"Q"

[Joe Manning 0]

"Q ...

 

"... O ...

 

"... B ... "

 

"Cob?"

 

Decker turned to look at his 'science man,' or poor excuse thereof, the Ferengi Ugott. Ugott was handy with techs, even techs of alien make, and he'd had a bit of prior experience trekking the galaxy, having served four years aboard a Ferengi survey vessel. He was the smartest person Decker could afford to recruit. But considering that Decker's hired muscle often forgot to tie his own boots, that wasn't saying much.

 

Ugott looked up from the translator program running on his tricorder. "Qob," the Ferengi corrected him, properly pronouncing the Klingon vowel. "Like lobe, see?" He tugged on one of his giant ears to illustrate.

 

"Whatever," Decker shrugged and looked back at the front viewport and the runes that were painted in dark red on the hull of the Klingon ship. "What's it mean?"

 

The Ferengi bore his fangs with a leering grin that the Captain could not see. "Danger."

 

The door at the back of the cockpit opened and the towering Nausicaan Zelik entered, remembering to duck his head under the top of the frame. Ugott looked back at Decker's 'bodyguard' and silently cursed to himself; he'd been keeping a running tally of the number of times the braindead bruiser had accidentally slammed his head against a low obstacle somewhere on the Queen Vicky (or whatever nonsense Decker was calling his scav ship nowadays). Zelik patted the disruptor rifle at his side to signal that he'd gotten himself ready, then he looked around the cockpit to survey the situation. "What we got?"

 

"Danger," Decker answered, tilting his head at the derelict Bird of Prey and the horizon of the planet beyond. Nayal IV. One of the planets that had been hit by the Beholders. One of the planets off which Decker and his crew were building their nest eggs. So many colony worlds had been hit by the Beholders. Some, mostly the smaller ones out here on the fringe, had simply been abandoned by their remaining inhabitants, and the Federation hadn't gotten around to sending salvage ships to all of them.

 

They didn't have too many ships left to send.

 

Just the kind of circumstances that opportunists like Decker thrived under.

 

"What's a Klingon Bird doin' this deep in Fed space?" the Nausicaan asked, now standing beside Decker at the front of the cockpit.

 

The short (by comparison) human looked up at his hired muscle with a grin. The only things ol' Zelik ever showed any insight about were fleet positions, battle tactics, and weapons. The sound of plastic striking tritanium alerted Decker that Ugott was having troubles with his tricorder again. Maybe this latest haul would provide them with enough income to get the Ferengi the new arm-mounted model; they were supposedly more adaptive -and- reliable.

 

"Ah! Here it is," the Ferengi announced. "Qob. A former Klingon Defense Force vessel."

 

"Former?" Decker turned to look at Ugott. "As in MIA? Or they went renegade?"

 

Ugott continued reading the tricorder display. "Their Captain was declared treasonous by the Empire in '81. Doesn't say why. He and his crew stole the ship and escaped rather than surrender to state punishment. Listen to this. 'Over the years that followed, Qob became one of the most dangerous and successful pirate vessels in Klingon history, menacing shipping lanes on both sides of the Klingon/Federation border and even raiding colonies, always managing to evade pursuit and leave little trace of their activities.'"

 

Decker's eyes lit up as he looked back at the Bird. "Payday," he said. "Looks kind of small to be the most dangerous pirate vessel in Klingon history, though I'm still wondering if it can be made operational ... "

 

"Not so fast," Ugott replied. "It turns out there's been more than one Qob. 'Stories of Qob's deeds became legend among other Klingon renegades. Around 2386, conflicting reports of variously sized and configured ships bearing the name "Qob" began to surround Klingon pirate activity. A renegade cruiser captured by the Defense Force in 2387 confirmed suspicions -- other pirate ships were adopting the name "Qob" in mimicry of the original renegade ship, hoping that the name would bring good fortune in battle and inspire fear in enemies.'"

 

"What? So which Qob is this?" Decker asked. Zelik towered beside him, scratching his head in confusion. "And what was it doing in orbit of a Federation penal colony when the Beholders attacked?"

 

"To your first question," Ugott answered. "I cannot provide an answer. There is no public record of the configurations of the original Qob or any of its mimics. The records do hint at quite a few mimics, so the odds -are- against this one being the original. Why it is here is anyone's guess. My scans showed a total loss of power, even backup power, consistent with the Beholders' draining beam, so it is not likely that they were aiding the Beholders."

 

"Don't be stupid," Decker waved a dismissive hand at the Ferengi. "Nobody worked with the Beholders."

 

"The Beholders needed nobody's help," Ugott agreed. "But that is not to say that these Klingons did not attempt to offer their help. Nayal IV was one of the third wave targets, so they had to know what was coming. Perhaps they were trying to make contact in order to forge an alliance. I find the idea of a Klingon pirate ship coming to a Federation colony's aide no more plausible."

 

"Maybe they were already here when the invasion started," Decker suggested. "Maybe there was a Klingon prisoner on the surface that they were trying to spring loose. In any event, we're only going to find more answers on board. And we may just be able to comandeer ourselves a genuine pirate ship, just like the old colonial days back on Earth.

 

"So, who's in the mood for a field trip to a derelict Bird of Prey?"