((Sorry it's been so long since the last update. Real life got in the way. Hopefully there won't be such a long break again.))
Captain’s Log, Stardate 86066.67. The Stonewall has been patrolling the border of Federation and Klingon space for several weeks and is currently docked at K-7. Thankfully, recent activity has been at a lull as the Klingon Empire seems to have entered a holding pattern, though it is likely only a prelude to new hostilities. I have taken this opportunity to use the contacts I have to find this intelligence officer that Captain T’Laris mentioned. Unfortunately, I have had little success.
With the Stonewall docked at Station K-7, Nick had taken the opportunity to get off his ship and finish some administrative work in a setting that wasn’t his ready room, his quarters, or the Stonewall’s crew lounge. Despite how much he thought of his ship as home, it was nice to be somewhere with faces he didn’t recognize. With K-7 serving as one of Starfleet’s main strategic locations in the new war with the Klingon Empire, the station was a flurry of activity. Club K-7, where Nick was currently seated at the bar looking over a padd, was no exception. Between the ambient noise and the information he was absorbed in, he didn’t notice the waitress approach.
“Can I get you another drink, Admiral?”
Nick looked up in surprise at the woman standing next to his table. He glanced at his glass, which was empty.
“Yes, please.”
The woman nodded and walked back to the bar. She returned later and set a fresh concoction down on the table before walking off to take care of the other patrons. Nick took a tip of the synthehol drink and went back to the padd in his hand. He only got through a few more lines before he heard a man’s voice speaking next to him.
“A fake Cardassian sunrise. A pretty standard pick, though I’ve found women are more prone to ordering it.”
Nick looked up at the voice’s source, making little effort to hide his annoyance. What he found was a tall tan-skinned Starfleet officer with shortly cropped brown hair. The man caught Nick’s look and backpedaled with a grin.
“It’s a great drink though, don’t get me wrong.”
Nick raised an eyebrow. “Can I help you,” he asked, glancing at the man’s pips as he did so. “... Captain?”
The man caught the rank pull and made a slight grimace. “Sorry, sir. I was just making conversation. Allow me to make it up to you.”
Nick watched as the man flagged down a waitress and asked for a number of items, including soda, Centaurian whiskey, flour, and a box of matches. The waitress gave him an odd look.
“What are matches?”
The man sighed as if pained by the woman’s ignorance. “Just ask the replicator for them.”
The waitress shrugged and walked off. After she had left, Nick looked back at the man.
“Flour and matches? What exactly are you making?”
The man grinned. “A drink. It’s one of my favorites. As much as I would like to claim credit for it, it actually came from a Dabo girl I struck up a friendship with while stationed near the Neutral Zone.”
Nick found himself grinning despite himself. The man’s demeanor was disarming and Nick realized he was enjoying the break from work.
“Please, have a seat, Captain...?”
“McCloy, sir. Captain Ethan McCloy,” he said as he took the seat across from Nick. Just as he did, the waitress came by with the items that Ethan had requested. She set each of them down and seemed to linger in curiosity before realizing she had other customers that required her attention. Ethan picked up the soda and poured it into the glass, followed by the Centuarian liquor, speaking to Nick as he did.
“Apparently, whiskey from Alpha Centuari goes through a minimal amount of purification before it’s shipped. One of the components left in is an enzyme used in the fermenting process. Now, while this is the synthehol version, the enzyme is still used because its byproducts contribute to the taste.”
Ethan mixed the drink and then picked up the cup of flour and began pouring some of it in. Nick raised an eyebrow, as the thought of flour in a mixed drink wasn’t very appetizing. Ethan continued unabated.
“The enzyme readily processes flour, of all things, into a polymer. Don’t worry, it’s edible.”
Nick watched as parts of the clear drink began to take on a slightly different appearance that seemed much more solid. Ethan pulled a match from the box, struck it across the side to light it, and touched the flaming tip to the surface of the drink. It caught immediately, causing the surface of the drink to burn.
“The enzyme is deactivated by heat. You need to act fast or your whole drink becomes gelatin. Additionally, this only works with synthehol, because normal alcohol doesn’t burn hot enough. Ah... there we go!”
Nick watched as the drink stopped solidifying. The solid chunks floated to the top and bobbed on the surface. Ethan moved the drink toward Nick.
“And that, Admiral, is how you make a Centaurian arctic flamer.”
Nick picked up the drink, sniffed it with some trepidation, then took a sip large enough to also take in one of the floating globs. The drink had a strong, fizzy taste and, when he bit down on one of the gelatinous pieces, it released a burst of the flavor into his mouth. Nick gave the glass an impressed look.
“Excellent drink, Captain McCloy. Thank you. It’s really amazing what one learns in a bar.”
Ethan nodded with a sly grin. “It really is. Sometimes you learn how to make an excellent drink...”
At this, Ethan leaned forward and lowered his voice. “... and sometimes you learn about missing Starfleet reports.”
Nick, who had been taking another sip, practically spit the contents back out. He forced himself to swallow before he spoke.
“Captain?”
“Admiral, may I suggest that we adjourn to a more... secure... location to continue this conversation?”
Nick nodded in agreement, and soon the two were walking away from Club K-7. They continued in silence, even in the ride up the turbolift, until they reached a rather unassuming set of doors. Nick glanced at the nameplate to the side which indicated that they, in fact, led to Ethan’s office. The two stepped inside and, once the doors shut, Ethan began speaking.
“I’m sorry for not being more direct Admiral, but trust me when I say that my way may have been much safer. I’ve been waiting for you to arrive on K-7 after I received a message from an associate on Vulcan who informed me that you spoke with Captain T’Laris.”
“I’m glad you did. You have no idea how hard it is to find a Starfleet Intelligence officer when you don’t know his name.”
Ethan shrugged and walked over to a monitor on the wall. “Well, after that speech of yours on Earth Stardock, I’ve been wanting to meet you. Admiral, permission to speak freely?”
“Granted.”
“Admiral Ford, I admire what you’re trying to do, but you may have just committed suicide.”
Nick looked at Ethan with incredulity. “Yes, I’m aware my position isn’t popular, but I hardly think it’s career suicide.”
“Not career suicide. I mean actual suicide. That has made you some potentially dangerous enemies, not the least of whom is Admiral Terev.”
“Excuse me? Remember, you are speaking about a Starfleet admiral. She and I may disagree, but I hardly think she’s going to kill me over this.”
“Even if she’s the one who is responsible for those reports going missing?”
Nick blinked in surprise. “What!?”
“It’s a rather long trail, but I can assure you that I can prove she’s responsible. She and that damn subordinate of hers, Commander Gallagher. I know you probably find that hard to believe, so I took the liberty of putting it all on this padd.”
Ethan plucked a padd from his desk and handed it to Nick, who beheld it in disbelief. He briefly made an attempt to look through it all, but realized it probably wasn’t going to do him much good when he had other questions. Nick looked back at Ethan with a very concerned look.
“Even if what you say is true, what are their motives? Why deliberately try to sabotage Starfleet and the Federation? It’s not like the Borg are capable of planting secret agents among us.”
“No, they aren’t. But the Undine, on the other hand, are quite capable of it.”
Nick’s jaw dropped. “The Undine!? What proof do you have that they’re Undine!?”
“Not a whole lot, admittedly. However, it’s the only possibility that really makes any sense. In the past, covert operatives in Starfleet could have come from the Tal Shiar, the Obsidian Order, and the Changelings from the Dominion. However, not only are none of those agencies truly equipped to pull off such an operation these days, but they don’t have the motive. All three at least partially depend on the Federation to keep the Borg off their respective doorsteps and Starfleet Intelligence estimates that the chances of them performing an operation like this are exceedingly low. The only group that possesses both the means and the motive are the Undine. If the Borg were to invade and catch the Federation off-guard, it would destabilize the entire quardrant and give them a significant advantage.”
Silence permeated the room as Nick took in what Ethan had told him. When he couldn’t come up with a response, he looked back down at the padd and skimmed through it. Ethan waited patiently while Nick looked for any sign that he could be wrong. When he was unable to find anything, Nick shook his head.
“This is insane.”
Ethan shrugged. “I admit that it doesn’t prove Terev and Gallagher are Undine, but that information does prove they are responsible for the removal of those key reports, as well as shutting down all attempts to restart the Borg Task Force over the years. In my opinion, we need to treat them as the worst-case scenario until we know more.”
Nick mulled that over in his head and was about to respond when his combadge went off. He gave it a tap, though he was annoyed at the interruption.
“Ford here.”
“Captain, we just received new orders from Starfleet Command. They’re not priority one, but they are labeled as urgent. Are you near a secure terminal?” asked the voice of his first officer.
Nick looked at Ethan, who nodded and pointed to the one on his desk. Nick moved over to the terminal, activated it, and set up a secure link to the Stonewall.
“I’ve established an encrypted link, Commander. You can transmit them now.”
“Acknowledged, sir.”
In seconds, the terminal displayed the new orders that had come in. As Nick read them over, his eyes widened. Ethan’s curiosity was piqued.
“What’s wrong?”
Nick looked at the orders in concern as he read them over a second time. “Starfleet Command is ordering both myself and Captain T’Laris to the last known coordinates of the Aurora and the Pendragon. Apparently they both ships were patrolling the Orionis sectors when all contact suddenly ceased after they had left Rigel in Beta Orionis.”
Ethan frowned. “You and T’Laris? That’s an odd coincidence. And isn’t the Pendragon commanded by Admiral T’Rehes?”
Nick nodded. “Correct. And if that seems like a coincidence, wait until you hear which admiral these orders are coming down from.”
Ethan’s eyes widened. “No...”
Nick nodded. “Admiral Terev.”