Saren paced back and forth in his office with a padd in his hand, raised and his eyes buried into it. When he was recently promoted to commander, he had hoped to be given command of a warbird right away. Although they have quite a fleet, all of which are currently commanded by those who do not seek to retire anytime soon. Nor are there any more flag officer positions to be filled to promote one of those warbird commanders. So what did this leave Saren with? He was left with being Vice Admiral Terik’s first officer, still on board the Intrakhu. But the ship was undergoing a significant refit; it had a run-in with a couple of Imperial warbirds, to which luckily not a single crewmember perished but had left the Intrakhu out of commission for a few weeks.

What has Saren done with his time? Reading reports. Lots and lots of mission reports from current and former commanders. He wanted to keep his mind fresh and absorb as much information as possible about what had been happening with the colonies that once belonged to the Romulan Star Empire. He was about to get into an extraordinarily detailed report when the padd updated with a new report, fresh off the comms channel. The title grabbed his interest. He opened it, found it to be from a scout ship commander, and began to read it. His eyes began to widen, and the pacing back and forth in his office immediately changed to a rush out of his office. Within a split second, he had pressed the chime button on Vice Admiral Terik’s door. His office was right next to hers.

“Come in,” said the woman from inside her office.

Saren stepped in between the door before it had a chance to open fully and made it across the room in a blink. At the edge of her desk, he laid his padd down in front of Terik and pointed at the report. “I think someone just found me a ship.”

Terik looked up at him, then down at the padd to which he pointed and skimmed over it. A smirk crossed her face. “Another Valdore-class.”

Saren grunted, “I would prefer a D’deridex-class; I did serve on one for almost over 26 years.”

Terik nodded her head. “True, but you also served on board my ship for nearly half that. And if I am not mistaken, you quite enjoyed the Intrakhu. Or the kind of warbird that she is.”

Saren took the padd and skimmed over the report, practically ignoring her. Not on purpose. “Only problem is, it is likely an Imperial warbird. But from the scans that the scout ship shared, it appears to be abandoned.” Saren then returned the padd to her desk.

Terik took another look at it and hummed to herself in a curious manner. “Strange. I wonder what happened on board. But the scout ship scanned the vessel at long-range. The commander is new and a bit fearful of ambushes.”

Saren nodded his head. “I’ve experienced one myself as an Uhlan. Plus, considering the lack of diplomacy with the Klingon Empire and the fact that there are Imperial Naval vessels that have yet to concede, still flying about in the unaligned regions. So, I do not blame them.”

“Still,” Terik pointed to one of the scans. “At least long-range scanners were able to detect the emissions that we look for in a warbird that is adrift. The Singularity Core is intact, but the question remains, how damaged is it? Other scans show minimum power levels. Still, it is difficult to detect life signs with long-range scanners.”

Saren placed the palms of his hands on her desk and leaned forward a bit. “I think it’s worth investigating. Allow me to take a team to investigate.”

Terik looked up at him. “I don’t like risking my first officer, recently a commander, on a mission that could be dangerous.”

One side of his lips curled into a grin. “And what if it turns out that we can acquire this ship for our navy?”

Terik leaned back into her chair as she drummed her fingertips into her desk; the gears turned in her head as she processed the information. Once the drum of her fingertips stopped, she gave Saren her answer. “Fine. A full team. And if it turns out to be abandoned but you can restore functionality, I want you to bring that warbird back to the naval yards immediately.”

Saren looked at her. “And if it turns out we cannot restore functionality?”

Terik stared into his eyes. “Destroy it. Cannot have it fall to the wrong hands or be returned to our enemy.”

Saren pushed off her desk and stood straight; his grin turned into a smile. “Understood. I know just who I want as part of my team. Sublieutenant Isha.”

Terik brought up a holo display with a manifest, did a quick key search, and found the woman Saren spoke of. “She is assigned to a warbird, but they are just a day away. I will notify the commander immediately of her reassignment. Anyone else?”

“I will have to get back to you on that, Admiral,” Saren told her.

Rhianna Isha grumbled with annoyance as she stepped off the transporter pad. She wondered why she was reassigned, again. Her first assignment didn’t go so well as she tried to be an assistant to a diplomat, but while they were at a Starfleet Starbase, some undisciplined enlisted men got a little handsy. She got a little angry and put a couple of them on the floor, which later ended them in the infirmary. She knew she could have followed proper procedures and reported it, but she wanted to teach them a lesson. Lucky for her, those enlisted personnel had made their last mistake and being young and immature, they were sent off for some ‘corrective’ training. Which meant some Bajoran security officer got to teach them some discipline. But her actions were inappropriate for a Diplomatic Aid and reassigned her to a warbird as a survey team officer.

Then the warbird was about a day away from New Romulus when it received orders to make a U-turn and drop her off for yet, another reassignment. This time she has no idea why. Her former commander wouldn’t tell her. Or they didn’t know, which she found hard to believe.

She barely made it several feet from the transporter when she saw a familiar face and nearly ran to them. But she was able to keep her composure. Isha walked over to the man, stood before him, dropped her bags, and saluted. “Jolan-tru, subcommander!”

Saren smirked. “Jolan-tru, Rhianna. And it’s commander now.”

Isha’s smile grew bigger. “You got your promotion! I’m so happy for you, S’Tev!”

Saren reached down and grabbed her bag before he gestured her to follow. “Come. I got much to tell you.”

Isha sighed, her smile now faded. “I would love to, but I’ve been reassigned. Somewhere.”

Saren looked at her with a grin. “I know. Come.”

Isha frowned then her smile came back. “You got a warbird?!”

Saren made a look that wasn’t at all assuring. “Yes and no. I’ll explain once we get to my office.”

Isha frowned again. “Why do I get the feeling that we are going to be sent on what could possibly be a suicide mission?”

Saren chuckled. “We’re in the Romulan Republic now, sublieutenant! Some missions are worth the risk. And this mission is definitely worth it.”

Pre-Mission: Assembling the Team / Hakona Parau

The republic might show in various areas stabilization, but there were still various areas that were not there yet. One of them was the medical care that every Romulan and Reman deserves to receive. The problem was not so much that they were denied their service. It was more than experienced people in the field of medicine were in shortage. The republic was in the process of gaining more doctors and nurses to provide the demand, but it would take some time. Therefore, the hospital was chaotic as people wanted to receive medical attention.

“Get him to checkroom four and treat him with these specific details, go” A woman with a ponytail and a white coat pointed in a direction.

“Yes, doctor Parau” a nurse replied, walking with the patient toward the designated room.

Placing the PADD on the counter and taking a breather moment, she noticed a man standing next to her, looking at him. “If you have an appointment, please wait the designated time slot, and we will get to your needs as soon as possible, sir” Hakona looked back at the counter. 

Saren stared at her with his hands clasped behind the small of his back. He had been observing the situation at the hospital for quite some time, to get an idea of the situation that is happening here. He knew help was coming, but he also knew that the timing was not the best. Nor is this. “It is not a matter of an appointment, doctor. It is a matter of duty and service to the Republic.”

Looking up from the PADD in front of her as she looked slowly at the man, “I believe I am already performing my service to the Republic by aiding the people with the medical care they require sir” Hakona turned to him and crossed her arms “But you got my attention, what can I do for you sir?”

Saren smirked at her remark and nodded his head in agreement. “Indeed, you are.” He then cleared his throat. “I am putting together a team to investigate a vessel that is adrift in the unaligned territory just outside our border. Scans were conducted long-range, so the status of the crew is unknown. Regardless, I would feel much more comfortable investigating the ship with a medical expert on my team.”

Hearing the outline of the given operation, she slowly nodded, “Yea, Commander Xivaik made it clear that the Republic might come to me one day to ask for my services. I guess this is the day, then. But I wish to know that there are enough medical experts on New Romulus, and I presume also active in the navy. Why me?” Xivaik, ah yes, that old man of her previous assignment at the IRV Shianev did warn her about this. 

Saren’s smirked shifted to a grin at the mention of her former commanding officer. Likely when she left the Imperial Navy after Romulus was destroyed, as per her record. He then nodded his head to her questions. “New Romulus does. Nurses that were under you are likely on their way to become doctors themselves. Unless you think otherwise.” He told her.

“Why you?” Saren repeated her question. “You should be answering that. Why should I pick you? What makes you qualified to be on my team on what could potentially be a suicide mission?”

“I believe you are the one standing here in my hospital asking for my service,” Hakona shrugs. “But sure, let’s do it your way. I am qualified because of my long-term service on various Star Navy ships, where I have seen all kinds of injuries and diseases. Be it from the Klingon or Federation borders. I have seen the Dominion from way too close as well. If you wish to stay alive, then yes, I might be your best shot in the dark.”

Saren smiled at her. “Exactly how I would have put it. Maybe not word for word but you got it. I don’t just need the best, doctor. I need someone who has talent, who can figure a way to save a life when they lack the modern tools. Not saying we won’t, but you never know. You see that warbird I mentioned, after we figure out what happened to the crew, the Republic Navy will see to it that it becomes my bird to command. While we may be busy trying to assist Republic colonies to better stabilize themselves, we may also be out there, in the non-aligned territories, helping colonies that have claimed independence. Colonies that may run out of supplies, or tools that have become damaged beyond repair, maybe even a bit backwater because they were heavily reliant on the ‘tender love and care’ of the Romulan Star Empire. Whatever that may have been.” He smirked at that thought. “Point is, we will be helping a lot more of our people that just the ones here on New Romulus. How does that sound to you, Centurion?”

“A rank I have not heard for a long time” She admits and slowly nods, looking at the PADD. “Tell you what, I finish up here and get the transition done correctly without abandoning anyone or leaving them in their own fateful hands. Then I shall report to whatever ship you currently use to get to the abandoned ship. I do appreciate any information on the said ship’s mission if that is known….at least the region” Hakona brain was already there to figure out what kind of biological thing it could potentially be if there was any that could do such a thing. 

Saren smiled and pulled a padd out from inside his jacket to hand to her. “These are the details that we have so far. As I said, only long-range scans were conducted so we’re going in slightly blind. No idea if there are life signs. Singularity Core appears to be operational, but its condition is unknown. And it’s adrift in space that used to be claimed by the Romulan Star Empire but is now non-aligned or unclaimed at this time.” He then pointed at the information up top. “Come by the hangar bay attached to the command center at this date. We will be taking a Kestrel runabout to get there. Does that fit with your transition period?”

She gets the PADD and narrows her eyes, “A ship with a perfect working Singularity Core sounds like bait to me” Hakona didn’t mind stating her mind about it as she read the details. Nodding to the final comments “I should be done with that transition period by that date yes Commander” She looked back at him “I want to say looking forward to work with you, but only time will tell if that is true or not”

Saren chuckled. “That’s why the scout ship only conducted long-range scans.” He told her with a grin. “But it doesn’t necessarily say it’s perfect, just says it’s working. Safety measures are likely still in place but for how long? We won’t know until we get there.” He winked. “I’ll see you there, Centurion.” And with that, Saren turned around and made his exit.

“So does that sound good to you, sublieutenant?” Saren asked Rhianna Isha. He had just explained the whole report from the scout ship and what Saren plans to do with that information. Then he had directed her to find them a runabout and prepare it for a full team. Saren is not sure if he will have a full team, but it would not hurt to be prepared or to have extra equipment.

“I think you’re nuts, with all respect, sir,” Isha told him. She then took in a deep breath and sighed. “But with you leading the team, and eventually in command of the warbird…yes. Yes, sir, it sounds good.”

“Are you sure?” Saren asked her. “You’re going to be my Strategic Officer on this, and as my Strategic Officer, I need your full support.”

Isha took in another deep breath and sighed again. “How about this? I pull up what plans we have on the Valdore-class,”

“Which we should have easily, considering a good chunk of the Republic Navy is Valdore-class warbirds,” Saren added.

“Right. I should be able to draw up a few plans specific to a situation if it came to it.” Isha told him.

Saren smiled. “Good. Then get to it.”

Isha stood up from her seat and began to make her way to the door before she stopped and turned around to look at him. “Are you sure about that woman? The one you are choosing to be on our team?”

Saren looked down at the padd which had a full detailed file on a Romulan woman. The file belonged to Herrana Orex. Saren then looked back up at Isha. “I am. Let me put it this way, Isha. You’re on my team because you fought by my side and saved my life as well as many lives in the Kani Colony. This woman is the same reason.”

Isha smiled as she understood. “Of course, sir.” She then returned to her path out of his office, only for his door to be seconds away from being closed to sliding wide open again. It was Vice Admiral Terik and she looked concerned.

“I was wondering when you were going to arrive, Admiral.” Said Saren.

“I want you to be very honest with me, Commander. Did you just submit a request for Herrana Orex to be on your team?” Terik asked him.

Saren nodded his head. “I did.”

Terik sighed heavily and then began to pace slowly in front of his desk. She looked at him and then at the padd that was there on top of his desk, and she could see the face of the woman in question. “Then you know what she has been doing?”

Saren cleared his throat. “I do, Admiral but please, enlighten me.”

Terik approached the front of his desk and scowled at him. “This is not a game, Commander! You could be putting yourself, your team, and this mission in jeopardy!”

Saren stood up from his seat, now at eye level, he stared directly into hers. “I do not think so, Admiral. I am thinking about my team and this mission, and I believe that Commander Orex will be a valuable asset!”

Terik took in a deep breath, then sighed heavily as she relaxed. “She was a Commander when she was in the Imperial Navy. Only she was removed for disobeying orders.”

Saren shook his head. “She chose not to be the Romulan who kills other Romulans!”

“Those ships she didn’t fire on belonged to the Free State and they are the enemy, Commander! So, by that fact, she would have disobeyed me or some other Admiral in the Republic if we had given her the same order!” Terik raised her voice at him.

“Except no one knew that they belonged to the Free State at that time! She sure didn’t!” Had raised his voice as well.

For how long they have worked together, they both took a moment to regain their composure before the discussion continued. Terik was the first to continue it. “She spent most of her years, since her removal from the Imperial Navy, as a civilian atmosphere transport pilot. And when she wasn’t flying, she was drinking her life away. She allowed a decision that took away her career to ruin her life, her mind, and her body. She’s unhealthy, unfit, undisciplined-”

Saren raised his voice back up, only so slightly. “She saved my life, S’anra!” Saren then selected a tab of information that was pieced together from several sources, picked up the padd, and handed it to Terik.

Saren then waited patiently for a couple of minutes for Terik to read the file before he continued. “During the Dominion War, Commander Nurakh, the commanding officer of the Harakon, had been rendered unconscious. Herrana Orex was his first officer at that time, and she assumed command per regulations. The Dominion Dreadnought’s shields were nearly gone and yet a lot of our warbirds were focused and engaged with the other Dominion vessels. My commander saw the opportunity and took it, and it seemed that Herrana saw the opportunity as well. She used Harakon to screen the D’Dara when we went in on an attack run for the dreadnought. Because of Herrana, she gave us the chance to unleash a full barrage of our weapons on the dreadnought and destroyed it, saving thousands of Romulan lives, including mine.”

Terik sighed and placed the padd back down on Saren’s desk. “I am not sure how we missed that.”

“I am not disappointed in you, S’anra. I’m disappointed at the other Admirals who also viewed Herrana’s application, though I’m sure not all of the Admiralty had a chance to view it. But you are all so bent on loyalty and obedience that when you dig into someone’s past and see what you do not like, you immediately turn a blind eye without digging deeper. So, I dug deeper and that’s what I found, and I am glad I found it.” said Saren.

“She is still out of shape and those eleven years as a civilian do not make her look good,” Terik told him.

“Then give her to me and I’ll get her back on track. I owe her my life, S’anra, so I am giving her another chance. One that she deserves,” Saren told her.

Terik stood there, clearly in thought, and then her lips grew into a smile. “Fine, we will give her that chance. We will accept her application and commission her as a subcommander, she will not get her original rank back due to several reasons. Reasons that I have voiced pretty clearly.” Terik told him. “On one condition. Since you want that warbird as your ship, she will be your first officer.”

Saren smiled. “I don’t see an issue with that.”

“Oh, I’m not finished. If she so much as disobeys a direct order, or slips up, or gets someone killed, she will be terminated and removed from the Republic Navy and her record will show it.” Terik told him. “And you will be demoted back to subcommander, where someone else will command that warbird.”

Saren’s smile faded. “That’s a hefty price.”

“You want her on your team? Then you will be responsible for her and her actions, as much as any commanding officer is responsible for their crew and their actions. Am I wrong?” Terik asked.

Saren shook his head and sighed. “No, Admiral. You are not.” Saren took a deep breath. “Fine. I accept the conditions.”

Terik smiled. “Good.” She then began to make her way out of his office before she stopped, turned, and looked at him. “I know you won’t fail, S’Tev.” Then she left his office.

Saren took in a deep breath and then sighed heavily with a shake of his head. “I don’t know if I am crazy or this desperate for command or both.” He said to himself before he sent a text message to Herrana’s communicator, which just told her to come to his office.

Herrana strode up to the door to Commander Saren’s office, then took a minute to compose herself and make sure she was up to code. She had to admit that the Republic did know how to design a uniform – the olive-drab utilitarian jacket that had become the mainstay of the New Romulus Navy was much more comfortable and ergonomic than the bulky grey blouses of the Old Empire… even if this particular jacket was a bit more snug around her midsection than she would prefer. 

Sighing, Herrana pressed the doorbell to Saren’s office.

“Come.” Said Saren.

Herrana strode in, doing her best to put that old Star Navy military bearing back to work. “Prospective-officer Herrana Orex, reporting as ordered, Sir,” she said, snapping to attention and performing the cross-the-chest Star Navy salute.

Sir. This officer would have been kissing her boots while she was a Warbird commander.

But, she supposed, the only person she could blame for her current position was herself.

Saren gestured to the chair across from his desk. “Please have a seat.” He asked and waited before he continued. “I guess you are wondering why you are here, so I will get straight to it.” He leaned back into his seat and relaxed. “How much do you remember when you served on board the Harakon?”

Herrana did as she was told, formally taking a seat at Saren’s desk.

“Quite a bit,” she said firmly, making sure there wasn’t an ounce of doubt in her voice. “One doesn’t forget the first vessel they served on as a senior officer. And of course, as with many of my fellow veterans, the events of the Dominion War are very thoroughly burned into my brain.”

Saren nodded his head in agreement with her. “Neither do I. The D’Dara was my posting as first officer during the Dominion War. It is where a lot of us became experienced, hardened veterans.” He waited to see if the name of his old warbird clicked or not; either way he put a pin in that and moved on. “I have a problem, Officer Orex.” He then lifted up his padd and turned it around for her to see. It had a list of her activities from when she left the Imperial Navy to when she joined the Republic Navy. “No matter how deep the hole and how much you fill it with drink to try and drown it away, ‘Disobeying Orders’ tends to find its way back to haunt you.”

The name D’Dara struck Herrana as familiar, but when she heard what Saren said after it, all she could do is scoff. She arched her eyebrows and chewed on her cheek for a moment in contemplation as to how to respond.

“Disobeying orders…” she said almost mockingly. “Yes, I refused to fire on a warbird ferrying civilians to safety. Is that going to be what stops me from joining up with you people? You know, the Federation has a policy that says officers are allowed – no, mandated – to ignore illegal or immoral orders they receive. Given how much the Republic seems to worship them, I’d have assumed you would implement a similar policy.”

Saren raised his own eyebrows after her explanation. He then pulled the padd away and sat it back down on his desk, after he allowed those words that she had said repeat in his head. He then smiled.

“Flag Officers have problems with soldiers not following orders. To us, we see civilians. To them, they see potential soldiers who would join the ranks of their enemy and become our enemy and for that, they are the enemy.” Saren raised his eyebrows and lowered them in one single motion as if his way of shrugging his shoulders, but with his eyebrows as he leaned back into his seat. “I’m sure you knew where they were going but regardless of if you knew they belonged to the Free State or not, you did what any patriot to the people would do, not to the Empire.” He sighed as he slowly shook his head. “Romulans killing Romulans. How far have we fallen.” He asked rhetorically.

Herrana nodded along with Saren, encouraged by his understanding. She wondered if his dismissive attitude towards Flag Officers was common in the Republic Navy. During her time as a captain, most of her mistrust was directed at the Tal Shiar or Reman detachments… perhaps it was just the nature of sapients to always find an enemy in their own ranks.

“Indeed,” she said as he finished speaking. “I found the lack of cohesion amongst our people to be the real tragedy of the Supernova. You think of the state you serve as a cultured, unified force, but once things hit the fan… it turns out most people are just out for themselves.”

Saren nodded his head and he continued on. “Unfortunately, command is not too pleased with your record. Along with the disobeying orders that we discussed, it’s also the fact that you reduced yourself to an unfulfilling job. By that, sure you served the people but then you tried to drown your past in liquor with essentially all your earnings. So that makes them wonder if you’re even fit to come back to the navy. How would you set an example to the crew when their commanding officer looked like she got pulled out of a bar?”

“We all dealt with the loss of Romulus in our own way,” Herrana said firmly after a brief but pointed pause. “And I’m not going to be showing up to shift drunk or hungover, Commander. I assure you that I am very well-versed in the importance of how the crew perceives senior officers, as I’m sure you’re aware that I spent over a decade commanding a Valdore. The Republic will never have its reputation damaged by my actions off-duty, I promise you that.”

Herrana sure hoped that she’d been able to bring back that old Warbird Commander voice of confident authority. It had certainly been a while since she’d used it.

Saren smiled and stood up out of his chair. He made his way around his desk and leaned back against it. He placed his hands on the edge of his desk and looked directly into her eyes. “Remember that battle with that Dominion Dreadnought? It became very important to get rid of it when it’s shields were nearly gone. I was the first officer on board the warbird that you screened with yours, the very one that destroyed that monstrosity.”

“Ah, I knew I remembered your ship name from somewhere,” Herrana said with a snap of her fingers. Well, no wonder this guy had vouched for her. “That… uh, that was a good day. The Harakon crew certainly popped open a bottle of celebratory ale after that fight.”

She suppressed a wince. Not the time to bring up booze, Herrana… she mentally scolded herself.

Saren just laughed as he brushed that off like it was nothing. “We all did, because of you, a lot of lives were saved.” He reached behind him to retrieve the padd, only to swipe here and there before he presented it to her to take it. “I discussed with Vice Admiral Terik about assigning you onto my team. Because I have her trust, command has chosen to commission you into the Republic Navy but at subcommander. Think you know why.” He told her before he pushed himself off his desk. “But we’re done discussing about the past.” He reached over and pressed a button that brought up a holo-display, showing an image that the scout ship had taken of the Valdore-class warbird that was found adrift.

“You are going to be my second in command on this team. We’re going to take a Kestrel runabout from the hangar here, all the way to this warbird. The scout ship commander decided against taking a closer look.” He then pressed a button and another display appeared next to the image, which showed the long-range scans. “As you can see here, the singularity core is online. So, the commander was afraid of an ambush situation. We just do not know what the Imperial Navy is up to anymore, especially after the fall of the Romulan Star Empire.” He pressed one more button, another display on the other side of the image came up, which showed exactly where the warbird is on a galactic map. “It is adrift here, outside of our border, right where it used to be claimed by the empire.”

Subcommander. Herrana knew she should be honored just to receive that rank after so long out of the service, yet she couldn’t help but feel insulted. 

However, the moment the display brought up that derelict Warbird, Herrana’s mind snapped into focus, returning closer to her old commander mentality than she had in years.

“The ship looks pretty intact,” she said, eyes affixed to the image of the Valdore. “No damage on the nacelles indicative of compromised FTL…” She looked a bit closer, then wracked her brain for a moment, calling upon all the Valdore information she’d stored away over the years. “That hull patterning on the nacelle-side quarter of the heat sinks indicates that it was manufactured at the Crateris shipyards. The Remans slaves there were a little fast and loose with the EPS systems to the impulse thrusters, so since there’s an active power core, the thrusters would be flickering or straight-up ignited if there was runaway electro-plasma distribution. Given that they aren’t, that’s a good sign for the integrity of the Warbird’s internal systems. That’s great if we want to claim it, but maybe not a great sign if you’re afraid of an ambush. What’s our security detail like?”

Saren smiled at her detailed examination of the warbird. Impressive, he thought. “Seems you were much more invested in the Valdore’s more than I was when I served on the Intrakhu.” he said before he got back to the mission. “It is possible that the safeties are holding but for how long, we will not know until we get on board. Plus, long-range scans can’t necessarily guarantee accurate results on life signs. So that’s an issue as well.” He then manipulated the holo-display, where he placed the image of the warbird up top while he brought up the team.

“So far it is going to be you, me and Sublieutenant Isha. I fought alongside her on the Kani Colony when the Klingons raided it. She’s a good soldier and will follow orders.” He then pointed to Hakona Parau. “I will be visiting the hospital in a couple days to recruit her. Figured that if there are injured on board, or if one of us were to get injured, she be the best to have at our side.” He explained then he pointed to a Romulan male. “This is Taval N’Vek. I will reach out to him tomorrow. With him and his expertise, we should be able to restore functionality to the warbird.”

Saren sighed. “That’s what I have so far. Not a large team but if by chance this is a suicide mission, then it is probably best to have a small team.” He told her as he looked at Herrana. He tapped his chin for a moment as he remembered what she said earlier. “Unfortunately, you might have to get used to the idea of Remans helping us. Because I believe, to ensure the victory of this mission and securing this warbird for the Republic, we will be needing a Reman Commando.” He then grabbed a smaller padd off his desk and handed it to her. “And I want you to select that Reman.”

“Well, I suppose security detail is the most effective use for a species like the Remans,” Herrana said as she took the padd, looking over the collection of commando dossiers. “It may take some time to perform a thorough background check on these individuals. Would it be alright if I returned to you in a few hours with my decision?”

Saren nodded his head. “That will be fine. We won’t be departing for a few more days. Then it will likely take us a few more just to get there. So we will have plenty of time to brief and be prepared.”

“Understood,” Herrana nodded. “I will return with a chosen Reman operative when called. Is there anything else you require of me before we set off?”

Saren had contemplated the idea of Herrana being told about the terms to which he had agreed with the Admiral but he decided to hold off on that for now. At least until a moment required it. “Just bring your best gear, if you have it.” He joked.

“Yes Sir,” she replied, then decided to end things with a bit of self-depreciating levity as a way to show that she was aware of her situation and not letting it stop her. She gave her rather generous midsection a pat, and said “I’ll bring everything that still fits.”

Pre-Mission: Assembling the Team / Taval N’Vek

After Saren’s surprise encounter with the exchange officer, he traveled across the facility to locate the centurion he planned to recruit. One of the things that the facility had was a ground-based shipyard for small vessels like the Malem-class. And that is exactly where Saren headed to find this centurion.

As Saren entered the facility, right before his eyes was exactly that, a Malen-class is under construction, well half of it anyway. The hangar doors above were closed, as they would only be open when the construction was near complete. As Saren stared at the sight before him, a sublieutenant approached him and asked if he needed assistance. Saren simply asked the sublieutenant where he could find Centurion N’Vek, and the sublieutenant pointed. After Saren expressed his thanks, he headed straight over to where N’Vek was at.

Taval N’Vek was leaned over a blueprint of the ship being worked on, arms braced on the console in front of him. An assortment of tools and parts lay strewn about the work place and at his feet. His work area could be best described as an ‘organised mess’. He heard footsteps approach from behind. He straightened and turned, “May I help you?”

Saren smiled apologetically. “My apologies for disturbing you with your work, Centurion. But I have come with a proposition for you.” Saren told him as he approached N’Vek’s console to take a peak at the display to see the blueprint of the vessel. “A very modern version of the T’Liss.” Saren commented.

N’Vek looked over at the blueprint and nodded slowly, “It is an interesting project to build. I quite like working on it.” He shook his head, “I do not mind the interruption. I need a break every once in a while.” He lifted a brow slowly and folded his arms, “And this proposition?”

Saren pulled out a small padd and set it down next to the console’s display. He then pressed a few commands, minimizing the blueprint for one, then syncing the data from the padd to the console. Once complete, he brought up the data from the scout ship. First, the image of the Valdore-class clearly showed it to be adrift, and the data from the long-range scans. Next to it all was a small galactic map that pinpointed where the warbird was.

Saren gestured N’Vek to the display as he cleared his throat to begin. “A scout vessel found this warbird, adrift in non-aligned space that used to be claimed by the Romulan Star Empire. Ever since their collapse, there are Imperial Naval remnants everywhere. Assuming claim here and there to worlds that are declaring independence.” Saren pointed at the warbird. “This bird is likely an Imperial vessel.” Then he pointed to the scan data. “As you can see, the scout ship picked up the usual emissions from an active singularity core, so the scout vessel’s commander chose not to approach the warbird, in case it was a trap.” Saren then took a step back to allow the engineer to examine the data. There wasn’t much there but it was enough to get some sort of clue that the vessel was not functioning with how it is rolled and angled in the still-shot photo.

N’Vek stepped over to study the data that was displayed, “A strange situation. no contact has been formed? It was wise not to approach.” He paused, clasping his hands behind him, bluntly asking, “Why would this pertain to me?”

Saren shook his head. “No contact.” Saren then smiled at the question. “The co-leader of this team is quite knowledgeable on where this particular Valdore-class warbird was built. She made it clear that there is no runaway electro-plasma distribution, otherwise, we would be seeing one of these nacelles flickering or worse, ignited. But as I stated to them, this data is from long-range. The safeties that our singularity cores have, may still be intact. Question is, for how long?” Saren let that sink in before he continued. “But, if by chance everything in the engineering bay is fine and the singularity core is at no risk of imploding, then it is a matter of figuring out why this warbird is adrift. Main computer problems? Command interruptions from the bridge? Something’s amiss here. And I need an engineer who knows these birds.” Saren looked at the bird of prey that was being constructed.

N’Vek nodded slowly as he listened to Saren speak. He replied slowly, “I take it you are needing an engineer. I am an engineer.” He paused momentarily, “And I am to assume you looked into me at least a little bit?” He studied Saren closely and rather warily.

Saren smiled. “Well, like I said.” He turned away from the bird of prey and looked at N’Vek directly. “I need an engineer who knows these birds. Your expertise would go a long way. If the singularity core needs repairs, you’re the man for the job. If it’s fine and we just need to restore functionality, I would still count on you. I need one of the best and I happen to be looking at one.”

N’Vek nodded slowly as he listened. His brow arched a little as he was called one of the best. He’ll take a compliment when he could get one. He looked over his shoulder, and frowned at the ship under construction, as if it held the answers for him. He found construction rather… Boring. He wanted to be on the ships rather than build them. N’Vek looked sharply at Saren, “Alright. I am in. When and where are you departing?”

Saren smile turned into a grin. “Fantastic. We will be departing from one of the main hangars here at command and it will be in a couple of days. Bring what you need with you, we will be taking a Kestrel runabout, so that will have plenty of room for the team.” Saren explained before he began to head off, only to stop in his tracks to turn and look back at N’Vek. “One thing I nearly forgot to mention. Command has decided to assign an exchange officer from Starfleet to the team. The only reason I’m mentioning this is that they are a junior engineer. So you may be doing some mentoring on this trip. See you there!” Saren smiled and took his leave.

N’Vek nodded a few times, “Alright, I will look forward to meeting the rest of the team. I will be there.” His brows shot up upon hearing the news of the exchange officer. N’Vek had mixed feelings; on one hand he didn’t trust a Starfleet officer not to accidentally blow something up due to the technology differences, yet on the other hand he could train them exactly how he wanted to for peak efficiency. He gave a single nod of his head, “I apprectiate the advanced notice. I will see you then.”

On board, the Kestrel runabout that flew at high warp was Commander Saren and his team. This team consisted of Subcommander Herrana Orex, the co-leader of the team; Centurion Taval N’Vek, the engineer; Centurion Hakona Parau, the doctor; Sublieutenant Rhiana Isha, the strategist; Sublieutenant Vuzhan, the Reman Commando; and finally, Uhlan Thisbe Prar, the exchange officer who will be assisting N’Vek. A seven-personnel team wasn’t necessarily small but it also wasn’t too big either. Hopefully, Saren thought, it was enough to get the job done.

“We are dropping out of war, commander.” Said Isha.

Saren stood there in the center of the cockpit with his arms folded across his chest. “Bring us to a full stop,” Saren ordered and watched as a Malem-class bird of prey decloaked in view. “That must be the scout ship.”

“It is, commander and they are hailing,” Isha reported.

“Accept the hail.” Once Saren heard the acknowledged beep from the computer, he spoke up. “This is Commander Saren. I presume that you were briefed about my arrival?”

The small monitor in the center between the pilot and co-pilot stations blinked to reveal a male Romulan. “I am Commander J’Tel, we welcome you to the Republic border. I was briefed by command and I think you are taking a big risk.”

Saren nodded his head in agreement. “Probably am, but it’s better to risk seven officers than send a whole ship like yours to investigate. Minimum losses that way, don’t you agree?”

“I would prefer no loss but we live in a dangerous time.” Said J’Tel.

“That we do. Have you detected any more activity with the warbird or in the surrounding area?” Saren asked.

J’Tel shook his head. “Negative. It has been strangely quiet over there. I know that the Imperial Naval is in shambles but to leave a warbird such as that one without salvaging or retrieving it is rather odd. A waste that, back then, would have not been tolerated.”

“I agree,” Saren replied. “What about the emissions from the ship? Have they changed at all?”

J’Tel shook his head once more. “Negative. They have remained stable since I sent the data to command.”

Saren took in a deep breath. “All right. Then I guess we will be underway.”

“Unfortunately we will not be remaining to support you. We just received orders that we are needed to patrol the border with the Klingons. Something about a possible raid from one of their houses.” Said J’Tel.

Saren frowned. “That is unfortunate. Then on behalf of my team, we wish you luck.”

J’Tel smirked. “We don’t need luck. But the gesture is appreciated and I return that gesture. Jolan-tru.” His face blinked out and the screen returned to its normal operation.

Saren sighed with a slight shake of his head. “Sublieutenant, take us to the warbird.”

“Yes, commander,” Isha replied.

Saren then turned around to take a look at everyone before he took this opportunity to refresh them. “I know that I have already briefed everyone on the mission parameters but let’s just go over them once more. That warbird there is the property of the Imperial Navy, what’s left of it. Being adrift right now brings questions and concerns. Is it a trap? We certainly do not know. Is the singularity core intact? After being adrift in space for a week…two weeks up until now, I am surprised that it hasn’t begun to destabilize. As I’m sure everyone here knows, any reactor needs to be monitored and maintained. Now, has the ship lost functionality due to no crew or damage to the computer core? No idea until we get on board.”

Saren turned to look at the warbird as it grew closer in the viewer. He licked his lips. “Our objective is to restore functionality to this warbird and claim it for the Republic. This ship will become our home if we can retrieve it. If we cannot restore functionality, then we are to scuttle it. One less ship for the Imperial Navy, the better. So once we get on board, we will split up and conduct our investigation, figure out what is broken, and hope it can be fixed.”

Saren then turned to Parau. “We should be close enough for more intensive scans. Are you able to detect any life signs on board?”

Looking at the scans that were coming in Hakona shrugged and looks a bit disappointed back at Saren “No initial detection of life at these readings. But it can be that something is interfering with the scans. I got to be on board to know for sure”

Saren sighed once again. “Then that settles it. Subcommander Orex and I will head for the bridge. Centurion N’Vek and Uhlan Prar will head for main engineering. Sublieutenant Isha and Vuzhan will go to the computer core. And doctor,” Saren looked at Parau again. “You will head for medical, see if you can access the ship’s chief medical officer logs.” He looked at everyone else. “On your way to your destinations, if you find any bodies, investigate. Conduct your scans, and figure out what happened to them. A rendezvous location will be chosen in time. Questions?”

Hearing she is going to solo this one “I will check the medical bay, maybe I learn something from the logs” Hakona nodded.

“You’re sending the doc in alone?” Vuzhan asked as he ran through checks on his plasma rifle. “I don’t know if I’d want any of the crew out there on their own if I were you, Sir,” he said to the Commander.

Herrana listened intently as she began slipping into her environmental suit, and was surprised to find herself agreeing with Vuzhan. Perhaps I managed to choose correctly, she thought, pleased with herself for finding a Reman with more developed tactical skills than many of his species.

Saren looked at Vuzhan and pondered over the opinion of the Reman. Years ago, they were just mining slaves of Remus or wherever the empire placed them. Now, they’re free, with the same rights as any other Romulan in the Republic. He never thought he’d hear a concerning comment from a Reman about a Romulan until now. “Fine. The computer core will be N’Vek and Prar’s job if they find nothing in disrepair in main engineering. Isha and Vuzhan will escort the doctor to the medical bay. Better?” Saren asked everyone.

“I am a big girl you know, but sure if you want to tag along be my guest” She winks at Vuzhan as Hakona gets ready herself. 

“Wasn’t meant as an insult, ma’am,” Vuzhan said as he sat down his rifle and began assembling his EV suit. “I’d say the same about anybody going solo.”

“Well said, Reman,” Herrana said as she fidgeted with the fasteners of her suit. Vuzhan shot her a distrusting glance, then went back to getting ready.

Not noticing Vuzhan’s irritation with her, Herrana continued trying to put her suit on, only to let out a dejected sigh as she realized that she wasn’t going to make it fit. Wearing an expression between agitation and mild embarrassment, the Subcommander slipped back out of her suit and went to the shuttle’s aft to grab one a size up.

At this, Vuzhan couldn’t help but smirk. While he appreciated Herrana “trusting” him enough to recruit him for this mission, she’d been subtly but pointedly condescending to him every time they’d interacted. Seeing her brought down a peg by her EV suit was well-deserved, in his professional opinion.

Seeing the whole ordeal between them as she clicks her rifle into the correct setting and without looking at the Subcommander “Do you require some lotion to get into that suit? The design is rather …..slim” Hakona tried to keep her grin to herself. Vuzhan, meanwhile, stifled a chuckle. Taval concealed a snort with a cough.

“Oh, ha ha,” Herrana said with a heavy-lidded stare, walking back to the crew as she worked to get on the larger suit, this one managing to zip up over her stomach. During her Empire days, she’d have reprimanded a crewman for speaking about their superior in such a way… but for all she knew, this was readily accepted in the Republic. “Bring on the weight jokes if you must, Doctor. I enjoy the rare occasion of hearing new ones.”

Hakona was biting her lower lip trying to remain respectful and ….then she heard Herrana say she enjoyed it in a fashionable sarcastic way “Well the doctor advised, less snacking and more working. Then you don’t need lotion to fit that EV suit, Commander” Now Hakona knew she had to stop or the line would be crossed. 

“Ah, but I have a bigger suit now, don’t I?” Herrana said with a smile and a wink, then picked up her rifle again and approached the front consoles.

“How long until we arrive, Commander?” she asked Saren. “I’d prefer we figure out if this is a suicide mission sooner rather than later.”

Taval lifted his brows before his stoic facade dropped for a half moment for him to snort and cough, hiding a laugh. He checked over his EV suit, seeing it sealed and fastened to his satisfaction. He checked over his rifle and other equipment as he cast a silent look toward Uhlan Prar. N’Vek declared, “I am ready when we arrive.”

“I am also ready, sir.” Said Uhlan Prar.

Saren smirked at the conversation as he slipped into and sealed his EV suit. “Isha, put the runabout in station keeping with the warbird. Everyone, prepare to be transported. You have your assignments, let’s get this done.”

Saren had arrived at his office only a moment ago to grab a padd and some notes before he headed off to locate and recruit the engineer he told Subcommander Herrana Orex that he would get. Centurion Taval N’Vek. His record speaks for him, and Saren believed that the man will be the best for the mission. He just wanted to be sure he was prepared to surprise the man with this dangerous mission.

After Saren got what he wanted, he was on his way toward the door when Vice Admiral Terik came in with someone behind her. Saren raised his eyebrows in surprise and stopped in his tracks. “Admiral. I was just on my way out.”

Terik nodded her head. “I figured as much.” She then moved out of the way and gestured to the female officer. “You will be taking Ensign-my apologies, Uhlan Thisbe Prar, with you on your mission.” Terik then pulled out a small padd from inside her jacket and handed it to Saren.

“Adding more terms to our agreement, Admiral?” Saren asked as he took the padd and skimmed over Thisbe Parr’s file and raised his eyebrows again. “From Starfleet?”

Terik nodded her head once again. “Officer Exchange Program. We have sent some of our own to them and they have sent some of their own to us. It is to help better our relations with each other. I know you’ll play nice, Commander. And no, you don’t have a choice.” Terik smiled at him and then placed her hand on Thisbe’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, he won’t bite.” She looked back at Saren and winked before she left his office with just the two of them now.

Saren sighed after the door closed behind Terik, leaving him alone with the Uhlan. “My apologies for my reaction, Uhlan Prar. I normally do not like surprises like this.” He told her as he skimmed over her file some more. “You are an engineer?”

“Yes, sir!” Said Prar.

Saren nodded his head. “Good. Your credentials here say you can handle your way around plasma conduits and other kinds of damage control.” He then put the padd away by clasping his hands together behind his back. Saren looked at Thisbe Prar. “So, Uhlan. Tell me about yourself.”

Thisbe’s head was spinning, and she might need to sit down soon. The Exchange program was new, and her old CO hadn’t really said much about it other than “you go here and make nice. We’ll take theirs and play nice. BE GOOD.” She had just nodded, and hopped on the shuttle. It was going to be a new experience, and hey, she’d made it this far on her own, so she’d be ok. “I am sorry for the last minute drop in. I am unsure why the Fleet made it so, but my former CO just said I need to do this,” she said, with a soft shrug. “Yes, I am good with machines.” She didn’t elaborate, but she’d had to learn to fix stuff when her father was away, and she was home alone, and then later, when her ship was destroyed, because she didn’t want to DIE out there in no-man’s-land, alone and shamed. It had been easy enough to figure out, and after that, she’d spent as much time as possible learning the StarFleet tech via the various electronic libraries and later on, her hands on training at the Academy. “I came from the fleet, as just a nobody, and worked hard to become an officer. I am Bajoran, but raised on Cardassia, and uh…well. I don’t fit In well there, and…” she trailed off, worried she’d already said too much. Saying too much caused people to ask too many questions, and too many questions could reveal her past and THAT could spell disaster in case her father came looking for the “up and coming Cardassian/Bajoran” girl. “I am willing to learn everything you’re willing to teach me.” Jon had taught her much, but most of it had been the ins and outs of Fleet manners and social cues, and less of the hands on workings of the machines, computers, and wiring that made the ships go. “My area of interest actually is in reconditioning ships after battle, but I’m told that takes a long time of slogging away before being allowed to do so!”

Saren stared at the Uhlan as he listened to them, where he found some fine details about the individual. “Everyone is somebody somewhere, Prar. You simply have to make yourself known.” He told her. “You’re not the first Bajoran and Cardassian mix, and will likely not be the last. In time, Cardassia will learn to welcome all their children.” He smiled.

“You might learn a few things from me, Uhlan, but once we depart for our mission in a couple of days, you will actually be working with someone else in the department that you will be assigned to. As an Engineer of the Romulan Republic, I’m certain you will learn much about our systems.” Saren explained, even though he was surprised at the lack of concern in regards to Romulan technology being passed on to other empires with much detail. Perhaps just another way of trying to improve relations. “So how do you feel about working with Romulans?”

Thisbe listened carefully to her new CO.  She had honestly been far more concerned with the Cardassians looking for her than she was of the Romulan; her people and them had a tenuous relationship but the Cardassians held their duty to state above literally EVERYTHING, and, as a result, could be far more ruthless and dangerous than the Romulan, in some ways. On the other hand, the Romulan were much like ancient Human’s Roman Senate, unshackled. Petty power plays, subterfuge, and political chess. “I understand. I did mean the royal ”you,” actually,” she said, to clarify. She shrugged. “I can be nice.” She didn’t elaborate; even Starfleet had its issues, but if everyone got along, they would be fine. “I may not be the first, and certainly not the last, but most of the rest don’t have parents in governmental service. He’s gonna be so mad if he ever finds out that I am here, working with ROMULANS.” Well, she probably shouldn’t have said that. 

Saren was confused about the ‘royal’ part and just pushed it off to the side as he was unclear as to what brought that up. As for the last part, that did draw his attention but did not make him any bit concerned. “If you think that your Cardassian father is going to come over to Romulan Republic territory to take you back home, let me just make things perfectly clear. As a member of tbe Romulan Republic Navy, you are bound by the laws and citizenship of the Republic. The Cardassians will have to go through a lot of red tape to claim a Republic Officer. Secondly, if your relationship with your father ever so much as endangers the crew of my ship, you and I will have a serious problem. But since you are here and under my command, I will give you this chance to prove that you are useful. Learn from your department commander, and do not make any costly mistakes. Are we clear, Uhlan?”

“Clear, sir!” Said the Uhlan.

Saren nodded his head. “Good. Go enjoy the recreational facilities that we have here. But on this date,” Saren handed the Uhlan a small padd of the mission details. “We will be leaving. So be there. Dismissed.”

The Uhlan took the padd and departed from Saren’s office.

Saren sighed. He took one more look at Thisbe Prar’s information on the larger padd only to notice an intelligence report tab. He pressed it and read into it. His eyebrows rose as he looked up and looked at the closed door. “I guess we shall see.”

As the runabout is held in place with the drifting warbird, anyone monitoring the runabout will witness the seven life signs disappear from within and reappear in several locations inside the warbird. Inside, what was a dimly lit vacant corridor that, illuminated on occasion, would be briefly lit by a flickering light was also briefly lit by the bright light from two green columns. The light would then dissipate after the transporter beam deposited two individuals in EV suits. However, that two seconds when the helmet’s automated system detected the lack of illumination and activated the torch lights on their right shoulder.

Saren lifted his left arm and pressed buttons on the armband device to activate the tricorder. “This is as close as we could get to the bridge. Some sort kind of interference all over the ship. Strange.”

“At least it didn’t beam us into the middle of a wall,” Herrana sighed, looking around to ascertain where exactly they were on the Warbird.

Saren sighed. “Scanners are unable to determine the cause of the interference.” He then pressed a button to activate the communicator. “Saren to teams Beta and Delta.” When they got no answer, he tried again. “Saren to teams Beta and Delta, respond.” After another solid minute of silence, Saren turned in place to look at Orex. “The interference is also causing communication problems. Strange. We are able to transport to specific areas of the ship but communication is disrupted.”

“Well that’s just all kinds of convenient,” Herrana said as she walked to a nearby door, opening it with the press of a console.

“This is the stellar cartography lab,” she said to Saren as she shown her rifle-mounted torch into the room. “That means the bridge is just down the hall. Let’s get there and figure out what’s keeping this bird on ice.”

“Agreed.” Said Saren as he allowed her to take the lead. Not because he wanted her on point or because he didn’t recognize the layout of the ship. Just mainly that she was ahead of him and it made logical sense. As they made their way towards the bridge, Saren kept looking about in search of bodies in the corridors, and yet, nothing. “Crew complement of this vessel is a third of the D’deridex-class warbirds. And yet, not a single body in the corridor.”

“Yes, this is extremely odd,” Herrana replied, gun raised as they ventured down the corridor. “Did your scans say anything about escape pods being launched? If there’s a… leakage of some kind I could see the crew bailing out ASAP.”

Saren thought for a moment, having gone back on the memory of the data that he reviewed multiple times on their trip here. He then shook his head and remembered that she was in front of him and could not see the motion. “Negative. Just to be sure.” He scanned the immediate area. “They are all still here. If there was a combat situation, it would be unwise to abandon their posts. So perhaps, we will find the bridge crew.”

“Perhaps,” Herrana replied, eyes alert and scanning her surroundings. Everything about this was just wrong, in a way that set off far too many mental alarm bells for comfort.

Eventually, the pair came upon the door to the bridge, and Herrana turned to face Saren. 

“Well, here we are,” she said. “Do you want to try and open the door normally, or via breaching charges? For all we know, the door controls might be booby trapped.”

Saren frowned when they came up to the bridge, blocked by the closed door. “I don’t remember there being a protocol to close the door during combat.” He said out loud. “Unless they weren’t in combat. Would explain the lack of scorch marks on the hull.” Also out loud. He took in a deep breath and sighed heavily in frustration. Nothing was adding up.

“I would rather not blow up a door that might be closed for a reason. If we need to close it back up, we would need it intact.” He told her, “Not only that, with no way to warn the other teams, setting off an explosion would certainly alarm them.” He said as he scanned the area around the door. “The hydraulic mechanism is seized. So we will have to force it open.” He made one more final pass on the door with the tricorder. “Strange. There is no magnetic seal. If these doors closed on their own, they would have sealed the bridge.” Saren sighed once more, deactivated the scanner on the armband, and grabbed what lip he could in the middle of the door. Herrana quickly moved to help.

When they got an inch or two open, he stuck his foot on the other half and used force to push the door panel open even wider, at least wide enough for two individuals in EV suits. “Ladies first.” He gestured to Orex and he would follow directly behind her. 

“Thanks,” Herrana replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm as she shown her light into the room and strode inside. The first thing she saw were the bodies of the crew all over the floor, in multiple piles with someone or something in the middle.

“By the elements…” she whispered, eyes wide.

Saren shined the light from his rifle around the other side of the bridge and stopped at the navigation console. There was a Romulan female officer, slumped back on top of the console, their upper chest just over it so their arms dangled down to the floor. But that was not what made him hold the light on her, it was the look on her face and the damage done to it. Her eyelids were open but her eyes had rolled up into her skull with tears that had ran from her eyes down the side of her face. They weren’t normal tears though, they were of blood, her own blood. She also had deep claw marks on her cheeks and forehead, as well as an impression on her throat that was a clear indication that someone had choked her.

Saren walked up to the body and ran a scan. His frown deepened even more. “She was definitely strangled, her airway completely collapsed but…” he paused as he tried to make sense of the data.

“But what?” Herrana said as she approached to look at the woman’s ghastly remains. Her heart was beginning to pound in her chest – she’d never seen anything like this during her time in the Star Navy.

Saren turned in his suit to look directly at her. “She did not die from suffocation. Scans show a lot of blood cells in the brain, likely from a hemorrhage. That is the cause of death.”

“Then why does she have a collapsed airway?” Herrana then looked at a pile of bodies near them, and drew her tricorder. “We need to see if everyone else here died from similar hemorrhages.”

“Your question is good as mine. If she was already dead, who would continue to choke her?” He asked rhetorically. He then began to scan several bodies for a solid minute before his frown deepened so far that you think the look would be glued to his face. “I don’t understand any of this.” He began to head for one of the rear stations, grabbed the body in the chair and just shoved it to the floor, his frustrations clearly getting to him.

This Commander’s a bit hot headed… Herrana thought as she scanned the nearby corpses. That may be a problem… or an opportunity.

“These died from hemorrhages, too,” she spoke to him, standing with a bit of a grunt. “This is getting surreal.”

Saren yanked a panel open and began to tinker to get the console tapped into an alternate power source. As soon as the console came to life, he turned in place to look directly into Orex’s eyes. “Others died from their hearts exploding in their chest.” He then got back to his feet, only to sit down at the station to begin accessing logs.

“Commander, if you don’t mind me saying, we need to get out of here, call in a HAZOP team, and camp out in the shuttle until they arrive. We don’t have any business poking around what looks like a pretty high-intensity biohazard situation, and for all we know we might already be infected with… something. We need to find the rest of the crew and leave.”

Saren frowned and turned in the seat to look at her. “Are you all right, subcommander? I may have allowed my frustrations on this mystery to get away from me, but you sound like fear has claimed your judgement.” He then turned in the seat again to face the console. “We need to find out what happened and why. Did they pick something up from a planet? Was this a deliberate attack?” He turned again and looked at her. “We must find out for the safety of the Republic. Even if it means we have to scuttle the ship, we must know what caused this and find a defense.” He turned once more and went through the logs.

“Fear,” Herrana scoffed, walking up very close to Saren. “Commander, have you ever seen crewmen succumb to Acute Radiation Syndrome? Back on the Harakon, we rescued two engineers from a D’deridex that had been near the singularity core during a containment failure. They got bombarded by over 200 rem. Even after the best treatment we could give them, they rotted from the inside out and were dead within a week. So yes, I take biohazards very seriously. We need to get out of here and leave this to the people who specialize in it. That’s not fear. That’s reason.“

Saren knew what she was talking about, he had seen it from his own experience. He turned in the seat to look right at her, “We will head for the medical bay and rendezvous with Beta team. If Delta team has not restored functionality to the ship by then, we will get them and leave the ship.” He turned once more towards the console. “First we need to understand why and how this has happened.” He found the log that he wanted and played the audio.

“Very well,” Herrana sighed. “But if I feel my flesh start rotting off, I’m shooting myself in the head. Fair warning.” She leaned in close to hear the log as well.

“Commander’s Log; it has been two hours since the confrontation with the Free State warbird. We are on our way to the nearest starbase when the engines shut down. Internal communications are offline and reports coming from all departments state that the crew have become irrational and aggressive. There are those who are less affected by the gas than others, a weapon the Free State had installed into our life support systems. A team was successful in disconnecting the canister, but it is already empty, and the entire ship is filled with it. I am already showing the first symptoms of the gas, these…ridiculous pink polka dots on my skin are a strange side effect of a gas that is meant to kill us.” There was a pause then followed a heavy sigh, the voice starting to become high pitch and squeaky. “The doctor informed me that those who are more quickly affected by the gas, were extremely aggressive and hostile to others and to themselves. Some had even clawed their own eyes out. Others, died to either their hearts exploding or to a hemorrhage in the brain. Doctor has also informed me that they are unsure if they will be able to find the cure in time.” Another pause and then the Commander attempted to activate the self-destruct. “Unable to comply, voice authorization unrecognized.” said the ship’s computer. “Damnit. I can’t contact engineering to manually overload the core. Damn you Free State!” There were then sounds of banging, likely to a door and then the log terminated.

Saren stood up from the console and turned to Orex. “Check your suit, make sure that you were able to get a proper seal on it. I don’t want to take any chances.” Saren then checked his suit through the armband, to which it did not indicate any issues in the seals, but he inspected his suit as best as he could visually. “Once you’re good to go, we’ll head for the medical bay immediately. Maybe our doctor will succeed where this ship’s doctor has not. Or perhaps we can vent the gas out into space. Either way, we need this ship.”

“I’m all good,” Herrana said after running a quick diagnostic on her suit. “That wasn’t a suit-fitting joke, was it?” She shot Saren a wink. “Kidding. Let’s get out of here.”

Saren smirked and began to head for the door, this time he took the lead as they made their way toward the medical bay. Unfortunately for Saren and Herrana, their ev suit’s biofilters were failing. They had the most unfortunate chance of picking out the two ev suits that had faulty biofilters.

Three columns of green light appeared in a dimly lit corridor. After the lights dissipated, three figures in evs suits were left behind. The automated system detected the lack of illumination and activated the torch on their shoulders to compensate for the lack thereof; the same went with two additional torches on rifles. Two of those individuals had rifles while the remainder was armed but their pistol rested in their holster. Self-defense was only natural, and a requirement.

Isha hand turned around a couple of times to illuminate several areas of the corridor with her shoulder and rifle light to ensure that they weren’t surrounded or going to be. Isha frowned. “No bodies. Quiet. Lights are flickering down on that end.” She turned once again. “And that end. Could be a malfunction in the power distribution or something else. But where is the crew?” She asked out loud. Then she lifted up her left arm to press a button on the armband terminal to activate the scanner only to frown even more. “We couldn’t transport directly to the medical bay because of some interference and yet the scanners cannot tell what kind of interference.” She turned in her ev suit to look at Vuzhan. “Have you tried contacting team Alpha?”

“Yes. Comms are completely down,” Vuzhan replied. “Shuttle’s autopilot program isn’t responding either. For now, we’re on our own.”

Walking close to Isha “Communications seem to be interfering with something, I am unable to get their attention” Hakona shrugs “Plus I am doing still readings on the area for any toxic in the air. It seems the air is clean, but some of the readings are off the chart. I need more time to calibrate this before I give the thumbs up to get those helmets off” Hakona wanted to be rather safe than just give a thumbs up, it was a rookie mistake to blindly accept the conditions. 

“What, exactly, is reading off the chart?” Vuzhan replied. “Not anything that would disable plasma weapons, is it?” He lifted his rifle up slightly to accentuate his question.

She waved off the weapon, “Don’t worry you can keep your toy with you, these readings are specific in the field of oxygen but for some reason mixed with other readings. I will know more after a while of analyzing the various chambers. Let’s move forward to the sickbay, I feel more at home there” Hakona shrugged and moved on “Come on, you are here to protect me right?”

“Mmmm-hmm,” Vuzhan replied, waving the others in the direction of sickbay. “C’mon, Doc. Maybe there’ll be some answers there. I don’t like biochemical unknowns on a mission.”

When Vuzhan mentioned the link to the runabout’s autopilot system was severed, she had slung her rifle and began to work on trying to re-establish the link with the runabout by tapping away at her armband. After a few minutes of failure, she cursed under her breath and lowered her arm. “Strange how this interference is affecting communications but not weapons. Even more strange that we have not come across a single body.”

As soon as they got to sickbay, the door was closed and it looked as though it had been through hell. Dents all around, burn marks likely from disruptor fire. Isha ran a quick scan and sighed. “Even if there was enough power to open the door, the hydraulics have seized.” She did her best to grab the lip in the center of the door. “Come on, help me open this.” Vuzhan and Hakona gripped the door alongside her and heaved.

Once they get the door open, a body that was leaning against it fell into the corridor, which nearly made Isha jump. She then took one look inside and gasped, her heart now pounding rapidly in her chest. There were bodies littered all over sickbay, more grouped in piles as if they were after something in the middle of each pile. She cursed loudly in Romulan. “What happened to the crew?”

“Shit,” Vuzhan said, visually scanning the corpses as he strode into the medbay. He poked at one with the tip of his rifle.

“No weapon burns on any of these guys,” he said. “No stab wounds or anything like that either. Wanna scan ‘em, doc? Make sure they’re not contagious or something?” 

Hakona had checked the bodies and turned a head to its side “Mmm” She narrows her eyes “Curious, this one has some kind of skin rash, markings of scratches indicate it was quite the itching feeling” Letting her finger slide over the Romulans chest as Hakona stops “What is this” She looked closer annoyed with the helmet “Indication of pressure on the heart area…” She grabs the tricoder and started scanning as her pupils got wide, “What the….” Looking at the others “There is residue of a heart….”

While the doctor was scanning that body, Isha knelt down to a different body and ran her own scan. Her confusion grew as well did her frown. She turned in her suit to look at Hakona. “This one had a brain hemorrhage. I am not a medical expert but two separate causes of death? I mean,” Isha looked back at the body before her. “There are rash and scratch marks all over the face on this one too but no skull fractures to indicate blunt force trauma.” Isha stood up and looked around at all the bodies. “We need answers.”

Isha headed straight for the chief medical officer’s office and knelt down before the desk where she yanked a panel off and dropped it onto the floor. She began to access what power there is, likely from the batteries or auxiliary that has the bare minimum of power left, and managed to route what power was needed to reactivate the console. “Doc!”

Looking up from the body Hakona got onto her feet and walked into the direction of Isha “Well talk to me, what did you find?”

Isha looked up from the console at the doctor when she came closer. “The first thing on the screen is the chief medical officer’s logs, their last one and it does not bode well.” Isha took a step to the side to let Hakona in to take a look herself.

The last log would state that the crew has gone completely insane and started to attack those who were not affected by the gas or were affected much slower than others. Then the rest becomes gibberish, mentioned things like home, trees, flowers, only to switch to being aggressive, asserted blame to the commanding officer for taking away their fork at dinner. Then the rest is complete nonsense. “With their logs open, maybe we can go back to when the crew started having symptoms? Find out what did all of this?”

Vuzhan, meanwhile, was continuing to poke around at the corpses, trying to find any clues amongst the piles of dead.

Staying quiet as she crossed her arms, reading the logs of the former Chief Medical Officer. Hakona narrows her eyes and looked carefully at her side to the bodies, “So my presumption was spot on, we are dealing with a gas that still might be here. The symptoms are clear as daylight by the hints of both bodies and those logs” She shrugs “Skin rash, losing their minds end something severely affecting the heart” Looking back at Isha “Lieutenant check the files on any data with regard to that gas” Looking at Vuzhan “We are on a time rush, we are unable to verify the gas but also cut off from any communication to the other teams. We have to find them….” Hakona taps the side of her arm “Thought I wouldn’t mind seeing the gas in action” She mutters to herself letting a small grin appear on her face.

“Then we need to make way to the bridge ASAP,” Vuzhan noted, striding over to his compatriots and ignoring the odd implications of Hakona’s little musing. “The Commander and XO might be in danger of exposure.”

Isha found all the research data that the chief medical officer had gathered and the details of a cure that they were working on but did not finish. She then found an earlier log, an audio one and played it.

“Chief Medical Officer’s log. An hour ago, the Commander has graciously informed me that the battle with the traitorous Free State warbird has come to an end with our victory. But when our shields were down, they had transported a small team with a canister and hooked it up to the ship’s life support system and reported that some sort of gas was being vented throughout the ship. So far, there has been very few incidents, crew coming in with rashes and pink polkadots all over their skin. Some even began to speak in a high pitched voice that has become rather humorous. I am now having a patient who has advanced to the next stage, where they have become extremely irrational and expressed severe aggression to themself and to others. They are currently strapped to a bed and are being monitored but it is getting worse. I fear that I too am infected but at a slower rate than others, which should give me an advantage to find a cure but I am uncertain as to how soon. This contagion is extremely different and difficult. Whoever engineered it knew what they were doing. I-” There was a loud crash, like a cart or tray being tossed to the floor and then the log terminated.

Isha looked to Parau. “Can you finish where he started, Doctor?” Then looked to Vuzhan. “Long as they haven’t taken their helmets off, they should be fine, right? But we better go check, and quickly.”

Vuzhan nodded with a slight grunt.

Listening to the audio log made her narrow her eyes as she looked again toward the bodies on the ground. Would the Free States go that far to poison their fellow people? Thought something did seem off as Hakona looked slowly around to all the bodies, “There are no Remans….” She mutters as her though get interrupted by a ping looking back at the PADD that just downloaded the information of the late Chief Medical Officer “Let’s go, Vuzhan lead the way to the location of our beloved new Commander”

“There might not be any Remans because a lot of Commanders request Romulan-only crews,” Vuzhan said as he led the team out of the medbay and into the halls. “Lotta your kind didn’t think very highly of us to begin with, and that whole business with Shinzon just made it worse.”

Isha patted Vuzhan’s shoulder. “Come on. We can discuss about the Imperial segregating the Remans later. Let’s find the Commander and Subcommander!” Isha looked at the doctor. “I suggest you stay here, Doc, and see if you can finish that cure. If that is a weapon from our enemy, we need to be prepared to defend against it in case others are attacked by this.” Isha merely suggested before she led the way out of the medical bay to look for Saren and Orex.

Isha checked her map display on the armband once more after they made a turn around the corner, just to make sure that they were still heading in the right direction. She sighed for a moment and looked over at Vuzhan, only to return her gaze toward the direction they were walking. “You know. The doctor kind of scares me a little bit. The way she talked about this gas, or the contagion that’s within it, makes me kind of worried a little.”

“I think she may enjoy scaring people,” Vuzhan replied, the commando still holding his plasma gun at the ready. “Seems like there’s always one person like that in any crew.” He likewise briefly looked over at Isha before returning to the path ahead of them. “But I wouldn’t worry, our suits have held up so far. Once we find the Commanders, we’ll just jump out of an airlock and float until we’re past the interference and the shuttle can beam us aboard. It’ll all be over soon.”

Isha laughed. “Yeah, that’s starting to sound about right.” She sighed and lowered her arms, which lowered her rifle and the map display on her armband. “I’m hoping we could get the ship running. Maybe vent the gas, flush out the filters. Republic really could use another ship like this.”

Isha and Vuzhan soon come around a junction just to stop at the second the two Commanders were right in front of them. Isha sighed heavily in relief. “Boy. Aren’t we glad to see you two. Wdll I don’t know about my stone cold friend here but I sure am!”

“Commanders,” Vuzhan said flatly with a nod.

Saren tilted his head to the side for a second, like a shrug. “There something we should know about?”

Isha laughed. “Oh no, no. Everything’s fine.” Isha’s smile then faded when her shoulder light shined on Saren’s face. She raised her rifle just to shine on both their faces to be certain, then she gulped. “Oh no.”

“Something the matter, Sublieutenant?” Herrana asked with a raised eyebrow, suddenly feeling a bit uneasy.

“Pink polka-dots? Can’t be right! I mean. Wait.” Isha then frowned an

d realized something. She raised her armband and went into the suit settings. “Our suits haven’t detected the contagion, so the system thinks the air is fine. Life support on this ship is still getting power, so the suits switched to filter out our Co2 and bring in o2 from outside rather than deplete the suits o2 supply.”

Saren looked at Orex then back at Isha. “How are your biofilters?” Saren asked as he went to check his.

Isha checked hers and sighed in relief. “Mine are fine.”

“Mine too,” the Reman said.

Saren sighed and then began to speak but his voice went squeak. “Mine is compro- oh what the hell.”

“Oh, shit,” Herrana squeaked, then attempted to reflexively clasp a hand over her mouth but only served to bonk the front of her helmet. “This is bad.”

Isha tried her best not to laugh.

“It is not funny Sublieutenant!” Saren scowled at her.

“I’m sorry! I’m not trying too but.” She snorted before turning away. “Okay! Let’s get them back to the medical bay and quick!”

“I swear, I leave New Romulus for the first time in ten years and something like this happens…” Herrana said with a high-pitched groan, leaving Vuzhan trying to suppress a smirk.

“Hakona to Alpha team” Their comm went.

“Comms are working again?” Herrana squeaked, then looked to Isha and Vuzhan. There was no way she was answering the comms, not with her current voice.

“Hey Doctor! Slight problem. Our suits noticed the life support was still functioning and started recycling air and well, the biofilters in Vuzhan’s suit and mine are good but both Saren and Orex biofilters are compromised and…they’re infected.” Isha said with a nervous chuckle.

“Right, well that is problematic and at the same time very fascinating to use our systems against us”

“’Problematic’ is putting it mildly,” Vuzhan replied.

“Then get your ass to the sickbay, Vuzhan, per the doctor’s request and on emergency order…..get them here at any cost but protect yourself. All of you hurry…time is not in your favor” The communication went off.

“Alright you two, let’s get to the doctor’s office,” Vuzhan said, gesturing for Saren and Orex to follow him.

“Yes, let’s please hurry,” Herrana said, doing her best to keep her voice at a non-ridiculous tone.

“Let’s, before we die laughing before we try to kill each other.” Saren said in his high pitch voice.

Isha tried not to laugh but it was a real struggle. She took the lead and guided the team right back to the medical bay, at which point Isha had to ask. “How did you get the comms to work again?” Isha looked at the doctor.

Looking over her shoulder and points at the panel “I activated it, if you don’t push it then you never know it works right” Hakona looked back at the console tapping some buttons as she let the computer analyze it. 

Meanwhile, Saren grumbled. “You know,” his high pitched voice continued. “We would have figured this out some more if you had just let me finish reviewing the command logs. But no, you want to play it safe. Like how you played it safe back in your little, personnel transport business?”

Herrana shot Saren a glare. “Yes, we’d have been just fine if we stayed put and let ourselves stew in this toxin for longer…” she squeaked. “We didn’t need to figure it out, that’s what we have a medical officer for. Leaving is getting us treatment sooner. Or are you just determined to do everything yourself?!”

Isha overheard and stared at the doctor. “Doc, I think it’s getting worse!”

Ignoring their fighting, Hakona sighs and pulls off the helmet, taking a deep breath, “Ah, it is dusty here….” She blinks and looked at Isha “That face looks like you think it is safe….but it is not. The gas is still here, yet, to give these some calm to their minds and their build-up of paranoia. I do what every doctor does…or should do…show them it is safe” 

Isha eyes widened at the doc removing her helmet. “Uh, what’s going on?”

Ignoring the question as she throws a tricorder at Vuzhan “The fun part of being a medical officer is that you can see what something does to a certain particle. In this case, what does it do to us or to our Reman friend there” Hakona gets the injector as the console beeps, and she walks to it nodding “The answer is nothing….because this specific weapon is made and designed to take out a Romulan” She shrugs slowly letting the fluid get into the injector “Now with that in mind, I used the old database DNA logs on a Reman, used the profile of DNA logs of a Romulan and generated something of an antidote” She turns around looking at them with an injector in her hand “Now comes the fun part ladies and gentlemen. The test phase can either go well and reduce the symptoms, or it speeds up the progression. Seeing that these lovely people took their helmets off, they will die within the hour because of the density of the toxic. So I have no time and need to take risk”

“Uhhh, yeah, please fix us then!” Herrana said with wide eyes. “I would very much prefer not to die within the hour, thank you very much.”

Hakona raised her hand while taking a deep breath again, “That is why I am taking heavy breaths. Vuzhan whatever happens to me….shoot me if I become violent. Isha, if I douse the other profile in the system and I can assure you that one works” Hakona looks at Orex and smirks “Did you know that you really need to lose weight” Was it the virus already working? No one knew, but pink dots did appear. Hakona took a deep breath and pressed the injector into her neck and put the antidote into her neck, giving a small growl and yet enjoyable look on her face.

“Really? I had no idea…” Herrana said as she gave her ample stomach a pat, shooting Hakona a heavy lidded stare. “Please tell me more, oh observant medical officer.”

Saren could feel his blood boiling. “I would be happy to tell you more, oh pudgy one!” Was it getting worse or was he looking to get smacked? Hard to tell. Meanwhile, Herrana pouted a bit, then looked over and childishly stuck her tongue out at Saren.

“Sorry, Commander but would you shut the hell up!” Isha yelled at him.

“Excuse you, Sublieutenant! And where the hell were you when my family was in danger?” Saren asked her.

Isha frowned. “What?”

“Back on our colony, when it was attacked by the Klingons. I trusted you to always be ready for a fight! I expected all my soldiers to be perfectly ready for anything!” Saren barked at her.

Isha ignored him as she looked back at Hakona and Vuzhan. “Anything?”

“Perhaps it would be best if we sedate them,” Vuzhan said as he crossed his arms. “The voices were funny at first, but now they’re annoying me.”

Looking a bit of blank from her eyes and not replying to any of them, she drops to the floor and lets her hand flat on the floor heavy breathing “Give ….me a second” Hakona felt like her whole arm was on fire spreading through her body as if it’s attacking something. She looked at them and tilted her neck to the side “Are the dots gone?” 

“I’ll be damned,” Vuzhan said with a smirk. “No dots. Well done, doc.”

“In that case, I would very much like TO HAVE SOME OF THAT ANTIDOTE!” Herrana blurted. “I don’t want to get all STUPID and ANGRY like Saren has, thank you very much!”

Hakona rest herself against the console and looks at Herrana “I do like that angry attitude of yours Commander, but seeing the results that come after that…” She throws the antidote to Vuzhan “Do keep note, it has a lovely aftertaste” 

Saren closed his eyes hard as he grunted, trying very hard to not let the next dumb thing come out of his mouth. “Who cares about the aftertaste. Let’s go already! Already feeling like punching someone.”

“I sure hope that’s the sickness talking,” Vuzhan said as he grabbed the antidote and administered it to the Commander, then the Subcommander. “Because I’d really get in trouble for winning a fistfight against my CO.”

Saren smirked at Vuzhan as he grimaced from the pain he began to feel. “I’ll take you up on that challenge.” he grunted. “But maybe another time.”

“Owwwww, I am in paaaaiiiiiinnnn…” Herrana whined, rolling on her sickbay bed as she let out high-pitched moans. Gradually, her voice lowered back to normal, and her childish complaints began to subside.

Eventually, she sat up, rubbing her head and letting out a few coughs.

“Are… um… we alright now, Doctor?” she said sheepishly, clearly a bit embarrassed by her toxin-induced outbursts.

Already back on her feet Hakona looked at Herrana “Yes that is all, to my own disappointment” The last part she mutters and looked away. Herrana shot her a slightly bemused, slightly agitated glance.

Saren took in several long deep breaths followed by slow, long exhales. Once he was certain the pain was gone, and he didn’t feel like shit, he straightened himself out and looked at everyone, then at Hakona. “Disappointed you may be, you found the Republic and the entire Romulan population in the non-aligned region a defense against this weapon.”

Suddenly there was a green glow from a single column of a transporter beam in the room. This made Saren and Isha raise their weapons at it until the beam disappeared, leaving a single Romulan female behind. “Identify yourself!” Saren shouted at the individual. At the same time, the lights and the consoles around them came on, indicating that Delta Team had restored power.

“Uhhhhh, is hallucination a side effect of that drug, or did somebody just beam onboard?” Herrana muttered, still sitting cross-legged on the sickbay bed.

Exhaling a deep breath Hakona looked a bit disappointed at the arrival “Sadly for you Sub Commander I don’t deal in hallucination shit. Ask a Ferengi for that” She shrugs “As for you, speak up quickly”

Teri ignored the Commanders super rude remark towards her and unphased, looked at him with a look of pure seriousness “I am Centurion Teri Maec, the new Romulan Republic Intel Officer that has been assigned to your ship. I am here because I have an important message.” She said with no indication of what the message was yet. 

Chapter is before “Everyone has a voice!”

Two columns of green light appeared in a dark corridor just a few junctions away from the engine room. The light would then disappear, leaving two figures in ev suits in the darkness. The suits automatic systems would detect the lack of illumination and immediately turn on the shoulder torch lights to help the individuals see where they are going.

Centurion N’Vek checked his gear the moment after they were transported aboard. He still was unsure about getting assigned to work with a Starfleet exchange officer. He would have preferred to have worked with a Romulan who was at least slightly familiar with their technology. He didn’t have time to grill her on what the extent of her knowledge was. He suppose this assignment was one way to figure it out.

The two individuals in ev suits made their way to main engineering to find out the cause of the power fluctuations and lack thereof throughout the ship. There were no bodies to find in the corridors but in main engineering? There were not as many as there were found on the bridge and medical bay, but there were still quite a bit of bodies. Although this does not seem to bother the two individuals as they get to work.

Thisbe stood, a tool in one hand, and the main toolkit on her waist. Romulan tech wasn’t really her strongest suit, but how different could it be from her home planet’s?! The Romulan and Cardassians were roughly similar in age and advancement. She, very carefully, looked at the panel as the EV suit feed them information. “I’m seeing mass damage in the wiring. Maybe a fire?” 

N’Vek was silent till Thisbe spoke. He jerked slightly as if he was jolted out of his thoughts at the intrusion of her voice. He looked sharply over towards her, “That is possible, though there would be emissions in the air if it was a fire. Overheating is likely.” He started to conduct a scan, looking down at the device in his hand, “It would be wise to fix the wiring and damages before restoring power. Otherwise we would have an actual fire.” He paused, “I do not reccomend fried or roasted Romulan.” His attempt at humour was poor, dry and did not suit him in the slightest.

She smiled a little at his joke, forgetting he couldn’t see her under the stupid suit helmet. It was HOT in there. “Very funny. But I think you’re right. Let’s get started.” She looked at her own scanner. Definitely, it seemed like something had overheated or burnt somehow. “Do you want to open it, or should I?” 

N’Vek was torn between letting her do it in case something goes wrong and doing it himself just for that exact reason. He emitted a soft, inaudible sigh, “I will.” 

Upon opening the panel, as careful as can be, they will find that the junction is indeed very hot. No plasma fire…yet. If they hurry, they may be able to prevent one or they run risk of serious damage or perhaps an overload. Who knows? Time is ticking!

Thisbe just nodded. Normally, she’d protest that she was perfectly capable of opening a damn panel, but they had a deadline, AND she didn’t really want to die, in case something went wrong. She watched as N’Vek opened the panel, and sure enough, it was hot, almost as if it were about to catch fire. Quickly, she removed the wire closest to her. “Got any thermal regulators on your person?” She shrugged. It was the best idea she had-having been mostly self-taught, she was lost on the actual protocols. 

Taval’s eyes widened, almost wishing he could have slapped her for removing a wire without putting on power dampeners. He exhaled sharply, tapping his face shield instead of face palming like he truly desired to in the moment. He quickly clamped the dampeners onto the remaining wires to impede the flow of power. He spoke a little sharper than intended, “I do, yes, and I reccomend we replace the damaged wires, keep a thermal regulator on it, and see about diverting excess power to where it is needed.”

Thisbe caught the sharpness in his voice, and winced a little. “I am sorry. Did I do something wrong? But that sounds good.” She pulled some various colored wires from deep in her case. “I was taught colors go with colors. You?” She was mostly trying to make conversation-when it was quiet, she got too deep into her head. She worked fast, as Taval watched carefully, and used tweezers to pull a wire out for inspection. Indeed, it appeared damaged. “What HAPPENED?” 

Taval sighed a little, “Remember to cut off power flow before you work on power lines. I don’t want to see either of us becoming… fried.” He quirked a brow at her conversation starter, “Erm, yes… Colours with colours. Positive to positive. Negative to negative. Crossing them is… Bad.” He shadowed over her, letting her get some hands on learning expereince, ready to jump in and correct her if something was being done wrong. He retorts with sarcasm, “I assume they overheated.”

Thisbe just gave him a LOOK. “No kidding! I guess I meant HOW.” She worked a little more, letting out a sigh when something didn’t work right away. She was really hard on herself, but thankful that the man with her let her try. Some people didn’t even do that. “You’d think the Fleet would’ve figured out how to make these self-replicating by now, don’t you?” She looked at him. “Why don’t you take a whack at it?” 

Taval let out a little muffled snort at her look. “If only. I can imagine far too many complications pertaining to that.” He strode forward and took some tools from her starting to snip some wires out and replaced them with new ones. He spoke as he worked, “Don’t be so hard on yourself. These things take time and practice to get good at. It’s taken me many, many years to get to where I am now. Lots of mistakes, lots of practice, lots of learning.” He snapped in a thermal regulator to the wiring he was doing. He worked quickly and efficiently.

She watched carefully, taking mental notes as she did, so that she could do it properly the next time. “I imagine it would present some problems, for sure. ”Thank you. Admittedly, I am a duct-tape it and pray to the Daughters of the Fourth House type of girl myself. When I left Cardassia Prime, I took damage from the Breen. What I am trying to impart is that I am self taught and…thank you for letting me try.”  Oversharing was a thing she needed to work on, but she was going to! Someday. “Did you learn yourself, too? Or did you grow up with engineering in your family?” 

Taval looked over at her, momentarily wondering what the hell ‘duct-tape’ even was. He arched a brow at her oversharing but didn’t seem bothered by it at all. “I did not, know. My father was an engineer and I was apprecnticed under another engineer for a few years before…” He paused, contemplating his words. It would be unwise to admit that he left his old posting due to a mutiny, “Before his sudden departure.” He started to replace the panel as he spoke, “I think that makes things good to go. Initiate one more scan to check and we will report to the others.”

She nodded, and held the scanner to the panel. It showed a green light, and with a thumbs up signal to Taval, she spoke. “Looks good to me.” She slid her tools back into her case, and then turned to her supervisor. 

Taval nodded in approval hearing the results of her scan, a faint smile crossing his face. Her enthusiasim was a bit contagious, even he had to admit. He turned, gesturing, “Let us go and report our findings.” 

It was a bit of a surprise for everyone when the Romulan Republic Intelligence Officer just appeared out of nowhere in sickbay before them but not as much as what Centurion Maec had to tell them. Saren had chosen for everyone to relocate to the bridge of the ship, he even had sent a message via comms to the two engineers in main engineering to rendezvous with the rest of them there.

While they had waited for the two engineers, Centurion Maec explained everything to them. About where the gas truly came from, who made it and why it is imperative that the gas becomes obsolete. With all that was said, Saren chose to back track, to ensure everyone, including himself, understood everything that Maec had said. Saren held up one finger, “The gas came from the Tal’Shiar in the Romulan Free State.” Then he held up his middle finger, which made it two now. “Which was created by a man named Soldar, and although he worked for the Tal’Shiar while he created it, he done so without their knowledge.” Then Saren rose another finger, making it three. “But after Soldar was removed from the Tal’Shiar, they went through his files, found the gas, and decided to test it on this ship that was under control by the Star Navy.”

Maec nodded at the recollection of her briefing to the crew. “That is correct, though the one thing I forgot to add was Soldar was invited back to the Tal’Shiar, which makes him an incredible threat to all of the Romulan Republic.” 

Saren sighed heavily as he rubbed his face a little before letting his arms drop to his side. “Well, that will certainly make things complicated.” Saren looked to the doctor. “Your antidote for the contagion that was in the gas. You have the complete formula, yes?” Saren asked her.

Looking at Saren “Right, the formula is completed yes. Though the information is not perfect as it is made on the go. If I had waited longer your hearts would have blown up” Hakona thought for a second.

“That’s reassuring…” Herrana muttered, crossing her arms and leaning against one of the consoles.

“I want the data sent to Republic Medical Institute on a secure frequency, to be perfected and hopefully they can come up with a vaccine to distribute to everyone, including the non-aligned worlds.” Saren ordered.

“Yes, sir” Walking to the medical console as Hakona started to get the formula together that she had brewed up. The information would be sent to Republic Medical Institute. Most likely they would give her a recommendation for finding the solution, “Urg public attention…” She mutters. 

Saren then heard footsteps and turned to look to see the two engineers. “Ah. N’Vek and Prar. Good for you two to join us. I hope nothing else is too damaged.”

N’Vek nodded once and offered a faint smile, “All is functional. The ship will continue to operate as expected, though normal degradation and repairs will be needed. I highly recommend going into a drydock for a complete repair within a few months time.” 

Thisbe just nodded when N’vek did. Her input wasn’t necessary; she was new and still trying to feel things out. 

Isha went to the pilot station and took a seat, where she began to fiddle with the terminal. She checked various systems before she turned in her seat to look at Saren and Orex. “Helm control is responding. We don’t just have functionality; we have full control of the ship.”

Herrana walked to Isha’s side and leaned over her shoulder. 

“I’ll be damned, we sure do. Power up the…” She paused for a moment, then looked back to Saren. It was going to take a while to get used to being on a Valdore bridge and not being in charge. “Commander, I recommend powering up the impulse engines and testing this bird’s response to helm input. We don’t know what the Star Navy remnant’s standards of maintenance are, it’s possible that she’s a bit sluggish or uncalibrated.”

Thisbe was pretty much in her element. Damage Control was her THING. She had, after all, managed to fix her own ship when the Breen had tried to shoot her down long enough to stay in the sky until she was rescued. All she’d need was a couple of thermal regulators, duct tape, and a lot of luck. On the other hand, her Romulan boss didn’t seem that impressed with her “winging it” skills. The Carjoran woman spoke up. “I can check the thermal regulations, if you need me too. Damage control is my favorite. What supplies do we have?” She had her own kit, but whatever the Republic supplied might also be helpful, even if all she had was plaster and duct tape, she’d make do.  

Saren took in everyone’s recommendations, giving some thought on their next course of action. He looked to Thisbe with a smile, “You’re the only engineering team member N’Vek has. So I’m certain you’ll be doing plenty of damage control until we get back to base.”

Then Saren looked at Herrana, and he knew the struggle she was going through. He could see it in her eyes. He couldn’t imagine what it was like to be a former Commander, to be on the bridge of a ship like the one she commanded. He’ll have to talk to her privately when he gets the chance. “I think that is a very sound plan, Subcommander. Do what you think is necessary.”

Isha already knew what Herrana wanted and began to power up the impulse engines, but before she could get far in engaging those engines, her panel started to light up. It was a communication indicator, and they were receiving a signal. Curiosity got the best of her, and she opened up the communications display to see what it was. Isha then looked at Herrana, and then at Saren. “We’re receiving a distress signal.”

Saren’s cheerful look on his face turned into a frown. He looked at Herrana and knew they were in no condition to answer any calls for help. But curiosity is a fickle thing. “Where is it coming from?”

Isha checked the display and traced the signal. “It’s coming from a colony only a few lightyears away from here. The message says they urgently need help but doesn’t say what exactly. It’s a neutral colony, formerly under the Imperial Star Empire before they went under.”

Still standing there, mute, Thisbe heard the SOS call from the hallway. Her ears perked up-a neutral colony was always a fun find. The Carjoran spoke softly. “If I am not needed immediately, I’ll head back to Engineering, get some stuff prepped in case we take fire or something.” She might be a little wet behind the ears but at least damage control was something she DID know, even if, as she’d told N’Vek, her idea of damage control was duct tape and a lot of thoughts to gods she wasn’t sure she even believed in.  

“Commander, I don’t think we have any business chasing down a distress signal,” Herrana spoke up with a grimace. “Even if this bird was in tip-top operating conditions, a Valdore takes at least fifty people to perform at bare-minimum, and substantially more if we want to have any sort or operational flexibility. We should notify the Republic Navy of the signal in the same communique that we send to report on the status of this ship. I’m sure they’ll have someone come inspect.”  

Saren looked to N’Vek and then at Hakona. “You two have the right to voice your opinions on this.”

N’Vek nodded slowly, “We are capable of running on a skeleton crew, yes. But within limited capabilities. If we get engaged with combat, it would get very… Ugly.”

Looking at Saren “Well at first I am in agreement that we are running on a skeleton crew, but then N’Vek said that it could get ugly” Hakona smirks “I say we go for it, what could possibly go wrong” The idea of doing emergency operations under pressure did excite her. 

Saren looked at Isha and at Herrana. “Even while we are in the process of claiming this ship for the Republic, it is still an Imperial warbird. Isha, the colony that is calling for help, as you said, it used to be an Imperial colony.”

Isha knew what Saren wanted and began pulling up information on the colony. “It’s a farming colony, minimum defenses. It had a troop contingent, but I highly doubt they’re there anymore, or perhaps they joined the colony. No way of finding out.”

“Any specifics on their distress?” Saren asked.

Isha looked over the message again and looked to Herrana, then at Saren. “Just that they’re in trouble.”

“Subcommander. If you don’t mind checking our long-range sensors, look for other Imperial warbirds, Republic, and other vessels in the range of the colony and us.” Saren requested.

“Aye, sir,” Herrana nodded, striding over to the sensor console and powering it up. After a moment of scanning the sensor logs, she turned back to the Commander. “As is usual when receiving distress signals, we’re the only ones in range to respond in a reasonable time frame. Figures.”

Saren grumbled loudly as he placed his hands on the backrest of the command chair as he stood behind it. He had thought of sitting down in it but resisted the urge. Saren then turned to N’Vek. “As the Subcommander stated, this ship requires a bare minimum of fifty people to operate this ship. How much of it can you get automated to operate on a very small skeleton crew?”

N’Vek cracked an amused grin. A challenge. He loved it. He looked forward to it. His mentor in engineering was a computer genuius and Taval had learned quite a bit from him. He straightened up his posture at the importance of the task. He inclined his head, “I will see what I can do to the best of my ability. I should be able to automate a good majority of the systems.”

Saren looked at Isha. “What would our ETA be at warp five?”

Isha ran the numbers on the console before she looked back at Saren. “Twelve hours.”

Saren looked back at N’Vek. “That’s the time I’m giving you to do your best work. Time to see how much of a miracle worker you are.” Saren smirked.

N’Vek returned the smirk, “Challenge accepted, sir.”

Saren looked at everyone else. “I’m making the call.” He then looked at Herrana. “Of course, the Subcommander has the right to overrule me, if she so believes that my judgment is impaired or misplaced.” He looked back at everyone. “Nevertheless, I will contact naval command and inform them of the situation.” He then looked back at Herrana. “And I won’t leave out any detail.” Which meant he would include her objection.

Saren then turned to Maec. “What is your opinion on this? You’re Republic Intelligence; any help would be nice.”

Teri had been listening closely and was interested to see the actions the crew would take. “I can’t really say anything about the colony, but I can say as part of the Republic it would be good to see if we can incorporate another colony.” She didn’t show any emotion and knew she was only partially telling the truth, but sometimes even Intelligence officers has to test the mettle of the crew.

Saren nodded his head in agreement. “Then that settles it. Isha, plot a course at warp five.”

The story continues to Part 2!