Asteroid 726: Denorios Belt, Bajoran Space

Stardate: 53310.4

"We have to contact Captain Tigranian at Deep Space Nine!" Gleeto shouted across the bridge.

"Wait!" Katie said raising a hand. She turned to face T'les.

"Have the Cardassians detected us?" Katie asked trying to keep everyone calm.

"I do not believe so," T'les replied as she examined her displays. "There is much interference both from the Tong Beak Nebula and from venderite deposits in the surrounding asteroids.

Katie took a deep breath.

"Ensign Gleeto," she said closing her fist. "Cloak the ship."

"Ma'am?" he asked in utter disbelief.

"I said cloak the damn ship!" she repeated more forcefully.

"Katie…" Phil said softly from the helm. "I concur with Ensign Gleeto. If there's a chance we can coordinate efforts with Deep Space Nine…"

"Mr. Lexington," Katie said cutting him off. "Your recommendation is noted, but if the Cardassians haven't detected us, there's a chance we can still take them by surprise. If we open hailing frequencies, they'll know we're out here. They'll charge straight for the Bajorans as fast as they can. We all know that the hometown fleet is no match for those cruisers."

"Ma'am," Gleeto said still on the verge of panic. "With respect, neither are we. We have no offensive weapons. Even if we did get the drop on the Cardassians, we wouldn't be able to stop them before they reached Bajor."

Katie raised her hand to silence him once more.

"I am command of this ship, Mister," she said calmly. "I will not let those Cardassians reach Bajor, even if I have to ram straight into them. Do you understand?"

Gleeto knew she was serious.

"Yes, Captain."

"Cloak the ship."

As Gleeto activated the cloaking device, Katie keyed her intercom.

"Bridge to Engineering."

"Scharr Here."

"Mr. Scharr, how long until you can get the weapons back online?"

"The weapons interlocks are manually bypassed at the plasma junctions, Katie," Scharr replied. "It'll be three hours at a minimum. I might be able to give you quantum torpedoes in two."

"Phil," Katie said turning to the helm. "How long till we intercept the Cardassians."

"At maximum warp, twenty-three minutes."

The situation seemed so hopeless, Katie couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Well, Mr. Scharr," she said back into the intercom. "You better get started."

"Aye, Captain," Scharr replied.

As the Andorian moved as fast as he could into the nearest jeffries tube, Katie turned back to the helm.

"Phil lay in an intercept and engage at maximum warp."

"Aye, Captain," Phil said plotting the course.

"I say again, Ladies and Gentlemen," Katie spoke steadying herself in the captain's chair. "We will not let those ships reach Bajor…by any means necessary."

****

"I've lost all contact with the Pershing," Laria said examining her instruments in Deep Space Nine's operations center. "She must have cloaked."

"What is that crazy lieutenant of yours doing?" Rhaan said angrily before turning towards Tigranian. "The first sign of trouble and she tries to run?" The overgeneral turned to a Bajoran manning the communications station. "Open a channel and get them to coordinate with us…"

"No…" Tigranian said angrily shaking his head.

"Are you serious, Captain?" Rhaan said in disbelief.

"Katie is an experienced combat officer who knows what she's doing! If she cloaked the ship, she must have a plan. If we try to communicate with the Pershing, it might tip the Cardassians off and desynchronize everything."

"So, you're asking me to put the entire fate of my planet in the hands of a twenty-eight year old Starfleet officer and one ship?" Rhaan asked.

"That's exactly what we're doing, Sir," Annabeth said joining the heated exchange. "Because, quite frankly, they're the only hope we have. The rest of the Federation fleet won't be here for hours and those Cardassian cruisers will cut through your ships like they weren't even there."

"By the hand of the Prophets!" Rhaan said throwing up his hands in total frustration. "I guess we don't really have a choice," he said acquiescing to the bleak situation, "but if you're wrong, the survivors of the Bajoran civilization will not forget what happens here today."

Tigranian couldn't help exchange a glance with Laria.

"Sir," Kira said calmly. "The Prophets will protect Bajor, and I believe they will make all of us their instrument today."

"I hope you're right, Colonel," Rhaan said glaring back at her. "I really hope you are. Redeploy the Bajoran Interceptors inside the Derna perimeter. Tell them to get their weapons back online as soon as possible. Everything depends on it."

"Time to intercept?" Katie asked glaring at the main viewscreen.

"Thirty two seconds till we enter weapons range…or what would have been weapons range," Phil said adjusting the Pershing's trim. "But they're still at warp. If we don't find a way to slow them to impulse, there's no chance of stopping of them before they reach the system center."

"Scharr!" Katie screamed into the intercom. "Where are my torpedoes?"

The chief engineer was barely able to tap his comm badge to answer. Ten decks below, he was hanging upside down in a jeffries tube junction furiously repositioning isolinear chips in a power relay.

"You don't think I'm not moving fast enough?" he shouted back angrily. "You're welcome to come down here and help! I've got twenty crewmen all over the ship working on it. Another hour, at least."

"I'm open to other suggestions," Katie announced to the rest of the bridge.

"An inverse graviton burst…" T'les said as her eyebrows perked up. "We can quickly reconfigure the main deflector. It will destabilize all warp fields within a million kilometers."

"If you're gonna do it, do it quickly," Phil said looking at the viewscreen. "We're less than two minutes from the Derna perimeter at this speed."

"Get the pulse ready T'les!" Katie yelled. "We'll initiate as soon as we drop the cloak." Katie reached down and keyed the shipwide intercom.

"All hands, this is the captain. Standby to decloak! It's gonna get real rough, real quick, but we're not gonna let those Cardassian through! Brace for emergency deceleration!"

"Deflector dish primed and ready," T'les said from behind her.

"Phil, put us right into the middle of their formation. As soon as the cloak drops, initiate the burst."

Phil guided the Pershing right between the two lead Cardassian cruisers.

"It's now or never," Katie said taking a last deep breath. "Gleeto, drop the cloak!"

The Pershing suddenly appeared, catching the Cardassians completely off guard. A brilliant flash of white light appeared from underneath their saucer, surging out in all directions. All five ships dropped from Warp 9 to sub-light speed instantly as their warp fields collapsed.

On the Pershing's bridge, everyone held on for dear life as the inertial dampeners desperately tried prevent them from splattering against the viewscreen. Katie flew out of the captain's chair and nearly landed right on top of Phil. The Cardassian ships spun out of control and Phil was barely able to avoid a collision.

"Report!" Katie said climbing back into her seat.

"All Cardassian ships have dropped to impulse. They're beginning to assemble into an attack formation."

"Shields are up and stable," Gleeto said catching his breath. "Still no phasers or quantum torpedoes."

"Well, we've got them stopped," Katie thought to herself. "Now what do we do?"

****

"It's the Pershing!" Laria shouted seeing the new sensor readings. "They've initiated a graviton burst! All the Cardassian ships are at impulse."

"That's what I'm talking about, Katie!" Tigranian yelled as he moved to a tactical display along with Kira and Rhaan.

"I don't see what you're celebrating for, Captain," Rhaan said shaking his head. "The Cardassians will be able to resume their course within ten minutes and your ship still has no weapons!"

"Suvlu'taHvIS yapbe' HoS neH, General," Tigranian replied confidently.

"What the hell does that mean?" Rhaan asked.

"Brute strength is not the most important asset in a fight. Katherine Stone and the rest of my crew will find a way," Tigranian said.

"The Cardassians are moving to engage the Pershing," Laria shouted. "And they're still closing at impulse speed. Range 300 million kilometers to Deep Space Nine."

"They'll be here in less than fifteen minutes," Annabeth said doing a quick calculation in her head."

"Is there anything we can do?" Kira said nearly bashing her fist into a console with frustration.

Laria's eyes suddenly grew wide.

"This is a Cardassian station…" she muttered looking around OPS.

"Wow, you really are the intelligent one," Rhaan muttered in reply.

"Cardassian dynamic power relays!" Laria said diving over her console and running toward the subspace control junction. She furiously ripped off the metal cover and began pulling out power cables.

"L, what are you doing?" Annabeth asked very concerned.

"I'm doing something to save my planet!" she screamed in reply.

****

A Cardassian disruptor blast slammed into the Pershing's shields sending a shower of sparks across the bridge.

"Shields down to 82 percent!" Gleeto shouted from Tactical. "Ablative armor is holding."

Phil was furiously maneuvering the starship, trying to keep the Pershing between the Cardassians and their path to Bajor, but only meeting limited success.

"Tractor beam!" Katie said. "Lock a tractor beam onto each one of them. We can at least act as an anchor."

"With four beams at once, we won't be able to get a very solid grip, Ma'am," Gleeto said preparing to execute. "Plus, if they go to warp, they'll rip the tractor emitters right out of the hull."

"It's better than nothing," Katie said shaking her head, out of all other ideas.

"Aye," Gleeto said pressing the display in front of him. Four blue beams locked onto the Cardassian hulls, slowing them to a crawl. However, their shields deflected most of the energy. The Pershing started to lurch and sway violently. Main power started fluctuating and the entire vessel seemed about to tear apart.

"We're being dragged!" Phil said trying to adjust the impulse engines to compensate. "The Cardassians are gunning their engines trying to tear free."

"Hold on!" Katie commanded. "Every second counts here!"

"Emitters are at one hundred fifty percent!" Gleeto shouted. "They'll burn out in less than a minute."

"Hold on!" Katie repeated.

"Bridge! This is Scharr!" the Andorian shouted through the intercom. "You've got to shut down the tractor emitters. If you don't, we'll blow out the entire main power grid and getting the weapons back online we'll be the least of our worries!"

Katie realized that they didn't have a choice. "Shut'em down!" she said losing hope that they could stop the Cardassians. Gleeto hit the kill switch and the enemy cruisers were free to move towards the planet again. They would be able to re-engage their warp drives in less than eight minutes.

"What's the blast radius if our warp core breaches?" Katie asked quietly.

"What?" Phil said turning over his shoulder.

"You heard what I said!" Katie spit through her teeth.

"Captain," T'les said calmly from behind her. "If our warp core breached, everything within thirty thousand kilometers would be vaporized."

"That's good enough," Katie said shutting her eyes. "Mr. Lexington, lay in a collision course. Prepare to engage at full impulse power at my command…"

"Captain…" Gleeto said trying to dissuade her.

"There are over six billion people on Bajor." Katie said opening her eyes again. "And everyone back home seems to think Starfleet can do without a warship…"

Without another word, Phil entered the coordinates into the helm.

"Course laid in, Captain," he said calmly. He looked over his shoulder and silently mouthed the words, "I love you."

Katie fought back tears as she silently mouthed back, "I'll see you on the other side."

An alarm echoed through the bridge.

"Captain!" T'les said. "I've picked up another group of ships!"

A single T-bat fighter streaked in from behind them. It opened fire with its pulse phasers, strafing the Cardassians cruisers, and causing them to break formation.

"Pershing, the Sinoraptor 1," Dee's voice echoed through the bridge. "Sorry, I'm late. It seems like everybody forgot about us." Katie nearly burst out laughing. She could tell that Dee was smiling on the other end of comm.

"Dee!" Katie said engaging her comms. "How the hell did you get your pulse phasers back online?"

"Hold your horses, Fleetie. Mama's still got business to take care of. Sinoraptor squadron, this is Sinoraptor 1. Have your Sizzos look next to their right foot. You'll see a small access panel. That's your main phaser relay. Reconnect the isolinear link inside and you'll have your cannons back."

"Dee," Phil said engaging his comms. "You're a goddamn miracle worker!"

"And don't you forget it, Sab. Consider us even for that little stunt you pulled back on the Tholian border. But it still ain't all sunshine and roses. We got pulse cannons, but no micro-torpedoes or missiles. It's gonna take a lot to take those spoon-heads down. Plus, one hit of their main disruptors will tear a fighter apart like paper."

"I'm still happy to see you, Fighter Jockey," Katie said on the open channel. "We got shields and armor for you."

"Are you saying what I think you're saying, Fleetie?" Dee asked.

"That's right: we block, you tackle."

"Alright, alright, alright!" Dee replied. "Sinoraptors, we're gonna take position right between the Pershing's nacelles. Stay clear of their impulse wash or you'll flame out like a scrub. Call your shot and let's plow the road! Hey Sab," Dee said talking to Phil. "I'm really glad you're my bus driver today. I wouldn't trust anyone else behind the stick of that fat bitch of a starship."

"Hey, watch who you're talking to, Dee," Phil said grinning from ear to ear as he made some adjustments to the helm. "Lady Blackjack might have a big appetite, but she's all muscle."

"Phil," Katie said cutting off the banter. "She's yours to fly. Do what you gotta do."

"Aye, Ma'am," Phil said rolling his shoulders back. "They'll be studying this one at Fighter Weapons School for years to come. Gleeto!" Phil called over his shoulder. "All power to forward shields. The Cardies ain't gonna see any other part of us!"

****

"That's amazing!" Kira said studying the tactical display.

"You ain't seen nothing yet," Annabeth replied.

Tigranian stood next to them silently watching the battle unfold. He was so incredibly proud of his crew at this moment that words couldn't describe it. He had trained them, and now they were performing at a level never before seen in the history of a space combat.

Laria was still working furiously at the subspace control panel. Wires, isolinear rods, and fiber optic cables littered the floor around her knees. Everyone seemed to ignore her efforts, Annabeth and Tigranian because they trusted her, Rhaan and Kira because they thought she had probably lost all touch with reality.

A Bajoran technician had taken her place at the sensor console.

"They've closed to within 100 million kilometers," he said nervously. "The Bajoran fleet has reformed in a defensive line ten million kilometers to our rear, but still has no offensive capabilities."

"By the hand of the Pah-Wraiths!" Rhaan said starting to pace back and forth. "What's our status?"

"Shields one-hundred percent and holding. Phasers and photon launchers offline. The engineering crews say another two hours at least."

"TWO HOURS!?" Rhaan shouted loud enough to shake the bulkheads. "By the time we can fight, this battle will already be written in the history scrolls!"

"Almost ready, almost ready…" Laria began to repeat from across OPS. Everyone looked as she furiously focused on her mysterious task. Kira stepped over to Tigranian and whispered in his ear.

"Is she alright?"

"Colonel, I don't know what Laria is planning, but I think it will amaze us all."

****

"Alright, Dee, I'm coming around to Zero Mark 317 and cutting straight across their axis." Phil said bringing the Pershing around in a sharp arc.

"Acknowledged," Dee said flying less than a hundred meters behind him. "Sinoraptors, wach that crossfire. Last thing we need right now is to lose a fighter."

Phil accelerated to full impulse and charged straight at the formation of Cardassian cruisers. The enemy ships lashed out with their main disruptors. Blasts of energy slammed into the Pershing's forward shields. The entire ship shook, but the shields held. Just they were about to collide with the nearest ship, the Pershing pulled hard to the left, clearing the way for Dee and the rest of the fighters to open fire. Dozens of pulse phaser blasts slammed into the manta-ray like wings of the Cardassian vessels. Before they could react, the Pershing veered to the right to protect Dee and the rest of her fighters from the counter-barrage.

As more disruptor blasts hit the Pershing, Katie called for another status report.

"Forward shields down to 61 percent!" Gleeto said steadying himself at his console. "Those Cardassian main batteries are more powerful than they look.

"Did we lose any fighters?" Katie asked.

"Negative," Gleeto replied. "They got back behind us just in time."

"We've just passed the Derna perimeter," T'les said. "The Cardassians are in the final stages of reintializing their warp cores. I estimate they will be able to jump within the next three minutes."

"How long until they are in range for their tri-cobalt warheads?" Katie shouted.

"If they can jump to warp, they will be in launch range within twenty seconds," T'les said trying to us her Vulcan mental discipline to stay calm.

"God dammit!" Katie said banging her fist on her chair. "We need to do more!"

"Captain," T'les said. "The Galor cruiser on the far left of the formation is showing significant fluctuations in their power grid. I believe if we focus our next attack run on them, we might be able to penetrate their shields."

"Phil!" Katie commanded, but he was already in motion.

"Dee! hit the far left cruiser with everything you have! Attack pattern Lancer Delta 3!"

"Acknowledged, we're right behind you!"

Phil brought the Pershing back around and charged straight at the Cardassian ship. Dee maneuvered her squadron into firing position and let loose. Within a few seconds, their pulse phasers had punched through the weakened shields. The ship exploded into a giant fireball.

"Got him!" Dee shouted triumphantly.

"Don't pop the cork yet, Dee," Phil said lining the ships up for another pass.

"One of the Cardassian cruisers has reinitialized their warp core," T'les said. "They've begun the tri-cobalt arming sequence and are preparing to jump."

"No!" Katie said climbing to their feet as she saw the Cardassian vessel break formation and line up straight for Bajor.

"For Bajor!" a voice said echoing through the bridge's speakers. A Bajoran interceptor came screaming into view and rammed the Cardassian straight in its bow. Both ships were destroyed in the resulting fireball.

"Oh my God," Gleeto said.

"Dee, we're out of time," Katie said into her comm system.

"What else can we do?" Dee replied on the verge of panic. "Both of those other ships still have active shields. Even at max overload, our phaser relays would burn out before we could punch through…"

"Captain Leenyo was my friend for almost twenty years…" Rhaan said in disbelief. "We fought in the Resistance together."

"His sacrifice was not in vain," Kira said putting a hand on the general's shoulder.

"It will be if we don't stop those other two ships!" Rhaan said turning back towards the tactical display.

Tigranian stared at the computer icons growing ever closer to their position. If one of the Cardassian ships could reinitialize their core, the other two were not far behind.

The turbolift rose into OPS and Alex and Bashir charged down the steps to join them.

"We saw the Bajoran ship explode!" Bashir yelled.

"Are there any survivors?" Alex said desperately wanting to help. She looked at Kira who simply shook her head no.

"They're now less than a thousand kilometers from the station," The Bajoran technician announced from the sensor station. "Both Cardassian ships have begun the tri-cobalt initiation sequence. I estimate they will be able to jump to warp in less than thirty seconds!"

"By the Prophets…" Kira said covering her mouth. In her almost twenty five years of fighting for Bajor, she had never felt so helpless.

"GOT IT!" Laria screamed from the subspace panel.

"Sir! Our shields are dropping!" The Starfleet crewman said from Tactical.

"What the hell did you do!?" Rhaan shouted losing patience with Laria.

"I needed the energy…" Laria said making a few final connections in the panel. "The Cardassian dynamic power relays in the subspace array can create severe subspace shockwaves if exposed to raw antimatter plasma…" She slammed her comm badge on her chest.

"This is Lieutenant Amira Laria on Deep Space Nine to all coalition ships! Turn to heading 421 Mark 615! Do it! Do it now!"

Laria suddenly turned around to face Tigranian on the far side of OPS. Tears were streaming down her face as she held a live reactor lead in her right hand.

"Till Sto'Vo'Kor, my love…" she whispered at him.

"NOOOO!" Tigranian shouted as he realized her intent. He charged across OPS to stop her, but it was too late. Laria slammed the reactor lead into the subspace power junction. The entire space station lurched and the conduit exploded in front of her. Her body flew five meters through the air. Alarms echoed through the smoky room as emergency power took control.

Outside in space, the subspace array produced a massive blue and purple shockwave that flew out towards the battlefield.

Phil and Dee barely managed to turn their vessels out of the way as the energy wave flew past them directly into the side of the Cardassian ships. Both cruisers were carried along like leaves on a raging river, eventually careening into each other and exploding into a massive cloud of debris. The fierce subspace energy carried their remains back towards Cardassian space.

As the others in OPS attempted to regain their bearings, Tigranian charged through the acrid plasma smoke towards Laria's body. He picked her up and his heart dropped as he felt her limbs go limp. Her uniform was still smoking from the intense burst of plasma energy and blood dripped from her nose and mouth.

"Laria! Laria!" he repeated as he hopelessly tried to bring her back to consciousness. He felt a pair of hands pull him away from his fiancée as Annabeth used all her strength to subdue him. "No! Get off me!"

Alex knelt down next to the brave Bajoran as Bashir grabbed a medical kit and joined her.

"She's not breathing," Alex said trying to find a pulse. Bashir pulled out a medical tri-corder and scanned along Laria's body. "Third degree internal plasma burns from head to toe. She's going into shock and her neural synapses are depolarizing."

"Thirty CCs anaprofaline!" Alex said as Bashir prepped a hypospray. Alex started pounding on Laria's chest trying to get her heart beating again.

"Do not let her die, Alex! DO NOT LET HER DIE!" Tigranian shouted finally breaking free from Annabeth's grip. Before he could get back to Laria, Rhaan tried to help Annabeth regain control of him, but he was fighting like a wild animal.

"Bashir to Infirmary, medical emergency in OPS. Three to beam directly to you."

Just as Tigranian was about to reach them, they disappeared in a swirl of golden light.

****

Bashir lifted Laria onto the operating table. Alex ran up with a pair of neural stabilizers and attached them to her pale temples.

"Still have no pulse," Bashir said preparing another injection.

"Neural activity is down to twelve percent, if it's drops below ten, she'll be permanently brain dead!" Alex said.

"That' won't matter if her organs shut down first," Bashir countered administering the hypospray to Laria's neck.

An alarm echoed from the panel above Laria's head.

"The anaprofaline is having no effect," Alex said furiously making adjustments to the medical computer. "C'mon, L! Stay with me!" She grabbed a tricorder. "We've got to try direct neural stimulation." Bashir nodded his agreement. "Charging to twenty microjules. Standby: clear!" Bashir lifted his hands away from Laria as Alex jolted her nervous system. The tiny Bajoran's body jumped off the table, but fell back limp. The alarm continued "No effect!" Alex said repriming the machine. "Charging to thirty! Standby: clear!" Another jolt passed through Laria's body, but she was still not responding…

Laria opened her eyes. She looked around in panic. The last thing she remembered was connecting the reactor lead to the subspace relay, the sound of Daniel's agonizing screams in her ears…but now she had no idea where she was.

She seemed to be surrounded by bright white light and nothing else. The sound of her heart beating echoed through her ears. She couldn't see anyone else, but had the overwhelming feeling that she was not alone.

"Who's there?" Laria asked loudly. Her voice echoed off the emptiness like she was in a sealed space, but there was absolutely no sense of scale. The light surrounding her seemed impenetrable.

She looked down at her body. Her uniform, her hands, nothing at all showed any signs of the plasma explosion. In fact, Laria felt physically better than she had in ages. Then, as if somebody had flipped a switch in her brain, she had the epiphany:

"I'm dead…" she said out loud.

"Dead?" a voice came from behind her. She spun around to see General Rhaan, standing in the light and staring straight at her. "What does she refer to?" he asked dispassionately cocking his head to one side.

"She refers to the termination of her linear existence," came another voice. Laria looked around to see Kira standing on the other side of her.

"This doesn't make any sense…" Laria said still in disbelief.

"She is of Bajor," another voice sounded out from the light.

"Laria turned her head once more to see Vedek Grigan standing there with his hands crossed in front of him. "She sacrificed herself her linear existence to save it."

"But she is not of Bajor," the figure of Rhaan said loudly. "She knows so little of it."

"And yet she feels it within her," the Kira figure said without any hint of emotion. "How curious…"

Laria felt her knees start to shake.

"Prophets!" she said dropping to her knees and averting her eyes.

"She did not expect to meet us," came another voice. Laria looked up and found herself back in OPS at Deep Space Nine. The sound of her heartbeat still pounded in her head. Annabeth looked down at her. Laria climbed back to her feet and walked over.

"But she believed in the Celestial Temple, and has for the majority of her linear existence." Another figure, this one in the shape of Katie stared at her from across the room.

"She is not of Bajor," the voice of Rhaan echoed in her head again. She was back in the white light.

"And yet she sacrificed everything to save it," Kira added.

"Prophets," Laria said as the whole disorientation of the experience started to kick in. "But…"

The figure of Rhaan raised his hand to silence her.

"She is not of Bajor," he repeated again more forcefully.

"She IS of Bajor," Vedek Grigan said again.

Laria finally couldn't take anymore. They might be her gods, but they were not giving her any answers.

"Where am I? WHAT am I!?" she shouted.

"You are you…" the figure of Kira said appearing directly next to her. Laria froze as Kira grabbed her ear. "Her pagh is strong."

"Her heart burns with a new fire," the figure of Katie said appearing in front of her.

"Her purpose has not been met," Annabeth said from behind her.

"What purpose?" Laria said looking at the figures surrounding her. "What am I supposed to do?"

Suddenly, she found herself alone, standing on the bridge of the Pershing. The sound of her heartbeat still pounding in her brain.

"You are of Bajor," Vedek Grigan said calmly. "But you are not of Bajor," Rhaan repeated. "You live in this place."

"You are both," Kira said directly next to her ear. "You will see the old brought into the new."

"Is that my purpose?" Laria asked nervously. "To bring Bajor closer to the Federation?"

"You will do what no other of Bajor has done," Kira added.

"To meet her purpose, she must be reborn. Her linear existence must continue," Annabeth said firmly.

"She will be reborn in fire," Katie said.

"Her place is not here," Rhaan added as Laria found herself back in the white light.

"Her place does lie elsewhere now," Vedek Grigan said with a nod of his head.

"She will be reborn…" Kira said as her expressionless face turned to a smile. "…in fire."

****

The Pershing had docked at Deep Space Nine along with Dee's fighter squadron. Katie, Phil, T'les, and Scharr had joined Annabeth and Kira outside the infirmary waiting for any news from Alex and Bashir. Tigranian, however, couldn't stand just standing there helplessly.

He wandered into the Bajoran temple on the promenade. As he stared at the altar, he prayed to Kahless, the Prophets, and anyone else who would listen for a miracle.

"I am a Klingon warrior!" he said fighting back tears. "Death, especially such a glorious death as hers, should fill me with pride…" he said staring at the Bajoran eternity wheel mounted on the wall, "but instead I feel only pain. Bring her back to me, please…"

He felt someone else step inside the room He turned around to see Rhaan staring back at him.

"She sacrificed herself to save Bajor," Rhaan said looking down at the carpet. He cautiously took a few steps towards Tigranian who made no effort to stop him. "She will be remembered as a hero to our people, I promise you that."

"Forgive me, General, but I take little solice in that right now…" Tigranian said averting his gaze. Rhaan nodded understandingly and took another step towards the captain.

"I don't blame you at all. It's obvious you loved her very much."

Tigranian shut his eyes tight. Tears from a warrior's eyes were bad enough, but he definitely didn't want this man to see him cry.

"Yes, I did." Tigranian said resigning himself to what seemed inevitable now.

"Back at the reception," Rhaan cautiously began. "You said you hoped that you could convince me that Starfleet wanted to be our partner." The general sighed. "If it helps ease your pain at all, you and your crew have done exactly that. In my report, I'm going to recommend that Bajor continue working towards full Federation membership. It's because of the Pershing that I still have a home to go back to you. Thank you, Captain."

"Don't thank me," Tigranian said meeting his gaze. "Thank her."

"I will…"

"Hunter to Tigranian." Alex's voice echoed out of Tigranian's comm badge. He took a deep breath as he prepared to roar. He wanted all the honored dead his Sto'Vo'Kor to know his par'Mach'kai was crossing the River of Blood to meet them.

"Go ahead…" Tigranian growled.

"There's someone here who I think probably wants to speak to you…"

Tigranian and Rhaan looked at each other.

****

The captain rushed into the infirmary and into the crowd of crew members.

Just as Tigranian approached Annabeth and Kira, the figures of Bashir and Alex stepped through the door. Julian had a look of amazement on his face.

"What happened?" Annabeth asked, not able to take the tension anymore.

"I have a greater knowledge of Bajoran physiology than most Federation physicians, but I have no idea what just transpired in there."

"Alex?" Tigranian said looking to his chief medical officer. Quietly, she walked up to the captain and took his hand in hers.

"Dan," she said on the verge of tears. "I can't explain it. There was absolutely no signs of life. She was dead…and then she wasn't. It's like she just decided to wake up."

Tigranian rushed straight past Alex.

"Sir, you can't…" Bashir said holding out a hand to stop him, but a touch from Kira silenced the doctor's complaint.

"Let him see her, Julian. I think we owe them that much."

Tigranian stepped inside the operating theater. Laria lay on a biobed a few meters away. She sensed his presence and painfully raised her head.

"Daniel…" she said as a smile crossed her pale face.

"No, don't move," he said rushing over. He bent down on one knee to look her in the eyes before gently placing a hand on her cheek.

"I thought I had lost you for good this time…" he whispered fighting back tears of joy.

"Daniel," Laria said moving her gaze to the ceiling. "I met the Prophets."

"What?" he replied still in shock.

"I awoke in the Celestial Temple. I actually spoke to them. They said I still had a purpose in this life and they sent me back."

"You didn't see the River of Blood?" he said almost sounding disappointed. Laria couldn't help but chuckle, but a wave of pain from her side caused her to wince.

"Hey, take it easy," he said moving a pillow under her head.

"No, I didn't see Kortar's boat this time," she said regaining her composure. "But they did tell me something else."

"What?"

"That my place now lies elsewhere. I hope they meant at Kahless' table with you," she said grinning.

Now it was Tigranian's turn to laugh.

"I hope they did too…" he replied. After seeing her smile, he couldn't wait anymore and kissed her. His touch instantly caused her to relax. "...but I hope that's not for a very long time."

He leaned back and gazed at her once again, a grin slowly creeping across his face.

"I know that face," Laria said pursing her lips. "That's the 'I'm thinking something mean about my fiancée face."

"Well," Tigranian said cocking his head to one side. "You spoke to your gods today and basically got kicked out of heaven. That's probably the most Klingon thing I've ever heard."

"Oh shut up," Laria said. Now, it was her turn to lean up and kiss him.

Suddenly, they both felt they were being watched. They simultaneously looked over to the door and saw a half dozen pairs of eyes staring at them. Tigranian stared at Annabeth and grimaced. His first officer just shrugged her shoulders.

"Hey!" Laria said shouting at them. "Can't a woman come back from the dead in peace here?" she took special pleasure in glaring at General Rhaan. The group of gawkers suddenly looked away in embarrassment and left the room.

As they were heading back to the promenade, Kira leaned over to Annabeth.

"Remember when I asked how the hell those two got engaged?"

"Yes," Annabeth said with a smile.

"I get it now."

Annabeth laughed.

"I think we all do."

Deep Space Nine: Bajoran Space

Stardate: 53310.8

Dee reclined in a chair next to the dabo pit in Quark's Bar and Grill. She casually swirled a nearly empty glass of Saurian Brandy. Phil and Katie sat at the table across marveling at her alcohol tolerance. They had been drinking for nearly three hours and Dee still showed no signs of slowing down. Even more remarkably, they had not paid for a single drink. Apparently, the locals now considered them to be heroes. It was idea that made Katie and Phil pretty uncomfortable, but Dee seemed to be using this as an opportunity to destroy her liver while keeping her wallet safe.

"Here we go," Quark, the Ferengi bartender, said hauling over another tray with a bottle of red liquid and three fresh glasses. "Compliments of those fine Bajoran gentlemen over there." He pointed to the far end of the bar where a cluster of Bajoran officers raised their glasses. Dee jovially returned the salute with her glass and smiled.

"Thank you, Sweetie," Dee said as Quark placed the items on the table in front of them. She reached up and gently brushed his giant right ear before dropping a slip of gold-pressed latinum into his lapel pocket. Phil and Katie both nearly gagged, though they weren't sure if it was a result of Dee's interaction with Quark or the amount of booze they had both consumed.

Quark literally shivered before walking away with his empty tray.

"If all Starfleet officers were like you, I might actually consider moving to the Federation…" he mumbled.

"What the hell, Dee?" Phil said.

"What, Sab?" she simpered innocently.

"Why do you lead that disgusting little Ferengi on like that?" Katie said pushing the glass away from her.

"When, mama's in a good mood, everyone's in a good mood," Dee said leaning forward. Dee grabbed the bottle Quark left and poured herself another glass. She offered to pour two more, but Katie and Phil both waved their hands. "Suit yourselves," she taking a sip.

"What's next for you, Dee?" Katie asked.

"Well, since you asked, Fleetie…and I've had enough booze to answer you honestly…I don't know." The way she responded made Phil nervous.

"What are you talking about, Dee?" he asked.

"I think this was my last wild ride, Sab. The secret's bound to get out sooner or later, but the Pike isn't going back out after it's serviced. It's headed to the mothball fleet. A few of the pilots are headed to the Kirk, but I'm not one of them."

"So you mean?" Katie asked nervously.

"I'm out of a job!" Dee said reaching over and grabbing a shot of whiskey left over from a previous round and quickly knocking it back.

"My God, Dee, I'm so sorry," Phil said in disbelief.

"Don't be," she said with a playful smile. "I'll head back to Starfleet Command and ride a desk for a year or two till an instructor slot opens up at Top Gun. Then I'll be right back in the cockpit. Don't worry, the stars haven't seen the last of me." Dee then shrugged her shoulders. "And even if they have, I'm glad I went out guns blazing next to you two." She leaned in even closer. "I hope this isn't the booze talking, but I'm really starting to see the appeal of what you guys do. What you could accomplish as a crew, working together to fight that starship. It was beautiful to watch."

"Thank you, Asha," Katie smiled.

"And you two…" Dee continued pointing a finger at the pair. "Don't you screw this up!"

"What?" Phil and Katie said simultaneously.

"This," Dee said waving her finger back and forth between the two of them. "This love thing you got going on. I've never seen you so happy, Sab, and Fleetie, you seem a hell of lot happier than when I first met you. I can only assume it's because of this asshole," she pointed at Phil. "No offense, Sab."

"None taken…" he muttered.

"He's doing something right by you."

Katie grinned.

"We'll do what we can."

"You better."

"Shit," Katie said looking down at her watch. "I'm gonna be late meeting the captain back on the ship."

"Go," Phil said as she got up. "Hey!" he said before she left. Katie smiled, bent over, and gave him a quick kiss. Katie ran off towards the upper docking pylons leaving Dee and Phil alone.

"Are you sure you're going to be alright flying a desk? I know you, Asha, and that's not you."

"I don't know…" she looking down at table.

"You want me to put in a good word with Captain Tigranian? We could use a good pilot on the helm during the night shift."

Dee laughed.

"F**k you, Sab."

"Had to ask," he smiled.

"You're my brother," she said. "I love you."

"Terrors of the stars, Dee," he said holding out a hand. She reached out and grabbed his wrist.

"Lancers for life, Sab."

****

Alex and Annabeth walked through the door of the Vulcan restaurant on the promenade. Bashir had a table in the far corner and waved at them. Alex waved back. She adjusted her dress as they walked over.

"What's up with you, Babe?" Annabeth whispered in her ear.

"I'm just not sure we're doing the right thing. He's an amazing physician and he's going through a rough time. I don't want to hurt him even more."

"Don't worry about him. She's a big girl and knows what she's doing. The rest is up to him," Annabeth said quickly cutting herself off as they entered Bashir's earshot.

He jumped up and pulled out two chairs for them. They both smiled as they took their seats.

"Sorry we're late, Julian," Alex said. "We had a few things to take care of on the Pershing."

"Oh, it's quite alright," Bashir said. "I'm just glad that we still decided to have dinner. I don't get to have many professional discussions either."

"I suppose that's the result of having so few medical personnel in Starfleet," Alex replied nervously looking towards the door. Bashir looked a little puzzled, but Annabeth quickly interjected.

"I promised Alex I would behave myself, even if I have no idea what you two are talking about," Annabeth said.

"Well, Ma'am. I promise not to make things too technical," Bashir said motioning towards a server.

A female Vulcan waitress approached the table, politely bowed and poured three glasses of Altair water.

"Oh, may we have another glass?" Annabeth said. "There will be someone else joining us."

"As you wish," the Vulcan said completely dispassionately as she walked back to grab the flatware.

"Someone else joining us?" Bashir said raising an eyebrow.

"I hope you don't mind, Julian," Annabeth said. "We said were eating at a Vulcan restaurant, and she told us how long it had been since she had something that really tasted like home. We just couldn't say no."

"Oh, there she is," Alex said very excited. "T'les!"

Bashir looked towards the door to see a striking Vulcan woman in a long satin dress stroll into the restaurant. Her long black hair, normally in a tight bun on top of her head, hung down over her shoulders. She moved with graceful purpose towards them and Bashir nearly tripped over his feet as he jumped up to greet her.

"I'm…I'm so glad to meet you," he said awkwardly grabbing another chair from a vacant table.

"It is agreeable to make your acquaintance as well, Doctor," T'les replied. "I am very much looking forward to hearing your opinions on Vulcan cuisine."

"Well, I'm not really a connoisseur, but I do know a little bit," he said still stammering over his words.

"We shall see," T'les replied flashing him only the slightest of glances.

"Ice queen routine. Bold move," Alex whispered into her wife's ear.

"Told you she knew what she was doing…" Annabeth whispered back.

****

Katie took a deep breath and rang the chime on the captain's door. When he first explained what he wanted to try, she was a little taken aback, but he assured her that he thought it would ease her trauma, insomnia, and anxiety. Phil wasn't too happy either, but reluctantly agreed. He was desperate to find anything that could help her.

The doors parted and Katie nearly ran into Laria making a dash for the corridor.

"I'm sorry, L," Katie said.

"It's ok," she said balancing a satchel on her shoulder. "It's just I'm trying to catch the red eye shuttle to Bajor. I've got some business to take care of."

"Are you sure you should be travelling in your condition?" Katie asked with concern.

Laria was recovering rapidly from her injuries, but she still looked a little pale.

"Don't bother, Katie," Tigranian's voice came from inside the darkened quarters. "She refuses to listen to reason."

"I will be fine, Daniel!" Laria said with a little annoyance. "Besides, this is for both us!"

"I don't see why you can't do it over subspace. He already said he would be happy to."

Laria rolled her eyes.

"Goodbye, Daniel!" she said blowing a kiss back inside. "Be sure you take care of Katie."

"I will…" he grumbled back. "Love you, too."

Laria turned back towards Katie and grinned.

"Are you ready?"

"I'm not sure…" Katie said, still quite nervous. She couldn't help but feel she was somehow intruding where she didn't belong.

"Don't worry, I feel amazing when he does it with me. It's like your body is charged with electricity. Just be sure he warms up his hands first, it can be a little uncomfortable otherwise." Katie blushed, but before she could say anything Laria was running back to the station.

"Alright, Katie," Tigranian called out to her. "Please come in."

"I can't believe I'm doing this. I can't believe I'm doing this…" Katie repeated to herself over and over again as she stepped inside. Tigranian had dimmed the lights to almost black. She jumped as the doors quickly sealed behind her. The only illumination came from a few candles scattered around the room.

"It's alright," Tigranian said walking towards her. "There's nothing to be nervous about. I do this with Laria all the time."

"I know," Katie said.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Good, now I need you to take your clothes off and lay face down on the bed."

Katie pulled her shirt over her head and was soon dressed in nothing but a sports bra and shorts. She walked over and slowly took her place on top of the captain's klongat skin.

"Try to relax," he said walking over to a cabinet in the corner. He came back carrying a large wooden box. As he knelt down over her, he saw her tense. "Katie, I said try to relax. This isn't going to work very well if you're wound up like a watch spring."

"Sorry, Sir. It's just my first time in this position with someone in my chain of command."

"Katie," Tigranian said with a chuckle. "Don't make it weird. This is purely professional."

He opened the lid of the box and removed two small metal dishes he placed on either side of her head.

"Traditional Klingon medicine is thousands of years old. It is based on the principle that the body and mind draw their strength from the soul. Physical and mental ailments are a result of an unbalanced energy flow from the spirit, and we're going to attempt to correct that imbalance. I can't guarantee that it'll replace all the prescriptions Alex has you on, but with some work, I think we can drastically cut down on your medication."

As he spoke to her, he pulled out a bundle of dark brown fluff that had been milled into a consistency as fine as raw cotton. He portioned out a small handful and expertly rolled it into two small spheres. He placed one in each metal bowl and set them alight with a candle from the nightstand. They slowly began to burn with an acrid smoke that stung Katie's nostrils.

"What is that?" she asked.

"QelVot weed," Tigranian answered. "It grows wild all over Qo'nos' northern hemisphere. The smoke it produces slows the heart rate and opens the blood vessels."

"It's not gonna cause me to fail a drug test, is it?" she asked sarcastically.

Tigranian chuckled as he pulled out a targ leather-bound book from the box.

"I haven't failed one yet…" he said flipping through the tome's yellowed pages.

Katie glanced over and saw a piece of parchment covered with hand written Klingon script. There was a drawing of a warrior covered with lines and dots than ran from his head down to his feet.

"Sir, is this really gonna work on me if I'm not Klingon? I mean, our anatomy is not exactly similar."

"It's similar enough," Tigranian said calmly. "As Alex can tell you, all humanoids share a basic anatomical structure. Now…" he said running a finger down the middle of Katie's bare back. She shivered as he gently stimulated the nerves running down her spine. "In Klingons, there is a meridian here that increases circulation to their third lung. You and I don't have that, but we do share this accu-point…here!" He jabbed his finger hard into her left lower back. She nearly jumped off the bed as a wave of pain shot through her, but then was immediately overcome with a warm tingling sensation all over her body.

"Whoah…" Katie said sinking deeper into the klongat fur.

"You see? It's not so bad," he said reaching back into the box. He pulled out five of the largest copper needles that Katie had ever seen. They looked more like roofing nails than medical instruments.

"What are you going to do with those!?" Katie asked tensing up again.

"Katie, you need to relax…" he said massaging her back again to calm her down. "But I am going to stick these in you."

"'Relax' he says as he's about to impale me with his grandmother's knitting set…"

"The way a Klingon stoically bears pain reflects greatly on her character," Tigranian said prepping the first needle.

"I'm not Klingon, Sir."

"You're more of a warrior than many Klingons I've met, so act like it," he said pulling her hair back. He started circling his finger over the spot where her neck joined her skull. "Now, you're going to feel a sharp prick when this goes in, but it'll pass very quickly. One…two…"

He didn't wait for three. Tigranian slammed the needle into her flesh. Katie tensed as a sharp burning sensation coursed through her body, but then immediately was overcome with the strangest feeling of euphoria she ever experienced. It was like her muscles were slowly melting into warm jelly.

She sighed in contentment.

"Oh God…" she muttered under her breath.

"See?" Tigranian said. She couldn't see his face, but could tell he was smiling.

Tigranian prepped the next needle and then inserted it behind her right knee. Katie's euphoria only increased…

****

Ninety minutes later, Katie stumbled back into her quarters. Phil was reading a book in bed. He looked up.

"Hey, how was it?" he asked nervously.

Katie stumbled over and collapsed on top of him. She rested her head on his chest and smiled as she heard his heart beating. He reached over to the nightstand and grabbed Katie's hypospray. It was already prepped with her nightly injection.

"Are you alright?" he asked in shock. She reached up and pushed the hypospray away. He lifted her chin so he could see her eyes. "Katie bug?"

"I…love…you…" was all she managed get out before losing consciousness.

That night, Katie experienced the deepest and most relaxing sleep she had in years…

Rakantha Province: Bajor

Stardate: 53310.9

Laria finished wrapping her scarf around her hair before pushing open the doors to the temple. She stepped inside and took in its wonderful, comforting atmosphere. She knelt down to pay her respects to the altar. When she looked up, a familiar face was staring back at her causing her to grin from ear to ear.

"Welcome back, my child," Vedek Grigan said opening his arms wide. Laria jumped up and gave him a hug.

"Thank you, Vedek. It's so wonderful to see the improvements that have been made here since my last visit. It's incredible!"

"It seems the Bajoran government is finally taking our province's recovery seriously," Grigan replied. "With the help of the Prophets, Rakantha will be back to its old glory before this old man joins the Prophets." He cocked his head to one side. "It seems they have smiled on your plans to be married here. Everything is prepared next month."

"That is wonderful…" Laria said. His comment about the Prophets carried her mind back to the Celestial Temple.

"But something tells me that your wedding is not the only reason you visited. Come," he said bidding her to follow him. "We have much to discuss."

She followed him back to the Rectory. In the kitchen, he pulled out a chair at an old wooden table. Laria cautiously sat down while Grigan went over to the stove and grabbed a kettle of tea. He placed it down in front of her and poured them both a cup.

"This is wonderful," Laria said taking a sip of the steaming hot brew.

"I'm glad you like it," he said taking a seat across from her. "I grow the leaves myself in the garden behind the temple. It's a very old blend taught to me by my father. Very good for encouraging conversations." He paused, but then broached the subject Laria was too afraid to bring up.

"You're wondering why the Prophets sent you back, aren't you?" Grigan asked with a grin.

"How did you know about that?"

"My child," he said with a chuckle. "I'm old, not stupid. When a person is touched by the Prophets as spectacularly as you were, news travels fast among the vedeks."

Laria blushed and looked down into her tea.

"Why did they send me back, Vedek?" she finally managed utter. Then, Grigan said something completely unexpected.

"I don't know," he said shrugging his shoulders. "But whatever it was, I bet it was a good reason."

"That's it?" Laria said a little incensed. "You don't know of some passage in the sacred texts that applies?"

Grigan laughed.

"Laria, I'm just a simple country vedek. I don't have all the answers despite what some in my tiny congregation think. Did the Prophets tell you anything?"

"Yes, they said I was both of Bajor and not of Bajor…"

"Hmm…" Grigan said with a somewhat mischievous smile. "That sounds familiar. Glad to see my pagh reading skills are not growing dull in my old age."

Laria tried to join in the levity, but he could tell she was still deeply conflicted by her experience.

"Do you think they were wrong?" Grigan asked next.

"How could they be wrong?" Laria replied. "They're the Prophets. They said I would do what no other Bajoran has ever done. That I would see the old brought into the new."

"There is your answer then," Grigan said leaning back in his chair.

"But I don't know what that means!" Laria said looking down into her tea. "I assume it means that I will help bring Bajor into the Federation…"

"Ahhh…" Grigan said gently raising his hand. "There is your issue, young one. You only assume you understand what the Prophets were trying to say."

"How else could I know what they're saying?" Laria asked starting to get a little frustrated. "It's not like my divine revelation came with a guidebook…"

"Blasphemy does not become you, Laria," Grigan said.

"I'm sorry," she said embarrassed.

"No need for an apology," Grigan replied. "However, many mortals have found the words of the Prophets confusing from the beginning of our recorded history. They see across all time and space. What is clear to them is often murky to those of us without the context."

"Still, I don't know what to do to fulfill my destiny."

"Your destiny will reveal itself in time, Laria," Grigan continued. "Continue on the path the Prophets have laid out for you and you will see." She nodded, but didn't say anything. Grigan cocked his head to one side again. "Is there something else you're not telling me?"

Laria sighed.

"There is one other thing they told me. They said my place was no longer in the Celestial Temple. That I know belonged elsewhere. Does that mean they are turning me away? That I'm longer worthy to follow them?" She looked genuinely terrified. Grigan reached out and grabbed both her hands.

"The Prophets saved you, Child. They have not abandoned you. I am not sure what they meant by those words, but you must have faith that you will end up exactly where you need to be. It is the way of the universe."

"Faith…" Laria said glancing out the rectory's window.

"Yes, Faith," Grigan echoed even more firmly.

"Does that mean you have faith in me, Vedek?" she asked turning back to him.

"Child, I have more faith you in you now than ever before."

Dining Room of the Praetor's Villa: Romulus

Stardate: 53311.0

Proconsul Vrnealious nervously tapped his fingers on the Praetor's opulent table and stared out towards the Apnex sea. He had barely touched the plate of Arnucioun caviar in front of him. Praetor Neral took notice as it was one of his favorite dishes.

"My old friend," Neral said picking up his flute of Romulan Ale and taking a long sip. "What troubles you?"

"Praetor, my apologies," Vrenealious said nervously looking over to the two Elohsian attendants in the room. Neral received the hint.

"Slaves! Leave us! When your presence is required again, you will be summoned." The two women bowed and exited the room. "Now, Relann, you may speak freely."

"Praetor, the Cardassians failed! This plan was tenuous enough to begin with, but if it is discovered that we provided the insurgents with the tri-cobalt warheads, it could be construed as an act of war byboth Bajor and the Federation. The Klingons would be sure to join the alliance against us…"

"You bawl like an old woman," a voice came from across the table. Selonia stared at him while playing with a long, golden chain hanging around her neck. She was dressed in an opulent evening gown made from Tholian silk. "Everything is going exactly as I predicted."

"Exactly as you predicted?" Vrnealious said incredulously. "Then why isn't Bajor destroyed?"

"Because," Selonia said angrily like she was talking to an annoying insect about to be squashed, "we never expected the Cardassians to succeed. They are a race of ignorant, pretentious lizards and have a mental capacity that reflects that lineage. That is why we provided them with a tri-cobalt design we stole from the Ferengi over two decades ago. No one will ever suspect our involvement. The destruction of Bajor would merely have been a bonus."

"Praetor, I do not mean to your question your judgement," Vrnealious said turning to Neral, "but why do you let your woman to speak to me as if her opinion mattered?"

Neral looked down into his lap. Selonia suddenly let a coy look cross her face. She slowly climbed to her feet and walked around the table behind Vrnealious. She gently ran her fingers down his arm, letting her hand come to a rest next to his right hand.

"Oh, Proconsul," she whispered in his ear. "Is that how you really feel?" In a flash, she grabbed his knife off the table with one hand and his hair in the other.

"Listen, you piece of slime," she spit at him as she held the blade to his throat. "My opinion is the only one that matters as far as you are concerned. Is that understood?" He violently trembled as he nodded in understanding. "Good," she said releasing him. "It really is a pity," she mused as she walked back around the table to her chair. "Romulan leaders were once the bravest warriors of us all. Now, they nearly wet themselves at the prospect of spilling blood." She still playied with the dinner knife in her hand as she spoke.

"Since you seem too stupid to understand, Proconsul," Selonia continued, "allow me to enlighten you. What this little event has set in motion will benefit the Romulan Star Empire for decades to come, and as Tigranian tries to stop the inevitable, he will destroy himself and his ship in the process. All the work to accomplish our goals will be done by our enemies. All we must do now is sit back and watch the show."

Vrnealious was still trying to regain his composure after nearly having his neck cut open.

"If I may say so, My Lady," he said finally clearing his throat. "You seem very confident that your vision will come to fruition."

"Of course, I am confident," Selonia replied with an evil grin. "For me not to be implies that I could be wrong…"