Subject: FRONTIER: Back to the Frontier

SD 80409


>There was a white flash and Q appeared next to Ramsay, he took a step 
>towards the baron.

>"Q, if you dare to come any closer I'm going to break your kneecaps."

>Q stopped mid-step, and he was met by dark glares from everyone in the 
>room,"I think an explanation may be called for here."


"Damn right!" Angus glowered.

"Will this be the truth or yet another fabrication?" Ramsay added.

Q seemed to cringe slightly, "I admit that what I told you before wasn't 
*completely* accurate, but you understand I have my reasons.  Firstly, as 
the baron said, this is not a game.  However, he *is* giving one of the 
combatants an advantage in order to punish someone who has greatly offended
him."

"As is my right to do so," the baron said defensively.

"So I was merely trying to redress the balance, but I had to destroy the 
installation for it to work, which is why I brought you here."

"Well... we're here, it didn't and you haven't," retorted m-Caroline.

"I haven't given up," Q said.

"So why are we still here?  We can't do anything now," Angus muttered.

"You can still agree that I am right, and we can work out something from 
there."

"Right?" the baron stormed, "You're interfering in a matter which is of no 
concern to you!"

Q drew himself up and took on a haughty expression, "As a member of the Q 
continuum, *everything* is my concern."

"That does not apply here!" the baron yelled, "This is *my* planet!  It is 
my concern and no-one elses!"

"This is getting us nowhere," Angus interjected.

"Oh? Were you going somewhere perhaps?" Q sneered, "It strikes me that you 
humans haven't been going anywhere for the past few centuries.  These 
matters are above your level of development."

"What?" m-Caroline exclaimed, "You're arguing like a pair of spoilt 
children, and you accuse *us* of being underdeveloped?"

There was a stunned silence, "She has a point Q, we can argue like this for
an aeon, one of us has to concede."

"Will you?" Q leered, "I thought not, why should I?"

They stared coldly at one another for a moment and then turned to look at 
the others in the room. "You claim to be capable of making this decision." 
the baron said, "Well, it appears you have it."

The crews glanced at each other in confusion, then Ramsay asked 
tentatively, "And you will abide by the decision we make?"

The two nodded slowly. "We'll give you some time to think it over," the 
baron said and exited the room before any further questions could be asked.
Q shrugged and disappeared in his usual fashion.

There was another flash and the two Keanus and the others were left 
looking somewhat bewildered.


ONE QUICK EXPLANATION LATER.

"So how are we going to do this, a majority vote, two falls or a 
submission?" asked m-Keanu.

"A vote I suppose, and I think Q has lost already." There was a murmer of 
agreement.

"Well as far as I see it, either the baron is right or Q is wrong," Angus 
said.

"We need to make sure that we see this from all the possible angles." 
m-Houston put in.

"You mean there's more than one?" asked Angus with a perfectly straight 
face.

"There's always more than one angle, how would you feel if the two of them
were to switch sides?" m-Houston replied.

"I think this is a clear decision, whoever is interfering is definitely in 
the wrong, he's involving himself in business which is not his own," 
m-Caroline answered.

"I believe we have our majority," Ramsay said.  There was a chorus of 
assent.

"Our experience with Q may have clouded our judgement," m-Caroline 
suggested, then quickly added, "but he only has himself to blame for 
that.  Two people have died because of this, and to me that's enough."

"We're agreed then," Ramsay announced, "When they come for their answer, it
is Q who is in the wrong."

They waited for a moment in silence, "So do we shout it out or just wait," 
Angus asked, the end of this episode seemed to be in sight and he was 
feeling a great sense of anticipation at the thought of getting back to the
ship.  But the clues still didn't add up.  The flight recorder, metal
fragments, cryo-pod and Riker were obviously all connected.  But the ship
that Keanu had found, his brief experience of a future which could
obviously never happen now that Teri was dead, his brief experience at the
place where he had gotten his prosthesis, the pieces just didn't fit
together.  The only suitable explanation seemed to be that these were just
red herrings being strewn in their path.

In the corner of his eye, Angus saw Keanu being helped to a seat by Joanna,
he appeared to be in a great deal of distress and so Angus decided to find 
out if he could be any help.

He walked up to Keanu and crouched beside him, then he looked up at Houston
and subtly dismissed her.  When she left he turned to Keanu, "I just wanted
to say I'm sorry about Teri, I didn't really know her but I can see how 
much she meant to you."

"Thanks Angus," Keanu said wiping his eyes, "I didn't even know her that 
long but it seemed that..." he broke off sharply, trying to stifle another
sob.

Angus stayed with him for a moment until he saw a flash.  Q and the baron
stood side-by-side in the middle of the room and the crew assembled in 
front of them.

"Have you come to a decision yet?" Q asked.

"Yes Q, we have," Ramsay answered. "We have decided that it is you who is 
in the wrong."

"And it's as simple as that is it?" Q responded in a slightly sullen tone.

"It wasn't an easy decision to make," put in m-Caroline.

Q laughed briefly, "You mock me with your lies human, I was listening to 
you the whole time, the decision seemed to come to you all very easily.  
You were all quick enough to condemn my actions without fully considering 
the implications of what I was doing.  If this had been a real situation I
would feel very sorry for the thousands of people you have sentenced to
death."

Q watched as the expressions on the faces before him changed to confusion 
and then into realisation and anger.

"*If* this was real?" m-Caroline whispered.

Angus clenched his fists tightly but restrained himself from doing 
anything rash, "Are you saying that this..."

"Was just a game?" Q finished, "No.  It was a test, I wanted to see if you
would be capable of making a decision of this magnitude.  It seems that you
*think* you are, whether or not you are aware of the implications of your 
choice."

"Is that the end of it then?" Ramsay asked, "Will you let us go now?"

"Yes and yes."  There was another flash and they were back in the familiar 
surroundings of the Frontier's bridge, everything was very much as it was 
before they had left.

Q surveyed the faces of the crew before saying, "I must say that I am 
disappointed, I am beginning to despair of ever being able to teach you 
anything.  But who knows? If I get too bored I may visit you again one 
time." And then Q disappeared in his now familiar manner.

There was silence on the bridge, broken eventually by Ramsay, "Status."

Angus looked across the displays on his console, "Everything as it was, 
except that the logs show that we've been off the ship for twenty minutes. 
All crew have reported in at their stations," he paused, then added 
solemnly, "Two casualties reported."


                       Respectfully submitted;
                                   
                        **********************          
                        *  Allan MacLennan   *
                        *                    *
                        * [Lt.] Angus Murray *
                        **********************

          "Put your faith in God and keep your powder dry."
                           Oliver Cromwell