Vaughn also seemed unperturbed by Riker's objections. The mission leader stood beside a viewscreen on the far wall, amus.e.m.e.nt tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Don't hold back, Commander. Tell us what you really think."

Will shook his head and pointed to the Betazed system tactical graphic displayed on the viewscreen. "You can't expect the Enterprise and only three Saber-cla.s.s light cruisers to go up against a dozen Carda.s.sian and Dominion ships of the line. We'll never get anywhere near Sentok Nor."

Picard had shared the same concerns with Vaughn earlier, but the captain had also accepted that three light cruisers were the maximum Starfleet could spare. All other ships within range were either disabled or fighting along the extensive front, struggling to prevent Dominion forces from penetrating Federation s.p.a.ce. Besides, Picard wasn't about to express his reservations in front of his crew. For the mission to succeed, they had to believe that it would, or they were beaten before they left the starbase.

Seeing Worf and O'Brien gathered once again around the table with Riker, La Forge, Data, Troi, and Crusher brought back a number of fond memories-pleasant times Picard now forced himself to set aside in order to face the current crisis.

"I would share your skepticism," Vaughn said, "except for the factors in our favor."

As if forcing himself to relax, Riker took a deep breath, but his expression dared Vaughn to prove him wrong. "I'm listening."

"First, Captain Picard will lead the task force against the Dominion fleet," Vaughn said, "and Starfleet has full confidence in his abilities. The starships Tulwar, Katana, and Scimitar will be under his command. Saber-cla.s.s starships may be small, but therein lies their strength. They're fast and easily maneuverable.

"Second, we may not have to destroy the enemy fleet. We simply have to keep them occupied long enough for you and Mr. La Forge to to beam aboard Sentok Nor with a team, complete the job, and beam out."

"In a heated battle," Riker said, "even ten minutes can be a lifetime."

"Ten minutes may be all we'll need, Number One," Picard stated with a calm he didn't feel. The captain realized how much would be at stake when they engaged the enemy defenses. He had already discussed tactics with the captains of the light cruisers. Each was aware that her ship and crew might not return from this action, a possibility they had each accepted when they volunteered.

"Let's move on," Vaughn said, and indicated the sixth planet ringing Betazed's sun. "This is Darona. Because its population is small, the Dominion has garrisoned less than a thousand troops there, according to our intelligence. However, those troops are vital to the Dominion because of the planet's strategic location. It makes an excellent listening post to scan the shipping lanes and observe movements of ships and supplies."

"If the Dominion forces are using long-range scanning equipment," Data said, "beaming onto the planet undetected seems unlikely."

"You're right, Mr. Data. Which is precisely why Admiral Ross has a.s.signed the Defiant to get the extraction team to Darona," Vaughn said with a nod to Worf. "She'll be operating under cloak."

Data's eyes narrowed, and Picard could almost hear the subprocessors humming in the android's brain.

"It is my understanding, sir," Data said, "that the Dominion possesses the capability to detect cloaked vessels. Will that not be a problem?"

Worf spoke up. "Perhaps not. On Deep s.p.a.ce 9, we have been looking for ways to improve the effectiveness of the Defiant 's cloaking device ever since we learned the Jem'Hadar possessed countermeasures. Chief?"

O'Brien picked up the ball and ran with it, speaking directly to Picard. "It took a while, but I think we finally came up with a solution. It's based on the same principle Commander La Forge first devised to defend ourselves against the Borg back on the Enterprise -D. By randomly rotating the field harmonics of the Defiant 's cloak, we should be able to stay below the threshold of the Dominion's sensors. With luck, the Jem'Hadar will have no idea we're in the area."

"I take it you haven't had a chance to test your modified cloak yet?" Riker asked.

O'Brien shook his head apologetically, "No, sir. My a.s.sistant and I actually worked out the final kinks after we left DS9. But the real test will come only when we're facing a Jem'Hadar ship."

Picard looked at Vaughn. "Then, a.s.suming you can make it to the surface successfully, Commander ... what next?"

"According to Commander Troi, beaming directly into the prison facility isn't an option. We'll need to make contact with the warden, Director Lanolan, and secure his cooperation in releasing Tevren. We'll be wearing surface blacks for maximum protection, with native coats over them. And with the help of Dr. Crusher's skills, even Mr. Data will be able to pa.s.s for a Betazoid."

Picard turned to Troi. "You think Lanolan will cooperate?"

She glanced at him with dark eyes still haunted by the depth of her dilemma and the discomfort of her decision. "I can't imagine he'll like it, but I think he'll understand the necessity."

"While on Darona," Vaughn continued, "we'll be operating without combadges-a total communications blackout. We don't want the Jem'Hadar homing in on our transmissions. Once we have Tevren, Data will activate a subs.p.a.ce transponder that Commander La Forge will install today in his positronic systems. When Data gives the signal, the Defiant will lock on to that transmission and beam the team out."

"And by that time," Picard added, "Commander Riker's team should have destroyed Sentok Nor."

Vaughn nodded. "That's the idea. The Defiant will proceed to Betazed and deliver Tevren to the resistance."

"Piece of cake," Riker said with more than a trace of sarcasm.

"Let's hope so," Vaughn said evenly. "Any questions?"

"I have a comment," La Forge said. "Destroying Sentok Nor is fine in theory, but I'd be a lot more comfortable emptying our torpedo launchers into it than trying to blow it up from the inside the way you're proposing."

"Inadvisable," Vaughn said. "Even if our task force wasn't already contending with a dozen enemy craft, the station is still able to defend itself."

Picard turned to O'Brien. "Chief, what can we expect from Sentok Nor?"

"Ma.s.sive armaments and heavy-duty shields at least, sir," O'Brien said, "if it's that similar to Deep s.p.a.ce 9. And we should expect upgrades from the original design. Commander Vaughn is probably right when he says that getting a team in will be easier than trying to destroy it from a distance."

Vaughn nodded. "There's also the fact that there's almost certainly some Betazoids on board. We have an obligation to try to get them off before we take out the station. Obviously it won't be easy, but that's why Mr. O'Brien is going with the boarding party."

O'Brien looked up. "Me, sir?"

But La Forge had already deduced Vaughn's meaning. "You're the Federation's leading authority on Carda.s.sian s.p.a.ce stations, Chief. If anybody would know how to blow that monstrosity up from the inside in the shortest time, it'd be you. Frankly, I wouldn't want to try this without you."

"With all due respect, sir, I spend most of my time trying to keep Deep s.p.a.ce 9 from falling to pieces," O'Brien reminded him, "not figuring out ways to blow it up. But I appreciate the sentiment."

Eighteen hours after the briefing, and after the fourth day of combat drills with Vaughn, Deanna prepared to join Elias, Worf, Beverly, and Data aboard the Defiant. Will had come to the transporter room to see her off, and even dismissed the transporter operator so he could spend a final moment alone with her.

"I know you don't want to hear this," he said, "but I'm gonna say it anyway. Be careful."

Deanna smiled. "You too. I'll see you soon." Suddenly she had her arms around him, and Will was hugging her back, his long arms wrapped tightly around her.

"You know what I'm feeling, don't you?" she heard him ask unnecessarily.

"Yes," she said. "Me too." After a moment, she said. "Promise me something, Will?"

"You name it."

"Promise you'll never let me go."

Will smiled. He knew what she meant, and that it had nothing to do with their embrace. "That depends," he said. "Does it work both ways?"

"Of course."

"Then, yes," Will said. "I promise."

Later in the Defiant 's mess hall, as the ship warped through s.p.a.ce under cloak, Deanna sat in silence, keenly aware of her turbulent emotions and finding the ship strangely disquieting. She missed the familiar decks and faces of the Enterprise. Vaughn, amazingly, seemed comfortable regardless of his environment and adjusted as easily to new surroundings as Data. Worf, to his credit, had provided them with every comfort his ship had to offer-such as they were.

She allowed herself a wistful sigh. She had hoped to spend time with Worf, but his duties as captain had kept him too occupied for them to share even a few moments alone together. Through his fierce Klingon demeanor, she continued to feel his devastating grief over Jadzia, and Deanna's frustration at being unable to comfort her dear friend added to her agitation.

Shortly before their arrival at the edge of the Betazed system, she, Vaughn, Beverly, Data, and Worf had convened for a briefing in the mess hall.

In preparation for their a.s.signment, the away team had donned their s...o...b..s, equipped themselves, and put on dark hooded coats that, Deanna a.s.sured them, were typical on the planet. With the exception of Deanna, the team wore dark cosmetic lenses that made even Data appear Betazoid at a glance, once Beverly had altered his skin's pigment to something comparable to Deanna's.

"We can't transport directly into the city of Jarkana without risking detection by Jem'Hadar sensors," Vaughn said.

Worf pointed to a map on his padd. "I suggest an insertion point here, a kilometer outside the city. You are less likely to attract attention, yet close enough to make your way into Jarkana easily on foot."

Transporting directly into the prison facility would have decreased the risk for the away team, but the presence of Jem'Hadar security forces in the city had eliminated that option. From her previous stay in Jarkana, Deanna recalled little cover on the roads leading into the city and worried about exposure, but Vaughn explained that remaining in plain sight was another way to hide. The away team simply had to blend in with the native population to keep from being noticed.

Vaughn turned to Deanna. "When's the most foot traffic on the main road?"

She considered what she remembered of the terrain and what she knew about the people. "When the farmers take their fresh produce into the city in the mornings. It's only a short distance from the open market in the center of the city to Director Lanolan's house, a.s.suming he hasn't moved in the last seventeen years."

"Let's hope he hasn't," Vaughn said, and checked the chrono on his padd. "That means we're go for transport in less than thirty minutes."

"The Defiant will remain cloaked," Worf said, "until it is time to transport you onto the planet. We are out of the usual shipping lanes there, so we should remain undetected."

Data frowned. "Have you ascertained if your modifications to the cloaking device will be effectual?"

Worf shook his head. "There is no way to know until the cloak is exposed to Dominion sensors. However, the current best-case scenario shows that remodulating the cloaking field will overtax the system in a fairly short time."

"Overload?" Vaughn asked.

"That is one possibility," Worf acknowledged. "The other is an automatic shutdown, which would merely require reinitializing the cloaking device after a cooldown period. But the end result would be the same: exposure."

"Sounds like this may not be the breakthrough you were hoping for," Beverly said.

"It is not," Worf said, clearly trying to contain his frustration. "But we have no alternatives." After a moment, he said, "As agreed, once you beam down, the Defiant will go quiet and remain out of contact for at least twelve hours. If you run into difficulties on Darona and Commander Data activates his subs.p.a.ce signal before the designated rendezvous, it may take some time for the Defiant to get within transporter range."

"Understood," Vaughn said.

A voice from the bridge sounded over Worf's communicator, and the captain responded before turning to the away team. "The Defiant is approaching Darona. I am needed on the bridge. Report to the transporter bay. Die well."

On the viewscreen, the cla.s.s-M planet Darona spun with deceptive serenity as Worf strode onto the bridge and settled into the center seat.

"Half impulse power, Mr. Nog," Worf ordered the Ferengi ensign at the conn before opening a comm channel to the transporter bay. "Away team, prepare for transport."

"Ready, Captain," Vaughn answered.

"On my mark, Ensign," Worf told Nog. "Two ... one ... decloak and energize!"

In the common room of the resistance stronghold, Lwaxana Troi considered her two-year-old son with an objective eye. Every day he showed more signs of having inherited his mother's indomitable disposition.

"Barin, please eat." She lifted a spoonful of chopped sadi fruit to his tightly compressed lips.

"No!"

Pushing a strand of hair off her forehead, she stifled her frustration. No had become Barin's favorite word, not an unusual development considering his age and stage of maturity. In a situation where food was scarce and strictly rationed, however, she couldn't grant the little tyrant the luxury of his tantrums. He needed all the nourishment he could get.

"Just one taste," she said reasonably. "You'll like it, I promise."

"No." He stamped his foot and turned his head to avoid the proffered spoon. "Don't want sadi. Want chocolate."

She could thank Deanna for the boy's preference. Her daughter had sent them an ample supply of the confection before the war started, and with careful rationing, Lwaxana had managed to dole out an occasional treat to Barin until only a few weeks ago.

"But this is chocolate," she improvised. "It's just yellow. And juicy. And tart."

Barin shook his head defiantly, unconvinced, but Lwaxana's attention had already been drawn to the approach of Enaren. She sensed his agitation even before she heard his footsteps pounding down the tunnelway. Within seconds, he thundered into the room.

"What's wrong?" she demanded.

"Two members of the scavenging team just returned. The Jem'Hadar have captured Okalan."

She dropped the spoon into the bowl of minced fruit and handed it to Chaxaza. "Where?"

"They grabbed him just as he was leaving the hospital-at Condar village," Enaren said. "The others in his group were hiding and managed to slip away."

"What about the ryetalyn?"

Enaren shook his head. "Okalan had it when the Jem'Hadar captured him."

Lwaxana bit back a curse of frustration. The doctor had used the last of the ryetalyn to save Enaren's grandson, but afterward, three more children had come down with the fever. One hovered near death. Without medication, he'd die before sunrise. "Perhaps Okalan dropped it along the way in the hope we'd find it."

"We can search," Enaren said. "It was the last ryetalyn known to be within a hundred kilometers."

Lwaxana reached for her cloak on the bench behind her. "Let's go."

"Where do you think you're going?" Enaren asked in amazement.

Taking charge, Lwaxana drew herself to her full height and tinged her voice with the irrefutable tone of command. "The other members of his team will show us where Okalan was captured. Then we'll follow his trail and locate him."

Enaren gaped at her as if she'd lost her senses. "And if we find him? What good will that do?"

Lwaxana bristled at his lack of faith. "Okalan and I are two of the strongest telepaths in this cell. If I can communicate with him without his guards seeing me, he can tell me what happened to the ryetalyn."

Enaren shook his head. "It's a fool's errand."

Lwaxana's eyes flashed with fury. "Tell that to the parents of those sick children."

Enaren hesitated. "It's almost sunset. The beasts begin foraging at dark. And if we use our phasers, we'll draw the Jem'Hadar down on us."

"Then arm yourself and the others with blow guns," Lwaxana ordered. "And hurry."

With few modern weapons, the resistance had reverted to the blow guns and darts of their primitive ancestors to protect themselves from wild animals and even to kill tunnel rats. Most of the men and women had become proficient in the use of the small tube, fashioned from the hollowed stems of the corzon plant and armed with tarna thorns dipped in the deadly poison of the zintaba root. The toxin killed instantly.

After ordering Chaxaza to persuade Barin to eat and swiftly kissing her son, Lwaxana led the way into the tunnel that exited the caverns. Enaren followed. The other members of Okalan's team, the stocky young cavat farmer and a gigantic blacksmith, both from Condar, joined them as they left the stronghold.

What if the Jem'Hadar have transported Okalan? Enaren demanded. We'll never find him.

I know where he might be, the cavat farmer answered. The ugly brutes have commandeered the community hall as a temporary headquarters in this province. My guess is they took him there.

We have to hurry, Lwaxana insisted, before they decide to move him somewhere else.