“All right, Chris,” Sulu said, raising a placating hand. “I didn’t mean to second guess your medical judgment.”

Her expression softened immediately. “I didnotice some residual metabolic activity in his cells, but you always expect to see some of that immediately after the body’s major systems suffer a fatal crash. The cells don’t suddenly commit mass suicide the moment the heart and lungs stop functioning. Looks like our Neyel friends have more in common with the Nasats than any of us thought.”

Sulu nodded, shuddering inwardly. The idea of humans being genetically engineered to survive even a limited exposure to hard vacuum—the way a naturally armored, insectile Nasat could—was hard to accept. If the Neyel reallyare of human stock, then they must never have learned the lessons of the Eugenics Wars. Or is it possible they simply chose to ignore them?

“Our guest is damned lucky I hadn’t got around to laser-cutting into that thick hide of his yet,” Chapel said. “He just missed the messy part of his autopsy.”

Sulu followed the trail of wrecked and upset shelves, tables, and instrument carts that stood between him and the lab’s exit. A moment before he reached it, the doors opened again, admitting Lieutenant Akaar and six armed security officers.

“Put Excelsioron full security alert, Lieutenant,” Sulu told Akaar. “A member of the Neyel ship’s crew is loose aboardship. He’s extremely dangerous, but he’s to be taken alive. We need to communicate with him.”

[181] “Understood, sir,” Akaar said. Turning smartly on his huge heel, he led his people back out into the corridor.

There has to be a reason that our ... cousins would attack an apparently harmless Tholian colony world.

Sulu crossed to the bulkhead, where he thumbed the companel. “Bridge, this is the captain.”

“Bridge. Chekov here.”

“Pavel, we have a huge problem.”

Lojur was in his quarters trying to relax enough to take a restorative nap when he heard the intruder alert. The initial report said that a Neyel had escaped from sickbay. Shocked to discover that one of the aliens had been taken aboard—alive—he sprang from his bunk and ran into the corridor. When the turbolift deposited him near sickbay, he collided with a bulkhead, then fell unceremoniously onto his posterior.

The bulkhead turned out to be Akaar.

The security chief scarcely broke his stride as he ran past Lojur, at the head of an armed security team. The group was moving away from sickbay, fanning out through the corridors in various directions.

“You should not get involved in this, Commander,” Akaar rumbled, phaser pistol in hand. Then he moved down the corridor with an alacrity that belied his great size.

Rubbing his backside and feeling humiliated, Lojur picked himself up off the deck, unable to think of anything other than the horrid presence that had invaded Excelsior.Would the Neyel bastards who killed Shandra resemble the bile-green Orions who had razed Kotha Village? He had to find out.

Don’t get involved, L.J.? Just try to stop me.

Chekov looked at the chronometer on the arm of the command chair. His body was tense as he considered how little time remained until the Tholian ships were due to arrive. Turning toward the center seat from the bridge’s main [182] science station, Lieutenant Tuvok—who had insisted on returning to active duty the moment Dr. Chapel had pronounced him fit—looked as composed as if he were about to recite the mess hall menu. “Commander Chekov, the four Tholian vessels are entering the system, on a direct heading for the colony.”

Chekov fixed his gaze on the main viewer, which stubbornly displayed only the crippled Neyel ship, the limb of the planet, and the stars beyond. “Have they detected us yet?”

“I am not certain, sir,” Tuvok said.

Chekov watched as Tuvok stared into the scanner built into the science-station console. “One of the four approaching vessels is Admiral Yilskene’s flagship, the Jeb’v Tholis.They have just dropped out of warp approximately thirty thousand kilometers off our port stern. They appear to be conducting intensive sensor sweeps of the Neyel vessel. Judging from energy-signature readings, Yilskene’s ship also appears to be using a transporter beam to collect debris samples from the vicinity of the ship.”

Damn,Chekov thought. Yilskene’s going to be absolutely delighted if he finds us here, in the middle of a Neyel attack on a Tholian outpost.

As Chekov was preparing to alert Sulu, the companel on the command chair beeped, heralding a familiar bass voice. “Bridge, this is the captain.”

Chekov stabbed a button with his thumb. “Bridge. Chekov here.”

“Pavel, we have a huge problem. The dead Neyel in sickbayisn’t dead. He’s loose somewhere on the ship, and he’s violent. Akaar’s trying to capture him.”

“Understood, Captain,” Chekov said, looking toward Commander Rand, who was seated at the tactical station, starboard aft. She was apparently intent on information coming through her earpiece, and her hands moved quickly across her console; Chekov suspected that Security Chief [183] Akaar had called in moments ahead of the captain. The intruder alert klaxon immediately began to sound, and Chekov gestured to Rand to mute the volume.

Turning his attention back to the main viewer, Chekov could now clearly see the image of the four approaching Tholian warships. Addressing Sulu, he said, “We have another problem, sir. Yilskene’s flagship has arrived, with three escorts.”

“Has he detected us yet?”Sulu wanted to know.

“The Tholians are scanning Excelsiornow,” Tuvok said.

Rand turned toward Chekov. “Yilskene is hailing us, Commander. He doesn’t sound happy.”

Chekov sighed. “Make that an affirmative, Captain.”

“I’m on my way. Sulu out.”

Sulu entered the bridge almost at a full run.

Yilskene was already glowering down from the main viewer, his crystal-plane face an unfathomable mask.

“Greetings, Admiral,” Sulu said, taking the command chair as Chekov vacated it to stand at attention beside him.

From the jangling dissonances in the Tholian’s chorus of voices, Yilskene was clearly not in the mood to exchange pleasantries. “Captain Sulu, why have you entered Tholian space without my government’s authorization?”

That is an excellent question, Admiral. But it’s one I can’t afford to answer with complete candor.

“We received a distress call from the outpost on this planet, Admiral. We came to assist as quickly as we could.”

“The Tholian vessels are closing,” Tuvok reported. “They appear to be taking up equidistant positions around Excelsior.”

Chekov leaned toward the command chair. “I could do without getting caught in another Tholian web,” the exec said, sotto voce.

“We’re not caught in anything yet,” Sulu whispered, rising from his chair.

[184] “My people are not fond of alien incursions, Captain Sulu. Even well-intentioned ones,”Yilskene said, then turned his polygonal head to the side to bark a series of unintelligible orders before facing Sulu again. “Nor can we allow you to leave as yet. We see evidence of a savage attack upon our outpost.”

“An attack carried out by the other vessel,” Sulu said evenly. “Your own scans ought to bear that out.”

“Perhaps. Perhaps not. Regardless, your vessel is to remain where it is until we can fully determine the truth behind your presence here. When we are satisfied that you intended no aggression against us, we will escort you directly backto the Federation border.”

“Very well,” Sulu said, hopeful that Yilskene would give Excelsiorthe benefit of the doubt.

“As you have no doubt observed, Captain,”Yilskene continued, “the outpost planet you now orbit is extremely vulnerable.”