Alliance repair ship." 

"I'm sure Han, I have to go down there, with or without you I will be
going." 

"Very well, Chewie start the landing cycle, lets see if we can find a
dry spot to set down." 

Halfway through the landing cycle something unexpected happened, the
automatic landing controls activated by themselves. 

"Chewie I've lost manual control, override!" 

"Whoosh woof Growl" 

"Override isn't working, Leia brace for impact!" 

But despite Han's shouted warning the Millennium Falcon came peacefully
to rest in a clearing, next too a small organic looking building. A 
small green figure exited the building and approached the Falcon's 
boarding ramp, then waited serenely for the crew to open up. 

End Chapter Two 


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