A voice spoke through his badge. "Engineering, Kelly here."
"Did we ever get those insulation pieces for the cannons installed?" That represented the last chink in their armor... the last piece that kept Warlord from being one hundred percent functional. Without the proper insulation, the cannons could only be fired at fifty percent power... and they'd have to wait almost an hour before being able to fire them again.
"Afraid not, Commander," Kelly replied. The disappointment was evident in his voice. "It was supposed to be installed after the trip to Romulus. We were called away to Cardassia before they could install it. We'll get it when we get back, though."
Kirk nodded. That wouldn't help them here... if something erupted. Hopefully, the secondary weapons would suffice, if they were needed. "Okay, thanks for the update. Sorry to bother you."
"No worries, Commander," the aussie voice replied. "Everything's pretty quiet down here. A little action would do us good." He sounded playful.
Kirk chuckled somewhat nervously as did a few others on the bridge. "Be careful what you wish for, Lieutenant. Kirk out."
Kirk's comment voiced what everyone else had been thinking. Without saying a word, everyone somehow knew something was stirring. Too many things didn't make sense; not the least of which was a phantom cloaked ship that hadn't come into view again despite several more tachyon bursts, including one performed just a few minutes ago by Commander Richards, who was nervously drumming his fingers against his console.
The silence was suddenly interrupted by a voice coming over the bridge speaker. "Colonel Prichard to bridge," the southern voice spoke. Although barely more than conversational in volume, something was wrong.
Kirk looked up at the speaker. "This is Commander Kirk, Colonel. What's up?"
"I lost contact with the 'Vettes a few minutes ago and I can't re-establish it. They had just gone into the Orias system." Prichard said calmly.
Kirk spun around in his seat and snapped his fingers then pointed at Elaine. She spun around to her console and began pressing buttons. "There's nothing on their comm channel... just static."
"It's either because of the debris there or because someone's jamming them." Prichard's voice stated.
"Elaine, what have you..." Kirk was stopped short by Lieutenant Davies' raised pointer finger asking for a moment. With her other hand, she pressed her earpiece deeper into her ear. Almost like playing an antique piano, Elaine's hands glided over her console. An oscilating image appeared on a screen in front of her. She pressed several buttons to the left of the screen, which changed the wildly fluctuating line to a single, vibrating, flowing curve.
"Commander," she said quickly, "this isn't natural interference. The signal's being jammed at the source."
"Commander, I need..." Prichard began.
Kirk interrupted him. "I'm one step ahead of you, Colonel." He pressed his comm badge. "Bridge to Captain Bolerov." There was several moments of silence. "Commander Kirk to Captain Bolerov." He spoke a little more urgently. "Captain Bolerov, please report to the bridge." He sounded even more urgent.
After several more seconds, Kirk's comm badge popped. The first sound was a heavy sigh. "What is it, Commander?" Andrei's rough, gravelly voice sounded even more so. He sounded breathless and half asleep.
Hiding his concern for the captain, Kirk continued. "Captain, we've lost contact with both Marine ships. We're pretty sure, " Kirk turned to get a facial confirmation from Lieutenant Davies, who nodded, "their signal is being jammed. What do you..."
Bolerov interrupted, annoyed. "Go get them, Commander. You didn't need me for that."
"But, Captain," Kirk continued, "the peace delegation is still down on the planet. What should I tell them?"
"I don't care. Find out what they want. I'll be on the bridge in... good grief... four hours. Don't bother me until then, or if we go to war. Bolerov out."
Stephen shot Tony a concerned look, who reciprocated by shrugging his shoulders. "Colonel, we're heading for the Orias system in just a few moments..."
"I heard, Commander," Prichard interrupted. "I'm already on my way to the bridge. I'll be there in just a few minutes. Prichard out." The overhead speaker popped off.
Kirk stood up from his seat and headed over to the navigation console. "Ensign Bristol, set a course for the Orias system, maximum warp."
Intensely, Tyler turned back to his console. "Aye, aye, Sir." With a few button strokes, he began searching through the Cardassian starcharts to find the Orias system.
Kirk tapped his comm badge. "Warlord to Admiral Picard."
Several moments later, the familiar french/english accented voice of Admiral Picard popped back. "What is it, Commander?"
"Sorry to interrupt," Kirk started quickly, "we've lost contact with the Marine ships. Captain Bolerov ordered us to break orbit and go after them. Do you want us to beam you up?"
A moment of consideration passed before Picard answered. "I don't think that would be wise. The discussions aren't going well at all. To leave now would probably cause a complete collapse. I shall tell Chief Councilman Tegril what's going on, however. He should be able to keep what's left of the Cardassian Navy from interfering." His voice sounded concerned, but confident.
"Thank you, Admiral," Kirk said sincerely. He looked at Tyler, who was pressing in coordinates. "How long will it take, Ensign?"
Ensign Bristol turned back around to face Kirk. "At warp nine point four, it'll take about thirty-two minutes, Sir."
Kirk nodded. "Admiral? We should be back in just over an hour."
Picard's voice was still calm. "I think we can fend for ourselves until then. Good luck, Commander. Picard out."
"Coordinates laid in, Commander," Bristol said professionally.
Kirk pointed at the screen. "Break orbit, secure our route and engage." He sat back down in the captain's seat. The star patterns changed as the panoramic view of Cardassia Prime disappeared to the left of the screen. Within seconds, the Warlord was speeding off to the Orias system.