The first thing Michael and Ash saw as they stepped onto the Bridge was a large Starship that was approaching slowly from the starboard side. Michael walked closer to the window observing the structure and shape of the vessel. Although she had never seen one of its kind, there was something familiar about it.
"Captain, shields are up," called Commander Saru from somewhere behind her.
Michael turned. "Sir, I don't think we need to prepare for a fight. They obviously aren't attempting to surprise us."
Lorca chuckled darkly. "That so? Can you explain then why they currently have their weapons locked and ready to fire? He looked over at Lieutenant Tyler. "To your post soldier."
Ash nodded once and his brow dropped as his face took on a look of intense concentration. He headed over to his panel. In that moment Michael saw the Ash that she remembered. Now he's in his element, she thought to herself. The sureness and confidence that he radiated in combat left no uncertainty that he was a soldier first, and Michael wasn't sure how she felt about the fact that in battle he seemed to be at his most comfortable. "Bringing weapons online Sir," he said, tapping away.
Michael turned back to the window to see the ship turning to face them head on. She saw it now, the sleek curve of the hull, the particle beams placed just slightly aft of the midsection. This vessel was Vulcan. She was sure of it, despite the fact that she had never seen a ship like it before.
Just as she was about to turn, Commander Saru commented that the unknown ship was hailing them. Michael stepped to the side of the room, so as not to be in the foreground.
"Accept transmission," Captain Lorca said, standing and pulling his uniform to straighten it.
The connection was made and a man, with dark hair styled in a severe haircut, came on screen. His eyebrows flared up at their ends and his eyes had distinctly sharp tips. Most definitely Vulcan.
A look of surprise passed over the man's face, so quickly it was almost imperceptible, before a cold mask slipped over it.
"Prepare to receive a boarding party," he said, skipping the preambles.
Lorca paused, no doubt as confused as the remainder of the bridge crew.
"Excuse me? And why would we do that?" he asked, perhaps a little more brusquely than he had intended, but given their current situation, quite understandable.
At this point the Vulcan was no longer able to contain his obvious confusion with their conversation. His eyebrows rose and he looked to his left at someone who was out of the camera's field of view. Lorca gave Michael a side glance, hoping that she might have some understanding, but it seemed as if there was confusion on all sides.
Then a man, human, stepped forward and moved next to the Vulcan that had been speaking. He moved wearily and observed Captain Lorca and what he could make out of the Bridge crew behind him. The man glanced back and forth, appearing to be looking for something in particular. He frowned.
"I know this may be a little hard to accept Sir, but you, and your companions are being liberated. Now please, tell your Klingon Master's to step forward, we wish to denounce them for their war crimes before we take back control of this ship."
If the crew of the Discovery had been confused before, they were now shocked into silence. Flabbergasted, looks of disbelief were passed around while Captain Lorca attempted to compose himself. His jaw worked back and forth and, for lack of any logical emotional response, appeared to be settling on angry. Michael turned to look at Ash. He felt her eyes on him and met them with an equally confused expression. His mouth was hanging open slightly and his eyes were wide. Captain Lorca, having finally found an appropriate response, took half a step forward.
"What the fuck is going on?" he said.
He had decided to become absolutely incensed by this nonsensical conversation. "This is the USS Discovery of the Federation Starfleet. I am Captain Lorca and this is my crew. The only Klingon aboard this ship is the one we currently have locked up in the Brig, so I believe you are sorely mistaken. We do not want or need your assistance at this time, thank you very much," Lorca finished, finally running out of energy to fuel his angry rant.
Another uncomfortable silence befell both parties, but this time it was the Vulcan and the man beside him that appeared to be in disbelief. Well...if a Vulcan could ever feel disbelief, Michael imagined that this is what it would look like. Captain Lorca, breathing a little heavily, awaited their response.
The man and the Vulcan exchanged a look. Something passed between them that Michael couldn't quite put her finger on.
"Captain, we are deeply sorry for the confusion," the man said apologetically," Perhaps we should talk in person. My name is Luke Saxton. Would you allow myself and Captain Turk to come aboard?"
Captain Lorca paused for a moment. "Of course. Please beam to our transporter room. I will meet you there in five."
Luke nodded. "Thank you Captain."
The transmission was cut off and the crew collectively released a sigh of relief. Michael felt tired suddenly.
Lorca turned to Commander Saru. "Commander, you have the bridge. Burnham, Tyler, you're with me."
The Captain was already headed towards the lift when Saru called out. "Sir, would you like us to turn our weapons offline?" Lorca stopped and looked out the window at the ship in front of them. He glanced at Michael before answering. "Not yet. I need some idea of what's going on here first," he said, before continuing to the lift. Michael and Ash followed at a quick pace. Just as the lift doors were closing to take them down to Deck 6, Michael heard the Captain mutter "Klingon Master's" under his breath. Michael looked over at Ash and smirked, but he didn't see her. Even with his face turned slightly away from her she could see the look of fear he wore.
They exited the lift at Deck 6 and stepped into the transporter room. The technician greeted them formally as they entered the room. Captain Lorca gave the man a nod. "Two are beaming over Cadet."
"Yes Sir." The technician activated the transporter and two men materialized in the alcove.
The Vulcan, Captain Turk, was wearing a long robe of a dark yellow colour. He had his hands proffered before him and he stood with an air of indifference that was typical of his people. Luke, the man standing next to him, had sandy blonde hair and hard eyes set in a weary face. He was wearing a plain black shirt and pants, and while average height, his confident posture made him seem taller. Michael thought that this was a man who had lived a difficult life, and yet triumphed in the face of his hardship.
The two men stepped down from the transport platform and moved towards them.
Captain Lorca stepped forward to greet them. Michael and Ash flanked him on either side. "Welcome aboard gentlemen," Lorca said, shaking Luke's hand and nodding to Captain Turk. "This is Specialist Burnham and Lieutenant Tyler." He waved a hand to towards each of them in turn. "Now, please tell me what this is about."
Luke nodded. "Well Captain, I'm afraid what I am about to say may be a little difficult to understand," he said, sympathetically. His eyes shifted briefly to the transporter technician who was still standing in the corner of the room. Captain Lorca turned and followed his line of sight.
"Could you please give us the room Cadet?"
Bowing slightly, the man walked quickly to the door and exited. Luke waited until the doors closed behind him before speaking again. He looked back at Lorca, and a deep sadness seemed to overwhelm his face. Michael suddenly did not want to hear what he was about to say. She hoped that Captain Turk and Luke would apologize for bothering them, transport back their ship, and turn around and leave, but something about his expression told her that what would transpire next would be far more devastating.
Luke took a deep breath. "Captain Lorca, due to your obvious confusion and lack of knowledge of current events, I feel the need to make you aware of the fact that the Starship Discovery and her crew have been missing for 98 years, 6 months, and 17 days."