Soval stared into his glass, then took a sip of the spiced liquid, feeling it burn his tongue as he swallowed. Finally, he answered.
“I feel confident that Vulcan will take part in the offensive against the Romulans that is to come. And if Starfleets technology hasbecome compromised, we will introduce new countermeasures to make certain that Vulcan remains, as always, insulated and protected.
Despite their relative youth, LNels and Solkars facial expressions told Soval that they understood what he was saying. Vulcan had played a larger role than humanity would ever know in moderating the breakneck pace of Earths development into an interstellar species. As with the secret listening post near Tezel-Orokoa facility that still needed to be staffed, resupplied, and completedVulcan was good at keeping secrets.
Thursday, July 24, 2155
Keisha Naquase stared at the message that had come into her datapad seconds ago. She was tremendously protective of the deviceit was actually locked to her wrist with a tetherbut now, in the crush of other reporters outside Starfleet Headquarters, she gripped it even more tightly as she backed away from the other assembled members of the press corps.
They all knew somethingwas up. During the last thirty-six hours, a significant number of new military personnel had arrived, representing every member of the Coalition: Vulcan, Andor, Tellar, Draylax, Alpha Centauri, and even members of several species that she and the other human media had only recently been able to identify as potential Coalition allies.
But security and secrecy had been tight, and Starfleet was taking every step to make certain that no leaks occurred.
Except that she hadone. He hadnt been in contact for several days, but he wason the inside.
And she had just gotten a message from him.
“Come on, Nash, pick up, she said to herself, hearing the chimes in her earpiece. She stole a quick glance in the direction of Gannet Brooks, who stood with several of the others; Brooks always seemed to scoop just about everybody when it came to Starfleet-related news, but so far today she had been mum. And Keisha had been working her own contact for weeks now, setting him in place. It was amazing the kind of loyalty that good sex could inspireand the sob story shed given him about having a relative serving aboard the still-missing Columbiahadnt hurt either.
Finally, just as she was about to try another editor at the sub-net, Nash McEvoy picked up his comlink.
“What is it, Naquase?he asked breathlessly, as though hed just entered his office at a flat-out run.
She toggled the headpiece vidcam she wore, activating it even as she turned her back to face the rest of the press gaggle. She didnt want them to see the “on light on the headset.
“I promisedyou Id scoop your girl, she said, subvocalizing into her throat mic. “And I recorded your promises. So dont even thinkabout trying to back away from our deal.
“This had better bebig, or else you just torched your bridge while you were still standing on it,McEvoy said, hiding none of his testiness.
“Oh, its big,all right, Keisha said, holding the datapad up to where the cameras eyeand Nashcould see it.
Thursday, July 24, 2155 Grangeburg, Alabama
Albert Tucker balanced the four plates of waffles in both hands as he exited the kitchen. He had picked the strawberries in their patch of the communal garden at sunrise, then sliced them thinly in order to add them to the multigrain batter. He knew how much his dad loved strawberry waffles, and he and Mom visited so rarely these days that Bert wanted to make certain they both had a good time.
“All right, Dad, heres your favorite, he said, entering the dining room.
Seated at the table were his father, Charles, and his mother, Elaine, while Berts husband, Miguel, stood nearby. They all looked stunned and grief-stricken.
What now?Bert thought. They had already lost Berts sister in a Xindi attack on Earth, and his brother, Trip, had been killed on the Starship Enterpriseonly a few months back. Today everyone in the room bore the same signature of tragedy hed seen on both of those other terrible occasions.
“What is it, Mike? he asked, holding the shifting stack of plates like an inexpert juggler.
Miguel pointed to the nearby wall-mounted flatscreen, which he often left turned on as a soundless visual wallpaper. Though the sound was muted as usual, he could see the silent news anchor mouthing words, the screen split between him and a stern-looking uniformed Starfleet official.
Bert watched as his father took his mothers hand. “Say goodnight, Gracie, said Dad, incorporating his nickname for Mom into what was doubtless some sort of obscure, centuries-old pop-culture reference calculated to cheer her up.
It didnt seem to be working, however; Moms misting eyes remained riveted to the image on the screen, which Bert finally began looking at closely.
Crawling across the screens bottom, in large white capital letters superimposed onto a red stripe, was a single ill-omened phrase.
The stack of plates left Berts nerveless fingers in time-dilated slow motion, smashing on the floor with the same silence as the screens three endlessly marching words:
COALITION DECLARES WAR!
FIFTY-ONE
Friday, July 25, 2155 EnterpriseNX-01, Gamma Hydra sector, near Sataghni
E VERY TIME C APTAIN A RCHERand Commander TPol were off the bridge, Travis Mayweathers mind took him to the worst places imaginable. It wasnt significantly better for him when they were onthe bridge Enterprisehad been mostly stopped dead in space, undergoing a number of in-place emergency repairs and systems diagnostics ever since the Tezel-Oroko confrontation and the Kobayashi Marudisasterbut at least having command staff in place on the bridge meant that they werent sequestered away exchanging secret messages with Starfleet Command.
Malcolm Reed and Hoshi Sato had both tried to reassure him that even if Starfleet was calling with news, it wasnt necessarily related to the disappearance of the Horizon. That hadnt helped. He already knewthat; the specter of impending war had been haunting the ship like all of Charles Dickenss Christmas spirits wrapped into one.
He knew that things were bad everywhere. Columbiahadnt been heard from in days either, ever since she had gone to Alpha Centauri. And rumors were floating around that the Romulans had managed to get control of other kinds of ships besides those of the Klingons. But if those rumors were true, nobody had confirmed them yet.
But Columbiawasnt the Horizon. Mayweathers family wasnt on Columbia. Paul, Mom, where are you?he thought for perhaps the three-thousandth time in the last few hours, his slightly shaking fingers manipulating the controls as he checked and double-checked sensor readings to the limits of Enterprises resolution.
Mayweather knew from his conversation with the Kobayashi Marus first matethe man whom he had trusted to deliver his letters to his family and friends aboard the Horizonthat the Mayweather familys freighter was supposed to have met the Maruin the Coalition side of the Gamma Hydra sector. But the Horizonhadnt made her scheduled rendezvous, according to every port of call he had managed to contact. Nobody had heard from the Horizonfor over ten days; it was as if she just dropped off the edge of the star maps.