startrek76

On board Enterprise, Worf's eyes scanned the TTSA output screen. "Captain, the TTSA has acquired twenty-eight targets currently in range of the phasers, all of them the small attack craft type."

"Stand by, Mr. Worf, we may still be able to settle this peacefully," Picard said standing up and straighten his uniform tunic. "Open Channel -- This is Captain Jean Luc Picard of the Federation Starship Enterprise..."

"The aliens ..." Worf began, but before he could finish twenty-eight Cylon charged particle beams impacted on the forward, bottom, and port side shields of the Enterprise. "...are firing, sir. Minimal damage to shields."

"Well, so much for a diplomatic solution," Picard mumbled. "Return fire, Mr. Worf. Make an attempt to target their propulsion systems."

"Aye, sir," the Klingon said, a large smile spreading across his face as he turned to the tactical control station.

From several points on the forward phaser ring-emitters, beams of phased energy leapt out at the attacking Cylon raiders. Each time a beam came into contact with a raider, the small attack craft dissolved instantly into a fog of subatomic particles. In seconds, the volume of space directly around the Enterprise was clear of Cylon vessels.

"Mr. Data, have you finished crunching the numbers on that Cylon beam weapon?" Picard asked.

Data had slaved all of the Enterprise's sensors, except those target acquisition ones Worf was using to his OPS station. "Yes, Captain. It appears that the Cylon weapon is a charged particle beam consisting of antiprotons with an average field energy of 375 trillion electron volts. Its pulse width is 100 microseconds and it appears to have a maximum range of 60,000 kilometers before divergence causes the beam to loose cohesion. According to the technical readouts the Colonial Military sent over, the weapon also
apparently has a minimum range of 1,000 Kilometers. It is unable to attack anything within this radius because of feedback developed between the weapon and the charged target in the few seconds it takes to vaporize the target. Apparently ..."

"Thank you Mr. Data," Picard said cutting off the Second Officer, knowing full well that Data could and would proceed to teach an honors class in particle beam weapon technology if allowed to.



"FELL ... DER ... CARB!" Lieutenant Leah Starbuck of the Battlestar Galactica's Red Squadron had seen a lot of alien weapons systems in her eighteen yarhens with the Colonial Military ... but nothing that could compare to what she had just seen the alien ship do.

"Starbuck," Apollo's voice was hushed in awe. "Did we really see that ship destroy twenty or more Cylon raiders in a blink of a eye?"

"Either that," Lee said in a hushed whisper, "or we'd all three better report to Dr. Salik when we get back as unfit for duty, due to hyperspace psychosis."


TO BE CONTINUED