Varael Stormclaw paced.  It wasn’t a behavior he usually engaged in. His all-black fur now showed speckles of gray, though his gold eyes shone bright and sharp. Walking into the breezeway, he moved to the inside arboretum. Thousands of scents entered his nose. To humans, it would be the equivalent of white noise. Varael’s mind relaxed slightly. 

It reminded him of the old cliche, ‘May you have interesting adventures.’ Several things were converging, and his people needed to be wary. The crashed ship yielded secrets and mysteries his people were still unraveling and likely would be for a decade or more. Not only were the Luphirians not alone, but the aliens that crashed were advanced. The intentions of said aliens were in dispute among most council members. Some believed it was a failed invasion, pointing to the armory and antimatter warheads discovered on board. Others weren’t convinced as the tech was advanced and external damage had been observed. Plus, what could they want from their planet? 

When the next ship showed up, it seemed inevitable. How Luphirians accommodated themselves in these next few years could determine their fate in the now more crowded galaxy. 

Varael ordered the designs. schematics and equipment should be equally shared between tribes. It spurred the rapid development and reverse-engineered indigenous first-generation tricorders, disruptors, and even replication on a massive industrial scale. 

They had gotten into things only partially understood with the incident in the Southern desert. Learning at this level, like the early atomic programs not that many decades ago for the Luphirians, could be fatal on an entirely new level. 

General Swiftclaw and Colonel Ironfang approached the Alpha Sentinel. The general bowed his head in an act of submission. “Pardon me, sir, there has been an incident.” Swiftclaw had soft reddish-brown fur that tipped black at a pair of ears, one of which was missing a large chunk.   Grey fur was coming in on his muzzle.

Pausing for a contemplative second, Varael turned around to face his cabinet. “What is it?” He said, asking them to continue the report. 

The two officers glanced at each other.  “Delos City is gone,” the general announced.

Varael pondered the words. “Gone? What do you mean gone?!” Every word not spoken angered Varael more. Baring his teeth slightly, he said, “Tell me the whole story.” he offered to both of them, then added, “Be very glad I am more civilian these days than your commanding officer. Your reporting skills need practice.”

“We mean exactly that.  The FTL test was unsuccessful, and the warp engine exploded, pulling a large amount of matter into sub-space. At the same time, matter outside the warp bubble was annihilated.” The General didn’t back down from the challenge and exposed the tips of his own canines.

Varael softened somewhat without backing down as he sprung into action. “Your tact needs work.” He said, walking back to his office as the officers followed him. “Scramble all available medical personnel and army for support if you haven’t already. Establish a safety perimeter and whatever the scientists tell you. Add twenty-five percent. We need a buffer.”

“It will be done as you command,” The General said bowing his head a placing his fist over his heart in salute.

Varael returned the salute. Turning around, he walked behind the desk to sit down.

The two military officers turned a marched out of the office with their orders.  They closed the door behind them and then there were orders shouted as they assembled the necessary resources to fulfill the Alpha Prime’s request.

The office fell silent again, and Vareal was alone. A whine broke the silence and the office was bathed in a bright blue light. From that light four strange looking aliens materialized before his very eyes. One of them with an impressive mane,  the color of the red rocks of Thalor, stepped forward with its paws open in a gesture that could be interpreted as a sign of non-threat.

“My name is Captain Rebecca Talon of the United Federation of Planets,” it spoke in a high pitched tone that sounded nothing like a Luphirian, yet Varael could understand every word spoken.  “These are my officers; Lt. Commander Jeter, Counselor Qetax. and Ensign Viat.”

The joined Trill Counselor smiled, “Greetings, I’m Emimi Qetax. It’s an honor to meet you.”

She did not get into how she was both a Trill and a joined one at that. It was likely enough to process having so many varied individuals beam down at one time, and she figured that her spots likely spoke for her uniqueness as much as she could have.

Jeter, tilted his head to the side slightly and smiled without showing any teeth and nodded slightly to Varael, “Sorry for the rather abrupt intrusion, we come in peace.” As he said it he couldn’t help laugh inwardly as he had always wanted to say that line.

Varael’s eyes narrowed as he stood behind the desk. Initially, he considered it an elaborate hoax on his person—one in incredibly bad taste. The room was set up, so the desk was always downwind. It was all smoke and mirrors until he smelled the new, nearly hairless ones. 

They did smell different from the original beings with cranial ridges. Unsure if they could be from other places. but he’d also seen young pups mutilate themselves with tattoos or cropping their ears. The encounter suit Varael wore hid the fact that his whole body was on edge. Hackles raised in response.

After they spoke, he was unsure but knew his people were out of their depth, especially considering the catastrophe. Gathering his thoughts and courage, “I must say your timing is interesting, to say the least. I am Varael Stormclaw. Alpha Sentinel of the Luphirian Tribal Council. I speak for the pack.” 

Emimi Qetax remained still, preferring to let the Commanding Officer take the lead in the immediate negotiations. She had made her presence known, and was willing to offer advice when needed but was not about to throw her weight around or her experience. Most joined trills had learned that not all experience was worth sharing and other species found it annoying when you kept bringing up past lIves in places they were not directly applicable.

“Well, it isn’t a coincident Alpha Sentinel if that is your preferred title. We detected the explosion and were surprised, given your level of development. We understand the damage such a blast could inflict. We came to offer aid and what help we can,” Jeter said as he took in the reactions of the Luphiran.

Not missing the catch in that sentence, Varael bristled a bit, then chuckled. “Our level of development,” he repeated. “Isn’t that a polite way to say, how did you build that?!” He walked around closer to the group, genuinely curious. Scent was such an essential sense for Luphirians. Varael wondered how the newcomers smelled anything with such tiny noses. “Call me Stormclaw. You probably guessed part of the puzzle. We know enough to be dangerous now, which is most likely why you are here.” He paused. “Since you understand our language, I imagine you’ve been listening to our transmissions and know about the ship that crashed last season. It provided as many mysteries as it did answers. Boosting our leap to the stars. A journey to the star is compelling, is it not, Captain? The venture into the unknown.”

“Dangerous…” Rebecca repeated letting it percolate.  “Yes, moving in this direction when you aren’t ready is dangerous, but thay particular bell has been rung and now we are here to mitigate the damage the contamination has created.”

Thinking of the potential for upcoming aid, Varael said, “From the heart of the pack, thank you, Captain. After the first nearly furless ones crashed in their starship, I expected more to arrive.” While the pheromones he detected were unfamiliar, Varael wasn’t sensing anything but normal anxiety, mostly his own. “Our people are smart, Captain. Though the popping in is something I must prepare them for.”

“The others should not have come here, but they do not adhere to our Prime Directive.” Rebecca added.

Genuinely curious, Varael asked the group, “How common are such events? Cities obliterated. A great wound for my planet and my people. ” Though his question was dual purpose. He needed to know how far he could trust this group.

Rebecca looked at the others to confirm her coming statement,  “From an accident like this? I am unaware of it happening in my lifetime. At times of war… unfortunately, it’s far too common.” She felt honesty was the best course here, even if it could cause a level of fear. However, the truth of the matter was: the strategic implications were obvious and skirting it could be seen as deceptive. 

Reading body language was something nearly genetic to a Luphirian. He had seen enough interaction to know that very little was scripted. While the newcomers weren’t his race, Varael had  “Captain and others; while time is of the essence, join me in a small drink to this historic occasion. Walking to an ornate wooden bar, he took down one of several large leather bladders. “This is from a vine we call the hate berry that lives on the edge of the western desert. I think the name lives on because drinking too much will make you hate yourself the following day.” He said with a chuckle. Opening the top of the flexible bladder, Varael deftly aimed at his mouth, taking a long pull of the fermented beverage. He then passed it to the Captain first. “Perhaps there is more we can share than just a drink.”

Rebecca took the bladder, hesitated and squeezed a mouthful.  She wouldn’t normally drink alcohol,  but in a situation such as this discretion was probably the better part of valor. She handed the pouch behind her for one of the others to take a drink. 

Jeter took it and gave it a quick sniff before a smile spread across his face. “Smells nice. I guess a little sip wouldn’t go amiss.” With that he squeezed out a mouthful and swallowed. “Thank you Stormclaw, I wouldn’t mind getting a bottle or two to that myself.”

Following suit Qetax took the bladder and took a swig. She was not a drinker of liquor, human or Trill or otherwise, but she managed to keep a straight face and not show how much she disliked it. She knew the science behind intoxication and that such a small amount would have no effect on her or the symbiotic bonding process, but she hoped there would be no further occasions that she would have to be ‘tough’ or whatever this proved.

”It is a taste I will not soon forget,” she said wanting to balance honesty with being sensitive.

“We have an obligation to help you on a humanitarian basis,  but I hope you do not expect an exchange of technology and any more information than you absolutely need. Rest assured under normal circumstances we wouldn’t be here. It is put people’s highest command not to interfere with the natural development of a civilization.  Unfortunately your civilization has been contaminated, and it is my intention to unring that bell as much as possible.”

“I understand and agree with that nearly unanimously. I wasn’t expecting to do anything but bury the pack more than a few handfuls of minutes ago. My people are already crawling around the moon and nearby planets, so the attraction of an interstellar craft was irresistible. Could you say your people would have let something like that sit if you were swapping places?” Varael asked. 

Jeter nodded at that, understanding exactly where the Luphirians were coming from. “I can honestly say Humans, our race,” he said gesturing at the Captain and Ensign Viat, “would have done the same as you. but that doesn’t change the fact that the arrival, well crash, of the Cardassian ship catapulted you decades or even centuries ahead in the development. As you can now understand that are great risks associated with that. The damage from an antimatter explosion is nothing to make light of.” He passed for a moment before continuing, “You mentioned the nearly furless, were there any survivors? Anything you can tell us about them?” He gave the Captain a glance as thoughts of possibly recovering the ship’s core crossed his mind. 

“We interned them since most were less than cooperative. Maybe not the smartest move, but they are well treated.” Varael said honestly. “They are allowed, under watch, access to any part of our society they want to. So far, not many have left the settlement we set aside for them.” He paused momentarily, “May I say I find them a disharmonious people. Perhaps it is just a clash of personalities. However, I do not sense the same discordance here.  Though you may be more on your best manners.”

Jeter glanced at the Captain for a moment before looking back to Varael, “I am glad to hear they have been treated well. “Would we be able to see them if possible?”

Rebecca who had been silent considering things spoke to Varael’s original question, “To be honest with you, when my people were in your position we were too busy killing each other in a world war. It took first contact with another species,  the Vulcans, for humans to finally put aside our differences. And as Mr.Jeter said, I would like to visit them as well.”

“Then we shall go see the Others.” Back to Jeter’s point, Varael offered, “Not that we haven’t had our wars, Commander Jeter, but the harmony of the pack is more important. This incident appears to be a catalyst for us as well.” Walking to the desk, Varael deftly punched a button. “Elara, have Saariq bring my vehicle out front. We have guests.”

“At once, Varael.” Elara answered through the speaker, wondering when someone had slipped past her. 

Turning to the Captain, Varael offered. “Perhaps they will be happier to see you than they were to see us.”

Jeter’s hid a cringe at that comment, ‘I wouldn’t be so sure of that…’ he thought to himself. He took a deep breath as he glanced out the window, “We appreciate that, I also wanted to let you know that a group of our doctors are ready to beam down to what we have identified as the front-line health facility in Delos City with first aid materials to help the injured. I am aware that their arrival may cause a but of a surprised but before they go down I wanted to ask for your permission first. Perhaps if, allowed you could inform the local officials to avoid any misunderstandings?”

Rebecca caught a flash of Jeter’s expression and smirked. She was fairly certain what he was thinking.  It was likely the same as her own. 

Varael saw the glance the officers exchanged. Having been a general officer most of his life as well as a politician, he knew they had information they were not willing to gleefully share. He filed that little tidbit away. It would be a far truer gauge of the newcomer’s worth.  He offered, “Having seen your pop into existence inside a building. There are structures nearby that will serve that purpose. Until my people get more use to that. Perhaps that would be better. Follow me to the conference room. We can open the planetary network from there. 

Rebecca and the rest of the Starfleet delegation followed Varael down the corridor.  She noted the armed security that fell in behind them.  They held a respectful distance, but were well within the ability to to defend their leader if it should come to that. Gus spoke for the first time. “Captain, perhaps a shuttle team would be less intimidating initially. These people do possess sublight spacecraft. 

“I think anytime delays will cost more lives on the ground. If Commander Nalam has her team beam into, out of view, they can start working right away,” Jeter said as they made their way to the ground transport. “That said, Varael I would appreciate your thoughts on the matter.”

Thinking for a moment, Varael said, “Commander. You are quite right,” Varael replied, two stationary guards opening heavy double doors.  He added, “Since you are not our first alien visitor, this will be less of a shock.”Reaching the podium, a crew was already moving around, as were the others. “Tiza, I want a wide shot. These people have come to help—no secrets from the pack.” Tiza nodded, getting ready.

Lights came on, and the room went silent. “Great tribe. There has been a great tragedy in Delos City. While we don’t know the extent of the damage, this is the time to come together as a pack and heal. Also, we have other visitors that have come to help us. ” He said with a flourish of his hand. “Captain, can you say a few words, or any of your officers.”

“I would rather not,” she said under her breath. “Starfleet is going to have kittens over this.”  She gave Jeter an expression of tne condemned heading for the gallows. In front of the mic she took a deep breath, “You may call me Becca. As you can see I am not from this world.  I will not be answering questions,  but I will say I have dispatched medical,  and engineering personnel to help in Delos City. We will provide medical assistance to those in need along with basics such as food, water, and blankets to those in need. That is all.”  She stepped away from the podium in an attempt at  disappearing between her officers and the local security. 

Emimi Qetax stayed in the back and did not say anything. She was not particularly a public speaker, and more over they did not know much about the cultural relevance of therapists and counsellors that would make her feel confident speaking in front of such a large crowd. Many cultures, even ones that had them, found the idea of sharing your fears and other weaknesses to be yet another sign of weakness. Many cultures distrusted counsellors or did not like them. Thus it was better to remain silent, and leave her fellow officers who were better at this to do the speaking.

Once settled into the interior of the ground transport next to Jeter and across from Vareal she glanced at her strategic operations officer and took a deep breath. “Alpha Sentinel,” Rebecca started.  “You should know that we believe your uh… guests are Cardassian.  They are members of a vast Interstellar Empire known as the Dominion. We are currently at war with the Dominion.”

Jeter nodded in agreement, “There is no point hiding the fact as it would be apparent very quickly.” He watched the Luphirian’s face trying to guess what he might be thinking but found it hard to read before continuing, “The Dominion is currently working to subjugate this entire region of space, we, the Federation, went to war to stop that.”

Realization dawned on Varael’s face as he remembered the shared looks among the away team. “Very little escapes a Luphirian reading of body language. Deception is rare among the pack, as falsehoods damage the harmony of relationships. Thank you for finally telling me. It changes nothing from my perspective.”

“I do not want you to think we are a violent people,” Rebecca said with regret in her voice. “What the Cardassians… Uh, aliens will likely try to paint us as the villains.  Most of it will be lies, some the truth. We have made mistakes. Most of us with the best of intentions,  and some not so pure, but I promise I will be honest with you and as open as possible.”

“I can understand that,” Varael said casually. “Do not misread me, Captain. What I meant was nothing changes since either of you could easily overwhelm my people; it is quite apparent.” He paused as much for effect as thought. “My question to you is, why am I better off in your Federation hands than this Dominion?” 

“Hard to say,” she replied. “I guess that depends,  but if it were me I wouldn’t want to be subjects of the Dominion. If you are lucky they just tap your world for resources and bring you into the larger galactic community.  If you are unlucky they may deem you inferior and genetically modify you to make you their slaves.  If you are really unlucky they might wipe all life from this world and strip mine it bare to fuel their empire. The Federation will ignore you until you have attained your own warp drive. In that event, you will be able to choose your own destiny. If choose to join the Federation,  just know, you are not allowed to leave paradise.”

Jeter listened patiently while the Captain spoke to Varael before chiming, “As she said, we will leave you be until you are ready to join and that would be your choice.” He paused and looked out the window for a moment before looking back, “I know it is a lot to take in but we will answer any question you have to the best fo our ability.”

Varael spoke with intent but calmly. “I already felt the disharmony from your ‘Cardassians’. Slavery is an abomination and heresy against the whole of the pack. Time to see if have outgrown our Den. Capatin, our die is now cast. Please help us.” He said, addressing the entire away team.

Following a glance at the Captain, Gus and Emimi, Jeter nodded solemnly, “We will do what we can.”