Encounter at Farpoint Read Online Free PDF

strength
and
cleverness. After all, didn’t the Earthers have a saying? “He who fights and runs away, lives to fight another day?” Or was it, “—lives to run another day?” Never mind.

    “Heading, three-five-one, mark eleven, sir,” Data reported from the conn.

    “Steady on that.”

    Tasha spoke up from the Weapons and Tactical console behind Picard. “The hostile is giving chase, sir. Accelerating fast.”

    Worf stirred at his console and studied his screens. “We are now at warp nine point three, sir.”

    “Thank you. Let me know when we pass the red line.”

    “We are passing it now at warp nine point three five, sir.”

    “Thank you, Lieutenant. Inform engineering to maintain maximum power.”

    “Aye, sir.”

    “Continue accelerating,” Picard said evenly. He looked over at Troi and half-smiled. “Counselor, at this point I’m open to guesses about what we’ve just met. What did you feel about it?”

    She bowed her head a moment, her dark hair shadowing her face as she pondered, analyzing the sensations she had felt when
Q
was on the bridge. “It . . . it felt like something
beyond
what we’d consider a ‘life form.’ ”

    “‘Beyond?’ Clarify?”

    “Very,
very
advanced, sir. Or . . .” Troi considered it and then nodded firmly. “Advanced or certainly very, very
different!”

    Worf turned in his chair to interrupt. “Sir, we’re at warp nine point four.”

    “Hostile is now beginning to overtake us,” Tasha chimed from behind Picard.

    “Hostile’s realized velocity is warp nine point six, sir,” Data added calmly.

    “Are you sure?” Picard regretted the words even before he finished speaking them.

    Data did not bother to look back at Picard. He accepted rhetorical questions as a matter of human habit. “Of course, sir. Hostile is now within viewer range. Shall I magnify the image?”

    “Do it.”

    The forward wall of the bridge shimmered, and the blinking point of light that had been at the center of it suddenly jumped forward to become a spinning shape, shimmering and undefinable.

    Tasha tensed, reading her console. “Hostile’s velocity now at nine point
seven
, sir.”

    Picard leaned forward in his chair, keeping his eyes on the screen, tabbed his communications line open. “Engineering?”

    Argyle’s voice came back instantly. “Sir—I have to caution you—”

    “Caution be damned, Engineer. We need more speed.” Picard snapped off the communications line. “Go to
yellow alert
.”

    Data touched a control on his console and the yellow alert alarm began to clamor loudly. Picard turned to Tasha. “Arm photon torpedoes. Stand by to fire.” He was aware of Troi’s alarmed glance, but he ignored it.

    “Torpedoes to ready, sir.”

    Suddenly the ship shuddered. It was felt as a tremendous tremor throughout the bridge, and several of the crewmembers had to grab quickly for their consoles to steady themselves—and there was a sound, as if some great beast slumbering on the bottom of the blackest ocean had been troubled in its sleep, a beast better left unawakened.

    Troi glanced around quickly. She felt the pulse of fear and alarm from some of them. Then the temblor eased away as suddenly as it had begun.

    At the forward console, Worf was hastily punching up commands on his console. He had minored in the design and engineering of starships in his Academy days. He’d never experienced a
primal shiver
first hand, but that great shuddering groan couldn’t have been anything else. It was a bad sign. Warp stress could rip the drive core apart.

    “Hostile now at warp nine point eight, sir,” Tasha reported evenly.

    Worf quick-scanned his console. “Our velocity is holding at nine point five.”

    “Projection,” Data said quietly. “We may be able to match the hostile’s nine point eight if we push the warp engines to absolute capacity. But at extreme risk, sir.”

    “Now reading the hostile at warp nine point
nine
.”

    Picard