The Long Night

by Dean Wesley Smith

  "My understanding of international salvage law is this," he said, "any ship abandoned for over one hundred years can be claimed by the finding party."

  Dax's smile was wistful. "That would be nice, Benjamin, but this is not abandoned. It still has a technically live occupant."

  "Yes," Sisko said, "but no one in the ships around the station knows that."

  "So," O'Brien said, "you are going to fly this old ship into the middle of that mess."

  "Absolutely," Sisko said with a grin. "I wouldn't miss that for the world."

  "But what does salvage law have to do with us?" Bashir asked.

  "We're going in proudly flying Federation colors. We'll let the diplomats sort it all out after this ship is docked at the station." Sisko turned to Dax. "It seems, old man, that you are about to get your first command."

  Dax opened her mouth, but nothing came out.

  Sisko laughed. He knew that being on the Nibix affected her as deeply as it affected him. Commanding it pleased her more.

  "Can you have your ship ready, Lieutenant?" he asked.

  Dax nodded. "We'll be ready."

  "That we will," O'Brien said. "The Federation ship Nibix will make us all proud."

  Sisko shook his head. "We can't call it the Nibix. At least not when we approach the station. We can't even mention that word at all. We need another name." He turned to Dax. "It's your command."

  Dax nodded and then slowly smiled. "The Long Night. The Federation Deep-Space Ship Long Night."

  Sisko smiled. "The Defiant and the Long Night will jump to warp in ten minutes. We're going home."

  CHAPTER

  21

  JAKE WAS AMAZED at how fast Odo found their way back through the dark tunnels to the opening cut into his office. He never even had to check the markers Jake left. He didn't even pause at the tunnel junctures. He just ran. And Jake had to work to keep up, even though Jake was in excellent shape.

  They climbed through the opening to find one of Odo's security guards waiting for them—a woman whom Jake didn't recognize. She gave Jake an odd glance, which he hoped was because of all the filth that covered him, and then the three of them left the security office at full run.

  The Promenade was empty. Jake couldn't remember the last time he had seen it like this. Maybe never. It seemed bigger, and the passageways longer. Their footsteps echoed as they ran.

  No one spoke. No one needed to.

  His throat was dry again, and he wished he had taken more of Imba's water. When all this was over, he would drink a gallon of water and eat two helpings of all of his favorite foods.

  He would deserve it. If they were successful.

  Jake and the security guard were panting when they reached docking bay five. Odo looked as if he hadn't made any effort at all. They stopped at the opening to the bay.

  "We should have brought Rom," Odo said.

  That was Jake's first indication that Odo wasn't able to see the panel either.

  "He pointed to a laser blast and part of a Cardassian insignia," Jake said. He searched for the insignia. It had looked big in the monitor, but in actuality it might not be. The guard simply waited. She didn't know what she was looking for.

  Jake took one side and Odo the other. It felt as if they were losing precious time, as if they would never find the spot. They had to find it. The station would remain on red alert until they did.

  Jake made himself slow down and look. The diamond pattern in the metal repeated, floor to ceiling, except on the wall closest to the docking clamps. There, a thumb-sized depression showed the remains of a Cardassian insignia.

  "Found it!" Jake said.

  Odo turned. He glanced up, apparently looking for the laser slash, and then at the tiny insignia. "It is smaller than I thought," Odo said.

  Jake nodded. He stood back as Odo and the security guard went to work on the wall. They had the panel on the floor quickly. Behind it was a small transmitter box, a light on top of it blinking red.

  The box looked like nothing Jake had ever seen.

  Odo studied it for a moment. "Rom was correct. It is set to relay the stored information from the hidden cameras every five hours. From the looks of it, we barely made this in time."

  "Do you know how to disable it?" Jake asked.

  "Of course," Odo said. "Stand back."

  Jake and the security guard did. Odo nodded to the security guard belt, took aim, and fired. The box exploded outward. The sound in the tiny space was deafening. The air smelled of cordite and burning metal.

  "I thought you knew how to disable it," Jake said, his hands over his ears.

  Odo's odd little smile crossed his mouth again. "I did," he said and pointed at the box.

  Jake peered inside. He couldn't recognize the transmitter any more. It had fused into a mass of melted circuits and wires. A tiny fire burned in the center of it. The guard took the extinguisher off the far wall and put the fire out.

  Odo tapped his comm badge. "Ube, have you located all the hidden cameras?"

  "Yes, sir." Ube's voice came back strong.

  "Then destroy that board and everything behind it," Odo said. "Go after the cameras next. We'll take care of the one here on the docking bay."

  Jake looked back and up in the direction the camera had to be but couldn't see a thing. He, Odo, and the guard moved down the hall slowly scanning the walls and ceiling until finally Odo spotted it. A small lens, no bigger than the head of a pin, stuck into a tiny hole in a ceiling panel.

  Odo pointed to the lens and the security guard leveled her phaser. The small lens, a section of the ceiling panel, and a small device behind the lens disappeared in a red glowing mass.

  Odo tapped his comm badge again. "Major, we have destroyed the spy system, but I would like permission to board and search the ship docked at cargo bay five."

  "Permission granted," Kira said. "Good work."

  Odo patted Jake on the back. "Well done," he said.

  "Now, shall we see this through to the end?" Odo headed toward the docking bay door.

  Jake's stomach clenched. He wasn't quite sure why Odo was taking him this far. His father would have left him behind. If any part of this mission was dangerous, this would be it.

  Then he grinned.

  Enough of imagined dangers. He would confront the real thing. At Odo's side.

  Kira let out the breath she had been holding. At least one thing had gone right. Odo had stopped the information leak. After this, she would make certain no area of this station went unexamined for long periods of time. She hated the idea of the Cardassians watching her every move. She thought she had gotten past that a long, long time ago.

  "I think we can take our leave of you now," Mouce said.

  Kiser smiled at her. "Anxious to get back to your ship, Captain?"

  She grinned back. "Every moment away is agony," she said. Even though the tone sounded light, Kira could hear the truth behind it. All captains had to feel that way about their ships.

  "Nicely done, Major," Higginbotham said. "Now let's see how this thing plays out."

  "We'll beam you back to your ships," Kira said.

  "Ah, Major, excuse me," Tappan said. He was almost cringing as he looked up from his pad.

  Kira resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Mr. Tappan?"

  "Commander Sisko is hailing us from the Defiant. He says the Defiant, with another ship in tow, is approaching at warp two."

  "Another ship?" Kira repeated. She felt as if her entire body had gone numb.

  "He does know the situation here, doesn't he?" Mouce asked.

  "If he's within hailing distance, he's within scanning distance," Kiser said. "He knows."

  "And he's bringing the Nibix into this mess?" Higginbotham shook his head. "I sure hope he knows what he's doing."

  "We don't know whether or not he is bringing the Nibix," Kira said. "We're assuming that, but we could be wrong."

  Mouce smiled. "I would love to see the expression on the Grand Nagus's face when he
learned he had scurried all this way for no profit at all."

  "Let's stop the speculation and see what's really going on," Higginbotham said.

  But Kira was already ahead of him. She had indicated to Tappan to put Sisko on screen.

  When his face appeared, she felt even more relief. He looked normal. Part of her had been worried that he would have been in some strange battle or would disappear into some space anomaly like the Nibix herself.

  "Hello, Commander," she said, hoping that her relief didn't show in her voice.

  "Major," Sisko said. She could see the bridge of the Defiant behind him. "I see you have lots of company."

  "Yes, sir," Kira said. "And more on the way. Deep Space Nine is the most popular place in the galaxy right now, and Quark's isn't even open."

  Sisko chuckled. "I'm sure I'll hear about that when I return."

  Kira grinned. "I'm sure you will."

  Then his smile faded. "Major, the Defiant along with the Federation ship Long Night will be there in one hour. The Long Night's main drives are out, but it will be able to maneuver in close. You might have a repair team standing by. Sisko out."

  The screen went blank. He disappeared before she had a chance to ask a single question. Such as where did he find the Long Night and what happened to the Nibix? Or was Higginbotham's guess right? Was the Long Night the Nibix?

  Kira might try a stunt like that, but not Benjamin Sisko, Mr. Rules and Regulations himself. Although he had been willing to bend the rules a number of times. Not often enough for her tastes, but on occasion.

  "The Long Night?" Kiser asked. "I don't think that name is in the Federation registry of approved ship titles."

  "I didn't know there was a registry," Mouce said dryly.

  "I believe that's the famous Kiser sarcasm, Captain," Higginbotham said. "The Federation prefers rousing names for its ships like Enterprise or Defiant. In absence of that, the ships are usually named for a famous person, place, or thing."

  And then his eyes widened, and his gaze met Kira's.

  "The long night," she said to him, "is another name for cold sleep."

  "He is bringing the Nibix in," Mouce said. And then she laughed. "Of all the reckless, wonderful things to do."

  "We need to get back to our ships," Kiser said.

  "Wait!" Higginbotham said. "He's playing it this way for a reason. We must do the same. As far as we're concerned, this is a Federation vessel."

  "Subject to Federation protection," Kiser said. Then he grinned. "Make certain your weapons systems are up."

  Mouce laughed. "First thing I do." She returned to the position she had been in when she arrived.

  "Drop the shields," Kira said to Ensign Jones. "Let's allow our guests to leave."

  The other captains went to their original positions as well. Mouce looked at them, then tapped her comm badge. "Mouce to Bosewell. One to beam up."

  As her frame dissolved into multicolored light, Kiser hit his badge, requesting a beamup. And when he was gone, Higginbotham did the same.

  Finally they were gone. The bridge was empty except for Kira and her crew.

  "Ensign Jones," Kira said, "the entire station should be at battle stations, but I want you to double-check. Raise our shields again, and make certain our weapons are ready to go."

  "Aye, sir," Jones said.

  Kira glanced at the blank screen. She wished she were with Commander Sisko right now. This was her kind of fight. Gutsy, adventurous, and one hell of a good time.

  She would make certain he brought the Nibix to Deep Space Nine.

  Or she would die trying.

  Sisko clicked off his communication with Kira and sat down hard in his chair. He wished he could send a message to Dax. But to say much more would hurt their ruse.

  Ensign Kathé turned to him, her hair swinging as she did so. "Do you think they'll buy it, Commander?"

  Sisko smiled. "Of course not, Ensign. But they'll have to pretend they do."

  CHAPTER

  22

  GENERAL CAYBE LOOKED like a caged animal. He had been wanting to take action, any kind of action, for hours now.

  Hibar Ribe wouldn't let him, and the general knew better than to question him. Ribe sat in his chair, keeping his expression as neutral as possible, while he watched the events unfold before him.

  The advisors were conferring. They had been conferring since he gave his last order. Mostly they were trying to determine what he was thinking. It made him wonder how often they wasted time trying to discover what he was thinking instead of actually thinking for him as they were supposed to.

  The rest of the crew on the flagship was working tirelessly. The general had run them through their paces an hour ago, keeping them fresh and alert. Ribe wasn't sure what the general expected, but Ribe knew what he expected.

  He expected to see the Nibix appear in his viewscreen and then in the dome any moment now. Especially after Commander Benjamin Sisko's last communiqué.

  "The Federation Deep-Space Ship Long Night?" Ribe asked. "Does such a ship exist?"

  The general snapped to attention. The advisors stopped muttering. The crew worked harder at pretending there was no tension around them.

  "It seems to," the general said. "But we are checking to be sure."

  Imbeciles. The general might believe that Sisko was towing a Federation ship, but Ribe did not. He stood. His lack of control on this ship frustrated him. If he thought he could, he would turn it around and head toward the coordinates of Commander Benjamin Sisko's message, find the Nibix, and blow it up.

  But he couldn't. He had to wait until it appeared. He had to pretend, for his sake and the sake of his people, that he was overjoyed. He would have to pretend that the Nibix's destruction was an accident.

  An accident he would have to devise quickly.

  He glanced up at the dome and saw a few ships above him. More had arrived while they waited. The starship captains had also beamed aboard Deep Space Nine and made plans. It was no coincidence that after Sisko broadcast his message, the captains returned to their ships and upgraded their status to red alert.

  The Nibix was coming here.

  Ribe glanced at the general and then the rest of the bridge crew. If he couldn't destroy the Nibix, he and a few of his most trusted advisors had to take control of that ship and keep it sealed until his ancestor's sabotage could be covered.

  Somehow.

  Kira studied the screen before her. No sign of the Defiant or the Long Night yet.

  She had to think of it as the Long Night. If she allowed any other name into her mind, she might blurt it out at the wrong moment.

  "Mr. Tappan," she said, "give me the status on the other ships."

  "The four unidentified ships slowed when they monitored the commander's message," Tappan said. "They are waiting just outside scanning range. Jepson's ship has taken up a position near the Cardassians. The three Ferengi ships have aligned themselves behind the negus's ship. All three starships are in positions around the station and are at red alert."

  The alliances were beginning to show. Leave it to the promise of wealth to destroy any hope of peaceable terms. She desperately wanted to call Sisko and ask him just what he was thinking. Then she could plan her strategy. Instead, she had to work on her guesses, based on her knowledge of Commander Benjamin Sisko.

  "How long until the Defiant arrives?" she said, knowing she had only asked that question a short time ago.

  Tappan glanced at his screen. "Thirty minutes until the Defiant and the Long Night are within range."

  Kira leaned against the railing and forced herself to take a deep breath. Thirty minutes. Thirty more minutes of waiting. This was the part she had always hated. When she had joined the Resistance, her cell leader had warned her about her dislike of waiting.

  "If you're not careful," he had said, "you'll anticipate every attack, and destroy any chances we have."

  She wasn't going to anticipate anything. Maybe nothing would happen. Or maybe she would
find herself in the biggest firefight she had seen in years.

  The cold had seeped through Dax's gloves. Her fingers moved more slowly than she would like. She hunched over the green panel in front of her, watching the glow grow. The power sources were tied to the green gems that the Jibetians had guarded so well.

  The lights had transformed the control chamber from that of a coffin ship to that of a working ship. She could almost imagine what it had been like to work here all those centuries ago. Although no one really had a chance to work here. Not after the ship set off. The sabotage had seen to that.

  O'Brien stuck his head out of the panel beside her and grinned. His ruddy skin was streaked with black dirt. Even his teeth had specks on them. He had been working like a madman and had managed to get some of the equipment running, and running well.

  "I have the viewscreen hooked up so we're not flying blind," he said.

  Dax tapped an auxiliary panel in front of her. O'Brien had rigged it on top of the Nibix's communication controls. A perfect blend of Federation and ancient Jibetian technology. If he continued to do that, the ship truly would become a Federation vessel.

  After a moment of sputtering, the small viewscreen winked on. Space zipped by in warp. A familiar sight. Just not one she had expected to see on the Nibix.

  "Well done," she said.

  "I also have a camera on the screen hooked up so you can broadcast," he said.

  She wiped her face with the back of her glove, wondering idly if she were as filthy as O'Brien was. Probably. Maybe the extra layer of dirt kept her that much warmer. The tiny heater in the back wasn't helping much, and the heat that O'Brien turned on had made the temperature rise from unbearable to frigid.

  She glanced quickly behind her to make sure nothing in the background showed the true identity of the ship. The walls were black, and the paneling wasn't working at all. No green glow. No insignias. Just a polished wall, like ones on a thousand ships. She knew that the ruse of flying in as a Federation ship wasn't really going to fool anyone, but at least she had to keep up the appearances.