Power Assessment

Posted on 25 Sep 2015 @ 8:12pm by Commodore Juliana Terlexa
Edited on on 25 Sep 2015 @ 8:29pm

1,428 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Rude Awakening
Location: Deep Space 11
Timeline: MD1 - 1400 Hours

Deep Space 11
Station Commander's Office
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Captain Juliana Terlexa took a sip of Darjeeling tea and looked at the manifest in front of her. Things had been running well of late. Deep Space 11 and the surrounding sectors were now completely under Consortium control. A number of ships had been taken over by the Consortium - the Ottawa, the Antares, and the Hermes, to name just those few. Their position at the head of the wormhole was now secure. The oxygen supply to the remaining Starfleet loyalist forces in the quadrant was now completely cut off. Vice Admiral Adislo was on the run, cut off from any possible assistance and unable to contact his allies. Commodore Cameron was exiled on Starbase Unity, isolated from most of the Quadrant. No doubt she would be attempting to mount a resistance, but the Consortium was prepared.

Oh, to be sure, those victories had come at a price. The takeover of the Princeton had failed, resulting in the loss of the ship with all hands. Several good officers, men and women of valor who had sworn loyalty to the Consortium, had been killed. And she'd been forced to place her own First Officer, Commander Axam, under arrest.

But that was the cost. The cost of taking the Gamma Quadrant away from Starfleet. And possibly wiping Starfleet from the face of the galaxy altogether. The resentment she felt had been there for a long time. The blood boiled in her veins at the thought of Starfleet. She longed to rip off her uniform and burn it for what it represented, and for what it had done - but that wasn't possible. Her senior staff had sworn loyalty to the Consortium, but the junior officers knew nothing of the current situation.

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Betazed
2374 (Earth calendar)
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Everyone was rushing. Only minutes separated them from total destruction, or enslavement at the hands of the Dominion.

The planet had been caught completely by surprise. The Tenth Fleet, engaged in military exercises, had been light-years away when the Dominion fleet had invaded their star system. Sixty-three ships, determined to gain a foothold deep in Federation space, at such a strategic location that it would place them within striking distance of worlds such as Tellar, Andor and Vulcan.

The planet's orbital defenses had been completely obliterated by the combined fleet of Cardassian, Dominion and Breen ships. Orbital bombardments had then begun to take out the planetary defenses. The shield generators had been taken out first, and the Fleet was now targeting the spaceports, to prevent the planet's evacuation.

Lieutenant Terlexa was among the Strategic Operations staff. She, along with the rest of her colleagues, had been caught completely unaware. She was doing her best to help coordinate the evacuation. The Royal Houses of Betazed had to be evacuated first - their status as leaders of the Betazoid society, they were the most likely to be executed first if the planet fell. Non-Betazoid Starfleet officers, as well as their families, were also being evacuated. The Strategic Operations center was a hub of activity, as people shouted orders in their comlinks, or ran everywhere with data padds, tripping over each other as they hurried in a state close to panic.

The ground rumbled and the building trembled alarmingly, and plaster dust fell on her console as the Dominion fleet bombarded the city once more. Terlexa wiped the dust from her panel, and pressed the comlink closer to her ear. "No, Ray," she said. "Leave everything behind. Just get to the spaceport with the girls. They're waiting for you," she said, unable to hide the alarm in her voice.

"We're not leaving without you," countered her husband. She could hear her two young girls in the background, panic in their voices. They were scared, which was understandable. She wanted so much to be with them, to comfort them, and tell them that everything would be fine. Their father was doing his best, of course, but they also wanted their mother.

"I'll be with you as soon as I can. But I have a job to do. Now go," she said, cutting the comm channel.

She opened another channel to the transport. "Tiber, this is Terlexa," she said. "They're on their way."

The transport acknowledged the communication. She could tell that the pilot was scared. She knew exactly how he felt. She was torn between her duty as a Starfleet officer, which was to coordinate the evacuation of the Royal Houses of Betazed, and safeguarding her own family.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Commander Charbonneau, her commanding officer, run to her closest colleague, Lieutenant Tamoryn. "The Warrego is away," he said, referring to the transport carrying one of the Royal Houses. "Order the Second Squadron to protect them at all costs."

"What about the civilians? I've got the Tiber, the Seine, the Thames and the Clyde ready to take off."

Charbonneau shook his head. "The Betazoid heads of state take precedence," he said. "Carry out my orders, Lieutenant," he instructed, walking away.

Terlexa felt the color drain from her face. Charbonneau's order would leave her family unprotected. Tamoryn knew that, but all the Bolian could do was to give her a look of pity, and carry out the Commander's orders.

She watched the tactical display as the Warrego rose from the surface of Betazed. The swarm of fighters from the second squadron flew around it, and attacked the closest Dominion ships, buying enough time for the Warrego to jump to Warp.

Meanwhile, the civilian transports took off unescorted. She watched in horror as the Dominion ships destroyed the Thames. The Clyde was the first to complete the Warp jump. The Seine pulled off very impressive evasive maneuvers, before jumping to safety itself.

The Tiber, carrying her husband and two young daughters, was the last one to take off. The Second Squadron, now free of the burden of protecting the Warrego, sped toward the Tiber. But they arrived too late.

Under fire from three Dominion ships, the Tiber exploded in Betazed's upper atmosphere. Terlexa looked out the window in pure shock. In the distance, she could see a cloud of ash and debris raining down on the planet, just as another wave of orbital bombardment created a seismic shockwave.

A skyscraper close to the Starfleet base of operations collapsed, raising up a cloud of dust and debris that obscured the sky. The ceiling above her head started to crack, and debris started to fall on the computer consoles, shattering viewscreens, and injuring several of her colleagues.

"That's it," called out Charbonneau. "We're evacuating the base. Everyone, head for the tunnels. We're sealing the entrance in two minutes, let's go!"

Terlexa stood motionless, her mouth hanging open, staring out the window where her family's transport had been.

Tamoryn pulled her by the arm and dragged her into the tunnels.

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Deep Space 11
Station Commander's Office
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Terlexa didn't remember much of what had happened afterwards. She knew, of course, but that was because of what people had told her - the months spent hiding in the caves, the Resistance and guerilla tactics employed against the Dominion occupation, and the sacrifice that the Betazoid telepaths had made to overcome the enemy.

But the pain over losing her family because of Starfleet orders, and the anger at Starfleet, had never faded away.

And now that she was in charge of the gateway to the Gamma Quadrant, she would make them pay for it.

The doors to her office parted, and Commander Stanton, her new First Officer, walked in.

"The Black Hawk has docked," he said. "They've been out of contact for over three months. I'm sure they haven't heard anything."

Terlexa nodded. "Do you think Geisler would ever turn his back on Starfleet?" she asked, highly skeptical.

"I don't think he would," replied Stanton.

Terlexa stood, and walked to the viewport. She could see the Black Hawk, at one of the nearby docking ports. The Akira-class starship was powerful, fast, and came with a full complement of starfighters. If she could get her hands on it, the Consortium's fleet would be stronger, and that much more diversified.

She turned to her First Officer, and smiled. "Arrange a reception," she said. "We'll see where her crew's loyalties lie."

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