Kira Nerys continued staring at the blackened screen as she reflected on what had just happened and could be going on. The Romulan ship had just decloaked before them, but they could trace their track coming from Cardassian territory; their business was their own, but still some ingrained prejudice that new experiences could hardly erase told her to distrust anything coming from that area of space, and the Federation seemed to suffer from a similar case of fear regarding the Romulans. And the sudden appearance of Admiral Ajeya in the small assault ship was at the very least odd. She appreciated her independence and preferred to manage everything on her own, but she realized that in this instance, it was better if she just informed Starfleet of what have just happened, even if it was probably something unimportant they would disregard.
The colonel swept her gaze over the assembled crew. When her eyes passed by the sliding door that lead to the commander's office, inwardly the thought of consulting Captain Sisko came to her mind; it always did. She had lost too many people along the way since her early childhood, and even if the pained memory of all them was still very alive in her heart, the loss of the charismatic presence of Sisko was being harder to accept. It was harder to accept that now at Deep Space Nine, his office was hers, and at Bajor, there was no Emissary of the Prophets anymore.
And then she thought of Odo. Too many times she had crossed the promenade, or come into Quark's and let her imagination think, for a single second, the he would still be there; she had lingered around the security office and had irrationally hoped she could still go in and have a raktajino with him, as they always did, even if she was the only one drinking.
Kira wondered if her sudden sadness was being reflected in her eyes, and to counteract it, she smiled warmly at her people at Ops; practically none of them have been with her during the Dominion war. The old comrades were all dead or gone; it has always been that way.
She was letting her mind drift away by her heartened thoughts when another incoming ship took her away from her reverie. Another sudden decloaking, another Romulan assault ship, another one she was not expecting. She commanded a channel open at the double, and the alien vessel answered at once.
The first thing she noticed was the unmistakable gray uniform of the Tal Shiar, and she frowned immediately even if the Romulan man was smiling at her. They were crossing the wormhole and their business were their own; she had not really expected them to volunteer information, but she was curious and asked him nevertheless, "Are you traveling with Admiral Ajeya?"
Was it a gleam, what for a single moment appeared in his eyes? Anyway, no matter how hard she tried, she could not read his expression. He coolly added, "Yes, we do, and we are falling behind." And once assured he was cleared, he cut them off and, cloaking his ship once more, the Romulans disappeared through the wormhole. Again.
The Bajoran colonel was puzzled. And this time, she did not doubt anymore. She could not understand what was going on, but it was extremely odd, and she was warning Starfleet now.