USS Arcadia Mission Briefing

[LoAmi 0]

A priority coded Starfleet communication came in less than a day after Starfleet received Arcadia's report about the Romulans' claims in the neutral zone and their activities in the alternate universe.

 

Acting Captain Lo'Ami took the call in the ready room. He was still getting used to sitting on the other side of the desk.

 

Admiral Cristophe was on the other side.

 

"Captain, we read your report. Intelligence has been watching activity in the Empire, but, Starfleet wasn't expecting that level of activity the far side of the Romulan Neutral Zone."

 

Lo'Ami continued listening. It was obvious that the Admiral wasn't just calling to congratulate Arcadia on intelligence gathering.

 

The Admiral continued. "The Federation has received a communication inviting us to establish relations with planet Axrekrav. It's in neutral territory near your sector."

 

Lo'Ami reminded himself about the planet. "When we came into this sector, Axrekrav was on record as an off-limits pre-warp society."

 

The Admiral corrected. "The last reports were from a long-range survey mission over a half century ago. The planet was at a low level of development. It was divided into hundreds of nations, constantly on the brink of war, and with it distance from the Federation core, it wasn't considered a priority for observation."

 

"What changed?"

 

"The planet has made considerable political and technological progress. Their wars ended, and they developed warp drive. They tested their first warp engines only a decade ago. Now, their newest ships are breaking warp 3."

 

Lo'Ami sensed that there was more to it. "That's extraordinarily fast progress. Most planets take at least half a century just on development of practical long range ships after the first warp flight. What's the catch?"

 

"The way they did it. From what we could piece together, one of the nations developed a technological advantage over the others and won the war. We don't have any reliable intelligence on how they did it. There are rumors that they even developed biogenic weapons. One lone, and unconfirmed, report indicated that they used them in the war."

 

The Admiral paused, letting the captain absorb the information, then the briefing continued. "The planet's leader, Li Dyse, the general who won the war, invited us and just about every other spacefaring power to open up relations. It's a pretty bold move for what would otherwise be a backward planet, but with its position as neutral territory in the borderlands, it could become a pivotal back channel into and out of the Romulan Empire should everything go sour. It's likely that the Romulans will be making an appearance. Under the terms of our treaty with them, we're escorting a ship from a Klingon house through our territory. I wouldn't be surprised if the Ferengi show up to try to take advantage of it as a smuggling route. You've got the closest ship. We need you to take Arcadia over to Axrekrav and represent the Federation."

 

Lo'Ami inserted. "It doesn't sound like the kind of people or place with whom we would ordinarily establish friendly relations."

 

"True, but with the political situation as it is, we can't always choose our friends. And, there's nothing that projects Federation power quite like a Sovereign class starship. This isn't just about a small planet, it's also about the new militarism taking over the Romulan Empire and the coming changes in the balance of power all along the neutral zone."

 

Lo'Ami faced the screen. "Understood, Admiral."

 

"Starfleet out." The screen turned to the familiar blue and white-on-black UFP seal. Lo'Ami wondered if Arcadia could come out of this mission respecting the values that the seal represents.