There was silence on the bridge for a second, Burton holding up his hand. Then he nodded, a small smile playing over his face. “Oh yeah, they bought it and then some!”

“Good.” Raan chuckled and turned toward Kovash, one eyebrow raised. “The Talexar systems?” 

She shrugged and held up a mug. “Coffee is life.”

“It is indeed,” Bennett grinned as he and Micheals emerged from maintenance hatches armed to the teeth.Raan had always wondered how a man Bennett’s size managed to fit into such tiny spaces, but he had always had an affinity for underground work during the war on their homeplanet. 

The big man unfolded himself to his full height. “Although I think anyone drinking that shi-substance will find themselves needing sickbay sooner rather than later.”

Kovash grunted. “Is not my fault your systems not as robust as Rivan’s.”

One of the junior officers looked around the bridge, surprise on his face. “So the ship is not about to blow?”

Bennett clapped a hand on the lad’s shoulder. 

“The thing about engineers, doll,” he said in a deep voice. “Is that we’re as good at taking ships apart as we are keeping them together. Or… giving the impression that they’re about to come apart.”

Raan motioned towards the bridge consoles. “Check the systems again.”

Several officers moved for their screens, surprising an audible wave over the bridge. 

“Oh my god, they’re all normalising,” the junior officer who had spoken before gasped. Raan searched for his name. Williams, that was it. “The only damage appears to be to minor systems and several replicators have… blown up?”

Raan turned to Bennett, who shrugged. “You said secondary systems. Have you people never heard of a kettle?”

“Is called Trojan Donkey,” Kovash spun in her chair to add, grinning from ear to ear. “We offer present with visible danger and they not want.”

Burton frowned. “You mean Trojan horse? When the Greeks hid troops inside a huge wooden horse and left it outside the city of Troy to gain access to the city?”

Raan almost facepalmed, but Burton had yet to learn ‘Kovash-speak’. She had a unique way of looking at things. 

Sure enough, she turned a look on him that would have given a rattlesnake’s own reflection a headache. 

“And this worked? Humans are dumb. Oh, is huge thing made of wood that not there before. Lets take it inside…” She said in a sing-song voice. “Oh, where these warriors suddenly come from? Obviously male idea.” 

She waved her hand in dismissal. “No. Is donkey, because Resolute ‘prize’ they no want.”

Callahan piped up, confusion in her voice. “By why didn’t you tell us? The crew could have helped.”

He easily saw the suppressed hurt in the back of her eyes. Callahan was one he had his eye on for promotion, so he could understand why she felt left out. 

“You and the crew were the most important part of the plan. The Devore had to believe what was happening. They had to think we were reacting exactly as a Starfleet crew would. Your responses were perfect and all federation standard, which was key to selling this.”

She blinked, but then smiled. “I’m glad we could be of service. And it makes sense. What crew would blow up their own ship to fake a disaster? So, what happens now?”

Raan grinned. “We’re in a starship the Devore think is dead, we have a full tank of gas and Bennett has his shades. We’re about to kick ass and take names.”

“The captain is now banned from watching old earth movies.” Micheals groaned. “By that he means, we’re going to fix the shit Bennett blew up, then go rescue our people.”