Disclaimer: Paramount Studios and the estate of Gene Roddenberry own copyright of all things Star Trek. The original plot is my own as are any characters created specifically for this story.

Aboard the Heghta the atmosphere was markedly different. There was no fear or trepidation. One emotion ran through the crew. Expectation. Today would see a great battle. Not the first for any of them, certainly not their Captain whose sat grinning wolfishly in the command chair as he barked orders to the crew around him. Yet they knew that if there were a chance of the Cardassians succeeding the Central Command might just send assistance, knowing that their duplicity in the action was already known. Very possibly they might send a warship to destroy the rogue vessel and claim the crew as renegades. Somehow Kurn doubted that, as he knew the Central Command and was not as sure as his Federation allies that they would willingly throw away the chance to obtain such a weapon. He leaned forward to accept a data pad offered by one of the crew and grunted in satisfaction. Whatever the Empire's enemies had in store for them today, they would be ready.

'Signal the Enterprise. The squadron is ready for battle.'

Back onboard DS9 Kira Nerys was decidedly harassed. Not only was she responsible for the combat readiness of the station, but also provisioning for that of the fleet gathering around it. She tapped her comm. badge. 'Chief, how are we doing?' O'Brien's voice came back. 'I'm just returning now from the Enterprise, Colonel. Looks as though Lieutenant Reetek has kept things running smoothly in my absence. All systems check out perfectly.' Kira grinned, and couldn't resist, 'That's a first isn't it Chief?' There was a pause and a slowly drawled 'Yesss… Actually that's a good point. Nothing has ever worked absolutely spot on around here. I'm going to run through the diagnostics one more time to make absolutely certain that it isn't the routines themselves giving false readings. What we don't need is an EPS conduit or a power relay blowing at the wrong time in combat. Give me ten minutes. O'Brien out.' Nerys nodded, vaguely aware he would not see the motion and turned back to the display on her desk. She flicked the display off and stood. Always a preference for action, she strode out to the main Ops Centre to see first hand the work of her command staff. Ezri Dax noticed the movement as the door slid open and raised an eyebrow at her. She returned the look and shrugged. Ezri knew her as well as anyone; knew she could not sit idly in an office while there was work to be done.

'How's it going Dax?' Ezri mimicked the shrug and grinned. 'We're on top of things here. Shields, phaser banks, all systems up and running. Long range scanners keeping an eye open for our visitors, although to be brutally honest I think the first time we are going to have positive ID on their location is after they've opened fire on the Merrimac. All ship commanders have signed in at peak readiness so although they may get the first shot off, we are pretty much guaranteed the second. From then on it's every ship for themselves. Let's just hope the Cardassians keep out of it.' Kira directed a sharp swift glance at her. 'Something I should know about?' Again Ezri shrugged, 'Probably nothing, but in his status report Captain Kurn indicated he and his ships are ready for 'anything they can throw at us'. Call it intuition but if he was only expecting a Galaxy class he would have said so.' Kira pursed her lips. 'Maybe, equally it could just be our noble comrade's wishful thinking. A single Galaxy would be made mincemeat of in seconds. If however the Central Command decided the prize was too good to lose that easily, things could get ugly in a hurry. She made her decision. 'Signal the Enterprise and notify them. Tactical command is Captain Picard's area. He should be aware of the possibilities.'

The sick bay of the Enterprise was a hive of activity.

'I said medical tricorders!' The raised, and agitated, voice of Beverley Crusher carried across the bay to where Bashir was standing with his back to her while supervising the construction of an emergency triage area for the most severe wounds. He glanced over his shoulder where she was glowering at an ensign in front of her and called across 'You're beautiful when you're angry!' She looked over and snapped 'Shut up!' However a grin spread across her face. 'Alright Ensign, nobody's perfect. Just make sure you get the right ones this time.' 'Yes Doctor.' He turned and left the room.

She grumbled and returned to the inventory she was doing of the equipment that she had begged borrowed or stole.. 'acquired' she amended with a smile to herself. She snapped the padd in front of her closed and called over 'I'll be on the bridge if I'm needed. Captain Picard has called a meeting of the senior staff.' With that she strode out of the sickbay, noting on the way, how Bashir's eyes followed her. Beverley's wicked streak took temporary control and she gave a minute wiggle as she left. She was rewarded by a fumble and clatter as his PADD hit the floor. In turn he was rewarded by a burst of laughter silenced by the closing door behind her. As he straightened up to resume his work Bashir caught the eye of Alyssa Ogawa and saw the badly hidden amusement. He sighed and caught up where he had left off.

Meanwhile Crusher was just entering the turbolift and was opening her mouth to call for the Bridge when a shout held her back. 'Wait one Beverley!' A second later Troi slipped through the doors and smiled at her. 'Going my way?' Crusher rolled her eyes; suddenly everyone was a comedian. 'How's Julian?' Crusher paused and replied, 'He's fine.' Troi glanced at her and decided on this occasion not to pursue the inquiry. As the doors slid open they turned right and skirted around the back of the main bridge, entering the door on the far side into the Observation Lounge. As they entered Crusher drew a sharp breath. More than merely the Enterprise crew, no less than four starship Captains had joined them for the briefing. Needless to say chief among the new arrivals was Robert DeSoto of the Hood. Additionally Kurn had taken time out from his preparations to attend, as had Kira Nerys and Miles O'Brien for DS9. Crusher smiled at DeSoto and took her customary place at the long centre table. After waiting for everyone to settle Picard stood and approached the display at the front.

'I think we'll dispense with introductions. Everybody here knows each other if not by sight then certainly by reputation', here he glanced between Robert DeSoto and Will Riker. His attention was rewarded by a good-natured rumble from the pair who regarded him with some suspicion wondering what joke was about to be sprung on them. However Picard returned to business. 'As you all are aware we have, or I should say, had, potential problems with the Merrimac. Essentially the power output for the tachyon grid from the Merrimac was found to be lower than required. However, we have found a way to work around this and turn the potential weakness into an advantage.' He went on to describe in detail the plan that had been formulated up to that point and concluded by indicating where each of those assembled would come into the scene. 'Now are there any questions?'

He glanced across as Kurn raised a metal clad hand, 'Yes, Captain?' Kurn grinned wolfishly and rumbled 'How long until they arrive?' Picard threw a questioning look at Geordie LaForge. He thought swiftly. 'Probably within the next 90 minutes would be the absolute earliest, more likely two hours or so. Our original calculations as you know were based on best possible speed, so that if they arrived later, then we would have time in hand to prepare. Kurn nodded. 'Excellent. My squadron will deploy immediately to their assigned positions. Permission to leave Captain?'

'Granted.' Kurn stood and strode swiftly out to return to the Heghta.

'Captain Picard!' He turned, 'Yes Robert, how are repairs going on the Hood?' DeSoto smiled, the first time in days. 'We're doing fine Jean-Luc, I was wondering though about the dispersion of ships. Why is the Hood not in the front line?'

Picard grinned 'Not had enough Robert? Actually if you notice, the Hood is adjacent to the Merrimac. If the Cardassians come barrelling through there you'll see plenty of action, trust me old friend.'

DeSoto grinned and sat back in his chair. Picard glanced warily at him. 'Now any more questions?' There were none. 'Alright, dismissed, thank you everyone.' The meeting broke up as all returned to their ships and assigned stations.

As Riker was leaving Picard called him back. 'Will! Stay a moment if you would.' Riker sat on the edge of the table and looked at him expectantly. 'You know what I am thinking Will, what is your opinion? You served with the man as his First Officer long enough.' Riker bit the side of his mouth and grimaced. 'He's on the edge. The Hood lost 21 of her crew in the battle and it's brought back memories of the border conflicts. Did you know he was involved in the clean-up operations after Setlik III? It was Picard's turn to wince. 'No I knew Chief O'Brien's involvement of course, on the Rutledge, but not that Robert was there too. Hmm…' he sighed, 'Well it can't be helped now. Be ready Will, old friend or not I will not sacrifice this mission if there is a problem. I will replace him as Captain of the Hood… with you.' He raised his hand to stay Riker's objection. 'I hope it won't come to that, and knowing Robert's record, I doubt it will, but you need to know the chance exists, and I needed to know your thoughts.'

Riker stood, 'If that's all Captain?' Picard nodded, 'Oh just one thing Will… who was Kelly?' Riker froze. His sharp glance at Picard drew a nod from the other. 'I thought so. Will, I don't need to be a Betazoid to feel the tension when you asked that question. Is there a problem?' Riker shook his head. 'No sir, I… Deanna and I... have discussed her. There is no problem that will affect this mission.' Picard nodded, 'I'm sorry Will, you understand I had to ask, as you would have had every right to query my reaction to Vash; which you did not query, and I am grateful for your discretion in that.' He pursed his lips, 'That will be all Commander.' Riker nodded and exited the Observation Lounge.

Picard stood for a few minutes reflecting on the personal losses that had been inflicted in such a short space of time. An involuntary shudder passed through him as he recalled the moment of being advised of the deaths of his brother, sister-in-law and nephew and the subsequent events that led to the supposed destruction of his previous command. He exhaled sharply, pulling down on the hem of his jacket and strode out of the Observation Lounge, replacing Will Riker who had taken the command chair in his absence.

'How are we looking Number One?'

Riker looked up from his displays. 'Well the fleet is loaded for bear. Kira Nerys has done a great job restocking any shortfall in weapons inventory from the reserves of DS9. The Merrimac has been given an augmented load and somehow', here he raised an amused eyebrow, 'the combined talents of Chief O'Brien and Geordi LaForge, not to mention a certain android Starfleet officer, have raised shield efficiency a full 30%. I asked Geordi and he muttered something about 'knowing the guy who wrote the specs' but he wouldn't be more explicit than that.' Picard chuckled 'I think he is referring to a certain ex-Enterprise Chief Engineer we ran into a few years back.' Riker smiled in realisation. 'Ah, well anyway that should give the Cardassians a nasty shock. They may be thinking to take out the Merrimac with one shot, but with those shields they'd have to be very lucky… especially as her captain is likely to weight the shield strength heavily to the expected approach vector of the enemy ship.'

Picard yawned. 'Good. In that case I am ordering all senior staff to rest up for a few hours. At the earliest the Cardassians can't be here for another… Mr Data, how long until the earliest we can expect trouble?' Data swivelled in his seat. 'At a sustained Warp 7.6 the hostile vessel could be in range within 2 hours. Picard grunted. 'Better than nothing I suppose, so on that note, Will, you and I are hereby ordered by the good doctor to get our heads down.' He tapped his communicator. 'Mr LaForge, Mr Worf… both of you report to your cabins immediately. I'm sure your teams can manage without you for a while.' He paused and stood. 'Mr Data you have the bridge.' He beckoned Riker to follow and left the bridge in the capable hands of one tireless android.

'Status!' Evek turned to the Glen at the security station.

'All ready Gul Evek. All stations report full readiness.'

Evek clasped his hands together. At last they were nearing home. His mouth split in a wolfish grin. 'On my mark... Engage!'

On the bridge of every Starfleet and Klingon Defense Force vessel, alarms lit off in quick succession. 'Red Alert!' came the bellow of Riker 'All hands to General Quarters!' Across the vast bulk of the Sovereign class starship, crew members scrambled to their allotted posts. A split-second later Picard arrived on the bridge, followed rapidly by Worf and Troi. Vacating the command chair, Riker dropped into the First Officer's position and tapped urgently at his side console to bring up a situation report.

'I thought we weren't expecting them for another half hour or so?' Deanna queried, evidently puzzled. Picard turned to her and commented sourly 'No battle-plan has ever survived first contact with the enemy, Counsellor – a truism which is the bane of every commander in the field, and has been since the first caveman threw a rock at another on Earth.' He snapped around to Wil Riker 'Report Number One!' Riker grimaced. 'Trust the Cardassians not to do what is expected of them!' Picard arched an eyebrow 'Which is?' Pointing to his readout Riker illustrated the point, 'See? We expected them to come in on a straight trajectory heading for home with all possible speed. Instead they swung around the back side of Bajor and caught us on the blindside. They're still ten minutes away, but the damn Merrimac is not positioned relative to them where we need it for the plan to work!'

'Do they know they've been spotted yet?' Riker shook his head 'No.. the problem is now though that any manoeuvring by us will tip our hand as they will wonder why we are re-deploying and figure they've been spotted.' Picard tapped his top lip thoughtfully. 'Hmm... but we can redeploy our cloaked contingent with impunity... Wait! Do they have visual on the Enterprise yet?' Another shake of the head in response. 'Good! Signal Kurn to redeploy his forces on tangent to the incoming vessel. Meanwhile', he tapped his communicator, 'Mr LaForge! Now if you please!'

A curious shimmer passed before Riker's eyes. Curious, unsettling and yet somehow unhappily familiar. Picard saw his glance and nodded. The phasing cloak had been engaged. Now, when the Cardassians hit they'd have an Ace up their sleeves.

'Sir!' Terek's call from the Ops station brought Macet's head up from examining the data coming in on his chair console, 'What is it Centurion?' Terek responded by bringing up the tactical display from his console on the main viewscreen. To the bottom right the curvature of Bajor fell away behind them, but the reason for Terek's concern was immediately apparent. Arrayed before them was a fleet of Federation vessels; clearly their strategy had been anticipated. Macet cursed then thought, asking 'How long to the border?' The response, this time from Seetel at Helm '30 minutes sir..' Macet scowled, that meant twenty minutes of flight after they had got through the cordon ahead, which given the calibre of the vessels in the fleet was by no means guaranteed. Evek exited the Captain's Ready Room where he had been.. what? 'Sleeping!' thought Macet sourly. 'Good of you to join us...' with biting sarcasm, and he jerked a hand at the viewscreen 'You see what the Federation has sent to greet us? The cream of their fleet, it seems they do not want us to make it home with our prize..'

Evek glowered at the screen studying it for several seconds before pronouncing 'Hmm.. a tachyon grid.. not very original considering Picard is undoub..ted.. ly..' his voice trailed off and a quizzical eyebrow raised before he continued '.. that's interesting. Speaking of that devious old.. where is he? Where is the Federation flagship? Surely they wouldn't be left out of an engagement like this.. I see several othe..' a curse of surprise spat from his lips 'The Hood.. they must have broken all records to repair the damage we inflicted on them!' The tone in his voice one of grudging admiration. Macet's harsh voice broke into his thoughts 'Well? You're supposed to be the tactical genius. How do we get through them?' Evek scowled at the insinuation in the supposed and tapped his chin while his eyes drifted over the display. Finally he grinned, and pointed 'Here! This ship, the Merrimac.. the power of its' transmitter is fractionally lower, and it is right next to the Hood.. which despite their obviously hurried repairs cannot be as ready as they would like.' He turned to Macet. 'We cross in front of them as if searching for a way through, but then as we come level with the Merrimac we turn and strike - hard!' Macet regarded him coolly, 'You do not perhaps think the weakness a bit obvious, and they want us to strike there?' Evek glanced at him 'Hmm.. you're learning Macet.. we may make a half-decent tactician out of you yet..' Macet bristled but Evek ignored him continuing '.. Yes I had thought of that but I do not see any other way.. besides even if they are ready for us, if we hit with sufficient power and speed they will not be able to respond before we are through'. Macet growled reluctant acceptance of both points, 'Do it!' Evek turned away almost ignoring the instruction to give his orders to Seetel at the helm.

Aboard DS9 was a hive of activity as Kira, Dax and O'Brien rattled off orders all around, having been apprised of the Cardassian's unexpected approach, both in timing and direction. 'Bloody Cardies!' O'Brian muttered 'Never where you want them, always where you don't..' Dax glanced at him with an amused grin 'I wasn't aware there actually was anywhere you wanted a Cardassian Miles?' O'Brien opened his mouth to retort, but shook his head and laughed, responding 'Well Garak's OK but.. yeah.. that is about my limit!' Dax chuckled turning back to her science station which during combat doubled as monitor for critical systems including all weaponry and shields.

'How're we looking Dax?' Kira called down from the railing of her office above the circular pit where O'Brien and Dax sat surrounded by a ring of displays for all DS9's critical systems. The Ops Centre where O'Brien - as Chief of Operations for the station - was king. Dax looked up 'We're ready , not that it would make any difference if I said we weren't.. they're coming and they're coming now..' Kira scowled 'Any activity in the Demilitarised Zone?' Dax shook her head.. the DMZ - the zone created by the prior tenuous treaty between the Federation and Cardassia was - as far as her sensors could tell - entirely empty, but they both knew that was a situation that could change in a hurry if things did not go as planned. 'Alright, keep me posted..' Kira turned and went back to her office hearing the doors slide shut behind her.

Aboard the Enterprise there was a similar tale unfolding. While Picard, Riker, Data and Worf worked together as a well oiled machine - testimony not only to their professionalism, but also to their close friendships - each knew what the other was thinking and doing, elsewhere on the Enterprise other teams were hard at work. Crusher, Bashir and Ogawa were busy in the Sick Bay whilst Geordie was marshalling his troops in Engineering, assigning critical roles to his most trusted staff, particularly Barclay and Gomez. He knew that in the coming battle, especially with the largely untested cloaking device, anything could happen, and a loss - or excess - of power in the wrong place and/or at the wrong time could prove fatal, literally.

On the bridge Picard was, as usual, balancing the many balls of his command with consummate ease. While simultaneously checking readiness of all departments he was able to fire off specific queries and instructions to those around him. 'Number One how fa..' 'Three million kilometres' Riker replied to the half spoken question without even taking his eyes from the display to his right side. Rather than reprimand him for interrupting Picard just smiled inwardly and called to his left 'Mr Data, where are they now?' Data responded without turning 'They are clearing Bajor now, they appear to be slowing. I would surmise they have spotted us, and the tachyon grid and are currently probing for a weakness.' Picard grunted, 'Let's hope they find one, and that it's the one we know about', his clarification earning a mild snort from Riker, half amusement half in agreement with the sentiment. Turning in his seat Picard looked back up at the Tactical station, currently occupied by Worf. 'Any activity in the Demilitarised Zone?' Unknowingly echoing the same query from his counterpart aboard DS9. A similar response 'No sir, everything is quiet over there, too quiet', at which Picard raised an eyebrow. 'I rather like the idea of a quiet Demilitarised Zone Mr Worf..?' Worf grunted 'As do I sir.. however it is unlike the Cardassians to see a fleet of Federation vessels this close to their border without sending a ship to investigate. The DMZ is clear - they know their obligations under the treaty - but so is the half million kilometres I am able to scan inside their territory. If I were the Cardassians I would be curious but it seems they are not.' 'Let's not look a gift horse in the mouth eh Worf?' Riker chimed in. Picard stepped in to avoid a pointless discussion brewing 'Agreed Number One, but the point is well taken Mr Worf.. keep an eye on them.' Worf nodded 'Aye Captain'.

In Engineering LaForge was busy having heard the report that the Cardassians had broken cover. While he left Gomez to deal with propulsion and defensive systems power he put Barclay on offensive systems, with instructions to both to yell the microsecond anything looked dicey. Both had, predictably, given him 'Yes, we have done this before' looks. For himself he took the somewhat more precarious, and unreliable in his mind, role of monitoring not only all of the ship's normal systems but also the cloaking device, knowing that if it failed, or even deployed itself, at the wrong moment things could go very badly for all concerned. That and the possible overload of the warp-core was giving him sleepless nights already, and he was fairly sure he hadn't even been to bed yet to get any kind of night, much less a sleepless one.

'Sonya how's the...' She cut in anticipating '100%.. same as it was five minutes ago Geordie..' Barclay chipped in 'Same here..' LaForge rolled his eyes 'OK you two, I was just asking..' He shook his head amused and proud in equal measure that his team was so well-prepared and close-knit they could answer questions he hadn't even finished asking yet.

'There.. there it is again sir!' Seetel pointed to an unusual reading seemingly emanating from an area ahead of them. Evek peered at the display with suspicion, glancing over at Macet. 'Bah! It is nothing..' Turning back from the display he turned and took his place in the First Officer's chair, momentarily smarting once more that Macet as teh senior Gul had claimed by right the Captain's chair. 'When you're quite ready..' Macet's voice grated on his nerves and he grunted an affirmative. 'Helm set course for the Merrimac and take us past her bow, then straight for the Demilitarised Zone'. Terek tapped a few controls on his console and awaited the next command. It was not long in coming.

'Engage!'

At the instant they saw the Cardassian ship move the Federation fleet poured all their power into the tachyon grid. Aboard the Merrimac her captain held his nerve, knowing that the next few minutes, and his conduct, would spell success or disaster for the fleet. He glanced up at his Security Chief 'Wait.. wait...'

'Here they come!' Picard glanced at Riker nodding.

A snarl of pleasure was torn from Kurn's throat smelling the scent of battle.

'Fire!' Macet's sharp command snapped across the bridge as his commands were obeyed and as - from outside - the Enterprise-D shimmered into view her phaser banks opened their account sending a concentrated beam of energy at the Merrimac. As the energy made contact with the Merrimac's shields they glowed a bright blue curving around the ship.

Aboard the Merrimac the Inertial Damping Field struggled to cope, but her captain was gratified to hear the report 'No damage sir!' from Ops station to his front left. 'Good' he thought 'Let's hope it stays that way!' The unwelcome surprise of the rogue being able to fire from cloak was not something they had been aware of.

Ignoring a virulent curse from his right Picard spoke calmly. 'Lower the cloak please Mr LaForge! Let's give them a surprise!' Geordi tapped a few controls on his panel and breathed a sigh of relief as the prodigious energy consumption of the cloak plummeted leaving the Enterprise with a little more than her usual loading. He glanced at the other systems and noted with some pleasure all seemed to be within nominal range.

'Open fire Mr Worf.. a full spread of photon torpedoes.. maximum yield..' Riker glanced at the grim set of his captain's jaw but said nothing. The familiar orange balls curved away on the viewscreen toward their prey.

Engineering and Geordie's face showed alarm at the sudden spike in energy use as the photon torpedoes were released and he hurriedly shunted power from a less critical system to compensate, muttering to himself 'Damn that was close!'

'They're coming our way! Chief..'

'Yes I see it!' O'Brien immediately aware of the danger transferred shield energy to the sector facing the incoming rogue and unleashed a torrent of phaser fire from the recently upgraded defences. The Enterprise-D responded with photon torpedoes, the impact on a weaker area of the shields setting an alarm off as the rogue ship curved past them attempting escape to the DMZ and Cardassian space.

In DS9's medlab Crusher and Bashir were shepherding the thankfully small number of casualties to beds, treating cuts and blast burns rapidly both of them aware of how much worse it could get, but not voicing their concern for fear of making it a reality.

'Dammit Evek! The Merrimac is sti... The Enterprise? Where did they come from? You're certain they weren't..' Macet was clearly unhappy with the sudden change in fortunes, nor too was Evek who snapped 'Yes of course I'm sure!' Snapping at Terek to take evasive action. As they turned to port angling toward the Demilitarised Zone he jerked in his seat as a torpedo grazed the ship's left warp nacelle setting of alarms throughout Engineering. 'Cardassia Prime.. Warp Nine! Engage!' As Terek reached for the control to engage the new course a new - and for the Cardassians unwelcome - development occurred. Around them a phalanx of twelve Klingon battle-cruisers de-cloaked and as they manoeuvred to escape began firing, immediately inflicting heavy damage on the once proud Federation flagship. A heavy blast rocked them and started several fires around the bridge. Seetel glanced over and recoiled in shock seeing Terek's body slumped over his console. 'Engineering to Bridge.. sir we no longer have power to maintain the cloak!'

Macet slammed his fist on the arm of his chair. 'We are lost Evek.. once they see us we shall not escape..' Evek snarled at him in response 'I for one do not intend to die here today.. Come!' Without waiting for a response he stood and strode to the turno-lift behind to their left. Macet followed, angry but also part curious at Evek's thought. 'Captain's Yacht!' Evek barked and stood waiting while the lift plummeted the entire height of the ship to where the Captain's Yacht sat anchored to the bottom of the saucer section. As the doors opened he strode in and began tapping controls to bring the systems online. Macet regarded him with contempt 'So this is your plan.. abandon all we have worked for.. all I have planned these last years?' Evek regarded him sourly 'If you do not like it Macet you can always return to the Bridge..' Macet scowled and sat in the Captain's chair as Macet brought the vessel up to readiness.

'What the hell?' Riker's bellow of combined confusion and anger echoed across the bridge. Picard shot him a glance. 'Evidently our quarry does not wish to be caught Number One..' Having spotted the small ship detach itself from the Enterprise-D he tapped his communicator he spoke 'Picard to Kurn.. you see them?' Kurn's response was instant ' I do indeed Captain Picard! Shall I..' 'Let them go..' forestalling any objection he continued 'If we capture them it will destroy the treaty, and the fragile peace we currently enjoy.. No I'm afraid on this occasion we will have to let them slip by us..'

Aboard the Enterprise-D the Security Chief had bolted from his station to take up position in the Captain's chair. Just in time to issue the last command he would ever issue 'Helm get us out of he..'

An expanding brilliant ball of gas and flame marked the position where the ship had once been, a phaser blast having ignited the plasma streaming from the left warp nacelle.

Aboard the fleet and on DS9 whoops of elation filled the comms channels as the crews celebrated their success. Yet on the Enterprise Picard was curiously sombre, only moving when he felt a touch on his left arm. He nodded 'Yes Counselor I know.. we had no choice.. It doesn't mean I have to like it'. He stood abruptly. 'Number One, you have the bridge.. I have to make a report to Admiral Henry. Hopefully he'll be so relieved he won't ask too many questions.. In the meantime perhaps it would be prudent if Mr LaForge..' Riker nodded 'Aye Captain.. right away..'

Thus as Picard left the bridge to report to Henry, Riker departed to Engineering to speak to LaForge. Both musing how close they had come to disaster.

To a Cardassian Galaxy.