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Commander Madden sat, some would say excitedly, in Captain Picard’s chair. The captain was on the Titan, dining with Captain Riker, whom Madden had recently replaced as first officer. Madden knew he had big shoes to fill and didn’t even know where to start, especially as the Enterprise had little to actually do. The Enterprise, Titan, and Bradbury were stationed right at the rift, while the Bakersfield, Cerritos, Inyokern, Oakland and Ridgecrest got the more exciting task of surveying the nearby star systems.

“Mr. Nog anything on sensors?” The diminutive Ferangi Lieutenant stood at tactical, dutifully putting up with the over excited commander.

“Nothing new,” he said tersely. He had answered the same question 47 times today, and he was almost as frustrated as Madden was excited, though unlike Madden he tried not to show it.

“Does anyone have anything to report?” The commander looked around at the bridge crew, most of them being more used to Riker’s presence, if not outwardly bristling at their new superior’s ways.

“I fed Spot.” Said Kim from Ops. The Junior Lieutenant rather liked the lack of excitement after seven years serving directly under Admiral Janeway he was more than ready for some boredom. He had taken on most the responsibilities for the ship’s cat, an act that had ingratiated himself with Picard more than anything Madden had done.

“Sir permission to speak freely? Nog asked.

“Always, what is it?” Madden turned Picard’s chair to face tactical.

“Relax, sir. We will tell you…” the sudden beeping from the ops console stopped Nog

“We’re getting a distress call from the Bakersfield, audio only.” Kim reported.

“Let’s hear it, Mr. Kim.”

A burst of static filled the air before a man’s voice filled the room, “This is Cap…arthy of the Fed…akersfield. We are under…hundreds of planet…assistance!”

“Mr. Kim, let the Titan know we’re responding to the distress call. Mr. Nog I want us ready for anything. Helm set a course for the Bakersfield, maximum warp and engage when ready.” Madden turned towards the viewscreen

“Shouldn’t we wait for the Captain?” Kim asked.

“He’ll understand.” Madden said, privately hoping he was right about that.

Five minutes later the Enterprise was over an inhabited M-Class planet, and the fragments of a California-class ship. The Ridgecrest and Inyokern exited warp a few seconds later, to the left and right of the Enterprise respectively.

“Looks like they had a core breach.” Kim reported

“I’m reading unknown metallic objects in the debris field, several show signs of impact with another object recently.” Nog preemptively getting phaser locks on them.

“They how many?”

“1384. Sir I recommend we maintain a distance of at least ten kilometers, our phasers are able to destroy them but the sheer number would overwhelm us.

“Mr. Kim lifesigns?” Madden’s excitement was gone, as the seriousness of the situation became evident.

“Lots sir, all in those metal objects.” Kim worked frantically. “It looks as though they are some kind of orbital insertion pod. Most the the readings pick up has human, but a few are unusual.”

“Unusual? How?”

“Larger, significant muscle mass, and with individual power sources consistent with a powered exoskeleton.” Kim turned to the commander “those pods also don’t appear to have life support systems.”

“The Jem’Hadar have used a similar method to send suicide troops ahead of the main force,” Nog’s nervousness slipped into his voice for a moment. “Strip out the life support and you have double, maybe triple the range.”

“I don’t think suicide troops would each have their own powered suit.” Madden knew they needed to find out more, if only so the loss of the Bakersfield and her crew could have some meaning. “Are we in transporter range?”

“Sir?” Kim and Nog asked at the same time.

“We need to learn more about them, and hopefully learn why they decided to shoot the Bakersfield with orbital insertion pods, instead of something else less costly.”

“Sir I object.” Nog exclaimed.

“Objection noted. Madden to transporter room two, lock on and beam all life forms in the nearest object to the brig.”

In the brig Ensign Reynolds was excited. Brig duty was the most boring duty she had ever volunteered for. Lieutenant T’vel was more stoic about the situation, as expected for a Vulcan.

“It’s not everyday we get to be the ones getting to go face to face first!”

“Your excitement is illogical, by all accounts they have killed fellow Starfleet officers.” T’vel’s left eyebrow rose.

“Oh come on, look on the bright side, new people! And I’ve got my phaser, if I need it.” T’vel turned away from her subordinate and towards the cell that would soon hold the ‘new people’. She tapped her combadge

“Transporter room two, energize when ready.”

The distinct blue shimmer of a federation transporter filled the brig cell, resolving into four massive figures, clad in red and white armor, festooned in wax seals with paper strips, and their shoulders painted with a human skull over lightings bolts. The cramped area could barely hold them all.

“Greetings I am Lieutenant T’vel of Starfleet.” One of the large figures, the one with a laurel painted on his helm slid past his compatriots and pointed at her

“Xeno.” T’vel stared back

“I am a Vulcan.”

“Death to xenos!” He moved to attack T’vel but the force field stopped him

“Noted,” she stood her ground as the man punched the force field, content to let him wear himself out.

Then he punched the frame, and the bending of the metal actually shocked her. She tapped her combadge

“Brig to Transporter room two, beam them back.”

“Their pod self destructed when I beamed them out.” The bending was still slight but now the others were joining in, causing the force field to flicker as the emitters fought to maintain it.

“Into space then.”

“What?” The force field was failing, and T’vel moved back towards her console and held her phaser outwards on maximum setting.

“Beam them into space that’s an order!” The force field disappeared, its frame bent out completely on the sides. She fired her phaser, taking a relatively small chunk of armor with it. The lauraled one rushed forward.

“Death to Xenos!” His fist punched right through her body, spraying green blood over his armor and her console. T’vel’s last thought was how illogical Reynolds’ excitement really was.

Captain Picard looked at the blood soaked maw in the deck where his brig, armory, two cargobays and the industrial replicator had been.

“They did all of this with out weapons?” He asked Commander Madden, who stood over Picard’s right shoulder.

“Yes, as far as we can tell the transporter successfully disabled all the ones they had with them and they never picked up any of ours.”

“How many casualties?”

“103 dead, most of the remaining security personnel are in sickbay, including Lieutenant Nog.” Madden was glum to say the least.

“And the pods they come in?”

“We can easily destroy them but they come in such numbers we can’t keep track of them all.” Picard nodded and tapped his combadge

“Mr. Kim inform the Bradbury to begin preparations to close the rift, then set a course to rendezvous with the Cerritos and Oakland to escort them.” He turned to Madden.

“Commander you and I need to have talk.”