—- USS Luna, Briefing Room 1 —-

The Strategic Operations Officer gestured to the screen on the wall showing the ten Devore Imperium warships that had removed themselves from the gaseous cloud and were now blocking access to the underspace portal that the USS Luna had used to travel to the Delta Quadrant in.

“It is likely that they discovered the portal shortly after our arrival and realizing that we would eventually look to double back, have decided to block it,” Lieutenant Eleanor Dorian said.

“Why?” Commander Olivia Carrillo asked, “Why not just let us go. We’re out off their hair in less than a day.”

“A ship that refused to bow to their laws, and allow the boarding and inspection,” Dorian said, “However distasteful we find their rules, if they don’t enforce them others will push back too.”

“Okay what’s the tactical options?” Carrillo asked.

The way that Chief Security Officer Lieutenant Claudia Jara inhaled as if breathing through her teeth suggested that it was bad, “Well against two ships we reasonably could win. Against three we might survive. Four maybe. Ten, short of showing up with a Borg Cube we don’t stand a chance.”

Acting First Officer Yuhiro Kolem studied the screen, “Can we dodge?”

Dorian shook her head, “They have us on scanners, and are readjusting to our movements. We’d need a cloaking device.”

Carrillo turned to her Chief Engineer Lieutenant Commander James Young, “We have industrial replicators can we build a cloaking device?”

He made a face, “A cloaking device isn’t something you can just build, even if we ignore all treaties in place with the Romulans.”

“If we turn and run the other way,” Carrillo asked.

“Let’s say seventeen years through normal space to get back home,” Lieutenant Akane Sone from Stellar Cartography said.

Carrillo sighed, “Did anyone bring me options, or are you all armed with problems?”

Chief Intelligence Officer Jake Dornall had been silent through most of the meeting and finally gestured to the gaseous cloud, “What’s that cloud made of?”

Dorian looked down at her PADD, “Various things, zinc, metals, hydrogen”

“We have a mostly empty cargo bay now that we don’t have shuttles,” Dornall said referring to the shuttles that the Luna had blown up as a distraction, a ploy that had worked at the time. He leaned forward in his chair, “Can we collect just the hydrogen in a big the size of our hanger?”

All eyes turned to Chief Engineer James Young who shrugged, “I could rig something up.”

“Who’d heard of the earth ship Hindenburg?” Dornall asked, to mostly blank stares.

“The Devore Imperium ships will be shielded against hydrogen,” Carrillo said, “Even the first warp capable Starfleet vessels were able to withstand that.”

Dornall pointed at the screen, “Look at that patten of enemy ships. They’re careful and they’ve planned for us. They want order and control, we need chaos. We put a quantum torpedo through a big bag of hydrogen and suddenly they don’t know what’s going on. We aren’t going to destroy them but if we have a chance of slipping through it’s with chaos.”

Carrillo nodded, “Okay, well that’s a terrible plans. But seeing as we have nothing else Young start working on that with Dornall. I want us ready.”

—- USS Luna, Bridge —-

Commander Carrillo glanced at her acting First Officer Yuhiro Kolem and took a breath, “Well here going nothing.”

“At least we know they won’t have telepaths on their ship,” Kolem joked.

“Open hailing frequencies,” Carrillo said and soon another Inspector in another dark leather uniform was frowning at her from one of the Devore Imperium ships. Carrillo looked as harried as she felt, and had made her hair disheveled on purpose. Both her and her entire bridge crew had donned charred uniforms as if they’d been fighting fires.

“Prepare to stop and we will seize your vessels for an assault on our ships,” the Inspector said.

“We can’t stop, our warp core is damaged, if we stop we will explode,” Carrillo said trying to sound panicked, which was easy given what was going to happen next, “There’s a gateway to the Beta Quadrant that we came through, we need to get through it before it goes critical,” she said.

The Inspector cut the transmission.

“They’re scanning us,” Jara at tactical said, “They’ve noticed the radiation leak that engineering has staged. He’d hailing us again.”

“Follow our lead vessel, stay an assigned distance away, any closer we will open fire,” the Inspector said.

Carrillo nodded, and Jara cut the transmission. Carrillo glanced at the officer at the Engineering console, “Have Young release the gas bag. Soon as it’s out of the ship fire two quantum torpedoes. Everyone hold on, all ship announcement. Brace brace.”

The explosion was significant, two quantum torpedoes detonated at their aft hitting the large silicone bag of hydrogen gas that they collected. It ignited, bathing the Luna in flames and then the Luna hit the lead Devore Imperium ship head on.

Visually it looked as if the Starfleet ship had burst into flames and then exploded taking the lead ship with it. Carrillo felt herself lurching forward, restrained by the belt on her seat but then the seat gave way and she flew forward still buckled in. There was the terrible sound of metal being crushed as the ships collided. The lights flickered and emergency lights took their place.

“Injuries reported all across the ship, the Imperium ships are pulling back,” Jara reported as she got up from the floor where she’d landed.

Carrillo unbuckled herself from her seat which had flown to the front of the bridge, “Warp?”

“We have warp,” Jara said.

“Shields up, starting firing everything and everything,” Carrillo said, “And Pr’Nor take us home.”

Devore Imperium ships had just seen the Starfleet ship burst into flames and take out their own ship, and were backing away hastily from what was meant to be left. Then suddenly out of the rubble came blue streaks of light as quantum torpedoes were fired. Ships backing away collided with other ships and suddenly there was no one in charge of the large enemy force.

“The forward lounge is gone,” Jara reported, “Massive damage to the hull section’s fore. All areas had been evacuated as you ordered, no deaths.”

“We needed to drink less anyway,” Carrillo joked.

“Primary threat vessel is disabled, three others damaged, we’re through the blockade,” Jara said, “Warping now, but the remaining six ships are pursuing.”

The Luna rocked as phaser fire hit its shields. At comm Jara said, “Shields offline.”

The ship rocked again, and unhelpfully Jara said, “Propulsion systems offline. We’re dead in the water.”

Using her commbadge Carrillo called Engineering, “Young how long until I can go fast again?”

“An hour?” replied Chief Engineer James Young unsure given that the ship was still shaking with phaser fire and a lot of things were currently on fire in engineering.

“That’s about fifty nine minutes too long,” Carrillo said, she turned to Jara, “Prepare to be boarded.”

“Commander I’m getting four ships declocking,” Jara said, “It’s a three Klingon Mat’Ha class ships and one Bortasqu‘-class dreadnought. Holy shit that thing’s big. Sorry Ma’am.”

“What are they doing?” Carrillo asked, unsure if this was good news or bad.

“They’ve engaged the Devore Imperium ships,” Jara said, “Two are destroyed the other two are fleeing.”

Carrillo took a breath, “Okay, hail the Klingon ship.”

A Klingon male with unruly hair and a fevered look in his eyes answered, “Starfleet do you contest ownership of this territory?”

“No,” Carrillo said.

Satisfied the Klingon nodded, “We claim it in the name of our house and the Empire.”

“I think the Devore Imperium lay ownership, but you know I’m not worried to much about that right now,” Carrillo said.

“It will be a glorious struggle. Did you just ram their ship, and blow yours up?” he asked interested.

“Yes, basically,” Carrillo said.

“What a bad idea. I love it. You fight like a true warrior, always ready to go to Stovokor,” the Klingon laughed.

“Look my Captain has a lot of wine, do you want it?” Carrillo asked.

“Because you killed him?” the Klingon asked.

Carrillo shook her head, “No sent her to have surgery. But she owes me, and she can get more. I think our transporters still work, we’ll beam over what we have that wasn’t broken in the crash. For your timely intervention.”

The Klingon nodded, “May I have the honor of killing you myself one day.”

When the screen went dark Carrillo sighed, “Miss Tashai, get all the wine from Captain Cruz’s ready room and quarters and send it to the bridge of the Klingons. The big ship. Soon as we can go home, let’s go home.”