SB Assailant Mission 4.1 - To have and to hold...

[Felix Savali]

Felix took a week of leave after the events of Magellan's going crazy were over. He used this time to spend it with his daughter who was already 4 years old. But all good things come to an end. And so did his leave and now he was getting back to work. But first he decided to pay a visit to Admiral Lin. After stopping by the office he saw that Cmdr. Sarkonis was as always on top of all things. After exchanging a few words with him, he departed from the office and headed to the office of Admiral Lin.

After reaching the proper deck, he exited the turbolift and headed for the admirals office. He greeted his secretary and questioned if the admiral was inside. After receiving a positive response, she pressed a button and the door of Lin's office opened for Felix to enter.

"Admiral"; Felix said when he entered the man's office, "It is good to see you again"; Felix said while extending his hand to shake Magellan’s

<Tag Magellan>

"So how are you doing sir"; Felix questioned as Lin signaled for him to sit down

<Tag Magellan>

[Magellan Lin]

"Admiral"; Felix said when he entered the man's office, "It is good to see you again"; Felix said while extending his hand to shake Magellan’s

"And you Commodore... I could have sworn you were a Captain when I left" he greeted with a smile, "Congratulations, the promotion was well-earned"

"So how are you doing sir"; Felix questioned as Lin signaled for him to sit down

"I m fine in myself now... better than I have been. Just dont let me use a Debrune Transporter ever again. Still its good to be back even if the place is so busy."

"Yes quite a mess isnt it" Felix replied,

"I suppose you heard about Drolem getting out. Something smells bad there"

Felix nodded,
"I did a little checking nothing so far but all of Mr Kaiba paperwork was in order, the pardon was bona fide"

"Still we dont have to liek it do we. On a similar note our new Intell Officers arrived."

"Yes?"

"Yes. Ezra Drake likes to be called Dodger."

"Any good?"

"Too early to tell but she comes highly recommended - I ve put her to work straight away"

"The Tholians?"

Magellan nodded

"Amongst other things. Mr Kaiba being one of them. I suggest you make her aquaintance go through with her the policing side of the station and provisional security arrangements for the Presidents visit"

"Speaking of which Mr Thenta Makur will be arriving later tonight" Felix nodded, "Hes the Presidents Security Advisor"

"Ah excellent. Perhaps he'll understand that now is not the best time for the President to be visiting this sector."

TAG all

[Felix Savali]

"Indeed you seem to have it all under control once more", Felix said to Magellan while smiling

"If only things were that simple", Magellan responded

"Yes well, here things are never simple from what I can see", Felix said

"Indeed you are right", Magellan said

"Well, I guess I should go and attempt to meet our new Intelligence officer. It is great to see you back to your usual self."; Felix said as he got up and shook hands once more with Magellan

After departing from Lin's office, Felix contacted the new fleet intelligence officer.

=/\=Commodore Savali to Ensign... ah... Dodger=/\=

=/\=Ensign I wish to see you at my office at your earliest convenience, you can find me at the Fleet JAG department. When you arrive there just contact Commander Sarkonis and he will direct you to me. =/\=

Once he sent the message to Dodger, he went back to the turbolift and then back to the JAG department where he was scheduled to be briefed on what events took place in the last week while he was on leave.

<Tag Dodger>

[Deleted]

T'Val smiled happily as he shoved the ring on her left ringfinger. "I love it," she whispered, admiring the gift, "it looks very unusual, and unique." They sat together on the couch for a while, only briefly interrupted by Tedak who came bearing a message.

She frowned ever so slightly when she returned to Stuart. "Why did my father not contact me personally?" Yet Tedak had mentioned he had tried. "Three days, that is not an awful lot of time." She snuggled up against him, smiling again. "You know we still have to tell Admiral Lin. We do want him to be our officiant correct? I was thinking of asking Rayna as maid of honour, I am certain she will be thrilled."

T'Val turned to face him. "Stuart, how much do you know about pon farr? This is my first Time, and I must admit that I feel...anxious, scared. I do not know what to expect, except that I feel my blood burning. And it is getting to a point where I may no longer be able to control it."

[mercy]

Stuart thought about her question while holding her hand, admiring the ring on her finger. "Well, I did a little research on my way back on Vulcan physiology. I stumbled onto pon farr and wondered if that was what you were going through. I do know that ultimately you could die from it, and if we waited any longer for me to help you...in the way you need me to...it could be quite dangerous for me as well."

He noticed T'Val give him a worried look as if all was her fault. "Don't worry dear, I don't think we are that far yet and I have complete faith in you that you won't...uh...tear me apart."

He smiled in jest, trying to relax her a little. It wouldn't do any good to worry her any more in her current state. Silently Stuart figured they still had about a week or so. Just far enough away to receive her father and make the proper arrangements.

"I'm sorry to say that my parents won't make it in time for the bonding ceremony, but they can be here for when we plan a regular earth wedding. I was hoping that would be acceptable to you."

Now holding both of her hands, he expectantly waited for her response.

[Deleted]

"I would not expect anything less," she replied, "parents belong at their child's wedding. My mother is just too hide-bound I suppose. She has never been off Vulcan and I believe she will never leave it in the forseeable future. I am relieved my father will be attending, I have not seen him since I first came to Assaillant."

She pulled her hands from his as she sat up straighter. "As mentioned, I believe I will ask Rayna to be my maid of honour. Undoubtedly she will take pleasure in that, the poor girl needs some happiness in her life. And, since he is due in sickbay soon anyway, we could inform Magellan of our intent. Yes, I know we already did, but it is formal now, and we do want him to be our officiant correct?"

She paused, seeming thoughtful for a few seconds. "Yes, we should go to sickbay now. I was not officially off duty at that, Nurse Tsomba will have a fit about that, trust me. I still feel she does not like me." T'Val babbled on for a while before she realised she was doing it. "I apologize, I am just...excited."

Then D'Beren came running into their quarters, out of nowhere. "Daddy!" he cried, jumping into Stuart's lap, giving him a fierce hug.

"He has taken to calling you daddy while he refers to Tedak as 'father'. I have not taught him to do so," she offered, as she pulled the child towards her. "D'beren were you not supposed to be with your father?"

The boy nodded. "But he had a meeting, though he will be picking me up soon. Rayna's standing just outside," he explained, "just wanted to pick up some toys." He clambered off her lap and went to retrieve said toys. Then he waved at the both of them. "bye bye!" And off he was again.

"As I said, we should return to sickbay," T'Val repeated, pulling her fiancé to his feet.

[mercy]

Stuart was surprised at D'Beren calling him 'Daddy', not that it had bothered him. Stuart actually liked the sound of that. In no time was the boy back out of the quarters with Rayna, and T'Val seemed pretty anxious to get back to work in sickbay.

"Hold on there, my pretty. Have you forgotten who the Chief Medical Officer is?"

T'Val's conversation was one of stringing words and together and changing subjects quickly without awaiting responses.

"Yes, Rayna can be the maid of honor. Now don't worry about that anymore. Tsomba will be alright at the Infirmary, I'll take the heat from her, but the last time I checked I was still her boss."

Stuart winked an eye at T'Val which seemed to calm her down just a little.

"We can go to Ops and intercept Magellan there and ask him to officiate. We'll also mention our plans for an Earth wedding, I think he'd be honored for that as well."

Stuart rose and led T'Val to the door of their quarters. H didn't mention Tedak's visit and news as that seemed to be a conversation that would just raise her anxiety more. No, instead he looked around the room for a brief moment. He could see the discarded clothes strewn about in the bedroom, since his arrival, which gave him good cause to smile.

This ceremony needed to happen quickly, T'Val was barely able to keep herself together, but she would have to for the next few days. Stuart was going to do everything he could to help.

Once at Ops Stuart looked about to see if Admiral Lin was anywhere to be seen. He was conscious of keeping a good hold of T'Val's hand, almost as if holding onto a child but he knew it was for her sense of security.

Zoilop happened to see the doctors and he came right over. "Doctor Mercy, you have absolutely no idea how happy I am that you have brought back Admiral Lin." He stuck his hand out for a firm shake and Stuart accepted.

"It wasn't just me and besides, I was doing my job. Speaking of which, is he around?"

Zoilop pointed in the direction of the Admiral's office and mentioned his gratitude once more before returning to his duties.

Stuart walked hand in hand with T'Val and together they reached Admiral Lin's office. He bade them to enter after an initial knock.

"Admiral, I see that you've wasted no time getting back into the swing of things around here."

<Magellan, T'Val>

[Magellan Lin]

Stuart walked hand in hand with T'Val and together they reached Admiral Lin's office. He bade them to enter after an initial knock.

"Admiral, I see that you've wasted no time getting back into the swing of things around here."

"Well I had very little choice in the matter. Things in this region seem to have...progressed somewhat. Now what can I do for you to...as if I couldn't guess"

T'Val looked at Magellan with a raised eye brow,

"Well either theres a major medical emergency that no-ones told me about or it concerns the two of you."

"Yes sir. It is a personal matter," Stuart paused "I know you were not exactly enthused about... well us but things are going well and we...well have decided to become bonded."

Magellan nodded, he was familiar with the ritual having performed it only 4 years earlier for Tedak and T'Val, how times changed.

"Congratulations, how can I be of service?"

TAG - Stuart and T Val

***

The docking ring door had barely opened before Mr Makur stepped through it and out in to customs. He flashed his ID and was quickly hurried through customs and allowed to exit onto the spacedock level.

He entered a turbolift and went directly to the security office.
"Commander Vanetti, Thenta Makur, Presidential Advisor of Security" he announced flashing the ID at Sharon,
"Ah pleased to meet you"
Makur smiled weakly,
"I want to see your security provisions for the Presidents visit."
Sharon nodded sensing this was a no nonsense person,
"Captain Voran is in charge of that. I ll page him" she smiled sweetly.

[dodger]

Ripper yawned and stretched himself out fully on the bed, contemplating staying there for a good long time. After all, he had just been dragged around the stations Jeffries tubes very much against his will and never wished to see the likes of them again. That said, he didn’t really have much choice in the matter, or in anything at all for that matter. Life was so hard sometimes. Nevertheless, he thought it prudent to air his feelings, as it was about the only thing he could do. He sat up and opened his mouth to speak.

“Shower first.” The young intelligence officer grumbled, already peeling off her filthy clothes. He knew better than to argue with her when she was like this, and flopped back down onto the pillows. Dodger’s feet barely hit the floor of her quarters as she headed straight for the bathroom, stripping off her clothes on the way. They were very much less than clean: she supposed that crawling a long while on ones hands and knees, no matter how good the stations extraction system was, you still got dirty smudge marks all over you.

Emerging a good ten minutes later she wrapped herself up in a warm dressing gown and perched on the end of the bed. Ripper had now moved, and was lurking around in the corner, apparently looking through a pile of books she had brought with her from back on earth. It still amused him greatly that she liked to reference these great paper-scribed journals. Personally he didn’t see the fun in them. He hadn’t seen the fun in their afternoon adventures either. It was true, she didn’t need to use the Jeffries tubes, but she got a lot more listening and lot less noticing done that way.

It had not been difficult to check the station records and find the current living quarters of Seto Kiaba. The 5 Star Hotel on the civilian level was her first stop, but unfortunately a rather unproductive one. To begin with, Dodger wasn’t sure she was well-dressed enough to get in, even in her Starfleet uniform. The woman at the desk, a middle-aged Bolian, was very helpful, confirming she had come to the right place. Other than that, however, she refused to divulge any further information about the guests whereabouts or personal messages. Dodger would have to think of another way to get at those.

Their next stop was the brig. She had read what moderate information was available on the computer archives, but wanted to dig a little deeper in Drolem Simeth’s colourful history. If this man was going to be set free, she wanted to know just why. A quiet chat with the security guards, and a stop for coffee with a young gentlemen by the name of Justin Angrove and she had quite a concise record of Simeth’s colourful cohort’s, including his ties with the Tammeron Consortium.

She had figured that to be enough digging for one day. There was enough there to keep an eye on while the Presidents visit passed over. No doubt Admiral Lin would want her up to speed on the activities, but she deeply desired to be well behind the scenes when such events were taking place.

Now that she was back in her quarters, the Admirals other orders came flooding back to mind. That had been something immediate that she had set to work on, but the rest…Still not fully clothed she sidled over to the desk and opened a communications channel on the computer.

“Computer, contact Morgulian Drake, USS Achilles.” She ordered. While she waited for the transmission to reach its destination she tapped her fingers slowly on the edge of the desk. When at last her brothers face appeared, it looked much older and more creased than she had seen for a long time.

“Cypher.” She nodded to him. “How goes it on the western front?” She asked.

“Not good I’m afraid sis.” He answered grimly. “Peter sent in reports of several new skirmishes over the past couple of days, ones that apparently we missed, and only this morning Captain Manadon informed us of another incident breaking out in near the border…” He trailed off, looking away from the screen for a moment.

Dodger panicked silently in the pit of her stomach. She had not seen her brother so worried for a long time. “There’s something else then?” She asked caustiously.

“Well, it might be nothing, but we came across the wreckage of what looked like a Trill civilian transport. It might have nothing to do with the Tholian/Klingon affliction, but it is a worrying possibility…”

“Is that the only incident of this type?” she asked carefully.

“At the moment yes. Thankfully. It’s probably just a coincidence. There’s nothing obvious to point to either side having been responsible, so I guess that’s a good sign. Peter is coming to take a look at it soon enough. He should have a report with you within the next twenty four hours.” He informed her.

Dodger nodded. “Alright. Make sure you lot keep me posted. And take care.” They signed off, Dodger now feeling more downhearted than every before. A lot of the time her brother seemed to forget just how young she was. She had only been out of the academy for just over three years, and had had nothing this major to deal with in her life. Sure, the Lethean mission had been a downright failure, by her standards at least, but back then it had only been one ship, and one life. If left unchecked, these skirmishes could escalate into an all-out war. That wasn’t something she had bargained for when she had taken this assignment.

Her depression was interrupted by a slightly familiar voice on the internal comms. =^=Commodore Savali to Ensign... ah... Dodger=^=

She couldn’t help but smile at his hesitation. He had obviously been talking to Admiral Lin. =^=Commodore Savali…=^= she replied expectantly.

=/\=Ensign I wish to see you at my office at your earliest convenience, you can find me at the Fleet JAG department. When you arrive there just contact Commander Sarkonis and he will direct you to me. =/\=

Fleet Jag Department. She didn’t even know what deck that was on. She hoped the turbolift did, because that was all she said to it once the doors had closed behind her. Stepping out of them at the other end, she couldn’t fail to notice that she seemed to be in the right place. The advertising was hardly at a minimum. She looked through a maze of people and desks and offices and pinpointed the one that she hoped belonged to Commander Sarkonis.

She walked up to him and cleared her throat quietly. “Sir, I’m looking for Commodore Savali?” She said, as more or an inquiry than a statement. The man’s face seemed to dawn with comprehension.

“Ah yes, he said you would be coming. This way please.” He held out his arm to direct her but then lead the way himself anyways. Dodger shrugged and kept up his quick pace. “Just in here Ensign.” He said, this time stopping clear of the door so that she could make her way through it by herself.

“Uh…thanks Comman…” She muttered but the doors had already slid shut. Commodore Savali, who she recognised a little from the meeting stood up to greet her.

“Thank you for coming.” He said as he shook her hand. With impeccable timing Ripper popped up from behind the mans desk wearing a Hawaiian shirt and copious straw hat. Both annoyed and amused at the same time, Dodger tried to mould her face into an expression that looked like neither.

“Not a problem Sir.” She replied, remaining guarded yet polite. “What can I do for you?”

[Deleted]

"Congratulations, how can I be of service?" Magellan asked, and T'Val was momentarily at a loss for words. Somewhat helplessly she glanced at Stuart who, instead of just answering the question, nodded encouragingly at her.

"Well," she started, feeling the heat rise in her cheeks. She glanced up at the Trill admiral, whom she considered her friend. "We were wondering if you would be our officiant for our wedding," she finally spoke, though the words seemed rushed, "and not just as Stuart's commanding officer, but as our friend."

"That is certainly possible and well within my job description, it would be my pleasure"

Only after he'd answered did T'Val realise she'd been holding her breath. She leapt forward and took the taller man in a brief but tight hug, causing Stuart to cast her a somewhat annoyed and jealous look. She quickly released the now somewhat embarassed admiral. "I apologise," she murmured as she stepped back and reached for Stuart's hand, "I am...having difficulty. It will pass soon, I promise."

A light squeeze in her hand told her there was something else she needed to ask him. "We would also ask that you would witness our bonding." She hesitated again. "The same way you witnessed for me and Tedak," she added, "but this time it may be a little different." T'Val explained briefly why then waited anxiously for Magellan's response.

Magellan was not so sure about this, he wasnt exactly familiar with Vulcan tradition "I ll see what I can do but you'll have to explain, how will it be different?"

"Because then I was not suffering from the condition that I am now," she explained, "it will be more intense. Not just for us, but for you as well. You have just recovered from an identity crisis, you could be drawn to it. I do not wish to impose danger on you. The chance is small, but present."

T'Val felt it would be best to be completely honest with the admiral, because he was her friend and she trusted him completely. However, he was the only one, beside Loskene, whom she did trust to be in a mind meld. There was of course Saarok, but he was different, he was Vulcan. And she and Stuart wanted Magellan for their witness. She turned to her mate, casting him a pleading look for assistance.

[Felix Savali]

"So nice of you drop by so soon ensign", Felix said when Dodger finally arrived to his office

After Dodger questioned what it is she could do for him, Felix explained that the bugs which were placed on all outgoing and incoming communications for all the senior staff of Assaillant were still in place and that Dodger should inform him should anything suspicious come up in any of those communications.

After Dodger acknowledged the information received, Felix informed her that that would be all for now. When this was done, Dodger departed from the Commodore's office and went about completing her to do list which increased by the hour.

[Deleted]

Vebn was beginning to feel more settled in his role as Ambassador now. Aside from Tedak things were going well. He sat a moment and rethought his interaction with his fellow Romulan. It had beenthe obvious thing to do. Whilst Mayor and not Ambassador Tedak would have continued to pester and be obstructive, not to mention hostile. Far better that he be given back his ambassadorial title and placated. Vebn was glad the senate had agreed, although to be fair it hadnt been hard, Tedak for all his faults still had friends back home.

Vebn chuckled to himself, like chalk and cheese, Tedak and he represented an interesting dichotomy in Romulan society today. Tedak liberal and he conservative, neither stand point was wrong per se but Vebn couldnt help but feel that since the Reman incidedent the Romulan Empire had sold out to the other powers and it was people like Tedak who had aided in that.

Vebn and Tedak both had Romulus' best interests at heart they just differed fundamentally on application. It was curious how much Tedak must have changed, he after all had been in the Tal shiar in its most oppresive times a time when diplomats like Vebn had to be careful what they said or did lest they disappeared. Perhaps it was this distaste of Tedaks former career that helped him think so little of him.

"Ah Ambassador Kaskrene your early" Vebn greeted as the Tholian scuttled inside,

...Yes Klingons problems...

"Yes they are problematic arent they" he laughed, "Now what can I do for you?"

...more...

"More?"

...More cloaks...

"Ah well that may not be possible we risk getting drawn in to conflict withthe klingons ourselves if we supply anymore. It was alright before this...skirmish occured but now... no its not a good idea."

...we pay...

"Of course you would but how much would insulate us from risk is the question"

Kaskrene fumed,

...We need cloaks to hide our colonies and hatcherys, its a question of aid...

Vebn shook his head, "I m afraid we can't help. You see we dont know your intentions. It would be...irresponsible"

Kaskerne clacked his limbs together,

...You knew what we were doing, you came to us... you sold us cloaks...

Vebn nodded, "indeed we did, but that was then and this is now. Then we denied you colonies on our demon class planets and in return offered you the chance to colonise other areas in secret... and heres the rub... you never told us why?"

..Why is irrelevant. We need to hide ourselves from the Klingons, we die otherwise...

"Why is exactly the point Ambassador and when you realise that you can come back here and we would reconsider selling you more cloaks."

Hssssssssssssss Kaskrene hissed loudly and with a flailing of limbs skittered out

...do not anger us. we can hurt you too...

Vebn paused pensivly, he had baited the trap but was unsettled by the Tholians threat. There was too much in all this that was unknown.

[Magellan Lin]

Magellan frowned,

"I see. I m not sure such stress would be wise... as you say I dare not stir up Loran again...ever. Without knowing more I m not sure I can commit." he looked at them both "I m sorry. Perhaps your father could help, or maybe a relative of Stuarts?"

TAG - T Val and Stuart.

[Deleted]

The SS Cardinal slipped gently out of warp a short distance from Algol II. Through the viewscreen, Aiken stared intently at the planet. It looked like the accumulation of his nightmares; a planet that scared him even from here. Unlike many Class Y planets, this one wasn’t red; merely an awfully dark shade of grey. He knew that the ship would be recording everything he could see; the network had set that up when they had given him the ship – but he checked anyway, making sure that there was a small red circle in the corner of every image. Once he was certain that everything was running as it was meant to be, he accessed the sensors and started a level 3 scan of the planet. His source had indicated that one of the Tholian annexes was located on this planet, and he was damned if anyone else was going to interview them before he was.

With the scan started, Aiken glanced over at the chronometer; he wanted to make sure that he didn’t spend more time here than he had to. The president wasn’t due at Starbase Assailant for a while yet, but she had developed a knack at arriving earlier than advertised to avoid the press. This time though, he would make sure he would be there. Two exclusives in a week would keep the network happy for a while. He knew the scan would take around half an hour to locate the colony, so he moved into the small office at the back of the ship and started to film a short piece on the location, background information and how he had got to where he was so far. It wasn’t anything that people didn’t already know, but if it was going to be used as a feature, the network often liked a selection of material to edit as an introduction.

The camera started rolling.
“With tension escalating between the Tholian and Klingon governments, it is easy for many in the central planets to forget that out in the border regions of federation space our planets are being seized too. So far the president has refused to comment publicly on this, but government sources have indicated that her trip to Starbase 2, commonly known as Assailant will focus heavily on the conflict, and it is hoped by many in this region that she will indicate the need for action.”

He paused the camera as the computer bleeped; it appeared that it had already found something. There appeared to be a small settlement just south of the equator. The sensors couldn’t tell him anything more than that, but the set of coordinates was all that he wanted. He changed into a protective suit that would hopefully negate the exceedingly high temperatures and inputted the location into the transporter. After collecting his equipment he crossed his fingers and beamed down to the settlement. In retrospect, he thought, it might have been a good idea to try and contact the Tholians from space before beaming down.

The first thing he noticed was the guns. Not that he particularly recognised them as guns, but the way that they were all aimed at he there was little doubt of them being anything else. The next thing he noticed was that his camera wasn’t recording. He discreetly altered this, although slightly worried that the movement itself could result in a good number of weapons firing. They didn’t however, and he smiled slightly, and started to turn, allowing the camera to take in the whole scene.

A fair few seconds passed before anything was said, and then one of the Tholians broke the silence. “Why have you come here? We do not take anything that you can use.” It certainly wasn’t scared; the number of weapons on its (Aiken had no idea as to whether this Tholian was male or female) side removed a good degree of fear. But it did seem to want him to understand, which was good. A public interest story always went down well, especially when the interest was with the person normally viewed in a bad light.

“I just want to find out why you need more planets, what you are doing here, and how you are being treated by ours governments.” The reporter replied. He could feel himself starting to shake slightly: he always felt like this when he knew he was on the edge of a truly huge story. He supposed it was nerves, but they had nothing to do with the guns, it was pure excitement.

“We need places to live, you are the first to come here, and you have been rude.” Aiken frowned. This wasn’t what was meant to happen next. For one thing, they were meant to put the guns down. Only seconds ago he had felt like this could be another massive story in his career, but now he could feel it slipping away quickly. He had to do something to recover it, but he knew next to nothing about the attitude of Tholians, had no idea how he could appeal to them.

“I am a news reporter, I am filming an account of what is happening, making people realise what it is really like out here.” He tried to remove the panic from his voice, but he knew there was still a trace of it there. He just couldn’t let this slip away.

“We do not need people to understand.” This time it was another Tholian; Aiken swung the camera towards him, but the sound of a weapon building up warned him that such quick movements weren’t good for his health. “You should leave here, it is our place.” Before Aiken could say that he just wanted a story, that he wasn’t a threat, he felt a transport take hold of him. The Tholians obviously had brought some technology with them, and were removing him themselves. He swore softly and turned the camera off as soon as he had rematerialised on the Cardinal. At least he had some footage, even if it wasn’t the exclusive interview he had wanted. He sighed and started the transfer that would send it to Federation United Press, his employers.

A few days later (thanks to getting a berth on a trans-quadrant transport service that travelled far faster than his maximum rated Warp 6) he was on Starbase 2, contacting as many of his sources as he could get hold of to try and find out when the president was likely to arrive. He managed to ascertain that it was definitely earlier than advertised, but no one seemed quite sure exactly when it was. It seemed to be time to talk to people on the station, see what they knew. He had been reading through the profiles that the FUP had on all the staff and decided that initially it might be best to speak to the Mayor Tedak, who had also been recently installed as the Romulan ambassador to the Debrune. He was an interesting looking fellow, one of the newer ‘breed’ of Romulans, and someone who probably had a few spies about to let him know a thing or two.

So it was that a few minutes later, after a short argument with the mayor’s desk clerk, he had knocked on the mayoral door and was now sitting the other side of the desk from the short romulan.

“Ambassador Mayor, I am so glad that you could spare me a few minutes.” He said with a smile.

[Magellan Lin]

When Stuart and T'Val eventually left they did so with some reticence. Magellan wished he could help but it wasnt something he felt entirely comfortable with, not the new Magellan anyways.

He sat back in his chair and reflected on the changes occuring all around him. Once a place of relative stability Assailant had become a place of constant change, fluid. So much so that Magellan was no longer sure exactly where everything and everybody fitted.

He looked at the latest reports from Command. They were endlessly depressing. The Tholians and Klingons continued to rail against one another and the Federation was taking a very fine line on it all. He felt that too little was known about the whole situation.

A thought struck him, the Tholians were not responsive. That was up to the diplomats but the Klingons, now they were allies.

=^=Magellan to Drake=^= he said as he tapped his badge

=^=Dodger here=^=

=^=I have a... well task for you. Its well not quite legit. I need you to find out from the Klingons which planets in Klingon space are settled by the Tholians and most importantly if the plan to strike at any Tholian targets in Federation space.=^=

=^=That shouldnt be too difficult=^=

=^=Maybe. But it can't be traced back to us. Use whatever means neccessary. Just don't get caught=^=

=^=Aye sir=^=

Well thats one problem solved Magellan thought to himself now for the others.

"Zoilip put me through to the Federation Presidents Office. I need to finalise her arrival time."

[mercy]

{Magellan’s Office}

Stuart could sense the hurt feelings from T’Val when Admiral Lin didn’t give his full consent to administrating the bonding ceremony. “I’m sorry sir, but my parents won’t be present for this particular ceremony. They’ll be here for the traditional wedding, which we have yet to schedule, but T’Val’s condition requires the bonding to take place pretty quickly.”

Magellan gave a concerned look at the two, but wasn’t ready to commit yet. Stuart continued on. “Sir, as your physician I can understand your reluctance. Isn’t Guardian Laurana still on station? I’m sure that T’val would agree to allow her to be present to help monitor the situation.”

Stuart looked over at T’Val and she nodded in agreement. “Please…Magellan…we are asking you as a friend.”

T’Val and Stuart watched the Admiral pace around his desk. “I have a lot on my mind at the moment. I don’t mean to be rude and I know how important this is to the both of you, but I need a few hours to think this over. You’re right, Guardian Laurana is still on station. I’ll confer with her. Now if you’ll excuse me…”

T’Val and Stuart left the Admiral to his usual business. Once outside of Ops, T’Val broke out in tears and wept on Stuart’s shoulders. “It’ll be alright. Come, let’s go home. We’ll need to think of an alternate for this ceremony, just in case.”

Stuart held T’Val in his arms tightly as they walked home.

[Ji' Zhan]

The shuttlecraft made a soft thump on the bay floor as the Elder’s private shuttle landed. His guards instantly scanned the area before they opened the door, satisfied with the results they nodded at the Elder and he stood from his seat. Ji’zhan’s figure appeared from the craft and walked down the ramp as his guards formed their protective formation around him. This usual cadence was so familiar to him now that he hardly noticed having loathed it before. His mind was on the ceremony that would usher his people into the Federation and into a place, finally, they had always meant to be. ‘It has been along time in coming,’ Ji’Zhan thought. ‘My father would have loved to see this.’

The group made their way to the turbo lift that was reserved for VIPs only and was secure. However, his guards didn’t rest on their Loral’s. They still had their scans going and Ji’Zhan still wore his personal transport device that would beam him away to a secure location in a blink of an eye; yet another protocol that Ji’Zhan simply went along with. Arriving on the diplomatic level Ji’Zhan made his way to his office. He greeted everyone with the usual Debrune greeting, deposited his guards and support staff in the outer offices and soon was seated at his desk. When his office door closed he breathed a sigh of relief and, for the first time in several days, was alone.

Steam was rising from the cup in his hand as he slowly sipped the hot liquid. The added mint opened up his nose and cooled the back of his throat. Setting the cup down, he called for Ambassador Mayor Tedak, but only called him Ambassador, “Lilly, please contact Ambassador Tedak and inform him of my arrival and that I would like to request a meeting with him preferably before the Federation President’s arrival.” Lilly acknowledged. Ji’Zhan smiled and added, “Lilly, I never seem to remember to ask you, how are you doing?”

Lilly replied, “I am functioning with in parameters Elder Ji’Zhan”

“Now Lilly, I didn’t ask that … I asked how you are doing?”

“I … I am doing fine,” Lilly stated.

“That is good, I always seem to forget you are sentient. I shouldn’t spout out requests of you as one would of normal computers.” Ji’Zhan said.

“Thank you Elder, I have become accustomed.”

Ji’Zhan sighed, “Well, it’s a shame that you have to become accustomed to something like that.”

Lilly didn’t respond but Ji’Zhan knew she did seem to appreciate the gesture.

<TAG Tedak>

Turning to his personal logs, he said, “Lilly, please start a log entry for today.”

“Yes Elder, begine when ready.”

His blue eyes glimmered, an eye color not seen that often in his people, “Thank you.”

Tapping the terminal to indicate his beginning, “The past several days have been tiring. All the meetings, the council’s seemingly endless questions about this and that, why is it that when something good is about to happen people always think of the strangest questions. The other Elders are all in agreement that this induction into the Federation is the step that will establish our people’s mark among the others who simply want to gain something from the Debrune. I’m am glad that this day is here, my Father and his Father would be proud.”

“On another note, I must record that I am glad that Tedak is our Ambassador to Romulas. I can’t seem to shake the looming feelings I have about Ambassador Vebn s'Khellian. His thought seems to bring the feeling of alarm – warning. I must make a note to talk to Admiral Lin about him. I feel, at least, Tedak understands the importance of my people becoming members of the Federation. However, I also feel that he may have secondary motives that I am not aware of at this moment. I must remember my Father’s words and keep my people’s needs and safety before all else.”

A reminder sounded from his terminal that prompted him to say, “End log – save.”

Standing, he turned to his left and opened a cabinet that housed sacred stones from both Qualinost and Vulcan. It was time for his meditations.

[Deleted]

ooc: Mr Aiken I do not know what you consider to be small...but I reckon one meter and eighty centimeters measures fairly tall...

ic

“Ambassador Mayor, I am so glad that you could spare me a few minutes.” He said with a smile.

The Romulan got up from his seat long enough to wave the reporter over to a seat. He tried to the, probably running, camera and grabbed hold of his brown winged companion before it could launch itself at the newcomer. "Settle down Nut," he told the creature while glancing sharply at his bronze brother who was just about to copy the brown's movement. "You too Sev, settle down!"

Now, he glanced up at Aiken. "You must be Aiken Drolar," he spoke up after staring at the reporter for a long time, in utter silence. "And I doubt you have come her to just chat because I am such a nice person. How may I be of service to you?"

(Aiken)

[Deleted]

OOC: I don't know for sure, but I'd say its below average height for a romulan.

The two firelizards were of vague interest to Aiken; he had heard of them before, but this was the first time that he had seen any first hand. They were remarkable creatures, that was sure. They appeared to respond very obediently to the orders given to them by the romulan mayor. Maybe if he was still around once this was all over, he would see if he could run a feature piece on them. He was certain it would have interest and even if the Mayor wasn't willing to participate, he seemed to recall that a fair few of the crew on the starbase had such pets.

“You must be Aiken Drolar, and I doubt you have come her to just chat because I am such a nice person. How may I be of service to you?” His voice was level but it offered some warmth to the reporter. Not your typical romulan then, Aiken pondered.

“Indeed, I have an agenda. I was hoping that you could help me with a couple of questions?” The reporter asked. It was a standard opening to make the interviewee feel like the questions were happening on their own terms. It helped to soften them up. The romulan opened his hands in response, a clear signal that he was listening. Aiken smiled again.

“Thank you. I understand that the president is visiting the base. Now, we all know that she never keeps to her schedule, so I thought that you might be able to suggest when it is more likely for her to arrive.” The smile never left his face as he spoke softly.

The mayor’s face contorted into a deep frown. “I am not at liberty to give you that information.” Definitely not a typical romulan, even for the newer breed. Or, maybe a very typical one, wanting something in return.

“Is there anything I could do to make you more at liberty?” He asked smoothly.

He’d miscalculated.

The mayor stood up abruptly, now looming over the seated reporter. “I will not be bribed. That is a level of what is wrong with this base already and something that I swore to get rid off. Leave my office before I have security remove you forcibly.” Aiken remained where he was for a few seconds, making sure that when he did stand up it would appear to be on his own terms.

“Just remember that I’ll be around if you decide to change your mind.” He flashed another smile at the mayor, and swung around on his heels, pushing the door open to leave the office. As soon as he was outside, his smile dropped into a scowl. “That could have gone better,” he muttered to himself, “it was almost as hostile as the Tholian reception.”

He had barely gotten ten steps from the office exit when he almost bumped into a rushing officer. He was about to offer his apologies and carry on his way when he recognised the face. In his mind he scanned through the images that he had been reading about earlier in the day. This one hadn't had as much information attached to it, but had still seemed among the more interesting. He uhmmed for a split second, and then the penny dropped with a light 'clunk'. “Ah, Ensign Drake. I wonder if I could take up a few seconds of your time…”

[Magellan Lin]

Fatigue setting in Magellan signed of from his conference call with the Presidents Office. She had already departed her last tour site and was en-route to Starbase Assailant via Betazed. It was believed she would arrive however in the next day or so. The actual arrival time would only be revealed to Magellan at the very last moment. The idea was that the fewer that new about it the less that could go wrong, Magellan however new better, Assailant had a way of throwing up all manner of surprises.

It was about time he retired to his quarters to get some rest but he was still concerned that he had let Stuart and T Val down in some way, although he was in no way obligated to help them officially. He began by a quick search of the Vulcan database to try and understand a little better. He could nt understand why T'Val was so cagey about explaining exactly what this ceremony entailed and why it was so different from the bonding that he had peformed for her and Tedak.

The vulcan database was predictably logical and it wasnt long before he had read more than he had ever wanted to know about vulcan sexuality and the intricacies of the Pon Farr or blood fever. It was then that he realised how close T Val may have come to the Blood Fever whilst Stuart was away rescuing him... so in a way he did have a responsibility. At last he found a reference to the Ka-if-fee. T Val had barely mentioned it but this had to be to what she refered he frowned as he read the description of the 'Passion fight'. Did T val mean to fight Mercy or perhaps he was to be involved? Did he fight T Val or Stuart? He read the passages again gaining little new insight. He was reassured that his instinct was correct - this was not something he should allow, violence was rarely the answer to any problem.

He paused did this mean T Val was already gripped by the blood fever and if so was she a danger to anyone else. He had read many stories in the more salacious news columns about Vulcans in Blood fever, the masochism, the orgies and well things that best not thought about. Should he confine her to quarters, have security keep an eye on her or let Stuart handle it. Not a particularly noble approach down any road. Perhaps Staurt was right perhaps Laurana could help him, he realsied that in the past year he had come to rely on her advice and counsel and it would be comforting to see her again before she departed for Trill in the next day or so. Logging out and exiting the office he made a bee line for her quarters ordering a table to by booked at Hishars as he did so.

[Deleted]

T'Val leaned into her mate as he guided her home, quietly sobbing onto his shoulder. She had felt compelled to inform Magellan of the dangers involved to him, because of his close encounter with death and his currently shaky constitution. What she hadn't expected was him telling them he had to think about it. If Laurana would be present...

"There are alternatives," she sighed, "there is Loskene, though I have heard he has departed Assaillant a few days ago and will not be back for a while." She looked up as he wiped the tears from her face. "Is the Jefferson still docked?" she suddenly asked, hoping Stuart would embrace the idea. The human wedding would go according to his plans, but the Vulcan one would go according to hers. Of course, with both parties agreeing to certain turns of events. "We have both served on the Jefferson now, though under different circumstances. Perhaps we should approach her commanding officer?"

(Mercy)

She was sat down on the couch and she sighed heavily. "I do not have much time, we must do it today or tomorrow. I am losing control, rapidly." What she gathered from Magellan's reaction was that he didn't fully understand the difference. But she had to respect his choice and given his situation she actually had great respect for his courage on making such a decision and telling them straight on and directly. "Perhaps Magellan could have a different role, on our wedding," she proposed. "My father will be arriving shortly, and he would gladly witness our bonding but I would rather he give me away at our wedding. I have not seen my father for years, it does not feel right."

A message from Lily told them both that a shuttle had arrived and that Soric of Vulcan would be on that shuttle. "We should go and meet my father," she suggested. Minutes later, officer and civillian were waiting at the airlock to meet their guest. A Vulcan in his mid-seventies approached them, a bearing of power and calm surrounding him. Yet when he approached, his expression softened somewhat. "My daughter, I am gratified to meet with you again," he offered formally as he held his right hand up in the Vulcan salute.

"And I am gratified you would grace us with a visit," T'Val replied, but instead of returing the salute, she simpley wrapped both her arms around her visibly uncomfortable father and hugged him tightly. He underwent the gesture stoically, then lightly returned the hug. T'Val released him then reached for Stuart, pulling him forward. "Father, this is Stuart Mercy, my...fiancé. We are to be bonded soon."

Soric glanced the human over, then nodded in approval. "He seems suitable," he agreed, "tell me Stuart Mercy, do you love my daughter? Do you intend to make her...happy? She is no ordinary Vulcan." Then he smiled ever so slightly. "And neither am I. T'Val, I am told there is a Debrune aboard this station. I would wish to meet with him."

T'Val nodded, holding on tightly to Stuart's hand. "Elder Ji'Zhan has been very helpful," she said, "he should be in his office. Come, I shall bring you to him."

Quietly, they walked through SBA's corridors until they reached the diplomatic level. When they entered Ji'Zhan's office, they also found Tedak to be present. "Ambassador Tedak, Ambassador Ji'Zhan, I present my father, Doctor Soric of Vulcan. He wished to speak with you Elder."

(Ji'Zhan)

[Deleted]

"Ambassador, Elder Ji'Zhan has requested you meet with him prior to the Federation president's arrival," Lily suddenly spoke up, startling the Romulan diplomat out of his reviree. Only minutes ago a reporter had come to talk to him and seemed to have wanted to bribe him into releasing classified information. Until now he had been debating reporting such breach of etiquette to the base commanding officer.

"Thank you Lily, please inform him I shall come to his office shortly. I have something else to do first." As Lily acknowledged his response, he composed a message to Admiral Lin, informing him of the situation around the reporter, and what he thought of it. After that, he cleaned up the clutter on his desk and informed Vebn where he was going. Since apparently Vebn was to be his immediate chief, Tedak had taken to politely informing the other Romulan of his dealings. He didn't quite care what Vebn thought of it, or of him for that matter, and he was quite certain the feeling was mutual. In fact, Tedak had the distinct impression Vebn would rather see him away from the office rather than working in it.

You wished to see me?" he asked as he entered Ji'Zhan's office, only seconds before T'Val, Stuart Mercy and a Vulcan he didn't know entered the office. Yet when he looked more closely at the older Vulcan male, he could see the strong resemblance between T'Val and the Vulcan. And indeed, as she introduced him, she did explain he was her father. Yet, he'd never known that her father was a medical doctor also, or a doctor at all to begin with.

"Perhaps I should come back later," Tedak offered, sensing it might be important for Soric to talk to a Debrune official. "Unless there is no harm in them hearing what you have to share with me?"

(Ji'Zhan)

[Ji' Zhan]

Working on several items, one was looking over new providence lines for the northern continuant of Qualinost, his office staff notified, "Elder, Ambassador Tedak is here."

"I will come out to meet him," Ji'Zhan offered in response.

"You wish to see me," Tedak responded with Ji'Zhan entered the front offices.

"Yes, my friend. It has been a while." Ji'Zhan smiled.

Ji'Zhan no more than got his greetings out when the Doctor, T'Val an a older Vulcan entered the office.

"Ambassador Tedak, Ambassador Ji'Zhan, I present my father, Doctor Soric of Vulcan. He wished to speak with you Elder." T'Val announced.

Looking at Tedak, Ji'Zhan thought it strange that his face indicated he didn't know T'Val's father. "Perhaps I should come back later," Tedak offered, sensing it might be important for Soric to talk to a Debrune official. "Unless there is no harm in them hearing what you have to share with me?"

Ji'Zhan gave the custom Vulcan greeting, howbeit tempered with Debrune overtones. "Doctor Soric, Greetings, I am pleased to see that we are different. May we together become greater than the sum of both of us." It was clear that Soric was, for a Vulcan, struck with Ji'Zhan's knowledge of such a Vulcan greeting and clearly honored. "Sojourn with me in my land, you shall be unto me as a home-born for we all are sojourners in a new land." (adapted from Leviticus 19:33-34) Ji'Zhan concluded his greeting. "Doctor Soric, would you mind if Ambassador Tedak remains in our company? ... for he is welcome here."

<Tag Soric ... and Tedak or T'Val>

[dodger]

“I hope your taking notes on all this…” Dodger said to absolutely nobody as she weaved her way out of the Fleet JAG Department. With her list of objectives growing exponentially, she suddenly wished she could be in several places at once. Technically she could be in at least two places, using Ripper as an extra pair of eyes, but there was the small catch that those simultaneous places could only be about four hundred metres apart before the connection broke down.

She was actually unsure as to how she and her Lethean counterpart had stumbled upon the ability to project Rippers corporeal eyes and ears independently beyond her own, but nonetheless, it was an ability that came in handy from time to time. Of course he had been taking notes. He had access to most of her higher brain functions, a fact that when she thought about it frightened her considerably. Still, it meant that he could reach information long forgotten by her conscious memory. Yet another interesting feature.

Her musings were interrupted as her comm.. badge chirped. =^=Magellan to Drake=^=

=^=Dodger here=^= She said, her step hesitating slightly as she waited to hear what he had to say.

=^=I have a... well task for you. Its well not quite legit. I need you to find out from the Klingons which planets in Klingon space are settled by the Tholians and most importantly if the plan to strike at any Tholian targets in Federation space.=^= The Admiral explained.

=^=That shouldn’t be too difficult=^= She replied automatically, her mind already reeling through the possibilities.

=^=Maybe. But it can't be traced back to us. Use whatever means necessary. Just don't get caught=^= He warned her. Dodge rolled her eyes.

=^=Aye sir=^= She never got caught.

She stated out for her office, but as she walked her mind wondered back to Commodore Savali’s words. Knowing this place, there were probably all sorts of listening devices lying around. Of course, it would look far less suspicious if she used her own office, but like the Admiral said, this had to be untraceable. She changed course, once again heading for the access shafts, climbing in a downwards direction until she had counted the correct number of decks.

“Ah, good old science.” Dodger said with a smile as she emerged into a small, out of the way science lab that smelled the same way sickbay always did. Clean. She was sure you weren’t able to actually smell clean, but that was how she perceived it.

“You go keep watch.” She ordered Ripper, who had been briefed on the plan.

He gave her a hearty salute. Yes Ma’am.

One sly look around to check what she knew wasn’t there and Dodger reached up to her Comm badge and unpinned it. Running her fingers along the side she reached the join and silently unclipped it, tipping out the small chip that was contained within. She quickly posted it into the slot on the console and entered several required security code.

“Computer, send encrypted message to Robert Eddy on gold channel three. Authorisation code…” She stopped talking there, and typed in yet another nine digit code. It really was a good job Ripper could remember all these numbers so easily. She keyed in the message as text, preferring to send it in that manner than risk it being overheard. She waited a few moments before a face finally appeared on the screen.

It was the face of a human, but she knew that wasn’t strictly true. She also knew that on the other end of the communication, her face appeared as that of a Klingon female. Here was yet another disturbing thought to add to the list.

“Nice to hear from you again.” He said with a slight twinkle in his eye. It was amazing what the Starfleet Intelligence could do these days. You really wouldn’t have had any idea the man she was talking to was actually a Klingon General.

“You got my message?” Dodger asked, cutting to the chase. The less time spent on small-talk the better.

“Of course. It may take me a while to find out. I will contact you again at 12:00 hours with my results.” He said matter of factly.

“I’ll look forward to it.” General, she added the last word in her head, knowing that she couldn’t say it aloud, however unlikely it may be that there were eavesdroppers. They signed off, and she quickly removed the chip back to its rightful place. She would let the Admiral know in due course, perhaps he would want to be present when they handed over the information. It was a shame she couldn’t go through her brother for information like this, but it was far too easy to trace. Plus, General Tahlon was very good at passing intel on the Q.T…

Now that was out of the way for the minute, she wanted to check on the progress of the resident Mr. Simeth. With the upcoming arrival of the president, she wanted to make sure he was nowhere near her when she finally got there. Some people might say she had a suspicious mind, but anything out of the ordinary that occurred right before a presidential visit most certainly required her attention.

This time she used the turbolift, but still shot out of it at top speed when it finally stopped moving. She didn’t know what it was about them that she didn’t like, but she would take a dark, dank Jeffries tube anytime…She suddenly pulled into an emergency stop as someone skittered into the corridor in front of her. She tried to live up to her nickname and dodge around him, but he seemed to be one of those people that always managed to get in the way.

“Ah, Ensign Drake. I wonder if I could take up a few seconds of your time…” He said unexpectedly. Dodger paused mid-step, looking past the man at the formation of Ripper. The Lethean, for some reason sporting a black leather motorcycle kit, spread his upturned hands wide in an ‘I’ve never seen him before’ kind of expression. She frowned.

“Aiken Droler, Federation United Press.” He introduced himself not breaking tone, and tried to hand her something that she imagined was a business card. She failed to take it, but he carried on regardless. “I was wondering if I might ask you a few quick questions on Presidents upcoming visit?”

“How did you find out my name?” Dodger snapped, at once on her guard.

“I simply looked you up on the database.” He said quickly, thrusting his card even closer to her. “You can do that here you know, there’s a public computer –”

“I don’t want to talk to you” Dodger muttered and turned away to make her point. “I have things to do.”

As she began to walk off he caught up and fell into step behind her. “Are you sure about that?”

[Deleted]

After waiting in vain for more than 30 minutes Saarok got slightly agitated, well at least as agitated as a Vulcan can get. He was a busy man and he did not have the time to go and wait around for Tedak to decide to come to the lunch he himself organized.

=/\=Lily send a message to Mr. Tedak and inform him that next time he decides to invite me to lunch he needs to schedule it 2 days in advance and after he arrives there he should send me another message so that I know he actually intends to show up=/\=

After he sent the message he got up from the table and after collecting his guards he proceeded to head back to his office. After arriving there, he noticed there were several messages waiting for him. One was about a nosy reporter arriving on base; the second one was about finalizing the hour and date for the arrival of the president. After seeing the time of the arrival, Saarok was able to calculate the exact arrival time based on previous experience. The Madame President for some reason always chose to arrive a certain amount of time earlier than the announced time. This also meant that security preparations could not be completed until only an hour before her arrival and were most certainly an illogical course of action. After finishing his read through of the messages, he decided to meet with the chief of security for the office of the UFP president and see what the security plans looked like.