A danger for another night
"Captain, the ambassador is ready for you." Data's calm voice said over the comm. Picard stood up and adjusted his uniform.
"Thank you, Mister Data." He left his quarters and made his way to the docking bay. Uniformed security guards surrounded the entrance, led by that irrefutable Klingon, Worf. Picard nodded at Worf. The doors opened and the ambassador, Shirom of the distant planet Olpeni 3, made her way through the door, humorously waving away her guards and advisors. Picard smiled a bit. Her long flowing gown bore the mark of Olpeni 3, while her guards wore dark red suits, the arms reminiscent of the early Starfleet uniforms of Captain Kirk. The gold stripes at the cuff were, Picard assumed, signs of rank
. "Captain." Shirom said, her voice sounding perfectly human. Her face was humanoid, two ridges going down the side of her face, starting from the temple down to her cheek. She smiled and her bluish gray lips parted.
"Ambassador." He said, taking her by the hand to escort her into his ship. "Don't be so formal, Captain, call me Shirom." She said, smiling. Behind her, her advisors and guards were twitching nervously. It happened every time they were encountering a different race, especially one with uh, hostile tendencies. And it certainly didn't help with their royal ambassador being so friendly. They were on their way back to Earth for a treaty, things were going good so far.
"Only if you call me Jean-Luc." He said, and she nodded. "Let us show you the ship." He said to her.
"Of course, it's a magnificent ship. We saw it from outside, my guards were absolutely frightened." She laughed a bit. "They were all trading stories of past wars and adventures this ship as gone through. I must say, quite impressive." Picard smiled and led her away from Worf and the rest of the team.
"Captain on board." Commander Riker said. He stood up to greet the captain. "The ambassador?"
"Having a delightful conversation with Guinan in Ten Forward." He said in amusement.
"Really? I think that's the first time that's happened, an ambassador being so friendly, I mean." Riker sat down as Picard did.
"Well, she's nothing if very relaxed. Doesn't look like someone who was just attacked by the Romulans."
"The Federation should help things." Riker said, his voice tinged with uncertainty.
"Sir, we are picking up a distress signal coming from that small moon." Data said, bringing up a map of their area. "Our scanners show a small shuttle, specifically Olpeni 3 origin, stranded on the moon."
"Run the transmission." Picard said, and moments later a crackled, faded voice came across the bridge.
Help us, please. My crew is hurt and my ship is destroyed. If anyone is out there, please help us.
"Transmission ended." Data concluded.
"Why would they be all the way out here?" Picard asked. "The Olpeni Empire is in a whole other quadrant. The ambassador traveled to another planet before embarking to the Enterprise."
"Should I notify the ambassador?" Data asked the Captain.
"Notify me about what?" A clear voice rang out from the back.
"Ambassador." Picard said, wheeling around.
"Captain." Shirom said, her voice clearly not pleased.
"Ambassador." He said. "We have received a distress signal from what appears to be a shuttle from your people."
"Really? Why it's so far out I can't conclude." Shirom said, looking at the viewscreen.
"We have detected a warp core leak. There are several survivors aboard, however, we want to be cautious." Riker said.
Shirom eyed the commander carefully.
"Ambassador, Commander Riker." He introduced.
"A pleasure." Shirom said. "And now, what shall we do about the downed shuttle? It bears the mark of Olpeni 3 military cruisers."
"Were they, possibly sent to safeguard you in your arrival?" Picard said.
"I would know about it." She said. "I understand Starfleet protocol but I have to say that I have my suspicions, as I am sure you do too."
"Yes. As Starfleet protocol, we are responsible to at least attempt to rescue the shuttle survivors." Picard said. He turned. "Helm, take us down to the moon, slowly."
As they complied, Picard turned to Shirom. "It is our duty to treat them with the utmost kindness, however, since we all have clear reservations about our visitors, I would suggest security."
"Agreed." Shirom nodded. "Have guards at the door."
Dr. Crusher ran into the sick bay just as the victims were arriving. She held her tricorder in one hand and her hypospray in the other.
"Put him there." She commanded as the nurses lifted an injured man to the table. "My god." She said, as she surveyed the damage. The man she was examining opened his eyes and opened his mouth.
"Don't speak." She said. She grimaced at the blood already pooled on the table. It was a sickly greenish brown. When he tried to sit up, she gently held him down and motioned for the nurses to do so.
"We've got another one here." A nurse said.
"Over there. Go get the others." She said, pointing. The nurses left the man at the table and they all left for the other patients.
She turned back to her current patient who was struggling to sit up. He abruptly sent an arm toward her and knocked her down. As she stood back up, the Olpenian tried to get off the table. Nurses struggled to hold him down as she sent a dose of tranquilizer into the Olpenian.
She sighed. She examined his wound. It wasn't deep, but the blood, mixed in with the dirt and soot from the crash had made it look worse than it really was. Crusher's brow furrowed and she took a scalpel from a drawer. She lifted a piece of skin and gasped.
An arm snaked out from behind her and clamped her mouth shut. She gasped and another arm knocked the scalpel away. She mumbled for help but no one heard her.
All survivors are beamed aboard, Captain." Data said.
"Very good." Picard said. "Ambassador, do you wish to see the survivors?"
"No, not yet. Despite my good cheer, I can't help but wonder how much of a coincidence that I am on board a Federation Starship at the same time a shuttle 'happens' to crash."
"I too, am curious to know how much of this is coincidence. Perhaps later, when we get the full story." He said.
"Captain, we detect a disturbance in the force." Commander Riker said. "Sickbay has just shut down."
"What? Report." Picard said.
"The sickbay was just manually shut down by Doctor Crusher."
"For what possible reason? Mr. Worf, get a security team down there." Picard commanded. Worf nodded and left the bridge. "It might be jumping to conclusions, but I have found now that coincidences are piling up."
"Indeed." Shirom said.
"Picard to LaForge."
His badge beeped and LaForge tapped it. "LaForge here."
"The sickbay has just shut down. It's sealed. Is there a problem?"
"No, sir. Everything is perfectly fine. Except for the sickbay, everything is running on normal. It was manually shut down so it wasn't something the computer did."
"Thank you, Mr. LaForge. Picard out."
"Captain, I'd like to return to my quarters." Shirom said, heading toward the door.
"I'll have someone escort you." Picard said. Shirom nodded. "Thank you." After the ambassador left, her gown sweeping behind her, Picard turned to his second in command. "Number one, what is your take on this?"
"We shouldn't jump to any conclusions. But I have to say, it is awfully suspicious. Especially with the recent Olpeni conflicts between the two republics."
"Yes, it doesn't look like peace is a settled option." He said. "Mr. Data, please run the Starfleet report from 10 months ago. Olpeni 3."
"Aye sir." Data complied and the news scrolled up on Picard's screen.
"Ten months ago, the Olpeni ambassador Perekis was assassinated while on a treaty signing with the Federation." Picard sighed. "The attackers were supposedly the Caecilian republic."
"Caecilian." Riker said. "Aren't they the rebels who were against the Federation-Olpeni treaty?"
"Exactly." Picard said.
"Who are you?" Crusher said. "And why have you attacked us?"
"Us attack you?" The Olpenian said. Crusher glanced back at the sickening piece of fake skin lying on the Sickbay floor. It was all prosthetics and show. "Why, my dear doctor, it is you who was so keen on attacking us."
"What do you mean?" She asked. "We didn't attack you, we never did."
"Do you know someone by the name of Perekis?" The Olpenian said, pacing.
"Perekis. The ambassador who was assassinated?" Nurse Hawkins said.
"Yes. Who was responsible for that assassination?" The Olpenian asked.
"It was obviously the Caecilians." Nurse Hawkins said. Crusher subtly nudged him to be quiet.
"Wrong!" The Olpenian crossed the room and pointed a finger at Crusher. "It was the Federation."
"How can that be?" She countered. "There were no Starfleet ships even near the ambassador's ship when it happened."
"How are you so sure?" He said. "When you cannot even be sure of your life now?" He grinned.