Title: Star Trek-Infinity: A Matter of Duty [PG] (MISC) 
Author: Charles Rando (trando@worldnet.att.net) 
Series: MISC 
Rating: [PG] 
Part: NEW 1/2 
Disclaimer: Paramount owns the characters in The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine, and Peter David owns the Selelvian race (see his book, Strike Zone). I'd like to think that the characters I've invented and the story are mine. :-) 
Summary: An attack on the Infinity by Maquis raiders draws the ship into a situation that hits too close to home! 
PROLOGUE
Captain's log: Stardate 49430.2- It's that time of year again... after six months of observations, Commander Witherell and the department heads have presented to me their candidates for promotion. Now it's my job to decide which promotions I should approve. It's not an easy job... the paperwork alone will take me days to read through... but I think the rewards speak for themselves.
Captain Charles Rando scrolled down the long list of recommendations on his console. Thirty officers up for promotion... the most Rando had ever seen in his year and a half as captain of the Infinity. Days... getting through all these recommendations would take a week! Rando sighed. Now it was just a matter of determining where to start.
A name on the list caught Rando's eye... the newest member of the bridge crew... he had helped develop a cure for the Infinity when it came down with a case of Rigallian flu, and he had been instrumental in defeating the Borg. Not to mention how well he had adapted to his new position.
It was time to give Lt (j.g.) Chris Johnson that second full pip.
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"Commander!" Lieutenant Johnson announced. "I'm picking up a distress call... it's a Federation cargo freightor... the Tulsa. It's adrift... five point two lightyears away."
"Commander, the source of the distress call is coming from the badlands," Lieutenant Remley interjected.
Commander Kevin Witherell nodded. "I don't have to read your mind to know what you're thinking, Evan... Maquis."
"Yes sir," Remley confirmed.
"Commander, the Maquis are fighting the Cardassians," Lieutenant Johnson said, turning around in his chair. "I don't think they would attack a Federation freightor."
"Unless they thought that freightor was carrying goods to the Cardassians," Lieutenant Remley replied.
Witherell shook his head. "It doesn't matter. We've got a Federation ship out there that needs our help." He turned his attention to the CONN. "Ensign Marit, set a course for the Tulsa, warp two. Captain Rando, please come to the bridge."
"We'll arrive in just under twenty minutes, sir," the Bajoran navigator reported.
"Keep alert, everyone," Witherell ordered. "If there are Maquis around here, I want to know about it."
CHAPTER ONE
"The Tulsa is in visual range, Captain."
Rando nodded. "Thank you, Mr. Johnson. Put it onscreen."
The starfield on the Infinity's viewscreen shimmered and was replaced by the image of a small cargo ship. The ship was adrift right outside of a brilliantly colored nebula... Rando couldn't help but appreciate the spatial anomaly.
Breaking out of his reverie, Rando ordered, "Mr. Remley, hail the Tulsa."
There was a slight pause before Remley replied, "No response, sir. Their comm. systems might be down."
"Or there might be no one there to answer," Ensign Marit suggested grimly.
"Let's hope that's not the case," Rando told the Bajoran. He turned to Witherell, who was seated at his right. "Take an away team over there, Kevin. If there are survivors, we have to find them."
"Aye sir," Witherell replied. He stood and motioned for Lieutenant Remley to join him in the turbolift. As they left, Rando heard Witherell tell Doctor Calabretta to meet them in transporter room one.
"Keep an eye on our team, Mr Schroeder," Rando ordered the Lieutenant who'd taken Remley's place at tactical. "And keep an eye out for any Maquis ships... let's not be caught unaware."
******************************************************
Lieutenant Remley whistled. "Man, this place took a beating."
Beside him, Commander Witherell nodded in the dim light. "Can you pick up any lifesigns?"
Remley glanced at Calabretta, who shook his head. "No sir... the energy surges all around us are interfering with the tricorders."
Witherell nodded. "Then we'll just have to do this the old fashion way," he said... and opened up his mind.
Moving past Remley, Calabretta and the two security guards that comprised the team, Witherell searched the ship with his mind. If there was someone... anyone still conscious on this ship... he'd find them.
Finally, he sensed a mind. Then another... and another.
"This way," he ordered, proceeding carefully down the damaged corridor. The away team followed closely.
******************************************************
Rando's head snapped up as the comm. line opened. Beside him, Counselor Sonja Kassal did the same thing.
"Witherell to Infinity. I've found the crew. I need emergency transport directly to sickbay."
"Confirmed, sir," Lieutenant Schroeder replied. "Initiating first transport now."
"Captain, I'm picking up some strange readings coming from the nebula... looks like three impulse engine wakes," Lieutenant Johnson said. Seconds later, the ship buckled as it was fired upon.
"Report!" Captain Rando shouted as he attempted to remain seated.
"Three Maquis ships caught us off guard," Lieutenant Schroeder answered quickly. "There is damage to the primary shield generator... attempting to bring the secondary generator on line...."
The ship rocked again as another barrage came from the Maquis ships. Lieutenant Johnson, at OPS, shook his head. "That last blast took out the secondary generator," he reported. "We're defenseless."
Schroeder shook his head. "I'm sorry, sir. They caught us in mid-transport... I was completely unprepared for...."
"Sir! They're hailing us!" Johnson exclaimed.
"Onscreen," Rando ordered.
"My name is Dyan," said the man who suddenly appeared on the screen. His face was pale and wrinkled... and his hair was almost white. He looked like he was in his late fifties, maybe his sixties, and Rando couldn't help but wonder what this man's life had been like before he had joined the Maquis.
"I am Captain Charles Rando on the U.S.S. Infinity. Why have you attacked my ship?" Rando demanded.
"We are simply defending what is ours," Dyan replied smoothly. "We are claiming the Tulsa under universal salvage laws."
"There were still people on that ship!" Rando exploded.
Dyan nodded. "Were, yes. But you have removed them for us. Now, as I was saying, we are claiming the Tulsa as property of the Maquis. We would appreciate it if you left our ship alone." And with that, the man disappeared off the viewscreen.
"Nice guy," Ensign Marit spat.
Rando sighed. He hated feeling this helpless, but the Maquis had caught his ship off guard. He tapped his comm. badge. "Rando to Neddek. Damage report?"
"Both shield generators were damaged in the attack, Captain," the voice of the Vulcan chief engineer replied. "Impulse engines are offline."
"How long will it take to repair the shields?"
There was a slight pause. "Three point four hours, Captain."
From Tactical, Lt. Schroeder exclaimed, "Sir! The Maquis could be long gone by then!"
Rando nodded. "Mr. Neddek, are the warp engines and weapons still online?"
"Yes Captain, although phasers are operating at only 75%."
"I'll take it. Rando out." Smiling, Rando sat back down in his command chair. "Lieutenant Schroeder, target the lead Maquis ship. Fire on my mark. And Ensign Marit... prepare to engage warp engines... two second burst, heading 231 mark 11."
"Aye sir," both officers chorused.
Rando raised a finger. "Ready... ready... Mr. Schroeder... mark!"
In less than a second, the Infinity fired at the lead Maquis ship twice, knocking its weapons systems and engines offline. Rando then gave the go ahead to Ensign Marit, and the ship briefly jumped into warp... appearing behind the remaining Maquis vessels. The two ships had been unprepared for the Infinity's quick maneuvering, and they found themselves firing on empty space while the Infinity attacked them from behind.
"All three ships are disabled, Captain," Lieutenant Schroeder replied smugly.
Rando glanced at Kassal. "Remind me to send a special thank you note to Captain Picard for that maneuver of his." He stood and clapped his hands. "Mr. Schroeder, open a channel with the Maquis ships."
"Channel open, sir."
"Maquis vessels... this is Captain Charles Rando of the Infinity. I am hereby charging you with attacking a Federation starship... which comes with heavy penalties, I assure you. Please prepare to be beamed directly to our brig." Rando turned to Schroeder. "Beam everyone single one of them onto the ship. I don't want any of them to get away."
Rando's head turned as the turbolift doors opened and Commander Witherell and Lieutenant Remley stepped back onto the bridge.
"Did we miss much?" Remley inquired. Rando knew all too well that Remley knew what had just happened. In fact, Rando knew that Remley knew that Rando knew that he knew.
"Mr. Remley, please accompany me to the brig," Rando ordered. "Commander, you have the bridge."
Witherell nodded and watched his captain and the security chief leave before taking his seat next to Kassal.
"Was it just me," he asked her, "or did the Captain seem very pleased about how that had turned out?"
The Selelvian counselor smiled. "I know... I hate it when he's like that... it's so unbecoming!"
CHAPTER TWO
"Captain Rando. We meet face to face. Although I must say, I wish the circumstances had been different."
Rando smirked at Dyan's greeting. "Believe me, Dyan, I would have prefered meeting you in a Klingon operahouse... but you left me little choice when you attacked my ship."
One of the other Maquis in Dyan's cell bolted to his leader's side. "We had no choice but to attack! It was the only way we could have prevented you from covering up the evidence on that ship!"
"Marcus!" Dyan hissed. The man immediately fell silent.
"Evidence?" Rando repeated, sharing a glance with Lieutenant Remley. "Evidence of what, exactly?"
The Maquis in the cell looked at each other nervously, but Dyan didn't answer... and neither did they.
Rando nodded briskly. "Well then, I thank you all for your cooperation. Your ships will be towed into our shuttlebay, and we will deliver you to Starbase 503 where you will stand trial." He turned to leave, Remley right behind him.
"Captain... wait. I think I can help you."
Rando turned towards the voice that had addressed him. It had come from the furthest cell away... and Rando couldn't see who was speaking to him. He moved past Dyan's cell, down the line to the cell the voice had come from. He couldn't help but show a little surprise when he saw the speaker's face.
"Ms. Su," he greeted the Maquis. "Interesting company you find yourself in nowadays."
******************************************************
"She's here?!" Lieutenant Johnson demanded. Across him at the briefing room table, Counselor Kassal gave a look of concern. She knew all too well the hardships of running into someone you'd been involved with. She made a mental note to stop by Johnson's quarters that night to see how he was doing.
"By some strange coincidence, yes, Joy Su has returned to us," Captain Rando replied. Kassal turned her attention to Rando. He was speaking very formally now... and he only did that when he felt extremely uncomfortable in a situation. And the look on Johnson's face... the surprise, the uncertainty... it would even make a Vulcan uncomfortable.
Commander Neddek shifted positions in his chair.
"Did she say why the Maquis attacked the ship?" the chief engineer asked.
"Ms. Su told me that the Maquis were under the impression that Starfleet has begun selling weapons to the Cardassian empire," Rando replied. "They received word that the Tulsa was to deliver a shipment of quantum torpedoes to the Cardassians... and so they attacked it to find out. Unfortunately, we arrived on the scene before they could search the ship, so they hid in the nebula until the right moment."
Lieutenant Williams shook his head. "Honestly, sir, the Federation wouldn't sell arms to the Cardassians... would they?"
Rando sighed. "I honestly didn't think so... but Lieutenant Remley feels differently."
"Yes sir," Remley replied. "When we were on the Tulsa, there were some pretty strong energy readings all over the place, interfering with our tricorders. It's very possible that those energy readings could have been produced by a stockpile of quantum torpedoes."
Commander Witherell shook his head. "I didn't pick up any thoughts from the crew of the Tulsa about quantum torpedoes."
Doctor Calabretta interjected. "They probably had other things on their mind at the time."
Rando turned towards the CMO. "How are our patients doing, Matthew?"
"Nanci and I treated five of them for extreme radiation burns, two concussions, and one broken leg. Right now, all twelve of them are resting comfortably in sickbay," Calabretta replied.
Rando nodded. "Counselor, Commander... I want you to talk to the Tulsa crew as soon as Doctor Calabretta says it's all right. In the meantime, Doctor, could you check up on our guests in the holding cells?"
"Aye Captain," Calabretta answered. "Nanci and I will take care of it."
"So, did the Maquis say anything else?" Witherell inquired.
Rando shook his head. "No one said anything, but I could tell that none of them were too happy with Ms. Su. I can't help but wonder if we should move her out of the cells... maybe confine her to quarters?"
"That would only isolate her more from the group, Captain," Kassal put in. "She made her decision by telling us what she knew... she'll have to live with it."
"You're right, Sonja," Rando admitted after a few seconds. "I just hope Dyan and his crew are a forgiving bunch."
"If we can figure out the mystery of these arm sales, maybe they will be," Witherell interjected.
"Dyan?" Calabretta asked. The entire senior staff turned to look at the Doctor.
"Yes, that's what the leader said his name was," Rando replied.
"Can I see him?"
Rando regarded the doctor... something was making Calabretta agitated... he looked almost as uncomfortable as Johnson did. "Computer," Rando ordered. "Display picture of the man currently being held in the brig named 'Dyan.'"
The computer replied, and Dyan's image appeared on the small viewscreen behind Calabretta. The doctor looked at the wrinkled face, the gray hair... and then proclaimed,
"That's my son."
CHAPTER THREE
"Your son?!"
Doctor Calabretta sighed the sigh of a man who had been forced to tell a story over and over again to various people because they had only heard bits of the story in passing and wanted all of it from him. "Yes, Nanci. He's my son."
Doctor McDonald watched the Merlin suddenly become very interested in a group of hyposprays on a nearby cart. "I'm sorry, Doctor. It's just that... I just wasn't expecting that to be your answer."
"You did want to know why I wanted you to look over our prisoners," Calabretta noted. He didn't look up.
McDonald had worked with Calabretta for over a year now, and she had learned many of his idioyncracies in that time. One major personality trait was how the Merlin seemed to withdraw into himself when reality presented a situation he didn't like. She so far had not been able to determine if his motivation for this withdrawal was simply to hide from reality, or if he wanted to remove himself from the world so his mind could better solve his problems. There had been sufficient proof of the latter in Nanci's experience with Calabretta... but she still wasn't sure. She wanted to say something, but Calabretta quickly walked out of the room. Belatedly, she replied, "Yes, Doctor."
******************************************************
Lieutenant Phil Williams shook his head. "I've done every conceivable scan I can think of," he told the Captain and Commander Witherell, who stood behind his console. "I just can't confirm that these readings we're getting come from quantum torpedoes or not. I will say this, though... if there are torpedoes on that ship, whoever put them there is good! Somehow he was able to mask their signature just enough to cause doubt and create a lot of confusion. It would be simple enough to dismiss the idea of these energy readings coming from quantum torpedoes and then focus on another possibly source. And to be honest, I doubt that either the Maquis or the Cardassians would have the patience to run through each possibility."
"It's a good thing we do, then," Witherell remarked. Rando nodded.
"Then it would appear that the only way we'd be able to find proof of torpedoes on that ship would be to search it bow to stern," Rando thought aloud. "But Commander Neddek doesn't think that would be safe."
"Not with all the energy readings over there, Captain," Williams replied. The chief science officer shook his head. "This isn't just energy, this is radiation. Half of the crew had to be treated for severe radiation burns... if we'd been an hour later, half the crew would've been dead and we would've been treating the OTHER half for the same burns. Our away team wasn't over there long enough to be affected too much, but radiation is radiation. A prolonged search would be dangerous."
"Then we need to get the radiation levels on that ship down," Rando said.
"And to do that, we need to find the quantum torpeodes... or whatever is causing this radiation," Williams replied.
"Which came first? The chicken or the egg?" Witherell remarked with a grimace.
"Twelve people on a cargo freightor," Rando said, "five of them end up with severe radiation burns... the others don't. They must have been exposed to more radiation... they must have been closer to the source of it all."
Williams shook his head. "But all of them were in the ship's medical facility...."
"When we found them," Witherell added. "Five crewmen start feeling sick, the result of prolonged exposure to radiation. They all go to sickbay. The freightor is then attacked by the Maquis... casualties are brought down to the medbay as well. They end up being the only survivors of the Tulsa."
"Only survivors?" Williams asked, turning around in his chair. "But I thought...."
"The Tulsa had a crew load of around forty," Witherell told him. "I didn't sense anything from anyone else. The only people who came off that ship alive came from the medbay."
"Then it seems the proper place to move this investigation is to sickbay," Rando said. "Let's see what the Doctor says."
******************************************************
"Lieutenant... what can I get for you?"
Johnson took a seat at the far end of the bar. The Middle Ground had become one of his favorite new haunts... he was glad to see it back up and running after the Borg attack. And he was glad that Lorin was still here. "Terralian tea," Johnson replied.
Lorin nodded and swung into action. She had expected that Johnson would come in here sooner or later... after all, rumor often moved faster than even subspace messages. She placed the tea down on the bar and watched as Johnson took a sip. "Have you gone to see her yet?"
Johnson looked up in surprise. He was about to ask how Lorin knew about her... she hadn't even been on the ship at the same time as her... but then he realized that the bartender probably heard a lot. "Not yet... I'm not sure if I want to or not."
"Really?" Lorin asked. "I know I wasn't on the Infinity when Joy was, but from what I hear, you two had something really special together."
"HAD something," Johnson said somewhat bitterly. "We were going to get married until she left me."
"She left you... this was before she joined the Maquis?" Lorin inquired.
Johnson shook his head. "No, she left me for the Maquis."
Lorin sighed as she began wiping down the bar. "Sounds like a big choice to make... I mean, she'd be giving up her career... maybe even her life, for this cause of hers. Not to mention you."
"I thought I was over her," Johnson said. "I hadn't thought this way about her for months... now she's back... and she's all I can think about."
"I'm willing to bet she's been doing a lot of the same thinking since this began," Lorin told him. "You know, there's a name for this... you'll be with someone, the perfect someone. The one you want to spend the rest of your life with. Sometimes it works out... sometimes it doesn't. When it doesn't, you feel pain... you feel like your life could end. But somehow you move on... you get past the pain. And then, after all that, you see that person again, and all those feelings come rushing back... and you forget about the pain... the hurt. All you can think about is the other person. It's called love."
Johnson smiled. "Yeah, I can see that. Then you think I should go talk to her?"
Lorin raised an eyebrow. "I was going to ask what you're still doing here."
Johnson put the teacup down on the bar, nodded to Lorin, and headed towards the exit.
******************************************************
Doctor Calabretta looked up as Captain Rando and Commander Witherell entered sickbay. His skin was pale, and there were heavy bags under his eyes. The Merlin doctor almost looked his age.
"Captain," he greeted. "Commander. I was just about to call you down... one of the patients is awake and wants to talk to you."
"That's good news, Doctor," Rando replied, and regarded the Merlin again. He made a mental note to send Sonja down here to talk to him.
Calabretta nodded and lead them over to a biobed. The man on it looked only slighty worse than Calabretta did, but as bad as his physical condition was, his eyes were soft and calm. "Captain, this is Doctor Harlan Jennings, CMO of the Tulsa."
"Or the closest thing we've got," Jennings said with a grunt. "You're Captain Rando?"
"Yes," Rando replied, "and this is Commander Kevin Witherell, my first officer. We're wondering if we could ask you some questions."
"I was wondering the same thing," Jennings replied. "Like what happened to our ship?"
"It was attacked by a group of Maquis fighters," Rando told him. "We've disabled their ships and taken them into our custody." Rando didn't mention that the Maquis had come close to disabling HIS ship first.
"The Maquis?" Jennings repeated. "I don't get it, what would they want from us? We're a Federation freightor, we don't trade with Cardassians."
Rando nodded. "Doctor, did anything... unusual happen before your ship was attacked?"
Jennings seemed to think about this for a moment before replying, "Well, Jim and all them came in feeling sick to their stomachs about a half hour before. Somehow, they'd come down with a bad case of radiation poisoning, which I didn't understand one bit. They'd all been assigned down in waste reprocessing... very important part of a freightor, I might add... and when I contacted Gordon, he said there was nothing wrong with those systems but he'd take look anyway."
"Gordon?" Witherell asked.
"Gordon Hathaway. Our chief engineer," Jennings told the first officer. Rando glanced at Calabretta, who shook his head; Gordon Hathaway had not been among the survivors. "What is all this about, Captain?"
Rando drew in a breath. "Commander, take an away team back over to the Tulsa. Concentrate on the waste reprocessing systems," he ordered. "Mr. Jennings and I have a great deal to talk about."