Chapter 7
Chapter 6
Stardate 57165
“Captain, we’re being hailed,” Kitty reported.
It was a week since the “Barroom Brawl Bet”, as it had become known. They had arrived at the border of Shi’ar space only moments before, and Kitty had almost immediately reported detecting a Shi’ar warship in the vicinity, shielded but with its weapons deactivated.
“Open a channel, Commander,” Picard replied.
“Comm-channel open,” she acknowledged as the main screen changed from the standard forward view to show a high-ranking Shi’ar military officer.
“I am Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise representing the United Federation of Planets,” he identified himself.
“I am General D’Lar of the Shi’ar Defense Forces,” the man on the screen identified himself, “aboard the Starjammer.” Picard heard a sharp intake of breath from behind him at the tactical station. “I bid you welcome on behalf of her Imperial Majestrix Lilandra. We have been expecting you, and I look forward to meeting you in person.”
“We, too, look forward to meeting you in person, with the hope of finding mutual interests and benefits,” Picard responded with a gracious smile that was returned by D’Lar.
“That is my wish as well, Captain. May I invite you and your officers and the members of the Federation delegation aboard the Starjammer to dine with us this evening?”
“We would be honored to join you, Sir,” Picard answered. “I should make it clear, however, that my officers and the delegation are one and the same. We have not brought a separate group of negotiators.” Seeing the surprise on D’Lar’s face, Picard quickly added, “I hope that won’t cause any difficulty.”
D’Lar recovered from his surprise quickly. “Not at all, Captain. We will be honored to receive any and all of your officers. I will arrange the times with your Communications Officer.”
“That will be fine. My Tactical Officer,” he said with very slight emphasis, to correct the General without drawing attention to his correction, “Commander Pryde, will be happy to make the arrangements.”
D’Lar’s brow lifted in surprise again. “Pardon me, Captain, but did you say Commander Pryde?” Picard nodded. “As in Kitty Pryde, the Shadowcat?”
Picard turned to Kitty, who bowed her head slightly in acknowledgement. He turned back to the screen. “Yes, Sir, her name is Kitty Pryde.”
“I see,” he said with obvious excitement. “I look forward to speaking to your Tactical Officer.” D’Lar checked his chronometer. “I will have my assistant contact her shortly to make the arrangements. In the meanwhile, if you would care to match course and speed with us, we should begin our trip to Chandilar.”
“At your convenience, General,” Picard replied. “Mr. Data, please match course and speed.”
“Aye, Captain.
“We look forward to a pleasant dinner,” Picard concluded, and D’Lar nodded his acknowledgement.
The screen blanked and returned to the standard forward view.
Picard turned to Kitty. “Alright, Commander. What was all that about? And why were you so surprised?”
“Lilandra sent out the Starjammer.”
“What’s so special about that?” asked Riker.
Kitty replied. “The Starjammer is Lilandra’s flagship. More than that. It’s her personal vessel. She rarely goes anywhere without it, and it never goes anywhere without her. There has been a Starjammer in the Imperial fleet for over 400 years. They only retire one Starjammer when there’s another to take its place. And Starjammer is always the Imperial flagship, and Lilandra’s personal vessel.” She looked at Captain Picard. “Lilandra is here, Captain. She’s aboard that ship over there.”
“You’re sure about this?” Picard asked.
“No, I’m not,” Kitty admitted. “But Starjammer is special. She’s like Airforce One. She only has one assignment.”
Most of them didn’t get the reference; Picard did. “I understand.” He considered the implications for a moment. “But if she’s aboard, why wouldn’t she contact us herself?”
“I don’t know, Captain. But she might just want to study us before we get to Chandilar. If that was her plan, though, it’s gone up in smoke, because she knows I’m here too, which means she knows that I know.”
Picard nodded again. “All right. Whether she’s here or not, we’ll have to be on our best behavior.” He looked meaningfully around the bridge, and all his officers acknowledged him. “Why was D’Lar so surprised about us not having a separate negotiating team?”
“The Shi’ar are a warrior race, Captain,” she answered. “Everything about them is colored through that perception. As far as they are concerned, Starfleet Officers are soldiers... warriors. Negotiators talk, and talk is cheap. Warriors are men and women of action. So if we’ve sent our flagship, our greatest warship, commanded by our greatest wartime commander, with our greatest crew, along with a person that they recognize as one of their own most decorated warriors--- me---, it must mean that we’re really serious about these negotiations.”
“And was D’Lar happy about that?”
Kitty mulled that over. “I’m not sure, Captain. I got the impression that if he had his own way, he would like to be happy about it, but that as things stand, his life just got more complicated.”
Picard thought for a moment. “I’m not sure what that means.”
“Neither am I. But I have a feeling that not everyone is of a mind about these negotiations. It seems that there might be some who are in favor of it, and others who are against it. But as for who is who in the political spectrum,” Kitty shook her head, “there’s just not enough information yet.”
“Very well,” Picard sighed. “We’ll just have to go into this with our eyes open.”
Here it comes, thought Kitty.
“What was that business about a ‘shadowcat?’” asked Riker.
Yep --- right on schedule, she thought.
“‘Shadowcat’, Will, is a name, or rather a nickname. About 400 years ago, there was a character from their history that came from the stars and helped them conquer certain enemies and defeat certain evils. A few years back when I was last here, I fought alongside Lilandra’s troops to help fight off an invasion by a foreign power. I earned a few medals by getting shot up a bit, and somehow the name ‘Shadowcat’ stuck.”
It wasn’t precisely a lie. Shadowcat did exist almost 400 years ago and did fight evil among the Shi’ar. And the name did continue to stick after she helped fight off the Kree-Skrull invasion. She simply left out the fact that both Shadowcats were one and the same.
“Well, then,” Picard commented, “if these people respect warriors, it’s a good thing that you’re along for the ride.”
There was a beep at her console. “We’re being contacted by the Starjammer. With your permission, Sir.”
“Make it so, Commander,” Picard agreed.
*******
Dinner was, as expected, excellent and entertaining. The Starfleet officers were in their standard uniforms this evening. There would be enough time once they reached Chandilar to wear their mess dress kits. But this was an informal dinner to allow the two command crews to get acquainted.
The food itself was a mix of Shi’ar and Earth delicacies, all edible by human and Shi’ar alike. To both Kitty’s and Deanna’s delight, desert had included warm chocolate mousse pie covered with powdered sugar with fresh berries on the side... as well as a large assortment of other confections.
Conversation had been diverse and had covered quite a few different topics from art to politics to military tactics, with all of the officers participating. The company was quite pleasant and the last unease had disappeared quite a while earlier. Of course, the wonderful variety of wines --- all real alcohol --- had helped. No one had gotten drunk, but they had all mellowed out quite a bit, and gotten comfortable.
D’Lar turned to Kitty. “Commander Pryde, I have, by now, concluded that you do not remember me.”
“I’m afraid not, sir,” she replied sheepishly. “Am I supposed to?”
“I’m not surprised,” he said with a shrug, “I was a very junior officer when we last met.”
“When was that, sir?” she asked.
“During the invasion. I was a junior lieutenant in your command at Elagor 3.”
“I’m sorry that I don’t remember you. Unfortunately, my memories of that day tend to run in a somewhat different direction,” she said darkly.
“Oh, don’t be, Commander. I’m not offended in the least. You had quite a bit on your mind at the time --- we all did --- so I quite understand. But I remember that you took a moment of your time to comfort a very scared junior officer on his first wartime deployment. You didn’t have to do it, but you did. And I very much appreciate it. Then you went ahead and won the battle for us.”
“I may not remember you, General,” Kitty answered, “but I do remember that I was hardly the only one on the battlefield. I may have been in command, but it was you and your colleagues that won the battle.”
“Yes, I remember that too. I also remember your modesty. But none of my fellows charged that Skrull weapons position and took out the launchers. You did that on your own, and got quite shot up in the process. And then you tried to refuse the Star of Shi’ar, our highest award for bravery in combat, when it was offered, and only accepted when Her Majesty informed you that the recipient was not allowed to refuse the medal.” He smiled. “You see, I do remember, even if you do not.”
Kitty smiled ruefully, looking around at her fellow officers who were listening intently to the conversation. “Yes, well, don’t believe everything you hear, General.”
“I don’t, Commander. In this particular case, I was there to witness the events first hand.”
Looking for a way out of this uncomfortable conversation, Kitty said, “And how is Her Majesty?”
“She is quite well; older, perhaps, with the frailties of age. But generally in good health. She will be greeting your ship personally when we reach Chandilar.”
“Good. I look forward to seeing her again,” Kitty smiled again. “And to introducing her to Captain Picard. I think it will be an interesting meeting.”
“Indeed,” agreed D’Lar. “I agree. The resemblance between your Captain and the late Royal Consort is uncanny, if you’ll pardon the pun.”
Kitty looked at D’Lar in pained consternation. “A pun that bad might not be enough to start an interstellar war over. But it’s close.”
“Ahem,” said Picard. “My resemblance to whom?”
“I’m sorry, Captain,” apologized Kitty. “We’re having a bit of a laugh at your expense, and I really shouldn’t. You look very much like the Majestrix’s deceased consort. He died several centuries ago, so nobody will mistake you for him. But the resemblance is really close. And I’m looking forward to seeing Lilandra’s reaction.”
“Are you?” came the authoritative female voice from behind Kitty.
They turned to see Her Imperial Majestrix Lilandra Neramani standing in the doorway, with several bodyguards standing behind her. Everyone immediately came to their feet.
“Yes, Lil, I am,” Kitty replied with a grin on her face.
She walked up to Lilandra and crossed her arms in front of her chest, then spreading her arms in a gesture of welcome. Then, speaking in Shi’aruk, the primary Shi’ar language, she said “May the Great Bird of the Galaxy bless you eternally.”
Lilandra repeated the gesture and said in the same language, “May the Great Bird’s wings warm and comfort you.”
Kitty and Lilandra hugged like old friends.
D’Lar and his officers bowed, and the Enterprise crew came to attention. Only Kitty remained casual in the presence of the leader of the Shi’ar Empire. “Your Majesty,” D’Lar began, “I was not aware of your intent to join us...”
“It’s all right, General. The fault is not yours. But as the humans say, ‘the jig is up.’ Kitty suspected I was aboard, and no doubt she already informed her captain of that fact.”
“True,” admitted Kitty.
Lilandra nodded. She turned to Captain Picard. “Captain, please forgive D’Lar for the deception. He did so on my orders.” She smiled ruefully. “For my own behalf, I make no apologies. I rarely do, but especially not for actions that I take on behalf of the security of my people.”
“I assure you, Your Majesty,” Picard responded, “no apology is necessary.”
Lilandra bowed her head slightly in acknowledgement. “I believe you were finishing desert,” she continued with a smile. “Far be it from me to disturb such important traditions.”
“Your presence could never be a disturbance, Your Majesty,” Picard said gallantly in his best Shakespearean manner with a slight bow.
She smiled brightly and turned to Kitty. “You’re right, the resemblance to Charles is uncanny. He even knows exactly what to say, just as Charles did.”
D’Lar had another chair brought to the table as he relinquished the spot at the head of the table to Lilandra. “Again, Captain,” she said, “I regret the deception. But I have found that observing from afar often gives me insights into negotiating partners that I would otherwise not have. And I do not like to throw away any advantage that I can claim.”
“We understand, Your Majesty,” Picard said again. “But if you will permit, we are not an enemy that you need to gain an advantage over. We are here to negotiate for peace between our people, not set up a war.”
“Perhaps, Captain. Yet it has been my experience that the lines between peace and war are very thin. It was one of your own military leaders who said that diplomacy is simply war fought by other means.”
“Agreed, Your Majesty, and Clausewicz was essentially correct. But we are not here to make war with you, but rather to find a way to wage peace in a manner that is mutually beneficial to us, and which also strengthens us against our enemies. And while I can’t say that there will never be disagreements between us --- in fact, I will guarantee that there will be --- our purpose for being here is to make sure that those disagreements never do become a reason to wage war. And we believe that the best way to do that is to establish a strong relationship, one that can stand the strain of normal politics without breaking down into war.”
Lilandra nodded. “Indeed, that is the purpose for these discussions. But we are not allies yet, and it wouldn’t do to throw away any advantage.”
“You’re talkin’ like you’re expecting any talks we have to break down, Lil,” Kitty pointed out.
“It has happened before, Kitty. You know that.”
“We’re not the Kree or the Skrull.”
“No. No, you’re not. Or we wouldn’t be having this conversation. But there is no telling what the future will bring.”
“Your Majesty,” Picard said, “nobody knows what the future will bring. There are so many variables. Anything can go wrong. And I’m sure that some of it will. But the talks we have now may very well set the tone for how both of our nations react when things do go wrong. I hope that you will look favorably on these talks, for the sake of both our nations.”
He continued, “I have seen the number of different species that serve aboard this vessel, Your Majesty. It reminds me very much of the diversity that we are so proud of in the Federation. So many different species do not work so closely together without occasional rifts between them. Yet here they are, still working together despite those occasional rifts. That could only have occurred because people were willing to talk to each other in order to work things out.”
“Most of those different races were conquered by the Shi’ar, Captain,” Lilandra responded. “The fact that the Empire has so many different species is testimony to the strength of our military, not our negotiating skills.”
“Perhaps, Your Majesty,” Picard answered. “They may indeed have been conquered once, long ago. But that doesn’t explain how they are all here, now, working together on this ship. That sort of cooperation can’t be forced by a conqueror. It can only happen by agreement, and such an agreement can only happen through the power of negotiation, through the realization of mutual benefit.” He paused. “Please, Your Majesty, give us the chance to realize our mutual benefit. Please listen to us with an open mind.”
Lilandra turned to Kitty without taking her eyes off Picard. “Yes. So very much like Charles.” Kitty nodded her agreement.
“Very well, Captain. I will hear you and your crew out. I make no promises to sign any agreements. But I do promise to hear what you have to say. For the sake of diversity, and for the sake of my friend, who you have brought with you.”
Picard hid a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Your Majesty. That’s all we ask.”