"I am glad we can be of service, Senator," Bolerov forced a smile. In his opinion, they had already overstayed their welcome. The conversations he had endured with the network president had been far less pleasant than this one. "Starfleet has given us permission to remain for up to five days." And if anyone asked, he'd be able to tell them, down to the second, when they'd be breaking orbit.
"Fine, fine," Relor nodded. "I'm certain that with the Warlord nearby, those reman terrorists won't come near us. You're giving us ample time to re-establish our government." Relor's expression turned a little more playful. "I'm sorry to hear that the interview didn't work. I hear there were technical difficulties?" He sounded quite sarcastic.
"I'm afraid so, yes." Bolerov's voice became almost playful, too. "But who would have guessed our own internal security system would start malfunctioning again, rendering all that equipment useless?"
Relor mocked a look of concern. "I know... and despite your assurances that your sensor damping fields wouldn't prevent those transmissions from leaving..."
Bolerov nodded again. "I know. We shall have to look at that. I could have sworn they told us it would have been fine."
Relor looked sly. "Especially since you and I are talking just fine. It IS strange."
Bolerov smiled. He had been found out. Obviously, Relor knew. He was interested to see what the crafty, old senator would do with the knowledge. "I hope this little glitch won't damage our new relations." He offered cautiously.
Senator Relor sat back in his chair and scoffed. "It was just an interview, Captain," he replied. "nothing more. I'm sure we'll be in touch later. Thank you again for your continued assistance, Captain." The front viewscreen dissolved to black with the romulan emblem in the center. Within moments, Elaine switched it back to view the area in front of the ship.
T'Nia turned from her tactical station to Captain Bolerov. "Obviously, he was aware that our sabbotage of their interview was intentional, Sir."
Bolerov gave a thoughtful look, while staring at nothing in particular. "Obviously." He pursed his lips.
"I don't understand," T'Nia was trying to grasp what had just transpired. The logic eluded her. "It was a political move to discredit this new alliance. This whole series of events is illogical to me."
Bolerov smiled and let out a deep breath. Kids, he thought to himself. Perhaps there was a reason why he was put on this ship after all. "Lieutenant Commander, it's like playing chess. Sometimes, you have to put a piece at risk in order to see how your opponent will react. Whether your exposed piece takes an oppoent's piece is irrelevant. It served its true purpose." His knowledge of romulan culture would, no doubt, help convince his crew that he deserved to command this ship. It should also help smooth over his unexcused absence from the tour yesterday. If T'Nia had been upset by her unexpected assignment, she didn't mention it.
T'Nia had chosen to let go of her discomfort with the romulan news crew yesterday. Despite their attempts to discredit the Federation overtures, Captain Bolerov had outmaneuvered them. Still, there were lingering pieces of the puzzle that eluded her. Her look of confusion remained. "But... whose side is Senator Relor on? Is he for, or against, the alliance?"
Bolerov shrugged. "I have no idea. But... if I was a betting man, I would bet he doesn't, either. He's probably waiting to see which side has the better chance of furthering his career."
T'Nia shook her head. "It seems illogical to me to put your world at risk for the purpose of benefiting your career."
Bolerov raised a partially mocking eyebrow. "Who said politics was logical?"