The Christmas party onboard the Enterprise was without a doubt a tremendous success. As with all things though, there came a time to say goodbye.

With no small trepitdation I rolled onto the transporter pad, awaiting beam out. After last year's malfunction, I was more than a bit apprehensive about using this unlikely future technology again. However, Captain Picard assured me that the problem had been fixed and the trip home would be smooth this time around. That did comfort me somewhat. There's just something about that man's face that I trust.

Scott and I watched as the engineer's hand pulled the slide down. Strange glowing lights danced all around us. My body felt lighter and lighter, rather similar to when I detach my consciousness and travel the astral plane.

The interior of the transporter room became lost in the twinkling lights. For a brief moment, there was just a bright nothingness around us. Then the teleportation chamber of the Federation Time Portal shimmered into view, only to start fading again as then sent our atoms back to our own time.

We finally materialized outside the designated arrival spot in the parking lot of the Galleria Shopping Mall. Unfortunately the X-Van wasn't where we had left it.

"There's no way anybody could have stolen it!" Cyclops cried. "Hank put in a fool proof lock!"

"That's the least of our problems," I answered cooly, pointing towards New York City. Great pillars of smoke were rising up from the distant sky scrapers. "I'm sensing wide spread panic. Their thoughts are too jumbled though. I can't make out what's causing it."

"I'm not getting a thing on the X-Communicator!" Scott wailed, as he frantically pushed the buttons on his cel phone.

"We're going to have to go in to the city somehow and find out what's going on."