“You will be offered paths to assist you in finding peace with each other,”the alien said, seemingly turning to level a withering gaze at Kutal himself. “The choice of which path to follow is entirely yours to make, and the consequences for your decision will rest solely with you.”
As the final words left his mouth, the projection began to shimmer and contract, with the near-blinding light now returning to envelop him and accompanied once more by the irritating whine that assaulted Kutal’s ears. The captain squinted to ward off the worst of the glare, but it faded more quickly this time, and within moments, all evidence that the alien—real or projected—had ever been on the bridge was gone. Only the bridge crew was left, exchanging looks of bewilderment and mounting anger at what they had just witnessed.
“Captain,” Kreq said, his youthful eyes wide with puzzlement, “is it possible? An enemy that can defeat the empire with such ease?”
Moving to his chair and realizing at the last instant that it still radiated far too much heat for him to sit in it, Kutal did not reply to the question. What could he say? He had no answers. Who were these Organians? Were they bluffing, or did they truly wield the power they seemed to have demonstrated? Kutal did not discount the possibility of such a people’s existence. His tours of duty in the Gonmog Sector alone had provided ample proof.
“Turning to face the rear of the bridge, Kutal directed his attention to the lone human standing there. The man had remained silent throughout the events of the past several months. “What do youthink, Earther?”
Dressed in dark clothes that almost allowed him to blend in with the shadows, the man stood with his arms folded across his chest. The deep lines on his face appeared even more pronounced under the bridge’s severe lighting as he regarded Kutal with an expression that the Klingon recognized on humans as one of uncertainty.
“Well,” said Diego Reyes, former and now-disgraced Starfleet officer. He nodded toward the viewscreen and the image of Starbase 47 displayed on it. “Things have certainly gotten a bit more interesting.”
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
First, thanks to editor Marco Palmieri and fellow writer David Mack, for conspiring to create the Star Trek: Vanguardseries and for having me back for a second helping. Additional thanks to David for leaving so much to work with after the series’ third book, Reap the Whirlwind.Here’s hoping I returned the favor.
Thanks also to Kevin Dilmore, my dear friend and frequent writing partner. Life dealt us a few curveballs this time around, requiring Kevin to recuse himself from participating in the writing of this novel in order to see to more important concerns. Rest assured that the book you’re reading follows very closely to the outline we developed together, and his influence is present all throughout these pages. I hope I didn’t screw it up too bad, dude.
I once again offer my sincere appreciation to Alex Rosenzweig, fan extraordinaire, who contributed much in the way of assistance with respect to the Star Trektimeline. Given the period of time over which the events of this novel unfold, along with the fact that they take place in concert with a host of other happenings during this period in Star Trek’s “future history,” it’s always nice to get the insight of someone who really knows this stuff. Any flubs, goofs, or other missteps in this area are the author’s, despite everything Alex did to keep that from happening.
Much appreciation is extended to the fine folks responsible for maintaining the Memory Alpha (http://www.memory-alpha.org) and Memory Beta (http://startrek.wikia.com) Web sites, which offered more than a few helpful nuggets of knowledge on a variety of topics researched during the writing of this book. Keep up the awesome work!
Salutes are offered to Jeanne M. Dillard, Josepha Sherman, and Susan Shwartz, authors of various Star Treknovels over the years, several of which provided a few choice tidbits of Vulcan and other lore that ended up sprinkled throughout Open Secrets.
A glass of Saurian brandy is raised to Dorothy Jones Heydt, an old-school fan who created a comprehensive Vulcan language in the 1960s and coined the term Ni’Varin a Star Trekstory she wrote for the fanzine T-Negative.Also included in this toast is Claire Gabriel, one of the contributors to Bantam Books’ Star Trek: The New Voyagesin 1976. Claire arguably “popularized” the term “Ni’Var”in her story of the same name, which appeared in that book.
Also appreciated is the work of Kenneth A. Hite, Ross A. Isaacs, Evan Jamieson, Steve Long, Christian Moore, Ree Soesbee, Gareth Michael Sharka, John Snead, and John Vick, all authors and contributors to the sourcebook The Way of Kolinahr: The Vulcans,for Last Unicorn Games’ now-defunct Star Trek: The Next Generation Role-Playing Game.The book provided much inspiration during the plotting of T’Prynn’s arc.
And finally, many thanks to the loyal readers and fans who make this job so rewarding. A writer’s work is often carried out in solitude, and while we certainly write for our own satisfaction or because it’s something we simply have to do (like, you know, breathing), it’s still nice to see our efforts read and enjoyed by so many people.
Until next time!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dayton Ward. Author. Trekkie. Writing his goofy little science-fiction stories and searching for a way to tap into the hidden nerdity that all humans have. Then an accidental overdose of Mountain Dew altered his body chemistry. Now, when Dayton Ward grows excited or just downright geeky, a startling metamorphosis occurs. Driven by outlandish ideas and a pronounced lack of sleep, he is pursued by fans and editors, as well as funny men in bright uniforms wielding tasers, straitjackets, and medication. In addition to the numerous credits he shares with friend and cowriter Kevin Dilmore, Dayton is the author of the Star Treknovel In the Name of Honorand the science-fiction novels The Last World Warand The Genesis Protocol,as well as short stories that have appeared in the first three Star Trek: Strange New Worldsanthologies, the Yard Dog Press anthology Houston, We’ve Got Bubbas, Kansas City Voicesmagazine, and the Star Trek: New Frontieranthology No Limits.Dayton is believed to be working on his next novel, and he must let the world think that he is working on it, until he can find a way to earn back the advance check he blew on strippers and booze. Though he currently lives in Kansas City with his wife and two daughters, Dayton is a Florida native and still maintains a torrid long-distance romance with his beloved Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Visit him on the web at http://www.daytonward.com.