Oh man! I expected things to go badly as is the way of stories - but so swiftly and so brutally to the reader so. Damn. That was a carpet rug pulling moment. And then the final line of a promise to return to this story at some juncture to add injury to matters! (LOL!)

Damn. We still don't know if there is more to the pirates than simple mercenary ends. We also don't know what the fall out of this will be for the crew. Ariel will have to face the loss of Dawkins and consider just whether the cost of cutting herself off is worth it. And I wonder, given the surprising endorsement of the plan by T'Cirya, will Ariel bear her fault for the disaster that has befallen.

Aha. The crux of the relationship between Leone and Ariel is that little dance they do together. That little stand up to each other but see through the crap and see the actual person under it all. Leone can measure Ariel up and maybe with anyone else that would annoy the shit out of her but because it is Ariel it is just something she likes even more about her. And it is strange to think that Leone is Ariel's unrequited love. No wonder she finds no staying comfort in the arms of others.

Ariel is bold but maybe a little too enthralled with Leone as she imagines that the captain is too reserved and that Leone would have figured a means to best the fighters. Maybe she would but maybe she wouldn't. The problem for Ariel is that she feels certain that Leone would and it may be the case that that belief will endanger Ariel at some point.

And now a trap is going to be laid? ...

And here comes the trouble ... Nice transition from a bridge scene into a mini battle that promises a mystery as to purpose and identity of the attacker. Very interesting and an interesting little battle scene too. Interesting because it showed some tactics, and ably demonstrates some of Leone's ability in that area, to the strange duking it out of a large capital ship against fighters. You showed how the fighters used their size, and upgraded systems, to their advantage.

But before all of that, you had some great character moments. The Leone conversation with her hubby was a great scene. There seems to be a lot that went unsaid between them in terms of where their relationship is at. He is jealous of Ariel too, not trusting Ariel even though he trusts Leone. But he probably thinks Leone is being unfaithful simply by virtue of the fact she spends her time with Ariel and yet gets too busy to drop him a line about her promotion. Ouch! It does not bode well for their marriage that both share frustrations and certain resentments.

Then we come to Captain T'Cirya. I like her point of view, especially her impressions of Ariel. They are less than favourable. I like how we got a definite feel for the Vulcan woman's thoughts and feelings, even though as a Vulcan her responses were virtually stripped of emotion. I like too how you can write her as a Vulcan without recourse to the stereotypes - there is no mention of logic or Surak for example.

Also, to be commended is the way you give certain details that only give part of a picture but points to a richer star trek universe beyond what we saw on TV. First, there's the late night calls and strained marriages we see with Leone. Then, there are those little details about the cargo freighter, how it belongs to a company and points to a whole civilian way of life going on in the trekverse. Nicely done.