“Drax is understandably concerned about his image.” The face of Fleet Captain Peter Crawford displayed a latent annoyance as he stood on the bridge of the USS Denver. As he continued, the look did not improve.“He reached his contacts on Tholian side of the border, and he made them aware of the concerns. He’s been told to have a ship or two standing by on our side of the border to receive whatever may be left of them.”

“That’s not ominous at all,” Commander Shaelynn Rhodes Miados answered from the back of the bridge of the USS Southampton. She nodded to the ship’s commanding officer, Lieutenant Commander Abigail Scott, “We’re ready for whatever you need, Peter.”

Crawford sighed. “Commander Scott, I’m going to ask you to yield to Commander Miados for now. Taking the Denver or the Zephyr that close to Tholian space will send a message. The smaller the ships we can send, the better. You and Relentless will take on this duty.”

Abigail replied from the right-hand chair solemnly. “Understood.” The rest of the senior staff nodded, almost to themselves. The complex nature of the Tholian border required a practiced hand at the center chair. Crawford signed off and Miados stood, stepping forward into the center command circle.

“We’ve only just met each other, so I won’t bore you with a speech that I haven’t earned.” A thin smile crossed her lips and vanished before she continued, “I will make one condition. There may be an inclination to play the hero the closer we get to the border. Don’t. Whatever you’ve read or studied about the Tholians, it is immeasurably worse. They are sticklers for time, and the rules matter to the letter. Follow my lead. Questions?” A unsettling silence fell over the bridge, and she nodded in understanding. “We’ll get to know each other once we’re back closer to Montana Station. For now, we need to be ready to receive survivors of whatever the Tholians did in response.”

Six hours later, Miados sat in the center chair, watching the unchanged screen. They had arrived an hour ago in order to ensure compliance with the scheduled arrival of…well, whatever was coming to meet them. She had felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up several times in the last thirty minutes, and the memories of her symbiote reminding her of moments like this that ended in good and bad. “Ensign Kane, tactical screens?”

Riley Kane had been studying the surrounding sectors diligently, searching for errant signals that might have been something else, hoping to find a clue. No such luck. “Nothing notable or not notable. It’s empty, aside from the Tholian listening posts.” Miados had made a study of the crew, and Kane was a focused and serious officer.Kane avoided distractions almost religiously, and his academy professors coached him to ease his formidable focus on his duties. He was still young, she knew. He’d find his balance.

“Ensign Kovac, sensors?” Lena Kovac was similarly serious, and yet had a fun side. Her hobby of guitar playing had earned several notes in her dossier from various professors and staff. Tied tightly behind her head, her white hair had streaks of blond running through it.

“I’m picking up a slow surge in an energy reading coming from Tholian space. It started small, but it grew in intensity. It’s on an intercept course for us. Thirty minutes. I can work with Ensign Kane to attempt identification.” Miados motioned them to get together and work the problem. Her eyes turned back to the screen. What was coming out of Tholian space?

Twenty-five minutes later, Kane and Kovac could not discern the signal. Kovac’s frown was deep, and Miados could sense her frustration from across the bridge. Kovac shook her head in silent fury. “The interference from the Tholian side is impeding identification.” She glanced up from her console. “The ship, or whatever it is, has increased speed and will arrive in thirty seconds.”

Miados drummed her fingers on the arms of the center chair. “Well, let’s play along. Yellow alert.” The shields on the Southampton kicked on, and the lights faded into a dull yellow as the moaning roar of the klaxon rang out across the ship. Officers went through the practice of checking readings and counting down to the arrival. All the while, Miados sat in the center chair, watching and waiting for whatever it was to appear. She’d instructed Relentless to hold back just enough to avoid the threatening image of the Defiant-class starship.

Kane spoke up, the excitement clear in his voice. “Contact arriving in sector…now.”

On the screen, a deep green shape flashed out of warp and solidified into the familiar shape of the Klingon B’rel-class starship, or more commonly known as the Bird of Prey.

Miados winced. “Well, that’s new. Hailing frequencies, please.” The singsong sound of an open channel signaled it was ready. “This is Commander Miados of the Federation starship Southampton.”

A crackle and a squeak echoes out of the speakers until a gruff voice coughed onto the open channel, “Commander! What a lovely name and voice to hear at long last. You are a sight for sore eyes.” The viewscreen faded into a view of the bridge of a Bird of Prey, and the vision of Captain J’Klast leaned in, searching the Southampton bridge for familiar faces. “It is good to see you again, Commander.”

Miados felt her jaw pick itself off the floor before she found the words. “It’s good to see you too, Captain J’Klast…I suppose you are here on behalf of the Tholians?”

The Klingon captain grimaced with a curious grin. “I am, but I am also here to officially join your division once more. I have much to share. Perhaps we could put some distance between us and the border? We do not enjoy their company or being close to them for very long.”

Miados answered, “Similar feelings, Captain. We’ll rendezvous,” she tapped into the chair console, “at this point. I know you have an affinity for dinner cuisine.”

His curious grin turned to one of joy. “You have not forgotten, Commander. See you soon.”

The screen blanked, and Miados turned to the crew. “Let’s get ready to host our new friends.” As the crew went to work, she had to wonder what J’Klast and his Bird of Prey had been doing in Tholian space.

And what was bringing him into their division?