CHAPTER 1 - Unfinished Business

“Welcome home Captain, Commander,” Rivas said as Fara and Harry stepped out of the Talon.
“Thank you, Commander,” Harry said, casting a quick glance to Fara who nodded and simply hurried past Rivas.
Rivas, a bit concerned, raised a brow curiously. “I trust you had a good furlough, is there a problem?”
“When isn’t there a problem?” Harry sighed. “But overall, it was fine. It was good seeing my family for a bit and just getting away from it all.”
“How is Chief Phoenix doing?”
“She’s doing as well as she can,” Harry replied. “I think she’s ready to go back. She kept obsessing over a to-do list of things she wanted to go over before we got underway with the Raptor again. It wasn’t the most endearing conversation but I pre-approved everything so she should be at least occupied.”
“What about Terri, what happened to her? I admit I haven’t been keeping up with events.” Rivas asked.
“It was a shit show, they busted her down and put her on probation,” Harry said with disgust. “She is blowing all her leave and then using her Maternity leave. Last I spoke to her because she was planning on going back to Altairia to check on Mr. Land. Eventually, she’ll be rejoining us, however, I don't know if she’ll be on the bridge since Perry’s been promoted. Has there been any news on Jack?”
Rivas shook his head. “I’m sure if there was, we would have known by now.”
“I suppose no news is good news then.” Motioning for Rivas to follow which he did walking in step with his captain.
“I know his condition has been dire, but it’s been months now.” Rivas said solemnly.
“If they didn’t think they could save him they wouldn’t be taking all this time.” Harry allowed more to reassure himself than Rivas as they exited the shuttle bay heading for a turbo-lift.
“How’s my ship?” Harry asked.
“The Raptor is space worthy once again, I’m not sure about the crew but the equipment is fine.”
“We’ll take care of that, excellent work Commander,” Harry said, stopping at the lift and hitting the call button. “She looked practically brand new when we came in.”
“Starbase Altaria did the usual top-notch work they always do.” Rivas smiled. “I’m sure you’ll want to do an inspection at some point?”
“Later.” Harry said. “When I’m ready. I’d like a day to settle before jumping right back in.”
“Understandable sir.” Rivas said as the lift opened.
“You know what, let's go over everything, come to my place for dinner tonight, you can fill Fara and me in on the details. What about 19:00?”
“That would be fine,” Rivas said, a bit intrigued. “It probably would be best if we took some time to catch up.”
“It would,” Harry said, smiling stepping in the lift. “We’ll keep it casual, bring some refreshment and we'll make a night of it. Also, extend the invitation to Major Hughes, he could have some concerns that need to be addressed.”
“Of course, sir.” Rivas said, smiling, intrigued. An informal meeting to discuss ship business was unusual for his Captain but not unwelcome.
“Excellent, Commander, I'll see you at 19:00.” With that the lift closed and Harry was whisked away to the habitation deck.
He was a bit grateful for the invitation; he was feeling a bit antsy since O'mara had left for the Sciences Conference a week ago. Having some company, any company would be preferable to muttering to himself alone in his quarters.





* * * * *


Title: Unfinished Business


Writer: Vakash Darkbane


Editor: Ashen Hugo


* * * * *


Fara had hustled to her quarters, tossed her duffle into the couch and quickly donned her uniform tying her hair back in a ponytail. After fixing her com badge to her breast she tapped it.
"Phoenix to Kurtzman!"
"Commander? I wasn't aware you were back yet."
"Never mind that you can send Ensign Boscht with a diag kit to hangar bay 15 and schedule a maintenance visit for the Talon with the dock master?"
"Of course,". Kurtzman replied over the comms. "Is there a problem with the Talon?"
"I just missed its first fucking overhaul and it decided to make our trip miserable all the way back home!". She growled. The computer kept repeating an annoying Klaxon and message every five minutes in the cockpit and then the computer completely locked out all but the most essential system functions. It had been a very annoying inconvenience, fortunately, it didn't sound the alarm in the cabin area and she and Harry found their own ways to stay occupied with the entertainment systems disabled.
"That could be a problem as they are currently assisting the U.S.S. Kareena In a refit. It might be a week or so before they get to the Talon.". Kurtzman said apologetically.
"Damnit, fine whatever, just schedule it.". She said, grabbing her engineering kit off its place on the table by her door and leaving her quarters.

* * *

The lift hummed to a stop, its doors sliding open with a soft hiss. Harry's eyes darted to the readout, a frown creasing his brow. This wasn't his destination; he was expecting the familiar glow of the habitat ring. Instead, he found himself facing Amelia, her figure silhouetted in the corridor's dim light.
An awkward silence hung in the air, broken only by the soft whirring of the lift's ventilation. Amelia stood with her arms crossed, her coveralls stained with the grime and grease of her work. Stepping into the confined space, she leaned against the opposite wall, her eyes meeting Harry's.
"You're back," she stated, her voice a mix of surprise and hesitant curiosity.
Harry grunted in response, the unexpected encounter stirring a sense of unease within him. He shifted his weight, his gaze fixed on the lift's control panel, willing it to reach his floor.
"I've gotten a position working for the Dock Master," Amelia continued, breaking the silence.
"Good," Harry replied, his tone clipped. "Do you like it?"
A flicker of enthusiasm lit up Amelia's eyes. "Yes," she said, her voice gaining a newfound warmth. "I love working with machines. My days just fly by." She paused, a sheepish grin spreading across her face. "I'm keeping my nose clean at least, metaphorically," she added with a wink, attempting to wipe a smudge off her nose with the back of her oil-stained hand.
Harry's impassive expression softened into a small smile. "How long have you been at it?"
"About as long as you've been gone," Amelia replied, her voice laced with a hint of wistfulness.
"Who is your supervisor?" Harry inquired, his curiosity piqued.
"Commander Torek," Amelia answered.
Harry raised a brow, a thoughtful expression crossing his face. The lift chimed, signaling their arrival at his deck. "Indeed," he mused. "Ask him to send me an assessment of your performance."
Amelia's eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"
"Yes," Harry nodded, his tone firm yet encouraging. "I'd like to be kept informed on your progress." He stepped out of the lift, turning to face Amelia. "I'll see you around. Have a good night."
"Thank you!" Amelia exclaimed, her voice filled with gratitude.
The lift doors closed, leaving Harry alone in the corridor. As he walked towards his quarters, he couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction. It was good to see Amelia taking steps towards a better life. He made a mental note to follow up with Commander Torek, a small gesture that could make a significant difference in Amelia's future.
Harry continued forward, glad to be out of that situation. He appreciated the fact that she seemed to be oblivious to how he felt and wasn't rooting around in his head. It was an unexpected but inevitable encounter. He had offered to help her and she was obviously holding him to it. He'd even extended that offer in front of Jayna and although she was no longer around to remind him of that, it didn't diminish the weight of the obligation he now felt.
That moment seemed so far away now, but it didn't help the unease he felt around Amelia knowing what she was capable of. However, she had done as asked, perhaps she wasn't lying about not remembering anything about her time as a pirate. More importantly, he reminded himself, what did she find buried in his mind that changed her?


* * *


Ensign Boscht's playful chiding echoed through the hangar bay as Fara strode in, "Couldn't wait to put me back to work, huh?"
Fara, ever focused, retorted with a hint of amusement, "Special Priority assignment, straight from the Captain. This bird needs its first refit." She paused, keying open the Talon's gangway, then added with a touch of warmth, "But hey, we can catch up over drinks later. Can't stay out too late though, I've got a prior commitment."
Boscht's face lit up, "Drinks? Always a good idea. So, what's this commitment?"
"Officer stuff," Fara explained, tapping the Talon's hull rhythmically. "The Captain wants a get-together with Commander Rivas, catch up on things. Probably be dull as dishwater, but hey, free dinner."
Curiosity piqued, Boscht inquired, "How was your time off, by the way?"
Fara's expression softened, "Quiet, relaxing... there was a beach. Probably overdid it on the drinks, though."
A wave of empathy washed over Boscht, "Can't blame you for that, given everything..."
“Have you been on the ship yet?”
“No.”
“You should come see it.”
“Why?”
“Well you are going to have to do it eventually.”
“Eventually, isn't now.” Fara huffed.
Boscht, ducking slightly to enter the Talon's bay, asked, "So, where do we start with this refit?"
Fara turned to answer her and she had to stifle a laugh at how much of the bay Claudia seemed to occupy.
"You forgot this might be a little cramped for me didn't you?". Claudia said laughing.
"Yeah, I did. I'm sorry.". Fara giggled. "I just wanted to catch up. I forgot you were so tall."
"Well I can squeeze into a maintenance tube. I think I can make this work, I just need to remember to duck. So what's the plan."
"We need to pull the flight data recorder, then dump the computer core.". Fara said. "It shouldn't take too much time."
Fara said entering the causeway that led up to the cockpit and passenger cabins. They climbed up the ladder and paused in the upper room. "I'll get the recorder.". Boscht suggested. "I don't get on with computers that great."
"Sure it'll be easier because I have the command codes. I'll get the data dump started and I'll join you in the back.". Fara said, turning and disappearing through the cockpit door.
Claudia watched her go, she seemed better, she just wondered what had transpired in the months since they last spoke to turn her around. She shrugged and sucked her head as she stepped into the back quarters of the ship.
It didn't take her long to find the flight recorder and in a matter of a few minutes she already had it extracted from its storage trunk and in its carry case. She locked the trunk and placed a seal on it. The task had been fairly easy and as she stood up her stomach growled embarrassingly loud. She immediately regretted skipping breakfast this morning, having been doing a diagnostic on the Raptor's inertial dampening system before Fara had requested she come to do this. She’d hoped to have grabbed a snack after completing her prior task. The computer hadn’t announced a shutdown yet so she made her way towards the passenger cabin.
Cabarrans have a few interesting things about them, one despite having the occasional individual of above average height such as Claudia herself. Other members of their ursine race had Red or Orange irised eyes, they had one other unique trait about them. Lastly, they all still possessed a rather highly developed sense of smell. How they managed to maintain this trait is a mystery even into the technological age with their species' survival not relying on this trait is a mystery, nonetheless it persists.
This was only relevant as Claudia's snout started picking up on some scents in the cabin the longer she was there to the point she couldn't even ignore them anymore even as the smell of the sandwich filled the small bunk-lined room. One was definitely Fara's, the other was less familiar and there was something else…..
Fara jumped as she heard Claudia's uproarious laughter from the cabin behind her. Claudia entered practically in tears laughing hysterically, nearly hitting her head on the top of the archway. She had what appeared to be a sandwich still unwrapped in her hand.
"Are you okay?". Fara asked, confused as to what the Cabarran had found so hilarious.
"I need some air." She howled still laughing.
"What's so funny?" Fara asked, glancing at the readout for the data dump showing it was 30% complete.
"You!". Claudia gasped trying to catch her breath and still giggling.
"What are you talking about? I didn't do anything!" Fara said, still confused.
"No no but what you did back there with the Captain is!!!!l" Claudia said, busting out laughing.
Fara immediately became indignant, her ears folded back and she snarled. "What the, how dare you!"
"Look, honey.". Claudia said, trying to regain her composure and tapping her snout with her finger. "This thing doesn't lie, I can smell what went on back there. You didn't know that we Cabarans have super sniffers?"
Fara's indignance quickly dissolved into embarrassment. "No!! I didn't!!" Fara spat.
"Well we do!". Claudia said finally getting a hold of herself. "I'm just surprised. Are you sure you want to get involved with someone so soon?"
Fara stood aghast, confused, and embarrassed.
"Look." Claudia said standing up, walking over to face her, and gently grabbing her by her shoulders. "We're Pals right? I'm worried about you I don't want you getting hurt is all "
Fara sighed. "Look, Harry and I had a thing long before you or Nikolai came along. It was an accident, but we didn't regret it either."
"Your secrets are safe with me, swear on my life.". Claudia said.
"Thanks.". Fara said, continuing. "After that, there was always this "tension" between us. Then I met Nikolai and he swept me off my feet. Things were great, but then he went off and disappeared on some damn mission and we lost contact for several months. I thought, perhaps, he'd lost interest in me and I hated him for it. Then I started to think about Harry again and Nikolai came back into my life but we all know how that ended." Fara sighed.
Claudia released Fara as she walked over to the operations station and sat down listening intently. Claudia leaned on the science station. "That's pretty tough."
“Yeah, well we're both miserable and single so I figured, why not.". Fara shrugged.
"Well, I guess you know what you're doing then.". Claudia shrugged.
"That's not reassuring."
"I just don't want you getting hurt." Claudia said.
"Thanks. I don't think I will." Fara said, glancing at the read-out again. "I guess it's not so bad someone knows about it, at least I have someone to talk to now."
"Yeah, you definitely will. I'm sure once we get out in space again it's going to be real fun keeping the relationship apart from work. If you thought you butted heads before, you haven't seen anything yet."
"Probably, but we'll work on it.". Fara said.
"So, dinner later, huh?". Paula chuckled. "I need to find me a guy who cooks"
“Most of them would be afraid you'd eat them.” Fara said teasingly.
"I might." Claudia grinned wickedly. "Is he at least a decent cook?"
"He's a pretty good cook.". Fara allowed. "I was serious about the boring part with Rivas though."
"DATA UPLOAD COMPLETE.". The computer interjected. "SYSTEM SHUTDOWN IN T MINUS 3 MINUTES."
“Time to go, I hope you had that Flight Recorder pulled.” Fara said trying to move things along.
“Of course I did. It’s in the cabin.” Claudia responded.
“Good go grab it, let's get out of here.”


A few moments later they were outside of the Talon and Claudia was using the seal tape to mark the Talon as being shut down for its refit. Once done she put the tape back in her engineer's kit and then hefted the flight recorder off the floor. “Let’s drop this off and get those beers?”
“Sounds like a plan,” Fara said smiling.





* * *


U.S.S. Raptor



Knackt entered engineering dressed in civilian garb and walked around idly looking at everything. He was already in a foul mood because the Marine guards at the airlock had given him a fair amount of guff just getting on board. He missed the ship, she’d been gone for a while and he wanted to get a feel for her before he got back on duty again.
Kurtzman was standing near the core which was in standby mode talking to Remmick and Rydel who were on the opposite upper stations doing some sort of calibration on the ship's systems.
“Ey, Kurtz, what’s goin’ on?” Knackt asked.
Kurtzman turned to him. “Oh Knackt, are you planning on joining us again anytime soon?”
“Soon as my leave runs out in a few days.” Knackt replied. “Everything is in good shape.”
“Everything is excellent,” Kurtzman said. “Since you took your leave after your little knock-out drag-out verbal confrontation with Ensign Boscht, we’ve been getting along just fine.”
“Yeah and how much stuff did she break?”
“None.”
“Phhft. Well, she got lucky then.”
“The only one here that’s going to be lucky is you to keep your job,” Remmick said, leaning on the railing above them and grinning mirthfully. “Ensign Boscht jumped right in and picked up all the slack after your little temper tantrum.”
“Ya and you better shut your mouth chopper face before I remove those teeth for ya.” Knackt snapped at the Catarian.
“Kai!” Jenna hissed at him from the opposite platform. “Why don’t you pay attention to your station and let's get this finished instead of antagonizing him!”
“Anyways,” Kurtzman said, glad he didn’t have to step in for once. “I thought maybe you’d be thrilled all you do is complain about having to do the really dirty jobs now you have the help!”
“How does she even fit in the damn tubes!” Knackt protested. “You’re telling me she got in and recalibrated the main energizers?”
“Yup.” Kurtzman shrugged.
“How!!”
“I don’t know, maybe she’s a contortionist but she slipped in there easier than you did.” Kurtzman said, looking up from his data pad. “Mr. Remmick, could you please reset Coprocessor 9005? It seems to be on the fritz again.”
“You got it,” Kai replied. “The Raptor is not taking to some of it’s new upgrades as well as we’d hoped.”
“Yeah well what else is new, where’s the boss lady?”
“She’s on station and she’ll be on duty tomorrow.”
“Have you seen her?”
“No, she asked me to schedule the Talon’s refit with the dockmaster,” Kurtzman said, walking over to the master systems display. “She sounded normal but I can’t tell.”
“Well, if she’s gonna be here I’ll be here, just in case.”
“That would be most appreciated,” Kurtzman said with some relief. “Now If you don’t mind I need to finish this up, and you should probably clear out if you’re not on duty.”
“Yeah, Yeah. I’ll be going.” Knackt said. “See ya tomorrow.”
As he left through the main doors to engineering and slowly made his way to the gangway he heard someone rushing up to approach him. It was a brown-furred cornerian wolf wearing a green uniform. He recognized him as the Marine Commander Major Hughes.
“Mr. Algrim!” He said coming to a stop. “I understand there was some trouble with boarding today?”
“Yeah your boys weren’t letting me on, they gave me a run around on the clearances.” Knackt huffed.
“They’re new.” Hughes shrugged. “They 're only doing their jobs, we just can’t let everyone on the ship just because they claim they work here without some sort of vetting.”
“Look buddy I've been on this bucket for damn near three years, I shouldn’t have to go through a lot of bullshit to get on or off it.” Knackt hissed.
“Well, unfortunately, you do. You are a civilian crewmember so you do need to have your credentials ready when you come on board during a non-alert crisis. Or at least be in uniform. There could be unfortunate circumstances if you don’t follow procedure.”
“Like what?”
“Well, they are authorized to use full stun if you don’t comply, if I hadn’t been on duty you’d be waking up right now, not very happy. Just thought you might want to know that.” Hughes smirked. “I thought you might want to be spared the after-effects of being hit by a full stun.”
“Sheesh, fine whatever,” Knackt said, waving him off. “I’ll do what ya want.”
“Excellent. Just remember to follow procedures is all. Have a good afternoon.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Knackt said, turning to leave.


* * *


Doctor Okan arrived back at the station and saw Jakar waiting for him at the gate.
“You’re back,” Jakar said. “So how did it go?”
“Better than you thought,” Okan said. “I even met someone.”
“Really?” Jakar said with a barely masked astonishment.
“Yes, really,” Okan said, annoyed.
“Well, good for you.” Jakar said jovially, slapping him on the back nearly knocking him over. “About damn time.”
“I can agree with that sentiment but I really don’t want to share the details with you.” Okan said annoyed trying to re-shift the weight on his duffel.
“I don’t expect you to.” Jakar replied. “I’m just glad you seem in better spirits.”
“I am and thank you.” Okan relented. “It wasn’t all relaxation I managed to find something to keep me busy but the challenge was worth it.”
“Can’t wait to hear all about it.” Jakar said.
“Did I miss much?”
“Not really, the station's been pretty quiet. The Falcon’s been keeping the peace in the quadrant. I've been busy doing security checks for that big project coming down the pipe. Thankfully we’re almost done with them. Mostly we’re getting the Raptor ready to get back out there again.”
“I’m sure you just can’t wait.”
“I can’t.” Jakar smirked.
Okan approached a turbo lift. "Well it's good seeing you again but I really want to get settled, if you don't mind."
“Nah, you take care." Jakar said. "We'll have plenty of time to get caught up.". Jakar said, stepping away and disappearing back into the throngs of people moving through the promenade deck.
The lift soon arrived and in a matter of a few minutes, he was back in his quarters. He had a promise to keep and he connected to Krysta's terminal. Surprisingly she answered.
"I was starting to wonder." she mused with more relief than scorn.
"Sorry Krysta, our departure got a bit delayed due to an ion storm. I made it home in one piece."
"I'm glad.". She said smiling. "I've been missing you since you left."
"I miss you too, I'll admit home feels rather empty."
"Tell me about it.". Krysta sighed but then smiled. "But I'll try to get out as soon as I can I have a few things I need to take care of before I do."
"I know Krysta."
They continued chatting well into the evening hours.


* * *

"Why do you smell like beer?". Harry asked as Fara stepped into his quarters and she pecked him on the cheek. "We were having dinner with Commander Rivas and Major Hughes, remember?"
"Relax Harry, I only had a few.". Fara hiccuped.
He looked her over, she at least bothered to dress casually. She was wearing a red ruffled blouse, black slacks, and black round-toed slip-on shoes. Her hair was down and combed out, but she was off duty. She reeked of hops though.
"A few?"
"A. Few." She said mimicking his tone and sticking her tongue out at him.
"I just hope you get it out of your system before we get back on duty.". Harry sighed.
"I'll be fine!" Fara said hopping onto his couch and finding the vidscreen controller and flipping through the channels. "You worry too much "
"You look nice.". Harry said realizing that the discussion thread had run its course
"Pfft I didn't even try too hard but thanks."
Harry walked back to his kitchenette and checked on the meal.
"What are we having?". Fara said, leaning back on the couch to look at him. "It smells good, it smells like real meat."
"Steaks from Corneria and a vegetable mix .". Harry replied.
"Can you make mine medium, I don't like blood in my food". Fara asked.
"Really? Yeah sure. I haven't started them just yet. I don't know what Rivas likes."
"I can find out.". Fara said conspiratorially.
"How?"
"I have my ways, toss me that datapad on the counter."
Harry did so and went back to preparing the meal.
Fara typed on the datapad and sent a priority message to O'mara. A few minutes passed and she finally got a response. Fara knew she was at some conference but she also knew Michelle didn't go anywhere without a datapad.
How does Don like his meat cooked?


What?! Why are you asking me!! I'm in a conference!!


Because the Captain and I are having an informal meeting about ship business it's your boyfriend and Harry wants to know.


You didn't tell him, did you?!


No! I just said I had a way to find out!


Fara this is really weird are you ok? I haven't heard from you in months and you just message me out of the blue with a random question!


I'm fine.


That really doesn't make me worry less!


I'm fine damn it will you just answer the question!?!


Fara suddenly felt as if O'mara was suddenly in the room with her, she felt the fur on the back of her neck stand on end and she shuddered with unease. She looked around the quarters warily only to get a concerned look from Harry whom she waved off. Then however as suddenly as it had come the feeling was gone. The datapad beeped.

He likes medium rare despite how many times I've told him it's not good for him.

Thank you.

"Medium rare.". Fara said, breaking the quiet.
"Ok thanks, you'll have to tell me who your spy is." Harry chuckled.
"Not a chance I'm wiping the transmission now.". Fara said, punching in the commands.
She hit the final authorization and one last message popped up before the screen cleared.

Don't have too much fun later tonight ;).


The screen flashed. "Transmission Deleted." And returned to a blank field.


Maybe she'd imagined that last part?


She snapped out her thoughts as she heard the motors of the shutters over the viewports of Harry's quarters.
"What are you doing?". Fara asked.
"Getting a better look at our ship". He said smiling. "You didn't even look when we came in, you can't avoid her forever."
“I really don’t want to.”
Harry stepped down into the pit in front of her and held out his hand. “Come on.”
Fara sneered and sighed and reluctantly took his hand and he helped her to her feet. They walked over to the window as the shutters finished opening and Harry put his hand around her reassuringly.
The Raptor sat in its bay practically shining as spotlights washed over it’s newly finished hull. A new ablative armor coat had been applied and the Raptor’s old gun metal grey had been replaced by an Aztek pattern of white and light grey to resemble the other Predator class ships a bit more The nacelles had been changed out, they didn’t fit exactly with the contours of the ship, and resembled the production models. Physically it was still the same old Raptor from what she could tell, for the most part.
“I don’t like the color.” Fara sneered.
“Shush,” Harry said. “She looks great.”
“Yeah, I suppose she does.” Fara sighed leaning her head on his shoulder.
“And she’s all ours.”
“She’s mine.”
“Ours,” Harry said, correcting her gently.
“You keep telling yourself that skipper,” Fara said, nipping at his ear beneath his spines. “I suppose I can get used to it.”
“Are you ready to go back?”
“I suppose so.” Fara sighed. “It won’t get any better if we keep running from it.”
Harry gave her a reassuring squeeze and she smiled at him. “And here I thought I was the one who’d have to say something reassuring.” He chuckled. “You know if you need anything my door is always open for you.”
“It’d better be,” Fara smirked hearing a timer go off. “You might want to see to that.”
“Yeah, the vegetables are almost done and I need to start the entree,” Harry said, stepping away and glancing at the time.
Fara turned to look back out at the docking bay. Something else caught her attention, there were a lot of Cornerian Vessels coming into the station today. That was a bit unusual, Starbase 186 was a bit off the beaten path for most ships from her home system. Among them, one a modified Cornerian Assault Carrier with red wing struts, gunmetal grey hull with red highlights and showing years of wear slowly drifted into the lower docking ring. It had some sort of logo on it that looked familiar, something about that logo stirred a great sense of unease about her.
“You know, if you wouldn’t mind, could you set the table?” Harry said, interrupting her thoughts.
Fara was snapped back to her senses, she glanced back through the viewport and the vessel had already disappeared from view.
“Are you doing ok?” Harry asked. “You blanked there for a moment.”
“I can set one hell of a table, for some reason I can remember little bits and pieces of my noble heritage.” Fara scoffed, walking up to the replicator and pulling up some set pieces.
“Then I stand to be impressed,” Harry said, tossing the steaks into the pan and the sound and scent of them searing filled the quarters.
“Don’t be smart, Harry.” Fara chuckled.
"Guess who cornered me in the turbolift when we got back.". Harry said as he prepared the steaks.
"Who." Fara said, replicating a tablecloth.
"Amelia, the pirate I told you about."
Fara frowned. "The one who messed with your brain?"
"Yeah."
Fara whistled. "How'd that go?"
"She's been working for the Dockmaster and keeping herself busy. She felt it necessary to tell me herself."
"Well we did leave her here and nothing seems amiss.". Fara said. "If she was going to be a problem I think we'd know by now."
"Jayna had a similar sentiment." Harry said.
"Well, she was a sharp one, I'll give her that.". Fara said. "You trusted her right?"
Harry nodded
"Then we probably don't have anything to worry about then.". Fara shrugged.
"What really bothers me is what she saw in there that changed her. " Harry said, tapping his head.
"Well, maybe you need to figure that out with her if you are so damned worried about it.". Fara suggested finishing setting the plates, admiring what she’d done. It felt strange to her how quickly they’d fallen into a domestic pattern over the last few months. It was strangely comforting albeit a bit weird.
"That doesn't help me feel any better." Harry sighed.
"Look, I can fix your ship, I’m working on your heart.” She said walking into the kitchenette and hugging him from behind. “ but I can't fix all of your problems Harry. I've got plenty of my own.” Fara kissed him on the cheek.” Talk to her about it. What's the worst that could happen?"
“I’ll think about it.” Harry sighed. “This is nice and all but I am trying to cook here.”
Fara clutched herself to him tighter. “Deal with it.”

* * *


Rivas, clutching a bottle of his cherished Fortuna Noir, made his way to Harry's quarters.. As he approached, he noticed Major Hughes was already present, his eyes briefly flicking towards the wall chronometer as if measuring the passage of time itself.
"Commander," Hughes greeted, a polite smile gracing his features.
"Major," Rivas replied, returning the gesture. "Apologies for the short notice. I trust you have a few matters to discuss?"
Hughes chuckled lightly, "Indeed, but nothing too pressing. And what is that you have there?" His gaze fell upon the bottle in Rivas' hand.
"A thirty-year-old bottle of Fortuna Noir," Rivas answered, a hint of pride in his voice.
"Ah, that will certainly make for a relaxed evening," Hughes remarked, his smile widening.
Rivas' expression softened, "You've never been in close quarters with Commander Phoenix when she's... not quite herself, have you?"
Hughes' eyebrows rose slightly, "I haven't had the pleasure, but the stories are legendary." He paused, then added with a touch of amusement, "Shall I ring the chime, or would you prefer to do the honors?"
"Be my guest," Rivas said, stepping aside.
As Hughes reached for the chime, Rivas found himself reflecting on his social interactions aboard the Raptor. With O'mara's departure, a sense of isolation had crept into his life. Despite his role as a liaison between Harry and the crew, his close circle was limited to Fara, Harry, Terri, and perhaps Jakar. He had made a conscious effort to be more approachable and friendly with the rest of the crew, but outside of professional courtesy, he had no one else to share his free time with, except for Michelle. His relationship with Michelle, however, was a different matter altogether.
Maybe it was time to rectify that.
The door to Harry’s quarters slid open. “Don, Major, excellent timing,” Harry said. “We just got everything set out. I hope you brought your appetite.”
“I did and I brought something I hope you’ll enjoy.” Rivas said, handing him a bottle.
“Oh a Fortuna Noir, I’m impressed,” Harry said looking at it. “Well, it’ll help keep the atmosphere relaxed.”
“I unfortunately didn’t bring anything.” Hughes said. “I wasn’t aware I needed to.”
“Nonsense Major, you're my guest.” Harry said. “You are as much a part of my crew as anyone else and you should be included.”
“I figured since we had a lot to discuss it’d be worth it to break out some good stuff for the occasion.” Rivas said.
“Indeed.” Harry said with an appreciative nod and going to get a cork.
Fara finally approached and looked at the bottle curiously. “What’s that?”
“I’m surprised you don’t know.” Harry chuckled.
Fara glared at him.
“It’s Fortuna Noir, it’s really good, I used to drink it with Nora when we were in the academy,” Harry said, smiling bittersweetly. “Even back then it was really hard to get a bottle of this.”
“How’d she get a hold of it then?”. Rivas asked.
“She had her ways.”. Harry said remembering “I never bothered to press her for details anyways this is perfect, everyone have a seat!” Harry said motioning to the table.
Rivas, Hughes and Fara took their seats.
“How are you holding up?”. Rivas asked Fara.
“I am still here, I guess that's something.”. Fara shrugged.
Rivas nodded. He could tell she seemed better but the lines under her eyes and on her face showed she was still grieving, he noticed the same on Harry but it wasn't as severe. Harry was way better at internalizing his feelings than most.
Harry popped the cork on the bottle and brought some glasses to the table. “If you will do the honors.”. He said to Rivas.
“Sure.”. Rivas said, pouring a glass for Fara, Hughes then Harry then finally himself.
“So are you ready to get back to the grind?” Rivas asked Fara.
“I think so.” She said without hesitation, taking a drink of the wine. “All things considered. Wow, this is really good.”
“Glad you like it, I would have thought Terri might have introduced you to it by now.” Rivas chuckled.
“Nah I usually stuck to beer or whatever mind-melting concoction she'd have me try when we used to go out.”. Fara chuckled.
“I may as well break it to you now, star base Altair did a lot of work in the ship, they even did some internal aesthetic changes. I did protest on your behalf but it is a new fleet mandate.”
Fara scowled and then downed her drink. In one gulp. “More please.”. She said motioning with her glass as Harry arrived with the entree. Rivas obliged her but didn’t give her nearly as much. “I have to make it last, don't get greedy besides downing it like that is going to catch up to you fast.”
Harry finished setting the food out and then snatched Fara's glass from her.
“Take it easy, will you.”. He said scoldingly, setting the glass over by his plate. “Drink some water, you can have this back when you’ve had a few bites.”
“Ugh fine.” Fara said indignantly.
Rivas was a bit concerned. “You might want to curb that a little, I'd better not catch you intoxicated on duty.”
“You need to mind your own business.” Fara hissed at him scowling. “I can mind myself just fine.”
“Ah of course, just like that time you assaulted a patron at Hanger 97 followed by the time you got carted out of the holodeck and hauled to sickbay shortly after.”
Fara’s indignance melted into horror and Rivas saw her skin pale beneath her fur.
Hughes raised a brow in amusement, he hadn’t heard that story yet.
“I think I have every right to be concerned as your commanding officer and your friend.”. Rivas said coolly. “You thought I didn't know?”
Harry cleared his throat and sat down interrupting the conversation. “We both knew,” Harry said to Fara.
She quietly nodded, seeming slightly less embarrassed. “However, Don, I've been making sure she conducts herself. She can come to me if she has any problems. We had a lot of time to work out our differences on our little hiatus.”
“That's good to know.” Rivas said. “Sorry, I am just concerned.” Rivas said.
“Yeah well, point taken.” Fara said, taking a drink from her water glass. “Despite everything I'm a lot tougher than I was back then. So you both knew about all that?”
“Bad news travels upward.”. Harry said. “However you showed improvement from those incidents and it didn't seem prudent to rub your nose in it after the fact.”
“Unless we saw something concerning.”. Rivas finished for Harry.
“Indeed.”
“I thought we were supposed to be discussing the ship not airing out my dirty laundry,gentlemen.” Fara said, stabbing at her steak, her fork plinking against the plate.
“Of course.” Harry said.”You said there had been some changes?”
“Yes.” Rivas said, fishing a datapad out of his pocket. “They added some upgrades. The core was swapped to a newer Mark 20 version. It's apparently a lot more efficient and will suit our power needs a lot better than the old 18.”
“Seriously?!” Fara groaned. “I just got the old one doing really good, now I have to play catch up and learn this new one.”
“Sorry, again fleet mandates.”. Rivas shrugged. “There's even word we might get another enhancement after that as well. Apparently there is some Kistoran hot shot engineer making waves among Fleet Command and telling us that our drives are sub par.”
“Really?”. Harry chuckled. “Well we never had a chance to examine the one Kistorian ship we had on board.”
“We didn't really have enough time to do so.”. Fara muttered. “I've been going over the scans we did have, it was some pretty ingenious engineering, I just haven't had time to play with what we did learn.”
“Mr. Kurtzman has been on top of it Fara I'm sure he'll be glad to help you catch up. He's done his usual fantastic job of filling in for you.”
“He always does “. Fara said. “Have any of you considered promoting him?”
“We could.”. Harry said. “That would require you to be on the bridge more and step back from a lot of the more direct work.”
“Maybe I want to be on the bridge more.”. Fara said, taking a bite of her steak.
Rivas cleared his throat. “You realize it would be his show down there from that point forward. He’d still answer to you, it's just, you'd have to step back.”
“That's fine.”. Fara said. “That would free me up to work on my own tweaks and projects. Besides, your voice is really annoying over the com channel Harry.”
Rivas nearly spit out his wine and tried to stifle a laugh only resulting in swallowing most of it and a portion making him cough. Hughes’ face was a mask of placidity.
“Annoying?” Harry said, raising a brow.
“Very. Besides I'd be happier on the bridge making sure you two yahoos don't make any decisions to trash my ship without me having a say.”
Harry pressed on. “Very well if you think he's deserving we’ll do our part and see it goes through.”
“Thanks, I think he’ll be happier,” Fara smiled. “I’ll be happier.”
“I never thought you'd ever step back.” Rivas said, smiling at Fara.
“Me neither but Harry convinced me maybe it would be time to do so during one of our many talks on Termia.” Fara replied quickly, getting another bite and swallowing. “I mean I don’t see you two working yourselves to death. Maybe I need to just let my people take care of things and trust they can do their jobs.”
“Then it’s settled then, if we can, can I get some input from the Major. I'm sure he has some things he’d like to discuss.” Harry said diplomatically.
“Of course.” Rivas said with a nod. “I am sorry that it took a while to get through.”
“You all have served together for some time.” Hughes shrugged. “I’m the new guy I didn’t expect not to be the third wheel.”
“Well I want to rectify that.” Harry said. “The floor is all yours Major.”
"There's an issue I'm not sure you've caught up on while you were away," Hughes began, his tone measured and serious. "Starfleet's been on edge since the Borg attack, and there have been some significant changes in protocol."
Harry looked up from his meal, his expression curious. "Like what? " he asked, a hint of apprehension in his voice.
Hughes continued, "More ships, especially the larger ones, have been assigned a unit of Marines. There have also been some changes to landing party procedures."
"Such as?" Harry prompted, his brow furrowing.
"For one, any away team must have at least two Marines with them at all times," Hughes explained.
Harry's expression turned to disbelief. "You can't be serious," he scoffed.
"I'm very serious," Hughes confirmed, his voice firm. "It's in the new regulations. I thought it would be prudent to bring it up with you in a less tense environment before we go back out into the field."
Harry scowled, his disapproval evident. He didn't like this at all. He envisioned the implications – what kind of image would this project for the Confederation when they encountered new species or new civilizations? Having two heavily armed figures lurking in the background wouldn't exactly leave a good first impression. He glanced at Rivas, who also seemed to disapprove of the decision, his face etched with concern.
"So that's what we've come to," Harry muttered, stabbing at his food with his fork, his appetite suddenly diminished. "A show of force instead of diplomacy."
"Sir?" Hughes questioned, sensing Harry's displeasure.
"I understand the need for security, Hughes," Harry began, his voice laced with frustration, "but this feels like a step backward. We're explorers, diplomats... not a military force."
Hughes nodded, acknowledging Harry's concerns. "I understand your reservations, sir. But Starfleet Command believes this is a necessary precaution given the current climate."
Harry sighed, recognizing the futility of arguing against the new regulations. He knew that the Borg attack had shaken Starfleet to its core, and that fear had led to these changes. But he couldn't help but feel that they were sending the wrong message to the galaxy.
"The current situation demands a more robust response," Hughes explained, his voice firm. "The Urthean threat, the Prell situation, the Lylat political unrest... Starfleet believes a stronger, more proactive stance is necessary."
Harry, met Hughes' gaze with a cool skepticism. "That's a dangerous path, Major," he cautioned. "A slippery slope."
Hughes' tone remained unwavering. "I understand your concerns, Captain. But Command believes that the safety of individuals like yourselves," he gestured towards Harry and the others, "justifies the means. Some of us have to get our hands dirty."
Harry's eyes swept across the room, taking in the faces of his companions. Don Rivas his first officer, and Fara, the Raptor's Chief Engineer. He was the only non-Cornerian present, and he felt a pang of isolation. "Don, what's your take?"
Rivas shrugged. "Can't say I'm surprised. There have been times on away missions where a bit more firepower would've been welcome."
Harry suppressed a flash of irritation. He had expected that response from Rivas, the ever-practical soldier.
"Fara?" Harry prompted, turning to the ship's engineer.
"What?" Fara replied, her tone distracted.
"Your thoughts on the matter?"
"I only leave the ship if you need something fixed. I'm not opposed to it. Besides, you wouldn't drag me off the Raptor anyway for anything else. I'm the only one who truly understands her." Fara said indifferently.
Harry released a sigh, a mixture of resignation and frustration. "I suppose I'll have to adjust," he conceded, though his tone betrayed his reluctance. The new initiative was coming, whether he liked it or not. It was a change, a shift in Starfleet's approach, and Harry couldn't help but feel a sense of unease about the potential consequences.
The way forward was getting narrower and darker and he didn’t like where it was leading, there was still light somewhere down the end of that path but it was growing slowly more distant.
An unease settled over them as they ate and an uncomfortable silence had fallen on the room. The only sound, the clinking of silverware against plates. Hughes broke the silence, his voice measured and calm.
"Captain," he began, "it's your ship, and as a member of your command staff, I can only advise. Ultimately, the decision rests with you. I trust your choices will prioritize the safety and well-being of yourself and your crew."
Harry looked up, his scowl softening slightly. "Thank you, Major," he replied, his voice gruff but appreciative.
Hughes nodded in acknowledgement, a small smile playing on his lips. He raised his glass towards Harry in a gesture of respect. "Excellent meal, Captain," he remarked, his tone light and casual. "My compliments to the chef!"
The unexpected compliment brought a flicker of amusement to Harry's face, and Fara couldn't help but smile at the subtle shift in his mood.
"During my furlough," Harry explained, a hint of pride in his voice, "I spent a considerable amount of time practicing my culinary skills for Ms. Phoenix. She wasn't keen on Termian cuisine every day, so I took the initiative to learn a variety of Cornerian dishes."
"Well, this is certainly delicious," Don chimed in, his voice enthusiastic. "You've truly outdone yourself, Harry." He was impressed by Harry's ability to maintain his composure and even showcase his culinary skills despite the weight of the unpleasant news they had received.
Harry took a sip of wine and leaned back in his chair pulling down his shirt and looking down the table at Hughes. “Are there any other things I need brought to my attention, Major?”
“Not currently, we have all the equipment we need and my Marines are happy in their little Barracks and having deck four to ourselves suits us just fine.” Hughes replied. “Thanks for asking though.”
Harry nodded. “Well, is there anything else I need to be brought up to speed on?”
“There is one more issue besides the Refits, although it’s more unfinished business than anything.” Rivas said, speaking up.
“What would that be?”
“It’s the matter with the Urthean Refugees from the Rorishard incident.” Rivas said, speaking up. The matter has been handed to me, in the meantime with Lt. Lu being on furlough and also from her disciplinary action. She managed to set them up so they are settled here but Starfleet is wanting us to return them back to their home space.”
“Why us?” Harry asked.
“Because, we’re the only ship with a cloaking device, and the Keldryian’s aren’t too keen on doing it.” Rivas said nonchalantly.
“Wonderful.” Harry sighed. “What are they wanting to do with them?”
“Starfleet Command has managed to reach out to the Kilagra Urthean Empire and they are working out the details as we speak. They’ve agreed to take on the stranded crew but they are currently engaged in hostilities with the Empire which is slowing the process down.” Rivas leaned forward in his chair.
“That’s going to make things really tight on the ship.” Harry said. “We’re already a pretty packed boat as it is.”
“It can be done.” Rivas said. “These people just want to go home Harry, they’ve caused the station no problems in their stay here. Most of them are healthy and healed up and they want to be back among their own kind. They haven’t caused any problems. The longer we keep them here they’re only going to get more restless.”
“May I?” Harry said to Rivas, reaching for the bottle.
Rivas handed it to him and he filled his glass a bit more than the usual portion.
Fara glared at him, but the anger didn’t last, the amount she’d downed had already caught up to her and she was feeling more light hearted as a nice gentle buzz settled in.
“That's going to make for one interesting trip.” Hughes mused.
“Especially since they are going to be your neighbors if we have to house them.” Harry said quickly downing his glass then handing it back over to Hughes who did the same.
“I should have brought more wine.” Rivas chuckled.
“How long is this little trip going to take?”
“A few months, give or take.” Rivas said. “At least according to the coordinates the Urthean crew provided us.”
“When do they want this done?”
“As soon as Starfleet Command gets the details worked out.” Rivas replied. “However, there is one plus.”
“And what would that be?” Harry sighed.
"We'd be the first ones in the Confederation to chart that area of the galaxy," Rivas said with a shrug, a hint of excitement in his voice. "Even if we have to bend a few rules or... be a little sneaky about it."
Harry leaned forward, his interest piqued. "Very well. I'd like to meet with their leader tomorrow afternoon, if possible. Can you arrange that? I have a busy day tomorrow and I'll need a little time to recover between both meetings."
Rivas nodded, "Sure, I can do that. I'll send a message after this and see what I can arrange."
Harry sighed, the weight of the day's decisions settling on him. "If there's nothing else, I'd like to enjoy some good company and my dinner, if you don't mind."
Hughes raised his glass in a silent toast, "Not at all, Captain. We're here to enjoy the evening as well."
The rest of the evening continued with less tense conversation as they delved into stories of past adventures and shared laughter over inside jokes. Hughes and Rivas left thanking Harry for the time and food. Fara helped Harry clean up the dishes by tossing them into the disintegrator while Harry wiped down the table and cleaned the kitchen.
Eventually Harry sat wearily on the couch and Fara cuddled up to him leaning her head on his shoulder. They were finally alone again and there were still a few waning hours to the evening.
“You alright?” Fara asked carefully.
Harry turned to look at her. “I thought maybe we could get through it without some nasty surprises.”
Fara shrugged. “You can’t say you didn’t expect it a little.”
Harry merely sighed.
“Come on Harry, I know you’re stressed.” Fara said, sliding closer. “Let’s do something to take your mind off of it.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea right now, Fara.” Harry said, his voice strained.
Fara’s hand slid down his chest. “Let’s not think about it for now.”
Her voice was soothing, and her touch was gentle. Harry’s eyes closed briefly as he felt the tension begin to ease from his body. He knew what she was suggesting, and while he appreciated the offer, his mind was racing with the implications of what he’d just learned.
“Fara, I can’t. I need to be clear headed for this.” Harry said, pushing her hand away gently.
Fara leaned in closer, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “I can make you clear-headed. Just let me help you relax.”
Her lips found his, and Harry felt himself giving in. The kiss grew more passionate, and Fara’s hands began to work at his clothes. He knew that she was right, he needed a break from his worries.


* * *


It was late into the night and Harry dreamed as he lay entwined with Fara in his bed. His mind was drifting to another time, a time that seemed so far off.
It was all blurry as most dreams are but then it focused on a a single red furred paw as it grasped a chess piece and lifted it to the third level.
“Your move Harry.”
Harry sat across from his friend and crewmate Tara Torees, a bit bewildered, he looked around and noticed they were in the Phoenix’s mess hall and a smile crossed his face.
“I know it’s late but we’re going to finish this game.” His female companion said, leaning her head on her hand and yawning idly.
“Yeah you’re right Tara.” Harry said. “I sort of drifted off there for a second.”
“Maybe you need to drink more of your Fizz.” Tara suggested.
“It won’t keep me awake.” Harry said, moving another piece to block Tara’s move. “Well you aren’t going to bed until we finish this game.” Tara said, eyeing his piece and taking a few moments to ponder her next move. “So you’d better replicate some coffee or something, Mister..”
Harry nodded and got up, walked over to the replicator and made some coffee then sat back in the chair across from her as Tara grabbed another piece and moved it on the board. “Check.” She said confidently.
Harry looked at her move as she sat back in her chair smirking confidently.
“You think?”
“I know.” Tara smirked, crossing her arms in front of her and giving him a look of confidence.
He sighed and suddenly it dawned on him, this was the past, a memory, he must be dreaming. He felt the last several years weighing heavily on him as he became aware that it was a dream.
“In two moves I’ll have you mated and the game will end.” Harry said no longer the much younger echidna he had been.
Tara laughed. “That’s mighty cocky of you to assume that, make your move.”
Harry smiled. “Maybe I don’t want the game to end. This was the last time we ever played … before.”
Tara looked at him quizzically and something shook the Phoenix and the portals were filled with the leviathan visage of a Borg cube dwarfing their own ship. The strange green lights shining through the viewports swathing everything in that sickly color and washing everything else out in shadow.
Everything suddenly shifted. Tara was gone, the ship was gone, the air around him felt hot and the whir of mechanical noises mixed with breathing was all around him. Two Borg drones held him fast by his arms against some sort of table, he could taste copper running down his throat and feel blood running down his nose and something made one of his eyes slightly out of focus and an unending burning sensation was deep within his head something was slowly being with drawn from the tear duct in his eye and it was white hot agony. The long needle like device finally retracted but the drones seemed frozen, their dead listless eyes just looking at him.
There were small explosions in the distance he couldn’t tell what was going on he struggled free of the paralysed drones grip and assessed his situation. He couldn’t see out of his left eye and the effect was disorienting. He did see Tara on another table with some sort of device holding her there he quickly ran over to it and released it and shook her to wake her up.
“Come on Tara, we need to get out of here!” Harry said desperately.
She slowly came around and her groggy confusions became a look of horror as she realized where they were.
“Where’s the rest of the crew?” Tara asked.
“I don’t know but we need to leave right now.” Harry said tapping in the emergency transport sequence on their combadges and praying it worked.
The dream shifted again.

He was running, the Phoenix was dying all around him, and behind him Tara was running as well. The escape pod was so close only a few meters. The computer was screaming about a plasma overload, they had to get off the ship. He heard the fatal sound of a plasma conduit overloading him and felt Tara suddenly slam into him as it went off. Flames washed all around them and they tumbled across the deck.
Harry got back to his feet and tried to help Tara but she wasn’t moving, he turned her over and saw she was horribly burned over most of her body and the smell of burnt flesh permeated his senses. He didn’t know if she was alive or dead but he wasn’t leaving her here. He picked her up and crossed the last few meters to the escape pod.
He closed the hatch and launched the pod. After a violent shudder, he could see the Phoenix bathed in flames of its own plasma drifting away and the remainder of the fleet capitalizing on the wound his deflector lance had dealt the cube. Torpedo after torpedo slammed into the cube's grievous wound and Phasers lit the night in their interlacing paths stabbing deep into the heart of the beast. Finally, its lights died as it died and it suddenly exploded in an enormous shockwave as its core exploded sending sparks and gridded metallic frameworks careening into space.



* * *


Harry woke with a violent jolt, his body lurching upward, sending Fara tumbling off the bed with a startled yelp and a thud. He remained frozen, heart pounding, sweat beading on his forehead, desperately trying to reorient himself as Fara glared up at him from the floor. Her initial annoyance quickly melted into concern.
She scrambled back onto the bed. "Bad dream?" she inquired softly, her voice laced with worry.
Harry managed a hoarse nod, his mind still grappling with the remnants of the nightmare. Fara slipped out of bed and disappeared for a moment, returning with a glass of milk. She handed it to him, then climbed up behind him, wrapping her arms around him in a comforting embrace, pressing her body against his back and nuzzling his cheek.
"When you wake up like that, it's always the worst kind," she murmured, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek. Harry took a sip of the milk and nodded, his throat still tight. "I'm sorry about throwing you off the bed," he croaked, guilt mingling with his lingering fear.
"Don't even think about it," Fara chuckled softly. "You haven't been around for one of my bad dreams yet, trust me, we'll be even when it happens." She paused, then asked gently, "What was it about?"
"It's hazy," Harry sighed, setting the glass on the nightstand. "A jumble of bad memories, maybe a good one in there somewhere, it's all a blur now." His stomach churned in response to the late-night milk, a stark reminder that he was now wide awake. "What time is it?" he asked, his voice thick with awkwardness as he instinctively checked to make sure his left eye was still in place.
"Around 5 AM," Fara replied, stretching and yawning. The dim light filtering through the window cast an ethereal glow on her naked form. "We might as well get up. I'll replicate something to eat."
"Fara," Harry began, his voice hesitant.
"Yeah?"
"You haven't had a bad dream with me yet," he repeated, a note of wonder in his voice.


Fara leaned against the doorway, her brow furrowed in thought. "You're right," she finally said, a slow smile spreading across her face as she turned and left the bedroom.



* * *

Later



Harry overlooked his ship from his station office, which was spartan to say the least. Most of the time he barely used this room but it was his nonetheless. He wondered if maybe he should bring a plant in or something else to give it a personal touch. His ready room on the Raptor at least had one of his models on a well-fastened display mount and a few other personal effects. This room was just overly bare with some generic decorations on the walls and his desk and terminal.
On his desk was the datapad with Commander Torrek’s glowing praise of Amelia and her efforts in the station.
She had shown up for her duties at the yard on time repeatedly, always completing her work in an efficient manner. She was never late, she had made a few friends among the yard dogs.
Harry furrowed his brow, he did recall promising to help her find her way home.
Apparently, the Alderi was intent on making him hold to that promise. He was a bit hesitant, considering how their paths had crossed, to begin with.
Captain Stiles was in the chair at his desk across from him leaning forward on his cane watching him implicitly. They had just spent the last thirty minutes discussing what to do next with Amelia.
“That’s all my impressions of her. Despite the one little incident in her quarters to which we couldn't find any evidence of her causing it. She’s made every effort to fit in that she can, she’s followed protocol for anything she’s requested to do. The only odd thing was she requested an item she had on her person when you captured her, but she’s been relatively quiet since then just working and spending a lot of time with Mr. Algrim.”
You made the promise, you better hold to it. He heard Jayna say in his imagination, giving him that matter-of-fact hawk-like glare she would, that he missed so much.
He hit his combadge. "Commander Braddock, Major Hughes can you both come to my office please."
"Of course, Sir." They both responded.
He didn't like dealing with Braddock mainly because he knew who signed the orders to have him take Jakar's place on station security. Leyton. The Avian who kept turning up like a bad penny in his life now became a harbinger of doom. However, if anyone had been keeping an eye on Amelia it would have been him. He went to his replicator.
“Would you like anything?” Harry asked.
“I’m good for now Harry.” Stiles said smiling.
Harry replicated a glass of cherry fizz water with ice and sat down across from Stiles and drank a few sips before his door chime rang.
"Come in."
Braddock entered along with Hughes."Reporting as ordered, sir." Braddock said.
Hughes merely nodded with a smile.
"At ease Commander, I just have some questions regarding our Alderi guest who has been aboard the station for the last several months. Do you have anything to report?"
"The only change is she applied for citizenship to the Confederation and it was granted. She's a model resident, stays in public areas, visits the station arboretum and meditates for a few hours every day. All her replicator requests are on the nose. Honestly, I don't believe continued surveillance is necessary anymore. I wish more people on board were like her."
"Well…". Harry said, taking a drink and pausing a moment before swallowing it. "If everyone here was aware they were being watched they'd behave too.”
Braddock shifted his weight from foot to foot. "That is true sir however, it's my experience that if one has Ill intent, they can't hide it forever without slipping up at some point.". Braddock thought for a moment then said with an amused grin. "If you want my professional opinion, sir, if anything she just seems a bit listless."
“I would agree with that sentiment, Harry.” Stiles grunted. “She’s at least shown she has patience, she hasn’t been hounding us to move things along but you can only expect someone to wait for so long.”
He recalled something his mother and aunt often said. Idle hands and minds lead to pernicious deeds.
"Is there anything else, sir?". Braddock asked.
"No, that will be all, thank you, commander.Thank you.” Braddock nodded and neatly turned and left his office.
“So Major, what is your opinion on this matter, I may as well inform you since your men protect my ship.”
“There was only one incident a while ago where she was hanging around the gangway. I politely asked her to leave and she did so. She never came back. However, she does hang around the observation area of the Raptor a lot.” .
“That’s not necessarily a crime.” Harry said.
“It makes me nervous, I don’t like being nervous Captain.” Hughes replied.
“Well what is she doing?”
Hughes shifted his weight. “Mainly just staring at it. I’m not really sure that cat is a strange one, and that says a lot for most feline species I’ve encountered.. I have spoken to her a few times casually when she does so. She generally asks vague questions about the ship, if I know if we’re going to be deployed to the Badlands soon. I would agree with Commander Braddock that she does appear a bit listless, that is a fair assessment.”
“You don’t feel like she’s manipulating you or using that little talent of hers do you?” Harry said.
“I read your and Jakar’s reports. I haven’t noticed anything when I'm speaking to her.” Hughes frowned. “But if she has such abilities to manipulate our minds, I can’t even trust my own perceptions. I’m aware of the situation with her, and I understand that you want to do right. I see her as a threat.”


“Major, I feel if she was, it’d be obvious." Harry sighed. “However I can only put it off for so long, I had to put the offer out to help her and if I renege on it, she could make herself a problem.” He picked up a datapad and handed it to Hughes. “She’s been working for the yard dogs most of the time she’s been here, her CO speaks glowingly of her he even granted her an enlisted rank just recently he requested she get a bump up too.”
“I would find that concerning in that short amount of time.” Hughes said frowning.
“I did too but she’s demonstrated great dedication to her duties and even worked herself to near exhaustion sometimes.” Harry said, picking up the datapad full of Torrek’s reports. “That’s a lot of effort for a bunch of people who didn’t ask it of you, let alone trust you.”
“It’s definitely impressive, as I told you earlier. It’s ultimately your decision. I have said my piece.”
“Thank you.” Harry said flatly. “You are dismissed, Major.”
Hughes nodded and left the office.
Stiles chuckled. “Welcome to being a Captain. It’s all on you anymore.”
Harry sighed and sat heavily in his chair and spinned it once around staring up at the ceiling trying to figure out what to do.
“Look at it this way, if you keep her here forever she may become problematic, the busier you keep her and show you are trying to fulfil your promise you’ll probably have a lot less problems.” Stiles said.
“I just had to open my mouth and offer to help her.” Harry sighed.
“You did the right thing.” Stiles said standing up. “You got to figure out how to see it through my friend. I need to get back to Ops, We have a Zellarite trading convoy passing through in the next hour and they are so fun to deal with.”
Harry stared down at the datapad for a few moments before he finally signed off on the request and scheduled a meeting for her within the hour. Lt. Perry would arrive soon to bring him his usual paperwork concerning the Raptor's daily operations, he was sure he could get that done well before Amelia showed up.
Amelia, punctual as always, arrived at the meeting, her promptness a testament to her seriousness. Harry, taking note of the jeweled headband she wore - a stark reminder of their tumultuous first encounter - gestured towards the chair opposite him.
"Please, take a seat," he invited, his tone carefully neutral.
She nodded, a flicker of apprehension in her eyes, and sat down, her posture straight and alert.
"Firstly," Harry began, his voice steady, "I've taken the time to review your record here on the starbase. I must say, I'm impressed. You've integrated seamlessly, your performance has been exemplary, and you've even managed to forge friendships."
"It's been... an interesting experience," Amelia admitted, her voice laced with a hint of introspection.
"Commander Torrek speaks very highly of you," Harry continued, a slight smile playing on his lips. "He credits you with significantly reducing the backlog."
"It's a lot of work," Amelia replied, "but I find it fulfilling."
Harry leaned forward, his expression turning serious, his fingers interlacing on the desk before him. "Given our initial encounter, I don't have much reason to trust you, Amelia."
Amelia's brow furrowed, a flash of hurt crossing her features, but she met his gaze unflinchingly. "I understand," she replied, her voice barely above a whisper.
"But," Harry continued, his tone softening slightly, "I did offer to help you, albeit with reservations. Mainly due to your... unique abilities."
"I understand," Amelia repeated, her composure unwavering. "When we first met, I was a different person. I've since regained memories... unpleasant memories."
"Go on," Harry encouraged, his curiosity piqued.
"The Black Stars," Amelia began, her voice barely audible, "they abducted me as a child. They coerced me, tortured me, twisted me into... the person you encountered on your ship."
"Ah," Harry murmured, his mind racing. "So you've regained your memories. Is this connected?" he asked, pointing towards the jeweled headband.
"Yes," Amelia confirmed, her voice steady.
"I see," Harry replied, not fully comprehending but accepting her explanation. "I apologize for bringing it up."
"It's fine," Amelia assured him. "I also remember my training before the Black Stars. What I did to you and your friends... It was inexcusable. Forcing myself into other’s minds without their consent is extremely taboo, and I am deeply sorry."
"Apology accepted," Harry said, a small smile gracing his lips. "But," he shifted uneasily in his chair, "I'd like to know what happened when you did that to me."
"I'm not entirely sure..." Amelia hesitated, her gaze distant. "It was like standing between two mirrors, seeing countless reflections. As if you could see every potential version of yourself and choose who to be."
Harry raised a brow, intrigued. "That's it?"
Amelia's voice trembled as she spoke, the weight of her confession heavy in the air. "It was... terrifying," she admitted, her eyes reflecting the fear she had experienced. "I almost lost myself in the process. There was this overwhelming yearning to be who I am now, not who I was, and your mind... it facilitated that transformation."
Harry's mind was flooded with fragmented images from his dream - the unnerving stare of the drones, the explosive destruction of conduits, and the chaotic overload of circuits. The vividness of the recollection shook him.
Amelia, ever perceptive to the emotions of those around her, noticed his distress. "Did I say something wrong?" she inquired tentatively, her brow furrowed with concern.
"No," Harry retorted, his voice sharp with irritation. He was still grappling with the unsettling remnants of his dream and Amelia's words had inadvertently struck a nerve.
"I apologize," Amelia responded sincerely. "I have the ability to pick up on strong surface thoughts and emotions," she explained, hoping to alleviate his discomfort. "I assure you, I'm not intentionally prying."
Harry turned away from her, his gaze fixed on his ship below. The distance between them grew palpable as he retreated into his thoughts. Amelia sat in silence, unsure of how to bridge the gap that had suddenly formed.
After a moment of contemplation, Harry turned back to face her, his expression resolute. "I want to understand why I have these gaps in my memory that I can’t explain" he stated, his voice firm. "You might be able to help me with that. You want to go home, and I can help you with that. Everyone deserves a chance, so we'll start over. I hope you won't make me regret it."
Amelia's spirits lifted at his words, a glimmer of hope rekindling in her eyes. "I won't, Captain," she assured him earnestly.
"You're provisionally assigned to Stellar Cartography," Harry informed her, outlining her duties. "It'll give you access to star charts to help you find your way home, plus other responsibilities in Engineering, new crew members always get some time there. You'll have plenty to do if you enjoy that kind of work."
"I really do!" Amelia exclaimed, her excitement bubbling over. The prospect of finding her way home and contributing to the ship's operations filled her with a renewed sense of purpose.
“Commander O’mara and Doctor Okan are your department heads. Commander O’mara is away at a conference so Lt. Quinna will arrange an orientation for you.”
“Thank you Captain, you won't regret this!!!”. Amelia said practically beaming.
“You may go.” Harry said, nodding.
The cat practically danced out of his office.
Harry sat down heavily in his chair and let out a long sigh leaning back in his chair. He didn’t care if she could sense it.


* * *
Fara, savoring the warmth of her morning coffee, strolled into the engineering room, stifling a yawn. The transition to a command position had brought a whirlwind of changes, not least of which was the increased delegation of responsibilities. Kurtzman, her second-in-command, had risen to the occasion, proving his ability to manage the engineering team without Fara's constant oversight. Though she was loath to admit it, Fara relished the perks that accompanied her rank – the freedom to strategize, to lead from a broader perspective, and to entrust the minutiae to capable hands.
"Commander, good morning," Ensign Muniz snapped to attention, extending a data pad laden with the morning's reports.
Fara returned the greeting with a smile, stifling another yawn. "Anything urgent I need to know, Ensign?"
"No, ma'am, all systems nominal," Muniz reported with crisp efficiency.
Fara chuckled inwardly. Despite her gentle reminders, Muniz clung to the formalities of his academy training, addressing her as "Sir" with unwavering persistence. It was a charming quirk, reminiscent of a younger, more eager Harry. "How would you like a special assignment, Ensign?" she inquired, a hint of intrigue in her voice. "Something hands-on, something to sink your teeth into?"
Muniz's eyes lit up, his enthusiasm barely contained beneath a veneer of professionalism. "What did you have in mind, Commander?"
Fara laid out the task, noting the young echidna's eagerness despite his attempts to mask it. "I need a thorough inspection of the Bussard collectors and plasma injectors. Most of it can be done remotely, but I want a visual confirmation. Think you and Reese can handle that?"
"Absolutely, Commander!" Muniz's voice rang with enthusiasm as he made a hasty exit, nearly colliding with Knackt in the doorway.
"Hey, watch where you're going, kid!" Knackt grumbled as Muniz offered a hurried apology and disappeared into the ship's labyrinthine corridors. "Honestly, these newbies.”
Fara waved off Knackt's complaint. "Leave him be, Knackt. He's got potential."
"Potential to cause a catastrophic accident with that kind of recklessness," Knackt retorted.
"Or potential to learn from his mistakes and become a valuable asset," Fara countered, taking a sip of her coffee. "Speaking of assets, you're looking rather chipper this morning. What's the occasion?"
Knackt smirked, Amelia had told him that she’d gotten assigned to the Raptor and the prospect of them not being separated for long periods of time had put him in a better mood as well as seeing Amelia’s excitement at seeing some fruits of her labors the last few months. "I'm always chipper, Fara. So, you messaged me. What's on your mind?"
Fara eased into the conversation, her tone measured. "There are going to be some changes around here, Knackt. For starters, I'm stepping back from day-to-day operations."
Knackt's eyebrows shot up. "You're joking, right?"
"I'm afraid not," Fara replied. "I'll still be Chief Engineer, but I'll be spending more time on the bridge."
“But why the sudden change?" Knackt pressed.
Fara explained her rationale, emphasizing the strength of the engineering team and Kurtzman's leadership. "I have a solid team down here, and you all respect and listen to Lieutenant Kurtzman. I feel confident that I can contribute more effectively on the bridge, knowing that the Raptor is in capable hands. In fact, I'm going to recommend that Kurtzman be promoted. So, you'll be reporting directly to him instead of me. I wanted you to hear it from me first."
Knackt absorbed the news, a flicker of apprehension in his eyes. "Well, I appreciate the heads-up, Fara. When is all this going to take place?"
"Likely before we leave starbase again," Fara replied, her gaze steady.
“Alright, well. Anything else, I got some power relays down in deflector control. I need to get back too.” Knackt said.
“No, that’s it. Just keep your mouth shut about it”
“Got it boss lady, See ya around.”
Fara frowned as he left but it was replaced by a smile as she saw Claudia enter the room. She had her sleeves rolled up and was carrying a case of spooled fiber optic conduit that she set heavily down when she stepped through the double doors of engineering.
“Morning, Chief.” Claudia said, smiling at her.
“Morning, Ensign.” Fara said, returning the smile.
“You seem like you are in better spirits.”
“I am, mostly.”
“I bet.” Claudia chuckled, touching the equipment locker in the wall and placing the spool back inside it.
Fara's eyes narrowed as she caught the subtle glint in Claudia's gaze. "What do you mean?" she challenged playfully.
Claudia laughed. "I'm just saying, you've got “that” glow about you. Did you enjoy yourself last night?"
Fara's jaw clenched. "I had a fine time, thank you.” She said, sipping her coffee. “So do you have anything else you need to do or are you going to tease me the whole day?”
the subdued hum of the ship's systems filled the air as Claudia leaned back, wiping her brow. "Actually, things are pretty quiet right now. Kurtzman's had us all swamped getting the ship ready, and I just finished running some cables on Deck 3. But sure, I'm up for something else." She flashed a grin at Fara, "Honestly, we're all set with the pre-flight checks."
Fara returned the smile, her eyes crinkling at the corners. "That's what I expect from my engineering team."
"Aw, shucks, boss," Claudia chuckled, ducking her head in mock embarrassment.
Fara's smile softened as she set her cup down on the table. "Okay, I've got to ask," she began, her tone curious, "With your reputation from previous assignments, I'm surprised you haven't caused a single issue here. Your old Chief Engineers didn't have the nicest things to say. I thought you'd be a handful, but you've been great. What gives?"
Claudia shrugged, a nonchalant air about her. "Well, for starters, I really like it here," she admitted. "And unlike the other guys, you're not a stubborn jerk who ignores their crew. Plus, I could tell you were sizing me up on day one, and we ended up hitting it off."
Fara chuckled, nodding in agreement. "I hope you feel the same way about Lt. Kurtzman."
Claudia's shrug was noncommittal. "Kurtz? He's alright. Most of the time."
"Good," Fara replied, her tone firm.
"Why's that?" Claudia asked, her curiosity piqued.
Fara leaned forward, a conspiratorial glint in her eyes. "Well, you're only the second person I'm telling before I announce it, but I'm stepping back and running things from the bridge from now on," she revealed.
"Really?" Claudia's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "This wouldn't have anything to..." she began, a knowing look on her face.
"No, it doesn't!" Fara hissed, cutting her off. "It's something I've been considering for a while."
Claudia's skepticism was palpable; her drawn-out "Uh-huh" dripped with disbelief. Fara, despite the tension, couldn't suppress a flicker of amusement. Their dynamic was often contentious, but Fara had grown to appreciate Claudia's sharp intellect. It was refreshing to have someone who could match her technical prowess, and be her friend.
"That's the plan, regardless," Fara asserted, her voice unwavering.
Claudia's arms folded across her chest, a defensive posture. "So, the grease monkey's hanging up her wrench?" The barb was thinly veiled.
Fara bristled. "I didn't say that!" Her retort was sharp. "Just... less so. Claudia, I've poured my blood, sweat, and tears into this ship for almost three years. I salvaged her space frame from a scrapyard, oversaw every inch of her reconstruction, even got my hands dirty with the manual labor. I've been injured countless times, pushed to my limits, but I've also learned to anticipate her quirks, her... temperament." Fara's voice softened, tinged with exhaustion. "You weren't here from the beginning. I became so obsessed with fixing every little problem myself that it nearly broke me when I couldn't find that one 'glitch' a while back that cost lives." Her grip tightened on her mug. "Maybe... if I had stepped back, let Kurtzman and the others handle it... things might have been different. I made this ship my entire world. She's been temperamental, but she's reliable, mostly. It's time for me to... detach, just a little."
Claudia sighed and uncrossed her arms and walked over to her friend and put her arm around her shoulder. “Now that you put it that way, I guess I’ll just have to learn to deal with it.”
“I’m sorry I was gone so long.” Fara said.
“Don’t worry about it. You needed time to get your head right.” Claudia said. “We’ll have plenty of time to get caught up, don’t worry Kurtzman’s been doing a hell of a job getting all us newbies caught up in working on this ship.”
Fara smiled. “Good because if he hadn’t he and I were going to have some serious words.”



* * *




Harry and Rivas were on a turbolift to go speak to the Urthean’s that had been housed on the station for sometime to discuss some issues of their return to some semblance of home.
Rivas, his curiosity piqued, leaned in slightly as Harry stepped off the turbolift. "So, tell me," he began, "how did your little meeting with the Alderi go?"
Harry exhaled wearily, the weight of the conversation evident in his posture. "It came and went," he replied, his tone noncommittal.
Rivas, not one to be deterred by vague answers, pressed further. "And? What was the outcome?"
A flicker of frustration crossed Harry's face. "Look, she's been nothing but a model citizen since she's been here," he explained. "I offered her a position in Stellar Cartography, hoping that maybe while we're out exploring, she might be able to use our resources to find a way back home."
Rivas raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise in his voice. "That's quite generous of you, Harry."
Harry's frustration bubbled over. "Well, what else was I supposed to do, Don?" he retorted. "Tell her no? She's been working hard for the dockmaster for the past few months, without being asked to. Commander Dorsai speaks very highly of her, says she's one of the most reliable civilian workers he's ever had. She's never been late, never missed a shift."
Harry paused, his voice softening slightly as he recalled the one incident on Amelia's record. "She's only had that one questionable incident, the depressurization in her quarters. But even that couldn't be proven to be her fault. And since then, there's been nothing."
Rivas nodded slowly, absorbing Harry's words. "So, you're giving her a chance," he concluded.
Harry met Rivas' gaze, his expression resolute. "She's earned it," he stated firmly.
“Alright. It’s your ship.” Don shrugged.
Harry sighed. “Now i have a whole pile of Urtheans i have to deal with that I’ve been so caught up in my own matters that I never bothered to check up on.”
“If it makes you feel any better sir,” Rivas said. “Terri did a great job setting them up here and getting the ball rolling on at least making them comfortable. Even our resident one Kazan has been operating as a go-between in facilitating any concerns they could have.”
“Kazan?” Harry said, raising an eyebrow. “Wait, are you talking about the Exile who works as a tailor?”
Rivas nodded.
“One can only wonder why he would suddenly be interested in getting in the middle of this.” Harry muttered.
“It’s hard to tell, I'm sure he has his own reasons.” Rivas shrugged as the lift slid to a stop. “Whether they are benevolent or not remains to be seen.”
The doors parted and they exited the lift.
“You did get fully caught up on the briefing I hope.” Don said quietly as they passed the security personnel who made sure that their guests had their own privacy in the hold.
“Of course, I prepared.” Harry said. “It has only been a few months, I haven’t completely forgotten how to do my job.”
Rivas chuckled. “Just checking.” he said as they stopped by the door and Rivas keyed the opening sequence. “Ready?”
Harry nodded and Don opened the door.
On the other side were two Urtheans, one Harry immediately recognized as the so called tailor Kazan and the other was a Orange furred colored female dressed rather stately in a blue double breasted suit. She looked at him quizzically as they entered and Harry extended his hand confidently.
“Gel Fenrix I presume, I am Captain Martinez of the Raptor, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”
Reluctantly Fenrix returned the gesture. “Where is Commander Lu? We haven't seen her for some time.”
“It’s a long story.” Harry said. “For now, I’m assuming her responsibilities as her Commanding officer, I assure you I will explain in due time. Shall we?”
Fenrix seemed annoyed but she nodded. “Come with me.” She relented.
The four of them walked through the bay that had several small emergency shelters set up in it where the other Urthean Crewmembers watched them pass quietly chatting among themselves.
“As you can see Captain, they've made the best of their little home in the time they’ve been here.” Kazan said.
“I see that.” Harry said trying to remain polite and sound interested, in all honestly he didn’t feel too comfortable at the moment.
“Indeed.” Fenrix added with some pride. “Thanks to Ms. Lu our stay has been tolerable at best,” Fenrix chuckled darkly. “However we are doing well, way better than we were on our own vessel, I’ve even but on enough weight I can’t fit in my old uniform anymore. Not that I would care too.” She noticed Harry’s eyes were scanning across the faces of her crew and he seemed to be preoccupied with something.
“Do you find something objectionable Captain?” She stopped.
“I haven’t really been around many other Urtheans other than Kazan and Red’s.” Harry said. “Well there was one other exception.”
“Most outsiders are usually taken aback by our diverse fur coloring.” Fenris said as they stopped by a hut. “This is my home, we'll talk here.” She said opening a door to one of the shelters and they stepped inside.
Harry and Don sat opposite Kazan and Fenrix. Frenrix sat with her fingers interlaced on the table. “So, where shall we begin?”
“I want you to know that Starfleet is working on getting in contact with the Kilagra Urthean Empire to have them grant you the asylum you seek.”
Fenrix listened intently. “Then why have they not arrived to do so?”
“They are having difficulties with the Empire currently.”
“So what is your starfleet going to do about it?” Fenrix asked.
“The plan is the Raptor will deliver you to them. I’m sure you are aware we have a cloaking device, we’ll have to cut through a good chunk of Urthean Empire territory to get to them..”
“Very much aware.” Fenrix said bitterly. “I’m surprised the Keldryians haven’t equipped all of your ships with them. It’s a risky plan, if that device fails we’ll be relentlessly hunted.”
“It’s dangerous but I’m sure we can deal with any emergency that comes up.” Harry said.
Fenrix leaned back in her chair, her expression a mixture of defiance and resignation. "Forgive my skepticism, Captain," she began, her voice laced with bitterness, "but trust doesn't come easily to me, even trust in your Confederation. And as for the Keldryians, let's just say I have no love lost for them. This entire situation reeks of a trap, a convenient way to dispose of a few more dozen Urtheans."
Harry's face remained impassive, a mask that concealed his growing unease. "I don't understand," he replied, his voice carefully neutral. "What are you suggesting?"
Fenrix's eyes narrowed, her gaze piercing. "Perhaps you're unaware, Captain," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "but our 'benevolent' Emperor has been using every non-Red Urthean as cannon fodder for his war. All those Scutta you destroyed? You were doing them a favor by ridding the universe of so-called undesirables." Her voice hardened. "And when your ship became a problem, who do you think crewed those Scutta? Not the precious Reds... it was everyone else."
Harry shifted uncomfortably in his seat, a maelstrom of emotions churning within him. Curiosity warred with revulsion, and a flicker of doubt began to take root. "Tell me more," he urged, his voice barely above a whisper. Don said nothing his face a perfect mask only the quiet whirring of his carapace as he shifted in his chair as well.
Fenrix's lip curled in a snarl. "Most of us are scholars, thinkers, performers... all those who dared to speak against the Emperor. Can you believe I was a Professor of Quantum Warp Theory before I found myself in this wretched position? I'm an Am'bar Urthe! I should be unlocking the secrets of the universe, not harassing the Confederation."
"Then why do it?" Harry asked, his voice laced with concern.
Fenrix's shoulders slumped, the fight momentarily draining from her. "We're forced to," she replied, her voice heavy with despair. "Serve or die. Some choose death, most choose service, clinging to the desperate hope of finding a way out. Some met their end at your own hands, Captain." A flicker of accusation flashed in her eyes, but it quickly faded, replaced by a weary resignation. "We're trapped in a nightmare, Captain, and there's no end in sight."
A few tense moments passed before Kazan finally spoke up.
“As you see Captain Martinez, there is much more going on with my people then even the Keldryian’s let you in on.”
“Because it’s easier to be wary of something you don’t fully understand.” Harry mused leaning forward in his chair.
“Let one thing be clear.” Fenrix said. “Red’s are bred to be aggressive, barbaric and vicious. They are the perfect soldier, unquestioning in their loyalty and unmatched in their brutality. They are a military surplus created by a madman in a bygone era who wanted to control the whole empire for himself, and managed to take advantage of his people's trust in our darkest hour. Feel free to kill as many of them as you like.”
Harry said nothing but Kazan pressed on.
“Omari,” He said gently. “Now that we’ve cleared the air, we should probably discuss the finer points of this hmmm?”
Frenrix nodded. “So what is your plan when the time comes?”
Harry handed her a data pad he brought with him. “We’ll probably berth you on deck four. It'll be tight and you’ll have to share the deck with our Marine contingent. However you will be free to travel about the deck and other non essential areas of the ship and use our mess and holodeck facilities if you feel inclined to do so. However if there is an alert situation you will be required to return to your designated space.”
Fenrix wearily looked at the data pad and nodded as she read it over. “I suppose these are what we’ll have to live with. They are acceptable.”
“I do have one other request, my Chief Medical officer would like to meet with your, own in order to effectively treat your own people in case there are any emergencies.” Harry added
Fenrix merely nodded. “I do have one request.”
“Yes?”
“If Commander Lu is not available, or if she is. I would still like Kazan to accompany us till we are safely delivered. He has been very useful in facilitating us.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” Harry said. “I assure you Ms. Lu would be here if she could, there are extenuating circumstances surrounding her absence that I do not wish to go into. I assure you if it wasn’t for those she would still be working with you.” Harry paused in thought. “ Not to sound as if I’m rushing things, but when we get notice to leave, how soon can your people be ready to go?”
“Believe me, captain, it will not take more than an hour.” Fenrix said. “Your hospitality is appreciated but we would like to be among our own kind again.” she chuckled. “Some are already in a constant state of readiness to leave; they are just waiting for the word.”
“Then I'll make sure your accommodations are ready as soon as possible.” Harry said.
Fenrix nodded appreciatively.
“Also I will require you to provide us some guidance through Urthean space. We’d be the first Confederation vessel to navigate it. Any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated.”
“I’m familiar with the area of space we will be travelling through.” Fenrix replied. “I’ll use your computers and set up some probable courses.”
“I will send Lt. Quinna from my stellar cartography department to work with you.” Harry said. “That way you have all the information you need.”
“Very well, if you don’t have anything else,” Fenrix said tiredly. “I grow tired of discussing this, just make sure your Confederation holds to their word and tries to push this through as quickly as possible. My people and I would like to return to some semblance of home.”
“If anything it’s been somewhat productive.” Harry said standing glad to be done with the matter. “Thank you for your time, We’ll be in touch.”
Fenrix nodded and waved that they could go.
Harry and Don had traversed several paces from the imposing cargo bay doors when Rivas, with his characteristic drawl, finally broke the silence. "Well," he remarked, a hint of amusement in his voice, "that was certainly...pleasant."
Harry, his patience clearly frayed, snapped back, "Oh, so NOW you decide to speak up, huh?"
Rivas merely shrugged, his expression nonchalant. "You two were handling the situation admirably without my intervention."
Harry released a heavy sigh, running a hand through his hair. "I was hoping their arrogance wasn't a universal trait. It took every ounce of self-control not to lose my temper in there."
They came to a halt in front of the sleek turbolift, and Rivas pressed the call button with a practiced ease. The mechanical carapace that facilitated his movement whirred softly as he relaxed his posture. "I'm sure they have a plethora of 'interesting' opinions about Echidnas as well,sir." he remarked dryly.
Harry's jaw clenched. "It's going to be an... interesting trip when we finally embark on it," he muttered, his tone laced with a foreboding undercurrent.
The turbolift doors slid open with a gentle hiss, and they stepped inside.
Rivas chuckled, a mirthful glint in his eyes. "I don't think 'interesting' will even begin to cover half of it, Harry."
Harry shot him a withering glare as the doors hissed closed.


* * *


"You seem surprisingly chipper for someone sporting a bandaged hand and smelling faintly of coolant," Knackt remarked, a playful lilt to his voice as they ate their dinner together in the Promenade.
Amelia, her mind still buzzing with the excitement of her successful meeting with Harry, had been momentarily careless while repairing a shuttle's environmental controls and coolant reservoir. In a burst of enthusiasm, she had inadvertently ripped the tube from its housing, the coupling colliding painfully with her paw. The shock of the pain had triggered her powers, resulting in the unfortunate destruction of the entire unit. Commander Torrek had been less than pleased about the damage, but Amelia, ever resourceful, came up with a reasonable explanation as to what happened and had promised to arrive early the next day and rectify her mistake. Grudgingly, he acquiesced, but only on the condition that she first visited sickbay.
Snapping back to the present, Amelia beamed at Knackt, her voice brimming with excitement. "I'm just so happy I’ll be on your ship! Working in the Stellar Cartography lab will be a great way for me to try and find my way home."


Knackt's response was a curious blend of emotions. "That's... great," he replied, his tone betraying a hint of hesitation.
Amelia, ever perceptive, tilted her head inquisitively. "You don't sound entirely sincere," she observed.
Knackt sighed, his shoulders slumping slightly. "I don't know. I mean, I'm happy for you, but if you find your home, then what?" he admitted, his voice laced with uncertainty.
Amelia, sensing his unspoken thoughts, responded gently, "You're afraid I'll leave."
"Just a bit," Knackt confessed, his gaze meeting hers.
A warm smile graced Amelia's lips. "At least you're being honest," she said, her voice soft. "That's always a good thing. And very sweet of you, too."
Knackt's expression softened. "Well, it's not like I can hide anything from you," he replied with a resigned chuckle.
Amelia laughed, taking a few bites of her meal. "Honesty is good for you, Knackt," she said, a playful glint in her eyes. "Maybe if you had been more honest about your feelings in the past, we might not be having this conversation. But then again, if you had, it would have been a very lonely stay for me these past few months," she teased, wiggling her fork at him.
Knackt rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "Ugh, don't bring up the ex," he grumbled.
Amelia's laughter filled the room, light and playful, as she leaned towards Knackt, her eyes twinkling with amusement. "Oh, come on, Knackt," she teased, "maybe you should be thanking her. If you and your ex hadn't parted ways, you might not have ended up here on the Raptor. And you've certainly had an... interesting time, haven't you?" She punctuated her words with a suggestive wink, her tone laced with playful innuendo.
Knackt's face flushed crimson, his ears burning. "Amelia!" he hissed, his voice barely above a whisper, "Keep it down! Someone might hear you." He glanced around anxiously, his eyes darting nervously. "Don't bring that up, okay?"
Amelia's laughter subsided into a mischievous giggle. "Oh, please," she whispered conspiratorially, "you think about it all the time!"
Knackt's cheeks burned even brighter. "Well, you probably would too if it happened to you," he retorted defensively, desperately trying to steer the conversation away from his past trysts and relationships.
Amelia's amusement bubbled over, and she slapped the table in delight, her laughter echoing through the room. "Maybe, maybe not," she said with a shrug, "I'm still trying to figure all that stuff out. It's not like I had a normal childhood, you know. Growing up in the Black Stars wasn't exactly... conventional." Her voice took on a wistful tone as she reminisced. "It was pretty much just obey, or face the consequences."
Knackt, relieved at the change in topic, latched onto her words. "So, tell me," he asked, his curiosity piqued, "why didn't you just... you know, brain zap them? If they were mistreating you, why didn't you use your powers against them?"
Amelia's brow furrowed as she delved into her memories, the fragments of her past slowly piecing themselves together. "It's... complicated," she said, her voice laced with sadness. "They coerced me. They used a combination of manipulation, threats, and promises. They also implanted something in me," she pointed to a small, furless patch on her temple, "to suppress my powers when they didn't need them. Your doctors removed it after I was rescued." She shuddered involuntarily. "I hope you've never had anything like that done to you."
Her voice softened as she continued a frown slowly forming on her lips, "They weren't all bad, though. They made me feel like I belonged. After a while, I started to believe it. There were even times when I had fun. I was treated better than most because of my gifts. I practically lived in luxury, just below whatever our Captain had, as long as I obeyed." A flicker of sadness crossed her eyes. "It was a gilded cage, but for a while, it was all I knew."
"Thanks for your honesty," Knackt said, his voice laced with relief and a hint of vulnerability.
Amelia's frown melted away, replaced by a warm, genuine smile. "Alright, you've made your point," she conceded, placing her fork down on the plate. She leaned forward, resting her chin on her hands, her gaze meeting Knackt's with a newfound intensity. "Truth be told, I've been doing a lot of thinking about us," she admitted softly, a hint of vulnerability in her voice.
Knackt's ears perked up, his tail twitching excitedly. "Really?" he inquired, his voice laced with a mixture of surprise and hope.
"Yeah," Amelia confirmed, a playful glint in her eyes. "What if, after we're done here, I go home, get cleaned up, and we meet at our usual spot in the arboretum... and, I don't know, maybe see where the evening takes us?" she suggested, a nervous tremor in her voice betraying her outward composure.
Knackt's eyes widened, his heart pounding against his ribs. "Sure! I mean, if you want to," he stammered, trying to contain his excitement. "But, um, why the sudden change of heart?"
Amelia's expression softened. "You've been a true friend to me, Knackt," she began sincerely. "I know it hasn't always been easy for you to suppress your feelings for me, but you've shown incredible restraint and respect." She paused, her gaze unwavering. "Over the months, I've developed a deep fondness for you. You make me laugh, you always listen to me, and you give me the space I need." A smile played on her lips as she added, "Plus, your surface thoughts are always so entertaining, and the way your mind jumps to the strangest conclusions sometimes... it's endearing." Reaching out, she gently squeezed his hand. "And, if I'm being completely honest, I think you're very cute, in a rugged sort of way."
Knackt returned her smile, feeling a profound shift within himself. The usual torrent of lust that often dominated his thoughts was replaced by a deeper sense of affection and care for Amelia. With the warmth of her hand in his, she felt a newfound clarity in their connection.
Amelia continued, a hint of caution in her voice. "Let's approach this as an experiment, okay?" she proposed. "We'll take things slowly, one step at a time. If at any point I feel uncomfortable, we'll stop. No questions asked."
"Of course!" Knackt agreed eagerly. "I would never want to make you uncomfortable."
She reached out and gently caressed his cheek. "I know you wouldn't," she murmured, her voice filled with trust.

* * *


Later that night.


Cluadia and Fara had wound up at Leeta’s Bar.
They were having a few drinks in the waning hours of the night, and had actually gotten up to quite a few pitchers of beer between them. The remains of a shared pizza sat on a tray off to the side. They chatted quietly about a variety of things and just enjoyed the quiet common atmosphere that Leeta’s Bar provided.
“You got any plans tonight?”
“Nah, I need to go spend some time at my own place tonight.” Fara slurred. “I still gotta live there ya know. At least part time, maybe start redecorating, or something.”
“I could come by and help.” Claudia suggested.
“Why?”
“Well, you are moving on, you are always going to have your memories of Nikolai, but if you change up your quarters a bit you might be more prone to going home instead of crashing with your Captain.” Claudia said hushedly.
“Yeah you might be right.” Fara frowned, every time she went there it was all she could think about. Maybe a change would help having someone there to facilitate her. “Come buy around 10, we can start then.”
“Good we’ll make a day of it.” Claudia said, glancing over Fara’s shoulder. “Hey did you notice that old coot at the end of the bar has been checking you out?” She said hushedly.
Fara turned to look and saw a middle aged Cornerian in a battered green flight suit wearing a pair of aviator glasses with a beige old style flight jacket sitting at the bar seeming to mind his own business.
“Him?” Fara said, turning back to Claudia.
“Mmhmm.” Claudia said, keeping an eye on him. “Of course he’s not doing it now but he was.”
Fara turned again and looked at him long and hard, there was something familiar about him but she couldn’t put her finger on it.
“Look, you want me to tell him to shove off?” Claudia growled, cracking her knuckles.
“No.” Fara said, sounding distant. “I’ll see you tomorrow, I could use a little time to just sit here and think.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure.”
“Ok, if you insist.” Claudia shrugged. “Have a good night boss.”
“Thanks, see you tomorrow.” Fara said, smiling at her.
Claudia got up and made her way out of the bar.
“Hon, I think you should call it a night and go home.” Leeta said, trying to take the remaining half full pitcher of beer.
“Leave… it.” Fara hiccuped.
“I’m not filling it again,” Leeta said, snatching the pitcher and putting it under the bar. “I don’t like the look in your eyes, you are cut off.”
“If you say so.” Fara scowled, finishing her glass.
“Last call was a while ago and I want to go home, bar closes in thirty minutes.” Leeta hissed. “I suggest you sober up and stagger back home.”
Fara frowned. “Maybe I’m not quite ready to do that.”
“I’ll take care of her.” A voice down the bar spoke up.
“I don’t need anyone taking care of me.” Fara said blearily.
She heard a soft chuckle and the blurry figure ordered a coffee for her.
“Black two sugars, dab of honey right?”
“Yeah… lucky guess.” Fara said a bit suspicious.
“Barkeep if you wouldn’t mind? Put it on my tab.”
Leeta nodded and fetched the beverage.
The strange Fox that had been looking at her was standing not too far away. “Is this seat taken?”
“Not at the moment.” Fara said she felt a bit uneasy as the strangers' looks seemed very familiar, almost too familiar. There was something about this star jockey but she couldn’t put her mind on it. She glanced over at Leeta who was watching with concern out of the corner of her eye. They were the only three people left in the bar this time of night. “Do I know you?”
The stranger chuckled. “I get around, you might have seen me anywhere.”
The stool creaked as he sat on it, Leeta came by and delivered the coffee to Fara and the stranger paid.
“Thanks.” She said, taking a sip of the coffee. “You are a ways from home aren’t you?”
“I could say the same to you.” He said smiling.
“You know the lighting in here is pretty comfortable, you don’t need to wear those aviator glasses.” Fara quipped.
He chuckled and removed them. “They were my fathers'. I keep them for good luck.” He said stuffing one of the arms in his flight jackets pockets. Fara admired his green eyes, he was quite handsome for an older fox.
“A lot of Cornerians went to Starfleet, I didn’t think even the upper class were setting up shop out here.” He mused.
“How’d you know I’m a rich girl?” Fara chuckled.
“It’s in your face, your sculptured features, only obtained by lots of careful selective breeding, you definitely aren’t a mutt like me.” He chuckled. “You may be a bit banged up and grew your hair out, and some lines under eyes, missing a chunk of your ear, from work or something else, but it’s still there.”
“You are very observant.” Fara chuckled.
“So, of all the places in the galaxy, what are you doing out here?” the stranger inquired with what sounded like equal curiosity, concern possibly apprehension.
“What business is it of yours?” Fara said, still drinking the coffee.
“Just curious is all.”
“I’m Starfleet, that’s all you need to know,” Fara replied. “I’m not on duty is all.”
“Really?” The stranger said intrigued.
“Chief Engineer Commander Phoenix of that mean-looking monster they keep locked indoors.” She gestured in the direction of the docking bay.
“How long have you been doing that?”
“Three years?” Fara said sipping more coffee feeling the caffeine slowly drag her back to her senses.
“Really?” The stranger said, pondering this deeply.
“Well Two years, it took a little over a year to build the damn thing,” Fara said hiccupping. “Thanks for the coffee, that’s all you’re getting for thanks,” Fara said her vision getting slightly less blurry. “I could use more.”
“Of course.” The stranger nodded and motioned for Leeta to bring over more, the Eviasin did so before returning to watching warily from the other side of the bar.
“What do they call you?” Fara asked.
The older fox hesitated a bit before finally saying. “James.”
“Jim work?”
“No.”
“Ok, James it is.”
“And your Fara Phoenix.” James said.
“How do you know that?”
“You have a reputation around here, your crewmates speak of you a lot.” The older fox explained. “When you came in here with your friend, it didn’t take a lot to deduce that.”
The stranger was quiet for a moment. He put both his hands on the bar, fingers interlaced in front of him as if he was pondering some sort of decision.
“So… what brought you out here Fara?” He said like he was tripping over the words.
“It just sort of happened…. I woke up without a head full of broken memories and started on the Pathfinder project. Nothing that exciting.” Fara said starting on the second cup. “After that, it’s been Urtheans, Space Monsters, Terrorists, and lots and lots of repairs.”
“Do you have anybody?” The stranger asked, his face steeled, his green eyes staring straight ahead as if he was locked in some inner struggle.
“What business is it of yours?” Fara said, shooting him a withering glare.
“Well even an old dog like me has a Companion, well more than that a family now. Might even be a grandpa someday.” He shrugged. “The galaxy isn’t so cold when you have someone beside you.”
“I, do.” Fara said. “It’s none of your business who though.”
“I never assumed it was, Fara.” The stranger said.
“You are one weird Fox, James.” Fara said, chuckling.
“I’ve been called worse.” He shrugged, smiling at her, although it was a sad forced smile. He stood up and waved Leeta over to close his tab as Fara finished her coffee feeling the caffeine punch through the haze of the beer as she sobered up.
“My ship should be ready, I need to get back to it.”
“Wait.” Fara said, grabbing the sleeve of his jacket.”
James looked at her hand and then at her.
“I have a feeling, a really weird feeling like I know you from somewhere.” Fara said. “I see it in your eyes, like you know me, why is that?”
James gently took her hand from his jacket. “Maybe we knew each other in another life? Who knows? Take care Fara.” He then gently moved away and exited the bar.
Fara watched him go, her ears drooping down, she felt a strange connection to him that she couldn’t place and now he was leaving. Why was that, why now of all times?
James, had disappeared into the bustling promenade by the time Fara reached the doorway of Leeta’s. The sudden sprint from her seat at the bar to catch up had aggravated her thigh injury, a dull ache blossoming into a sharp pain that caused her to yelp and nearly lose her balance.
Cursing under her breath, Fara fumbled for the cane she kept tucked into a pocket of her lab coa t. With a flick of her wrist, it extended, and she used it to steady herself, hobbling into the throng of people. The late-night crowd, a mix of workers, tourists, and those who simply never slept, parted reluctantly around her as she pushed through, her eyes scanning for any sign of the fox. But he was nowhere to be seen.
Her heart pounding, Fara hurried towards the observation bay, her mind racing. She tried to remember what she'd seen from Harry's quarters earlier - the Cornerian frigate, yes, but where had it been approaching from? Which airlock? Time seemed to slow as she navigated the maze-like corridors, the pain in her thigh a constant reminder of her urgency.
Finally, she reached the bay and rushed to the window, her breath catching in her throat. There it was - the four-winged assault carrier, not a frigate as she'd initially thought, detaching from the airlock and reversing out of its slot.
"WAIT!" Fara screamed, pounding on the thick window in desperation, knowing even as she did so that it was futile. The ship was too far away, the bay was a vacuum designed to contain the roar of launches, not transmit the desperate pleas of a lone engineer.
A wave of despair washed over her as she watched helplessly. The old red and white assault carrier, a relic of a bygone war, exited the space dock and passed through the massive doors, taking with it the fox and the answers she so desperately sought. Fara staggered back, her legs giving out, and she collapsed onto a nearby couch.
Panting, she rubbed her throbbing thigh, the dull ache now a fiery burn. Tears welled up in her eyes, blurring the view of the empty space dock. She felt a sense of overwhelming defeat, the weight of her failure pressing down on her. With a trembling hand, she tapped her combadge and called for Medical, her voice barely above a whisper.

* * *


Doctor Okan, with a reassuring tone, informed Fara that her injury was thankfully just a pulled muscle. Relief washed over Fara, but it was short-lived as Okan explained that if she desired a muscle relaxer, she would need to undergo a quick detox process. This involved taking detox pills and remaining under observation for at least an hour. Although hesitant, Fara understood the necessity and reluctantly agreed, swallowing the pills with a gulp of water.
Okan instructed her to continue hydrating and to make herself as comfortable as possible on the biobed. He assured her he would check on her in ten minutes, and if her system was clear of toxins, he would administer the muscle relaxer and she could be on her way.
Fara settled onto the biobed, adjusting her position to ease the discomfort in her thigh. The sharp pain had subsided into a dull ache, and the promise of imminent relief brought her a measure of comfort. Lying on her back seemed to alleviate the worst of it.
As she lay there, her thoughts drifted to the enigmatic stranger and the inexplicable emotions he evoked within her. Her mind conjured fragmented, disjointed images of forgotten memories, leaving her bewildered and unsettled. A deep sigh escaped her lips. Perhaps one day, she mused, she would encounter James again and persuade him to open up. It was evident he possessed knowledge about her that she lacked, and there was something more she had glimpsed in his eyes besides sadness—a flicker of restrained revulsion.
That, more than anything, was what disturbed her the most.



The End