Log Entry 130831.77

Outside of his jail, the Helvetian was even more intimidating to look at. The low growl emanating from deep within him didn't help much either. "Sorry," he mumbled.

I frowned, wondering what he was apologising for.

" I don't suppose you have anything to eat, do you?"

I scowled disapprovingly.

"No, and I didn't realise you were after a picnic."

He laughed, not altogether pleasantly.

"Of course, you've just arrived. You won't know the hunger."

"Hunger?"

"Yes. The Dancers are an energy based life form. They don't eat so there is no food here."

My mind wandered back to that first day in the cargo bay when T'Roc had told us of our mission. "Five life forms had materialised—three of them inside walls and bulkheads. The remaining two were alive, but not well. Emaciated and dehydrated, their minds were blank. They died within hours."

"So not only are their minds wiped, they starve too?"

"Yes."

"But you've been here a while. What have you been eating?"

"I came with rations, but they were taken from me. I've not eaten in five days."

I looked at those long, sharp, black teeth that seemed even longer and sharper now. He laughed again.

"I'm hungry ... but not that hungry. Now, let's find your friend," and he ambled over to a door on the far side.

"I assume you know you must be silent?"

"Well, I had more or less worked that out, but if we are temporally out of sync with them—"

"We're not."

"Oh! I thought we were. I thought that was why they couldn't see us?"

"Good grief, no! Our invisibility is because they don't see things the way we do. Animals have an entirely different method of visual perception to Dancers. We have taken advantage of that difference to elude them by manipulating their perceptions. They detect us through a combination of things including noise and the electrical impulses our bodies emit."

"Ah!" I exclaimed. Suddenly the penny had dropped. "Neural blocking! My telepathic cloaking device!"

"Ah, so you do know how you do it."

"Well, I do now ... sort of ... but that doesn't explain why you can see me and then you can't."

"You're a very complicated animal, Jenny. Your defences go up and down and with it your ability to block."

"So ... it could be that the Dancers can see me now, just as you do?"

I was alarmed at the thought.

"It could be. We'll find out soon enough," and with that, he opened the door and stepped through it. I followed, opening my mouth to say more, but he shushed me. Angry, but understanding the need for silence, I snapped my mouth shut but threw him an evil look that was wasted.

The room we entered was large and dimly lit by a single light that shone down on a bio-bed in the centre of it. It was very dramatic, the walls being quite featureless in the darkness; it drew all attention to the bed. I could see a figure silhouetted on it. My heart leapt into my mouth and nausea filled me. It was Luke. I knew it was Luke even though I couldn't see his face. His stature was unique.

I approached the bed and my fear peaked. It was, indeed, Luke. He lay perfectly still. Over him, an overly large piece of apparatus towered. From it, two bright white beams of light shone out. They pierced through the air like laser beams and struck his eyes. His face was ashen and his eyes red as though he had been crying, with tears encrusted around them. I couldn't see his pupils. The lights that shone into them were too bright. I wanted to retch and the back of my throat stung with acid. I swallowed it down hard. Hot tears began to burn in my eyes, the compulsion to cry almost overwhelming me. My bottom lip began to quiver. All I wanted to do was sweep Luke up into my arms and hold him, tell him everything would be okay.

"Turn it off," I said coldly.

"It wouldn't be—"

"TURN IT OFF!" I screamed no longer caring who heard me.

Troy sighed deeply and then silently walked around the bio-bed, reached up and tapped some instructions into the panel there. The beams were cut leaving just the dull glow from the illumination overhead to light the room.

Luke's pupils were dilated so wide, I could barely make out the iris at all. He just stared blankly up into space.

"Will ... will he be alright?" I finally managed to ask.

"It depends how far the process has gone."

"Help me get him off here," I commanded and took hold of Luke's arm. Troy's hand fell on top of mine. He looked at me coldly.

"And then what?"

Still fighting back tears, I answered.

"I don't know, but I have to get him off here."

"And take him where? He's catatonic. He can't walk. Where can he hide?"

"I don't know and I don't care!" I spat at Troy. "Now help me with him!"

Troy shook his head and stepped back.

"No. This isn't my mission and doing this will jeopardise it."

"Then GO!" I screamed at him angrily.

Troy studied me for a moment, and then turned and walked away.

My tears finally came. I didn't want them, but they ran down my cheeks unchecked as I pulled at Luke's arms and heaved him into a sitting position. His head flopped forward in his stupor, and I had to lunge forward to stop him from falling. Awkwardly, I manoeuvred myself under his body, preparing to heave him onto my shoulder. I began to lift but I hadn't realised how heavy deadweight could be. My knees buckled and I faltered under the strain, but I was determined. A few more awkward shuffles and I had Luke's body organised so that his centre of gravity wouldn't overbalance me and took a couple of steps forward. How could such a little guy be so heavy, I wondered and then I slipped.

I tumbled to the ground and Luke fell on top of me, pinning me there and now I did the one thing a Starfleet officer shouldn't do. I burst into hysterical tears. All the emotions I had been bottling up erupted: frustration, heartbreak, despondency and hopelessness—I just lay there and sobbed with Luke sprawled across my chest like an overweight rag doll.

And then the weight lifted.

Snivelling like a child, I wiped my eyes on the sleeve of my uniform and looked up to see Troy standing over me, Luke cradled in his arms like a child.

"When Helvetians cry, we cry blood."

I had no idea what relevance that had.

"Come on," he said, and turned and walked away.

Log Entry 130824.76

"Where's Luke? Where did they take him?"

"Why?"

"Because he's my friend!" I exclaimed at the stupid question. "I can't let them hurt him."

"He's special to you then."

"All my friends are special to me. Now, do you know where they took him or not?"

"Of course."

"Then tell me?"

"And what about the rest of your friends—your crew?"

"I ... er ... well I have to find them too, but Luke is in imminent danger."

"That's a lot of people to liberate."

"Yes. So?"

"And the plan is ...?"

"I told you—to find Luke first. He's the one in the greatest danger."

Troy then turned, ambled nonchalantly back to his bunk and perched on its edge. He leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees and tented his fingers in front of his mouth.

"You haven't thought this through, have you?"

I hadn't, but he was implying there was something else I hadn't considered, something bigger.

"If you do find and release him, who will the Dancers think was responsible for that?"

"What?"

"The Dancers are looking for you. They have been for years. They know what you can do. They think that you hold the key to our stealth technology ... but they don't know that you are here. If you rescue your friend, they will know that someone with stealth technology was responsible. Because I'm imprisoned in here, there is only one alternative. They will know you are here and then you will have lost your advantage."

"They might think it's another Helvetian."

He laughed.

"No. Only I have been able to infiltrate the Dancers' HQ. They will know it was you ... unless ..."

His words trailed off. I wasn't sure if I believed him or not; and I knew he was baiting me. He was angling at something.

"Unless?" I prompted.

"Well," he stood up and approached the bars of his jail. "If you release me ..."

Now that did get me thinking.

"But how would you have escaped?"

"I've managed it before."

"But how?"

"It really doesn't matter. The important thing is that I did it once so it is possible that I could do it again."

"And what will you do if I release you?"

He said nothing.

"I mean, if I am such a threat to you, it would be in your interests to destroy me, wouldn't it?"

Troy smiled, his mouth stretching to reveal a row of perfectly formed, shiny black teeth that shone like obsidian.

"Now you're thinking," he smirked.

"But I have a point, don't I?"

He pondered.

"Yes, but perhaps there is a greater prize to be won here."

"And what would that be?"

"My mission. It is of mutual benefit to us both. If I can complete my mission, it means that the Dancers won't be able to connect to your realm anymore, and my people will be rid of them too."

"So while I save Luke, you're going to ... what? Destroy the Dancers?"

"Actually, no. Destroying something as resilient as the Dancers would be nigh on impossible. No. The fact is that as we became aware of your ... what did you call it? Realm. Yes, we began to ask why these two universes can exist alongside each other and yet remain oblivious to each other."

"Hang on a minute! Earlier, you implied you didn't know of my realm."

"That's true, but it doesn't pay to reveal all you know to a stranger."

"So why tell me now?"

"Because you are the only hope I have for completing my mission."

"Okay," I said suspiciously. "Go on then. How does this asynchronous temporal plane thing fit in?" I said, quoting Luke word for word.

"We call it a temporal drift. Our two universes exist in different moments in time, but the temporal difference is not a constant. It drifts."

"Is that even possible?" My understanding of the subject was limited, but I had paid attention to my temporal science lessons at the Academy.

"Yes, it cycles, and those cycles are driven by astral events."

"But that would suggest a gravitational pull, surely?"

"Absolutely."

"But there are no planets in this region of space?"

"Not in your realm, no, but in ours, yes. You're on it now. We have a sun and a small solar system, but it doesn't extend very far. As you move away from our sun, our realm ... fades."

"Fades? How can space fade?"

"Because of the black hole."

"Now you've lost me."

"On the rim of our solar system is a microscopic black hole that consumes matter. We cannot move beyond the perimeter of our universe because of it. Anything that ventures that far is consumed, but the black hole is also the cause of the temporal drift, pulling and stretching at time as well as matter. The gravitational forces created by the black hole are responsible for the variable temporal drift. By manipulating the black hole, we can influence that drift."

My brow furrowed as I puzzled it over.

"You mean you're going to create another drift—split your world into two temporal regions? So then there'll be three temporal planes?"

"Not exactly. No, my mission is to take advantage of the temporal divide and manipulate it to place the Dancers on one side of it and us on the other. We want to move the Helvetian world into your realm and leave the Dancers behind."

"But that's impossible."

"I wouldn't be here if that were so."

"But how?"

"With the kaleg."

"The kaleg?"

"Yes, the kaleg is designed to breach the gravitational drift—that's how it enters your realm and is able to bring your kind back here. My aim is to use that force to influence the black hole."

"You can do that?"

"Of course!"

I fell silent trying to put the pieces into some sort of order in my head.

"I still don't see why you need me in all of this. I mean besides me freeing you."

"Because while I'm distracting them from you," and he smiled. "You will also be distracting them from me."

I could see how that would work, but remained doubtful.

"But how do you know that this plan will leave the Dancers behind? Surely they will be transported along with you."

"No. They can only exist in this temporal plane. Their being is dependant upon that temporal shift. Their colour and format physically changes as the cycle moves. They cannot exist in your realm. By shifting our world into your temporal plane, it will simply leave them behind."

"But if you take your planet into our temporal plane, where will they live? How will they exist?"

Troy shrugged.

"It doesn't matter. They don't need a planet to exist. The forms they have taken may mimic us but their natural form could survive just as well in open space."

It was a difficult choice. Was he telling the truth, or would I be helping him commit genocide? How did I know he wouldn't kill me anyway? I really didn't know if I could trust Troy or not, but without him, one thing was certain. My chances of success were limited. Even if I freed Luke and my entire crew, how would we all get back to the Earhart? I considered hard and wondered ... is the enemy of my enemy, my friend?

Finally, I decided.

"Okay, but we stick together. Deal?"

"Deal," he grinned.

Log Entry 130817.75

"The Helvetians were the first race to walk this realm, and we walked it alone for millennia. We were a peaceful people and, without enemies, our race flourished and grew. We became technologically advanced, developing new machines that made our life easier, and new power sources to drive them.

"Soon came the computer age of artificial intelligence, and as our technology grew so did our demands until, one day, our only limitation was the energy we used to drive our inventions. We needed a new, more sophisticated power source; and in time that came too.

"We developed an intelligent energy that was as self contained and mobile as a mortal. Although usually spherical, it could take any form, accept verbal instruction and adapt itself to energise any piece of equipment. When you needed power, you simply selected a new cell and activated it. With the point of a finger and a verbal instruction, it would obey, connect itself to the required piece of apparatus and energise it until, like an old battery, it became exhausted and died. It was perfect in every way ... but one. It was intelligent.

"Over time, the cells began to mimic our shape as they moved among us. It amused us and we called them Dancers because of the way they flitted through the air: a dancing figure of energy, but their beauty hid a darkness.

"Unbeknownst to us, the Dancers were learning from us: learning and evolving. They were becoming more than just intelligent; they were becoming sentient. We didn't know it but every time we took one and used its energy, we were effectively murdering it and yet, they said nothing. We did not know. We did not appreciate what the Dancers had become ... until it was too late, until the war began.

"The first battle did not last long. When you have never had any enemies and thus have no weapons, and when your enemy already surrounds you in your very homes as well as your workplaces, it was easy for them to kill us. In the space of a few hours, all the Helvetians in the cities were annihilated, and then those in the towns. Soon, all that was left were those in the small villages where new technology did not prevail, but the Dancers were not going to let them survive either.

"The Dancers were mobile and mimicked us in so many ways. They took on individuality. Now they were politicians, scientists, leaders and soldiers. They took the technology we had left in our cities and redeveloped it to use the old energy sources. Now they drove vehicles and carried weapons to engage us in hand-to-hand combat, but we had never fought anyone before. We had always been the masters in our universe so we had to learn new ways. We had to develop weapons to fight the Dancers. We too had to redevelop machines and resurrect old energy sources in order to survive, and that is the way it has been for eons now. The Helvetians and the Dancers fighting an endless war.

"Now, I have kept my side of the bargain, Creature. What about you? Tell me what you truly are."

I debated how much I should tell him, but soon realised I knew very little that would compromise either me or my crewmates.

"My name is Jenny Terran and I am Human. I have been snatched from my universe along with my shipmates. I don't know why but I intend to find out."

There wasn't much more I could say so I stopped talking, but Warrior Troy was waiting for more. His head was thrust forward and he scowled, waiting for my words.

"Is that it?" he finally asked with contained surprise.

"Yes. I'm sorry."

"But what of you? Tell me of your beginnings!" he demanded, so I did. I told him how I was found as a baby on board an abandoned alien vessel, and he listened in silence. He sat pensively as he mulled over my words.

"So it seems that the Dancers lost you."

"Lost me?"

"Yes. You are the Creature. You must be the Creature."

"Why must I be?"

"Because of your ability to cloak."

"What ability? I don't have an ability!"

"Then why can't I see you?"

I couldn't answer that.

"Tell me about the Creature," I asked.

"Ah! Now there's the thing. Was the Creature fact or fiction? Until this day, no one really knew."

"But now you do?"

"Yes, Creature, you were born here and then it seems that within days of your creation, you were lost."

"My name is Jenny or Jen, not Creature, but if I am this ... thing, how was I lost? I was just a baby."

The Helvetian shrugged.

"I do not know," he sighed. "I am just the enemy ... and you may call me Troy."

Well, at least we were on first name terms; that was something, but still my questions remained unanswered.

"But what was the Creature supposed to be?"

"I can only speculate."

"Then speculate!"

"Throughout the war, we have been hunted by the Dancers and have found it almost impossible to find a place where they cannot find us. In general, we live in the deep wildernesses of our world with little technology so as to remain hidden, but still the Dancers would pursue us and slay us. In the end, we sought to hide ourselves in a more permanent way. We began to study stealth technology and after some time discovered that it was quite easy for us to mask ourselves from the Dancers."

"How?"

"The same way you do."

"I don't know how I do it."

"No. I suspected not."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because I can see you now ... and now I can't. I suggest you try to master your technique."

"Wait a minute. Are you saying that the Dancers can't see you either?"

"That is correct."

"Then how come you are in here?"

He tutted.

"Because I got caught. Ah! And I can see you again! And now I can't." His tones rose and fell as he spoke. "I really would work on that if I were you."

"But I can see you all the time."

"Yes, apparently so," and he laughed heartily, throwing his head back. "Excuse the pun."

The cogs were turning frantically in my mind.

"If you think I mask myself from the Dancers the same way that you do, does that mean that you think I am more like a Helvetian than a Dancer?"

"I know that the Dancers are researching how we evade their detection. It is why I will die soon. They will take me, run their experiments and, ultimately, dissect me."

"That's horrible!"

"That's war."

I pondered for another moment.

"But, if I'm Human, how can I have mastered this stealth thing?"

"I don't know but what if, somehow, you were created as a result of their research, either by design or by accident."

"Well, if that's true and they did lose me ..." My words trailed off as I realised an awful thought.

They had been looking for me. All those times that ships and crews had been disappearing had only been in the years since my discovery by Starfleet. Was that the reason why so many people had been snatched? More disturbing though: had all those people died because of me? But if that was so, how had my parents been in this realm to start with?

So many questions swimming around inside my head.

"How did they know where I had gone?"

"I don't know. I am just a simple warrior."

I sighed heavily. This was just too much to take in.

"And when they take people from my realm, what happens to them?"

"They are interrogated and then they die."

"Yes, we've had one or two bodies come back, and one or two live people too, but they don't survive long. Their minds ..."

"That will be the bleaching."

"Bleaching?"

"Yes, the interrogation bleaches their minds. In order to find the information they require, they bleach out the unnecessary thoughts and memories until the only thing that is left is what they are looking for."

"In other words, they wipe their minds; and if they can't find what they are looking for?" but I knew the answer to that. Suddenly I realised the urgency in finding my crew.

"Have you seen any others like me—well, not like me, but in a uniform like this?"

"Yes."

"When? Where?"

"Today. It was a child. They were taking him for bleaching."

"Child? There are no children in our crew; no children on the Earhart at all in fact."

Troy shrugged.

"I assumed it was a child. He was smaller than you," and he indicated with his hand how tall the person was. My mind toyed with the puzzle, turning it over and, suddenly, I realised! Both horror and fear filled me.

Luke! It could only be Luke! Oh god, no! They were going to destroy Luke!