The Ballad of St. Germain: Civil War II Chapter Seventy-Eight

As Lestat and the High Wolfman walked towards their hired ship, Lestat began to question his own actions. Was he doing the right thing? Although Louie was perhaps his oldest friend, he had also been his oldest enemy. Perhaps the old saying about keeping enemies close rang true for the both of them.

"There is our ship!" said the Wolfman.

Lestat was surprised that the Wolfman had even managed to get hold of a ship, given his current situation. Before them was an old rickety-looking ship.

"Are you sure this 'thing' will get all the way to Earth?" asked Lestat.

"Why don't we ask her captain? Please, step aboard!"

The inside of the ship looked slightly tidier than the outside as the Wolfman led Lestat to the small cockpit. Upon hearing them enter, the pilot and owner of the ship swung around in his chair.

"Ambassador, Lawrence Talbot!"

"Of Starfleet? A human? What is a human doing on Monstron?"

"After my short tour of duty on the Valkyrie and my case, I resigned my commission. Since then, I've been working for the Monstron government as a cargo pilot."

Lestat turned to the Wolfman.

"Perhaps this was not a good idea. This ship doesn't look capable of getting to Earth in one piece!"

"She'll get there," said Talbot. "She has a top cruising speed of warp nine, two phaser banks, twelve photon torpedoes, and a Klingon cloaking device."

"How did you get a Klingon cloaking device?" asked Lestat.

"It is best not to ask, Ambassador," said the Wolfman.

 

Soon, St. Germain, Picard, and Crusher left their armory and walked deeper into the tunnels.

"Have you control of the entire old underground system?" St. Germain asked.

"Not exactly, Admiral," said Picard. "It belongs to them!"

They emerged into what seemed like an old-style marketplace, but underground. St. Germain was surprised at what he saw. The last time he had seen anything like this was hundreds of years ago.

"You see before you the place known as London Below!" said Picard.

"I thought London Below was destroyed hundreds of years ago!" said St. Germain.

"It was," Picard replied. "Most of it, anyway. Hundreds survived, and, with the help of Phineas Magus and the elder James Watt, they rebuilt."

"But why haven't the Imperials done anything about them?"

"Simply because they don't know about London Below. Only a few off-worlders do, and they're on the Time of Legends."

Suddenly, St. Germain placed his fingers on his temples and staggered slightly. He put his hand on the wall for support. If he hadn't, he would have keeled over.

"Are you alright, Admiral?" asked Picard.

"It will pass. Must be all of the excitement. If you don't mind, I'd like to be alone for a while."

"Certainly, Admiral."

 

Hours later, and Picard was worried. It was obvious that St. Germain was ill, and now he had been missing for a few hours. Although he didn't know the tunnels as well as some, he decided to go in search of the Admiral.

It didn't take him long, but Picard soon found him. In an old tunnel hardly used by anyone now, Picard found St. Germain seated on an old crate, a dead rat in his hand, blood on his lips. St. Germain was surprised when Picard was not shocked by this sight.

"Tell me, Picard, will you supply me with food? Will you keep me alive? Did you think of these things when you came to rescue me?"

Picard did not know how to answer.

 

On what used to be the old Federation/Monstron border, the mighty Satan-class warship moved closer to the much older vessel and fired once more. Inside the much older vessel, Lestat was thrown from his ship.

"I thought you said this ship was good, Talbot!" he shouted. "Once we're out of Monstron space, we'll be safe!"

"Once you engage the cloaking device, we'll be safe!"

Talbot looked at the Wolfman, and the Wolfman nodded. With a flick of a switch, Talbot activated the cloaking device. For a long moment, nothing happened. Then it kicked in. Slowly, the ship began to shimmer until it was gone from view.

Lestat looked at the sensor panel.

"Good. They're going! Now set course to Earth! Maximum warp!"

 

During all the commotion around the Old Bailey, nobody noticed a rather scruffy-looking old man gazing down on the proceedings from the rooftops. Now, after the battle between the resistance fighters and the Imperial soldiers, this old man observed something else.

Down on the streets below, he watched as a man in a Starfleet uniform spoke with two other men. He recognized the uniformed man. He had seen his likeness on many pictures. The other two he knew from personal experience. He began to wonder what Commander Sleer would be doing talking to Croup and Vandermar, two of London Below's most notorious criminals.

He had to do something. Leaving his rooftop dwelling, he decided to return below.