“Captain, I really think you need to get some rest,” T’Sunik insisted as he picked up a cast aside towel from the ready room floor and laid its grubby surface neatly onto the back of the couch. “I promise to wake you if there is any change.”

“Why haven’t we found them yet?” Dasranika muttered as she clutched a locket at her chest, a small curling spiral of gold suspended in a jewel-encrusted silver ring. Two in one, Dane’s first gift to her almost twenty years ago.

“The Concord bombardment left a significant amount of interference; we are continuing our scans,” the statuesque Vulcan replied, hovering indecisively at the end of the short curving sofa of the ready room. Across the short ocean of grief-stricken air, the captain was punishing herself with the last moment of dematerialisation before the transporter beam snatched her from the moon’s surface. Over and over again, he watched it play out on her face.

A white light at the edge of vision.

A falling boulder.

A desperate final look.

No, not final. T’Sunik was determined that it would not be so.

“Sensor clarity is resuming quickly, and Nuld’s team are preparing a probe deployment to increase resolution.” He paused, his heart yearning to reach out across the distance to comfort her. His finger twitched as his muscle fibres began to move, but he stymied the motion with a glance. “I was considering reaching out to the Romulans to lend their aid. Stygur seemed friendly in our brief encounter on Velantri Prime.”

Dasranika offered a slight nod as the action replay began again in her mind’s eye, a fresh and unrelenting torment.

“Captain, I really think-” he began in a soft tone before a chirp from their combadges interrupted his offer.

“Bridge to Dasranika, we are being hailed by the lead Concord Vessel.”

“Just deal with it, T’Sunik. I can’t…”

“I understand, Captain.” He offered a slight bow as his hand twitched again. Soft comfort wasn’t his way, and his relationship with Dasranika wasn’t at that stage. But this comfort he could offer.

“I have the ship.” He announced softly as he turned towards the bridge and left the Captain to her tidal wave of grief.

“Put them on screen,” T’Sunik announced as he strode across the small bridge to the lonely centre seat.

Moments later, the partial vision of the Velantri moon, its surface potted with still-burning plasma fires, was replaced by the shining golden face of the Concord Envoy. A sickly smile spread across his face as if they had just refreshed the flowers rather than pulverised a mining base and two of Hart’s crew with it. Behind him, the emerald form of the Klingon envoy Ohkhan watched from the lonely shadow of the Concord vessel’s bridge, his smirk of satisfaction replaced by a glum stare.

“Starfleet, we are ready to return to Velantri Prime to continue our negotiations,” the Envoy announced matter-of-factly.

“And the mining base?” T’Sunik’s blood simmered and flushed his dark cheeks despite his Vulcan control.

“We will leave a contingent of vessels to monitor the Zhelicar for further sedition.” The golden-skinned creature waved a dismissive hand. “Dilithium production should not be unduly affected.”

The commander clutched the end of the seat rest with white knuckles fingers, pushing another muscle twitch deep into his stomach, layering his anger over his compassion.

“What of the injured? We have not completed search and rescue operations.”

T’Sunik caught the look of surprise that danced across the Envoy’s face before he managed to ferret it away, replacing it with his perpetual visage of laissez-faire.

“Search and rescue?” The Envoy raised an eyebrow slightly in an attempt to offer nothing more than passing interest. “The Zhelicar will handle their own arrangements. Our team are focused on returning the mine to full operation.”

“And our team?” T’Sunik’s eyes narrowed minutely.

“Are a terrible loss. You have our sympathies that they were lost as a result of the rebels’ detestable actions.”

“The rebels did not lose them, Envoy.”

“We gave plenty of warning of the bombardment; it is unfortunate that the Zhelicar did not allow them to leave in sufficient time.”

“We do not believe them to be dead.”

The Envoy’s eyes turned downward as the glow of his eyes dimmed.

“We understand, we are aware of your people’s deep ties to each other,” he sighed. “The loss of three senior officers must be hurtful.”

T’Sunik caught a surprised twitch of his face before it made its way to the surface as he realised the Concord believed all three officers dead. Across the bridge, he caught the eye of Lieutenant Commander Taggart, now de facto first officer. The mousey man’s thick brow narrowed in confusion, dragging his pronounced ears upward as his face scrunched. T’Sunik offered him a minute shake of the head before returning his focus to the viewscreen.

“We request permission to remain and continue scanning for them for a little longer.” T’Sunik stacked his gambit, knowing the Concord would never allow the vessel to remain. He could hear Dane’s ghostly voice in the back of his head, ‘ask for a mile, and you may gain an inch’. 

“We require you on Velantri Prime to continue negotiations,” The Envoy replied firmly.

“Then would you allow a small team to remain in shuttles to continue with our search?” T’Sunik asked with his best attempt at a pleading tone. “They would not interfere in your ship’s operations.”

The Envoy swayed his head from side to side in consideration, mulling the possibilities over and batting the implications back and forth in a mental volley.

“It would be a great kindness, and we would be extremely grateful for the accommodation,” T’Sunik added, pressing an unnatural tone of wounded desperation into his voice.

The featherweight of ego massaging tipped the scale, and the Envoy’s golden face turned into a golden orb of patronising sympathy.

“We will grant you this kindness, launch your shuttles. We will leave shortly.”

The aurelian man disappeared from the screen without another word, his shining visage replaced once again with the scarred and wounded surface of the moon.

“Shuttles, sir?” Taggart asked in confusion, the consonants of his words sticking in his throat with a thick Liverpudlian accent. “They’ll be well out of their depth, and what about us? Are we just going back to the table whilst the commanders get left in the dirt?”

“They won’t be alone. Have Nuld and her team move to three shuttles and continue their survey. Load them with as many class 3 probes as will fit and emergency medical supplies, have Doctor Rimsomar join them.” T’Sunik rose from the centre seat and began towards the turbolift. “And Taggart, please make contact with Skofnung. We will require their assistance.”