Episode 104: Needs Of The One (Part 2)

[Rhai]

Rhai had just rounded the corner on the way to check on Nitza when she heard Alia demand the door to Nitza's chambers to unlock.

"Alia, would you like some assistance?" She said in a meek voice.

"Councelor! Am I glad to see you!" the ensign's voice rang of gratitude yet fear. "Johannsen thought I should handle this myself, I thought you should.. but.. here I am." She looked into the room and saw Nitza sitting at a small piano in her quarters.. intensely concentrating on her music.

"Perhapes this isnt the right way to approach Nitza, Alia. I know you miss her within you, but this isnt the way to do this. Why don't you give her a little time and invite her to talk to you later? I can give you some tips and pointers if you would like." She tucked her lower lip into her mouth, and studied Alia's body language.

"I suppose you DO know best, dont you conselour? Ok. Give me a moment I am going to ask her to meet me for diner.. we can talk then." her eyes held to Nitza at her piano, contently practising her art.

"Ok Alia, I'll be in my quarters. Come in when you are done, we can talk there." She smiled and patted Alia's hand. "I know you miss her ensign."

[Andorian_Incident]

Ensign Golko was just about ready to pull her hair out.  She had only been the acting chief of security for a few hours, and already she was feeling overwhelmed.  She was in over her head, and she knew it.  With the Letheans, the Ferengi on board the Enterprise, and the problems that her roommate was having, she didn't know what to do.

There was only one thing for her to do.  She headed straight for Thram's quarters.  Thram smiled at her when he saw her come in through the door.  "Something I can do for you, Tammy," he asked her.  She noticed that he had already stopped referring to her rank and using a more personal tone of voice.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, there is." Golko said, spinning on her heal.  "I want you to reconsider your resignation and take your position back."

Thram was taken back and confused.  "What happened?"

"I'm not cut out to be a chief of security yet.  I'm not prepared for the challenges that we face on a starship.  The Letheans, the Ferengi, Nitza..."

"Hold on, did you say the Ferengi?"

"Yeah, they've taken over the Enterprise."

Thram sighed.  "Okay, I'll talk to Jefferys and see if I can get my commission back."

"Thank you, Commander," Golko said, and walked out, a heavy weight lifted off of her.

Thram made his way to the bridge, and told Jefferys that after thinking about it, it would be better if he stayed on Archer for the time being.

"As it so happens, Thram, I hadn't sent in your resignation yet."

"Thank you, sir," Thram said, and took the comm badge that Jefferys was handing back to him.  Thram turned to leave, and as he did so, he activated his comm badge.

"Thram to D'Aaron."

[D'Aaron here]

"Meet me at my quarters.  I may need your help with a few matters."

Jefferys smiled as Thram left the ready room.  He liked it when things seemed to work out.  Now he, too, had to focus more on the real issues.

[Tricorder]

Johansson sighed. "Please, oh please, don't let this situation get any worse...", he muttered. But no sooner than he said that, Ensign Golko appeared in the Sickbay's doorway as she heard what the doc was saying as she was passing by..

"I don't mean to burden you, Doc, but haven't you heard?" She wasn't trying to be pessimistic, but it was just the news. "It's already gotten worse. The Ferengi want Nitza Kenek."

Johansson walked to the doorway with an expression of shock upon hearing the news, but he also started to understand. "WHAT?" That startled everyone in sickbay, particularly Candy who ran towards his side. "What could they possibly want with her? Oh.... wait... Oh No! It can't be."

He started to breath deeply and tried to stay calm. He knew that Ferengi made deals. Is this the kind of deal Captain Shelby had been dealing with? Perhaps they had made a deal with the Letheans to get Nitza for them? But why? Why Nitza? Why was she so important to the Letheans? Was it something that had happened with her host or was it information that she knew that they wanted to extract from her? He had one piece of the puzzle. Part of the Ferengi's plan was to take over the Enterprise in order for it to be a ploy. Now that the Archer was just within weapon range of the Enterprise, the Ferengi could deal damage if the Archer didn't cooperate, and he would hate to see what the Archer would look like if the Ferengi had done what they had done to the Enterprise with their own ships. There was danger ahead. Questions to be answered. And most of all, work to be done. He prepared supplies for the injured that would be coming through his doors in any moment.

[Dohlman]

Dayna stood outside Thram's door and rang the chime.

"Come," came the reply from within.  The door slid noiselessly open and Dayna strode in.  Thram stood imposingly in the middle of the room, as if making the statement that he was the one in control.  Dayna smiled slightly.  Ah, men.  Alien or no, deep down they were the same.  

"You rang?" she said, one eyebrow arched.

A faint scowl crossed Thram's face as he regarded her.  "We have a situation.  I thought you might be able to help."

"Well," said Dayna looking around Thram's room.  "I'd be more than willing to help.  Mind if I sit?"

"Please," said Thram, proffering her a seat, then sitting opposite her

"You know about the Alia and Nitza separation.  How are you taking it?" asked Thram, who wanted to know her state of mind.  It was always advisable not to get involved in a dangerous situation with an emotionally vulnerable person.

Dayna crossed her legs and shifted her body in the chair.  "I'm not taking it," Dayna replied.  "But there's nothing I can do about it."  She turned back toward Thram.  "And I've learned that worrying about things over which you have no control is a waste of time and energy.  So I leave it in our good doctor's capable hands.  I've tried to stay out of the matter, running diagnostics in engineering.  But enough about me.  What's going on?"

"The Ferengi have taken over the Enterprise and have demanded we hand over Nitza.  We have a suspicion that the mind exchange mishap was purposely planned," said Thram.

Dayna quickly rose from her chair and walked to the window.  She crossed her arms and stared at the stars.

"I didn't think they would resort to these drastic measures," she said.

"What?" asked Thram.

Dayna turned and looked at Thram.  She supposed she could trust him, at least as much as she was ever going to.

"The Ferengi have been trying for years to gain psychic abilities.  If they could read people's mind while negotiating deals..."

"They'd probably wind up owning all of us," said Thram.  "But how?"

[Dohlman]

"Three years ago, a Lethean scientist isolated the gene that gave the race their psychic abilities.  He was approached by the Ferengi to purchase the gene, but we were alerted to the deal by some intercepted transmissions.  We dispatched an agent, but the scientist eluded him and escaped on a shuttle.  Nitza Kenek was on that shuttle, and he used her as an unsuspecting live drop," said Dayna.

Thram's brow furrowed in confusion.  Dayna smiled.

"Meaning he planted the gene on her person or in her belongings without her knowing.  He figured when they arrived on Ferenginar, he would retrieve the gene from her when it was safe.  However, Nitza received an emergency call from home and boarded a private runabout to return.  The gene went with her.  

When the scientist arrived on Ferenginar without the gene, he was killed by the Ferengi who thought he was trying to double-cross them.  The scientist, however, left no notes, no PADD, no sketchings. All of the knowledge was in his head, and it disappeared with his death.  We took Nitza and interrogated her.  She, of course, knew nothing.  We searched her belongings and found nothing.  We thought we had been mistaken, and let the matter drop.  But now..."

"Now perhaps the Ferengi have found something," replied Thram.  "But why would they want Nitza if she doesn't know anything?"

Dayna sighed.  "She may have been conditioned to drop into an alternate personality at the sound of a trigger word."

"A Manchurian Candidate," said Thram.

"Exactly.  I seriously doubt this, but anything's possible at this point," replied Dayna.

"What we need is more intelligence," said Thram.

"We have to figure out a way to get on board the Enterprise," said Dayna.

"We could transport over with Nitza, only have the transport officer leave our signatures in the buffer until it would be safe to..." started Thram.

"But we need to somehow let the transport officer know our plan," interrupted Dayna.

"We could send an encoded carrier wave through with Nitza's transporter signal.  The science officer would pick it up," replied Thram.

"Which means we would have to transport after Nitza," said Dayna.

"Exactly," said Thram.

Dohlman smiled.  Perhaps they would work well together.  They both rose and headed for the captains ready room.  On her way out the door, Dayna noticed a small black attachment on the back of Thram's monitor.  The kind of attachment that encoded signals from remote cameras.

So Thram has a secret, thought Dayna.

[AlexanderTheGreat]

The situation on the Archer had deteriorated rapidly in the last few days. First there was the whole matter of Nitza Kenek and the Lethean attack, Thram's possible departure from the Archer (Zack admired the way Thram kept a watchful eye on everything that happened on the Archer at all times - he hoped he would reconsider); and now the Enterprise, the flagship of the Federation, had been invaded by the Ferengi.

And these weren’t the only problems Zack had to deal with at the moment. There was also the issue of his past; and whether or not he should keep it hidden from Rhai. He yearned to know everything about her, to be there for her. But what if she wanted to know about his own past. He couldn’t let her find out. He was a different person back then. But what if she could not accept the fact that he had changed? What if she could not overlook his past and believe that he was now a different person?

How could she possibly love him if she knew how evil and barbaric he used to be?

Right now Zack had to put these thoughts aside. There were other matters to attend to. He was needed elsewhere, particularly by Ensign Alia Kenek, and also on the Bridge. Zack could see what was happening to Alia – her mental state and patience was deteriorating rapidly. So far he had let her deal with it by herself; he wanted to see if she would be able to overcome the current situation by herself. But she was still young; she would need his help.

Without Nitza's memories, Alia would probably be more inclined to take solace in Cardassian advice. Zack knew that the influence of Jarid, Kenek’s first host, would now weigh more heavily for Alia, particularly because Jarid spent a great deal of his life on Cardassia.

In many ways Zack saw Alia as a student. In his past he had corrupted many youthful men and women and persuaded them to embrace their darker tendencies. The thing about the young was that they were naive and fresh-faced. They were easy to manipulate and to brainwash. Zack knew that he had ruined the lives of many young throughout his darker times.

But by helping Alia, Zack hoped he could redeem himself. By guiding her through these troublesome times and preparing her for the realities of the galaxy and of life, he could gain redemption. While this was not something that would happen overnight, he knew that by helping her get in tune with Jarid’s calming presence, she would survive and persevere through the current predicament.

This was not the only thing that bothered Zack at the moment. Unlike most of the other officers onboard the Archer, Zack was not too impressed by Nitza's presence. He did not care that she was a famous musician and worshipped thoughout the galaxy for her musical prowess. To Zack she was not a real hero. Real heroes were the simple ordinary people, the dedicated women and men of Starfleet, the hard working ensigns, the docotrs and nurses who saved lives - NOT people who could play instruments, such as Nitza.

Right now Zack felt like he was the only one thinking straight on the Archer. Everyone else, even the captain, was too starstruck by Nitza's presence on the ship to think clearly and to have a grip on the current predicament the Archer was facing. They were intoxicated by Nitza's presence and seemed to have forgotten that the Letheans and Ferengi were involved, and that Alia was in need of some attention.

Zack hoped to speak to Alia before making his way to the Bridge. After locating Alia in Ten Forward, Zack made his way there when his commbadge sprang to life.

"Jefferys to Commander Zack."

[Zack here]

"I need you on the Bridge now Commander. The Ferengi have indeed taken over the Enterprise and are moving in to attack positions.”

[Tricorder]

The Enterprise viewscreen was functional. The Ferengi was glad for that. At least they didn't destroy the ship completely as they had misjudged the Letheans' weapon that they had installed on their own ship. It was part of the deal. Lethean weapons were superior to those of Ferengi weapons.


"Board the Archer and get me Nitza Kenek", said a voice on the viewscreen. It was a Lethean. As this was said, The Ferengi gave the order to his tactician to fire up the weapons and fumbled to get the communicator that he had gotten from shelby's uniform to tell his security team to get a team of Ferengi down to the weapon's room and get loaded with the best guns they find and then proceed to the transporter room. The Lethean continued. "Get her and you'll get your reward. I've waited 13 years for this. Don't foul up! If you do, well, let me just say that your existance will be exterminated."


Darmok, the Ferengi in charge of the whole operation, snarled and spoke up. "Yes Sir. But i'm telling you right now that the Grand Nagus won't be too happy about this. Oh no, he won't!"

"HAHAHA, and do you really think I care what he thinks?" That laughter was a very maniacal laughter. One that sent shivers down the spines of those Starfleet Officers were were now slaves to the Ferengi, taking orders from the Ferengi. They felt defenseless.

"No," Darmok replied. "I just want my lithium!"

"Oh, you're just a coward like the rest! You'll get your lithium. After you've done what you've promised. Now get me Nitza Kenek and don't fail me!" The viewscreen image flickered and faded as the image was replaced with the image of the Archer.

Darmok turned in his seat to his tactician again started to give him orders. "Target that ship and fire! Give them a warning shot." He snarled. He turned back towards the viewscreen and smiled at what was going to happen. He has it all planned. At least he think he does.

[Ana Ng]

Commander Zack had just reached the bridge when the first "warning shot" hit the Archer.

"Our Ferengi friends have decided it's time for us to transport Nitza Kenek into their custody," Jefferys deadpanned.

"Our Ferengi friends are going to be very disappointed," Zack growled as he sat down next to the captain.

"Aye, Commander, very disappointed," Jefferys replied.  "Open a channel."

"Channel open," Thram reported.

"Captain," a very smug Ferengi smiled on the viewscreen.  "We are ready to receive your passenger."

"Oh? Funny, I have no recollection of any transfer orders from Starfleet," Jefferys responded, equally smug.

The Ferengi slammed a fist down on the chair.  "Enough, Captain!  We want Nitza Kenek, and we want her now."

"We are prepared to defend this ship," Jefferys replied.

"It would be a great shame, Captain," the Ferengi spoke, regaining some of his illusion of pleasantries, "if we were forced to begin executing our hostages here on the Enterprise.  A great shame, indeed."

Jefferys was expecting this.  He knew he needed to stall the Ferengi.  He had some degree of faith that the crew of the Enterprise was also working on a plan to oust their Ferengi captors, and wanted to give them more time as well.

"You realize, of course, I will have to discuss any arrangements with both Nitza and Alia Kenek," Jefferys said calmly.

"You have one hour to deliver Nitza to us, captain.  Then we begin executing hostages."  The viewscreen went blank.

"Captain," Thram said.  "I believe Lt. D'Aaron and I have a plan."

Jefferys turned and looked at Thram with the slightest hint of amusement.  He'd have to have a talk with his Security Chief some day about the dangers of working with Federation Intelligence officers.  But today was not that day.  He stood.

"Commander Zack, Lieutenet Thram, assemble the senior staff in the observation lounge.  Also, inform Nitza Kenek her presence is requested."

"Sir," Zack said.  "I should inform Ensign Kenek of the meeting as well.  She has the right to know what we're doing."

"Agreed," Jefferys said with a nod.

A few minutes later, everyone was sitting around the table in the observation lounge, listening as Thram and D'Aaron explained the plan.

"How can you be sure to immobilize the Ferengi once you're onboard?" Jefferys asked.

"Our scans indicate there are only twelve Ferengi onboard," Thram said.

"Shouldn't be difficult," D'Aaron said confidently.

"Besides, there are already hundreds of Starfleet officers onboard the Enterprise.  We wouldn't stick out," Thram added.

"It sounds dangerous," Alia said softly.

"We'll get the job done," D'Aaron said, feeling slightly insulted that Alia seemed to be questioning her abilities.  She should have more faith, Dayna thought, there wasn't a chance she would allow Stirok's consciousness to remain in Alia's symbiont while Stirok's body was abducted by rogue Ferengi.  

"I will lead the away team, Ensign," Zack said.  "Failure is not an option."  Thram and D'Aaron nodded accordingly.

"Is anyone going to ask me whether or not I wish to participate?" Nitza asked.

"Nitza, there are hundreds of lives at stake," Alia said through clenched teeth.

"Well, I know that Alia, and I do wish to participate," she leaned back in her chair.  "I just wanted someone to ask.  If the Captain agrees that when we get back, I can have my concert, I would be more than happy to assist."

"I don't see the harm in that," Jefferys said with an accomodating smile.  "Well, people, let's get to work!  Dismissed!"

[Andorian_Incident]

Nitza, Zack, Thram, and D'Aaron stood in the transporter room, going over the final plans of their mission.  All four of them knew that it would be a very risky mission.  They also knew the stakes involved.

Jefferys had told the Ferengi that he would transport Nitza over to the Enterprise as they demanded, and convinced them that Shelby would then transport them to specified coordinates and would allow them to leave the Enterprise peacefully.  And to make sure that Shelby didn't change her mind, that the Archer would accompany the Enterprise to those coordinates as well.   Naturally he didn't let on to the fact that Nitza wouldn't be the only one beaming over.

Nitza was the first to beam over to the Enterprise.  When she materialized in the Enterprise's transporter room, she saw a human transporter officer, an android officer, and two Ferengi holding phasers--one was pointing them at the two Enterprise officers, and the other one was pointing the phaser towards her.

"Success," one of the Ferengi snided.  "Darmok will be pleased with us."

"I don't care about Darmok," the other said.  "With the latinum that we earn from this, I'll be able to retire to Risa."  

As the Ferengi were dreaming about the latinum and what they could do with it, Data was able to make some adjustments on the transporter controls without being observed.

"Come on, lets get her to the bridge," the first Ferengi said.

The Ferengi holding his phaser on Nitza motioned for her to step off the pad, and to move out the door.  The other Ferengi motioned for the Starfleet officers to do the same.  As the last Ferengi turned his back towards the transporter pad, Zack, Thram, and D'Aaron shimmered into existance on the pad.

The last Ferengi almost didn't hear the noise of the transporter, and when he finally realized what was happening, the three Archer officers were already fully materialized.  He swung around....and got hit square in the middle of his chest by Thram's phaser fire.  He slumped down, unconscious.

Data and the other officer quickly jumped out of the way, to avoid the firefight that was now being waged.

The Ferengi fired wildly at Zack but ended up missing him entirely.  D'Aaron fired back at the Ferengi, and scored a direct hit.  But instead of the Ferengi merely falling unconscious, he vaporized.  D'Aaron had a smug look on her face.

Thram glared at D'Aaron.  Clearly she didn't care that she had just killed a Ferengi.  She just looked back at him with an expression that said "hey, at least I got the job done".  But Thram didn't necessarily agree with her methods.

If Zack cared what D'Aaron had done, he didn't show it.  As the Ferengi vaporized, he ran up to make sure that Nitza and the two Enterprise officers were okay, and to start planning the next phase of the operation.  

Thram tied up the Ferengi that he had stunned, and hid his body in a storage closet.  They didn't want him where one of his Ferengi associates would be able to find him and alert the others.  It was possible that the Ferengi on the bridge were already alerted to the phaser fire if they were manning the stations on the bridge, but Thram hoped that the Enterprise officers were still doing that.

"We need to move quickly, now," D'Aaron said.

[Tricorder]

Darmok called out to one of his comrades, but his communicator wasn't getting any response. Something was wrong. His plan wasn't working.

"NO!!!!!! This can't be!" He checked the sensor logs and his eyes didn't deceive him. The transporter logs showed 1 Trill transported, as well as 3 other lifeforms a few seconds later. His communicator wasn't getting a reply and he put two and two together. Starfleet had done something to his Ferengi Friend. He cursed under his breath.

"Do I have to do everything myself?", he snarled as he looked at the people on the bridge. They didn't look very sympathetic towards him and kept doing their bridge work. He took his phaser and raised it towards the crew. "Now, I ask again. Do I have to do everything myself?" He heard nothing. "Fine. Have it your way then." Just as he was about to start firing on his crew the doors to the bridge opened and Dayna's voice was heard.

"Alright, Hold it right there!" she said for the whole bridge crew to hear.

Darmok was startled but tried to stay calm. He turned over to the voice and forced a smile. "Well Well, look what we have here. Can I do something for you?"

[Ana Ng]

Ensign Alia Kenek sat anxiously on the bridge.  She was still technicaly off-duty, but at Counselor Tae's recommendation, Captain Jefferys allowed Alia to wait on the bridge to monitor the away team's progress.

However, there wasn't much monitoring to be done. The away team had to maintain radio silence until their mission was completed; any communications might be used to track the away team's location.  So it was a waiting game for everyone on the bridge.  

Sitting in Commander Zack's chair, Alia glanced over at Counselor Tae gratefully.  She'd hated these past few days, not just because of the radical change to lose a Nitza and gain a Stirok, but also because she'd been temporarily relieved of duty.  After her years working at both the Academy and the symbiont initiate program, Alia was not accustomed to being idle.  It felt good to be on the bridge again, even if she wasn't actively involved in the operations.

Of course, if Alia had her way, she would have been a part of the away team.  Nitza was vulnerable, and it was Alia's first obligation to protect her symbiont.  If Nitza didn't make it back, the Kenek symbiont would be forever altered, and Stirok would be trapped inside of her forever.  For Alia, that just wasn't option.  She didn't want to live without Nitza's memories.  They'd become a part of her as much as her arm or her leg.  And as much professional respect as she had for Stirok, she didn't want him to remain in her symbiont.  Sure, Alia had been trained to integrate the memories of her other hosts into her own existence, but this was different.  It was unnatural, and Stirok wasn't even a Trill.  Not only that, but Stirok had the right to live his own life.  It wasn't his "time" to go, and she knew that if it weren't for Stirok's Vulcan training, someone else may not be able to survive the emotional trauma of what had happened.  

There was also Lieutenent D'Aaron.  She'd made it clear to Alia that Stirok's presence inside the Kenek symbiont was unacceptable.  Alia had tried to keep D'Aaron's dooming words out of her thoughts; she had no desire to accidentally access some of Stirok's memories and discover something she wasn't supposed to know.  Something, Alia got the distinct impression, she didn't want to know.  

Trying to banish those thoughts, Alia focused on thinking about the away team.   She knew that Thram, Zack, and D'Aaron were accomplished officers, and she guessed there wouldn't be a group of officers on the Archer more qualified to get this job done.  She knew that D'Aaron would protect Stirok's body at all costs.  And, although Thram greatly intimidated her, she also knew that she wasn't the only person Thram intimidated.  Commander Zack's presence on the team was also comforting.  She'd barely served with Zack for a month, but she felt like she could trust him.  One thing she knew clearly:  it's good to have a Cardassian on your side.

So Alia sat anxiously on the bridge, attempting to occupy her mind with these thoughts.  But thoughts are fleeting, and waiting seems eternal sometimes.  

Counselor Tae kept an eye on Alia's body language while they waited.  She noticed that Alia shifted occasionally, but for the most part sat rigidly, lost in thought.

Captain Jefferys tapped his fingers on the side of the chair impatienty.  

"What are they waiting for?" he asked.

Good question, Alia thought, good question.

[Dohlman]

Dayna, Zack, and Thram stood in the transporter room with bodies strewn on the floor.  Dayna looked at Zack and Thram.  

“You guys better take off a couple pips.  It’ll be easier to blend in, besides, the XO is probably already on the bridge,” said Dayna.  Zack and Thram nodded and removed 2 pips and placed them in their pockets.  

“I have the tracker for Nitza that the captain gave me,” said Zack.  Dayna nodded.  

“Good, you guys track Nitza and find our what you can.”  Dayna reached into a small pocket on her belt and pulled out a small listening device.  She handed it to Thram.  “When you find what room she’s in, to into the next room and place this on the wall.  It will amplify any sounds and you will be able to hear what’s going on.”  

“A spy gadget?” asked Thram.  

“Hey, what’s the point of being a spy if you don’t get the gadgets?”  Dayna winked at Zack, whose face cracked a slight smile.  Thram scowled.  

“I’ll head to the bridge and assess the situation there,” said Dayna.  

“But they probably won’t let you enter,” protested Zack.  

“I’ll just say I’m from engineering and that the warp field coils are operating outside the normal parameters.”  

“I see Stirok’s gotten to you,” chuckled Zack.  Dayna suddenly looked downward.  In more ways than one, she thought.  

The three then exited the transporter room.  Dayna headed for the turbolift, while Zack and Thram headed down the hall, following the tracking device.  

The turbolift emptied Dayna onto the bridge.  A Ferengi was holding a phaser, about to fire on the crew.

"Alright, Hold it right there!" Dayna said for the whole bridge crew to hear.  The Ferengi turned toward her.

"Well, well, look what we have here. Can I do something for you?" he said.  

“Just…please don’t kill my captain,” said Dayna.  

“Well, your bridge comrades don’t seem to be cooperating with my orders,” he said.  “Who the hell are you?”  

“I’m Lt. Smythe, from engineering,” she replied.  She quickly scanned the room. The captain, XO, and counselor were sitting in their chairs, as were the helmsman and navigator.  The science and tactical officers were at their stations.  Seven Ferengi were holding weapons on them, two on the same level at the science officer, three on the main floor, and two guards flanking the door.  “The warp field coils are operating outside the normal parameters.  I need to monitor the readings from the bridge.”  The Ferengi then pointed his weapon toward Dayna.

[Dohlman]

“Before the warp coils explode,” added Dayna.  

“Why did no one from engineering call me?” he asked.  

“Because we’re busy,” replied Dayna in an annoyed voice.  

“Call engineering,” said Darmok.  Dayna’s heart raced and she began to mentally assess her chances of taking out Darmok and at least two other Ferengi before phaser fire started flying.  

“That won’t be necessary,” replied the Vulcan science officer.  “The parameters are on my console and do appear to be operating outside of the normal range.”  

Dayna’s jaw almost dropped in shock.  The Ferengi scowled, then motioned with his head for Dayna to go to the engineering console.  Dayna complied, and began punching buttons.  She punched out SOS, SOS in morse code until she saw the science officer looking at her from out of the corner of his eye.  Then she punched out the message, I’ll take out the five guards by the door and in the middle of the floor.  You get the two on this level.  The science officer nodded ever so slightly.  

Dayna mentally prepared herself while the science officer moved closer to the guard, ‘checking’ operating parameters on the console.  While in the turbolift, Dayna had set her phaser on wide dispersal.  Stun.  Just to please Thram.  Dayna quickly pulled her phaser and spun around, firing first on Darmok and the two other Ferengi on the main floor.  They collapsed.   Then she ducked and rolled as the two guards fired on her.  She came up behind the tactical officer’s station, which provided some cover.  The science officer had given the guard a neck pinch, then took his phaser and fired at the other guard.  Five down, two to go, thought Dayna.

The 2 guards were laying down a heavy blanket of fire, preventing her from returning fire. She turned while crouching, and caught the eye of the XO.  She winked at him.  Dayna took off her comm badge and threw it straight up in the air.  As the 2 guards shot at it, she threw her phaser to the XO.  He shot the 2 distracted guards and they fell to the floor in a heap.  Dayna sighed with relief.  Captain Shelby arose and started barking orders.  Dayna leaned back her head and wondered what Zack and Thram were up to.  

***********************************

Zack and Thram had found Nitza and had gone to the adjoining room to listen.  

“What’s the word?  What’s the word?” said an eager voice.

“It’s a phrase, stupid.”  

“Well, what’s the phrase?”  A pause.  

“The red sail at dawn claims a green fish flies.” A pause.

“Why have you brought me here?”  

“That’s Stirok’s voice,” said Zack.  

“Shhh,” replied Thram.  

“We need to know where the gene is.”  

“It’s inside my cello,” said Stirok.

“Where’s the cello?” said the excited voice.  

“On Trill, at the Dona Museum of Fine Arts.”  Then Zack and Thram heard laughter.

[Dohlman]

Dayna rolled over and got up, running for the turbolift.  She heard Capt. Shelby's voice calling after her, but the last thing she wanted was to give a formal explanation to another Starfleet captain.  Giving one to Capt. Jefferys would be bad enough.  Luckly, the lift door closed quickly, sealing off Shelby's voice.  Dayna rode the lift to the floor where the transporter room had been.  She hoped Zack and Thram were on that floor, but since she no longer had a communicator (or phaser for that matter) she could not call them.  

She stepped out of the lift and sprinted down the hall.  She paused at every door, and each door slid open at her presence.

"Sorry, just checking the doors," she would explain to any surprised looks she came across.  She finally came to a door that did not slide open, one that was locked.

Aha, she thought.  She put her ear to the door and heard two Ferengi giggling excitedly.  Dayna figured Zack and Thram were next door, so she went to the other door and knocked softly.

"It's me, Dayna," she whispered.  Momentarily the door slid open, Zack standing in front of her.  She stepped quickly inside and the door slid back.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"The gene is hidden in Nitza's cello on Trill," replied Zack.

"The Dona Museum," added Thram.  "They're contacting someone now to go retrieve it."

"Well, we now know what we came for.  Let's take 'em," said Dayna.

"We have a problem," said Thram.  "Nitza was induced into an alternate personality.  We need the phrase to return her to her normal state of mind."

Dayna sneered.  She couldn't have cared less about Nitza, but knew she was important to Alia.  "Alright," Dayna said.  "I'll go down the hall and transport you guys into the next room.  Open the door and I'll handle the...negotiations."

Dayna ran down the hall and entered the transporter room.  She looked at the controls and furrowed her brow.  She had done this before, at the Academy, but that had been a while ago.  She made the adjustments and locked in on Zack and Thram, then said a quick prayer as she pulled the controls, hoping they wouldn't wind up as part of the bulkheads.  Then she ran down the hall to the room with Nitza.  The door slid open and Dayna saw the two stunned figures of the Ferengi staring back at her, phasers pointed at them.  Dayna locked the door.

"What's the phrase to return Nitza to her correct state of mind?" asked Dayna.

One of the Ferengi spit at her feet and scowled.  Dayna quickly closed the distance between them and grabbed the Ferengi by the ears, hard.

"OWWW!" he screamed.

"Don't let me have to ask you again!  What's the phrase?" growled Dayna.

"AAAH!  The wise power awaits the return of the ship, for it no longer docks in the night!"

Dayna released her hold and they all looked at Nitza.

[Dohlman]

"Where'd you three come from?" Stirok's body asked.

"Nitza?" asked Thram.

"Yes?" she replied.

"Do you know anything about your cello on Trill?" asked Zack.

"My cello on Trill?  What are you talking about?"

"She's normal," said Dayna.  Then she turned toward the two Ferengi.  "How the h e l l did you two idiots figure out how to brainwash her?"

The Ferengi who spat at her looked as if he were about to do it again, and Dayna made a move toward his ears.  His hands clapped up about his head, protecting his ears.

"We didn't do it.  Someone told us, and gave us the phrases," he protested.

Dayna was about to box him about the ears, but then her innate senses clicked, and she realized that this did not indeed sound like the work of Ferengi.  Too subtle.  Sounded like...

"Come on," said Dayna.  "Let's get out of here."

"What about us?" asked the Ferengi.

Zack ignored them and tapped his communicator and rang the USS Archer.  "Zack to transporter room.  Four to beam over."

Just then the door slid open, and two security officers watched helplessly as the four shimmered in nothingness.