TREKS IN SCI-FI FORUM

Profile

Name: Galdar
Rank: Lieutenant                (http://www.treksinscifi.com/forum/Themes/Enterprise_smf11final_tp/images/lt.gif)
Position: Conn Officer

Personal Information

Age: 30
Place Of Birth: Ferenginar
Gender: Male
Species Of Origin: Ferengi
Hair: None
Eyes: Brown
Height: 4'10"
Weight: 102
Skin Tone: Orange
Telepathic and Empathic Status: None but resitant to the abilities of others due to the four lobed Ferengi brain
Body: Short
Face: Round with sharp teeth and large lobes
Marital Status: Single
Children: None

Habits: As with many of his species he has a tendency to twitch in a seemingly random uncontrolled fashion. This is normally only evident at times of stress or when he's agitated. It's partly due to his extremely sensitive hearing - at the first sign of overly loud noise, his hands are jumping to his ears before conscious control cuts in.

Quarters: Neat and uncluttered. He associates clutter with an over-concern over possessions and goes out of his way to avoid that association.

Likes: Grubs! Eating is a pleasure and his diet is one of the few Ferengi traits he claims to have truly inherited.

Dislikes: Most Ferengi, overbearing parents, chocolate.

Ambitions and Goals: Within Starfleet, his interests focus on one day taking the helm of a Starship

Temperament: Generally even handed but prone to bouts of selfishness which he puts down to a "species imperative"

Hobbies: None known.

Family
Mother: Dusha
Father: Baj
Siblings: 1 older brother, 1 younger sister

History:

2358 Born on Ferenginar to a traditional Ferengi family.

2375 Galdar leaves home at 18 taking a pilot 'apprenticeship' aboard the Glantor Class transport ship Depository under DaMon Glem. Gelm's trade route takes him from Ferenginar, via the Ferengi Alliance planet of Irtok, onto Fellebia and then into Federation space.

2376 Depository arrives at Altair VI but is ambushed by Orion pirates at the edge of the system Galdar saves the ship and the cargo by his piloting skills and attracts the attention of Starfleet Captain Adams of the Nebula class U.S.S. Leeds who approaches him to join the fleet. Galdar enters Starfleet Academy.

2380 On graduating Starfleet Academy, Ensign Galdar is assigned to the flight deck of the U.S.S. Tiberius under the command of Lt. Cmdr. Aeric James.

2385 Unaffected by the Lucas Virus, Galdar takes the helm of the Tiberius and keeps her flying while the crew get to the escape pods and the ship is scuttled. Escaping himself, Galdar is promoted to Lt. (j.g) as a result. On being let out of quarantine, Lt. Galdar is rotated to Starbase 416 near the Ogus system, as duty flight control officer and shuttle pilot.

2386 Bored with station service, Galdar transfers to the Saber Class U.S.S. Luxembourg as Beta shift Conn officer.

2387 Recalled at the request of Commander James, Galdar joins Arabella as Alpha watch Conn officer. Sad to leave the Luxembourg, Galdar is promoted to full Lieutenant to 'sweeten the deal'.

"I'm going now." he shouted.

The sound of the closing door obliterated any response that might have come from the house but Galdar wasn't listening anymore. He'd said his private farewells to his mother five minutes before and didn't really expect the others to come and see him off.

As he shambled away from the only home he'd ever known, he breathed deeply in the damp air and actually started to enjoy the rain. Maybe it was the sense of freedom that had been growing on him as he neared his eighteenth birthday, although that had peaked a week ago with the event itself, or maybe it was simply a result of his current destination and all that it represented for his future. Either way, he walked with what felt like a new sense of purpose as he headed into town.

Last night hadn't been so easy. After waiting for as long as he could, he'd finally had to face his father with his plans. As expected Baj hadn't been happy. In his mind, any future that didn't involve an office in the Tower of Commerce wasn't a future worth contemplating for his son. Galdar had pressed on regardless, however, and explained that he would not be following his fathers wishes and taking a junior position in the family brokerage.

Privately, he suspected Baj had actually been relieved at his refusal to cooperate, regardless of the public rage. The prospect of having his son as a 'junior' anything would have stuck in the proud Ferengi's throat. In fact, Galdar was fairly sure that the offer had only been made at the behest of his mother, probably only to keep her quiet. Still, Baj had shown what appeared to be true upset and concern when he received the news and in a strange way, Galdar loved him for it. The whole family knew that Baj wasn't interested in his son's future any more, but for him to have made the effort to appear that he was, was...kind of him.

Galdar shook his head at the irony implicit in discovering some nugget of familial love in his father, however warped it was, on the day that he left home for good.

The transporter station wasn't far from the house and Galdar had splashed his way there within five minutes.

Passing his clearance to the operator but declining the attempt to garner a tip, Galdar stepped onto the platform and waited nervously. As the room dissolved around him and a more utilitarian version of the same facility appeared, he breathed a sigh of relief. As a first time transporter user it was easy to be nervous.

DaMon Glem was waiting for him at the door, nodding abruptly in greeting before turning on his heel and marching off toward the main docking bay of the orbital station. Galdar followed hesitantly, noting the sparse nature of the cargo facility as he went. Wide doors and high ceilings catered for the internal transport of cargo from one hold to the next while offices to either side handled the complicated tax and revenue processing for the ships and trading agencies using the station. Ferengi of all descriptions thronged the corridors, each ignoring the others as they moved self-importantly about their own business.

Galdar would have liked to have taken the opportunity to stop and look around the station but it was clear that the DaMon was in a hurry. Dropping his head, the young Ferengi hurried along in his wake, sidestepping others of his species where he could, pushing through groups of them where he had to. Given this new profession that he'd chosen, there would be plenty of time to gain familiarity with space-borne facilities of all kinds over the next few years.

Glem paused at the entrance to a vast docking and cargo processing hanger, waiting for Galdar to catch up. Paying the attendant his due, he processed both of their IDs and started to lead Galdar out onto the vast deck but, once clear of the station wall, the younger Ferengi simply stopped and stared.

The hanger was at least six decks high and ran the full width of the station. Galdar had nothing to scale this against, having never seen the place from outside, but he still had to admit that the hold was cavernous. In his eyes it was probably the biggest space he'd been in where it hadn't been raining. Cargo and shuttle-craft were laid out across the acres of space in front of him with some larger small ships off in the distance. The biggest ones remained outside, in orbit or docked with the station, transporting whatever goods and personnel were required in and out of this vast space.

Breaking into his wonder, Glem grabbed his arm and guided him silently across the bay, weaving through shuttles and even some pleasure craft, toward the bigger ships nearer to the space doors. Finally reaching the side of a Glantor class cargo vessel, Glem stopped and entered a code into the personnel access door panel. This, it appeared, was the Depository.

As the door opened Glem turned and barring Galdar's way, held out his hand. "Down payment", he demanded. The first words he'd spoken since they'd met.

Opening his mouth to protest, Galdar caught the look in Glem's eye and realised how tenuous his position here was. His mouth closed. Taking a position aboard this ship sight-unseen was a risk, but for Glem to take on an unknown quantity as a trainee pilot was also a risk and one that the DaMon clearly wanted to be sure would pay off, however it turned out in the longer term.

Sighing, Galdar pulled out a PADD he'd already prepared and pressed his thumb to the panel at the bottom. Passing it over to DaMon Glem, he waited. When Glem eventually appended his print, the agreement was sealed and both sides were committed to the transaction. With a grunt of acknowledgement, Glem stood aside and allowed his newest crew member to board the Depository.

"I thought you said you could fly this thing," DaMon Glem shouted for what seemed like the fifteenth time. Swallowing back a retort, Galdar shuffled nervously from foot to foot and brought the Depository back onto its assigned course once again.

"I should never have accepted a pilot with nothing more than holosuite training experience", Glem groused as he moved aft.

In all honesty, Galdar could fly the ship as well as anyone aboard and Glem had acknowledged it more then once but his employer was a mercurial character and not one that could be easily predicted or placated when roused. It was true that he'd never flown a real ship before being taken aboard the Depository; that had been Glem's risk in accepting him aboard. Enough of his time had been spent obtaining ever more complex training programs, however, that by the time he reached seventeen he was more formally qualified to fly this ship than some pilots with years of service behind them.

The rub was in the words 'formally qualified'. Without any real experience, there was only his word as to his ability and for many, that had not been good enough. So he had ended up aboard the Depository having persuaded DaMon Glem to take a chance on him.

Glem muttered darkly as he strode around the bridge checking the various instruments and readouts. His gait was atypical for a Ferengi and demonstrated the time that he'd spend among other the other species in the galaxy. As Galdar was starting to learn, the Ferengi bow legged gate could become a subject of humour amongst other sentient races such that many Ferengi tried to eliminate that particular trait. In the privacy of his quarters, even Galdar was starting to practice the straight legged walk of many of the Federation and other races. The 'Hew-mon walk' Glem called it.

Back in the present, Galdar reached across the control dome and adjusted the course again. This problem was getting more frequent and unless Glem agreed to an overhaul of the port impulse engine when they reached Irtok it was soon going to get more serious. Galdar wasn't an engineer by any means but he was already finding that he had a fair grasp for some of the diagnosis and repair tasks required aboard ship.

"More trouble with the port engine, Galdar?", DaMon Glem was back, feeling more cheerful this time it appeared.

"Yes DaMon.", Galdar hesitated, "I think a maintenance sequence might be required at the next stop-over."

"Bah, more latinum.", the DaMon griped, "I was hoping to hold this off until we reached a Federation planet. They're much more...amenable to helping out with such things."

The first officer grinned a toothy grin, "What he means is 'more work for less pay'."

The three exchanged glances and chorused together, "Rule of Acquisition number 37, If it's free, take it and worry about hidden costs later."

Glem and his senior officer laughed heartily while Galdar lunged back to the control dome to correct another inadvertent lurch to port.

As the Depository came out of warp just beyond the Fellebian system, Galdar relinquished the control dome to the second officer and moved to the back of the bridge where DaMon Glem had summoned him.

"Good, Galdar, good." the DaMon almost purred as his junior pilot approached. "I see you've been paying attention these long months of trading. You are becoming skilled as a pilot and are a quite a quick study in other areas too."

Galdar nodded, keeping his eyes focused on Glem's knees as a sign of respect. He'd come to feel comfortable aboard the ship, most especially when manning the helm, but his DaMon continued to be a cause for concern. Not only was he unpredictable, he was becoming a little desperate in some of his business ventures too.

One of the reasons Galdar got this opportunity appeared to be because Glem was not a rising star of Ferengi business having suffered some major blows to his interests since the start of the Dominion war. Longer term, some of the partnerships he'd invested in looked like they would turn into solid opportunities and Galdar was fairly sure that Glem would survive but the short term held a few problems for him.

"DaMon, why did you wish to see me?" Galdar asked nervously.

"Don't rush me, boy. I'll get to that when the time is right. Conversation is like Oo-mox. You need to take it at the correct pace to achieve the desired result!" Glem leered at Galdar, who smirked uncomfortably in response. "I've complimented you, now you say nothing until I'm ready to discuss our business." Lowering his head to the PADD in his hands, DaMon Glem made a few notations as Galdar waited, apparently compiling some form of cargo manifest. Finally, he looked up again, catching Galdar's eye.

"Before we reach Fellebia, we have a little side trip to make.", the DaMon said briskly, "I'm going to leave you in charge of the bridge while we do so.", Glem stared at his young protege.

"Thank you, Da..."

"Save it for later. Just be sure you understand the privilege I'm bestowing on you...we'll discuss its relative value later." Glem leaned in closer to Galdar and lowered his voice as he continued. "Now, before we make for the planet, you will take us to the far side of the Fellebian sun and shut down all external sensors other than those solely used for navigation. You hold us in position, absolutely still relative to the star, until I give you orders to move. Is that clear?"

Behind Galdar, a signal lamp started to blink, distracting Glem from his interrogative. Waving Galdar away, he headed for his bridge chambers, the door grinding shut behind him cutting the younger Ferengi off from whatever was being said. With nothing to do on the bridge now his shift was over, Galdar shrugged and headed for the door and then his quarters.

Holding the Depository in a synchronous orbit of the Fellebian star was not a taxing issue for Galdar. Automatics handled most of the minor corrections required leaving the Ferengi with very little to do. With all external sensors shut down and most of the bridge screens blank as a result, there were very few distractions around to prevent Galdar worrying about what exactly they were doing here.

He'd already checked the data terminal as he did every couple of days. As the months had past he'd given up any hope of his mother contacting him but he still checked...just in case. Reaching a decision, he left the helm and the bridge and walked out onto the companionway behind. Sensors were shut down...but the ship still had windows.

"Two hundred and forty first rule", Galdar muttered to himself, "Never trust a hardworking employee". He pushed his way down to the port at the end of the corridor, edging past the small cargo containers stored there since their most recent spatial rendezvous. One thing that Galdar had noted about the Depository was that it spent a lot of time, when he was off shift, in open space between systems while Glem dealt with other ships and species. This was, presumably, another such run but it was the first time that they'd done anything in such close proximity to a star.

Finally reaching the window, Galdar pressed his nose to the transparent aluminium. He would see nothing if the ship they were meeting was aft of theirs but there was only a fifty percent chance of that and he may be lucky.

He was. As he watched, a ship dropped out of warp close in to the sun slowed for a moment, perhaps long enough to make a transport, then accelerated away and was gone before the Ferengi fully registered what he'd seen.

What are we doing receiving cargo from the Breen? thought Galdar. Shrugging, he worked his way back round the cargo and onto the bridge, arriving as a channel from the main deck crackled open and his DaMon's voice came through.

"Galdar, what are you doing? Get this ship moving. Take us away from the sun then out of the system. Once clear warp us round and come back in on the usual approach vector. We'll be up as soon as we've got this lot...we'll be up there soon. Glem out."

"Yes DaMon." Galdar muttered as he brought the impulse engines on line and turned the nose away from the sun.

As his dreams meshed with reality, Galdar sat up abruptly. The alarm that had intruded into his sleep and been incorporated into a half remembered family party was still sounding in the real world.

"Galdar to the bridge, now!" Glem's voice over the intra-ship com-channel was insistent, verging on the strident and it was apparent that something serious was up.

Pulling on a jumpsuit, he scrambled from his quarters with his boots in his hand and hobbled up the companionway to the bridge, fastening the clothing as he went. Getting there, the door seemed to take forever to open and when it finally did, the noise that washed out was incredible. Everyone seemed to be there and everyone was shouting. The ship was accelerating rapidly and it was completely unclear as to exactly what was going on.

"Galdar, helm! Evasive manoeuvers - whatever you can think up." Glem was desperate but controlled. Whatever was going on was serious.

Dropping his boots on an empty console, Galdar pushed his way to the helm and shoved the first officer out of the way. Under other circumstances he may have been more diplomatic with Barfas but with the current air of urgency, he figured it didn't matter.

Checking the sensor displays caused the Ferengi pilot to pale. Someone was chasing them down and whoever it was, clearly had an advantage in terms of speed.

"Have you raised them yet?" Glem shouted at the haplass Ferengi at the communications console.

"No, DaMon. They do not answer." he cowered as he spoke.

"Then try them again! Make them answer!"

A bolt of disruptor fire sizzled against the shields and systems across the bridge blinked out for one or two seconds in turn. Galdar banked the ship desperately as a second bolt came in, evading it beneath the hull. Around him, Ferengi clung to their consoles as the inertial dampers completely failed to compensate for the strain they were being put under.

"Bah!", muttered Galdar, "They have the advantage in firepower as well."

Rolling the Depository, Galdar reversed course and dove back towards the oncoming ship, trying to weave around the incoming fire as he did so. As the vessel loomed on the forward screen, a number of Ferengi crouched and screamed as they sensed their date with the Divine Treasury getting closer. Barfas, at least, kept a clear head and had powered up the Depository's weapons array, such as it was, and was using it against the aggressor.

"Why are we still here?" Glem screeched. "Get us out of here! Move! MOVE!"

Clenching his teeth, Galdar almost hissed, "They're emitting a subspace field of some sort. We can't form a stable warp bubble."

The com system chirped.

"Let's see them", Glem snapped.

Instead of a picture, a voice broke through the chaos over the now open channel. "I believe you have something that's soon to be mine. Stand down your weapons, lower your shields and prepare to be boarded."

No-one answered but the noise and chaos increased. Glem and Barfas disappeared into a corner, apparently holding a heated debate.

With a blur of light, a new ship appeared on the viewer, dropping out of warp directly behind the marauder as it turned to persue them once more. The new vessel was round with underslung nacelles and a weapons pod of some sort mounted on the top. Someone cheered but Glem didn't look completely overjoyed. Apparently some things were more important than being rescued.

Grabbing the arm of the first officer, the DaMon gestured wildly at the hatch. "OK, OK. Get that Breen stuff off this ship and do it fast!", Galdar blinked. So much for secret rendezvous, he thought.

Barfas nodded and scurried to the tertiary engineering console. With a whine of overstressed systems that ought to have overloaded at least one power relay, the first officer hit a control and the Breen cargo, whatever it had been, was transported into space as a stream of directed energy. With no destination, the energy stream would flow until it lost power and dissipated into the background noise of the universe. It was as effective a way of getting rid of unwanted matter as Galdar could think of...and he got the impression that it wasn't the first time the crew of the Depository had used it.

Swooping in behind the unidentified vessel, what Galdar would later be able to identify as a Nebula class starship matched velocities with ease. The bridge crew of the Depository watched the screens, fascinated, as a series of photon torpedoes blasted from the upper weapons array and skewered the rear shields of their attacker. A beam of coherent phaser energy from the saucer followed, spearing the ship which now broke off its persuit and turned to face its new opponent.

With the breathing room provided and the subspace field neutralised by the efforts of the new combatant, Galdar steadied the Depository and engaged the warp drive, moving as close into Altairian space as he dared before returning once more to normal space.

On Altair VI, Galdar stood at the top of a hill and looked out over the cityscape. Buildings rose to three sides but ahead was a swathe of green and blue, a vast open space amongst a mess of construction. The contrast was strangely beautiful.

Free of the ship for the moment, while Glem went off to do who knew what, Galdar was touring the city and enjoying the views. His father would have shaken his head in horror at the missed business opportunities but the son would not be swayed by such thoughts. Simply looking around this new planet and enjoying himself was enough for Galdar.

"Good evening", a human stood beside him, a red and black uniform marking him out from the numerous civilians of different species gathered around the hilltop.

"Er...hello?", Galdar stood back and looked at the stranger, a non-Ferengi to be sure, but one who was strangely intimidating.

The uniformed man smiled and some of that fierceness seemed to melt away. He settled his forearms onto the rail beside Galdar.

"Captain Paul Adams. U.S.S. Leeds. You were on the Depository when we finally caught up with it, I think?" The rising inflection at the end of the sentence was pure courtesy. Adams knew precisely whom he was addressing.

Galdar's guard came up anyway. "You're Starfleet. Yes, I was there."

Adams grinned, "Don't look so haunted! I'm not going to ask you about what was going on...or about the jettisoned cargo that your DaMon seemed so keen to avoid mentioning.", he nodded at Galdar's look of surprise, "Don't get me wrong, we're looking into it, but you're not an avenue of enquiry."

Relaxing a little, the Ferengi looked at the captain with a quizzical expression on his face. "If you're not here for the DaMon, you're here for...?"

"I'm here for you."

Galdar looked back at the parkland before him as a pair of Altairian swallows lifted from the trees to his left to dance a complex pattern across the sky. Lost in the intricate trajectories of the dance, Galdar almost forgot that Adams was present until the captain shuffled his feet and brought the shorter being back to earth with a bump.

"Wha...?", Galdar swallowed the lump that suddenly appeared in his throat and tried again, "What did I do?"

Adams laughed outright this time, a loud hearty, joyful sound that Galdar felt he could probably come to enjoy. It was completely different from the laughter of his people which was so often spiteful, callous and caused by the misfortune of others.

"You Mr...Galdar?", the pilot nodded, "You flew that big old ship like some sort of Romulan attack vessel. That's what you did! It was an extraordinary sight and one I will long remember." The captain laughed again until his eyes hardened, the laughter faded away and some of his earlier intimidating look returned. "I'm less impressed with the 'why' of your flight however. Be aware that your DaMon is not unknown to the Federation and is not the most...popular visitor. Is he family?"

It was Galdar's turn to laugh, a bitter, mocking sound when compared to that of the captain. "Family? No. Glem is my...escape route. Family is on Ferenginar."

Adams regarded him silently for a moment, head tilted to one side. "You want an escape route, Mr. Galdar?." Lapsing into silence again, the captain continued to regard the Ferengi. Finally, he shrugged. "Well, I've seen you fly a transport like a Reman fighter, how do you think you could do with a Federation shuttlecraft...or a starship?" Adams laughed again as he saw the effect his words had on the young pilot.

"Bu...Bu...But you don't know me," stammered his companion, "you know nothing about me, you don't trust my...colleagues, how can you be making such suggestions?"

Straightening, Captain Adams regarded him steadily. "No, I don't know you Galdar of Ferenginar but I do know Glem and the types of Ferengi he usually employs. You don't fit that mould."

"You've been following me." It wasn't a question, more a statement of resignation.

"Well...someone has." the Starfleet officer responded, "You've done an awful lot of sightseeing and very little business."

It was Galdar's turn to shuffle his feet. "Business isn't my thing."

"I'd figured as much."

Across the grassland before them, a group of school children burst from the trees, running and playing in the grass. Three adults hurried behind them, engaged in some serious conversation of their own. The sound of transport vehicles and the voices of others on the hill blended together to form a background bustle to Galdar's ears. A noise he had almost tuned out until it was broken by an unfamiliar chirp.

Startled Galdar looked to Adams, the question plain on his face.

"Adams to Leeds. Two to beam up. Energise."

Materialising on the transporter pad of a Federation starship was another new experience for Galdar. Until the Depository he'd not been on any form of space vessel and even now, months later he'd only been on Ferengi ships. Sure, he'd visited a couple of orbital stations but, to the pilot, they never seemed to have quite the same atmosphere as a 'proper' space vessel.

As the annular confinement beam released him, however, the joy of being on a ship again was not at the forefront of his mind. Reflexively he crouched, backing away from the captain and the Tellarite transporter operator toward the gleaming rear wall of the large circular platform. For the first time in his life, he wished he carried a weapon of some sort.

"What sort of treatment is this? Kidnap?" he hissed, trying to clamp down on the panic welling up inside him. His heart, already quick by Hew-mon standards appeared to have doubled its rate in the last five seconds and beads of sweat were breaking out on his exposed orange scalp.

"Sir?" the transporter chief enquired warily, reaching for his communicator but looking to the captain for guidance.

"At ease, chief." Adams said quietly. "Prepare to send Mr. Galdar back to the coordinates we just came from...if that's what he wishes." Adams turned and looked questioningly at the Ferengi.

Hesitantly, Galdar straightened a little and edged back toward the front of the pad.

"I was serious in what I suggested down on the planet," Adams continued, "I think you have some skills that Starfleet could use and I don't believe you to be wholly against the idea."

Straightening further, Galdar eyed the captain carefully, glancing at the Chief now and then, waiting for the trap that he was sure was being sprung on him. "You can't expect me to believe you would sign me into your Starfleet simply on the basis of one evasive flight. I don't believe you're that naive...and I don't believe you believe I'm that naive!"

Adams smiled briefly at the convoluted sentence but maintained eye contact with his visitor. "No, of course not, you're completely correct.", Galdar relaxed slightly, "I'm playing a hunch here and one that may fail dismally or backfire spectacularly but I'm going to play it anyway. Come with me if you're interested, go back down to the planet if you're not." So saying, Paul Adams turned on his heel and strode from the room. Galdar's gaze turned to the Tellarite who was busy doing something at the console, ignoring him completely.

"Oh hang it.", he finally muttered.

Stepping from the transporter he straightened his crew jacket and headed for the door.

"You know we're at war, Galdar?", Paul Adams asked. The Ferengi nodded but said nothing as he concentrated on flying the shuttle manually. A type nine wasn't the most complex Federation shuttle but it was fast and required fast reactions. Adams nodded too. "Good. Then you know that we need manpower and resources. Normally that sort of requirement is meat and drink to a Ferengi but what I've learnt from you over the past few days is that you really aren't like any other Ferengi I've ever met."

Passing full control back to the computer, Galdar turned in his seat. Out of the window, the stars around Altair VI were static with the planet growing in the forward view - they were flying at impulse today, Galdar's first run out in the type nine. From what he'd seen of the ship so far, he liked them.

"That is something I've been told many times, Captain. Normally by my father.", the bitter tones were not easily masked. "But given that this is the case, you must also assume that I am not as...emotionally stirred by your need for resources as are others of my species."

Adams sat back in his chair and steepled his fingers, "Pilots are also a resource and you, Mr Galdar seem to be quite an exceptional pilot."

The Ferengi inclined his head but his expression was deeply suspicious.

"You asked me the other day if I was going to sign you up and send you to the Academy instantly and of course I'm not. I'm starting to like you but there's no way I'd trust you that far this soon.", glancing out of the window, he saw that the dot that was the U.S.S Leeds was now visible against the planet. "All I'm proposing is that we...spend a little serious time together. Get to know one another properly, perhaps hone your skill a little and see where it goes from there. We have time before the entrance exams this year."

The captain reached out and tapped a panel on his console. "Adams to Leeds, request permission to dock.

"Cleared, sir." The response was crisp but respectful.

Galdar cleared his throat. "What you're proposing...captain...is that I walk away from my apprenticeship and the only opportunity I've had in Ferengi society on the off-chance that you decide you can get me a better flying career somewhere a lot more risky."

"Risky?", the starfleet officer leaned forward, his voice hardening perceptibly, "You think flying for Glem's not risky? Look back at your little escapade with the Orions last week", Galdar's surprise was evident, "Yes, that was a Syndicate ship you were playing with and it's not the first time we've seen it in this sector. I don't know what you were carrying or who for but you aroused some serious interest there."

Both men were silent as Galdar flew the shuttle neatly into the docking bay of the Leeds, Adams nodding in approval at the neat approach and landing. They left the shuttle together and continued in silence, walking back to the transporter and Galdar's 'ride home'. The pilot had taken a room in a hotel on the planet, as had a number of the Depository's crew, and Adams had begun beaming him directly to and from that location rather than risk being spotted beaming in and out in public. Not for his own protection but for Galdar's.

"The Depository leaves tomorrow Mr Galdar," Captain Adams stated as the Ferengi stepped up onto the transporter pad. "The Leeds will be in orbit for another three days after which we're going out on patrol. You can come with us on that patrol...if you want." The Starfleet officer turned to the Tellarite at the console. "Energise."

Standing beside Paul Adams on the bridge of the Federation starship Leeds, Galdar the Ferengi watched dispassionately as, on screen, the Glantor class Depository finally entered warp and departed the Altair system. They'd waited an hour beyond their planned departure, presumably looking for a missing pilot who was last seen leaving the ship with a bag of 'merchandise' earlier that morning.

From the Depository, Galdar had gone directly to his hotel to settle the bill and had transported from there to the Leeds. After half an hour settling into his new quarters, Adams had taken him on a more...detailed tour of the Nebula class ship than he'd had before, culminating with a visit to the bridge. There they had waited, monitoring the Depository and the increasingly strident communications traffic it was generating.

Finally, it had gone.

Turning to the Ferengi, Captain Adams held out a hand. "Congratulations Mr. Galdar. I'm glad to see you know how to apply the 277th Rule of Acquisition."

Galdar looked at the captain in surprise, taking the proferred hand but biting back his instinctive response. "Anything worth fighting for is worth hiding from?" he asked. "Ha. Acquisition is overrated." With a nod from the captain, he turned to the turbolift and left the bridge to find his quarters.

Joint backstory post by Feathers and Jen

Cadet Galdar sat at a quiet table in the corner of the cafeteria, trying to remain inconspicuous as he worked his way through a fairly generous helping of tube grubs. The place was quiet at this time of day, which was exactly why he was here. There were ten other people present in a facility that would seat many times that number, but none of them paid him any attention.

It would be unfair to say he was 'having problems', but there were a few 'unresolved issues' that he needed to find a way through. Apparently it was supposed to be character building, but sometimes it was simply easier to avoid flash points. In this case, he was not prepared to change his diet, nor retreat to his quarters to dine so eating alone at odd hours seemed to be the best compromise even though it severely limited the possibilities for social interaction with his fellow first years.

The old-style swing door crashed open, breaking into Galdar's reverie and making him jump. His pulse quickened perceptibly as a noisy bunch of primarily third year cadets entered. It looked like this particular form of 'resolution' has just failed spectacularly.

The Cadets, mostly human but with a Bolian and a Trill in their midst, stopped at the replicator bank while some of them ordered. After looking round the room, they moved in mass toward the Ferengi and took the next table.

"Galdar", said one in pseudo-respectful tones.

"Young", nodded Galdar in reply.

Cadet Young didn't look away after the greeting, but continued to watch the Ferengi as if waiting for something. Galdar sighed, nervously.

It always went down like this, no matter what Galdar did. He assumed it had started as general distaste at the prospect of eating live food, but it had grown from there into what he was sure was a great joke for the older Cadets but something that was beginning to unnerve him terribly.

Slowly, the other members of the group turned and stared at Cadet Galdar, waiting for him to take a handful of grubs. If he ate, they cheered. If he walked away, they booed. If he did nothing, they simply watched and waited.

They wouldn't talk to him other than in greeting and they never got bored.

I bet they wouldn't try this with a Klingon eating Gagh, he thought as he steeled himself to continue with his meal.

Ryla Emarrin turned back from the Ferengi to stare at her plate. She picked at it uncomfortably as the group laughed at Galdar. Danny Young's attitude toward the newcomer had become a source of contention between he and Ryla. The human was her boyfriend, though she wasn't really sure why. He was tall, dark and handsome...and rather pompous at times. The group laughed again as Galdar took another mouthful of tube grubs. The Trill sighed, shoved her chair back dramatically and rose from the table with her plate in hand.

The group turned to glance up at her. "A bit unappetizing isn't it?" Danny laughed.

The Trill flicked her eyes at Galdar and saw that he was watching. She couldn't ignore it anymore."Yes...your treatment of a fellow cadet turns my stomach."

Without another word, she strode out of the cafeteria to eat alone in the quad.

In the ensuing silence, Galdar turned his attention briefly back to his bowl and took an especially large handful of live grubs. Waiting until he caught the eye of the Trill's erstwhile friend, he opened his mouth wide and deposited the wriggling mass squarely in the centre of his tongue before closing his mouth and chewing vigorously. When that cadet eventually looked away, he turned his gaze to the occupant of the next seat and continued to eat.

Joint backstory post by Feathers and Jen

Galdar blinked as he left the confines of the Academy building and entered the relatively bright light of the surrounding grounds. As soon as he was clear of the doorway, he stepped to one side, taking himself out of the flow of people...and 'other' people. He smiled as he realized that he was reacting to the sheer number of different species, in this place where he himself was an alien. It amused him, but also saddened him in a way he couldn't quite define.

He made his way slowly across the neatly clipped grass to a patch of shade beneath an old oak and lowered himself to the ground. He had a an hour until his next class and not a lot to fill the time with. On such occasions he had taken to sitting outside with a PADD and looking across the well tended lawns and flowering shrubs, enjoying the simple lack of rain. Weather control was a marvelous innovation!

"Ryla! Wait up!"

The shout from behind him almost deafened Galdar and his hands jumped automatically to his ears; he clamped down hard with his jaw to contain the screech that was fighting its way out. The person who had shouted, oblivious to the discomfort she'd caused him, jogged past Galdar and down the path toward a Trill who'd stopped and turned at her call.

"Oh... Hi Kate," said the shorter female with yellow hair that was worn in a little 'tail' at the back of her head.

"Where have you been!?" asked the hew-mon, black hair pouring over her shoulders.

"Studying... I have an exam on Vulcan physiology in a few days."

"If I were a Vulcan, I would tell you that studying for exams is superfluous. Ryla Emarrin learns everything she knows through osmosis or something... You never make less than a 4.0 in any subject."

"That's because I study, Kate," said Ryla with a dimpled smile.

"Not this much! There's something else keeping you away...are you still mad at Danny? He's been moping about ever since you bailed on us at lunch last week."

"Good..." said Ryla in a victorious soprano.

Kate gave her a friendly shove, "you know we were just having a little fun..."

"...at another cadet's expense. I'm sure it wasn't fun for him," interrupted the Trill as she looked up at the hew-mon.

Kate changed the subject, "Are you going to the Sadie Hawkins dance?"

"Not with Danny," replied the spotted female with a tone that Galdar assumed was intended to be cold, but sounded strange coming from one who appeared so friendly.

"Oh, come on...this is silly. If you don't come, I'm going to be the only girl in our group to go."

"Make sure you save a dance for Danny," said the Trill as a Bolian cadet brushed past them.

As their conversation trailed off, Galdar was distracted by a polite throat clearing to his left. Turning, he found himself staring up at the same rotund Bolian, who was smiling nervously and extending a hand towards in his direction.

"Cadet. Excuse me. I was wondering if you might spare me a moment as I'm in the middle of studying the second year economics module and have reached the point of examining some of the specific commercial practices within the Ferengi Alliance and, being not so much of an expert in these areas as perhaps some others of my race are, I was wondering if you might be able to spare me some time to discuss some of the politico-religious ramifications of the..." The cadet broke off from his break-neck delivery and stopped in confusion as Galdar simply grinned at him. The Ferengi levered himself to his feet, took the proferred hand and shook it hew-mon fashion.

"Galdar." he said. "First year."

"Rolan", said the Bolian. Galdar assumed that was his name.

"Well, Rolan, I'm not the best Ferengi to speak of the workings of the economic and religious systems behind the Alliance, nor are they my favourite topics for discussion...but I have a free hour and would be happy for the company. Sit..." Gesturing to the grass beside him, he sank back down.

As Kate continued to petition Ryla, the Trill glanced over the other woman's shoulder and noticed the Ferengi. She had been meaning to make amends for the behavior of her 'friends', but hadn't found the right time to approach him. The last thing she wanted to do was embarrass him further by mentioning it around other people.  "I'll talk to you later, Kate..."

Ryla made her way toward Galdar, pausing only briefly to offer Boothby a kind word. The old gardener presented her with a daisy and a smile before she continued to Galdar's oak.

"You're sitting under my favorite tree, Mr. Galdar... But I'd be willing to share it if you are," she couldn't hold the straight face for long. The dimples she hated soon appeared in her cheeks as she offered him an outstretched hand. "Cadet Emarrin. Second year. But you can call me Ryla."

Galdar looked surprised for a moment, but quickly stood again. Bowing his head slightly, he took her hand and shook it gently. "It appears you know me already...Ryla," he said, still slightly hesitant, then nodded at the blue figure beside him. "This is Rolan. If you're happy to share the shade, feel free to take a piece of lawn...I was just expressing my desire for some company for a change."

Ryla laughed, "Oh...I'm perfectly willing to share." She then lowered her voice to a hush and glanced from Galdar to Rolan, "it's not really my favorite tree." The petite woman then pointed to a Trill Elm, "that one is...it reminds me of home."

Nodding to one another, the Ferengi and Bolian admired her tree from a distance as she sat on the grass beside them, "I'm pleased to meet you both. I hope I'm not interrupting."

The Bolian shrugged, a gentle, almost graceful movement in one so large. "Not at all Cadet Emarrin. I was asking Cadet Galdar to help with a study I'm conducting of some of the more difficult aspects of the...", he tailed off as he had earlier, looked down then back at the others with an embarrassed grin. Taking a deep breath, he started again. "No problem. I was asking Galdar's help with a study topic, but I have plenty of time to complete the assignment. I need not do it today."

Galdar grinned again. Rolan rushed out his words as if they might bite him if he didn't get through them quickly enough. Glancing at Ryla, he saw that she too had picked up on it and his grin widened in response.

"I'm happy to give you some pointers Rolan," he said, still smiling. "But I should warn you that in my education on these topics I was a severe disappointment to my family." His smile slipped as he spoke and he lapsed into a melancholy silence for a moment once he finished.

A breeze rustled the leaves above his head and someone laughed gently behind them at a whispered endearment he wasn't supposed to hear. He glanced from Rolan to Ryla and the unexpected company was enough to shake him out of his mood.

"So", he began slowly, "Rolan has an interest in macro-economics, I'm here to fly things and Ryla...is...a doctor." The surprise in her eyes brought a laugh to his voice as he tapped his right ear with an orange finger and said simply, "Vulcan physiology."

"I'm impressed," she said with a grin. "I assumed you noticed the division insignia on my jacket. Oh, I'm not a doctor yet, Mr. Galdar...but I will be." She looked up at the oak's massive canopy to watch the sparrows chittering above them. "I haven't had the honor of meeting a Ferengi until today, and I consider myself to be well traveled." She turned her gaze back to Galdar, " How about you? Has your love of flying taken you to many places?"

"Not yet...although I hope to be able to change that in a few years. No, at the moment, I think the sum of planets visited stands at...four." He solemnly raised four fingers of one hand and began to count them off as he talked.

"Not counting Ferenginar itself, where I was born, I've visited Irtok, which is in the Alliance so probably doesn't count, Fellibia which is an...interesting place, Altair VI and now Earth." Folding his last finger, he dropped his hands to his lap, idly toying with his forgotten PADD. "How does that compare with the planetfalls of a 'well travelled' Trill? Or a Bolian, Rolan?"

Rolan blinked a few times and shook his head, "that's why I enrolled in the academy."

"I'd say that's as good a reason as any," said Ryla as she stood and brushed the grass off her black uniform. "Well, this well-traveled Trill has a lecture to get to," she added with a wink.

As she reached for her bag, Galdar touched her wrist briefly, causing her to look back at him as he sat. "Thanks", he muttered, embarrassed now that he had her attention, "for..."

Ryla shook her head slightly and cut him off with another smile, "I'll see you around."

Joint backstory post by Feathers and Jen

Every day, weather permitting, Ryla Emarrin had her lunch beneath the large oak with Galdar and Rolan. It had been a couple of weeks since she first met the cadets, and afterward she decided that their company was much more enjoyable than that of Danny and Kate. For starters, her new friends were interesting. Galdar could recite the Rules Of Acquisition at the drop of a hat and Rolan had the unique ability to choose obscure words and use them in complete, rapid fire sentences. They were characters who had character and Ryla was never bored, embarrassed or offended by them.

"It's not a done deal by any means," said Ryla with a melodic chuckle. "Host initiates must pass all required tests and have their application approved by the Symbiosis Commission in order to become joined. And the competition is stiff... there are more hosts than symbionts... there's no guarantee that I'll be selected."

Galdar struggled to contain his feelings but some of them leaked into his voice as he spoke, "But to let them put some...thing inside you. How can that be such an privilege? It's like..."

Rolan leaped onto the end of sentence finishing it before the Ferengi could dig too big a hole for himself, "It's like strangely coloured people eating live food!" he exclaimed, pantomiming a disgusted face at his friend before collapsing into laughter.

A blue tinge rapidly climbed Galdar's cheeks, the blush spreading to his neck as he rewound the conversation in his head. "Sorry," he said contritely "What little I know of Federation members is what I've learnt here at the Academy. I guess we haven't reached the Trill yet."

"What do think your chances of selection really are?", the Bolian inquired once he'd recovered his composure.

Though Ryla was emotionally sensitive, she was not easily disgruntled; her slightly faded smile did not fall away completely at Galdar's comment. He was simply inexperienced with regards to other species. She patiently addressed Galdar before answering Rolan's question. "The symbionts are sentient beings, not 'things' and our two peoples are made whole when we are combined." Ryla turned to the Bolian and shrugged, "there are only 300 symbionts available for hosting each year. Because there are many more humanoid Trill than symbionts the chances that I would be chosen are very slim."

Colour returning to normal, Galdar tried to redeem himself. "Can you...talk to your...partner once joined? Do they become 'you' or do you take it in turns to use the shared body?"

Rolling his eyes, Rolan looked at Ryla. As a member of a Federation native species the Bolian had a leg up on his Ferengi friend but by no means did he knew everything about every member race. "It's called 'joining' for a reason, Galdar. From what little I know, both host and symbiont remain but not as individuals. More as a sort of 'blend' of the two characters. My uncle explained it to me once, he worked with a joined Trill for a while."

"I didn't know you had such an ample understanding of the Trill, Rolan," said Ryla with a broadening smile. She turned her brown eyes back to the Ferengi, "I'm still learning about it all myself."

A shadow fell across the petite blond as another cadet approached them. Without a word, Cadet Young gestured for Ryla to follow him. She leered at him a moment before getting to her feet. "Excuse me," she said to Galdar and Rolan, "I'll be right back."

She wandered a few feet away to hear what Danny had to say.

"What do you want?" Asked the Trill in a lowered voice.

"You've ignored all my communiques and avoided me for days. Since you haven't told me whether or not your going with me to the Sadie Hawkins dance, I figured you were made at me about something..."

"...You think?"

Danny smirked, "I hoped that you would accept my apology and let me to take you to the dance next week."

She glared up at the much taller cadet, "You don't owe me an apology. You owe Galdar one."

He laughed, "If that's what it takes to get you to talk to me again, I'll do it right now!" He turned on his heel and strode back to the oak tree. Clearing his throat he looked down at the Ferengi, "Cadet Galdar, I've been informed that I owe you an apology.... I'm... sorry." He forced the latter sentence out with great effort and flicked his gaze to the Trill. "Will you go to the dance with me?"

"You're too late," she replied nonchalantly. "I already told Galdar I was going with him." Ryla glanced at the Ferengi with an expression that he quickly translated as: 'just play along'.

Young looked down at the orange cadet and read the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as confirmation of Ryla's words. Galdar raised a hairless eyebrow in a Vulcan-like inquiry but kept silent. After his slip-up about the symbiont, the least he could do was follow her lead. Besides, he'd heard most of what she'd said to the hew-mon despite their moving away and appreciated the point she was making.

What he wasn't so sure about was the dance, nor did he understand why Young seemed so insistent on talking Ryla to it. Over the past weeks he'd come to admire her for her personality and strength of character but those weren't characteristics that normally got one invited to parties.

Danny's face instantly turned beet red with frustration, "You're serious?!"

"Yes," she replied smoothly.

Cadet Young stared at her in shock a moment longer before storming away. Ryla watched him go in silence then turned back to Galdar. "You can dance... can't you?"

Looking at Ryla, Galdar slowly shook his head, the smile still tugging at his lips "I've never had the need to learn." he said.

She smiled, "By the way, thank you. You don't have to go, I was just trying to get out of going with Danny. I'd be happy to teach you both how to cut a rug... It could come in handy in the future. There will be instances where, as officers, we will be expected to attend formal events—dancing may be a part of the festivities. It's not required, but it's always more fun to take part rather than watching everyone else."

Galdar got to his feet and stood in front of Ryla Emarrin. Putting one hand flat on the top of his head, he moved it over toward the Trill to illustrate the height difference between them. When his hand touched her chin, he dropped it to his side having made his point. "I'm not sure I'm cut out for dancing", he said, "but I'm willing to learn if you're willing to teach."

"You'll be doing the Tango in no time."

Joint backstory post by Feathers and Jen

"Ouch! Careful where you put your boots Galdar..." said the Trill as she and her dancing partner clumsily moved about his dorm room. "Computer, pause music." The waltz abruptly ceased. "Don't watch your feet...it will trip you up. You have to look your partner in the eye and anticipate her moves." They began again without the music, "There you go...see...you can do it."

The Ferengi nodded but didn't speak, so hard was he concentrating on what he was doing. In truth, he didn't think he was too bad for a beginner and was surprised to find the lesson holding unexpected appeal. As a pilot and navigator, coordination of movement, direction and speed, was where he specialised and in an abstract sense, dancing was nothing more than a different expression of this discipline.

"But boots are maybe not the most appropriate footware for this exercise", Galdar muttered as he struggled round the room and looking down at his feet again. Realizing he'd spoken aloud, he looked back up at his partner "Sorry...stray thought."

"Not at all...actually many people dance in boots and have no problem at all doing so. It's just going to take a bit of practice, that's all. Before long, you'll be leading and I'll be following!"

"Whew! Let's breathe for a minute, I can feel muscles tightening that I didn't know I had. If nothing else I seem to be getting a good workout!" So saying, Galdar released Ryla and collapsed into one of the chairs that they'd pushed to the side of the room. Catching the disapproving glance from his teacher, he raised a hand. "Really, I just need five minutes."

Joint backstory post by Feathers and Jen

Five weeks later the Sadie Hawkins Dance had arrived. A very good holographic representation of the Glenn Miller Orchestra, was playing swing music on the stage within the great hall. "Sun Valley Jump" echoed in the hall as dancers shuffled past Ryla and Galdar's table. The Trill's smile spread as the trumpet and sax solos dueled one another for dominance in the piece. The rhythm was so intense that it seemed to pound in sync with her heart, but it didn't seem to bother the sensitive Ferengi. He was tapping the toe of his boot to the beat and patting his knees in time with the drums.

Many weeks of practice had made Galdar fairly confident. When "I want to Be Happy" began to play, he wasted no time in hauling Ryla to her feet and escorting her to the floor—spinning, dancing and laughing as they went. Almost instantly they began to a draw the attention of fellow cadets, distinguished guests and professors alike.

"I guess they've never seen a Trill and a Ferengi strut their stuff?" Ryla shouted over the cacophony of horns and drums. It wasn't necessary, what with Galdar's exceptional hearing, but she could barely hear her own voice. The fast pace required concentration so their chat was held to a minimum. They hardly noticed the fact that no one had followed them to the floor.

Their feet were a black blur of stomping and shuffling polished boots as they spun about one another, sometimes close, sometimes at the full length of their outstretched arms. Galdar grinned, exhillarated by the sheer freedom of the motion and surprised at the ease with which he'd thrown himself into it. It was one thing to practice in private, quite another to 'perform' in public.

It was probably the thought of performing that caused him to look about the room and discover their lone status on the floor. Stumbling briefly at the impact of the realization, he caught himself quickly and continued the dance but the surprise in his eyes soon communicated itself to his partner.

Ryla shrugged as they shuffled apart before dancing back together again. Their hands met and the Trill was spun then lifted and flipped backwards over the Ferengi's head. That was the moment that the applause errupted and the spotlight found them. The grin slowly returned to Galdar's face—he was begining to enjoy the attention. Dimples accompanied Ryla's quick smile and she winked at her friend. The big finish was coming and the crowd anticipated a spectacular ending. They inched closer together, palms up and shaking to the beat. Galdar and Ryla counted, waiting for the proper timing for their finale. "1, 2, 3" they mouthed in unison. Ryla aided his leap with a quick boost which allowed him to spring over her in a somersault. He pivoted and met his partner again before ending the dance with a dramatic dip. Ryla's hair swept the dance floor as she stared at the applauding crowd from her upside down vantage point. From that position, through the haze of the spotlight, she watched as Galdar nodded to the clapping spectators. An instant later, her eye began to track a round object, silhouetted by the light, that was rapidly growing in size as it sliced through the air. Ryla tried to pull herself up from the dip to avoid the projectile, but the object struck her in the face and splattered all over her partner's crisp dress uniform. The cheering instantly turned to sympathetic moans...

Joint backstory post by Feathers and Jen

Cadet Galdar slipped quickly into Cadet Emarrin's quarters and waited for the door to fully close before speaking. In truth there was no reason why he shouldn't be there, or why he should be sneaking around, but something about the task they were about to undertake had brought out his hitherto unknown melodramatic side.

"I've got the tricorder." he announced as the door finally sealed itself. "and the access codes weren't that difficult to crack. We're good to go if you want to."

The room's occupant lifted her head from her PADD and simply looked at him.

"What?", Galdar asked innocently, "Yes, I'm a Starfleet cadet...but I am a Ferengi Starfleet cadet." Putting down what he was carrying, he allowed a note of uncertainty to enter his voice and asked the question he'd tried to suppress. "Ryla, are you sure we should do this?"

"He deserves it, Galdar. I know it's impossible to prove to the Admiral that he is the culprit, but it was Danny who threw that fruit at us...I'm certain of it. He's bragged about pulling stunts like this before...and he was very angry at me for going to the dance with you instead of him." She harrumphed as she crossed her arms. "I'll admit, I'm a little nervous about doing this, but I refuse to be a victim Galdar. It's time Danny Young learns a little lesson in humility."

"Yes, but are you really sure it's safe? I don't want to injure anyone." Galdar still looked worried but Ryla's usual confident air, even slightly dented, was restoring his own strength of will.

"Trust me, all we have to do is tune the shower to the proper frequency. It won't harm anything but his pride. Danny won't know the results of our little operation until he wakes up the next morning as bald as you are.... not that there's anything wrong with that mind you," she paused her nervous pacing and gave him a quick apologetic smile before continuing. "Consider our response a sonic strike on the rapidly spreading empire known as 'his ego'." She stopped before Galdar and lifted her chin, "he won't know what hit him..."

A Ferengi grin is never a pleasant sight, but this one had an edge to it that Ryla hadn't seen in her friend's face before. Running a hand over his head, Galdar moved toward the door once again. "Sharing some of my beauty with another cadet, particularly one as ugly as Danny...why that's such a generous act." he announced. "Let's do it!" Glancing back at his co-conspiritor, he plucked his com-badge from his chest and threw it into one of her chairs, gesturing for her to do the same.

Slipping out of Ryla's quarters, the two left the building and headed across the campus to Danny's accommodation block. Above them, the sky was a deep blue-black and many stars were visible. Some clouds appeared to be lurking out toward the ocean but for the moment, at least, the sky above was clear and dry. On another night and with another female this could be quite romantic, Galdar thought.

Entering the block was easy enough but getting to Danny's room was a little more tricky. The tricorder Galdar carried was emitting a wideband interference signal such that the standard Academy security systems ought not to be able to detect them. They couldn't walk through walls, however, and they couldn't scale buildings so they had to risk the doors and the lifts. It would be recorded that they'd been used, but hopefully nothing would remain on record to reveal who'd used them.

As they approached the door they wanted, a burst of laughter from in front stopped them in their tracks.

"Great...it's Kate and Danny." The laughing couple rounded a corner as Galdar and Ryla tucked themselves into an adjoining hallway. The Trill watched as her former gal-pal kissed her ex-boy friend, the spots on her forehead elongating as her brows pushed them into her hairline. "This an interesting development," she whispered.

"Shhhhhh," came Galdar's reply.

"Well...they are better suited I supposed. Both of them are pretty shallow," she said in a voice that would be indiscernible to any but the Ferengi standing near her. A moment later, the new couple proceeded in the opposite direction, clearing the way for Operation Sonic Strike.

"Come on Galdi...let's get this over with," said Ryla as she slithered in towards Cadet Young's quarters.

Following in her wake, Galdar listened for any further sounds of approaching company. This was one of the most exposed points in their plan as any passer by could easily identify them. While they hadn't done anything worthy of note yet, that wouldn't be true for much longer.

Ryla nodded at Young's door as she passed it but continued walking until she reached the next turn in the corridor. Galdar stopped at the door, crouching in front of the access panel, and carefully entered the override code he'd obtained earlier that evening. The wait for the command to activate was agonising and the Ferengi could feel the perspiration cooling on his neck as he waited to be discovered. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the door opened and the orange cadet slipped inside, his spotted companion following closely behind him.

"Right, you're sure about the frequency and the period we need to configure?", the Ferengi hissed as they moved into the room. "From what you said, I assume we need to hit him with a controlled burst but leave the shower to function normally for the remainder of the time?"

"Affirmative," Ryla snapped crisply as she wandered through Danny's messy quarters, crinkling her nose at the dirty laundry strewn about his room. "It seems he became a tad bit messier after we broke up...what a pig."

"No offense, but with regards to cleanliness your own quarters are just a step above this mess. " replied Galdar.

She frowned at the comparison, "Ppplease...there's a huge difference between my quarters and this cesspool...I organize my chaos into little piles."

The chronic neat freak returned her frown as he made his way toward their target. The door to the head hissed open for them and Ryla gestured with a flourish for Galdar to enter.

With an exaggerated nod, the Ferengi ducked past her and knelt to remove the shower control access panel. Opening his tricorder, he checked the interference field was still operating before placing it, open, on the top of the counter. "It'll squeal if someone comes anywhere near us.", he told his companion as he bent to his task.

Once the shower interface was accessible, it was a simple enough job to access the functions he needed to change. Having already worked through these sequences in his own quarters, his fingers tripped quickly over the required controls.

"Can you program it to return to it's original settings in 12 hours?", Ryla hissed, trying not to interrupt his concentration. Galdar simply nodded and carried on working.

After what felt like an age to the Trill but was only two and a half minutes on the clock, Galdar sat back with a satisfied sigh and started to restore the room to it's original state. "Done.", he whispered, "It's set for a thirty second burst five minutes into the cycle with a repeat after ten minutes. It'll stay in that configuration for twelve hours and then reset to standard operating parameters." Pocketing the tricorder, he found it hard to resist the temptation to giggle inanely.

"This time tomorrow, bodily hair will be a completely alien concept to Cadet Danny Young...and anyone else who may use his shower!" Looking round the room again, another funny thought struck him. "You know, we could have configured his plumbing for a Bolian...THAT would be something I'd PAY to see. I suspect the medical attention he'd require afterwards would move the attempt from a prank to an assault, however."

Silently, the two cadets moved back to the entrance, scanning the corridor from inside before opening the door and slipping out.

It took only ten minutes for them to get back to Ryla's quarters. After they entered, the Trill turned and offered her friend a hand, "It's been a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Galdar. I have no doubt that our little venture will pay off tomorrow. I suggest that we have our lunch in the dining hall in order to savor the fruits of our labor." After a brief silence her serious expression failed and a boisterous laugh escaped through snorts before erupting into uncontrollable laughter. "I'll see you tomorrow," she managed to say between her gasps and giggles.

Kobayashi Maru - Part 1

As the Ready Room door hissed shut behind him, Galdar surveyed the bridge of the U.S.S. Venture, his new Galaxy class command. Absentmindedly, he ran his fingers over the four gleaming rank pips attached to his uniform as he watched his crew labour at their stations, some talking quietly, others fully absorbed in their duties. The large curved viewscreen displayed a familiar, smeared star field, indicative of the high warp velocity at which they travelled, while diagnostic monitors around the walls and on the consoles displayed status readouts in reassuring yellows and oranges.

From the Tactical station at the bridge rail Commander Paul Gibson, his first officer, nodded to him as Galdar moved to the middle of the room and took his place in the centre seat. Unbidden, his face was split by a large and very toothy grin as he fingered his rank pips again.

"Enjoying yourself?", the woman to his left asked quietly.

"A little...Lieutenant Commander." Galdar answered, emphasising the rank and fighting to keep the elation from his voice. He thought he'd made a credible effort, but turning to Ryla Drett, the Venture's CMO, he could see he'd failed by the suppressed mirth in her eyes.

"We're on schedule for arrival at Galorndon Core in sixteen minutes, Captain.", Commander Gibson stated as he came round the rail to sit to the right of the Ferengi.

"Very well, Mister Gibson", Galdar said, carefully schooling his face. He allowed himself to settle back in the chair and placed one hand on each arm, feeling the grain of the fine leather beneath his fingers.

"Captain, I'm receiving a distress call." The Bolian Operations Officer spoke calmly but Galdar could detect an element of tension in the blue woman's voice.

"Good Luck.", Ryla whispered, too quietly for anyone but the Ferengi to hear.

"Let's hear it." Gibson called.

A blast of static and interference crashed from the speakers making Galdar and a number of other officers wince. Then, crackling and broken by distortion, words almost incomprehensible and the pauses between them long enough that Galdar feared they'd lost the signal, the message started to come through. "...distress call...we are adrift and life support....failing...Alg#&$# system...any ship...Kobayashi Maru....". The Ops Officer cut the noise with the stab of a blue finger.

Galdar nodded his thanks. "Do what you can to clean it up, Lieutenant, but I get the general drift." he said, leaning forward slightly in the now overly comfortable chair.

His first officer turned to him in confusion but Galdar simply glanced at him, grinned and tapped at an ear lobe. "Ferengi hearing, Paul. Possibly better even than Vulcans." Turning back to the viewscreen he called out, "Helm, plot a course for the Algeron system, and increase speed to Warp 8.5. Tactical, take us to Yellow Alert. Ops, try and get an acknowledgement through to the Kobayashi Maru and get a message out to command informing them of our...change of plan."

"May I remind the Captain that Algeron is centred squarely in the Romulan Neutral Zone?", Commander Gibson asked quietly once Galdar had finished.

"You may," Galdar replied, turning towards him, "but what else can we do?" Straightening, he raised his voice. "Helm, when we reach the Neutral Zone, bring us out of warp and hold us in position on the edge of Federation space." He looked back at Paul. "Satisfied?" he asked.

Gibson simply nodded and sat back in his chair, checking status and readiness reports on the arm console.

It took fifteen minutes for the ship to reach the Neutral Zone and Galdar could feel the tension of his crew ramping up as they got closer. He was doing a round of the bridge when he finally felt the ship drop out of warp and was halfway back to his chair when Ensign Skooda called out from the helm "Sir! We are at the edge of the Neutral Zone nearest to the Algeron system. Holding position as ordered."

"Tactical, what have we got?", called Galdar, dropping into his seat.

"Sensors have the Kobayashi Maru at three hundred thousand kilometres from the Algeron sun, Captain. It's stationary, looks to be venting drive plasma and their warp core containment stability is compromised. All appearances are consistent with some sort of accident."

"Life-signs?", asked Paul Gibson.

"Just over three hundred, Sir. Various species. Human, a few Vulcan, some Klingon and others."

"Open a channel", Galdar commanded.

"Channel open."

The Ferengi stood again and took a pace forward, raising his head as he did so. "This is Captain Galdar of the U.S.S. Venture to the Kobayashi Maru....

"Kobayashi Maru respond...."

"Nothing Captain."

"Very well." Galdar turned first to Ryla and then to his first officer. "Doctor Emarr...Drett", an apologetic smile flickered across his lips, "have your team prepare to receive casualties. Mr Gibson, you have the bridge. I'm taking a shuttle into the Neutral Zone."

"Sir?", Paul Gibson looked confused and Galdar realised that he'd jumped too far ahead in the scenario playing out in his mind. Taking a deep breath, he chided himself and mentally stepped back a couple of paces.

"This may not be as clean cut as it looks Paul, so I'm taking a shuttle into the Zone. Once I've assessed the state of play I'll call you in if I need to. Until that time, hold position here.

"Under NO circumstances will you attempt to enter the Neutral Zone without my express orders."

"With all due respect....No Sir.", Commander Gibson stiffened as he spoke, trying to convey respect for his superior officer while preparing to disobey his orders.

Galdar's shoulders dropped slightly and he was distressed to hear a pleading tone enter his voice. "Paul, you must see the risks here as well as I do? Would you take the ship into the Neutral Zone without assessing the situation first?"

Gibson leaned toward him and lowered his voice almost to a whisper. "Sir, this is not about what I would or wouldn't do." He paused as a new thought struck him, "You know they may not have the time for us to run a shuttle reconnaissance?"

"Yes," Galdar responded, at a similar volume, "but it's a chance we'll have to take. I can't take the ship in and ignore the risks and I can't abandon them and run away. I'm looking for another option and a shuttle craft looks to be it. It's small, maneuverable....harder to hit in a firefight..."

"I'm not questioning your tactics but your choice of personnel assignment. As the Captain your post is here. Someone else needs to take that shuttle, Sir. Probably me." Straightening again, Paul Gibson took a step back but maintained eye contact with his orange skinned superior. To his left he was aware of Lieutenant Armok, studiously avoiding the discussion playing out below him.

"Paul...I can't ask...", Galdar stopped then sighed theatrically. Looking round the bridge, he raised his voice to it's normal level and began again, "Very well. Mr Gibson, it appears you have me out voted." Someone laughed. "Take a shuttle and proceed to the coordinates of the Kobayashi Maru and assess her status. If this all looks to be genuine, I'll bring the ship in behind you and we can begin rescue operations. If ANYTHING untoward occurs, however, if you even get a sniff of something out of the ordinary you will turn around and get back here.

"If all else fails, we'll try and keep a transporter lock on you."

Lowering his voice again, he took a step forward, "...and if the worst happens then you know what I'll have to do?" He looked briefly down at the floor until he remembered his rank and pulled his head up sharply to look his first officer in the eye.

Paul Gibson nodded once as he met his Captain's gaze.

Turning, he acknowledged the other members of the bridge crew and strode to the lower turbolift. Tapping his com-badge as the doors glided open, he stepped into the car. "Gibson to shuttle bay...".

As the lift doors closed, Galdar felt his shoulders start to drop again and quickly sank into his command chair to mask the telltale sign. Beside him, he heard Ryla stir but she said nothing. Still, he took comfort from her familiar presence.

"Mr Armok. Clear the Commander's shuttle for launch and keep a tight sensor lock on her. I want to know everything she does and to see everything she sees." He stabbed at a control on the arm of his chair, "Bridge to Transporter Room 1"

"Sir?", the female voice crackled slightly At Ops, the Bolian Lieutenant reached for a control.

"We're about to launch a shuttle to reconnoitre the Neutral Zone, Chief. From the moment it leaves the ship I want you to get a lock on Commander Gibson and keep it on him. At the first sign of trouble I want him out of that ship."

"Aye Sir.", clearer this time. The Ops officer smiled.

As he waited for Paul to prep the shuttle and depart, Galdar contemplated his next move. If the distress call was genuine then he stood to face some questions if the delay due to sending a shuttle resulted in the loss of the ship and its passengers. If it were not, or the Romulans were using the Maru as bait then different questions would be asked - prime among them from the family of his first officer.

"Shuttle is entering the Neutral Zone.", the Tactical Officer eventually stated, cutting across Galdar's thoughts.

"On screen." Galdar snapped and the star field before them was replaced with the image of a type 9 starfleet shuttlecraft heading away from the ship.

A bead of sweat ran down the back of his head from the point where it met the leather of the command chair. Somewhere deep down he acknowledged the simulated nature of this mission but with modern holo-technology, everything his senses detected told him that this was genuine. From the hiss of the environmental systems and the electrical hum of the control interfaces to the slight ozone tang in the air mixed with the aroma of the crew...everything felt real.

"Sir!", the Bolian Lieutenant called, causing Galdar to flinch involuntarily, "I'm losing the cargo ship...she's gone, Sir."

Jumping from his seat, the Ferengi crossed to the Ops console. "Gone? Where? How?"

"She...just sort of faded out Sir. I didn't see an explosion and I didn't detect any weapons."

"Status of the shuttle?", Galdar snapped, turning to Lieutenant Armok at the Tactical console.

"Shuttle is..." the human's voice tailed off as on the screen before them all, a large green birdlike vessel shimmered into being between the shuttle and the Venture.

"Galdar to transporter room!", shouted the captain, thumping the com-badge on his chest, "Get Mr. Gibson back aboard. NOW!"

"Sorry sir,", the chief's voice sounded worried, "transporter lock was interrupted three seconds ago."

On screen the shuttle suddenly rolled to the left as a bolt of disruptor fire speared the space where she had been. A glittering, shimmering sphere briefly glowed...and Galdar groaned. With shields up, Paul Gibson was now on his own.

"Options?", he called.

No-one responded.

Galdar walked back to his chair, seated himself and looked around at the officers making up his bridge crew. He'd sprung the Romulan trap with the shuttle and revealed the situation for what it was...his gamble had paid off and he was now clear to do an about turn and run away with his ship and crew intact...but without his first officer.

In reality, Paul Gibson was a fourth year Academy student picked to play out the First Officer role in this test. Galdar had never spoken to him before today and would possibly never speak to him again. This wasn't reality, this was a simulation...a test...a scenario, but one that he had been repeatedly told to treat as he would the real thing.

Briefly locking eyes with those of Ryla Drett, he pressed a button on the arm of his chair and cleared his throat.

"All hands, this is the Captain.", he took a deep breath and released it slowly. "Battle stations."

Kobayashi Maru - Part 2

As the deep alert klaxon sounded across the bridge and red strip lights flared along the walls, Galdar sat forward in the chair. "Mr Armok. Raise shields, arm phasers and torpedoes. Ops, reroute as much power as we can spare to the shields and keep them up for as long as you can."

"Aye, Sir."

"Helm, take us into the Neutral Zone, full impulse."

"Sir."

He imagined, rather than felt the surge of power as the ship accelerated, gripping the chair arms tighter as he watched his first officer's shuttle dodging disruptor fire on the screen. The type nine had been a good choice for this mission, he conceded, Paul had chosen well in terms of manoeuverability and speed.

"Entering Neutral Zone.", Skooda called from the helm.

A green beam of light struck out from the rear of the Romulan vessel and washed across the viewscreen. The ship shook but there were few other signs of the sheer amount of energy that had just been unleashed on their shields.

"Forward shields at eighty percent."

"Return fire Mr. Armok. Ensign Skooda, evasive manoeuvres, pattern Galdar one."

Skooda nodded as his hands flew across the helm panel accompanied by the distinctive sound of phaser barrages letting loose from the forward array. 'Galdar one' was an unorthodox approach but one he'd successfully used in the past while still aboard the Glanto class Depository. He'd had it programmed into this simulation against just such an eventuality as had now materialised.

"Quantum Torpedoes. Full spread." Galdar said, calmly.

Another disruptor beam struck the Venture's shields to the port side of the saucer section causing her to yaw wildly for a moment until Skooda got her back under control. Armok called something across the bridge but Galdar missed the detail. At the same time, the warbird let loose with a forward torpedo, catching Gibson's shuttle full on, sundering its shields and ripping through the small, fragile craft. The Venture's five quantum torpedoes impacted shortly afterwards, flattening then destroying the warbird's port shield and destroying its port warp nacelle.

As Galdar watched the shuttle disintegrate before him, his jaw worked furiously but no words came. He shook his head as a sudden dizziness threatened to engulf him then slammed his fist into the arm of his chair.

"Captain, two more warbirds decloaking between us and Federation space!", Armok yelled. "They're firing!"

"Skooda, come about, heading 214 mark 001. Best speed. Get us out of here!" Galdar shouted the orders.

"Aye" Skooda shouted in his turn.

Disruptor fire from two fully powered warbirds slammed simultaneously into the side of the Venture as she turned, shaking the vessel, penetrating her shields, impacting the hull on the top of the saucer and rupturing at least one plasma conduit on the bridge. The Bolian at Ops was thrown from her seat, landing in an untidy heap on the floor.

"Hull breaches reported on decks four through seven." Lieutenant Armok called, "Containment fields holding."

Galdar jumped to his feet, waving off the relief officer heading for the unmanned Ops console. "Skooda, take Ops. Do what you can with power distribution but keep those shields alive and structural integrity fields intact. Mr Armok, throw whatever you have at them but keep an eye on that wounded one behind us." As he barked orders, he darted for the now vacated helm console and settled himself in the chair. Hands moving of their own volition, he did the pilots equivalent of seizing the Venture by the scruff of her neck and shaking her until she squeaked.

As the two new warbirds swung onto the screen, Galdar rolled the Galaxy class ship through ninety degrees on her central axis, effectively standing her on one side. Disruptor fire from each Romulan sizzled past her, grazing both dorsal and ventral shields but making no significant impact. Rolling the ship again, anticipating the next bolts of fire, Galdar called, "Quantum torpedoes Mr Armok, Lower warbird. Follow up with all ventral phasers. Dorsal phasers on the other."

"Rear warbird firing!", the panic was evident in Armok's voice this time. "Torpedo's away. Firing phasers."

As their energy lashed out towards the Romulan ships, Galdar tapped the panel before him and the Venture dropped like a stone falling down a well. "Drop shields for five seconds, on my mark!", he shouted.

Luke Armok looked at the back of his captain's orange head, a stunned expression on his face and mouth open to protest.

"NOW!", Galdar shouted without turning and instinctively, Armok's finger stabbed down at the panel before him.

As the Venture continued to drop and the shields came down, the disruptor fire from the damaged ship burned across the top of the saucer section and impacted with the lower of the two warbirds in front of them. On top of the torpedo and phaser impacts, the disruptors collapsed the shields and speared the elegant neck of the vessel, separating the forward bridge section from the rest of the ship in a gout of venting atmosphere and flame. Had the Venture kept her shields up or dropped more slowly, she would have effectively protected the Romulan from the killing blow.

The Venture reared as the shields came back up and she rolled again as Galdar pulled her nose into the disintegrating ship, heading for the safety of the Federation. He ramped up the impulse power as the ship came around and the bridge shook as the inertial dampeners struggled against their reduced power availability.

"Photons. Rear warbird." snapped Galdar.

"Away!" Armok called as another bolt of disruptor fire took the Venture on the back of the secondary hull. "Rear shields gone, Sir!"

On the screen six red pulsing beacons sped towards the disabled Romulan ship as Galdar was thrown from his seat by a fierce explosion from yet another disruptor strike from the front. As he struggled to his feet the lights dimmed. Armok was gone from the Tactical station and Skooda was staring dazedly at the remnants of his Ops console. Regaining his balance, the Ferengi watched as the warbird exploded after releasing one final disruptor bolt. Mesmerised by the approaching energy, Galdar ignored the once familiar voice from the rear of the bridge.

"Captain, another two warbirds coming out of warp", Ryla Drett shouted from the Tactical station, hands busy on the unfamiliar controls. "Three more detected inbound."

Galdar simply stared at the screen and nodded distractedly as the disruptor pulse impacted and his ship went dark around him.

Kobayashi Maru - The Debrief
Joint backstory post by Feathers and Jen

As the lights came up, the surroundings dissolved, and Galdar found himself standing on an empty hologrid. The Ferengi blinked a couple of times and shook himself. Still in full Captain's uniform, he turned and watched 'his' crew get up from the floor where they'd landed during the maelstrom. There were some grins between them but also some sober faces.

Catching Ryla Drett's querying expression, he gave her a small smile and a short nod. He was OK.

With a base whine, the Holodeck doors slid open revealing Admiral Roberts...and 'Commander' Paul Gibson.

Gibson simply nodded at his Captain but Galdar hurried across the intervening space and shook him by the hand. "I'm...sorry", he said, quietly.

Ignoring this exchange, Admiral Roberts marched briskly to the centre of the room and waited for what little noise there was to die down. "Computer, debrief." he called.

With an obliging bleep and a twinkle of transporter effect, the hologrid disappeared and a Galaxy class starship briefing room materialised. With the wave of an arm the Admiral indicated that they all sit. Galdar took the head of the table while Roberts took the seat on his right. Paul Gibson sat to his left with Ryla next to him.

Once everyone was settled, Roberts picked up a PADD from the table and settled his eyes on Galdar.

"Captain Galdar. Well done."

The Ferengi looked up in surprise, this wasn't quite the start he'd expected. "Sir?", he queried. "I lost the ship, Sir." His hand once again crept to the four gold rank pips pinned to his uniform and unconsciously caressed them.

Roberts nodded and a sad smile of understanding briefly crossed his face. "Yes you did...but as you must be aware, so has just about everyone else who's taken this test." The far away look that passed across his face told a story all of its own.

He looked down at the device in his hand before continuing, a more formal tone entering his voice. "This will be the initial debriefing following the Kobayashi Maru mission. A more detailed brief will be held tomorrow when everyone's had time to reflect." He waited for the nodding and murmurs of agreement to die down then turned to the bald Captain.

"Sending a shuttle to investigate the distress call was an interesting option, Mr. Galdar", he said quietly, "but I must say that it's not one that's preferred by Starfleet. In a real situation it could easily have impeded the operation or cost enough time that the Kobayashi Maru would have gone down with all hands without any help from the Romulans."

It was Galdar's turn to nod. "Sir, I realise that. My thoughts were on the rescue of the passengers on that ship, but I also had a responsibility to the crew of this ship. To simply push into the Neutral Zone following such a convenient distress call seemed...risky. Thus, I thought to lead with the shuttle rather than a starship." His eyes drifted to the starfield through the port over Roberts left shoulder.

"You were scared?"

Galdar attention snapped back to the officer as the sting of his question hit hard. "No! Not at all, Sir! It was my intention to pilot the shuttle myself! By taking it into the Neutral Zone I sought to try and draw out any threat that might exist and so save the ship and crew. That is not a plan driven by fear."

Roberts eyed the other Cadets round the table, looking at each of them in turn. Finally, he settled his attention on Ryla. "Lieutenant Commander Drett, You were closest to Captain Galdar during the mission. How would you assess his emotional state when he first realised the nature of the task? Specifically, was his cautious approach motivated by fear?"

Ryla tried not show her displeasure at being asked such a question. She kept her posture rigid and her unaffected gaze on the Admiral. "I think it would be fair to state that Captain Galdar's crew was under a great deal of stress...and...I believe that is the purpose of the simulation, sir."

The admiral frowned as he crossed his arms over his chest. "You didn't answer my question Lieutenant Commander. Was Mr. Galdar afraid?"

The Trill lifted her chin slightly as she made the decision to speak her mind. Determination had always come slower before she was joined, but the confidence of Drett gave her a wisdom beyond her young years. "Sir, permission to speak freely?"

"Granted," said Roberts after a moment.

"As you know, I'm not an empath nor am I a counselor. My testimony as to Captain Galdar's emotional state can only be based on speculation."

"Then speculate, Drett. You're the Chief Medical Officer. It's your duty to keep an eye on your Captain's mental state and relieve him if and when he poses a risk to the ship," snapped the Admiral.

She nodded slowly, "Yes, sir."  Through her own experiences she had discovered that fear was a healthy emotion. Surmounting such an obstacle would develop character. She disliked the thought of speaking against her friend, but it was her duty as an officer to give the truth when it was asked of her by a superior. She glanced to the Ferengi with a softened expression that offered apology for the statement she was ordered to give.

"Well, doctor?" prodded the Admiral.

Ryla turned her face back to Roberts, "The Captain was afraid, sir..."

Galdar jumped to his feet, ready to shout a protest but the look in Roberts eyes quelled his anger. Deflating, he looked down at the table and shrugged minutely. "Yes, I was scared. The simulation is very...compelling, but I stand by what I've already said. Fear was not a motivating factor in any of my actions." He briefly locked eyes with the Admiral then turned and shot an angry look at Ryla before dropping back into his chair.

"You said your plan was to 'draw out any threat that might exist and so save the ship and crew'. If that was so...then your plan failed, Captain. As you said, you lost both your ship and your crew." Roberts leaned forward as he spoke.

The Ferengi shook his head and Ryla saw some of his spirit returning.

"With respect, Sir", he said, sitting forward himself and meeting the Admirals steady gaze, "My plan was a success. The threat was revealed and the surprise was neutralised. It was in the manner of its implementation that I failed."

Admiral Roberts nodded and his tone softened as he spoke again, "True, Captain. Your shuttle sprang the trap as you had hoped but Commander Gibson paid the price for your gamble and you hadn't prepared yourself for that, had you? So you still took the Venture into the Neutral Zone."

Galdar examined the fine grain of the wooden table before him. He traced some of the pattern with one blue nailed finger while carefully considering his response. When he spoke, it was clear that he had retained his composure once again.

"From the moment I let Commander Gibson convince me that he should pilot the shuttle, my plan was wrecked.", Roberts nodded agreement but no-one noticed. "I didn't see it at the time," Galdar continued, "but once that decision was made, there was no way I could avoid taking the Venture into the Zone behind him. Had I been the one in the shuttle as I planned, that problem would never have arisen." Galdar sat back.

Roberts looked thoughtful for a moment then put his PADD down on the table and slid it across to the Captain with two fingers.

"Loyalty is a fine thing Captain, but it sometimes comes at a heavy price. If you take a look at the PADD before you, you'll see how the scenario would have played out had you insisted on taking the shuttle yourself."

Picking up the device, Galdar looked questioningly at the Admiral but soon turned his eyes to the data before him.

There was silence for a full two minutes before Galdar looked up again.

"So you see Captain...the same outcome WOULD have arisen." Roberts sad quietly. "The self-sacrificial Captain has been catered for in the simulation and the result is very much as you witnessed this afternoon. The only difference is that you would have been stranded in a shuttle powerless to do anything except watch the destruction of your command first hand." Roberts caught Galdar's eye. "Be grateful you allowed Commander Gibson to talk you out of taking that path."

There was silence for a while longer as Galdar digested what he'd read. His initial stab of disappointment at the fact that the computer would have ruined his perfect plan even if Paul hadn't, quickly gave way to a feeling of wry humour as he realized how completely he'd been outmanoeuvered.

Seeing the twitch of his lips, Roberts spoke again. "You took the helm yourself at one point I believe?"

"Yes Sir."

"Would you like to justify that decision Captain?"

Galdar sat back as he considered his answer, eyes drifting down the table from face to face until they found Ensign Skooda. The Ensign smiled slightly and nodded quickly.

"As you know Sir, my primary training is in piloting." Roberts nodded. "At that point in the engagement, it had reached the stage where I could see a number of possibly navigable routes from the engagement but to have to put all of that into words would have been...wasteful," that was the word he wanted, "I don't want to belittle the skills of Cadet...sorry, Ensign...Skooda but equally, Sir, I felt we needed the best pilot in the room flying the ship." There was a little bit of defiance in his voice as he completed the explanation, tinged with a little bit of pride.

Roberts said nothing until Galdar felt the edges of his self assurance start to crumble. Something must have shown on his face since the Admiral finally smiled and sat back fully in his chair.

"It happens that the panel agreed with your assessment Captain and commends you on the way you managed to fly the ship and maintain firm command of the situation." As Galdar started to swell slightly, Roberts went on, puncturing his ballooning self esteem. "You lost it at the end though, didn't you?"

Galdar sagged and nodded quietly. "Yes Sir."

"You could at least have called 'abandon ship', particularly as you selected a Galaxy class. A family ship," he chided gently.

"Sir." Galdar lapsed into silence again.

"Still, you did creditably Captain. Two enemy kills and a confirmed hit on the third bird. That manoeuver of dropping the ship while lowering the shields was an inspirational tactic - I've not seen anyone perform in a similar manner, certainly not in this test. That one manouever bought you a guaranteed kill."

"Thank you, Sir."

The Admiral looked at the collected officers and nodded. "Very well," he said as he retrieved his PADD from before Galdar, "As I said at the start, this was only the initial debrief. Formal debrief and analysis will commence at 1300 tomorrow. Captain Galdar, you and your crew may stand down. Cadets, return to your duties. Well done everyone...dismissed."

As Roberts stood and walked to the door, Galdar also rose as did the other cadets. As the briefing room dissolved around them, he headed for the exit avoiding all eye contact and looking to neither left nor right.

Ryla followed him into the corridor, "Galdar...Galdar wait..." When her friend continued on his path, she jogged to catch up. The Trill fell into step beside the Ferengi as he wove his way through the busy hallways. She stared in silence at him as kept his deadpan eyes set straight ahead. When he didn't acknowledge her presence, she slowed her pace and allowed him to storm away. In that moment, she had no trouble assessing his emotional state; Galdar was furious...he was furious at her and she had no idea how to make amends.

"What's the matter Ryla?" Rolan asked. She hadn't even noticed that she had stopped in the center of the hallway, or that the  Bolian had appeared at her side.

"...I think I just lost a friend." Her heart sank as she spoke the thought aloud.

Joint backstory post by Jen and Feathers

Ryla dropped a slip of latinum in Galdar's hand as she entered the door of his quarters. His quizzical expression prompted an explanation on her part,  "My admission fee for entering your home," she said in a formal tone. For a total of two minutes, a day after she was left standing alone in the hallway outside the holodeck, she seriously considered whether his friendship was worth the stress. Despite his attitude and selfishness, it hadn't taken her long to decided that being his friend still meant a great deal to her and she would do whatever was necessary to offer recompense.

The culture and traditions of the Ferengi people were opposite from that of her own people. During the last couple days of persistent rejection, she decided these differences had kept her from communicating on a level that her former friend could understand. If he was going to be self-absorbed and inconsiderate then she would have to think like a Ferengi to get through to him.

Galdar's hand had closed around the slip almost out of reflex, his thumb running back and forth over the contours of the metal as if assessing its quality. He'd had half a mind to hand it straight back to her but she had entered his home and latinum...was latinum. He pocketed it.

"What can I do for you...Cadet?"

The Trill wandered about, examining the few knickknacks he kept on shelves within in his central living space. "I have been reading up on Ferengi tradition and have learned that your people practice a ritual known as 'plea bargaining'." She stopped to study a statue of a clothed Ferengi male standing beside a naked Ferengi female. Ryla's raised brows denoted the recognition of yet another cultural difference between their two peoples. After a moment, she turned her gaze back to her former friend and continued, "If an item of importance is taken by another Ferengi then the article in question shall be delivered to it's previous owner if the culprit is offered something of equal or greater value in exchange."

Galdar inclined his head, accepting the validity of her words. "Then you are here on business? You have a transaction you wish to propose?"

"Well, I'm not here for the grand tour," she said sarcastically; another trait that the symbiont honed. "I want to bargain. I will give you back your pride by supplying you with the apology you have demanded....All I require in return is forgiveness and continued friendship."

Galdar sat beneath 'his oak', the early evening autumn rain soaking and chilling him in equal measure. The tree offered some protection but many of the leaves had fallen now and those that were left were brown and crisp, water rolling off them far more easily than would have been the case in summer. The impact of the drops on his orange scalp reminded him very much of Ferenginar and all that he'd walked away from and for the first time, he missed both the planet...and his family.

It had been light, dry and clear when he'd come outside to read up on some engine specifications and test reports for tomorrow's lecture. It had been a little cold for his liking but it had been quiet.

A week had passed since he'd taken the Kobayashi Maru test and four days since he'd talked with Ryla Drett.

It had taken him three days just to work through his anger at his friend. Three days of self-righteousness indignation...and misery. Eventually he'd reached the point of accepting that she'd had no choice but to answer the Admiral's questions, but he was not ready to accept the answers that she'd given. She'd made the mistake of coming to see him at about that time and while things had started out OK, both of them being fairly guarded with their words, it had ended...badly.

It had been another three days before he finally realized what had actually gone on in the holodeck and when he did so, the structure of his moral indignation and self-righteous justification came crashing down around his ears. He smiled sadly at the metaphor. Quite appropriate for a Ferengi.

She'd been correct in her assessment, of course, and he'd admitted as much on that day but he'd hated being pushed into it by Ryla even if the Admiral had been pushing her in turn. What he hadn't understood, in fact what he'd completely missed, was how important that admission was.

At the time it had seemed out of character for the Admiral to persue one fact so hard. Until then he'd been fairly understanding but on that single issue, he'd gone in like a terrier after a rat.

What Galdar had finally worked out was that Admiral Roberts had deliberately pursued Ryla on that issue, not to find something out, but to get Galdar to understand and accept his own reaction to the scenario— a lesson that the Ferengi now conceded was a valuable one that he had obviously needed to have rammed down his throat.

Galdar would never have accepted the assessment of his fear from the Admiral, he'd have found some way to justify things to himself, but from a fellow cadet the observation was much more potent. It was 'unfortunate' that the other cadet had to be his best friend.

Galdar had come a long way since joining Starfleet and entering the Academy, but none of that had made him invincible and this had been Roberts' way of making him realize that. It had given him a night to reflect on his performance in the light of his true feelings before the full debrief and, Galdar realized, had led to a more honest self-appraisal of his performance.

It was this realization that led him to the undeniable conclusion that not only had Ryla been right, but that she needed to have been the one to tell him. Of all the cadets Roberts could have chosen to point out what he needed to know, he had chosen the very best...and the very worst.

The problem now was one of putting things right.

Joint backstory post by Feathers and Jen

Within five minutes he was at her door, standing in a brightly lit corridor in a pool of water all of his own making. A passing Bajoran cadet looked at him reproachfully, but was somewhat reassured by his uniform so said nothing.

His finger hovered over the chime but was unable to activate it. He was afraid, he admitted to himself, afraid to find out whether the death of a friendship he had spent a week blaming her for, he himself had now provoked.

Closing his eyes, he touched the panel. The door opened to reveal the spotted female. She assessed the Ferengi a moment as he stood dripping in the hallway outside her entry. Galdar resembled a wet cat...and by the look on his face, he felt like one too. "What can I do for you Cadet?"

Silently, Galdar extended a single slip of latinum to the Trill, the entry fee he'd accepted from her the last time they spoke.

"Please, come in." The smile the Trill had been fighting won out as he moved past her in a sopping mess.  He roamed her small living space a moment in mock interest. She managed to wrestle the grin away just before his gaze met her own.

"Would you like to purchase a towel?" She inquired with a hint of wryness.

"Um. I have no more latinum. Well not with me...I mean...", he shrugged awkwardly as his words tailed off. Deliberately ignoring the chairs, not least because he didn't want to get them wet, Galdar stood in the middle of the room and looked at the blonde woman before him and thought how easy it would be to pretend nothing had happened between them.

"Cadet...Ryla, I think we need to talk," he stammered at last. "...at least I think I need to talk and I'd like you to listen...but you don't have to if..." Breaking off again, he took a deep breath.

"I'm here to reject your business proposal." Lifting a hand to forstall any interruption, Galdar continued, "I told you when you proposed it that the transaction was unnecessary and I stand by that assessment. You were following orders during the interview in the same manner as the rest of us and I can't fault you for it.

"What I was unable to accept then, but have come to," he paused, "respect now that I've had time to think about it, is what you actually said.

"You were perfectly correct in your assessment and you fought your hardest not to have to express it in front of everyone, but what the Admiral knew then and I have come to realize now is that I needed to hear it and I needed to hear it from someone I respect and trust." A drop of water fell from the end of his nose, rather spoiling the effect he had hoped for.

"So I reject your proposal that I plea bargain, on the grounds that you took nothing from me. That said, I would like to make a counter offer to you. The second Rule of Acquisition states that 'The best deal is the one that brings the most profit', so I would like to propose something that I hope will profit both of us....an exchange of friendship, something I seem to have forgotten the value of recently."

The Ferengi extended a hand to the Trill and waited.

Dimples escorted a smile that reappeared on Ryla's face. Forgetting the fact that Galdar was still soaking wet, she bypassed the outstretched hand and enveloped him with a friendly hug. "It's a deal," she replied.

Ferenginar - Tongo
This is the very first part of the Galdar story (to date). It's been knocking about for ages but I never posted it

"Confront!"

Baj's voice carried clear from the living space, backed by the jeers of support or derision of the onlookers gathered around the table. Tongo had undergone a resurgence in popularity in the last couple of weeks and Galdar's father was set to take full advantage. House admittance for this evening alone would have netted the family a hefty number of slips and if Baj's luck continued to run to form, the winnings from the game would net a lot more.

It wasn't luck, of course, it was all skill. Galdar didn't like admitting it, but one of his more uncharacteristic traits was an honest streak. His father was good at Tongo, good at being a Ferengi and good at letting every other Ferengi know it. Of course, there was little distinction between the last two traits. To be good was to have everyone know it since it showed in your personal wealth.

It was interesting to note how the increase in Tongo's popularity had only occurred after the family had procured their latest table. Galdar smiled sadly at the thought; his dad rarely missed an opportunity and never one so big. The smile faded and the Ferengi shook his head. Lying back on his bed, he listened as the sound of rain on the window drowned out the noises from next door before another round brought the shouting back to fever pitch.

"Evade!" Baj was sounding supremely confident.

By rights, he should have been in there with everyone else...and in truth he would have loved to have been included. If nothing else he could have earned a couple of slips by agreeing to wait on the assembled crowd, but he'd refused the offer when it was made as his father knew he would. In Galdar's eyes, accepting such a job would have taken him one step closer to becoming what his family wanted him to be, something he'd resisted through years of nagging and cajolery. Baj hadn't even tried to look disappointed at the refusal. He'd clearly reached the point where his preconceptions about his son's abilities outweighed any chance he had of seeing beyond the particular characteristics he so disliked.

Had Galdar really wanted to surprise everyone, he could probably have put in an acceptable performance at the table, at least for a little while. There was no way he would have won the game, but there would be many losers that night. With luck he could even have demonstrated a small profit if the cards had fallen well, but he wasn't going to try. The days of trying to please the family were past, having fallen under the onslaught of his stubborn streak.

Dusha, his mother, paused in the doorway, masking the sadness in her eyes as she found herself observed. She smiled brightly and waved at him but Galdar saw the brittle edges around the emotional display. She'd always found family problems hard to deal with, but now that he was old enough for his Attainment Ceremony, things were coming to a head and the stress of it all was taking its toll on her. Doing his best to look relaxed, he waved back and grinned in his turn before returning to the PADD he'd been staring at for a while.

With a grimace, he pressed his thumb to the space indicated and keyed the document to transmit. There he thought The the deed is done and there is nothing I can do to cancel it. For better or worse he was committed to a path and his future was decided...for the next few years at least.

U.S.S. Leeds - Bridge Duty

"Take us out of orbit Mr Rolfe", Paul Adams ordered as he took his seat in the centre chair.

"Aye, Sir.", the helmsman tapped out a series of commands as he spoke and the vast Nebula class starship that was the U.S.S Leeds slowly lifted it's nose, powerful impulse engines pushing it out of the synchronous orbit it had maintained for much of the past three days.

To the captain's left sat the squat, gnome like form of Galdar. The youthful Ferengi was hunched forward in the chair looking distinctly uncomfortable and out of place in his civilian garb. He'd been aboard, on and off, for just over three weeks and while it seemed like he'd done an awful lot in this short time, his exposure to the bridge had been minimal. Save for witnessing the Altair departure of his former shipmates, he'd kept well away. Here now at the captain's invitation, he was unclear as to the exact reason why.

"Sir, I...", he started.

"Relax, Galdar. You're not a cadet yet so strictly you should be calling me either Captain, or Paul. Try Paul!" Smiling at the horrified look that this last suggestion produced, Adams shifted slightly in the chair. Truth be told, he'd grown to like this Ferengi in the time that they'd known one another and was now more firmly convinced than ever that the lad had a future in the fleet. Galdar may have stayed away from the bridge, but he had spent quite a lot of time in the company of the captain.

Firstly it had been a case of getting him settled in and acclimatised, a task that any one of dozens of crewmen could have assisted the young pilot with but one which the captain had taken upon himself. Galdar had been introduced to all and sundry aboard the Leeds, so many names and faces that he knew he would never easily remember. Many had been surprised by his presence but all had been accepting of his circumstances. To Galdar as an outsider, it seemed that the captain's word carried weight among the crew and the crew's work inspired the confidence and trust of the captain. This symbiosis was all in stark contrast to way the Depository had operated, DaMon Glem ruled that vessel with much shouting and gesturing, resorting to the back of an open hand when all else failed.

At the same time as this familiarisation, Adams had also proposed a course of informal learning, something that Galdar had accepted as a necessity but hadn't particularly enjoyed. As a non-federation citizen, there was so much basic information that he simply didn't know; things that any school child on Earth would be able to babble about for hours were revelations to the Ferengi student. On the whole, they were mundane matters of history and lifestyle but together they equated to the grounding that he would need if he really wanted to find a way of fitting into this society that looked to be adopting him.

More formal education would follow, of course; a fair amount of preparation was required of any candidate for the academy entrance exam.

"I want you to try something for me, Galdar", Adams said quietly after the de-orbit was complete. "Mr Rolfe, if you wouldn't mind..." Grinning at the civilian, the helmsman rose and crossed to the turbo-lift by the captain's Ready Room.Galdar's confusion at this obviously planned manoeuvre turned to shock as Adams jumped to his feet and gestured him towards the vacant seat.

"Captain, I really don't think...", he started as he stood slowly.

"I hope you do!" Adams laughed in a friendly manner, a number of the bridge crew joining him. "If you don't, we're all in trouble! Just sit...and fly." As Galdar crossed the space to the helm and gingerly took the offered chair, Adams crouched down beside him. "You've tried this on theholodeck , I know you have." he said, quietly enough for just the two of them to hear, "You may be a guest but remember, you don't have freedom to roam unhindered just yet." His smile took the sting from the words but Galdar knew he spoke the truth. It had been unobtrusive, but whenever he'd been 'officially' unaccompanied he'd been aware of the discrete security presence as he moved around the ship.

Rising, Paul Adams grinned down at his protege and nodded as he turned back to his seat. "Set a course of three one two mark seventy five Mr Galdar and prepare to engage at warp five."

"Aye, Sir.", Galdar intoned as he'd heard so many others do in his time aboard. "Ah...I mean 'Yes, Captain'" he stammered.

Smiling at the correction, Paul Adams exchanged a quick glance with his first officer. "Engage"

U.S.S. Leeds - Training

Standing at the central terminal in the engineering section of a Galaxy class starship, Galdar stared at the problem before him and sweated. He'd been analysing this particular configuration for at least half an hour but felt no nearer to solving the puzzle than he had when he'd first entered this holographic scenario. Sitting at one of the stations before the warp core, Commander Jervas was manipulating a PADD, looking over personnel reports or some such and monitoring the Ferengi's progress on the exercise.

Galdar shifted form foot to foot and looked up at the ceiling. The program was detailed enough that he could feel the faltering thrum of the failing power systems through the soles of his boots and detect the reducing hum of the plasma flow to the warp core as the conditions beyond the hull continued to take their toll on the ship.

Frustrated, he threw his stylus at the display and stepped back from the desk. The clatter of the implement hitting the screen and then bouncing around on the floor seemed to have no effect on the holo-engineers around him but it did get the attention of the Leeds' Argosian first officer. "Problem Galdar?" Jervas enquired mildly, glancing up from the PADD in his hand.

"I should say so." the Ferengi was grumpy in his defeat and there was an edge of self-pity to his voice that he was hoping wouldn't be detectable. "I've looked at this in just about every way I can imagine but there's no way I can find to get a conventional warp powered starship out of this situation. I guess there may be some applicable law of warp propulsion that I haven't learnt yet but aside from that, I'm out of options."

"Then maybe that's your answer. It's impossible for the ship to get itself out of there."

"No! I won't accept that. Paul...Uh, that is Captain Adams told me that this is based on real events from stardate 44631 and while Ferenginar may not be a Federation member, even we know that the Enterprise didn't disappear without trace never to return. There has to be a way out of this, it's simply one that I can't see."

"Computer, end program." Jervas called. "Galdar, take a break." The room around them swirled with the mists of dissolution until only Jervas' chair remained. When he stood, that too dissolved out from under him. "Let's get a drink or something and I'll talk you through it." Nodding assent, Galdar followed the commander through the large holodeck doors and out into the belly of the starship . It still amazed him how much space was available inside a ship that was nothing more than a saucer with nacelles and a weapons pod. The Nebula class was large when compared to anything he'd ever been aboard but the amount of available internal space spoke volumes about the systems miniaturisation that the current state of Federation technology afforded.

"What do you make of the dreams in the scenario, Galdar?" The question, asked as the doors to the turbolift closed behind them, brought the Ferengi back to the present with a jolt. "Huh?" he grunted as he refocused his mind on the problem, "What, the 'One Moon Circles'? They're just dreams. They don't have a bearing on the problem." Jervas regarded him quietly, the hum of linear induction motors being the only thing audible in the car. Aware of the scrutiny, Galdar looked down and shuffled his feet slightly but resisted the urge to fill the silence.

With a marked drop in tone the car drew to a halt, doors opening to allow the passengers egress. The commander maintained the silence as he guided the Ferengi towards an innocuous set of double doors set to one side of the corridor and through them into 'The Lounge'. Zig-zagging their way between the scattering of side tables, casual chairs and more formal dining furniture, they made their way to the small bar. Set to one side of the raised dais that dominated one wall and backed by an array of transparent aluminium windows, it was manned by a number of civilian staff and catered to some of the off duty needs of the crew.

Gesturing his guest to a stool, Jervas seated himself. "Why do you discount things so quickly?" he asked quietly, waving a greeting to the bar tender and miming an unquenchable thirst.

Ordering drinks gave Galdar a little time to process the question, but not as much as he would have liked. "Are you saying the dreams have a relevance?"

"They're in the exercise." The Argosian was patient, one of the reasons he had risen to the rank of Commander, "That ought to tell you that they deserve at least some attention. Starfleet examiners are good but they're generally fair. They'll give you enough descriptive detail to provide a sense of the real events but things that are truly irrelevant are generally avoided."

Taking the synthahol he was handed, Galdar eyed the crew around the room. A number of species were represented here and the civilian still marvelled at the lack of friction and conflict that seemed to exist between the different aliens. All that he'd learned of the Federation and its military/exploratory wing while growing up simply didn't stack up when compared against the reality he had found on coming aboard the Leeds. He'd had a glimpse of it in his first couple of visits at Altair and it had played a part in decision to jump ship so early in his contract aboard the Depository. Still, the degree to which it permeated the crew exceeded even his most optimistic expectations.

Returning his attention to the first officer, Galdar took a pull of his drink. "Maybe treating it as a pure engineering problem isn't the way to go then?", he asked.

"'A wise assertion' as my one Vulcan academy lecturer would have said." Jervas looked around the room. "As you well know, a starship is more than a collection of systems and components dragged together to perform a function. Perhaps you should allow that thought a higher priority in your considerations when considering problems such as this, hmmm?"

Galdar simply nodded and sat back, raising the drink to his mouth once again as Commander Jervas started to take him through the story of the Enterprise's escape from the Tyken's Rift.

U.S.S. Leeds - Accidental Intercept

The bridge felt tense to Galdar as he exited the turbolift and quietly slipped round the rail to sit beside the captain. Wearing a utilitarian starfleet coverall, the Ferengi had dropped his traditional wardrobe in favour of the more conformal covering. Partly driven by a need to 'fit in' aboard the ship he was rapidly coming to consider as 'home', the change was mostly due to the fact that in the glare of the surrounding uniforms, the high-waisted Ferengi fashions were starting to look more than a little ridiculous to him.

"Bring us out of warp and hold us on the rim of the asteroid belt. They'll be on the edge of sensor range but that should hopefully work both ways." The tension in Paul Adams' voice confirmed the Ferengi's initial feelings and set him slightly on edge in his turn. It was one thing to be asked to the bridge for a bit of flying practice at the whim of someone who was rapidly becoming a friend, but quite another to be called up here during what looked like a full blown operational encounter.

As the ship dropped into normal space it came to a halt almost immediately, the stars transitioning from streaks to static points as the Leeds came to a dead stop. On screen, Galdar could see asteroids at the periphery of the forward view as the Nebula class vessel sat just above the outer edge of the belt. Looking at the back of Lieutenant Rolfe's head, his respect for the helmsman lifted a notch or two in acknowledgement of the skill involved in the manoeuvre he'd just witnessed. Dropping out of warp on top of an asteroid field was an interesting way to avoid detection but it was also a good way of slamming your ship into a rather large hunk of floating rock. From the calm manner with which the Lieutenant had carried it out, it was clear that he'd done this before.

"No probes detected", the voice of the tactical officer cut across the bridge, "nothing either in the system or beyond."

"Very good." The clipped response came from Commander Jervas. Sitting in his chair to the far side of the captain and staring hawkishly at the screen, he looked as if he was trying to detect probes by eye alone. "Is the ship in range?"

"She's there alright." the officer confirmed as Galdar turned to face him, "She hasn't moved since we first plotted the end of the warp trail."

"Can you confirm their identity?" Adams' was a little more relaxed now, the initial danger passed.

"Aye sir. It's them, the warp signature matches across the spectrum."

"Very well. Helm. Hold position as best you can for the moment and let's see if anything else turns up." Turning to Galdar, Adams lowered his voice. "We appear to have run across an erstwhile friend of yours in a rather unusual place. It was pure chance that we picked up their warp trail but having found it I thought we'd take a little detour and see where it went."

"A friend?", confusion was clear in the Ferengi's voice, "I don't think I have many of those, not out here anyway." Silent for a moment, he suddenly straightened as a new thought struck him, "Hang on, you don't mean the Depository do you?" Confusion now clearly replaced with incredulity, Galdar's eyes were locked wide open as he flicked his gaze between Adams and Jervas.

"Well OK, maybe friend is too strong a word but they were certainly a brief acquaintance...until we showed up and chased them off, anyway."

Realisation dawning, Galdar blinked. "The Orions."

"The Orions indeed." the captain confirmed. "I'm not sure what they're doing this far out of their usual zone of operations, but here they are. They're being careful too. Far enough out of the system to avoid detection from any normal traffic but holding station very close to a single position. Almost no drift at all." Briefly turning to the tactical officer, Adams raised an eyebrow. "Anything?" he asked. A shaken head was his only reply. "I guess we should be grateful they're not using the system itself. Getting in there and close enough to keep an eye on them without being detected would have been quite a challenge for Mr. Rolfe."

"Why am I here?" Galdar was still a little confused. "I don't know these people. I'm not even sure Glem did although I suppose he might have been able to make a guess."

"Strictly, we don't know much about them either other then the fact that they show up pretty regularly around Altair and the surrounding systems. What they're doing out here, though, is anyones guess." Adams smiled, "As to what you're doing here...let's just say that you're here to observe and maybe further your education a little. Don't expect to fly anything."

Nodding his agreement and understanding, Galdar sat back and regarded the speck on the screen.