Coming Home |
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Bridge Captain Taybar and the rest of the Bridge crew relaxed as the battered and bruised USS Leviathan-B arrived back at McKinley Station. Docking with the station and securing the vessel with the docking clamps, it was both good and bad to be back in orbit around Earth. "All stations report secure." Marco Borealiou announced from the Ops station. "Power down the slipstream core and warp drive." Aki ordered. "All stations to standby." "All stations on standby." Marco confirmed as the vessel slowly grew silent. Outside, worker bees were already buzzing around the vessel, checking out the damage and estimating the repairs. With the Leviathan requiring at least a week to be fitted with a new weapons pod and many other repairs to be carried out most of the crew had been given shore-leave. Most of the senior crew however were remaining on duty, either assigning positions to the new crew or working with the repair crews to get the Leviathan back up and running. As Aki left the Bridge and headed for the transporter room, she was surprised to see both Commander Rashad and Lieutenant Moss already there, waiting to beam down to Earth. "Heading my way ?" Aki asked. Stefen Moss was the first to speak, looking at the Captain with a small smile. "We've been ordered to Starfleet Intelligence to report on the attack on the mining base Omega was using." He stated. "And you ?" "Starfleet Headquarters, I've got a meeting with Admiral Devore." Aki replied. "Maybe we'll see what our next mission will be. Then I have a meeting with personnel to arrange for the transfer of the new crew onboard." The three officers stepped onto the transporter pads and within moments, they were in Starfleet Headquarters. "We will see you later Captain." Stefen remarked as he and Commander Rashad stepped away at a brisk pace. As soon as they were out of sight of the Captain, Rashad tapped her comm. badge and they disappeared once more. Admiral Devore's Office Aki found herself in the office of Admiral Devore and looked around. It hadn't changed much since the last time she had been here. The one change was the Admiral's aide who was sat behind the desk in the outer office. "You'll find the Admiral and Sub-Commander T'Plek in briefing room six." The aide announced. *Briefing room…..."* Aki thought. *Sub-Commander.. !* She stepped back out of the office and headed down the corridor towards the briefing rooms. Finding room six, she was met by two Security guards who after checking her identity, allowed her into the room. "Ah…. Captain Taybar." The young Admiral announced. "It's good to see you again." "And you Admiral Devore." Aki replied, examining the only other person in the room. She was a Vulcan, dressed in Diplomatic attire and looked about thirty. Aki never really trusted Vulcans, she found them too logical and unemotional, so seeing this Vulcan made her nervous. "Captain Taybar, it is a pleasure to finally meet you." The Vulcan announced, rising from her chair, offering her hand and giving a slight smile, something that Aki didn't miss. *A smile, from a Vulcan !* She thought to herself. She shook the hand of the Vulcan and examined her more closely, just in case this female was not Vulcan, but Romulan. She saw nothing out of the ordinary. "Sorry…." Admiral Devore remarked. "….This is Sub-Commander T'Plek of the Federation diplomatic corp. She is part of your next mission and will be serving as Federation Ambassador onboard the Leviathan once the repairs are complete." "An Ambassador ?" Aki remarked. "Exactly what is our next mission ?" "Ambassador, would you like to explain." Devore asked. "Why not travel on another vessel, I am sure by now you could have been at Starbase 901. ?" Aki enquired. "Why use the Leviathan ?" "Partly for security and partly for speed." Devore interjected. "We have very little information on the Axtilities and most of that has come from the G'Kar, who were the one's who informed us of the Axtilities Ambassadors arrival. From what we know, they have been at war with another race for over a decade and they are looking for help from others to support them. The G'Kar are in no state to assist them and the Mullurans have already destroyed the diplomatic mission sent there, which means we're next on their list." "And you expect what ?" Aki asked. "We know nothing about this second race, but we don't want to get pulled into a war unnecessarily." Devore stated. "You'll leave at the last possible moment to arrive one day before the Axtilitie ambassador." "Should we expect trouble ?" Aki stated. "We just don't know." Sub-Commander T'Plek replied. "But I have no intentions of failing in the mission. If we can negotiate some sort of pact between the Federation and the Axtilities, we will gain access to new worlds beyond the DMZ." "Until then, you'll liaise with Sub-Commander T'Plek in ensuring that as soon as you arrive, everything will go smoothly." Devore stated. "I know the Sub-Commander is eager to visit her new home and settle in before you leave." Devore passed a data Padd across to Taybar, who picked it up and quickly reviewed its contents. Rising from her seat Aki turned and headed out of the door. As she walked down the corridor, she heard footsteps coming up behind her. "Captain…!" The voice said. "Is something wrong ?" "No." Aki replied. "It's just I was hoping to be able get some shore leave myself whilst the Leviathan was undergoing repairs. Now I have to ensure you safety and get you to Starbase 901." "Captain, I am sorry that your plans have been disrupted. " T'Plek replied. "But these negotiations could be important to the Federation." "From what I've heard so far, we're getting into a war not of our making." Aki replied. "If these negotiations are successful, then we're going to be committing men and equipment in fighting a war on behalf of another race." "But the Axtilities could give us access to a whole new area of the Alpha quadrant." T'Plek said. "A chance to meet a whole new group of races." "And make more enemies." Aki added. "Can I ask, just how long have you been a Federation Ambassador ?" This caused T'Plek to lose for a second her grip on her controlled emotional state. All her life she had wanted to serve the Federation and explore the galaxy, now she was on the verge of achieving a major part of that dream and a Starfleet Captain had just brought all of that enthusiasm crashing down. "I've been a diplomatic aide for over twenty years and was junior ambassador on the USS Galileo for two years before I was re-assigned to the Leviathan." T'Plek replied. "But this will be your first assignment as a full ambassador !" Aki remarked, realising that she had hit a nerve. "It is true, these negotiation will be my first alone, but I know that I am more than ready to face this new challenge." T'Plek replied. "Then what ?" Aki enquired. "I was hoping that once passage to Axtilitie space and beyond was established, I would continue to serve the Federation and the Leviathan as Ambassador." T'Plek continued. "You are assuming a lot." Aki remarked. "What if the negotiations go bad, what if our 'aid' to these aliens isn't enough or what they promise they cannot give in the end." "You are correct Captain." T'Plek stated. "But I must try to do the best for the Federation and the Alpha quadrant. If I may, I'd like to get onboard the Leviathan and settle into my new quarters. I'd like to schedule a meeting with the senior staff sometime tomorrow." "I will contact the ship and let them know that you're on your way
up." Aki remarked. "How does 10 hundred in the main briefing
room sound for your meeting ?" With that the Captain and the Ambassador went separate ways. T'Plex to arrange for the transfer of her few personal possessions and Captain Taybar to Starfleet personnel, where she was to discover the arrangements for replacing the missing crew. |
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