"Okay it's actually inoculations and warp core combined that has caused the changes in us"

"Oh that's helpful to know actually. But yeah you need to report in because you never gave them a full report about Tanixi did you?"

"Oh good point, I was going to and then well..."

"Exactly"

Ashland actually went down to the planet to give her report in person when they were interrupted by a communication from the Federation and Ashland instantly switched to sign language because she had temporarily served with the officer before and knew that they were deaf/mute

*Mark what happened?*

*We've lost Vulcan and two refugee ships, we need Republic help to get people to safety*

*That's not part of the Burning Galaxy plan*

*I know but I also needed to get in contact with the Republic to tell them that the five year wait is to last six years instead, we lost the President two days ago and we need an extra year to have leadership established because the Admiralty is now unsure of who should lead the resistance overall*

*I will pass that on, the refugees will be safe here but you have to get them to us on your own we can provide escorts just inside our space but other than that we can't do anything due to how dangerous it is right now*

Communication is cut and the Council was going to discuss what had just happened when they noticed Ashland wasn't paying attention to them anymore and very suddenly she just up and disappeared, only to be told that she was going so fast that she could barely be seen except as a streak. Two minutes later she was reported to be outside the Temple, armed and ready for a fight with her phaser out

"Why is she fighting as a Starfleet officer and not a Jedi?"

"She's a Sentinel, she probably understands what's going on better than we do"

Meanwhile Ashland was acting like she would fight like a Starfleet officer because she knew that her having a lightsaber wouldn't be productive because what she had sensed was a grieving and angry Jem'Hadar and as such she knew that she needed to stun the Jem'Hadar instead of trying to kill him, she would use Force suggestions if needed but she would try and talk him down and phaser him to bring him back to reality first

"Stand down soldier and get your act together"

Unfortunately several high powered phaser hits and several attempts to slow him down by talking later Ashland had to start using the Force by pushing him back and also using it to avoid getting hurt. She finally used a very powerful Force suggestion to stop the Jem'Hadar but it ultimately took three Jedi to stop the Jem'Hadar long enough for him to see enough reason to simply stop what he was doing but he wasn't rational enough to listen to Ashland beyond just standing there calming himself down

"Okay, let's allow him to calm down some more and then I'll talk to him to explain the situation to him better, I will also need to talk to the Dominion representatives"

"We'll call them over then"

"How long will it take for the Jem'Hadar to calm down enough for you to rationally talk to him?"

"Shouldn't be too much longer, my authoritative voice combined with Force suggestions should get him back to normal calm levels soon enough"

Fifteen minutes later the Dominion representatives were there and the Jem'Hadar was calm enough for Ashland to rationally talk to the group

"So we're basically stuck here for the moment"

"Exactly, and we've essentially lost communication with the Federation except trickles of refugees so we're going to have to be very cautious about any calls from the Federation. We got lucky earlier today because I recognized the officer and the code that was used as soon as comms were up but like I said we shouldn't expect anything else except from the refugees"

"How long are we to expect refugees?"

"About a year and then we shouldn't expect anyone else from the Federation. I'm going to have my work cut out with the Starfleet officers that make it here because none of the Admiralty will make it here and I am the senior Starfleet officer anyways because this is where I am originally from but I would have given any Admirals a degree of autonomy so that there's a semblance of normal but that's no longer an option"

"So what's next?"

"I need to find one or two planets for refugees and that will be complicated all on its own"

"Can we help? I know we don't know the Republic like you do but we've been to a few planets that have no life except natural plants and animals that the Republic keeps empty for various reasons"

"Okay you show me what planets you know are available and I'll take a look as well and then make the decision based on recommendations from you and what I know is needed"

"Okay, expect the file to come within the next two days, and Portland we're staying on Coruscant to relieve the burden and help the Federation be represented"

"Okay, and there might be others that decide to stay on Coruscant as well but we still need a planet"

"Oh I can see a lot of fights at first due to cultural differences"

"I know but we'll just have to deal with it as we go"

Two days later the file was sent to Portland and she was juggling two different files at once because not only did she look at a planet individually she compared a few that seemed similar to each other so that she knew what was best between the similar planets, she also looked at people who stated they wanted to stay either on Coruscant or Naboo who had offered their planet for refugees as well. The reason why was to see who would fit best and who wouldn't be a good fit particularly on Naboo

"Okay I finally have a planet for the refugees and sent messages to the refugees that either want to see on Coruscant and those who want to stay on Naboo, a few of the people will actually be better with the Gungans, but only if they allow it if not then they have to stay on the surface"

"Have you let Naboo know about it?"

"Yes I just messaged them and they will ask the Gungans about it but for now they can stay on the surface with a few families that have volunteered their homes for the refugees. Coruscant is ready as well and as for the planet it will take work for it to be fully functional but if they have basic supplies it will be a good start and I have a feeling that things will work out if they are forced to work together to make a home even if it's temporary"

"Okay that should work then, it will also help the cultural differences as well because they will have to work together to survive"

"Yeah, in the meantime I'm going to medical, memories are starting to flare up again and I haven't gotten a whole lot of sleep in the past two days. I decided to work to see if that would help but it didn't and I am in desperate need of some sleep now"

"Why not use the natural sedatives that work like chamomile, poppy, or almonds?"

"Too dangerous, can't explain it properly because I'm beat, tell the Captain that I sent the files to his PADD as well"

"I'll also tell him you went to medical to get a sedative"

"No need, sickbay will alert the Captain themselves, standard procedure started while I was at the Academy"

"Heard that an experiment went wrong will you try that again at a later date?"

"Yep, but only when I'm sure poison has not been involved, the seizures probably saved my life alerting medical personnel to a problem, probably saved the lives of many others too"

"Okay, now then get some sleep, you look like you need it"

"I do, believe me I do, see you when I wake up from sedation and natural sleep"

Ashland goes to medical and they are surprised to see her again so soon after the failed experiment

"What's going on Portland?"

"I need my sedatives, my memories are keeping me up again"

"Probably started back to work too soon after the poisoning then"

"Not likely, the most likely result was the combination of lack of sleep and poison, it's happened before"

"When?"

"Back when I was simply a Jedi, medical files are accessible if you need more information about that"

"Mission kept you up?"

"Something like that yeah"

"Okay I'll look into it because other Sentinel's might have the same problem as you, other Starfleet officers too now that I think about it"

"Yeah, well, I need sleep so can I get my sedatives now?"

"Sure, I'll have a nurse go back to your quarters with you in case you fall asleep on the way back to your quarters"

She's given the sedatives and goes back to her quarters for sleep, and the Captain was informed as well so that he didn't panic when she didn't show up for her shift like normal

"Thanks for telling me doctor, what do you suggest for later?"

"Get her back on duty as soon as possible because quite honestly that's what she needs right now, besides if she gets a feeling in the Force she'll hijack the ship anyways"

"Good point, but I'm going to put her on limited duty until she gets some real sleep for at least a month due to the fact that she really needs it and not medical sleep either"

"Makes sense to me, hope she agrees as well"

"She probably will, she knows her body better than any of us and as long as she isn't using a forbidden meditation technique she'll probably see the sense in my order"

"What forbidden meditation technique?"

"Something that isn't well known because she over did it and risked her health. Basically when she meditated it was as if she had gotten a full nights rest even if that wasn't really the case, the downside is if you over do it eventually the lack of sleep will catch up to you and you'll simply collapse into unconsciousness, potentially a Healing trance or even a coma. The body's self defense against doing too much at once, the Force only circumvents those results for a short period of time and can do mental and physical damage while doing so"

"Like what?"

"Confusion is most common, memory loss can happen as well in the mental department and there were signs of heart damage, hormonal imbalances, and I also think the reports mentioned liver damage as well though I can't be too certain about that"

"She was also hallucinating at one point according to the reports"

"Of course I completely forgot about that"

"Okay so how did she avoid the problems with Tanixi"

"We made sure to drug her on occasion and also made sure she had at least three hours of sleep a night, it appears that Sentinel's don't need as much sleep depending on their training, whether given in the Temple or out in the field"

"Well either way we're going to have to wait and see how she feels before we decide whether or not to put her on limited duty for a month"

"We'll also have to wait and see what her reaction is to such an order"

"How long until she wakes up?"

"Not entirely sure Commander, but if she's not up in two days I'm going to check and see if it's because of the Force"

"Fine by me"

Suddenly Soketh cried out in pain and suddenly ran out of the bridge with the Captain and doctor following him because they realized that something had happened that was important and both wanted to make sure it didn't involve Portland

"I really hope it isn't Portland that's involved"

"Same here because she needs rest that isn't interfered with"

Fortunately what Soketh sensed was a science experiment gone seriously wrong and yes the doctor was needed as were several other medical personnel to help with the containment and transfer of those affected to sickbay

"Okay, that was unexpected but for now let's hope nothing else happens"

"Captain, Coruscant called apparently the Senate wants a little bit more help with security, at least until the refugees are completely settled and they're sure that there aren't any threats against the Federation representative's for what's happened there"

"Makes sense, who's the main group they're worried about?"

"A group from the Republic that don't really like the Federation for whatever reason"

"We can help with security until things are a little calmer makes sense considering what's going on right now, does the entire Senate know about the Burning Galaxy plan by now?"

"Yes they know, and they also know that there's a chance of them being invaded so they're asking us for cooperation in training exercises"

"Makes sense because we never know if the people who have taken over the Federation will try to take over the Republic and sense they're mainly our enemy we should take point in those battles if at all possible"

"They're also talking about making clones again, like in the Clone Wars"

"I thought they never trusted Kamino and the clones after what happened the last time"

"Yeah except this time the Republic isn't under the control of a Sith and there won't be any secret orders to kill the Jedi or turn against the Republic for whatever reason"

"Okay, but I hope they understand I'll be wary of the clones until I have proof no one especially Sentinel's are in danger from betrayal"

"I think they'll understand, they should because you're just trying to protect your fellow Starfleet officers"

"Exactly"

The next day Portland woke up and actually requested a reduced schedule until she was getting sleep more consistently without sedatives. She then went to the holodeck for some hand to hand training with some of the newer officers to see just how well they could fight. As soon as she got in the holodeck she put on the Force inhibitor bracelet

"Sentinel Portland why did you put on the bracelet?"

"Because this is a test of your skills and most people you'll be fighting aren't going to be Force sensitive as such this puts us on an even setting, at least in the special abilities department"

"Why only in the special abilities department?"

"Don't forget I've been a Starfleet officer longer than you have and as such I have more experience fighting people then you do"

"Oh...that makes sense then, but Sentinel Portland what about if we go up against Force sensitives because they either don't have control over themselves or are just plain evil?"

"Don't worry we'll deal with that another time, for now I just want to assess your hand to hand skills against an opponent who can't use the Force"

An Ensign who thought he was all that though spoke up and mocked her