—- USS Luna, Hangerbay 1 —-

Lieutenant Junior Grade Rosa Flores was one of a team of security officers watching the Runabouts following the Captain’s orders that only she had the authority to launch them. Not being part of the senior staff she did not know exactly what was going on, but rumours were flying that a changeling had gotten on board and was for some reason killing the crew. If it was successfully offing the crew she was not sure why it needed a warp capable runabout, but that was that. The ship only had two warp capable small craft, aside the captain’s skiff, so they were both in the main hanger.

The captain entered the hangar, and headed to the group of four security officers. Nodded and said, “I need this on order of Admiral Janeway. I can’t explain why.”

It seemed unlikely that the Captain would need something like a runabout, there was nothing of interest and they were so far from Federation space that not traveling in the USS Luna seemed inside but she provided the correct codes and so it was not for a Lieutenant Junior Grade or a gaggle of Ensigns to question Captain Cruz or the orders of an Admiral.

”Do you need anything sir,” Flores asked as the Captain headed into the runabout.

”I’ll be fine with the replicator and the rations on here. I’ll be back in a few days,” Cruz said. 

As the door to the runabout closed Flores tapped her comm badge, “Flores to bridge, Captain Cruz is leaving in a runabout. It seemed odd but she had the right codes.”

Her commanding officer, Chief Security Officer Lieutenant Jara replied, “Thank you Flores.”

The runabout lifted off and exited the ship, passing through the forcefield that kept space out and the crew in as it took off at impulse speed readying the jump to warp and away.

—- USS Luna, Bridge —-

Lieutenant Kolem gazed at the view screen and the runabout. Her empathy could not tell if the pilot was the captain or not, only that getting away from the ship was important to it. Not that she blamed the pilot, whoever it was, on that front. The Romulans were coming to deal with the shapeshifter and time was running out of the USS Luna. Starfleet’s position was that peace with the Romulans basically would require the sacrifice of the ship if they could not solve the problem quickly.

“Do you think it’s the captain?” Lieutenant Jara asked at the tactical conn.

”Open hailing frequencies,” Kolem said once more in the unwelcome role of temporary captain, “Get her on the screen.”

”Kolem, I am sorry but I have orders directly from Admiral Janeway,” Cruz said as she appeared on the screen. She seemed sympathetic just as anyone would given what the Luna would face while she was gone. Everyone aboard was going to die, and the captain was leaving the ship first. Cruz frowned, “I would explain more but the Admiral forbid me to.”

Kolem nodded, “Understood captain, good luck.”

The transmission cut out, and Kolem sighed, “I don’t know for sure, it could be the changeling but it could be the captain.”

”The runabout’s warp engines are powering up,” Jara said, “It’s going to warp.”

Instead of vanishing in a blue streak as it entered warp the runabout sped up a few kilometers, then stopped. Kolem spoke, “Bridge of engineering, any reason the runabouts wouldn’t warp?”

”None that I can think of,” said Chief Engineer James Young.

A second voice came through, that of Assistant Chief Engineer Vanessa Constable, “Captain Cruz had me disable all the warp capable craft a few days ago. Other than the ship none of them should be able to go to warp. We didn’t tell anyone, not even Young.”

“Why would the captain take a disabled runabout out without having it fixed before leaving?” Kolem asked.

”Unless the captain isn’t the captain,” Jara said.

”Red alert, Jara have security sweep the ship for the captain, or her body,” Kolem said fearing the worst, “And lock a tractor beam onto that runabout, but don’t bring it onto the ship.”

Hearing the hiss of the turbolift’s doors opening Kolem saw Sub-Lieutenant Navan entering the bridge, “The Warbird is here.”

As if by magic a very large Warbird appeared out of warp, hanging over the Luna. Kolem gulped, this was not great.

”There’s not supposed to be here for another twelve hours,” Kolem said.

”Apparently Captain Cruz arranged for them to be early,” Navan said.

”Hail them,” Kolem said.

The Romulan commander of the Warbird nodded, though mostly to the Romulan advisor, “Your Captain promised me the shapeshifter would be in that runabout. She had us come early to deal with it. Where is your Captain?”

Jara looked up, “They found her bleeding and near death. She’s going into surgery now.”

Kolem nodded, the Romulan Commander had also head and nodded, “Well, my condolences. But that leaves our quarry. I’m hailing the ship now.”

A second screen with seemingly Captain Cruz appeared, now looking frantic, “I was assured you would be arriving tomorrow.”

”When you have the chance to warp to safety,” the Romulan asked, “I believe I heard human captains go down with their ship. But then you are not human are you?”

The USS Luna’s bridge crew watched as the Romulan commander cut the call, and then fired on the runabout. Disabled the small ship could not warp away and while it held out against the phaser fire briefly a torpedo struck it disintegrating it. There was a tense moment and then the Romulan commander called back.

”We are satisfied that the situation has been resolved,” he said then with a curt nod ended the communication. Within a minute the Romulan Warbird cloaked and vanished, leaving the Luna on its own.

”What just happened?” Jara asked.

”The Captain must have known the changeling would flee if it knew that the Romulans were coming and would kill us all. She arranged for them to arrive early, and for the warp capable ships to be disabled, so that the changeling got caught with its pants down,” Kolem said, “Pardon the phrase. She must have known that by making the ships guarded except on her authority, she’d become the target and thus fewer people would die.”

Navan nodded, “It seems brave and stupid to make herself the target. But we are all alive because of that.”

Kolem nodded, “Keep me updated on her status, and Klar’s. Until then I guess stay here, we’ll want to figure things out. I have reports to writs to Starfleet.”