The door chime drew Lyndan's attention to the door. He had been ignoring visitors for several hours, lost in thought following the revelations in the PADD Greene had handed him earlier that day. He had watched the file so many times he felt he could recite it in his sleep. But he had to make sure, absolutely sure, what his orders stated. He already knew what the message would say, but he pressed started the message anyway. Admiral T'Prau's face appeared on screen.

Captain Lyndan, I was hoping to meet you in person to deliver this news face to face. Alas, events outside of my control have dictated an alternate course of events. Approximately forty hours from when you embarked on course 303 mark 030, you will arrive at on of the most secure facilities in the Federation. I cannot say what it is in this message, but suffice to say you will be the fifth person in known space to know of its existence. Even those stationed there do not know what it is, and think they are at various deep space stations. Now, as for the ships that are following you. When you approach the facility, they will challenge you. The correct answer is "Lady of the Lake." Answer quickly, yet any other answer will result in the destruction of your ship. As you have no doubt guessed, there are no pirates in this sector. They are a top secret, covert operations group masquerading as pirates. It may not seem ethical, but it is easier to deal with unauthorized and trespassing ships this way. Less red tape, and no one questions the motives of pirates. Now, I should not tell you this, and you must forget you ever heard this. But I feel it is necessary for you to know the reasoning behind the orders you are about to receive, as they may appear to be ... contradictory ... to the values of Starfleet and yourself. I was not entirely honest with you when I gave you your initial orders. You are on an intelligence gathering mission, but not against Fleet Admiral Bower. There is a threat massing on our borders, and we are not prepared to meet it. Again, specifics will have to wait until you arrive at the facility. But rest assured, your mission is vital to the interests of the Federation. Now, for your orders. When you arrive at the facility, you will put in for repairs and resupply. Just before departure, you will be detained for an emergency courts martial and will turn command over to your XO. She will take the ship on a short shakedown cruise to test the quality of the repairs. Her course will take her into a vital area, where there is a high likely hood the Hornet will be attacked and destroyed. The repairs will add numerous sensors to capture the final moments of the Hornet. It may seem cruel, but no ship has ever survived contact with this particular enemy, and we have almost no intelligence to work with. The sacrifice of your ship will provide us with valuble information to combat this threat. And if somehow the Hornet does survive, the charges which will be placed during the repairs will ensure there are no survivors to tell the tale. There are only a handful of people cleard to know about this. I am sorry Hugh. I truly am. If there was any other way..."

Watching it again had not helped. He probably broke his hand on the damned bulkhead after his first viewing. The second and third viewing had not helped his hand either. After the dozenth viewing Lyndan sat in the dark, contemplating his future. Neither option looked particularly enticing. One one hand, he could condemn his crew to certain death. It would not be the first time Lyndan had sent good men off to die, but he had always shared the risks and perils. But this, this was cowardice, sending others off to die while he remained behind. Lyndan wasn't sure he could live with himself along that route. On the other hand, he could disregard the orders. He wasn't sure he'd live long enough to be court martialed along that route, with all the 'privileged' information he'd been fed.

Then there were questions of loyalty. Did T'Prau have agents in his crew to make it easier to maintain discipline? If this operation is truly as large as Lyndan believed, agents could have been picked years ago and groomed for missions such as this. Sleeper agents so deep they could pass any intensive psych profiling and probing. There were some newer crew members though, who could very well be plants without the time and effort of recruiting and training sleepers. Though they are the logical choice to suspect if there were agents...

Lyndan shook his head. There can be no going back once he started down the route of groundless suspicions and paranoid behavior. Besides, he himself could be a deep cover sleeper and never know it until his activation. There was no point in worrying about such events beyond his control. He had more pressing matters to attend to. First, he had to take care of his hand, the pain was distracting. Lyndan slowly stood, looked at the blank monitor one last time, and headed for sickbay.


Greene sat in the captain's chair doing her best to project an aura of confidence and control. Only Srenk did not seem fooled by her charade. But it appeared to be working, the bridge crew had gradually eased into the routine of being chased while running towards a target no one knew the location of. There was no banter, cheerful or otherwise, only the steady humming of the engines and occasional beep from the computer. Greene could feel her nerves straining past the breaking point, willing something, anything to happen to relieve the monotony. Her wish was granted when the lift doors opened and Lyndan stepped onto the bridge. All eyes turned to follow him as he made his way to the captain's seat. Lyndan signaled Greene to remain seated as he approached, looking from Srenk and Greene several times before he spoke.

"I have received a communique from Admiral T'Prau, I would like to speak to Commander Greene and Lieutenant Srenk in my ready room in ten minutes to review our new orders."

Lyndan turned and made strode to his ready room without another word. Greene and Srenk exchanged a single, concerned look before returning to their duties.


Captain's Ready Room

Exactly ten minutes later, the door to the ready room chimed.

"Come."

Greene and Srenk entered silently, stopping just inside the door. They took seats at a gesture from Lyndan. After several moments of tense silence, Lyndan finally spoke.

"Well," Lyndan began. "Commander, how would you like a real taste of command?"

"Sir?!" Greene could not keep the surprise out of her voice.

"I've been tapped to sit on a courts martial when we arrive at our destination. It shouldn't last too long, but any delay in our mission is intolerable according to the Admiral. So, in my stead, you will command the Hornet while I do paperwork. Congratulations, Commander, I have the utmost faith in you and your abilities. Please return my ship in one piece."

Greene sat there, speechless.

Srenk addressed Lyndan, "That's very nice for the Commander, sir. But why am I here?"

"Because," Lyndan replied. "I know you aren't a Lieutenant, 'Major'. Plus, we've all been under a great deal of stress. I was hoping you could help the Commander and I shed some of that stress. A long time ago, I was on shore leave on, oh, Mars . While there, I found this exquisite Vulcan masseuse. Except, rather then physically massage the pain and stress away, she used a form of mind meld to mentally remove the stress. I was hoping you knew a similar technique to help Commander Greene deal with the news which she still has not recovered from, and for me to get used to the idea of sitting behind a desk for the rest of my days."

Srenk raised a curious eyebrow. "Of course, sir. It is important the commander and captain should have clear minds. If you don't mind, we can get started right away."

Lyndan looked at Greene, who nodded yes.

"All right, I order everyone in this room to relax." Lyndan laughed.

"First, let us move our chairs into a circle, it will be easier that way." Srenk moved his chair into the center of the ready room and waited as Greene and Lyndan followed his lead.

"Next, I must ask you two to hold hands. Humans are not naturally strong telepaths, and this will aid in forming the proper telepathic bond, reducing some of the strain on me."

Greene and Lyndan joined hands and Srenk placed a hand on each of their faces.

"May our minds join as one ... May our thoughts merge together..."


I know it has been a while since I've posted, so what do the few people who actually read this think?