Most intriguing. In such a short amount of time, their systems seem to have adapted. Their computer systems were most impressive, once online. It appeared to be similar in some respects to Asgard technology, much of the principles seemed the same. Except where the Asgard used crystals, these humans had devised a way to manufacture some form of biological equivalent. Their ingenuity was indeed impressive.
Another panel flashed to life in front of him. Some form of communications signal! The computer seemed to take only moments to process it, and then the next shock of the day was indeed a strong one for the Asgard. The woman spoke the same language as most other humans in this dimension. The computer reported that the signal was actually composed of many different versions of the same greeting, but was able to differentiate between the original voice and the computer altered translations. Noting the contents of the message, he decided to respond in kind.
"Greetings. I am Thor, Supreme Commander of the Asgard Fleet. May I be of any assistance?"
"I'm not sure, Supreme Commander. My ship encountered an unknown phenomenon which appears to have dragged us to your dimension. Was this of your doing?"
Thor understood the reason for her suspicion. "No. My ship was pulled from hyperspace by the same anomaly, shortly before your appearance. The rift which brought you here appears to have closed, as I can detect no trace of its existence. Is such an occurrence common in your dimension?"
----
"Hardly. One moment please, Commander." She turned and signaled Tuvok, who muted the feed. "Opinions?"
Chakotay stood and moved to her side. "Captain, we know nothing of where we are or the people will encounter. I don't think Thor means us harm, but until we know more, I advise caution."
Nodding, the captain turned. "Tuvok?"
Arching an eyebrow, the security chief replied. "I concur. Until more data becomes available, I cannot help but suspect the Supreme Commander's intentions."
Taking a moment to think about it, Janeway nodded, and turned back to the screen. "Supreme Commander, at this time, we are a little worried. We were already far from home, and now we appear to be even farther from where we were going. Quite frankly, I don't know what to think, and I'm hoping you can provide some answers."
"Any information I can provide I will gladly share with you. If I may be so bold, may I ask where 'home' is, in your original dimension?"
"We're from the United Federation of Planets, which is based on a planet called Earth."
----
Thor processed this tidbit of information, and came to the conclusion that, roughly translated from the original Asgard, meant "Well, that figures."
"Captain, Earth also exists in this dimension, although there would appear to be some noticeable differences. However, the Asgard are proud to claim friendship with the people of Earth. I can not take you directly there, as I do not have the time to spare. As a compromise, I can take you to a planet nearby, where they can be contacted via stargate, and they may be able to assist you."
"Stargate?" The captain glanced off screen. "I'm not familiar with that term."
"The stargate system is a very old method of interstellar travel, first devised by a race long gone from here. Through the use of artificial wormholes, it allows travel from one planet to the next. Do you not have something similar in your dimension?"
"No. More's the pity, we could really use something like that."
"Of that, I have no doubt. Regardless, I would be glad to take you to one, and assist you with contacting the people of this Earth. Would that be acceptable to you?"
----
Turning to her first officer, Captain Janeway quietly asked, "Well, Chakotay? What do you think?"
Taking a deep breath, he replied, "I say sure, why not? If they are friendly, then they may be able to help. If nothing else, it gives us somewhere to start. And in any case, I want to see one of these stargates up close and personal. If we can figure out how it works, we may be able to use it once we figure out how to get back to where we belong."
Pondering her options for a moment longer, she nodded. "Agreed."
Turning back to the screen, she said, "Very well, Supreme Commander. How do we do this?"
"I shall take your vessel in tow, and set course for the planet. We should be there within one Earth hour. Is that a measure of time you are familiar with?"
"Yes, it is. Very well, whenever you're ready. Janeway out."
Turning to her first officer, she ordered, "Warn the crew, we don't know what kind of ride we're in for."
At the helm, Ensign Paris exclaimed, "Pretty smooth, I'd say. We're already moving! And faster than light!"
Ensign Kim called out, "Captain, if I'm reading this right, we're doing what appears to be....warp 9.9995! And the readings we're getting should help us calibrate our warp drive to operate here. And I can detect no tractor beam technology that we're familiar with, I don't know how they're towing us."
"Understood. Keep scanning, Harry, I want answers. I'll be in my ready room. You have the bridge, Commander."