"Is that supposed to be better?" scoffed one of the nine different aliens gathered about.

"Yes," Lotre said. "It is."

"Ravings," someone said. "We're asking for death," another complained. And again, Gorlat said, "You're crazy, Lotre."

"I am not insane."

"Then you're drugged." Gorlat pushed Lotre away from the lockers, as if Lotre wasn't done and on his way anyway.

"I am not drugged."

"Insane or drugged, 7 care not. We'll all be just as dead if we continue to follow this ship."

Lotre noticed that while Gorlat spoke for himself and probably most of the others, they were all stowing their gear nonetheless. "You're supposed to be mercenaries. You're paid to do as you're told."

"I'm paid to fight," Gorlat said. "Not to die."

Lotre smiled. "Fight well, and you won't die."

"Against a starship? That starship? In case you'd not noticed, that is the Enterprise."

"I noticed. We'll have help, from the inside." Lotre turned to them, and smiled. "Now what do you say?"

Gorlat sneered. "I say the help'd better be flippin' divine."

U.S.S. Enterprise. NCC 1701E Klingon Empire Lanmit Sector "Captain, we're reading increased neutrino emissions." Spock had been at the science station, waiting for just such an occurrence.

"They're closing in," Picard said, stepping up toward the Vulcan.

Spock turned toward the captain. "A logical a.s.sumption." He had that glint in his eye. Smiling, without actually smiling.

"Within transporter range?" Picard asked.

"In ... seventeen seconds," Spock answered with just a slight glance at the console.

Picard turned toward tactical. "Mr. Chamberlain, silent signal of general quarters and intruder alert. Notify Mr. La Forge."

"Aye, sir."

Determined, the captain turned back, his jaw tight.

"Stand by, Mr. Sp-"

Cut off by a low rumble and then an alert, Picard stopped instantly and listened. Somewhere, deep within the ship, a series of explosions vibrated up to the bridge.

"Captain," Chamberlain called, "shields are down! We've lost the main shield conduits."

"Reroute, Ensign! And now, Mr. Spock. Now!"

The whole process lasted longer than it should have, and for a very brief moment he thought he might actu ally panic. It was a common phobia, but he pushed it away. He knew that when he finally did materialize, there would be much to do.

Lotre experienced the final stage of transport when his feeling slowly returned. His skin tingled and then his sight was restored in a hail of harsh sparkle. Enterprise's engineering room appeared before him. His disruptor already raised, Lotre targeted the nearest Starfleeter and fired.

The man crumpled, stunned into submission. Lotre targeted another, by his rank probably the chief engineer, but the dark man jumped behind a console. "Fan out," Lotre ordered, and gave chase.

The engineer was fast and well trained. He rolled away quickly, and when he came up on a knee, Lotre a.s.sumed he'd have a weapon. He did. The mercenary bowed left and protected himself behind a support strut. He glanced back at the nine others who had beamed in with him. They were all still standing, but only two of the Starfleeters were yet down. Two down, hundreds to go? Only if Lotre couldn't get to environmental control and the bridge.

"Secure engineering," Lotre ordered, "I will proceed with the plan and meet the other-"

Squinting in sudden pain, Lotre pressed his free hand's fingers into his skull above one ear. "Sonic!" he grunted.

"They don't hear it," cried one of his men. "Earplugs."

Something Lotre hadn't thought to bring. "Find where it's coming from!"

A painful distraction that could win this battle for the Starfleeters. Lotre looked for any speaker centers or communications hubs, and at the same time needed to defend himself from phaser shots. He darted between support struts, painfully zeroing in on the place from where the sonic whine seemed to emanate.

He reached for his tricorder, but the scanning device was missing. Odd-he'd not felt it drop. Too small a concern to occupy his mind now. The pain in his head was too great. He felt the sound reverberate throughout his skull, now his spine and breastbone. He couldn't take anymore. He fired toward the area wildly. Foolish, really-his own orders were to maintain stun settings so that neither necessary equipment nor necessary personnel would be damaged.

Disrupter energy punched forward from his weapon and slammed into a force field. Containment fields! "They had time to raise containment fields!" Loire screamed in pain, but fought to keep himself from grumbling. He reset his rifle to full and fired a prolonged burst Raw energy finally pushed past the electronic barrier and the console exploded. Fire suppression force fields quickly surrounded the flames, but smoke had already plumed into the room.

Loire coughed hard, but the painful noise was gone and he ran toward the exit. The air was cleaner in The corridor, and he remembered the deck map clearly as he turned toward the turbolift, and the armory.

"Two sets of ten life-forms have transported aboard, sir." Chamberlain's voice was thick with apprehension. He anxiously leaned on one leg and then the other as he stood al The tactical station. "Shields are still down."

"La Forge?" Picard asked.

Chamberlain shook his head. "Comm systems are down, too. Also due to internal explosions."

"Sabotage," Picard growled. "Ensign Bradley." The captain motioned the man quickly forward. "Alert security. I want the guard doubled around T'sart."

"Aye, sir."

"Chalna, find La Forge and get him to find a way to bypa.s.s the destroyed conduits. Sanderson, I want status from every deck. You'll have to go on foot."

All three cleared out for the turbolifts.

The captain pivoted toward the upper deck. "Mr. Spock?"

Spock nodded but didn't look up from his internal ship's scanners. "Internal sensors show all intruders are accounted for. One of the ten from Engineering is on his way to deck twelve." He looked up and met Picard's eyes. "Engineering has been secured by the intruders."

"They've been lucky until now," the captain said. "Let's see that luck doesn't hold."

Spock's left hand glided over his console. "Aye, sir."

Lotre stopped quickly, catching himself before he entered the turbolift. Obviously the sonics had left him more disoriented than he thought. He knew better than to confine himself in an elevator, and he'd committed to memory every ladder access he'd need and a few he shouldn't, but might. And he'd wasted time running in the opposite direction.

Dull footsteps echoed up the corridor. d.a.m.n Federation! What kind of warship has carpeted halls? Boots MAXIMUM WARP: BOOK ONE.

on metal would have alerted Lotre sooner; now he had only seconds.

Ducking into a doorway alcove, Lotre hid and waited until he could hear their breathing. He quietly reset his weapon to wide stun, and when he heard them close enough, he curled his weapon arm into the hall and fired.

Lotre fell to one knee and rolled across the corridor and into the next alcove. He was one of twenty men on a ship full of Federation soldiers. He would take no chances.

When he glanced up the hall during his roll, he saw all four security officers were down, stunned. He sighed, rolled back into the corridor, and jumped into a run. Leaping over the Starfleeters, Lotre fired up the hall as two more rounded a corner. They quickly deflated and collapsed to the deck.

He couldn't help but smile. It was going well. Very well. And then, suddenly, it wasn't.

A force field snapped to life and blocked his way.

Anger furrowed his brows where nature had not, and he pushed against the field for a frustrating moment. A foolish and yet instinctive reaction to being trapped-test the cage.

A waste of time, he thought, and knew he didn't have the time to squander. To snare him, they'd had to have known where to find him. He probably had only seconds.

He pulled a small device from a pouch in his tunic and set it on the deck. A one-use force-field disruption unit. He'd thought he'd need to use it around the bridge or the armory, but he needed it now for the force fields that ran through the ship's bulkheads and decks. Resetting his disrupter, he aimed it at the floor and pulled the rifle's trigger. A cascade of sound and energy squashed the deck beneath it. Spark and smoke gushed toward his head and he bowed away, but continued to fire. First just burning, then melting, the floor finally gave way and crashed to the deck below.

Lotre leapt and followed it down, his boots crunching into molten debris as he landed roughly and nearly stumbled. He jumped again, this time off the rubble he'd created and onto the clean floor.

The corridor was clear, but above him he heard the cursing of those looking for him in their trap.

Now he had to run-they would be on him again, and soon.

Two decks away he'd find reinforcements. His men were in the main armory, beamed directly there, and that would be where most of the Enterprise security personnel would be. There, and trying to get his other nine mercenaries out of Engineering.

"Status?" Picard asked Chamberlain.

"Commander La Forge is working on the shields, sir. No ETA yet. I have a weapons lock on the enemy ship. They've scanned us, so they know it. They're just waiting."

"Waiting for their boarding party to get a foothold. We can't accommodate that many more. We need those shields up." Picard paced toward tactical and looked over Chamberlain's shoulder. "Just in case, arm the crew. Hand phasers for all personnel."

"Aye, sir."

Spock approached and handed Picard a sidearm. He also holstered one for himself.

"I want to know how we were damaged. And by whom," Picard said as he took the weapon.

"I shall investigate," Spock said. "The enemy number in Engineering is down to six. They've sealed themselves in and are attempting to override environmental and helm controls."

The captain pursed his lips and marched back toward the command chair. "Make it difficult for them."

"Of course," Spock said.

"What about the other team?"

"The armory." The Vulcan turned toward one of the sensor readouts on the console behind him. He tapped at the controls. "Ten life-forms of various races, with one of the enemy force from Engineering apparently making his way there. A Klingon."

"Interesting," Picard said. "A Klingon working for a Romulan?"

"Not unheard of."

"Indeed not. Just unusual."

"The question is, why would he break away from those he beamed in with?"

"Easy answer." Picard stood and walked toward Spock. "He's in charge." He leaned over Spock's shoulder and watched the sensor readouts. "His people secured Engineering, and now he'll make sure they secure the armory."

Spock nodded. "Very logical, Captain."

"I have my moments," Picard said. "Let's see that their leader gets a leader's welcome outside the armory. Add a few more to the security team."

Spock's fingers did a lithe dance on the computer console. "Added."

"We'll see how long it takes him to get into the armory now."

"Hold it right there, Mister."

Lotre turned quickly and ducked into a doorway alcove for cover.

He got a quick glimpse of the officer who'd caught him short. Red accents and the rank of commander, if he wasn't mistaken. Looked like the first officer, Riker.

The tall Starfleeter had just a hand phaser, but he seemed to know how to use it. Lotre was pinned down, and if he allowed that for much longer there would be a swarm of security officers around him.

So d.a.m.n close to the armory, he thought. A phaser shot sizzled past his head and was absorbed into the bulkhead close to him. Heavy stun. Federation fools. If his ship was the one being invaded, he'd be firing to kill .

"It's over," Riker said. "Give it up."

Starfleet arrogance at work. Lotre was nowhere near ready to give anything up. He had a few stun grenades, but the problem with those was that they were really more for a covert operation. Tossing a stun grenade at someone who saw it coming and could disable it with a well-placed phaser shot... well, it wouldn't do too much good. But as a distraction ... He took one grenade, then decided to take another as well. He punched in the codes to arm them and tossed them up the hall toward the Starfleeter.

Jumping forward as the grenades clattered up the deck, Lotre rolled along the floor and around the corner. He heard Riker fire twice to disable the grenades. As he a.s.sumed the Starfleeter would.

He peeked up the corridor and saw no one coming from in front of him. But when he turned quickly back around' Drop it." Riker was standing there, close enough to have his phaser aimed right at him, point-blank, but far enough away to be out of easy striking range.

"How-" Lotre was amazed.

Riker stepped forward and kicked the Klingon's rifle up the hallway. It skittered against the deck and out of reach. Lotre looked from Riker to his weapon, then back to Riker. He rose slowly, feigning a defeated posture.

Gesturing for him to take a walk up the corridor, Riker was sure to keep his distance. All that meant to Lotre was that he'd have to lunge.

He landed painfully on his elbows at Riker's feet, and managed to pull the Starfleeter's legs out from under him. Riker fell back with a grunt and Lotre pulled the man's tall frame toward him. As Riker struggled to rise without leverage, Lotre grappled for the phaser.

The Starfleeter's grip was like iron and Lotre grumbled, "How strong are you?"

Smiling, Riker said, "Stronger than you," and he kicked out from underneath the Klingon, sending him a few feet down the corridor.

His right leg taking most of the blow as he fell on the deck, Loire got up quickly. He didn't have the phaser, but somehow neither did Riker. Lotre saw it, leapt for it, and rolled shoulder to knee as he grabbed it.

Now Riker was the captive, Lotre thought, and smiled.