“You said so yourself, Cardamon…your record is clear.”  Captain Wren Walton sat on the right end of the couch, an iced tea in her hand.

The Voth perched on the end of the other side of the couch, his claws clattering together, “It’s…how you humans say…complicated.” He shrugged a very human shrug as Thasaz stared at him from her chair in the ready room.  “It…they may have cleared my name from the sector records and removed any…you call them warrants…from the system…but a Voth’s memory is long, my friends.  We live long lives, and our…what is the human word…penchant…for holding grudges until we can take our revenge…is great.”

Commander Park leaned against the back wall, “Do you think they’ll listen to us if we tell them they’re a target?  I mean…impending doom can be a great motivator.”

Cardamon scoffed, but as a Voth, it sounded like a snarl.  “Impending doom is our motivation to spill blood. The fight…the battle…in this way, we are similar to your Klingons.”  He allowed, “The Borg is the one enemy that has ever given us true fear.”

Walton asked, “Do you think they’d listen to us, at least?”  She had quickly come to understand the way of the Delta Quadrant – everyone was paranoid, suspicious, and looking at everyone as an enemy or, at a minimum, a threat.

Cardamon wasn’t sure.  “They will hear you, I assure you of that.  What they do after that, I do not know.  I have learned new words from you…words that would fit my people very well.  Pride and hubris in the…what is that word…,” he tapped at his PADD until he located it, “…the extreme.  I have read the events of your Wolf 359 and the Borg’s original march on your Earth.  They humbled you.  My people do not know such humbling…and I fear they will repeat your errors.”

Wren understood the message even as the metaphor pushed up against her sensibilities.  She could forgive Cardamon, as he was still learning the language and culture of the Federation and his adopted home, Earth.  “Then we have to try our best.  I’m leaving the choice to join us on the planet up to you, Cardamon.  You don’t have to make an appearance if you don’t wish to.”

The Voth shook his head quietly, “It is not about my wishes, Captain.  It is about having the courage and strength to stand before them.  You would refer to it as ‘destiny’ or ‘fate’.  I cannot run away from my past any more than I flee to the future.”

“They’ve made no conditions about weapons.” Security Chief Kondo De Fontaine stood in Transporter Room One with Commander Park, Commander Charlie Hargraves, Commander Thasaz, and Cardamon.  “We’ll be addressing the senior command of the Voth Planetary Government.”  He glanced at Cardamon, “They are aware of you, Cadet Cardamon.”

He gave a quiet bow, his fresh uniform bringing him some level of comfort, “I am ready.”  The group stepped onto the transporter pad.  Moments later, they vanished in the bright lights.

They opened their eyes to a crowd of Voth officers in various uniforms.  One larger Voth stepped free of the crowd, “I am Voreth, Supreme Commander of the Voth Planetary Colony.”  He peered through the small group of Starfleet officers, “I see you brought a murderer into our midst.”  His snarl was not a misinterpretation of Voth posture or facial expression.

Cardamon shuffled forward, his uniform drawing gasps, growls, and pointed claws as it became clear who the erstwhile Voth had sworn his allegiance.  His initial cowering stance straightened out slightly, “I cannot refute the accusation.  Unlike my brethren, I cannot lie.  I could not be taken back into chains to serve a higher calling that was not my own.”

A buzz of conversation swept through the crowd as Voreth returned to caucus with the others.  Hargraves turned to the Starfleet group, “We’ve provisionally granted Cardamon as a protected party on the Mackenzie and a pending application to Starfleet Academy.  Diplomatically, he’s been granted asylum with us.  We’ve started the process for him to become a Federation citizen.  I suspect they’re going to try and claim him back.”  Park glanced behind him, and Charlie turned as Voreth stepped forward.

“Cardamon has admitted to the murder.  He must be tried and executed according to our laws.”

Charlie handed a PADD to the head Voth, “We’ve claimed him.  He’s a part of our crew and has been given several protected statuses within the Federation.”

The tall Voth screamed as he swatted the device back to Hargraves, “Lies!”  His posture tightened, “You came here for a purpose.  We will deal with the heretic soon enough.  Why are you here?”

Park stepped forward and explained the Borg threat and what they knew.  Several of the Voth in the crowd gasped and turned to talk with those around them.  At each revelation, a new smattering of conversations would break loose.  As she finished, Voreth sneered, “You think we fear the Borg?”

Cardamon chuckled, “I know we do…”

The lead Voth shouted him down, “You are not a piece of us anymore, traitorous murdering trash! You have been away too long.  You don’t know us anymore…and we do not know you.”  Voreth spun his eyes to Commander Park, “You Federations claim to be the smartest of them all…in the end, you are foolish beyond measure.  We will stand against the Borg.  We have developed new weapons and powers.”

Park wasn’t sure what to say or how to respond.  Hargraves, the diplomatic officer, tried, “We think they’re going to come for you because of certain qualities in your DNA struct…”

Voreth exploded at Cardmon again, “You gave them samples?  You sold us out to them with your allegiance…but also your blood?”  He withdrew a blaster and pointed it threateningly at the offending Voth, “I should kill you where you stand!”  He looked around and found each Starfleet officer had pulled a phaser rifle or phaser out and was pointing it back at him,  “You dare point your weapons of war at me?”

Thasaz intoned, “You’re threatening to kill one of our crew, Supreme Commander.  We take that shit pretty seriously.”  She went further, “You said you do not know him anymore – it would seem to a layman Romulan that you’ve expelled him from your group…and your laws no longer apply to an exile.” The Supreme Commander huffed and stared her down before shuffling back to the group to confer.  Everyone lowered their weapons.

Charlie sidled up to her, “Nice work commander.”

She shrugged, “It’s only ‘nice work’ if it works, commander.”

The commotion slowed, and Voreth returned to face the Starfleet crew.  “You…are right.  Cardamon is an exile.  Effective immediately, he is exiled under the penalty of death should he ever return to this place or us in space.  We will enforce this no matter who he is ‘traveling’ with at the time.  This is your only warning.”  He assumed a taller posture, “As for your warning – it is the practice of you Federations to try and scare others into your protection for your gain.  We reject it as we reject you.  The exile conditions apply to you – if you return to us for any reason, we will bring you out of the sky into the fires that consume all heretics and traitors.”

The XO blinked twice, “Then yes.  We’ve been warned.  I hope your defenses hold the Borg when they come looking for you.”  They turned to leave.

Voreth spat, “And you would never sell us out to them, would you?”

Thasaz spun on her heels, locking eyes with him, “Whatever you think of us or have heard of us…that is one thing we would never do…can you claim the same?”  She withdrew and joined her retreating group.  Voreth simmered as he watched them vanish into a transporter beam.  He hated them with every bone in his body.  Despite this, his mind felt the cold worry of their warning trickling down his spine.