Spock inhaled deeply, than exhaled slowly, meditatively. "The praetor did not stop Empress Donatra's transmission," he said. "That suggests that there is at least the possibility that Tal'Aura will agree to a summit."

"And what then?" D'Tan wanted to know. "How can that possibly end well?"

Spock thought for a moment, searching for an answer to D'Tan's question-an answer that might define the course of the Romulan people for generations to come. In the end, he could only offer up the truth. "I do not know."

32.

Ben Sisko woke up in h.e.l.l.

The lieutenant commander regained consciousness quickly, but his mind felt dulled. He opened his eyes in dim light, the right side of his face resting on a hard surface. Another surface, looking equally hard, rose up before his eyes just a few centimeters away.

Sisko's body burned. His flesh felt as though it had been doused with an accelerant and set aflame. Worse than that, his muscles ached in the same way, without his even attempting to move. The simple act of opening his eyes had sent bolts of agony through the top of his face.

He lay there like that, his eyes open but his body still, for some period of time he could not estimate. His head pounded with the beating of his heart, as though the pulse of his blood sent freshets of pain overflowing his veins. No thoughts entered his mind beyond the recognition of his agony and the desire for it to cease.

Eventually, a scent reached his nose, and the perception made it all the way to his brain, providing the first minuscule decrease of what to that point had been his all-encompa.s.sing physical suffering. Somehow, the odor pushed through, demanding the slightest bit of his focus. At first, he welcomed it, grasped for it, tried to use it to pull himself away from the pain.

And then he recognized the smell: burnt flesh.

Sisko gagged, the involuntary reflex engaging some of his muscles. Fire ripped through his body, forcing tears from his eyes. When he lay still again, though, the pain had diminished, as though actual movement had broken a spell.

Sisko thought. He couldn't remember his location or how he'd arrived there, or many other relevant details. He just knew that he wanted very badly to go home, to Jennifer and Jake. He could barely recall his own name, his own position- Executive officer, U.S.S. Okinawa. U.S.S. Okinawa.

Rescuing the crew of a.s.surance. a.s.surance.

The Tzenkethi.

Sisko had never been shot with a Tzenkethi weapon before, and he hoped he never would be again. He remained motionless, but no longer to avoid the pain. He concentrated, opening his mind to his senses. Past the odor of smoldering flesh, he heard noises, little noises, and he attempted to isolate and identify them. A hum in his ear pressed to the floor: the engine of a starship. A soft rustle from somewhere behind him: somebody stirring from unconsciousness. A murmur from above . . . he could not place.

With care, Sisko turned his head and looked up, grateful to find the pain declining further. What he saw, though, made no sense to him. Across the overhead stretched a ma.s.s of color: the reds and golds and blues of Starfleet uniforms, the myriad flesh tones of humans and Andorians and Orions and other species.

And he saw faces.

Sisko pushed himself up onto his elbows, and then to a sitting position, the wave of pain flowing through him at least bearable. The surface in front of him when he'd woken up-When I regained consciousness, he corrected himself-turned out to be a silver cylinder embedded in the deck, a meter or so tall and perhaps a dozen centimeters in diameter. He leaned against it, then peered into the dim light.

He seemed to be in a large s.p.a.ce, like the hold of a starship. All around, he saw what he thought he'd seen above him: the uniformed bodies of Starfleet officers. Here and there, some of them stirred, and he heard the low moans of physical distress. Intermingled with the bodies, Sisko saw more of the silver cylinders.

Turning to his left, Sisko looked for the bulkhead that marked the extent of the hold. Instead, he saw more bodies. Shocked, he peered upward again, and saw the same thing. It made no sense to him, and he wondered if- An electronic whir began somewhere above him, and then he heard the sound of soft bells. It took him a moment to recall that the voices of Tzenkethi sounded like that. He immediately threw himself back onto the floor-his body protested, but complied. He lay not on his side, though, but on his back. He closed his eyes, but not fully.

The hold brightened considerably. Through his almost-closed eyes, Sisko again saw the bodies of Starfleet officers on the overhead. Movement caught his attention, then, and he shifted his gaze to see a circular opening far up in the bulkhead. Two Tzenkethi walked inside-directly onto the overhead. The opening behind them irised closed.

Between them, they dragged the body of a human, dressed in a blue Starfleet uniform. The Tzenkethi hauled the unmoving body across the overhead, then threw it down-or up. It flopped onto the overhead, and Sisko saw that part of the uniform had been burned away, the exposed flesh mutilated, as though seared by exposure to hot metal. And again, the smell of burning flesh reached him.

Sisko realized that the body the Tzenkethi had just thrown down was dead. He realized that a lot of the bodies in the hold were dead.

The two Tzenkethi-both of them glowing a greenish yellow-moved back toward where they'd entered, when the door dilated open again. Another Tzenkethi, this one radiating more of a golden color, walked inside and waited for the other two. Then, as a group, they walked toward the bulkhead-and then onto it. They walked normally, making their way down to the floor on which Sisko lay.

As he watched them through his squinted eyes, they drew nearer, peering down at the bodies they pa.s.sed. Then one of them looked in Sisko's direction, and Sisko suddenly felt terrified. The golden Tzenkethi pointed, and the other two started toward Sisko.

I'll fight them, Sisko resolved. He would overcome his pain and do as much damage as he could.

Stepping past other bodies, the two Tzenkethi had come within three meters of him when one of the Starfleet personnel grabbed for them. He wrapped his arms around one of the Tzenkethi and pulled him down. In the flurry of motion, Sisko saw the attacker: Captain Walter.

Sisko suspected he would get no better opportunity, and he hauled himself up by grabbing hold of the silver cylinder. He felt suddenly light-headed as he got to his feet, but he lurched forward. As he did, the golden Tzenkethi drew a weapon.

"No!" Sisko yelled, but too late. The orange beam struck both Captain Walter and the Tzenkethi with whom he grappled. Both dropped to the deck, either unconscious or dead.

Then the Tzenkethi trained the weapon on Sisko.

In the moment before she fired, the remembrance of the terrible pain he'd experienced led him to just one thought: I hope this shot kills me. I hope this shot kills me.

When Sisko came to again, his pain did not approach what he'd felt previously. He opened his eyes to find himself on the deck of a small room. Before him stood a beautiful Tzenkethi woman, a soft golden glow emanating from her body.

Sisko heard a gentle metallic tinkling. The Tzenkethi reached to the wall and touched a control. When she did, Sisko saw another silver cylinder embedded in the deck. Then, from a panel in the bulkhead, strangely inflected words spoke in Federation Standard, and Sisko realized that she'd activated a translator.

"Why are you here?"

Sisko pulled himself up and leaned against the bulkhead. "I don't even know where I am," he said. He heard a deeper set of chimes, obviously his own words translated into the language of the Tzenkethi.

"You are aboard a Tzenkethi marauder," she said. she said. "But I am not asking you why you are aboard. You were seized from a planet near the border of the Tzenkethi Coalition. You were aboard the remains of a Federation starship that crashed on a planet. Sensor scans show the residual energy effects of Tzenkethi weaponry on the hull of that starship, but there is no Tzenkethi vessel in this planetary system and none reported destroying a Federation ship here. "But I am not asking you why you are aboard. You were seized from a planet near the border of the Tzenkethi Coalition. You were aboard the remains of a Federation starship that crashed on a planet. Sensor scans show the residual energy effects of Tzenkethi weaponry on the hull of that starship, but there is no Tzenkethi vessel in this planetary system and none reported destroying a Federation ship here.

"So I ask you again: why are you here, in this planetary system, on this planet, after battling a Tzenkethi starship?"

"We're at war," Sisko said. "Ask the autarch why that is and you'll have your answer."

The bottom half of the Tzenkethi's right leg shot forward in a way that would have been impossible for a human. It kicked Sisko in the side. Where it struck him, he felt a sensation like something between electricity and heat, through his uniform and that of the Tzenkethi.

"You encroachers have caused this war," the Tzenkethi said, moving away. the Tzenkethi said, moving away. "Do not look to blame us for your transgressions. Why are you here? In this planetary system? Did you destroy the Tzenkethi vessel that fired on you?" "Do not look to blame us for your transgressions. Why are you here? In this planetary system? Did you destroy the Tzenkethi vessel that fired on you?"

"We did not start this war," Sisko said. "But we defend ourselves."

The Tzenkethi stepped quickly forward, and Sisko threw his hands up to ward off another kick. Instead, she strode past him and onto the bulkhead. He peered up to see her walking upward, past another silver cylinder, and then onto the overhead. There, he saw another heaped body in a Starfleet uniform. The Tzenkethi took a small device from somewhere in her formfitting clothing and touched it to the outside of the officer's arm.

Sisko watched as the officer came to, and he saw that it was Captain Walter. The Tzenkethi touched a control in the wall, and then the translation of her lyrical sounds spilled from a panel in the bulkhead there. "Why are you here?" "Why are you here?"

"To convince the Tzenkethi to stop waging war," Walter said.

"We do not wage war," she said. she said. "You do!" "You do!" She reached for the captain, grabbing him by the hair and pulling his head back, forcing him to look up. He saw Sisko. She reached for the captain, grabbing him by the hair and pulling his head back, forcing him to look up. He saw Sisko.

"You," the Tzenkethi said, pointing at Sisko with her free hand. the Tzenkethi said, pointing at Sisko with her free hand. "Why are you here?" "Why are you here?"

Sisko repeated Captain Walter's words.

"Why are you here?" she said again, and then the Tzenkethi reached up and pressed her fingers to the captain's forehead, as though trying to reach she said again, and then the Tzenkethi reached up and pressed her fingers to the captain's forehead, as though trying to reach through through his head. his head.

Walter screamed. But even over the sound of his voice, Sisko could hear his flesh sizzling beneath the Tzenkethi's golden touch. The raw odor of burning meat filled the room. And still the captain screamed.

And then a siren split the air, a moment before the deck beneath Sisko pitched forward. Sisko slammed into the cylinder, and crashed to the floor. He felt momentarily nauseous, and he realized that the embedded cylinders functioned as field nodes, generating gravitational envelopes within the Tzenkethi vessel, possibly even reinforcing the ship's structural integrity.

He peered upward and saw Captain Walter struggling with the Tzenkethi. The lighting flickered, the Tzenkethi glowing brightly in the instants of darkness. Sisko looked at the bulkhead before him, then rushed forward and stepped onto it. He felt momentarily disoriented, but he did not fall back to the deck.

Quickly, he strode forward, and then onto the overhead-which became the deck for him. He felt woozy once more, but did not hesitate. He rushed forward and threw himself at the Tzenkethi.

Sisko felt a jolt, like an electric shock, but the Tzenkethi flew backward and into the bulkhead. Sisko followed, raised his foot, and thrust it forward into whatever joint pa.s.sed for her knee. His boot connected, and he felt the sensation of something giving way, like a water-filled balloon popping.

The Tzenkethi opened her mouth and a sound like gravel falling on metal came out, clearly a scream of pain. Not knowing if he had sufficiently incapacitated her, Sisko raised his foot to strike a second time, but the deck beneath him rocked again, and he lost his footing, sending him onto the deck, hard. He landed beside the captain, and Sisko saw the flesh of Walter's forehead hanging in tatters, blood seeping down his face.

The room shook again, and over the siren, Sisko heard the sounds of battle. Phasers Phasers, he told himself, though he could not really tell. He looked back at the Tzenkethi, but she was gone. He glanced up, and saw her pulling herself up the bulkhead with her arms, her leg dragging uselessly behind her.

Sisko let her go. Instead, he reached up to his uniform and tried to tear a strip from it. When he couldn't, he peeled off his uniform shirt and applied it gently to Captain Walter's forehead, wanting to stanch the bleeding. Walter winced when the fabric made contact with his wrecked skin, but the captain reached up and held it there.

The room continued to shake and rattle for ten minutes. At one point, Sisko looked up again and saw the Tzenkethi woman nowhere in the room. She must have left, but no one else entered.

Finally, Sisko stood. "I'm going to go try to find something of use for us," he told Captain Walter. "A weapon . . . a shuttlebay . . . something."

Walter said nothing, but he nodded.

Sisko saw a f.l.a.n.g.ed metal circle in the wall, which resembled the opening through which the Tzenkethi had entered the hold. He moved toward it, but before he reached it, his vision began to cloud. He thought the Tzenkethi vessel and its various internal gravity envelopes had affected him again, but then he recognized the sensation of being caught in a transporter beam.

He and Walter materialized aboard Okinawa. Okinawa.

They were two of only eleven survivors recovered from the Tzenkethi vessel.

33.

Praetor Tal'Aura of the Romulan Star Empire-an empire soon to be made whole-sat down in the gilded chair in her audience chamber. Months of planning perched on the threshold of fruition. She found it nearly impossible to contain her satisfaction, though she knew that she must.

As she waited to play out one of the final acts of her complex plan, she gazed around her chamber. She relished its regal splendor: the beautiful artwork, the stately columns, the dazzlingly glossy floor and walls. For too long, this place had felt temporary, as though the means by which it had come into her possession lessened the legitimacy of her claim to it. But Romulan politics had a long and rich history of advancement by a.s.sa.s.sination. And she had not plotted the demise of Praetor Hiren and the Senate; Shinzon had. Tal'Aura had merely escaped her own death by agreeing to a.s.sist Shinzon in his plot-had escaped her own death, and contributed to the removal of a praetor and his sympathetic Senate, all of whom preferred to appease the Federation and the Klingons rather than stand firm and face them down. She had taken control of the Empire to strengthen it, to make it the the power in the region, to return it to a position worthy of respect and even awe. power in the region, to return it to a position worthy of respect and even awe.

And I would have succeeded, she thought, if not for Donatra escaping the Empire and forging her own base of power. if not for Donatra escaping the Empire and forging her own base of power. "'Empress' Donatra," she said aloud, her lone voice sounding hollow in the large s.p.a.ce. "'Empress' Donatra," she said aloud, her lone voice sounding hollow in the large s.p.a.ce. But now I've cornered that But now I've cornered that veruul, veruul, and there will be no more escaping. and there will be no more escaping.

The enormous wooden doors that permitted visitors into her chamber began to swing open. Her proconsul, Tomalak, entered, closing the doors behind him. His boot heels clicked along the floor as he approached her dais. "Praetor," he said, bowing his head, "I bring news."

"Tell me."

"The chairman of the Tal Shiar and his loyal pet have just entered the Hall of State," Tomalak said. "They will be here shortly."

"Very good," said Tal'Aura. "Make sure that our friend is prepared."

"Immediately," said Tomalak. He bowed as he withdrew a step, then made his way around the dais to one of her chamber's private entrances. He returned only a few moments later, informing her that the necessary arrangements had been made. Then he turned and stood before her, to her left, facing the visitors' doors and waiting along with her.

When Rehaek entered, Tal'Aura for the first time felt pleased that he had brought his bilious servitor. Torath's constant display of disrespect for anything not directly a.s.sociated with the Tal Shiar rankled her. Even as he crossed Tal'Aura's audience chamber with Rehaek, he moved with an air of pomposity impossible to miss. The Tal Shiar chairman, on the other hand, walked unhurriedly, almost carelessly, at least not wearing his arrogance for all to see.

Rehaek stopped several strides before Tomalak, Torath at his side. While the Tal Shiar chairman kept his gaze trained on the proconsul, his aide haughtily peered up at the praetor, as though looking upon a mere servant girl. "Good evening, Proconsul," Rehaek said with polite formality. "I understand that Praetor Tal'Aura has requested my presence." In the past, Rehaek had often taken days to respond to such requests, but that night, knowing the current state of affairs-as he most a.s.suredly did-he had made his way to the Hall of State within an hour.

"Thank you for coming so quickly, Chairman," Tomalak said, and Tal'Aura cursed him for his courtesy. A change in behavior would certainly not go unnoticed by a man of Rehaek's ilk. But then Tomalak regarded Torath with a disdainful look, and Tal'Aura calmed herself. "The praetor wishes to inform you of a political undertaking that will at the very least demand your notice, if not your attention."

"I see," Rehaek said, and Tal'Aura knew that he did. She could scarcely eat a meal without the chairman being informed of her every bite. His spies had infiltrated so many places throughout the Empire, and his surveillance devices even more. But Tal'Aura had her own methods and agents, and few actions could Rehaek take without the praetor finding out about them.

"You are aware, I trust, of Donatra's plea two days ago," Tal'Aura said, "for a summit between us."

Rehaek looked up at the praetor. "I would imagine that there are few enough citizens throughout the Romulan realms that are not aware of it," he said. "It seemed a desperate attempt to ask you to help bail water from her sinking ship of state."

"Perhaps," Tal'Aura said, actually appreciative of the chairman's turn of phrase. "But I have chosen to take Donatra at her word. She said that she wants a united Empire, as do I, and clearly the Romulan people want that as well. I have therefore agreed to her offer of a summit."

"I . . . am surprised," Rehaek said, and Tal'Aura waited to hear what more lies he would tell her. The praetor's own sources had already confirmed the chairman's knowledge of the summit. "It may prove difficult for the Tal Shiar to do any advance work on a meeting held within Donatra's so-called Imperial Romulan State. She has tightened security considerably on her world."

Another lie, Tal'Aura thought. "The summit will not be on Achernar Prime," she said. "I have agreed to host Donatra here. This is, after all, the homeworld of the Empire."

"Ah, I see," Rehaek said. "I am pleased with your decision, Praetor. It will make what I am about to tell you much easier for us both to deal with."

Tal'Aura waited for Rehaek to tell her the greatest lie of all. Instead, the chairman motioned to Torath, having his aide do it.

"We have just learned that the man who attempted to a.s.sa.s.sinate Spock," Torath said, "was himself a.s.sa.s.sinated by a protector in Romulan Security named R'Jul."

"And that is important why?" Tal'Aura asked, presenting her own falsehood. The praetor's people had hired the Reman to kill Spock, and when that had apparently failed, they had put out the word to protectors throughout the city to execute any Remans on sight. Once R'Jul had done that, it had been a simple matter to plant enough false information to link him to Donatra. But then, Chairman Rehaek knows all of that too. But then, Chairman Rehaek knows all of that too.

"It is important because R'Jul was in the employ of Donatra, and in killing Spock's a.s.sa.s.sin, acted on her behalf," Torath explained. "Donatra wished to silence the failed killer after having hired him to eliminate the leader of the Reunification Movement. She apparently wanted Spock dead so that his ideas of reunifying the Romulans and Vulcans could not stir people's desires to unite the two Romulan empires."

"These are extraordinary charges," Tal'Aura said, playing her part. "Do you have proof enough?"

"We do," Torath said.

"And when Donatra arrives on Romulus for the summit," Rehaek said, "it will be a simple matter to make public her complicity in both acts-in the attempt on Spock's life, and in the murder of Spock's would-be killer. After that, we will have no choice but to arrest her."

"Thus dissolving the only real government of the Imperial Romulan State," Torath added.

But neither Torath nor Rehaek added the subsequent part of their plan, which Tal'Aura's own agent had uncovered. Once Donatra had been arrested and put to death, the chairman would reveal that Tal'Aura actually had framed Donatra, which would provide more than enough cause for the Senate to remove her from the praetorship, imprison her, and possibly even execute her. Rehaek then would call in favors in the Senate to have his own puppet installed as the leader of the Romulan people: Durjik.

But Tal'Aura disclosed nothing. "You have clearly earned your position on merit, Chairman Rehaek," she said, summoning up the spirit of magnanimity. "Donatra will arrive on Romulus, in Ki Baratan, two days hence. Once she is within the city, you are authorized to release the information and see that she is taken into custody."

Rehaek nodded. "It shall be done," he said. "Is there anything else with which I can a.s.sist you today, Praetor?"

"I asked you here to inform you of the summit," Tal'Aura said, "and to direct you to coordinate with Romulan Security on the logistical details for Donatra's visit. I ask now that you still take on that task. All must appear normal."

"Of course," the chairman said. "Is there anything else?"