Like two great armies standing on a battlefield, ready to charge at one another, the Odyssey Squadron stood shoulder to shoulder in front of the Cardassian ships. Though there were only three Cardassian ships (all of them Keldon-class cruisers), the Cardassians were apparently resolute in their steadfastness. They were not intimidated by the seven Starfleet ships that stood before them. They outnumbered two to one and the larger more powerful Starfleet ships, like the Odyssey, Themis and Destiny could easily defeat them. Having the Constitution, Bellerophon, Triton and Orion with them, only enforced the superior hand that Starfleet had in the situation. Instead of opening fire on each other, the two leaders of each group had agreed to meet. There was no need for either of them to attack each other. 

The tension in the room was palpable as Gul Jacet was shown to the conference room with three of his aides. All of them were glinns and did not speak unless he gave them his authority to speak. 

McCallister, Duncan, Horin and Flemen entered a few seconds later. Keli stood nearby with another security officer, while two more stood outside the door, ready in case any trouble ensued. McCallister wasn’t hoping for that, but he could not ignore the uncertainty of the situation. 

After the necessary pleasantries were once again exchanged between each party, they all sat down to start their discussion, the formality of the setting adding weight to the impending conversation. 

“I must admit, Gul Jacet, you weren’t someone we expected to see here,” McCallister shared, his surprise evident in his tone. 

Jacet smirked at that. It was apparent that he had liked putting Starfleet’s nose out of joint. “Hope our appearance hasn’t surprised you too much.”

“Starfleet is committed to peaceful coexistence with all of its neighbours,” McCallister reminded Jacet. He was intent on not letting Jacet get under his skin, especially since he had left the last time they met, stating he was a friend. McCallister wanted to know his intentions. “So, how have you been since we last saw you?”

“Well, thank you,” Jacet said, still with that awful grin. “And you? I see you’ve been promoted. Congratulations.”

“Thank you,” McCallister replied. “So, let’s get down to business. Why are you here, and will your presence be an issue for us?”

Jacet scoffed. “Come now, Commodore McCallister, we’ve fought alongside each other to prevent a terrible biological weapon from being used against your people; we’ve defeated the last remnants of the Dominion. Do we need to be coy with one another?”

“I won’t deny that our previous working relationship was very amicable, and we appreciated your help greatly in saving Divinium Four, but if memory serves me correctly, you did so to correct an omission on your part,” McCallister stated.

“I’ve paid my debt, commodore,” Jacet responded.

“So, why are you here?” McCallister asked again. 

Rolling his eyes, Jacet shook his head in disbelief. “Once again, Starfleet shows its superior than others attitude when it comes to exploration,” He paused as he considered his words. “Exploration.”

“You’re lying,” Horin bluntly said. The Betazoid counsellor had been sat quietly to McCallister’s left. “Your intentions aren’t the same as ours,” She added.

“And your insincerity with the commodore is a delaying tactic. Which begs the question, why is a heavily armed Cardassian squadron here so far from Cardassian space?” Flemen added. 

Chuckling, Jacet looked to his aides and back to his Federation counterparts. “We don’t answer to Starfleet.”

“Maybe not, but you’ve still not reassured us that your presence here is not a threat to our intentions,” Duncan countered. 

“Ah, yes, because your intentions are honourable,” Jacet said sarcastically. His continued amusement was laced in his words. “We’re aware that your ships have been assigned to the Delta Quadrant for some time, commodore. That is no hidden secret.”

“The Odyssey and her squadron are well-known in this quadrant,” McCallister reminded Jacet. 

“All thanks to that former lost ship of yours and the use of the Barzan Wormhole,” Jacet countered. “But that’s changed with the opening of underspace across the entire galaxy.” 

“A new day dawns upon us all,” McCallister said, leaning forward and placing his clasped hands on the table. “We could work together for the benefit of all in our efforts to explore this area.”

Jacet’s amusement now reached a whole new level as he gave out a louder laugh that came from deep down in his belly. “Oh, Commodore, I have missed our exchanges.” He leant forward. “Let’s be honest here; there won’t be any exchanges or working together. What has happened to the galaxy is a menace to everyone. Even your Turei allies aren’t happy with these new corridors being opened.”

“Starfleet Command has noted the Turei’s concerns, but given time, we could all benefit from learning from one another about the use of the underspace corridors. Surely even the Union can see the long-term advantages?” McCallister challenged.

“Oh, we’re quite aware of the long-term implications, commodore, and they don’t give us much hope that things will improve,” Jacet replied. “However, to answer your original question, my squadron won’t interfere with your squadron’s operations. Please go ahead and do your exploration while we conduct our matters.”

Considering his words for a moment, McCallister leant back in his chair. He knew his exchanges with Jacet wouldn’t produce anything more productive or provide concrete reasons they were here. Instead, he just nodded and stood up. “Then I will take your word for it and hope that our past relationship of working shoulder-to-shoulder will ensure we can conduct our separate operations amicably.”

Jacet stood up. “Likewise, commodore.”

“Lieutenant Commander Keli will escort you and your party back to the transporter room,” Duncan advised, giving Keli a motion to show the guests out. 

Jacet bowed his head out of respect, and as he reached the doorway, he turned around and looked back at McCallister. “Commodore, ]your Starfleet is fortunate enough to know this area and have access to the Barzan Wormhole.”

When Jacet was out of the room, and the door was closed, McCallister turned to the others. “Thoughts?”

“They’re up to something; we should tell Starfleet,” Duncan answered.

“If the Union is concerned about the chaos the underspace corridors bring, it wouldn’t surprise me if they try to fortify apertures that lead back to their space,” Flemen added. “We should get our new chief science officer to determine how Jacet got here.”

“I agree with Craigen,” Horin said. “Jacet, though he thinks he is an honourable man, is undoubtedly delivering on a strategy the Union has devised. This is big, as I could sense he was doing his best to hide whatever is deep within his thoughts.”

“And he certainly didn’t seem bothered about our possible plans in making diplomatic contact with the locals,” Flemen stated. “It was almost as if he didn’t care what we did.”

“Yes, I got that too; it’s almost as if he knows we want to make diplomatic ties in the area, but what we’re going to do wouldn’t be a nuisance to him,” Horin theorised. “And his remarks about the Barzan Wormhole, it makes me think he cares we can still use it.”

Duncan looked at McCallister after a sudden lull of silence between the officers. “You don’t think they know how to close the apertures?”

McCallister crossed his arms. “I didn’t think they could be.”

“Perhaps we need to get our new chief science officer to review that possibility,” Flemen suggested. 

McCallister looked at Duncan and nodded to him to get Reddick on it. “This could all be speculation, but I’d prefer not to find ourselves without a way to get back.”

“Especially as we’re so far away from either end of the Barzan Wormhole,” Horin said as she crossed her arms. 

“So, do we just stay here and wait for the Cardassians to do something?” Flemen asked.

McCallister considered his options. “They only have three ships here, so I say we proceed with our plan but leave a few ships behind to guard the aperture.”

“Who gets the babysitting duties then?” Duncan asked.

McCallister turned to Duncan. “Odyssey, Themis and Orion.” 

Duncan chuckled. “Thanks.”

“I know it’s not glamorous, but it gives you all time to study the aperture and the underspace corridor to see if they can be collapsed and determine how the Cardassians got here. Also, all three of you have starfighters that can be launched to help defend the aperture. In the meantime, I’ll start our mission of making some diplomatic overtures with the locals.”

“And if the Cardassians don’t like us staying behind?” Duncan asked.

“Don’t worry, we’ll keep everyone close, as planned so that if anything goes wrong, we can all get back to one another quickly,” McCallister advised. 

“So, who’s ship will you transfer your flag to, commodore?” Flemen asked, smirking. 

“Oh, I’ve got one in mind,” McCallister smirked as they made their way out of the conference room. “But its captain isn’t going to be happy to have their big brother crashing on his sofa!”