((Runabout Guadiana))

Chief: We're approaching the Borlan system.

Canis: Thank you, Chief.

::James was strapping into the copilots chair.  He'd been counting the minutes
until they got this close before he let himself come up to the cockpit.

oO And about time, too. Oo

::Three days in a runabout was a cramped experienced, especially jammed in with
fifteen others.  Commander Dane had, reluctantly, agreed to send James to meet
the ship rather than waiting for her to return.  He had also insisted on sending
everyone else who was waiting for the Discovery, no matter how junior.  Not that
any of them had an urgent need to get there right away, but James hadn't made a
friend of the Commander with his insistence on getting here right away.

Chief: We'll drop out of warp well above the system's gravitational axis.

Canis: Thank you chief, but let me bring her in.

Chief: Sir?

::The pilot furrowed his brow, but let James take control.

Canis: I'm going to drop out of warp in orbit.

Chief: Are you fu--

Canis: The HCO is supposed to be able to pilot the ship.  I want to let them
know I can fly a runabout.

Chief: Even if you pull that off, sir, Commander Dane gave explicit orders to
stay well clear of anything that might be happening with the Suarians.

Canis: There's starships and Klingons there.  My family knows Ambassador
Ginsberg.  I'm sure it's all taken care of.

Chief: Sir, you know what would happen if we hit someone dropping to sublight.

Canis: Come on, chief.

::James noticed the chief discreetly activated the runabout's shields.
James rolled his eyes as he eased the engines offline.

Canis: Chief, the odds of a ship being at the exact place we drop out of warp
are so small it's--

::At that moment, the runabout dropped out of warp and immediately crashed into
a spaceship.

((Imperial City Ship Plecanth))

Paladin: Did you feel something?

Engineer: No.

Paladin: Are you sure?

Engineer: Yes.

((Runabout Guadiana))

Chief: Transporter!  Everyone!  Now!

::James staggered to his feet, blinded by the red light that had flared through
the portholes for a split second before the protective screens closed.  Having
the shields up had saved them from instant vaporization, but they were already
starting to fail. It seemed impossible, but it was like the runabout had flown
into a star.

::He heard the familiar hum of the transporter.  By the time he made it aft, the
chief had already beamed half the passengers to the planet.

Chief: I think there's a Starfleet signature down there.  It could be two or
three.  I don't know, I can't get us within three kilometers with this plasma
field we're in.  We'll be lucky not to end up in a tree.

::Then everyone else was gone and James and the chief got onto the two man
transporter pad.  They vanished just as the runabout's warp core ruptured...

((Imperial City Ship Plecanth))

Paladin: That was definitely something.

Engineer: A power surge in the plasma core.  It's nothing.

Paladin: Are you sure?

Engineer: Yes!

((Borlan Six))

::James blinked, adjusting to the bright sunlight.  That, and the sight of a
Marine, rank of Major, in full battle armor pointing the business end of a pulse
rifle at his face.

Tag Quay

__________________
Ensign James Canis
HCO