By the time Enid's party arrived at the convent, Zani finished her meeting and was sitting with Picard and Elnor. Enid hung back. She wished Picard wasn't there. She wanted to apologize to see Elnor after her behavior on Vulcan which she attributed to nerves over being exposed to so many Vulcan minds. Yumuen had used the word post traumatic stress but Narek quickly silenced that theory. Even if true, someone in Enid's position could not be seen as unstable. Her intention had been to settle his mind about the supernova, but things always fell apart for Enid around Elnor. She wanted to tell him this, but not with an audience. She wasn't sure she could ask to speak with Elnor alone.

It was Missy who spoke first. She pushed past Enid. "I'm Missy O'Dare," she extended her arm towards Zani, who acknowledged the gesture but did not take the young woman's hand.

"I believe I declined your interview request," Zani said.

"Oh, I'm here to see Enid," Missy pulled Enid forward as evidence.

"Hello, Zani. My father sends his regards," she said. A stone settled in Enid's stomach.

"Your father should have sent you with more staff," Zani said. "We are not in the business of protecting Tal Shiar." Enid flinched.

"I am not Tal Shiar." Enid's voice sounded small, even to her own ears.

"And yet you surround yourself with operatives. Your father had to know that your presence here would cause disruption."

"I don't think...".

"You don't." Zani interjected.

Enid took a deep breath. "I have delivered my father's regards. I will bid you good day." Enid turned and left, Yumuen followed. Zani motioned to two sisters to accompany Enid to the transporter site. "I don't need your protection." Enid waved her arm and the nuns found themselves on their bottoms.

"The nuns are not for your protection," Zani said. Compared to Enid, Zani was a towering presence.

"I..."

"You are surrounded by trouble. Some is bound to rub off on the people around you." Enid turned on her heal again and walked, briskly. This time Zani followed. "Just like your father. You run from honesty."

"I do not wish to engage in trading insults with you, Zani."

"Then tell me what you want." Zani called out and crossed her arms across her chest. "Honestly," she added.

Enid broke off her retreat. She retraced her steps until she was square with the nun. Then she leaned in to whispered softly so only Zani would hear, "I wanted soup, but I find I am not hungry now." She walked off. Elnor joined the group of nuns that followed at a comfortable distance.

It was more than the soup, Enid knew. The nuns fussing over her and Zani's patience had made her feel as if she had a mother. Not one, but dozens. With every step she heaped criticism on herself. She was the enemy to these women. If not her, then at least Narek which was the same thing.

On the trip to Vashti, Yumuen and Narek knew Enid might channel refugees loved ones and discussed ways to minimize Enid's physical exposure to the to manage the phenomenon. Neither anticipated that the phenomenon could be triggered if Narek touched someone. Fortunately for Enid, the experience was much less intense. It didn't cause seizures like it had on Surruk. It was a surprise to everyone. The ensuing stampede was also a surprise. The nuns, however, blamed her but it wasn't her fault. What was she supposed to do? Enid's thoughts clouded her vision. She had lost track of where she was until Yumuen put his hand on her shoulder. She looked around. A group of five men, Romulans, were blocking her path.

"Plutarch's little whelp," one of them said. He drew a disrupted and aimed it at Enid. Enid dodged the fire easily but Yumuen was hit. It wasn't bad, he rolled over and pulled Enid to cover. Narek who wrapped up his business at the tavern when he heard the rumblings of Enid's mind leaped in the fray as well as Elnor.

Enid heard Elnor's entreaty and her hands flew around her skull. These men had no intention of choosing to live! Someone was going to die. She didn't want anyone to die, even if they were enemies of her father. She had learned from the last time she was on Vashti that it didn't matter if someone else did the killings. It would hurt. Elnor knew that. Narek knew that. Neither men had the same inhibitions as she did. They would see the death as justified. Something she needed to steel herself against. She wanted to tell them to stop—make them understand they needed to stop. Still clutching her head, she dropped to her knees with her eyes closed. Please stop! Stop, stop, stop! Her mind screamed.

It was the silence that alerted her that something was different. She looked up. There was a game that the children on Kiara played at recess. One person, the curator stood at the end of a field. The statues, or the rest of the players tried to tag the curator, but they could only move when the curator's back was turned. When the curator turned back to face the statues, everyone had to freeze or be sent back to the starting line. Right now it looked as if the curator was definitely watching. Everyone, even Narek was still.

Enid stood up and crept past the frozen combatants. Narek was mid air in a kick and Elnor was upside down in a flip. The Romulan who had just suffered the kick from Narek was mid flight backwards but his weapon was trained on Narek. She took the disrupter from his hands. Then she proceeded to disarm the rest of them. Enid's party had not been allowed to bring weapons but Narek didn't need one to be lethal. She supposed Elnor didn't either but she wrestled his sword out of his hands. It took some work, she had to pull back his fingers to loosen his grip and his position made it awkward. She laid the swords and disrupters at a safe distance then wondered what to do next. She needn't have worried. The action resumed once she returned to her original position.

Of the combatants, Narek kept his head. Although frozen, he had been aware of her activities. "Restrain them!" He shouted to Elnor who took his disarmament in stride and tacked one of the attackers. With a fist to the temple, he knocked the man out then sprung to assist with the other assailants to find they had also been subdued. Federation peace officers arrived.

"We need to question them," Fank said.

"This is our jurisdiction," the officer replied. Narek had dropped to his knees besides Enid. Enid's eyes were a faint blue, evidence that the blood had left her face. She starred vacantly. A federation medic was at his side with a tricorder aimed at Enid. With barely a flick of his hand, the tricorder flew several feet away. Yumuen ripped his own sleeve which he secured around the injury on his thigh and limped over to Enid. He pulled out his own medical device.

"She's in shock," he said. Narek looked towards to the transporter site. A crowd had gathered. Narek turned back to the convent. He didn't want to take refuge with the nuns but no one should see Enid in this condition. He slid his arm under hers and raised her to her feet. Fank and Yumuen fell in behind to obstruct the views of the onlookers and the four of them continued to the convent. Enid shuffled her feet but it was Narek's strength that carried her.

"We need to find out more about the attackers," Fank said.

"No we don't," Narek said. He had seen the men's minds. He knew they were enemies of Plutarch who had been flushed out by Enid's ability to channel supernova victims. He also knew that this was what Plutarch had hoped for. Most of Plutarch's rivals had the courtesy to fall victim to the supernova but he wanted to weed out any survivors before he considered resettling the refugees. this is why he sent Enid to Vashti. He had seen the current situation as an opportunity. Plutarch had used Enid as bait.

Elnor ran ahead to let Zani know what had happened. No one, even the assailants was badly hurt but the federation officers would need help restoring order. Zani dispatched some nuns, and then lead Narek to a curtained room where he lay Enid on a bed. Yumuen used a hypo spray to administer medication and Enid slept. Missy poked her head into the space.

"You're not welcome here," Narek told her.

"I'll hear that from Ena." She tried to push past Narek to find herself restrained by Fank.

"If Enid wants to see you, she will indicate that after she is rested." Missy huffed out. Zani entered the room and took a seat next to Enid.

"Thank you for your hospitality," Narek said. He didn't take his eyes off Enid.

"I believe your work here is finished," Zani said.

"Pardon?"

"Plutarch has what he wants. It is why he sent Enid here, isn't it?"

"Plutarch does not confide his aspirations to me," Narek said. Even if he did, Narek wouldn't share this with Zani.

"You need to get her away from the Surruk influence," Zani said. That was a truth that Narek didn't argue. He had been thinking the same thing for some time now. He and Ni'ael had discussed that Enid would have to be useful to her powerful father but he thought that meant her abilities. Narek felt his blood turn cold. Her abilities were useful for sure, but they were also a liability. Lorlani had described the efforts Plutarch had gone through to sabotage his rivals' escape. He was conscious of Zani's regard as this realization settled in his mind and checked his expression. Plutarch's rivals were victims of the supernova. Surely he knew that their memories if not their consciousnesses were within Enid. Of course! He had to have known that. What did this mean? He met Zani's eyes and wondered if she could see his struggle.

"Enid loves her family on Surruk," he said.

"Surruk is a paradise. But the place corrupts." Zani stood and walked out, leaving Narek alone with Enid and his thoughts.