Selar pursed her lips slightly, obviously considered a dozen rebukes she could have said, and just as obviously set them all aside. Instead she simply asked, “And was he?”

“I ... believe so.”

Just as Selar did not permit annoyance to play out on her face, neither did she allow excitement or hope. But there was a brief flash of both of those in her eyes. “Did you communicate with him? Did he provide any guidance?”

Soleta tried to shake her head, and found it too much effort. Instead she just said, “I ... I wasn’t able to. It was as if ... something was blocking me. I tried to bring him out. Impart to him some of my own ... vitality.”

Selar raised an eyebrow. “What are you saying? That you endeavored to convey some of your own life essence to him? Do you have any comprehension how dangerous that is?”

“If I did not before, I do now.”

“Lieutenant,” Selar said stiffly, “you are not to attempt such a thing again. Not ever. Not in my sickbay. Not on any vessel on which I am CMO. Is that understood?”

Soleta’s gaze fully focused on Selar for the first time. “You pulled me out. You brushed your mind with mine ... and pulled me out.”

Selar gave the. closest equivalent of a shrug in her bodily vocabulary. “You have ... extended yourself in the past to me, when I required aid. I have not forgotten that. As a fellow Vulcan, and as ship’s chief doctor, I can do no less. Nevertheless ...”

“I should never do it again.” This time she managed a nod. “I won’t. But ...” She sounded close to despondent. “What of McHenry?”

“What of him? Do you believe your ... rash ... behavior had any sort of result?”

And as the full effects of the sedative took hold of Soleta, she closed her eyes and whispered, “I have no idea,” before drifting to sleep.

III.

Mark McHenry stood in the middle of the corridor outside sickbay and stared at his hands, his feet, his body.

He was there. He was alive. He was whole.

“All right, Soleta!”he shouted with more joy than he’d ever displayed in his entire life.

At that moment he heard a cry of “Xyon! Get back here!” And here, around the corner, came Xyon, the young son of Dr. Selar and Commander Burgoyne. He was literally galloping down the hallway on feet and hands, like a small ape. Moke was directly behind him, having agreed to undertake the not inconsiderable responsibility of keeping an eye on the irrepressible half-breed child.

Xyon blew right past McHenry without a second look, but Moke skidded to a halt. His eyes went wide as he stared at McHenry.

“Moke! I’m back! Everything’s okay!” said McHenry.

Moke threw himself against the far wall, as if he needed the corridor for back support. He slid slowly along it, easing his way past McHenry while never taking his eyes off him. McHenry stared at him in bewilderment. “Moke? What’s wrong? It’s me, Mark McHen—”

And with a terrified yelp, Moke dashed off down the hallway in the same direction as Xyon had gone, limping ever so slightly, but otherwise moving with a great deal of speed.

“—ry,” he finished, not comprehending what could possibly be wrong.

Then he looked down.

And saw no shadow.

Other crewmen were walking casually past him, paying no attention to him. Quickly McHenry stepped into the path of one of them, and they walked right through him without slowing.

“This can’t be good,” said Mark McHenry.

“It gets worse,” said a low voice from behind him.

He turned and saw an elderly, bearded man with one eye standing directly behind him.

“Much worse,” said the one-eyed man.

TRIDENT

I.

KAT MUELLER STRODE into Captain Shelby’s ready room with her customary confident stride, but her face was a picture of concern. Shelby looked up as Mueller draped herself across the nearest chair and said briskly, “Our attempts to reach Si Cwan on Danter have proven unsuccessful.”

“Damnation,” muttered Shelby, shaking her head, and tilted back in her chair. “This is the most insane thing I’ve ever heard. And I’m someone who witnessed a giant flaming bird hatching out of a planet.”

“I might agree with you, Captain, if I had the faintest idea of what we were talking about.”

Shelby winced, chagrined that she had overlooked the obvious. “My apologies, XO. You’re usually so on top of matters, that it literally didn’t occur to me I hadn’t told you the latest intel from Starfleet.” She leaned forward and rested her interlaced hands on the desktop. “While we’ve been out here, looking for signs of the Beings ... apparently they’ve been setting up shop on Danter.”

“Set up shop? In what sense?”

“According to Starfleet, they are offering ambrosia—the legendary food of the gods—to the Danteri. Supposedly they are out to bring a new golden age to Danter.”

“In short,” said Mueller, “they’ve offered the Danteri the exact same deal they were putting forward to Captain Calhoun ... except the Danteri have taken them up on it. But how does Starfleet know of it?”

“Apparently they haven’t been doing much to keep it a secret,” Shelby told her. “Word’s leaking out to neighboring worlds. There’s a good deal of interest, but the Danteri are playing their hand rather closely. Supposedly the Beings were rather ‘put off’ by the initial reticence Mac displayed. So they’re carefully regulating the availability of ambrosia, endeavoring to restrict it to those who are considered ‘worthy.’ ”

“And the Danteri are worthy?” asked Mueller with raised eyebrow and a look of tolerant amusement.

“Apparently so.” Shelby blew air impatiently between her lips. “I can only think that Mac would have a fit over that. After all, the Danteri were the original conquerors of Mac’s people, the Xenexians, before Mac organized the revolt that threw them off Xenex. I doubt he’d be pleased to know that the Danteri have formed an alliance with the creatures who brutalized the Excalibur.”

“On the other hand,” observed Mueller, “he might find some amusement in the notion that the Danteri are lapping up his leftovers.”

“Yes. Yes, that might appeal to his sense of the perverse. Still, my major concern now is Si Cwan and Kalinda.”

“Why should it be a concern?” asked Mueller reasonably. “They knew the risks they were taking in getting involved with the Danteri and taking them up on their offer of a new Thallonian Empire. If the Danteri had abruptly switched allegiances, and Si Cwan has become so much excess baggage, I don’t have a good deal of sympathy for him.”

“I find that an odd attitude for you to have, XO.”

“Why?”

“Because”—Shelby shifted uncomfortably in her seat—“well ... not that it’s any of my business ...”

“You’re the captain of the Trident.Everything is your business,” Mueller said primly.

“Yes, well ...” She cleared her throat. “My understanding, from what I’ve heard—not that I listen to gossip, of course—”

“Of course.”

“—but I’d heard that you and Si Cwan were ... romantically involved.”

Mueller shook her head, strands of her blond hair swinging around her face. She brushed them back and readjusted the bun she kept the rest of her hair tied in. “That is not accurate.”

“Ah. O—”

“We simply had sex.”

“—kay.” She blinked. “Having sex isn’t the same as being romantically involved?”

“Not if you do it correctly,” said Mueller.

“Sometimes, XO, I really don’t understand you.”

“I assume you’re referring to those times that I get completely drunk and start speaking only in German,” Mueller said. When Shelby offered a guttural laugh at that, Mueller permitted a small smile, and then continued, “Are we to return to Danter then?”