High Chancellor Krevis gazed out of the window of his private office, within the former Romulan Governors Villa.  From it he could see some of the vast expanse of gardens that surrounded this edifice of the once mighty conquerors and enslavers of his people.  Much of what he could see remained unchanged from the Romulans rapid and mysterious departure; however one section had been cleared of the non-native plants they’d brought with them, creating room for native species to be grown.  Another part, beyond a row of trees and out of his line of sight, had been given over to farming.  The soil within these high walled gardens had proved to be some of the most rich and fertile in the region.

Here everything appeared peaceful and calm; yet beyond those imposing walls, tension had been rising for months.  The trouble had started near the abandoned mines, and slowly spread out from there.  Groups of people would suddenly and for no apparent reason stop what they were doing and start chanting. ‘All hail the Helgeshran, he of the light, for his time approaches.’  Sometimes it would last a few minutes, others nearly an hour.  It was like they were all in a hypnotic trance.  But no matter how long it went on for; in the end everyone would just carry on, as if nothing had happened.  None of those involved had any memory of it, and the doctors could find nothing wrong with any of them.

He knew there were people who worshipped this God; a few had even committed acts of vandalism and even terrorism in his name.  Though there seemed no way that they could be behind what had been going on.  The High Chancellor was worried, about his people and the future.  He’d contemplated contacting their new diplomatic allies, the Federation; they had proved to be both honest and trustworthy.  But for now; pride and a wish for his people to solve their own problems; had stopped Krevis from doing so.

Krevis had long heard about them, but only through Romulan channels; which painted a much darker picture of the Federation, than the reality he’d come to know.  It had been his predecessor who’d reached out to them and made contact; partly in secret, because the Vashran people were wary and afraid of strangers after all that had gone on during the occupation.  Some still feared the Romulan’s would one day return and enslave them once more.

The High Chancellor heard a faint cough from behind him; no doubt Ikali his secretary come to remind him of his meeting with several ministers and key advisors.  The work of a planetary leader never seemed to end; he pondered thoughtfully, rubbing a scaly hand across his reptilian chin, before turning to face her.

“You could always say you couldn’t find me.” Krevis grumbled.  “Tell them I’ve gone on pilgrimage to the seas of our ancestors.”

It was a place he’d been to a few times in his life; a place of mystery and wonder.  They had started out like any other creature of this planet; even some of Vashran’s best scientific minds couldn’t figure out how their evolutionary path had brought them to the point they’d reached now.  But on a small insignificant looking beach just south of the equator, that’s where it had all begun.

“You know Kralor would only send a Skyrake and a squad of his best men after you!” His secretary smiled back.

Annoyingly, Ikali was perfectly right; Kralor as head of the Military, all two hundred of them, at the last official count; would send a fast transport with a handful of men to hunt him down; if he ever tried sneaking off.  Kralor was still bitter for letting the previous High Chancellor leave the planet without protection.  Though Kreen had said, he’d be safe with the two Starfleet Officers who had come to collect him.  Someone had attacked the small space craft they’d been using and it had crashed on another world.   ‘What did they call those things, Run-off, Run-around, Runabout that was it.’  Universal translators were marvellous things; however his language had been unknown to the Federation until very recently, so communication still had its issues.

Krevis walked over to his desk picking up the Padd, which was one of a handful that had been given as a gift by the Federation.  It was much easier to use than the Romulan style equivalent he’d been more used to.  These Federation Padd’s, could be programmed and adapted more readily to an individual’s needs.  They also felt a little easier to hold.

As the High Chancellor turned back towards his secretary, he noticed Ikali wasn’t moving; not just standing still, but totally motionless, frozen.  Then her eyes blazed with fire and she looked right at him.  “All hail the Helgeshran, he of the light, for his time approaches.” Then as quickly as her eyes had turned to fire, they returned to their normal orangey-brown and Ikali smiled like nothing had happened. “Are you ready for your meeting?”

Krevis felt a chill run down his spine. It was getting worse; whatever was affecting his people; was spreading.  Were any of them safe anymore, would he soon fall under this hypnotic spell to?  He had to contact the Federation, and tell them what was happening.  He would take a detour to the Interplanetary Communications Office, on his way to the meeting, and tell them.

Walking past his secretary, she grabbed his arm, with a force harder than he would have expected.  “The Helgeshran sees and hears everything.” Ikali whispered in his ear.  “Do not attempt to stand in his way.”

That was certainly new and unexpected. “And what if I refuse?”  Krevis asked, trying to sound defiant.

“Then the none believers will be punished harshly.” Ikali answered him.  “Look out of the window.”

The High Chancellor rushed over to the window where he’d been standing only a moment ago; looking out Krevis could see the same scene as before, nothing seemed different or out of place.  Two gardeners were hard at work, one kneeling by a bush he’d seen the two of them just planting, the second holding a spade.  This Vashran for no apparent reason and without warning; swung the spade in a vicious arc, striking his companion in the side of the head with brutal force.  Krevis yelled, but the distance and the sound proof windows meant the kneeling individual would never hear is cries.  Krevis watched him physically lifted from the ground; such was the force of the impact, the gardeners’ lifeless body dropping in a crumpled heap.

“Consider that a demonstration of what is possible.”  Ikali announced harshly. “Now you really must be getting to that meeting.”

**********

Lightyears away a young woman lay in her bed, her forehead covered in sweat; much like the rest of her body.  She mumbled incoherently, tossing from side to side as if plagued by some horrible nightmare.  Then she sat bold upright, as several items lying around flew across the room, either crashing to the floor or hitting the nearest wall.  The replicator in the far corner sparked briefly the shutdown completely.

Phoebe Andrianakis looked around her room at Starbase 86, her heart pounding. ‘For his time approaches’, the words danced around in her head, ‘He’s coming’.  Instinctively the Greek doctor reached for her combadge, but rather than find it on the bedside table where she’d left it; the small device was on the floor, half way across the room.  She picked it up, noticing her Padd and a photo of her mother, also on the floor.

Getting the stations computer to patch her through she waited for the person at the other end to acknowledge.  “Jason, we need to move now!” She all but shouted.