Star Trek: 3.
Movements of the Unseen Hand
by Charles Hackney
2366 AD
(Two years later)
Thornn could hardly contain its bitter disappointment.
The Kivas Fajo project was a total wash.
Fajo, goaded to the endeavor by Thornn, had far overreached himself. He thought he could outwit the Federation and capture Data, Starfleet's one-of-a-kind android, for his collection. Thornn had decided that Fajo's progress was almost sufficient to begin using him for high and terrible purposes against the Heavenly Plan. His caper was to be a test, for if Fajo had what it took to outmaneuver the galaxy's premier peacekeeping force, then the sky was the limit (so to speak).
A total wash.
Fajo was defeated on both fronts; from without, as the Enterprise's crew were able to see through Fajo's attempt to present the appearance that Lieutenant Commander Data had been destroyed in an explosion; and from within, as Fajo was unable to control Data or prevent his escape.
Demons rarely sulk. Thornn, however, sulked as it assessed the situation: Fajo was effectively out of the picture. He had been arrested on charges of kidnapping and theft, and was even now on his way to a Federation penal colony for rehabilitation. His vast collection had been seized, half to be returned to the rightful owners from whom the items had been stolen, and half to be sold to pay for Fajo's legal fees and stiff fines. Fajo was, however, crafty enough to keep his prize possessions (including Thornn's ring) safely hidden away in a secure location within Orion territory.
That's it, thought Thornn, no more subtlety. Subtlety takes too long in an uncertain universe. What it needed now was something big, like the Sybok project.
No.
Bigger.
Thornn considered its projects of millennia past. Sargon of Akkad. Rasputin. Tyrants and sinners of such epic stature that the world trembled before them, and Adonai's pitiful followers could only weep in despair at their coming.
It was time to bring back the good old days.
Thornn grinned and began to consider options.
