— Gamma Quadrant —

It had been two weeks of high-warp travel. With the USS Andromeda behind them, slowly visiting former Dominion worlds and working diplomatically to establish connections the USS Adelaide was free to rush onwards. With scanners on, they moved quickly passing the areas that had long been studied by the Federation as they delved into new frontiers. Commander Sok kept in daily contact with Captain Olivia Carrillo back on the Andromeda but those calls were perfunctory. She seemed either to trust him or to be inexperienced enough in leading two starships to ask many questions. 

“Remember,” she would end the calls with, “don’t go into Dominion space. We may have won the war, but I don’t want to explain to the admirals why we started a second one.”

The Vulcan would nod, affirm his commitment to not starting a needless war, and end the call. He had been a student back when the war had ended, he remembered it. He had no desire to return to the uncertainty and tension of a second war with the Gamma Quadrant superpower. 

He was staring out the window of his ready room when he heard the doors open, and knew immediately without turning that it was Lieutenant Commander Edward Krishna come to bother him.

“Edward,” he said turning. 

The pair had known each other for so long that it felt odd to call him anything but his first name in private. Despite their reputations, Vulcans could actually make friends, and be sociable even if not in the way a human might find to be obvious.

“You haven’t been at the senior officer poker games,” Krisham said, taking a seat. The ready room was still their previous captain’s set up, as altering it to his personal taste had been a secondary concern.

“I am aware of my absence,” Sok said, “I felt it inappropriate given that I’m in command of the ship.”

Krisham snorted, “You’re still a commander, and a science officer. This posting is temporary, you’ll be back to being one of us lowlifes in a few weeks when we get back to port.”

“Then I will return to the poker games, when I’m a lowlife, as you say,” Sok said.

Krisham rolled his eyes, clearly not convinced. He made a sound of frustration and sighed, “Sok there’s more to life than your career. I bet you haven’t even spoken to that Vulcan we met on Opaka Station.”

Sok nodded, “Cadet Sol and a number of other cadets from the Andromeda are now aboard the Adelaide making me her commanding officer.”

“You know captains get into relationships too. You’re a scientist. She’s a scientist. She obviously likes you,” Krisham said. He knew that the argument was likely futile like maintaining a good haircut as a Borg drone or a sense of humor as a Romulan. Sok was simply going to sacrifice any sort of personal enjoyment for duty. 

Sok turned about to respond when his comm badge beeped. He tapped it, “Sok here.”

“Sir we have something on sensors,” the voice said. He recognized it as Lieutenant William Hume his Chief of Security and Tactical. 

“On my way,” he said, gesturing for Krisham to fall in line behind him

“This isn’t over Vulcan,” Krisham said standing and following his friend out and onto the bridge.

“What is it, Lieutenant Hume?” Sok asked, nodding to his First Officer, also a Hume. Why he had siblings on his bridge he did not know, they had been foisted on him, the result of their hasty departure from Opaka Station. 

At tactual the younger Hume, Lieutenant William, replied, “We have three Jem’Hadar Battlecruisers at the edge of our sensors, heading this way.”

“Do they have us on their sensors?” Sok asked, he knew that was unlikely as he’d been the Chief Science Officer aboard the ship until they’d left Opaka Station and he the limits of the Intrepid-class sensors. Unless the Dominion had improved them substantially since the war they were not aware of them yet.

“Flight pattern shows them not heading straight for us, and given what we know of their sensors,” Hume said, pausing, “I doubt they see us yet.”

Sok nodded, “Lieutenant Commander Hume, assessment?”

His first officer nodded, “Tactically we’re outmatched, and our orders are to avoid the Dominion. We could alter course and by-pass them.”

Sok nodded, “While we aren’t at war I don’t place much faith in the sense of a Jem’Hadar Battlecruiser’s crew. But altering the course won’t be required. What’s the nearest class-M planet?”

The science officer on duty replied, “There’s one, unnamed a light year away. No intelligent life on scans.”

Sok nodded, “Set us down on it, we’ll power down warp engines and wait out the Jem’Hadar. A few days of research on the planet and we’ll be able to leave undetected. Objections?”

 The crew looked around and shook their heads. Sok nodded, “Allow us to proceed then.”

Krisham grinned, “All you Andromeda and Falcon folks hang on to your hats. You never parked on a planet have you?”

Sok glanced at him, “It is not that exciting.”

“It’s very exciting,” Krisham said, winking at the Vulcan.