USS Horizon waiting in orbit

" Long range sensors report one contact, Captain; 300 mark 40, on an intercepting course with this star system, warp 9.9. ETA twelve hours. Configuration and power output  similar to the Draxx cruiser but much larger; mass reads at least comparable to ours. Eden's energy output will mask us from their own sensors until they enter the system... but then, they will be right on top of  us."

Science chief K'Leysha's report came in just as the tactical board of Aron'son beeped him it's own warning. But the science station's instruments were much more refined so they gave a bit more details sooner. But now, it was his tactical computer and sensor pallet that were taking over and pouring data ontot the screen of his console. Already it was starting to analyse the sensor data pouring in and comparing it to what had been recorded of the alien cruiser as the signal came closer.

"Lieutenant Lyrya; open a channel to them."

"Captain... this will precisely pin point us to them," warned the Illythirii science chief.

"We will loose any advantage of surprise," added Tyvya from behind him.

The Andorian did not turn to his officers. He kept all four oculars on the screen, as if he could already see ther approaching craft.

"We are not here to prepare an ambush," his deep voice retorted. "There are people down on this planet counting on us to help them; and some of these people might just be their own."

"Channel open, Sir... but they're not answering our hail."

"Maybe they can't hear us yet? Tne star's energy output..."

"Sir, analyzing their technology from the encounter with their cruiser, I can safely bet that their communication system is certainly on parr with ours," states the shrill voice of Cheonghi. "Their comm should be able to filter out stellar noise."

"But out here, there is no subspace relays... reminded them the Aenar counselor,  except those dropped by the Phoenix, which are on the opposite quadrant from here. Calculating their aproaching speed with that of a subspace signal, our hail will reach them in... six hours. By the time we get their message, they will be entering the system."

Kheren closed the silvery eyes of his face and sighed.

"People, I need options. Preemptive strike and retreat are not among them. And I need them discussed, chosen and implemented in less than twelve hours."

S'Tan rubbed his temples, he wasn't a diplomat, and generally such encounters were complete disasters on Romulan ships.

"Let us consider for a moment the thought pattern of the Draxx. Assuming the former vessel was able to broadcast a distress call, they would be looking for a hostile invader. Even if we just sit here for six hours, I would strongly advise against leaving any tactical system online...even our shields. Hopefully they will want to chat before trying to fill us with plasma."

"There was no signal sent, but log buoys were shot out of the system," Lyrya reminded him. "Adding the speed of the buoys with that of a subspace signal, they may have received their broadcast by now... or it will be soon enough; I would estimate three hours before they reach this system."

"Meaning, they will know of our presence here, have a general idea of our capabilities and able to make preparations beforehand," understood Kheren. "At best, they will react like us and see that we are more inclined to talk than to shoot and not the enemy they expect. At worse, they will react like Klingons and simply rush in to avenge their vanquished comrades."

I might be able to use the star's energy to our advantage...mask our signal for a few seconds to determine if they want to talk or fight... But I have no idea their sensor capabilities. They may already see us."

"If that is the case, since the star's output is already overlapping our own, then it means that  their sensor technology is definitely superior to ours or any we know of so far, estimated Irksos. Although it didn't seem to be the case with the first cruiser we encountered, this is a different, more powerful one and may be more powerful in this regard as well. We may need more than just a stellar cover."

"I doubt there's anything to hide behind. Nor do I think it would be advisable to take the ship away from it's current location. Our away team may need support."

He paused for a moment.

"The first Draxx vessel attacked based on the theory that we were attempting to enslave them. Maybe there is some way to show the incoming vessel that we are not that race they believe us to be?"

"Communication is always the first, best option," Kheren quoted from Starfleet's rules of engagement.

"In that regard, the only way I can think of that would serve our purpose is to use the same photonic encoding they used themselves to communicate between their detached sections and with us," recalled Ke'Leysha, bringing up the visual log of the Polaris on screen. "The universal translator can again convert our audio-visual transmission into light pulses that their own system can then decypher. The only problem is that such a signal can only travel at the speed of light. They will not be able to realize that we are signaling until they drop out of faster-than-light speeds... and that should mean right on top of us. If they are as trigger-happy as they seem to be, we will have to survive at least one full salvo... and that, if they are in a mood to talk."

"How about telepathic contact?" wondered the captain.

"Mental contact might be seen as the very intrusion they fear, even as outright agression," Counselor Lyrya warned with an approving nod from the Illythirii science chief. "In fact, virtually all non-telepathic species do. That's why we, Aenars, have a severe code about not initiating such contact unless the other party is willing to and thus, why we still use speech."

"Alright, we know how to initiate proper contact. Now, if they come in guns blazings, I don't want to reply to them a la Governor De Frontenac."

"Sir?"

"Human History, Counselor; Je vous répondrai par la bouche de mes canons; answering through the mouth of my cannons. That's what the French Lord of Quebec replied to a surrendering order from the invading English General in Eighteen century Canada, on Earth. When the Draxx comes in, and if they open fire, I don't want to engage them; but we will have to avoid suffering from their wrath long enough for them to cool down... or find a way to cool them down. I'm not yet sure how to apply Aikido with starships."

Security officer Kyle stood at his post near the turbo lift doors, officer Celes stood across from him. She noticed that Kyle looked uneasy, as if he might be thinking over something unpleasant.

As he started making motions to get someones attention she gave him a 'are you crazy' look and he hesitated. But he had made up his mind to offer an idea and since he couldn't leave his post to approach anyone he had to speak up.

"Captain, I... I might have an idea.. Sir."

Celes looked mortified and went rigid at her post.

"Ensign; you are registered as a bridge officer, are you not?"

The question was quite rhetorical, as the turbolift would not have even brought him up on the bridge had it not being the case. But coming from the stern Andorian captain with his eyes like molten balls of silver, it felt like anything but. The young man stammered.

"I... aye... Captain Sir."

"Then, I require your input as well, Ensign, like that of any other bridge officer."

For a moment, that froze the man and his colleague almost as much as if he had ordered them off the bridge and straight to the brig, as they had half-expected him to. Captain Kheren was well known for being a strict disciplinarian with zero tolerance for insubordination. Yet, those who had served under him testified that he was as quick to listen to his subordinates if they had something valid to say as he was to make a command decision on his own. Kyle was about to put that rumor to the test.

"Well, Sir... what if we offered to surrender... Sir."

The room went quiet except for the sound of equipment.

"What I mean, Sir..." He added hastily, "is that, if we offer to surrender, they might wish to discuss terms of  surrender... and that, at least, would negate immediate hostilities."

And just as hastily as he spoke, he stepped back into his post, giving the captain a slight awkward nod. He felt like he might throw up..

The Romulan nodded.

"It could work, yes. Especially if we leave a skeleton crew in stasis in the transporter system, as an extreme backup. Take back the ship...I believe Captain Picard performed such a maneuver. Or so the Romulan Academy has taught."

The Andorian seemed lost in his tought for a moment. Then, his deep voice broke the silence as he nodded respectfully to the security guard.

"Ensign... I think your Human saying is; you might just have saved our ham."

"Our bacon, Sir," Tyvya discreetly but audibly corrected him.

"Whatever... the thing is, this is something they will not expect, especially from the enemy they beleive to be facing... 

"They might also think it's a trap," Tyvya remarked sternly. "A trick to have them lower their guard."

"And if I was their captain, I would certainly consider it. But that be as it may, it will have them start thinking instead of just jumping right in guns blazing... especially if we go one step further with Mister Kyle's idea."

"Which is?" wondered Doctor Nasaro-Myth, unusually quiet all this time.

" Send out a distress call."

"A trick?" 

"Not at all, Doctor. We have people stranded on that planet with no way we know of so far as to how to help them. We are not from this neighborhood... but they are. We do require their help."

"They still might think it's a trap. A fake distress call is the oldest trick in the book," insisted Tyvya.

"Agreed; but it will still have the same effect as Mister Kyle's recommendation... which we can still implement if it comes down to that to ensure that they will not attack us outright."

Kheren turned to face his other wife.

"Counselor; send out a general distress call...but make sure they receive it. Send it on all channels and frequencies, including photonic emissions. Use smoke signals and flags too if you think that would help but make sure it is out there."

"Understood, Captain."

He turned again towards the young security officer.

"As you were, Mister Kyle."

Then, he looked once again at his chief engineer but spoke so that everyone on the bridge would feel as concerned as the Ensign at the turbolift door had been.

"In the meantime, we too should prepare for the worse. Keeping a retrieval crew in transporter transit is a good start. But what else may we do to secure this ship if all comes to worst? We have three thousand civilians to take care of, in addition to our crew... but ensuring the safety of Federation citizens is our most important duty. Recommendations?"

S'Tan put the captain's request on the backburner for a moment, as a thought popped into his head.

"What about the Phoenix? If they receive our distress signal, they may come running... I doubt the Draxx would enjoy seeing a second ship enter the system while they were talking to a 'surrendered' ship."

" She is not responding to our hails," Lyrya reported, her white eyebrows furrowing over her whitish eyes. "There is a line of active subspace relays dropped by the Phoenix between them and us as part of the exploration protocol established for this mission, so there should be no delay in transmission... yet I receive no signal from them."

" They might be in trouble too," Ke'Leysha observed, here eyes on her long range sensor readout. "Long range sensors confirm the spread of subspace relays... but I can't find them beyond the last one. If I follow the standard exploration pattern, I find instead an area where our subspace scanners can't penetrate... like... some kind of subspace void. "

Cheonghi lifted his bald chitinous head to add to the science chief report with his shrill voice.

"If they are in there or directly on the other side of this area, only n-space signals will reach them... meaning limited to the speed of light.  At this distance, this mean... several years!"

"Keep trying, Lieutenant, all channels and frequencies, " Kheren ordered. "Send them a log report of our situation and real-time data of our position and that of our incoming friends. With her QSD drive, the Phoenix can jump back to us almost instantly. Whatever situation she is in that prevents her from answering immediately, I trust Captain Syntron to make the right call at the right moment. In the meantime, let us assume that he can not... and work to resolve this ourselves."

Silent the whole time, Joey Sisko, now filling the Exec chair, spoke directly to his commanding officer.

"Sir, as I see it, we have three problems; see to our marooned people down on Eden IV, deal with the incoming alien warship and protect our civilians... and only one ship... unless we take measures to deal with all three problems at once. "

The Andorian looked at him for a moment, blinking the silvery eyes on his face while his antennae bobed slowly towards the Half-Bajoran. Although his facial muscles were not numerous enough to allow him to smile, this was nevertheless the feeling everyone on the bridge had when he spoke.

"Separate the ship."

Everyone was looking at him now.

"Commander Sisko; you will be in charge of the civilians. You with Lieutenant Lyrya as your Exec will take the saucer section to the other side of Eden III and stay hidden there. Proceed with the initial colonization survey while waiting for us to return. If after all this planet is suitable for colonization, or if it becomes necessary to take refuge there, you will be ready to proceed once this situation is resolved; if the situation does not warrant any planetside operation, we will pick you up there... or the Phoenix hopefully will. If all things come to worse, you will surrender to the Draxx as Mister Celes recommended."

"Aye, Captain."

"Commander Ke'Leysha," then said Kheren looking at the Illythirii science officer. "I know you have extensive rescue operation and battle experience; you and Lieutenant Aron'Son as your Exec will take command of the stardrive section and maintain position here to protect and assist our people down on Eden IV or deal with any threat to them or the rest of our people hidden at Eden III. Implement Mister Solius' recommendations, stay in telepathic contact with Counselor Lyrya and keep trying to contact the Phoenix to inform her of our situation and get her assistance. If the Draxx will not listen to you, as Mister Celes proposed, use your judgment and experience but keep in mind that the civilans'safety is our prime responsibility."

"And what about you, Captain?" wondered Snowfire with all the others.

"I am taking the bridge module to go out and meet our incoming friends. Mister Solius will be my Exec."

"Sir, the bridge module will be like a snow rabbit facing a polar bear!" Aguk Snow said.

"They should not be afraid of us then... and willing to do some light talk with us."

"Small talk, Sir?" Tyvya tentatively corrected visibly puzzled.

"Negative; I truly meant, talking to them through this light code of theirs so that they don't think the Zetarrians are coming after them when we will be directly implementing Mister Celes' recommendation. That is why we need to get up close and personal."

"I agree with the Captain." The engineer added, "If we are sending out a distress call, it is best to show ourselves as half of a ship. Hopefully, if there are engineers and science officers aboard the Draxx ship, they will understand our capabilities and explain that we are indeed in distress."

"Let us split up then," Kheren ordered. Stardrive command crew to the battle bridge; saucer section command crew to the auxillairy bridge; send replacements to the main bridge and prepare for full ship seper."

He asked Lyrya to open a shipwide channel.

"Now hear this! This is the captain... We are about to face possible enemy contact and attempt to negociate a peaceful solution while trying to safeguard those of us now stranded on the planet we are orbiting and all civilians aboard. Prepare for full ship separation operation. Delta shift bridge officers, all combat personnel will report to the secondary hull, including all medical and engineering personnel crosstrained in security. Gamma shift bridge officers, all science personnel and all personnel crosstrained in medical and engineering will report with all civilians to the primary hull. Beta shift bridge officers, report to the bridge. Further orders will come from your assigned command officers. Everyone, I know we can succeed because you will do your best; we now need it. Captain out."

By the time he had finished, everyone had moved through the two turbolifts; those that exited for their assigned position and their replacements coming up to fill their bridge station. Aguk Snow had remained at Helm but Tyvya filled Tactical for Aron'son leaving with Ke'leysha. Solius also remained at Engineering and Cheonghi at Ops but Norbert Baoule took over for the science chief while Counselor Sirris did the same for her chief leaving with Sisko.

"Mister Solius; you will have to double up as my Exec and as chief engineer. Think you can manage this for a two decks starship with a crew of  six?

"If I cannot, we shall die." He sarcasticly commented. "Let's go and set the trap."