‘It would be best,’ said Valance to the image of Captain Borodin on Endeavour’s bridge viewscreen, ‘if you and the Scylla remained at a distance on our approach.’

‘I agree,’ conceded Borodin with visible reluctance, ‘but we’ll hold position. If Rencaris or the Klingons start anything…’

‘We’ll withdraw,’ Valance said swiftly. ‘And you can cover our escape. We’ll signal if we need you, Scylla, and communicate once we’re safe. Endeavour out.’

‘Babysitting over,’ mused Beckett as the viewscreen died. He’d assumed the tertiary command seat, somewhat to her consternation, but he was still the closest thing they had to a local expert.

‘We probably owe Captain Borodin our lives,’ Valance reminded him curtly, then raised her voice. ‘Take us into the system, Lieutenant Lindgren. Ensign Kally, keep transmitting our greeting message.’ Kally had composed, in consultation with Beckett, a simple message to declare their peaceful intentions and desire to speak with the leadership of Rencaris, trying to open the door to negotiations succinctly without over-explaining.

Within minutes, they dropped out of warp at the periphery of the Rencaris system, the strained hum of Endeavour’s engines receding as they coasted in. Valance watched the image on the viewscreen still as the stars stopped streaming, but barely change, the outermost planet still no bigger than her thumb at this distance, but growing all the time.

Kally had a finger to her earpiece, the young officer’s expression perhaps the most intent Valance had seen it. ‘Picking up traffic from local ships, captain. There’s a lot of commercial activity.’

‘And patrols,’ said Logan, reading his tactical sensors. ‘Old ships, mostly – D-7s and Stormbirds. All with modified transponders of the former Star Empire, Romulan and Rator. Two are headed our way.’

Valance looked at Kally. ‘Do they have our message?’

‘They should do, Captain.’

Kharth had moved to stand at Logan’s shoulder. ‘They’ve got shields up but haven’t armed weapons,’ she said. ‘Flight pattern is for non-hostile engagement; they’re wary, but they’re not coming in hot.’

Valance had wondered if she should stop her XO and former Chief of Security from backseat driving her successor, but Kharth was still an astute observer of Romulan military matters. She nodded, just as Kally called out anew.

‘Comms from the patrol ship, Captain.’ She paused, finger at earpiece. ‘They’re offering to escort us further in. Governor Vhiemm would like to welcome us.’

Valance let out a slow, relieved breath. ‘Confirm our cooperation, Kally. Lindgren, follow their lead.’

Endeavour glided deeper into the Rencaris system, the crew watching on the viewscreen as the once-distant star blossomed into the heart of a bustling interstellar hub. Stations, freighters, and sleek transports crisscrossed the space between planets; even in the vastness of space, the star system boasted a steady hum of activity. A moderately sized defence platform orbited the sixth planet, a respectable shipyard the fifth, and within that ring of duranium, they could see the rest of the system’s life. Sleek habitats and settlements gleamed on the surfaces of worlds and moons, their infrastructure layered with industry and urban sprawl.

‘I’m getting comms not just in Romulan, but some of the local indigenous languages – and some further out, too,’ said Kally, keyed into the general communications chatter.

‘Some of these ships are from a ways out,’ mused Logan. ‘Few we know from Sot Thryfar, even Rho Detara. Some are IDing from Volantis, Chalthe…’

‘This is to the old Romulan factions what Alfheim is to the Federation,’ Kharth reminded him. ‘The edge of everything.’

‘The Vor’cha class is orbiting the third planet,’ Airex butted in, voice terse. ‘I’ve ID’d her as the IKS Suv’chu, part of the House of K’Var’s fleet.’

Beckett’s head snapped around at that. ‘That’s General Brok’tan’s ship. He’s the…’ He waved a hand illustratively as he sought the word. ‘Master-at-arms? Marshall? Of the house. The highest ranking military member who’s not part of the house itself.’

‘That could be worse,’ said Kharth, ‘seeing as we – well, Rourke – killed one of K’Var’s sons and now the brothers are out for our blood.’

Logan sucked his teeth. ‘He might have orders to bring in our heads.’

‘Torkath only attacked us back in the Empire to hurt Rourke; it’s only personal with Rourke,’ said Valance, rubbing her chin. ‘I wouldn’t expect a subordinate to automatically take up that fight. We should be careful, though.’

‘It’s a big deal if Brok’tan is here,’ Beckett said. ‘He’s the highest ranking member of the house to get involved in their campaign against the Romulans.’

‘Let’s hope that means he won’t compromise his mission just to please Torkath,’ said Kharth.

‘That does raise the question of what he’s doing.’ Valance frowned, but then Kally was interrupting again.

‘Sorry, Captain – we’re being hailed. It’s the office of Governor Vhiemm.’

Kharth looked over before Valance could reply. ‘You want to field this one, or should I?’

Valance shook her head. ‘There’s no telling if they’d distrust a Klingon in a Starfleet uniform or a Romulan in a Starfleet uniform more. I won’t overthink this.’

‘That’s a hell of a choice getting into Romulan politics,’ Kharth pointed out, but returned to her seat at Valance’s side anyway.

The captain nodded to Kally. ‘On screen.’

Vhiemm was a weathered Romulan man whose ridged forehead was somewhat at odds with his otherwise thin, delicate features. Behind him was his office, bathed in bright sunlight spilling from tall windows showing the distant vista of Rencaris’s capital city, walls adorned with intricate Romulan tapestries. He spoke in a voice slightly higher pitched than Valance had expected, almost melodic in his greeting. ‘Captain Valance, welcome to Rencaris. How may we assist Starfleet today?’

Valance straightened. ‘Thank you for the welcome, Governor, and for receiving us. As you may have been informed, my ship is badly damaged. We face a long journey back to Federation territory across this turbulent sector. I’m here to ask for shelter so we can conduct repairs.’

‘I’m delighted to hear Starfleet considers us friends enough to reach out in such troubled times,’ said Vhiemm, rather to her surprise. ‘You were right to make your way to Rencaris. I cannot offer you use of our shipyard facilities at this time, but your ship is welcome to enter orbit of our capital and conduct repairs in safety.’

It took discipline to disguise her surprise at this immediate cooperation. ‘That would be gratefully received, Governor. In return, we can discuss sharing some of our findings of the further reaches of -’

‘Captain, what matters most is your ship getting to safe harbour.’ Vhiemm interrupted her with an airy wave of the hand. ‘We can discuss the details later, perhaps some way our shipyards might accommodate you. Rencaris is welcome to all those who would treat with us fairly. That includes you.’

‘Thank you,’ Valance said again, somewhat stunned.

‘I ask you to appraise your repairs and inform me once you have some idea of how long it will take, and we can discuss from there whether it is appropriate for you to call in further assistance from your people. My reports indicate there is another starship nearby?’

‘The Scylla.’ For a moment, she considered obfuscating, but decided there was value to testing Vhiemm’s reaction. ‘They have business of their own to return to once we are safely harboured, but they escorted us here after we were targeted by a Klingon bird-of-prey.’

Vhiemm’s eyes did narrow at that. ‘Targeted.’

‘I assure you, Governor, in our condition I did not seek a fight, and your scans should make it plain that our damage came from the Mesea Storm, not Klingon weapons. I’ve no intention of starting trouble with your other guests.’

‘Yes, well. General Brok’tan is our guest. We will brook no external conflicts spilling into our territory.’

‘Of course not.’

‘I expect you to make your people aware of this, should they come across any of the general’s warriors off-duty.’ Vhiemm did spot her flicker of confusion this time, and gave a thin smile. ‘Of course your crew are welcome to enjoy the sights of Rencaris while you are here. As I said, Captain. Rencaris is welcome to all those who would treat us fairly.’

‘We’d… welcome the shore leave, Governor.’

‘Good.’ Vhiemm’s eyes flickered off-screen. ‘You will be given instructions by your escort about your orbital vector. Please give my security staff your full cooperation. Governor Vhiemm out.’

Kharth was frowning deeply when the viewscreen died. ‘That went well.’

‘Really well,’ Valance agreed with shared suspicion.

‘He didn’t ask for anything,’ said Caede, turning in the chair, scowling. ‘He’s up to something, Captain.’

‘He said we’d negotiate later. Though that sounded like it’d only cost us if we want their facilities, or to bring in more personnel.’ Valance frowned and, despite herself, looked at Beckett. ‘Lieutenant?’

‘I’m not exactly an expert in Romulan negotiations,’ the intelligence officer admitted. ‘But it’s a pretty standard practice to make the first offer free, to get us in the door. Also, the Klingons being here might shift things. Maybe he doesn’t want to seem like he’s favouring the Empire, so doesn’t want to risk turning us away.’

‘I think he’s actually proud of Rencaris,’ mused Kharth. ‘He wants to show it off.’

‘He wants,’ said Caede roughly, ‘to come across as reasonable, when he’d rebuild the Star Empire in a second if he had his way.’

‘But he won’t get his way,’ said Kharth, a bit dismissive. ‘So he can be as munificent as he likes if it suits us.’

‘What I’m saying, Captain,’ the centurion pressed, eyes on Valance, ‘is that he’s not our friend. Even if he’s being nice.’

‘I’m aware of that, but thank you for the reminder,’ said Valance, trying to sound sincere. ‘It’s easy for us to get so relieved at a spot of good luck we don’t keep an eye out for danger. But let’s not borrow trouble, either.’ She stood and straightened her uniform. ‘Lindgren, find us a patch of sky we can call our own. Then let’s figure out how long we need to be here. Lieutenant Kally, signal the Scylla they can get back to their journeys. We’re going to put our trust in our host’s hospitality.’