After talking to Ambassador Sitar, Commodore Hunter invited the Romulan down to the planet for a first contact meeting.
The Romulan looked at the secretary, a petite woman that looked seriously nervous. When she saw the Romulan she stood up and it seemed that she wanted to block his way into the Commodore's office.
She pressed her comm badge. "Commodore Hunter, I believe there is a Vulcan here to see you." She doubted it was a Vulcan, but it would be impossible for a Romulan to be here on a Federation colony.
Send the, er... Vulcan in, Miss Piper, replied Hunter across the intercom.
"Right away, sir." Jamie led Sitar to the door to the Commodore's office with a perfunctory smile, and said, "You may go in, sir."
"Good." He tried to enter the room and bumped himself on the door. "The servos to this door must be damaged, Miss."
"Ah, this is not an automatic door, sir." She reached for the knob and opened the door.
"I see." He walked in. "Thank you, young lady." Jamie Piper closed the door behind him. The ambassador directed himself to the sitting Commodore. "Commodore Hunter, thank you for accepting a guest on such short notice."
When the door to his office opened, Commodore Rick Hunter looked up from the mound of paperwork on his desk. "Ah! Ambassador Sitar. I thought it might be you when my yeoman said a Vulcan was here." He stepped out from behind his desk and offered his hand to his visitor. Romulans did not share the same reluctance towards bodily contact as Vulcans did.
The Ambassador took the Commodore's hand and shook it. "I am glad to meet you."
"Can I offer you a drink, Ambassador?"
"Yes." He looked around the office. "Any Romulan ale?"
Rick smiled. "You know that's illegal in Federation space, Ambassador. Serenity may be on the frontier, but we're still inside the UFP borders."
"Illegal." He scanned the room with his eyes for any weapons. "I see. Then I will take that drink you call coffee." He continued to search the room. "Is this place secure?"
Rick stepped over to his desk and placed his palm against a certain spot on the top. A small panel slid open in the desk surface revealing a compact set of controls. He pressed a button, then turned back to Sitar. "It is now."
Sitar eyed the small console on the desk and felt more secure. He then looked at the chair.
Rick indicated for the Ambassador to take one of the seats in front of the big desk, then headed for the replicator on the back wall behind the desk.
"Thank you." He took the seat and sat down. "As I told you before, Commodore, over the communications channel, this is of great importance to my people." He fidgeted a little bit on the chair.
Rick returned with two streaming cups of coffee and passed one across to the Ambassador. "And what would that be, Ambassador?" he asked as he seated himself in his own chair.
Sitar accepted the coffee from the Commodore and sipped it. "Quite good." He looked away from the cup of coffee straight at Hunter. "My government wants to make... friends... with the... Federation."
Rick set his cup on the desktop. He looked puzzled. "I'm not sure I understand, Ambassador," he confessed. "Wouldn't the Romulan Senate deal directly with Earth? Why come to me? I'm only the Starfleet base commander of a frontier outpost."
"No, no, no." He put his coffee on the table. "Not the Romulan Government."
Rick knew he was still missing an important piece of the puzzle and wondered why the Romulan was playing this guessing game, if he really was a Romulan. Rick was beginning to wonder. "If you don't represent the Praetor, then who? Federation knowledge of internal Romulan politics is inconveniently piecemeal. A Romulan splinter group? An altogether different government we've never heard of?"
"Yes, another government." He sipped at his coffee again. "It is located on the north-western corner of the Romulan Star Empire. It is made up of humans, Vulcans, and Klingons."
Rick looked skeptical. "Sounds like a pretty unlikely combination," he said wryly. "Must be an interesting place."
"You may be wondering why a government that has few if any Romulans has a Romulan Ambassador." He sighed. "That is a little more complicated, Commodore."
"Well, my schedule is clear for the rest of the afternoon."
"Okay, let us begin by saying that this government is called the Cellione Republic..." He looked a little nervous as he debated in his mind if he should continue. But he did. "It is well off and prosperous, but there is the problem where other Romulans and I come in." He gulped down on his coffee. "The north-western part of the Romulan Star Empire wants to part with the Romulan Government and join the Cellione Republic." He put the empty cup on the table. "If this happens there will be another civil war in the Romulan Empire, like with the Remans a few years back." He looked directly at the Commodore. "In other words, let me put it simply, that if war does break out, we would want the support of the Federation."
"Ah, well, Mr. Ambassador. I'm sure you're aware that the Federation will never get itself involved in the affairs of the Romulan Empire, whatever the reason," said Rick, "especially if there is a civil war brewing."
"No you have it all wrong." He put his arms on the table. "We don't want you to join a war. Besides, your prime directive forbids such a thing. That is what former Federation Admiral Kiok has told us many times."
"Admiral Kiok, you say..." Rick searched his memories. "Yes, I believe I met him once or twice."
"Ah, you know of him." He put an electronic pad on the desk. "This is were the Cellione Republic is at. The only thing that we want from the Federation is their support."
"I still don't know what sort of support you're hoping to get if it's not military backup in case of a civil war," replied Rick. "But I do know that you should be talking to the Federation Council about this and not me."
"No, we don't want to deal with the Federation Council yet. Kiok says that after being around the Serenity Colony for several years he has recommended you as the liaison to the Federation, and the Cellione Republic's queen has accepted this even after her advisors told her that the best course is what you are telling me. But the queen is stubborn and decided to follow the Vulcan's request."
"Well, that's a woman for you," muttered Rick, a little annoyed that he was being dragged into this by the whims of a female a dozen sectors away. Out loud though, he said, "So Kiok picked me, eh?"
"Yes he picked you because he says you are a trustworthy individual." He got up and headed for the door.
I guess the interview's over, Rick thought to himself. He stood and said, "I imagine we'll be seeing each other again."
"Yes, Commodore.," He extended his hand. "You have a lot to think about and report to your superiors. We will be in contact with you."
The Ambassador headed out of the office.
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