Author's Note: Thanks to Lucy for being an amazing beta. I realize this is very late. Basically, I had bad writer's block and the result is a chapter that took half a year to write. My bad.

One more thing. If incorrect details in a fanfic bother you, this may not be the story for you. Although I love Star Trek, I wanted this story to be more "in the spirit" of the show that an actual replication of one of the series. If you want to continue, great. If not, then you can offer to beta. I don't want to waste time rigorously researching officer titles, deck names, etc. that I could spend on writing. I hope you enjoy the chapter, and will post more soon. Or soon-ish.

Commander's Personal Log: Stardate 2276.05

Even with my eidetic memory, I cannot pinpoint the exact moment I began to fall in love with Captain Bennet. The emotions came upon me rather covertly, and the realization that I was emotionally invested in a non-existent relationship caught me somewhat abruptly. However, I can recall the moment when I first began to admire the captain for her ingenuity and bravery.

Nyx: Stardate 2275.188

Captain Bennet stared bitterly at the surrounding landscape. Snow flurries leisurely swirled around her head and she clenched her gloved hands in agitation. The ground was completely white, and Lizzie could already feel her shoes begin to dampen. Growing up in a warm, humid climate meant that Lizzie always had a much harder time adapting to cold weather, and Nyx's freezing environment was no exception.

She looked to her right and frowned in jealousy. Despite being half Vulcan, and therefore having a supposed lower tolerance to the cold, Darcy seemed completely unbothered by the weather. The tips of his ears were a little green, but his attitude remained impassive.

Lizzie regretted taking the advice of their guide, a thirty-year old miner named Carter, who had suggested that they walk to the administration building. "It's only a mile," he'd said. "It'll be fun!"

This was not her definition of fun.

The landing party had beamed down to the engineering building first and left Charlotte and Fitzwilliam to evaluate the machinery and security measures. The remainder of the group, including herself, Darcy, Mary, Ensign Leei, and Carter, was currently walking toward the administration building where the rest of the miners were waiting for their physicals. Lizzie almost shouted in relief at the warmth that greeted them as they entered the building's lobby.

She was quick to note that the administration building was utilitarian in style. The entire structure was divided into four sections, with one section containing only a couple of chairs and a small desk. Mary would use this room to examine the miners one at a time while Lizzie, Darcy, and Leei would wait in an adjacent room with the rest. Carter went into the examination room with Mary while Lizzie and Darcy conversed with the miners.

Well, Lizzie conversed with the miners. Darcy, as usual, sat there rigidly without saying a word.

One of the workers, a woman around forty years old, grasped Lizzie's hand in hers. "We sure do appreciate the Federation taking time to send a doctor out here. The mines aren't as dangerous as they used to be, but it still helps to know that we're all healthy."

"Could you perhaps walk me through the process of mining dilithium crystals? I'm sure it's an interesting operation," Lizzie replied.

"Oh, no dear," the woman chuckled, "it's not very interesting at all. We have various machines and tools that help with the process, but most of the mining requires physical labor. Of course, I'm not complaining at all, seeing as how our compensation is very generous.

"Some people are paid more than others, though," a gruff, young man interrupted from the woman's side.

The woman rolled her eyes. "Dawson, Captain Bennet is not interested in your conspiracy theories.

"What are you talking about?" Lizzie questioned.

Dawson looked around the room before leaning over the woman to whisper to Lizzie. "We pair off into smaller groups to mine different areas. Somehow, Carter and Denny always appear at the end of the day with twice as many crystals as every other group. But they're always late, and they're the laziest bastards you ever met. Tell me, how is it possible they produce that many crystals in such a short amount of time?"

"Where is this Denny?"

"Like I said, always late."

Before Lizzie had a chance to reply, the door opened and Carter emerged and approached her and Darcy. Dawson immediately sat back in his chair to glare at Carter. "Would anyone like a tour of the area?" Carter asked with a charming smile. "There's not much, but I'm sure it'll be more entertaining than waiting around here."

Lizzie quickly declined, thinking of the cold weather. "Thank you for the offer, but I should stay here with Dr. Bennet." Darcy also politely declined, although he didn't bother giving a reason. "I'm sure Ensign Leei would enjoy a tour though," Lizzie said while gesturing across the room where Leei was talking to a young woman. Carter bid them farewell and approached the ensign, and they both left the building.

Outside the snow had stopped. Carter showed Leei around the small shacks the miners lived in, as well as some of the mines. As they walked back towards the administration building, Carter finally gave in and asked the question that had been flitting around his head since he had seen Leei.

"Out of curiosity, what planet are you from? I have a little obsession with alien genealogy."

Leei smiled as if he was asked this a lot. Although the ensign's features were almost human, his skin held a purple tint and his ears were twice as large as his peers. "It's a funny story, but my grandfather was actually a-"

He stopped talking and Carter noticed his ears perk up. "Do you hear that?" Leei asked suddenly before dashing toward one of the caves a couple hundred yards away. Carter followed him until they entered a narrow tunnel. The walls were jagged and loose rocks were scattered about. Carter grabbed Leei's arm.

"Where are you going?"

Leei gestured behind him. "I hear something whimpering. I'm going to check it out." Leei tried to continue but Carter held firm. Leei looked back to question him only to see Carter looking panicked.

"You can't go back there!"

Leei reached for his phaser just as a rock smashed against the back of his skull. The injured man crumpled to the ground as Carter glared at the man with the rock.

"Was that necessary, Denny? Leei seemed like a good guy!"

Denny shouted back, "Of course it was necessary. He could've ruined the whole operation! And you lead him here!"

"I didn't lead him here, the guy has some great hearing-"

"I don't want to hear your excuses, Carter. Go drag him to the other side of the administration building and tell the Federation officers he fell and hit his head. Make it look like an accident. I'm going to go secure the animals." Grubby hands grabbed Carter's shirt and Denny dragged him forward as he hissed, "Do not screw this up."

A short time later the landing party was seen following Carter to where Ensign Leei laid on the ground at the base of a small hill. Mary had her medical tricorder out and scanned Leei's body while Lizzie turned to Carter. "What happened to him?"

"We were walking over the hill when he tripped on a rock. He must of hit his head or something. I tried waking him up but he didn't respond."

Mary leaned back on her heels and looked up at the captain. "He's alive but his vitals are alarmingly weak and he has cerebral hemorrhaging. I need to get him to medical bay immediately."

While the rest of the team had their eyes on Mary, Lizzie was covertly watching Carter. His eyes had widened in alarm after Mary had declared Leei's diagnosis. Lizzie pressed the communicator on her chest. "Transporter room, beam up Dr. Bennet, Ensign Leei, and the miner immediately. Have medical standing by and tell Yeoman Ramirez to take the miner's statement on Leei's accident. Bennet out."

After they beamed up, Lizzie turned to her first officer. "Did something seem off to you, Commander Darcy?"

Darcy thought carefully before answering, as always. "Yes, Ensign Leei's injury was to the back of his skull, as indicated by the blood on his hair and the back of his collar. Yet when we found him he was lying face down. His position would only be logical if he fell backwards and rolled over, which is possible but unlikely. In addition, the snow on the hill appears-"

"Undisturbed, precisely," Lizzie agreed. "In fact, it hasn't been snowing for about an hour, so the snow couldn't have possibly covered up tracks. Carter's story doesn't add up. Not to mention how panicked he looked when Charlotte announced that Leei was alive." Lizzie paused before adding, "Darcy, scan for lifeforms near us. Something is fishy about this situation."

Darcy was a little perplexed by the idiom, but followed her order quickly. "The only humanoid lifeforms in the vicinity are us and the miners in the building. However, the tricorder is showing a group of non-humanoid lifeforms in a cave approximately .43 kilometers in that direction," Darcy stated, pointing to their left.

"The only pair of footsteps near here is also coming from that way," Lizzie noted. "We'll start there. Look for blood on the ground or for any indication that Leei was carried."

Lizzie and Darcy followed the single set of footprints to a cave, damp and cold from the snow that had drifted inside. Darcy squeezed in behind Lizzie as they entered the short tunnel. "What the hell?" Lizzie muttered to herself as the tunnel started to expand into a small cavern. Stacked, rusty kennels lined the walls, filled to the brim with small animals. Some of them whimpered quietly, as if in pain. Lizzie and Darcy quickly crossed the small room to look inside the cages. "They look like rabbits," Lizzie mumbled to herself as she examined them. These animals did indeed resemble their Terran counterparts, with the exception of the copper colored scales that covered their bodies. Wide eyes looked up at the humans in confusion as Darcy took out his tricorder.

"These animals are called quigins and typically reside in burrows." Darcy eyed the animals critically. "They appeared injured and starved." Bones jutted out from their sides, and blue blood flecked their long nails. Lizzie distastefully noted the rotten food and feces at the bottom of the cages.

"This must have something to do with Denny and Carter, but I'm not quite sure how it all fits. Darcy, help me let them loose," Lizzie commanded as she starting fidgeting with the locks. "Darcy?" Lizzie questioned when her first officer failed to step forward. Instead he stood still, gazing thoughtfully at the creatures.

"Captain, we have no evidence that Denny and Carter were involved in this incident."

"We'll figure that out later. Just help me get them out." Lizzie tugged at the locks unsuccessfully.

"Humans tend not to confess to wrongdoing unless confronted with evidence. I believe our best course of action would be to observe the miners with these animals. Even if we cannot ascertain exactly how they are using them to their benefit or if they were the ones to assault Ensign Leei, we can still charge them with four violations of animal abuse under Federation regulations." Darcy's face remained neutral as he said this.

"Darcy," Lizzie breathed in disbelief. "How can you say that? We need to get them veterinary care now!" As if to punctuate her sentence, an animal in front of her let out a mewl of pain.

"If we take this action I believe we will not have sufficient evidence to arrest Denny and Carter, which means they may do this again," Darcy calmly replied. "While I will of course follow any order you may give, I must insist on an alternative set of action." Looking into Lizzie's eyes, Darcy emphasized his words. "If not, these animals may be back here within a week, and we will not be here to release them. In addition, we might never know what happened to Ensign Leei."

Lizzie reluctantly tore her eyes away from the poor animals. "You're right. I know you're right, I just don't like it." Her back straightened and she tone became commanding. "Alright, here's the plan..."

Darcy and Lizzie pressed together in a recess off to the side of the entrance to the cavern. The small alcove afforded just enough space for them to stand face to face, and to remain hidden as long as no one turned around after entering the room. Lizzie had never been a quiet person, and after fifteen minutes the silence began to unnerve her. Although she knew they should be listening for footsteps, she couldn't resist saying suggestively, "Hey Darcy, is that a phaser in your pocket? Or are you just happy to see me?"

She thought the joke would break up the awkward tension.

She thought wrong.

Darcy frowned down at her. "No, captain, my phase is in its hostler, as per Federation regulation seven-"

"Never mind, just a joke."

"I do not understand, why would my phaser be in my pocket? Easy access to the weapon is the most logical choice, and furthermore-"

Over the sound of Darcy's prattling, Lizzie heard muffled footsteps. Lizzie frantically hushed Darcy, who fell silent immediately. They faintly heard a heated conversation.

"You almost messed up the whole operation, you imbecile!"

"Me?" A voice Lizzie recognized as Carter responded incredulously. "You're the one who assaulted a Federation officer!"

"I had to do that because of your incompetence! You practically showed him to the door!" The conversation got louder as the men entered the room and stood in front of the cages. The animals, which had been relatively calm in Darcy and Lizzie's presence, started hissing and whimpering. "Shut up," Denny turned to yell at the animals. "We need to move them. If the Federation finds out we'll get fired, not to mention at least some fines."

"Fines?! We'll get arrested. Leei was barely alive when they found him!"

"Stop whining and pick up a kennel," Denny barked as he turned to the cart in the corner.

Lizzie stepped out of the alcove, Darcy right behind her. She and Darcy pointed their phasers at the miners. "Hands up, you are both under arrest for the assault on Ensign Blublay Leei and-"

Denny shot forward and tackled Lizzie, who grunted from the impact. Denny made a desperate grab for the phaser, which Lizzie avoided by tossing it across the room to Darcy. Darcy effortlessly caught it, and Lizzie whipped her hands up to box Denny's ears during the distraction. The miner howled in pain and grabbed his head, which left his abdomen open. Lizzie quickly jabbed her fist into the soft flesh, and bucked up her hips to dislodge him. Lizzie lifted herself up while Darcy continued to point the phasers at Carter and Denny. "Thanks for the help, Darcy," Lizzie grumbled sarcastically.

Darcy lifted an eyebrow at her while glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. "You looked like you had it under control, Captain."

Chuckling weakly, Lizzie looked down at the man moaning in pain on the ground. "Yeah, I guess I did."