AN: Over the last coupe of days I went over this story, cleared it up and expanded a few segments - most notably Chapter 1 Part 3, where Martok's thoughts hint at what I plan to do with the Klingon Empire in the future.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Star Trek TV series, Motion pictures, Novels or Games. They belong to their respective creators and Copyright owners. This story is created with no monetary gain in mind. I make no money from it. It is not to be sold or rented.
Chapter 3: A different perspective
=HDD=
Part 1
Bridge
USS Enterprise
High orbit over Tezwa
"I'm detecting sixty eight Klingon ships. One of the new Neg'Var battlecruisers. twenty assorted cruisers of different classes. Eleven Raptor escorts and the rest are Birds of Prey." Data reported.
"Hail them, Mr. Toval." Captain Picard addressed Enterprise's comm officer. The Vulcan gave him a bland confirmation as his fingers moved over the controls of his station.
Jean-Luc sighed. This was going to take all his experience as a diplomat to fix.
"They aren't going to be happy." Riker muttered from his seat to the captain's right.
"No Number One. I don't imagine our allies would like the situation." Picard looked at the main viewer, which was showing the disposition of the Starfleet vessels in system. The planet was at their back and its only visible defense was a thin ring of weapon satellites that surrounded it. Facing them were the Klingons, who had de-cloaked to reveal a fleet already assembled into an assault formation. Two lines of cruisers anchored the enemy line, formed around the flagship, with the lighter ships covering their flanks. The Klingon vessels were just close enough to support each other and be able to concentrate their firepower, but not so near that proximity detonations would have any effect on them.
"We're being hailed by the Neg'var." Toval reported.
"Put it on the main viewer." Picard had to suppress a sigh.
A moment later the captain was stared down by a furious Klingon, who was looking at him as if he was something that one would be scraping from under their boots.
"Picard. I hope, for your sake that you have a good explanation for this." Martok growled and waved in the general direction of the Federation task force.
Jean-Luc suppressed a sigh and stared at the old warrior. The usual niceties and language that went with diplomacy were going to backfire if used on the Klingons. That would be perceived as both a sign of weakness and disrespect – a complication no one needed in this situation if ever. The captain glared back and stood straighter in his seat.
"That should be obvious, general. A contingency plan in case the Dominion gained even greater advantage in the war. One that's necessary now." Picard didn't add that in his opinion the way this whole affair had been handled was much less than ideal, though it had more to do with moral sense of outrage at the government's underhanded methods than with the fact that he and his crew were stuck with cleaning up the mess. Frankly, if he was in Martok's place he would be pissed off too.
Besides, trying to explain the frankly nebulous justification about this project to the Klingons would have been a disaster – Jean-Luc was rather sure that the canons were supposed to be a safeguard against Martok's people once the war was over. Though that might have been him going cynical in his old age.
"Really? So instead of fortifying a Federation world, one that the Dominion would have to hit to secure their rear – like Betazet, you put a lot of ground and space based canons right here – on a contested world on our border." Martok sneered. So much sarcasm dripped from the general's words that it might just start eating through the deck-plating. "Picard – do you take us all for fools?!" There were accompanying roars of approval from the Neg'var's bridge crew.
"Not at all." Jean-Luc continued staring down the general. "What I just told you is what Starfleet Command gave me as a justification. I'm not going to speculate about their or the President's motives. Frankly, those weapons might as well have been aimed at the Klingon Empire or anyone else. It doesn't matter!" Picard stood up and pointed a finger at Martok. "All that matter is that those weapons and our combined forces are the only thing standing between a thousand Dominion warships and the Klingon Empire! Once we've dealt with this damned invasion we might have the luxury of assigning blame. This is neither the time nor place for such a spat! We have a battle to fight – against the Dominion, not against each other!"
Martok actually grinned. "Picard, you might just make a decent Klingon." The smile vanished as fast as it appeared. "We'll fight against the Dominion. Together. However!" The general raised a clenched fist. "The Empire won't forget this act of treachery! We will be watching you – and the Federation – carefully. What other surprises… for the Dominion do you have on our borders?"
"None that I know of." Picard told the truth. He knew that Martok wouldn't believe it. He couldn't blame the general either – Jean-Luc certainly wouldn't if their roles were reserved. When he was younger, the case might have been different. Yet, as the war worsened, the captain was finding that his sense of morality and faith in people was starting to slowly erode. That was something that he was finding had to believe, yet… It was getting harder and harder to believe that the principles he held so dear would survive the war intact. The beast of that was the Dominion war was slowly but surely warping everyone involved.
"Even if that's true, today I find the words of a Federation Captain, even yours, hard to believe." Martok stated. "The Chancellor and High Council would find it much harder. Picard, your people lost most of the respect and honor you all won in the war so far."
Jean-Luc frowned. That statement didn't bode well for the future relations between the Federation and Klingon Empire. Even worse for the war effort.
"Then we'll have to reclaim our honor." Picard stated with conviction he didn't feel.
"Soon enough you're all going to have that opportunity. The Dominion will be here in less than a day." Martok smiled hungrily.
The captain had no doubt that the old Klingon was eagerly looking for the battle to begin.
"True enough. We should draw defensive plans and ensure that our forces would be able to properly coordinate." Picard added.
"Indeed. I'll wait for your arrival. Martok out." The general made a sharp gesture and the connection was terminated.
"Well, that could have gone better." Riker sighed in relief. "At least we aren't shooting at each other.
"Yes, this could have turned worse." Picard relaxed in his chair as a part of the tension gripping him dissipated. Much worse indeed. If the Klingons had chosen to pull back to their space or worse – to attack – that would have meant the doom of every federation crew member when the Dominion armada arrived. The only recourse would have been for the Starfleet ships to scatter and hope that a few of the faster would be able to make it to a friendly port. It was either that or stand and die… and most of the ships under Picard's command didn't have either the speed or endurance to make it.
=HDD=
Interlude: Romulan Star Empire II
=HDD=
Imperial Palace
Romulus
Even in an age when the Emperor was a mere puppet, there were very few people who could approach the seat of the Imperial family armed, much less accompanied by a platoon of fully kitted soldiers. Such escort was restricted for the most dangerous of times and even then, the people who would warrant it so they wouldn't be engaged by the palace's defenders was a very short one.
The Director of the Tal Shiar before his demise above what was assumed to be the Changeling's homeworld had been one. The Pro-council of the Empire was another. Technically, members of the Royal family did warrant similar escort – a custom that fell out of fashion along with the Emperor's power. That's why, when Prince Shiron landed on the front lawn of the Imperial Palace ridding in the center of a flight of four shuttles, only his name and a reasonable confirmation that he was indeed one of the people on board was the only thing that prevented concealed AA defenses from coming online and vaporizing his party. Nevertheless, when they landed, the shuttles found themselves surrounded by a full third of the residence guards who all had plasma rifles at the ready.
"Your Highness, I must respectfully request that you explain yourself." The Centurion in charge of the greeting committee politely demanded and there was no doubt that this was a demand, not a request.
"First, with the Capital one accident away from erupting, I deemed it prudent to keep tightened security for the time being. Second, my father would love to meet these lads – Prince Shiron smirked and waved for his people to disembark.
The mere fact that full half of them were Reman shock-troopers in full combat gear certainly didn't relax the praetorians guarding his father.
"After all, they succeeded where even the Tal Shiar failed." Shiron made a dramatic gesture and waved at the last shuttle that so far had remained sealed. Its ramp opened and first two more armoured and armed Remans marched out. Behind them another pair not too gently shoved a prisoner forward. "I present you the infamous D'Tan – a seditionist and traitor my father would want to question personally."
The Centurion stared at both prisoner and Prince in disbelief. It was well known, to the Praetorians at least, that the Emperor didn't have any hard power nowadays. That has been the case for a long time now. In fact, one of the primary jobs of the Praetorians was to keep an eye of the Imperial family and make sure that they didn't cause waves and problems for the people who really ran the Empire – the Senate, military and Tal Shiar, not necessary in that order.
"We'll be having a word with my father. Now." All the cheer drained off Shiron's face and his bearing became deadly serious. "The plasma arrays of those shuttles are very much operational, armed and aimed." As he said that, ominous whine came from the landed craft.
"You won't get away with this, whatever it is, boy!" The Centurion glared at the Prince.
At that moment air-raid sirens screamed all over the capital ensuring that even the dead knew that a hostile fleet had just entered the system. The sound startled a few of the greener Preatorians and one of them acting on instinct squeezed the trigger of his rifle. A plasma bolt slammed into the extended shields of one of the shuttles, stopping the shot long before it could reach the deployed soldiers. As if that was a signal, all hell broke lose. The shock-troopers and other soldiers with Shiron moved like well oiled machines. They knew that the shields covered them and didn't even bother to try seeking cover even if their training screamed to do so. Instead, all of them shouldered their weapons and in short order cut down the Praetorians surrounding them.
"The hard way it is." The Prince grimaced. "We're moving in. Secure my father." He ordered and pulled out a plasma pistol from a well concealed spot on his waist.
=HDD=
Planetary Defense Center Remus
If there was one factor that contributed to the initial success of the coup, it was the arrogance of the Romulans. In another timeline, just a fey years later, another coup would have succeeded and one of its primary building blocks would have been the same – the Reman shock-troopers and salves of the Empire. The chaos reigning after the disastrous collaboration between the Tal Shiar and the Obsidian Order sicked the military, Senate and Tal Shiar against each other as they maneuvered for power. The officers of the Intelligence agency did their best to retain their power even as their high ranked members clashed with each other for the now vacant post of director. At the same time, the birds of prey began to circle them seeking any weakness to exploit – for a long time both the military and Senate wanted to curb their power, something that no Tal Shiar agent worth their salt would ever find acceptable.
Those three organization had their agents watching each other. Every movement of proper Romulan military unit, no matter if it was from the ground forces or the navy was closely monitored and people wondered if they were disloyal, to them and their cause, which often meant to the Empire as well in their eyes. The high ranking military officers in turn had subordinates closely watched the Senate and every suspected or known Tal Shiar agent and ship, wondering if or when the spies would move to remove them from the board because they were a danger to their power. Needless to say, many a Senator had agents in both organizations looking at each other. When a week ago two divisions of Reman infantry landed on the homeworld and relieved trusted units from all across the planet so they could be on hand to watch the capital and known Tal Shiar facilities, everyones eyes concentrated upon them and those in charge of said units.
The Remans? No one paid them much attention. That turned out to be a grave miscalculation…
=HDD=
Fifteen minutes before noon, Colonel Xiomec, the CO of the elite Reman Kaperzun battalion waited for his commanding officer – one General Taver Javis, the senior ground forces conspirator who had a hand in the excitement planned for that day. The General arrived on time, he was punctual as always and with him he brought a platoon of shock-troopers, which when combined with the soldiers waiting at attention behind the Colonel meant that they had a whole company. If they were any other soldiers and if the political situation was any less tenuous, no one would have left them be at that place without close supervision.
On that day? They were the ones meant to guard the place facilitate an inspection by the General. After all, who knew when a Dominion or disloyal fleet might drop to shoot up the homeworld? Those were dangerous times they lived in.
"A Company, Kaperzun Battalion, reporting for duty!" Xiomec stood straight as a durasteel pillar as he saluted.
Today, he was ready to die for the General, his accomplices and their cause – for a simple reason. They had promised his people their freedom and equal rights within the Empire, something that they might be the only people who might be willing to deliver on such a deal. If they won today. If they lost? What did it matter if Xiomec and his soldiers would die? At least they would go fighting for freedom. Otherwise – they will die anyway, once their lords and masters decided it was time for another military adventure.
Javis returned the salute and gave a sharp nod, which was the signal that they were a go.
"Let's see if these soft navy boys and girls take their jobs seriously." Javis spoke aloud in such a tone that made it crystal clear he didn't believe that the facility's personnel would pass muster.
"By your command. First platoon, march!"
The greatest obstacle to their objective – the thick armoured doors leading into the facility opened at their approach so a small cadre of the naval personnel manning the place could meet them. They of course knew about the inspection – lose tongues from those barbaric and uncouth Remans saw to it so everyone inside was to busy making sure they looked their best and that the place was spotless to worry much about anything else. When the General began his inspection and found nothing lacking, most of the PDC personnel felt only relief. By the time anyone thought to ask why small detachments of the security detail moved inside after the General and took position at critical junctions, it was too late to keep the facility from becoming compromised.