Diotima woke with a big headache. "Oh, jeez, the back of my head!"
"Glad you're awake," came a voice from the side.
She looked groggily to her right. "Onasi? Where are we?"
"We're in an abandoned apartment on Taris. Shortly after our arrival, the Romulans took over the planet, and commenced a lock-down for their occupation. Beats me why."
"They're probably looking for surviving crew members. I assume the ship did blow up?"
"As bright as the sun."
Diotima swung her legs out of the bed, and tried to stand up. But her knees were like rubber. "How long was I out?"
"About three days. Hey, take it easy there."
"Don't give me orders, I outrank you."
"I'm sorry, Commander. What are your orders?"
She knew Carth was mocking her, but in this situation, she didn't care. "I take it you had time to gather some intelligence?"
"Yes. There are currently five Romulan battle cruisers orbiting the planet. To get away, we're going to need a fast ship, and certain security codes."
"We're not going anywhere until we find the captain, commander."
Carth nodded. "First, call me Carth. I'm used to being on a first-name-base with the senior crew."
She smiled and attached her communicator to her pants. "Alright. Since we have almost the same rank, and you're more experienced, I'm Diotima. What's next?"
"Nice to meet you…again," he said. "We should get some disguises. I don't think Starfleet standard issue will take us very far."
"Did you check the closets?"
At this, he almost squirmed. "There are a few things. Nasty things."
She had just finished attaching her field tricorder and phaser, and looked up. "Oh? How so?"
Without words, he opened the next closet. There were a few rags, a red biker jacket roughly her size...and a bright orange leather jacket that looked like it'd fit Carth perfectly. Diotima reached for the red jacket and pulled it over. "Nice. The sleeves are a bit long, but I like it. What's your problem?"
He pointed at the leather jacket. "It's orange. Bright orange."
"So?"
"We're supposed to be hiding, not telling the Romulans 'Here I am, someone kill me please!'"
"The Romulans are looking for Starfleet personnel, not civilians with a horrible fashion sense."
He sighed heavily. "All right, I'll take it."
Diotima nodded. "Quick question. What uniform did the captain wear?"
"Huh?"
"You were on the bridge during the attack. So you should have seen her uniform colour."
Carth thought about it for a moment. "It was the green wrap-around variant, her favourite."
"Then the situation is better and worse."
"Come again?"
"With the green uniform, the captain is easier to identify. For us, which is good, but also for the Romulans, which is bad."
Carth grimaced. "I have the feeling we're going to need help."
"And information. We need to know where the shuttles landed."
"Sounds like a plan. Where do we start?"
Diotima just smiled, until it dawned on the helmsman.
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" he said.
She wasn't kidding. Only a few minutes later, they were sitting in a nearby bar, fishing for rumours. Diotima seemed to be very good at it. The smell of alcohol was heavy in the air, while most of the patrons talked amongst themselves over the noise of the music. Carth sat by himself at a corner table, shoulders hunched as he watched Diotima chatting with a Rigellian at the bar. He hoped that nobody would notice him – and it seemed nobody did. He sat up when he saw Diotima walk towards the table and sit down across from him.
"Most of the shuttles crashed in the slum area of the main city," Diotima reported. "A nasty area, where they cast out the criminals."
"Crashed?"
"Shuttles are easy prey for battle cruisers. And that's what I don't really understand."
"Why?"
"Romulan weapons crack Starfleet shuttles like eggs. Why were they only damaged?"
Carth thought about it for a moment. "They're looking for somebody, one of the crew."
"The captain?"
"Maybe. She's a brilliant tactician. And one of the few humans with a high enough ESP-rating to actually do stuff with it." He eyed her suspiciously. "Tell me, what were you doing during the attack?"
"Me?" she asked, surprised. "Sleeping. I'm on Beta Shift. And I don't know about you, but I need a few hours of sleep before my shift. After the rude waking provided by the Romulans, I tried to get to a transporter room. That's it." Diotima reached out and grabbed his hand in hers. "I assure you, I didn't invite the Romulans over for tea. I lost my brother to them, for goodness sake!"
With the last sentence, she got louder, and squeezed his hand pretty hard. Hard enough to make him press his teeth together.
"Could...could you please stop crushing my hand?" he said.
She let go at once and blushed. "Sorry. I grew up on a world with higher gravity than Earth's. And I used to work out, training for crushing hand-shakes."
Carth flexed his fingers. "No, it's alright. I have to apologize for accusing you. I'm often suspicious. Maybe even a bit paranoid."
Diotima smiled. "I noticed. But it might be useful in this environment."
"Thanks. Anything else new?"
"The Romulans closed all access elevators."
"Elevators? To where? I don't really understand."
"I didn't either. But it's pretty easy, once you know the background. See, Taris was a thriving trade world during the first part of the Klingon war. However, the main trade routes shifted when the territorial boundaries were realigned after the war, and Taris was left abandoned. The planetary governors tried to bring colonists and traders back, going so far as to import plants and animals from other worlds as part of an 'enrichment program.' They even set up a Starfleet Academy branch campus here."
Carth nodded. "I think I remember hearing about that. Some kids even signed up, but they didn't have many good instructors."
"That's right," Diotima continued. "Eventually, the only people who moved to Taris were malcontents from the high-society of Scalos – you know that cloud city on the planet Ardana? Their government was starting a civil-rights movement for their miners, and they didn't like that. So they moved to Taris, hoping to 'retain' a bit of their original societal standards."
"So Taris is now mostly populated by bigoted rich people," Carth said with disgust. "Great. But what does that have to do with us?"
"When they established themselves here," Diotima went on, "The ex-Scalosians set up a similar system to what they used to have back home: the rich people live in the higher levels of the city, while the poorer people exist beneath them. Elevators connect the different levels."
"I see," replied Carth.
"We're currently in the Upper City, with the rich guys. Below that is the Middle City, where the working class lives. They're not really rich, but they have no financial problems, unlike the people in the Lower City. That's where the beggars, criminals, and just plain poor people are."
"And that's where our shuttles landed."
"No. They crashed in the Under City, which is the only region on the entire planet that's on the actual surface of the planet." Diotima sighed and twirled a strand of her red hair around her finger. "The Romulans of course know where the shuttles crashed. Or at least know it's in the lower levels. Therefore, only Romulan Imperial forces have access to them. Meaning we have to get either special papers, or one of their uniforms with those ridiculous helmets."
Carth furrowed his brows. "I take it you have already a plan?"
Diotima grinned mischievously. "Sure. That's what you have your superiors for, isn't it?"
"And I take it I won't like it."
"You don't have to."
"Was that really necessary?" Carth asked and put away his phaser.
Diotima looked up from the Centurion she killed. "What?"
They had ambushed a patrol of Romulan guards in another abandoned apartment, two blocks away from their own.
"We could have just stunned them."
"And have them reporting the incident? Dream on, Carth. They violated the Romulan Peace Treaty, so officially we're at war, here."
Carth sighed and pulled the uniform off of one Romulan that had his size. "I still don't like it."
Diotima shrugged, and tightened the coloured sash around her body. "Just be glad that the helmets cover eyebrows and ears. Otherwise we'd need surgery."
He grunted and put the golden helmet on his head. "How do I look?"
"Very Romulan, 'Centurion.' Now get going."
The Romulan guarding the elevator appeared to be bored. "Another patrol going down to the Lower City?" he yawned. "Watch out, the gangs down there attack everyone, even us!"
Diotima, in her Romulan disguise, smiled evilly. "Their problem. We shoot to kill."
The guard chuckled and opened the doors. Inside the elevator with the doors safely closed, Carth tried to scratch an itch through the heavy cloth of the uniform. "Can I take it off now?"
He looked at Diotima, who had already wriggled out of the top half of her disguise. "Can't tell you not to. Best bet would be to hide them somewhere nearby."
The Lower City was a wreck. "And to think the Under City is supposed to be worse..." Carth said out loud. They turned around a corner, and faced an Andorian, a Tellarite, and a Gorn. All of them wore some sort of armoured clothing, with the same colours and symbols.
"We don't like Romulans down here," grunted the Andorian.
Carth snorted. "Yeah? Join the club!"
"You're carrying their uniforms, 'Human'!" spat the Tellarite.
Diotima wanted to say something, but the Gorn moved surprisingly quick and removed their equipment. Glancing at the three phasers, two communicators, and the field tricorder with his silvery eyes, the Gorn hissed with surprise. The Andorian nodded. "You're right." He looked up at the two Starfleet officers. "Gadon Thek wants to see you two."
"Do we have a choice?" Diotima asked.
"Of course. Either you come quietly with us, or our friend here guts you like fish."
Carth quickly interjected, "We're coming."
"Thought so."
The thugs led Diotima and Carth through a maze of passageways under the city. Steam hissed from valves, and the sound of clanking metal deep within the bowels of the city echoed through the cavernous expanse.
"Would you look at this place?" Diotima said to Carth. "It's huge…it just goes on forever!"
"Yeah," Carth said in agreement. "We should really keep our wits about us. Who knows what else is down here?"
"I wonder how the other survivors of the Endar Spire are doing," Diotima remarked. "I hope they made it to safety."
The thugs leading them stopped short in front of an entranceway. It was blocked by a formidable-looking woman, who was some kind of bodyguard for Gadon Thek.
"Hold it right there!" she commanded them. "Who are you, and what do you want of Gadon?"
Gadon, seated in the room behind her, waved her back. "Relax, Zaerdra. Do you want us to start shooting strangers like the Vulkars do?"
Zaerdra fumed, but motioned them to proceed.
"You have to excuse Zaerdra," Gadon said to Diotima and Carth. "I suppose that's what makes her such a good bodyguard - she's very suspicious."
"She's not the only one," Diotima said, glancing at Carth.
Thek looked at the Gorn. "I'm guessing you relieved them of their weapons?" The Gorn hissed something in reply and put the equipment on Gadon's desk.
"Ah, I see. Seems we have Starfleet visitors."
Zaerdra frowned. "I don't know, they could have stolen this stuff."
"Not that," he said with an exasperated tone, pointing toward Carth and Diotima's feet. "They're wearing the same boots, Starfleet standard issue."
Diotima and Carth both looked down. Both pairs of boots were black leather, knee high, and polished. "Seems I forgot something," Diotima admitted.
Gadon chuckled. "Let me guess. You're survivors of the Starship that blew up a few days ago?"
"Yes."
"I see. I'm Gadon Thek, in case you didn't catch that. I'm the leader of the Hidden Bek gang down here." He looked at one of the thugs. "Sam, give them back their equipment. Those two are going to help us."
Carth raised his eyebrows. "Are we now?"
"You are looking for your captain, aren't you?"
Diotima eagerly nudged Carth out of her way and addressed Thek. "Yes. We are. You know where she is?"
"Unfortunately. She was found by the Black Vulkars, another gang down here."
Diotima cursed under her breath."It just gets better and better, huh?"
"Indeed," Thek replied. "Brejik, the Vulkar's leader, sponsored her as a trophy for the Great Swoop Race."
Carth exploded, "He did WHAT?"
"Carth, back!" Diotima had to pull him behind her. "What is a Swoop?"
"A form of hover-bike," Gadon explained. "Very fast, very dangerous."
"And anybody participating in that race could win our captain?"
"Yes. But only gang members can race the Taris Swoop Open."
Diotima looked a tad smaller. "Well, we're boned."
Gadon shook his head. "No, you're not. I could place you on my list, and let you race for the Beks."
She fixed him with a stare. "That's... nice. What do you want in exchange?"
"The Black Vulkars stole a booster prototype we were constructing. This booster would make the swoop it's attached to unbeatable."
"So you want us to break into the Vulkar's hideout, and retake the booster?"
Thek shook his head. "It's not that easy."
Carth sighed. "What now?"
"The doors are locked. And before you could cut through with your phasers, there'd be dozens of Vulkars over you." He raised a finger. "But I know somebody who could help you. A young Andorian woman, called Mission Vao."
Diotima's face lit up. "Where can we find her?"
"She's in the Under City. Beats me how she got there, to be honest. But Mission knows the Under City and Lower City better than anyone else does. Especially the Romulans!"
"Sounds good. How do we get to the Under City?"
Gadon pointed at the Romulan uniforms they had brought down. "I take it you don't need them anymore? We could trade. The uniforms for Romulan IDs, with access to the Under City and the elevator connecting the Lower City with the Upper City."
"Sounds like a deal," Carth said quickly. "Those uniforms are itchy!"
Diotima held up a hand. "What do you need the uniforms for?"
"I like to be prepared. In the case that the Romulans send a strike force to us..."
"Understood. Papers for uniforms."
"You won't need them, now you have the papers."
"Whatever. We'll be back as soon as we have your booster."
Twenty minutes later, they were standing in front of yet another guard. This one checked their papers, and eyed them suspiciously. "It's unusual for the commander to let humans go to the Under City. Especially with Romulan ID papers."
Diotima scowled. "Ever hear of plastic surgery? We're going to pose as Starfleet officers, and lure their captain out of his hiding place. Then, we're getting him."
"Uh-huh... I don't even understand half of it, but your papers check out." He opened the elevator. "But beware, there are nasty creatures down there. I've heard they're called Mugatos. A few of them were shipped here from some backwater planet as part of a silly Federation 'enrichment' program, but they ended up being forgotten about and just retreated to the lower levels, where they've multiplied like crazy. Don't get bitten or scratched, they're extremely poisonous. Just shoot at everything that moves. Then at everything that doesn't move, just to be sure."
Diotima led Carth into the elevator, and as soon as the doors were closed, he chuckled. "Nice one. I almost thought you were a real Romulan spy."
"Wrap a lie in truth, then it's more likely to be believed," answered Diotima with a smile, and she took out her field tricorder. "I'm just glad I picked up this little toy before I left the ship. It'll make it fairly easy to locate this Mission. I mean, how many female Andorians are on Taris?"
"Could be more than you think. There's a Starfleet Academy on this planet, remember?"
"You're right. I almost forgot. This complicates things. Except I don't think many Andorians are in the Under City." Her tricorder beeped. "Hah, got her. Andorian, female. Three clicks to the West."
"Any signs of Mugatos?"
"Only one, about four clicks to the South-West. But it's getting closer pretty fast."
"Then we better hurry."
The doors opened, and an imposing, dirty figure turned to look at them. "You! You're from the Upper City! You have credits, don't you?"
Diotima frowned. "Who are you?"
"Oh, I'm part of the neighbourhood crime-watch," the man answered. "The way this works is you watch -" he produced a crude weapon, "- and I commit the crime."
Carth's gaze was fixed on Diotima. After all, she was the superior officer. "Listen, we don't..."
"No, no, no. There's no talking. You just give me your timepiece and credits, now."
Diotima thought about it for a moment, and then got out her credit chip. "No timepiece, but here's my money -" The outcast took the chip and frowned at it, as Diotima reached for her hip. "- and phaser."
She fired the weapon at the would-be thief at point-blank-range, and picked up her credit chip from the unconscious man. "What do you know, Starfleet's kind of payment has its advantages!"
"I don't think that Command had that use in mind when commissioning our credit chips."
"I know. That's the beauty of it."
Quickly looking around, she realized they were standing in the middle of a village of some kind, surrounded by high walls.
Carth pointed in a direction. "There's a gate in the wall over there."
"Yes," Diotima said, looking down at her tricorder screen. "And from my readings, it's in the same direction as the Andorian life sign."
"What a coincidence. Where did you get that thing?"
"My tricorder?" Diotima said, holding up the tricorder so Carth could get a better look at it. "It's a new standard issue tricorder for non-scientific personnel. I don't think the Endar Spire got them yet, but I had this one from my last assignment."
Before Carth could reply, they arrived at the gate. A woman was there, pleading with the gatekeeper to open it. A man was trapped on the other side.
But the guard shook his head. "I can't. The Mugato is too close. If I open the gate to let him in, the Mugato will kill us all!"
"No!" the woman screamed. "That's not fair!"
Then she noticed Carth and Diotima. "Please! You must help me!"
Diotima looked at Carth and adjusted her weapon. "Set your phaser on force three, to kill."
"Yes, Commander." He knew that when high-ranking officers went into "Command Mode", they usually disliked being addressed with their first name. Diotima nodded to the guard. "Open the gate. Now."
He complied at once, and two seconds later, the Starfleet officers were almost face-to-face with a white-furred Mugato. "Fire!"
Two blue beams of high-frequency energy hit the animal in the chest, and it keeled over.
The saved man didn't know what to say. "You... you saved my life! Why?"
"I couldn't just watch you die. We're looking for a young Andorian woman, called Mission Vao."
"Mission Vao? She comes through here sometimes. This morning, she went that way."
He pointed down the corridor he had come from, and Diotima checked her field tricorder. "That matches my readings. Looks like we're lucky. Thank you, we'll be on our way."
About ten minutes later, they rounded a big pile of junk. "Curious," Diotima mumbled. "According to this, we're standing right on her."
Suddenly, Dio was knocked to the ground by a figure that had been perched on top of the junk pile. The older woman struggled to get the Andorian off her. Finally, she was able to throw her into the pile and draw her phaser. "Stop it!"
Mission looked puzzled at the emitter of the phaser. "You're not Romulans."
"No."
"Starfleet?"
"I didn't steal this phaser. It was issued to me."
The Andorian opened the long coat she wore, and revealed the silvery-grey cadet uniform of Starfleet Academy. "I'm sorry, sir. I didn't know..."
"It's alright... Cadet, isn't it?"
"Yes, sir."
Carth picked up something Mission had dropped on the floor. "Since when do cadets get Phaser IIs?"
"We don't. I found a crashed shuttle back there and..."
"Wait, you found one of our shuttles?" Carth interrupted.
Mission nodded. "Yes, sir. Nobody inside, and everything was raided by the Black Vulkars."
Diotima looked at the phaser again. "Then how did you get this?"
"Well, Vulkars are pretty dumb. They didn't know about the hidden compartment containing the weapons."
Diotima handed her the phaser and padded her on the shoulder. "It's okay, Mission. Gadon told us you know how to get into the Vulkars' base. Was he right?"
"You kiddin'?"
Diotima raised her eyebrow, and Mission blushed slightly. "I mean, he was right, sir. I'm sorry, but I'm still not used to keeping my big mouth in check. I tend to speak my opinion."
"Good. I like it when young officers tell me their opinions. But it's better to ask first."
"Uh-huh... I'll do so, uh..."
"Commander Mulgrew. But since we're kind of undercover, just call me Diotima. Or Dio, for short."
"Dio. I like that. And you are...?"
Carth took that as his cue. "Lieutenant Commander Carth Onasi."
"Carth. Well, Dio, you asked for the entrance to the Vulkar's base?"
"I did."
Mission re-attached her phaser to the black belt around her dress. "You won't like it. We have to go through the sewers."
"Oh, great!"
Ten minutes later, they were marching on the walkways in the sewers. Mission led the way, with Diotima in the middle and Carth taking the rear. Mission had told them that there were Mugatos in the sewers, so Diotima kept a constant watch on her tricorder screen. "We seem to be lucky. None of those hairy beasts are near."
Mission looked at the scanning instrument. "Is that one of the new field tricorders? Looks neat."
Carth groaned. "Am I the only one that never heard of them?"
"Looks like it, Carth. Mission, stop!"
The Andorian just was about to open a door, when Diotima held her back. "What?"
"Mugatos, five of them. Right behind the door."
Carth took out both of his phasers. "Ready."
Diotima did the same and nodded to Mission. "Now."
The door opened and four beams hit the creatures. Diotima was a bit surprised to see that Mission took out two of them almost as fast as Carth did. But her targets disappeared in flashes of green haze. "Mission, do you always have your phaser on force four?"
"Oops."
"How old are you anyway?"
"Fourteen."
"And here I thought you had to at least be seventeen to be accepted into Starfleet Academy."
"Andorian years. Not Earth years."
Diotima sighed. "My bad. I'm sorry. Now, where is the Vulkar base, Cadet?"
"Right through there, Commander."
Carth looked through the door Mission pointed out, and quickly drew back in surprise. "Mission, did you forget to mention something?"
"Huh? Oh, that's right. There's this creature guarding the back door. A big creature..."
Carth folded his arms. "A twenty foot tall, dragon-like creature. The natives on Omicron Persei 8 call it a 'rancor'."
Mission nodded. "So what's the problem? Phasers on full."
"Won't do it. It's scales are resistant to phaser blasts."
"Only the scales?"
He shrugged. "That's what I heard."
Diotima looked at Carth's hip. "You have a second phaser."
"It's not against regulation."
"No, but we can set it on overload and throw it into its throat."
"You got to be kidding me!"
"Just give me your second phaser, I'll do the rest."
"You are not going in there!"
Diotima smiled sweetly. "You are concerned about me? That's nice."
"What? I..."
She put her hand on his shoulder. "I really appreciate this, Carth." Then she squeezed, and he passed out. "Umph, he's heavy. Help me, Mish!"
Mission helped the older woman move Carth on the floor. "How did you do that?"
"Vulcan neck-pinch. My room-mate in the Academy taught me."
The Andorian whistled quietly. "You have to show me someday. But do you really think that was a good idea?"
"Yes. Keep an eye on Carth, will you?"
"But I... okay."
"You know, you seem like a good kid."
"I'm no kid!"
Diotima chuckled, and patted Mission on the shoulder. Stepping into the rancor's lair, the beast immediately faced her and roared, opening its mouth wide. Diotima set the phaser to overload, and threw it into the maw of the rancor. The weapon exploded, and the rancor keeled over, dead.
Carth opened his eyes, when Diotima slapped him in the face.
"Wake up, Commander!"
"Huh? What happened?"
Dio shrugged. "You were stubborn, I rendered you unconscious."
He sat up and touched his hurting shoulder. "How?"
"Neck pinch."
"You can do that?"
"Obviously."
"What about the rancor?"
"Dead. Come on!"
The Vulkar base appeared to be deserted. They heard nothing except for a rhythmical noise. "Does anybody have an idea what this sound is?" Diotima asked. "Carth?"
"No idea."
"Mission? Do you..." Diotima looked at her and raised her eyebrows. Mission whipped her head with the rhythm. An amused expression crossed Diotima's face. "I take it you can identify the noise?"
"Noise?" Mission snorted. "That's music! I think the correct Earth term is 'techno'. I like it."
"Like I said, noise. The Vulkars are having a party. With a bit of luck, the booster is probably not guarded."
She opened a door, and was face to barrel with an automated defence system. "Oh, son of a..."
Mission pulled her back just in time, as a disruptor blast was fired out of the door. "I think we have to find a way to deactivate those guns."
Carth crossed his arms and thought. "Hm. I have an idea. Why don't we just set a spare phaser on overload, and throw it in there? Oh, wait!" He snapped his fingers. "We don't have a spare phaser, because somebody thought it would make good rancor food!"
"Don't make me mad, Commander," Diotima replied. "Or I might decide to throw something much larger than a phaser into that room."
He whistled softly and looked around. "Maybe there's a control mechanism of some kind around here."
Mission took a mirror out of her coat pocket and used it to look into the room. Then she took a deep breath, and threw herself on the floor in front of the door. The disruptors fired too high and missed her. But her shot hit the energy source of the guns. "Or we hit the guns before they hit us," Mission said, standing up. "What's next?"
"Well, we take that elevator next to the guns," said Diotima. "The sign next to it says 'garage level'. Sounds like a good place to stow away a booster."
The garage level was unguarded, like the rest of the base. "Where is everybody?" asked Diotima, confused.
Mission shrugged. "Maybe they're guarding this special prisoner of Brejik. Who cares? We have to get that booster."
"I care!" Carth objected. "That's my captain you're talking about."
"Oh…I see," Mission said, embarrassed. "Well, that's another reason to find that booster. That way the Beks can win the race, and your captain. But don't you worry, the Hidden Beks don't like slavery. With that booster, your captain is as good as free!"
Diotima raised an eyebrow. "Actually, I'm going to race myself. Hey, Carth, does that mean I own the captain if I win?"
"No. And I advise you not to mention that in her presence."
"Any specific reason for that?"
"We had a run-in with Orion slavers last year. I think you can imagine what happened."
"I can. Let's get going, we're on a tight schedule!"
They wandered around the garages, until Diotima's field tricorder beeped louder than usual. "I got it. Through that door."
Carth tapped the opening button. "It's locked."
"Then do your magic, Flyboy."
He stepped back and adjusted his phaser. "Stand back!" He fired a long blast on the forged steel, until it was vaporized.
Diotima looked through, and saw a pack of Black Vulkars. "Hi. Sorry to re-arrange your architecture, but we need to get Gadon's booster back." She held up her phaser and pointed it at them. "Now."
Every Vulkar looked at an Andorian thug in the front row, who took a small step forward. "Why don't we forget this booster for a while? You're no Beks, and..."
Before he could continue, Diotima placed a shot next to his head in the wall. "The booster. Now." Another shot, this time on the other side of his head. "You know, if you keep stalling, I'll stop missing."
He sighed. "I had hoped it wouldn't get to this. Kill them all!"
Carth and Mission chose that moment to jump into the room and fire multiple shots. Diotima nodded at them and walked over the unconscious bodies. "You know, this planet is getting dull. Everybody tries to kill us. Now, where's that booster?"
Carth picked up what looked like a small jet engine. "I think this is it. Better get out of here, before they wake up."
"Excellent idea. Mission, you lead the way."
Gadon didn't even flinch, when Diotima almost slammed the booster on his desk. "You're just in time. My mechanics will install the booster immediately. But it will take some time. So I'm afraid you won't be able to train with the bike before the race."
"That's no problem. My parents had a mechanic's shop back home, and I got to test-drive the repaired hover-bikes. They're similar enough, right? I could fly them blind."
Gadon nodded. "Good. I have prepared two rooms for you, so you won't have to go to the Upper City. Mission knows the way."
"Alright, Kiddo. Lead the way."
"I'm no... ah, forget it."
The next morning, Diotima was standing in a group of Hidden Bek pilots, and gaped at the course. "That's it? I thought this was a race, not a time trial!"
The Bek's top-pilot, a female Andorian named Anglu, looked at her curiously. "You're new to Swoop Racing, am I right? We don't race against each other directly, we're racing against the course and time."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Look, there are barriers on the course, as well as accelerator fields. You have to navigate around the barriers, and hit as many accelerator fields as possible to make a good time. The one with the best time wins."
"If it were that easy it wouldn't be as popular. What's the catch?"
"Death by barrier is the main reason so many people watch. Especially rookies like you tend to hit too many of them - with the result that the engine overloads and explodes."
Diotima was silent for a few seconds. "I see your point."
"But don't worry, with your booster installed, you just have to avoid the barriers. Most of the accelerators are in front or at least near them, but you don't have to worry about them on your first try. Get a feeling for the bike first."
"Thanks for the advice."
"I just want the Beks to win. If you do it, or anybody else of us, doesn't matter."
Diotima nodded and walked to the commentator. "I want to race."
"Sure. Who's your sponsor? Ah, the Hidden Beks. Always liked them."
"What time do I have to beat?"
"Let's see, Redros is first, with 38:27:01."
"Thank you."
The course was not as hard as Diotima thought. Still, she was surprised to see that she was leading with 32:28:70.
Anglu clapped her on the back. "Very impressive! Where did you learn that?"
"I don't know... I remember using a bike once or twice a week for a few minutes, but I never did something like that!"
"Still, it's a... blast!" She pointed at the electronic sign where the actual top-time was displayed. "Redros beat you! 30:58:10!"
"Is that good?"
"Rookie, I've been in this sport for ten years, but I never got below 32 seconds!"
Then I guess it's time for me to show that guy how to win, eh?"
During her second lap, Diotima drove much more risky. Taking almost every accelerator, only narrowly avoiding the barriers, she shot over the finish line with a time of 22:78:50.
Shortly after that, she was about to get her prize, when Brejik, the leader of the Black Vulkars, took a step forward. "People, listen to me. This so-called 'champion' cheated."
Diotima snorted. "Don't make me mad, Brejik."
"You've been using an experimental booster-prototype. That's an unfair advantage. Because of this, the Black Vulkars refuse to give you the first prize."
Behind him, a powerful female voice said, "I'm nobody's prize, Brejik!"
He turned around and faced an angry Bastila, holding her guard's disruptor.
"What? How did you..."
"You would be surprised what you can do with a hairpin."
"Vulkars to me! Kill the woman! Kill the pilot! Kill everybody!"
Diotima didn't like the idea of dying, so she quickly removed the easily concealable Phaser I from her belt and shot the yelling Brejik in the head. Next moment Carth and Mission jumped out of the Bek's booth and covered the incoming Vulkars with their blasts. Mission took the time and threw the phaser handle of Diotima's weapon to her. Seconds later, she was armed with the Phaser II again, and blasted through Redros' body. The Vulkars, having lost their chief and star pilot, quickly retreated. Bastila sighed heavily and threw the clumsy disruptor on the floor.
"Well, those Vulkars will think twice about capturing a Starship captain in the future. And if you think that..." She opened her eyes wide in surprise. "I don't believe it, you're my new chief navigator!"
"I'm so glad we found you, Captain." Her gaze wandered over Bastila's clothing. "Although your uniform has seen better days."
Bastila looked down at her dirty, tattered uniform and scowled at Diotima. "Don't ever mention it."
Diotima snickered a bit, and turned to the young Andorian ten meters behind her. "Hey, Mish! Give the captain your coat."
Bastila took the long coat thankfully and covered herself in it. "It's a bit small, but thanks. Who are you? You're wearing a Starfleet uniform, but I never saw you on my ship."
"Doesn't surprise me. I'm just a cadet."
"There's no such thing as 'just a cadet'. You're already part of an elite group inside of the Federation. Only one out of a thousand even get to this level."
Mission nodded. "Yes sir. But you're a captain, Dio is commander, and Carth is Lieuten-"
"Carth? Where is he?"
Mission pointed to the side, where Carth pulled a Starfleet phaser out of Brejik's coat pocket. Bastila's jaw dropped as she saw his jacket. "Where on Earth did you get that thing?"
He looked up. "I didn't. It was inside a closet in an abandoned apartment. Dio ordered me to take it."
"Dio? Ah, I see. I'm glad my officers are on a first-name-base with each other," she said with a hint of sarcasm.
"She thought it would be less suspicious if we call each other by our first names instead of rank."
Bastila sighed, and rubbed her eyes. "She's right. It's just... the last few days have been hard. And I'd only been promoted to captain about a year ago. I..."
She stopped mid-sentence, as Mission hugged her tightly. "Mission, what are you doing?"
"Trying to comfort you."
The captain smiled slightly and patted her on the back. "As a person, I'm flattered. But as captain, I have to ask you to stop it."
Diotima cleared her throat loudly. "Mission, we have to get going. Let the captain go."
About an hour later, they stood in their apartment, and Bastila took off the coat. "Now, let me see this closet of yours."
"There were only rags left. But I think I saw something in the closet over there."
She opened the door and shuffled through the tattered clothing. "Honestly, I find it interesting that both of you were able to obtain fitting clothing out of this junk."
"What can I say, I'm a lucky girl. Sometimes."
Bastila snorted and pulled out a peach-coloured jumpsuit with dark brown stripes of cloth running from neck to the knees on the front and back that looked like a loincloth. Additionally, there was a belt around the waist with the same brown cloth hanging over the outer thighs. In her other hand, she held a pair of grey boots that would reach her mid-shin. "I don't think peach's my colour. I like green better."
Mission held the jumpsuit next to Bastila's face and nodded. "You're right, it's definitely not your colour. Perfect!"
The older woman couldn't really make sense out of the young, energetic Andorian, and simply retreated into the apartment's bathroom to change.
Carth, who had looked away since Bastila had taken off the coat, checked the phaser he had taken off Brejik's corpse. "Mission, I have the feeling you're trying to push the captain over the edge of madness."
"Yeah, I tend to do that. I'm not really sure why."
Diotima wanted to lie down on the bed and sleep a few additional hours, but the door alarm didn't let her. Growling, she hit the "open" button. "What?"
A human in the colours of the Hidden Beks stood outside. "You are the great victor of the Great Swoop Race?"
"Brejik said otherwise, but corpses have no vote."
"Canderous Ordo heard of what you did. He's impressed, and wants to meet you in the cantina, as soon as possible."
Diotima was puzzled. "Alright, tell him I'm coming," she said with a wave of her hand.
She shut the door, and turned to Mission. "Mish, who's Canderous Ordo?"
"He's an old Starfleet veteran of the Klingon Wars. Whether he's still officially enlisted or not is a mystery, but either way he still wears the old uniform with a mission badge I can't recognize. But everyone here knows he works as a mercenary now. Works for Davik Kang, an Orion crime lord."
Diotima blanched and shushed her quickly. "Watch it! Remember Bastila has bad memories concerning Orions."
"Correction, I had a bad encounter with one Orion." Both women turned around to face Bastila, now in her jumpsuit. "And I might want to add, that this particular Orion didn't enjoy it either."
Diotima gulped. "Do I even want to know?"
"I guess not. Who was at the door?"
"A man telling me that a mercenary called Canderous Ordo, a veteran of the Klingon Wars, will be waiting for me in the local cantina."
"In the what?"
"Well, you could call it a tavern, bar. Whatever you like to call it. Fact is that Ordo wants to meet me there."
"Then I suppose we had better get going," Bastila ordered.
Diotima blinked. "We?"
"Commander, I still hold the rank of captain. With or without ship." She bit her lip. "My ship. It's funny, I always think I only have to flip open my communicator and call for a beam-up. And I don't even have a communicator."
"I know that feeling. But I don't really know when I ever lost a ship..." Diotima scratched her head. "It's curious. I'm sure I never commanded any kind of vessel, but there's also this feeling that I'm good at it."
"Well, I think we should get going. Mercenaries are often impatient."
Bastila was right. Canderous Ordo was waiting impatiently in a corner of the cantina. And his frown deepened when he saw the big group. "You Starfleet guys are as dumb as thirty years earlier."
Diotima smiled sweetly. "Good afternoon to you, too. What's your problem?"
Ordo scoffed. "Did you look at yourselves? You look like Starfleet in civilian clothing. With uniform boots and pants."
"Excuse me if I had to use what was available, Ordo. And 'available' didn't include the latest fashion for pants and boots!"
"Shut it. We have more pressing matters at hand. You want off this rock, so do I. I can get a ship, but I need the codes."
"Let me guess, we have to get you the codes. Then we leave together."
"You're smarter than you look, Starfleet. But there's a small catch. The ship I mentioned is Davik's."
"The Orion? It just gets better, doesn't it?"
"But your luck is that I work for Davik. I can get you on his property."
Diotima thought about Bastila. "How?"
"Despite Davik being part of the biggest Orion syndicate in this sector, he always employs members of other species. I'll tell him you want to join his organization, and that I brought you with me, so he can check you out for himself."
"Sounds good. What kind of ship is it?"
"A small Federation Spaceship, called the Ebon Hawk. He nicked it from the local base, when the Romulans took over."
"Blasted pirates – that's commissioned Starfleet property!" Bastila said angrily.
Canderous grinned. "I take it you're in?"
"Yes. How do we get into the base?"
"You're full of questions, aren't you? There's a little workshop nearby, run by a woman called Janice Nall. There you'll find a young man that goes by the name of Terence Thomas Thompson. He's a blasted good engineer, despite his youth. He'll get you into the base."
"Alright, Ordo. We'll get you the codes. Where do we meet again?"
"Javyar's Cantina in the Lower City."
Carth, who had been silent until now, asked, "Why there?"
"They serve wonderful ale."
Janice's workshop was filled with parts of machinery and computers. Diotima looked around. "Hello? Anybody here?"
The only thing that answered her was a series of beeps, coming from under a console. Shortly after that, a young man, about seventeen or eighteen, stood up and smiled politely. But instead of any sound coming out of his mouth, there were only another series of beeps coming out of a box sitting on his right shoulder.
"Are you Thompson?"
He nodded and beeped an affirmative.
"I don't want to be rude, but are you mute?"
Again, he nodded, and shrugged. Mission watched him closely, somehow impressed by the young man.
"Canderous Ordo told me you could open the Romulan base for us."
Terence raised his eyebrows surprised, and beeped cautiously. He glanced over at Diotima, Carth, Bastila, and Mission. Before anybody could say anything, he pulled out a kind of pad and handed it to Diotima.
"What's this?"
He beeped a short sequence, and her eyes widened as the screen displayed a line of text. "A translator device? Clever."
Thank you. What do you want in the military base?
"We need the codes for the start sequence."
Who are you people? The beeps accompanying the question sounded confused.
"Starfleet. I'm Commander Diotima Mulgrew. This is Commander Carth Onasi, Captain Bastila Shan, and Cadet Mission Vao."
I know her. We were in the same engineering class in the Academy.
"You were in the Starfleet Academy here?"
Yes. If you intend to leave this planet, can you take me with you?
Diotima looked at Bastila and showed her the translation. The captain glanced at it and fixed Terence with her grey eyes. "Well, we could use an engineer. Do you think you could manage a Spaceship?"
Terence blinked. You really allow me to get my hands on a warp engine?
"Yes."
Mission stepped next to him and frowned slightly. "You know, we can't always call you Cadet Thompson, or Terence Thomas. Would Terence be okay?"
My grandfather was called Terence. I hate that name. But Janice calls me T3.
Diotima nodded. "T3 it is, then. But where's Janice?"
"I'm here, I'm here!" came a voice from the back of the shop, and Janice came in, towelling her hands. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting, but I had to clean my hands."
"No problem. We were just wondering if we could borrow T3 for a time?"
"Well, I don't have any work for him. The Romulans confiscated most of my machines. And the few things that the people want repaired... No, he's an engineer, not a simple mechanic. But who are you?"
Bastila stepped in front of Janice. "Bastila Shan, captain of the late Starship Endar Spire."
"Starfleet?" Janice said with surprise. "Take him. That's was what he wanted to do the whole time. Go with them, T3. Make me proud."
"Dwuuuuu..."
The group of five strolled casually to the Romulan base. "If this works," Mission mumbled, "then the Romulans are even dumber than I thought!"
"Be-op boop dwuuuu."
"You know, I don't get it why you're only beeping. Almost every computer can talk."
"Beep di-beep!"
"Oh, shut up."
Diotima walked between them and huffed. "Now you can both shut up or stay on Taris. And try to look innocent."
Mission thought about it for a moment. "Uh... How do I do that?"
"Ever seen a puppy? They do it all the time."
"You mean like this?" She suddenly had a wide-eyed look that told everybody 'I'm cute and adorable, cuddle me!'
"Exactly. Now stop it."
The main entrance was guarded by a whole squad, but there also was a side entrance, guarded only by a lonely Romulan, who was not amused. "Go on, nothing to see here," he said to them.
Diotima smiled sweetly. "Oh, but I really would like a picture of me with a Romulan guard. Hey, Mish, would you be so kind?" She handed Mission her field tricorder, and stood next to the guard, with one of her arms around his shoulders. "Go on, take a shot."
The same instant Mission hit the button, Diotima pinched the Romulan's shoulder. "Sweet dreams."
T3 helped her lay the guard on the floor, and then faced the lock. After a few seconds of studying it, he let out a longer series of beeps, and the door opened.
Mission gaped. "What the... Wait, that's why you talk in beeps?"
"Beep-bop."
The first thing inside of the base was a female receptionist with too much make-up. She glanced up at them as they entered. "Stay right there or I raise the alarm!"
Bastila held up her hands, and smiled politely. "There's no reason for that, we have an appointment."
"Nice try. Do you think just because I'm pretty, I'm dumb?"
Mission snickered quietly. "I don't really know about pretty."
The receptionist glared at her, and hit the alarm button. Diotima sighed and looked at the Andorian. "Smooth."
Seconds later, half a dozen guards ran into the room. But before they could even realize what was going on, the Starfleet personnel shot them down. Carth looked at the receptionist, and cocked his head, contemplating if he should stun her as well.
But she held up her hands, and stammered, "I'm sorry, I just work here, don't shoot!" Bastila just jabbed her thumb over her shoulder at the door. "Get the devil out of here!"
T3 shoved the frightened woman out of his way and began hacking the terminal. After a few minutes, he beeped approvingly and pointed at the monitor, where a schematic of the base was displayed.
Diotima looked it over. "Okay, we're here, the codes are there...that looks like an office. Governor's office. That's where the Romulan overlord is going to be."
Bastila nodded. "Good work, T3. Let's get going."
"Any specific orders?" Carth asked.
"Phasers to kill, stay together, and hurry up."
"Curious, I had the same plan."
Fifteen minutes later, they were standing in front of the Governor's office. Diotima studied the door mechanism with her tricorder. "Well, doesn't look like T3's trick is going to work. Any ideas?"
Mission shrugged. "We could always knock."
But Bastila simply pulled out her hairpin from her neat and tidy braids again, and began attacking the lock with it. Seconds later, the door opened. "Never underestimate the usefulness of a hairpin."
The governor raised a pointed eyebrow at the intruders. "Don't you know it's rude not to knock?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, sir", Diotima mocked him. "But maybe you can help us. We're looking for the pass codes so we can leave this planet."
"There's a form for it. You can get it at the reception."
"Ah, there might be a little problem. We scared your receptionist away, when we shot your guards."
"Now, that's entirely against regulation."
Mission frowned. "Is that guy a retard?" With that, she shot him.
"Mish, that was rude," Diotima told her.
"He was delaying. Also, I hate bureaucrats."
T3 whistled, impressed, and searched the room.
Carth helped him, and quickly pulled out a red coloured tape. "Got it. Better get going."
Canderous waited impatiently in Javyar's Cantina for the Starfleet personnel. "It's about time. Okay, I heard about somebody breaking into the base. I also know that you have the codes."
"You seem to know a great deal about us."
"Let's just say I know enough. I have a vehicle that can take three of us to Davik's lair."
"Just three?"
"Davik gets suspicious if we're too many. We're two, who else comes?"
Mission quickly said, "Shotgun!" while Carth was a bit slower.
"Shotgun! Blast!" exclaimed Carth.
Bastila sighed and rubbed her temples, while T3 simply rolled his eyes.
Mission on the other hand grinned for three reasons. First, she'd go with Diotima and Canderous. Second, she'd be sitting on the front seat. Third, she got Carth to play this stupid child's game.
Eyeing Canderous' hover-jeep, Diotima frowned. "You didn't mention the jeep having a projectile gun. I've only seen those in museums."
"Well, it IS a military jeep. It has four inch armour plating, a 20mm calibre machine gun, and total seating for five. Ladies, this is the M-12 LRV. Also called the Puma."
"You know", Mission began, "with those tow-hooks, it looks more like a warthog."
"Shut it, kid."
She huffed and sat next to Canderous. "I'm no kid."
Diotima sat behind the Andorian and crossed her arms. "Oh, can it. The sooner we leave this rock, the better."
Mission glanced back at the antique weapon. "What do you do when it runs out of lead projectiles?"
"Then you're out of lead projectiles," Canderous shrugged and hit the activator button. Immediately, an annoying sort of accordion music blared out of the radio - which the mercenary didn't think of turning off.
Davik was a bit... petite for an Orion. He was about as tall as Bastila, and looked weak. The only thing that made him dangerous was the fact that he was always surrounded by his minions - heavily armed minions. Davik was talking with a bounty hunter wearing a white hat that looked like a mushroom. Canderous shoved a minion out of his way, and clapped the bounty hunter on the shoulder. "Hey, Calo. Still trying to kiss ass?"
Davik looked at him. "Ah, Canderous. I was curious when you would come back. And I see you're not alone anymore."
"I've never seen you looking for a partner, Canderous," quipped Calo. "You're growing weak."
"Watch your mouth, Calo," Canderous growled. "You're the new sehlat in the pack, but not the leader!"
"Quiet, Canderous!" ordered Davik. "I can't have my two best men killing each other."
"Alright, Davik. But this woman is no average partner. She's quite capable, and interested in joining your syndicate."
"Oh, I recognize you. You're the one who won the Great Swoop Race. And the...rather heavy fight after that."
Diotima shrugged. "Well, Brejik tried to cheat, so I cheated back."
"Yes, yes. Canderous is right, you know. I'm always looking for capable hands. What's your profession?"
Diotima briefly wondered if he really was dumb enough not to notice Mission. "I'm a good navigator, I can fly well, and I know more about computers and engines than the average guy."
"Good. I had to put my personal pilot in the agony booth for trying to steal supplies."
Diotima raised an eyebrow. "That doesn't sound very smart."
"I can't say he's smart. But I hope you'll prove to be better than that."
"Right, I promise I won't try to steal anything." "Except for your ship!" she thought to herself.
A few pleasant words later, Davik showed them around. The end of his tour was a hangar containing the SS Ebon Hawk.
Diotima frowned. "That's a commissioned Federation Spaceship."
"Yes, I... acquired it during the takeover of the Romulans. It's an outdated design, probably as old as our friend Canderous here, so no one will miss it. It was not secure in the base."
"Ah, so before the Romulans could destroy it, you stole it. And now I steal it."
"Exactly. Wait, what?"
She kicked him away, and fired her phaser at him.
Mission dodged a shot by Calo, and fired a powerful beam at the ceiling, bringing it down on the bounty hunter.
Canderous looked surprised at the young Andorian. "You're good with the phaser, you know that?"
"My drill instructor mentioned it."
"Stop the chatter, and get on board!" Diotima yelled.
The hallways of the ship looked like aboard every other ship, but there was one significant difference. There was no turbolift. Instead, there was a circular stairwell leading to the bridge. The bridge itself looked like the smaller variant of a modern Starship's bridge, except with only four side consoles, and the typical red handrail was not there either. Diotima sat herself at the helm, and shoved Mission into the engineer's seat. "Engage all systems."
The Andorian hesitated a few seconds before finding the right buttons. "Alright, just like the simulator. Energized. Where's Canderous?"
Diotima was about to answer, but at that moment the mentioned human entered the bridge, and sat himself at the weapons console.
"Where have you been?"
"Had to tie up some loose ends."
"Uh-huh... Mission, what can you give me?"
"Just thrusters. I'm no engineer, I don't know how to activate the intermix chamber or the warp reactor!"
"Okay, I'll take thrusters. Retracting landing gear, closing ramp. Aft thrusters, full ahead."
The Ebon Hawk shot out of the hangar, and Diotima frowned at her readings. "Mission, can you give me the viewscreen?"
She walked over to the communications console, and hit a switch. "There you go...blast!"
"Shields up!" Diotima interrupted, and Canderous punched the button seconds before the ship was hit.
The viewscreen showed a row of Romulan Battle Cruisers firing their main weapons on the planet's surface.
"Mission, hail Carth's communicator!"
"Open!"
"Carth, come in! Report status!"
The channel crackled for a short moment, then Carth's voice filled it. "I'm here! Do you have our coordinates?"
Mission nodded, and pulled out a data tape. "I got them, Carth."
"Good. Request beam-out ASAP!"
Canderous looked to Mission as she ran for the spiral staircase. "Uh, you might want to use the portside transporter pad."
The Andorian looked back from the door. "Why?"
The Falcon-variant of the Spaceship-class had two rather large cargo holds, as it was used as a fast supply ship during the Klingon Wars. In every hold, there was also a cargo transporter pad with a console. Mission ran over to the empty port hold's transporter and energized the controls. On the way down, Diotima noticed something under the bridge that hadn't been there before.
"ORDO! WHAT'S YOUR PUMA DOING THERE?"
Bastila, Carth, and T3 shimmered into being on the cargo transporter pad. As they began running toward the Bridge, Bastila stopped to see what Diotima was looking at.
"What on Earth is that?"
"Our mercenary's jeep. He likes to call it a Puma. Plays horrible music."
"Wouldn't it better to discuss this after the ship stopped getting shot at?"
"You're right, Ba... Captain. This way, please."
Reaching the Bridge, Bastila swiftly sat on the centre chair. "As the senior-ranking officer present, I am hereby assuming command of this vessel. Prepare to leave orbit!" Then she stopped. "Um…prepare to leave the atmosphere."
As Carth and Diotima worked on the Helm/Nav station, Carth muttered a curse. "I need at least impulse power to leave the atmosphere, let alone break orbit!"
T3 beeped and booped annoyingly, and left the bridge. While he was away, Carth used the ship's thrusters to dodge the various disruptor shots fired by the battle cruisers.
Bastila grabbed her command chair tightly and clenched her teeth. "We'll never evade these cruisers at this rate!" After another near-hit, and she hit a button on her control panel. "Engine Room, I need warp speed!"
"Be-oop, diwut, dwoo!" T3 "yelled" through the intercom, and Carth noted a switch lighting up. "Ready for warp speed."
Bastila breathed deeply. "Prepare to warp out of orbit. Mission, send the codes. Carth... go for it!"
He hit the switch, and with a sudden acceleration, the ship jumped to its cruising speed.
"Excellent flying, Commander. Best speed to the Sherman's Planet Colony."
"Computing course for Sherman's Planet," Diotima reported and got to work.
Carth, on the other hand, studied his buttons, knobs, and switches. "Does anybody know our best speed?"
Over the still open channel, T3 let go a very speedy set of beeps, not helping Carth the slightest. "What did he just say?"
Mission turned to him. "He said he can give you warp 10. Maybe even warp 11, but no guarantees it'll be a smooth ride."
Everybody stared at her. Finally, Bastila asked, "You understand what he's saying?"
"You ask that as if that were hard or something," the Andorian replied meekly.
Diotima piped up, "Course computed. With warp 10, it should take us about ten hours." She turned to Bastila. "Why are we going to Sherman's Planet, Captain?"
"Sherman's Planet is a safe haven, where we can restock our supplies. After the K-7 incident, Starfleet was allowed to set up a base there. It's also the place where I was trained with my ESP."
"Right. I just thought I'd ask, as with me being the officer of the second highest rank, I'm acting first officer."
Bastila pursed her lips, thinking. "You know, Commander, you got the job."
"Oh-kay... Then I guess I'll look for the galley and get everybody a cup of coffee."
"Thank you. Oh, and Ordo?"
Canderous looked up from his station. "What, Starfleet Princess?"
"Secure your lousy jeep out of the hold. It's a safety hazard."
