“This reads more like a museum than a prison.”  Captain Harris sat at the head of the briefing room table with his XO to his right and his Cardassian advisor to his left.  “This class of Romulan ship isn't in our databases.  The two Vulcansah ships you identified bear a resemblance to a Klingon Vulcan hybrid ship, while this fourth ship defies anything we've seen before.”  He glanced at the Gul, who was intently studying the photos and specifications of the fourth ship.  “Gul Hasara…?”

He was quiet for a moment, tracing the lines of the ship, his eyes wandering across the early drafts of the schematics, “This ship has the appearance of some of the early designs of Cardassia.  Ancient history to us in 2400…but it would reason to suggest that that ship is in part Cardassian.” He pointed to several items on the ship's design, “These are unfamiliar to me.  I do not think they are of native Cardassian design.  They have the appearance of….”

T'saath interrupted, “Early Vulcan designs.  Very early.”  She examined the items on her PADD, “Captain, I suspect there is more to the Vulcansah.  Our science teams have been working to examine the computer core for the Island and have extrapolated significant data and logs.  Lieutenant Fowler advised me of some preliminary results.  The Vulcansah appear to be what we think they are - ancestors to Vulcans.  However, growing evidence suggests they were involved with Romulans, Cardassians, and possibly even Klingons.”  She clarified, “A working theory from the science and engineering teams is that the anachronistic elements of Klingon design in the Vulcansah ships come from their observations of early Klingon designs.”

Harris held up a hand; his eyes widened at her revelation, “Commander - you're suggesting the Vulcansah other spied on or ran counter-intelligence operations on the Klingon Empire to adapt their designs to their ships?”

The XO gave a slow nod, “It may not be that simple, captain…but that is an approximate summary of our early findings.”

Ambrose shook his head in amazement, “That's going to take some work to unpack.  Update on our mirror universe friends?”

T'saath confirmed, “They are still being held in the secured area where they were in stasis.  There are 115 of them alive.  20 were killed in the initial attempt and resulting battle.  We've attempted to negotiate with them, but so far, they're returning our attempts with weapons fire.”  She tapped at her PADD, “Chief Kondo has drawn up several plans to address them.”

The CO read through them, “Runs the gamut from stun them with a massive blast or a bunch of stun grenades to outright killing them.  My preference is no death, but knocking out 115 humans is quite the ask.”  He continued down the report, “Status of the rest of the base?”

Hasara answered.  He had partnered with T'saath early in the day to assist with organizing the efforts with help from the operations chief, Calog Tir.  “The bottom section is secure and powered.  The middle section is halfway complete, with power returning to most areas.  The top section is a third explored while our power operations there have been hampered by the damage it took from the attack.” He tapped the PADD in front of him, “The underlying concern is the reactivation of the defense systems and the impact they will have on your ship and the crew.  Your chief engineer and chief operations officer are engaged in discussions with Sokassia around that subject.  They report it is slow going as his attitude remains…they use the words ‘aloof’, ‘pious’, and ‘arrogant’.  I know you will not follow my recommendation, but I would have long ignored this fool and done it my way."

Harris chuckled dryly, “You know me so well, Gul.  No, we've got to stay on his good side.  His ability to control the entirety of the Island is something we can't forget or ignore.  We know what the defense system is capable of - I don't want to be on the wrong side of it.”  He contemplated for a moment.  “Could we find a way to convince him to program the system to ignore the Mack specifically?  I can't imagine it would be that difficult.”

Hasara and T'saath exchanged glances before she answered, “It is entirely possible.  However, getting Sokassia to agree to such a thing…may be impossible.  His behavior and attitude suggest while he has been willing to be open to us repairing and using the Island's systems…that line may be drawn when we suggest altering the programming.  He is a holographic program, so proceeding carefully would be advised.”

“I was wondering about that,” he sighed.  “Have we been able to detect any living readings that suggest we've got a living Vulcansah on The Island somewhere?”

“I can't answer that question until we've fully explored the station itself.  There have been errant biologic readings as our teams have moved through the facility - both living and dead.”

Harris tapped his signature on the report, “Then I guess we better get to work.  Whatever escaped this place is still out there…and we're going to need to figure out how to deal with before we go searching for it.”