ILuvHawkeye: Thanks!
Data: Sorry, I do not miss Veritas. I think the reason I wrote so much is because I can finally say what I truly think of everyone. Mwahahaha! LOL I am glad you like it though.
Star Trek Freak: Thanks for reviewing! Glad you like it!
Sorry about not updating. First I was away for a week for Christmas then I had absolutely no inspiration. I do want to propose an idea to my readers. Who would be interesting in seeing a series of short "filler" stories that take place between Attack of the Trekkie Trio and The Trio Broken just about the Trio and adventures in the Academies and starting their careers. If so, tell me in your review, which I am sure you are going to leave (hint, hint!).
"We found it!" T'Son cried in excitement, running into the room with an excited look on his face. Adamina slowly looked up from the padd she was reading and gazed calmly at her husband. He glanced guiltily at his wife for a moment and tried to control his excitement.
"Now," Adamina said, placing her coffee carefully down on the table beside the couch, "what causes you to have such a human display of emotion?" she asked.
"My team of Federation specialists found the cause of Syvar and the others' disappearance," T'Son said, clearly struggling to contain a grin. "They found it before the Romulan scientists." He looked hopefully at his wife.
"Perhaps you should consider that you put severe limits on the Romulan scientists that your own did not have before flaunting your triumph in the Romulan woman's face," Adamina said deadpan. T'Son seemed to visibly wilt.
"Don't tell me you would take Toreth's side in this," he said.
"Sides?" Adamina asked, raising an eyebrow. "I was unaware of the fact that we are on opposite 'sides' as you put it."
"Must you be so Vulcan?" T'Son asked, dropping onto the couch beside her.
"Of course," Adamina responded, though she let her eyes show a bit of the humor that had rubbed off on her from being around T'Son for so long. He smiled and kissed her.
"I was thinking of just having Admiral Qwi and Chairman Toreth meet me here. Will that disturb you?" he asked. Adamina shook her head and T'Son went over to the intercom and called Toreth and Qwi to his quarters. Within moments, they were all seated around a table with cups of whatever alien beverage they preferred and looking at a viewscreen on one of T'Son's walls.
"There is some sort of temporal anomaly that shows up here in the form of a purple cloud," T'Son said, pressing buttons on his padd. A red line formed a circle around the purple cloud on the viewscreen. "Since our children took a Klingon shuttle and obviously did not know how to fly it, presumably they could fly up and pass through the cloud at this angle, though they would have to accelerate very quickly in a short amount of time." A yellow line appeared, showing the presumed trajectory of the shuttle. "Logically we have to analyze this further to determine precisely when they went, but with my team of highly competent Federation specialists, that should be no problem." Toreth rolled her eyes and kicked T'Son under the table. He was just lucky she no longer wore wooden shoes. Qwi leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes.
"Well, that leaves me out… again," she said. "I'm a doctor, not a temporal expert. If the kids suffer any adverse effects from time travel, then I can step in."
"You never told me she was a doctor," Adamina accused T'Son. "Admiral, are you the same Doctor Pierce who wrote the article on myelin in Andorians?" she asked, looking more excited than Toreth or Qwi had ever seen her.
"Um, yes," Qwi said, remembering her article which had been printed in at least eight Federation magazines alone.
"But that was the most brilliant piece of work!" Adamina said. "I was hoping, along with the rest of the medical community, for a follow-up that might actually lead to a cure for Histumstroimyllirewtigitus. Several Andorians a year die from it, you know. Why did you stop with the article?"
"I am afraid that neural diseases in Andorians is hardly my specialty," Qwi said sadly. "Even discovering what I did was just a fluke in a different project I was doing. I would have no clue which way to go; I just identified the cause of Histumstroimyllirewtigitus and what it affects."
"Well we should, as you humans might say, go out for coffee sometime. We should discuss this further. I know I majored in telepathy in various species as a doctor, but I might still be able to offer some insight into your research." Looking around at the other four yawning, Adamina realized she and Qwi had been talking for way too long. "But of course, the children are more important right now," she said. T'Son gave a nod and turned back to the screen. However, before he could continue the briefing, a chime sounded at the door.
"What now?" he muttered, turned to the door, looking rather annoyed. "Come!" he told it irritably. An ensign entered, clearly fresh from the Academy and very nervous at being in the company of so many important people.
"President T'Son, sir, you have a visitor," she said quietly, cowed by T'Son's peeved look. T'Son was about to open his mouth to demand who it was but before he could, someone shoved the poor ensign aside and entered.
"Hello T'Son, Qwi, Toreth!" Captain Kirk said cheerfully.
"Jim! Good to see you!" Toreth said with a smile. "I have not seen you since Khitomer!" she said, hugging him. "By the way, T'Son, I am still mad at you for arresting Valeris. What brings you here, Jim?"
"Well," Captain Kirk said in between hugging Qwi and T'Son too, "I find retirement boring, especially now that they are retiring the Enterprise A, so I figured I would come here and help my favorite teenagers find their kids. You sound like you could use the expertise of Starfleet's finest," he said with a teasing grin.
"You are more egotistical than T'Son," Qwi said. "We are all in our forties now, Jim."
"Only you are the one who shows it, being human though," T'Son said. "Toreth and I still have hundreds of years to enjoy whereas you look middle-aged. In fact, I think-" He was interrupted when Qwi shoved him into the table, nearly knocking it over. Toreth decided to intervene before Qwi got arrested for killing the Federation president.
"Okay, right, we all know Qwi is going to find Neverland someday while patrolling an obscure part of the quadrant and become five years old again, but can we please focus here? The heiress to everything I built up is missing and I need her back, despite the fact that I have a second brat and I am probably just going to leave everything to someone more worthy than either of mine."
"That's nice," Kirk said sarcastically. "Show me what you have so far and we can work out a plan. We can have those children back before morning tomorrow! Spock is here too."
"No can do. We have a gigantic dinner with all the visiting ambassadors," Ben said, rolling his eyes. "What with it being twenty-four courses and all the other extraneous things that go on at a peace conference, the six of us are bound to be there at least until 4:00." Qwi muttered something unpleasant under her breath, obviously having forgotten about it.
"Am I invited?" Kirk asked. This time, even T'Son would have said he was egotistical.
T'Son had officially decided that whoever planned events was absolutely insane by the time he arrived at dinner that night. Not only was he unable to cancel the dinner or skip it and continue searching for his son without offending several powerful governments, but it turned out he and Qwi were seated at one table together and Toreth was a different one three tables away. (The room was filled with round, eight-person tables with special accommodations for various species). Toreth had given him and T'Son a grin and left with Vokar, smirking when she thought he was not looking.
"I could swear that Romulan did this on purpose," Qwi said darkly, also noticing Toreth's expression and echoing T'Son's thoughts.
"Yeah… too bad we used up our one agreement of the decade before dinner even started," T'Son said with a small smile. Ben and Qwi allowed themselves open grins. "I just hope the others will not mind if the Federation president works on a padd under the table all night long," T'Son muttered, taking his seat. "Toreth is certainly not doing anything." He scowled in the direction of her table, where she was engaged in a lively discussion with the Cardassian ambassador.
"Why is this such a big deal anyway?" Ben asked. "Each of you may think your government is better, but why do you always have to prove your government is better? Isn't friendship more important?"
"Ben, you are so naïve," Qwi said with a laugh. "T'Son and Toreth are both extremely egotistical and proud, and like repel each other. Neither of them has exactly been trying to keep the Trio together anyway."
"Oh, and you have," T'Son said sarcastically.
"T'Son, I advise you not to argue with Admiral Pierce at this point," Adamina murmured. "We may be at dinner and not the negotiating table, but the Federation must still present a unified front if we are to be taken seriously by other race… particularly your Romulan friend. Should anyone see the Federation President indulging in petty quarrels with an Admiral in public…"
"Wise counsel, my love," T'Son said, still not looking too happy. "For now, I shall attempt to enjoy the evening. At least the food will be good. I hope we get some Chateau Picard with at least one course." He grinned and sat down, letting Adamina sit between him and Qwi.
At Toreth's table, a conversation of a very different nature was taking place. For the Chairman, even dinner was just a more subtle form of the negotiating table. She had indeed had a hand in the seating assignments, though she truthfully did not care if T'Son and Qwi were together or not. She wanted to talk with the Cardassian ambassador… away from T'Son's pointed ears. She had her suspicions, and wanted to test them.
"What are you planning?" Vokar asked. Before Toreth could protest, he added, "Everyone who knows you well can recognize that look on your face and know that you are planning something. Can you tell me?"
"I am about to make my first friend since I met you, Vokar," Toreth said with an evil smile. She showed him a padd under the table. "Ambassador Nador, representing the Cardassians at this stupid peace conference and, I believe, a member of the Obsidian Order."
"How do you know? And what are you planning to do about it? Please, Toreth, do not go rushing into something dangerous again," Vokar pleaded. Toreth blushed a little, recalling the incident of which he spoke.
"Some of the ways he acted at dinner last night… just seemed like things an intelligence agent would do," she said. "Being Chairman of the Tal Shiar for fifteen years makes you learn to recognize these things, despite the fact that Nador was very skilled. Everyone knows that the Obsidian Order is the only intelligence better than the Tal Shiar. Now, if we were to form a Tal Shiar-Obsidian Order alliance…" A grin also spread across Vokar's face. He knew what she driving at.
"Please do not tell me that you are going to confront him at dinner at least," Vokar said.
"Never worry," Toreth said, standing up at the approach of the ambassador. "I have everything perfectly under control." She missed the worried look on her husband's face. "Hello, Ambassador Nador, how are you?" she asked with a smile. "Oh and by the way…" She leaned forward and whispered something that made the ambassador start.
"Very well… um, should we meet after dinner perhaps…?" he asked, completely caught off guard.
"Certainly. We can meet in my quarters. After all, there are very private matters and I know where T'Son hides my listening devices." She smirked and sat back down, giving a grin to Vokar. "See? I told you I can work everything out."
"I really wish you would tell me before doing something like this," Vokar whispered. "What did you tell him?"
"Vokar, I am the Chairman of the Tal Shiar. I can handle myself. At least I will allow you to be including in our meeting tonight. Are you going to eat that fish?"
