Star Trek: The Nara-Maru Files
A Deadly Betrayal
In the year 2561...
Living longer then most of her species by decades, Asami Hirayama had seen and done many things throughout her extended life which had been given too her as almost a gift by the one who was her daughter, from an alternate timeline that she had witnessed over a century ago. The United Federation of Planets had expanded in all directions beyond anyone's expectations as technology had advanced at an incredible rate as worlds where welcomed into the Federation with open arms as the large Super-Power covered the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, with the exception of the tiny Iolian Unity. Although the two powers had an Alliance Treaty, supporting each other and trading technology, the Iolian Unity had refused membership within the Federation many times in favour of remaining independent, especially since the Federation had encountered more hostile species in their expansion of their sphere of influence across the galaxy. Enveloping the former Romulan and Klingon Empires along with the Cardassian Union, the Federation now looked at the Gamma and Delta quadrants with hungry eyes.
Shuffling through the place she had called home since it had been built too hers and her late wife, Teela's specifications more then a century ago, she could feel the long darkness approaching even more so since Teela's death fourteen months earlier. With help from her great-granddaughter, Asami climbed into her bed with a sigh and groan as she finally managed to force out a smile for the first time since Teela's death.
"Thank you, my dear" Asami said as she gasped for breath. "Will you please, do me a favour?"
"Anything, whatever you ask" The young woman said with a tearful smile on her face.
"The long night is close, please… gather everyone. There is something that you should all know before I… before I die"
"Nonsense Asami, you still have many decades ahead of you" Wept the young woman who was named after beloved late wife.
"I have lived longer then most Humans or Betazoids will ever live and when, when my life long friend, partner and wife was taken from me, I knew… I knew that my time was close. Please my dear, honour my dying request as you would for anyone else?"
"Of course"
"You know, you have more then her name, you look a little like Teela when I first met her. In many ways, you remind me of her, you always have…" Asami said almost weakly.
"She was… she was an amazing and strong woman. I have lived my life by her code of honour and yours"
"Do not tell anyone that I said this my dear. You have always been my favourite… you have always been there for me, when my life is over… enter my private vault, everything which is in there… will be yours"
Slowly pacing the room with her arms behind her back, the young woman laughed as she turned and face Asami with a smile as she spoke.
"Of course, but it will take sometime to bring everyone…"
"I know nevertheless my time is short… you must hear what I have to say and tell Kaila, tell my daughter and everyone my, my confession. What Teela and I did and how we almost destroyed a world from our arrogance and stupidity"
"Asami, you have done nothing wrong…"
"No child, what I have done in the past has far exceeded the horrors of what I once saw…"
185 Years Earlier…
It had been exactly two years to the day since the Dominion War ended and finally the United Federation of Planets had almost rebuilt its forces as once again, Starfleet continued with its mandate of exploration however, the loss of life in such a brutal war had cost the Federation and all concerned greatly. On the planet of Cardassia Prime with a Civilian Casualty rating of over Eight Hundred Million dead, perhaps the greatest loss of life on any world after the dominion forces turned their weapons onto the planet itself as punishment.
Although they remained away from the war itself, Iolia still held a casualty list including the heir to the Regency himself. After the narrowly avoiding the near fatal accident which could have sent the galaxy into yet another war, Asami Hirayama and her Iolian wife Teela sold their shipping business contracts to another before fulfilling their dream of owning a Construction Yard. With orders flowing into their business from all over the two quadrants for their unique class of civilian vessels, the Archer-Nara class transport ships had begun to be delivered throughout the Alpha and Beta Quadrants to their new owners.
As a part of a sales pitch for new prospective clients, a holographic recording of the two owners had been created while Asami and Teela stood in what had become their new home's private holo-suite which was primarily used for training and new ideas for their growing business.
"… So as you can see, the new class of civilian transport vessels will be specifically designed for each prospective client, designed for your own needs…" Teela said with a large smile towards the Holo-Camera.
"Whatever your needs, we are sure that we can modify a vessel for you. Be it cargo transportation, civilian transportation or personal vessel, the new design of Archer-Nara Class ships are the way forward for civilian use. Written into this program of which you are currently observing is a brief walkthrough of our new vessel class…"
"And should you choose Del-Corp for your next purchase of Civilian Transport, we can be reached at Iolia, contact the Hirayama Family Corporation or the Iolian Transport Ministry. Thank you for your time, and thank you for choosing our product, we hope to hear from you soon" Teela said before the two bowed slightly with respect.
"That's it, You're all done Aunt Teela" Called out a proud and tall Iolian male. "I shall send these out shortly to those who have expressed interest in your product"
"Thank you Julan. Let's hope this brings in more interest"
"I don't know Teela, I hate doing business this way… but I've got admit, it's an interesting way of reaching new clients"
"I know Sam. I know you prefer the hands on approach with everything. Oh, which reminds me… did you take a look at Starfleet's proposal?" Teela replied as she held her hand gently.
"Not yet, I haven't had the chance. I've been… so busy lately, I can barely sit down. Brief it for me?"
"I know, we haven't had much time for each other lately. But you're going to like this one… yep, you're going to like this a lot!" Teela said as she led her out of the holo-suite and towards their home office.
Slumping into the large chair behind the ancient wooden desk which she had brought from her from her family home on Earth, Teela sat on the desk facing her as she placed an Iolian tablet in her hands with a smile as she spoke.
"Starfleet wants to run a military exercise close to DS-9, they heard your claims that the Nara-Maru is more efficient then their Defiant Class, they want to test your theory"
"Are you kidding me? The Nara has always been the superior class, granted… she's not designed for combat, but she can give the Defiant a run for her money. Granted, her weapons are not as powerful as a Warship, but with her hull-armour and superior manoeuvrability… we could create some serious damage… in theory of course" Asami said as she read the file before her.
"In theory, anything is possible. In theory, I can throw a Starship in space with my middle finger alone… in practice, I can't" Teela said as she laughed.
"You know I went over all of this with Miles O'Brian a few months ago, when I was on Earth" Asami said with a smile.
"When you see O'Brian?"
"I told you about it, you where at Starfleet Command, going over the Alliance Treaty and he asked me to give a guest lecture at the Academy on Iolian Construction methods? Don't tell me you don't remember?"
"I must've forgotten, this last year has been a whirlwind…"
Laughing slightly, Teela slipped off of the large desk and straightened her dress as she walked towards the door with a smile as she spoke with a soft tone and a large smile on her face.
"It's getting late and we have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow. Come to bed?"
"I can't, I've gotta a lot of work to catch up on" Asami said slowly.
Walking out of the office with a slight smile on her face, Teela disappeared from sight as moments later, the dress she was wearing landed outside the office door as her footsteps faded slowly on the marble floor as she spoke into Asami's mind 'Your loss'. Smiling to herself, Asami returned to the seemingly endless pile of work she had been putting off for weeks as she pulled on an old pair of glasses.
For almost eight hours, she signed the many requisition forms which had come past her desk. Although the work was mainly computerised, something which had always annoyed those around her and those who worked for the family was the fact that she had almost demanded that requisition forms be submitted in paper form and required her personal signature of which she used an antique fountain-pen handed down to her from through family line. Made of 24 karat white gold, with a yellow gold writing tip, it was one of the few things which had survived through the years from the early 21st Century and given to her ancestor by an author, long since forgotten although the inscription was barely visible it read 'Semper Enim' meaning 'Always Busy' in the ancient Earth language of Latin.
Four Hours Later…
After her usual meditation, Teela slept in the large lavish bed they both shared awoken quickly as Asami entered the room and leapt onto their bed with laughter in her voice and a large smile on her face while she shook her wife awake. Stirring slowly, Teela slowly opened her eyes as she saw Asami sit by her side with excitement.
"Ohh, what? What time is it?"
"Ohh, umm… 0315 hours" Asami said with excitement.
"What? It's to early. You know I haven't slept in days… I need at least eight hours this time" She said as she rolled over.
"Ohh, forget that, listen up… I've just spoken with Admiral House at Starfleet Command. They want to test our theory, you where right"
"What theory?" Teela through a yawn as she sat up slowly.
"The Nara-Maru against one of their ships. I told them she's down for maintenance for a few weeks, possibly a month, but when she's ready… they're calling in some war-games. They have a few ships they want to use at DS9..." Asami said quickly as she blinked rapidly.
"What? What the hell is wrong with you Sam?"
"Ohh Ahh… a few cups of that Coffee you like so much. I think I'm getting used to it now. Listen, we can do this, I've worked out a scenario with Command, they are eager to test this out, DS9 is out of the way and is the perfect set up" Asami said, almost rambling through her words.
"Slow down, slow down… test what? What about DS9?"
"What? Ohh, hang on… where is that damned thing… ohh here it is"
Reaching behind herself, Asami placed a large Iolian designed computer tablet into Teela's hands as it instantly activated with a mission brief of the suggested war-games. Sitting next to Teela, Asami could not sit still as her wife read over the display while Asami called out everything on the tablet.
"It's possible, it could be done. What is this they are thinking of over Bajor?"
"Wait, what, where? Ohh that is a drone they are going to put in orbit. First we destroy that, considering it an attack on the planet itself. Afterwards, we move towards DS9 and attack the station, simulated of-course. Assuming that we get past the vessels they are putting around the station, the Defiant and a few others. When we are ready, Starfleet will send us an observer for our part. None of the others onboard any ship or DS9 itself will know that we are the ones who will attack them… except an observer on each ship and the station of course. If we destroy the drone and neutralise the station, we set course towards a… 'Safe-Zone' outside the system which will single the end of the war-game, once we activate the buoy which will be in place"
"It could be done. How long did you say we would be out of commission for?" Teela said with a large smile on her face.
"Roughly a month, it would take Starfleet that long to arrange things, shall we do it? We could put those upgrades on the Nara we've been talking about? Her shields, new weapons and so on. It'll be fun!"
Nodding slowly as she yawned, Teela looked at the display once again as Asami pushed a control on the tablet itself as the display changed and a human face appeared on the screen wearing a Starfleet Uniform. Instantly, Teela leapt under the covers as the Admiral smiled before looking away, noticing that she was wearing nothing as Asami laughed.
"Umm… Should I call back?" Called out the Admiral.
"No-no it's fine" Teela said as she emerged from the covers, holding them over her bare chest. "You could've warned me he was waiting…"
"That was more fun…" Asami laughed. "Admiral Jonathon House, my wife… Teela"
"A pleasure Ma'am. I find Asami's plan… interesting, with the recent conflicts with the Dominion and the ever present threat of the Borg, a little war-game is a good way of shaking off the dust, so to speak"
"Yes, she generally acts without thinking lately. It could be done… how many ships are you thinking of sir?" Teela said with interest as she blushed deeply with her own embarrassment.
"Perhaps four, counting the Defiant, mixed classes of ships to get a wider range of capabilities and possibilities. I know that Mrs Hirayama has Starfleet Training and you served within your own planet's military for a long time. When you are ready, I will be at Deep Space Nine as an observer. We have a lot of excited people back here ladies, myself as one of them. The vessels you had been using throughout your cargo run days, had developed a reputation amongst Starfleet… I have just completed reading your file. You had the USS Enterprise running in circles for days before they found you. Very impressive"
"Thank you sir…" Asami said quickly. "One thing, I think I mentioned it earlier. No one other then the observers are to know that WE are the target, only that a threat has been made against the station, simulated of-course"
"Of course. I assume that you will have a battle plan ready in time?"
"Trust me sir, if my idea works, they will never even know that it was us… and for everyone's sake, I hope that I am wrong on that one. This should be fun and it's good to see you again sir. When it is over, you have to come out here, spend a few weeks leave. We should catch up Admiral"
"I will do that Sam, talk to you soon. Starfleet out"
As the screen went blank, Teela handed Asami the tablet as she sat up slowly with a slight smile on her face as she spoke.
"You know him?"
"Yeppers! When I was at the Academy he was my instructor, he ran the Kobayashi Maru test. I had the biggest crush on him back then, he was so dark and mysterious. Ohh, don't pout, he's nothing compared with you. He was so disappointed when I left Starfleet, I had an offer not long after to return as his Chief Engineer, I got the message two weeks later but it was too late…"
"Regrets honey?" Teela said, faking a frown.
"Hell no! I met you not long after, and look at what we've built since… we have a mini-little empire here. I married the most beautiful woman in the entire galaxy, actually a real Princess… and the tech that we have found and created together, has changed the lives of everyone on this planet and neighbouring colonies" Asami said with a large smile on her face. "You must've had a few people in your life before me. Actually, you never talk about your past, why?"
"I… Actually, before you… there was no-one else, I was so deep in my work that I never found the time. Ohh granted, I did fall in love once but I knew that he wasn't right for me. I wanted something, someone different and from the first moment I saw you, I knew that you where something special and when my ship was taken from me… I knew that it had to be you… Ohh, please don't sing that damned song!"
"Just for you, I won't sing. We've never… really talked like this have we? But, since you're awake… and it'll take a few days for this coffee to work through my system, a bath I think… and then, let's have some fun!" Asami said with a wink.
One Month Later…
Arriving at the Rendezvous point, the Nara-Maru awaited the arrival of the Starfleet vessel USS Carpathia, an aging and decommissioned Excelsior Class Starship currently assigned to Starfleet Academy as a training vessel for Cadets. After the upgrades and a month long refit of their vessel, the Nara-Maru was now ready for action in the War-Games designed to test their abilities against a more formidable enemy.
Sitting comfortably in her seat, Asami looked at Teela with a smile as she spoke with a calm and soothing tone in her voice.
"Did you give any further thought to my idea?"
"I did, but how? We are not exactly… compatible Sam"
"I know Teela, but… I want us to have a child, somehow. We could offer an amazing life for any child, look at what we have now. Cloning may be out of the question, but-but we could adopt a baby? I want someone to share everything we have together"
"Adopt? Iolian orphans never come up, rarely anyway… and with my lifespan, I could not loose a child, it will be hardest of all to loose you. Saying that, I've looked into cloning techniques, don't say anything to anyone… it could be considered illegal babes. After the… renegade Jem'Hadar incident, our fleet found their cloning facility and took it home. It's your human side that is incompatible with my own. I would love nothing more then have a son or daughter with you, but right now sweetheart, we have… other things to do. Picking up a vessel approaching, it's the Carpathia. They are requesting permission to beam two persons onboard. Looks like we're about to have guests"