He realized all at once that hed been playing the spy game so long that hed momentarily forgotten to think like a warp engineer. The Drolaes extreme current speedwhich nearly rivaled that of Ehrehins yet‑unrealized dream of a warp‑seven stardrivecame at a trade‑off cost that a larger, better‑armed vessel could never sustain. Terixs current speed‑at‑the‑expense‑of‑everything‑else use of the Drolaereminded Trip that Ehrehins research hadnt been about merely reaching the upper reaches of the warp scale; it had been about doing so in a sustained fashion without sacrificing every scrap of a starships non‑propulsion‑related functionality.
“I understand, Trip said, nodding. He didnt relish the prospect of having a long conversation about the calculus of power utilization curves with the centurion.
Unfortunately, Terix seemed to be one of those martinet types who enjoyed lecturing those he regarded as his inferiors. “We cant very well assemble a viable war fleet out of ships configured like this one, he said. “An armada that has to expend all of its energy resources just to reach the battlefield is useless from a tactical perspective. Unlessyour ship needs only to deliver one or two men very quickly to a target by stealth.
“All right. So maybe taking a few risks to neutralize the Ejhoi Ormiinis a worthwhile thing after all. But I still say that blowing ourselves to quarks on the way there is a spectacularly bad idea.
“We have little time to waste, Cunaehr. And for reasons other than our urgent errand in the Taugus system.
Trip frowned, wondering whether his own time might not have just become even shorter than hed feared. “Im afraid I dont understand.
“Taugus will not be our only stop on this voyage, Terix said.
Thats assuming we dont smithereenize ourselves en route,Trip thought. Or get killed by Chuihvs people once we reach Taugus.
Aloud, he said only, “Oh?
The centurion offered a grim nod. “Once we put an end to the dissidents in the Taugus system, we shall head directly to the Sei Paehhosaehallh sector.
It took Trip a beat or two to translate the Romulan place name into the words that appeared on the star maps with which he was most familiar. Sei Paehhosaehallh. Thats what the Romulans call the Gamma Hydra sector.
“Why arent we heading back to Romulus? Trip wanted to know, almost as much as he wanted to know why Terix hadnt seen fit to mention this little detour before now.
“Our intelligence operatives have uncovered evidence that the Coalition has recently set up a small surveillance station near the Tezel‑Oroko star system. We must find that listening post and take it out.
“Oh, Trip said, still suspicious. “Well, I suppose wed better get on with Taugus, then. Pedal to the metal,he thought as he faced forward again and stared out into the relentlessly approaching cosmos.
Since the bureau wasnt in the habit of deliberately giving itself vulnerabilities by briefing its operatives beyond what they needed to know for a given assignment, Trip knew he could neither confirm Terixs intel about a Coalition spy base in the Gamma Hydra sector nor dismiss it out of hand. He desperately wished for enough time alone with the Drolaes subspace transmitter to allow himself to touch base even briefly with his superiors, or at least to send a burst transmission to warn them to take precautions at Tezel‑Oroko. That might not only protect anyone who was stationed there monitoring the Romulans, but could also keep him from being killed by friendly fire coming from the alleged listening posts defenders.
It occurred to him then that he was already more than six hours late for his regularly scheduled check‑in with what he liked to think of as “the home office. Unfortunately, that couldnt be helped. At least not so long as circumstances forced him into close quarters with a Romulan soldier who probably already harbored enough suspicion about him right now to justify blowing him right out the nearest airlockand at warp six‑point‑five, no less.
Okay, so I dont get to check in with Stillwell or Harris while this guys looking over my shoulder,Trip thought, hoping, as always, to make the best of a bad situation. But at least he cant file any reports aboutme tohis home office without my knowing about it.
Nevertheless, the continued inescapable presence of Centurion Terix gave Trip an intermittent but highly uncomfortable sensation.
He kept imagining he could feel Admiral Valdores hard, vigilant stare drilling into the back of his neck like a pair of white‑hot mining lasers.
TWENTY‑TWO
Sunday, July 20, 2155 Enterprise NX‑01
A RCHER COULDNT QUITE BELIEVEwhat Admiral Gardner was asking him to do. “You do realize that the only reason I was able to help with the crisis on QuVat was because I was used as a guinea pig for the cure, and my ships doctor blackmailed the fleet admiral?
The image of Gardner on the ready‑room viewer nodded. “Nevertheless, the best xenoanthropological minds of the Coalition scientific community feel that you may be the one human to whom the Klingons are most likely to listen. On QuVat, after all, youdid become partly Klingon.
Archer shook his head, still incredulous even though the admirals reasoning made a crazy sort of sense. “Sure, the therapeutic retrovirus Phlox injected me with left some Klingon genes in my DNA. But I also spread the infection to the fleet admiral himself, not to mention several dozen of his crew. Admiral Krell has, by the way, practically sworn a blood oath on Doctor Phlox over the whole damned thing, and I suspect hed cook and eat me in a heartbeat if he could. Or maybe hed even skip the cooking, take me straight to his dining room, and do the deed raw.
“I never tire of your flair for the dramatic, Archer,Gardner said, traces of both bemusement and condescension mixing in his voice. “The Klingon High Council has agreed to grant you an audience, authorized by Chancellor MRek himself.
“This is the same chancellor who sent Duras to kill me for busting out of Rura Penthe. Just so were clear that youreaware youre sending me to face an extremely unfriendly crowd.
Gardner sighed. “Among many warrior societies, opposing leaders would often meet on neutral ground, setting aside their hostilities in order to discuss terms. Our xenoanthro experts believe that the Klingons will be much too honorable to do anything to you while under a flag of truce.
“Permission to speak freely, sir? Archer said, struggling to keep calm.
“Of course,Gardner said, nodding.
“Admiral, youre already talking as if we areat war.
“ Wewill be at war if the Klingons ignore this message, Captain,Gardner said, his voice grave. “Our formal cessation of hostilities ultimatum will be better receivedand discussedif one of our own is there to hand it to them personally.
“Have you ever heard the phrase shoot the messenger, Admiral?
Gardner offered a slight smile. “Archer, from what Ive been told, the Klingon High Council holds you in much higher regard than you think. Although the resolution that you and your CMO brought to QuVats metagenic virus crisis didnt make those affected by the cure terribly happy, the virus you helped cure would have decimated the Empire, and perhaps even destroyed it if youd left it unchecked. According to some intelligence weve gathered, a few influential Klingons have stopped just short of calling you a hero.
“Joy, Archer said under his breath. It wasnt that he minded having these people regard him as a heroit would be far preferable to being one of their targetsbut Klingon warriors were tremendously mercurial and unpredictable. And, as he had learned from Enterprises very first mission, it was a mistake to assume that members of an alien society would think, act, or react the way that humans did.