Beaming down with everyone else in full dress uniform, Thaustin wondered how this party with the Sikarians would go. T’Penni and Ethav remained on the ship to continue overseeing the repairs and using the supplies the Sikarians had provided them. Right now, Thaustin would have preferred to be on the ship than be entertained by those guilty of the damage the ship had sustained. That may have been the first officer in him thinking that way, while the former diplomatic officer within him knew that this occasion might go a long way in making sure the Sikarians did hold up their promise of sending them back. 

“Commander Thaustin,” called McCallister, “Let me introduce you to Magistrate Mala.”

Thaustin had heard the captain’s recount of his first meeting with Mala. She certainly sounded like someone who was the ‘hostess with the mostess’. Keeping his diplomatic look in check, Thaustin smiled in his usual boyish, charming way. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Madam Magistrate.”

“I’m delighted to meet you,” Mala said as she extended her hand towards him.

Thaustin wasn’t sure if he should tap or shake it; he glanced at McCallister, who had noticed his uncertainty of what to do. Confused when the captain pouted his lips, Thaustin had no idea what McCallister was suggesting he do.

“You’re meant to kiss a lady’s hand, commander,” Mala said.

Still unsure about this, Thaustin leant in and kissed it, which caused McCallister to hide his smirk with the glass of drink he now held. “My apologies, I wasn’t aware of that custom, Madam Magistrate.”

“It’s not a Sikarian custom, commander; it’s an Earth one,” She replied. “I read some of the stories from the database that your comrades left on my homeworld. If there’s one thing a gentleman does when he is in the presence of a lady, it is to greet her well.”

“Be glad you had access to our database and not a Klingon one,” McCallister remarked.

“Well, if you excuse me, gentlemen, I must make sure my people are ready for the feast we have prepared for you,” Mala said, still smiling as she bowed her head slightly and made her way across the open courtyard they were using to host this party.

Once alone, McCallister looked at his first officer, “Thoughts?”

Only able to share what he had seen so far, Thaustin shrugged his shoulders before answering. “It’s too early to say, sir, but I would definitely say what Voyager recorded is accurate about these people.” He thought that was a pretty honest and fair answer. 

“What, you mean the whole pomp and circus to show off?” McCallister asked; both men lowered their voices’ volume to prevent others from hearing them. “What gets me is how calm and carefree they are with having the Hirogen so close.”

“That’s certainly a concern, but whatever technology they are using to keep them at bay, it might be something we want to learn more about,” Thaustin suggested. Like the captain, he was indeed perplexed by that matter. “Everything we know about the Hirogen would tell us they would be planning to hunt these people, not ignore them.”

“Nonetheless, here we are sipping on the local champagne as if there isn’t a care in the world,” McCallister said. “What do you think about Mala?” He gestured for them to move around so it didn’t look like they were not mingling. 

After being offered a canapé that looked like it had cream cheese and a dice of salmon, the two men thanked the waiter who presented it to them. They both looked at each other to see who would eat it first. Being the diplomat and first officer, Thaustin took the hint from McCallister and tried the hors d’oeuvre. 

“Not bad,” He said as he chewed on it for a bit longer. 

After trying, McCallister nodded with approval. “Tastes a bit like hasperat.” 

Thaustin agreed with the captain; the strong taste was undoubtedly there. “So, back to Mala,” Thaustin said as they were given more flutes of what was meant to be the Sikarian version of champagne. “It may take longer than we want to see her genuine self.”

“Oh, what makes you say that?” McCallister quizzed. “I’m sure she’s someone who loves to be the life and soul of any party.”

“There’s certainly that,” Thaustin agreed, “However, I think it’s more of a ruse. Most leaders I’ve met like to put on a show in the initial first few meetings and gatherings. She’s no different, especially with how she’s changed her entire appearance for tonight.”

McCallister appeared confused by that notion. “Do elaborate. I mean, yes, she’s not in the same outfit that she wore earlier, but this is a formal gathering. Why would she not change? We did.”

“From what I read about the Sikarians, I do not believe showing off your wealth is their thing. They’re not Ferengi, but look around, sir, how over the top everything is. It reeks of luxury, of richness, and the outfit she’s wearing is very…” Thaustin paused as he considered his words carefully. “Provocative!”

McCallister chuckled slightly. “I suppose.”

“And you did say earlier that she was flirting with you during your first meeting,” Thaustin reminded him. “She is certainly trying to make tonight – arousing.”

“Arousing?” McCalister repeated, surprised at that choice of word.

“Arousing,” Thaustin confirmed. “It’s a typical diplomatic trait used by those who believe they allure confidence and passion. They try to make a personal and lustful connection with the person they are dealing with.”

“Great, it’s not exactly how I wanted my next lot of diplomatic exchanges to take place,” McCallister sighed. 

Thaustin snortled. “It’s not a bad thing, sir; you may be able to build a rapport with her if you let her play the game and flirt a bit back.”

Turning to his first officer with a deadpan expression, McCallister glared at him. “Number One, I’m quite aware of how to flirt. Remind me, once we’ve got out of here, how I used my charm to convince a Talarian general to let me free to save his daughter.” 

“I look forward to it, sir,” Thaustin replied, smiling at hearing that he had convinced McCallister to take one for the team. Hearing McCallister take a deep breath and see him knock back his drink, Thaustin was further impressed with how serious the captain was at doing his job.  Leaning in, Thaustin gave him one more piece of advice. “Sir, as Ambassador Spock once said, ‘the needs of the many’.”

“Thanks for the logical pep talk, Number One,” McCallister said as he patted Thaustin’s shoulder and made his way over to mingle further with Mala and her fellow Sikarians. 

Making his way over to what appeared to be a balcony that looked down over a huge waterfall, Thaustin saw the sun starting to set. 

“I prefer Risian sunsets,” a familiar voice said behind him.

Turning on his heel, Thaustin was surprised to see Jarata on the planet. “Lieutenant Commander Jarata, I wasn’t expecting to see you down here.”

“And let you and the captain have all of the fun? Not a chance!” Jarata replied as a waiter approached him and offered a flute of champagne, which he took after thanking the Sikarian man. 

“How did you get past Doctor Uknare?” Thaustin asked as Jarata joined him on the balcony. 

“She was on her way down here when I asked. I was fed up of staring at the sickbay ceiling. She allowed it as long as I didn’t do anything stupid.” Jarata shared. 

“Well, just keep away from any exploding consoles,” Thaustin advised with a grin before taking a sip of his drink. 

Jarata laughed, “Well, if I’m harmed again, at least you’re nearby to save me again.”

“Nah, you only get one of those, and you’ve already used yours up!” Thaustin replied with a snigger.

 “I suppose having the good doctor nearby then helps me,” Jarata said, still smiling. He looked Thaustin up and down. “You scrub up well, compared to the state you were in when you visited in sickbay.”

Looking down at his outfit, Thaustin blushed at the compliment. “Well, we need to put our best foot forward with the Sikarians.” He looked at Jarata. “You don’t look too bad yourself.”

“Thanks,” Jarata said confidently, which only made Thaustin roll his eyes at his lack of modesty. Jarata pointed over to where the captain was. “I see the boss is putting our best foot forward.”

“Yeah,” Thaustin agreed as he turned around to see the captain speaking not to Mala but to other Sikiarians, who he presumed were important in the settlement. Hopefully, he thought, they were the scientists or engineers that operated the trajector that got them here. 

He and Jarata remained there for a bit longer, talking about the Sikarians, past adventures in the Delta Quadrant and sharing accolades from their careers. Thaustin was starting to see a side of Jarata he liked. He was adorable, in a sort of goofy way, but there was a sense of wisdom that was uncommon for someone so early on in his career. Thaustin did see some of himself in him. They both had aspirations with their time in Starfleet.

Jarata suggested they should go back into the party after noticing Counsellor Oron and Commander Kazlaf walking away from it. 

“We need to keep our best foot forward, right?” Jarata asked.  

Thaustin turned back to Jarata and was about to answer back when he saw something at the corner of his eye coming from the riverside where the waterfall was entering. It appeared to be a bright white bolt of light. It was getting bigger in size, and then he realised what it may have been. Without hesitation, he called for Jarata to duck as the bolt hit the side of the balcony. He felt his feet give way beneath him as the balcony collapsed.

“Thaustin!” Jarata screamed after him.

Within a split second, Thaustin felt Jarata’s strong arms around him as he pulled him up from hanging where the balcony once was. Pulling him up and rolling him underneath him, Thaustin felt Jarata on top of him as he covered his own body over him. Surprised at the quick reaction from Jarata, Thaustin heard several more shots hit the settlement. 

Jarata looked down on top of Thaustin as he lay on top of him. “You okay?” He asked.

Thaustin just nodded and then thanked him. “Looks like you just saved my life.”

“Call it evens,” Jarata said with a smirk.

 “What the hell is happening?” Thaustin asked, trying to look over Jarata’s shoulder underneath his weight in their uncomfortable position.

“No idea,” Jarata answered before he got off him and helped Thaustin get up.   

Thaustin brushed the dirt off his dress uniform and did the same to Jarata as he looked at the settlement. More bolts of energy blasts came and hit the nearby buildings. People were moving away from the fire that was now raining down on them. Screams filled the air instead of the gentle music playing and the low level of pleasant evening exchanges. Then, the distinct sound of a transporter hum appeared everywhere.

Standing tall, wearing their distinguishing chrome blue armour, were large Hirogen hunters. 

  “Prey!” One of the Hunters called out and pointed to the crowd, now screaming louder.

Before they could react, Thaustin saw McCallister being attacked by a Hirogen hunter. He tapped his combadge, calling for reinforcement from the ship as he and Jarata darted across the courtyard towards the captain. The Hirogen he was fighting pulled out a sharp curved knife and slit his arm. The captain fell to the ground in agony. Anger filled Thaustin’s blood as he and Jarata tackled the Hirogen to the floor. The Hirogen slung his heavy arm to knock Jarata off him while he turned to Thaustin and pulled him up by his neck.

This was it, Thaustin thought. He was about to die in the hands of a Hirogen. He tried to grab for air and knock the Hirogen’s grip off him, but he wasn’t strong enough to overpower him. Then he felt himself falling back to the ground as he saw that Jarata had somehow got hold of the massive weapon the Hunter had initially been slung over his shoulder. Not knowing how Jarata had got it off him, Thaustin was just pleased it was in Jarata’s hands instead of the Hirogen. He watched as Jarata lifted the heavy weapon and, within a few seconds, aimed it at the tall alien and shot him almost at point-blank range. The Hirogen stumbled backwards, and he disappeared within a blink of an eye. Not vapourised by the weapon but transported away.

Some Sikarian had shouted out that everything was okay, that they had used the spatial trajector to send the Hirogens away. 

Jarata dropped the weapon and scrambled across the floor to check Thaustin. 

“That’s twice you’ve saved me,” Thaustin stated with a smirk.

“I’m sure you’ll get a chance to save me again,” Jarata responded.

Appreciating the banter, Thaustin noticed McCallister lying on the floor and pointed towards him. “The captain,” He said to Jarata.

Both men hurried over to the captain and saw instantly he was lying in a pool of his blood. 

Thaustin went pale when he saw the blood and then looked at Jarata. They both knew what this meant and what they had to do.

They had to save the captain’s life.