Starbase 47 ◇ Thread Concluded SD: 2409.0221

[Gheskori]

... SD: 2408.0531 .. 11:00 hours ...

"The Klingon Empire will seek to support our near neighbours, Admiral, or at least won't intervene."

Gheskori sat stock still in his office on Starbase 47, "Are you completely serious, Ambassador?"

"Of course," the Klingon responded, transmitting from his diplomat's suite in the premier residential area of the Starbase, "When Klingons commit to a treaty of friendship, or non-aggression in the Star Empire's case, they keep to it. We won't violate the territorial integrity of the Romulan Star Empire in its moment of difficulty."

"Despite recent events?" Gheskori raised his eyebrows, referring to the reported incident of the Raven at the Klingon asteroid-based station in the near galactic halo. Little was known about the Jalkoth incident currently, news had only broken in the last three hours, but already the ambassador was aware of the outlines. Ghes was sure he and everyone else would get to learn more once the Raven made it back.

"The High Council had nothing to do with the events you refer to. I certainly knew nothing about it... The commanders of the Klingon forces in question acted without the authority of the Empire and in some cases had been disconnected from the hierarchy for a substantial period of time."

Gheskori had no reason to disbelieve the ambassador; he brushed the matter aside for now and talked about something else, "The worlds Ceylan'tar II and III are still recovering. They took a beating, Ambassador, and the Klingon Empire is known to take an interest in such people. We'd appreciate it if you could inform us what your Empire's interests are in that system and its surrounding sector, past as well as the present."

Ghes was speaking of adjacent inhabited worlds lying astride the Klingon-Romulan border. In bygone times - perhaps two centuries ago - the Ceylan-tar system had been firmly in Romulan space, then as of about a 120 years ago it'd become neutral and a few decades ago a Klingon-aligned planet; now it lay somewhere in between, if there'd been a neutral zone between the two empires in that part of their border, Ceylan'tar II and III would very much be in it. Recently - as the Enzio had been making its way back from Alpha Centauri to near the edge of Fed space - the two planets of the Ceylanites had been the victim of one of the lightning raids of the Romulans' new antagonists.

The mysterious people the Romulan Star Empire had bumped into lay on a distant edge of Romulan space and hence were currently considered by the Federation to be no more than a curiosity, to be studied and catalogued by Federation xenobiologists and stellar cartographers. Occasionally though they conducted swift assaults far from their own territory with small squadrons of remarkably fast warships. They'd made one such strike against the two Ceylanite worlds. The Klingons had pledged not to interfere.

The ambassador nodded on Ghes's console screen, "I'm sure the High Council and the Defence Force will provide what information they can."

"Thank you, ambassador. And if there is anything you'd like to hold back, so be it, but remind your own authorities that Starfleet is accepting your statement on faith, that the Klingon High Council had nothing to do with the events in the Jalkoth system. We may be forced to investigate the Jalkoth matter if the Ceylan-tar data isn't forthcoming."

He sat in silence for a moment as the screen blanked out to the Federation seal and then nothingness. Having considered the balancing act he was keeping up in talking to the Klingon and Romulan ambassadors on the Starbase, he remembered the Enzio. He tapped the comm button on his desk, "Personnel Office, this is Gheskori, has the Enzio crew begun shore leave?"

"... Nearly three-quarters of your crew have signed off active duty and are in their leisure period, Admiral," an officer replied after a moment. Ghes nodded to himself; he might join them for a while before he had his talk with the Romulan senator Hazr'vat via subspace from New Romulus.

[Carl Torek]

SD: 2408.0531 .. 15:00 hrs ...
Level Two Zero One
Alpha Docking Arm
Starbase Forty-Seven ::

Carl had sat in silence as his Exec' had overseen the docking procedure for the Raven ..... It wasn't that he was disinterested, or unconcerned, it was more the fact that he had realised on their way back to the Starbase that he was tired ..... More tired than usual after an exhausting mission. 'Who knows, maybe I am getting too old' he thought with a wry smile as Andae got his attention:

"Docking complete Admiral,"

"What?... Oh, thank you Andae, miles away there..." he said self-consciously as he realised both Andae and Calli were smiling at his lapse, "... You can inform Department Heads they can submit shore leave rosters to you for approval,"

"Will do," Blakus said, with a sly glance at Calli.

"Something amusing you two?" Carl asked eyebrows raised as he feigned annoyance.

"Us ..... No," the two said in unison.

"Hmm ....." Carl replied, rising.

"Will you be staying aboard Admiral?" Calli asked.

"I'm not sure... Elise is taking Bethan and Vanessa on a bit of a holiday, so there's not much point in my using our quarters on the Starbase..." he said, placing his thumbprint authorisation on a PADD handed to him, "... What about you two, plans?"

"I'll be on board, at least until I've spoken to the 'Base Technicians about the upgrades," Andae said.

"Oh ..... I'll be heading for a tall cold drink or three, then... Who knows," Calli said, winking.

"Andae, make sure you are on the Shoreleave rosters, or I'll put you on it myself..." Carl said, playfully jabbing a finger in his Exec's chest as he walked towards the turbolift, "... I'll be in my quarters if needed," .....

Later that day, he saw Elise and the girls off ..... They were taking two weeks' holiday on Betazed, he promised he would join them in a couple of days or so, once he'd got through the inevitable backlog he would need to deal with as Starbase Executive Officer under Section Admiral Gheskori. This time, however, the Enzio had only returned days earlier, so he envisioned both of them had plenty of work to do .....

Following Day ::

He stepped off the umbilical walkway connecting the Raven with the Starbase ..... His Adjutant, Captain Jessica Yu, was waiting for him:

"Admiral, good to see you back, the mission went well?" she asked.

"Thank you, Jessica, good to see you. As for the mission, I'd suggest you wait for the book to come out..." he said with an exaggerated sigh as the two stepped into one of the command turbolifts, "... Anything interesting happen here?"

"Nothing drastic, unless you count the Vice President turned up unannounced. She did one of her whirlwind visits and left. Captain Helgesen ended up getting the brunt of her comments, he's currently under sedation..." Jessica said with a laugh, "... Admiral Gheskori asked me to remind you about the debriefing later,"

"Fine," Carl said as they stepped out of the turbolift on the Main Command Floor, the two walked up the ramp to the Mezzanine Level and entered his office. He looked at his desk, as usual, it was pristine, only one PADD adorned the leather writing mat built into the antique desk. Leaning in he gave Jessica a peck on her cheek by way of a 'thank you' and then smelled the coffee.

"What would I do without you," he said, dropping into the leather chair and then picking up the PADD ..... This held all the items that Jessica, despite her high Clearance Level, required 'his' personal authorisation or sign-off. As Jessica put a cup of hot coffee on the coaster, Carl looked at the first item on the list with a sigh ..........

[Carl Torek]

Fleet Admiral Torek's Office ...
Mezzanine Level
Command Centre ::

He had spent the morning going through the items left by his Adjutant ..... They were mainly mundane issues but with enough weight behind them that simply ignoring the seemingly endless gripes of the likes of Ferengi establishment owners was much more trouble than it was worth. Wanting more space, better space, more prominent locations on whichever Promenade they were on, These were issues Jessica could deal with, but every now and then she would 'let one slip' through her fingers and onto his pile, it drove him mad at times, but given how much she actually took off him, he couldn't begrudge her now and then.

He was about to go to lunch when his Adjutant informed him that Admiral Lemond was waiting to see him. He asked her to send Nia in and then she was free to go to lunch herself.

"Admiral ....." Lemond said as she let Jessica past.

"Carl ....." Torek said, shaking his head in mock annoyance, "... How many times Nia?" Carl said, getting up to walk to the small counter beside Jessica's office as Nia took the chair opposite his. He poured himself a coffee, and one for the Intelligence Director.

"Sorry, force of habit..." she said, apologetically as she took the offered cup, "... I assume you haven't had you're debrief with Admiral Gheskori, regarding the Jalkoth issue?"

"No ..... I had intended to go to his office earlier, but I lost track of time,"

"Strange situation - It seems completely unrealistic that the Klingons would be running definitive holo-programs to explore the various outcomes should the Federation collapse..." she said, sipping at the hot coffee before continuing, "... It almost beggars belief that experienced Starfleet Officers could be persuaded that they were enacting 'real' scenarios," she said, winking over the lip of her cup.

"Believe me, it was all 'TOO' real at the time, hell, we travelled to Betazed 'and' Cardassian space, we were in that bloody thing for days without being any the wiser! ..... Their technology was extremely sophisticated,"

"Yes, I have people going over your security logs and all relevant sensor data the Raven managed to pick up. This Talthor, a Klingon Commander, and supposed leader, did you establish if he got off the facility or not?"

"No, and given the pounding that Fortress was taking, it's hard to believe anyone got off alive. General Qo'mAh was ensuring nothing remained, even to the point of separating the Drive Section of her 'D7 Class' Battle Cruiser and slamming it into the Fortress, without any advanced warning as far as we could establish,"

"Well hopefully we'll know more once we've gone through the data more thoroughly..." she said, standing to return her empty cup to the cabinet, "... Besides, a 'little bird' told me that the Klingons have other things on their mind, apparently Ambassador Ch'Lor was anything but helpful when he contacted the Section Admiral ..... Somethings going on with those Klingons, and as usual, we'll be the last to know," she said with a wry grin as she walked to the door.

"No change there then..." Carl said as Nia left. He picked up the PADD he'd been reading then put it back on his desk as his stomach rumbled, "... Go eat ..... Bloody hell, now I'm talking to myself," he said as he left his office ..........

[Gheskori]

The grey-garbed officers ran through an intersection made by a narrow alley bisecting a section of pedestrianised road, shouting to one another and waving arms, overcome with frustration at having lost their quarry. Tiring of the search at last, they left the area of the intersection and headed into the next district, and only then did the drainage pipe near the alley to the right lose cohesion, morphing into a gelatinous silvery grey before flowing to the ground.

It lay there in a pool for a while before giving itself four legs and a head and propelling itself forward in its new form of a Ceylanite domestic cat.

Slinking down the alley, it turned its fluorescent yellow eyes upwards at the name of the firm at the road's end, and knew it'd reached its goal; it began meowing and the metallic door ringed as it was opened from inside.

"Hi there..." Surprised, the building's occupant lifted the animal and took it inside, thinking it looked thin and hungry, and once the occupant was gone the changeling resumed its true form and took on the only slightly flawed appearance of a human woman. Much better than what the so-called Founders are capable of, the changeling thought, aware of the species from the Gamma Quadrant with its deep suspicion of 'solids' and inability to mimic human faces.

The changeling checked to make sure the financial firm's caretaker was gone and stepped into the owner's office. Digits of her articulated human limbs opened the business owner's escritoire, riffling through pages of real paper and rapidly perusing Ceylanite datapads.

She gasped as she found the right set of documents, eyes blazing with triumph. The Ceylanite species native to the Klingon-Romulan border had had a long and fruitful relationship with Federation civilian authorities and much could be learnt of the Federation through their business dealings with individual Ceylanites. There was no government, she understood, only a series of independent business-oriented principalities and city states; she was sure they would get on with the Ferengis famously.

Now the changelings had a key to the Federation's prodigious wealth, to their seeming superabundance of resources which had eliminated all want and poverty within its borders, once the changelings had finished dealing with the Romulans, they would take all those resources for themselves, she thought. She heard a clatter towards the front entrance and thought the caretaker must've returned, grasping the datapad she stole out of the office.

---

"If you were not aware, Admiral, the Romulan Star Empire has other things that currently occupy its attention. We're engaged in the suppression of an irritation on one of our borders," Hazr'vat said dryly, "I don't expect you to know about -"

"Ok, Hazr'vat, I understand," Ghes shook his head, "And yes, the Federation knows about the changeling species. You senators of Romulus think you know everything and we Starfleeters know nothing. Section 47 is the official representative of the Federation in this area of the neutral zone between our peoples, and myself and my Command Staff represent Section 47."

"You have not been in this region for long, Admiral Gheskori. A lifetime isn't enough for an outsider to learn everything there is to know about the Star Empire, let alone ten months."

"In any case... You say the Romulans aren't concerned about the Ceylanite system. Despite the Ceylanites having been recently attacked by the changelings you speak of, and despite the clear Klingon interest?"

"There is no way the changelings could have penetrated our space to that level, Gheskori, out the other side to the Ceylanite system."

"It may take only one." They spoke on a little further and the comm with the capital of New Romulus was closed. Ghes sighed and rose from his office's seat, heading away from the command centre proper and to a secondary flag officers' lounge some decks below. There he found Admiral Torek, his adjutant and first officer, and Admiral Reynolds in conversation.

Ghes approached them, "Well Carl, it's good to see you back. I must say I'm glad to be back, too. You heard about Alpha Centauri? The Klingon ambassador Ch'Lor has hardly stopped talking about the Jalkoth system, he says the High Council has disowned General Qo'mAh but I wonder if that was the situation when she left Qo'nos. In any case they say they revile her. From what I hear you and your crew had a very tough time."

[Carl Torek]

Level Twenty-Three ...
Flag Officers Dining Room ::

Carl sat in the Officer's Lounge ..... It wasn’t somewhere he regularly frequented but had decided to forego dining in his office on the persistent 'advice' to figuratively, get some fresh air, from his Adjutant Captain Jessica Yu ... On arrival, he and Jessica ordered and found a table where Admiral Matt Reynolds, recently returned from a lengthy assignment on Earth joined them.

The three had been chatting for a while when the Section Admiral arrived:

"Well Carl, it's good to see you back. I must say I'm glad to be home. You heard about Alpha Centauri .....?" It was while Gheskori was talking that Carl realised he had completely missed the arranged debrief meeting.

"Is there anything to this gossip about 'Changelings' infiltrating Federation space?" he asked.

"Gossip .....?" the Section Admiral repeated, genuinely surprised.

"Apparently, there’s chatter going around that both the Klingon and Romulan Ambassadors are taking steps to secure all their files..." Carl replied, glancing at his Adjutant before continuing, "... Unofficially, they seem to be trying to find a way to distance themselves from any 'so called' issue while throwing any 'non-existent' blame on their opposite number... That said, neither one has approached me directly thus far, so I know less than the rest of you ... Is there any reason we should be worried about any Klingon-Romulan escalation?"

"Despite their mutual overzealousness on secrecy, neither seem capable of keeping their collective mouths shut for more than a minute at a time..." Reynolds informed them, "... Frankly, knowing the Klingons and Romulans, I’d be more concerned if they suddenly started to get all 'pally pally' rather than their constant nit-picking at each other,"

"..... So ..... We have nothing official thus far...?" Carl asked, glancing around the table, "... You've got my report on the Jalkoth incident Matt?"

"Yes, makes for interesting reading, seems a lot of effort for what resulted in zero rewards,"

"It kept the Raven away..." Jessica Yu suddenly interjected, "... And with the Enzio out, it left the Starbase somewhat vulnerable," the three Flag Officers looked at each other for a brief, moment then relaxed, given El Salvador, Enzio, and the Raven were all now docked, but they knew that Carl’s Adjutant had voiced a valid point.

"I'll have all relevant data and transcripts sent to you both," Gheskori confirmed, rising.

"Do you think the Romulans have a genuine problem with these 'Changelings' .....?" Reynolds asked, but the Section Admiral simply replied that he hoped they enjoyed their lunch, and then turned to leave ..........

[Gheskori]

Ghes returned to the command centre and accepted a report from Barton, who'd been promoted to become his official ADC now that Burr had taken an assignment on Earth. The Denobulan read through the PADD and began to return to his office; he was stopped on the stairs by an alert from somewhere out on the main floor. "Yes?" he pivoted towards what turned out to be the Chief of Security who weaved between the consoles given over to station security,

"Admiral, we're receiving a report from one of the diplomatic suites... Three assistants of Klingon Ambassador Ch'Lor have been found dead, sir, apparently murdered."

"Ch'Lor's people...?" Ghes managed weakly, and for want of anything better to say, "Ok... Have an investigation started." Five minutes went by, the shock passed and he was able to summon up his strength and ordered his thoughts, "This really is remarkable timing. Here I am in the midst of discussions with Ch'Lor, his Romulan counterpart and Senator Hazr'vat, and..."

"Won't the timing always seem suspicious, sir?" Barton asked.

Ghes thought about it and conceded the point. Still, he'd been speaking to Ch'Lor himself just that morning. The Denobulan supposed he better reserve judgement until the Security Chief could do his detective work, leaving off any conclusions until hopeful DNA deposits had been studied, and especially until it was even confirmed the three Klingons had been murdered.

=/\=Admiral Torek to the command centre,=/\= a duty Operations officer commed the Section XO.

Torek arrived with his adjutant and was brought up to speed on what'd happened. Surprisingly, it emerged he already knew. News spreads fast on the lower levels, Ghes surmised.

It was some time later that afternoon that the preliminary findings came through. The trio had suffered multiple stab wounds to the thorax and abdomen; it seemed they'd been attacked en masse, and there were signs in the ambassadorial quarters of a struggle, which was to be expected, but perhaps there'd been something of a tit-for-tat fight before the actual fatal stabbings.

Of course, though it seemed faintly ridiculous, some suspicion should naturally fall on the occupant of the quarters himself, Ch'Lor, and so the Klingon ambassador was arraigned on Alpha Promenade, doubly furious, at the news of his assistants' deaths and that he himself was now detained. Ghes didn't think it was possible the ambassador had been in his quarters, given he'd turned up only a short time later on the main promenade. It made no sense that he'd kill his own staff, anyhow, and given the recent issues with the Klingons' old-time adversaries...

"Are we suggesting that the Romulans may be responsible? Even the Romulans' own ambassador here on the station?" Ghes asked, standing over the eight people gathered at the conference room table.

"I couldn't say. DNA analysis is still inconclusive," the Security Chief spoke, "and given the vanishingly small amount of it deposited in those quarters, aside from the clear Klingon DNA, I'd say it's doubtful whether we could ever identify the species."

"Well, the Romulans are innocent until proven guilty," Torek said.

Lemond nodded, "You know what that means... No, we don't hold the Romulan ambassador for questioning, but make a simple visit to his offices; he'll have heard the news and will understand why we've come."

"Could this have anything to do with the situation in the Ceylanite system, and the Romulans' contact with the changelings on the other side of their space?" Admiral Reynolds voiced what they were all thinking.

Ghes resumed his seat and looked at each of the six officers and two civilian officials at the table - not all of the high-rankers and department heads on the station but enough to address the somewhat serious issue. "Well, of course we know that the Klingons are interested in the Ceylanite system previously controlled by the Romulans, now that the Romulans are stretched by their new threat. Ch'Lor hasn't convinced me that the High Council has no design on the Ceylanites. What would this attack be then, if the Romulans are involved? Some form of indirect reprisal, targeting Klingons outside their own space?"

[Carl Torek]

No one, Klingon or Romulan, suspected that there were imposters among them as they were observed. Be it inside the High Council Chambers on the Klingon Homeworld, or the Romulan Senate on Romulus. The observers would watch, listening to the mundane day-to-day issues, and the futile plans of each race to become rulers of known space, each time their expectations far outweighing their actual ability, yet plan they did, over and over.

Every forty-eight hours, vessels arrived on schedule, before holding position in high orbit. Unseen, undetectable, as their Rulers surveyed the planets below, awaiting the reports transmitted by their operatives, content that their activities and minor victories on both worlds were taking their toll .....

"In a hurry?" Carl asked as Admiral Lemond almost bumped into them him as they stepped from the turbolifts.

"You might want to see this," she said cryptically as she stepped past him and waited. Carl and his Adjutant retraced their steps back into the ‘lift and waited .....

Beta Promenade
Level 1554 ::

"Who are they?" Torek asked as he looked at the three bodies.

"Part of the Klingon Ambassador’s Staff,"

"What were they doing here?" he asked, looking around the disused premises.

"No idea, but we do know they were killed elsewhere," the Intelligence Director said, pointing towards the dust-strewn floor. Carl saw immediately that she was right. Given the injuries, there would have been a 'lot' more blood.

"Has Ch’Lor been notified?"

"I've sent word to Admiral Gheskori, I'm assuming he'll be giving him the news...' Nia said as the bodies were lifted onto mag-lev beds and removed, "... OK ... Let's make finding where they were killed a priority," Carl nodded as his commbadge chirped to life:

=^= Admiral Torek to the Command Center =^= he confirmed the request and then turned back to Lemond.

"Keep me informed Nia," he said, taking one last look at the covered bodies before leaving …..

Conference Room Two
Command Centre ::

The lack of for want of a better word, 'concrete' evidence, one way or the other, in the killings was frustrating to all. At least Lemond had found the location of the deaths, though why the bodies were moved was stiil a complete mystery .....

With Admiral Reynolds' mention of the possible involvement of the Ceylanites, it had crossed Torek’s mind to suggest sending one of the ships to investigate, with Raven still in mid-refit, and the Enzio likewise, it left only El Salvador anywhere close to being signed-off as ready to return to active status, so going looking the somewhat enigmatic shapeshifters over, would, for the moment, have to wait. He looked up as he realised Gheskori was speaking:

"Well, of course, we know that the Klingons are interested in the Ceylanite system previously controlled by the Romulans, now that they are stretched by their new threat. Ch'Lor hasn't convinced me that the High Council has no design on the Ceylanites. What would this attack be then, if the Romulans were involved, some form of indirect reprisal, targeting Klingons outside their own space?"

"What if we were to 'suggest' protective custody?" Carl commented.

"For who?" Matt asked.

"Ch’Lor, and maybe Hazr'vat too for that matter," Even as he suggested it he knew it was a nonstarter, but if nothing else it would show them that the Federation was taking proceedings seriously. They were still discussing the situation when the doors burst open, and the Klingon Ambassador entered, followed by a battered and bloodied Security Lieutenant. Colonel Dúpin, the Deputy Security Chief, motioned for the blood-soaked Officer to leave as he stood and approached the Klingon:

"I don’t take kindly to my Officers being assaulted," he said quietly.

"You will address me by my rank or title, or not at all ... HUMAN!" Ch'Lor spat, moving to push Dúpin aside, but the Marine spun deftly, grasping the Klingon's arm before forcing him to one knee. Both knew full well that one more ounce of pressure on the elbow would result in a break.

"Let him up now, Colonel," Carl said finally. Nodding, Dúpin released his hold and stepped back. Ch'Lor glared at the Marine Officer for a long moment before nodding, presumably appreciating his opponent's expertise, he turned to face the others around the table, clearly deciding not to kill Dúpin where he stood.

"You will hand over to me those responsible!" the Ambassador said ..........

[Gheskori]

Conference room

"You will hand over to me those responsible!" the Ambassador said.

"We don't know who may be responsible," Ghes said calmly, his fingers interlinked on the table before him.

"What? You don't have one idea?"

Basically we don't, Ghes thought. "We've taken what DNA samples we can. It appears they were killed in your own quarters, Ch'Lor, after which they were moved to a location on the Beta Promenade." The Klingon bristled. "But don't be concerned, you're not under suspicion, at the moment." The Denobulan wondered whether he wasn't ill-advised in taking this approach; it was the kind of tactic that would work well with most humanoid species, but with Klingons it could be lethal, regardless of the fact Ch'Lor was an ambassador to the Federation.

"It doesn't become a Klingon to ask, Admiral, but I want protection!"

"Well, you haven't asked, you've demanded, so not to worry," Reynolds said.

"This insolence!" Ch'Lor boomed at the ceiling.

Ghes calmed matters and told the diplomat they were doing their best to find the killers of his three staff, investigative work was being done by Starbase Security and Intelligence offices as they spoke. "... And we were going to suggest that you receive protection in any case, Ambassador. A half dozen armed security guards will be assigned to you until you can receive whatever replacements that come from the Empire. The Romulan ambassador will receive them as well."

"He should be your first target, Admiral. On the dignity of my House, I tell you, Hazr'vat has always had it in for me," Ch'Lor took the proffered seat at the conference room table.

Ghes paused to allow everyone to adjust to the diplomat's presence then glanced at Torek who spoke, "We will tell you only this, Ch'Lor, it would be improper to reveal more considering you're technically in detention. Hazr'vat is considered a suspect. Our protection of him is also a design to keep watch, to make sure he doesn't get himself into any trouble, shall we say."

Ghes made a note on his PADD. Giving Hazr'vat and Ch'Lor security protection hadn't been decided amongst themselves yet; telling Ch'Lor about it solidified the matter. "The arrangement is satisfactory. For now," Ch'Lor glared.

The Denobulan nodded and tapped his commbadge, =/\=Ensign Whatley, assign yourself and five officers as protection for Klingon Ambassador Ch'Lor. Give the same number to Ambassador Hazr'vat. =/\= The meeting gradually drew to a conclusion and Ghes stood and headed for the replicator. He took a sip of tea; at least, he thought, when Ch'Lor had arrived he'd been furious, but he'd gone away maybe slightly irked, he hoped it would stay that way as he trooped about with his Starfleet security guards.

Command Centre

He sighed as he sat back down in his office... He knew roughly how the three Klingons had been killed, but at the moment there was no clear motive, let alone knowledge of who actually did the deed. He hoped one would explain the other. The Romulans responsible? Why on earth would they want to kill Klingons and draw the ire of the High Council, though, precisely at the time they feared the Klingons would try to take control of the neutral Ceylanite system?

News came into the Starbase. More Romulan ships were being drawn away to the unknown systems of the distant and ill-defined border with the changelings. They were replacements for ten warbirds just destroyed in a changeling ambush. Surely the Romulans had problems enough, Ghes thought, without carrying out assassinations and worrying about the Klingons and Ceylanites? He thought of something and called Admiral Torek to his office,

"What if this is a ploy by the changelings to distract the Romulans from the fight? Frame them in this murder case?"

[Carl Torek]

Conference Room Two
Command Center ::

Both Matt Reynolds and Theo Dúpin watched the Klingon Ambassador warily as Gheskori tapped his commbadge:

=^= Ensign Whatley .. Assign yourself and five officers as protection detail for Klingon Ambassador Ch'Lor .. Give the same number to Romulan Ambassador Hazr'vat .. .. =^=

=^= Yes Admiral =^= Whatley replied. Carl had to stop himself from grinning, he and the others knew full well that the Section Admiral had deliberately assigned one of the most junior Security personnel to the task of looking after the Klingon and Romulan Representatives. It was an open front to their status within a supposedly tolerant Federation, and Reynolds, Dúpin, and everyone else knew it. As did Ch'Lor.

Section Admiral Gheskori's Office ::

Following the conclusion of the meeting, Carl returned to his office, but within minutes his Adjutant entered his office informing him that the Section Admiral needed to speak to him .....

Entering the office, Gheskori told him to sit, rising himself to request two cups of coffee from the replicator before handing Carl a cup and sitting himself down. For a long moment, the Section Admiral seemed deep in thought.

"What if this is a ploy by the changelings to distract the Romulans from the fight? Frame them in this murder case?"

"They're Romulans..." Carl said with an almost resigned shrug, "... Like Klingons, they're always either 'at war' or trying to find an excuse to 'be' at war with one race or another,"

"So you don't believe the idea of a ploy?"

"It's possible of course..." Carl replied, sipping the hot beverage before continuing, "... We know next to nothing, less than nothing, about this race. They have steadfastly refused any and all attempts to coax them into even preliminary talks regarding them considering joining the Federation. They're shapeshifters, which in itself could cause unknown issues ....."

"It just seems a little too ....." Gheskori began before falling silent.

"Our issue is the killing of the Klingon Aides..." Carl mused, rising to return the empty cup to the replicator, "... If, and at this point, it's only an 'if' they were killed, by the Ceylanite Shapeshifters, they were obviously making sure we, the Federation, became directly involved. To what end is frankly beyond me, but we have to accept the fact that there could be one, or possibly more, Ceylanites on the Starbase!"

"The Federation Council seem, reluctant, to become openly involved," Gheskori said.

"But they are not expressly forbidding investigations into the deaths, which may, or may not, require expanding our investigations beyond the Starbase...?" Carl asked, a little annoyed when there was no reply to his comment, "... The Ceylanites haven't expressly forbidden Federation vessels entering their Space, so why not go look for ourselves?"

"You want to send a Federation Starship into Ceylanite space?" Gheskori asked.

"The Raven can go,"

"No...!" the Section Admiral said, a little 'too' quickly.

"Then send the El Alamein," Carl suggested, waiting as Gheskori sat seemingly deep in thought ..........

[Gheskori]

"With our main Intelligence team? It'll have to go to Lemond's desk... Do you want to speak with her?" Ghes asked, aware that Carl had more to do with Nia than he did himself on a day-to-day basis. "Utmost secrecy is needed, of course, we can't allow the Klingon or Romulan delegations on the Starbase to become aware of any ill-defined operation in the Ceylanite system."

"Do we know how the Ceylanites have been coping after the changelings' attack?" Torek asked.

Ghes shook his head, "We're not even sure there was an attack in the conventional sense. The intel was that the changelings had struck across Romulan space at the Ceylanite system and several more uninhabited worlds, the latter in the interest of gaining resources, the former, it's not clear..."

"That's what an Intel operation should seek to find out," Torek concluded.

Ghes nodded, "I think Starfleet Command will accept the idea. Let's hope Lemond's people are up to it, if she approves of the plan. With the Klingon and Romulan borders not far distant, any work must be conducted as covertly as possible. In the meantime, let's hope Ch'Lor doesn't ask too many questions, beyond keeping us honest on the search for the killers of his staff, which I don't expect he'll be forgetting about. If only we could find some sign of DNA in Ch'Lor's quarters other than Klingon hair and skin deposits!"

Of course, what had been found left the possibility that the murderers of the three Klingon assistants were Klingons themselves. Ch'Lor remained a suspect, but still, it didn't make sense to Gheskori, particularly as the ambassador would've needed help (the trio had been stabbed multiple times), and particularly when there were others who arguably had a greater motive - even if the window into seeing exactly what that motive was remained utterly opaque. Colonel Dupin and now Iorte Clancy from Intelligence were continuing the analysis and crime scene investigation; something had to show up, signs of a murder by Romulans, Klingons, changelings or others...

He thanked Carl and the Fleet Admiral headed off to speak to Lemond and Captain Komin about a possible assignment for Mr Tan's team.

<Tag Torek / Lemond>

Ghes sighed and turned to his personal terminal, switching it on and having a comm routed to the diplomatic suites. "Hazr'vat's quarters. Is he present?" The officer setting up the comm replied affirmative and after a moment Ambassador Hazr'vat appeared on the terminal screen.

"Gheskori, what can I do for you?" the Romulan paused, "Is this about Ambassador Ch'Lor's brats? Your security guards have barely left me alone. They hover around me as I go about my duties, loitering outside my quarters... They're jailors, Gheskori, not bodyguards."

"I apologise, Ambassador, we didn't mean to disrupt your activities. But surely you've had to deal with worse? In short, yes it is about Ch'Lor. Tell me, is it true that you and him have had problems in the past?"

"I don't like where this is going, Gheskori..." the Romulan sighed and looked back at the screen, "Yes, it's true. Four years ago I sponsored a rival of his for a seat on the Klingon High Council; the rival won the favour of the Chancellor who was seeking a better relationship with the Romulan Star Empire. Ch'Lor challenged me to a duel and... I fled in my scout ship. Romulans don't accept fights to the death, at least when they see they're at a disadvantage. Besides, I'm a diplomat, not a soldier; Ch'Lor can rage all he likes, I have dissociated myself from the whole matter."

"Then you don't bear any ill will towards Ch'Lor, or to anyone in his service...?"

The Romulan ambassador smirked, "If you weren't so knowingly unsubtle, Gheskori, I would lambast you to the Senate. 'By all means negotiate with Gheskori, Praetor, he'll sign Starbase 47's entire sector away.'"

Ghes laughed, "How goes the conflict with the changelings?"

Hazr'vat turned serious, "It's none of your concern. I don't know that much anyway, how much information do you think my people broadcast into Federation space?"

"I'd like to meet with you and Ch'Lor. The three of us, as well as Admiral Torek and the head of the Section 47 Diplomatic Corps. We need to get things out in the open between you and Ch'Lor; it may just help us in the search for the killers."

[Carl Torek]

Admiral Lemond's Office ...
Mezzanine Level
Command Center ::

"..... Given the fact that we already have information confirming both the Klingons and Romulans have, at some point, contested ownership of Ceyelanite Space, I'm not convinced sending a ship in there would do any good," Lemond said as she poured coffee for Carl and herself before returning to her desk.

"This would be purely information gathering, nothing more..." Torek replied, realising that while Nia Lemond was relatively new to both her position in Intelligence and her somewhat meteoric rise through the ranks, it would never occur to him to overrule the Intelligence Director if she presented a good enough argument for or against a proposed assignment, so he tried once more, "... Basically, we'd be sending Tan's team on the El Alamein for a simple pass through, so to speak. If they pick up any information on what the Ceylanites are up to, if anything, then we can go from there. If they don't find anything, then they can come back no harm done,"

Nia thought for a moment then replied:

"The Ceylanites have refused every approach made by the Federation, so finding a Federation Starship snooping in their space might be seen as an intrusion..." she said, seemingly deep in thought for a moment before continuing, "... We could configure several sensor arrays on the El Alamein for stellar cartography, that wat if they're spotted they will have an excuse for being in Ceylanite space,"

"I'll leave it with you then..." Carl said, finishing the coffee, rising he replaced his cup on the replicator and headed for the door, "... Let me know when they can depart," .....

~~~~~~~~~~

Carl had been in his office for an hour when Adjutant, Captain Yu informed him that someone was asking to speak to him:

"Who is it?" he asked.

"Rear Admiral Ketchley," Jessica replied.

"What would our Diplomatic Liaison want with me?" Carl asked.

"He's refusing to say ..... Shall I send him in?"

"Yes..." Carl replied with a resigned shrug, waiting as the elderly Ambassador entered, "... Admiral, please take a seat, Jessica, get the Ambassadore a coffee ..... What can I do for you, Admiral?"

"I've been asked to attend a meeting with Section Admiral Gheskori, but other than his revealing that you would be attending, he was, reluctant, to divulge any further,"

"..... And you think I might be able to enlighten you?"

"Yes ..... I DO .....!" the man said, all pretence of cordiality vanishing.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, Ambassador, but I'm sure Admiral Gheskori will tell you all you need to know either prior to the meeting..." Carl said, standing, "... Until then I suggest you try to control your curiosity,"

Niles Ketchley wasn't used to being dismissed, and almost said so, but he knew it would be fruitless and undoubtedly give Torek the wrong idea about him, so with a curt nod he left the office ..........

[Gheskori]

"Hazr'vat supported Diykan. The Romulans surrounded the medical research laboratory on Ventas III and held the lives of important Klingon scientists and a member of the High Council to ransom. What...?" Ch'Lor paused, "He didn't tell you the Chancellor was seeking favour with the Romulan Senate did he? This is the lie he spins to everybody... my rival Diykan won the High Council seat through the Romulans' treachery, not through the benevolence of our Chancellor."

"Then your people let themselves be held to ransom?" Ghes asked, slightly disbelieving.

Ch'Lor shook himself violently, unhappy that the answer was affirmative, "One of the scientists, Dr Tojal'mar, was engineering antibodies to tackle a small-scale recurrence of the Qu'Vat!"

Ghes understood, the Klingon meant the plague of the 22nd and 23rd centuries which via Augment DNA had rendered virtually all Klingons similar in appearance to humans.

They were in an anteroom to the main room where the meeting between Ch'Lor and his Romulan counterpart was to take place. The Denobulan had arrived with ADC Barton who'd given him some last words of advice and departed back to the command centre; now Ghes, Hazr'vat and Ch'Lor were waiting for Torek and the DCS head Kletchley. The two officers arrived almost simultaneously, surprised by one another at the door to the anteroom.

Ghes thought he saw Carl and Kletchley glare at one another as they entered and then separated. What, contentious poker game?


15 minutes later...

"I tell you now, the Star Empire was not responsible for this," Hazr'vat declared as he looked at the admirals round the table, "As you suggest, Gheskori, we have much more that... occupies our attention - a minor irritant as it is - without causing ourselves difficulties with the Klingons. Considerable difficulties, at that. It doesn't matter that myself and Ambassador Ch'Lor have had our animus in the past... To allow that to affect my people's relations with the Klingon Empire would be the height of foolishness. I would be removed from my post by the Senate immediately."

"He is a killer," Ch'Lor spat, the ambassador using traditional Klingon diplomacy, "If he didn't murder my colleagues himself he hired others to do so. Nausicaans perhaps, or a group of Breen, or people employed by the Breen."

"I ask you, Starfleet officers," Hazr'vat said coolly, "Do I look like a killer?" Hazr'vat seemed mostly harmless, but his blank visage was difficult to gauge.

"At this stage it's not possible to say one way or another," Kletchley interjected, "Hazr'vat, I'm afraid you still have a lot of questions to answer, but your even-handed work here on Starbase 47 has been commendable. Ch'Lor, we should listen to your grievances of course, but the inflammatory language, best to cast it aside?"

Ch'Lor growled low and finally answered, "I would say you are in the pay of Romulan agents, Kletchley, if I couldn't see through your poker face as plainly as always... You're merely terrified! Very well," he held up a hand as Ghes was about to object, "I meant no offence. Mark me, if the Romulans aren't responsible then we should look to their adversaries for the real culprits... I am not so foolish as to be unable to recognise an act of diversion... Hazr'vat, your shapeshifter opponents might have engineered this. The death of Klingon diplomats with Romulans implicated? Bringing about, the shapeshifters hope, conflict between us."

"It's a possibility," Torek agreed and glanced at Gheskori, the two having talked about the same matter earlier in the day, "Though I'm surprised to hear you admit it, Ch'Lor."

So was Hazr'vat, evidently. The changelings were now the primary suspects. Still, Ghes wondered why Ch'Lor had taken this route. A diversion of his own? In the recess - the second half of the meeting to start shortly - he stepped away from the small-talking four and commed Ensign Whatley to keep a close eye on Ch'Lor.

[Carl Torek]

It was two hours later when he and apparently Ketchley too, had arrived .....

Carl stood to one side almost theatrically allowing the Federation Ambassador to enter the room ahead of him. Their eyes had met for a fraction of a second with clearly no love lost on either side, but their 'look' hadn't gone unnoticed.

Taking their seats, Carl realised Gheskori was looking at him:

"Problems?" the Section Admiral asked casually.

"Bit of a headache, nothing serious," Carl replied, calling silent as the Klingon Ambassador began his tirade .....

"..... Hazr'vat, your shapeshifter opponents might have engineered this. The death of Klingon diplomats with Romulans implicated? Bringing about, the shapeshifters hope, for conflict between us."

"It's a possibility..." Torek agreed and glanced at Gheskori, "... Though I'm surprised to hear you admit it, Ch'Lor."

"Well, I think we could do with a brief recess about now," the Section Admiral said, rising from his seat surreptitiously tapping his commbadge and speaking quietly as Carl approached. They watched as both Klingon and Romulan Ambassadors left the room, presumably to report proceedings to their relevant governments.

"You think there's something in this 'Changeling' idea?"

"Given neither argued too forcibly, I am tempted to believe so..." Ghes said, helping himself to refreshments, "... Has the El Alamein departed?"

"Yes, I briefed the Intelligence team and Captain Komin, Intel' have carté blanché in their investigations but are to avoid any direct contact with the Ceylanites, a basic information gathering exercise,"

"Do you believe the Ceylanites could be involved?"

"To be honest, I'm not at all sure..." Carl replied as he watched the two Ambassadors reenter the room, making every effort not to cede to his counterpart as they helped themselves to food and drinks, "... I have a feeling that they are both more worried about this 'Changling' issue than they're letting on. No change there obviously, but I wonder if the Ceylanites are about to become pawns in the fighting between those two," he finished with a shrug before retaking his seat.

~~~~~

"Ch'Lor .... I'd like to go back to your previous comment, regarding the 'Shapeshifters' pitting your Races against each other?" Admiral Ketchley said.

"What are you having difficulty with?"

"Well, how do we know the deaths of your colleagues weren't orchestrated by someone in the Klingon hierarchy, to throw the blame on the Romulans?"

Both Gheskori and Torek closed their eyes for a second ... They knew that while Ketchley had earned his rank of Rear Admiral during his service with Starfleet, his experience as an Ambassador was relatively limited. In fact, he had initially been sent to Starbase Forty-Seven to begin honing his skills, essentially earning his diplomatic spurs, so to speak, prior to the Betreka disaster, which had separated the Starbase from the Federation for almost four years, so he had almost no experience in interspecies diplomacy ..... Unfortunately, his last comment showed the fact brilliantly.

For a second Carl wondered how the Klingon Ambassador would react to the obvious slur, alas he didn't have long to wait as Ch'Lor shot out of his seat as be from a cannon and reached over the table, he snatched Ketchley by the throat, throwing the man like a ragdoll across the room as Hazr'vat began to applaud.

Security finally dragged Ch'Lor off Ketchley and secured him against the bulkhead.

"Well, gentlemen..." the Romulan Ambassador said, rising from his seat, "... As much as I am enjoying these theatricals, I have other duties to attend to. Perhaps we can reconvene when we can be assured of a more cordial meeting," he walked out of the room under a verbal barrage from the constrained Klingon.

"Please escort Ambassador Ch'Lor to his quarters," Gheskori instructed the four-man Security detail as a Medic began treating the battered Ketchley.

"What's that saying ..... It never rains ....." Carl said shaking his head ..........

[Iorte Clancy]

Clancy headed for the El Alamein's cramped briefing room and entered, seeing that all the officers were already present, four of the senior staff as well as Tan and de Luca - with Noon and Iezeld below deck. Clancy cleared his throat and tried to smooth creases out of his uniform. "Nice of you to join us, Commander," Komin said and raised an eyebrow, before turning to her first officer who already stood at the wall display the short distance from the conference room table.

Van nodded and turned to the screen, pressing a button, "Our latest information indicates that one ship believed to be of changeling allegiance approached the Ceylanite system 18 days ago. It remained for only a couple days before heading back into Romulan space and being lost from view of our long-range sensor arrays."

"They only sent one vessel? Our intelligence was that they intended to strike at the system militarily," Clancy said.

"It would serve little purpose, Mr Clancy, the Ceylanite system itself doesn't have much strategic value. It's believed by your colleagues at Starfleet Intelligence - in the Federation core - that this was an infiltration mission by the changelings. The Ceylanites seem to keep themselves to themselves, but they're known to have had dealings with the Federation in the past, trading in industries that in their own economy have been quite lucrative for them and in the wider Beta quadrant. Rumour has it they're deeply involved in interstellar black market activities."

"The changelings may have attempted to involve themselves in Ceylanite business dealings?" Captain Komin asked, "Draw off some wealth for themselves?"

"Either that, or they're merely trying to gather intelligence on the Federation, through the Ceylanites. Or maybe both. Perhaps they're also looking for more resources in their struggle with the Romulans." Van pointed at a Beta quadrant map he now put on the screen, "Ok. As for the Ceylanites, they inhabit this corridor between Klingon and Romulan space, not far from the Federation but closer to the two empires than us."

"How long before we pass the nearby fringe of Klingon territory?" Iorte asked. Their route took them quite near a boundary of the Klingon Empire, this particular course being the fastest route to the world of the Ceylanites.

"Approximately nine hours," the helmsman confirmed.

Komin spoke, "The Klingon Empire should be fine with what we're doing. They know we've had our agreements with the Ceylanites in the past, and everyone knows about the changelings' recent visit to the Ceylanite system, so as far as the Klingons are aware, we're just checking on the Ceylanites' wellbeing."

The meeting went on for another half hour, the officers talking on whether the changelings might not be interested in the significant dilithium deposits in an uninhabited system nearby that of the Ceylanites. "Ok, dismissed," the El Alamein CO nodded.

The three Intel officers returned to crew quarters and then to the mess, joining up with Rosa and Iezelda. "Ok, there was a recent visit by the changelings to the Ceylanites, likely a covert infiltration. I think it's possible we may just be dealing with a single changeling," Iorte said as the five sat down at a table.

"If so, we can assume they're long gone now. Can't we? That changeling-allied ship departed the system over two weeks ago," Tan observed.

In any case, the plan was to make contact with the Ceylanite government, though they would only do so once they entered the star system itself. Any long-range transmissions stood a chance of being detected by the Romulans or, just possibly, the changelings, which would cause its problems. The Klingons - tenuous Federation allies - knew about their mission, but the empire had its own interests in the Ceylanites and the adjacent resource-rich star system, so the more they could keep from the Klingons the better....

[Carl Torek]

The ship was small ..... Impossibly small given the functions it was designed to accomplish ..... But more than enough for its single occupant .....

As instructed, he had spent the requisite time in the Capital City of Ceylan'tar II. On several occasions he had secreted himself into the Council Chambers, listening, noting, as the ceylanites had gone about their daily routines. Still, he had learned little thus far, and these wishing for information will undoubtedly be disappointed, but what was he to do, fabricate conspiracies to latch on to?

Now though, something new came into the equation ..... Hours ago, he spotted the Federation Starship approximately five lightyears from Ceylanite Space. It had begun scanning the nearby binary cluster and its lifeless Star System, obviously under the pretext of research no doubt, but he couldn't be fooled so easily, it was no coincidence that the Federation was investigating. The Klingon deaths on their Starbase head proved a useful weapon, and as expected, it had allowed the Federation to insert themselves into yet another situation they had no right to, but here they were, and he would report as such.

~~~~~

It had taken almost three hours for his superiors to reply to his last transmission, thankfully, far from removing themselves, the Starship had now entered Ceylanite Space, though it was still heavily scanning its surroundings, no doubt an excuse if challenged he thought with a smile ..... So, he would visit the ship, and learn what they have learned. Bringing the drive systems online, he turned his vessel towards the newcomer and began his approach .....

"How long before we pass the nearby fringe of Klingon territory?" Iorte asked. Their route took them quite near a boundary of the Klingon Empire, this particular course being the fastest route to the world of the Ceylanites.

"Approximately nine hours," Sharon Yip confirmed.

"The Klingon Empire should be fine with what we're doing. They know we've had our agreements with the Ceylanites in the past, and everyone knows about the changelings' recent visit to the Ceylanite system, so as far as the Klingons are aware, we're just checking on the Ceylanites' wellbeing." Fran Komin said, stifling a yawn. The meeting went on for another half hour, the officers discussing whether the changelings might not be interested in the significant dilithium deposits in the uninhabited system nearby that of the Ceylanites.

"Ok, we've gone through as much as we can, for the time being, dismissed," Komin said, standing.

She, along with the ships' Exec' Milo Van returned to the Bridge, leaving the Intelligence Officers still in discussion. As she took her seat she eyed tom Demik at Tactical, he was frowning, making numerous inputs before repeating the frown. She got up and approached him, looking over his shoulder for a second before speaking:

"Problem, Tom?" she asked.

"..... No, erm..." he replied, then turned to his panel. He brought up readings from moments earlier and pointed, "... Iv'e been keeping a wery eye on both Ceylan'tar Two and Three, half expecting one or both to send a ship out to investigate since we passed into their space, but nothing as yet, then ten minutes ago sensors picked up something, it was there for a fraction of a second then vanished, see, there, at the Lagrange point between the Ceylanite Sun and Ceylan'tar Two."

The El Alamein Captain studied the readings, frowning then squinting as she replayed the five seconds on either side of the anomalous reading.

"Sensor glitch, the glint of a stellar fragment maybe?" she suggested.

"Possibly," Demik said, unconvinced. But with nothing else to go on, he reset the sensor array and continued his duty shift, forgetting the glint a moment later ..........

[Andae Blakus]

Trying out new fighter designs, Sovereign class engines and blocks of bioneural hardware was Blakus's idea of fun, though he'd have liked access to the Starbase's facilities for it with their greater memory capacity, despite how excellent were those on the docked Raven which had now completed its minor refit after the Jalkoth system events.

The engine began running up through the warp factors. "Is she stable?" he called out.

"4.2 teracochranes and climbing fast. Ok, the curve is flattening, I think I can hold it," Milyanov reported back, hurrying around the pool table to see to the various displays.

"Warp 9.5... established. It looks as if we have a stable platform to achieve 9.999." As per design, Andae thought, this particular engine was originally designed for the Luna class, an upgrade on its original propulsion system that virtually made it the fastest in the fleet. If the Raven officers could successfully reverse engineer and customise it, they might hand that honour over to the Sovereign class, and the Raven in particular. He looked at his console, "9.6."

"9.6," Milyanov confirmed and paused as the pool table started blaring with alarms, "Wait a moment, Andae, there's a problem with the intermix. It's the alignment... Ah, antiprotons are packing out the dilithium chamber!"

The abandon ship call would follow at this stage, but given the short time span of this type of crisis it wouldn't do much good. Still, it was possible they could stabilise the system and flush the antiprotons... As Andae thought it the magnetic containment collapsed and fingers of white light burst through the dilithium chamber, quickly saturating all around them until it faded and left him, Milyanov and Christina Taylor standing in the mostly empty hologrid of holodeck 1. "Computer, end program." The small console in the corner controlling the various simulations vanished and the three exited, heading through the corridors towards the main personnel vestibule back to the Starbase.

"We'll run it again tomorrow morning," Andae said to the two engineers who joked again that as first officer he was spending too much time on these projects. They were looking for an exit to the docking ring. "Engineering isn't work, it's a hobby," he replied, and they began to discuss events on the Starbase, in the wider sector, the various topics surrounding the killing of the Klingon ambassador's assistants and the unhappiness of the Romulan ambassador that he was getting the blame.

"Well, didn't you hear?" a passerby, another Starfleet officer called, "There has been another death. Attache Hirvik has been murdered." The assistant to the Romulan ambassador? Andae thought, Well, it seemed obvious that Ch'Lor was responsible, whether or not Ambassador Hazr'vat was responsible for killing the Klingons...

"I'm Lieutenant Janto from the Maracanda. Sorry, I have to get lunch," the woman continued, and paused before she left, "The thing is, the admiralty think it may prove that the Romulans' enemies - not the Klingons but the changeling species - are responsible, trying to set the Klingons and Romulans against each other. But people can't make up their minds whether it's changeling interference or the result of a Klingon vendetta, apparently both possibilities are being investigated."

"Commander Andae Blakus," he introduced himself, "Commander Milyanov, Lieutenant Taylor. We're from the USS Raven. Thank you, Janto. Would you like to accompany us? We're headed to an officer mess anyway. We've been cooped up on our vessel for the last couple days. Perhaps you could tell us more?"

"Well, the head of the Section's Diplomatic Corps has delegated responsibility for mediating between the Klingon and Romulan parties to a more experienced assistant," Janto said as she strode along, "The Romulan ambassador is unsurprisingly furious at the turn of events, but it's said he understands that Ambassador Ch'Lor recently had the same experience... What may have killed the three Klingons, may have killed Hazr'vat's own assistant. Unless of course he and Ch'Lor are engaged in some private war."

"I assume that's what the changelings want us to think," Milyanov said.

"Right," Janto nodded. They reached the designated mess/lounge and found a free table and set of couches, "Bear in mind though that the changelings were encountered by the Romulans in unknown systems the other side of their space to the Klingons, towards galactic north. They're a long way away to be meddling in affairs on Starbase 47."

"Well, plenty of empty space out there for the Romulans' antagonists to come through," Andae replied.

[Sean O'Toole]

The bar had been quite busy all day, Sean and Kara had left around four in the afternoon as they, well, Kara, had shopping to do, for an upcoming wedding they were hosting at O'Toole's, so they had left the bar in the evening shift managers hands ..... They were on Beta Promenade, Sean carrying several large bags as Kara entered one shop after another, each time brandishing yet another bag.

"Want to try that Italian again?" he asked, feeling hungry.

"An Irish man, wanting Italian food, crack on why don't ya," she said, digging him in the ribs .....

O'Toole's Bar & Grill ::


Liam had been on shift for about an hour when the Klingons entered. There were already three Romulans in the bar, all presumably members of the military, they had been overindulging, for want of a better expression, and when the Klingons entered there was a shouting match as they each insisted they had every right to be there. Finally, Liam had gone to the two groups and separated them, making it perfectly clear that any further issues would result in both answering to Starfleet Security.

Reluctantly the two groups separated, the Romulans taking one of the booths, the Klingons planting themselves at the bar demanding copious amounts of blood wine!

Around seven, the Romulans had begun to leave, but not without throwing a few final jibes at the now blind drunk Klingons. They pushed their way through the bars' customers and onto Alpha Promenade, where they looked for the offending Romulans, suddenly, they were spotted and another argument ensued, finally erupting into physical violence ..... Security was informed by members of the public and rushed to the location of the fracas, but by the time they got there one Romulan lay dead! ..... The second had a deep wound in his side, the third was cut and bruised, but of the Klingons, there was no sign.

It appeared to Security a simple case of interracial infighting resulting in the loss of one life, for which the Klingons were prime suspects, and charges were quickly drawn up. But several witnesses had come forward saying they had seen a cloaked, hooded figure goading both the Klingons and Romulans prior to the fight beginning. Security trolled through all available security data in the section where the fight took place but couldn't identify any third party, investigations continued but as a matter of course both Klingon and Romulan authorities were informed of the death.

Sean and Kara got back to the bar around ten in the evening, after enjoying a good meal, entertainment, and 'not' working, Liam informed them of the earlier issue. They said they had heard there had been trouble but at least it was away from the bar, so as far as they were concerned it had nothing to do with them. Liam also said that Security had been in the bar asking why they had served both races, he had 'nicely' points out that 'who' they served was their business, and of no concern to Starfleet Security, pointing out to the two Officers that unless the law had changed, shouting insults across a room wasn't a hanging offence!

"I hope you offered them a drink," Kara said with a wry grin.

"Only twice..." Liam said, shaking his head in dismay, "... But wouldn't you be knowin' it, they only went 'n refused!" he said with a shrug, before walking away to tend to one of the bar's customers. Kara found an empty booth and asked one of the staff to bring them drinks. Sean said he might just check the takings, but changed his mind when she gave him a look that would stamp a definite 'NO' to any 'extra-curricular' activities he might have been expecting once they retired for the night.

It was early the following morning while the two were having breakfast before going down to the bar, that Starbase newsfeed 'hinted' that the deaths of the Klingon Ambassadors Aides, and that of one of the Romulan Ambassadors' Staff, could have been retaliation, an 'eye-for-an-eye' killing that could escalate quickly ..... As they ate breakfast before going down to the bar, Sean wondered how close to the truth the speculation might be ..........

[Carl Torek]

Conference Room Four
Level Fifteen ::

Carl was sitting at the circular table when four Security personnel escorted both Ch'lor and Hazr'vat in ..... To say the two Ambassador's were irate, was a colossal understatement ..... He asked Security to seat the Klingon and Romulan Diplomats opposite each other, then talking over the shouting he instructed the Officers to remain inside the conference room during the meeting behind their respective charges. He sat patiently reading one of several reports on the incident that had occurred two nights previously, where one Romulan Aide was killed and two had been injured. Finally, Ch'lor and Hazr'vat fell silent, both glaring at Torek .....

"Can I assume by your silence that you are ready to begin?" he asked.

"This 'DenIb Qatlh' is accusing me of killing one of his 'Ha'DIbaH' ... I will have his TONGUE for uttering such an insult!" the Klingon spat.

"This 'Dyypan Veruul' is insane, it is 'HE' who brought on the death of my Aide, and the Romulan Star Empire WILL HAVE THEIR REVENGE. Should that mean 'WAR' then so be it!"

"I'm more than happy to allow you two to scream and shout at each other for the foreseeable future..." Carl said, picking up the PADD once more, "... Or ..... You can both accept the fact that there have been both Klingon 'AND' Romulan deaths in the last few days, and try to come to the conclusion that there may be a third party involved, one that would possibly benefit from having you at each others' throats?"

"I have heard this nonsense about a Changling being responsible, it is ludicrous to believe we could be fooled in such a manner," the Klingon Diplomat said, a little too unconvincingly, even for Carl.

"Is this 'Klivam' saying the Romulan Star Empire hired such a species to provoke conflict!?" Hazr'vat asked, addressing his comment to Torek.

"..... And there you go again, slinging insults and accusations ..... Now, what do either of you know in regards to Ceylan'tar Space?"

"It is of no concern to the Federation what plans we may, or may not, have, in regards to the Ceylanites," Ch'lor said, glaring at his opposite number as if to add weight to his comment.

"We too feel the Federation need not be privy to any future dealings with the Ceylanites," Hazr'vat spat.

"Well, I see this is getting us nowhere fast..." Carl said, rising from his chair, motioning for the four Security Officers to approach the table, holding up a hand as both Diplomats glared, "... To be honest, I had thought that allowing you out of your confinement might have mellowed your tempers, but apparently not,"

"You have learned something, what is it?" Ch'lor asked, his eyes narrowing. for a moment Carl remained silent, then asked Security to step back, "... I don't know anything, that's why you two are here,"

"Where is Section Admiral Gheskori, I tire of dealing with, UNDERLINGS!?" Hazr'vat demanded. On any other occasion, Carl would have found it amusing that the Romulan was attempting to goad him into saying something he might regret later, but today wasn't that day, so he just sat completely silent, inwardly smiling when Ch'lor laughed.

"The Section Admiral is busy, so you will have to make do I'm afraid. Of course, if you both insist on his direct involvement then I will arrange it..." Carl said, picking up another PADD before feigning scrolling through the information, "... It seems Gheskori is due to meet with the Federation President next week, and will be departing the Starbase early tomorrow. He expects that if all goes as planned, he will be back here in ten days ..... Give or take," he finished with a shrug.

"This is INTOLERABLE!" the Klingon screamed. This time Carl had had enough, he stood, concluding the meeting.

"Feel free to send word when both of you are willing to hold something approaching a civilised meeting, until then, gentlemen," he finished, walking out of the room to a chorus of threats and insults.

The fact was, the Section Admiral wasn't going anywhere, but they needed to see how serious both Klingon and Romulan Representatives were about getting to the bottom of the murders, and whatever else they could mean ..........

[Gheskori]

Ghes understood some witnesses had reported a cloaked figure in proximity to the Klingons and Romulans before the death of Hirvik, Hazr'vat's aide. Try as they might, they couldn't identify the individual in any visual surveillance records, and internal sensors focussed in that short section of Alpha Promenade picked up only eleven lifesigns - the six combatants and five obvious consumers passing through and stopping in shock at seeing the fight.

"Keep at it," he nodded to Colonel Dupin on his office's terminal screen and went back to considering the subspace talks with three bigwigs - the Federation president, the deputy C-in-C of Starfleet and the new regent of Alpha Centauri, the colony at which the Enzio crew had a somewhat unpleasant time...

The word had been passed around that he was leaving the station to speak with the bigwigs in person; it was useful considering the situation with the Klingon and Romulan ambassadors, Ghes liked to think of it not as misleading the diplomats, but forcing them either into a quick reconciliation before he returned or - dropping all pretence of attempting to talk with one another now they believed Gheskori was gone - unleashing themselves and perhaps revealing more about the case.

"Isn't it odd that those seven, or was it eight? people thought they saw a cloaked figure near the Klingons and Romulans, when our various systems show us nothing?" he asked Lemond who came around to drop off a report on current activities of the Section's whole Intel department.

"Yes... Do you think they're telling the truth?"

Ghes wasn't sure, he said nothing at first and nodded for Lemond to give him the Intel report. She handed him her PADD and spoke. Various Intel jobs were ongoing on the station, as well as some towards the Klingon and Romulan borders. The primary matter though was of course the somewhat secret escapade of the El Alamein towards the Ceylanite system. The Defiant class had been under comms blackout for some time, though by now Lemond expected Komin's crew and Tan's team to have reached their target. What would they find there? Signs of the changelings' presence, recent or current, damage done by espionage or military force? The Starbase would be receiving the first broadcast soon, when the El Alamein crew were fairly sure the nearby Romulan listening stations were looking elsewhere.

"Why would the witnesses lie about what they saw, pretending they saw a cloaked figure, and in individual statements?" Lemond asked as she finished the Intel report.

"I don't say they're lying. But there certainly was no one in the vicinity of the Klingons and Romulans except those five civilians browsing the shops... and two of those civilians were some of those who gave statements. Did they see something near the fighters that we haven't been able to see on the surveillance...?" he wondered aloud and experienced an eerie sensation.

Slightly creeped out, Lemond replied, "I don't know about that... Is it possible those who gave statements were told to say something like this? Someone may have put the lie about the cloaked figure into their mouths."

Ghes shook his head, "For what reason? Misdirection?" It was possible he supposed. He sat up in his chair and quickly sifted through some PADDs as Torek then joined them as per request. Ghes brought Carl up to date on what they had talked about and checked again over the PADDs, "Ok, how many gave statements about the cloaked figure?"

"Seven," Torek said, "Two of the shoppers we can see on the surveillance, four offscreen some way down the length of the promenade, and one on a balcony of a nearby hotel."

"Let's have security question them again, and one Intel officer present at each session additionally," he nodded to Lemond. "Each witness will be interviewed alone, and then all seven of them as a group. Make it clear they're not being investigated, we just need some more information about what they saw."

He hoped Dupin would be able to uncover something, DNA evidence for the first triple murder, some sort of definite motive for the first or the second, anything.

[Iorte Clancy]

The starship shot back its data stream to the distant station some lightyears inside the Federation border. The crew wished the Alpha Quadrant was a little more accessible, at the moment they were closer to the two main empires of the Beta Quadrant than to the Federation and its roughly 200 member worlds.

It was highly unlikely the stream could be intercepted or interpreted, being sent in a burst finer than the most constricted laser or phaser beam and the information encrypted to one of the highest levels possible. It was beyond the Romulans and Klingons' current technology level, so they'd have to quickly come into possession of more than one piece of advanced tech to have any sort of chance.

What did the ship have to report to Starbase 47? First it let the admiralty know that it was now thought a changeling vessel or a craft in the liquid entities' service - if not necessarily something natively built - was sitting at the Ceylanite system's planet-Sun Lagrangian point... It was the only explanation for the ghosts of warp signatures that seemed to track to and from that stationary point within the system of bodies in motion towards the Romulan border, precisely in the direction that would lead to the changelings' own space.

Another clue was the intermittent detection of an actual object at the Lagrangian point. It seemed to be a small ship, perhaps four times the volume of a Starfleet torpedo tube or escape pod... possibly an unmanned probe and observation tool, or something else with enough space and life support for one or two people. If personnel were present and the species was changeling, then - being similar to the Gamma quadrant-dwelling Founders - they wouldn't be expected to need machinery for life support, so two of the changelings might be aboard (assuming of course anyone was aboard at all).

Clancy considered these things as he pored over the report from tactical officer Demik and the El Alamein's science staff.

Perhaps it was worth trying to beam any possible occupants of the craft aboard; despite not being able to see the ship properly, a broad sweep with the El Alamein's transporter system - having it target organic or shapeshifting matter - should take any beings on to the Defiant class vessel, assuming of course that the craft's shields weren't raised or any other inhibiting device wasn't in place aboard it. Who would the El Alamein end up grabbing, if anybody? A mercenary of whatever species or one or two changelings?

The data stream to the starbase continued, beaming the rest of its gigaquads of information - as copies from the El Alamein's computer core - via a subspace channel... The ship's crew had let SB47 know that they'd contacted the Ceylanites themselves... After descending briefly closer to establish their comm with the surface in relative privacy, the El Alamein now held station in a very high orbit of Ceylan'tar II, the mercantile species' homeworld.

The planetary government hadn't exactly warned them away, as reportedly happened to a great many ships that visited this star system, and had given the El Alamein crew 'leave to pursue commercial advantage' for the next two Federation standard weeks, at which time they would unfortunately have to depart unless they'd made new mercantile contacts and some trading arrangement was reached that required them to stay.

"We strongly believe that a hostile species may have recently visited your star system," Komin had said to the governor, "They are antagonists of the Romulans. Are you aware of them? We believe they may still be here, at the Lagrangian point between here and your sun."

The Ceylanite governor had chuckled. He said he didn't know anything about any hostile species, Which makes sense, Komin had thought... an agent of the changelings, or one or more changelings themselves, had been or were currently here in secret anyway.

The governor had told the Starfleet captain that she should enjoy her stay and try to make her business contacts while she could. With that the El Alamein had acknowledged and climbed out to a higher orbit and had started the data stream to SB47.

The governor had closed the channel his end and returned from the control room to his office, necessarily alone. Once inside, making sure no real Ceylanite was going to try to enter and that all his office's surveillance devices remained deactivated, he reverted to his natural liquid state. So Starfleet have come, and so has another, the changeling now thought in the cold silver of his pool on the office floor. The solids - Ceylanite and Starfleet officers alike - could engage in their petty bartering; he had to make contact with whoever of his people was at the Lagrangian.

[David Tan]

"We strongly believe that a hostile species may have recently visited your star system..." Komin had said to the governor, "...They are antagonists of the Romulans. Are you aware of them? We believe they may still be here, at the Lagrangian point between here and your sun."

The Ceylanite governor had chuckled. He said he didn't know anything about any hostile species, 'Which makes sense' Komin had thought... 'An agent of the changelings, or one or more changelings themselves, had been or were currently here in secret anyway'. Before concluding the Comm, he had told the Starfleet Captain that she should enjoy her stay and try to make her business contacts while she could. With that, the El Alamein had acknowledged and climbed out to a higher orbit and started the data stream to SB47 .....

The Intelligence Officers had sat out of sight of the communication console on Komin's desk during the conversation. Once closed, David remained silent, seemingly deep in thought:

"David ....." Captain Komin prompted.

"David ....." she repeated, this time he looked up, realising someone was speaking to him.

"Sorry, mind drifted there for a moment," he apologised, seeing his colleagues grinning as if he'd been caught doing something he shouldn't by a teacher.

"You seemed concerned about the conversation..." Komin commented, rising to request 'coffee - black' from the replicator, "... Something bothering you?" she asked as she retook her seat.

"Yes... No... To be honest... I'm not sure. The Governor seemed sincere enough, there was just, I don't know, it was one of those things you can't instantly put your finger on," he said with an apologetic shrug.

"Well, he did say we can try to establish trade contacts with the civilians, which I'm taking as permission to send an away team down there," Fran said, sipping at the almost scalding liquid and making a mental note to lower the default temperature of her coffee by a degree or two.

"I'm tempted to agree, but why suddenly give us, a Starfleet vessel, permission? ..... To our knowledge they've turned away countless ships vying for trade concessions, most notably the Ferengi, so why us?" David said, still trying, and failing, to pinpoint his nagging feeling enough to vocalise it. Their last report should have reached both Starfleet Headquarters on Earth, and Starbase Forty-Seven, so maybe someone there will have a suggestion.

"Did you see how he reacted when we informed him of a possible unknown...?" Elena asked, seeing the other nod, "... Was it just me, or did he seem completely unconcerned?"

"Well he's not likely to divulge any worries he has to us, is he?" Rosa Noon commented.

"Maybe we should investigate this unknown ourselves?" Iezelda suggested.

"No ..... If we go after the one thing we gave the Governor, he might ask why. He made it clear it wasn't any concern to him or the Ruling Council and might take offence if we go off investigating..." the Captain said, pausing for a moment as she glanced out of the window at the planet far below, "... The Commerce Region of Ceylan'tar II is still on the nightside, so we'll wait until sunrise on the surface then discuss sending a team down for 'exploratory' trade talks,"

"Just out of curiosity, what are we trying to purchase, or sell for that matter?" David asked, a wry smile forming.

"According to what records we have, Ceylan'tar II leans towards technology, while things like consumables are traded on Ceylan'tar I," Rosa Noon commented.

"OK, unless there's anything else, let's call it a night, what's left of it..." Komin said, standing as David nodded they had nothing else, "... We'll reconvene at zero nine hundred tomorrow and see what we can come up with," ..........

Over the last six days, he had been inside the Council Chambers of both Governments, on Ceylan'tar I, and Ceylan'tar II ..... He had learned very little to help him advance any agenda his Rulers deemed necessary. On the fourth day, he had been walking the corridors of Ceylan'tar II when he was passed by someone. For a second he had the distinct feeling of concern and he paused, turning to look at the man who had passed him seconds earlier, but there was no sign of anyone. Retracing his steps he paused to glance into each open doorway, but couldn't find the man he was looking for, so reluctantly he had turned and left, moments later materialising on his cloaked vessel .....

Now he was holding position: fifty metres above, and one hundred metres astern of the Federation vessel.

He had been aboard twice since their arrival, each time taking the form of a sleeping crewman ..... Had he been inclined to report them, his actions would have undoubtedly been a cause for concern amongst those in charge, so he had taken it upon himself to act as he felt fit. As long as he was able to gather information 'and' remain undiscovered, he saw no issue in his actions ..........

[Gheskori]

Arriving at the conference room, Gheskori left ADC Barton at the door giving him last minute instructions on the response to the El Alamein's report from the Ceylan'tar system. He nodded to his aide and entered the room to find the returned Samia Cavit finishing watching the praetor's execution of the Romulan rebels.

The idea was to show her Section 11's USS River City, now docked at the Starbase undergoing final construction. Having lost the opportunity for a command in a different sector some months back, it'd been decided the River City would be Cavit's in two month's time if she could see to her troubles with the bottle. Gheskori really intended that she should stay with her impending Section 47 vessel as navigation officer, though of course the choice would be hers.

They left the bridge of the new starship and headed for the state of the art sickbay, then they took in the Century class's astrometrics, Ghes pleased Samia seemed so enthusiastic. He had the galactic map zoom in on Tholian space and the unexplored zone beyond it, working the display panel and plotting a trajectory the River City would follow as it charted the vast new region.

He smiled, "Impressive, isn't it? We'd have to be careful though, the agreement worked out with the Tholians means the USS River City will need their permission to enter new star systems."

Ghes thought she would be alright in their own Section, of course he hadn't told her that her replicator usage would be monitored for the next couple weeks but he suspected she knew already. "In any case, I'll have your assignment here worked out shortly. Most of our operational vessels are at the Starbase at the moment and the crews are on shore leave, so you'll probably find your new crewmates somewhere on the station."

Cavit nodded and they began to depart astrometrics, having time for a cup of coffee in the mostly unfurnished mess hall before the Denobulan departed back to the base's command centre.

* * *

"Ok, what do we have?" he asked as he climbed the steps of the platform in the middle of the command centre.

Having been watching the large screens, Barton and the Starbase's Chief Tactical Officer turned to him. "Deep space sensor arrays just confirmed it, the Klingons have sent a squadron of Birds of Prey led by a Negh'var class towards the Ceylanite system," the aide said.

Despite knowing about the El Alamein's presence there, and having agreed to its mission? Ghes wondered. He'd expected the Romulans would've been the ones to react, but perhaps they were none the wiser as to the Defiant class's entry into the narrow corridor between the two empires. "Do they have hostile intent, do we know? Speed, intercept course?"

"Listening outposts can't tell that from this range, Admiral, though I doubt they'd send a Negh'var class battleship into action without it at least being intended as a show of force..." the tactical chief replied.

Ghes considered bringing Torek up to the command centre, though he was still helping Lemond with the investigation into the killings of the Klingon and Romulan ambassadorial staff. The Denobulan guessed he wouldn't hit the alarm button just yet but would wait to see how the Klingons approached the Ceylanite system. In case things went awry they did have the USS Maracanda on emergency stand-by.

He wondered on the wisdom in giving their tenuous allies the Klingons information on the El Alamein's objective. He'd tried to argue for a totally covert op but had been overruled by the Starfleet C-in-C.

[Carl Torek]

Level Nine
Command Centre Main Floor ::

"OK, what do we have?" the Section Admiral asked as he approached the other around the Tactical holo-display table ... He nodded briefly to Carl with an expression Torek couldn't quite put his finger on.

"Deep space sensor arrays just confirmed it, the Klingons have sent a squadron of Birds of Prey led by a Negh'var class towards the Ceylanite system," Gheskori's Aide, Commander Barton said.

"Well, you can always rely on the Klingons to go charging in like proverbial bulls in china shops!" Carl said with a grin.

"Do they have hostile intent?"

"Listening outposts can't tell that from this range, Admiral, though I doubt they'd send a Negh'var class battleship into action without it at least being intended as a show of force..." the Duty Tactical Officer replied.

"So at this point, we can be pretty sure they haven't spotted the El Alamein...?" Carl said, changing his position slightly to get a better look at the star plot and the vessels highlighted, "... Given the lack of attention the Romulans seem to be giving the region, I don't think it wise to inform wither side of our presence, at least not at this stage," he said, unknowingly voicing Gheskori's concerns.

"Do we have anything else closer?"

"Nothing Admiral," Captain Helgesen said.

"Communications... Contact the El Alamein on a secure channel, and inform them that they are about to have company... If they don't already know that is," Carl ordered. He was about to continue when one of the Security Personnel approached:

"Commander?" Carl said as Gheskori continued to study the holographic display.

"Admiral, Ambassador Ch'lor is 'demanding' to speak with the Section Admiral, I did say he might be indisposed, but he, insisted," the woman informed him.

"Tell the Ambassador that the Section Admiral is busy and direct him to Commander Barton to arrange an appointment," Carl ordered, grinning at the expression on the Aide's face at the prospect of a confrontation with an irate Klingon.

"Yes, Admiral," the Commander replied turning to leave.

"Commander..." Torek said, forcing the woman to turn around, "... He didn't ask to speak to me?"

"I 'believe' he made some vague suggestion, the Klingon equivalent of 'organ-grinders and monkeys' though I could be mistaken, my Klingon isn't all that good, Admiral," she turned and walked away as everyone around the table grinned.

"Hmm... Seems I'm out of favour with our Klingon Ambassador..." Carl said, feigning hurt as he turned back to the display, "... Captain Komin's last report said they had made contact, and after a little talking, they were given permission to go to the surface of Ceylan'tar II, they're preparing to send away teams on the pretext of looking for 'trade opportunities' ..... You think the Klingons will go in firing?"

"No....." the Starbase Chief of Operations said, "... They will undoubtedly barge into Ceylan'tar space unannounced, but unless they have some absolutely solid evidence of something amiss then they will be forced to sit there sucking their collective thumbs. There's no way they have anything that would allow them to undertake an all-out attack, the ramifications don't bare thinking about, even for the Klingons," Helgesen concluded.

"I have to agree..." Carl said, wondering if it was pure coincidence that Ch'lor was stamping his heavy-booted foot all of a sudden, "... What's that?" he asked, pointing at two new indicators on the holographic display.

"Two Valdore Class Warships, they are approaching Ceylan'tar Space," the Tactical Officer confirmed.

"They don't seem in any hurry," Commander Barton said.

"Hmm ..... Possibly waiting to see what kind of a mess the Klingons get themselves into before showing any hand?" Gheskori speculated.

"OK, let's keep a close eye on the Klingons... Plot the two Romulans too, if they make any overt move toward the Klingons inform me," Torek ordered, glancing at the Section Admiral, "... Should I tell Ch'lor you can see him now?" Gheskori gave him a withering look then turned away. Smiling, Carl looked at the plot once more before turning to walk up the ramp to the mezzanine level and his office ..........

[Calli Valente]

O'Tooles Bar & Grill ...
Alpha Promenade
Level 1551 ::

The Raven had been in Spacedock for almost three months now ..... Calli had spent most of her time aboard, despite the threats from Andae Blakus to have her chained to the bar at O'Tooles to keep her away from the ship .....

She had been dividing her time between her assignment on the Raven, and that of her role as an Intelligence Officer, making daily trips up to the Command Levels and the Intelligence Offices, but even there it seemed her services were not required. Admiral Lemond, her boss and Director of intelligence, had even gone as far as to 'suggest' she take a break away from the Raven, and, the Starbase.

Had she been prone to bouts of paranoia, she 'might' have thought that they were trying to get rid of her! ..... So, despite her genuinely wanting to learn as much as she could about starship operations, she had finally given in, and after going to her quarters to shower and change, she had walked off the ship .....

"So let me be gettin' this straight..." Kara, the bar's Manager said, an exaggerated frown forming, "... You're thinkin' that everyone on the Raven is pretty much 'soooooo' sick of the sight of you popping up here there and everywhere, that they reported you to command in an effort to rid themselves of your pesterin' ways?"

"Pretty much," Calli replied, sipping at the cognac.

"Well, we both know that's complete rubbish... Sure, you've got a tad of a tendency to be a right pain in the ol'e royal arse at times, never seeming to get the hint, if you know what I'd be meanin' ..." Kara said, trying to keep her face straight but failing miserably, "... They're lookin' out for you my girl, nuthin' more, nuthin' less, and if you ask me, which you aren't, you should take the hint. That bloody ship isn't your whole life,"

"Yes, I suppose your right," Calli said after a moment's contemplation.

"OK .... Good .... Now, how about I find you a nice young man to be keepin' you, company?"

"No need, he's already here," Calli replied with a smile as Sean, the bar's owner approached, kissing her on the cheek before kissing his Fiancé Kara.

"She's sulking," Kara said. Sean turned to Calli and asked if kara was right.

"No ..... Honestly, I just felt a little sorry for myself, the ships still undergoing upgrades and aren't due out anytime soon. Intel' doesn't seem to have anything for me to work on..." Calli said, suddenly realising how pathetic her whining sounded. She downed the glass and tapped it on the bar for a refill as the night's entertainment began their first set. The band, Irish, began with a lively ditty that despite her feeling sorry for herself, got Calli tapping her foot, and when Sean dragged her reluctantly off her stool and onto the dance floor, her melancholy faded quickly and it wasn't long before she was thoroughly enjoying herself ..........

[David Tan]

USS El Alamein ...
Ceylanite Space ::

"Just out of curiosity, what are we trying to purchase, or sell for that matter?" David had asked, a wry smile forming.

"According to what records we have, Ceylan'tar II leans towards technology, while things like consumables are traded on Ceylan'tar III," Rosa Noon commented.

"OK, unless there's anything else, let's call it a night, what's left of it..." Komin had said, standing as David nodded they had nothing else, "... We'll reconvene at zero nine hundred tomorrow and see what we can come up with,"

~~~~~~~~~~

Hanging close to the Federation vessel, the changing listened to their internal communication ..... According to their chronometers, it was the early hours of the morning - Almost zero one thirty hours - Stepping onto the single-person transporter, he activated the device using his wrist controller, and a second later he materialised in an empty part of the Defiant Class Starship .....

Deck Two:

He had chosen this corridor intentionally as it contained the Crew Quarters for those aboard. Approaching one door, he listened for the tell-tale regular low breaths that signified the occupant was asleep. Adjusting his molecular configuration, he slipped into the darkened room and approached the sleeper. Slowly, he placed a 'hand' over the man's mouth had concentrated for several seconds until he was sure the man would not wake unexpectedly. Standing he again changed his outward appearance ..... Satisfied he was a duplicate of the sleeping man, he left the room and made his way toward the ship's Mess Hall:

Despite the hour, two men were sitting at one of the tables, he walked to the replicator with a brief nod at the two. Ordering a 'coffee' he sat down behind the men, intent on listening to their conversation when one turned:

"Hey Finch, I thought you were on the early shift," the man said.

"Yes, couldn't sleep so I thought a quiet drink might help,"

"Well that won't," the second man said with a grin as he pointed at the cup of coffee. Deciding to seem uninterested in conversation, the Changling gave a Human 'shrug' and looked at the cup. His looking away seemed to be enough to silently tell the other two he wasn't interested in conversation, so they resumed what they had been talking about before he'd arrived:

"Anyway..." the first man said, turning his back on Finch "... I just don't get why we have to go down there playing shopper,"

"Hmm, well, ours not to reason why I suppose... All part of some big Intelligence operation, I'll say this, at least they at least keep us in the loop, that's one good thing about the group we have aboard," the second replied.

"I suppose so... You think there's anything in the rumours that someone is trying to start an all-out war between the Klingons and Romulans?"

"Who knows, it wouldn't take much that's for sure, both of them could jump at the chance of a conflict without too much provocation, especially those bloody Klingons," the second man replied. The Changling inwardly grinned: 'If only they knew who, what, was sat behind them' he thought.

"Are any of us accompanying Intelligence to the surface later...?" the first man asked, jabbing his companion in the arm when he didn't reply, "... You listening?"

"What? ... Oh sorry. I was just thinking about that glitch that showed up on the long-range sensors earlier today, Tom was certain it was more than just some echo or signal reflection," he said as he stood and placed his empty cup on the replicator, "... Anyway, we're both on early so I'll say goodnight,"

"Yeh, night....." the other replied as they headed for the door. The Changling watched as the two left him alone, then he stood and made his way cautiously down to Engineering. There were only two Officers on duty, and both were occupied with routine maintenance. He concealed himself in the shadows, then took a small device from his tunic, he placed it out of sight. Satisfied, he transported back to his ship. Once there he checked for the transponder signal, and satisfied he could now remotely monitor El Alameins' communications with their Federation Masters, he returned to a more comfortable shape and ate a meal of his own ..........

Zero Nine Hundred Hours ...
Deck Two - Mess Hall ::

"OK, anyone any thoughts on what would prove to be problematic for the good folks of Ceylan'tar Two to supply?" Fran Komin asked as she looked around the table ..........