Chapter 10 - Diplomatic Relationships.
Rommie stood on the docking ring of DS9, looking out one of the many view ports, at the Rotarran. The vessel, Rommie decided, was more of a large scout, or possibly the Klingon's idea of a frigate. The hull was pitted with weapons scars, evidence of the desperate fight while protecting the Defiant. As she continued her analysis of the docked ship, she realised that a lot of the weapons impacts on the hull were old. Considering the Klingon mind set, Rommie decided that the hull was left that way intentionally. However, a lot of the damage was painfully obvious.
Rommie decided that she liked the simple design, purely from an aesthetic point of view. She turned away from the view port and headed towards the airlock.
It had been Dylan's idea for Rommie to establish a rapport with the warrior race. Dax and Harper were still having problems figuring out why Andromeda had been sucked into this universe, and not re-emegred in their own. If they were going to be stuck here, then Dylan reasoned it made sense to have friends, rather than enemies.
Therefore Rommie had contacted the Klingon ship with the intention of making an appointment to see General Martok. She had been told by the comm officer to simply turn up, and if the General wanted to see her, he would. According to Dax, a display of strength and skill in combat was always a good opening start when talking to Klingon's for the first time. To that end, Rommie brought her force lance with her. If the opportunity arose, she would give the Klingoin's a simple display, perhaps offer to spar with one of them ?
The docking port suddenly rolled back and Latnok emerged. He took one look at Rommie and reacted instantly by pulling a fierce looking, three pronged dagger and charged, screaming .
" For honour "
As he charged Rommie stepped towards him, her hand shot straight up and caught him by the neck. Rommie's free hand caught his other wrist and snapped it. Latnok screamed again and dropped the knife,this time in pain, as Rommie lifted him higher off the ground until his head was almost touching the ceiling.
As Rommie was deciding what to do with Latnok, three more crewmen emerged from the Klingon warship, having heard Latnoks screams. Rommie simply tossed the Klingon towards his fellow crew members. He was knocked out by the force of the impact with the interior walk of the docking port. Two more Klingon's also emerged from the ship, making it five to one.
Rommie simply deployed her force lance into staff mode, and smiled daring the Klingon's to attack.
" I'm here to see the General " Rommie stated
The front two charged, Rommie with all her Highgaurd technology, instantly noticed an opening and dives between the two, shattering their knees as she passed them. They two Klingons go down in a howl of pain, Rommie spins to face another attacker and sees a fist heading directly towards her face. She simply catches the fist and crushes all the bones in her attackers hand.
In an attempt to break himself free of the small woman, the Klingon opts to simply head butt her, which he successfully does, and his hand is released as he falls to the floor unconscious. She whirled back towards the docking port as more of the ships crew came charging out
Inside the battered bird of prey, Martok walks the short passage from his quarters towards the mess deck, expecting to find some of his crew there between shifts. He tried to have at least one meal with his crew every week, always varying which shift he sat with, to make sure that his crew's moral was ok.
He rounded a corner as three figures rush out of the mess hall and head forward through the ship in an obvious hurry. He lost sight of his crew men so Martok had to break into a run to keep up with them, confused why they were heading to the docking port connecting them with DS 9.
Suddenly Martok hears the sounds of fighting and cries of pain, making him hurry even more. As he enters the docking port, he sees a good portion of his crew, on the floor, with obvious broken bones, cuts, or simply unconscious. As he emerges onto the Deep Space 9 side of the docking port he sees Rommie deliver a kick to the head of the last remaining standing Rotarran crew member. She falls to the deck at Rommie's feet. Martok realises that Rommie doesn't have a mark on her, or is even breathing heavily.
" Enough " yells Martok, " look at what you have done" preparing to attack Rommie himself.
Rommie assumes an informal stance, and addresses the General
" General, I must apologise for damaging your crew, that was not my intention " Rommie says, while she retracts her staff and returns it to her holster.
" Captain Hunt ordered me to speak with you, I tried to make an appointment but was simply told to turn up. When I reached your airlock, Latnok was exiting the lock and attacked me without warning. I defended myself. "she explains " But more of your crew members kept emerging and attacking me when they saw their crewmates lying on the floor. "
Martok glances round " How were you able to defeat 30 Klingon warriors without a mark on you? "
" With respect General, it's 31, and I was told that when you establish contact with Klingon's for the first time, a display of fighting skills is always a good start? Nobody told me that a ship full of warriors would attack me!" Rommie pauses for a moment " But it does save me the trouble of a sparring session "
Suddenly Odo comes running run the corner after being alerted that the Klingons were rioting, but is taken aback when he sees the carnage and Rommie stood talking to Martok. After seeing Latnok, he realised what had happened and tapped his comm badge
" Odo to infirmary. We have a large number of Klingons that require medical attention outside the Rotarran's berth "
Odo examines the nearest Klingon, looking at the damage inflicted by the living incarnation of a war ship. Odo smiled privately at the thought of the Klingons reaction when they found out Rommie's true origins. Odo realised with a start that Martok was getting more and more angry at the avatar, and if he didn't act Martok would be joining his crew on the floor.
" General, I believe that I can offer a explanation" Odo pauses getting Martok's attention "Perhaps it would be better to have this conversation in private"
Martok waits until medical crews arrive and start tending to the bulk of his crew laying on the floor of DS9.
" This way "
Martok lead them through the winding corridors of the warship to his state room and office. On the way though the ship Odo and Rommie are surprised at the amount of damage sustained by the ship. Rommie starts to revise her opinion of the Klingon bird of prey.
" Explain to me now " Martok barks as he sits down, not bothering to offer the others a seat.
" As you are aware, Rommie here is from the Andromeda " Odo began "She was sent to see you by her Captain, Dylan Hunt. At present, the ship and crew are no closer to finding a way home. To that end they have decided to establish closer ties with ourselves and the Klingon empire. Dax suggested to Captain Hunt that Rommie would be the best choice from his crew to establish ties, however loosely with yourselves, as she is the best officer on the Andromeda in the field of combat"
" If you recall the battle recently when our shields were sabotaged, DS 9 was boarded. We were about to be over run, when Rommie engaged the Jem Hadar in combat. This, as you know, is not an easy task"
" You survived battle with a Jem Hadar boarding party ? " Martok asks, looking at Rommie with new respect. " Their boarding parties are always veteran warriors"
" I killed them all " Rommie states simply
" I find that hard to believe "
" Its true " Odo interjects "After the battle, we collected the bodies, Jem Hadar bodies. Only 23 were killed by DS9 personal. The rest were dispatched by Rommie "
"General, would you find it hard to believe that I am not human, despite my appearance? I am in fact the Avatar of the Andromeda Ascendant . "
" Avatar, I am not familiar with this term ? " Martok says, eyeing Rommie with suspicion.
" General, please indulge me. Hail the Andromeda "
The Klingon reaches to a console, hails the ship, not certain what this will achieve.
Suddenly he sits bolt upright as a picture of Rommie appears on the screen in response to his hail.
" Allow me to explain. I am the Highgaurd Glorious Heritage class Heavy Cruiser Shinning Path to Truth and Glory, more commonly referred to as the Andromeda Ascendant " Andromeda begins " The ship is controlled by a very complex artificial Intelligence, me, which is capable of splitting itself into various copies. I am equipped with a 3 delta 6 type android. While the majority of my robots are not sophisticated enough to receive a downloaded copy of my program, the delta 6 type is. We are in constant contact, but if the need arises, we can operate separately for long periods of time. I am Rommie, she is me. Think of us as sisters. Andromeda out"
Martok looks at Rommie for a full two minutes before speaking.
" My crew were beaten by a machine, the Jem Hadar we beaten by the same machine.
Rommie speaks very coldly
" General Martok, I told this to Worf, and now I will tell you. Where I come from, AI's are considered alive, with all the same rights as you would have. I am the living version of the biggest warship in this quadrant. I easily captured your ship, I saved you in battle, I defeated your crew with no difficulty at all. I am beginning to see this meeting is pointless. It is obvious that you are without honour. I am going to advise my Captain that there is little point in establishing ties with your race. " With that statement said, Rommie stands to leave.
Odo was more surprised than Martok at the response of the Avatar.
"Wait " Martok calls, not happy with the way this conversation was heading, and the prospect of losing an alliance with an incredibly powerful ship
" I am truly sorry if I caused offence. The technology that has 'created' you is new to me. I am only aware of one android, a star fleet commander, who is sentient. It is simply a new concept I am coming to terms with. I applaud you as a warrior, worthy of many stories and song. "
Martok goes very quiet, before saying to Rommie, using a tone of voice that left her in no doubt as to his meaning
" I will now tell you something, also only once. Never imply I am without honour, or I will die in the attempt to kill you. That is the same of all Klingon's!"
" Latnok, and indeed most of my crew, will now consider it a matter of honour to best you in combat. However, most will have the common sense not to challenge you. If any do, please do not harm them too much, I need an mostly intact crew. "
" Apology accepted general. And I offer one with regard to your honour as well. Sorry if I'm also a bit sensitive about the way I'm treat, but as the only surviving High Guard AI I am aware of, people tend to treat me as "
" A machine" Martok interrupted. Rommie just looked at Martok, seconds later, he broke out laughing. Rommie smiled as well.
" Now then general. I would first of all like to offer you the full tour of the Andromeda Ascendant. Not just the hangar bay this time, but the full tour. Our crew is a little depleted, but you are welcome to join us for our evening meal "
" Agreed, but don't you need to see if Captain Hunt will be present..Oh course, forgive me, but I'm still getting use to the whole connected to the ship thing. However, first I must check on my crew. You did injury an annoying amount of them. "
" Indeed I did, but for the sake of diplomacy, you will find that there is nothing life threatening, bearing in mind the nearness of medical help available, on your ship the station and on Andromeda as well. "
" Ah, I understand. "
Odo then speaks, after having been quiet for most of the meeting.
" Well, I must continue my security round, excuse me " giving the two a nod of his head, he proceeded round the docking ring.
Five minutes later, Rommie and Martok exited the sick bay on DS 9's promenade and were heading towards Rommie's drop ship which would take them out to her ship self.. The journey would take 10 minutes.
" I never had chance to mention this before, but you/the ship have a very elegant design. How long did you take to build? " Martok asked.
" To make this easier. When you speak of the ship, she's my sister, if you see her on any monitor or holographic form, she simply my twin sister. It took 5 years from the laying of the keel to my launch. I'm the twelfth of this class to be launched, normally the flagship of a battle group of anything up to 50 vessels.."
**************************************************************************** ***********
Beka looks at her display with more concern. When the Exeter had entered orbit around this moon it's back up reactor had been so close to overload that the survivors of the crew had been forced to shut it down, otherwise it was going to blow up in their faces.
The only problem with that course of action was that now they had insufficient power to break orbit. Beka knew that the Maru had the power available too tow both ships. It was simply going to take a bit longer, especially with the extra power drain which they had to give the Exeter.
She was alone in the cockpit. Worf and Tyr were with the surviving officer on the Exeter, who was little more than a Kidd, Beka thought, smiling at her own pun. The doctor had opted to stay on board as well, tending to the wounded, as the Exeter's medical staff had not been spared from causalities.
Before leaving the Maru Worf had pulled her to one side and said
" Once those warships are within range, they will simply attack. If that happens cut the tow cables and make a run for it. They are more than likely to board us, but for some reason transporter's cannot penetrate this hull, and they will be interested in this ship and its technology. "
Suddenly the comm system sparks into life with Tyr's voice from the Exeter.
" Captain Valentine. I believe now would be a good time to get us underway. Mr Worf estimates that it will be 45 seconds until we are in weapons range of the approaching ships. What is our ETA for slip stream ? "
Before she answers Beka engages her engines and the entire ship starts shaking from the strain.
" Slip stream ETA is now 90 seconds "
Tyr had left the channel between the two ships open, in order for Beka to hear what is said in the engineering room of the Exeter, but it was a lot harder to figure out who was saying what.
" Weapons status? " Beka suspected that was Tyr
" Off Line "
" Security forces "
" Mostly dead, injured, we have 150 personnel able to fight, of which 35 are marines, who are armed "
" Mr Kidd, pick the 3 most sensitive areas left on this ship, split the marines at those locations "
" They are now in weapons range "
10 tense seconds pass
" We are being hailed "
" On screen "
Beka wished she could activate the comm station view screen in order to see the transmission, but dared not take her hands from the controls.
" I am Gul Kinmar of the warship Tennok. To the commander of the crippled federation starship. Prepare to be boarded and surrender both your ship and its tug. "
" This is Commander Worf, currently in command of the Federation Star Ship Exeter. You will not board this vessel. You will vacate..."
Worf is suddenly cut off by one of the staff manning the ship's sensors.
" Sir We are being boarded "
Before Worf can reply Gul Kinmar speaks again
" I gave you a chance to spare your crew Klingon, now they will die with you "
" Sir we have 40 enemy soldier's on board "
" All hands we have been boarded..repel boarders " Worf say into the ships intercom.
" Anytime now Beka " Tyr said into the comm, forcefully.
Suddenly the two Cardassain vessels open fire. The lead vessel targeted the towing cables awhile the second vessel targets the Maru's engines. Its weapon fire impact on the hull of the Maru as Beka engaged the slip stream drives.
The weapons fire from the lead ship severed the tow cables, as well as the power transfer cable. The Maru escapes into Slipstream, while the Exeter simply drifts forward, its chance of escape gone.
Beka exits slipstream moments later, cursing about the worst timing ever. As she gets up from the pilots seat the Maru is rocked wildly, panels spark before going dark, indicating a power failure. As Beka is plunged into darkness, she realises the live power transfer cable must have made contact with the hull, shorting out most of the Maru's power supply.
Beka activates a panel that is still showing a light, and calls up a systems check. The slip stream drive and comm's are completely blown.
" Where is Harper when you need him ?"
Before Beka can think of a really good curse of Harper not being there, an alarm sounds from the tactical station
" You have got to be kidding me "
**************************************************************************** **********
Back on board the Exeter in main engineering, Tyr, Worf , Kidd and a few of the engineering staff watch a monitor, They see the Maru depart in a blast of white light. Moments after beng struck by weapons fire from the Cardassians.
There is silence for a few se-conds, but then Tyr is the first to speak
" Mr Kidd, what is the status of the boarding parties ?"
Kidd shakes off his shock and manipulates a control console
" There are now 150 soldiers on board, 50 are near the Shuttle bay, starting to work forward, 50 are near the neck of the ship, heading aft, and the remaining are on the lower deck, heading up "
Worf suddenly smiles, activates the external sensors, smiles, and then announces.
" I have a suggestion "
Rommie stood on the docking ring of DS9, looking out one of the many view ports, at the Rotarran. The vessel, Rommie decided, was more of a large scout, or possibly the Klingon's idea of a frigate. The hull was pitted with weapons scars, evidence of the desperate fight while protecting the Defiant. As she continued her analysis of the docked ship, she realised that a lot of the weapons impacts on the hull were old. Considering the Klingon mind set, Rommie decided that the hull was left that way intentionally. However, a lot of the damage was painfully obvious.
Rommie decided that she liked the simple design, purely from an aesthetic point of view. She turned away from the view port and headed towards the airlock.
It had been Dylan's idea for Rommie to establish a rapport with the warrior race. Dax and Harper were still having problems figuring out why Andromeda had been sucked into this universe, and not re-emegred in their own. If they were going to be stuck here, then Dylan reasoned it made sense to have friends, rather than enemies.
Therefore Rommie had contacted the Klingon ship with the intention of making an appointment to see General Martok. She had been told by the comm officer to simply turn up, and if the General wanted to see her, he would. According to Dax, a display of strength and skill in combat was always a good opening start when talking to Klingon's for the first time. To that end, Rommie brought her force lance with her. If the opportunity arose, she would give the Klingoin's a simple display, perhaps offer to spar with one of them ?
The docking port suddenly rolled back and Latnok emerged. He took one look at Rommie and reacted instantly by pulling a fierce looking, three pronged dagger and charged, screaming .
" For honour "
As he charged Rommie stepped towards him, her hand shot straight up and caught him by the neck. Rommie's free hand caught his other wrist and snapped it. Latnok screamed again and dropped the knife,this time in pain, as Rommie lifted him higher off the ground until his head was almost touching the ceiling.
As Rommie was deciding what to do with Latnok, three more crewmen emerged from the Klingon warship, having heard Latnoks screams. Rommie simply tossed the Klingon towards his fellow crew members. He was knocked out by the force of the impact with the interior walk of the docking port. Two more Klingon's also emerged from the ship, making it five to one.
Rommie simply deployed her force lance into staff mode, and smiled daring the Klingon's to attack.
" I'm here to see the General " Rommie stated
The front two charged, Rommie with all her Highgaurd technology, instantly noticed an opening and dives between the two, shattering their knees as she passed them. They two Klingons go down in a howl of pain, Rommie spins to face another attacker and sees a fist heading directly towards her face. She simply catches the fist and crushes all the bones in her attackers hand.
In an attempt to break himself free of the small woman, the Klingon opts to simply head butt her, which he successfully does, and his hand is released as he falls to the floor unconscious. She whirled back towards the docking port as more of the ships crew came charging out
Inside the battered bird of prey, Martok walks the short passage from his quarters towards the mess deck, expecting to find some of his crew there between shifts. He tried to have at least one meal with his crew every week, always varying which shift he sat with, to make sure that his crew's moral was ok.
He rounded a corner as three figures rush out of the mess hall and head forward through the ship in an obvious hurry. He lost sight of his crew men so Martok had to break into a run to keep up with them, confused why they were heading to the docking port connecting them with DS 9.
Suddenly Martok hears the sounds of fighting and cries of pain, making him hurry even more. As he enters the docking port, he sees a good portion of his crew, on the floor, with obvious broken bones, cuts, or simply unconscious. As he emerges onto the Deep Space 9 side of the docking port he sees Rommie deliver a kick to the head of the last remaining standing Rotarran crew member. She falls to the deck at Rommie's feet. Martok realises that Rommie doesn't have a mark on her, or is even breathing heavily.
" Enough " yells Martok, " look at what you have done" preparing to attack Rommie himself.
Rommie assumes an informal stance, and addresses the General
" General, I must apologise for damaging your crew, that was not my intention " Rommie says, while she retracts her staff and returns it to her holster.
" Captain Hunt ordered me to speak with you, I tried to make an appointment but was simply told to turn up. When I reached your airlock, Latnok was exiting the lock and attacked me without warning. I defended myself. "she explains " But more of your crew members kept emerging and attacking me when they saw their crewmates lying on the floor. "
Martok glances round " How were you able to defeat 30 Klingon warriors without a mark on you? "
" With respect General, it's 31, and I was told that when you establish contact with Klingon's for the first time, a display of fighting skills is always a good start? Nobody told me that a ship full of warriors would attack me!" Rommie pauses for a moment " But it does save me the trouble of a sparring session "
Suddenly Odo comes running run the corner after being alerted that the Klingons were rioting, but is taken aback when he sees the carnage and Rommie stood talking to Martok. After seeing Latnok, he realised what had happened and tapped his comm badge
" Odo to infirmary. We have a large number of Klingons that require medical attention outside the Rotarran's berth "
Odo examines the nearest Klingon, looking at the damage inflicted by the living incarnation of a war ship. Odo smiled privately at the thought of the Klingons reaction when they found out Rommie's true origins. Odo realised with a start that Martok was getting more and more angry at the avatar, and if he didn't act Martok would be joining his crew on the floor.
" General, I believe that I can offer a explanation" Odo pauses getting Martok's attention "Perhaps it would be better to have this conversation in private"
Martok waits until medical crews arrive and start tending to the bulk of his crew laying on the floor of DS9.
" This way "
Martok lead them through the winding corridors of the warship to his state room and office. On the way though the ship Odo and Rommie are surprised at the amount of damage sustained by the ship. Rommie starts to revise her opinion of the Klingon bird of prey.
" Explain to me now " Martok barks as he sits down, not bothering to offer the others a seat.
" As you are aware, Rommie here is from the Andromeda " Odo began "She was sent to see you by her Captain, Dylan Hunt. At present, the ship and crew are no closer to finding a way home. To that end they have decided to establish closer ties with ourselves and the Klingon empire. Dax suggested to Captain Hunt that Rommie would be the best choice from his crew to establish ties, however loosely with yourselves, as she is the best officer on the Andromeda in the field of combat"
" If you recall the battle recently when our shields were sabotaged, DS 9 was boarded. We were about to be over run, when Rommie engaged the Jem Hadar in combat. This, as you know, is not an easy task"
" You survived battle with a Jem Hadar boarding party ? " Martok asks, looking at Rommie with new respect. " Their boarding parties are always veteran warriors"
" I killed them all " Rommie states simply
" I find that hard to believe "
" Its true " Odo interjects "After the battle, we collected the bodies, Jem Hadar bodies. Only 23 were killed by DS9 personal. The rest were dispatched by Rommie "
"General, would you find it hard to believe that I am not human, despite my appearance? I am in fact the Avatar of the Andromeda Ascendant . "
" Avatar, I am not familiar with this term ? " Martok says, eyeing Rommie with suspicion.
" General, please indulge me. Hail the Andromeda "
The Klingon reaches to a console, hails the ship, not certain what this will achieve.
Suddenly he sits bolt upright as a picture of Rommie appears on the screen in response to his hail.
" Allow me to explain. I am the Highgaurd Glorious Heritage class Heavy Cruiser Shinning Path to Truth and Glory, more commonly referred to as the Andromeda Ascendant " Andromeda begins " The ship is controlled by a very complex artificial Intelligence, me, which is capable of splitting itself into various copies. I am equipped with a 3 delta 6 type android. While the majority of my robots are not sophisticated enough to receive a downloaded copy of my program, the delta 6 type is. We are in constant contact, but if the need arises, we can operate separately for long periods of time. I am Rommie, she is me. Think of us as sisters. Andromeda out"
Martok looks at Rommie for a full two minutes before speaking.
" My crew were beaten by a machine, the Jem Hadar we beaten by the same machine.
Rommie speaks very coldly
" General Martok, I told this to Worf, and now I will tell you. Where I come from, AI's are considered alive, with all the same rights as you would have. I am the living version of the biggest warship in this quadrant. I easily captured your ship, I saved you in battle, I defeated your crew with no difficulty at all. I am beginning to see this meeting is pointless. It is obvious that you are without honour. I am going to advise my Captain that there is little point in establishing ties with your race. " With that statement said, Rommie stands to leave.
Odo was more surprised than Martok at the response of the Avatar.
"Wait " Martok calls, not happy with the way this conversation was heading, and the prospect of losing an alliance with an incredibly powerful ship
" I am truly sorry if I caused offence. The technology that has 'created' you is new to me. I am only aware of one android, a star fleet commander, who is sentient. It is simply a new concept I am coming to terms with. I applaud you as a warrior, worthy of many stories and song. "
Martok goes very quiet, before saying to Rommie, using a tone of voice that left her in no doubt as to his meaning
" I will now tell you something, also only once. Never imply I am without honour, or I will die in the attempt to kill you. That is the same of all Klingon's!"
" Latnok, and indeed most of my crew, will now consider it a matter of honour to best you in combat. However, most will have the common sense not to challenge you. If any do, please do not harm them too much, I need an mostly intact crew. "
" Apology accepted general. And I offer one with regard to your honour as well. Sorry if I'm also a bit sensitive about the way I'm treat, but as the only surviving High Guard AI I am aware of, people tend to treat me as "
" A machine" Martok interrupted. Rommie just looked at Martok, seconds later, he broke out laughing. Rommie smiled as well.
" Now then general. I would first of all like to offer you the full tour of the Andromeda Ascendant. Not just the hangar bay this time, but the full tour. Our crew is a little depleted, but you are welcome to join us for our evening meal "
" Agreed, but don't you need to see if Captain Hunt will be present..Oh course, forgive me, but I'm still getting use to the whole connected to the ship thing. However, first I must check on my crew. You did injury an annoying amount of them. "
" Indeed I did, but for the sake of diplomacy, you will find that there is nothing life threatening, bearing in mind the nearness of medical help available, on your ship the station and on Andromeda as well. "
" Ah, I understand. "
Odo then speaks, after having been quiet for most of the meeting.
" Well, I must continue my security round, excuse me " giving the two a nod of his head, he proceeded round the docking ring.
Five minutes later, Rommie and Martok exited the sick bay on DS 9's promenade and were heading towards Rommie's drop ship which would take them out to her ship self.. The journey would take 10 minutes.
" I never had chance to mention this before, but you/the ship have a very elegant design. How long did you take to build? " Martok asked.
" To make this easier. When you speak of the ship, she's my sister, if you see her on any monitor or holographic form, she simply my twin sister. It took 5 years from the laying of the keel to my launch. I'm the twelfth of this class to be launched, normally the flagship of a battle group of anything up to 50 vessels.."
**************************************************************************** ***********
Beka looks at her display with more concern. When the Exeter had entered orbit around this moon it's back up reactor had been so close to overload that the survivors of the crew had been forced to shut it down, otherwise it was going to blow up in their faces.
The only problem with that course of action was that now they had insufficient power to break orbit. Beka knew that the Maru had the power available too tow both ships. It was simply going to take a bit longer, especially with the extra power drain which they had to give the Exeter.
She was alone in the cockpit. Worf and Tyr were with the surviving officer on the Exeter, who was little more than a Kidd, Beka thought, smiling at her own pun. The doctor had opted to stay on board as well, tending to the wounded, as the Exeter's medical staff had not been spared from causalities.
Before leaving the Maru Worf had pulled her to one side and said
" Once those warships are within range, they will simply attack. If that happens cut the tow cables and make a run for it. They are more than likely to board us, but for some reason transporter's cannot penetrate this hull, and they will be interested in this ship and its technology. "
Suddenly the comm system sparks into life with Tyr's voice from the Exeter.
" Captain Valentine. I believe now would be a good time to get us underway. Mr Worf estimates that it will be 45 seconds until we are in weapons range of the approaching ships. What is our ETA for slip stream ? "
Before she answers Beka engages her engines and the entire ship starts shaking from the strain.
" Slip stream ETA is now 90 seconds "
Tyr had left the channel between the two ships open, in order for Beka to hear what is said in the engineering room of the Exeter, but it was a lot harder to figure out who was saying what.
" Weapons status? " Beka suspected that was Tyr
" Off Line "
" Security forces "
" Mostly dead, injured, we have 150 personnel able to fight, of which 35 are marines, who are armed "
" Mr Kidd, pick the 3 most sensitive areas left on this ship, split the marines at those locations "
" They are now in weapons range "
10 tense seconds pass
" We are being hailed "
" On screen "
Beka wished she could activate the comm station view screen in order to see the transmission, but dared not take her hands from the controls.
" I am Gul Kinmar of the warship Tennok. To the commander of the crippled federation starship. Prepare to be boarded and surrender both your ship and its tug. "
" This is Commander Worf, currently in command of the Federation Star Ship Exeter. You will not board this vessel. You will vacate..."
Worf is suddenly cut off by one of the staff manning the ship's sensors.
" Sir We are being boarded "
Before Worf can reply Gul Kinmar speaks again
" I gave you a chance to spare your crew Klingon, now they will die with you "
" Sir we have 40 enemy soldier's on board "
" All hands we have been boarded..repel boarders " Worf say into the ships intercom.
" Anytime now Beka " Tyr said into the comm, forcefully.
Suddenly the two Cardassain vessels open fire. The lead vessel targeted the towing cables awhile the second vessel targets the Maru's engines. Its weapon fire impact on the hull of the Maru as Beka engaged the slip stream drives.
The weapons fire from the lead ship severed the tow cables, as well as the power transfer cable. The Maru escapes into Slipstream, while the Exeter simply drifts forward, its chance of escape gone.
Beka exits slipstream moments later, cursing about the worst timing ever. As she gets up from the pilots seat the Maru is rocked wildly, panels spark before going dark, indicating a power failure. As Beka is plunged into darkness, she realises the live power transfer cable must have made contact with the hull, shorting out most of the Maru's power supply.
Beka activates a panel that is still showing a light, and calls up a systems check. The slip stream drive and comm's are completely blown.
" Where is Harper when you need him ?"
Before Beka can think of a really good curse of Harper not being there, an alarm sounds from the tactical station
" You have got to be kidding me "
**************************************************************************** **********
Back on board the Exeter in main engineering, Tyr, Worf , Kidd and a few of the engineering staff watch a monitor, They see the Maru depart in a blast of white light. Moments after beng struck by weapons fire from the Cardassians.
There is silence for a few se-conds, but then Tyr is the first to speak
" Mr Kidd, what is the status of the boarding parties ?"
Kidd shakes off his shock and manipulates a control console
" There are now 150 soldiers on board, 50 are near the Shuttle bay, starting to work forward, 50 are near the neck of the ship, heading aft, and the remaining are on the lower deck, heading up "
Worf suddenly smiles, activates the external sensors, smiles, and then announces.
" I have a suggestion "
