Chapter 4

January 23, 2248

EarthDome:

"You people do enjoy living dangerously! Although I must say that we Klingons have much in common with yours in that regard."

President Elizabeth Levy narrowed her eyes at the menacing-looking alien in confusion. She had brought the two Alpha Quadrant ambassadors to her private office while the other members of their parties had been taken to a nearby conference room. She wanted answers to some tough questions from the pair of high-ranking officials and believed they'd be more forthcoming if the three of them spoke together without an audience.

"What do you mean by that, general?"

The alien smiled fiercely at her. "Why, madam, did you not just ask us both 'what do you want?' That is a very perilous question to ask anyone because most are unwilling to look deep into the abyss to discover just how far they'd go to obtain their heart's desire." As she tried to shove down the urge to shiver under the heat of his glare, Koloth magnanimously said, "Since we do not have much time to prepare for the Minbari's onslaught on your world, I propose we engage in a little game to help facilitate the course of our discussions."

Sarek peered directly at the Klingon, his face completely devoid of emotion. "A game, you say? Specify."

"Why, of course, my dear Ambassador Sarek. I propose we play a game I call the 'truth.' For the next ten minutes, the three of us must agree to tell the truth, and only the truth, as we know it at the present time. If one of us asks a question of the others, the person answering the question must do so honestly to the best of his or her ability. To encourage complete candor, we should also agree that whatever is said here shall not leave this room or be repeated to anyone other than the three of us. Are we in agreement?"

The Vulcan simply nodded and said, "I accept your terms."

Levy sighed. "All right, I'll agree to play by those rules."

Koloth grinned wickedly at both Sarek and her. "Splendid! I shall begin by answering your question, Madame President." The suave warrior paused momentarily, apparently to gather his thoughts. Then he cleared his throat and said, "The answer to your question, at least from my peoples' perspective, is twofold. However, to put your mind at ease, madam, we desire nothing whatsoever from the Earth Alliance." As she cocked her right eyebrow toward the ceiling in disbelief, he laughed heartily. "Remember, madam, the rules of our little game! I promise you I am being completely truthful by saying we want nothing from your people."

"Then," Sarek asked, "what is it that you do want?"

"We want only two things, Vulcan. The first thing we want is something fervently desired by all of my people. We want the glory of honorable combat. And what could be more honorable than defending a species so hopelessly outclassed as the Humans on this side of the galaxy from complete annihilation by a race like the Minbari, a people who are even more arrogant than either the Humans of the Federation, the Romulans, or my own? Indeed, my people, and I suspect many of those in Starfleet, will sing songs about the glory of this impending battle until the stars themselves grow cold and die."

Elizabeth nearly couldn't bring herself to believe the alien except for the fact she spied the fire of his convictions in his eyes. It was then she realized that both Captain Sulu and Sarek had been right about the Klingons. They truly lived for battle. "I see, General Koloth," she said. "You mentioned before there was another reason?"

"Yes," he hissed. He hesitated for a moment and took a sip of water from his glass. As he placed the glass on top of the table, he said, "The second thing we want, although it pains me to admit this and I will deny I ever said it if either of you violate the rules of our little game, is to build a closer relationship with the Federation." At that moment, Koloth shot a piercing look at the Vulcan. "You, of course, already know this to be true, Sarek. Indeed, it was our chancellor, your son and you who'd arranged for the recent peace talks between our two governments. Now, some of us, such as Kang, Kor and I have come around and seen that there is much that our two peoples could accomplish if we worked together yet maintained our own distinct cultures." Suddenly, he leaned toward Sarek and spoke with a soft growl. "However, there are many others on both sides who'd stop at almost nothing to keep the old animosities between the Empire and the Federation alive and well."

Koloth paused for another sip of water and continued by saying, "Even though there are many on either side who'd rather take up arms against the other, if there was a glorious war that forced the members of Starfleet to stand side-by-side with Klingon warriors in honorable battle after battle, the dynamic between our two peoples would change forever." The Klingon then smiled at his counterpart. "My dear Ambassador Sarek, is it not delicious irony that a war in another part of the galaxy stands a good chance of establishing cordial relations between our two governments?"

Sarek said nothing in response to Koloth's musings. So, Elizabeth took the opportunity to ask the Vulcan, "Sarek, I've heard what the general has to say. What does the Federation want from the Earth Alliance?"

Sarek seemed to study her face for a moment while his countenance was as impenetrable as the facades of the presidents carved into Mt. Rushmore. Suddenly, she detected something in his body language that she found reassuring and, although she didn't know exactly why, she knew him to be trustworthy. Then while she reflected on her impressions of him, he said, "President Levy, I shall tell you the truth, though, at the present time, most of your people are incapable of believing it. We simply desire to associate with the Earth Alliance on friendly terms. We have no desire to subjugate your people or force anyone to join our Federation. Indeed, there are many governments that have loose affiliations with us. They engage in cultural exchanges and commerce yet have no desire or interest in joining the UFP. For instance, there is an independent confederation of worlds known as the 'First Federation' in the Alpha Quadrant. That government first made contact with us twenty-five years ago and the contact has been enriching to both parties. The First Federation is still independent, though, of the UFP, is that not so, General Koloth?"

"Yes," the Klingon agreed with a nod. "Sarek speaks the truth."

"However, to address your reservations and the prevalent Human imperfections that have led your people to distrust our way of life, I will say that what we do want from you other than peaceful and friendly relations is access to your knowledge of the races in your quadrant and your assistance in arranging introductions to them."

Levy stared at the Federation ambassador. "That's all you want from us?"

"Yes."

"That's it?"

"Was I unclear in some manner regarding the answer you require?"

"N-no," she stammered. "It just seems like you're hardly asking for anything at all. Do you not require raw materials, a colony world, something to provide recompense for your actions on our behalf?"

"We have no need for compensation for our efforts, Madame President. You see, the Humans in the Alpha Quadrant already believe this is their fight because the Minbari wanted to exterminate you and all Humans everywhere. Moreover, when the Minbari attacked Regulus and extinguished the lives of twenty-eight million sentients, the Andorians, the Tellarites, the Vulcans, the Klingons, the Deltans, the Trills, and even the Gorn realized that the Minbari had to be confronted. The Gorn are another species that has a government in the Alpha Quadrant independent of the Federation. One of their leaders who had been visiting Regulus was killed during the attack. The Gorn have decided, as you would say, 'to join the party' against the Minbari." Then the ambassador paused to take a sip of water from his own glass before he continued. "As I have said before, Madame President, your world is much like Federation Earth before its first contact with my people. Vulcans served as Federation Earth's guide into interstellar space before it was ready to pursue its own course. Earth Alliance's courage in the face of the Minbari threat speaks much to your potential to be as successful and well-esteemed as Federation Earth is today. This is one of the factors in our willingness to assist your world." Then he added ominously, "However, if your people decide they wish for the Federation to leave Earth Alliance alone and have no further contact with it, we will accede to their desires. However, you should understand that if we engage in diplomatic relations with the other species in your quadrant or establish colonies or bases in currently uninhabited star systems, our activity shall not be constrained by your government whatsoever."

"You see, Madame President," Koloth noted with a predatory smile, "In reality, the Federation doesn't need the Earth Alliance to fight the Minbari. It could do so by itself. The Klingon Empire could do so by itself. The fact we intend to include you in our military engagements against the Minbari should speak to how considerate we both are willing to be toward your government."

As she reflected upon Koloth's point, Sarek said, "I wish to ask you a question, Madame President."

"Please do, ambassador."

"Do you believe your people can set aside your anti-alien sentiments and work with both the Klingon Defense Force and Starfleet?"

Elizabeth took a deep breath as she attempted to compose her thoughts. Then she said, indicating Sarek with a knowing glance, "Well, once you'd arrived here in our space, the genie was out of the bottle in regards to the other races here that may seek closer ties to both of your governments. So, I want my people to understand that if those of us who desire either isolationism or to impose their anti-alien sentiments on the humanity governed by Earth Alliance have their way, Earth Alliance risks falling irrevocably behind the other races in our quadrant." Then she paused, wondering whether she'd tell them everything. Moments later, she decided that transparency was essential to create a stronger working relationship with the visitors. "Sarek, you should know that one of our senators had the notion to try and take the Excelsior by force during your first visit. He believed that the Federation couldn't understand our predicament or sympathize with our plight and attempted to justify his notion with that. However, I made certain he could never have acted against you."

The Vulcan nodded at her. "I thank you for that, Elizabeth, however, there was no cause for your concern. We were aware of his intentions."

Her eyes shot wide open both at his revelation and his use of her Christian name. "You knew?"

He nodded gravely. "Do you not recall that we had several crewmembers who are members of telepathic races on board the Excelsior? They had discerned his intentions. We simply implemented contingencies to protect against such an occurrence if he and his followers had decided to act upon them." Then he gracefully lifted an eyebrow toward his hairline. "It was fortunate that he chose not to act; it would have been…counterproductive on his part."

She smiled at Sarek then. Indeed, she had used the same word when she'd talked Senator Clark down from following through with his insane scheme. "Those were my thoughts exactly, ambassador." Then she leaned slightly toward him and said, "I am happy that you do not hold that senator's thoughts against us, Sarek. I'm not certain that my people would be so magnanimous in your place. It seems you Federation people are fascinatingly different in many ways."

"Indeed?" drawled Sarek. "The same may be said of you, madam."

At that, Koloth suddenly grinned lasciviously and purred, "Vulcan, we know you already have a fancy for Human females. Why don't you both simply cut to the chase and get a room already?"

Although Elizabeth was completely caught off guard by the Klingon's remarks, her mind did consider the possibilities fleetingly.

#

"Are you people out of your freaking minds?" Secretary Josephine Hannah practically screeched at the commanders of the visitors' starships.

Commander Klagh shot a slightly confused glance at Captain Tynen. When the Federation Human caught the Klingon's look, he smirked and said, "She thinks we're insane."

"Oh," Klagh said simply. "She's probably correct in her assessment." When the Starfleet officers glared at him, he added, "Well, how else would you explain why we've travelled nearly seventy thousand light years to fight and most likely die in glorious battle on behalf of total strangers?"

V'Lar appeared to carefully consider the Klingon's observation and said, "I believe Commander Klagh makes an excellent point, captain." Then the alien woman shot a hard look at the Earth Alliance Secretary of Defense. "What exactly do you find discomforting about Admiral Tapin's strategy, Secretary Hannah?"

The cabinet member sputtered, "T-the part about using EarthForce as bait for the Minbari!"

Tynen chuckled at that. "Well, it's not just your ships that will serve as bait. The Minbari will have plenty of incentive to try and destroy ours, too, you know."

As Hannah glared at the Federation captain, the Vulcan woman said, "It is essential that the Minbari believe that the bulk of your forces, as well as ours, are present in this system to protect your world. If they discern we are setting a trap for them, they may bypass your Earth and continue to systematically destroy your colonies before we can help you build the capacity to defend them for yourselves. If we entice the Minbari to engage us here and now, we may eliminate enough of their vessels to force them into a defensive posture and to persuade their leadership to seek a diplomatic end to this conflict."

General Hague stared at both Starfleet officers for a moment before he sighed. "I suppose we have little choice but to adopt the admiral's plan."

"Bill…" Hannah muttered lowly.

"Jo, let's hear them out. Perhaps it'll get better as we go along."

"Look, general, I can honestly say I'm not crazy about the plan, either," Tynen said. "However, I do believe it's our best chance to save your planet from destruction and to hurt the Minbari badly enough to get them to come to the table and discuss a peace settlement."

"Fine, captain," Hague said. "Now how can we help you hurt the Minbari when they invade our space?"

Tynen then turned to the alien woman who was his wife. "V'Lar?"

"General, Ms. Secretary, there are several important elements to Admiral Tapin's and Brigadier Kerla's plan. First, we will provide you with several multi-generator shield systems to protect Earth, Luna, Mars, Titan, and Io. The system that we have begun to install on your Earth will have the capability to repel an all-out attack by a single Federation fleet for an entire day of space-to-ground bombardment. By the end of the day, your planet will possess a single shield generator which is vulnerable to penetration if a warship attacks Earth opposite the generator's location on the surface. That is the reason we shall install a series of generators to make certain the entire planet is adequately protected."

"Excuse me, commander," Hague asked, "how many of your ships make up a Federation fleet?"

"That would be one thousand starships, general. Starfleet has ten fleets that are currently in operation and two in reserve."

A stunned Hannah's jaw nearly hit the table in disbelief. "You people have ten thousand starships?"

Tynen nodded at the woman. "Yes, give or take another two thousand or so. The Klingons have, what Klagh, at least eight thousand ships?"

"Yes, that sounds about right, my friend."

"Together, your governments have more than twenty thousand ships?" Hague droned.

"Well, yes," the captain confirmed. "But you should remember that we have a radius of seven thousand light years to defend and even more volume of space to explore. The Klingons have at least forty-five hundred light years to do the same. It takes a large number of starships to patrol and explore an area that's so vast. That's why we were only able to muster a little less than a hundred ships for the expeditionary force. It takes some time to cycle ships out from patrol and exploration missions for resupply and deployment to the other side of the galaxy."

As Hannah's mind nearly shut down from trying to comprehend the sheer magnitude of the forces that both of the Alpha Quadrant races had at their command, V'Lar asked, "May I continue with my briefing, Ms. Secretary?"

"Yes, by all means, commander," Jo said.

V'Lar simply nodded in response and said, "In addition to the planetary shields, Starfleet will install ground based phaser banks on your Earth, Luna, Mars, Io, and Titan. These phaser banks will have stealth probes throughout space up to one A.U. distant to facilitate their targeting. Each phaser bank will have a range of one light second and each beam is twice as powerful as the Valkyrie's assault phaser cannons. On your Luna, we shall also install several pulse fire photon torpedo launchers to catch the Minbari fleet in a deadly crossfire between our ships, your Earth's phaser banks, and the weapon emplacements on your Luna."

Tynen smirked and added, "Both your Earth and your moon are the 'anvils' and our ships are the 'hammers!'"

Hague nodded then asked the two Starfleet officers, "Do you need to train our people to maintain these weapon emplacements, commander?"

"No, general, the phaser banks will be manned by Starfleet personnel and the torpedo launchers are fully automatic and will be fully armed upon installation. You should also know that the weapons systems, the planetary shields, and their power sources are sealed and linked by subspace radio signals. They cannot be taken apart and analyzed by your people. If any individual system is tampered with, all of the others will be rendered immediately inoperable."

Hague frowned at her answer. "Commander V'Lar, don't you think that's a draconian and unreasonable action to take against an ally?"

Instead of V'Lar answering the man, Tynen indicated that he'd address the general's question. "General Hague, sir, if I were you, I wouldn't shoot the messenger. The restriction originated far above both of our pay grades and you know it."

"Yes, of course, captain, I understand that but it appears your people don't trust us."

"You're right, sir," Tynen noted. "We don't."

"Excuse me?"

"We've just come into contact with your people, general. We practically know nothing about you. What we do know is that your armed forces launched an attack on a visiting starship which approached you in a non-threatening posture in your space nearly two years after you're in danger of being exterminated by another race that despises you for firing on the ship that contained its seat of government in unclaimed space. So, your track record in that regard is somewhat suspect to us. However, putting all of that aside, normally, it takes ten years of cultural exchanges and trade relations before any new member is accepted into the Federation. Then, at that point, we would completely and freely share technology with the new member world so long as it agreed to be bound by the laws of the Federation. Now, in your case, there are still elements among your people who see our way of life as a threat to your own. There are elements who would even consider stealing or using force to take some of our technology to use in a war of conquest against the other races in your quadrant of space. General, Ms. Secretary, you need to make your people understand that is something we will never allow."

As the flag officer glared at the captain of the Valkyrie, Tynen said, "V'Lar, please continue with your briefing."

"Very well, sir. Finally, Brigadier Kerla 'insists' that we deploy their contribution to the defense of your Earth. To join the six defense satellites left previously in orbit above the planet by the Excelsior, the Klingons shall deploy their 'Starkiller' mobile weapons platform in orbit as well. Each platform contains three long range disruptor cannons, two pulse fire photon torpedo launchers, long range sensors, a mini warp core, fully automatic artificial intelligence, and a cloaking device. They are completely invisible to the sensors used by the races indigenous to your quadrant of space as well as humanoid vision while cloaked. However, they must decloak to fire their weapon systems."

Jo believed she sensed that the Vulcan found something distasteful about the Klingon weapons. "Commander," she asked, "does something trouble you about these platforms?"

The other woman regarded her with an ice-cold look. "I am incapable of being 'troubled,' Ms. Secretary. That is a Human emotion and I am not Human; I am Vulcan. However, it is fair to say I am somewhat…disconcerted about the use of disruptors."

As Hannah glared at the alien woman while she wondered for the twentieth time what-in-the-hell-did-that-gorgeous-captain-see-in-that-pointy-eared-witch, Hague mused loudly, "Okay, I'll bite. Why is that, commander?"

"Unlike phasers, which at their highest setting instantly disintegrates flesh upon contact and kills painlessly, Klingon disruptors are designed to punish as well as kill. Victims are said to suffer horribly as their molecules are slowly disrupted and lose cohesion even as their ships die around them."

Hannah's stomach lurched queasily at the sound of that. "Dear God in Heaven," she murmured.

Meanwhile, Klagh glared at the people around the table and asked, "Well, why would we want our enemies to die painlessly? Where is the enjoyment in that?"

As the others shot hard looks at the Klingon, Tynen simply said, "V'Lar, please continue."

"Yes, sir. Tomorrow, when the rest of the task force arrives, we have several cargo vessels loaded with phase cannons, polarized hull plating, subspace fire control systems and fusion generators to power them. These cannons and the generators are also sealed and cannot be disassembled by your people. However, we are willing to provide you with the theory and operation of the weapons and the generators so you can design and build your own. The polarized hull plating is a defensive technology that preceded the use of shields on our starships. In a battle situation, electromagnetic power from the fusion generators is applied to the plating, making it several orders of magnitude harder. However, unlike our shields, polarization cannot be amplified to reinforce a specific area." V'Lar then took a moment for a sip of water before she continued. "The admiral has ordered, as a surprise to the Minbari, the engineers on the Fleet Mobile Dock as well as those among the crews of our ships to upgrade your Olympus gunboats with these systems to turn them into 'Sharlin' killers. The admiral believes that three of these enhanced vessels working in concert would be quite deadly to our enemy and most likely, during the defense of your Earth, overlooked by the Minbari who will be more intent on destroying your attack cruisers and dreadnaughts."

"What is a phase cannon, Commander V'Lar? Hague asked.

"A phase cannon is a phase-modulated energy weapon, a type of particle weapon which served as a successor to the plasma cannons that United Earth had developed for its Starfleet before the founding of the Federation and as a precursor to the phaser the United Federation of Planets developed early in this century. The prototypes of ship-mounted phase cannons were first introduced by Starfleet in 2151 as the primary defense of the NX-class of starships. The current maximum power output of these weapons is one hundred TeraWatts."

"A hundred TeraWatts? Why, that's the upper limit of our plasma cannons! How big, exactly, is this phase cannon, commander?" the general asked.

V'Lar blinked twice before she stated, "Approximately four point three-seven meters long and one point seven-eight meters wide."

"Are you joking?" Hague snapped.

"I do not believe so, general," V'Lar drawled. "Vulcans never 'joke.'"

"If what you say is true, how can a weapon so small produce that much power?"

"Actually, general, as is the case with most things in life, 'size' does not matter," Tynen's wife observed. "You see, the weapon has always been housed inside the same dimensions. However, when it was first developed, the phase cannon had a power output of six hundred GigaWatts. Over time, we kept the same housing dimensions to avoid extensive refits and simply changed components, circuitry and power couplings to enhance the weapons' output. By designing our devices in this manner, this allows Starfleet to maintain the operation of its spaceframes for half a century or more without the necessity of engaging in extensive refits."

Klagh then nodded and said, "Indeed, my people also use a similar design philosophy for our weapons systems and spaceframes. For instance, our disruptor cannons are similar in size to the Federation's phase cannon housing. So, General Hague, madam, in the interests of our relations with your people, I will see to it that we provide your scientists with the actual working plans of a disruptor cannon that is designed for one of our Raptor scout vessels."

Hannah was stunned by the alien's offer. "You're offering us the weapon without any preconditions?"

"Yes."

"Although we certainly appreciate your government's gesture, commander, I must say my curiosity has gotten the better of me. It was my understanding that Klingons were long-time adversaries of Starfleet. However, you and Captain Tynen appear to be on very good terms. Can you explain that?"

"Several years ago, I had believed like many Klingons that the Federation was filled with bureaucratic nabobs who were bent on hemming in my people and denying us of our destiny among the stars. Then one day, an extra-galactic marauder from a war fought eons ago invaded the border areas between the Empire, the Federation, and the Tholian Holdfast. The artificially intelligent demon threatened to eradicate the population centers of several systems that belonged to all three governments unless we engaged it in ship-to-ship combat. After the thing began its attack on my ship, Tynen and his frigate, the Hippolyta, crossed into Klingon space along with Loskene, a Tholian commander and its vessel. At first, I thought they had come to either gloat or to help the thing destroy my vessel. Instead, they allied with me to engage in noble combat against our common foe. Oh, general, the battle was truly glorious!" the Klingon roared, the gleam in his eyes plainly evident as he recalled the past. "The Pagh fought the beast to a standstill, drawing its impenetrable screen to swing my ship's way, while Tynen and Loskene raced to fire overloaded torpedoes and disruptors into the demon's stardrive, hoping to destroy the monster before it could regenerate itself. Against impossible odds, we succeeded, but we paid a heavy price. Our Tholian comrade now serves in the Black Fleet, its noble memory kept alive by the song Tynen and I sing on the anniversary of that great battle by Loskene's comrades who were not so fortunate to die as honorably as that old insect. Now, Tynen and I are fortunate enough to have the opportunity to meet Loskene in Sto-vo-kor if we die in a battle that Loskene would certainly join if it were still alive. My R'uustai and I could not hope for a better end than that, General Hague!"

"R'uustai?" the general repeated.

"In Human words, general, I consider Jason Tynen to be one of my brothers."

Unshed tears began to fill Hague's eyes as he reached out to shake both the Klingon's and the Federation captain's hands. "I don't know what to say, Commander Klagh, Captain Tynen. We are honored to have you both here."

"There is nothing required to be said, general," Klagh drawled, "except we hope you use our 'gifts' to smite down many of the Minbari in the coming battles!"

Just then, Tynen's communicator trilled. "Excuse me," he said and flipped open the device's antenna grid. "Tynen here."

"Captain, this is the Valkyrie."

Squinting, the captain muttered, "Frost, is that you?"

"Yes, sir, Commander Rex left me in command of the bridge."

"Never mind that, lieutenant. Are our warp nacelles intact?"

Hannah could hear the woman who sounded quite young over the man's device sigh heavily. "They're fine, sir. Captain, how long do you intend to tease me about my behavior right after the Minbari had crippled my old ship, the Challenger?"

Tynen smirked at the device. "Well, Renee," he drawled, "that depends on you now, doesn't it?" Then he snapped crisply, "Report!"

All business now, she stated, "The Archer-class scout ships, the T'Pol and the Cutler have just arrived and taken up their assigned positions in this system's Oort Cloud. At the moment, Commander Rad is assisting the Pagh's chief engineer with a refit of the Klingon vessel's warp coils while Commander Rex and members of her science department have taken the shuttle Brynhildr to transport the shield generator just outside of EarthDome."

"Good, lieutenant. That's a fine report."

"Thank you, sir. Do you know how much longer your party shall remain on the planet, captain?"

"I believe we'll be here for at least another hour or two, lieutenant. I want you to continue minding the store until either Rex, Janja, or I return to the ship. And Frost? Have the helm keep their eyes open for any sort of spatial anomaly in the Val's vicinity. At the first sign of any trouble go to warp immediately in any direction, do you understand?"

"Aye, aye sir."

"Good. Oh, and Renee?"

"Yes, captain?"

"I'd appreciate it if the nacelles are still there when the landing party returns home, all right?"

After a long-suffering sigh, the woman murmured, "Aye, sir, Valkyrie out."

As Tynen flipped his communicator grid closed, Jo hid a smile at the man's gentle ribbing of his subordinate. Apparently, at least some of the Federation commanders weren't all sticks-in-the-mud like Captain Sulu seemed to have been.

Tynen then announced, "As you've just heard, a few more starships have arrived on station and my second officer is bringing down the first shield generator even as we speak."

"That's wonderful news, captain," Hannah said. "We really appreciate the technology you are providing us even with the restrictions your government has imposed."

"The shields, the phase cannons, and the polarized hull aren't the only technology we're giving you, Ms. Secretary. We're providing you with more efficient tracking systems to help you target Minbari vessels and burn through their masking technology. We're also providing you with the proper frequencies to use sonic transmission technology to cause havoc on crystalline ships by vibratory attacks which should effectively deafen the Minbari crewmembers. Starfleet is also providing anti-ECM package suites to prevent the powerful Minbari sensors from overloading your vessels' sensitive equipment. Finally, we'll provide you access to the sensor network we'll use to detect the Minbari fleet's approach in hyperspace. We believe it should give us at least thirty minutes of warning, perhaps even several hours or so under the proper conditions."

Hague smiled at the Federation Human as if his people had been granted a new lease on life simply because, in fact, they had. "Captain Tynen, Commander Klagh, thank you so much for your peoples' generosity. If I may, though, what do your people expect in return for such largess?"

Both of the starship commanders gazed at the flag officer with confused looks on their faces. Then Tynen said, "Sir, neither the Klingon Defense Force nor Starfleet expect anything in return."

"All right then," Josephine asked as she tried to approach the subject from a different angle. "What is it that you both want?"

"Well," the Klingon said, "that is another matter entirely. My people seek glory and his seek justice for the dead at Regulus. Fortunately, on this occasion, our goals are aligned and we shall obtain them by the crushed hulls of the Minbari's pitiful ships and their broken bodies lying at our feet. At that moment, whether we are still alive or standing over those that died before we ascended to Sto-vo-kor, I, along with my brothers, Kang and Tynen, shall tap the first keg of blood wine and drink our fill!"

Then the alien laughed like a madman for several moments, startling the former academician. Suddenly, he frightened her even more so when his laughter snapped into silence like a shot. As he turned his attention to her and growled, Hannah almost collapsed in the face of the fire that raged in his eyes. "That, madam, is what we want and that is exactly what we shall have!"

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