Declassified

Privileges of seniority, Terry,Fisher thought. That, and being the captain’s close personal friend for close to fifteen years.

In the center of the bridge, Captain Diego Reyes leaned forward in the command chair, his gaze fixed on the viewscreen where the dark, vaguely liver-shaped rock of Azha-R7a was partially eclipsed by the distinctive droop-winged silhouette of a Klingon warship. “Any change in their energy readings?” Reyes asked.

At sciences, Anya Brzezinski stared into the hooded viewer that fed her sensor telemetry. “No spikes. Weapons remain cold. Shields are still down.” She turned to face the captain. “Sir, they may not know we’re here.”

“They know,” Reyes said with certainty. “We came in too hard and fast for them to miss our entrance.” He looked up at Ga

“Sorry for the delay, sir,” Ga

“See that it doesn’t,” Reyes advised her. “When I call for battle stations, I expect my XO’s first response to be to head for the bridge, not second-guess the alert. Are we clear?”

Ouch. That bad already, Diego?

“Aye, sir,” Ga

“Evidence of a recent explosion in one of the subsurface sectors,” the science officer said. “A number of the aboveground structures have been compromised.”

“Life signs?”

“I’m reading approximately seven hundred humanoids, mostly Arkenites. Eighty-five of them are Klingons.”

“An occupation force,” Sadler said.

“They damn well aren’t there for the coffee,” Reyes agreed. “Talk to me, Mister Kendrick.”

Seated to Fisher’s right, Lloyd Kendrick swiveled away from his console while making an adjustment to his earpiece. “No response from the colony to our hails, Captain. I’m unable to pick up any internal comm traffic. The Chech’Iwis dark to us as well.”

Reyes pushed out of his chair and crossed his arms as he stood watching the Klingon ship. “Tactical assessment, Lieutenant Sadler?” he said over his shoulder.

“We collected considerable intel on the D7-class battle cruiser during our last encounter with the Chech’Iw,sir,” Sadler said confidently, his Oxford enunciation always making an interesting contrast to the unique lilt of Reyes’s own voice, which was at times tinged with both Castellano and a subtle Texas twang. “Commander Shey and I put that knowledge to good use during the repairs and in subsequent combat drills. There’s no doubt in my mind that we have the advantage.”

“Captain, the Klingons learn from experience too,” Ga

“You don’t get to lecture me on this ship’s history with Gorkon, Commander,” Reyes said coldly. “This crew has shed blood every time we’ve tangled with him, and I don’t recall youbeing there on any of those occasions.”

Sadler frowned. Kendrick and Brzezinski looked toward Reyes in surprise. So it isn’t just me,Fisher thought.

“Sir,” Ga

“—was part of a program specifically designed to produce officers who could advise starship captains during Klingon encounters,” Reyes finished for her. “All right, Ga

“Talk to them.”

Reyes stared at her. “I must have misheard you, Commander. Could you repeat that? For a second it sounded as if you suggested I open a dialogue with the ship that attacked a Federation colony.”

Instead of rising to the bait, Ga

Brzezinski consulted her instruments before reporting, “Negative. Scans reveal no Klingon weapons signatures of any kind.”

“Is the Chech’Iwstill maintaining a nonaggressive posture?”

“Affirmative.”

Ga

Reyes’s eyes narrowed. He held her gaze while he spoke. “Ensign Jordan, are we maintaining a target lock on the Chech’Iw?”

“Aye, sir,” said the helmsman. “All banks locked on.”

“Arm photon torpedoes and target their command pod.” After Jordan acknowledged the order, Reyes said, “All right, Ga

“Mister Kendrick,” Ga

Kendrick tapped his board for several seconds, then lifted a hand to his earpiece. “Message received. They’re opening a cha

Fisher let out a long breath. He hadn’t even realized he’d been holding it.

“On screen,” Reyes said as he returned to the center seat.

As the view of the Chech’Iwdissolved into a shot of its bridge, it surprised Fisher to see Gorkon was not the man sitting in its command chair. Whereas Gorkon was tall and lean and kept his upper lip shorn above an otherwise full beard, the robust Klingon facing the Dauntlessbridge crew sported a long goatee braided with a silver chain. “Captain Reyes. How unexpected. It seems not so long ago we watched your vessel limp away like a woundedHa’DIbaH.”

“I’m surprised you noticed through all the charged plasma you were bleeding after we perforated your starboard nacelle, Mazhtog,” Reyes said, and Fisher recognized the name as belonging to Gorkon’s executive. “But as nice as it is to reminisce, I don’t have time to waste on pissants. I want to speak to your boss.”

Mazhtog bared his teeth, and Fisher wondered how the translators had handled the insult. “General Gorkon is unavailable, Earther. And you will show proper respect to a soldier of the Empire.”

“Fine,” Reyes said. “The day I meet a Klingon worthy of the title, I’ll be sure to salute him. Until then, you’re trespassing in Federation territory and interfering with a rescue operation. You’ve got fifteen minutes to pull your people out of our colony and back the hell off. Failure to comply will be considered a hostile act and met with force.”

Mazhtog’s rictus widened into a grin. “So like a human. So arrogant.”He leaned forward, his face growing larger on the screen. “You come here prepared to attack, blind to the obvious fact that the crisis on the Arkenites’ asteroid is already under control; thatDauntless ’s assistance, solate in coming, is no longer required; and that it isyou who are trespassing here. And you dare to threaten us!”

Reyes stood up. “So that’s what this is? A land grab for your territory-hungry chancellor? Is Gorkon really stupid enough to believe I’m just going to sit back while he carries out the illegal seizure of a Federation settlement and the capture of its citizens?”

Mazhtog slowly leaned back into his chair, nodding to someone offscreen before turning his jagged smile back to Reyes. “You still fail to grasp what has happened here, Earther. We have stolen nothing. These Arkenites have given their asteroid and their allegiance to the Klingon Empire of their own free will.”