For the Record
Posted on Sat Apr 25th, 2026 @ 4:41pm by Lieutenant Bartholomew Hale
1,114 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
Friends and Traitors
Location: Starbase 310, Interview Room
Timeline: Just Prior to "Friends and Traitors"
"So let's go through this again, Lieutenant Hale," the Lieutenant Commander Hudson muttered from the desk, glancing up from a small red PADD. The man pursed his thick lips as he repeated the information, swiping his hand across the crop of prickly stubble that had grown during the day. "The situation on Juhraya became untenable; the Federation and Bajoran citizens were at war with the Cardassians, the flashpoint being an event that occurred three days ago, on Stardate 46230. The Cardassians detained a Bajoran accused of stabbing a Cardassian shopkeeper. A Cardassian vigilante group then randomly beat a man in his own home. Nasty business."
Hale nodded.
Hudson continued. "The following day, the Bajorans successfully freed the prisoner from the Cardassian barracks, leading to a skirmish in the streets. The Federation and Cardassian Union vessels Akagi and Vetar then evacuated any person who was willing to leave. This included you and your staff, who were ordered by Captain Vince Franklin to secure any Federation assets and extricate yourselves from the planet. So far, so good?"
"Uh... yeah," Hale nodded, shoulders slumped. The dimly lit room fell into a cramped silence. It was broken by a quiet acknowledgement. "Yeah, that sounds about right."
"The evacuation then proceeded smoothly until the last shuttles were preparing to depart. Your Yeoman, Crewman Shmack, used a Type-3 phaser rifle to fire upon Cardassian Glinn Teri of the Fourth Order, commander of the Cardassian garrison on Juhraya. He was killed. Was that on your order?"
Hale went to voice his disgust, but his energy did not permit it. "Absolutely not, Teri... Teri was a friend."
Hudson nodded. "Fair enough. In your report, you said that he was trying to make space in his shuttle for a group of Bajoran evacuees?"
"Yes."
"And Shmack killed him for this?"
"I... well, no," Hale paused again. He shook his head, "I can't explain why she'd take such action, Commander. My only explanation is--"
"Is?"
"Is that she felt like those Bajorans were under threat of the Cardassian soldiers. But I can't see how... they did nothing to suggest that they would harm anyone."
Hudson nodded in quiet understanding. "That phaser rifle. Not normally part of a yeoman's regular equipment loadout. How did she come to be in possession of it?"
"She took it from Xander McGuire, my assistant administrator."
"Took it, or was given it?"
"It was taken," Hale insisted. "She ripped it from his hands."
"You said in your report that McGuire followed Shmack after the Glinn was killed. That could suggest collusion."
"I'm not speculating, Commander," Hale pushed back. "There was nothing to suggest that is the case. I... I cannot explain either person's motive. I was more concerned with getting to Teri."
Hudson nodded. The officer stood, tossing his PADD on the desk and leaning against the wall. He let out a slow breath. "There's a lot of people asking questions about this."
"I know."
Hudson paused for a moment, flexing his shoulders uncomfortably. "You've been on the other side of this desk enough times to know there is a lot of scrutiny here. I'll be frank, this is not reflecting well on you."
"I'm aware of that too."
Suddenly, the darkness was cut by the door of the small interview room opening, another crimson-tunicked officer stepping in. Hudson and Hale stood to attention. Captain Vince Franklin, a silver haired, craggy-faced man, nodded to the pair and raised his hand slightly. "At ease, gentlemen."
Hudson rested his broad shoulders against the wall. Hale took a seat. The room felt like a closet with three people in it.
"Quite the mess, Lieutenant," Franklin grumbled. The senior officer sighed. "I've spent three hours this morning in meetings with Admiral Rollman."
Both junior officers tensed their jaws at the mention of the Admiral.
"The Federation Council and Cardassian Union have formally agreed that Juhraya is a neutral world. Both sides are prohibited from visiting the planet. They'll be on their own until a decision between our governments can be reached on who will remain."
"In other words, that planet will be given to the Cardassians before long," Hudson opined.
"That would be my assumption," Franklin admitted. "No matter how friendly the Cardassians' intentions appear to be, negotiations don't seem to be going in our favour. As for you, Hale..."
Bartholomew swallowed hard. He was waiting to be excommunicated, or executed, or sent to waste transfer on Starbase 80.
"An inquest will need to occur into what happened on that planet. However, with these negotiations, the Federation and Starfleet are too busy to worry about that now, and a Cardassian officer dead at the hands of a member of Starfleet means we're doing our best to prevent a war. However, it seems the Cardassians are prepared to be lenient here."
Hale's eyes narrowed. "Lenient?"
Hudson's gaze settled on Hale, "In your report, you said the Glinn mentioned something called the Maquis, correct?"
"Yes?" Hale shrugged. "I didn't know what he meant."
Franklin stroked his chin thoughtfully, "Across the DMZ, we've seen increased resistance against Cardassian visitation on colonies inhabited by Federation citizens. Some have resorted to taking up arms on Juhraya. There are rumours they may be organising into a group with that name. If that is the case, then your yeoman may have been co-opted. At the behest of the Cardassians, we've officially listed her as a deserter and wanted terrorist."
"And McGuire?" Hale asked.
"His motives were a little more vague," Hudson admitted. "Missing."
Hale nodded. "Understood."
"We're sending some ships out to look into this terrorism problem while our talks continue," Franklin said. "Are you familiar with the Thunderbird?"
Hale raised an eyebrow, "The old battleship? The mythological bird? The puppets?"
"Don't get cute, Lieutenant. She's an Akira Class. Beautiful vessel." Franklin interjected.
"They need a helmsman." Hudson added.
"No," Hale raised his eyebrows and his index finger, almost at the point of pleading, "... No."
"Since you're a pilot and they're heading out to the DMZ, Admiral Rollman thought you would be the perfect choice. You might even be able to offer some of your knowledge of the people out here."
"Think of it as a chance to make amends with all this," Hudson offered.
"And best of all, you'll always have someone watching your every move," Franklin grinned. He clapped his hands together and went for the door, stopping only to point at Hale, "I'll send through your transfer orders when I return to my office. They're expecting you to report aboard later today. Good hunting, Lieutenant!"
Hale looked darkly at Hudson as Franklin left. "This has to be a stitch up."
Lieutenant Bartholomew Hale
Chief Flight Control Officer
USS Thunderbird
RSS Feed