Lee Carter had still been in sickbay when she got the word that Captain Osagawa had recommended her for a commendation. She had received the news with joy, and shortly thereafter she was released from the doctors' care.
The Knight had docked with Deep Space Station Nine a short while ago, and now Carter made her way through the gangplank that led over to the station's embarkment area. The views out the portholes showed several other Starfleet vessels also docked at the upper and lower pylons. Among them she noticed an Akira and a Defiant class; also several freighters no doubt delivering munitions and personnel for the fighting ships.
The mission to stop the madman Beard and quell the Barien threat would be a difficult one. Carter assumed that Starfleet chose to mass their forces hundreds of light-years from the front in order to ensure that their movements and plans remained secret.
As she thought these thoughts, Carter navigated her way towards the Promenade deck, and Quark's Bar. She had some old business to conclude with a certain Ferengi there.
She crossed the threshold and noticed that the place was busy as usual. People were talking and drinking, Morn sat on his stool having just finished (again!) telling the long tale of his exploits with the Orion Syndicate, and a group of young Bolians were regaling him with questions. A harried Ferengi scuttled back and forth behind the bar trying to fill his customers' orders as fast as they came in. The place was packed with Starfleet officers from the Knight and the other two ships.
As Lee approached the bar, the Ferengi noticed her and pushed his way past his assistant in her direction. Lee smiled her most disarming smile at him and said, "Hi, Quark."
"Don't you 'Hi' me, Lieutenant," said Quark in a very annoyed tone of voice. "The last time you were here you had the bad manners of taking something with you that didn't belong to you."
"I'm sorry about that, Quark, but I had to," said Lee firmly. "It was important for the Federation." Carter slipped a thin isolinear rod from her belt pouch and set it on the counter in front of Quark. It was the program that held the initial specs for the new Peregrine Fighter craft that she had "lifted" from Quark when the Knight had docked here before the Kelvan Encounter.
Quark quickly picked it up and inspected it. Satisfied that it was undamaged, but still highly annoyed, he said, "Fine. You returned the stolen goods. That means I can cancel the call I put in to Security. But it doesn't begin to cover the loss of profit I've suffered from not having this program in my library. It was quite popular, you know."
Lee took the hint. Again, her hand slipped into her belt pouch, but this time withdrew it with some metallic rectangles. She laid them on the counter. They clinked as they settled on the plastiform surface.
Quarks eyes lit up. "Ten strips of latinum!" he hissed. He quickly gathered up the currency to himself before his assistant saw it. "That ought to cover any losses I've incurred," he said with a smile.
"Good. Then we're even," said Lee.
"Not quite," answered Quark with a sly look entering his expression. "You still owe me dinner."
Lee smiled, knowing that Quark was up to his old tricks again. "Maybe next time, Quark." She reached across the bar and patted him on the shoulder. "See you later, my friend."
"Count on it," chuckled Quark at her retreating back. His thoughts were interrupted and he was recalled to the business at hand by Morn, who had started banging his flagon on the countertop for a refill. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" yelled Quark.