1
Commander Hwiii slept peacefully in his water-filled quarters aboard the runabout Tursiops. After two weeks of debates and discussions concerning the Amicus Construction Facility on Kithrup (of which he was a major part of), Hwiii welcomed the free time during the journey back to the EHB Stenos. He hadn't even set the computer to its maximum warp speed. He was a good six hours out.
He was in a deep sleep, not an easy feat for a dolphin, dreaming about a battle, a huge battle, in which he commanded the Stenos and was making quick work of the enemy. He didn't know who the enemy was or why he was fighting them, but he loved every second of it. He held the highest position of any neo-fin in Starfleet (the first officer of the Stenos ), but to command a starship, well, that was only a dream. Neo-dolphins were relatively new to being in space. But they were great at it, at least by human standards.
Suddenly, the computer sensed a tachyon surge behind the runabout. Searching its data banks, it looked for any correlation of the phenomena. Then, it found one: a Klingon cloaking device. Knowing that the Klingons were possibly hostile, it followed the primary automated hostility situation contingency, which consisted of slowing the ship to impulse, raising the shields, and arming the runabout's limited weaponry.
Hwiii heard the alert siren, and immediately awoke. He was so startled that he hit his tail on the celling of his quarters. Cursing silently, he oriented himself to the situation.
"Computer," he said in his high, squeaky voice, "what is our status?" Suddenly, he felt the runabout take a direct hit, from what felt like the rear.
"The Tursiops is under attack by two Vor'cha class Klingon attack cruisers and an unidentified Klingon vessel. Aft shields are at 73 percent, weapons are armed."
"Fire at will!" Hwiii shouted, astonished at the computer's lack of self-preservation. "If I survive this, I'm going to reconfigure that computer with my own fins" he thought to himself. He swam to his 'harness', which permitted him to move about the ship and kept him alive outside his quarters. It was tethered to the far wall, receiving a steady stream of the drug which kept his skin moist and from drying out. By now its storage tank was nearly full.
He swam into it, and feeling it tap his dorsal fin, instructed it to activate. It reeled in its cord and closed around Hwiii's flippers. He felt another hit, and swam out of his door into the bridge area.
He came up to the control panel, and instructed the harnesses's two 'waldow arms' to take control of the runabout with his neural impulses. With the speed of human hands, he turned the craft about so that its damaged aft section was out of harm's way. What he saw was two smaller cruisers flanking an immense craft easily as large as the Stenos herself.
"Holy shit!" he thought to himself as he manually dodged huge blasts from the large cruiser's cannon. Being successful, he fired his own phasers. They bounced harmlessly off the ship's shields. Disgusted, he turned the ship and attacked one of the other Vor'cha cruisers.
The phasers hit the hull at full strength, digging into the alloy. The cruiser took massive damage to its aft section before it was able to get out of the runabout's firing range.
Now Hwiii's shuttle was in trouble again. All three ships were closing in a triangular formation in an attempt to deny Hwiii's escape. He saw their attack and, utilizing the last power resources of the runabout, fired its entire compliment of torpedoes and maximum phaser blasts at the undamaged Vor'cha cruiser, causing it to explode into a fiery blaze.
The giant cruiser fired two fusion blasts at the Tursiops. Hwiii dodged the first one, but the second found its mark, and the shields were destroyed instantly. Sparks spewed from the bridge panels and Hwiii flew back in surprise, trying to avoid the fiery shower. The runabout was dead in space.
"Computer, damage report" Hwiii said, picking himself up from the rear of the bridge.
"Shields and phasers offline. Hull integrity at 88%." Suddenly, the craft shook as the cruiser's tractor beam locked onto it. Hwiii looked out of the window, and saw the runabout being pulled closer to the underside of the cruiser. He tried to think of some way to escape, or at least to go down fighting, but the shuttle was in ruins.
Then he got an idea. "Computer," he began, "set self-destruct timer to ten seconds, begin countdown on my mark."
"Security code required for self-destruct activation." The computer said as Hwiii swam out the bridge toward the transporter.
He hissed in annoyance. "Authorization Hwiii, First officer. Security code tursiops-tursiops-4-4-5-gamma-9!"
"Authorization valid. Awaiting signal." It replied. By this time Hwiii was already inputting the transport coordinates into the controller console. He set the timer to fifteen seconds, and swam up onto the pad as he counted down silently to himself. When he got to five, he told the computer "Begin countdown."
The transporter activated. He was transported to what turned out to be the mess hall. He immediately darted toward the door, and less than five feet from it, one of the dining Klingons leapt out at the intruder and grabbed him by his tail.
This only infuriated Hwiii. With lightning speed he whirled around and firmly clamped his needle-sharp teeth down on the Klingon's other hand. The warrior yelled in surprise and pain, and just as he let go and Hwiii was freed from his grasp, the runabout exploded.
Hwiii had set the coordinates to as far away from the detonation site as possible, but even here he felt the ship as it rocked from the blow. Caught by surprise, nearly every person in the bar jumped off their chair and out the doors. Even as the last few filed out, the ship was still rocking from the explosion.
The room was nearly empty, except for three who had cowered under their table when the commotion started. Amazed at the sudden emptiness of the room, Hwiii turned toward the door, and as it opened, was greeted by five Klingons with their disruptors leveled at his rostrum.

2
"You haven't had any cramps, any bleeding or anything?"
"Nope, nothing."
"Well, you're halfway there. In another six months you and Hwiii will have a brand-new calf." Chief Medical Officer Makanee said, as Commander Laka turned right-side-up and swam with Makanee to her office in the sickbay complex.
"How did he take the news?" Makanee asked, while entering information in her computer.
"Well, he was a little surprised, at first. He couldn't believe I kept it from him for so long."
"Well, you look fine. Just keep doing what you've been doing and in half a year you'll be rewarded."
"It seems so long." Laka said, stretching her fins.
"Well, you're fit to return to duty. Report back to me immediately if you experience any unusual symptoms."
"Thanks. I will." With that Laka turned and swam out of the Sickbay and toward the turbolift to the bridge.

On the bridge, things were as they usually were: calm. The captain and second officers were talking, the navigation and communications officers were doing work at their own consoles, and the rest of the bridge crew were quietly chatting and laughing. Then Commander Laka swam in and took her station at tactical.
"Commander, welcome back!" Captain Johnson said, getting up. Laka turned.
"It's good to be back." She said.
"You were only gone a half-hour!" Kris said, standing next to her and stroking her moist back.
"I know, but I miss being here." She said with a slight smile.
"Well," He said, "how's the calf?"
"Makanee says he's doing fine."
"That's great. I'm happy for you two." He patted her a couple of times, and then strode back to his own chair. "Laka, would you hail Mister Hwiii and ensure that he's still on course?"
"Gladly." She turned back around smiling, and tapped a few buttons. Then her smile faded.
"I'm not reading the Tursiops anywhere within sensor range, but I am picking up sufficient debris to assume that... oh my god." She stared at the viewscreen, stunned at the thought of her only love, of Hwiii, dead from attack. It couldn't be possible.
"Captain," Commander Allgeyer said, "I am picking up two ships on long range sensors heading bearing 383 mark 45, at approximately warp 8.5. I am unable to identify their configuration at this range."
"Well, I think those two ships are our best bet at figuring out what's happened here. Commander, lay in a pursuit course, maximum warp."
"Course laid in."
"Engage!"

3
The Stenos easily caught up with the two ships traveling at less than their maximum speed. When they were in weapons range, Johnson gave new orders.
"Hail the lead vessel. Instruct them to disengage their warp drive or we will fire on them."
"Sending message now." King said. "They are increasing speed."
"All rightey then. Laka, fire a type-one spread in their path, minimum detonation yield."
"Yes sir." Laka suddenly broke out of her trance, which she had held the entire time since she had discovered that Hwiii might be dead. "Firing."
The torpedoes detonated in front of the cruiser. The two ships slowed out of warp.
"Full stop" Johnson ordered. "Finally got their attention."
"Captain, the cruiser is coming about. She's arming her weapons." Laka said.
"Red alert!" Sirens blared and red warning lights flashed on and off. "Tactical analysis, Commander!"
"The cruiser's weapons rival those of the Stenos, and may exceed our capacity." She suddenly turned to her console. "They're firing!"
"Full power to shields!' Johnson yelled. The ship shook violently as the cruiser's fusion blasts ripped into its shields.
"Outer shields down! Inner shields at 88 percent and holding!" said the dolphin.
"Return fire! Full disruptors! Evasive pattern delta-gamma-daystar!"
The Stenos dove under the cruiser, firing its phasers as it pulled back around for another pass from behind. The twin disruptor cannons tore the top decks of the Klingon ship from its hull.
"Maneuvering successful! The cruiser's shields are at 80 percent!" said Laka.
"Come about for another pass!"
"They're firing again! And the escort ship is too!"
"Brace for impact! Evasive-"
Johnson was thrown from his chair before he could yell the rest of the command. Sparks flew in fiery arcs as electrical conduits overloaded and exploded. Commander Laka was thrown from her console as it melted from fire. Lights went out all over the bridge for a moment, and then dimmer lighting came on in its place after the din ended.
"Main power offline! Phasers not responding! Shields are DOWN!" Second officer Joe Caruso said.
Johnson got off the floor and back into his chair. He coughed from the smoke clouding the bridge. "Engage cloaking device! Move us off!"
"Cloaking device not functional!" Rachelle yelled from the rear of the bridge as she helped Laka get up.
"Get us out of here, maximum warp!"
"Aye sir! Maximum warp!" Ed Allgeyer said from his console. The Stenos veered off the cruiser's third attack and disappeared in a small flash of light.

4
"The Stenos has engaged her warp drive" the navigational officer aboard the Ts'chak said. "They are leaving at warp 9.95."
"Course?" asked the captain.
"None apparent. They appear to be merely retreating."
"What is our status?"
"Shields at 80 percent, dorsal hull severely damaged, aft photon torpedo launchers offline."
"Get the repair crews to work! I want this ship fully operational within the hour! And resume our course to Qo'noS."
"Yes captain." said the navigational officer before turning to his panel to input the coordinates.
"And bring the prisoner up to the bridge!"
Hwiii was escorted by six guards - he had already tried to escape again - through the huge doors leading to the bridge. The commanding officer stared into his delphine eyes; Hwiii stared angerly back.
"I am captain K'maht of the Ts'chak!" The Klingon bellowed. "What is your name and rank?" Hwiii simply stared at him.
"I grow tired of asking this, but I will give you one more chance. What is your name?" He pulled out his own disruptor to emphasize his point.
"My name is Hwiii." Said the dolphin.
"What is your position aboard the Stenos?"
"First officer."
"Very good. Maybe I won't have to turn you over to K'temok. He is looking for a mate." The captain turned in the direction of the navigation officer along with Hwiii, and he smiled a long, sinister grin and growled softly at the dolphin.
Hwiii turned to K'maht in disgust. "Are you gay, or just stupid?" he asked.
The captain looked puzzled, a look on a Klingon that was new to Hwiii. "But are you not - female?"
"NO! No, I'm not FEMALE! What in god's name gave you that idea?"
"But you have no-"
Hwiii cut him off. "I'm a dolphin. I do have one. It's just in a different - place. Now if you want do discuss cetacean anatomy, I suggest you consult our Medical Staff."
"When we get to the homeworld you will be taken to a holding cell, where you will be tortured and interrogated. I suggest you cooperate, or else your friends on the Stenos will loose a crew member."
"So you're going to return me if I give you what you want?"
"In time, yes."
"What do you want?"
"You will find out when the time comes." He turned to his escorts. "Take the prisoner back to his cellblock!"
The dolphin and six armed guards passed through the door to the intra-deck lift.

5
"Jim! Get me a power inverter!" Yelled chief engineer Michael Aarsvold to the dolphin assistant.
"Here!" The dolphin came up to Michael carrying a rounded cube in its mouth.
Aarsvold yanked it from him. "How many times have I told you not to carry things in your mouth, Jim?" He asked, annoyed.
"Sorry Mike, won't happen again." The dolphin did a backflip and turned around, heading toward the engineering office.
Aarsvold fitted the inverter into a slot in a panel. "Silly fin" he thought as he locked the instrument into place, and chuckled.

On the bridge, things were anything but normal. Fen darted all around, repairing the damage as quickly as possible. Dolphins even worked on the hull outside the ship, tethered with long umbilicals.
"Main power has been restored" Caruso said as the lights on the bridge brightened, along with the activation of all the wall readouts and panels.
"Well, how long until we're operational, Malia?" Johnson said to one dolphin working to his right on the bridge engineering station.
The fin looked up from her welding job. "Since the starboard power coupling was damaged, we've got at least an hour's worth of repairs, maybe longer."
"Thanks." He said, and tapped his comm badge. "Johnson to Aarsvold."
"Aarsvold here."
"Mike, we need to speed up repairs, like, a lot. How long until we have full weapons?"
"I'm sorry Kris, but I'm moving as fast as I can. I've got every crewman and crewfin on repairs, but we're still about an hour away from full capacity."
"Thanks Auzzie." Said the captain. "Johnson out."

Hwiii found his holding cell - well, bare. It was totally devoid of any kind of comfort. He also had another problem: his tank of fin-so-soft (what they called the drug that kept their skin from drying out), was nearly empty. He had only an hour or so left of the substance that kept him from severe pain. He would either have to be in water, or find some way of synthesizing the drug.
He could ask the Klingons, of course, but they most likely had no idea how to get it, as he didn't either, and they probably didn't care. But he was a valuable prisoner, with secrets on every intricacy of the Stenos .
Then, he got an idea. If there was some way he could signal the Stenos, and at least tell Laka and the rest of the crew he was ok and where they were taking him, maybe he wouldn't even have to worry about running out of the fin-so-soft.
He looked around. Was there anything he could use for a communications device? The only device in the room was the interior wall panel, which controlled the door (if it wasn't locked), the lights, and the environment. He swam over to it.
With a little effort he got the panel off. But how could he use it to his advantage? All the panel did was operate a door, heating and cooling systems, and lighting intensity...
THAT'S IT! Intensity! He could wire his harness communicator through the panel to amplify its signal! He'd need to regulate the voltage very carefully, but by running the communicator through the ship and using the ship as a huge antenna, he could be heard for light-years!
He began to work at disconnecting the power supply from the panel. Finally he found it and pulled it out, and the room went dark.
"Shit" he said as he telepathically instructed his harness lights to activate. He knew that if he accidentally disconnected the environmental controls, he would suffocate quickly.
He continued working.

6
"Aarsvold to bridge!"
"Bridge, Johnson here." Kris said. He was hoping Mike had some good news.
He did. "Kris, I don't know how, but Takkata-jim and Moki just got the PTC back up! We're back in business!"
"Give my thanks to all the fen, Auzzie!" Kris said. "Johnson out!"
Laka turned to him. "Should I recall the workers on the hull?"
"Yes! Please, commander." He turned to Allgeyer. "Commander Allgeyer, set a course for the Klingon ships, maximum warp!"
"Sorry sir, I can't locate them anywhere!"
"They must be cloaked, then. Damn! There's no way we'll find them in time!"
Laka knew he was right.

Hwiii had just finished the last connection when he noticed a problem. Each room had its own power source in conjunction to its main ship feed. To prevent frying his harness with raw energy, he had to use the room's power source. However, it only supplied enough power for one system at a time. He would have to disconnect the room's environment control in order to use the communicator.
He prepared a short, cryptic message - he knew the ship's sensors would pick it up, but hopefully dismiss it as electric 'noise'. Unfortunately, due to advances in artificial 'gill' systems, dolphins now had a smaller lung capacity than their predecessors, because of the fact they had to hold their breath less often. Taking a deep breath, he disconnected the room's system and connected his communicator. He then activated the communicator and programmed the message to send.
The harness computer processed the message much slower than any normal ship computer. It took a full ten minutes to send the message. By the time the harness notified him his lungs burned and he was starting to feel light-headed. He yanked out the harness link and plugged back in the room feed. As soon as he felt the air on his skin, he let out a powerful breath. It was so loud he hoped that the guards outside the door didn't hear him and come in to see what was going on.
He quickly reassembled the panel and swam to the far wall to rest. He finally caught his breath, and hoped that the Klingons didn't think a little dolphin under surveillance could send a message back to his ship.
And if they did, he hoped to god they found him a valuable enough hostage.

7
"Brace for impact!" The captain yelled as the static wave hit the Stenos. The ship shook in its wake.
"Damage report!"
"Reports coming in... no serious damage, no casualties" Commander Allgeyer reported.
"Captain," King started, "The wave left a residual charge on our sensors. I'm running a scan now." The bridge was silent for about 15 seconds, and then Commander King's panel beeped.
"Well?"
"It's some type of code!"
"Let's see it, then!" Johnson said, his hoped soaring.
A series of numbers appeared on the main viewscreen.
"Can you decode it?"
"Yes, I think so." A line of text appeared below the numbers.
Johnson read it out loud. "Low F-S-S, to Homeworld, Hwiii ok." He had a look of astonishment for an instant. "It's from Hwiii! They're taking him to the Homeworld! Set a course and engage at maximum speed!"
"Aye captain, engaging now!" Allgeyer said.
"And activate the cloaking device!"

On the bridge of the Ts'chak, things were going as normal when suddenly a great charge surrounded the ship, bringing nearly every system temporarily offline.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?" Yelled the captain as his chair became deactivated.
The communications officer answered him. "Unknown as yet. There appears to be some sort of static shell encasing... wait a minute, it's gone! For a minute there I could swear that-"
"I don't want theories! What the hell just caused every system on this ship to go dead? Did our cloaking device deactivate?"
"No sir, we are still cloaked and holding course and speed. The shell appeared to not affect the warp field and cloaking shields."
The captain thought for a moment. "Could it be that, that thing in cell block 4479?"
"No, I don't believe so, it was probably caused by some type of interference from the cloaking device, probably battle damage."
"Can we remain cloaked?"
"I don't see any reason not to. I'll monitor our cloaking status carefully."
"Be sure that you do. How long until we arrive?"
"Approximately two hours."
"Increase speed to warp 9.6."
"Yes sir."

8
In cellblock 4479, Hwiii was fighting to resist the urge to rip off his harness and let himself die. His supply of FSS had run out twenty minutes ago, and he was just beginning to feel the intense pain where his harness rubbed against his skin. It felt like sandpaper hard against his smooth exterior. He knew that soon the rest of his body would start to feel the same way.
He couldn't believe that the cell didn't have any running water. Not even a lavatory. At least on Federation ships, you got a sink. That's all he wanted, to wash his skin off so that it may soak up the moisture.
Against his better judgment, he rapped the door with his tail.
"What is it?" One of the Klingons yelled.
Hwiii thought for a moment about what to say. "I need water," he started, "otherwise I could die."
"I will ask the captain." The guard said.
After a couple of minutes, he yelled back to Hwiii. "We will transport some water to your room. Stay near the door."
A pool that filled about three-fourths of the room and that was about three feet deep appeared. Hwiii guessed it to be about eight feet in circumference. It was filled nearly to the top with crystal-clear water.
"They must like me!" Hwiii thought as he set his harness on the edge of the pool and dove in. It felt wonderful. Maybe being a prisoner wasn't so bad after all.

The senior staff met in the conference room to review possible rescue methods of Commander Hwiii.
"We could just blast the hell out of everything, and when we find Hwiii, transport him up and get the hell out of there!" Allgeyer said.
"Yeah, and when we drop our shields to transport, the cruiser could decloak and blast us to space dust. No, I don't think so."
Laka went next. "What if we took a cloaked shuttle to look for him?"
"The only shuttles with cloaking devices are the AM-4's, and we won't be getting them until next week. All we have are AM-2L's and SN-6's."
"Well, I could modify an SN-6 to be fitted with a cloaking device" Aarsvold said.
"How?"
"I'd need to remove most of its weaponry and shield emitters for the energy the cloak would require. However, I cannot guarantee the stability of the cloaking device."
"All right. Do it. How much time will you need to make the modifications?"
"One hour should be fine."
"You've got it. Laka and Allgeyer, meet in the main shuttlebay at 1830 hours. Dismissed."

9
"Slow to impulse!" the captain of the Ts'chak growled. "Bring us into orbit of the homeworld! Prepare the prisoner for deportation!"
"Yes captain" the security officer said.

Hwiii was enjoying himself immensely in the pool when the armed Klingon team came to his cell door to take him down to the planet.
The door opened, and Hwiii opened his eyes from resting. "You are to come with us" the team leader said.
"Go away!" Hwiii squealed back at him.
"You come now, or we kill you!"
Hwiii rose higher out of the pool. "I'm sure you would kill me when I have information on every tactical detail of the-"
Hwiii's response was cut short when one of the group fired at Hwiii from the rear. Hwiii let out a loud squeal as he flew back and slammed into the opposite wall of the pool. The water turned pink from the blood.
The team leader turned. "Who fired that shot?"
"I did" one of the officers said. "He will live."
"You will die" Said the leader as he pointed his disruptor at the disobeying officer and created a large hole in his torso.
He turned back to Hwiii, who was struggling to turn himself over. There was a medium-sized wound on the left side of his belly. "Get a medical team up here immediately!"

"Captain, I'm reading a tachyon field directly ahead!" Allgeyer suddenly said.
"Full stop! Report!"
"The field appears to encompass an area of roughly 900 million square kilometers. Any cloaked ship passing through it would be immediately detectable."
"Can we go around it?"
"That would take an additional 12 hours."
"We don't have that much time. Suggestions, anybody!"
"Sir, the field grid is wide enough to allow passage of a shuttle. We could safely launch the modified SN-6 from here."
"How long would it take them to reach the planet?"
"At full speed, 1 hour."
"Okay, then it shall be. Hold position until further orders, commander."
"Yes sir."

10
The medical team was able to clean Hwiii up reasonably enough to be transported to the surface. There, he was taken to a prisoner cell.
The cell on the Homeworld was a little better than the one on the cruiser. At least it had a sink. But Hwiii was in too much pain to care. The team dumped him inside the door and left. He no longer had his harness, and his wound, while small, was deep. It hurt like hell. And he was stuck where they put him.
He didn't like being a prisoner anymore.

Aarsvold had finished the modifications to one of the shuttles, and had notified Kris and Laka, who would be accompanying him.
The new SN-6 looked more or less normal. It was missing two of its four forward disruptor cannons, and had a curious-looking addition on its back.
"So, we're ready to go?"
"As ready as we'll ever be. I'll need to come along to ensure proper operation of the cloak. She's a little underweaponed, but I was able to use some extra power to increase her maximum speed. It should only take us about 45 minutes to reach the planet now."
"What can we expect as far as resistance?"
"Lots of it. We need to land cloaked, and use our communicators to find our way back to the shuttle. We'll also need to maintain radio silence."
"All right. Laka, Aarsvold, let's go. Johnson to bridge!"
"Caruso here, sir."
"We're beginning the mission. All systems monitor in case of attack. If there's any threat to the ship or crew, I want you to get out of here. Forget about us."
"Yes sir. Good luck."
"Thanks. We'll need it. Johnson out."
The SN-6 left the Stenos while both ships were cloaked. The first 40 minutes of the journey to the planet passed uneventfully.
"We're nearing the planet." Aarsvold said.
"All right, prepare for landing. Laka, have you scanned for Hwiii?"
"Yes, and I believe I found him. I'm transferring the coordinates to you."
Aarsvold and Johnson studied the location where Hwiii was thought to be held. "It will take us about 10 minutes to reach it" Johnson said.
"We're entering the atmosphere." Aarsvold reported.

11
"Commander! I am reading an atmospheric distortion over the east hemisphere!" Said the tactical officer on the Ts'chak.
"Is it a ship?"
"Unknown as yet. If it is, it's got to be a shuttlecraft. But-"
"But what?"
"I've never seen a cloaked shuttlecraft before!"
"Of course you haven't, you idiot! Cloaked ships are invisible!"
"That's not what I meant-"
"Sound alert! Target the distortion and fire!"

"Commander!" Allgeyer exclaimed. "The shuttle is under attack!"
"How?" Caruso asked, getting up.
"When they entered the planet's atmosphere, the cloaking device created a distortion field around the ship! They might as well not be cloaked!"
"Oh shit." He said.
"Should I open fire?"
"No! Under no circumstance do we decloak! We have to hope they can get out of there alive."

The shuttle was knocked suddenly by an explosion from one side. The crew's hands scrambled frantically over the controls.
"We're under attack!" Aarsvold said.
"Well, duh!" said the dolphin from the rear compartment. "Shields are holding!"
"What happened? Are we still cloaked?"
"Yes, but the planet's atmosphere has created an ionic disturbance around the ship! We're as visible as a Borg cube!"
"Well, won't the disruption go away once we leave the upper atmosphere?"
"Yeah, but we're looking at about two minutes until we do!"
"Not any more!" Kris said, shoving the control stick forward. The shuttle dove nose-first toward the planet.

"The distortion has increased speed!"
"It is a ship! Open fire!"
"Sir, the distortion has just disappeared! They must have left the upper atmosphere!"
"Notify the surface of intruders! Don't let that ship get back up into space!"

12
"We've cleared the upper atmosphere! You can pull us out of this dive now, Kris!"
"Okay" he said as he pulled back on the flight stick. The shuttlecraft obeyed nicely, leveling off.
Laka reported , "We're about 400 miles from the compound. Our E.T.A. is seven minutes, 42 seconds."
Suddenly, the shuttle shook and the control panel lit up like a Christmas tree. "What the hell is going on?" Johnson yelled.
"The cloak is non-functional!"
"Oh great, just great! I'm sure glad we took this plan into action!"
"I can compensate, hang on-"
"Compensate? How?"
"I don't know, just give me a second-"
"Oh my god!" Johnson said, looking at the armada of Klingon GT1 shuttles closing on them from the front.
"Raise shields! Arm weapons and fire!" Aarsvold yelled, seeing the oncoming flotilla.

"I have estimated their location by their trajectory angle, captain!"
"Lock target and fire!"
"Direct hit! Their cloak has disengaged!"
"Scan target and alert ground-based units!"
"It appears to be an attack craft of some type, fast and moderately armed, three passengers. Two are human, the other is a dolphin!"
"The Stenos! Damn those fools! They have only now guaranteed their demise! Have the tachyon field extended outward by 9 million kellicams! Find the Stenos!"

The SN-6, although more lightly armed, was still a capable fighter, and destroyed three of the Klingon ships before it had even taken damage itself. But the Klingon ships, upon passing the shuttle, promptly came about and opened fire.
"Hit to the aft section! Shields at 79 percent and holding!"
"Increase speed to maximum!"
"They're still gaining! And firing!" Aarsvold said. The shuttle sustained a direct hit on its port impulse engine, disabling it and throwing the vessel into a spin.
"We've lost port propulsion!" Yelled Johnson, trying to control the situation as the remaining six GT1 shuttles flew past them.
"Powering down engines!" Laka said. "We can still use the remaining impulse engine as long as we carefully vector the thrust to cancel out-"
"I don't care, just do it!" Johnson yelled.
Aarsvold said, "Engaging impulse drive!" as the craft jumped forward, plowing into the GT1 shuttle group. The Klingon ships scattered around them like fish in a pond, and regrouped behind to attack.
"Aft shields buckling! Aft torpedo launcher destroyed!" Laka yelled as Johnson pulled the shuttle into an escape maneuver. The little craft shuddered from the lack of power as Johnson completed the maneuver.
"Hey, take it easy! This isn't a normal SN-6!" Aarsvold said.
"Stop yer yapping and get to work on that cloaking device!" Kris scolded him.
"It's totally destroyed! There's no way I could get it to work again!"
"Either that or surrender to the Kling-" Johnson stopped the shuttle just in time to avoid an array of ground-based disruptor fire. He quickly turned the craft around and sped off again.
"Nice move Kris!"
"Thank you Laka!"
"But we're going in the wrong direction!" She added.
"You know, you're right!" Johnson said, and brought the ship into a tight turn. The engines stalled halfway through.
"Punch it! Punch it!" Aarsvold yelled.
"I'm trying!" Johnson said, attempting to get the last ounce of energy from the little craft, but there was none left. The GT1 squadron had reappeared, and was headed directly toward them. Then Johnson got an idea.
"Diverting power from weapons to propulsion!" He said, working the control console.
"There's not enough power in the weapons system to power the-"
"That's not what I was intending." Johnson stared at Aarsvold.
Laka spoke up from the rear. "I hope you're not thinking what I think you're thinking!"
"I am, Laka! Hang on!" With that Johnson activated the program he had input moments before. The craft surged forward and, at the same time, the cockpit detached from the rest of the ship and flew upwards.
"You humans are craaaaaaaaaaazy!" Laka yelled as the crew were thrown away from the fighter, now speeding towards the GT1s at full speed. Just as the engines gave out the craft exploded, sending flames in every direction and destroying the entire squadron. The cockpit sprouted a parachute and floated gently, nose-first, down to the surface. As it settled Johnson opened the canopy and looked around.
"Looks like we're alone!" He said to the other two.
"Wrong, human" said a deep voice from behind them.

13
"Commander, the tachyon field is expanding. It will reach our position in fifteen seconds!" Allgeyer reported.
"Back us off commander, one-half impulse."
"Aye sir. The field has stopped moving."
"Full stop. They're looking for us, eh?
"It would seem that way. Uh-oh."
"What?"
"The cruiser is moving towards us at full impulse."
"Have they spotted us?"
"No sir, cloaking device still functional. And I can't get a reading on the away team. The cruiser is emitting a scattering field. Our sensors are useless."
"Hold our position. King, Radio Starfleet for assistance."
"Aye commander."

Laka, Johnson, and Aarsvold were led away from the cockpit of the SN-6 to the prison building. As they were led away, Aarsvold attempted an escape. The officers shot and killed him as he turned to run.
"You bastards! Unfeeling, cold-" Johnson cursed.
"Silence!" a Klingon bellowed. "If you speak again, I will kill you." He tapped his and Laka's back with his disruptor. "Follow me" he said.
He led them to the prison building, to the very same cell that had held Hwiii just minutes before they got there, but they didn't know that, and the guard didn't tell them. The officer shoved them in, and activated the forcefield.

"This is the LAST TIME I will ask you this, fish! What is the Stenos's maximum phaser output?"
Hwiii, held upright by a restraining field, stared at him with glazed eyes and kept his jaw shut.
"All right, if you will not speak now, maybe a few more hours in the prison will change your mind! Get him out of here!" said the officer. Two other Klingons deactivated the field, grabbed Hwiii as he fell, and carried him out to the cell.
As the forcefield was lowered and Hwiii's limp body was dragged in, Johnson and Laka both stood up.
"Hwiii!" Laka squealed with joy.
"Commander! Are you all right?" Johnson asked seconds later, as the officers left and the field was reactivated.
Hwiii laid on his side on the floor of the cell, his eyes partly opened. "Krisss...Lak-ka...good...to...ssssee...you...again" his speech was slurred, but the words were intelligible.
"It's good to see you too, Hwiii" Johnson said. "Just hang in there. I'm sure Caruso and the crew are thinking up some kind of rescue plan."
At least, Johnson thought, he hoped they were.

14
"Any response yet, Commander?"
"None yet, sir." Lieutenant-Commander Rachelle King replied. It had been over two hours since they had radioed for assistance.
"Wait a minute sir, I'm receiving a response; secured channel, priority one."
"On viewer!" Caruso said.
The viewer activated, showing an image of the cockpit of an extremely small vessel of some type.
"I am Commander Michael Lorsung, piloting the U.S.S. Velociraptor. Starfleet received your signal for help, and they dispatched me to rendevouz with you. Hold your position, and I will dock in your shuttlebay. Lorsung out." The image then disappeared.
"Well, we asked for help, and I guess we got it! Open the shuttlebay doors and prepare for docking. Allgeyer, keep an eye on that Klingon cruiser. I want to know if they spot us with the shuttlebay open. King, Hikahi, let's meet our guest. Allgeyer, you have the bridge. Let's go."

Hwiii had told Johnson and Laka the story of how he had been captured, how he had sent the message, and how he survived with out his harness.
Johnson said, "I knew it wasn't a good idea to send you without escort ships! Why didn't I-"
Hwiii interrupted. "You can't go about blaming yourself. It'ssss not your fault."
"Yes it is. If I had thought ahead, this would have never happened."
Suddenly the forcefield deactivated and two Klingon officers walked in, grabbed Hwiii, and dragged him out. The field then went back up.
And there wasn't a thing any of them could do about it.

Lorsung and Caruso met privately in the captain's ready room.
"Don't get me wrong," Lorsung began, "I'm not your assistance."
"You're not?" Caruso asked, puzzled.
"Well, I am, but not by any means all of it. Starfleet just sent me to inform you of what they have planned. They're also bringing the Molokai, Smiley, Yukon, Firestorm, and the Lone Wolf. In addition, the Dimension and Shadow are nearby, and they have the option to join if desired."
"Excellent. That will give us a considerable advantage. Any word on the Klingon forces in this area?"
"Well, in addition to the cruiser you encountered, there are at least a dozen attack cruisers and twice...three times that number of birds-of-prey."
"At least we've got that figured out. Now there's one more problem; the captain and the other missing officers."
"Just for that purpose am I here. They've got the Firestorm and Lone Wolf holding position a few kilometers off. Their job will be to occupy the cruiser while we mount a PDQ rescue."
"PDQ?"
"Pretty Damned Quick. Neither one of them will last very long against that cruiser. That's why we need to get out, get in, and get back without getting blown to space dust."
"It sounds like the odds are against us."
"Well, yeah."
"Sounds like fun!"

15
"Any sign of them?" asked Captain K'maht.
"No sir, nothing! It's as if they have just disappeared!"
"No, you fool! They are here, and cloaked! They will show themselves. We only have to wait."
"Sir, surface reports that the captain and another dolphin are in custody and awaiting interrogation!"
"Excellent. Continue scans! I want to know the instant that ship appears!"

"Do you hear that?" Laka suddenly asked Kris.
"Hear what?" he responded.
"I hear screaming...and what sounds like phaser fire!"
"Well, I don't hear-" Suddenly the forcefield disappeared, and through the door stepped Lorsung and Caruso.
"Hello Kris!" Caruso said, lending a hand to help him get up.
"Where's Aarsvold and Hwiii?" Lorsung asked.
"Aarsvold was killed," Kris said, "And Hwiii's in interrogation."
"Well, let's get him and get the hell out of here!"
The team knocked out the interrogation room door and shot the guards. They grabbed Hwiii and, with a person on each side, carried him outside, where the Velociraptor and an SN-6 were waiting.
"Get Hwiii and Laka in the SN-6, I'll take the lead in the Raptor" Lorsung said.
"Hang on a minute," Kris intervened as they helped Hwiii into the fighter, "I might want to take a hand at that ship of yours.
"Be my guest! The thing practically flies itself!" Lorsung said, climbing into the rear seat of the Velociraptor.
"Joe, you can manage the SN-6 all right?"
"Sure! Let's get out of here!"
The two ships lifted off the planet's surface and headed back to the Stenos at full impulse.
Johnson, in the pilot chair, turned to ask Lorsung a question. "So, how exactly did you get past the cruiser?"
"Take a look!" Lorsung motioned to the front. Johnson turned as they cleared the upper atmosphere, and saw two vessels keeping the cruiser occupied. One looked like a Defiant-class ship, and the other, a Soverign-class.
"Who are they?" Kris asked as they flew past them.
"The Defiant-class is the Lone Wolf, and the other is the Firestorm."
"Well, I must say, they sure are doing us a favor. What's our E.T.A.?"
"About 40 minutes."
"You think they'll last that long?"
"Easy. By the time they're destroyed we'll be halfway back home."
Fortunately, the two fighters made it back to the Stenos safely. They docked, and Hwiii was brought to sickbay to care for his wounds. Johnson, Caruso, and Laka met on the bridge.
"Hail the Lone Wolf and Firestorm. Inform them that we no longer require their assistance, and that we are grateful for that which they gave." Johnson said.
"Hailing" Laka said. "Captain Roycraft of the Lone Wolf is responding."
"On screen."
The viewer activated, showing the dimly lit bridge of the USS Lone Wolf .
"Ah, hello Kris." Roycraft said.
"Hello Shaun. I wanted to thank you for your help-"
As he spoke, the Lone Wolf sustained a direct hit. The panel to the rear of Roycraft exploded in a cascade of hot sparks. The captain looked behind him, then faced the viewer again.
"Ah, Kris? Would it be asking too much to request your assistance?"
"Not at all" Kris said, smiling. "How about the Firestorm?"
"How about it? They're in as bad shape as we are." Then Roycraft's ship sustained another hit, sending static across the viewer for a moment.
"We're on our way" Kris said. He gave the signal to end communication. "Battlestations! Laka, set a course for the cruiser, maximum warp. Arm all torpedo tubes with Mark fives. All phaser banks to standby. Energize the phaser cannon, maximum power. Prepare all Amicus fighters for disembarkment. Notify all starships standing by."
"Aye, captain. Weapons systems powering up, phaser cannon charging. Course laid in for the cruiser."
"Sir, I'm reading six attack cruisers and fifteen birds-of-prey approaching the cruiser's position!" Allgeyer said.
"Engage!"

16
"Commander Lorsung to bridge!"
"Bridge, this isn't the best time, commander!"
"I know sir, but I wanted permission to take the Velociraptor out."
"Granted, but be careful."
"Thank you sir! I'll do my best! Lorsung out."
Laka spoke. "Slowing to impulse. We have arrived at the cruiser's position."
"Prepare to uncloak and fire on my signal."
"I'm reading three Federation vessels uncloaking. The Smiley, Molokai, and Shadow, with the Dimension approaching at high warp on short-range sensors."
"All right. Decloak and open fire!"
The Stenos decloaked and fired on the cruiser. The Smiley and Molokai coordinated attacks on the rear section of the giant Klingon vessel, while the Shadow took the front. Temporarily relieved, the Lone Wolf and Firestorm sped away, to assess damage and make temporary repairs before rejoining the fight.
"Captain, the birds-of-prey have engaged the Molokai. Velociraptor uncloaking, attacking one of them...it has been destroyed!" Laka reported.
"The 'Raptor or the bird-of-prey?" Caruso asked.
"The B.O.P. The Dimension has dropped out of warp, approaching the cruiser. Three attack cruisers moving to intercept."
"Okay. Target the cruiser's warp drive. Prepare to fire the phaser cannon. Warn all other ships to move away."
"Aye captain, ready to fire!"
"Fire!"
The phaser cannon powered up and unleashed an incredible blast, which stopped just short of the cruiser, impacting on another, small object.
"What the hell...?" Laka said, punching buttons at her control console.
"What it is, Laka?"
"The cannon didn't even hit the cruiser! It was deflected by a small, metallic object...oh my god."
"What?"
"The Yukon must have flown into the discharge path! It was just incinerated!"
"You're kidding!" Johnson said with disbelief.
"No! I'm not kidding!"
"Well, no big deal. Continue firing. Prepare the cannon for another-"
Suddenly, an armada of Klingon birds-of-prey uncloaked and fired on the Stenos.
"Main power fluctuating!" reported the second-in-command.
"Oh no, not again!" King said.
"Don't worry, I'm sure it's only...OH SHIT!" Caruso said.
The cruiser was just about to fire when the Lone Wolf flew between it and the Stenos , effectively taking the shot and saving the ship. However, the cruiser was able to re-aim and fire again, hitting the Stenos directly.

17
"Direct hit on their forward shields!" said the Ts'chak's tactical officer.
"What is our status?" asked the captain.
"Shields at 78 percent, no other damage. Cannon is now ready!"
"Fire!"

When the second blast hit the Stenos , half of the control consoles exploded, sending officers flying in every conceivable direction.
Rachelle King, upon getting back in her chair after being thrown out of it, gave a systems report. "Primary shields are not functional! Secondary systems at full power!"
"Johnson to Engineering!"
"Engineering, Takkata-jim here, what the hell is going on?"
"I need to get main power back, NOW!"
"All right, I've got my best team on the problem." Suddenly a third blast hit the Stenos. A large explosion and many screams were heard over the speaker, and then, silence.
"Johnson to engineering!" No response. "Engineering, please respond!" Still no answer.
"Laka!"
"Yes captain?" She asked, turning around.
"I'm going down there. Allgeyer, Caruso, you're with me. You have the bridge, Laka. Launch the Amicus squadrons, SN-6 only. Wish me luck." Johnson got up, directed the other officers toward the turbolift, and they stepped in.
"Good luck." Laka said.

Meanwhile, aboard the Firestorm, Captain Kori Prins was quickly running out of options.
The ship shook as it took another hit. "Sir!" the navigation officer began. "The Stenos and Lone Wolf have suffered major damage! And the Smiley has been destroyed!"
The Firestorm was hit again. Sparks flew and smoke spewed from ruptured conduits. "Continue firing! Evasive pattern Delta-Gamma-Six!" Prins said.
"Impulse engines offline! Engineering reports magnetic interlocks are-" Suddenly the officer's panel exploded, sending him flying through the air to the rear of the bridge.
"Engineering to bridge!"
"Bridge, report!" Kori snapped.
"The plasma injectors are fused! We can't take any more hits or we'll loose containment!"
"Back us off, ensign."
"She's not answering the helm!"
Prins stood up. "All hands, abandon ship! Repeat, all hands abandon ship!" He paused. "Computer, set self-destruct, five minutes. Authorization Prins Theta-Theta-Six-Zero-Nine. Mark!"
"Destruct sequence activated. Four minutes fifty-nine seconds to destruct" said the computer.
"All right, let's go!"

18
"Stand back!"
The door to engineering, which had been stuck, was blown open, and Johnson, Caruso, and Allgeyer stepped in. There were dolphins and people darting about among the fires and smoke, trying to get a hold of the situation. The team felt shocks from phaser fire as they ran into the engineering section.
"Captain!" a dolphin said as he swam toward them. He had a large bruise on the side of his body.
"Takkata-jim! What in god's name happened down here?"
"We nearly lost it when we got hit that last time. If it weren't for Rapacz and Moki, we would have surely been destroyed!"
"So what's our condition?" Allgeyer asked.
"We lost both PTCs, so warp power is effectively-" There was a sudden small explosion farther back, and a high dolphin squeal was heard. Jim turned for a moment, and then faced them again.
"-offline. And this time I don't see how we're going to repair the damage without at least two weeks of reconditioning and repairs." The ship shook violently for a moment, and then was steady again.
"I'd better get back to the bridge. Caruso, Allgeyer, stay here to assist."
"Aye sir."

Johnson stepped onto the bridge moments before another explosion ripped into the Stenos . He quickly sat down in his chair. "Report!"
"Main power still offline, cloaking device destroyed, dorsal phaser array is inoperable, shields down to fifty percent-" The Stenos was hit again.
"Make that 45 percent!" Laka added.
"And the cruiser?"
"They've sustained considerable damage."
"Continue firing! Have the fighters been launched yet?"
"Yes sir, leaving the shuttlebay now!"
Nine small fighters sped out of the Stenos's shuttlebay and headed for the Klingon cruiser. They then broke up, attacking various parts of the ship.
"Captain, the Firestorm has launched their escape pods!"
"Cover them!"
"Sir, the Firestorm's warp core is reaching dangerous levels!"
"Back us off! Warn all vessels in the immediate vicinity!"
"It's breaching!"
"All hands brace for impact!"
The Firestorm exploded in a brilliant blaze of fire, vaporizing half of the Klingon cruiser, along with a large portion of the other Klingon forces and the starships Dimension and Shadow . The Stenos was barely out of the blast range.
Johnson, thrown out of his chair, sat down again. "Was the cruiser destroyed?"
Laka responded. "Sir, I don't believe it! Half of the cruiser has been vaporized!"

19
Aboard the Ts'chak , captain K'maht was thrown against a bulkhead and killed instantly as half of his ship vaporized. The second-in-command, Commander Em'li, quickly took command.
"Mistress! All sections aft of 473 have been destroyed! We've lost all power aft of section 445, including warp and impulse drive!"
"Is the main cannon still functional?"
"Yes!"
"Then shut up and continue firing!"

Shaun Roycraft, commanding the Lone Wolf, guided his ship in an attack on the vulnerable aft section of the cruiser.
"Target any power source and fire maximum phasers and quantum torpedoes!" he ordered.
"Firing...direct hit! Their aft shield generators are offline! They've engaged backup systems!"
"Come about for another pass!"
"Sir! Attack cruiser decloaking bearing 180 mark zero! They are firing!" The ship took a direct hit to the aft section.
"Shield status!"
"Aft shields are down! We can't take another hit!"
"They're preparing to fire!" Roycraft braced himself for the explosion, but at just that moment, the Atraiou decloaked and fired a massive phaser cannon blast at the attack cruiser, vaporizing it.
The captain, realizing he was still alive, asked "What happened?"
"It's the Atraiou! They've engaged the cruiser, and destroyed it!" Cheers went up all around the bridge of the Lone Wolf .
"We're being hailed!"
"On screen!"
Captain Blount of the Atraiou appeared. "Captain! Are you all right?"
"Yes Forrest, thank you! I am in your debt!"
"Just cover me while I blow the hell out of this cruiser! Blount out!" The viewer image changed to show the Atraiou speed toward the cruiser and fire multiple cannon blasts, as two additional vessels decloaked and attacked the cruiser as well.
"The Stingray and Prelude just appeared! They've joined the attack!"
"Well what are we waiting for? Full phasers, open fire!"
"With pleasure, sir!"

20
"The cruiser has taken massive damage to its aft section" said Laka.
"Shield status?"
"Down to twelve percent. I'm reading three vessels decloaking as well, bearing 067 mark 102! They're the Atraiou, Prelude, and Stingray!"
"Continue firing pattern! We're almost there!"

Aboard the Stingray , Captain Andy Gabatino was guiding his crew in an attack pattern.
"Keep her bow up! Target scanners and life support!"
"Aye, captain! Direct hit to lateral scanning array! They're essentially blind!
"Continue firing!"

The Prelude was making quick work of several birds-of-prey in the area.
"Use the photons! Don't give them time to cloak again!" Captain Jacobson ordered.
"Hit on the cruiser's shield generators! Their shields are down!"
"Captain! They're firing!"
"Full power to shields!"
The Prelude took a direct his from the cruiser's cannon, but in its current condition, the blast was not fatal.
"Report!" "The hit wasn't at full power! We just lost cloak and aft torpedoes! Shields at 77 percent and holding!"
"Fire!"

The bridge of the Ts'chak was in chaos. Fire burned all around.
"Our shields are down!"
"Continue firing!" Suddenly a loud buzzer sounded.
"Intruder alert!"
"Where?" asked the acting captain.
"I'm trying to locate, internal scanners are damaged-"
A phaser shot across the room and hit the navigation officer, vaporizing him. Captain Gabatino stepped forward toward the commander. He pointed his phaser at her.
"Step down!" he demanded, "or I will not hesitate to kill you!"
The commander reluctantly got up, and then stepped out of her chair. Andy turned and shot her anyway.
"I know enough to never trust a Klingon!" he yelled from the chair. "You have seen that I am not afraid to kill you if you do not obey me! Now hail all Federation ships and tell them that you surrender!"
"Communications are down!" said one officer. Angered, Gabatino stepped off the chair and toward the communications console with big steps. He shoved the officer there to the side, and punched buttons at the console. Cursing, he tapped his comm badge.
"Gabatino to Stingray! Stingray, respond!"
There was no answer.

"The cruiser's hull integrity is at five percent!" said Laka of the Stenos .
"Power up the phaser cannon! Prepare to fire!"
"We don't have enough power to fire the cannon!"
"Damn it! Laka, what is the status of the fighters and the 'Raptor?"
"The Velociraptor's shields are down to 39 percent! Six fighters remain!"
"Damn! We lost three! Bring us to within one kilometer of the cruiser and fire maximum phasers and torpedoes, full spread!"
"Sir, the cruiser is breaking up! She's lost hull integrity!"
"Fire!"

"Is the captain back on board?" Asked the first officer of the Stingray .
"No sir! And the cruiser is nearly gone!"
"I'm going over there! Notify all ships to hold their fire!"
"Sir, the cruiser! It's exploding!"
"My god!"
The cruiser exploded, sending a massive shockwave in all directions. The wave instantly vaporized the remaining six Amicus SN-6 fighters and three Klingon attack cruisers.
"Level-nine shockwave heading toward us!"
"Get us out of here, warp nine! Engage!"

The Atraiou was quickly wearing down the cruiser's hull integrity.
"Fire phaser cannons!"
"Firing! Direct hit with all three! The cruiser is-" The Atraiou was suddenly hit by a massive shockwave, flipping the ship over. The vessel tilted at a crazy angle as Blount attempted to regain his footing.
"Damage report!"
"We were hit by a level-nine wave! Shields, weapons, and impulse drive are offline! Hull breach on decks three, six, and eight!"
"Get repair teams on those decks! Warn all ships of the wave!"

"The cruiser has been destroyed!" Everybody on the bridge let out yells of joy. Johnson looked over at Laka, and noticed that she was not happy.
"Is there a problem, commander?"
"I'm picking up a class-nine shockwave heading toward us! E.T.A. one minute, fifteen seconds!"
"Do we have warp drive?"
"No sir, warp drive is offline!"
"Oh my god" Johnson said.

21
Captain Ross Meyer of the Molokai had just noticed the wave, and was taking evasive action.
"Get us out of here, warp one!"
"Aye, engaging warp drive!" The Molokai sped away from the wave.
"Are all ships out of the way of that thing?"
"Scanning...the Velociraptor, Lone Wolf, Stingray, and Prelude have gone to warp, the Atraiou has already gone through the wave, but..."
"But what?"
"The Stenos is still in the wave's path!"
"How long until-"
"Fifty seconds!"
"Hail them!"
"No response sir!"
"Bring us about, take us back to the Stenos, maximum warp!"
"Aye sir!"

"Jim, I need those warp engines NOW! We've got a level-nine shockwave headed toward us and we have to get out of here!"
"Sorry Kris, there's nothing I can do! The power transfer conduits have been totally destroyed, and there's no way we can work around that!"
"Sir, the Molokai has dropped out of warp next to us!" Laka reported.
"Hail them, tell them to get the hell out of here!"
"Sir, communications are offline!"
"Shit, shit, shit! How long do we have?"
"Thirty seconds!"

"Is there any way we could tractor at warp speed?"
"No! It's too unstable!" said the navigation officer of the Molokai .
"Wait! What if we could just get them to warp, and then they could coast until clear of the wave front?"
"It just might work!"
"Bring us into tractor range! How long do we have?"
"Twenty seconds!"
"This had better work!"
"In range, sir!"
"Lock on! Prepare to go to warp!"

"The Molokai has locked their tractor beam on us!" reported Laka.
"What are they doing?"
"Captain!" Laka shrieked. On the viewer, they saw the starscape change from steady to warp.
"Laka? What is our velocity?"
"I don't know how, but we're clear of the wave! Holding speed at warp one!"
"Incredible" said the captain, amazed.

22
Johnson walked through the sickbay complex door and headed toward the tank where Hwiii was. He pressed the button on the microphone console. "Hwiii? How are you?"
Hwiii slowly opened his eyes. "Captain? Thank god!"
"You sound much better."
"Makanee has taken good care of me. I feel like new!"
Johnson turned to the dolphin doctor. "When will he be ready for duty?"
"In about three to five days. He's still weak, and he lost a lot of blood. He's a very lucky fin" she said.
"Welcome back" Johnson said, and turned, walking out the door.

Johnson stepped into the conference room, where the captains of the Molokai, Lone Wolf, Prelude, and Atraiou were waiting.
"Captain, how is your Commander Hwiii?" asked Forrest Blount.
"Thanks to all of you, he's doing fine. He'll be serving on the bridge in three to five days."
"That's good to hear" said Captain Noah Jacobson of the Prelude . "So it was worth it after all."
Just then, Commander Lorsung entered the room and quickly took a seat.
"We lost a lot of good people out there" said Captain Meyer.
"Yes, we did." Johnson hung his head for a moment, the looked up. "Does anyone know whatever happened to the escape pods from the Firestorm?"
Everybody looked at each other with puzzled expressions. "I never even saw them!" said Captain Roycraft.
"Then they were lost too?" asked Johnson.
"Apparently" said Lorsung.
"Damn fine crew we lost. Not to mention the Dimension, Smiley, and Shadow." Johnson looked down at the table again.
"Well, not much more we can do here. I think some rest at Starbase 439 would do us all some good. You guys head on over, I'll catch up with you later." With that everybody got up and walked out of the door. Johnson stopped Commander Lorsung after everyone had left.
"Commander," he began, "I have requested that you remain aboard the Stenos as my new chief engineer, and the Velociraptor as our new fighter craft. I have already consulted with Starfleet command, and they have approved me on both counts, unless you, of course, wish not to stay."
A slow smile spread across Lorsung's face. "I'll expect my own senior officer's quarters, as well as my own private shuttle..."
"We'll see what we can do. Welcome aboard."
Mike shook Johnson's hand eagerly. "Thank you sir!" he said, and stepped out the door. Johnson stood for a moment, thinking about what had happened. Then he tapped his comm badge.
"Johnson to bridge!"
"Bridge, Allgeyer here!"
"Set a course for Starbase 439, full impulse!"
"Yes captain."
Johnson laughed for no apparent reason, and then stepped out of the conference room.