Chapter Twelve

ASVALAKCAME AROUND, his eyelids flickered open and he saw Picard standing over him. The disruptor Picard held was

aimed squarely at his chest. Valak started to sit up and winced. “Curse you, Picard,” he said. “My arm is broken.”

 

“You gave me little choice,” Picard replied.

 

Valak glanced around at their surroundings. Morning had come to the ark, and he saw that they were in a different

area. They were in a park, on a wooded rise overlooking a garden with a fountain in the center and curving, paved

paths radiating out from it, cutting through a blue-green carpet of low-growing, mossy vegetation interspersed with

clumps of shrubbery and spidery trees. More of the sculptures they had seenthe streetlights, as Picard had called

themwere placed throughout the park, and the only thing lacking to complete the bucolic scene was the sound of birds

twittering in the tree branches. Except for the two of them, there was no sign of life anywhere.

 

“So you managed to get away somehow,” Valak said with a grimace. “It will gain you nothing. You may have the

advantage over me for the moment, but my warriors will hunt you down.”

 

“I think not,” Picard replied. “Encumbered as I was with your weight across my shoulders, they should have had no

difficulty giving pursuit. Yet they did not follow. Perhaps they were unable to give chase.”

 

Valak grunted as he propped himself up against the tree behind him. “What do you mean?”

 

Picard countered with another question. “Did it not strike you as a coincidence that Talar and the others should

suddenly reappear precisely at that moment?”

 

Valak frowned. “What are you getting at, Picard?”

 

“Once darkness fell, everywhere we have gone inside this ark, the lights have followed us, illuminating the areas we

passed through. However, Talar and his warriors cameout of the darkness . Their approach failed to activate the

lights. Why? The obvious explanation is that the streetlights are not controlled by sensors, after all. We have been

under close surveillance ever since our arrival. Our way was merely lighted for us.”

 

“Then all those lights we saw …” said Valak. “Of course. They were a ruse meant to play upon our nerves and make

us anticipate an attack so that we would fire on Talar and the others when they approached out of the darkness. It

was all a trick.”

 

“That is one possible explanation,” said Picard, “but it does not explain how your people have been disappearing, nor

does it explain why Talar and the others should suddenly reappear the way they did. Nor does it explain how a message

was transmitted to your ship, mimicking your voice well enough to fool your bridge crew and have an additional away

team beamed down, perhaps more than one. If they were able to do that, they could just as easily have sentanother

message, in your voice, requesting that a team be beamedback up.”

 

“Then my men would have taken them the moment they materialized in the transporter room,” said Valak.

 

“Would they? What if the occupants of this ark are able to mimic more than just a voice communication? Consider

theIndependence , Valak. What happened to its crew? The ark’s residents might have induced a few landing parties to

beam down through some similar subterfuge, but surely not the entire crew. At some point, they would have realized

something was wrong.”

 

“What if the crew had been thoroughly infiltrated before they realized what was happening?” said asecond Picard,

stepping out from behind a tree. Valak’s eyes grew wide and his jaw dropped as his gaze went from one Picard to the

other. They were absolutely identical.

 

“Fascinating, is it not?” the first Picard said. “Which of us is the real Jean-Luc Picard?”

 

“Perhaps neither of us is the real Picard,” the second one said.

 

There were the sounds of running footsteps, and Talar and the others came racing up the hill, weapons drawn. They

stopped when they saw the two Picards.

 

“Shoot, Talar!” yelled Valak. “Shoot both of them!”

 

Talar lowered his weapon. “I fear you have mistaken me for someone else, Commander,” he said.

 

Valak stared at him wildly, his mouth open with disbelief. The science officer spoke into his communicator, only the

voice he used was not Talar’s but Valak’s own. “Valak toSyrinx,” he said.

 

“Go ahead, Commander,” came the response.

 

Valak tried to shout out a warning, but a sudden white-hot pain lanced through his brain and he collapsed, gasping

for breath. Sparks danced before his eyes and he tried to scream, but could not utter a sound.

 

“We are ready to beam up.”

 

Riker watched the gauges on the console, and the moment atmospheric integrity was restored to the shuttle bay, he

removed his helmet and gave the signal for Worf and the other hostages to leave the shuttlecraft. As they came out,

Geordi and the others started passing out phasers.

 

“I don’t know how you managed to escape,” said Riker, “but I sure am glad to see you. Your timing couldn’t have been

more perfect.”

 

“Happy to oblige, Commander,” Worf replied.

 

Riker grinned. “We’re not going to have much time. As soon as they realize the shuttle bay’s repressurized, they’ll

come in here after us.”

 

“Then we shall give them a warm reception,” said Worf.

 

“We’ll use the shuttles for cover,” Riker said, “and try to get them as they’re coming in. Keiko!”

 

“Yes, sir?”

 

“Take some of the others and get the children into the Jefferies tubes. Stay in there until you hear from me.”

 

“Understood,” said Keiko. She and the other mothers started herding the children into the narrow maintenance tube

hatchway.

 

“Geordi,” Riker said, “take your crew and work your way up through the tubes to Ten-Forward. Take some extra phasers

with you. And good luck. Now move it!”

 

“I’m on my way,” La Forge said.

 

Riker made sure that all the children were safe inside the maintenance tubes, then joined Worf over by the shuttles,

where the others had taken up position with their phasers. “They already know we’ve disabled the bridge controls for

the outer doors,” he said. “Their next step will probably be to try cutting off the life support in here, but

Geordi’s already bypassed the individual cutoff switches. They won’t be able to close down the system in here without

shutting it down throughout the entire ship. As soon as they figure that out, they’ll come in here after us.”

 

“Unless they attempt to come in through the tubes,” said Worf.

 

Riker shook his head. “They’d have to come through one at a time, and we could simply pick them off as they came out.

No, that isn’t Korak’s style. He’ll come in with a strong frontal assault. He’s got a score to settle with me, and

he’s not about to let anyone else settle it for him.”

 

Worf glanced at Riker questioningly. “A score?”

 

“We started something we didn’t get a chance to finish,” Riker said. “He’ll want a crack at me himself, and I’m just

dying to give it to him.”

 

The doors leading into the shuttle bay slid open.

 

“Here they come,” said Tyler, holding his phaser ready.

 

A squad of Romulans rushed into the shuttle bay, firing their disruptors. A score of phaser beams lanced out to meet

them. A number of them were struck, and the rest fell back, but one of the shuttles was struck in the hull right over

its tanks and the fuel exploded. There were screams as a number ofEnterprise crewmen were blown backwards while

others scrambled for cover. The Romulans retreated as the fire triggered the automatic control system in the shuttle

bay and jets of mist shot down from the ceiling, filling the shuttle bay with chemical fog.

 

“Korak!” shouted Riker. “Can you hear me, Korak? You wanted a rematch? Come on! Let’s finish it! Just you and me!”

 

“Do you take me for a fool, Riker?” Korak shouted over the roar of the fire-control system. “Do you expect me to come

in there alone so you can shoot me down?”

 

“I’ll put down my phaser and meet you in the center of the bay!” shouted Riker. “That way my people can’t fire

without the risk of hitting me, and your people can’t fire without the risk of hitting you! We’ll finish our business

first. Or are you afraid to have your warriors see you lose?”

 

“Come out where I can see you!” Korak shouted back. “You have my word of honor as a Romulan warrior that you will not

be fired upon?

 

Riker started to move forward, but Worf grabbed his arm. “You would trust the word of a Romulan?” he said.

 

“I never thought I’d hear myself saying this,” said Riker, “but in this case, yes.”

 

Worf shook his head. “This is not wise.”

 

“It will give Geordi and the others time to reach our people in Ten-Forward,” Riker said. “Besides, this is

personal.”

 

Worf scowled, then nodded and let go of Riker’s arm. Riker stepped out from behind the shuttle and moved toward the

center of the bay. Through the fog from the fire-control jets, he saw a figure coming toward himKorak.

 

They stopped about fifteen feet apart. Keeping his eyes on Korak, Riker slowly held up his phaser, then laid it down

on the deck and stepped away from it. Korak did the same with his disruptor.

 

“I have waited for this moment,” Korak said. “This time, Riker, you die.”

 

“This time there won’t be any interruptions to save you,” said Riker.

 

With a snarl Korak moved in to attack.

 

The transporter chief aboard theSyrinx was unprepared for the sight of two Jean-Luc Picards appearing on the pads,

supporting Valak between them and surrounded by the rest of the Romulan away team. In his moment of shock and

hesitation, he lost any chance he might have had to act. As he reached for his sidearm a searing pain exploded in his

brain. He grabbed his head and dropped to his knees in agony, gasping for breath. An instant later he was stretched

out on the deck, unconscious.

 

“Quickly,” said Picard, “we have no time to lose.”

 

“I have already communicated our arrival to the others,” his doppelgänger replied, in a voice indistinguishable from

his. “I perceive your concern for the safety of your ship. Rest assured, theSyrinx will present no threat to

theEnterprise .”

 

Valak was conscious but helpless. The Romulan commander was pale and he trembled slightly. His mouth worked, but no

sound came forth. He struggled against the control being imposed upon him, but could not resist it.

 

Picard’s double approached the transporter controls. Two of the Romulan doppelgängers stepped down off the pads,

while the others, with Valak, remained where they were. Picard glanced at his double questioningly as he started

entering commands into the controls.

 

A voice spoke in his mind, replying to his question before he could even speak it:”I have obtained the necessary

knowledge from the transporter operator’s mind to beam the others to the Enterprise from here. We will join them as

soon as this vessel is secured.”

 

Picard merely nodded, watching as his double activated the transporter. The thought had been communicated with such

confidence that he had no doubt in his mind that they could do it. It was more than a little frightening.

 

“There is no cause to be frightened,”said the voice in his mind.”We mean you no harm.”

 

“I believe that,” said Picard. He took a deep breath and exhaled heavily. “However, the thought that you feel you can

secure my ship so easily is rather unnerving.”

 

“I understand. The humans from theIndependencefelt much the same at first. But they have come to accept us, as we

have come to accept them.”

 

“Then they are still alive?” Picard said with astonishment.

 

“Regrettably, they did not all survive.”

 

“I see. After thirty years I suppose that is to be expected,” said Picard.

 

“I regret that those who died did not expire of natural causes.”

 

“What happened to them?” asked Picard.

 

“We killed them.”

 

As his double stepped away from the transporter controls, his features seemed to melt, and an instant later Picard

was looking at a facsimile of Commander Valak, right down to his uniform. It was the second time he had witnessed

such a transformation, the first being when he saw one of them turn into an exact double of himself, but it still

took him aback.

 

“Come.”

 

They went out into the corridor and headed for the turbolift. Along their way, they passed the prostrate forms of

several dozen crew members of theSyrinx, simply lying on the deck where they had fallen.

 

“Are they dead?” Picard asked uneasily.

 

“No. Merely inactive.”

 

The turbolift took them to the bridge of the warbird. As the doors opened and they stepped out, Lord Kazanak turned

toward them, panic in his eyes. “Valak! Thank the gods you have returned! The human hostages have escaped, and there

is something wrong aboard this ship! None of the sections are responding, and I am unable to raise our people on

theEnterprise!” He saw Picard, and his features contorted.”You! You are responsible for this!”

 

“Much as I would like to claim that honor,” said Picard, “I fear that I cannot. I assume I have the honor of

addressing Lord Kazanak, the designer of this ship?” Picard stood before the Romulan, smiling, then sat down in the

command throne. “Allow me to compliment you. This vessel is a truly brilliant piece of design.”

 

Kazanak stared at Picard with astonishment, then turned back toward Valak’s double. “What is the meaning of this,

Valak? I demand an explanation!”

 

“Commander Valak is, at this very moment, our prisoner aboard theEnterprise ,”came the reply, spoken in Romulan.

“TheSyrinx is no longer under your command.”

 

“Have you lost your senses, Valak? What are you talking about?”

 

“You are not addressing Commander Valak, Lord Kazanak,” said Picard. “Appearances can be deceiving, as I learned the

hard way when I first came aboard your vessel. Look around you. Do you see any familiar faces?”

 

Kazanak looked from “Valak” to Picard and back again. Then the navigation officer turned around in his chair, and

Kazanak found himself looking at his own face. His eyes bulged, and he gasped when he saw that the weapons and

tactics officer standing behind his console had also turned into a double of himself. As he gazed wildly around the

bridge, everywhere he looked, he saw his own face staring back at him.

 

“No!”he said. “No, this cannotbe! It is notpossible! It is a trick! How …” He sagged against one of the consoles,

his voice trailing off as his senses reeled in the face of the unacceptable reality confronting him.

 

“Your mission has ended, Lord Kazanak,” said Picard. “You have found what you were seeking. You have discovered the

secret of Hermeticus Two.”

 

La Forge stopped and held up in his hand. The others came to a halt behind him, crowding in as close as the narrow

confines of the maintenance tube would permit. They had reached the hatchway that opened out into the corridor

leading to Ten-Forward, where the Romulans were holding more of their fellow crew members.

 

“All right,” La Forge said softly. “There will be guards out in the corridor and probably inside Ten-Forward as well.

We’re going to take out the guards by the doors first, and we’ll have to do it fast, before they can alert the ones

inside. The second we step out of the hatch, they’re bound to see us, so we’ve got to come out fast and come out

shooting. Got it?”

 

The others nodded.

 

La Forge took a deep breath. “Okay. Phasers ready? Here goes.”

 

He threw open the hatch and dived out into the corridor. He rolled and came up with his phaser, but just as he was

about to fire, he froze. “What the hell … ?”

 

Lewis and the others had quickly followed him through the hatchway, but none of them had fired, either. There was

nothing to shoot at. The Romulan guards were lying on the deck, motionless. Slowly, Geordi got up and exchanged

puzzled glances with the others. They followed him as he cautiously approached the fallen guards.

 

“Cover me,” he said softly as he knelt to check them.

 

“Are they dead?” asked Lewis.

 

La Forge shook his head. “No. Just unconscious.”

 

“What the hell happened?”

 

“I don’t know.” La Forge bit his lower lip nervously. “All right. We’re going in. Watch yourselves.”

 

The door to Ten-Forward slid open, and La Forge and the others came in fast, phasers held ready, but the Romulan

guards inside were all unconscious on the floor, and their fellow crew members appeared to be unharmed.

 

“What in the name of … ?” La Forge’s voice trailed off.

 

“There is no need for concern, Geordi,” a familiar voice said. “Everything is under control.”

 

“Deanna?” he said. He stared as Troi came toward him, smiling. Ro and Data were there, too, as were two strangers

dressed in long black robes. He frowned, still holding his weapon uncertainly. “Who are they?”

 

Deanna turned and beckoned them forward. “Geordi, allow me to introduce Commander Morgan Llewellyn and Dr. Giorgi

Vishinski, of the starshipIndependence.”

 

The flames from the burning shuttlecraft had been extinguished, but the mist from the fire-control system still

hovered like a low fog over the deck of the shuttle bay, mingling with the smoke. Riker stood slightly bent over,

breathing hard, blood streaming from his broken nose and one eye puffed almost completely shut. His entire upper body

was battered and bruised from Korak’s powerful blows, and it hurt when he breathed.

 

The Romulan wasn’t in much better shape. He limped as he circled Riker warily, and his left wrist hung at a strange

angle, broken where Riker had snapped it. Blood covered his mouth, bubbling as he breathed heavily, but Korak was not

about to quit. He refused to allow himself to be bested by this human while his own people watched, and he wore a

look of homicidal fury as he moved around unsteadily, watching for an opening.

 

The two combatants were almost evenly matched. Korak had the advantage in strength, and though Riker was quicker, the

Romulan had easily been able to absorb most of his blows. Korak’s blows, when they got through, had done more damage,

and Riker was able to continue only by sheer force of will.

 

What saved Riker was his skill at aikido, which enabled him to turn Korak’s own considerable strength against him.

The Romulan seemed baffled by the unfamiliar martial art, and though he had managed to land some damaging blows,

Riker had tossed him around with motions that seemed deceptively simple and effortless, all the while taunting him

and egging him on, knowing that Korak’s greatest weakness was his temper. The Romulan was simply unable to accept

that a human could be a match for him, and his frustration and fury at not being able to finish Riker off kept

mounting until he was almost blind with rage.

 

The spectators on both sides watched silently and tensely. No one yelled encouragement. They all knew the battle was

in deadly earnest, and they watched with rapt fascination as the two combatants fought, neither able to gain the

upper hand. Even with his wrist broken, Korak kept on coming, pounding away with his one good arm and smashing at

Riker with his left elbow and forearm. He seemed almost impervious to pain, but he was moving much more slowly now,

hampered by his limp. Riker had snapped a kick into his leg that would have shattered a human kneecap, but amazingly,

the Romulan was still on his feet.

 

“What’s the matter, Korak?” Riker said, swallowing hard and breathing heavily as he fought exhaustion. “Getting

tired?”

 

With a snarl of rage, Korak came at him again, and Riker caught hold of his right wrist, then sidestepped and made a

tight circle, using Korak’s own momentum to flip him over. He held on as Korak fell and was rewarded by the sharp

sound of Korak’s right wrist snapping. The Romulan cried out and landed hard. He tried to get back up, but collapsed

when neither wrist would support him. He remained on his knees, arms crossed in front of his chest, unable to

continue. He screamed with impotent rage.

 

“Shoot!” he shouted to his warriors, no longer caring if he was caught in their fire. “Kill him!”

 

Worf and the others quickly raised their weapons, but there was no response from the Romulans. TheEnterprise crew

could hardly see through the undulating mist and smoke.

 

“Shoot, curse your souls!” Korak screamed again.”Kill him!”

 

“There will be no more killing, Korak,” said Picard, coming out of the swirling mist where the Romulans had stood.

 

“Captain!” said Riker, gazing at him with astonishment as Worf and the others came toward them, equally amazed to see

him.

 

“I am all right, Number One,” Picard said. “And so are all the others. TheSyrinx has been neutralized, and

theEnterprise is ours once more.”

 

“But … how … ?”

 

“That, Number One, is going to take a good deal of explaining. And I do not yet possess all the answers. However, the

first thing we need to do is get you to sickbay and let Dr. Crusher have a look at you.” He glanced down at Korak,

still on his knees and staring at him uncomprehendingly. “And him as well. Mr. Worf, assist Subcommander Korak to

sickbay.”

 

“With pleasure, sir.” Worf glanced at Riker and nodded. “Well fought, Commander.”

 

“Thanks,” Riker said weakly.

 

“Come with me.” Worf bent down to help Korak up.

 

“Take your filthy Klingon hands off me! Kill me and have done with it! I do not deserve to live!”

 

“You won’t hear any argument from me,” Worf said. “Now will you stand up, or must I carry you?”

 

Reluctantly Korak allowed Worf to help him to his feet and then moved off with him, his head bowed with shame.

 

As Picard led Riker and the others out of the shuttle bay, they saw the other Romulans sprawled out on the deck,

motionless.

 

“Are they dead?” Riker asked.

 

“No,” Picard replied. “Merely inactive.”

 

Riker frowned. “Inactive?”

 

Picard smiled. “A borrowed term, Number One.”

 

“Borrowed from whom?” asked Riker, now utterly confused.

 

“From a friend, Mr. Riker. From a friend.”

 

They gathered around the conference table in the briefing room aboard theEnterprise . Riker, battered and bruised,

with several fractured ribs, sat gingerly in his chair beside Deanna Troi, next to whom sat Ro Laren. On Laren’s

right was Data, with Geordi La Forge sitting next to him, and across from them sat Dr. Beverly Crusher, Worf, and

Picard. Also at the table were the two men from theIndependence , Llewellyn and Vishinski.

 

“Our friends from the ark asked that we proceed without them,” said Llewellyn. “They sensed certain inhibitions among

some of you, resulting from their being telepaths and felt that you would be able to ask your questions more freely

in their absence.”

 

The crew members of theEnterprise glanced around at one another.

 

“We have nothing to hide,” Picard said. “And I was hoping that they would be present. I feel that we have a great

deal to discuss.”

 

Llewellyn smiled. “Forgive me, Captain, I did not mean to imply that any of you had anything to hide. It’s just that

living with us, they have learned that non-telepathic races feel a certain natural discomfort about others having

complete access to all their thoughts. It took us many years to become accustomed to it ourselves. Counselor Troi, as

an empath, perhaps you will understand. They sensed a quite understandable apprehension among many of you and felt

that, at least initially, you would be more comfortable speaking with us.”

 

“Whoare they?” asked Riker.

 

“We call them ambimorphs,” Vishinski said. “Their own name for themselves is unpronounceable. Even after all our

years among them, none of us have learned to speak their language. They do not actually speak it among themselves,

for that matter. They have a highly complex and symbolic written language, but their communication among themselves

is totally nonverbal.”

 

“Shape-changers,” La Forge said. “And telepathic, too.”

 

“If you are thinking that they would make formidable enemies,” Llewellyn said, “you are quite correct. They would. If

we had to go up against them, we wouldn’t stand a chance.”

 

“From what I have seen, I find that point difficult to argue,” agreed Picard.

 

La Forge glanced at Llewellyn. “I … uh … see what you meant about those inhibitions.” He hesitated. “Were you

readingmy mind?”

 

Llewellyn smiled. “No, Mr. La Forge, I am not telepathic, though living with the ambimorphs for as long as we have

has increased our intuitive perceptions considerably. And if I may anticipate the next question, which you may or may

not be able to bring yourselves to ask: no, I am not one of them masquerading as a human, though they could easily

have accomplished that. You will have to take my word that I am who I claim to be, however. The ambimorphs’ ability

to transform themselves is such that even the most sophisticated medical scanners would be unable to detect them.”

 

“Where do they come from?” asked Worf.

 

“We know only that they are from a distant star system,” Vishinski replied. “As you have seen, their ship is

multigenerational, and their life span is far greater than our own.”

 

“The ark has been here for over thirty years, Commander,” Picard said. “Exactly what do they want here?”

 

“Some of you already know part of the story,” Llewellyn said, glancing at Ro, Troi, Data, and Crusher. “Their mission

is essentially similar to yours.” He smiled. “Perhaps I should sayours . After all this time I sometimes find it

difficult to recall that I am still a Starfleet officer.”

 

“So then they came in search of other intelligent beings?” Picard said.

 

“Yes,” Lewellyn replied, “and they found several species at war with one another. When they first arrived in this

sector, the Federation was still at war with the Klingon Empire and the Romulans were the wild card in the conflict.

Now the Federation and the Klingons are allies, but the Romulans remain as warlike and unpredictable as ever. The

situation was extremely unstable back then, and in many ways it still is. The ambimorphs had no idea what to make of

it.”

 

“They had long since evolved beyond the need for violence,” added Vishinski, “and they did not really understand what

was going on or why. So instead of making contact with any of the warring species, they decided to wait until they

learned more, primarily by monitoring communications at long range to get a better sense of the situation and the

participants.”

 

“Only you wound up making contact with them first,” said Riker.

 

Llewellyn nodded. “We had discovered a small planetary body that wasn’t on any of the charts, and when we

investigated, our experience was much the same as yours. We discovered that it was not a small planet at all, but an

interstellar ark, and we sent away teams down to investigate. That gave the ambimorphs their first opportunity to

observe humans up close, and they proceeded cautiously. They tested us. They interfered with our communications,

decoyed a number of other landing parties down, and watched us stumble around, trying to figure out what the hell was

going on. All the time, they were around us, watching and waiting to see what we would do, how we would react to the

situation. They particularly wanted to know if we would react violently.”

 

“The sculptures,” said Deanna. “I sensed something when I touched one of them, but it was only a vague impression,

and then it was gone.”

 

“Or telepathically blocked,” Picard said. “So what we took to be artful arrangements of lights and sculptures were

actually a number of them standing around among the streetlights and mimicking their form?”

 

“Actually the lights and sculpturesare arranged in groups to create an aesthetic blend of light and shadow,” said

Vishinski. “However, it was a simple matter for the ambimorphs merely to add’ a sculpture or two here and there, so

they could monitor you from up close.”

 

“Eventually they began to show themselves to us,” Llewellyn said, “in humanoid form, though at a distance, again to

see what we would do. And some of them came aboard our ship after posing as landing parties and getting themselves

beamed up. Being telepaths, the deception was simple for them to carry off. All they required was proximity to an

away team and a telepathic scan would do the rest. However, they never intended to take over our ship. I guess you

might say they were just hedging their bets, placing themselves in position to neutralize us quickly if we suddenly

turned hostile. And it also enabled them to make sure no messages were sent out to Starfleet.”

 

“What happened to cause the entire crew to beam down, and why did four of your people attempt escape in a

shuttlecraft?” Picard asked.

 

“We actually had no choice but to beam down the entire crew,” replied Llewellyn. “When the ambimorphs finally made

contact with us, after satisfying themselves that we weren’t a savage species, they were warm and welcoming.

Unfortunately, by that time, we had already been exposed.”

 

“You see,” Vishinski said, “with their ability to alter their own molecular structure, their bodies automatically

compensated for any germs we might have carried that could threaten them. In essence, they have the most perfect

immune systems in the universe. It never occurred to them that we were not so lucky.”

 

“The crew of theIndependence contracted a disease from the ambimorphs,” said Dr. Crusher. “A virus caused by bacteria

they apparently brought with them from their homeworld. They were naturally immune to it, but they were carriers.”

 

“The virus spread with unbelievable speed,” Vishinski said. “Our medical technology simply couldn’t cope with it. We

lost almost half our crew before the ambimorphs could put a stop to it.”

 

“So then that’s what the ambimorph meant when he said we killed them,’” said Picard.

 

Llewellyn nodded. “They were shocked and absolutely devastated,” he said. “They still carry the guilt. It’s a source

of great pain to them, even though it was completely unintentional on their part.”

 

“Then that explains the quarantine.” Picard frowned. “So we’ve all been exposed?”

 

“No, you need have no worry on that count,” replied Vishinski. “Once the ambimorphs realized what was happening, they

were able to isolate the virus with my help and then destroy it within themselves.”

 

“Unfortunately, they could do nothing for those who had already been infected,” added Llewellyn, “and that included

most of the crew. Many had already died, and some were hopelessly ill, but for the rest of us, they were able to come

up with a treatment using antibodies they created for us in their own systems.”

 

“It took time, however,” said Vishinski. “I was charting virgin medical territory, and they were dealing with a

completely alien morphology. The initial cell treatments killed the virus, but they also killed the members of our

crew who volunteered to act as test subjects. Eventually the ambimorphs were able to manufacture antibodies that our

systems could tolerate. The treatment does not constitute a cure, but it does hold the virus in stasis. However, we

do require periodic treatments.”

 

“So that’s why none of you can ever leave,” said Dr. Crusher. “Perhaps you no longer need to depend on the ambimorphs

creating the cell lines for your treatments. In the past thirty years we’ve made significant advances in protein

engineering. There’s a chance we could duplicate the treatments.”

 

“Perhaps, but that’s not the only reason we stay here,” said Llewellyn. “Our children all grew up aboard the ark, and

many of them were born there. I even have grandchildren now who grew up with the ambimorphs. Except for us, the

children have never known human society. Life aboard the ark is the only existence they know, and it’s a good life.

The ark is home for them, and they wouldn’t want to leave. Even if they did, they’d never really fit in with human

society. Aside from that, this has been a truly incredible opportunity for us. As the ambimorphs have studied us, so

we have studied them. They’re a unique species, highly advanced, and the most incredibly adaptable life-form we’ve

ever encountered.”

 

“Their ability to transform themselves, to alter their own molecular structure at will, makes them the ultimate

survivors,” said Vishinski. “It’s fortunate for us that they are nonaggressive, for they could easily become the most

dominant species in the universe. They have settled countless worlds, but always with an acute awareness of

ecological balance. They look for a niche, then adapt themselves to fit in.”

 

“Fascinating,” said Picard. “However, one question remains unanswered. What of the shuttlecraft from theIndependence

that was found drifting in space with four dead men aboard?”

 

“That’s right,” said Troi. “You told us it was your captain and three of your fellow crew members.”

 

Llewellyn nodded. “Yes, well, I must confess that I was less than honest with you about that, Counselor. You had a

great deal to absorb, and I wanted to see how you would react to the rest of the story before I told you this part.

You see, Captain Wiley, Lieutenant Commander Glener, Ensign Morris, and Chief Connors were among the first to succumb

to the virus. The four so-called survivors found aboard the shuttlecraft were neither dead nor human. They were

ambimorphs, posing as Captain Wiley, Commander Glener, Ensign Morris, and Chief Connors, men selected primarily

because they had no families.”

 

Picard frowned. “Selected for what purpose?”

 

“I think you already know the answer to that question, Captain,” Llewellyn replied. “The ambimorphs’ intention was to

get to Earth and infiltrate Starfleet.”

 

“Wait a minute. I thought you said the ambimorphs were nonaggressive,” Riker said tensely.

 

Llewellyn raised his hand. “Hear me out,” he said. “Their intentionsare nonaggressive. But even after spending all

those years with us, there is still much about us, our societies and cultures, that they do not know. They are not

ready to make formal contact with the Federation, and they do not feel the Federation is ready for contact with them.

At least not yet. Compared to them, we are primitive. They learned from us that planets could be quarantined and that

the files relating to those planets could be classified. They wanted to make certain no other Federation ships came

to the ark.”

 

“Then the ambimorphs who escaped in the shuttle were responsible for the ark receiving the Hermeticus designation,”

said Picard. “But that was decades ago. What has happened to the four infiltrators since?”

 

“I can only surmise that they remained in their original cover identities,” said Llewellyn. “As I said, their life

span is much greater than ours. By now they could be anywhere. And they could be literally anyone.”

 

“And youcooperated in this?” said Riker, aghast at the implications.

 

“Yes, but they could easily have done it without our cooperation,” said Llewellyn. “They only wish to learn. And to

keep tabs on us. We may not be as barbarous a species as we once were, but we do still have a propensity for

violence.” He glanced at Riker, who shifted in his seat uncomfortably. “My telling you this now will make no

difference whatsoever. Feel free to make a complete report. You’ll never find them, not in a million years. Not until

they’re ready to be found.”

 

“You seem to be forgetting one thing,” said Picard. “There is a classified file at Starfleet Command, containing the

location coordinates for the ark. If we submit a complete report, other Federation ships may follow us. That decision

will be out of our hands.”

 

“It will make no difference, Captain Picard,”said a voice they all heard in their minds.”The ark will no longer be

here.”

 

They looked up as two of the ambimorphs entered the briefing room. The shapeshifters had taken a roughly humanoid

form, but their substance was protoplasmic. It was rather like looking at giant amoebas that had assumed a roughly

human shape. The crew could see through them, and their internal structure appeared to be constantly shifting,

flowing as they moved.

 

“This stage of our mission here is complete. We shall go home soon. We shall not live to see the completion of the

voyage, but we have our work to occupy us, and our offspring will carry it on and deliver it to our homeworld. “

 

“And what of the Romulans?” Picard asked.

 

“We will take them with us,”the first ambimorph replied, telepathically.”We want to study them and learn as much as

possible about their species, as we have done with Commander Llewellyn and his people. What we have learned about

your race, through them, has given us much cause for hope. Meaning no offense, we feel that the human race is not yet

sufficiently evolved. However, we believe that in time, perhaps before a great many more of your years have passed,

the situation will be more favorable for our races to establish formal contact. Those of us who are now among you

have gone to prepare the way for that eventuality. Their mission is a peaceful one. They intend not to interfere, but

to increase our knowledge of you and make discreet, informal contact with key individuals among your people, so that

formal contact between our two races can eventually occur in a manner that will not disrupt your culture or your

internal stability. But so long as the conflict continues between your people and the Romulans, we shall not become

involved. We find violence barbaric and distasteful. There are more intelligent ways to resolve a conflict. When your

people and the Romulans discover those methods, perhaps we can speak again.”

 

The other ambimorph moved toward the door and, as it opened, Valak entered, flanked by twoEnterprise crewmen. He saw

the ambimorphs in their natural state and recoiled from them. Then his gaze swept the crew of theEnterprise until it

settled on Picard.

 

“Whatare these creatures?” he said.

 

“You will have plenty of opportunity to find that out,” Picard replied. “It seems that you will remain with them.”

 

Valak’s eyes grew wide. “No! This is your ship, Picard! You cannot allow that!”

 

“The decision is not mine to make, Valak,” Picard replied. “I warned you. You should have listened to me.”

 

“What are they going to do with us?” Valak asked apprehensively.

 

“The crew of your vessel is being transferred to the ark as we speak,”said the first ambimorph, still speaking to

them all telepathically.”Once the Syrinxhas been vacated, it will be towed to a sector near the Romulan border of

what you call the Neutral Zone, where it will be destroyed, along with the Independence.The debris will speak of a

battle between two ships. A small group of Romulan survivors will be found drifting in a shuttlecraft. They will

report an engagement in which a Federation vessel and their own ship were destroyed. They will also report that

certain design flaws in the Syrinxrendered it vulnerable. Lord Kazanak, the designer of the vessel, will be among the

survivors. He will pronounce his work a failure, and in time he will abandon the field of spacecraft engineering and

assume a position of leadership in Romulan society.”

 

“You must be mad,” said Valak. “You will never get away with this!”

 

The ambimorph turned toward him, and Valak gaped as he suddenly found himself looking at his own double, right down

to the finest detail of his uniform, the insignia of the D’Kazanak class warbird.

 

“I believe we shall,” the ambimorph replied in Valak’s own voice. “Your species is highly aggressive and extremely

violent, much in need of guidance. In certain subtle ways, without interfering in your society, we may be able to

provide such guidance. Perhaps not. In either case, we shall attempt to learn as much as possible about your race by

moving among you, and as the rest of us depart on our long journey home, you and your crew will help us understand

you better.”

 

“No!”Valak tried to jerk away from the two crewmen who held him and suddenly found, to his astonishment, that he was

being held by Talar and Korak. Shocked, he abruptly stopped struggling and turned back to Picard. “You cannot let

them do this, Picard! You mustdo something!”

 

“Must I? You were going to take my ship back to Romulus as your prize of war,” Picard replied. “You would have sold

us in your slave markets or else killed useven the children. Yet now you ask for my help?”

 

Valak swallowed hard and, struggling to control his emotions, drew himself up straight. “This is not over yet,” he

said, trying to keep his voice steady. “We shall fight and either regain our freedom or die like warriors in the

attempt.”

 

“Resistance will be pointless, Commander,” said Vishinski. “The ambimorphs are telepathic, and they will know your

plans even as you conceive them. Moreover, they can render you completely powerless with just a thought.”

 

“Despite all that you have done,” Picard said, “if I thought you and your crew would come to any harm, I would try to

help you if I could. However, I cannot, and I am convinced the ambimorphs do not intend to harm any of you. If they

had, they could have done so easily by now. You are a warrior, Valak, but you are also a scholar, and if you have any

saving grace, it is that. As a scholar, you will have an unprecedented opportunity to do research that may one day be

of great benefit to your people. I would seize that opportunity if I were you. I suspect you will find it offers much

greater rewards than conquest.”

 

Valak stared at him for a long moment, then nodded. “So then, the game is finished,” he said resignedly. “And you

have won.”

 

“I would call it a draw,” Picard replied, “because the ambimorphs intervened.”

 

Valak shook his head. “No, Picard, you would have won in any case. The hostages escaped from theSyrinx on their own,

and Riker bested Korak. He discovered weapons aboard theIndependence that we should have found and confiscated, and

once La Forge and his engineering crew had freed the others, they undoubtedly would have sabotaged our ship’s

systerns. There would have been many casualties before it was all over, but to employ a metaphor from your game of

chess, once your people took control of the board, the outcome was no longer in doubt. My compliments, Commander,” he

said, with a nod to Riker. “I warned Korak not to underestimate you. I had the superior vessel, I had the early

advantage, and I believed I had the superior crew. On that last point I was wrong,” he admitted wryly. “Perhaps it is

just as well that I must stay on the ark. With my mission a failure, I would not have had much to look forward to

when I returned to Romulus. At the very least, my career would have been finished.”

 

“Your career as a warrior is over,” his ambimorph double replied, “but your life as a scholar is only just beginning.

I shall endeavor to pursue it for you on Romulus, and I hope you will pursue it with my people. You should find it .

. . stimulating.”

 

Valak smiled wryly. “Well … perhaps I shall. Good-bye, Picard. Meeting you has indeed been stimulating.” He

glanced at the ambimorphs. “I am ready.”

 

They accompanied him out the door.

 

“He seems different from the others,” Llewellyn said thoughtfully. “With more like him, who knows? Maybe there’s hope

for the Romulans, after all.”

 

“There is always hope, Commander,” said Picard. “Perhaps more now than before.”