"Psycho Temper Tantrum"
by Lt K'Eytyanna Samara
partially quoted & paraphrased from "Clearing the way" by Cpt Price

Looking up from her console, K'Eytyanna blinked in surprise as a black uniformed officers walked into Main Enginneering with a squad of other similarily attired officers and called out,

"Everyone must clear this deck until further notice. Shut down any critical tests you are running and leave immediately."

Her Klingon side quickly snapped, { What kind of an asshole is that fool? There is no way in hell we are leaving here just on his orders, especially since I no idea who he is. }

Jumping up in anger, she stormed over to him and said, "Excuse me?"

Letting her Klingon side's anger boil over into atomic, she bellowed into the man's face as loud as she could,

"I DON'T CARE IF YOU ARE THE POPE! No one comes into Engineering and orders everyone to leave!"

Behind her, other engineers had moved into to support her. The man sneered at her and snapped,

"You will stand down LIEUTENANT... or when the Admiral hears of this you will spend the entirety of this mission relieved of duty!"

To her Klingon side's surprise, her Bajoran side mentally growled, {That's it.. this slimebag is going down!!!}

Letting out a Klingon growl, K'Eytyanna stepped forward and was about to smash the jerk's face through the bulkhead and all the way to Alpha Centauri when she saw her boss enter.

"It's okay Lieutenant Samara. They have clearance to be here." David confirmed.

Snarling angrily at the intruders, she moved back unwillingly.

"Sir, what is this all about?" K'Eytyanna asked. "Who are these men and what are they doing here?" Subconsciously, she clenched her fists very tight, keeping them ready to smash any of the black uniformed men in an instant.

David sighed. "They are with Starfleet Intelligence Kay, they have some sort of sensitive equipment to install for our present mission. It's all classified I'm afraid, so I can't really go into any more details then that."

Crossed her arms in a defensive position, she growled again, deliberatly showing the SI people her sharp teeth. After David was able to negotiate with Harbright, the others headed out. Obviously still upset, she spoke to Lt Mercury,

"Sir, what exactly are we supposed to DO for the next couple of hours while these... PEOPLE are making modifications to OUR ship?"

"Just relax Lieutenant." David said, placing a finger onto K'Eytyanna's chin and lifting her head towards his to gain her attention. When she was looking into the Chief's eyes and not over his shoulder at the Starfleet Intelligence officers, he continued. "Go to your quarters. Go to Ten Forward. Go to the holodeck. I don't care but you can't stay here. Be sure to keep your comm badge handy and I'll hail you when they have finished here and it's time to resume your shift. Okay K'Eytyanna?"

Grunting in displeasure, she replied,

"I will go. But hail me the minute we have been cleared to return to duty, I have lots to get done before my shift ends."

"Will do K'Eytyanna. Thanks for understanding." David smiled. At that point, she turned and walked out.

As she left, she muttered,

"The next time I meet that bastard Harbright, I'm going to plaster him against a bulkhead and throw his worthless body out the nearest airlock."

Once she was outside, she smashed her fists into the nearest wall, and let out a loud angry scream. Giving the wall a kick for good measure, she headed back to Ten Forward.

********************

Entering, K'Eytyanna looked around for Hunter, and then realised he was on duty at the Tac station on the bridge. She spotted Melissa talking to a man in a black SI uniform. Wisely deciding not to go over and beat the hell out of an Admiral, she headed over to the bar.

Door looked up and noticied a look of pure rage on her face.

"Lt, I hope you don't plan on attacking me again."

She shook her head, "No, I don't. If I decide to head over to that jerk in the black, hold me back for my career's sake. I'm liable to kill him at the moment, and Starfleet doesn't take kindly to that."

Smiling, he reached down and poured her a glass of Saurian brandy, handing it to her. She quickly downed it in a single gulp, and he refilled it for her.

"Try this. Do you want to talk about anything? I've noticed a few engineers on Alpha shift turning up here, and now Melissa and you. I assume you all got pushed out for awhile."

Nodding, K'Eytyanna downed the second one and replied,

"Nothing personal, but words don't help much with calming me. I'll see you around. I can't stand being in the same room with SI."

He shrugged as she turned and walked to the door. Stopping, she walked to the replicator and ordered something. As she turned towards Pressman, he saw that it looked like she was carrying a heavy duranium alloy rod, one that could easily crush a man's skull.

Gasping, he was about to head over and stop her when she turned to the door and walked out.

********************

Storming in to her quarters, she dropped the rod while grabbing a vase that she kept near the doorway for emotional emergencies and sent it smashing against the far wall, enjoying the sound of it smashing.

D'Akana quickly scurried into his section, realising that K'Eytyanna was angry and wisely choosing discretion over valor.

Picking up the heavy rod, she smashed it against the bulkhead over and over until there was a large dinge in the wall and the rod was bent. Realising that her anger hadn't left much, she threw the bar across the room, where it landed on the lounge coffetable and destroyed it.

Changing quickly into some exercise gear, she spoke,

"Computer, are there any free holodecks? If there are, book one for me for an hour."

[Working.. Holodeck 3 is free and has now been booked for the next hour.]

Leaving the room in a destruction heap, she walked out as D'Akana poked his nose out into the room.

**********

Entering the blank holodeck, she ordered,

"Computer, new program K'Eytyanna-SI. Load Japanese dojo and add to program."

Quickly, the walls changed to resemble an authentic Japanese fighting hall. Smiling, she spoke,

"Now, add in five humans, uniform of Starfleet Intelligence, unarmed combat only, aggressive, hostile and arrogant bastards. Change facial likeness to randombly be that of Lt Harbright of SI, or Admiral Pressman, authorization K'Eytyanna-Alpha-Nine. Save and then run program at Level 9."

Quickly, the figures appeared with Harbright's face and charged at her. Smiling, she charged into combat and quickly started attacking with all the anger that she had directed at Harbright.

Lt K'Eytyanna Samara, USS Galaxy - Engineer/Shuttle Pilot
D'Akana T'Mok (NPC), USS Galaxy - Pet

"Bed, Breakfast, and Afterward"
** By Ensign Be'Tran M'Benga & Ensign D'Auria **

Jack was sitting behind the desk in Be'Tran's quarters, going over the applications he had received about the team he was forming. He had a slight headache and hadn't been able to sleep, even after the hours he and Betta had spent together. Looking back at his faint reflection in the console, he kept thinking back at what had happened earlier.

{Several hours earlier}

The two lovers had gotten out of the tub and had retired to the bed. After a long, slow and passionate lovemaking session, they had snuggled into each other's arms and were now laying spoonstyle against each other. Jack kisses Be'Tran's neck, whispering softly to her.

"Tomorrow, how would you like to come to the holodeck with me? Around 1600? Dinner in a small Japanese restaurant near Tochimoto. It's beautiful there in spring. Then maybe a trip to some club. I think I can get one of those bands you like so much to perform."

Betta pushed back against Jack, purring like a satisfied kitten, "Mmmmmmm, sounds wonderful."

She suddenly turned around, wrapping her long arms and legs around him, giving him a quick kiss and looking him in the eyes.

"Jack, I was thinking, why don't we invite K'Eytyanna to come with us?"

Jack immediately became suspicious, he had learned to trust his instincts and they were sounding red alert signals now.

"Why?"

"Well, we could have a lot of fun, the three of us", she said, her voice sounding husky, letting the words trail out seductively. "Be'Tran, I do not believe that that would be a good idea. First of all, neither of us knows her very well, or how she is going to react to what I think it is you are suggesting."

Be'Tran recognized his demeanor, it was his Vulcan mindset. When he was in that mood, he could be the most stubborn person in the universe.

"Secondly, if you're proposing what I think it is you're proposing, don't count me in. I told you I don't mind if you have relationships aside from ours, but I am not that kind of person. I'm in love with you, not with anyone else. I do not need anyone else to join us. If you want to be with Lt. Samara, that is fine. I, however, will not join you."

Jack kissed her softly, reveling in the feel of her warm skin against his. "Betta, I know that nothing I've said will probably change your mind, but when you ask her, be careful of how you do it, okay? I don't want to hear that the two of you have gotten into some kind of fight to the death", he said with a wry chuckle. "Don't worry about it, Jack", she said running her fingers through his hair, smiling slightly. Be'Tran was determined to talk to Lt. Samara about this and who knows, if all went well, she might have another surprise for her lover tomorrow.

After Be'Tran had woken up, the two lovers had breakfast together in a silent but content way. Jack pulled Betta in his lap, quickly kissing her, then placing his toast against her lips. Giggling like a teenager, she took a bite, her fingers ruffling his hair. There was no need for talk, everything they were, everything they felt was visible in their eyes. Just before either of them left for their shifts, Jack took Betta into his arms, kissing her deeply, passionately as the door to her quarters slid open. He didn't care if anyone saw them. All he cared about was right there in his arms.

**************

{Holodeck 3; The Next Night}

Be'Tran was swimming, nude, in the waters of a holodeck-generated Lake Elnara. Jack was late again, but Betta was getting used to it. She just hoped she wouldn't hafta go looking for him this time. She didn't feel like putting her clothing on, and some aboard the Galaxy might take a dim view of her prancing the halls nude.

There was a music program running. A strong, feminie singing voice filled the holodeck. Her name was Celine Dion, one of the most popular singers of the late 20th Century. Be'Tran had chosen it because it was romantic. She was feeling very romantic. And Jack D'Auria was late.

Jack was making his way slowly to the holodeck. As usual, he was trying not to let his emotions show, but he was feeling disgusted. Or, perhaps, disappointed was the better word. He reached the holodeck, and scanned the readout. He could see the Lake Elnara program was running, with music, and he knew Be'Tran would be inside.

Be'Tran was climbing out of the water, as D'Auria enterred. She spun quickly on one heel, and smiled, seeing her lovers face.

"Betta," said Jack, almost sternly, "You're running around naked again." then he glanced quickly around. "Where is she?"

"Who." said Be'Tran

"Lieutenant Samara." said Jack, "Did you ask her to join us?"

Be'Tran plopped her unclad form on a lounge seat near the water's edge;"Yes, I did." she answered, "But she... respectfully declined."

"Probably just as well." said Jack, and seated himself on the ground, next to Betta's chair. He looked downcast, and Be'Tran could sense he was tense. She leaned out of the chair, and began to massage his shoulders.

"What's wrong?"

Jack shook his head, but Betta crawled out of the chair and sat in front of him. She kissed him gently on the forehead, and took his face in her hands, then she kissed his lips.

"I can tell you're troubled; one-quarter-Betazoid, remember... Imzadi." she said sweetly.

Jack held her hands tightly, and kissed her long fingers. "Be'Tran," he said, "I love you."

"And I you," she said, "Now what's on that usually-logical-but-still-very-passionate mind of yours?"

"It's my project." Jack began, "I think I may have stepped on some toes here."

"Toes?"

"Yes, love. Like Lieutenant McKenzie's toes." said Jack, "That's why I thought it was for the best that K'Eytyanna didn't join us."

Be'Tran curled herself into his lap like a lonely puppy, and kissed him so hard he thought she might break a tooth (in either mouth). They fell backwards into the soft holodeck grass, then she spoke again.

"My love," she began, "Your project is a stroke of genious."

"Four-hundred-year-old genious."

"And you thought of how to apply it to 24th Century technology. Jack, I'm an engineer, as well as the one who loves you with all my heart; I know how much work it must've been for you; and still will be."

Jack sat up, with Be'Tran in his lap; "I just feel as if I'm getting stonewalled wherever I turn."

"Give it time." said Betta, "Anyone who can't see the benefits of your little gem just isn't studying all of it's facets yet. You'll see. Things have a way of working out. Like us getting together."

At that Jack took her face, and kissed it. She always seemed to know just what to say, and just how to say it. And she believed in him, even if, sometimes, he had trouble believing in himself. He loved this woman... with all his heart.

They spent hours in that holodeck; or at least it seemed like hours. They made love, and they made each other feel loved. Be'Tran fell asleep in Jack's arms, and he held her close; and spoke softly to her.

"As long as I've got you on my side, I think I can handle anything." he said; and then he realized, they hadn't missed K'Eytyanna... not one bit.

Ensign James McCloud looked up from his paper work to see his companion and loyal dog Cosmo jumping onto his desk.

"Cosmo! Get down from there ".

Surprised by his masters anger Cosmo lets out a loud bark and runs to the farthest corner of the room. Sighing James heaves himself out of his chair and walks to were the dog is laying. Seeing his master coming towards him he puts that sad puppy eye face that makes people do what ever that person wants.

" Ah.. sorry boy I didn't mean to yell at you like that. Its just that I have a lot of paper work to do today."

Cosmo lets out another yelp.

" Your right I do need a brake. I`m going to go down to the holodeck for a while you hold down the fort alright."

Cosmo acknowledges with a happy little growl.

" Now thats a nice boy" James says and rubs Cosmos fur. Cosmo loves that.

James quickly steps out of his quarters and makes his way to the turbo lift. The Turbo Lift brings James to the deck which the holodecks are located. Stepping out of the lift he makes his way to the only deck available, Holodeck 5. As James steps in he finds himself in a Klingon battle arena. Looking around he sees the very life like weapons of Klingon history hanging on the walls.

" Magnificent" James mumbles under his breathe .

" Choose your weapon" a loud voice bellows.

James looking around finds a large Bat`leth hanging on the wall to his side. James catches out of the corner of his eye a young klingon male step out from behind a rock. apparently trying to sneak up on James. Wielding the Bat`leth in his hand he swings his weapon Punchering his opponents skin. The Klingon apparently astonished yelped with pain.

"Die! " Bellows James and stabs the Klingon straight in his heart. With a surprised expression on his face the Klingon falls to the floor.

"Computer end program".

"Tour of the Shuttlebay"
By Lt.(jg) George Prince

George had stayed late at Shuttlebay 1 because he told a teacher tha he would give the students a tour of the Shuttlebay and a Shuttle. He was just setting the last safty codes in when an ensign walked in.

"George..the teacher with some students are here for the tour." The ensign said trying to sound cool. George got up from putting the last safty code in. "Ensign, next time just be yourself and everything will turn out right. You got that?" The Ensgin stood there moveing his head up and down. "Besides it is only one little rank. You willn't get fired." George said jokeing.

The teacher and the students were standing at the door to the Shuttlebay. "Hello, everyone I hope you like Shuttles. Now, come with me and I will show you what it looks like to be in a Shuttle." they walk in the Shuttlebay about 20 feet. "Here is the Shuttlebay all this does is hold the Shuttles in the ship so they don't fly. The reson we need Shuttles is so that we can go to a planet that the transporter willn't beam as down to." they moved on to the Shuttle that was sitting in the far right coner. "Each of you can step in the Shuttle and take a look around. In the front is the controls and in the back are more seats to hold more people." George walked over to the teacher as the kids looked around the Shuttle. "We are even now. You can get the kids out of here now." George said as he walked out of the Shuttlebay.

"First day of duty"
by Ensign John W. McQueen

******Outside Lt. Cmmander Sunder´s Office*****

John McQueen and Matthew Albrecht was heading toward Lt. Commander Ursa Sunder´s office. John had meet Sunder yesterday when he was reporting that he had come aboard the Galaxy. And now he will report to duty to him. They aproached Sunder´s office and John fixed his uniform. Matthew punched the keypad and then he heard Sunder´s vocie.

"Come in." The doors slide aside and John and Matthew entered the room.

"Ursa, I think you have meet our new officer. Ensign John W. McQueen." Matthew said.

"That´s correct Matthew. Hello Ensign and welcome aboard the USS Galaxy and to the security department." Sunder said and hold out his hand to McQueen. John took it.

"Thank you sir. It´s a plesure to be here."

"That´s okay Ensign. Now, Matthew here will make sure you meet your new colleages, and then he will show you to a place where you can work."

"Thank you sir."

John and Matthew went out form Sunder´s office and headed down the corridor.

{One hour later}

John sat in chear in the security department. On his desk laid a few padds whit various preports from the outher security officers.

*This is briliant! My first day as security officer, and I must do all the papper work.* He took up the next padd and began to read.

Last night he had going through diferent mesage, and he find one from an Ensgin Jack D'Auria. It was something about puting together a team for somekind of project. He turned to his computer terminal.

"Computer, display bio of Ensign Jack D'Auria." The computer answered whit a series of bips and then Jack D'Auria´s bio apered on the screen.

*Here it is. improved C-Defence defence system? Well it sounds funier than this.* He made a mesage to Jack D'Auria telling him he was intresting to join the team.

*****In McQueen´s quarters after Gamma shift*****

John was very tierd when he entered his quarters after Gamma shift had end. He went down to the replicatorin his room.

"Vulcan red wine. Year 2368. He ordered. The replicator bagan to play a most anoying tune.

"Computer, turn off my replicator." He said and the replicator stopp playing. He hit his combadge.

"McQueen to Enginnering."

"Lt. Samara her. What is it." A female voice answered.

"Have you pepole down there don´t fixed the replicators yet?" John said. He had bean informed by Lt. Albrecht about this joke some one in the crew was doing whit the replicators.

"No, but I think we will have the replicators up and working tomorrow."

"Okay, thanks. McQueen out." he ended the comunication, walked to a cabinet and took out a glass and a bottle of red human wine, and took place in one of the chears.

"Computer, play background music. Beethoven, symphony No. 5." He lean back and enjoy the music and drank his wine.

*This is a good thing to end the day whit*

"Betrayal"
by Lt. Ronni Morris
ACSO, USS Galaxy

As soon as her shift was over, Ronni decided to follow up on Miran's suggestion and talk with Tebrianne. Tebrianne was surely lonely and probably just needed a friend. Again Ronni mentally thanked Miran for her wonderful idea.

In the turbolift, Ronni asked, "Computer . . . "

[Breed Eep]

"Please locate Lt. Tebrianne Bancroft"

"Lt. Bancroft is currently in the Officer's lounge"

Ronni headed for the officer's lounge. When she got there, she noticed that Tebrianne was in the middle of a game of chess with Deiran. Refusing to let Deiran see her apologize for anything, she said against the wall with a clear view of the two. Ronni pulled out her PADD and started going over some of the reports that she needed to do. She also sent a quick message of love to Greer.

As she was working, she watched the game between Tebrianne and Deiran. Besides the game on the field ahead of them, they seemed to be playing a flirting game. Ronni had seen Deiran do this a hundred times before. What bothered her is that he hadn't done it since he married Miran. The more she watched, the more she realized that this was no longer a game. Ronni's blood started to boil.

As the two finished the game of chess, they got up and left. Apparently headed for the holodecks. Ronni followed cautiously. She didn't know why she followed them, but she really had to wanted to speak with Tebrianne. She also felt her duty to Miran.

Deiran and Tebrianne entered the holodeck. Ronni went over and checked the program that was running. It was a homemade music scenario. That relieved Ronni tremendously. Her feelings of anger subsided. "I'm just being foolish." she said to herself. She decided to wait for Tebrianne. She really wanted to apologize to her about Greer and maybe be her friend.

After almost an hour, the doors to the holodeck suddenly opened. Tebrianne was sitting there, naked and crying. Deiran rushed out, looking sad and scared. He had that sex smell about him. He was in such a hurry, that he almost ran into her. The doors to the holodeck closed immediately behind him. He was trapped between Ronni and the wall.

Ronni stepped toward him so that there was less than 2 cm between them. A look of pure hatred and betrayal filled her eyes. "You son of a bitch!" she said.

Deiran, never at a loss of words, "Ronni, let me explain . . . " he started.

Poking him in the chest, hard enough to bruise him, she growled, "I don't want to hear it. I have loved you like a brother for two and a half years now. How could you do this? How could you do this to Miran!"

He grabbed her arm and said, "Ronni, this is none of your business. This is between Miran and myself . . ."

"and apparently Tebrianne . . ." Ronni continued. She yanked her arm away from him, tears of anger and frustration filling her eyes and rolling down her cheeks.

"I'm . . . I'm sorry Ronni. I never meant for this to happen." he said dejectedly.

"Targ-shit!" Ronni spat. "You went into that holodeck knowing full well what would happen. You're a grown man. You are enough in control of yourself to keep your pecker in your pants! How could you do this to Miran and Lara?"

"Shut up! You don't know anything about it. Now leave me alone . . . ." he said. He pushed Ronni out of the way and headed for the turbolift.

Ronni let herself forward against the wall of the corridor, hot tears streaming. With a burst of frustration, she hit the wall. The alert panel shattered under her fist. Pushing herself upright, she ran to the one place she knew she would feel comfortable. Greer's arms.

Adjustments
By Ensign Anthony Mendenhall

Anthony was suprised at hpw he felt. After kicking himself tellign himself over and over again for blurting out crime, he felt almost better. Even though he could probably demoted, he really didn't feel scared or nervous.

After careful thinking and some pizza from the replicator, he made some conclusions about himself.

(1) He should have beat his stupid brother at 3D chess
(2) He shouldn't have pulled such a big prank
(3) His morale compass had an odd time to kick in
(4) He was unpradictable

After some more thought and a old 20th century caronated drink, he found the flaws. The first was his apparent stupidity. It was obvious he wouldbe traced by one of the bright crewmen onboard the Galaxy. His plans had been on an assumption that he wouldn't be caught. Mendenhall could have easily "framed" someone, but was to proud to think he would be caught.

Second, the Polina was too cute. If he had pick some cadet sercurity officer, he would be laughing right now instead of trying to evaluate his situation and himself. Actually, it wasn't becasue she was cute, it was because she was nice. Well, maybe her being cute did matter a little, but not enough to have him blab out his crime.

That reminded him about another promise he had made. His mother wanted him to go on a date. Seemed pretty simple to any normal person, but Mendenhall was far from normal. He figured he'd ask Polina. Heck, might as well shoot for the top. I mean, chances were he was going to be rejected, but he might as well try. But only ask her AFTER the stupid prank thing had blown itself out.

That left Mendenhall with only one thing to do. Wait and see what happened. Maybe the two engineers would just think him crazy and dismiss him. Who knows? This time though, he would learn from his mistakes.

"Cleaning Up"
by Tebrianne Bancroft

***

It was some time before Tebrianne could think clearly again. She'd spent the last thirty minutes berating herself for being so stupid to think that Deiran would stay with her. He had a wife and daughter to go to. She wiped away the last of her tears and rolled onto her knees.

On the floor, where she and Deiran had made love was a spot of blood. Using her underwear, Tebrianne wiped it up. The holodeck cycle might clean it up, but she didn't want to risk it. It wouldn't be good to find Romulan blood on the floor of the holodeck, it'd be too easy to trace it back to her.

Teb stood up and looked around the room. It was dark and cold. Only a half hour ago, it had been filled with the searing heat of hers and Deiran's passion. Using the underwear, she tried to clean herself up a little more. She was able to get some of the blood and other mess cleaned up from between her legs, but the sexual fluids of Deiran's first climax were still caked on her chest. She picked up her skirt and lace top and put them on. She slid into the sandals and looked around the room again. The holodecks would never quite be the same.

She started walking toward the doors. She was sore. She balled up her underwear, and tried to keep in concealed. The doors opened and Tebrianne stepped into the deserted corridor.

She quickly walked down toward the turbolifts. The wait for a lift seemed interminable, but finally one arrived. It was empty. Teb stepped inside and slumped against the back wall. "Deck 5."

The car started moving. Tebrianne's heart sank as the car came to a stop on deck 7. The doors opened and an ensign stepped into the car. He looked at her and smiled a knowing smile. Teb looked down at her feet. She could feel his eyes on her. Checking her out. Admiring her near-nakedness. Tebrianne could scream. She could feel the lustful emotions pouring off the man. It was a sickly sweet feeling that turned her stomach. Teb quickly tried to throw up one of the blocks she'd learned to shield herself from the onslaught of the man's lecherousness.

The door opened on deck five. Teb practically fell out of the turbolift and into the corridor. She quickly walked toward her quarters, nearly running as she rounded the last corner. Keying her entry code, she fell through the door into a heap on the other side.

"Teb," a voice called from the living area. "Is that you? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Tebrianne said softly, looking up to see Julia walking toward her. "What are you still doing here?"

"I thought you might want some company when you got back," she said. "Looks like I was right. You alright?"

"Yes," Teb said. "I'm doing fine. I already said that."

"Well," Jules said. "You look like a mess. What happened?"

"Nothing much," Teb lied.

"I don't believe you."

"Nothing happened, Jules. Nothing at all. Okay?"

"Okay," Jules said backing away. "Don't get so defensive. I guess I'll see you later then. Have a nice night, Tebrianne." Jules stepped over Teb towards the door.

Tebrianne sat up. "Look, Julia, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... I mean, I can't really talk about it."

Julia nodded and turned back toward the door.

Teb squeezed her eyes shut as her stomach knotted up. "I had sex."

Julia stopped in her tracks and spun around. "What?? You?? I mean, you were just going out to have some fun... I didn't mean that much fun."

"One thing led to another..."

"I guess so," Julia said. "Come on into the living room and tell me all about it."

"I can't do that," Teb said. "It wouldn't be right."

"Come on, Teb," she said. "It's me. Julia. Your ex-roommate. The one that when we had a chance to see each other when we were living in the same quarters would stay up late with you and gab. So..."

Teb thought about it, and knew it would be wrong to say anything to Julia. Julia was making pleading faces and clasping her hands together.

"Alright," Teb finally said, giving in. "But you need to swear that none of this will ever leave this room."

"Promise!" Julia said as she crossed her heart.

The two women moved into the living room and sat on the couch. Teb turned to face Julia but before she could say anything, Julia cut her off. "Oh wow," she said. "I can't believe this."

"Well," Teb smiled weakly. "Believe it."

Julia got comfortable. "So, how did it start?"

"We were playing a game of chess and he was flirting with me like you wouldn't believe. We were talking about music and stuff and he asked me about the band. I started telling him about it, and all of a sudden I was telling him about all of the sex. We decided to leave and go to a holodeck to jam. He sang this really romantic song to me, and before I knew it, he was reaching to pull my shirt off. He stopped, and I put his hands back on it...and he pulled it off. I couldn't believe I did that."

"This is juicy," Jules said. "Who was it?"

"I can't tell that," Teb said.

"Come on, Tebrianne. It's not going to leave this room, right?"

Teb regarded her friend trying to figure out if she could say something. "It was Deiran Casey."

"Oh my god," Jules squealed. "You fucked Deiran Casey? THE Deiran Casey? The man that every woman I've talked to fantasizes about? You are going to be a legend, Girl. Oh my god. Isn't he married?"

Teb nodded. "That's why I can't say anything about it."

"I know," Jules said, nodding her head vigorously. "How big is he?" Teb indicated with her hands. "Oh my god. A stallion. What did you guys do?"

Teb felt her cheeks warming as her friend pried for details. "I gave him a...."

"A what?"

"I gave..." Teb looked at her sandals and then off toward the bedroom. "I sucked his..."

"Oh my god," Jules shouted. "You gave Deiran a--"

"Yes," Teb said quickly. "I did. Please don't shout, Jules. I don't want the whole ship to know about it."

"Okay," she said, crossing her heart again. "Spit or swallow, Teb?"

Teb swallowed hard, remembering the salty taste. "Swallowed the second and third times."

"And the first?"

"He...you know," she said, gesturing since she couldn't bring herself to say it. "On my chest."

"Oh, kinky." Jules squirmed in her seat trying to contain her excitement. "Did you guys do anything else kinky? Like did he--"

"No," Teb said. "That was it. I did him three times, and he did me,...down there...three times. After that, we fucked like a couple of bloody bunny rabbits."

"Bunny rabbits? Oh, Teb, you are goddess. The woman of this ship will bow at your feet."

"After that, he swore me to silence and then went back to his wife. I cried for a bit, tried to clean myself up, and came home. I lost my virginity, but I'm not sure how I feel about it."

"Did you enjoy it?"

"It was fantastic when we were there and making love," she said. "But, now it seems kind of empty. He was there with me, and then he went back to his wife."

"Well," Jules said, putting a hand on Teb's shoulder. "Maybe you should get some sleep. Let's get you in the shower and cleaned up."

"Okay," she said.

Half an hour later, Teb was sitting on the edge of her bed in a t-shirt. "Thanks, Jules. You're the best."

"That's what you've got friends for, Teb," she said, stifling a yawn. "Now, I need to get some sleep. See you tomorrow."

"G'night, Jules."

"Rebuttal"

Jack stood before the doors leading to Lt. McKenzies office. Straightening his tunic, he pressed the chime.

"Come."

Jack walked in purposefully, standing at attention in front of Lt. Hunter's desk.

"Sir, I am Ensign D'Auria."

"Ah yes, grinned Mac, The firebrand who wants to completely remodel the way we do things around here. Why don't you take a seat, Ensign?"

D'Auria sat down, keeping his back straight. Mac sat back in his chair, elbows resting on the armrests, fingers steepled.

"Sir, it has been brought to my attention that my actions have been interpreted as to be circumventing the chain of command. Also, that I am trying to change policy. I would like to apologize for the miscommunication and assure you that none of this was on my mind at the time I started my research. I did not mean to offend you in any way."

"That's quite alright, Mr. D'Auria. I've read your preliminary work. It's good, but not quite what we want here. You might want to think about sending it to the ASDB, though. I'm sure they would consider it. You did get my memo, didn't you." Mac asked.

"Yes, sir I did. I would like to discuss it and give you an in-depth review of my designs. I'm sure you will see that it is not what you think. As I told Lt. Erikson, this project can only work if all departments are involved."

Mac nodded, "Very well, Ensign. Proceed."

Jack handed over the PADD he was carrying before replying.

"As your first point, you mentioned the First Contact doctrine. We, the Galaxy, are not flying to uncharted regions of space. We are supposed to patrol the shipping lanes near the border with Cardassia, a world we're at war with. The chance of running into a new race in this sector is approximately 1,365,879.375 to 1. I submit that in such a case, the First Contact doctrine does not apply. Until such a time a treaty is signed or either side has been defeated, the First Contact procedure is moot, due to the fact that we will be actively scanning every particle in the sector to make sure no enemy ships get by us. To not do so, would be illogical and could cost a heavy toll."

Mac shook his head slightly as he listened. He couldn't believe what he had just heard from the Ensign.

"Mr. D'Auria, The First Contact doctrine and its associated texts, including the Prime Directive, are always in effect. I'm sure you are well aware of the number of documented first contact scenarios that have been documented even in so-called explored sectors. I mention Q as just one, But I'll concede that point for now. Please continue."

"As your second point, you stated that the TacOps center does most of the work that I have outlined. That is essentially a correct statement, Sir. However, one officer at the Tactical station on the bridge is not enough, in my opinion. I shall explain. The TacOps center gathers, compiles and sends the data to the bridge officer. He in turn has to quickly sort through a large amount of data, regarding offensive and defensive nature, while keeping an eye on sensors and a myriad of other tasks. It is easy to get distracted for a fraction of a second, especially in a combat situation."

Mac mentally restrained himself as he listened to the Ensign talk about the shortcomings of the Tactical officers, his tactical officers. He withheld his response as the Ensign continued.

"I would like to combine my answer to your last two points, sir and begin by asking you a question."

"Which would be, Ensign?"

"When in combat with multiple opponents, the current incarnation of the C-Defense fires at their weapons array when detected, correct?"

"No, The C-Defense is not a separate entity from the normal systems, merely an additional defensive subroutine. As with all the weaponry, the system will establish the most viable targeting solution unless overridden by the operator, based on the current alert status, of course. Currently only the 5 secondary phaser strips are tied directly to the C-defense. The two primary strips are used for Primary targeting, as they give us a 300 degree firing arc.

"During that time, the phaser ring that is firing at the weapons array of the enemy is not able to engage the larger targets, namely the ships, is that also correct?"

"Correct again, Ensign. But as I stated with the 5 strips located on the secondary hull we have more than ample firepower to disable most systems."

"Sir, during Commodore Soltak's Elementary Tactics and Maneuvers class, the one thing he kept hammering into our heads was to take advantage of the enemy's weakness. The Galaxy's C-Defense is an asset, but also a weakness."

"I disagree with you, ensign. I believe that during our last encounter, the current setup has proved its efficiency."

"I do not disagree with that, sir, I am only interested in making the setup better."

Hunter sat forward in his chair, " What was your position with the Fifth", asked Mac.

"Operations", replied DAuria

"Operations", repeated Mac, "Then you do not have the experience to tell me what my trained Tactical officers are able to accomplish on the bridge. My section doesn't heal people, it doesn't secure the hallways, Hell, it doesn't make sure that the engines work and it sure as Hell doesn't tell, in scientific terms, what color the inside of a Targ's ass is. My men and I are tactical officers. We make sure that the Captain of this ship has the best plans to available to resolve a possibly hostile situation. That means engaging an enemy. But it also means knowing when to run. Its not the hardware that wins an engagement, its the bioware. If it wasn't then we would be replaced by Tactical computers. Your problem, Ensign, is that you confuse knowledge with experience. Being in a War is a whole lot different than being in a battle."

"I understand, Sir and….."

Hunter held up his hand, silencing D'Auria as he continued, "As I stated in my memo to you, the Galaxy is not a warship. It is not designed for that. It would be dangerous to think that just by adding extra weapons or personnel or another computer or two that it immediately becomes a solution to any problem. As of right now, I feel that you fail to grasp the mission of the Galaxy and/or her capabilities. To that end I will not be assigning a member of my section to the design team until such time as there is a viable thesis , that is more viable to the Galaxy. It is my recommendation that you stick to the scientific aspects of the Galaxy and leave the Tactical ones to those that have the experience and training to handle them. That is all, Ensign. Dismissed."

Jack stood up, inclining his head towards the lieutenant, "Yes, sir, Thank you for your time", turned around and walked out. Mac tossed the PADD the ensign had handed him to the desk and sighed.

"I need a drink. He added as he stood and strode purposefully through the door.

Galaxy "Ten Forward"
Written By Lt. Kahn Nilani
Chief Medical Officer

I sat in my office for a short time wondering about the next step. I looked at the blank cream wall of my office and I knew I needed out! I got up from my desk and chucked the Data PADD onto it. I walked out of my office and Sickbay and headed to the Turbolift, I entered the Turbolift and told the Computer I wanted Ten Forward!

After a short time the Turbolift stopped and I walked into Ten Forward, I found a dark and secluded spot in one of the Far corners. I sat down and within seconds a waiter was beside me.

["Excuse me ma'am! Would you like a drink?"]

I turned to look at him.

"Yes please, I will have a Bajoran Coffee."

the waiter walked off and I turned back to look at the stars!

"Destruction Comes"
USS GALAXY
Lt. Commander Deiran Casey
w/excerpts from "Betrayal" by Lt. Ronni Morris

The holodeck doors opened, Deiran exited quickly, looking from side to side. When he looked in front of him he was met by Ronni Morris. His eyes were still red from the tears he had shed and was still shedding. The pain inside him was unbearable. It would have been less painful to get his leg cut off at the knee.

Sharp, intense pains shot through his system. His muscles were tense. Why did I do this? How could I have just screwed up my life. How can I have feelings for Teb *and* Miran? I would choose Miran without a second thought. Will she have me now? Why would she? And then he broke down again.

No one would understand what happened, he knew that. He didn’t even know how he had allowed himself to make the biggest mistake in his life. "Oh my God, of all times to run into her!" he swore to himself. Fear was advertising itself on his face and a sign of ‘guilty’ was painted red on his forehead. Or so Deiran thought.

Ronni stepped toward him so that there was less than 2 cm between them. A look of pure hatred and betrayal filled her eyes. "You son of a bitch!" she said.

Deiran, never at a loss for words, "Ronni, let me explain . . . " he started, tears streaming down his face which she didn’t seem to notice.

Poking him in the chest, hard enough to bruise him, she growled, "I don't want to hear it. I have loved you like a brother for two and a half years now. How could you do this? How could you do this to Miran!"

Ronni continued. She yanked her arm away from him, tears of anger and frustration filling her eyes and rolling down her cheeks. Deiran cried out to her.

"I'm . . . I'm sorry Ronni. I never meant for this to happen. I don’t even know how it happened," he said dejectedly, confused, his remorse clearly shown.

"Targ-shit!" Ronni spat. "You went into that holodeck knowing full well what would happen. You're a grown man. You are enough in control of yourself to keep your pecker in your pants! How could you do this to Miran and Lara?"

She was right, Deiran Casey should have the strength to control his pecker, he thought. If I can command a Starship under impossible odds I should be able to keep my privates in my pants under impossible odds. "You don't know anything about it. Now leave me alone . . . ." he said, his face red with tears. He pushed Ronni out of the way and headed for the turbolift.

No one saw him all the way back to his quarters.

As he hurriedly, almost running, back to his quarters he inquired for Miran’s whereabouts. [Casey Ti- Miran is in holodeck 4.]

Tell her nothing, if she finds out I’ll just deny everything. She’ll trust me. She has too. I’ll never do it again. I love her, I love her with all my heart. Common Casey, land on your feet! You get out of jams all the time, you can get out of this one. He took his wrist and wiped tears from his eyes. He wouldn’t get out of this one. Ronni knew. How long could Tebrianne stay quiet?

The odds were against him he knew it. Deiran tapped his comm-badge. "Miran? When will you be home?" he asked, a bit rough, but not rude.

[I’m landing my plane now hon, I’ll be home in ten minutes.] She said, her voice happy. She was definitely not aware of what just transpired between him and Ronni…yet.

The door of his quarters opened. "Take your time Miran, I was just wondering. I only have five hours till Alpha shift. D’tarna is watching Lara, I’m going to bed ok? Good night, see you tomorrow."

Deiran was abrupt, the guilt clearly getting to him. He said a quick hello to D’tarna, but never looked her straight in the eye. "I’m going to take a quick shower and go to bed. Thanks for watching Lara," he said as he hurried into the bathroom.

Bellen knew something was wrong but said nothing. Deiran was abrupt, distant. His words gruff, quick and his tone low.

Deiran turned on the sonic shower. Undressed and stepped inside. He looked at himself. And the pain was just too much to hold off any longer. It was like he could feel the pain Miran would feel when she found out. And it flowed down upon him like a dark eclipse. He fell to his knees and banged his head against the tile.

I have to get rid of this guilt! I can’t live like this. What was really scary was that it’d only been an hour since he left Tebrianne. And he already felt sick. Sick of himself, sick of his feelings, sick of the guilt. Sick of the whole situation.

He half wished that a Q would appear and offer to return things back as they were before in return for his life. I’d rather die than face Miran with this, he thought.

He finished his shower. The smell of his lovemaking with Teb washed off thoroughly. He put on his pajamas and started for the bed. He didn’t even look at Lara. The little girl reached out to her daddy for attention. Bellen noticed he didn’t even look at Lara. She knew that just being plain tired, he would give her a piggy back ride. But, he didn’t even look at her. Bellen also noticed he didn’t look at her either. Bellen could feel the tremendous pain inside him. It almost consumed her mind it was so strong. She had to sit down it overwhelmed her with such force. "Deiran…" she called out. He ignored her.

Deiran got into bed and tossed and turned for the rest of the night. Sleep was an impossible dream.

"Hook, Line and Sinker"
by Lieutenant (JG) Xavier Bishop
Security
USS Galaxy

***** Ten Forward *****

Ten Forward was a flurry of activity as Xavier walked through the massive wooden doors leading into the lounge. Stopping just inside the doors, Xavier began to tap the PADD he was holding in his hand against his thigh as he scanned the room. *Ah, there they are.* Xavier navigated the crowd of gathered starfleet personel making his way to a table occupied by three Starfleet Officers: George Prince, Matthew Albrecht, and Numa Taurean. "All of Engineering must be in here." stated the Andorian Officer as he approached his friends.

"Considering they were run out of Engineering, that would be my guess too." replied Numa.

"Run out?" asked Xavier dropping his PADD onto the table and plopping himself down into an empty chair reserved for him.

"You mean you haven't heard?" questioned Matthew.

"Heard what?" countered Xavier.

George interjected. "We took on some SI Officers," he paused slightly as he hooked a thumb in the direction of Admiral Pressman's table, " and they ran our people out of engineering."

"Yeah." agreed Numa. "I heard they were installing sensitive equipment for use in some sort of mission."

"Took over Cargo Bay 2, also." added Matt.

"I wonder what they're up to?" asked Xavier to no one in particular.

"I know." stated Numa.

George, Matthew and Xavier all turned to face the serious Benzite officer. She leaned forward across the table and peered over her shoulder toward where Admiral Pressman was seated with Lieutenant Thomas in the back corner of Ten Forward. Then, turning back to her gathered friends, whispered conspirotously, "I heard the Cardassian's had some sort of secret weapon they were going to unleash against the Klingon Empire." She looked around the table at her gathered friends.

"I wonder if they got hold of some of those genetically altered Klingons." querried Xavier.

"No. Something much worse." confided Numa as she looked over her shoulder toward Admiral Pressman again. She turned back to the table and lifted her drink to her tendrilled mouth draining the beverage in one gulp.

"Yeah. So gone on." urged George after Numa sat back in her chair and lapsed into silence.

Matthew leaned closer into the table. "Well?"

"C'mon Numa. Spit it out." demanded Xavier. "You've told us this much."

"No, I really shouldn't. Besides, it was all just second hand scuttlebut." replied the wary Benzite. She looked into the apprehensive faces of her friends. After a moment of thought, her decission was made. "Oh, allright. Tribbles."

"Tribbles?" questioned George, Matt, and Xavier in unison.

"Tribbles." Numa brought an index finger up to her smiling lips, "Shhhhh. Hush, hush top secret stuff gentlemen." But the charade was over. Numa burst into laughter as she stared into the confused faces of her three friends. "Hook, line and sinker."

After a few moments George, Matt, and Xavier joined Numa in laughter.

Noting the time, Xavier picked up his PADD and pushed himself up from the table. "Well, it has been a pleasure being the butt end of a joke. But, I have some reports to file. So, if you will excuse me, I will see you," he turned to Numa and then George and Matthew, "lady and gentlemen in a couple of hours on the holodeck for our date with Pink Pigs and Klingons."

***** Deck 38, Corridor *****

The turbolift glided to a smooth stop and the doors swished silently aside. Xavier, who had been engrossed with the contents of his PADD, looked up and stepped into the familiar corridor of Deck 38. *Just like Matt said.* A little way down the corridor, two black uniformed SI Officers were standing to either side of Cargo Bay 2: a Bolian and an Andorian. *Tribbles.* Xavier chuckled and returned to his reading as he stepped off in the direction of the SecOps Center. However, as Xavier came abreast of the SI Officers guarding Cargo Bay 2, the Bolian guard thrust his leg out in front of Xavier who in turn immediatley tripped over it.

"WATCH WHERE YOUR GOING!!" Bellowed the Bolian SI Officer as Xavier staggered to regain his footing.

After performing his 'shuffle dance' for the amused SI Officers and regaining his footing, Xavier spun around and glared into the Bolians face. A hideous scar slashed down and across his left eye curving around his cheek toward the corner of his mouth. The eye which the scar bisected was a single white, seemingly lifeless, orb. Xavier smiled. *I know this man.* "I'll be a Son of a Bitch. Is that you Dehv'ott?"

A ferol grin split across the Bolian's marred face as he dropped a hand away from his phaser rifle and thrust it toward Xavier. "The one and only." he said as Xavier clasped his friends arm in a powerful warriors shake. "And, it's Lieutenant Dehv'ott to you, you piece of Lieutenant Junior Grade shit." laughed Dehv'ott.

Xavier laughed too. "So, what brings you SI types onto my ship?"

"Well Lieutenant," interjected a sultry voice, "we could tell you. But then, Lieutenant Dehv'ott here would be forced to kill you."

"Him?" Xavier turned and faced the Andorian SI Officer. *Whoa!! How could I not have noticed this sweet treat like her.* He laughed as he looked from the pretty smiling Andorian woman to his old Starfleet Academy Room Mate and friend. "Guess you didn't tell her, huh Lieutenant." Xavier emphasized Dehv'ott's rank.

"Tell me what, sir?" asked the Andorian SI Officer of Lieutenant Dehv'ott.

"Fuck you, Xaev." swore Dehv'ott.

"Go ahead Lieutenant, sir." laughed Xavier. "Tell her. I'm sure Lietenant...." he turned toward the Andorian woman. *Mercy! I love the way her lavender eyes sparkle.*

"Tavia." filled in the smiling woman.

"Tavia," continued Xavier, "would like to know how you kicked 'my' ass all over the Academy Campus." Xavier winked at Lieutenant Tavia. "As for me, I have to get to work." Xavier turned on his heals and proceeded to the SecOps Center.

"That was a sucker punch and you know it you little shit!" roared Dehv'ott as Xavier continued down the hallway.

"Yeah, yeah. Any time, any place Lieutenant." called back Xavier.

***** SecOps Center *****

Xavier stepped through the doors to the SecOps Center with a huge grin plastered on his face. "Hello Jaqui." said Xavier to the beuatiful Napean/Human Officer manning the central console.

Jaqui looked up from her work station and smiled. "Hello, Xaev."

"Hey Bishop, how's it going?" asked Lieutenant (jg) James Chen as he turned from the phaser locker. Situated on the work station next to him was a fully dismantled weapon which James was currently cleaning and inspecting.

"Doing fine, Chen. Just ran into an old Acedemy friend of mine in the hallway." answered Xavier. Both Jacqui and James looked at Xavier.

"No." stated Jacqui.

"You mean you know one of those guys?" querried James at the same time Jaqui voiced her statement.

"So, what are they doing here?" urged Ensign Jacqui Mancinni.

"Ready for the holo-exercise?" rumbled a deep unmistakable voice.

"Commander." Xavier turned toward the sound of Ursa's voice. "I thought you would be sleeping."

A knowing smile spread across the Commanders bearded face. "I wouldn't miss it for the world Mr. Bishop." He was referring to the holoprogram entitled Pink Pigs and Klingons.

Xavier smiled. *Neither would I.* "Yes, sir."

"He was just about to tell us why SI is here, sir." stated James from across the room.

"Yeah. His ex-roomie from the Academy is one of those SI Officers." added Jacqui.

"Well." began Xavier as he looked behind him to make sure the doors to SecOps were closed. Seeing that they were, he turned back to his companions and in a low conspiritous voice began his story. "My friend in SI was telling me that the Cardies have a secret weapon."

***** Deck 38 Corridor *****

"Sir, your not supposed to go in there." insisted the petite asian officer as she chased after Lieutenant Commander Cassidy Lyle.

"Nonsense, Ensign Okuda." stated Lyle matter of factly as he walked briskly down the corridor past Lieutenant Commander Sunder's office. "We can't get our work done till we have those parts now can we."

"But, sir." pleaded the pretty engineering officer.

Lyle silenced her with a raised hand and, wagging his index finger in her face, continued as if speaking to a young ignorant child. "Ta ta my deer lovely lady. I am a Commander in Star Fleet. You are about to see the privelages of rank at work."

Rounding the corner to Cargo Bay 2, Lieutenant Commander Cassidy Lyle marched purposefuly up to the doors and, ignoring the two SI guards, prepared to walk through. But, a tall, yet somewhat stocky Bolian stepped up and barked an order at the trollish Commander.

"Sorry, sir. This bay is secured."

Lieutenant Commander Lyle hurumphed and looked at the man barring his path. Lyle gazed into the Bolians face taking note of the hideous scar that marred the man's otherwise handsome features. The next thing Lyle noted were the gold Lieutenants pips on his black collar. His lips curled up in a hideous gesture of a smile. "I am Commander Lyle and you will step aside Lieutenant. That is an order."

"Sorry, sir." repeated the Bolian guard.

"Yes, so you've said." sighed the Commander. "Now step aside or be prepared to face charges of insubordination." Lyle's eyes flashed threateningly as he stared into Lieutenant Dehv'ott's scarred face. The Bolian remained where he was.

"Sorry, sir. Orders." replied Lieutenant Dehv'ott.

*I can't believe this. No one on this ship respects rank.* thought Lyle to himself. *This is embarassing.* He glanced over his shoulder toward Ensign Kimi Okuda. *She must think me some fluzy of a fop. I have to do something.*

"Sir." began Ensign Okuda.

"I said move, you neandrathol!" Commander Lyle grabbed hold of the Bolians shoulders as he thrust him aside. *Why is he smiling?* The Commander yelped at the painful impact which exploded across his shoulders. The next thing he knew he was sprawled on the deck in front of the Bolian guard. Lyle lost all control. Angrily, he pushed himself up from the deck and took a swing at Dehv'ott's face while shouting angrily, "You are under arres...." However, Lyles threat came to an abrupt sputtering halt as the wind was forcibly knocked from his lungs by a starfleet issue boot.

At the same moment, Ensign Okuda, wittnessing the attack by Lyle, stumbled back and slapped her com badge. "Security to Cargo Bay 2."

Lieutenant Commander Lyle found himself airborn as he was propelled into the bulkhead before sliding to a seated posture on the deck. He gasped painfully for breath while at the same time his eyes settled on the phaser that was pointed toward his head.

"You...you...," sputtered the terrified Lieutenant Commander Lyle, "You can't do this."

"Yes. I can, sir." stated Lieutenant Dehv'ott matter of factly.

***** SecOps Center *****

"Hook, line and sinker." laughed Xavier.

Kimi Okuda's terrified voice squawked over the SecOps com channel. "Security to Cargo Bay 2."

"What the Hell?!" began Chen.

"Let's go!!" commanded Ursa, grabbing a rifle from the wall locker.

Xavier, Chen and Mancinni each grabbed a rifle and raced down the corridor after their Commander. As Xavier rounded the corner, he saw his old Academy friend standing over the prone form of Lieutenant Commander Lyle. Off to the side Ensign Okuda and Lieutenant (jg) Tavia were talking.

"What is the meaning of this?" inquired Ursa in his deep commanding voice.

"Sir." Lieutenant Dehv'ott came to attention in front of Commander Ursa. "This man," he looked down at Lyle, "attempted to force his way into a secured area."

Lyle, seeing the commanding figure of Ursa, mustered up some courage and, pulling himself to his feet, pointed toward the scar faced Bolian. "Nonsense!" He turned to Commander Sunder. "I want this man arrested."

Ursa turned toward Lyle. "We'll get to that Commander." The large SecChief turned to Xavier and Chen. "Bishop. Chen. Escort Commander Lyle to SecOps and take his statement. Mancini. Take care of Ensign Okuda."

"Yes, sir." chimed all three security officers.

Ursa turned back to Lietenant Dehv'ott. "Now tell me what happened here, Lieutenant."

"Dreams"
by Lieutenant (jg) James Chen
Security Officer

Chen's shift had proven relatively boring and his mind kept falling back to Brady and Lex. He went to Ten-Forward and saw Nilani sitting in a corner in the back. Chen went to the bar and got a glass of iced tea with mint leaves and walked over. He pointed at the chair across from her. "This seat taken?"

Nilani looked up and smiled politely. "No. Go ahead."

He sat down and looked at his drink. "James."

He looked up at Nilani. She looked concerned. "What's wrong?"

Chen sighed. He guessed that the reason he came here was to talk. He had to get this off his chest at some point. He liked Nilani and he had sat down. "I've been having some problems."

"Like what?"

"Well, it all started with this medal."

"Oh, the medal. I forgot to send a letter of congratulation. What started with it?"

Chen shrugged. "Well, it's just that me and Brady, the other guy that won the medal, don't exactly see eye-to-eye anymore. I mean before, we were best friends. It was always him and Lucas and me. The Three Musketeers they called us."

Nilani frowned. "Friends drift apart, James. It's a hard fact to accept, but we all change."

Chen nodded. He knew all about change. "To make matters worse, he's started to see alot of Lex. I mean, they really seem to be hitting it off."

Nilani smiled. "Ah. Jealousy. That can ruin a person's day quick. Besides, so what if he's seeing Lex? I thought you were just good friends."

Chen nodded. "Well, we are. But...I don't know. It's difficult to explain."

"You want to make things a little more serious?"

"No. Maybe. Hell, I don't know. Things have just happened so fast that I don't know what's going on."

Nilani clicked her tongue. "Confusion and jealousy. Why don't you just talk to Lex?"

"Because we're not exactly getting along great, either."

Nilani leaned forward. "You know how it sounds to me?" Chen shook his head. "Like maybe you need to swallow your pride and talk to her. If you don't want to fix things...Maybe you should stop and examine whether you really want that relationship. Friends or otherwise."

Chen looked up and studied Nilani. He looked at her in a whole new light. "I never knew that you were such an expert on relationships." Her eyes twinkled as she smiled at him.

"Then you should start paying attention. There's alot I can do."

Chen smiled back. "Thanks, doc." He stood up and walked out of Ten-Forward.

***Chen's Quarters***

Nilani was right. He had to fix things. He had to talk to Lex. But first, he needed a plan of action. He laid down on his bed and closed his eyes. He fell away slowly, thinking of what to do.

Then, he was standing in the corridors of an Excelsior Class ship and he immediately knew where he was. The Honorable.

He shook his head. "No. Not again." *Yessss*

He spun to face the voice and saw Ensign Jorge Gutierrez. He was bleeding from a wound in his side and a bad burn scarred his face. There was also a phaser burn on his chest. Where Chen had shot him nine years before. *You killed me, James.*

Chen shook his head and swallowed. "It was merciful. You were dying. It was all I could do!"

*What about me?*

Chen spun and faced the other voice. Lieutenant Rachel Mason. Her eyes bulged out of the sockets and her lips were blue. *Did I have to die?* The words came without her opening her mouth.

Chen stepped back. "What we did, we had to do. The ship would have been assimilated."

*You killed me!*

All of a sudden, he was surrounded by dozens of people, dozens of dead faces. Faces that shouldn't be staring at him. Into him. They kept walking towards him and he couldn't escape. "No!" He screamed. "I did what had to be done! WE DID WHAT WE HAD TO!"

He shot up quickly in bed, sweat dripping from his face. The dreams had started again. And he knew what caused it. Brady.

"Tears"
by Lt. Ronni Morris
ACSO, USS Galaxy

Greer was going over some additional reports and was getting some additional information for the visiting Admiral. The information he was asking for was obscure and seemingly unrelated. Security was high on this.

As he was adding in some notes, Ronni came running into the lab. "Ronni, what is . . . .Oofff!" he said as she ran up to him. Tears were streaming down her face.

Sinking to the floor next to Greer, Ronni put her head in his lap. He let her cry herself out, only gentle running his hand through her hair, trying to soothe her. When the tears finally stopped, Greer said, "What to talk about it?"

"I hate him! How could he?" she said vehemently.

"Who? What happened?" he asked. Ronni was never this emotional.

"I . . . .I can't say. . . . ." she said, suddenly halting.

"Why? I someone has done something to you . . ." he said getting upset.

"No. It's nothing like that. A friend of mine is going to be devastated when she finds out, and there is nothing I can do about it. Whether or not

I say something, she'll be hurt. No, he's right. It's none of my business." she said standing up and turning away from Greer.

He came up behind her and turned her toward him. He took her chin in his hand and brought it toward him. They kissed briefly and embraced. Ronni hugged Greer and wiped the tears out of her eyes.

"I'm sorry Greer. This whole thing really stinks." she said.

Suddenly the doors to the lab opened up. AC came in and said, "Is it true?"

Lt. Ronni Morris
Asst. Chief of Science, USS Galaxy

A little Drink
Counselor Daniels

Ensign Daniels wondered into Ten Forward and ordered a Jovian Sunspot, he sat at the bar for awhile, alone and feeling a little awkward.

Finally he picked up his glass and skimmed the room for someone to sit with. He spotted a tall Bajoran female sitting alone in the far corner.

Approaching her he asked some what sheepishly, "Mind if I sit down?"

"Blowouts"
by Captain Robert Edward Lee Price

Admiral Pressman and Lieutenant Thomas stepped out of the turbo lift and onto the Bridge.

Ensign Numa Taruean glanced over from Science station two. She had been running tests there when the lean Benzite saw the Admiral enter. She instinctively straightened up like a first year cadet and called out, "Admiral on the bridge!" Which caused tensions to immediately rise throughout the command crew.

Pressman just smiled wryly at the reactions, enjoying the prestige of his position. "As you were." He started, walking to the Captain's ready room with Lieutenant Thomas in tow, "Is Commander Sterner in the Captain's office?" he pointed.

Lieutenant' Sullax nodded from the Captain's chair. "Yes sir, the Commander is in there." the Romulan confirmed.

Pressman didn't bother thanking Ryak, instead just setting his jaw and barging into the ready room. Lieutenant Thomas followed and the doors swooshed closed.

"Admiral, can I help you sir?" Joerg glanced up from the desk and noticed Chris was with Pressman.

"I thought we could go over a few things before our arrival at the Cardassian boarder in six hours." Pressman explained glancing at the padds he was holding before picking one out and sliding it to the Commander.

"What is this sir?" Joerg asked glancing at the padd.

"Some changes in the duty assignments I'd like to have made when this mission gets underway." Pressman said matter of factly.

Joerg glanced at the list. The Admiral had rearranged almost every schedule for every department. Shifting people from gamma shift to beta, alpha to gamma, and beta back to alpha. It was difficult to figure out exactly who came from where. "Admiral, Captain Price normally lets the Department heads schedule their staff within their respective departments. Don't you think it would be better..."

"I'm not interested in what Captain Price does Commander. My job is to make sure this mission succeeds. To do that, I want the best people available at their posts when we proceed." The Admiral brow beat Sterner. His tone was firm.

"But sir, this will have a very disorienting effect on..." Joerg tried to explain but was interrupted by an incoming hail that seemed to annoy Admiral Pressman even further. Pressman glanced at Lieutenant Thomas who stood by silently and took everything in. "Excuse me Admiral." Joerg apologized and tapped his comm badge. "Sterner here, go ahead."

["Commander, we have a situation down here near Cargo Bay 2. Security has been dispatched."]

"Cargo bay 2?!" Admiral Pressman questioned, "What sort of situation?"

Joerg scowled his eyebrows at the Admiral for interrupting, "What sort of a situation?" he repeated into his comm badge.

["One of the Special Ops officers attacked Lieutenant Commander Lyle when he tried to enter the cargo bay to get some supplies. Lieutenant Commander Sunder from Security is handling it personally."]

"Don't your people know what 'off limits' means Commander?" Admiral Pressman jabbed.

Again Joerg just gave the Admiral a glance. "Be sure to have Ursa give me a full report soon as he has one. Sterner out." With a sharp snap of his finger, Joerg closed the channel and rose to his feet. The six foot three inch First officer towered over Pressman, even with his hands pressed against the Captain's desk while he leaned forward to address the Admiral.

"Security has the situation under control Admiral. And for the record, Lieutenant Commander Kyle is not one of my people. He's an engineer from Starbase 74 who was on board to help recertify the Galaxy fit for duty,... before we were recalled and Starfleet Intelligence came on board."

Pressman stepped closer to where Sterner was leaning over the desk. "You are on the boarder line of being insubordinate Commander. I won't tolerate officers that do not respect the chain of command." Pressman hissed in an implied threat.

Joerg straightened up, pulling back from his intimidating posture. A long moment of tense silence past before he looked over to Lieutenant Thomas and asked, "What are you doing here Chris?"

Thomas went to respond but Admiral Pressman jumped in. "The Lieutenant is going to be assisting me during the course of the mission COMMANDER. See to it that his duties, and that of the other officers on that padd, are rearranged. Are we on schedule to meet at the rendezvous point on time?"

Joerg was not happy at taking the Admiral's orders, but realized there was nothing he could really do about it. "We will be there, on time Admiral." Sterner said flatly.

"Good. I have some things to check on before I go to my quarters to get some rest. Be sure to contact me BEFORE we arrive at the rendezvous point. I want to be on the bridge when we arrive." Pressman commanded sharply.

"Yes Sir!" Joerg declared back, a hint of sarcasm seeping into the forced enthusiasm.

Pressman's eyes narrowed momentarily, but he didn't bother to say anything about it. "Come on Lieutenant, Let's see how things are proceeding in engineering."

Pressman turned to leave. Lieutenant Thomas paused for a moment to let the Admiral lead the way, something the Admiral seemed to excel at. Before doing an about face to follow Pressman, Chris saw Commander Sterner glance at him. Chris made a small Mona Lisa smile and winked at the Galaxy's First Officer and acting Captain before turning to catch up with Pressman.

Joerg sat back down behind the Captain's desk and sighed. "How do you put up with all of this Captain?" he asked of the empty room.

*****

*** Main Engineering ***

Lieutenant Mercury was working with the black uniformed Starfleet Intelligence engineers to install the mysterious device they had brought on board. David had guessed that it was some sort of high tech, state of the art spying equipment, meant to enhance the Galaxy's sensors to spy on the Cardassians across the boarder. But now that they were installing the equipment, he could tell that it was not any sort of sensor grid.

"Why are you hooking that into the main power grid like that?" the Chief Engineer asked, "How much power can this little thing use?"

Harbright smiled. "You'd be surprised Lieutenant."

"Call me David." Mercury said in a friendly tone, handing another coupling spreader to the SI engineer.

"Ken." Harbright replied with a nod.

David smiled. "So Ken, what exactly does this 'little black box' do anyway?"

The two engineers were busy working on the unit when Admiral Pressman and Lieutenant Thomas came walking into main engineering.

"How is it going?" Pressman said pointedly.

David noticed Harbright tighten up, like he was nervous or intimidated. "Everything is going fine sir. We should have the device on-line in a few hours."

"Good." Pressman replied, not being too interested in the details. "I'm going to get some rest before our rendezvous with the other ship. Inform me if you run into any difficulties that would jeopardize the mission."

"Will do Admiral." Harbright responded.

Pressman gave a slight nod and then turned to leave. Chris grabbed his arm to stop him. "Admiral, if you are going to be getting some rest, I'd like to remain here."

Pressman glanced at Thomas. "You should get some rest too Lieutenant. I know you just came off a duty shift not too long ago."

"I'm fine sir. I'd like to remain here and familiarize myself with this new equipment if it's okay." Chris explained.

"Suit yourself. I'll be in my quarters if I am needed." Pressman agreed, then turned and exited engineering.

David glanced over at Lieutenant Thomas. "How did you manage to allow Pressman to let you into engineering Chris? He ordered that the rest of the engineering staff be cleared from the deck while this unit was installed. Why did he let you in?""

"It's a long story Chief." Chris explained, "I think it has to do with my former Intelligence status and clearance."

"Well, welcome to the team." David greeted with a smile.

"Have you discovered what exactly this thing does yet Chief?" Thomas asked, "Is it some new type of sensor equipment or something like that?"

"No. That's what I thought at first. No, this is hooking into the main power grid. Way too much power for anything like that." Mercury explained.

"Humm, well then, what sort of things could require the sorts of power that this thing is hooked up to?" Thomas asked.

David began to thing about that. While he did, Harbright the SI Engineer let out a curse as the power line they'd connected began to burn up under the power surge. A flash of white sparks rained across the length of the line as it disintegrated before letting out a loud pop that caused the engineers to all jump out of the way.

"Ouch!" Harbright yelled, his hand slightly burned from the overheated cable. The engineering bay began to smell of burnt insulation from the smoke.

"That doesn't look like a good sign." Thomas commented.

"It's not. This power junction is not going to handle the power load this unit requires. We will have to reroute more lines and create a better junction capable of handling the power flow." Harbright explained.

"This thing uses THAT much power?" David declared.

Harbright removed his singed fingers from his mouth, waving them as if trying to shake off the pain from the minor burns. "Yes it does."

Lieutenant Thomas remained silent, but noticed the glint of realization that had formed on the Chief Engineer's face. He'd seen it a number of times in the past, when the senior staff of the Galaxy were meeting with the Captain and David would come up with an idea to get something to work, or figure something out. It was no wonder why David always lost at poker.

"Well, we can probably rig up a junction like that, but if you want to get it set up and functioning within the next six hours to meet the Admiral's dead line, we are going to need more help. I'll need to get some of the Galaxy engineers in here to set up and wire in the new heavy duty power junction and reroute power lines to the new circuits." David explained.

Harbright thought about it for a minute.

"Do you think we should contact the Admiral and let him know?" David asked.

Finally Harbright shook his head. "No, let him rest. As long as your people don't come near the unit and just put together the new power relay junction to handle the energy flow, I think we will be fine. We can erect a barrier around this area with a security shield to keep the unit hidden. That's how it was going to be once the unit was installed anyway."

"Great. I'll contact some of my staff and get them started." David said enthusiastically.

"Try to keep it to a minimum David. Pressman will be pissed enough as it is, so the fewer that are needed to get the relay set up the better." Harbright asked.

"I understand. Don't worry. We can probably have the relay set up and working before Pressman even knows about it." Lieutenant Mercury explained with a smile before turning to exit engineering.

"Wait up Lieutenant, I'll go with you." Lieutenant Thomas said, taking a few long strides to catch up with the Chief Engineer.

"Down The Dark Pit"
USS GALAXY
Lt. Commander Deiran Casey

Casey woke up to see his beautiful wife laying next to him. Everything was quiet, peaceful, serene. Everything but him. He had it all. A brilliant career, a beautiful wife and daughter, few friends but at least he had Miran. He had fame, great looks. But what did they do for me? He asked himself.

I would trade it all just to stay with Miran, his heart cried out in a still, silent roar. Casey was now sitting at the side of his bed. He knew he had to get out of here, if he had to look into her face, those stunning eyes, he’d break down and his life would be over. He knew it would come. Just a matter of time. The very second after he made love to Teb was the moment his life had ended, in his mind.

Tebrianne was beautiful, he liked everything about her. They had much in common. Was it worth your marriage you piece of crap? He knew the answer to his own question. Nothing was worth losing Miran.

He remembered at the famous Jawbreaker Battle, when he had heard that deck 8 had several breaches, the largest being his section. His heart sank, thinking he’d lost his family. When he found out she and Lara were alive. It was like heaven had opened and shined down upon him.

That light was now gone. All he could see now was the wretched, dark pit of his soul. And he hated every bit of it, just the smell made him sick. And he was still sitting on the edge of his bed.

*** Main Bridge ***

Casey made his way to the Bridge and took his seat next to Sterner. They were just about ready to arrive back at Starbase 74. Just a light year away.

Of all the mornings to have a hot pink, yellow and lime green uniform. It didn’t go well for him that morning. It was like, for the first time in his life, he knew what hell was. The uniform, his own pit, the night before.

When he did change into the normal command uniform, he was directly behind Tebrianne. She was equally nervous and fidgety. He couldn’t even talk to her. It was amazing how one selfish, lust-crazed act could destroy so quickly and resolutely.

He’d destroyed himself, destroyed Miran when she found out, put Lara at risk and possibly destroying her childhood and scarred Teb. Hurting so many people was really getting to him. Sitting in the XO’s chair he was just an android, devoid of emotion. If he let out his emotion at this time, they’d lock him up with a counselor.

No, Deiran Casey just went through the routine of command. When Joerg was called to Cargo Bay 2, Deiran took his seat at Conn. Even sitting here meant nothing to him. His own filth and wretchedness was beginning to create a chasm. Pain and remorse was all he could feel. He couldn’t smile, laugh, all of his emotions had been paralyzed by the chasm. He even looked different. The luminescent shine was gone.

"Chief Mercury, report to Cargo Bay 2 immediately," he barked, sounding like the ship’s computer voice, only with a male tone.

When Joerg returned to the Bridge, the curiosity of their assignment did get to him. He followed Sterner into the Ready Room.

"Sir, what’s going on?" he asked.

Sterner had known Casey for a long time, they’d served together side by side at least a year. Both men mutually respected each other. A friendship developed over time. But Sterner had never seen Casey look this bad.

"I’m not sure I can tell you Commander," Sterner replied.

"Top Secret even to your XO? Sir, that’s not protocol. Not even SI can do that. The command staff must be aware of the mission. And the senior staff will be informed on a need to know basis," Casey replied, spouting off the Starfleet Procedural Manual for Commanders and Captains.

"I don’t think Admiral Pressman cares about the manual Deiran."

Oh, this was just what Casey needed today. The chasm turned into a canyon.

"Oh my god, not him? Pressman?" Casey swore.

"You about summed it up there Commander," Sterner laughed.

"Permission to go visit the Admiral, sir?" Casey said.

"Permission granted. If you get anything out of him Deiran, let me know," the Commander replied.

"Aye, I would be happy too," Casey said and then turned and headed for Pressman. This was the conflict he needed. This was the challenge. You’re meat Pressman.

The history of the Casey’s run-ins with Pressman was legendary. His grandfather was one of the jurors back in the late 2360’s when Starfleet Command investigated charges against Pressman, which was still classified. Then his father, Thomas Casey, has a rivalry going with Pressman. Even though Casey outranks Pressman, the men hate each other.

If this man intends to keep me in the dark, Starfleet Command will hear of it, and my father will have a field day with this man. Be careful Pressman.

Casey was walking down the corridor of deck 10 when he arrived at Ten Forward.

The black cloud that hovered over Casey was thick.

"Admiral Pressman," Deiran said in a half-hearted greeting as he stepped beside the man, who was at the bar.

Pressman turned to see Casey. "Lt. Commander Deiran Casey, ‘The Iceman," hero at Boreth…the most famous Casey of them all!" Pressman replied, mocking Deiran.

"Nice to see you again too, Admiral!" Deiran replied with mock sincerity. The hatred they both felt was clear.

"I understand you’re going to keep this ship’s XO in the dark? What’s going on Admiral?" Deiran asked, his manner furious but controlled. Casey didn’t need this one bit. He was already out of control. It was the worst day of his life, before he knew Pressman was on board. Now it was hell in space.

"I know you’re XO. But, I’m an Admiral," Pressman replied, and turned to face Casey. The conflict and tone of their voices was beginning to filter out. Everyone’s attention in Ten Forward couldn’t help but turn to them.

"Yes sir, that’s correct. Permission to speak freely sir?" Casey asked, his eyes flaming mad. Pressman’s didn’t look any better.

"Permission granted," Pressman shot back, standing to his feet. Both men eye to eye now.

"You’re an Admiral who has routinely broken the rules, and thrown Starfleet procedural out the decks! A man known for his temper and cruel demeanor. A petty man, who always holds a grudge and doesn’t have a friend in Starfleet to save his life. You should be the same rank as my father by now. Curious that your not. I wonder why?" Deiran stopped to catch his breath. "If you keep me in the dark Starfleet will know it. They’ll know you’re breaking command protocols. And I have witnesses who would be more than happy to spill their guts. You will not handle me like you do others. Let me in on this mission, Admiral. You outrank me, but I don’t need to remind you who my allies are!"

Casey was controlled, but still ember hot with anger.

Pressman looked like a volcano, as he stared down Casey. Round one, went to Casey. And the chasm in his soul enlarged. It was just the beginning.

Welcome to the Senior Staff
Ltjg. Karyn Dallas, Chief Counselor

Lt.jg Karyn Dallas still couldn't believe what had happened to her only a few minutes before. The day had started out like any other day. She entered her office an hour before her shift actually started to work on some reports she had wanted to give to Lt.. Parker. Many of the crew were still dealing with what had happened with the Klingons and had come to the counselors for help. When she entered her office, Lt. Parker was waiting for her.

"Hello ensign, could you come to my office for a moment?"

"Certainly sir." The two entered the office. Karyn didn't know what to expect. If this is about that SI guy whose foot I ran over, I'm not apologizing, thought Karyn. I warned that jerk what would happen if he got in my way. Fortunately, Erin didn't waste any time.

"Ensign, I'm leaving the Galaxy because I have some personal matters to attend to. These past few days I've been searching for a suitable replacement and I think I've found just the right person for the job."

"Sir, I think Lt. Ral would do a fine job but if you're asking my opinion of her as a fellow co-worker, I really haven't known her very long and..."

"I'm not talking about Lt.. Ral, Ensign. I'm talking about you." Karyn couldn't have been more surprised as she was at that moment. She wanted to be Chief Counselor more than anything but she hadn't counted on it this quickly.

"May I ask why you chose me, sir?"

"The Capt and I both felt that your background in education as well as in counseling made you extremely suited for this position. The Chief Counselor also runs the education dept, and who knows better than a fellow teacher how things should be run. I've also spoken to Deanna Troi who informed me of the things you accomplished while working under her on the Enterprise-D. You'd be in charge of this dept. as well as a member of the senior staff, you'd also be promoted to Lt.jg Of course, if you don't think you can handle it all, we could always find someone else."

Karyn had slowly begun to take it all in, it was a huge responsibility but she knew in her heart what she was going to do.

"Sir, with your permission I'd like to accept your offer."

"Very good." Erin then reached for the new pips she had replicated this morning, just in case Karyn had accepted. After securing them on her uniform Erin said,"I hereby promote you to the rank of Ltjg and formally relinquish my duties as Chief Counselor to you. Congratulations, Lt. and good luck.

"Same to you, sir." After Karyn she entered her soon to be vacant office and was about to return to her reports when Lex entered.

"Congrats, Lieutenant. Would you care to join me in Ten Forward for some coffee. My next appointment isn't for half an hour yet. Don't worry about those reports, I know the Chief Counselor personally and I don't think she'd mind."

"You little sneak, you knew all the time!! Why didn't you warn me?"

"And ruin the surprise? There's nothing I like better than a good surprise."

"I'll remember that next time. Before we go, I'd like to check something first.

[ Computer, locate Dr. Khan.]

[ Dr. Khan is in Ten Forward.]

"Perfect, I've been worried about her lately. I think she could really use some friends right now.

"Agreed, let's go."

Lori

"New Assignment"
Lieutenant David Mercury
Chief of Engineering

David walked out of Engineering with Lieutenant Thomas close behind. "David." Thomas said. David spun his head around. "What are they installing?"

"I can't tell you what it is, but I can tell you what it isn't. This thing uses way to much power to be a sensor array, unless it is some sort of high intensity long range sensor. But I doubt it. The way they want us to build this new power junction it is almost like this thing is going to be drawing constant power from the ship. It scares me but I feel that the Lieutenant, I think he said Harbright, and I are connecting. My instincts tell me that he is just an Engineer like the rest of us. I am going to get some of my Engineers down here before the Admiral comes." David continued down the corridor to the Turbolift. "Computer located Lieutenant Boudreau"

"The Lieutenant is currently in Ten Forward." the computer replied. "Well then take me to deck 10" David instructed to computer.

*** Ten Forward ***

David entered Ten Forward and immediately noticed Melissa sitting at the bar, looking a little pissed off.

"What's wrong with you, you look like you are going to kill someone?" David asked Melissa as he walked towards her. She lifted her head to see who was talking to her.

"Well I tried kissing a little ass to see if I can get any information from Pressman but it didn't work, what about you aren't you supposed to be in Engineering working on that Top Secret installation with Pressman's special ops buddies?" Melissa answered.

"Well I have come looking for you. I need you in Engineering. We need to build a new power junction." David smiled, knowing that Melissa would feel more comfortable working in Engineering rather than sitting on her hands while someone messes with the Galaxy.

"Its about time, so what are they installing?" she questioned.

"I'm not exactly sure, something that takes a tremdous amount of power. Even if I did know I can tell you, at least not yet. I know that you don't like being in the dark and I know that we have grow accustom to confiding in each other but I have to go by the book with this one. Don't worry, if it comes down to the safety of this ship and its crew I won't hesitate to blow the lid on this thing."

"I trust you David, I don't like it but I trust you."

"Melissa I need you to get a hold of A.C. and K'Eytyanna and get them to Main Engineering as soon as possible. That's it. The four of us working together will build this junction in no time. I'll met you down there, I have to do something first." David explained. David walked out of Ten Forward and headed down the corridor. He quickly looked around to see if anyone was around. The corridor was empty.

"Computer initialize communication link Mercury Alpha Theta."

"Initialization complete, link is now secure and open." the computer chirped.

"Commander...?" David called

[Go ahead David, I am in my Ready Room.] the Commander responed.

"Sir, I convinced Lieutenant Harbright, the senior Engineer of Pressman's team, to allow me to recuit a small team of engineerings."

"What for?" Sterned asked

"Well it appears sir, that this thing they are installing requires a tremdous amount of power, so much so that it blew out the original relay connection and almost took of Harbright's arm. He wants us to build a new power junction to support this device." David explained

"Any ideas yet?"

"I am clueless, at first it appeared to be a senor relay but no sensor relay takes that much power, or at least no sensor relay that I have ever seen. I keep thinking about that Torpedo Rack and those Torpedo's with that strange device attached to them. It just doesn't make sense. Anything on your end?"

"Nothing, nothing at all. I don't like this. Alright Lieutenant thanks for keeping me advised, Sterner out."

David returned to the Turbolift and headed back down to Engineering.

*** Main Engineering ***

By the time David arrived a force field had been raise to shield anyone from viewing the installation. Things just keep getting stranger...

Dan Josephs

Galaxy "Counselor's Everywhere"
Written Lt. Kahn Nilani
U.s.s. Galaxy

I had watched Chen leave Ten Forward after his little chat to me, and It was Ironic that out of all people on the ship he had to come and see the one person that was not in a good mood. I saw the door open and Counselor Daniels walked through, he looked around and spotted me in the corner, he started to walk over to where I was sitting.

["Mind if I sit down?"]

I looked up at him and offered the seat oposite.

"So Counselor what brings you here?"

“S.I. and their secrets…”
by Lt. Hunter McKenzie
Chief Tactical Officer
USS Galaxy

Mac strode to the bar in 10-Forward and motioned for Door.

“What can I get you Lt?” asked the half Cardassian barkeep.

“Saurian brandy,” replied Mac as he watched the Bartender reach for the synthheol, “No. The real stuff” added Mac.

As Door sat the bottle and glass in front of him he started to pour some into the glass. Mac held up his hand. “I’ll keep the bottle.” He added as he took it and the glass and moved to a far table. As he sat he poured opened the curved neck of the bottle and filled his glass. As he sat he sipped at the potent liquor and thought about the past week. He replayed the meeting with Ensign D’Auria over in his head, trying to find somehow that a compromise could be reached. Taking another sip he shook his head. He simply refused to turn over any of his people until he was sure that D’ Auria had a firm grasp of their responsibilities and operating procedures. As he started for another sip he was interrupted by the “chirp-cheep” of his combadge.

=/\= Bridge to Lt McKenzie.=/\=

“McKenzie here.” He replied his irritation evident in his voice.

=/\= Sir, this is Lt. Groom. Sorry to interrupt your time off, but I’m getting some rather odd power fluctuations both from cargo bay 2 and main engineering. I’m not really sure what to make of it. Can you advise?=/\=

“Hmmm. Contact Engineering and see if they have some sort of project. We don’t know about. I’m enroute to the bridge,” sighed Mac. “McKenzie out.”

Mac drained the last of his glass as he stood and walked over to the bar. Placing the amber glass bottle on countertop he winked at Door. “Keep this safe for me. I’ll be back for it, shortly.”

Door smiled as Mac walked through the exit.

Bridge

A short time later Mac stepped on to the bridge and made his way to the Tactical Arch. Placing his hand on Lt. Groom’s shoulder, he scanned the LCARS.

“What’cha got, Lt.” asked Mac of the senior Tac Officer.

The TacOfficer gave a smirk and scratched the back of his neck. ‘Well, sir I contacted Engineering and was answered by a Mr. Harbright of Starfleet intelligence. He said that all was in order and we were to disregard any and all readings we get concerning Cargo bay 2 and main Engineering, until further notice.”

“And…?” asked Mac.

“And nothing, Sir. He disconnected and hasn’t answered any more hails.”

“Humph,” frowned Mac, as he stepped to Captains Ready room. “Okay. Keep me informed. Let’s see if Commander Sterner knows anything, Shall we.”

As Mac stepped through the doors he saw that Jeorg was not having a good day. The commander was looking over a PADDS and frowning. He looked up as Mac entered.

“Commander,” stated Mac, as he entered. “We have a problem.”

“Just one, Mac,” grinned the Acting Captain. “That would be a change.”

“We’ve got major power fluctuations in main Engineering and in Cargo bay 2. All were getting is some S.I Toady spouting “need to know” and no answers. What’s going on, Sir?”

Jeorg leaned back in his chair and looked at Mac with a shrug. “I wish I knew, Mac. I know little more than you do. All I can say, Officially, is that S.I. has a free run. Monitor the fluctuations and if they become ship threatening, then we’ll take action. Until then just stay out of their way. Un-officially, watch everything that those spook bastards do. If they step over the line, I want to know about it. Clear?”

“Crystal.” replied Mac as he grinned and exited the ready room.

Lt. Hunter McKenzie, Chief Tactical Officer, USS GALAXY
ICQ # 6728583

"Colleagues"
By Dr. Felicia Khatroweena,
Lieutenant (Assistant Chief Medical Officer), USS Galaxy NCC-70637
w/ Dr. Endris Gakor
reviewed by Lt. Albrecht and Captain Price

***** Sickbay *****

[Transmission for Dr Khatroweena from Starfleet Medical.]

"Ok, I'll take it now."

Cat turned to the terminal screen on her desk. The Federation symbol blinked to be replaced by the Starfleet Medical symbol and that was replaced with the face of an old Efrosian. Cat was surprised to recognise her old supervisor from her honours at O'Neil L2 Medical Centre. You had to get past the cold exterior to see the good man. Considering his home world, it was only natural.

"Doctor Korinian. It is a surprise to hear from you. How can I help you?"

["Ms Khatroweena, I have here your request for information on Irumodic Syndrome and it's similarity to the Teresi Virus. But I have something also for you and your co-worker Ms Gakor with your study on the virus. But it would be best for all concerned if you do not openly talk about it."]

"Uh, thank you. Um, what is it that you have?" Cat was very intrigued on what it might be.

["Here at the Medical Centre, we have been doing our own studies of many degenerative neural vectors. Our long-term simulation of excretions from an invertebrate found on Alpha Cetti V causes degeneration in the neural sheath and inhibits ion exchange flow within the neurons. The chain of events is very similar to that of the Teresi Virus."] As the Efrosian spoke, his image shrunk and a computer simulation of the attack on a neuron began with scrolling information appearing all around the simulation.

"I don't understand, why the need for 'secrecy' then. This is incredible news, it's wonderful," Cat exclaimed. Then the DNA expert remembered Alpha Cetti V's proximity to the former Mutara Nebula, which 'disappeared' after a classified Federation experiment nearly a century before. If this had something to do with the mythical 'Genesis project', perhaps there was more going on here than could be discussed. However, her advisor provided a different explanation.

["Starfleet Intelligence is very concerned on the possibilities in the use of extractions from the invertebrate to induce hypnagogic states. We have been given access to this information so we can produce a blocker to inhibit the effects of any extractions from the invertebrate. You can see the concern if this was commonly known."] Cat watched, as more information appeared on the screen.

*Hum, this is also similar to the 'mind control slugs' the Enterprise-D encountered.* Cat's brain was racing to absorb the importance of the new information, speculating... but politeness dictated another tract. The contentious doctor wanted to insure disseminating this wouldn't jeopardize her mentor's research.

"Thank you Doctor Korinian. But you giving..." Cat began protesting, not wanting to get her old supervisor in trouble.

["Ms Khatroweena, I know you are very capable and you will you this information wisely. I would personally wish that Ms Gakor be the one to find the cure to the curse that is on her home world. Good-bye Ms Khatroweena."]

Cat sat back musing over the call. To most would see Doctor Koranian as cold and uncaring, as soon as you got to know him, you realised that like a Vulcan, he controlled his emotions. He seemed to be quite happy, if that call was anything to go by.

Cat studied the information, it was obvious that a lot of work was needed. The connection to the Teresi Virus was tenuous at best. But it was the best chance that Cat had seen in a long time. 'I wonder what Endris will say,' thought Cat.

Cat smiled as she downloaded the information packet into a PADD. "Computer what is the current location of Doctor Endris Gakor?"

[Doctor Gakor is currently in Ten-Forward.]

Cat gave a small snort of amusement, "Of course."

***** Ten-Forward *****

Endris was working through one of her huge 'snacks.' Absorbed in her meal, she didn't notice Cat move towards her table. Cat was amazed as she watched as Endris 'stored' almost as much food as Ursa. "Endris.", Cat whispered, not wanting to disrupt the feeding Tellarite.

Gakor looked up and stuffed another Denebian truffle into her mouth. She quickly swallowed it to greet Cat, "Hello Cat, please have a seat. You hungry? Try the Selenian mushrooms, they are delicious." Endris pointed to a plate of what looked like a stack of thick pancakes, they were all almost the same size as the plate.

"Thank you," said Cat, "But I'm not really hungry. Still, I wouldn't mind a glass of Caitalian Silver Milk if Electra has any in storage." A waiter moved off to process her beverage order, and returned with a long fluted glass for the semi-feline doctor.

"Endris, have a look at this!" Cat said in a tone that concealed her excitement while passing over the PADD. She took a long pull out of her glass while her college scanned the information.

Endris took the PADD, stuffing another truffle in her mouth with her other hand. Endris watched for a few seconds. "Very interesting, so?"

"Advance the time frame of the simulation forty-two hours." Endris looked at Cat, a bit confused, but she quickly made the suggested adjustments. As the simulation moved forward, Endris almost choked as the ramifications of what she saw finally hit her. "Starvation!", the woman exclaimed while loosing her appetite. "The molecular interactions on the myelin sheath is almost exactly like that of the Teresi Virus. Where did you get this?"

"I have some old contacts looking for anything that might help with your research on the Virus. O'Neil Medical is working on inhibitors for the reaction. Endris it's a big start."

Using the well-founded Tellarite belligerence, Gakor waved and shouted until several servile waiters came to clear the table. "Race you to the lab", Gakor said to Cat. The stout Tellarite was already sprinting for the door, and had the advantage of surprise.

However, Cat had longer legs and a more dextrous constitution. The two women spared for contention, but the Caitalian won by a 'nose', (or perhaps just a nostril).

*** Medical Lab ***

Gakes knew she would be absorbed hours on this project. It was the first solid lead into the Teresi virus in a long time, and one of the few things that might distract her from Oinkus. The pair of comrades created an infusion matrix and set the computer churning out inoculation prototypes extrapolating from the new data.

"While we wait for the computer to finish its computations", Endris said "I would like to discuss some ways I think medical could contribute to the C-Defense profile of the Galaxy." Cat smiled, mildly surprised Gakor would think of the crew when just presented with a tantalizing lead on the threatening virus. After a brief pause, the porcine Doctor continued: "For example, if we use the biofilters to identify the species of hostile races as they approach, weapons could be adjusted to be more effective..."

Getting into the act, the two Doctors soon had a list of other things they could do to preserve their patients in an emergency. "I think the modifications you started on the EMH will go a long way to help should we have casualties", Khatroweena said. "Maybe we could even use the extra holo emitters in the Cargo bays to run multiple EMH programs. That worked well the one time we did it before..."

"Let's ask Ensign D' Auria to drop by Sickbay", Gakor said with a consprital Tellarite snort. "I understand he is coordinating the project, and it looks like there are several positive contributions we can make to his efforts....."

*** 3 hours later ***

The medical lab was decorated with several Earth containers known colloquially as a 'PIZZA' boxes. Lt Albrecht had popped in and foisted the culinary treat on the two Doctors after hearing about the exciting new lead they had encountered. The round pies were still steaming in their rigorous corrugated restraints.

"I thought you said this information was secret", Gakor complained to Cat. "Which is exactly why security got wind of it", Matthew lied skillfully. Actually, he had got bored with his new duties of making schedules out for the 'visitors' traipsing around the ship, even though his orders were to give them a wide berth. He had to post and rotate extra guards, and assign quarters to the 'operatives'. The computer had told him where to find the Doctors, and he knew Gakes wouldn't object to a snack.

"That smells delicious", Cat had said moments earlier at the human's sudden appearance, hefting a slice coated with veggies before Endris could react. The immunologist had been studying the computer's report with growing frustration, but looked up after she heard Cat's comment. Instinctively, she sniffed the air when she got wind of an incomming snack. However, she was too caught up in her research to grab the Pizza immediately. "Close, so close, but we've yet to solve..." Endris trailed off while consoling herself with a big slice of pie.

Albrecht grabbed Gakor and gave her a hug of encouragement, seeing his amiga was considerably discouraged. A noticeable film of perspiration hinted at the Tellarite's distress, although anyone who did not know her well would have probably have dismissed it without concern. Not wanting to interrupt further, he then retreated out the door, just as mysteriously as he had arrived....

"Everything comes crashing down."
by Captain Robert Edward Lee Price

Admiral Pressman had stopped into Ten Forward on his way to his quarters. He figured a warm drink would help him to relax before turning in to get some rest before the Galaxy reached the rendezvous point in just under five hours.

He'd settled down with a warm Saurian brandy and was looking out at the stars when Lieutenant Commander Deiran Casey came charging in. It was obvious he was upset by the way he greeted the Admiral. Pressman was ready with a few pre chosen references to grind salt into Deiran's wounds.

Permission to speak freely sir?" Casey asked, his eyes flaming mad.

"Permission granted." Admiral Pressman shot back, placing his brandy down on the bar and standing to face the belligerent young officer.

Deiran went off, making unsupported allegations against the Admiral, threatening his superior officer in a childish, fool-hearty way. The other patrons in Ten Forward couldn't help but notice the fire that was in Deiran's eyes, or the venomous words he shot at the Admiral. This was not the Deiran Casey they all knew. The one that went out of his way to shmoose with the upper brass to earn his promotions. What Deiran was doing was the equivalent of career suicide, and Pressman knew it. A small smile began to form on his lips as the young, brash Lieutenant Commander finished making his threats with a pointed finger.

Casey was controlled, but still ember hot with anger. He stood there for a moment expecting the Admiral to shoot back with the same sort of hostile comments.

But he didn't.

The bastard was just smiling. He was red with anger too, but managed to maintain his cool, something Casey had been unable to do.

"You have some nerve coming in here and making idle threats son. What you said was hostile, unsupported and way, way out of line Mister." Pressman took a step forward and got right in the Lieutenant Commander's face, which was difficult given that Deiran stood a few inches taller than Pressman. "Just who the hell do you think you are?!... addressing an Admiral in such a manner? You are damn lucky that I don't have you scrubbing waste extractors for the remainder of this mission son."

"You gave me permission to speak freely Admiral, so I did." Deiran snapped back. He wasn't intimidated at all. Everyone watching wouldn't be surprised if Casey was going to punch the Admiral on the spot, he was holding himself with such rock solid rigidity.

"Permission to speak freely son,.. not stupidly. A man in your position should be able to tell the difference by now!" Pressman half shouted back. Raising a hand, he pointed a finger directly at Casey's chest as if he were going to poke him with it, though he never did. "For your information Mister, my authorization comes directly from the President of the Federation. You'd better damn well get with the program, or I'll have you busted down to Ensign so fast it'll make your head spin! Do I make myself clear Lieutenant Commander?!"

Casey laughed defiantly. "If you try it, my Father will see to it you never work for the President again Pressman."

Everyone was watching in Ten Forward when Pressman leaned forward and whispered something quietly so that only Deiran could hear. "Steal any Trilithium resin lately Deiran?" Pressman pulled back and smiled that 'cat swallowed the canary' grin of his. He reached for his brandy and tipped the rest down before letting out a satisfied sigh. He wiped his mouth on the back of his sleeve and began to exit the lounge.

Everyone could see that whatever the Admiral had said just hit Deiran like a ton of bricks. It had definitely taken the wind out of his sails, though anger still burned behind his eyes. "Admiral wait." Deiran called but the Admiral just continued walking in a cocky, "I just won" stride, forcing the young officer to follow him out of the ship's lounge.

"Wait up Admiral." Deiran said sternly, "You can't just walk away after saying something like that."

Pressman continued walking. "Oh I can't? Really?" he continued to walk.

Deiran reached out and grabbed the Admiral's arm, spinning him around to face him in the corridor. "Damn it Pressman, you are going to talk to me about what you meant by that comment or so help me!..."

Pressman continued to smirk at the unbalanced young officer. He so much reminded him of his Father whom Pressman also enjoyed toying with. In an odd way, this was a double treat for him. "Come to my quarters then Lieutenant Commander. And at least TRY to behave like a Starfleet officer." Pressman added.

The two men walked silently to where Pressman was staying on board the Galaxy. The tensions were rising the entire time while Deiran wondered how much Pressman knew. Between this new trump card Pressman apparently held over him, and the whole incident with Lieutenant Bancroft on the holodeck, Deiran was beginning to think he'd broken a mirror or something.

The two men entered the Admiral's quarters and the door slid closed. "Computer, music. Classical. Set volume to level 4." The Admiral Called out. It was standard SI procedure to have some sort of back ground noise to mask any conversations from prying ears.

Finally, Pressman turned to face Casey.

"What did you mean back there about Trilithium resin Admiral? I have no idea what you are..." Deiran started to deny in poor fashion.

"Oh don't insult me Casey. You and I both know EXACTLY what it is you and a group of Galaxy crew members took from the Tyrell complex. There is no use in denying it." Pressman said flatly.

Deiran's brain began to race. The Admiral was referring to when he and several others went on a ski trip, and the Android Mudd kidnapped Ronni Morris forcing them to acquire a supply of the highly explosive Trilithium resin to power the battery packs the androids required to survive. But that was impossible! Both he and Blair were disguised like their Admiral fathers, and Casey personally eliminated all computer traces that they were ever there. How could Pressman know?

"I assure you, I have no idea what you are talking about Admiral. And if this was true, I'm sure you'd have brought it to Starfleet by now." Casey bluffed, certain that he left no evidence that could be used against him or his shipmates.

Pressman just nodded smugly, like he knew something Deiran didn't. Then he did something that Deiran was never expecting in a million years. He agreed with him!

"Maybe you are right 'Commander." Pressman glanced over to the computer terminal, "Come here, I have something you might be interested in seeing."

Reluctantly, Deiran walked over to the Admiral's desk. He watched as Pressman activated the computer and a surveillance video began to play. Deiran rocked back unsteadily as he saw the images of Admiral Casey and Admiral Blair walking through the Top security Tyrell complex, stopping to key in their security access codes and continue with their inspection tour.

"Jee, you are right son. My mistake. That looks like Admiral Casey and Admiral Blair. I guess they were the ones that stole the resin. It's a shame too. Such lucrative careers both of these men had..." Pressman deactivated the video and sat on the desk facing Deiran, "...before their sons ruined them." He added pointedly.

"You couldn't have gotten that. It.. it must be a fraud." Deiran stuttered. He was so cocky and arrogant, he was certain that he didn't miss anything in wiping the Federation memory banks of that entire incident.

"You are a fool 'Commander!" Pressman said flatly. "Oh yes, you were quite thorough at deleting the computer records of the Tyrell complex, covering your tracks with the inspection orders and even blanking out the security monitors through out the complex. But your Casey cockiness never let you consider that the complex was already being watched by Starfleet Intelligence. That there were additional security monitors and audio recorders independent from the standard Federation systems." Pressman watched as Casey's eyes lit up at hearing this, "Yes, that is correct 'Commander, there is audio to go with this footage. Of course it is recorded separately and can be used to exonerate both of these Admirals and implicate the true criminals here, their sons. Or the video alone is more than enough proof to prosecute the Admirals."

"You can't do that Pressman. They had nothing to do with this!" Deiran declared emotionally.

"How can you say that?" Pressman began ticking off fingers on his hand, "I have missing Trilithium resin, I have an unauthorized, unscheduled inspection conducted by Admiral Casey and Admiral Blair, I have a video record of them touring the plant and punching in their top secret access codes... seems like an open and shut case. They will probably get twenty five years for treason." Pressman smiled.

"But they were not even there!" Deiran screamed. "Okay, you win! I did it. But we had no choice. Ronni had been kidnapped and Mudd was going to kill her if we didn't get the resin."

"So you took it upon yourself to break into a top secret Federation refinery, and steal the highly explosive resin compound just to help your friend?" Pressman asked prompting Deiran to go on.

"Yes! Okay, I said it. Now knock this off. You know all of the answers, why are you doing this Pressman! You had this information before, so why didn't you use it then?! I know you are out to ruin the Caseys. You always have been!"

"I'm glad you have such a high opinion of yourself 'Commander. But the truth is, the universe does not revolve around your family. I can care less about your family or even you. It was only by coincidence that I came across this information. But I won't hesitate to use it if you give me reason to. Either way, with or without the audio your Father's career will be ruined. If you admit to pulling off this breaking, Admiral Casey will still be held responsible because it was his top secret security access code that was used. There is no way you could have that unless the Admiral told it to you. That's enough to have him brought up on treason alone." Pressman paused for a long moment to let the seriousness of this whole pissing contest settle in on the Lieutenant Commander's shoulders. When he thought he'd waited long enough, he got to the point.

"Now as you've pointed out, I have had this information for some time. " Pressman laughed, "I'm in Section 31 for Christ's sake Deiran. It's not like I have problems with any of this you've done. Indeed, I found it to be quite an admiral job coming from a bunch of amateur field operatives. But there is more going on here that your family's personal pride, or the life of one of your crew mates. While your father has been polishing a seat at Starfleet Head Quarters with his ass all of these years, I've been out here in the field doing what it takes to insure the safety of the Federation. I'm working directly under the authority of the President and that means I am the law on this mission Mister. Now if you have a problem with that and can't follow orders and keep your arrogant mouth shut like a trained Starfleet Officer, you let me know right now! I'm not toying with you here son. Your wife and child... Lara is it?, your Father's career and retirement, your own career, years of hard labor in a penal camp. It's up to you which way you want to go. But this mission WILL succeed with or without the egotistical son of Admiral Casey. Cross me again Deiran, or so much as raise your voice around me, and everything you know and love will be gone! Do you understand Lieutenant Commander? Do you?!"

Deiran paused for a moment. He felt beaten and abused. His lack of sleep last night over the incident with Teb on the holodeck, avoiding Miran and Lara, now this lingering threat of ruining his career, his friends and his father was weighing heavily on the young Casey's shoulders. One can only be Superman for so long before everything comes crashing down.

"I understand sir." Deiran said dispassionately.

Pressman waited a moment, studying Casey. Deiran had lowered his head slightly, weary from the events over the last 24 hours.

"I have no reason or desire to ruin your career, your friends, or your father Deiran. Just do your duty, carry out your orders and follow the chain of command during this mission and everything will be okay." Pressman explained.

"Is that all sir?" Deiran asked in a small voice.

"That's it. Dismissed 'Commander." Pressman said in a semi civilized tone.

Deiran did a perfect about face, not looking at the Admiral and walked out of Pressman's quarters. When the door swooshed closed, Pressman continued to look out towards the door as if he was still looking at Deiran. "You have your mother's eyes." he said softly to himself. He then sat there and listened to the soft sounds of the classical music that played in the back ground.

Deiran?
Casey Ti Miran

["Miran? When will you be home?"]

"I am landing my plane now sweetie, I will be home in ten minutes." That was strange. He never usually bothered her when she went out on her own. He usually encouraged her to get out, knowing that she missed her independence at times.

Miran thought about but just dismissed it as he being tired. He was pulling himself too thin, into too many directions. If he wasn't careful, he would get sick from trying to do too much and not sleeping enough.

Deiran was already in bed when she got in. That surprised her. He always waited for her. She smiled down at him. He was so handsome. She laid down next to him.

*** She felt Deiran get up, but she rolled over to go back to sleep. Maybe now she could sleep now that he wasn't tossing and turning next to her. He had to have had nightmares, his sleep was so turbulent. When she had tried to calm him, he just pulled away. She had little to no sleep that night.

Couple of hours later, she rose. Deiran had seen to Lara, D'tarna was there when she went out to see about Lara.

"Deiran wanted to make sure Lara didn't wake you. She's been fed."

"Thank you, I appreciate the sleep. Has it seemed like Deiran has been acting funny or is it just me?" Miran knew that D'tarna would be honest.

"He was a little distant last night. He didn't tuck Lara in like usual, but I just passed it off as him being tired."

"Maybe that is it, he has been working too hard lately. Thank you again. Lara and I need to get to the arboretum."

"Have a good day," her friend advised as she walked out the door.

*** Even when Deiran was really tired, he usually took at least the time to tuck Lara in. It disturbed Miran greatly. What could she have done to make him upset?

She absently dug a hole, not paying attention to what she did. It bothered her. She wanted to make it better, but not knowing what she did wrong, she didn't know how to make it right.

She wished she could talk to someone, tell them what was bothering her and get some advise on what to do. It must have been something, Deiran didn't usually get this upset with her. He would get fustrated but never like this.

"Oh Deiran, what did I do?" she asked to no one but herself.

Requirem for Doctor Grinch
by Ensign Jack D'Auria
with Lt. Endris Gakor

*** Gakor's Quarters***

Jack had received a message from Doctor Gakor regarding some upgrades she was thinking about for sickbay. It seemed she wanted to know if somehow there was a way to integrate some systems with the proposed C-Defense upgrade.

'Seems like I'm running in all directions lately. Everybody has an idea or wants to know all about it. Maybe I should just post the whole thing on the message board', he said to himself as the stopped in front of Doctor Gakor's quarters. He rang the chime and was invited in.

"Doctor Gakor? I believe you wanted to see me?" "I'm glad you could fit me in, Ensign. I know you're very busy with this whole project of yours."

"It keeps me from being bored, Doctor."

With a slight smile, Endris replied, "Really? From what I hear, Ensign M'Benga manages to keep you quite busy."

Jack raised an eyebrow, keeping his face straight.

"About the modifications. What did you want to talk about, Doctor?" "Snacks! Are you always this right to the point?"

"I trained on Vulcan and am basically a fighter pilot, ma'am. Neither wastes time when it comes to doing things."

"Oh well, okay. But don't just stand there. Sit down", she said jovially. "Can I get you anything? A drink? Something to eat?"

"I'm fine, doctor, no, thank you."

Endris sat down opposite of D'Auria, as she started to talk about her idea. "Well, see, Sickbay just received the upgraded version of the EMH program. There is some mention in the files accompanying it about alternate activation tracks. I was thinking that maybe it could be set up in such a way that the EMH program is activated as soon as a hostile vessel is located. Besides that, Jurelle added a more pleasent profiles to the EMH templetes. I have a feeling Dr. Grinch is going to get a makeover!"

D'Auria looked thoughtful for a moment before replying, "That would be a logical extension to the EMH's program. We had something similar on the Nimrod. We had a hard time keeping our medical personnel alive, so we gave the program the ability to switch itself on and off if necessary. We also had a link to the tactical computers so it was kept updated on all things that were going on. It really saved us a lot of time. Usually, medical personnel don't even think of the EMH when they are busy and in a crisis. I'll look into it and contact Operations about this."

"Thanks, Jack. Can I call you Jack?", the Tellarite asked shyly. Perhaps she was just distracted from the meal he saw on the table near by. Dishes and glasses littered the surface, and reminded him of desert cacti. The human's eyes expanded to take in Gakor's collosal tank of fish, swimming placidly as Selats playing in the mountain lowlands.

"Of course, Doctor. I do have some ideas I want to run by you regarding sickbay's role in the internal security protocols."

Gakor looked surprised, just what had this guy in mind?

"One part of the upgrades I'm working on is a DNA based security system that monitors who is supposed to be on board and who is not. It will, in theory, keep actions, like we witnessed with the Klingons, from happening. I was thinking that maybe it could also be of use to sickbay."

"In what way?"

"The computer will use DNA patterns of the crew and civilians onboard to check for intruders. If a DNA pattern is found that not matches any in the database, it automatically activates the security systems. I was thinking that it might also check to see if any of the crew were injured and if they were, where they are located so an emergency medical transport could automatically be activated. Or, if the transporter is down, alert the search teams and sickbay so they could get to these injured faster. It would save a lot of time, cutting down the need to search for casualties. I am in the process of writing up proposal. I was planning on sending it to you when it was finished, but since I am here already, I would like to hear your thoughts on it. Any advice you might have, any insights."

Endris looked thoughtful for a moment and then a huge grin brightened her face.

"Snacks!! That's an interesting proposal. Perhaps you could discuss it with Doctor Cat. Just yesterday, she came up with a new lead on the Teresi virus, and I've been consumed with medical research." The human could tell by her joyous snorting sounds that the Tellarite was excited. The prospect of discovering a cure for the virus that plagued her home world would be enought to make the most stoic Vulcan display a 'logical' smile.

The human digested this information with gusto, and gathered up the PADD he was using to take notes. Turning to leave, the human paused when he saw Gakor's Cleaver now prominately displayed near the exit. He had heard stories about the weapon from several of the crew who had accompanied the away team to the Qul' etlh. Even though she had given the original to her friend Korof, she had a duplicate made for display now that her crewmates knew of the award.

By this time, Endris had came up with a new idea. "And maybe, if we detect what species we are facing, weapons could be effectively tuned automatically to defend against hostile acts. Cutting down response time could save lives. We could even hook a detector up to the air filteration system, and have it knock out intruders with gas, similar to the solution which finally took care of the renagade Klingons."

Jack continued his voyage to the door, having several new pieces of information to consider for his plans to improve the ship's defensive capablities.

Recruiting
By: Lieutenant Mélissa Marie Boudreau

As soon as David Mercury left Ten Forward, Melissa sprung into action. 'Finally!! Something to do!' she thought.

"Computer, locate Lieutenants Hewson and Samara." Melissa had decided that it would be better to recruit the Galaxy's senior engineers in person. There would be less chance of extra rumors flying around that way. She may be curious about all of the SI business but she knew that it was important to keep it as low profile as possible.

"Lieutenant Hewson is in his quarters and Lieutenant Samara is in holodeck 3." The computer replied curtly.

Melissa started by going to AC's quarters. She signalled her arrival a couple of times before a very groggy engineer showed up at the door.

"Hi AC!" Melissa laughed. "Sorry to wake you!" AC had obviously been sleeping in preparation for his shift during the Gamma Shift. As such, he didn't have any idea about what had happened in the last few hours.

AC invited Melissa in. "So what's up?"

Melissa looked around. AC looked pretty good wearing only a pair of boxer shorts. Melissa shook all the stray thoughts from her mind and explained the situation in engineering to him.

"So, get ready and be in main engineering as soon as possible. I'm sure David will explain exactly what we have to do when we get there." Melissa said as she was leaving.

Next, she proceeded to Holodeck 3. She entered to find a Japanese-style hall and K'Eytyanna looking very "worked up". Melissa spotted a few holodeck humans lying on the ground and one approaching K'Eyt cautiously. Melissa laughed when she saw that the man looked like Lieutenant Harbright.

The man lunged towards Lieutenant Samara and she quickly added his form to those lying on the floor. At that, Melissa stopped the program. K'Eytyanna turned quickly and tried to calm herself when she noticed who it was that had interrupted her.

"Ease it K'Eyt! It's just me! We're needed in main engineering after all. It's just you, me, AC and David. Unfortunately, we won't get to know what's going on, but we have to privelege to help power whatever it is they are setting up."

At that, the two engineers left the holodeck and headed for Main Engineering.

Amelie aka:
Lt. Melissa Marie Boudreau
Assistant Chief Engineering Officer
USS Galaxy NCC-70637

"A Breath Taken"
By: Lt(jg)Ryak Sullax and Dr. Khatroweena

Ryak took a deep breath and put Sullar onto the ground. Sullar's grip became more intense as they entered sick bay. Ryak took a quick look around