Remnants of a Lost Cause

Posted on Sun Mar 26th, 2023 @ 1:33pm by Captain Akiva ben-Avram & Lieutenant JG Jaya Maera Garlake & Saalkan & Biynah & Lieutenant Colonel Storr Garlake
Edited on on Sun Nov 17th, 2024 @ 3:40pm

18,789 words; about a 94 minute read

Mission: Season 1 Interlude II (E5.5)
Location: The Collective Unconscious of the Garlakes
Timeline: ID 5/6 - middle of the night

Not every night in the Garlake bed featured a shared dreamscape, but the depth of the passionate union shared between Storr and Jaya made for a connection that could not be severed by unconsciousness. Usually, their slumbering holodeck of the mind was pleasant or at least exciting, but tonight it plumbed the darkness of past conflicts and trauma that went beyond their own into the burdens that Jaya carried from friends and colleagues long past. On this night, under the shimmering moon of Risa, the resulting montage of memories and events went beyond belief into horror.

Saalkan made his way through the corridor of the USS Vindex with a briskness in his step. The Chief Science Officer was waiting for him, and he liked to be early when possible. This was indubitably an unnecessary meeting intended solely to set the boundaries of professional interaction with a touch of social grace and a positive reinforcement of the chain of command. Humans seemed very keen on such institutional reminders.

When he finally made his way to the office door, he tapped his badge. "Computer, what is the current time?"

"The current time is 07:58," came the computer's reply.

The faintest of smirks teased Saalkan's lips. "A moment to spare." He pushed the door button to announce himself.

No... not Elsa. She did not deserve her fate.

"Enter," Elsa answered, rising from her seat to greet the slightly taller Vulcan male who entered her office. "Have a seat, Lieutenant Saalkan," she said, gesturing toward the seat on the opposite side of the desk from hers. Elsa paused before continuing. "The pure research we will be able to do in the following months, perhaps years, is going to be limited, because of our conflict with the Consortium. But I do not want it to cease. If there is a project you wish to pursue, an idea, a theory, let me know what I can do to help. I can't necessarily promise much in the way of resources, not at present, but I will give you everything I have."

"I appreciate your support, Lieutenant," Saalkan replied. "As of now, I have been preparing a long term thesis which I am unprepared to submit for peer review. It is akin to observational studies regarding environmental impacts on populations large and small. If there is any way I can be kept apprised of any mission details as they develop, perhaps I may organize my notes accordingly. Other than that, I believe I have everything I require."

"You will definitely be kept in the loop," Elsa answered as she took another sip from her cup, then set it down. "Lieutenant Saalkan, your study...that would entail not only the environmental impact on these populations, but the probability of different responses of said populations?"

Saalkan did not immediately reply. In fact, he looked to the side as he considered his words. At length, he responded with a question. "Tell me, Lieutenant, have you heard of fal-tor-pan?"

Elsa's eyebrows furrowed, as she tried to dredge up something she had read or seen or learned. Finally, she shook her head. "I want to say it has something to do with the...katra? Kolinahr?"

"Indeed." Saalkan's face was an unreadable median between compassion and arrogance. "When Ambassador Spock still served aboard the USS Enterprise, he suffered biological death. Rather than remain dead, his katra transferred to the ship's doctor for a time until they used an ancient rite to reunite the katra of Spock with his repaired, living body." He folded his hands together in front of his chest in quasi reverence. "The ritual in question is called fal-tor-pan. That was the last time fal-tor-pan was performed on Vulcan. Do you know when the previous occasion took place?"

"I wouldn't have a clue, Lieutenant Saalkan," Elsa admitted.

"Nor does anyone else." Saalkan's eyes grew intense. "That is my study. Do other species have a counterpart to fal-tor-pan? If so, what percentage of their population acknowledges or utilizes it? Is it comparable to the Vulcan ritual? Superior even? What if we never need die, Lieutenant? Those are the questions that my thesis will answer." The Vulcan clenched his jaw, then exhaled. "Forgive me," he said with eyes closed, reserving himself.

"No need to apologize, Lieutenant," Elsa answered. Her eyes withdrew momentarily before she continued. "I am convinced that theoretical physics is actual philosophy. It has revolutionized fundamental concepts about space and time, about causality, and about substance and matter, and it has taught us new methods of thinking which are applicable far beyond physics. Max Born, a human physicist and mathematician who lived more than four hundred years ago, made that observation." Elsa paused a few seconds before continuing. "You have my support, and though the cupboard may be bare in the months ahead, you have the resources of this department to support your inquires, Lieutenant."

"It is good that we agree on such a fundamental issue, Lieutenant--eye to eye, as I believe your people are fond of saying." Saalkan held back his next words, considering them before speaking further. At last he took a breath and said, "In the spirit of mutual understanding and the advancement of knowledge, in the event that an unfortunate death or other macabre crisis falls within the purview of my study, am I to understand I have your support in requesting a medical autopsy or other such postmortem analyses of the remains?" His gaze was unmoving.

"Lieutenant Saalkan, when the time comes, you have my permission to conduct whatever postmortem analysis you need to on my corpse. I will log that decision after our meeting. My personal belief..." Elsa shrugged. "My personal belief is, at that point, my concern for things corporeal will be moot. But that's strictly my opinion. I will also send a request to our acting chief medical officer that you be allowed to observe any autopsies that they conduct." Elsa took another sip of tea before continuing. "As far as any other analysis is concerned, I'm willing to support your endeavors, as long as your procedures do not run contrary to the wishes and beliefs of the deceased."

"I thank you," Saalkan replied with a bow of his head. "If there is nothing else, I suggest returning to my duties."

Elsa nodded. "I appreciate you coming in, Lieutenant Salken."

"I look forward to working together with you." Saalkan held up his hand and spread his middle and ring finger. "Live long and prosper."

Little did anyone know that Saalkan achieved a breakthrough in his study. Not long after his discovery which he had kept to himself, Saalkan suffered Pon Farr. He slinked down the corridor to the reserve medical room for the last time. It had been a very long 14 days--perhaps even longer than it should have--but in the end he had not suffered any effects from denying Pon Farr. The best part was the Doctor had not informed anyone else about their little secret. Once this last treatment was finished, he would be a free man.

No... Doctor Cara...you were the best of us.

"Good morning, Doctor," Saalkan said. "As much as I appreciate your assistance and discretion, I look forward to not seeing you every day." He sat down on the biobed and rolled up his sleeves, just as he had every morning for the past two weeks. "Thank you."

Dr. Cara had already set up a meditative audio selection of subtle flutes with the sound of a babbling brook in the back ground and she activated it. "Doesn't mean you and I have to be strangers," she said as she set up the infuser. "Lights dim to 35%," she said, once the infuser was in place and the cocktail was being delivered.

Saalkan eyed her warily from his supine position. "I am typically not one for social calls, Doctor, but I would not be opposed to that." He closed his eyes to steel his mind, forcing his emotions to submit to the serenity of Cara's audio composition. "Once again, I must compliment you on your treatment," Saalkan said from beneath heavy eyelids. "Such as it is, you saved me from... unfortunate alternative methods."

"I am glad I was able to help." After a few moments, Dr. Cara roused her patient from his meditation. "Saalkan? We're finished," she said, softly.

The Vulcan stirred in his return to conscious wakefulness. "Excellent." He breathed deeply and exhaled with something close to exuberance. He sat up and said, "I have already thanked you, Doctor, so I will not waste time repeating my gratitude. There was one other thing I would ask of you. Could you spare either an anabolic protoplaser or dermal regenerator for my research? I may be on the verge of a breakthrough, and either device would be indispensable to that end."

"Ask and ye shall receive," the doctor said, lightheartedly.

When she returned with the dermal regenerator in hand, Saalkan looked upon it with the reverence one might reserve for a sacred relic. He accepted it graciously with both hands, examining it from every angle in carefully with slow, deliberate turns. "You have no idea what this may allow me to do," he said, adding a flare of uncharacteristic anger to the words, "particularly in light of present hindrances." His face regained its taciturn composure along with his neutral voice. "One day, though, you will," Saalkan said, his voice full of promise. "On that day you will look upon the rocks of the eternal shore, Doctor, and you shall see me standing there."

With no more ceremony to stand on, the Vulcan turned to leave.

Not really knowing what he meant by his prediction, Cara simply shook her head and smiled as she watched Saalkan leave the lab. 'The rocks of the eternal shore," she mumbled to herself as she began to erase any sign that anything out of the ordinary had been taking place in the unused lab. "Poetic,' she added and followed it with, "lights out,' as she walked out the door herself.

The Science department seemed to be on a downswing, so Saalkan took the opportunity to venture into the Astrometrics Lab. He had seen the location during his initial tour, but never had any particular reason to come back. Until now.

"I beg your pardon," Saalkan said with forced politeness, "but I wish to presume upon your time for just a moment."

Of all people, Laena, how did you not recognize him for what he was? But then neither did I, not until it was too late...

Laena turned in her chair, looking up at the tall Vulcan man that stood behind her, "Of course," she said, forcing a smile. She still wasn't feeling 100?ter her fight with Claudia but she had to act professional. No matter how much she wanted to crawl into a box and die. "How can I help you?"

"Stars." The Vulcan stared at the multiple screens displaying various starfields and charts before them. "They are incredible. Almost like particles of a greater whole. Have you considered the similarities a planetary solar system has with an atom? And therefore a galaxy with a molecule? There is no telling what truly lies beyond our mortal grasp." He continued to stare at the screens for another moment before turning to face Laena. "I wish for you to update my personal star charts with the data compiled from our time in the Gamma Quadrant. They are for private meditational purposes."

The woman sat there for a moment, "I cannot," she simply stated, before turning back to her console. "But your thoughts on the galaxy are...enticing. I've never heard it described that way before."

Saalkan narrowed his eyes at Laena. "I could access the information myself if it were in the course of my duties. Unfortunately, neither Starfleet Command nor my commanding officer has tasked me with meditating upon my own fifth-dimensional parallax with Sha Ka Ree, otherwise I would make this a direct order. As this is a private matter of great personal import, I would, as it is said, 'owe you one' for your assistance."

Laena turned back to the man, "I'm sorry, Ensign, but I am under strict orders. I cannot release any stellar cartographic information without direct order from Lieutenant Johansson. I believe the concern is that the information can be used to harm our interests in the Gamma Quadrant."

"Do you truly believe Lieutenant Johansson would wish to be bothered over a personal matter of such inconsequential value?" Saalkan's lips spread a hair in what could have been the Vulcan approximation of a smile.

"No, I don't. Which is why I cannot give you the star charts," Laena said, her body language exuding an attitude of unwillingness to compromise.

"I see." The Vulcan's collar practically bristled, but his face remained stoic, chiseled, and stony. "I had hoped we could develop a relationship of mutual understanding and benefit, but I was clearly mistaken." He turned to leave. "I will see you later, Petty Officer."

"How are you feeling after finishing your Pon Farr?" Laena asked.

Saalkan stopped though did not turn around. "Is that intended as a rhetorical or sarcastic question? I do not find it amusing."

"It's meant as neither," Laena stated. "I've seen Vulcan men go through this before. It always seems..." she paused, "excruciating."

"I overcame it. Whatever does not kill me makes me stronger." Saalkan turned one foot back to give Laena a sidelong stare. "Doctor Cara did help mitigate the symptoms, so I did not suffer."

"I hope I'm not being too intrusive. I'm quite attuned to body language and symptoms." Laena stood and walked slowly towards the man. "I've seen it before. But this one... this one was more intense than usual, wasn't it?" She brushed her hand against the man's temple. "It echoes within you even after it's passed."

"I did not... resolve it... in the traditional form," Saalkan replied flatly with a glance toward Laena's hand. "Perhaps that is what you sense." He chose to ignore her hand for the moment.

"I know you didn't," was her simple response, as her fingers began to intertwine with his hair. Her pinkie grazed the edge of the man's pointed ear. "My past has given me an insight into men of many different species and the effects of their sexual practices. Your eyes betray your secrets."

Saalkan let a sly smirk creep across his face though it did not touch his eyes. "And what do you see in my eyes, Petty Office Laena? Does your past tell you the female from my last Pon Farr did not survive it?" He gripped her wrist with the firm grip that belied the Vulcan frame. "I know your mind. You are angry with our commanding officer for an unrequited love that she..." He paused a moment, eyes closed as though listening to a melody, then chuckled again. "... oh, yes, that she has given to another. You know that I defied her and she demoted me for it, so you would think to bed me as a primitive act of vengeance against your spurned lover." The Vulcan pulled her near to whisper raspily in her ear. "Be careful what you wish for, you little slut, for I will not be an unwitting pawn in your childish game. If you will not help me, then I will not help you." As soon as he finished, he shoved her back by the wrist and pressed his hands against his sternum, breathing in and out until he regained his center. "You are right about one thing," he said in his normal voice and tone. "It was excruciating."

Laena's mouth hung open for a few moments, until the fire within her raged and she swung, her open palm slapping the man across the face. "Don't you ever speak to me in that way again." A tear rolled down her cheek, but she did her best to hide it. The last thing she wanted was to give this man the satisfaction of knowing that he hurt her, both physically and emotionally. "If I wanted to get back at the Captain, which I do not, then I wouldn't use a person I've never met. I know nothing about you or your history with the Captain. And let me make one thing clear."

The small woman stepped forward, poking a finger into the man's chest, "If you ever touch me like that again, I will kill you. Without hesitation. You wouldn't be the first man I've killed for disrespecting me."

Saalkan licked his lip as he rubbed the pain away from his cheek. "You noticed the subtle effects of Pon Farr in my body language, and I am expected to believe you did not notice a pip of rank missing from my collar. Now I know what you want, you know what I want, and you know where to find me if you choose to deliver it. Good day."

Laena stood there in stunned silence as the man walked down the catwalk and through the doors, leaving her alone. She slumped into the chair, still stunned by the interaction.

The fateful day that would live in infamy began with celebration. It was the Vindex chef Paul Foster's 49th birthday and the crew had arranged a brief party for him.

Akiva was on hand to supervise the informal affair. Thinking of it as participation triggered his anxiety. He stood near the table of honor where the pastries and cake were being set up, though he did little by way of organizing it, and watched people trickle in a few at a time.

The first couple to walk in were two tall gentlemen, one a senior noncom in gold, the other a warrant officer in teal.

Storr entered next with his First Shirt, Bella Zaltin, both wearing ridiculous pointed green-and-white striped hats with a red tassel on top. The MCO looked around nervously, noticing that no one else was equally adorned.

"Wait, didn't they say that this was a birthday party?"

"With all due respect sir...can it," Bella chided him with a simper and an elbow to the ribs which he immediately returned. "Besides, I make this look good."

Storr rolled his eyes. "Great, now you're a fashionista. I'll be sure to reference the Ten-Twenty-dot-Three-Four [uniform regulation] when I get back." Making his way past the captain and first officer with a respectful head nod of acknowledgment to both, he stationed himself by the punch bowl like a bouncer at a seedy nightclub. Though, not before availing himself of it. Twice.

Several others made their way in and offered greetings. Dr. Cara came in from the kitchen with a tray of hors d'oeuvres and a gift bag slung from her wrist. She set the tray on the buffet table then carried the gift bag over to Claudia. "They just finished it," she said and pulled the silver ladle out of the bag so the Captain could see the engraving "Master Chef Paul Foster...Happy Birthday, your USS Vindex family".

Paul finally arrived and he was surprised to see the effort that had been put into arranging a surprise party for him. As the attendees broke into a rendition of "Happy Birthday" he couldn't help but chuckle to himself. Once they'd finished he blew out the candles of the cake Rebecca held up in front of him.

Akiva regretted not bringing Biynah. She was given the option to attend the party and opted to stay away. Akiva began to feel as though he were on parental shore leave for the time being, and he didn't know what to make of himself. He contented to look around the room with awkward fidgeting as he enjoyed the fact others were having a good time.

Saalkan strode into the function room and assessed everyone in attendance. Then he strode to the beverage table to take a glass.

“If I may have everyone's attention.” Saalkan's rose voice out over the room clear enough without the chiming of spoon to glass, yet he made the gesture anyhow. “Forgive me for interrupting this festive occasion, but there is another cause for celebration that is long overdue.” He stepped to the forefront of the gathering and waved his hand to one and all, ensuring everybody was included in his next words.
“In ancient times on Vulcan, before the modernized idealization of Logic, my people observed a number of holy days now considered Pagan among the intellectual elite. Among the most sacred was Kal Rekk – a day of atonement, solitude, and silence. Everyone, please raise your glass to Kal Rekk – the death of the old and birth of the new.”

Akiva raised an eyebrow, but raised his glass to the eccentric Vulcan nonetheless.

"I don't recall inviting you to this party, Ensign," said Captain Ainscow.

Paul wasn't very happy. He glared at the Vulcan, too.

“If I may beg your indulgence once more,” Saalkan said. At first no one heeded him. “Listen, please.” A few people looked his way, but he was far from commanding the attention of the entire room. “Everyone, please, just allow me another...” He grew impatient and smashed his glass to the ground. “You gods-be-damned mortal savages, I said listen to me when I'm talking to you!” That got everyone's attention. A hush fell over the room. “I was not finished,” he continued, his voice calm again but raspier than before. “What you may not know about Kal Rekk is that there is no season leading up to it. Kal Rekk is but one day out of the year. A surprise, if you will.” He cleared the lump from his throat that his shouting had made. “As I said before, it is a time to atone for the past, and to do so in quiet isolation.” Saalkan's eyes grew wide and fervent. “Many of you have wrongs for which you have not atoned. Some of you deserve to be isolated from all you know and love.” His gaze drifted across the crowd and settled on Captain Ainscow. “And some of you,” his tone turned nearly guttural, “need to be silenced.”

"Stand down, Mr. Saalkan," ordered Captain Ainscow.

Cara furrowed her brow. Something was not right. She moved toward Saalkan to try and urge him to leave with her.

He tapped his commbadge. =/\=Saalkan to Snowdon. Do it.=/\=

"Saalkan," Cara said in a soft voice as she took his elbow. "What are you doing?"

"You were given a direct order," said Lieutenant Cusack, her tactical sense tingling. She held her drawn phaser at point blank range. "Stand down immediately."

At that moment, Captain Ainscow and Akiva were called to the bridge. They were reluctant to leave the party, but it appeared the chief of security had the disruption well in hand.

"Aye, aye, Captain," Akiva said, falling in line as he gave a curt nod in Lieutenant Cusack's direction for her to resolve the situation with Saalkan.

Saalkan allowed Martha to approach. "Stop what? My toast? You humans have no class." When Cusack made to subdue him, Saalkan deftly pushed the doctor away and side-stepped the Security officer's rush in one fluid motion. He then grabbed her by wrist and pinched her above the shoulder near the neck. "I will take that," he said to her collapsing, unconscious body as he relieved her limp hand of its phaser.

With the Security chief out of the way, Saalkan turned to Cara. “Good Doctor, it would take too much time to explain myself. You will understand soon enough," the Vulcan said as he produced a translucent respirator mask. He stretched out over his face with one hand while keeping his newly acquired phaser trained on everybody, particularly the two Marines, with the other. “I want all of you to know that it was unnecessary for me to reveal myself and thereby potentially expose myself to harm. This was just an added perquisite. If I passed on it, I would have never forgiven myself."

"Saalkan....Whatever you're doing," Dr. Cara said, holding one hand out in front of her as she, slowly, moved toward him, "you must realize it is not going to end well for you."

"Do not take another step," Saalkan ordered, crisp and enunciated, training his phaser on Cara, though he did not let Storr or Bella in particular out of his sight. "I have had my fill of being touched by mortal savages this day. You all... reek of death."
He tapped his commbadge. =/\="Saalkan to Snowdon. Confirm action."=/\=

=/\="Confirmed. You might want to put your respirator on."=/\=

A Security team of two officers entered the room and drew their phasers, pointed straight at the Vulcan from a distance. "Drop it!"

"You first," Saalkan said diffidently. "In point of fact, atmosphere is being vented from every deck of the ship as we speak." The Vulcan made casual strides toward the door. “If you're wondering why your throat suddenly feels constricted, that would be the cause. I am no doctor, but that you are all still standing rather impresses me.” The doors parted before him as he breathed deep from his translucent respirator and made one final statement. “If you have any parting words to share with one another, I recommend you get on with them now. Don't bother trying to follow—the doors will seal behind me.” With that, the doors closed shut.

Dr. Cara took an oxygen mask from the first aid kit in the kitchen and began alternating its application. Everyone else was trying like mad to get the sealed doors open or raise the transporter room on their communicators.

Storr took a deep breath before letting it out, looking over everyone present. He and Bella held back during the altercation with the Vulcan as stopping him was not as crucial as learning more about their situation; Saalkan could not be doing what he was doing without substantial help. With no one else on their feet to take command, Storr took it upon himself and began issuing commands to access emergency air cannisters hidden in Jeffries tubes, to he room instantly exploded into action, bodies moving with a purpose in every direction, intent burned onto their faces. Mutineers lifespans were either very long or very short and the Vindex crew was aiming to make them the latter...

During the party, Jaya was seeing a patient.

Nealey Snowdown... you suffered perhaps worst of all.

She tucked her feet beneath her legs on the sofa as she took a cup of steaming Seyalian tea from the platter on the table. "I made yours the same as last time," she said to Nealey who sat opposite her on the other end. She smelled it, allowing its aroma to carry her away. After sipping once, then again, she set it down on the end table at her elbow.

Nealey accepted the tea and took a few sips of it before speaking. "Thank you, Counselor."

Before long, the door beeped. Not the buzzer but the panel itself. The sound caught Jaya by surprise, but what truly startled her was the intent she felt on the other side. Evil intent. It was their only warning. The doors parted to reveal none other than Ensign Saalkan charging into the room. She saw what appeared to be a burly Klingon mercenary standing guard in the corridor.

When Saalkan rushed at her, Jaya could feel the cold malice in the man's soul as surely as it shone from his eyes. She tried to scream, but the Vulcan was upon her in a moment, flinging her over the sofa with a deft yet powerful swing of his arm.

With the counselor dispatched, Saalkan set his predatory eyes on Nealey. "Do not move." Saalkan lunged upon her, placing both hands on either temple. "My mind to your mind," he hissed. "My thoughts to your thoughts."

Nealey's bloodcurdling screams could be heard from down the corridor. The Vulcan snarled. His eyes narrowed to slits as he dug his fingertips into Nealey's skin. "My mind to your mind! My thoughts to your thoughts!"

"Get away from her!" Jaya stood across the room, if barely. One eye was swollen shut, and she whimpered with every breath, but she defied Saalkan all the same.

"I will deal with you soon enough, little empath," Saalkan said. "Call for help, and she dies here and now."

Jaya stepped closer, favoring one leg.

"Stop right there," Saalkan said.

"Or what?" Jaya gasped as she limped forward, eyes bulging with an intensity that couldn't be squashed. "Are you afraid of a 'little empath'?"

"I fear nothing." Saalkan said, his grip tightening on Nealey. "Doqqu! Get in here and detain this nuisance."

"You fear death," Jaya whispered, finally closing the distance between them, "and like every other fucking coward, you will die a thousand of them." With Saalkan clutching Nealey, nothing prevented Jaya from reaching out and grasping Saalkan's face between her hands. "Let me show you." She forced her lips onto Saalkan's and unleashed the full weight of her repressed passion into him. The instinctual revulsion she felt compelled her to pull away. She could not overcome the Vulcan physically, and he was telepathically stronger than him. Their only chance was for her to use every ounce of will and essence she could muster.

No! No, no, noooo!!!

Saalkan convulsed, dead on his feet as though electrified. His grip on Nealey loosened. He could feel Jaya touch him to his core. The primal rage that every Vulcan suppressed flared within him, pushing against her bombardment. For just a moment, they stood deadlocked in a grisly, paralyzing kiss of death.

Jaya kept pushing. She felt her strength waning, even if her drive was true. Nealey's voice distracted her and she tried to block it out. Her empathy would seldom be denied. The pain of others spoke louder than their cries. A whispering voice in her mind told her she had lost.

The weight of Jaya's will to power was certainly more than Saalkan had anticipated, but nothing lasts forever. He finally regained his physical senses, enough to move his limbs. Slowly but surely, he reached his hand around to Jaya's shoulder, felt for the exact location of the nerve cluster specific to her variation of humanoid species, and pinched.

Immediately Saalkan's mind cleared. Jaya's eyes rolled back in her head as her body fell limp to the floor. Saalkan dropped to his knees, unable to stand.

"Are you alright?" asked one of the mercs.

"I am fine," Saalkan said hoarsely. He rubbed his eyes, face, and temples. "I am fine," he repeated with a snort.

When he returned to his feet, he looked to Nealey. "Subdue her," he ordered the two Security officers. "This will have to be quick, young one. I am expected at a party," Saalkan said as he rolled up his sleeves. "This should be much faster now." He took Nealey's unconscious head in both hands and began to chant under his breath. "My mind to your mind. My thoughts to your thoughts. My mind to your mind. My thoughts to your thoughts..."

You managed to deceive everyone, Kazyah... perhaps, not least of all, yourself.

"Ready?" Kaz asked, his hand running along the sleek metal body of the Type III phaser rifles that he held in his hands. He ordered the Klingon mercenaries in Saalkan's employ to fan out with a simple hand signal. Then his combadge beeped.

"Report," said Saalkan's voice.

"I wasn't able to get my hands on the new command codes, so if you happened to get them, that would make this much easier," Kaz said. "Either way, we shouldn't have any issues. We have agents on every deck and in all secure areas. Waiting for your signal, sir."

As they entered the turbolift, Kaz turned to the side panel and tapped a few controls. "I've set off a ship proximity alarm. The Bridge will think there's a ship off the port bow and ask for the Captain and Commander to the Bridge. They should arrive just a few moments after we do. And by the time they do, we'll have taken control."

When the turbolift arrived on the bridge, Akiva noted there didn't seem to be as much activity as he had expected. In fact, it seemed deathly still. "That's odd."

His instincts warned him something was up, but he chalked them up to whatever the alert was regarding. He made to follow the captain toward their central chairs until he realized the bridge was empty.

"Security to the bridge," the captain said.

Akiva's hand went for the phaser on his hip, only to realize it wasn't there. He rolled behind the nearest console as he watched mutineers fire upon the captain and haul her away.

"So this is how it's going to be, Linn?" Akiva called back from his hiding position. He had recognized Kaz among them. "I knew I had a bad feeling about you." He needed more time to form a plan. He had to think.

Three conspirators stormed onto the Bridge and Kaz held up his hand, holding them off. "Secure the rest of the command deck," he told them before they dispersed, "The XO is mine."

Kaz took a few steps towards the console the XO was hiding behind, his phaser rifle raised and ready to shoot, "It's over, Commander. Just play nice and we promise not to slaughter your entire crew while you watch."

The scenario in which Akiva found himself was alone, unarmed, and without backup coming. At the moment it was just him and Kazyah though. Kazyah somehow navigated while being blind, which meant Akiva would likely not be able to sneak past him. But maybe the traitor wouldn't spot a death charge until it was too late.

Kaz didn't see the attack coming. The Commander plowed into him with impressive force, knocking the two men to the ground and the rifle away. A fist connected with Kaz's jaw, another to his temple, and yet another to his gut. Akiva was going all in, but he wasn't enough. Kaz ducked to the side as the XO's fist connected with the hard floor, the crack of carpal bones a sound Kaz knew instantly.

The Intelligence Officer swung his hip around, his leg and foot securing the Commander's waist as he flipped him over.

Kaz regained the rifle and pointed it at the Commander's head, the muzzle planted directly against his skin. "Stand down, Commander. You can't win."

Akiva tried to speak, but the words came out gibberish. Kazyah was right. He knew he was beaten. And, beaten and defeated, he was dragged to the observation lounge when he was fastened to a chair for interrogation. When Saalkan checked in, Kaz had little to report.

"Nothing yet," Kaz said, not looking up from Akiva's face. The man was tied to a chair and his head hung low, blood dripping from his mouth. "I'm sure he'll talk soon, though," Kaz said, an evil smile planted on his face.

"I can tell you to go to hell." Akiva's voice was hoarse. He spat blood at Kazyah's feet. "How's that?"

Kaz turned his nose up in disgust, "Have some manners, Commander." Kaz cracked his knuckles. Without further warning, Kaz took a swing, his fist connecting with the man's jaw. "Don't be a fool." Kaz grabbed the man by the hair and yanked his head back so that Akiva was forced to look up at the Lieutenant. "Give up your command authorization code."

"All right, all right, I'll tell you," Akiva said with a grunt. "Come closer, and I'll tell you what you want to know." He leaned forward, closer to Kazyah's face and whispered, "Timtzotz li et hazyn b'Azazel!" The battered first officer threw his head back and cackled with maniacal resignation.

Kaz grabbed the man's face and brought it close, "Trust me, under any other circumstances, I'd take you up on that offer," he said before pressing his lips to Akiva's and giving him a kiss. "Now, answer my questions before I kill you."

"Death doesn't give me much incentive, now does it?" Akiva said. He worked up more saliva and spat it onto Kazyah's cheek. "You can have that back."

But they had bypassed the command console on the bridge. There was no need for either command officer. Saalkan gave the remote order to dispatch them.

"With pleasure," Kaz said, taking the phaser that was strapped to his waist and pointed it at the Commander. "Sweet dreams, Akiva," he said as the beam burst forth and landed directly on the man's chest, causing him to slump forward, unconscious.

T'Janikrel, one of the few willing mutineers, came alone to the rendezvous point. The group had dwindled thin.

Saalkan furrowed his brow. "Where are the others?"

"I must report that the were complications in the operation. In the struggle, Lieutenant Johansson was killed, as was Crewman Ch'rehlak, the Andorian assisting me."

"No matter." Saalkan appeared utterly indifferent. "They were but one contingency among many. I know Dmitri will not be pleased, but unlike you--" He interrupted himself to take T'Janikrel by the neck and snap it in the ancient Tal-Shaya form of execution, "--he will learn to live with disappointment." He sniffed along her gelatinous neck. "We can't all live forever," he whispered, savoring the sensation of her departing katra. "Farewell." Saalkan let the corpse fall to the ground in an unceremonious thud. He looked back to the two brainwashed officers behind him. "Throw her down the nearest Jefferies tube, then meet me at the next rendezvous point."

Through many long hours of exhaustion, the survivors on the Vindex licked their wounds, mourned their dead, and restored both access and functionality to the ship's systems. But the mutineers had escaped with several hostages in tow, including the captain. Dr. Cara did not survive, having given up the last air tank for another soul. Storr began his clearing actions on the ship with Jaya's quarters. When he found her, she called out for him.

"Storr." Jaya could barely raise her voice above a whisper. "Saalkan." She grasped his hand a final time, though through this touch she drew upon every thread and fiber of their bond to project an abridged summary of her final moments.

Saalkan. Attacked. Defending Nealey. Kiss of death. Psychic conflict. Sudden nerve impingement. Lights out.

Jaya's eyes fell closed again under the strain. Her throat moaned a sound not unlike Storr's name.

The Marine's eyes narrowed to slits. There was a term they had for targets that were the objective for the night's raid...DMWs or Dead Man/Men Walking. If he had not before, Saalkan had just placed himself squarely into that definition, if for no other reason than having nearly turned his future Boervrou into a mental vegetable. DMW indeed...

From his sanctuary on a long abandoned world, Saalkan steepled his fingers as he surveyed the landscape outside the executive suite that doubled as his office. The Cardassians held a unique view of spartan luxury that the Maquis had little improved upon. With that ragtag insurgency long since snuffed out, Veloz Prime seemed a fitting, fertile little plot of ground in which to germinate his grand design. Like the Terran mustard seed, most great things had humble origins.

The suite had been converted into an administrative office easily enough. More furnishings had been brought in than had been removed. A handful of art pieces adorned the walls and corner fixtures, though the obsidian desk in front of the floor to ceiling window dominated the main room. Saalkan sat in repose until the corridor sensors alerted him to an approaching figure. He stroked an ancient artifact with both hands before hiding it in the folds of his robes. Since arriving at Veloz Prime, he had abandoned his Starfleet uniform for more traditional Vulcan attire. He remained seated as he pressed a remote controller for the door.

"Ah, Kazyah Linn. Welcome to my sanctuary, my own threshold to Vorta Vor." Saalkan remained seated, though he raised his hands outward in reception. His loose sleeves gathered around his elbows. "Please, come sit and let us speak candidly." Saalkan gestured toward the earthen pitcher and cups to the left side of his obsidian desktop. "Would you care for some water? It remains toxic for one of Cardassian blood, but refreshing and harmless for the likes of us."

"I would, thank you," Kaz replied, his eyes not following Saalkan as he moved. He wasn't exactly sure why he was called here, but he could only imagine that it wasn't good.

"Excellent." Saalkan poured water for them both and set one cup in front of Kazyah with a resounding clap against the desktop. "Time is precious, so I will not waste it." Saalkan drank from his cup to the last, then refilled it as he continued. "Tolan is not to be trusted, but this is news to no one. I suspect him of harboring Starfleet sympathies only marginally more than I do with you. However, you are not planning to oust me from my new home as is he. And..." Saalkan hesitated as if conflicted as to whether or not he ought to continue. "... he does not have the mind to appreciate what I could offer one such as you." His mouth curved upward into a smirk that did not touch the darkness in his eyes. "Would you care to hear more?"

Kaz's mouth curled into a half-smile to match Saalkan's. "I'm interested," he replied.

"Make no mistake: I will purge the unworthy from among our numbers, for I have come too far to suffer any fool to usurp my destiny." Saalkan lowered his chin to stare down his nose at Kazyah. "In exchange for securing your loyalty, Mr. Linn, I will offer you my most precious gift."

"And that is?" Kaz asked, taking it all in.

"Life everlasting." Saalkan's eyes shot wide in fervent zeal. "It is the reason we are all here. It is the reason I ventured to the Gamma Quadrant. This very planet has seen the rise and fall of many--the Maquis, the Cardassians before them, and countless others to be sure. Eternal elements do not concern themselves with the passing of time or with the beings bound to it." Saalkan closed his eyes but a moment, sniffing as though a scent lingered on the air. "Ah, yes. Though you descend from those who fled our home under the banner of the raptor and mingled with outliers, your katra distinguishes itself nonetheless." The Vulcan opened his eyes and regarded Kazyah with a knowing look. "Vulcan blood cannot be denied. Look inward, Kazyah Linn. Feel the searing pain inside which yearns to burn forever, never to be extinguished." He slowly reached across the desk, leaning forward ever so slightly, and took Kazyah by the hand. "I know the torment you feel... the loss you suffered long ago for which you blame yourself. Let it not be in vain. Drink with me from the cup of immortality. Take vengeance against death. Let it quiver at the mention of your name, for ever and always. All I ask..." Saalkan released Kazyah's hand and resettled into his highback chair. "... is to aid me in the removal of my final obstruction. Will you join me?"

Kazyah sat there for a moment. He knew when his mind was being probed, even the weakest telepath knew when their mind was being invaded. The difference is, Kaz had the ability to resist. He had been trained by some of the strongest telepaths in his race. But this wasn't the time to hide behind walls and subterfuge. Hiding his mind would have only strengthened Saalkan's distrust of him. So he let him in. Not too much, not enough to give away his secrets. Just enough so that the Vulcan could see what he wanted to see, and taste what he wanted to taste.

"You make a convincing argument," Kaz said, suddenly missing the feel of the man's hand in his. There was a spark, the phantom of touch that lingered on his palm. "You...want me to kill them." Kaz adjusted himself in the chair. "I'm sure my past is no secret to you. A man of your talents, I'm sure, is even aware of my classified dealings within Starfleet Intelligence. Your dog, Doqqu, is good. But he's a brute. He lacks the grace and finesse to pull off this kind of job. He's good at attack and defense, but he's no assassin. He's never brought down a person in a crowd without being seen. You were smart to come to me with this, Saalkan. I won't let you down."

Saalkan grinned wolfishly. "Splendid." The grin dropped from his face just as quickly as it was sprung. Saalkan closed his eyes and reached within the fold of his robe. "Just so we understand one another," he said, voice strained in concentration, eyes still closed. "I offer a taste of what is to come." The Vulcan exhaled deeply as though punched in the gut, then gasped deeply. An even keel subsumed him, body and soul, before he shouted, "Behold!"

As he spoke, sight came to Kaz's eyes for the first time in almost twenty years. The overwhelming sensation hit Kaz like a ton of bricks and he immediately fell backwards causing him, and the chair he was sitting in, to tumble to the floor. Kaz screamed, he hands clutching his face as his eyes burned with a holy fire that he didn't understand and wasn't expecting.

The Vulcan sighed deeply and broke from his trance. "What I give, I can take away," he said. Kazyah's vision faded with the spoken words. "Serve me well, Kazyah Linn, and that will be only the beginning."

Kaz continued to lay on the ground, sobbing into his hands as he gasped for a breath. His body was shaking, uncontrollably, and though his mouth moved, no words could escape.

"Awakening can be painful at the beginning," Saalkan said, "but it does not last. It is but weakness leaving the body." He leaned back in his highbacked chair and steepled his fingers again. "The worst part is the withdrawal effects. This time tomorrow will be met with cravings of the spirit, for once you have tasted of athanasia's essence, nothing else will sate the desire for it." Saalkan regarded Kazyah's writhing form in silence. When the man seemed to get his legs back under him, the Vulcan slowly nodded in measured approval. "I can give you the universe, Kazyah. Now you know that I am good for my word."

Kaz slowly sat up, resting his back against the chair that had fallen over. "Next time, give a man some warning," he said, still taking deep breaths.

"What do you think that was?" Saalkan turned grim, eyes narrowed. "Do not fail me, for soon there will be no corner of the galaxy beyond my reach."

"You don't have to worry about me," Kaz said, still sounding out of breath, but he was finally getting his bearings back. "The unworthy are as good as dead."

"Resplendent." Saalkan turned his chair around to face the exterior panorama. "Inform me as soon it is done."

"Of course." Kaz bowed slightly before he turned and walked out of the room.

Kazyah walked down the grand hall from Saalkan's office, his fingers playing with the small device in his pocket. He needed to talk to Akiva about the next steps for his undercover mission, and his new orders from the new Director certainly put a deadline in place that he wasn't expecting. It was one thing to ask Kaz to prove his loyalty, Kaz would probably have done the same in his shoes. The man looked over his shoulder, confirming he was alone, and ducked down a side hall that was lined with rooms. He looked in a couple of them until he found what he was looking for, a working PADD. He removed the small device from his pocket and latched it onto the back of the PADD. After a few moments, a new interface appeared on the PADD with an area for a message.

'Akiva, confirm receipt. Need assistance,' he wrote before pressing the Send button. He sighed and slumped down into the nearest chair, waiting for a reply.

Akiva heard a buzzing noise which disturbed his dreamless slumber. His eyes popped open, immediately seizing upon the streak of stars outside his viewport window dead ahead. When it buzzed again, he snatched the offending object off of his nightstand. "Computer, lights."

The small object in his hand carried a tainted feeling for him. He marched from his sleeping quarters to the living room area where a PADD sat as he'd left it earlier. The device slammed into the PADD's base without protest.

A burst of coded protocol flew across the PADD, reformatting its operating system with decryption protocols. "Akiva, confirm receipt. Need assistance," he read aloud.

"This had better be good," he groaned. "Computer, begin log, and forward it to my PADD." The computer warbled acknowledgement. "Message received. What do you have?" He pressed the button to clear the text, which sent the captured data through the transceiver to its pair light-years away.

Seconds passed, then a minute. And then two. Finally the screen of the PADD lit again with more words. "Do you have ship control? We are in the Veloz system."

Akiva's eyes shot wide open. Finally! A solid lead. Could Kazyah be trusted? He had untied him, but he also tied him up in the first place... and kissed him.

"Yes. We also have reinforcements." Let him chew on that. "What are your numbers?"

"I'm not sure yet," came the initial reply. A few moments passed and then, "We have a Klingon vessel in orbit, beware. We only just recently arrived at the facility, so I have been unable to do a proper assessment."

Akiva hesitated before asking the next question. "Any fatalities?" His jaw clenched in anticipation of a response.

Time seemed to tick by slowly. It was almost ten minutes before a reply came through. "None. All are present and accounted for."

Relief swelled up within his chest as Akiva whispered a quick, quiet prayer of gratitude. "What is Saalkan planning?" he asked at length.

"I'll be honest, I'm not sure. Saalkan is keeping a tight lid on things but I know his telepathic powers are increasing. He seems to think he has found a way to live forever." A quick moment, and then another message. "You must hurry if we are to save everyone."

"We are already en route to the Alpha Quadrant," Akiva replied, not caring whether his annoyed tone was conveyed. "What sort of increase to his telepathic powers?"

"I don't know how to explain it. But he was able to temporarily give me my sight back."

Akiva nearly dropped his PADD. "Telepathically? No, there must be some technology at work. He is a scientist, after all."

"I'm not for certain. At the time I was so overcome with pain, I wasn't aware of much else." A few moments passed. "Saalkan has ordered that I kill some of his people to prove my loyalty to him. I fear there's no way around that."

"I have absolutely no problem with that," Akiva said. "Just keep the hostages alive."

"Understood. I await your arrival, Commander. Godspeed."

Kaz didn't knock as he walked into Saalkan's office. He knew the man was in there and he knew he was alone, which is exactly how it needed to be. The job was completed and now it was time to get his reward. Something that both excited and frightened him at the same time. But it was his destiny.

"I've done as you asked," Kaz said, not waiting for introductions or pleasantries.

Saalkan drilled him with a stare. "Where are the bodies?"

Kaz put his hands on his hips. "You'll have them soon enough. I've carefully executed several individuals as suicides and left them to be found. Trust me, this way everyone else has no choice but to look to you." He raised an eyebrow. "Satisfactory?"

The Vulcan's hands shuffled beneath his robes. His eyes closed for a second, brow furled in concentration. A harumph escaped his lips in short order. "Very well," Saalkan said. He reached for the communicator embedded in his obsidian desk. "Mr. Doqqu, bring the captain and her paramours up from the detention sublevel to my private lab." He did not wait for response before he moved toward his office door. "Come, Mr Linn. It is time I show you the reason."

"First," Kaz said, holding up his hand, "I would like what you promised me. My abilities to you would be greatly enhanced with my sight returned."

Saalkan stopped in his tracks and did an about face. He regarded Kazyah with a shrewd, calculating assessment. "Granted. You will better understand what I am to show you." His hand struck out in a fluid motion and seized Kazyah by the forehead. "Behold." The command was carried on a breathy, guttural gust.

As before, the pain hit Kaz like a warp core breach, except this time he was expecting it. He braced himself against the wall, squeezing his eyes shut, as he bore the pain in silence. And before long, it passed. The man blinked a few times, groaning.

"Wow," was all he could say as he looked around. He bit his lip, fighting back the tears that were welling up in the corners of his eyes. And as much as he tried, he failed, and a few tears rolled down his cheeks. "I used to lay awake in bed, dreaming of a time when I used to be able to see. Clinging to the memories I had as a child. The world is so beautiful and my memories paled in comparison to what I see now."

"I have much more to show you," Saalkan said slowly, then gripped Kazyah by the chin and pressed his mouth against his for just a peck. "My son." The Vulcan stared down as his nose at Kazyah before tearing away and briskly heading toward the door. "Come."

Kaz stood there for a moment, without words. He swallowed hard as Saalkan walked away, unsure of what just happened. A slight smile pulled at the side of Kaz's mouth as he quickly followed the Vulcan out of the room.

Rather than use the turbolift which would return them to the central hall which served as the hub for each of the modules, Saalkan had a private turbolift which took him directly to his private lab within the science module. He stood in quiet repose during the moment of travel, as if Kazyah were not even present. After but a moment, the door opened to reveal an extended area with its own power core. A stasis pod was linked directly to it, as well as a vast computer terminal with multiple screens and consoles not unlike a stellar cartography station on a smaller scale. Various instrumentation panels and supply caches stretched across the walls. A researcher could spend some time in the space without having to leave.

"My sanctum sanctorum," Saalkan said with his hand raised. "We are very close, Kazyah--so very close."

A buzz came to a blast door on the far end from the turbolift.

"Ah, that would be Mr. Doqqu with our guests," Saalkan said. His demeanor was nearly chipper. "Please have them restrained."

As he spoke, Doqqu followed behind Captain Ainscow, her yeoman Rebecca, and Laena with a disruptor rifle in hand and a bat'leth on his back. He forced them to march forward linked together in single file with their hands restrained behind their backs. The disruptor rifle was held inches from Laena's back.

Laena's lower lip trembled as she was lead into the room. Her eyes darted around, looking for anything that could be helpful. But she quickly realized that there was no hope.

"Ah, Captain Ainscow, a pleasure to at last speak with you face to face." Saalkan smirked in false cordiality. "Oh, yes, we have had our dealings before now, but I trust now you'll find matters sorted to their proper place. I am, as you can see, a different man than the one you thought you knew. Have you enjoyed your stay?"

"No, I haven't I'm afraid," said the captain with stoic dispassion. "I want my money back."

"Rest assured, my good captain," he said, leaning in to sniff along her hair and neck, "you will get everything that's coming to you." A throaty chuckle gurgled from his mouth. "But, for now, I require another." His eyes shifted to Laena. "Little Orion, you possess knowledge that I require. It will go well for you not to resist my taking it."

The woman's body began to tremble as tears rolled down her cheeks. "Please Saalkan, I don't know what you want," she said, not looking up at the man.

"Oh? Have you forgotten so quickly?" Saalkan leered at her, his grin wide and cruel. "Allow me to refresh your memory. It was the day that I entered your lab--just the two of us. Am I stirring any recollections yet? I asked a personal favor of you, and even though you could or would not fulfill it, you offered to fulfill another desire of mine. Pon Farr was painful, you said. Previous masters taught you how to ease my difficulty, you said. And you stroked my ear just here." His fingers brushed near the point of his lobe and shot Captain Ainscow a haughty grin. "A wicked little temptress, this one." His grin turned to a sneer. "But you would know that better than I, would you not? 'O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done. The ship has weather'd every rack, the prize we sought is won!'" The Vulcan suppressed his mirth, allowing only a chuckle, but then surrendered to the fiendish cackle that fought free from deep in his breast.

Doqqu turned away from everyone, having found great interest in the far wall.

Saalkan fixed a hard gaze upon Laena once more. "Do you recall now, my pet, or shall I go on?"

Kaz stood there, his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes set on the poor woman in front of him. Her mint green skin glistened as the uncontrollable tears fell down her face. "Saalkan," he said, taking a few steps forward. "While I know you're enjoying the terror of this poor girl, if her mind is filled with fear, it'll make finding the information you want much more difficult. Especially if you try to take that information by force, which I'm sure you also desire. Tell me what you want and I will retrieve it for you."

"NO!" Saalkan roared in fury. Loose articles about the room fluttered from the telepathic surge of his wrath. "It is rather specific knowledge of various star systems, both past and present, as well as future projections, all buried deep within her unconscious mind. And, if knowledge is power, then a god am I." He removed a silver rod that was inscribed with archaic writing from a hidden fold and affixed it around his neck by chain. "I appreciate your offer, Kazyah Linn," Saalkan said with a gentler tone, "but there are realms of understanding beyond your present comprehension."

The Vulcan placed his hands on their foreheads, centered between Laena and Rebecca. His eyes rolled back into his head while his fingers clenched his prey.

Doqqu raised his disruptor rifle at the other hostages in preemptive action. It was the only warning they would get.

"I close your eye to sleep, give me what I seek," Saalkan intoned, "call up from the deep, give me what I seek..." Tremors overtook his hands as both ladies simpered against his touch. "Enok-kal Fi Lar!"

Saalkan gasped and blinked his eyes back into focus. "Thank you, my pet," he whispered sincerely. He took Laena's forehead in both hands and kissed it. "I confess I did not know if that would work, but you have given me the final piece." He spared but a glance at Rebecca, whose eyes were glazed over and for all appearances looked dead on her feet. "As for you," he said in a deep, low tone, "your services are no longer required."

Two fingers on her forehead were all it took to send her toppling to the ground.

Laena let out a yelp of pain and heartbreak as she watched the woman fall that was matched by an outcry from Captain Ainscow.

"I did not take her life," Saalkan said coyly. "She did." He pointed to Laena. "I merely facilitated the transaction." After a glance at Rebecca's dead form, Saalkan tersely added, "Honestly you should be thanking me."

"You are a dead man," Claudia snarled.

"Oh, come now, Captain," Saalkan said. "We are so far past the point of meaningless threats. Can you not see? Your romantic dalliances are of no eternal consequence and so of no present relevance to me."

Captain Ainscow prepared a retort, but Saalkan cut her off.

"Return them to the detention sublevel," Saalkan said to Doqqu. "But take it slow. The captain may find this of interest on her way out."

The Klingon hesitated a fraction of a second, then nodded in compliance. "Move," he said, gesturing with the barrel of his disruptor rifle. He unlinked the dead woman from the others and rolled her over to one side.

"I'm so sorry," Laena whispered to the captain through the whimpers as they walked out of the room.

Saalkan turned back to Kazyah. "I must rest before I attempt my rebirth," Saalkan said. "Doqqu will guard my personal quarters while I meditate and gather my strength. But before I retire, allow me to keep my earlier promise." He moved toward his stasis pod and took up the cranial interface. "Consider this stasis pod as my very own Womb of Fire. It is connected to a planetary satellite network through which this facility and all nearby Consortium vessels are linked," he explained. "They will be my temporary eyes and ears until I learn to use my own on such a grand scale." He placed the interface over the crown of his head and concentrated.

Immediately the screens in the lab lit up, each one showing various sectors of space throughout the quadrants of the galaxy. The images were not static, but showed dynamic movements of stellar bodies and systems.

"It has taken a lifetime and a half," Saalkan said, "but I have finally found it: Sha Ka Ree." He set the interface down and looked deeply into Kazyah's eyes. His vibrant, seeing eyes. "Do you understand now, my son? Sha Ka Ree is not a place, but a state-of-being! Once I resolve the fifth-dimensional parallax of this planet to the origin of time and space, then I shall become eternity itself. The galaxy shall be my throne, and Veloz Prime my footstool." He placed a hand on Kazyah's face and stroked his cheek. "And all of this, I share with you."

Kaz's hand cupped over Saalkan's on his cheek, his other going to the man's face. Without a second though, he pulled the man's face closer and their lips met.

The Vulcan caught the captain's eye in his peripheral vision as she looked over her shoulder in passing into the corridor. He met her gaze with a cold squint of victory. When he finally pulled away from Kazyah, he yet stood nose to nose. "I know you have been tempted to betray me, my son, and I do not resent your doing what you have to do. I will take a weapon of mass destruction and repurpose it as a ladder to ascend the mountain of godhood. Give me 24 hours, and I will give you forever."

"Everything I do is in service of you," Kaz said, his chest rising and falling with quickened breath. "What are your orders, father?" he asked.

Saalkan removed the chain and its silver rod from around his neck. "I have more. You may have this one. It is a 'rod of Kel' from pre-enlightenment times, just like the Vorl-tak beneath our feet. Your katra is out of balance due to the many generations of interbreeding, so proficiency will not come but with long practice."

"And what is it for?" Kaz asked, his hand closing around the silver rod. He brought it close, his fingers grazing gently over the polished silver metal as his eyes danced over the Vulcan engravings that were etched into the object. "It's quite beautiful, actually."

"It is a relic of ages long past, before we squandered our birthright for Cthia and diplomacy." Saalkan's eyes smoldered at the mention of the words. "We were meant to metamorphose into luminous beings who walk upon the fiery orbs rather than fly between them on space vessels. Wondrous feats of life and death can be wrought by one of sufficient strength of mind and katra. The rod of Kel will teach you how, though it will exact a price. It will, I hope, prepare you to one day follow my path and ascend to interplanetary immortality."

Kaz's hand gripped the rod tighter as he held it against his chest, "I will study with it endlessly, father. But please, tell me your plan. What is going to occur?"

"There are beings in this galaxy who are as far above us as we are the amoeba," Saalkan said. "Starfleet has tomes of entries in its database, and were it not for that bastard Surak, we would already be among them. When our primitive ancestors harnessed the power of the Vorl-tak, they thought only of destruction. One engineer thought to use it as an impulse engine. As for myself," Saalkan drew himself up to his full height and raised his chin, "I will use it to transcend the mortal coil, using the gravitational field of this very planet to psionically uplift my consciousness to the point of origin for all matter, time, and space--Sha Ka Ree. The Vorl-tak device shall open the door to Sha Ka Ree, and then even the likes of Q will bow before me. I have allowed for a time of hibernation, and this stasis pod shall preserve my mortal form until my katra uplifts it to the transdimensional state that my consciousness shall attain."

Saalkan's eyes were miniature novas inside his head. "As you can see, the Federation, the Dominion, and every other so-called galactic power are mere dust mites in the vortex of eternity. But that shall not be my fate, nor shall it be yours. Sha Ka Ree shall be ours, body, soul, and katra."

"And what of the girls?" Kaz asked.

"I transferred Laena's pain upon the yeoman," Saalkan explained. "I did not know for certain if it would work. None of them will live to see the morning after next, so what does it matter?"

"It matters because I am trying to understand what I would need to do to follow in your footsteps, father," Kaz said, his fingers still fumbling with the rod Saalkan had given him. "How will we commune once you have passed to Sha Ka Ree?"

Saalkan patted Kazyah on the shoulder. "Do not worry, my son," Saalkan said whimsically. "At that point, there will be no escaping me."

Akiva had moved from the captain's Ready Room to the Observation Lounge. Spending too much time behind that desk only compounded the stress of the situation. The open space of the Lounge helped keep the walls from closing in. Biynah, of course, remained with him. Akiva had never though of becoming a father, especially not before taking a wife – and, truth be told, he never saw himself doing even that.

Yet Biynah was proving herself a capable assistant. She had aptly coordinated his schedule, arranged his paperwork in order of priority, and offered him quiet reassurance with every look. Akiva reminded himself to get that work study going in earnest once this was all done and over.

“What's next on my schedule?” Akiva rubbed his forehead and sighed. This day felt as though it would never end, yet he longed for it. One way or another, this ended tonight.

“There are tactical updates from the USS Endurance, intelligence reports from DS9, maintenance reports from Lieutenant Atkinson in Engineering, and medical reports from the new acting CMO in Sickbay; material requisitions accompany the latter two.” Biynah said by rote. “But first Counselor Maera wishes to speak with you.”

“Thank you, Biynah.” Akiva smiled despite his fatigue. “See her in if she's here.”

“You're welcome, Father.” Biynah returned his smile and shuffled to the door. When she opened it, Jaya stood with her hands folded in front. “Father will see you now."

Jaya grimaced for a moment. “Yes, thank you.” She put off the disconcerting awkwardness of dealing with an android with a faint shake of her head, then, armed with her best smile, marched with an eager step to Akiva's table.

Akiva made to stand, but not before Jaya had already cleared the distance. She folded her arms behind her back and swayed merrily. “Good evening, Commander,” she said with a smile.

“Good evening, Counselor.” Akiva rubbed the back of his head and grinned sheepishly. “I know I've missed a couple sessions.”

Jaya smirked and nodded in the affirmative. “Mhmm. But that's not why I'm here.”

“It's not?” Akiva was simultaneously relieved and suspicious.

“No, sir.” Jaya turned solemn, her hands folded back in front, her chin lowered in a demure bow. “Well, I suppose it should be the reason, but...” She chewed her lip. “I am conflicted.”

Akiva chuckled wryly. “I can relate to that.” He gestured to the table. “Have a seat.”

“No, thank you, I'd rather stand,” Jaya said, swaying again with her hands entangled together. “I don't intend to use up more of your time than necessary.”

“All right, then.” Akiva sighed, embracing his fatigue to block out the otherwise alluring nature of the Deltan counselor. He forced his eyes upon hers and not the rhythmic sway of her body. “What's on your mind?”

“First of all, I need to formally advise you that I've received several complaints regarding your temperament and mental state.” Jaya turned stock still. Her face was neutral, but her eyes pleaded understanding. “There is concern that you are not holding up well under the circumstances.”

Akiva nodded. “I hope you don't mind if I sit down,” he said, taking a seat. His elbows scattered the PADDs piled in front of him as he dropped his face into his hands.

“There is no official record... yet.” Jaya hesitated to state the final word. “At least, not in my log. Any such notation is purely at my discretion, and I do not feel it necessary.”

“Yet,” Akiva said. He heaved several deep breaths, then flung a PADD at the wall. “Ben-zonah!”

The outburst startled Jaya even though she had expected it. “Commander...”

“What am I supposed to do?” he asked rhetorically. “What would they rather I do? You know what? It doesn't matter.” He slammed his hands on the table and stood to his feet. “I am not a strong person. I wake up in cold sweats every night. I worry and fret over the smallest personal interaction. I cannot accept the compliments of my peers or even the attentions of a beautiful woman. What the hell was I thinking accepting a command position?”

Jaya took a breath and nodded, stalling for time to form a response. “It has been said bravery is not the absence of fear in the face of danger or adversity, but the choice to act in spite of overwhelming fear.” Ever so slowly, Jaya reached her hand upward to rest on Akiva's shoulder. “You do that every day, Akiva. You have done it today – this day of all days.”

“It's not good enough,” Akiva said, biting back a torrent of repressed frustration. “It's never good enough. I am never good enough!” He removed his combadge and set it on the table. “Please notify Commander Himmel that I am relieving myself of command effectively and that he is the new acting captain.”

“Stop it.”

Akiva balked at the blunt imperative. “I beg your pardon?”

“I said, 'stop it.'” Jaya raised herself up to her full height—all 5'4 inches—and glowered at Akiva. “If Captain Ainscow thought Commander Himmel was the right choice for her right hand, then she would have chosen him in the first place. Instead she kept him where he is best utilized, just as she did with you before all of this happened. Soren is so effective and indispensable in his role because he does not cut himself off at the knees. He might doubt his chances of success, but he does not give up on his friends. We all need you to be the man you are afraid you cannot be.” She took up his combadge and put it back on his chest.

Akiva did not resist, but neither did he concede. “But what if I fail?” He turned away from Biynah, though his heart clearly went out to her. “What if I get us or the hostages killed in this suicide mission?”

“Then we all die the hero's death,” Jaya said. “I've already tasted the thousand deaths that cowards face every day. I'd much rather die once, thank you.” The distaste of having touched Saalkan's mind made her nauseous. She backed off somewhat and lowered her tone. “I'm sure our missing people feel the same.”

“You're right,” Akiva whispered. “I'm sorry, Counselor. I... just... have wrestled with so much doubt.”

Jaya offered a merciful, knowing smile. “Humility is a wonderful trait in a leader,” she said, “but it must be tempered by courage. Do what is right not because it is a sure thing, but because you believe it is worth doing. No one can do more than that.”

Akiva nodded. “Thank you, Counselor.” He paused, then added, “I'll try to keep our next appointment.”

“You bet you will.” Jaya gave a teasing wink. “Now, with official business out of the way, I have a favor to ask.”

“Anything,” Akiva said. “Within reason, of course.”

Jaya spread her lips in a sly grin. “I wish to be assigned to the strike team.”

Akiva bit his lip, refusing to show his chagrin. “May I ask why? That hardly seems the place for you to be.”

“Say I'm a combat medic,” Jaya said with a shrug. “I can patch a flesh wound. If Storr is going into the jaws of death, then I want to be at his side.” Her tone was respectful, but her face and posture were unyielding.

“Do you really think you will be able to help?” Akiva asked in final consideration.

“Saalkan is a very powerful telepath,” Jaya said. “There is no telling what he may be able to do. I will not let that son of a bitch do to Storr what he... what I saw him do...” She trailed off and averted her eyes as they blinked back tears. When her eyes returned to Akiva, they were dry and firm. “I will do everything in my power to ensure the success of our mission.”

Akiva met her eyes with a firm stare of his own. “Very well,” he said at last. “It is likely that when the Marines find our people, they will be in dire need of your services as well. I'll approve it.”

“Thank you, sir.” Jaya bowed deeply and graciously. “I expect the major will object, so I appreciate your support.”

“Just give hell to our enemies and bring our friends home,” Akiva said. Anger bristled in his voice. It gave Jaya pause.

“Akiva, if we are too driven to accomplish both, then we may end up with neither.” Jaya assessed him with a look of pity. “Beware this path of anger you've set down, sir. I worry it may consume you.”

Akiva made to argue, but his words caught in his throat. “I will consider your advice,” he said. “Thank you.”

“You're a good man, Akiva.” Jaya smiled at him and Biynah in turn. “Biynah is a lucky girl to have such a wise father.”

Akiva warmed a bit by the compliment. Biynah stared at Jaya with an unreadable look. She nodded in agreement, but said nothing.

“I'll see you on the other side, Commander.”

Storr sat silently in the front row of the seating that faced the floor to ceiling windows, the scotch in the glass beside him barely lapping at the bottom edged of four stray remaining ice cubes. Grasping the glass, the MCO drained the last of the burning amber liquid and placed the now-empty glass on the side table. So many had perished in the mutiny that anyone in the Officer's Mess was cause for a miniature celebration...one, because of survival and two, because there was so little room for time-off between double and triple-shifts that it had to be taken quickly.

"I thought I might find you here." Jaya caressed his shoulder with a gentle touch. Soothing calm ran from her face through her fingers into her man. "May I join you?" Her voice was low and alluring.

Storr immediately relaxed and smiled, not even realizing how tense he had been before. He felt a warmth enveloping his body unlike that which had come from the glass and which, honestly, he highly preferred. Standing (because his mother raised him right), Major Garlake gestured to the seat beside him. "A pleasure, Jaya," he said with a smile. While he hadn't invited her, the relative calm before the proverbial storm had him thinking of the beautiful and graceful Ensign, to which he wasn't surprised she felt his emotional "pull". He wasn't about to spurn the company, regardless of how she came to be here with him.

Once Jaya took a seat, she pretended to sit alone for a moment. Storr didn't immediately respond, so she shot him a wink before returning to her nonchalant study of the bar. It was juvenile of her, but she had come to enjoy his flirting a little too much. And, she told herself, it was a means of inspiration. Even strong men needed a little help remembering who they are in the midst of adversity. The smug satisfaction of baiting him was only a minor incentive. Or so she liked to tell herself.

"Storr." Her head cocked to the side nearly to her shoulder. "Look at me."

The MCO grinned as he turned, their fingers intertwining. Her flirtatious behavior thus far had been absolutely ingratiating to him and he reveled in it.

"Do you love me?" She blinked seductively and grinned.

Garlake's grin expanded into a cocksure smile as he disentangled his right hand and gently cupped her cheek in it, his world swirling for a moment at their touch. Blossoming bursts of light careened over his vision before lessening to only mildly distracting pops and exploding to nearly disorienting waves and a kaleidoscope of colors as he brought their foreheads together.

"More than I ever thought possible," he replied, his eyes closed as he both reveled in and attempted to hold himself to reality from their touch.

Jaya lazily spread her lips wide into a thin smile. "Mmmm. That's what I like to hear." She reached her hand along his arm and clutched the back of his hand that rested against her cheek. "I love you too. So much that it surprises me. I first entered into this with goals that are no longer tenable to me. Now I want more. I want the same as you." Before going forward, she took his hand and held it in her lap. "That's why I'm coming with you."

Storr smiled. "Of course you will. I couldn't imagine you leaving for Delta IV after your short time here, and if you tried, it wouldn't be alone."

"I mean into battle." The smile faded from her face, yet she clutched his hand even tighter.

The veneer of Storr's warm facade fell like a curtain, his face turning to stone as Jaya's words created a sinking feeling in his stomach that refused to stop its fall into the aether. "You...what?" he asked in a harshly measured and clipped tone, sitting up and away from the counselor. Surely he had misheard. Surely...

"I'll be your combat medic," she said, her words falling out in a hurried frenzy. "You're going up against an enemy armed with more than phasers and explosives. You need me. And..." Her words slowed as she looked down for a moment. "I nearly died." When she looked up again, she peered deeply into his eyes with ardent determination. "I am not afraid to face that again, especially if I'm at your side."

The Marine wasn't sure if he wanted to scream, cry, or simply fall back into the chair that he was currently occupying in a rigidly straight manner. How could she do this? He loved her more than his own life yet here she wanted to accompany him on the away mission into...well, into an unknown hell. No, she couldn't. She wouldn't. He served to protect those things most precious to him and there was no way that he could put her in danger one moment if there was a way that he could shield her from it.

"It's done, Storr." The slackjawed expression on his face did not slow the disagreement blaring from his soul. Jaya heard every wordless protest resounding within him. "This is happening. Accept it."

Garlake tapped his commbadge. "Garlake to Commander ben-Avram," he said, waiting just long enough to know that his request went through but before the acting Captain could reply. "Commander...Akiva...sir...please, please tell me that you didn't authorize this."

"Major, I presume you're referring to the counselor's temporary reassignment to your unit." Akiva's words trailed on his clipped brogue through the comm. "Counselor Maera made a compelling case. No doubt you are hearing it now, so I will leave you to it."

Jaya resisted a cringe at the reckless disregard of decorum between the two of them. She was trained to be a peacemaker, which made the situation very uncomfortable. But her objective was dear to her heart. She would keep Storr alive, and possibly bring relief to anyone they rescued. That was worth disturbing the peace.

"Storr..." Jaya whispered and shook her head in warning. No good would come from him voicing the thoughts and notions he was forming toward the commander.

The MCO felt like a pressure cooker, emotions boiling up inside him, threatening to explode at any moment. To add to his internal turbulence, Jaya's touch was pulsating with equal unease and determination at a thing that was anathema to him. He met her gaze and tapped his combadge again, pushing down the well of passion he felt towards the situation.

"Thank you, sir. Major Garlake out."

Storr sighed and pulled away from Counselor Maera, closing his eyes and taking a long pull from the now half-empty glass before setting it down to rub his temples. "You're serious about this, aren't you? I..." he waited for half-a-moment before continuing with a sigh, already knowing her answer to the first question. "I don't even want to describe combat to you, let alone hand-to-hand, bloody melee combat. Do you know what it's like to be in a battle? In a war?

"I have healed the wounds and touched the scars it leaves behind," Jaya said. Her eyes deepened into pools of sympathetic horror at what she had shared with past patients. "I have carried the burdens of so many in my lifetime. No, I do not expect it to be an easy task, but it will not be a new one."

The Major listened to his intended and nodded ever so slightly. "I'll give you a very short run down...I've seen cowardice; I've seen heroism; I've seen fear; I've seen relief. I've seen blood and brains all over the back of a charred shuttle, and I've seen men bleed to death surrounded by their comrades. I've seen people throw up when it's all over, and I've seen the same shell-shocked look in 35-year-old experienced sergeants as in 19-year-old privates. I've heard the screams -- `Medic! Medic!' I've hauled dead civilians out of buildings, and I've looked down at my hands and seen them covered in blood after putting some poor sod in the wrong place at the wrong time into an early grave. I've seen kids with phaser burns, and I've seen kids who've tried to kill me. I've run for cover as fast as I've ever run -- I'll hear the bass percussion thump of photon mortar rounds and quantum rockets exploding as long as I live...I've heard the shrapnel from their explosions as it shredded through the cover my men have huddled under. I've stood, gasping for breath, as I helped drag into a bunker a man so pale and badly bloodied I didn't even recognize him as a Marine I've known for months. I've run across open ground to find my Marines and make sure I had everyone. I've raided houses, and shot off locks, and broken in windows. I've grabbed prisoners and guarded them. I've prayed for a man to make a move toward the wire, so I could flip my weapon off safe and put two bursts at kill in his chest. I've been wanted dead, and I've wanted to kill." Taking Jaya's hand in his, he opened his eyes and looked deeply into hers. "The Klingon ship and the base beyond are complete unknowns...I don't know if I'll be able to bring everyone back alive, let alone myself." Finally, the admission. While he wasn't scared, he understood the odds against what they faced and the reality of the situation. "How can I expose you to all this? Especially when he sought you out to try and kill you, personally? I could never live with the knowledge that something happened to you while you were with me."

Jaya let her hands be cradled in his much bigger and stronger ones. She kissed his knuckles, one at a time, listening to him pour out his heart. "I hear you, Storr." Jaya squeezed his thumbs in the palms of her small hands. "I know that my counseling experience is no substitute for time in the field and that no amount of training can mitigate the danger of what I have done." She closed her eyes, breathed deeply, and released the pain that she had packed away with deliberate repression for the last couple days. "Let me ask you this, though. In all of your battles..." she paused in order to wrestle with her next words. "Have you ever touched the heart of evil itself? I know that courage fails, and I don't mean that. You have seen death in its many forms, but have you touched its mind? Has it invaded your thoughts? Have you watched its demented incarnation deliberately and methodically subvert the free will of another person?" Jaya stared at him, eyes wide and ablaze. "I have. Medical science can grow back organs and reconstruct limbs, but I know of no cure for what I saw that... abomination... that walking plague do to Lieutenant Snowdon. I can stop him, Storr." Her words came out in brusque adamancy. "Saalkan could not overwhelm me. Do you understand? He had to render me unconscious because he could not take me like he did... her." Her next words were said to the side, as she could not look at him as she spoke them. "Against that? Head on? You would not stand a chance. I can't let him touch you. I won't!"

The sparkplug of a Marine's eyes burned brightly at her comments. He both could not deny them nor allow them to pass...She was correct and wrong; strong yet weak; protective yet vulnerable. He couldn't square her circle and it both enraged and endeared him to her on a primal level. Letting go of her hands, he took her face in his and kissed Jaya deeply and passionately, his world immediately bursting into color, heat, and sound, a profound desire of physical passion and shielding passing from his lips to hers before releasing her.

"I love you without knowing how, why, or even from where. Stay with me, we'll make it through this, together, and you'll be mine forever and always. Deal?" It wasn't the most romantic or planned proposal, but the Afrikaner bent to one knee and produced a tired red velvet ring box with a simple golden band. It was his great grand mother's wedding ring and it had passed to the eldest unwed child in the family. Opening it, he smiled at the memory of his family and turned it to the beautiful counselor. "Be the future Misses Jaya Garlake?"

Jaya shook her head back and forth for just a moment, then broke into an incandescent smile. "Yes." She nodded and wiped her eyes dry before they could shed. "A hundred times, yes."

The shaped charge detonated, violently rattling the earth beneath the away team and sending a white-hot blast of plasma and melted durasteel into the hall beyond. The dust kicked up from the pressure differential settled slowly back to the ground as the four Marines entered the darkened hallway in classic room-clearing fashion, preparing the way for the security contingent and the counselor.

Jaya suppressed a girlish smirk. As much as she admired Storr for his prowess and expertise, this was not the time to be fawning over a brawny soldier blowing a door apart. She instead kept her tricorder at the ready. "No life signs in the immediate vicinity, but I'm sure that had to get their attention."

Storr grunted an acknowledgment, the lights from the four men's headlamps tilting wildly as they continued to peer into the corners and crevices of the room. Now would not be the time for them to have made it this far to fall from simple tactical carelessness. His playful demeanor from the doorway was banished for the chiseled confidence that dominates competence.

Within the main hall, Doqqu stood assembled with his remaining security forces. Somehow, Starfleet's bilge rats had breached their walls and torn the facility asunder. Little remained now except to enforce the will of his master. Today was a good day to die, but not before he earned his place of honor in Sto'Vo'Kor. Falling in battle to one's enemies only for them to overrun your master was a double dishonor that would surely drag his soul to Gre'thor. This day, he would surely die, but he would do so on the bodies of his slain enemies.

"Here they come," Doqqu said to the dozen mercs behind the cover of pillars, utility fixtures, and blind corners leading to other modules. "The boss is working out his master plan, and what that entails doesn't matter. Today we hold the line. Our lives are no longer our own. We are already dead. We can only live by taking the lives of those who rise against us. Heghlu'meH QaQ jajvam!"

The three Klingon mercenaries at his back repeated the battle cry, but the nine others merely grunted agreement.

"Johnny, Vinar, take the right flank!" Storr yelled as they burst into the room, quickly taking in the surroundings. Storr took cover behind a large pillar on the left flank, which thankfully was next to his betrothed.

His rifle pressed hard against his chest, he risked a quick peek around the edge which resulted in ferrocrete shrapnel exploding in his face as several phaser and disruptor rounds nearly found their mark. Closing his eyes, he counted and tried to remember their locations and the intervening cover. Thirteen total, with that uppity Doqqu leading them. Breathing out and opening his eyes, he looked down at the diminutive Counselor, her features as angelic as when they began this endeavor, much unlike the disheveled appearance of the Afrikaner. As he began cracking a smile, it immediately sank when he noticed her empty hands.

"My maat, where's your weapon? Please tell me I didn't forget to ensure you were armed..."

"Our security chief wouldn't let me have one because I'm uncertified," Jaya said.

Storr's eyes closed again as he sighed and struggled to compose himself. Red was creeping into the edges of his darkened vision; it was partly his fault that she was here without a weapon. What a dom nool he was for not ensuring that Jaya had appropriate weaponry when then left the ship.

Thankfully, before his rage could begin winding its course more tightly through his heart, he felt Maera's hand on his and a cool breeze of blue and white weaved itself up his arm and around his shoulders. He puffed out the breath he didn't know he was holding.

"Don't worry," Jaya said winsomely. "I'll protect you anyway."

He smirked. "Let's fix this. Reach around to my right thigh and take my phaser. It's held in with a retention button and thumb break, just depress the first and flip the second back." As she fumbled for a moment, pressed against him to keep herself covered by the small pillar, he couldn't help but quip. "Take any more time and I'll know you're just enjoying this."

"Too bad," she whispered. "I could take all night."

As goosebumps run up and down his spine from her response, he had to purposefully re-center himself before continuing. "Remember how to use one, right? Blinky end toward the bad guy and press," he said with a wink. It's a fact that humor is one of the only ways to cut lethal tension, which is one of the reasons that marines in general (and Storr sometimes in particular) are so often accused of laughing in the face of danger, often with gallows humor. Given that they were outnumbered nearly two-to-one, with odds going to the defender, the MCO thought it was as good a time as any to deploy it.

"I can handle blinky," Jaya said.

The sheer volume of weapons fire in the room had caused the acrid buildup of ozone to sting Storr's nose fiercer than he had ever remembered. Three more mercenaries were down while Vinar was taking a knee due to a nasty looking disruptor burn to his left thigh and Lucia cradled her right arm. The Starfleet away team having only battled forward 10 feet, Storr was beginning to falter. He had used 3 of the 4 extra battery packs they had brought and he knew the others had burned through them at the same rate, while their grenades had been mostly ineffective due to the enemy's cover and respirators. Given the amount of time that they had been fighting, how many reinforcements were on their way? What was between this group and the hostages or Salkaan? How many more casualties could they take and still be a viable fighting force? The MCO did not like the answer to any of these questions and the scowl on his face proved it.

Taking a deep breath, Storr spoke from his diaphragm over his shoulder, his back to the small laboratory console. "Doqqu, I challenge you to a challenge of honor...single combat!" If he knew anything of the Klingon in the short few exchanges they had had, it was that he had an ego the size of their Sovereign-class ship and to turn down the challenge (especially in front of fellow Klingons) would be unthinkable. Or, so he hoped.

"Who are you to challenge me?" Doqqu shouted back from his cover.

"A man rescuing his comrades and stopping a maniac from attempting genocide on a scale nearly unimaginable...A man not willing to put his life in the hands of mercenaries...A man far more honorable than you!" It wasn't just an empty challenge...Storr believed it with all his being.

"You gotta be joking," said a Cardassian merc. "Shoot him and be--"

Doqqu discharged a direct blast into the merc's face.

"This is a matter of honor," he said to the dead man. When his disruptor was reading low, he swapped with the dead Cardassian and then stood up.

"I accept." Doqqu marched to the center of the main hall and raised his hand to order the other men to stand down. His order was disregarded. The mercs and marines began to exchange fire again.

"Stop it! Hold fire, you taHqeqs!" Doqqu snarled, and left his disruptor and mat'leths where they laid. He reclaimed his family's bat'leth and strode to the science module door. A crate of explosives called to him from within.

Doqqu pulled up two bandoliers of grenades and examined the Starfleet attackers, then the mercenaries. Not a shred of honor among the lot of them. He ripped the pins off one bandolier and tossed it at foe and comrade alike. The mercs had dishonored him in combat.

"Die well, you BiHunuch Qohs."

He then armed a satchel charge from within the crate, drop-kicked the entire thing closer to the center of the hall, and then lunged into a sprint for Saalkan's lab.

Despite the explosion, the Vindex fire team would not be denied. The explosion that blocked their entrance into Saalkan's lab forced them down into the detention level where they found the hostages restrained but unguarded. The reunited crew rallied together for one last push against the megalomaniac who had decimated their crew. When they blew a hole into his lab, Saalkan was unmoved.

"It matters not," Saalkan said with a smug glower. "On the scale of eternity, you are the blip of a radar screen."

Kaz immediately grabbed his phaser from his belt and held it out, pointing at the Vindex crew. His eyes met the captain's for a quick moment, hoping to glean the plan from them. But he got no new information. Improvisation it is, he thought to himself.

Garlake was breathing heavily, having had multiple adrenaline dumps over the last 10 minutes and exerting himself to the fullest at least as many times. Now Kaz was holding them at gunpoint as the megalomaniacal Vulcan glowered at them all. He wanted to rush the blind traitor, but something in the back of his head restrained him.

"Back off," Kaz ordered. "It doesn't have to be this way." He was careful not to lace too much telepathic emphasis into his words. Not with Saalkan at hand. There was no telling what that man would detect. "Stand down and everyone gets out alive."

"Enough of this twaddle." Saalkan upheld one hand with his eyes closed. The other hand was thrust inside his robes.

At the gesture, the room's atmosphere became very thick and turgid, practically unbreathable. The pressure of a thousand oceans fell heavy upon everyone's shoulders, though the sheen of a shimmering bubble surrounded Saalkan, Doqqu, and Kazyah.
The Starfleet personnel, both captives and rescuers, fell to their knees, clutching their heads.

Saalkan turned more pompous than ever. "Fools. I have never ceased to be in control. My ascendancy is written in the stars, so, you now see, your defeat was inevitable."

He walked among the crew who clutched their throats as if constricted.

"Captain Claudia Ainscow." The mad Vulcan regarded his former commanding officer with pure antipathy. "I promised that you would get everything that is coming to you. I am nothing if not a man of my word."

From the folds of his robes, he retrieved a silver rod similar to the one he had given Kazyah earlier.

"This is an artefact from ancient Vulcan. It's prohibited now, save for museums." He held it with both hands as one might hold a baby. "A sound policy, for legend holds that one of pure spirit could perform miracles, and one without conscience could work horrors."

Thrusting it toward the captain, the psionic torment he inflicted sent her writhing to the ground in agony.

"Did you think your pitiful insects could march boldly into my sanctum sanctorum and that I would simply let you leave?!" Spittle flew from Saalkan's lips. "My son, bring her to me!"

Kaz's eyes rolled back in his head as the phaser rifle dropped from his grasp, clanging to the floor. He fell to his knees as his hands pulled at the hair on the side of his head, his body bent in agonizing pain.

"Never," he said through gritted teeth as he rolled to the side in an almost-fetal position. He did the best he could do to withstand Saalkan's attack that partially diverted to him, but Kazyah's telepathic abilities paled in comparison to the deranged Vulcan's. He reached to his belt and grabbed the dagger, pulling it free.

"Fight me like a man!" Kaz screamed, swinging his arm around him, trying to cut at the telepathic hold that Saalkan had on him. But alas, there was no corporeal appendage available to slash.

His body rose into the air, his limbs unmoving as the pain arced from his chest. Slowly, he floated through the air towards where Saalkan stood.

"You have failed me again." Saalkan stretched his hand out toward Kazyah, planting his spread palm across the man's chest. "But you will submit to my will, in this life or the next."

Power erupted from the man's bodily contact, sending Kaz's limp form hurling through the air, colliding with the opposite wall. He hit the massive structure with a thud and fell to the ground in an unmoving heap.

Saalkan threw his Rod of Kel on the ground, its charge expended, and pulled his ever-cloaked hand from his robes. Within it was a slab of stone, about the size of a tricorder, embedded with ornate carvings.
"You have destroyed my Vorl-tak, but I have scoured the four quadrants to reconstruct this. Through it my will shall never be denied!"

Rather than the oppressive weight from before, instead the air lightened into a thin, wispy gust.

"My people destroyed the Stone of Gol, this blessed relic, rather than risk it falling into the wrong hands," Saalkan said. "Through it I could kill you all now, but I'd rather watch you destroy one another." His eyes rolled back once again. "Begin. Now."

Madness descended upon his foes, compelling them to turn one on another. Saalkan cackled with fiendish delight. "Yes, my pets! Destroy yourselves! Devour one another for my amusement!"

Jaya felt the onslaught of aggression sweep over her like a rainstorm. Fury pulled at the fringes of her mind, eliciting all of her secret passions and grievances from recent times back to long ago. Bloodlust began to curdle within her breast, a longing to inflict pain and suffering on anyone within reach.

No.

She was Deltan. Passion was her canvas on which weaved the tapestry of life. Rage would never be her master. She would not be taken in by this.

"Resist!" Jaya implored. "You cannot give in to wrath! Remember who you are!"

"Silence, infidel!" Saalkan seethed. "I should have killed you when I had the chance."

The temptation to indulge Saalkan in an argument crossed her mind, but Jaya forced herself to remain focused on her friends.

"He is feeding off your anger!" Jaya clenched her fists, pleading with ardent fervency to be heard over the tumult. "Remember why you're here! It's not for vengeance, but for peace! Clear your hearts and minds of hostile thoughts, and that old fool's power over you will fade!"

Holding fast to Storr, she pushed every ounce of her love into him, demanding his neurology recognize friend from foe. Breathing heavily, Storr advanced at a medium pace, despite his battered body, neither in hurry nor resting, ignoring the insanity which swirled around him. He had but one target.

Having gotten his breath under control and his strength slowly returning, Kazyah pushed himself up from the ground. "This has to end," he said towards Saalkan, quietly at first, but his voice soon came back. "This has to end!"

"Agreed," Saalkan said, as if Kazyah were still sided with him and not approaching with violent intent. He held up the Stone of Gol and began chanting in ancient Vulcan.

"You have no honor!" The Klingon unslung his bat'leth and swung it at Saalkan in one motion. The blade's edge connected with Saalkan at the wrist and severed his hand. The Stone of Gol fell to the ground and cracked.

"You damned fool!" Saalkan tucked his stubbed arm against his body, but he nonetheless disarmed Doqqu with a single hand. "Give Fek'lhr my regards." With a gnarled grasp of his remaining hand, Saalkan crushed the Klingon's throat and ripped out his windpipe.

Doqqu fell to his knees, clutching his neck while life-blood drained out of him. When he fell to one side, never to move again, his mouth was spread in a bloody, fanged smile.

With his servant dead at his feet, Saalkan heaved himself back into focus. His center was so far away from him that he struggled to maintain his composure. But he regained it. He always did. When he turned to face the crowd of antagonists who persisted in obstructing his path to ascension, he reached within the folds of his robes for his relics and artifacts.

He came up empty.

"Ben-Avram to ground team," Akiva said, his voice suddenly punching into the conflict through their combadges. "The battle group has subdued the mercenary flotilla. Saalkan is trapped like a rat. Take him down."

"With pleasure, Commander," Kaz shouted, hauling himself up the steps to where Saalkan was standing. Behind him, the rest of the crew was quickly closing the distance, all bent on taking a piece of the man who ruined them.

The poise and grace of Saalkan's movements revealed a lifetime of discipline in the Vulcan martial arts. But between his missing hand and being double-teamed by Kaz and Storr, there was little he could do. Kaz deflected his feints while Storr capitalized on his openings. The two avenging officers knocked the smug smirk off his twisted face.

"Ainscow to Vindex...lock quantum torpedoes onto this facility. Stand by for my command...." the captain ordered.

"Is that necessary, Captain?" Akiva asked.

"That's an order, Commander..." the captain said. "This lab must be destroyed. Stand by to transport."

Green blood was flung everywhere. Saalkan snarled like a beast in his decreasingly slower defensive measures.

Finally arriving, Storr nodded to Saalkan in equal wordless part of respect and despisal. He did not underestimate the Vulcan's incredible telepathic powers, but he also knew that the narcissist was overwhelmed. He also was about to be airborne.

When Saalkan landed, he began a desperate crawl toward his ascension chamber, his doorway to salvation. When he made contact with the raw power nodes, he felt new life enter him. A rush of power flowed through his limbs, through which he rocketed from the floor to an upright position that carried him to his feet. He stumbled a bit but held his balance. The Rod of Kel began to burn his hand, though Saalkan seemed unaware of it smoldering his flesh as he cauterized the stub of his other arm. "I cannot be denied," he said through gritted teeth. "Death will never hold me. I am its master!"

Storr simply stood over the man, his arms crossed over his chest, though back somewhat as the smell of burning flesh singed his nose still at distance. Saalkan was beaten, and there was no sport in kicking a man while he was down.

But Kaz felt no such compulsion. He dragged Saalkan up to his knees by his collar, stared him in the face, and then chopped his throat.

As Saalkan fell to his knees, paralyzed, he looked Kazyah in the eye. "I forgive you, my son, for doing what you must. Do not forget my gift to you. I will never forsake you. Remember." The Rod of Kel rolled from his still hand to Kazyah's feet.

With a struggle, Kaz bent to one knee and picked the instrument up. This rod was completely different from the one Saalkan had given him earlier. That one was beautiful and elegant, but this one in his hand was gnarled and sharp. He hated the man that lay in front of him, but at the same time, had to thank him for the gift.

He closed his hand around the rod, and a bright light flashed, knocking Kaz to the floor as his body was surrounded in a deep red glow. After a few moments, the shine dulled until it was gone and the Rod of Kel was nowhere to be found.

"I will not forget this," Saalkan whispered in his last throes. "None of you. I claim your lives. When the shadow of death comes to claim you, it will bear... my... f-face..." His quivering lips were stilled at last.

The site had been bombarded from orbit by the Vindex. There was no reason to believe Saalkan had survived, not when he perished in front of them all. It was just the confidence with which he spoke about death...

Jaya sat up in bed, screaming like a child in fear for her life.

His wife's shrill cry tore Storr from his slumber, reality tearing back into his mind. His heart was pounding, and his skin was covered with sweat as he rotated and wrapped his arms around Jaya. The touch brought waves of sadness, fear, terror, and loss slamming into his being, the rapid shift from dream to reality to bond, making his stomach roil and threaten to lose its contents. He breathed heavily and purposefully to both force down the queasiness and calm his bride.

"What's wrong, Love?" Garlake asked, afraid of the answer. Their shared dreamscapes rarely resulted in identical nights, but the fading images of his own dream and both their physical states made him think tonight was one of the exceptions. He waited a few moments before answering his own question. "It was Saalkan...wasn't it?"

At first, Jaya could only nod her head as she folded into the fetal position and allowed herself to be enveloped in Storr's strong arms like a protective cocoon. "Yes. Not just his face. I remembered... everything. The final confrontation. The mutiny. My... personal resistance. And even before he bided his time as a sane and kindly science officer." Normally she was a master of her emotions, but between past trauma and the turmoil of pregnancy, Deltan equanimity abandoned her for night terrors. She let out a faint whimper. Her hand slid between the intimate constriction of their embrace and set her palm against Storr's sternum. Somehow he remained strong through it all. She needed that strength to ask the question that had haunted her subconscious mind for too long. "Do you think he could have survived?"

Storr kissed the bald top of his wife's head. It was the rare time that she needed his emotional support, and the Afrikaner was more than happy to give it; it was times like these that made him happy to flex his heart rather than his biceps to solve a problem.

"No, I don't. But even if he did, what of it? Either his power is beyond us, and there's nothing we can do to stop him, or he's a broken, sad, sick man scheming in some dark corner, in which case he can be defeated again." He paused momentarily before continuing in a lower, more reverential tone. "Care not then for the morrow, for the morrow shall care for itself: the day hath enough with his own grief." He kissed her again and squeezed her gently. Saalkan would have to come through him to get anywhere near Jaya and that, in his professional and personal opinion, was not going to happen.

"Then I suppose it's best we forget him," Jaya said. "Trauma can be a form of immortality for the abuser who inflicts it. Dead or alive, I refuse to give Saalkan that satisfaction... or that legacy." She melted in Storr's squeeze. His arms were a little too tight at times, but she never complained. The emotional content was far greater than any physical discomfort.

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