“I can only imagine what Starfleet Command had to say about that,” Kirk replied, shifting in his chair. How long had the two of them been sitting here, locked together in this room? At this point, it was the single longest conversation he had shared with Nogura since first meeting the man back on Vanguard. Indeed, he could recall no discussion of comparable length with any flag officer. Such individuals rarely had the time for indulgences of this sort.

Nogura grunted. “It won’t be the most flattering entry in my service record, but it should be the most interesting . . . for a while, at least.” Rising from his chair, he picked up the cup and saucer and made his way to the food slot.

“So,” Kirk said, vacating his own seat and moving to join the admiral, “what happens now?”

“Damned if I know,” Nogura replied. The admiral inserted a data card into the food slot and tapped several buttons on the control pad. “My current orders are to reassign everyone with direct connection to the project back to Starfleet Headquarters on Earth. I’m guessing they, along with all the data and materials we’ve collected, will be debriefed and examined in excruciating detail.

“As for the rest of it, they’ll probably stuff it into a big box and bury it somewhere, and maybe me along with it. The whole thing’s toxic right now.” The slot’s door slid upward and Nogura took a tentative sip of steaming tea, then offered Kirk a wayward glance. “If I’d read you completely into the project, you and anyone else you brought into the loop would be on a transport heading for Earth right now. You’re welcome.”

Kirk was unable to suppress a smile as Nogura returned to his desk. Leaning against the wall, the captain crossed his arms. “They can’t keep the whole thing a secret forever, sir. The Shedai were a known threat, one believed to be too strong and powerful for us to defend against. How does Starfleet plan to explain their defeat? At least, in such a way that it convinces people the Shedai won’t be back?”

Sighing, Nogura replied, “So far as we’re aware, no one outside the project has any appreciable knowledge of the Shedai beyond what’s already been released, either through Starfleet channels or news reports published by . . . other parties.”

“You mean Pennington.” Kirk frowned as he considered the journalist. Timothy Pennington, through circumstance, fate, or luck, had found himself on the front lines of Starfleet’s unofficial “war” with the Shedai almost from the beginning. He had been among the survivors transported from Starbase 47 just prior to its destruction. “I’m surprised that he hasn’t been corralled by Starfleet or Federation authorities as a possible security threat, even if only temporarily.” Of course, detaining the reporter for any reason, but particularly if he had committed no actual crime, would bring about a host of new problems, which some might argue paled in comparison to the potential harm Pennington might cause if he decided to write and release even more detailed accounts of Starfleet’s final battle with the Shedai.

Some might argue that, but Kirk did not consider himself among that group.

“Pennington won’t be an issue,” Nogura said. “To this point, we’ve had what you might call an ‘understanding’ about the whole thing. I doubt he’ll be happy with how things play out, but I don’t expect he’ll make too much fuss.” When Kirk started to respond, the admiral held up his hand. “I’ll handle Tim Pennington, Captain. So far as the public at large will know, the Shedai attacked Starbase 47, and the Tholians came to our aid. Destroying the station was the only way of defeating the Shedai.” He paused, as though pondering the veracity of what he had just said. “Just enough truth in there to make it plausible.”

Kirk frowned. “And the Tholians are on board with this?”

“For now, at any rate,” Nogura replied. “Oh, they’re upset, all right. According to the last report I received, Tholian ambassadors were ripping into the Federation Council and the Diplomatic Corps. After all, this whole thing wasour fault, but it’s not as though we were the best of friends before all this started. On the other hand, they’d rather downplay their history with the Shedai. They seem to think it’s not good for your reputation as an interstellar aggressor if it’s known your ancestors were once slaves.” He shook his head. “Tactically speaking, they’re hurting. They lost a significant portion of their fleet during the battle. It’ll take them some time to replace those assets, to say nothing of the casualties they suffered. Still, I don’t think they’ll be coming for revenge or anything like that. I imagine they’ll retreat back behind their borders and we’ll leave each other alone, at least for a while. We’re already fairly sure they’ll never forget what happened; I seriously doubt they’ll ever forgive us, either.”

For a moment, Kirk imagined the tenor of conversations between the diplomats representing both governments. If what Nogura said was true, the Tholian Assembly might well prove to be a thorn in the side of the Federation for years to come. Would there ever be a time when the two interstellar powers might be allies rather than adversaries? Of that, Kirk was less than hopeful.

“So what happens now?” he asked.

Rising from his seat, Nogura stepped around his desk. “We do what we always do, Kirk: we tend to our duty. I imagine Starfleet will find something for me somewhere. The Endeavourand the Sagittariuswill be back in the game soon enough, supporting the legitimate exploration and colonization efforts in the Taurus Reach. That should be more than enough to occupy their attention for a long while. As for you, the Enterprise’s repairs will be finished in a couple of days, after which you’ll resume your regular assignments. I’d like to think that’d keep you out of trouble, but I know better.”

Kirk forced himself not to laugh. “I’ll try to behave, sir.” Sensing that the meeting was reaching its conclusion, he stood and held out his hand. “It was an honor serving with you, sir. I only wish it could’ve been under better circumstances.”

“Agreed,” the admiral replied, taking Kirk’s proffered hand and shaking it. “My compliments to your ship and your crew, Captain. They did a hell of a thing. Without them, and you, Operation Vanguard might well have ended on an even worse note than it did. Now, your orders are to forget all about it.”

Offering a knowing, humorless smile, Kirk asked, “Forget about what, Admiral?”

•   •   •

Stardate 5830.4

U.S.S. Enterprise

On the main viewscreen, the image of sloping metal bulkheads gave way to open space as the ship maneuvered out of Starbase 12’s docking bay. Beyond the confines of the mammoth space station, the stars beckoned to Kirk.

Across the bridge, Lieutenant Sulu turned to look at him from the helm console. “We’re free of the dock, Captain, and clear to navigate.”

From where he stood leaning against the curved red railing separating him from the science station, Kirk did not take his eyes from the viewscreen as he acknowledged the report. “Excellent,” he said, crossing his arms. “Proceed on course; ahead warp factor three.”

“Warp three, aye,” Sulu said, entering the necessary instructions to the helm.

Looking to his left, Kirk turned his attention to Lieutenant Uhura. “Notify the dock master of our departure heading and relay one final thanks to Commodore DeRoché for his hospitality.”

“Aye, sir,” replied the communications officer as she set to the task of relaying the captain’s messages.

Content to remain where he was as his officers carried out their various duties, Kirk continued to take in the image of the stars on the main viewscreen stretching into multihued streaks as the Enterprisemade the transition to warp speed. He did not realize he had allowed his attention to wander until he felt a touch on his shoulder. Startled from his reverie, he looked up to see Leonard McCoy standing above and behind him, leaning over the railing.