Entek went through his mental list of facts pertinent to the four humans and one Trill in the room. Troi had recently married an aristocrat on Betazed, a planet full of pacifist telepaths that Entek had always thought would be among the first worlds to fall when the Federation either collapsed on itself like the bloated mess it was or was finally overtaken by a superior force—ideally, Cardassia.
As for the others, Haden was a war veteran, having fought against the Romulans prior to the Tomed Incident, with a reputation for being somewhat blunt. Garrett was an expert fencer, and had had several dealings with the Klingon Empire over the years. Her experience was as nothing compared to that of Dax, who was one of the negotiators at the Khitomer Accords, and had forged personal bonds with several prominent Klingon military figures.
The only person about whom Entek knew nothing of consequence was Elias Vaughn. His official role was as a consultant, a functionally meaningless term that usually signified intelligence work. The Order’s knowledge of Federation intelligence was scattershot at best, but Vaughn wasn’t part of any of it that he was aware of. We’ll need to change that.
“Are you sure about this?”Dax was saying. The Trill sounded agitated.
Speaking with a certain confidence, Troi replied. “About the Cardassian ships, yes. About the Klingon ships, not so much.”
Entek frowned. His first thought was, What Cardassian ships?The only Central Command ship in the area was the Sontok.
“But it fits the profile,”Garrett was saying.
“That’s ridiculous,”Dax said, making some kind of gesture that Entek couldn’t make out from his vantage point. “The Klingons wouldn’t hide out like that.”
“What, it wouldn’t be honorable?”Haden’s words were laced with sarcasm.
Dax stared at the captain. “As a matter of fact, it wouldn’t. They’ve been completely up-front with us.”
“C’mon, Ambassador,”Garrett said. “You know as well as I do how fanatical Klingons get when it comes to anything sacred. Honor’s all well and good, but they’re not going to give up Ch’gran without a fight, and they’re not going to count on winning that fight over a negotiating table. Look what happened thirty-five years ago.”
Archly, Dax said, “Unlike you, Commander, I wasthere thirty-five years ago. Iwrote parts of the Khitomer Accords, so kindly don’t try to lecture me on the events leading up to them.”
To her credit, the commander was wholly unintimidated by the ambassador’s posturing. “Then you should remember that even coming to the table was too arduous a concept for some Klingons to wrap their minds around. So much so that they assassinated a perfectly good chancellor. If they can do that, I don’t think hiding a fleet nearby in case things don’t go their way can be considered out of character.”
“This will get out of control quickly,”Vaughn said. Entek noted that the human spoke in an even tone, and also that the lieutenant’s hands were bandaged. “The minute either Zarin or Worf decides that things aren’t going right, that one will call in the cavalry, and five minutes later, the other one will call in his, and this whole thing will blow up in our faces.”
Calmly, Haden said, “You’re projecting a bit, Lieutenant.”
“I don’t think so, sir.”
“Oh you don’t, do you?”Haden spoke as if he were lecturing a child. In fact, his tone reminded Entek a great deal of that of his Order supervisor. “We know there’s something that’s at least sixty-five percent likely to be anAkril -class ship in the Betreka Nebula. We know there’s a reading that might indicate a fleet of cloaked Klingon ships. Or, conversely, theHoplite stumbled across some debris from the battle here three weeks ago and those subspace variances are just background radiation, and your overactive imagination is transforming them into a pair of fleets.”
It took all of Entek’s willpower not to curse out loud.
Dax smiled. “I wouldn’t worry on that score, Captain. I doubt anyone’s accused the lieutenant of having an overactive imagination.”His face grew serious. “But you’re both right. We don’t know enough, and it is precisely because of that lack of knowledge that the situation isalready out of control.”
“We need to call in reinforcements,”Garrett said. “We’ll be a sitting duck if those fleets decide to go at it.”
“Too risky,”Haden said. “I don’t disagree with you, Number One, but Monor and Qaolin already have their bowels in an uproar because I let theHoplite out in the first place. They’re keeping a close eye on us.”
Entek noted the phrases “sitting duck” and “bowels in an uproar” for addition to their growing linguistic database on the Federation. Both had definitions that seemed obvious from context, though Entek tagged them both for verification and a tracing of etymology.
Dax shook his head. “What we need to do is put our cards on the table and call their bluff.”
“That’s a quaint metaphor,”Vaughn said with a level of snideness that Entek couldn’t help but admire. He also made a note for the Order to determine what that metaphor was—it was obviously some kind of contest involving cards, but that hardly narrowed the field. “But I doubt they’re bluffing.”
“I’m sure they think that, too—and will continue to do so, right up until they have to actually play their cards. But one reason why I think they’ve assembled these fleets in the first place—”he looked at Haden “—assuming theyhave assembled the fleets—is because they’re far from home. Reinforcements beyond whatever they’re hiding behind cloaks or in nebulae are days away, and probably not easily diverted. I’m not sure either Zarin or Worf will be willing to start something they can’t finish.”
“I’ve read the transcripts of the meetings so far,”Vaughn said. “I haven’t seen anything to indicate that either side is going to budge. Where does that leave us?”
“I have no idea where it leaves you, Lieutenant, but it leaves me with the winning hand. I just have to play it.”
Again, the alarm beeped. The ten-minute window was about to close. Cursing, Entek turned off the listening device. He had been hoping to hear more, but he dared not risk a second transmission. Another one so soon might be detected by the Carthage’s communications officer even without the automatic scan.
Besides, he’d heard enough. Haden may have had his doubts, but Entek didn’t. Central Command had objected to negotiations from the beginning. It was completely in character for them to assemble a fleet in secret and hide it in the Betreka Nebula, not bothering to inform the Order or the Detapa Council about it.
To Entek’s frustration, there was nothing he could do. His job was purely to gather intelligence—and this meeting had gleaned a great deal, beyond the significance of this particular mission. He had neither the means nor the ability to acton any of it, though. Indeed, he would not even be reporting back to his supervisor until he was back on Cardassia.