TEASER

FADE IN: 

1 EXT. DEEP SPACE NINE

Establishing the station... 

2 INT. DS9 - COMMANDER’S OFFICE

Beginning on another padd, held in Commander RO’s hands. It shows more Starfleet reports of the ongoing situation. 

The office door opens and Major CENN steps into the room. 

CENN
Commander... 
(she doesn’t look up)
It’s nearly oh-one-hundred hours.
You shouldn’t be here. 

RO
(re padd)
Just... reading the reports. 

Cenn takes a seat, not sure he wants to know. 

CENN
To quote yourself... hit me. 

RO
(shrug)
More attacks. More deaths. 
(beat)
One small ray of light though. The
reports from the Enterprise and
the Aventine say they’ve found the
point where the Borg are entering
the Alpha Quadrant - the Azure
Nebula. So I suppose strictly
speaking that’s the Beta Quadrant. 

CENN
That’s why the first few attacks
were all in the Onias sector.

RO
Yep. Some kind of subspace tunnel
from the Delta Quadrant. I’ve sent
the technical details to Nog and
John. Unfortunately... there are
dozens of these tunnels leading
all around the galaxy and all
intersecting at the nebula, and
they don’t know exactly which
one the Borg are coming through.

CENN
So what are they doing about it?

RO
Some good old-fashioned exploring.
One ship goes through while the
other stands guard at the nebula,
then they swap over, until they
find the right tunnel.

CENN
And when they do, then what? 

RO
Ray of light number two. Admiral
Akaar - he’s the new liaison to
the president since Ross retired,
so congratulations to him...

Cenn smirks - he knows Ro and Akaar don’t get along. 

RO (cont)
...says that Bacco is talking to all
the ambassadors and trying to
pull together a unified fleet to
blockade the nebula and stop
the Borg getting through.

CENN
So we might have a chance. 

RO
Maybe. Still a hell of a lot of
people dying while we wait
for that chance, though. 

CENN
Do you want me to tell the crew?

RO
It can wait till morning. May as
well let someone have a good
night’s sleep.

CENN
On that subject, I’m officially
relieving you of duty. Go to bed. 

RO
(sad smile)
I’m too tired to argue. Can’t
promise you I’ll sleep, though. 

Sluggishly, Ro gets up from her seat and follows Cenn out. 

3 INT. DS9 - ETANA & RICHTER’S QUARTERS

ETANA KOL (Bajoran female) and KRISTEN RICHTER (human female) lie tastefully in bed together. Richter is at least trying to sleep, but Etana is just staring at the ceiling. Finally Richter turns over to look at her girlfriend. 

RICHTER
What is it? 

ETANA
Sorry, go back to sleep. 

RICHTER
I wasn’t sleeping anyway. And
I can tell when you’re thinking.
There’s kind of a whirring noise. 

Etana gives her girlfriend a playfully withering look, but eventually also turns in bed so they are facing each other. 

ETANA
Okay. It’s just that we had a
patient in the Infirmary this after-
noon. Old man, must have been
over a hundred. And he was dying.
Nothing we could do, he had a
long-term chronic condition. We
just had to help him go to the
Prophets in peace and comfort.

RICHTER
I’m sorry. 

ETANA
But he was alone. No friends.
Never had any children. Nobody
to be with him at the end but me
and a couple of other strangers.
And I just thought - I never
want that to be us. Ever.

RICHTER
I don’t think it will.

ETANA
Me either. But...

Etana suddenly sits up in bed, something on her mind. 

ETANA
If I ask you something, will you
promise not to take it the wrong
way? 

RICHTER
Of course. You can ask me what-
ever you want, you know that. 

ETANA
Okay. 

Etana suddenly jumps out of bed, dashes across the room to the wardrobe, digs inside and pulls something out. Without showing it, she comes back to the bed and sits facing her girlfriend. Richter sits upright as well.

ETANA
If... anything... should happen, I
don’t want to go to the Prophets
an old, single woman... with no
wife. Will you marry me? 

Etana holds out a Bajoran PLEDGE BRACELET in both hands, offers it nervously to Richter.

ETANA
Now, just to be clear, I’m not
asking you to marry me because
I think we’re all about to die and
I just don’t want to be alone. I’m
asking you to marry me because I
don’t want to die - whenever that
happens - without having stood
before the Prophets and said that
you, Kristen Richter, are the love
of my life. The one I want to
spend the rest of my life with
- however long that is - 

Richter reaches out and puts a finger over Etana’s lips to stop her from babbling.

RICHTER
Yes. Yes, Etana Kol... I will
marry you.

ETANA
You will? 

RICHTER
Yes, of course! 

ETANA
Oh, thank the Prophets! 

The two women kiss, full of excitement and happiness and relief. PAN ACROSS to the window of stars... 

FADE OUT

END OF TEASER