Feeling her way along the Conduit’s thought channels, she discerned that the fractional progress made by the primitives had in fact been in the restoration of power to a key control facility inside one of the temple’s ancillary structures. Judging from their actions, the usurpers did not seem to grasp the purpose of the technology they had plundered; that they had chanced into a monitoring station for part of the planetary defense network still escaped their knowledge. Still, the Wanderer realized it was possible that—if left unchecked—they might discern the technology’s purpose and perhaps even seize it for their own use.
That cannot be allowed.
18
“Let me see if I’ve got this straight,” Reyes said as he sat behind his desk, rubbing his temples in a vain attempt to stave off the headache he already felt bearing down on him. “We’ve gone from the Tholians and the Klingons being upset with us, to having the Tholians and Klingons angry with each other, and Starfleet Command is now angry with us. Have I missed anything?”
From where he stood behind the pair of chairs situated before the commodore’s desk, neither of which was capable of supporting his oversized and stiff-backed figure, Ambassador Jetanien rolled his shoulders in an elliptical manner that Reyes had learned was the Chelon equivalent of a shrug. “No. I believe that to be a succinct and accurate appraisal of the situation.” As if punctuating his observation, the ambassador emitted a series of intermittent clicks from his blunt beaklike mouth.
“Thanks for the clarification,” Reyes deadpanned, shooting the ambassador a tired scowl. Rising from his chair, he made his way around his desk and moved to where T’Prynn stood before the viewscreen set into the wall on the left side of his office. She turned at his approach, stepping aside to give Reyes an unobstructed view of the screen and the information displayed upon it.
“While we know there has been a pronounced increase in both Tholian and Klingon ship activity during the past month,” T’Prynn said, “the past three days have brought the most alarming developments. According to data received by our network of long-range sensor arrays, there have been at least four skirmishes between Tholian and Klingon vessels. Each incident was an isolated, one-on-one encounter. To the best of our knowledge, no ships have been lost as all of the engagements were ended when the Tholian ships retreated.”
Four incidents in three days. Reyes repeated the statistic over and over in his mind as he studied the star chart showing a cross section of the Taurus Reach, upon which T’Prynn had highlighted four locations where the clashes had taken place.
As for the rest of the chart, the commodore was struck once again by just how much of it remained without detail. Despite numerous mapping missions conducted by automated sensor probes as well as the charting conducted by the crews of the Endeavour,the Sagittarius,and even the Bombaybefore its tragic loss, much of the Taurus Reach was still unknown.
In more ways than one,Reyes reminded himself.
“Is there anything to suggest that either the Tholians or the Klingons know why we’re here?” he asked, not turning from the viewscreen. “Are they simply maneuvering in response to our expansion into the region, or are they carrying out their own exploration and survey missions?”
“The Klingons are conducting planetary surveys,” T’Prynn replied, “but it appears to be consistent with normal expeditions to locate resources, such as dilithium deposits, for example. There are no indications they suspect our true motives.”
Reyes nodded. He knew at least two different star systems in the region had been claimed by the empire due to the presence of vast quantities of dilithium. The Klingons had wasted no time planting their flag, though thankfully those worlds had turned out to be uninhabited. Such was not the case with other systems in that sector, though Reyes knew there was nothing to be done about that at the present time.
Hopefully, we can correct that injustice one day soon, before it’s too late.
“What about the Tholians?” he asked. “Are they offering up any weak explanations for their actions like they did with the Bombay?”
“With regards to your first question,” Jetanien replied, “only the Tholians know what they believe about our presence here. As for their actions against the Klingons, this is different than the earlier tussles we’ve heard about.” He turned away from the Starfleet officers so that he might pace the width of the office. Waving his right hand in the air before him, he added, “The Tholians admit to launching offensive action against those Klingon vessels. While we know full well they’re not afraid to instigate hostilities, they are usually more methodical in their actions than what we’re seeing in these cases.”
“It’s retaliation,” Reyes replied. “They blame the Klingons for the destruction of their ship earlier in the week. Given how fast and aggressively the Klingons are moving into the region, it’s easy to see how the Tholians might draw such a conclusion.”
Turning from the viewscreen, T’Prynn clasped her hands behind her back. “There is no evidence to suggest Klingon complicity in that action. Further, based on what information the Tholians have elected to share with us, the way in which their vessel was destroyed is decidedly out of character for the Klingons.”
“While it is true that residual energy readings taken at the scene indicate the presence of weapons of unfamiliar design,” Jetanien said as he halted his pacing, “that itself does not rule out Klingon involvement.” Looking to Reyes, he added, “However, I must agree with the commander that the reports of the incident are not consistent with Klingon behavior.”
Feeling the dull ache behind his eyes beginning to assert itself with authority, Reyes frowned as he held up a hand. “I know what you’re going to say. Klingons aren’t subtle in their battle tactics. They don’t sneak around, they don’t cower in the shadows, and they’re never afraid to take credit for a victory. In case you’ve forgotten, I’ve had some experience with them.”
“I did not mean to imply otherwise, Commodore,” T’Prynn replied, her manner and expression unchanged. “However, given your own knowledge of how Klingons typically conduct themselves, surely you would agree that for them to be responsible for that action in a manner consistent with the Tholians’ accusations seems unlikely?”
Reyes waved away the suggestion. “What seems unlikely is me taking anything a Klingon does or doesn’t do at face value.” He indicated the star chart with a nod. “Besides, if not them, who diddestroy that ship?” Looking to Jetanien, he asked, “They don’t think we—?”
“There were initial rumblings to that effect, of course,” the ambassador said, interrupting Reyes’s question. “However, their own long-range sensor data confirms that no Federation vessels were detected anywhere near that location before or after the incident occurred.” Shaking his head, the Chelon added, “Naturally, that did not halt the initial barrage of invective, but cooler heads did indeed prevail.”
“Small wonder,” Reyes replied, feeling both fatigue and relief wrapping around the words as they left his mouth. Barely a month had passed since the Bombayincident, which still lingered like an open wound in the political relations between the Tholians and the Federation, refusing to heal no matter how much care and attention it was given. The Tholians had been expecting some form of reprisal despite promises from Jetanien and other Federation diplomats that no such action would be forthcoming. Even with those assurances, Reyes knew that everyone was watching and waiting for the precarious truce to disintegrate into full-blown hostilities.