"Sentinel Portland, exactly what did you do to get the bacta tanks working?"
"Reprogramming the computer several times with various programs specifically designed in the Republic and then mixing it in with the Federation coding. After that I shut down the system for two hours and then rebooted the system and then simply had to wait to see if the tank worked properly and it did"
"Then why not do that with the engine?"
"Because that is much more complex then the bacta tank"
"How can an engine be more complex then a device that helps save lives?"
"You have no idea just what's involved in making a Republic engine much less combining Republic and Federation technologies"
"Well we need to figure out something"
"I know"
So they started actually looking at the engine design and realized that the engine was very complex
"Can we see the designs for the bacta tank?"
As soon as the design of the bacta tank was revealed the entire engineering team realized that the engine was much more complex than the bacta tank
"So what now?"
"We make another plan"
The two start making new plans but eventually Portland speaks up and no one is happy with her when she speaks up
"Okay, everyone is to take a break and get something to eat. No one is allowed back in here for at least two hours and that's an order"
"But Sentinel..."
"No buts that's an order period the end of it, or do I need to go to Captain Frost?"
"No ma'am"
"Good, now then I'm going to get something to eat and then meditate, I suggest you guys do that as well or something else that helps you relax and think about the problem in a different way"
Unfortunately the problem of the engine would have to wait because Ashland suddenly felt something in the Force that meant she needed to be on the bridge now, not an hour from now, not five minutes from now but now as in immediately unless she wanted bigger trouble later on, she got to the bridge just as the ship was hit
"Ensign get ready to fire back on my order"
"Hold your fire!"
Everyone turns to Portland shocked she was on the bridge considering she was supposed to be dealing with the engine problem
"What's going on Portland?"
"They're scared Captain, they don't mean any harm but they also don't know where they are, open hailing frequencies audio only that type of ship doesn't have visual capabilities"
"Fine we'll try it your way first"
She's soon told that they could hear her
"This is First Junior Sentinel Ashland Portland of the USS Republic Alliance which is part of the United Federation of Planets"
"This is High Prefect Lalond of Vranok, we do not recognize either your rank or this United Federation of Planets"
"Ah sorry, I've gotten used to identifying myself as that, you would recognize the title of Jedi Knight much better, if you would stand down and come aboard this ship I can explain the situation a bit better"
"Let me discuss this with my command crew and I should be back to you with an answer within fifteen minutes"
"Very well, do understand that if we do not hear from you within that time we will consider you a potential risk and act accordingly"
"Understood Jedi Knight"
Comms are cut and Ashland turns to her Captain knowing she needed to explain
"The Vranok are allies of the Republic but they are not part of it, we mainly have a trading agreement with them, they've never heard of the Federation because all dealings are done on their planet per their preference because while they can travel within space they don't like to do it very often, they travel to Coruscant about once every five years, the reason why they never saw Federation representative's or Starfleet officers is because they meet in another area and are always off planet by the end of the day unless they arrive at night then they are gone by the end of the next day"
"Then their reaction makes sense now"
"Exactly"
Five minutes before the deadline the Captain of the other ship called back and came over. It would take another twelve hours for the full explanation and the offer of an escort to Earth for their safety
"Though we might be forced to divert to Vulcan, if that's the case then you guys will be pretty comfortable on that planet"
"What makes you say that Sentinel Portland?"
"Easy, you haven't noticed our guests shivering from the cold? Vranok people live on a desert planet very similar to Vulcan, though the air is the same as Earth so tri-ox isn't needed"
"It will for them because of the thinner atmosphere of Vulcan"
"Not necessarily, Captain, our people are very adept at adjusting to a new atmosphere if the air is thinner than our own we have a means of making sure we get proper oxygen to our vital organs"
"Of course I forgot about that one organ that does that"
"What are you two talking about Sentinel Portland?"
"The Vranok have a...sub organ you could call it that provides extra oxygen to vital organs if the atmosphere is thinner than their own or more toxic than their own as well"
"But there are limits, we need our regular atmosphere after a period of...three Earth days for approximately five of your Earth hours"
"Oh...didn't know that, and Captain there's another thing you should know, the Vranok have a unique diet that not many places provide, and no one in the Federation currently supplies it, trust me I should know I was actually on their planet a year when I was a Padawan with my Master and enjoyed their food and have tried finding it in the Federation since I got here and nothing"
"Don't worry Knight Portland, we can adapt to another's diet at least temporarily"
"But in the long term you'll start starving or other effects that won't be pretty"
"What can we do to help them?"
"There's actually not much we can do right now, not with their unique dietary needs, the best thing we can do is use special dietary cards that supplement what they need but that will only work for so long, what we really need to do is either get their unique diet to the Federation or find a safe way to get them home because they'll die otherwise"
"For now let's start escorting you to Earth until we hear otherwise"
Before anyone could leave Ashland speaks up
"Captain wait" (sighs) "I think there's something the crew needs to see before we go any further in a battle that could involve Sith or Sith artifacts at any given moment, something that explains why Jedi are cautious and at times if they're not capable of keeping a handle on their emotions also a little fearful of both the Sith and their artifacts, and the Vranok need to see as well just in case they encounter either one wherever they are"
"Very well"
Fifteen minutes later all non essential personnel was in the largest room available that had a view screen that let them watch whatever Portland wanted them to see, those that couldn't be there would get a private viewing later. They soon saw what they thought was a Jedi but they weren't too sure considering they were fighting their own friends with an efficiency that surprised them and also a viciousness that didn't seem natural, they also noticed the braid which identified them as a Padawan