Legacy

Legacy

By Journeyman Harper

All characters are either (1) My own creation or imagination; or (2) Property of Paramount Studios, producers of the Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Welcome to Legacy!

Kerryn sat in the conference room on the top deck of the USS Enterprise. How the hell had he gotten here? It had been a long couple of days. But he had to wonder what the hawk-like man who was the captain wanted, and what the young ensign was doing here. The Betazoid was no mystery. The several various other persons in the room were all obviously senior- ranking staff in various capacities. The bearded one seemed to be the official womanizer, though. Kerryn allowed himself a small private amusement.

Counselor Troi's eyes widened slightly. This young shipmaster had pegged most of them correctly. Especially Riker, she thought with mild amusement herself. This one would be a good choice.

Kerryn reached back to a couple of days ago. He had arrived at Starbase 290 with his cargo. This starbase was not on his normal route, but Starbase 277 had signaled early that it had no docking room available. So Kerryn changed course, and secured a docking reservation at 290. 290 was much larger, and was much more mainstream. And thus the docking fees were higher. But he could swing it. It just meant that the navigation computer upgrade would have to wait.

He was carrying crateloads of metallic ore. The ore would eventually make it into various subsystems, and more for the vessels that navigated space. He had been doing this run for years, even though he was only nineteen. His father had been moving cargo within this sector for sixty years, and Kerryn since he was about five years old. He smiled. They had been very lucky, as his father had been an excellent pilot and negotiator. Kerryn was a natural born engineer. During the cargo flights, he followed the education program and became a certified Ship Master at age sixteen. They had had six months of treating each other as equals before the Cardassian raid.

That still hurt. He missed his father still. But he had been in Propulsion and his father was on the Navigation deck when they had blown it off. He had never had a chance. Kerryn had hidden then, and they had lost their cargo to the Cardassians. It had taken all of his inheritance and savings to salvage and attach a new navigation deck. Even so, it wasn't exactly what you would call pretty. But he had gotten it functional, by himself, and back running cargo within six months. He was very proud of that. The new navigation deck was a lot more spacious than the old one, but it had seen heavy battle and scoring. And now, while it didn't gleam or shine, the Bridge deck was uniformly colored, comfortable, and highly useful. He had learned that it had come from a Starfleet Constitution-class salvage, and since everyone else had called it that, he had done so too.

He had just discharged his cargo and been credited for it when an alert had happened in the life support system. Kerryn had been on his way to the bar for a well-deserved couple of rounds when the telltale beeping went off. Taking his credit, sighing loudly, and three hours later all was well, but he had gotten to the bar late. It wasn't very crowded now, but the band he had been hoping to hear was gone for the night. He had sat down with some other freighter captains, and picked up on the local news and route issues.

They were talking animatedly and in wonder about the Galaxy- class Starfleet ship that had docked. The latest in technology, speed, comfort, and weaponry as well. Starfleet was the envy of most space pilots and captains. It made Kerryn extra proud that he had adapted the Constitution- class bridge to his ship.

Conversation dropped off as several Starfleet officers entered. They were alert, but at ease, in those tight uniforms. Kerryn automatically felt the stirring of his interest. The uniforms revealed all the good and not so good curves on people. A look of longing crossed his face briefly. Think of the ships that they commanded!

Kerryn failed to notice that one of the group was quite young, and had noticed the look cross his face. When most of Kerryn's companions had departed, the young ensign got up and came over to sit with him. Kerryn made room and welcomed him.

"Please, join me. You must be from that Galaxy-class starship everyone is talking about." Kerryn held out his hand. "I am Ship Master Kerryn, of the freighter Totentanz."

"Ensign Wesley Crusher, USS Enterprise. Can I get you something?"

Kerryn shook his head. "No, thanks, I am quite fine with this." He indicated his glass of bourbon. "More than that and I might miss my departure."

"Is that real alcohol then? I've only had synthehol."

"Real bourbon, from Earth." Kerryn smiled. "So, what brings you to Starbase 290?"

"Routine visit. We had some diplomatic envoys that are coordinating a trade mission. Everyone hopes it will go well. You?"

"Cargo, how I earn my living. I bring assemblies and technology to some of the outer colonies in the Aurigaen Belt. On the return trip I bring in ore and raw materials. I would have been here earlier except my ship blew an electrostatic evaporator and I had to buy a new one."

"Couldn't you just replicate one?"

"Replicators take power. The only replicator I have is for food and water. Everything else has to be bought or made."

Wesley was amazed. He knew that replicators took power to run, but didn't everyone have enough power?

Kerryn saw his look, and grinned. "Yes, we have to conserve power. We don't have big anti-matter energy sources like you do."

"How do you derive your power then?"

"I borrowed a trick from the Romulans. Our power is based upon a weak artificial quantum singularity in a gravity bottle." And Kerryn went through the basics, much to Wesley's awe.

"Wow! That's a different way for sure. Sounds unstable, though."

"Well, we have to watch it carefully. But it works and it is much cheaper than anti-matter units."

That caught Wesley's attention. "You still have to barter and buy things?"

"Out here on the Belt, money talks." Kerryn looked at the other officers wistfully. "For humans who belong or support the Federation, money doesn't exist. But for we who aren't integrated with the Federation on a daily basis, we depend upon it to survive." He sighed. "Like now. Replacing the evaporators means that I have to wait on my Navigation computer upgrade. Oh well." He leaned back a bit, and finished his bourbon. The gentle light of the bar raked over him, revealing his very good looking features and a body outline that was as enticing as any Wesley had seen or for that matter, slept with.

Wesley couldn't believe his eyes. This guy was hot. Independent, but yet honest, stable and nice. Trustworthy. He tried his best not to gape, but, well, it was kind of unavoidable. He resorted to his own drink.

"You seem a bit young for Ensign duty. Congratulations on that achievement."

Wesley laughed. "I basically grew up with a warp field coil in my hands. I'm nineteen, but I've been engineering since as long as I can remember. They finally had to put me somewhere where they could see what I was doing and not blow the ship up, so they made me an acting ensign until I could go to Starfleet Academy. I'm actually still attending, but on a tour of duty."

"Starfleet Academy." Kerryn shifted a little. "Is it truly as wonderful as it is portrayed?"

Wesley nodded. "To a point. The Academy is so much more than engineering. It is politics, diplomacy, experience, honor, ethics, . many things that an officer will need higher up. But yes, it is a great educational experience."

Kerryn felt eyes on him at that moment, and he looked carefully over toward the other table. The bald man with the big nose was staring at him with thoughtful eyes. Kerryn noted his gaze briefly, and then leaned inwards to Wesley. "Your captain is giving me the once over. He probably thinks I am being a bad influence on you."

Wesley turned around to look at Captain Picard. Kerryn rolled his eyes at how obvious that was. This kid would never make it on his own. "Yes, that is my captain. Looks like it is back to the Enterprise." They stood at the same time. "Thanks for letting me join you."

"It was my pleasure. I see so few people my age, and I don't often come to Starbase 290 because of the high docking fees." He took Wesley's hand and shook it. "Best of luck, Ensign Crusher." And with that he moved to the bar, paid his credits and made his way back to the Totentanz.

Picard, Wesley, and Riker each watched the young freighter captain leave the bar. Each had different thoughts on the matter. Picard saw the young man as an answer to a problem. Riker saw an image of himself at a younger age. Wesley was desperate to get into the young master's pants.

Kerryn had gone back to his ship, and pleasantly found out that there was a shipment of communication subsystem components available to take back. He spent the couple of hours coordinating the loading process, restocking certain items, and then departed the Starbase. His ship hummed along at a stately Warp 3.2, a speed he had found was the best optimization of power for the five-day trip.

Picard, Wesley, Riker and a couple others returned to the Enterprise. Captain Picard had asked Wesley about the young man, noting his ship and experience base, and particularly the amicable way that the two had gotten along. That had been more conversation from Wesley than he could remember. And there was still the Shepherd Project to resolve. Academy students needed to be shepherded on several missions in order to broaden their experience base. Picard had come to Starbase 290 to see if he could find a shepherd for Wesley. But the six or so old spacers that he had met with all weren't interested in taking on a neophyte, even if he could double the efficiency of their aging warp cores.

The eyes, and the look of that freighter guy had caught Picard off guard. They were mature and careful eyes, despite the guy's youthful appearance. He would investigate that in the morning. It could be risky, two young men and a ship looking for adventure, but it would definitely be good for young Wesley.

"Wesley, come by my ready room at 0800 tomorrow please, and we can discuss your Shepherding Project." Picard looked smug.

"Yes sir." Internally, he groaned. Another early morning. It was just past 2300 ships time.

But at precisely 0800, Ensign Crusher requested entrance and was admitted to the Captain's ready room. "Sit down, Wes. This is an informal discussion."

Nothing was informal with Picard. "Thank you, sir." And Wesley sat as if a four-foot dildo had been crammed up his butt. Hmm . interesting idea . oops. Wesley schooled his features for attentiveness.

Picard continued. "I have tried to find a shepherd for you from the traders now for a week, and there isn't anyone willing to take you on for the required period. I assure you it isn't personal; it seems to be that they either don't have room or time. This is causing some difficulty."

"I understand, sir."

"You could do your project here on the Enterprise, but there isn't much challenge in that."

"No, sir."

"It occurred to me though that you had a conversation at length with one of the traders last night. Do you think he would be a candidate as a shepherd?"

Wesley gaped. "I am not sure, sir. He is a freighter captain, between the Federation and the Aurigaen Belt. He has his own ship that he maintains himself." What he didn't add was that he was a total hottie.

"Did he seem responsible?"

Wesley shrugged. "He was alive. He had an incredible understanding of energy cores."

Picard remembered the look he had seen from the young captain. Wary, but honest. Crafty. Experienced. A moment of concern flooded him. How experienced? What would Beverly say if they took a side trip to Riisa, or worse? Picard remembered his own shepherding experience. Whatever happened, it was to be part of the experience and the adventure.

Wesley looked up at his benefactor. "Why would he take me on when the others wouldn't?"

Picard smiled. "Because we will offer to pay him. And you and he already have had a positive first impression."

However, inquiries about Captain Kerryn proved fruitless. It wasn't until after that that Wesley recalled that he had styled himself as Ship Master, not Captain. A further inquiry yielded that the freighter Totentanz had filed a flight plan and departed for the Aurigaen Belt at 0300 that morning. All inquiries about the young ship master revealed what could be a very interesting shepherding experience.

Of course, that was to be expected when a nubile nineteen- year-old and a man whose gaze could shatter granite are walking around in Starfleet uniforms, asking questions. One of the younger pilots pulled Wesley aside for a moment for a private discussion. It was then that Wesley learned that Kerryn was a horny young guy, as he was reported to have the best collection of porn in the business. That lit up Wesley's face for sure. Picard didn't need to know that. The pilot also stated that he was pretty sure that Ship Master Kerryn was gay. Wesley was sure that Picard did not need to know that either.

On their way back to Enterprise, Picard came to the conclusion that this was definitely the right solution. Wesley, who had been full of hope until they learned of his departure, was downcast as they stepped off the transporter. Picard remembered his own youthful days, and decided on a course of action.

"How fast do you think a freighter could travel fully loaded?"

Wesley considered. "He might make Warp 5, but probably less than that. Warp 3, perhaps."

"The Enterprise will be departing tomorrow morning. I believe we could make a side trip and see if this young captain would be interested in a business proposition."

Wesley stared in surprise. It wouldn't be the first time that the flagship of Starfleet and over a thousand people were diverted to accommodate Wesley. Blushing slightly, he said, "Captain, sir, I would be most gratified were that to take place."

Picard nodded. "Consider it a homework assignment to estimate his most likely trajectory. Let me know what course to set." He looked sternly at the young ensign. "Be sure your result is plausible. We don't just go sailing off in some direction because of a round-off error."

"Yes, sir!" And they separated.

Enterprise left Starbase 290 on time the next morning. Ensign Crusher sat at helm, and at the order from Picard he entered the course required and accelerated to Warp 5. They would know in a couple of hours if the Totentanz was within scan range.

Wesley squirmed in his seat at helm. He was anxious that they find the Totentanz at least and prove his navigation correct. He also kept having hot flashes around his butt, each one hinting at the fantasy of a young space captain's attention from his mouth, fingers, or ultimately his cock. It was a good thing Counselor Troi was elsewhere.

Almost two and a half hours later, sensors picked up a freighter vessel on parallel course. Subspace ID reported it as the light freighter Totentanz. Wesley was thrilled, because the solution was nearly exact based upon his research and modeling, and he would have a chance to Shepherd with the hottest guy he had seen in weeks, maybe even months.

Counselor Troi entered the bridge, glanced at Wesley, rolled her eyes and took her seat.

Worf took the initiative. "Scans report a light freighter. Five nacelles, though no reading of a conventional warp core. Cargo of electronic assemblies. Standard phasers and," Worf paused a moment, "an ion cannon. Evidence of construction from several cultures, including what appears to be a Constitution-class bridge deck mounted on a modified Romulan propulsion section." Worf snorted in disgust. "A hodge-podge."

"Slow to match speed and hail them politely, please," stated Picard. And they waited for a response.

Kerryn was hanging from the bridge ceiling. The lighting system had been faulty since he had the bridge, and he had it all apart He was cursing away at the scored wiring that he had found when the proximity alarm went off.

He jumped down from the ceiling, silenced the alarm and went over to the tactical station. What he saw took his breath away, as there on the display approaching at Warp 5 was a Galaxy-class starship in beautiful motion. He watched it for a bit, prancing through the stars. The coincidence was too great, though. But when it slowed to match his speed, he was sure that something was up.

Then the hail came through.

Kerryn's screen filled with the big-nosed bald man's visage. "Greetings. I am Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise. To whom am I speaking?"

Kerryn walked back to the tactical station and stood thoughtfully. "This is Ship Master Kerryn of the freighter Totentanz." Suddenly, half his lights went out. Damn this bridge!

Picard's eyebrows raised slightly as Kerryn offered, "Please, just one moment," and watched him walk to a bulkhead. Kerryn gave it an almighty whack with his arm, and the lights restored themselves. Picard's eyebrows went up another notch as the young master went back to his prior position nonchalantly. "Sorry about that. Design flaw. I'll write it down someday. How can I be of assistance?"

It was all Counselor Troi could do not to laugh. She could feel the mix of pride and chagrin emanating from this young man. And Wesley was mentally drooling all over him.

"Ship Master, I would like to discuss a business proposition with you. Would you be willing to drop out of warp and allow us to transport you onto Enterprise to discuss certain terms?"

Kerryn considered this. He was small and they were big. A couple hours would not impact his schedule. "May I ask what this is about?"

"I will fill you in when you are here. But you are not being detained, raided or plundered."

Kerryn smiled in mock relief. "That is good to hear, Captain. I can take a small shuttle over in about fifteen minutes."

"No need. We will use the transporter. Just signal when you are ready."

"Very well. I will need a few minutes to be presentable, and will then signal you. Totentanz out." And the signal closed.

"Wes, may I see you in the ready room for a few minutes?" Troi had already propelled him in that direction, and the doors closed around them.

"Well?"

Wesley tried to look innocent. "I don't understand, Counselor."

She tried the direct approach. "You want to get into his pants so badly it is dominating your mind."

He blushed furiously, and then surrendered. There was no escaping the Betazoid mind. "So?"

"The Shepherd Project is not meant to be driven by lust!"

Wesley thought on that. "Really?" That was counter to a number of things he had heard at the Academy.

Caught off guard, Deanna Troi recalled her own experience. True, she had picked her shepherd based upon his carnal desires, and wow what a time that had been .. Oops. Back to the subject.

"Well, it is supposed to not be influenced by sex." Now she was blushing slightly. Wesley just nodded at her knowingly but with a wide grin on.

"He is very hot, isn't he?"

Whoa. Deanna stopped it right there. "Whatever." The waves of desire for the young ship captain were flowing off of Wesley, and she wasn't quite prepared for that. And very quickly she realized that he was doing it on purpose. Sneaky. "Would you stop that please!?"

Wesley allowed himself a moment of victory. "Yes sir, but it is nice to know that a horny teenager can still sink you in his most creative desires when he wants to."

Ooooh, the Academy had given this one horns. Counselor Troi immediately decided not to tell Wesley that Kerryn was part Betazoid. But she had to find a private place soon and relieve this new sexual tension.

They returned to the bridge, alerted the senior staff and went down to Transporter Room 3. Right on time, Kerryn's voice echoed quietly in the room. "Totentanz to Enterprise. Ready for transport." And with the blur of light, he was there in the flesh.

While everyone maintained the pleasant exterior, Kerryn had jumped at the opportunity to read them as they made first impression. The Klingon regarded him with suspicion. The female with the long black hair was neutral and ambivalent, so she was obviously shielding. The captain reacted with respect and eagerness. Kerryn stepped down and greeted the captain.

"Captain Picard, I am Ship Master Kerryn."

They studied him. While he wasn't uniformed, his outfit was brown throughout, tunic style. Brown close-fitting pants, brown shirt, belted, with an odd logo. Worf recognized it as the emblem of a certified member of the Freighter's Guild in this sector. Medium height, lean build. Long hair. They had missed that before, but his hair was very dark brown and hung below his shoulders. Long fingers. And his features were unmistakably wary and on guard. This gave him the most incredibly sexy look.

"Welcome aboard. I am grateful that you can take some time to discuss this opportunity. We will go up to my ready room and then we can begin."

"Thank you, Captain. I admit I am somewhat in the dark about all this."

Three hallways, a turbolift, and a short walk and they were in the ready room. They were joined by what seemed to be an integrated team of people. Kerryn realized he was being scrutinized, and that made him a little edgy. He immediately recognized Wesley though, and eased a bit after greeting him affably. Greeting the woman who must be his mother was a little unnerving.

Picard introduced the rest of the staff. They shook hands, and were able to maintain the professional demeanor, but Troi was being distracted by Wesley's increasing desires for this guy. Fortunately, it wasn't just sex. He wanted to shepherd with this freighter captain very badly.

And that's how he sat there in the room, surrounded by brass from a culture different from his own, wondering what the living hell he had done to deserve this. He wasn't sure it was positive or negative. His dad would have known.

The group needed an icebreaker. And so Kerryn spoke up. "You have treated me with great courtesy, but I would very much like to know what the senior staff of the Federation's flagship wants with a self-employed light freighter ship master." He added, "One drink in a starbase bar doesn't cause that kind of interest."

Picard nodded. "Ensign Crusher here is attending Starfleet Academy. The cadets there are strongly encouraged to experience a tour of field duty away from the Academy, preferably in an honest trade environment outside the Federation. They call it the Shepherd Project."

Kerryn nodded. "I have seen some of my peers do this."

Picard smiled. It looked so strange on the man. "Well, although the ensign could do his tour here on Enterprise, it is not the most educational of environments on those terms. We have been interviewing freighter captains for several days and none have had either the room or the time to shepherd." Picard shifted a bit. "We would very much hope that you would consider shepherding Ensign Crusher."

"I see." Kerryn was caught completely off guard. "You are asking me to take on an Academy cadet who already holds the rank of Ensign, and show him how we on the fringe of the Federation perform our careers? How we live, our risks, our concerns, our questionable ethics?"

"We have an outline that we can discuss if you are amenable."

Kerryn thought about this. "He will consume resources. That isn't a problem but it is a cost. He has a strong engineering interest; I could use that." Immediately a problem came up. "What would his relationship be to me? Is he a guest, a passenger, or a crew member?"

"Most definitely a crew member. He does follow orders, most of the time." Wesley blushed at that one as Picard continued, "I have given him my confidence at the Helm station for Enterprise as an ensign."

Kerryn considered this. "Wesley, you haven't the senses and instincts of a merchant. You would have to learn some of that. Would you take direction from me seriously?"

"Yes, sir."

Kerryn laughed. It was a great laugh, the kind that lifts spirits. "Oh no, I don't merit a `sir'. Just the title when formally addressing me."

He turned to Picard. "Why would I do this? I haven't seen a proper motivating concept yet."

Worf growled at this. Picard gave him a look that said, "Down Boy," and then responded. "We would compensate you for your trouble."

Kerryn blinked. "You would pay me? I thought the Federation did away with money."

"We have. However, we see the necessity of barter and finance outside the Federation and have means of doing so." He coughed politely. "We would be prepared to offer fifty thousand credits for you to shepherd Ensign Crusher."

Fifty thousand! Coolly, Kerryn looked his fingernails. "How long a period?"

"Six months."

"That really is a low amount." He saw Troi's eyes widen, and he glared at her, challenging her to deny it. She instead sat back with amusement and folded her arms. He knew he had the upper hand. "How about five hundred thousand credits?"

Picard did not blink. The one called Riker dropped open his jaw in surprise. The green one furrowed his brow, and it was then that Kerryn realized that he was not human. Before they could respond, Kerryn exclaimed in surprise.

"You aren't biological! Yet by your position you are treated as equal, so you must be a high-functioning self-aware automata? Amazing!"

Commander Data blinked. "I am an android. Which is what you described in so many words." He adjusted his stare at Kerryn. "The amount you are asking is quite large, and is equivalent to a multiple year visit to the most expensive vacation planets."

Kerryn grinned. "You are correct." He thought a moment, and settled on what he had wanted all along. "I will accept fifty thousand credits, plus a rather specialized piece of equipment."

He saw Wesley gape. He remembered. And that was a good sign. This would be OK.

"No weaponry." That was Worf again.

"No, no weaponry. But I do need a replacement PK75 Navigation Computer."

Picard looked at his Chief Engineer. "Geordi?"

"No sweat."

Smiles spread all around. Picard formally stood. "Do we have an arrangement?"

Kerryn nodded carefully. "Pending any disclosure of the details, and an engineering grade tour of Enterprise, I agree." And they shook hands.

Doctor Crusher came over. "I don't need to tell you to be careful with my son."

"Doctor, the moment that the credits change hands he is like a brother to me, with all obligations in place."

With the rest of the staff dispersing, relieved, Picard and Kerryn went through the details. Wesley was becoming concerned. According to the freighter's ethics, Kerryn more or less owned him. But the role was very clear in the limitations allowed. Wesley had to follow orders. Wesley was not to put himself at unnecessary risk.

They discussed clothing, technology needs, and decided Wesley would need to bring some computing assets with him. They discussed flight plans, and settled on a return date and time to meet at Deep Space Nine, which was on the edge of Kerryn's normal flight space. A contract was drawn up, and signed by all. Picard knew that the Academy would approve. Wesley was getting one of the more adventurous shepherding opportunities.

Finally, Data arrived with the credit chit. He handed it to Picard, who gave it to Kerryn. Kerryn pulled out a portable scanner, verified the amount, and then pocketed both.

Kerryn could feel the time slipping, but he wanted his tour. "Captain, I would most enjoy a brief tour of your ship, after we meet privately with Dr. Crusher."

Picard replied, "As would I of your ship." And Kerryn was left with the Doctor and Picard only.

Kerryn addressed her. "This is more about your mother role than doctor. I would suggest that you discuss with Wesley any remaining sensitive topics before he leaves."

"Why? Is he going to be in that much danger?"

"No, but he is now open, honest and somewhat communicative. When you see him afterwards, if I am successful he will be much more closed, secretive, and in general more internalized. He will not lose any of his Starfleet values or ethics, but he won't be displaying them for all to see either. He will be the same person, but the presentation will be different."

Picard shifted. "I quote: A person is defined by his choices, not what he or she is."

Kerryn raised his eyebrows. "A narrow view. That was from Starfleet Admiral Satii's private works. We believe in the concept of `plant noise' when it comes to who a person is. His choices are a part, but the world often goes its own way."

Picard stared at him. No one had ever refuted Satii before. Before he could comment, Kerryn continued. "Now, when he returns to you he will be more shrewd, be more mature socially, and aware that many things come with a price. He will be a provisional member of the Freighter's Guild. Their code of ethics is very close to Starfleet's so he won't be compromised."

"When did you study Starfleet's Code of Ethics?"

Kerryn smiled slightly, but his eyes spoke volumes. "I'd prefer not to comment. We merchants like mysteries to unravel. But if you find out the truth about this one, I will share what I know." He sighed. "It has never been entirely solved. And I don't have the resources to do it." He glanced at the doctor. "A few last things. If he is still a virgin, he won't be when we are done. He will also have a built-in tolerance to real alcohol, not that synthehol stuff." He stretched slightly at their discomfort. "I would very much like that tour now." And they proceeded through the Galaxy class marvel.

First stop was the Bridge. Kerryn marveled at how spacious it was. The placement of the Tactical station was just as he had done the Master Control Station on his own bridge. Nice to know he had gotten it right. But when he saw the five chairs, he couldn't resist.

"Captain, may I sit in your chair for a moment?"

Picard understood, and nodded. Kerryn slowly walked over, and carefully sat, assuming a position very much like Picard's usual one: slightly reclined, feet squarely on the floor as if leaning into the ship. And in that moment, Kerryn could feel the connection that a captain has through the floorboards all the way down to the bottom deck under the shuttle bay. What a feeling! He got up slowly, and thanked him.

Picard smiled, and this time his eyes twinkled. "I could see that you felt the essence of The Chair. Many don't."

"Captain, it was quite a humbling experience. I am not sure I envy you the daily demands it must make."

Wow. He understood, thought Picard.

They stopped briefly at the Holodeck, and after explaining its function, they went inside. Standard holodeck demos were very impressive. But Kerryn was curious.

"Can we ask for any surroundings?"

Wesley nodded. "Just name it."

"Voice activated?"

"Yup."

"Computer." A chirp. "Please set the background to the Bridge of the Constitution-class vessel USS Excalibur, NCC 1664, in original condition."

The world whished, and in seconds he was standing on the bridge in question. It gleamed, lights blinking, the starfield at rest. The layout was the same, but the deployment of computing stations and the general condition was far better.

Both Picard and Wesley looked at Kerryn curiously. He had to explain. "My father was killed during a Cardassian cargo raid. They shot the Navigation deck right off the ship. I was back in Propulsion and hence survived. When I repaired the Nav deck, I bought a salvaged bridge from a Starfleet vessel." He paused. "This bridge, Constitution class, from the USS Excalibur. I was curious what it looked like in its prime condition."

Picard remembered an incident like that in this area that had involved the merchants. "You were in the Battle of Rana 7?"

Kerryn looked up. "Yes." He looked down a bit. "I was able to retaliate though, since they hadn't hit the weaponry or the Propulsion section. If one goes on manual, one can fly from the Engine Room."

Picard stared at him. "You were the one? The one who took out the flagship from behind?"

"Was that their flagship? All I had left was the Ion Cannon. But I was able to get a series of shots right up their ass . I mean, exhaust, which caused a chain reaction in their engine system that I was hoping for."

Picard could see the rest of the crew weren't following. "The Cardassians hit a trading station looking for Federation spies. They all but destroyed the merchants by the time we and several other starships arrived. Even so, it was not an easy battle." He pointed at Kerryn. "All we know is that one heavily damaged merchant vessel came up from behind and unloaded enough firepower from behind that it disabled the Cardassian flagship." He paused. "That action changed the outcome of the conflict. I had never thought that I would meet the officer who pulled that off. Well done, Ship Master Kerryn." He turned to Wesley. "You are one lucky cadet, Wesley. Learn from him."

They finished off Engineering, and returned to Transporter Room 3. Kerryn shook hands again. "Let me know when Wesley is ready to come over. Can you transport at Warp 3?"

"Yes, that isn't a problem."

"Good. My slack time is running out. I am heading straight to Mobius 11 so you can intercept me along the way at any time. My optimum speed is Warp 3.2."

"We will do so." Picard turned to Worf. "Energize." And Kerryn was gone again.

Picard turned to Wesley with a fierce look in his eyes. "Wes, do absolutely everything you can to get Kerryn to apply for Starfleet training. He is honest, ethical and a brilliant tactician based upon what I saw at Rana 7. The rest is classified." And with that, Picard's heels clicked rapidly in departure.

Worf looked sourly at Wesley. "I hope your Shepherd Project goes better than mine. I had to clean bathroom tile with a toothbrush."

Wes couldn't resist. "Why did you have to do that?"

Worf growled low. "I ate the captain's pet. I did not know that the creature, a Klingon delicacy, was domesticated." And he then walked out.

Wes almost ran to his room. He replicated clothes, collected his things, and left all his Starfleet uniforms behind except one. Wes knew how to dress, and he replicated some outfits that he knew would make his body irresistible. He had just finished when his mother came in. She handed him a small medikit and a couple medical tricorders.

"You never know when these merchants have seen a doctor. Make sure you leave it behind. We have a million of them."

"Thanks, Mom." He gave her a hug. "I am really looking forward to this."

"I can tell."

Counselor Troi waited for a moment, and then entered. "I wanted to wish you the best of luck, Wesley."

"Thank you, Counselor."

"Remember our prior conversation, OK?"

Doctor Crusher's eyebrows went up. "Oh? Something I should know about?"

"No, Mom!"

Troi decided it was time. "Wesley, she knows."

"Knows what?"

An awkward moment, then with incredulity Wes looked at his mom. In a stricken voice, he said, "You know?"

Doctor Crusher nodded slowly. "I have suspected for a while that you might prefer boys. Your father did sometimes. But never after we were married." Wesley just stood in shock as his mom continued. "But he was open enough that we could make all kinds of veiled comments about it." She then smiled secretly. "You will have to ask Jean-Luc about it someday, though not now please!"

An awkward silence, then Beverly continued. "Let me guess. You want to be intimate with him as much as you want to go on this project?"

Counselor Troi saw revenge for earlier. "More than that, Beverly."

Wesley rebounded quickly. "Mom, want to see how to defend against a Betazoid?" And he sunk his mind into the most horny and detailed fantasy involving Kerryn that he could come up with.

Beverly's eyes widened as Deanna flushed and shifted her weight. "Enough, Wesley!" And he stopped.

They each hugged, and then Troi left. Beverly said quietly, "Be careful, but I hope that whatever you experience is all that you hope for."

"Thanks, Mom."

And Wesley just had to wait for the rendez-vous.

Kerryn, however, getting back onto his ship was grinning from ear to ear. Fifty thousand credits! And a free Nav computer, and a cute crew member for six months! It was like he had just won the jackpot. He raced to his bridge, and keyed in the commands to resume course and speed at Warp 3.2. Enterprise diminished into the background, but it was still an awesome sight. He moved back down from the bridge and into the Habitat deck. His ship had eight cabins. One was his, one was a miniature theater, and the rest were unused. He selected Cabin 2 for Wesley, which was across from his, and made sure it was clean, working and stocked. Each cabin had a food replicator, private bathroom, spacious bed and a small living area.

As he raced through the ship he realized that he was tidying not for Wesley, but for Picard. For the strangest reason, Picard somehow had commanded his respect, yet in all the discussions each had treated the other like equals. That greatly amused Kerryn. He and the Captain of the Federation Flagship Enterprise were on equal footing. Best not let to get to his head. He wondered if he had left enough clues so that Picard might find out what happened six years ago. That outcome had plagued him, and now he finally had a resource that could find out the truth.

He heard the proximity alarm go off again. He stepped into an alcove, signed on and silenced the alarm. When you are the only one on a ship without voice command control, you have to have enabled terminals scattered around. The Bridge and Propulsion each had a maximal control suite, but basic terminals were in every cabin and every 50 feet on every deck. Since he had three decks and deck 3 was the only big one, there weren't that many terminals. One could read and write information at all terminals, but ship control required a special access code. And so from the midpoint on deck three he checked the cargo, and then returned to the bridge. Wes would have to get used to not having turbolifts too.

His bridge. The viewscreen was in the middle still, and Helm and Navigation in front of it. Sciences had been reduced to Sensors, and Communications were still on the right. The left side hosted the engineering stations replicated. The only change he had really made was the removal of the Captain's chair platform and replaced it with a Master Control Station, which replicated the basic capabilities of each of the other stations plus the Tactical station. Tactical for him meant shields, several phaser banks and the Ion Cannon.

When he was ready, Kerryn began the wait. It had occurred to him that having some kind of conference room would be a good idea. He would convert the cabin nearest the shuttle bay to be his conference room. Hell, he could afford now to put some windows in as part of the modification. Not that he would have many visitors, but you never know.

Shortly, Enterprise signaled for transport and Picard, Wesley, and Data beamed over. Kerryn greeted them formally.

"Captain, Commander, Ensign, welcome to the Freighter Totentanz." He gestured around him. "This is my salvaged Constitution-class bridge. I had to make some modifications to accommodate a one-man crew. But it is highly functional for a freighter."

Data was regarding the Navigation Station, which was dark. "How are you navigating without the Navigation Computer?"

"By eye. This route I know very very well and have visual landmarks that ensure a correct course." He looked at them. "You did bring the new PK75 Navigation Computer with you?"

Data pointed at one crate. "It is there. Do you require assistance in installing it?"

"No, thank you. I've done it several times but this time I think Wes and I will do it as a get-to-know-you experience."

Wesley licked his lips in anticipation.

Kerryn led them down the stairs to the Habitat Deck, and showed Wesley his cabin. "It may not be as spacious as a Galaxy-class crew cabin, but this is a guest passenger cabin and the largest I have."

They moved his things in, and then set off down the stairs to Deck Three. "The front of Deck Two is the main computing center. The front of Deck Three is where the phaser arrays and the Ion Cannon are. Most of Deck Three is committed to cargo, as the only corridor access is on the port and starboard hallways. Loading and unloading is done either by transporter or by access through the top bays." It was an eminently practical layout.

The tour concluded in Propulsion. That had ensued a fascinating discussion about the control of an artificial quantum singularity as a power source. Five nacelles, one gravity bottle. They were amazed that the warp drive pulsed two nacelles at a time rather than continuous duty warp field generation.

Wesley noticed an access tube going upwards on one corner. "What is up there?"

"Shuttle bay. I have a two person shuttle that I use for transport when I am not docked."

"No transporter?"

"It takes too much room, compute power and energy."

Tour finished, they returned to the bridge. They shook hands once more, and then Picard signaled Enterprise and he and Data beamed out. It was just Kerryn and Wesley.

Alone.

And awkward.

Wesley was watching Kerryn as he watched the Enterprise recede quickly into the background. There was a mixture of appreciation and amusement on his face. Without moving, Kerryn commented, "She must take an awful lot of a captain's attention."

Quietly, Wes responded, "Captain Picard usually thinks it is worth it."

"Your Captain Picard is one of the most aloof people I have ever met. Does he ever become human?"

Wesley was slightly stung by the blunt assessment, but honesty prevailed. "I don't think so. At least I've never seen it."

Kerryn turned to look at Wesley. That super-tight stretchy outfit would never work. May as well have a little fun. "Turn around slowly, please." Blushing mightily, Wes did so. Kerryn noticed that on the latter half of the cycle Wes had gotten hard, and what was worse, it showed. Nice body, but soft. It needed work. If he was going to look like a merchant, he was going to have to shape up a bit. Kerryn sighed. He was going to have to do a complete makeover on Wes.

"You look nothing like a merchant. Are all your clothes like that?"

"Like what?"

"Come on." Kerryn led the way to Wesley's cabin. "Unpack. Don't be shy, remember we are both boys and have to deal with the same things. I'm more interested in your outerwear right now."

Feeling very awkward, Wes unpacked. He had added some enticing items in his clothing choices, especially in the underwear section. No one else knew they were there, until now. Turning bright red, Wesley put away his underwear, a thong and a fishnet bikini brief. Kerryn's eyes widened at those, but said nothing. But his look at Wes communicated volumes.

Wes felt a stab of confidence as he put them away. "Hey, you never know."

The rest of the wardrobe was a disaster. The only reusable parts were a couple of ship suits. Kerryn decided that now was the best time to start learning.

"OK, starting right now you are a merchant apprentice. I want you to repack all your of your closet except for those last three."

Wes looked totally downcast. "What's wrong with them?"

"They look like a Starfleet officer on vacation, not a merchant. First, you Starfleet types wear those high tech skin-tight outfits that may be great for a climate controlled ship among friends, but we are none of those. Everyone is out to make money, and that means that they may be friends but they are also out to profit. Friends profit honorably. I have made any number of fair and square deals that happened to have robbed them blind because I am a good dealer. You need loose clothing, with pockets, inside and out. They have to be non-descript, and while not shabby, they shouldn't be neat and perfect. And most of all you need clothes that hide and protect your involuntary reactions. When I am dealing, I almost always wear a hooded cloak that only comes down when closing the deal. The less anyone can see, the better." He decided to hit home. "That includes your cock. You were hard back on the bridge."

Wes blushed mightily again. This all made sense. He felt so na^Ëve. "What about the underwear?"

Kerryn grinned big and wide. "You can keep that there. Although I may order you to model some of it." And before Wes could rebound, Kerryn continued. "You and I are about the same size, so I will give you a couple outfits to start. The ship suits will be fine onboard, but when we go off ship you must wear what I will give you." He looked at Wes again. "Your compliance could impact my reputation. You are in a position to do me a lot of damage. Listen carefully, and we will do fine."

Wes nodded. "Yes, sir."

"I don't warrant a `sir' you know. That's your first lesson. Learn it fast and now. Just call me Kerryn, or leave the title off altogether."

"All right."

"Better. Now strip that suit off. I'll be right back."

Taken again off guard, Wes began to undo the hidden fasteners. The material that he had gotten so used to he found now itched a bit, and as he peeled it off his torso it was a bit of relief.

Kerryn watched briefly from behind. This kid had no sense of urgency. "Come on, Wesley, take it off." He reentered with a measuring tape as Wes bent over and peeled off the rest of the suit. Tight black underwear. Kerryn began to suspect that Wes trying his best to be sexy. Then it hit him. Picard would have done some peer interviews about the Totentanz, and one of his clients must have told Wes that he was gay. He knew which one, too. And if Wes was going out of his way to entice him, well, all the better!

Measuring tape in hand, he told Wes to stand straight with his legs a little apart. Kerryn measured him along inseam and arm length from behind, taking several opportunities to brush up against that black-covered sexy butt. When he moved around the front to measure the chest size, there was no way he could avoid the contact with Wes's tented cock.

Any normal boy would have flinched. But Wes was Starfleet trained, and Kerryn was a merchant. So neither did anything. All Kerryn did was humph. "Can you sew?" At the shake of the head, Kerryn sighed again. "All right. I'll have to take in some of the pants at the waist and leg, but the shirts will do fine." He stood. "I want you to keep a daily personal log. Only you will have access to it."

"OK."

"You will also become a provisional member of the Freighter's Guild. It isn't hard, but it is necessary for me to maintain my license. Their code of ethics is almost identical to Starfleet, and complying with it while you are with me will not compromise the formal guidelines or statutes. In fact, I would like you to write an essay on the differences between them."

"Homework?"

"You are here to learn our world, right? Best way is to analyze it against the world you know."

Something tugged at Wesley. "Kerryn, you seem to know an awful lot about Starfleet for a merchant."

Kerryn grinned suddenly. "You just passed the first test. I gave your Captain Picard two other clues that there was a mystery present, and he didn't catch on. You did instantly."

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"How do you know so much about Starfleet?"

Kerryn thought a moment. "I'll answer one question on the topic. Think carefully."

Wesley thought, and one of the classes he had hated because it was all case studies came to mind. The professor had indicated that it was more important to know where to find information, than to actually know it, because you could find it again and again. "Where would I find the data for the answer?"

That caught Kerryn off guard. Wesley was going to have the answer in moments. "That is exactly the right question to ask. The answer is that the needed data is in the Admissions office to Starfleet Academy."

Even Wesley could put that together. "You applied to Starfleet? And you didn't go? Why?"

Kerryn said, very slowly, "That is the puzzle I have given to your captain, although I doubt he is aware of it." He looked at Wesley. "I took the Entrance Exams, the Officer Qualification Exams, and the Ambassadorial Exams. Since I had paid the fee, I even took the Commander's Qualifying Exam. My father had let me study and prepare for all of them. I even had the interview with Admiral Nuri. But I was turned down because of my age."

"How old were you?"

"Fourteen. I was not surprised, but I didn't even get a follow-up letter. And then I started the Ship Master program, and did that in eighteen months." He turned to Wesley. "I have one more certification, and actually you are going to help me. I need to demonstrate effective management of a crew. I've passed all my other certs for a full Commander."

"Sounds like an oversight to me." Wesley was now in a ship suit. He remembered Picard's words. "You could try again."

"Not without knowing what happened the first time. They didn't even tell me my scores."

"They didn't?? That's really odd. Iterative feedback is the Starfleet way."

Kerryn thought so too. But it was long hidden now. "OK, now lets get back to that Navigation Computer." And they went to the Bridge Deck and began the removal of the old one. Kerryn was pleased with Wesley's hands-on techniques. Clearly he was not an academic engineer. But Kerryn still had the knack for getting those hard to do things just right, and in comparatively short time navigation was back online.

"Wes, you know how to navigate?" When he nodded, Kerryn continued. "Good. Set a course please for Delvin Six. Warp four point five. I need to get you registered and my application in for Commander."

"Couldn't you do that over subspace?"

"Probably, but I also want to see if Enterprise is following us. They are a bit over-protective of you, and before we start breaking rules I want to be sure that they are off our back."

Sure enough, twenty minutes later a hail came in. It was from Enterprise. They both were on the bridge when it came in.

"Totentanz, this is Captain Picard on Enterprise. Why have you have deviated from course?"

Kerryn let his irritation show. "Captain, am I under Starfleet jurisdiction?"

"No."

"Am I under your command, or obligation?"

"No, but-"

"Then, under Starfleet regulations and Federation merchant trade agreements, please justify why you are following me."

Silence. Picard gave a `Its your fault' look to Beverly, and replied, "Only to ensure that the Shepherd Project was proceeding smoothly."

"We signed a contract. Even if it wasn't going smoothly, I will uphold that contract. Now frankly, get off my tail. You are damaging my customer relationships by your presence."

"We will be more discreet in the future."

"Fine. Just remember, you forced this action on me. Totentanz out." And Kerryn began to swear like only a merchant can. Wesley was aghast. No one spoke to Picard like that.

"Wes, are they backing off?"

"No. I think you riled them."

"Well, so be it." He went over to the Master Tactical Station, opened a control compartment, and pushed a large red switch. Immediately the lights dimmed, things became quiet, and Wes held his breath. Something was going on. Kerryn moved right and keyed in some commands, and the starfield went crazy. It began a corkscrew course and an inner loop maneuver before resuming their original course, although Kerryn slowed down to Warp 4.

"What did you do?"

"I engaged the Cloaking Device, and then pulled some righteous maneuvers to throw them off our trail." Sure enough, Enterprise was moving away at another angle.

"We have a Cloaking Device?"

"Why else would I have a Romulan-based propulsion system?"

"Cool." Then he realized what must be happening on the bridge. "They are either royally pissed on the bridge right now, or have decided we can function on our own. Wanna take a bet?"

"Not on that one, thanks." He looked at Wes, who was starting to lean a little. "You've had a busy day. Delvin Six is about five hours off. If you want to take a break, a nap, or something, go ahead. Ships time is about two o'clock. We will have dinner on the Delvin Six station."

"Thanks, I think I will take you up on that." And Wes moved off to his cabin. He lay down on the bed, and within seconds was asleep.

The Bridge of the Enterprise stood in shock. Finally, Picard spoke. "How is it that that freighter captain knows Starfleet merchant regulations so well?" Then it hit him, and he asked it again of his staff. "How is it that he was able to debate Amiral Satii's private works, use our own regulations properly against us?"

Data was the one who came up with the answer. "Captain, those two concepts have exactly one unique relationship. They are both required study for the Starfleet Commander Qualifying Exams."

Picard's eyes went hard as agates. "Get me Admiral Nuri and pipe it into my ready room."

Worf swore. That was unusual in itself. But it was Riker who asked. "What is it, Lieutenant?"

"We have lost them." And he pounded the Tactical station once.

"How? How can we lose a two-person light freighter made from a Federation Bridge, God knows what habitat and cargo deck and." he stopped.

"And a Romulan power generation system."

Data looked up from the sensors. "Apparently also equipped with cloaking technology."

Picard slowly made his way to the ready room. "Ladies and gentlemen, apparently we just got caught with our pants down. After that, I am convinced that Ship Master Kerryn can take care of them just fine. And Ensign Crusher is going to be a handful when he returns." And the doors snicked shut.

They all looked at Riker, who looked at Worf, who looked at the floor. "Resume our prior mission, course and speed," Riker said with a resigned look.

It took several hours, but finally Picard was put in contact with the Admiral. It was a short but enlightening conversation.

"Admiral, I thank you for your time in helping me track down a puzzle." Picard opened diplomatically.

"Any time, Jean-Luc. What do you need to know?"

Picard explained his arrangements for Wesley. The admiral was wholeheartedly supportive. "But you wouldn't contact me over something so routine. What is the problem?"

"The shepherd is a young Aurigaen freighter pilot named Kerryn. After some conversations, I and my staff realized that he had intimate knowledge of material unique to the Commanders Qualifying Examination. Moreover, he was the one at Rana Seven that single-handedly took out the Cardassian flagship." And Picard went on.

The Admiral was silent. "The name vaguely rings a bell. Darkish skin, long hair? A slight accent perhaps?"

Picard nodded.

"Well, if that was him, he applied to the Academy six years ago or so. Let me do some research. I remember him being quiet and rather intense, but he had paid his fee and took a whole battery of exams. Since he had an interview with me, he would have passed them all well."

"The Academy charges a fee?"

"We do for non-Federation worlds. Let me get back to you. It may take a few days."

"Thank you, Admiral. If he did apply to the Academy, please let me know if his application is still valid."

"Are you trying to recruit him?"

"Absolutely."

"Well, we'll see. Nuri out."

So, Kerryn had applied to the Academy, and apparently passed at least the CQE. That put him on the same level as a Commander. Picard shook his head. A commander at age what? Fourteen? Fifteen? Ship Master Kerryn was certainly one to be reckoned with.

The topic in question checked the approach vector to the station at Delvin Six. He hollered down to the Habitat Deck, hoping Wes left the door open. "We're approaching the station. Get up here in five minutes!" And in three and a half, Wes joined him, looking somewhat refreshed.

"This is Delvin 6 station?"

"The North station. We are assigned docking port 72. We need to leave by eight o'clock to make it to Mobius on time. That is enough time for registration and dinner." He pointed down towards his cabin. "On my bed you will find the clothes to wear on the station. Try them on and then return here."

He did so, and found that the clothes were comfortable, a little loose and totally hid his physique. He returned to the Bridge Deck, and Kerryn gave him his approval. The docking procedure took only a few minutes. It was quite obvious that Kerryn knew exactly what he was doing.

When ready, they disembarked. Kerryn lead him straight to the Freighter's Guild office, and by agreeing to abide by its code of ethics while working on Guild interests, he was signed in as a provisional member and given the membership implant. At that time, Kerryn also turned in his completed Commander's application and work package.

"So, going for the CDR, eh?" The Guild administrator was obviously an old friend.

"Yes, and Wesley here is going to help me get there."

"A Shepherd Project?"

Kerryn nodded. "Yes, I picked him up earlier today. He's got a ways to go though."

"You could have just hired someone to meet that qualification."

Kerryn nodded wistfully. "I wanted to be sure it was done right, not just checked off."

"Well, you should have no problem. I'll expedite it."

"Thanks, friend. I'll be back in the Belt for a couple of weeks, but then I'll swing by."

He paid his fees and rejoined Wesley, who had been waiting patiently holding the copy of the code of ethics. They then proceeded to a restaurant that Kerryn knew served easy food.

The waiter came over. "Something to drink?"

"Bourbon on ice, for both of us." And the waiter nodded, and left.

"Before you knock it, Wes, try it. Synthehol is a dead giveaway. You can have anything you want. Just limit yourself to two to start."

The bourbon came, and Wes tried it. It burned pleasantly down his throat, and he found that he did like it. Before long, dinner was served and they consumed the generous portions. Kerryn handed over a credit voucher, and the meals were deducted.

They had chatted during the meal about simple things, like music, activities, entertainment. No truly dissimilarities or incompatibilities. Just two easy companions having dinner. Wesley felt totally at ease. Almost euphoric.

Kerryn watched Wesley with amusement as Wesley got a little bit drunk. They made their way slowly back to the docking port, and back on to the Totentanz. A routine cast-off, and the freighter gracefully swung away from the Delvin Six North station, and went into warp towards Mobius 11.

Wesley noticed that they were going around warp four again. "Why don't you go faster? We could be there early."

"Money, Wes. You have to think of it this way. There are no points for being early. A merchant pays for docking time, and if you are there longer the fees go up. The idea case is to arrive, orbit for maybe an hour, dock and instantly unload and reload, and then depart. We all try very hard to achieve that sequence so that docking time is minimized. It is often unavoidable, and the fee structures are different, but we have to play each one in its unique fashion."

"Well, at warp four it will take us another three days to Mobius 11."

"Yup."

"What do you do with your time?"

"Watch vids. Repair the ship. Study. Schedule future freight shipments."

Before he could stop himself, Wesley blurted it out. "One of the guys we talked to said that you had the best collection of porn in the industry." Then he turned bright red.

Kerryn's eyebrows shot way up. "Really? He probably told you other things too."

"He said you were gay."

What could only be called a pregnant pause took place. Kerryn grinned then. So he had been right. He wondered if Picard knew. "Yes, to both. I am homosexual, although I have in the past shown a woman a time or two just what I am capable of."

Wesley gulped.

"And my father knew, so he collected the widest possible set of porn he could lay his hands on." He was enjoying this. "Why do you ask? Or are you at all curious?"

The alcohol kept talking. "It has been hard to get you off my mind, Kerryn. You are so wild, so free. You make your own path. Hell, you even get have your hair the way you like it. >From the moment Picard suggested that I might shepherd with you, I've been hoping to get fucked by you." He then realized what he had said, and blushed again. "Well, its true."

"Have you ever been fucked before, as a bottom?"

"Yes, lots. I had a boyfriend at the Academy before he graduated. I've done top too."

Kerryn considered this. "I had a special boy friend as well, years ago. But Imzadi was killed at Rana Seven. I retaliated there as much for my father as I did for him."

"Imzadi? That's a Betazoid term for a true life partner." Wes leaped onto that light lightning. "You are Betazoid, aren't you?"

"Half-Betazoid, actually. My mother was; my father was human."

"So you are in the same spot as Counselor Troi, except you grew up under the human half. Deanna grew up Betazoid because her mother made it so."

"I could tell that the counselor had some of it in her. She is a wily one."

Wes got defensive now. "She is great! Everyone depends on her."

Kerryn regarded him thoughtfully. "You really are integrated into that bridge crew, aren't you?"

"Yes, and no. They still treat me like a kid."

"Well, you are." And when Wes started to bristle, Kerryn held up his hands. "But you won't be six months from now."

Wes wobbled a little. "You know, I feel a little strange."

"We've had a busy day. There is no more for you to do today. Let's get you to bed." And he made sure that Wesley made it to his cabin. Once there, Wes pulled out some comfortable shorts, and without the slightest inhibitions stripped naked to put them on. Kerryn raised his impressions a bit, as while Wes looked soft he had a good start on some muscular definition. His butt was good, too, but he needed to work on his chest and shoulders. And once in his shorts, ready for bed, Kerryn dimmed the lights.

"Get some sleep, Wes."

Wesley ambled over to Kerryn. "Thanks. Good night." And he kissed Kerryn gently on the mouth.

Kerryn was completely unprepared for that. It was a nice, gentle kiss. Wesley had done it unconsciously, but as he did Wes realized what he had done, and broke the kiss. Horror in his eyes, he looked downward slightly.

"I'm sorry."

"Maybe in Starfleet. But I am quite grateful, and surprised." Kerryn moved towards him, gently forcing him back until Wes found himself pressed against a wall, with Kerryn's hot body trapping his. Wes took a deep shuddering breath at the excitement. "And let me share with you a moment of my gratitude." Kerryn's eyes glowed golden with fire as he firmly lowered his mouth onto Wesley's, insistently making the intimate contact with his mouth, his bare chest, and below. Kerryn's hands traveled down to Wesley's waist and held him firmly but close.

Wesley all but melted into Kerryn, and then he felt it. Kerryn's mind had somehow entered his, and not only was there the physical response, but Wes was electrified at the touch of the wild and independent feeling of Kerryn's passion as it rose and slowly overwhelmed him. He began shuddering in excitement and pleasure as the feelings swept him.

And then Kerryn released him. Wes just stared at him, and Kerryn smiled back. "That is just a taste of what is to come. Passion with a Betazoid is among the most amazing experiences you will ever have. I enjoyed that, Wes." He pulled away. "Now go to sleep. The bourbon has been doing a lot of talking for you." And he left the cabin.

The hours slipped away. Kerryn set the monitors and alerts, and stretched out for his light sleep. He only slept in his cabin at port. He had converted one of the turbolift shafts into a bunk bed with no door, so as long as you didn't enter the room, it was hidden. This way he could have access to the bridge nearly instantly. He was on a two-sleep cycle day. The trip to Mobius 11 was going to be straightforward and easy. The ship hummed along. And he dreamt of a delicate dance among the stars that he did between him and Starfleet. And he awoke, refreshed, and ready for the late night duty cycle.

Wesley was still passed out. Kerryn was really excited that Wesley hadn't freaked out over the mental link. Imzadi had taken a long time to get used to it. Here though was one wide-open chance for something. He was of two minds on this. That kiss, and the reactions involved promised a highly interesting and exciting potential. However, Kerryn really liked Wesley. He didn't want to casually jump in and start screwing. He wanted the friendship, the companionship, the interdependence to continue and develop. He wanted more than just sex. But, knowing it was for six months, what would happen after that?

Kerryn was hanging from the bridge ceiling again when Wesley awakened. Wes had a headache. He showered, marveling at the feel of the water instead of the ultrasonic shower, shaved and put on one of the ship suits. He checked the ships computer display, found that they were on course and speed, and made his way to the Bridge.

"Good morning." That came from above. Wesley stared up at the sight of Kerryn hanging from the bridge service panel.

"Sort of. My head hurts pretty bad. Is that normal for bourbon?"

"Until you get used to it, yes. From now on, whenever you drink alcohol, before you go to sleep, drink as much water as you can. That will help." He climbed down from above, reached over to a panel, and tested the bridge lighting. Finally, it worked.

"What do we do for breakfast?"

"Visit the replicator, and we can sit in the port lounge. Come on, I'll show you." And as he passed the Master Control Station, he keyed in the autopilot. Wesley kept noticing this.

"You really could benefit from a voice response system, you know."

Kerryn laughed. "Probably. But I'd have to re-outfit the remote terminals. Again, money."

They ate quietly for a few moments, and then Kerryn started grilling Wesley on his experiences. He had had an interesting career already. But Kerryn could tell that Picard made Wesley intensely uncomfortable. Most of his troubles were involved with Picard.

"Wes, what was the most embarrassing one? One where you felt like a complete ass?"

Wesley thought, and one stood out. "Ever hear of the Kobayashi Maru test?"

"That's the no-win scenario, right?"

Wes nodded, amazed. "Wow, you are good. Anyway, we had set up a holodeck simulation of the Enterprise where Captain Picard and I had exchanged roles, and some of the other crew members came along. The holodeck computer got hosed, and it wouldn't let us do anything unless Captain Crusher ordered it." He shuddered. "We worked it out, but for a long while we were totally helpless. Captain Picard was ready to remove the holodeck after that, but we found out it was some alien virus program that had hosed it." He looked up. "What about you?"

"Me?" Kerryn thought a moment. "Funny you should mention Kobayashi Maru. I am sure it was a disappointment to some, but before I realized that it was a no-win scenario evaluation I decided on a tactical move that was so bizarre that it almost worked. I attacked the enemy ships after sending out a series of false communications about a massive fleet about to drop out of warp near us. It delayed the enemy ships long enough that I disabled eight out of nine of them. The ninth got a lucky shot in and gave me a warp core breach, so I sidled up to him and took him out with me. It wasn't until the debrief that they told me it was designed as a no-win scenario."

Wesley stared. "You got a stalemate? No one destroyed the freighter?"

"No, although it was a damned fool freighter for being in the Neutral Zone. The only comment I got was for my language during the operation. When we detected them, I am afraid I got very frustrated and started to swear a lot."

"Wow, you did well. The only one to ever keep the freighter alive that I had heard of was Admiral Kirk, and he did it by cheating."

"Cheating?"

"He reprogrammed the simulation during the exercise so that there was a way to survive."

"Wish I'd thought of that."

"They blocked that years ago. So what was so humiliating?"

"The way out. They had a whole panel of people watching since I wasn't Starfleet already. I could feel their eyes on me the whole exit, knowing that I had failed to survive."

"When I took the actual Kobayashi Maru test, I only had Admiral Nuri and one other. Still lost." Wes continued on. "Any other really good stories?"

"One more. Early on my father let me negotiate some of his trusted customers. One of them decided to teach me a lesson, and negotiated way too high. It was for a load of stembolts. They wanted five credits per thousand, which is astronomical. I could tell he was playing with me, so I decided to play with him. I told him two per thousand or I would procure them from another supplier. He laughed and let me. So when I closed the deal with my supplier at two per thousand, he turned around and bought the same stembolts from my original customer at one per thousand. My father was very disappointed in me, but it was the two suppliers that really made me feel awful." He grinned suddenly. "You will have your chance. Just always, always check the market price on things."

They had finished breakfast and began a study of Propulsion. Hours later, Wes had a fine understanding of practical design tradeoffs. He also knew just how much power systems needed, and how much he had taken for granted on Enterprise.

In the off times, Wes taught Kerryn how to play 3-D Chess. Kerryn caught on very quickly, but it was only Wesley's years of experience that kept him from losing all the time. They played poker, learning to control their features and their body language. They ran laps around the cargo deck. And for some time the topic of sex did not come up again.

They arrived at Mobius Eleven just ahead of schedule, docked, exchanged cargo, and there Kerryn took Wes shopping for clothes. Wesley had achieved enough negotiating skills that the clothes were quite affordable. When everything was resettled, they went out to the bar. Kerryn loved to drink and pick up news this way.

They ordered bourbon, again. Wesley drank his very slowly, mindful of its effects. Kerryn downed two quickly and stretched out the third and fourth. Trade was good, the routes were good, but tension was building again near the Cardassian border. No flare-ups, but definitely something to keep an eye on. Kerryn had already booked a schedule for cargo to and from Deep Space Nine in the right time frame for Wesley's return, but a conflict would cause a change in plans.

Some Starfleet officers came into the bar. Conversation quieted, but they were not interested. Kerryn had seen these types before. Arrogant, confident, not interested in a smooth functioning cooperative, but more demanding to be in charge of it. Wesley watched discreetly too, and was the first to comment.

"I can't believe how boorish they are being." He paused, and then added, "Were we like that when we came to Starbase 290?"

"No. Your team tried to coexist, non-invasively. This group is trying to establish dominance. It turns traders off. Already you see how it is, and if you noticed no one reacted when we came in. It was because we acted like a couple of merchants in for a drink. Well done, Wesley. You didn't stand out at all."

They finished their drinks, satisfied and got up to leave. As they passed the table of Starfleet officers, one of them stopped Kerryn. "Trader, do you know how to get to the Booking Office?"

Kerryn smiled neutrally. "It is on the fourth deck, outer ring. From here, go down two levels and exit left from the turbolift."

"Good enough." And the man turned back to his table.

Kerryn and Wesley left. Wesley couldn't keep it in much longer. "Man, those guys were-"

"Difficult, just difficult. We can discuss it on board."

When the docking hatch had closed, Kerryn let out a sigh of relief. "I am so proud of you. Three bourbons, you held your counsel, and they didn't even suspect you were being shepherded." He put his arm around Wesley in camaraderie. "Come on, we'll go watch some vids. You wanted to see porn, right?"

Wesley blushed just a little. "Well, .sort of." And then he remembered, Kerryn was part Betazoid. "You know what I want." And he built a sequence in his mind with some of the things he wanted to share with Kerryn. Hot, sexy things.

Kerryn caught the idea immediately. This guy had practice, perhaps from Counselor Troi? He chuckled and said, "Wesley, is that is what you really want?"

Wesley held his breath. The moment was here. He nodded.

"Then lets make it happen."

Before Wes knew it, he had blurted out his deepest wish. "Can you make it a little rough?"

Kerryn smiled. "Oh yes." And his eyes began to glow with desire.

Millions of miles away, Picard, Troi, and Data were sitting in a conference room with Admiral Nuri on the communications screen. The admiral was angry.

"Jean-Luc, if I had known the can of worms this has opened, I probably would have refused to look into it. But it has been a real eye-opener."

Picard spoke up. "Thank you, then for your efforts. What can you tell us about Kerryn?"

"He sat the exams when he was fourteen. He had paid his fee, and had taken every exam we had. He did it at our bi-annual external recruitment event along with several other applicants."

"All the exams?"

"All of them. Ambassadorial, Academy Entrance, Commanders Qualifying, Officer Qualifying, Engineering Qualifying, Science Qualifying, and Communications Qualifying. His scores are incredible. They are all 98% or above. We haven't had a regular student do this in twenty years. More than that, he drew a technical stalemate on the Kobayashi Maru. No one has come that close to surviving since Kirk."

They were aghast. "So why isn't he in the Academy?"

"That's the can of worms. It seems that we could only take three applicants, and there were five. He was only fourteen, and therefore couldn't attend then."

"Fine, so we send him his scores and when he is of age he enters."

"Not so fine." Admiral Nuri's face darkened. "I interviewed him myself. Brilliant tactical mind. Well controlled. A bit clandestine, but then all the externals are. I wouldn't put him on Enterprise, but I would put him on Defiant or Voyager. Anyway, all was green for a fast-track. Then his paperwork disappeared. No one raised a fuss. Take one guess who dropped it on the approval cycle."

Picard knew. "Jellico."

"Admiral Jellico to you. And guess who also was sponsoring an external in the same group?"

Picard drew a blank. "I don't know."

"Admiral Nachayev. You can put two and two together. Your ship master applicant never got his scores, never got his feedback, but simply got a letter that he was turned down because of his age."

"That's criminal."

"I have confronted Jellico about this, leaving your name out. He admits and regrets an administrative oversight."

"Damn."

"Anyway, Picard, it is very rare but I have declared him qualified for every test he passed, with the requirement of passing a policy and procedures refresher sequence that he can take as a commander on any assignment. You get him to want to be in Starfleet, and he is there."

"Thank you, sir, that is most appropriate."

A short silence, and then with satisfaction, the Admiral stated, "Admiral Jellico is no longer affiliated with the Academy. Starfleet Command is evaluating a new role for him."

"Thank you again, sir."

"No, Jean-Luc, thank you. It is appalling but important to find these things out. Good luck. Nuri out."

They sat back, amazed. Troi broke the silence. "What do we do now?"

Picard shrugged. "We wait. And we hope that Wesley is doing as I asked, and is successful in wooing him back to Starfleet."

Wesley had nothing like Starfleet on his mind. He was prone on the bed, naked, with a very determined merchant giving him the best blowjob that ever, ever existed.

Kerryn had guided him to Kerryn's cabin, and stripped him and himself. Wesley could not help but stare at Kerryn's incredible body. Tan-skinned, with a light sprinkling of golden hair, when he was naked it only added to his wild spicy look. He had unconsciously posed for Wesley as he bound his hair, and Wesley whimpered with desire. And that was when it began.

Kerryn came over and held Wes close to him, feeling the contact of skin on skin in tantalizing pleasure. The kiss started, demanding, ungentle, and Wesley gave himself over fully to that experience. Kerryn had started head-on, and then began devouring him thoroughly. Slowly, silkily the tendrils of the shared awareness had eased in, gently at first and then streaking to his pleasure centers and took a firm mental grip of Wesley's sexual resources and brought him to heights he didn't know existed. He rotated around the ensign, holding him close from behind as he ravaged Wesley's neck and shoulders, his hands moving in extremely arousing patterns across Wesley's chest and down to his incredibly erect cock. His own wicked cock was buried in the cleft of Wesley's butt, but Kerryn wasn't going that way today. He continued his rotation, ultimately holding Wesley's face firmly as he deeply kissed and nibbled his way around.

Wesley totally yielded himself in body and mind as Kerryn crushed the young ensign into himself, his hands digging in and pressing Wesley's firm young butt. Slowly, inexorably he bent him backwards over the bed until he was fully on top of the ensign. And then he pulled himself out of the kiss, renewed his grip on the young ensign's mind, and then continued on.

Wesley had gone into heaven with a little nipple stimulation. Very gentle, very slow, but very very effective. But the hot mouth on his balls, the face nestled into his pubic hairs, and then the intense tongue action as Kerryn slowly slid up and down the length of his cock had him sailing to another galaxy. Wesley just kept moaning as Kerryn assailed his cock.

It wasn't gentle. It was rough, it was demanding. And it was picking up the pace as Kerryn moved quicker and quicker. Wes tried to pull him off as he got closer and closer, but Kerryn would have nothing of it. He wrapped his arms around Wesley's waist and began sucking and pounding his face into Wesley's cock. In and out, all the way down each time, and the mental dominance going on in his head finally gave way and Wesley screamed, "OH GOD YES!" and furiously pumped his cum over and over into Kerryn's slurping mouth. His mind, body and soul were bruised from the intensity of the experience and still Kerryn unrelentingly milked all the experience from Wesley, beyond any endurance for pleasure that Wesley had thought he had. His mind and body screamed for more, until it could take no more and the winding down began.

They panted for breath. Wesley laid back on the bed, totally spent.

Kerryn watched him, and knew he had to continue. Wesley was in that sweet contented spot, and the absolute best experiences where when you continued on from there. He went around the side of the bed to where Wesley's head lay, and upside down, he firmly placed his mouth on Wesley's and stabbed into his mind.

Wesley's entire body jumped at the invasion and immediately he had his second orgasm. And Wesley knew then what he had to do. He pushed back from the kiss, slid down on the bed and tipped his head back slightly over the edge and pulled Kerryn's cock into his mouth, all the way down until he was buried in the Kerryn's pubic curls. Wesley's hands dug into Kerryn's butt as he moved him back and forth, fucking his face faster and faster, stroking deeply in his throat until a blaze of white seared Wesley's mind and the cock in his mouth surged with intensity as orgasm rocked through Kerryn.

It took a long time to calm down. Kerryn had pulled out of Wesley quickly so the ensign could breathe easier, and he lay down next to him. He had enjoyed that very much. Wes was a natural bottom. Kerryn truly enjoyed being versatile, but it was going to take something to get Wes to dominate. And probably something illegal, or at least questionable.

Wesley was nearly incoherent. All he muttered was, "So that's what Riker sees in Troi." And he went to sleep on Kerryn's bed, a tangle of naked limbs. Kerryn decided that sleep would be a good idea since they were still docked, and so he catnapped for a couple of hours too.

When Wesley awoke, Kerryn was gone. He had been put under the covers and allowed to sleep. Recalling the experience, Wesley stretched in satisfaction. He got up, picked up his clothes and trotted to his cabin for a shower. His mind felt incredibly alive and agile. He looked out the window, and saw they were in motion again. Damn! He had missed the loading sequence.

Now presentable, he went onto the bridge to find Kerryn there. His friend? Lover? Shepherd? Wes settled for superior officer. Anyway, he was waiting for Wes and greeted him warmly.

"Sleep well?"

"Oh yes. I am sorry I missed the loading."

"Don't worry. We're empty right now. I arranged to pick up cargo at Araban Two. We are a couple of hours away."

"Did you sleep?"

Kerryn laughed. "Yes, I did, for a couple of hours. Not like you, but then again you experienced a lot you aren't used to." He winked. "But seriously, I do only sleep a couple of hours at a time." And he pointed out the bunk bed in the former turbolift shaft.

The next couple of weeks and months were a flurry of short cargo moves back and forth, with most of the time spent loading and unloading. It was a common route for Kerryn, who had a sequence of planetoids he hit on a regular basis. Pick up this at this one, exchange it for something else at the next, and so on, one long bridge of exchanges. But since they knew Kerryn had this route, and he was very stable with it, they paid well and everyone shared the benefits.

At the end of the cycle, Kerryn and Wesley breathed a sigh of relief. Wesley had closed several of the negotiations himself, and done well. No one even suspected that he was Starfleet anymore. And so it was that four months after he started, a message came in from Delvin Six that Kerryn was up for review. They set course, and cleaned the ship.

Wesley could tell that Kerryn was nervous. He had never seen him nervous before. But at this time, he closed down and largely had stopped talking except in briefest terms. Wesley knew instinctively what he could do. He had been aching for the chance, but there just hadn't been time for a proper seduction. His mind drifted back to the sexy things he had brought. Hmmm.

At dinner, Wes had poured him more bourbon. Kerryn's eyebrows went up a little, but before long they had each had five or so. It was working, as Kerryn began to loosen and forget about the upcoming review. Wes knew he was close. The trick was how to lure him in to his cabin. He finally settled on an approach. He would just over-power him. He had put on the thong underneath his regular clothes and had a very hard time concentrating during dinner.

They finished eating, and sat back. Wesley stood and cleared their stuff. He realized he was hard, and it felt so weird that he giggled slightly.

"What was that for?"

A perfect opening! "I actually found something amusing in my cabin. You would have to see it to appreciate it."

Kerryn fell for it. "I could use something amusing. Will you show me?"

"Come on." And they went down to his cabin. Kerryn crossed to the far side as Wesley shut the door. It was a useless gesture, but it sent a message. Kerryn's eyebrows raised slightly.

"Well?"

Wesley dropped his pants.

The thong was of white material, and very definitely shaped to give the impression that the wearer was hung like a horse. It only helped matters that Wes was tenting it so hard it pulled away from his skin. Daringly, Wesley slowly spun around so that the curves of the material naturally continued into the delectable shape of his butt. Wesley could feel the energy building in himself and the desperate crying need to control and pleasure his friend. Not restraining anymore, he let his thoughts flow unchecked as he approached Kerryn, ready and in charge.

Kerryn exploded inside. "You incredibly sexy creature."

"Hear my thoughts, Kerryn." And Wesley drew up to him, eye to eye, and whispered, "Feel my desires, Kerryn. Lose yourself in them, because tonight you are mine, if you so submit."

Kerryn was shaken to the absolute core. This Wesley was asking for control. Kerryn had never given up control, but the spicy fire of Wesley and the wicked thoughts that were streaming from his mind were caressing his imagination, drawing out his resistance and before he could stop himself he acceded himself.

"I am yours."

Wesley grinned in triumph as he brushed up against Kerryn. Clothes were off in moments, and Wesley laid him down on the bed. Kerryn was such an animal sex god! But tonight, he belonged to Wesley. And Wesley applied every technique he had at his disposal. He started with the shoulders and the light but muscular back. His hands were everywhere, but his eyes would not leave Kerryn's butt. Before long, Wesley had straddled Kerryn's back, facing backwards as his hands kneaded and stroked that intensely hot butt. And then, as he leaned down so his own nipples brushed the taught waist, Wesley buried his face and hot tongue in Kerryn's butt.

Kerryn cried out in pleasure. He was totally overwhelmed by the feelings of sex and arousal coming from Wesley. The contact on his back felt exquisite, and then the hot tongue probing his most secretive areas was driving him wild. Submission was never this good.

Wesley finished his adventures down there, and climbed off long enough to roll Kerryn over. His cock was incredibly hard and Wesley wasted no time pouncing on it with a violent blowjob. Kerryn was enjoying this immensely when suddenly a cool, slippery finger slid into his hole. His entire body tensed, and then eased as Wesley's expert tongue action and flood of emotions reassured him that this was going to be good.

And it was. Wesley found the prostate easily, and with the first stroke the universe went supernova for Kerryn. He repeatedly moaned out of control as Wesley held him hostage with his tongue and that incredibly stimulating finger of his. Wes gave him one expert stroke that shattered his limits and orgasm flooded through him as Wesley eagerly consumed his seed.

Smugly, Wesley withdrew the finger and teased the cock he worshipped so with his tongue. He wanted Kerryn hard again, and fast. Without him knowing, Wes snuck some lube onto his own entrance, and it was ready. He wanted it incredibly tight for him. And hard. Some long, deep swallows of the very sensitive head guaranteed that he was ready.

Wes broke off, and straddled Kerryn's chest. Kerryn thought he knew what was coming, and licked his lips in anticipation. But Wesley just grinned, raised himself, and slowly settled down on Kerryn's cock, gently wiggling back and forth until the head was absorbed and all the remaining length too. He hit bottom with a gentle brush of hairs, and Wesley gave a sigh of total pleasure.

Kerryn gasped with incredulity. Wes was so incredibly tight, and warm, and slippery. He could feel the muscles undulate around him as he dared not move. His hands reached forward and began to gently stroke Wesley's cock expertly.

Wes wasn't going to wait around. He began sliding up and down, longer, just enough to feel like a re-penetration and then he would slide down and bottom out again. The feelings were so incredibly intense that each began involuntarily moaning aloud. Wes tightened his abdominal muscles, and Kerryn gasped even louder.

Wes knew they were at the point, and so he uttered, "Invade me! Do it!" And Kerryn unleashed his mind into Wesley again, and the mutual superlative frenzy and raw fire of feeling swept through them. Actually screaming together in exquisite sensation, they came together in gobs and gobs of sticky ambrosia.

Kerryn had come deep inside Wesley, and for a few moments the painful but wicked sensation of abused cock and squelchy fluid teased him. What was more fun was that Wes had unloaded lots of cum all over Kerryn's chest, where it seductively dribbled around his pectorals and one very aroused nipple.

"I knew you had it in you."

Wes nodded. "It is true. It took a lot of what-the-hell but you responded just like I hoped you would." He shifted, and they were separated. "Thanks, Kerryn. That was incredibly awesome."

"Me too. We seem to be able to have the most incredible sex. I think our friendship enhances it." He grinned. "Thank you, Wes. It was really beginning to get to me."

"Anytime."

The remainder of the trip was more relaxed, but the last half hour saw Kerryn totally silent and mechanically efficient.

"Don't worry. Think of it this way: the decision has already been made, and you just have to find it out."

Kerryn smiled a little. "You are right, of course."

"So when you make it, what do I call you? Are you a Ship Master still, or what?"

"If I make it, I will be Commander. Kind of like the old- time high seas. I can have crew but am not entitled to a captaincy."

"What's the difference?"

"A captain can command any Freighter Guild vessel. I'm more of a privateer right now, but in desperate times they have moved captains around to protect the cargo. Sometimes we get guard duty. My dad used to like to do that." He shook his head. "It is ironic that the one time I can remember him seeing battle was the one time that we didn't expect it, and he lost his life over that."

"It is similar in Starfleet, although everyone rotates ship assignments. Only captains and above can act autonomously for their ship and crew."

"Humph. Well, captain is as high as the Freighter Guild goes. It is a lifetime achievement to get one." Kerryn looked up at a beeping sound from the Master Control Station. "We have our docking clearance. It has been expedited free of charge because of a flash priority message for us." He looked at the data. "It is a day or so old. I've started the retrieval process. It will take a couple of hours to access the right subspace relays."

A slight rumble accompanied the docking protocols, and soon Wesley and Kerryn were on their way to the Guild office. Once arrived, Wesley sat in one corner where he could keep an eye on things. Kerryn once again felt the pride and success of just how merchant-like Wesley had become. He was giving away nothing.

"Ah, Ship Master Kerryn, do be so good as to join the Director in his office." The receptionist pointed the way. "He is expecting you now."

"Thank you." The Director?? He hadn't seen the Director of the Guild since his father's funeral. But he calmly (as calm as possible, anyway) entered the plush office, and greeted the grizzled old man behind the famous desk.

"Good day, Ship Master Kerryn. You are here for the results of your review?"

"Yes, sir." It sounded so weird.

The Director leaned back. "You were a very difficult situation, you know. You are twenty years old and know all aspects of our trade. You have been highly respected, fair and profitable in the four years since your father's death." He leaned forward. "I too know who took out that Cardassian ship. That was one hell of a maneuver."

"Thank you, sir."

"Difficult, yes, very difficult. The report submitted about your handling of your crewmember, and a Starfleet shepherd at that, is a model for us all. All analysis on Totentanz shows you know exactly how to run a ship. And already a veteran Ship Master." He tapped his desk thoughtfully. "Anything to add?"

"No, sir. It sounds like the review was comprehensive."

"You will not contest the Guild's decision?"

Kerryn thought a moment. It must be the age again. "No, I don't think so, sir. I have known the Guild to act fairly in all cases that I am aware of."

"Very well." And then the Director cracked a smile a mile wide as he handed over a package of documents. "I believe you will need some new clothes, Captain Kerryn."

Kerryn's jaw dropped. "Captain? Really?" For a moment the incredulity flowed across his face, and the Director shared a private moment with the memory of Kerryn's father. He would be so proud right now.

"Effective immediately. Congratulations on a very bright future." He turned to his desk. "And now, I have to go unruffle some feathers in the currency department."

Kerryn found himself standing outside the office, in shock. He walked slowly back to the waiting room, just a little dazed. He almost walked right by Wesley, who stopped him.

"Kerryn, you look weird. What happened?"

Kerryn looked at Wes for a moment, and said, "They made me a captain." As the realization flooded him, he grabbed Wes in a big hug. "They made me a captain!"

"Awesome! Congratulations, Captain Kerryn of the Totentanz!" And with that, and the standard issue dress uniform that the Guild provides, they returned to the ship to celebrate.

When they arrived back, the flash message had arrived and was ready to read. It was not good news. Enterprise had been on a mission involving biological agents, and Beverly Crusher and several others had become stricken with a complex illness. They had been sent to Earth for the best possible treatment. The message issued from Picard was to temporarily recall Wesley back to Earth. A starship would be by in four days to pick him up.

Kerryn could immediately see that Wes was affected. It didn't show, except in his slightly preoccupied demeanor. One minute was enough for him to decide. They were going to Earth.

Through Starbase 27, Kerryn was able to arrange a rendez- vous with the USS Decatur. This would cut down the travel time to just over eighteen hours, as the Decatur also was returning to Earth because of relatives to the stricken crew. Within ten minutes they had maxed out the warp drive at warp 6.6. The Decatur would arrive shortly after and stop only long enough for beam-out.

They each packed a bag. Wesley packed his merchant clothes, and was considering wearing his Starfleet uniform when Kerryn walked in to check on him.

"I don't know if I should wear it or not."

"Wear it. You are back in Federation space for the time being. You will need access and respect due to your station, and that uniform will get it for you. Remember, being a merchant doesn't mean avoiding Starfleet. It means using Starfleet as it was intended to meet your mutual goals." He pointed at the smooth fabric. "That garment is your ticket and your qualifications. Use it."

Wes looked at Kerryn. "Thanks, Kerryn." He closed his case. "This must be hard for you, coming back to Earth."

"Well, it has been six years. I am sure that no one will remember me. I didn't pass, remember?"

"Don't be too sure on that. They aren't stupid, Captain Kerryn."

Kerryn grinned. "I like the sound of that."

"So do I."

The rendezvous with the Decatur went smoothly. Starbase 27 assured Kerryn that the Totentanz would be safe and unmolested, and under the circumstances they would not be charging a docking fee.

Captain Hardy of the Decatur met them in the transporter room. He showed them to their quarters. Each got a private room that was not quite as large as the cabins on Totentanz. Captain Hardy apologized to Kerryn about the room size.

"I am sorry about the quarters, but we really don't have much room here." He turned to Wesley. "Ensign, your bridge clearance arrived from the Enterprise, so you have the run of the ship." And then back to Kerryn. "Captain, since you do not have a Federation clearance, I must ask you to stay within the confines of this deck."

"Certainly, Captain Hardy. I understand and will follow the restrictions."

And with that he left them. Each went to their own rooms but soon Wesley was over in Kerryn's.

"Another twelve hours, Wes. You should get some sleep."

Wes looked at him anxiously. "Will you hold me?"

Kerryn walked across to him, folded him in his arms and said, "Absolutely." They lay down together, and within seconds Wesley was fast asleep. Within minutes, Kerryn was too.

When they awoke, Wesley did so first. He slowly separated himself from Kerryn. Wow. He had never seen Kerryn asleep before. He was absolutely beautiful. The wariness was gone from his face, and it looked years younger. He looked so much more vulnerable. Amazing how much awareness could change a person. Wesley gave him a gentle kiss and went back to his room.

The clearance thing really rankled. Here they were on a Federation starship, and Kerryn who had seen so much and taken such care with his education couldn't leave the deck. Hmmm. Captain Picard owed him a favor. Time to call it in. Fortunately, subspace communication is a commodity. Within minutes, he had his link with Picard.

"Wesley, we are so sorry about your mother, but she is holding on right now. Where are you?"

"We are about ten hours out from Earth, on the USS Decatur."

"We?"

"Kerryn is with me." Wesley saw Picard's eyes light up. "Captain, I need a favor." And he explained about the clearance issue.

Picard understood. "I will see what we can do. We can't get him a bridge clearance, but we can do something." Picard noticed that Wesley had changed a lot. "It looks like your shepherding has been good to you."

Wesley nodded slowly. "More than you can imagine."

"Good. Wes, I must absolutely speak with Kerryn when we are on Earth."

"Is this about his Academy entrance admissions?"

"He told you about that?"

"I kind of figured it out. He knows way too much about Starfleet. He was denied because of his age, but they never even sent him his scores or anything."

"Wes, it is a long and frustrating story. But yes, I absolutely must speak with him about that after we have seen to your mother."

"OK. Thank you, Captain."

"Picard out."

Picard almost jumped out of his chair on his way to Worf. This was perfect! After the past month this was the most positive thing to cross his mind, and he wanted to make the most of it.

"Mr. Worf, I need you to establish an Ambassadorial Clearance for Ship Master Kerryn. Make him a delegate of his homeworld."

"What is his homeworld?"

Data responded, "His rank and privilege are issued from Delvin Six."

Picard nodded. "Use that."

Worf grumbled. "I will verify that with Delvin Six."

Picard looked at him squarely. "No, you won't."

Worf stared at him. "A cover-up?"

A feral grin spread across Picard's features for all to see. "No, simply an administrative oversight." The rest of the bridge crew started grinning as well. "See to it that the USS Decatur, Starfleet Medical and Starfleet Academy get a copy as well. We have a chance to correct a serious wrong here." And the bridge staff felt better than they had in days.

One hour later, `Ambassador' Kerryn of Delvin Six had his clearance. Captain Hardy knew what went on, but grinned anyway. There were always loopholes in any bureaucracy. And if Enterprise was willing to stick up for him, that was good enough. It wasn't like they were in battle.

They were eating a light meal when Captain Hardy came down to the forward lounge. "Ensign, I have good news for you. Doctor Crusher is rebounding, slowly, but all the others who started the rebound fully recovered." He nodded to Kerryn. "We are continuing on the same plan, though, just in case."

The look of relief on Wesley's face spoke volumes. "Thank you, Captain. The Decatur has been most accommodating in this."

Hardy nodded. "We have several of our own at risk, too." He paused a moment, and then said, "May I sit with you for a few moments?"

They made room, and the Captain signaled for another round. Wesley had some orange concoction; Kerryn had water. Hardy himself had a synthehol mixture that was supposed to imitate a Margarita, but failed to those who had had real ones.

"I understand you both have engineering backgrounds. We've got a minor instability in the warp core that is holding back our efficiency. Care to take a look?"

Both nodded. Kerryn though was curious. "What about your engineering staff?"

Hardy grinned. "They are new rotation; this is an older Ambassador-class ship. They all learned on newer equipment."

Kerryn grinned. "Let's go." And he and Wesley went to Engineering.

The chief engineer was a bit older then Kerryn, but still young-feeling. Wesley at once could feel the imbalance, as did Kerryn. Together they started working the field parameters, until much of the unwanted resonance was removed. Wesley sat back, and relished the achievement.

But Kerryn couldn't stop. With a frightening fanaticism he surveyed the entire warp power delivery system and field generation networks. He pointed out dozens of small control circuits or flow regulators that should be replaced. He traced down every joule of loss in the system. The entire engineering staff were in both an uproar and caught in the wave of enthusiasm as their warp core efficiency went from 86 percent to 97 percent. And not to be outdone, Wesley picked up one more high frequency resonance that when corrected got them to 98 percent efficiency.

It was with renewed pride that the chief engineer signaled the bridge that they could hit warp 9.8 if needed, and they did so, trimming four hours off their travel time. It was obvious that the only thing worse than stir-crazy engineers in an inefficient system were those same engineers when no improvements could be found.

Wesley went to bed. The nerves and the fatigue had caught up with him, and he crashed. Kerryn decided to explore the Decatur. He never got far, though, as each time he did, he ended up in the forward lounge watching the stars go by.

Once or twice one of the engineering staff would come over and greet him, but it was late enough now that they had all left. The barkeeper had showed him where anything he wanted was. This late at night, it was the first officer who had just come off duty who was the only other customer. After a few moments, the commander came over to talk.

"I am Commander Lorrin. May I join you?"

"Of course. I am Captain Kerryn of the Freighter's Guild, currently with ambassadorial status. Please have a seat."

"Thank you. What brings you to the Decatur?"

"I am shepherding an Academy cadet who's mother was stricken by the disease. We are taking an interlude in the project so that he can be with her. She was near death until earlier today, and is now rebounding."

"Excellent news. Our warp efficiency, too. I was on the bridge and I have never heard our chief engineer so thrilled. He gives you and Ensign Crusher all the credit."

"It was a team effort. I am used to a different power generation paradigm, but I know where the losses are and I think that was my contribution."

They chatted a bit, and then the commander got a little bolder. "You said you are a captain? May I ask how old you are?"

"Twenty Earth years. And yes, I am the youngest captain in the Guild in forty years. I made Ship Master at sixteen, and was hoping for the Master and Commander qualification. But it turns out I also qualified for a captaincy. Believe me, no one was more surprised than I."

Lorrin nodded. "Well then, would you like a bridge tour?"

"I don't have a bridge clearance. Starfleet regs, remember?"

"Yes, but the commander has wide discretionary powers to those of ambassadorial status."

"Touche. I would love a bridge tour." And so they went up to the top deck, and stepped out onto the bridge. Kerryn could not help but feel the awe and the thrum of the ship beneath his feet. The stations were all manned, the crew efficient and at ease. The security officer eyed him speculatively, so Kerryn made sure he kept his hands to himself.

"Commander, my congratulations on your crew and your ship."

"Thank you. We will be arriving at Earth in about an hour, and you can depart once we have established orbit."

"My thanks. It was a pleasure." And Kerryn took the turbolift down to his deck, packed his items and woke Wesley.

Wes was curious about his impressions on the bridge tour. "So Kerryn, could you ever see yourself on a bridge like that, with crew under your command and responsibility?"

"Could you on Enterprise?"

Wes laughed. "Remember, I did. And yes, under the right circumstances eventually I could see myself in the chair."

Kerryn looked wistfully out the window. "Sometimes I think I could. But it is truly daunting, and I don't expect to have the opportunity. I'm just a hokey freighter captain, remember. This is Starfleet."

Wes smiled. "Yes, it is." He had put on his uniform. "Funny, I feel naked in this uniform now."

"Then you truly have become a merchant. We only feel naked when we are naked."

Wes looked at him, curiously. "I don't think that is true. I don't think you ever actually feel naked. Nude perhaps, but never naked. It's too vulnerable a state for you."

Kerryn pondered that. "I haven't felt naked since the Academy exams."

The call then came in from the bridge. "Bridge to Ensign Crusher. We have arrived in orbit. Please proceed to Transporter Room Two."

"Well, here we go. Ready, Wes?"

"Ready, knowing she is rebounding."

They went to the transporter, and beamed down to Starfleet Medical. After being ushered in to the waiting area, Wesley was immediately taken to his mother. Kerryn entered the waiting room to find three of the people he did not expect to see. Counselor Troi was there. Captain Picard sat there, his brow creased with worry. And a vaguely familiar face that he couldn't place.

Picard rose to greet him. "Ship Master Kerryn, it is with my great thanks that you were able to bring Wesley in for this. It really was close until yesterday."

"Captain Picard, having lost my own parents I can well appreciate the need. We will stay a few days and then we will have to find a way back to Starbase 27 to pick up the Totentanz. The USS Decatur and Captain Hardy were kind enough to bring us in."

"I also hear that you brought his warp core into the current century."

Kerryn laughed. "Merely cleaning house. When you don't have a lot of power, you make sure that every joule is accounted for."

The other man stood. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Admiral Nuri of Starfleet Academy."

Kerryn froze for a moment, and then put on his neutral persona. "Captain Kerryn of the Freighter's Guild ship Totentanz."

Picard startled. "Captain?"

Kerryn turned to Picard in acknowledgement. "Yes, after taking on Wesley I put in for a Master and Commander position. The Guild saw fit to skip that step and bestow a captaincy on me."

Picard gulped slightly. He was now forced to treat Kerryn like an equal. "My congratulations, captain."

"Thank you."

Admiral Nuri gestured. "Would you have a seat? I would like to talk a bit on a somewhat sensitive topic."

"Of course." They sat, and Kerryn said a silent prayer that he might get his answers.

"You applied to Starfleet Academy six years ago?"

Kerryn nodded. "That is correct. At the time I was turned down because I was only fourteen."

The admiral nodded. "Yes. And that was when a true tragedy happened." He explained about the situation.

Kerryn sat quietly for a moment. He would have been accepted at sixteen. But they never got back to him. "Well, admiral, captain, I am grateful that I was able to learn the truth at what happened." He blazed a little at them. "I can't describe the feelings that I had, waiting for some word, month after month, and hearing nothing. I can't describe my father's frustration before his death. But all that is years behind me, now. At least I would hope that you have taken steps to ensure that this doesn't happen to anyone else."

"I have," the admiral stated. He then looked at Kerryn. "Have you ever thought about joining Starfleet?"

Kerryn looked coolly at the admiral. "You mean, bypass the Academy?"

"Yes. We take officers from many worlds that do not go through the Academy. Vulcans are our best example."

"I don't know, Admiral. I haven't been very fond of Starfleet until taking on Wesley Crusher. He has shown me some of what I have been missing."

Picard spoke up. "Please consider the idea. We have an affiliate program that allows us to borrow skilled officers in time of intense need. You move freight very close to Cardassian space, and I don't need to remind you of all people the risks involved."

The admiral spoke up. "Did you ever receive your exam scores?"

"No, Admiral, I did not."

"Here they are." And the admiral handed him a folded piece of paper. "We hadn't seen as good a set of scores in years. Still haven't. Especially the Kobayashi Maru." He folded his hands. "I realize the circumstances are appalling. But I had no other opportunity to speak with you personally. I have granted you permanent affiliate status at the Commander level. All you have to do is put your signature on this pad and return it to me. Starfleet will not hound you to align with us, although I can not speak for Jean-Luc Picard." This drew a small laugh from Kerryn. "Will you consider it?"

Kerryn thought a moment, and accepted the pad. "I will consider it after due review. Thank you, Admiral, Captain, for the opportunity. I can return it to you at the Academy?"

"Yes. Anyone can direct you to my office."

"Very well." A pause, then, "Are you a close friend of Doctor Crusher's?"

The admiral chuckled. "I asked her to marry me once. But I lost her to Jack Crusher."

Picard's eyebrows raised.

At that moment, Wesley came in. He took in the sight, rolled his eyes slightly, and then came to precise attention. "Admiral, sir."

"At ease, Ensign. This is Medical, not the Academy." And Wesley loosened up a bit.

Kerryn could tell she was better. "Improving?"

"Yes, she should be out in three days or so."

"That aligns with our return schedule."

Picard spoke up. "Enterprise will be pleased to take you back to Starbase 27. And I have arranged quarters for you at the Academy, which is the closest facility to Starfleet Medical."

Wesley beamed. Kerryn groaned. "It seems I will be in your debt again. Thank you, Captain, and I can pick out an ulterior motive like that."

The admiral had the confidence to laugh at Picard's expense. "I told you to watch out for him."

Counselor Deanna Troi stood as they got up to leave. Kerryn smiled at her, and when their eyes met there was a fundamental jolt that shook him to his very, very core. Surprise rose in her eyes, and then shock as she took a step back. Kerryn had this happen once before. This was going to be complicated.

He broke the gaze as they left. Wesley and Kerryn walked to the Academy. Kerryn was issued a Starfleet communicator, and his ambassadorial clearance preceded him wherever he went. Upon arrival at the venerable entrance, Kerryn watched Wesley carefully. Wes had all the feelings of coming home.

"I wonder if my room is still here." They went through the access ways, up a floor or two and emerged in the North Wing of the dormitory. Wesley approached his room, and said, "Unlock and Enter." The door whooshed open.

It was just as he had left it. Neat, tidy, a little dusty, but a student's room. His awards, his trophies, his achievements on the shelves. The door closed on them, and Wes just breathed deeply. His room again. He turned and looked at Kerryn, and was amazed at what he saw.

Kerryn had knelt down and buried his face in his hands. He wasn't quite sobbing, but the tears flowed and the feeling of loss overpowered him. He was obviously in intense emotional pain. Wes knelt down beside him, and held him as Kerryn leaned into his shoulder.

"Kerryn, let me feel it. It will help to share it."

And Wesley was transported into the weeks of waiting for Starfleet's answer, when none came. And the loss of his father, the resolve to continue on, and the overpowering feelings of it-could-have-been-like-this when he had felt Wesley's own emotional homecoming, they all resonated within. Wes realized how lonely Kerryn was, and that he didn't mind it but oh how it ached sometimes. And then he was assailed by the indecision - Starfleet wanted to make good on its mistake, but could he give up all he had worked for and his new captaincy as well?

Before either of them knew it, they were kissing, deeply and hungrily. Nothing more than that, but still needed and savoring each other. Their own private reality. Protected, for now.

The kiss broke, the emotions restored their balance, and they stood up. Wesley made one comment only. "So now you know the truth."

"Yes." Move on, he thought. "So what does a Starfleet Affiliate do?" And they sat down and poured over the regulations and agreement on the pad. It was pretty cut and dry. A Starfleet Affiliate was a person who was versed in Starfleet regulations and protocols but who was not a full- time member. It was similar to the provisional status of the Guild: As long as you were under agreement, you followed their rules. Allegiances were not compromised. The only difference was that a Starfleet clearance was permanent, and that after being on active duty you still had to uphold the clearance terms.

Kerryn wanted to do it. He just wasn't sure. Wesley had some things to take care of, and so he agreed to meet Wes later to discuss it. Wes got suspicious.

"You are going to do something. I can tell. What is it?"

He said the first thing that came to his mind. "I am going to walk out into the middle of the Academy grounds, sit down, and think."

Wesley looked at him. "You just made that up."

"Yes, but it sounds like a better and better idea."

Wesley gave up, and headed out the door. Kerryn stopped long enough to gaze out the window at the Academy grounds. Here he was, hundreds of light years from his ship and his world. He was on Earth. And he had a choice to make. Although odd, he did exactly what he told Wesley he would do. He got up, walked down the corridors and stairs, and out towards the academic grounds of the Academy. He found the main courtyard, picked a bench in the middle, and sat down to think.

Fate struck a moment, as a very old woman looked out her window to see a young man, obviously not a student, study and then sit in the exact center of the courtyard. Her grading done, her curiosity piqued, she slowly worked her way down through the buildings towards him.

Kerryn put his head in his hands. What would his father think? He would be appalled at the circumstances. But to turn down an institution because of the work of the few, or the one? Preposterous. Kerryn grinned suddenly because he could literally hear his father going on about it. What was really important? Being happy, making the best solutions.

Someone approached him. He looked up to find a wizened old woman, who slowly sat down next to him. "May I join you?" she rasped.

Kerryn considered this. Why not? "Please do, although I am not the best of company right now."

"People are what and who they are."

"True. It is finding out who you are that is difficult."

She grinned slightly. "Not really. You are defined by your choices."

Kerryn laughed. "Back to Admiral Satii. No, even though we make choices, some are made for us beyond our control. But yes, we can choose our alliances and our actions."

The old woman stared at him, her eyes boring into his briefly, then held out her hand. "I am Janice. You?"

"Kerryn."

They sat in silence for a while. She realized that he was a deep one. "So, Kerryn, what is on your mind?"

"I have to make a choice."

"Don't we all."

They were quiet for a bit more. Then Kerryn continued, "I have to choose between what I had always wanted, and what I have worked hard for and excelled at." He looked at her. "Was entering Starfleet the right choice for you?"

What a question! Janice thought on this. "The answer changes from time to time, of course. Sometimes it was right. Other times Starfleet was a containing presence when I didn't want that." She shrugged. "The thread of life goes onward. Everything has its flaws and its perfections."

Kerryn looked at her. "That could mean anything."

"Yes, but it means something unique to each of us. This place," she gestured around the Academy, "helps bring out and define the thread of life for its graduates." She noted his uniform. "Freighter Guild Captain, Second Class? A remarkable achievement for one so young."

Kerryn stared at her. "Second Class?" He looked at the emblem. Sure enough, he had skipped Third Class. "I suppose so,." he remarked in wonder. "I didn't realize it until now. I've been kind of distracted."

And old man was shuffling over. "Ah, you are in my bench, old woman!" he grumped.

Something passed between Janice and the old man, and then she said with strength and venom, "Get lost, Boothby. This one is different." And the old man grumped off in another direction, clearly irritated and vexed.

Janice rolled her eyes. "He thinks he can solve everything." She looked at him. "How about you?"

Kerryn was taken aback. "I am a decent engineer. Better than that, really, but I don't want to brag."

"I wasn't talking about engineering. What will you do with your talent?"

"Talent?"

"Well, you are a captain. What do they call them? Master and Commander." The words rolled dramatically off her tongue. "You have been recognized for command roles, decision making and problem solving. What will you do with it? Haul freight?"

Kerryn was stung. "It is an honorable profession."

"Yes, but does it need you? Or are you in it because it is familiar?"

A long pause. "I don't know."

She looked around. "Don't be daunted by this place. There are many that are far more impressive." She made a guess. "Starfleet is a massive network of assets and talent that ensure Federation members the freedoms they desire. Starfleet serves the Federation, and we who belong serve Starfleet. What do you serve?"

Kerryn thought about that. "Myself, I guess. My clients, but I am compensated for that so that it isn't really the same kind of service."

"What a waste."

Kerryn looked at her with wide eyes. "Really?"

"Unrealized potential is always a waste. Tell me, when was the last time you failed?"

Kerryn looked down. "I failed to keep my father alive in a Cardassian raid."

She regarded him thoughtfully. "You don't believe that. Was there anything you could have done?"

"I could have been with him."

"Then you would both be dead."

"I could have stopped them."

She looked at him closely. "Really? You could have done something that you didn't do to save him?"

Deep in his heart, he knew she was right. "You are probably right, though I have tried to ensure that those circumstances are never repeated."

"So you learned from it and went on. And you can't remember your last failure." She sighed. "What a waste. The only way to grow is to fail, get up and try again. How can you stretch your bounds if you don't make mistakes?"

"Through success."

"Not pushing hard enough. Incremental only. Baby steps you are taking."

Kerryn struggled with this. "You are asking me to choose to jump off a cliff."

Her eyes crinkled with the smile that spread across her face. "Yes. And then to spread your wings and fly."

"Just who are you, Janice?"

She patted his leg, and then stood. "Well, when I was on Enterprise with Jim Kirk, I was Yeoman Janice Rand. That was before I found my true love. Good day to you, Guild Captain." And she resumed her walk back to the building where she had taught philosophy and ethics for dozens of years.

A choice lay before him. Stay the course, or jump into a black hole of the unknown. He got up, and began walking to Admiral Nuri's office. It was across the grounds, and in a stately and ancient building that was constructed at the outset of Starfleet. In front was a statue of Jonathan Archer, captain of the first Starfleet vessel. He looked at it, seeing courage and adventure etched in that face, and the fierce desire for freedom and truth. Was he up to it?

He realized he didn't have to be. He had to be what he was. He would never be an Archer or a Picard, but he could be Kerryn. And he could apply his finesse, his negotiations, and his tactics if they were called upon. He would try. And that would have to be enough.

He found he was standing out side the Admiral's office. Putting on his best confidence, he entered, to find that the Admiral was out. He left the pad with the administrator, saying that the Admiral was expecting it. The admin took note of Kerryn as he left.

Admiral Nuri returned to find the pad on his desk. Steeling himself, he picked it up, prepared for the worst but truly hoping that this would be the beginning of something.

The signature was there, along with three words. I will try.

The Admiral whooped with joy, and immediately instructed the security coordinator to grant him a bridge clearance for every vessel in the fleet, rank of commander, and attached a special access clearance provision. There was no project named White Thunder yet, but Nuri wanted it to be there if it needed to be accessed. He immediately sent out messages to all the relevant staff at Starfleet Headquarters, and within half an hour the update was fully propagated. Starfleet Commander Kerryn, hero of the Rana 7 conflict with Cardassia, suddenly existed.

Kerryn had made his way back to his room at the Academy the long way, taking several hours in the process, to lie down and think about what he had just done. It was right. He could feel his father rejoicing wherever he was, and knew that the closure had settled the last of his ghosts. He grinned suddenly. Wesley was going to freak.

His communication system began chittering. He looked over at it, and realized that Nuri had lost no time. There was a voucher for the right size Starfleet uniform set, and confirmation of his clearances and everything. Amazed at how fast this went, Kerryn went to the replicator. No buttons. Hmmm.

"Starfleet Command Officer Uniform, size 9A, boots size eight."

Whrrr. Out came a uniform and boots. He tried it on, and looked in the mirror. The hair made him look ludicrous, but still a little scary in a way. He grinned, and there was a knock at the door.

"Come in." And there stood Wesley.

Wesley could not believe his eyes. Yes, the uniforms made people look hot, but on Kerryn the uniform clearly defined that slender curve around his butt, the excellent physical shape he was in, and the hair . well, it wasn't the clean- cut Starfleet look but it was definitely his own look. Wes knew that Kerryn would not cut his hair for this. And he was glad for that, because the look was absolutely gorgeous and highly arousing.

Wes cracked a grin a mile wide. "You did it?"

"Yes, Ensign, I did it. For whenever I choose to uphold and serve Starfleet, I am entitled to this uniform and the rank and privilege that come with it."

"You look wild. Sir."

Kerryn grinned. "I am sure it was not what the original designers were thinking of."

"Kerryn, I was so afraid that you would turn it down."

Kerryn grew thoughtful. "I had this little debate in the middle of the Academy grounds. One of the senior faculty needed to get through to me somehow."

Wes nodded knowingly. "Boothby. He helps everyone."

"No, it was someone named Janice."

"JANICE SATII? You bared your soul to Admiral Satii?"

Kerryn's jaw dropped. "That was Admiral Satii? Oh my god, I shot down her signature philosophy to her face?"

"Knowing her, she probably found it the most intellectually stimulating conversation of recent times. Everyone dreads her ethics classes."

"Honestly, Wes, she introduced herself as Janice. How was I supposed to know?"

Wes grinned suddenly even wider. "Kerryn, that's the Academy for you. You must have been sitting out there in your Guild uniform, after choosing just the right spot to sit and think. Probably alone in the courtyard. Am I right?"

Kerryn nodded.

"Sure, I can see it now. She probably saw you, and decided you were curious enough to investigate. I saw it happen once. She and Boothby had almost a race to get to some poor guy. Boothby almost always prevails. But I am glad it was Admiral Satii for you."

"Boothby did show up after a little bit. There seems to be some friction between them."

"Difference in approach. Boothby tells you what you should do. Admiral Satii creates a trap for you to fall into."

Kerryn laughed. "She did that, all right." He turned to Wes. "I can't be a Jonathan Archer. I can't be a Kirk, a Pike, a Daystrom, or even a Picard. Hell, I can't even be a Crusher." Wes blushed at that. "But I can be Kerryn. And whether it is good or bad, I hope that is enough."

Wes nodded. "It will be." And then he couldn't wait any longer. "Commander, I am sorely in need of some really hot and deep kissing."

Kerryn shuddered. The title sizzled in him. "Ensign, get your ass over here." And they embraced tightly, with Kerryn taking the lead as their mouths connected, and Wesley melted into him. God, this was good.

Some distance away, Admiral Janice Satii sat in her office. In front of her was Admiral Nuri. Nuri was going over curriculum when he noticed that the admiral was staring out onto the courtyard.

"Janice, I haven't seen you like this in a long time. What's going on?"

She turned to him. "I had the most startling conversation this afternoon. A young man was out in the middle of that courtyard. I just glanced at him, and watched him survey the place like he had never seen it before, and select a seat in the middle." She looked back out the window. "I could tell that he was carrying a lot. But it was the posture that told me that if Boothby got to him it would be ugly. So I made it first." She shook her head. "And that discussion has opened up a million thoughts about my prior treatise. It was the first time a truly objective view argued with me."

Nuri sensed there was more, and so he waited.

She giggled. "He was so hot, I partly felt like a teenager again. But he had no idea who I was, and we had the most honest conversation I've had in years." She looked back at Nuri. "He wasn't a cadet; in fact, it seemed like he had years of experience. It was as if he knew the mechanics and the details and the understanding of the Academy, experience, but was missing the sense of adventure that so many pick up here." She shrugged. "I tried to light that flame. I don't know if it worked."

Nuri grinned suddenly. "You wouldn't be referring to Freighter Guild Captain Kerryn, would you?"

She looked up. "Actually, yes." Understanding dawned on her. "You were trying to get him as an Affiliate."

"No, I succeeded in getting him as an Affiliate, probably because of you. He's a commander now in Starfleet as an affiliate."

She thought on that. "Good. From now on, he is mine. Now, tell me absolutely everything about him."

Back at the Academy dormitory, Wesley and Kerryn finally broke apart. That had been sufficient for now, but each was just very out of sorts: Wesley because of his mother, and Kerryn because of everything. Rather than dive into the hot sex each wanted, they without even thinking elected to slide into camaraderie and just talk. But the elusive tendril of his Betazed genes awakened. And he realized that Troi was in his future. He had been through this once before, at age sixteen, with an older Betazoid woman. His father had explained it. But it hadn't made it any easier. This time would be different. Troi was a goddess.

All was peaceful and quiet on Enterprise, until a few hours later at the routine staff meeting. The topics covered the preparations to receive Dr. Crusher back, the plans and shore leave recalls, and the flight plan to break orbit and resume course back towards Starbase 27 to return Kerryn and Wesley. Naturally, the clearance information had come through security, and it was the last note on Worf's schedule.

No one had referred to either of the two young men by name. But as they got through Worf's list, the news broke.

Worf turned dour. "There is one final item. We have received a clearance updates for several of our crew members." He paused, and then also, "I have terminated the Ambassadorial clearance from Delvin Six as well."

Picard frowned. "Was that really necessary, Mr. Worf?"

"Sir, one of the clearance updates from Starfleet Command included a full clearance for Commander Kerryn."

There was silence. Then Picard said, "Did you say Commander Kerryn, Mr. Worf?"

"That is correct. He is a full Commander under the Starfleet Affiliate organization."

Counselor Troi grinned at Picard. "Bravo, Captain! And to Wesley as well."

Riker piped in. "We should hold a reception of some kind. This is a big step for him."

Picard looked at Troi, who shook her head. "I don't think it would be a good idea. He has been wary of Starfleet." She leaned forward thoughtfully. "What he will probably need is some proof to himself that he can do the job. He takes his actions far too seriously."

Picard nodded. "Excellent idea. Will, please work him into the duty roster on our return trip. Start with the late night shift." He remembered the comments that Kerryn had had when he had sat in the captain's chair on the bridge. "Try to get him three shifts. Make sure Data is on the same shift, but you and I must not be." Riker nodded.

Something wasn't right. They all looked at Troi, who was looking very unsettled. She noticed, then, and gave up. "There is one issue I have not discussed yet." She paused again.

"What is it, Counselor?"

She looked directly at Picard and away from Riker. "Kerryn is at least half Betazoid."

"Really? Does he have any mental skill development?"

"Yes, actually all indicators are that he has honed his skills very, very well."

Picard's brow furrowed. "How is this an issue?"

Riker caught on. "Oh. My. God. You are sure?"

Troi nodded. There was a short pause, and then Troi answered the mystery. "There is a not uncommon trait among those with Betazoid genetics. It is called the Frenzy. One out of every forty-seven chance meetings among isolated pairs will result in a, um, how do I say this?"

Riker muttered it out. "A one-night stand."

Troi shot him a look of venom. "It is not like we can control the sexual impulses, you know. It can be quite awkward."

Data furrowed his brow. "To put it informally, are we to understand that, on average, one out of every forty-seven random meetings of two persons of Betazoid descent will cause them to involuntarily fuck like rabbits?"

"THANK YOU, Mr. Data, that is ENOUGH." Picard hadn't quite caught him in time. But Troi nodded. Picard regarded her with concern. "Counselor, will this cause a problem? I will not allow it-"

"No, captain, biologically it must happen. The Frenzy is unusual to understand for non-Betazoid cultures, but Will understands."

Riker couldn't let go. "Are you sure?"

Irrationally, she reacted to his over-protectiveness. Maybe Riker didn't really understand just how open the Betazoid culture was. With renewed confidence, she spoke firmly. "Actually, Captain I am somewhat looking forward to it. The longer before he gets here, the more tantalizing and wild it will be. He is an exquisite specimen, and I find that my fingers already itch to touch him, especially his hair. Put him in a commander's uniform, and." she bit her lip. "Don't worry about me. And it is a non-recurring experience, so it won't happen again."

Everyone looked just a bit uncomfortable. Picard cleared his throat. "Well, we shall be aware to your unique circumstance and provide you with whatever flexibility you need."

"Thank you, captain." And she got up and left.

Riker seethed. "I don't like it. Isn't there something we can do?"

Picard shook his head. Worf, though, had the last word. "We could sell tickets."

"Meeting adjourned!" And they left the conference room.

Back at the Academy, Kerryn and Wesley had stopped their walk. It was well past noon. Dr. Crusher would return to Enterprise tomorrow, and then they would depart and resume the Shepherd Project. But there was this huge, huge complication, and he needed Wes to help. And so, with trepidation, Kerryn motioned for him to sit. Wes declined.

"Wes, we are great friends. We've shared some great experiences, and some very intimate sex." Wesley was watching him warily. "Something is going to happen when I get back on Enterprise. It is strictly biological. But it is not by choice and it can not be avoided in any way."

"OK. This sounds pretty bad."

"It isn't, really. At least this time, it won't be. It is likely to break all records for intensity, though." Kerryn looked very very awkward all of a sudden.

"Look, just spit it out, OK? I can take it. It isn't my fault, is it?"

"Oh no, not at all." He took a deep breath and stared at a polished stone wall. "Counselor Troi is Betazoid, right?"

"Half. Just like you."

"Well, if I gauge this feeling right, within 30 seconds of seeing her in person the next time, she and I are going to commence twelve hours or so of," he took another deep breath, "of wild frenzied sex. It is a Betazoid thing. It happens in one out of every fifty or so chance meetings. It only happens once per pair. It has nothing to do with our likes, dislikes, preferences, marriage status, or anything. It is totally unavoidable when it happens." He turned to Wesley. "I need you, Wes. I need your help, I need your understanding." The anxiety rose in Kerryn's eyes. "I especially need your help making it happen without alerting the entire Enterprise crew."

Wesley stared at Kerryn. He knew his friend was sincere. And while Wesley was gay, he was not so gay that he was uninterested in girls at all. Everyone was interested in Troi. He and Kerryn had never pledged exclusivity to each other; moreover, between them, sex was more like a closely coupled team effort to achieve pleasure and intimacy, not romance. Suddenly, Wesley laughed. And really laughed. He had to sit down now.

Kerryn regarded the giggling Ensign with exasperation. "This isn't funny."

"Oh yes it is. Kerryn, everyone with a sex drive has been wanting to fuck Deanna Troi constantly. And out of the blue, you are going to do it, and you aren't going to even have to work for the opportunity." He slapped Kerryn on the back. "How wild? Like really, really wild?"

"Probably more than that. It's been a while developing. There are a number of factors."

"Including the attractiveness of the people involved?"

"Yes. Even the two ugliest people in the world will have to do it, but let's face it, she and I ."

Wes finished for him. "Will probably break all records ever made anywhere."

Blushing, he nodded. "Something like that."

Wesley nodded. "OK. What do you need?"

"I need you to discreetly contact her. Tell her I need to arrange a meeting. She will know and tell you what she wants." He grinned then. "I can make arrangements if needed."

Wesley nodded. "I'll do it now."

Counselor Troi was pacing in her quarters when the call came through. "Troi here."

God, she looked vulnerable. And hot. "Counselor, this is Wesley Crusher. I'm conveying a message from Commander Kerryn. He would like to set up an extended meeting with you at your convenience."

Thank God for Wesley, she thought. It was obvious by the twinkle in his eyes that he knew, but he was most professional. "I would be most agreeable."

"He asked whether you would prefer to meet on Enterprise or down on Earth."

Earth! "I would much prefer a place on Earth, Wes. I will beam down at 1700 hours." That was two hours from now.

Wes nodded. "I will contact you with coordinates at that time. Crusher out."

Troi breathed deeply. Two hours was a long time.

Back on Earth, Kerryn also breathed deeply. He had used his credit chit to secure an overnight reservation in Sweden, it being a place most like Betazed. He had booked a private room with a view. To prevent any embarrassment, Troi would beam to the Academy, and then from there beam direct to Kerryn's coordinates.

Kerryn gave Wes a hug. "Thank you."

"No problem. I've never set up a tryst before." Kerryn rolled his eyes. "But someday I will ask you to return the favor."

Kerryn beamed to Osthammar, to a grand but remote hotel lobby where he checked in and made all the arrangements. His only instructions to the concierge were that he was there for some very personal discussions with his fianc^Âe, and that they did not want to be disturbed. The concierge understood perfectly (after all, this was Sweden).

The time came, and Crusher contacted Troi. "Counselor, this is Wesley Crusher. Please beam down to the Academy." And she did, tote bag in hand.

Troi looked around. "Where is Kerryn?"

Wes grinned. "Sweden." He set the coordinates himself. "Energizing." And she was gone. All he had to do was cover and wait. He had made Kerryn promise to tell all.

Deanna Troi arrived in the suite. Her eyes took in the surroundings, but when they landed on the god in the commander's uniform, every thought vaporized except how to become one with him, and that he was in charge. A tiny thought remained that all the other times, she had been in control, but not this one.

Kerryn had been anxiously waiting for her. How was this going to work? It didn't matter. When she arrived, and their minds touched, reflexively he took total and ultimate control of her. She was willing, pliable and his, and they devoured each other. For nine straight hours, Kerryn and Deanna caressed, teased, nibbled, sucked, stroked, thrust, and came.

Deanna was thrilled to be taken. Kerryn was nice and long and hard, and he knew what to do. She surrendered totally to his whim, and was amazed after several hours when she, on all fours with him stroking slick and smooth into her, suddenly changed position and drove himself patiently but firmly into her butt. His mind, so totally linked with hers would accept no argument, and for the first time in her existence she was totally helpless in his grip, physical, mental, and sexual. It was so forbidden-feeling, and the rebellion as he reamed her ass charged her so hard that she tightened and pushed back, over and over, until she felt the dildo penetrate her vaginal opening. Two at once and she screamed the shattering orgasm into the pillows.

Kerryn had never felt like this. It was like he had to dominate her, totally, in all ways. His mind held her a willing but totally imprisoned creature, slave to his every whim, and he had to execute every single whim. It was almost like a challenge for bizarre and creative feelings of sex, fucking, and pleasure, and it was his total objective to overload his prisoner with rapture.

After the incredible anal sex, each realized that a break was needed, and they took turns in the shower and eating a light meal. That turned totally silly, as Kerryn began adorning Troi with the various foodstuffs, including chocolate sauce, orange peels, and he himself adding calamari rings to his particular anatomy. She proceeded to chew the rings off, which led to the most amazing mutual oral satisfaction, and then more showers.

Then it turned dark. They each knew it was coming, and they knew that neither would truly hurt the other, but at the same time Kerryn suddenly turned sinister. She had been lying on the bed on her stomach, and he was admiring her nude form when they felt the change. Without warning, his mind lanced into hers, seizing it. She gasped, and as he got hard he stood in front of her, and slowly forced his cock between her lips. It wasn't that she was unwilling, but it was more the fact that she must submit on his terms, and he needed to punish her. She cried in her willingness to submit, and felt his displeasure and urge to punish mount. His hands tangled in her hair as he drew her on and off his raging cock.

Far away, Deanna's Imzadi awoke. He had felt an odd brush of fear. Getting up, and after a glass of water he queried the Enterprise main computer.

"Computer, location of Counselor Deanna Troi."

The voice returned, "Counselor Troi is not aboard the Enterprise."

Curious. Probably down at Medical with Beverly. But she was a big girl. Although his thoughts for the twenty year old commander and freight captain were less than attractive by any reference, he understood a little of the inevitability. Maybe they should sell tickets when it happens.

At that moment, the twenty year old commander was in the throes of a primal, sexual rage. Deanna's ass fascinated him. He freed one hand, and reached out to slap it, and the jolt of fierce pleasure streamed through them as he then applied his hand to her taught cheeks. She moaned uncontrollably around his cock, and he sped up the speed and intensity. He was going to teach her a lesson, somehow, and he could feel her contrite acceptance in his mind. Taking the tightest grip of her thoughts he had ever done to anyone, he wrenched them so that she begged for it, pleading in his clutches for him to teach her the lesson she so badly needed. It didn't matter what it was; it mattered that he was punishing her.

It was time. He pulled off her, slid her over the bed onto her back, and with one stroke deep and hard where he was standing on the floor he bottomed out into her ass. She wriggled under his grip now, no longer willing but being forced against her will to accept him, pounding, mentally scratching to escape and he tightened his mind so that there was no escape, never, she was his, forever, relentless, and he would MAKE her respect him, adore him, and beg for him.

And she surrendered, begging for mercy and then begging for more and then begging for release as he buried himself in her, and the orgasm that had been waiting slammed through them and they each ripped away the bond that had bound them, mentally bleeding in raw nerve endings and finally, finally regaining the awareness of the world around them.

They separated, slowly. Kerryn went from victorious to horrified as he saw his handiwork on her butt cheeks, and the red finger marks on her back. He saw blood, and realized that it was his, on his back which had dried already and on his chest. Deep ragged scratches were all over his own butt. Apparently she had been harder on him.

Troi was panting for breath. Her butt stung, but not unpleasantly. She realized that she had come out of this pretty well. She would be sore, but she had done far worse to him. But at the same time, he was only just noticing it.

Kerryn noticed the time. Eleven hours had passed, and they had not spoken one word aloud. He decided to go first.

"Deanna, I hope you are all right."

She nodded. "Yes, I am afraid I did worse to you." She stretched, and rubbed her butt. "You were most inventive. I have been through this a dozen times and nothing was as ultimately exciting as this."

"I have only been through it once. She was the assertive half. I was sixteen, and she was fifty. It was nothing, nothing like this."

Deanna grinned. "Here, let me mop up some of the blood. I probably should have trimmed my nails."

"No, actually I think it was equal payback for what I did to your butt." But the cool washcloth felt good and took care of the worst.

She laughed. "Well, I was a virgin back there." And in the aftermath, she caught the tendril from him. "Ah. You favor being homosexual. That explains it." A curious thought propagated through her again. "Wesley Crusher was incredibly attracted to you."

"Wes and I have shared many an exciting moment together as the most intimate of friends."

"Good."

They were still naked, and she still admired his body. Turning quickly, he caught her and pressed her up against the wall. Her eyes wide, he quite deliberately and slowly lowered his mouth gently onto hers in a savoring, deliciously gentle but intense kiss that sent her blood racing again. He hardened in seconds, and two minutes later he lay on the bed, with her straddling him and pumping up and down. She reached for him mentally and found him waiting for her, and together she led him through the relaxing and satisfying sex and orgasm.

After that, they were truly done. As she rolled off him, snuggling, he smiled at her. "I was taught that after separation, make sure that you show your partner that you still choose to participate, even after everything that went before. Your body can't lie, and it reaffirms who we are."

Deanna smiled. "That is a wonderful sentiment. And just now was just right. Thank you."

"You are quite welcome." He smiled wistfully. "If you ever want to again, for any reason, I will be there for you."

She smiled. "I am sorry I can't make the same offer. But you can always ask anyway."

They showed, ate, and got ready to send Deanna back. Kerryn contacted Wesley and had him stand by. Deanna would return to Starfleet Medical via the Academy, and then back to Enterprise.

They held each other for a moment, and then Kerryn did something he hadn't done since his mother left them. He sent a mental message to Deanna.

Don't forget me, please, he thought to her.

Deanna's eyes flew wide. She hadn't communicated that way in years because it was rude among non-Betazoids.

I won't. You didn't tell me you could do this, she thought back at him.

His eyes widened slightly, and he nodded slowly.

I haven't since my mother left us. I was five. But it is interesting to know that I still can.

The held each other close, and then separated.

"I will see you on Enterprise, Counselor. And I will not acknowledge that this took place."

She nodded. "You may have to, but it is unlikely to come up except from Commander Riker." She paused. "He is Imzadi for me."

"Noted." He tapped her communicator. "Kerryn to Crusher. Lock on to this signal and one to beam out." He stepped back, and she shimmered and disappeared.

Kerryn next surveyed the room. Not too bad. There was chocolate sauce in the bed. Let them figure it out, he thought as he collected his belongings and went downstairs to check out of the hotel.

He himself beamed back to the Academy. Wesley stood there in the transporter room, with eyes and visage fit to split wide with glee. "Welcome to Starfleet Academy, Commander Kerryn. Allow me to show you back to your room."

His voice was gravelly with disuse. "Thank you, Ensign Crusher." And together they walked back to the dormitory. Wesley was just aching to know.

Upon entering, they closed his door. The comm unit indicated that there was a message waiting for Kerryn. He bade Wesley wait, sat down gingerly and turned it on.

"Kerryn here."

The message showed Commander Data. "Commander, Enterprise will be departing back to Starbase 27 in two hours. Please be aboard before that time."

"Thank you, commander. Please inform Ensign Crusher as well in case I don't see him."

"Yes sir. Enterprise out." And the screen went blank.

Kerryn sighed and leaned back. "How fast can we clean a Starfleet uniform?"

"Twenty minutes."

"Good. Help me out of this one. And I will accept any comments you make before we leave this room for Enterprise, but after that I may not utter one word about it."

"OK." Kerryn stood up, and Wesley helped him peel the uniform off. The blood had dried, and the scratches had closed enough that they would be fine. But the uniform was a mess. And it extended all the way down to his ass.

"Wow. Did she do that?"

"Well, it wasn't the rug." And he explained to Wes that the way to break the bond was to push desire too far so that it became hostile, and while the sex was one part, the mental shredding of the bond was what was needed.

"So your head inside must be bad off too."

"A little. It heals differently and much faster."

Wesley worked on his back. "How many times did you cum?"

"Like twenty or more."

"And her?"

"At least that."

"Good kisser?"

"Very good."

"Was it like cooperative, or did one dominate?"

Kerryn was silent, then he replied carefully. "Until the moment we made eye contact, I didn't know what the roles would be. But after that, I was the dominant one." He sighed. "Wesley, someday you may find someone who is so enraptured with you that they will accept anything from you. Anything. We had no choice. It was like I had an entire sadist's toolset to play with at the end. Nine hours of bliss, fun, and silliness. Then a switch was thrown and I turned into the most fearsome creature. I had to have satisfaction, Wes. At any expense. And it felt good, and better, and powerful. And she begged for more."

"Begged?!?!"

"Yes, begged. I have never been so intense with anyone, and the worst part was I had no choice. The last phase is called the Terror, because it is a total dominance such that terror is what breaks the bond of attraction."

"What are the other phases?"

"Adventure and Adjustment. Adventure takes the most time and that is when you do anything and everything that feels nice and good, as a team. Adjustment is when adventure is over, and the Terror hasn't begun yet. Anything can happen during Adjustment." He laughed suddenly. "Wes, I don't know anyone in the world who would wear calamari rings on his cock, but I did."

Wesley's stopped and stared. "What was she wearing?"

"Orange peels and chocolate sauce."

You could have heard a pin drop.

"Wow again." Wes had finished his back and butt, and started on the chest. "Did she blow you?"

"Lots."

"Swallow?"

"Yup."

"You?"

"Reciprocal privileges. She is very sensitive."

Wes was quiet as Kerryn got dressed. But the questions resumed quickly. "Did you do anal?"

"I was her first."

"She like it?"

"I made sure she did. But it was a bit rough at the end."

"What do you mean, rough?"

Kerryn paused, and looked at Wes. "You know how I go into your head?" He nodded. "Well, imagine that I went in with sweetness, affection and a healthy set of spice. But near the end, you realize that I am dictating how you feel and what you want. And you try to escape. But I won't let you. I just keep gripping, harder and harder, pleasure turns to fear, and you fight back, but you lose, and in the end I am all but raping you. You were begging to be abused, and now begging to be released. But your only release is to fight and fight and when you have enough momentum, rip your mind away and shred the bond." He finished packing his small amount of stuff. "When I became normal again, I was horrified at what I had done."

"What could be that bad?"

"I all but raped her ass. I spanked her hard for nearly twenty minutes. I forcefully face-fucked her. And I abused our minds beyond any limit I was even aware of. And as I was pulling her mouth on and off my cock, one hand smacking her ass, she was mentally begging me for more. If I had had a paddle or a whip I would have used it. Hell Wesley, I double- stuffed her with me and a dildo."

Wesley again stopped dead still. "You are one wild guy." He paused, and then said, "When she transported back to the Academy, she looked extremely tired. I asked her if she was OK, and she looked straight at me and said `Yes, Wesley, I am very, very fine.' And then she winked. So whatever you did, she loved it."

"She had no choice but to love it. Neither of us did. She winked because she had asked about you and me."

Wes grinned suddenly. "You told her?"

"Not in so many words, but she was worried about you."

Interesting thoughts began to form in Wesley Crusher's mind. Kerryn didn't even have to think about what it was. "Don't, Wes, or Deanna and I might just decide to educate you." Kerryn knew that Troi was open enough to have enjoyed that opportunity should it arrive.

"Ha, ha, ha." But he grew serious again. "Kerryn, she looked totally satisfied and not at all unhappy."

"Well, I am satisfied, but still a bit unnerved at how far things went. Any other comments?"

"I'll think of some later."

"Maybe back on Totentanz. Now, Ensign, we are due back on Enterprise. But one last thing, for you. Once the frenzied fucking was over, and the bond was broken, we were very naked and vulnerable. If you ever, ever get into that kind of a situation, do whatever it takes for one more time, no matter what it does to you. Do it because you want to, and because you choose to, not because you had to." He sighed. "Now let's go forward."

"Yes, sir."

"Only while in this uniform, Ensign."

They made their way to the beam-out area, and in a whoosh of electrons they were back aboard Enterprise. The ensign at the controls indicated that Wesley would be in his mother's quarters, where she was nearly back to normal and had resumed he duties, and that Kerryn was due on the bridge. They separated, and Kerryn found his way to the bridge.

He was somewhat anxious. Galaxy-class, and here he was on the bridge. Stepping out of the turbolift, he moved slightly to one side to take in the view and watch operations. He needed a friend. He decided on Worf, and walked over to him.

"Greetings, Mr. Worf."

The Klingon turned to look at him, with not unfriendly eyes. "Commander. It is good to see you in a Starfleet uniform."

"Thank you. It is good also to see someone who has an appreciation for hair of length. I was beginning to get concerned."

The look from Worf was precious. "My sentiments exactly." He tapped his communicator. "Worf to Captain Picard. Commander Kerryn has arrived at the bridge."

"Please send him in to my ready room."

Worf looked at Kerryn briefly, and then very neutrally said, "Counselor Troi has elected to remain in her quarters for the day."

"Thank you, Mr. Worf. I am sure that working with the Counselor on a professional basis will not be difficult." He had given the slightest hint that no one need worry.

Worf relaxed a bit. "That would be pleasing to all of us."

Kerryn made his way to the ready room, requested entrance, and was admitted. He stood at what he remembered to be relative attention to Captain Picard.

"Captain Picard, I formally request permission to come aboard Enterprise."

"Permission granted, commander. Please relax and have a seat." Kerryn did so, slowly. Picard noticed, and commented slightly. "Before we begin, I am aware that there is a relatively common inadvertent biological um, synergy, between you and Counselor Troi. Is this correct?"

"Correct in all but tense only. That synergy has been mitigated, sir."

"Really?" Picard maintained his impassiveness. "I see." He moved on. "During our short voyage back to Starbase 27 I have arranged for you to take several command duty shifts. Commander Data will be on duty with you, and given your background I would hope that you make use of him and everyone to fill any gaps in your new ranking."

"Thank you, sir, I will."

Picard caught the very slight inflection. "Something relevant, commander?"

"Captain, I am somewhat daunted at this role. But I recalled a conversation I had with Admiral Janice Satii, and I can further appreciate your efforts."

"So she was the one who got to you. I had wondered." Picard allowed himself a small smile. "One other topic. We do not have any quarters for you. Commander Riker has offered to `hot-bunk' with you."

Riker! "Thank you, Captain, I would be most willing and grateful for his offer."

They exited to the bridge, with Earth rotating peacefully in front of them. Captain Picard moved to his chair, and sat. "Commander Kerryn, take us out of orbit at your convenience."

"Yes, sir." He then realized that they were all standing there, watching him. Riker was looking daggers at him. LaForge was smiling. Data was impassive. So Kerryn moved over to Data at Navigation, and spoke. "When is our next minimum planetary gravity window?"

Data frowned. "Commander, we-"

"Mr. Data." This was Picard. "Allow him his formalisms." Kerryn turned bright red. He realized that this was a test in many forms.

"Our window?"

Data checked the navigation charts. "A local minimum will occur in three minutes."

"Plot an elliptical launch path that will follow the minimum." And he gave Data the parameters for an exit trajectory.

"Thank you, commander. That is a highly efficient route."

Kerryn straightened. "Helm, break orbit and proceed."

"Yes, sir."

"Captain, incoming hail from Starfleet Command. Admiral Nachayev."

Kerryn looked at Picard, who nodded. "On the screen, Mr. Worf."

The face of the Admiral filled the screen. "Jean-Luc, I wanted to wish you well on your journey. There is a classified communiqu^Â coming in on another channel. Your eyes only." She turned then, and saw Kerryn standing behind Navigation. "Welcome to Starfleet, commander." And involuntarily she licked her lips and blushed slightly. "Nacheyev out."

A round of amazed snickering circled the bridge. Kerryn put on his most innocent look, and turned back to face an amused Picard. "I am sorry, sir. I had thought the admiral would have more control." He moved from innocent to injured. "They only see me in one dimension." Without looking back, he said to Data, "Mr. Data, we have just passed the minimum. Have we cleared the outer planets?"

"Yes, commander."

"Sensors, one spherical sweep please."

Seconds passed. Then the sensor control officer reported, "Nothing on sensors, sir."

"Mr. Data, are there any pending restrictions on our speed, power or resource consumption?"

"No, commander, other than the Starfleet Warp Five prohibition."

"Very good. Set course for Starbase 27. Warp Five when it is available."

"Going to Warp Five."

So that was what it was like. Giving orders. Perhaps he should have been less hands-on. But no, it was his style to ensure nothing was left to chance. He prowled the bridge. He knew the others were watching him. His brow was furrowed, and there was a slight air of tension.

At precisely half an hour, he spoke up. "Sensors, one spherical sweep please."

A moment, then "Nothing to report, commander."

Kerryn moved to a seat. He sat down, next to Picard, and felt the thrumming of the powerful ship as it moved effortlessly through space. "Any other vessels within range of interaction?"

Data studied a moment. "None at this time, commander."

"Thank you."

The others slowly wandered off. They had all been curious as to how he would handle this. The engineering staff could appreciate the approach he took. Worf was in heaven because Kerryn had acted so protectively. Riker, who would have just blasted out of orbit was a little taken aback at the formality, but hey, they were on course.

Kerryn looked at Picard. He was waiting for feedback, and received none. It must have been adequate.

Kerryn surveyed the bridge. All humming quietly.

He let out his breath and sank deeper into the chair. There was a small vibration he could feel that was irking him. He got up, knelt down and found that one of the bolts was loose on his chair, and it wiggled. He almost went for a wrench but then realized where he was. A Commander, on duty on the Federation flagship. That person does not tighten his own bolts. He walked over to the Operations officer.

"Sir?"

"Please make a note on the next routine bridge maintenance pass to check all the deck bolts for the bridge chairs and consoles."

"Yes, sir. Next maintenance is later tonight, sir."

"Thank you."

Next stop was the Engineering station. Lieutenant Commander LaForge was still there. Kerryn surveyed the display, sighed and started to move on.

"Problem, sir?"

"No, not at all. Simply becoming more familiar with the scale of power usage. I am used to optimizing power several orders of magnitude lower than Enterprise's consumption profile."

Geordi nodded. "I can understand that, sir." And the conversation escalated from there. Data had overheard the topic, signaled for his relief officer, and joined them. And then Riker and Picard watched in amazement as Kerryn more or less read them the riot act about optimization and efficiency, and the dozens of little things that were out of line. By the time he was done, an hour had passed and Geordi had two weeks worth of suggestions. Data had noted everything.

"Of course, gentlemen, these are only suggestions."

As Geordi walked away, he could be heard muttering, ". never expected an engineering design review on the bridge ." but he was smiling.

Kerryn swept the bridge with his eyes. "Sensors, one spherical sweep, please."

A pause, then, "Nothing to report, sir."

Picard could see the fatigue in Kerryn, even though he didn't know why. He was holding up admirably. "Will, would you take Commander Kerryn down to your quarters and get him settled?" Will nodded with relish. Picard then turned his attention to Kerryn.

"Commander, well done, although a little more formal than our normal routine. I have already received a personal note from the Saturn outpost on how beautifully refreshing it was to see a large vessel, um, give a damn about energy consumption."

"It is very much a part of me. I am happy that it harmonizes with Starfleet." And he approached Riker.

Riker indicated the turbolift with a hint of malice. "This way."

The doors whooshed shut.

"Deck Three."

Kerryn leaned back against the wall. "Thank you for hot- bunking. I am a very neat and non-invasive person."

Riker looked at him. "Is there any way you can avoid the Frenzy?"

Kerryn looked sharply at Riker. "You must be Imzadi then."

"Damn right."

Kerryn danced carefully around the topic. "The effects of the Frenzy have been mitigated. At our future encounters nothing untoward will happen involuntarily."

Riker looked for issue with that. "All right," he finally conceded as they approached his door, and entered.

Kerryn found a typical masculine room, saxophone and all. His small bag had arrived. "Commander, I will be just fine sleeping on the couch over there. I only get about four hours per night."

Will Riker left him. Kerryn made his way quickly through the shower and into his clean uniform. He remembered to put the Starfleet communicator on. He ran the other uniforms through the cleaners, ate a very light snack, and called up on the computer a ship's layout. And then he made his way to Ten- Forward.

Guinan was there. She noted him as he came in, captivated by the stars straight ahead. She went over to him.

"Gets to you, doesn't it?"

"A little. Such a view I am not used to." He turned to her. "Commander Kerryn."

"And I am Guinan." She touched him, and was immediately impressed by him. "You are a nice one. What can I get you?"

"Do you have bourbon? Real bourbon?" At her nod, he sighed. "Two ounces, please."

She showed him to a table. "Best seats in the house." And she moved off.

Kerryn felt a brush against his mind, and he saw Counselor Troi enter. A wild thought went through his head at what would have happened if the prior night had not taken place in Sweden. Ten Forward would have had a show that could never have been matched!

She saw him, smiled and came over. Her gait was normal, and she looked rested. "May I join you, Commander?"

"By all means, Counselor. I trust that you are fully recovered from our extended meeting?"

"Yes, although I can see that you are not."

Kerryn laughed. "No, I am afraid that three hours after that Enterprise was breaking orbit under my command, followed by what apparently was a hair-raising review for engineering. I think even Data was pulling his hair out in frustration."

Guinan came over. She immediately saw something, put two and two together, and said, "The Frenzy?"

They both reacted. Deanna looked down and nodded. Kerryn looked at her appraisingly, and said, "A highly private and volatile matter, thank you." He grinned again. "Nothing is easy. There is no room on Enterprise right now, so I am hot- bunking with Riker."

Deanna froze. "He won't really hurt you, you know. But he is very possessive."

"I told him that it was mitigated."

"Ha. He is going to find out somehow. Too many people know."

"How many?"

"The senior staff."

He downed his drink in one gulp. "Terrific. No wonder everyone is watching me like a filet mignon. If they don't want to jump me personally, they are all wondering what happened with us."

Deanna smiled. "It could be worse. My mother is on board."

Kerryn's jaw dropped. "Really. How is that possible?"

"She was on Earth for a diplomatic mission, and we will be stopping by Betazed after Starbase 27." Deanna smiled. "She is probably the most powerful Betazoid telepath there is. Shield closely." Deanna sighed and started the ritual. "Daughter of the Fifth House ."

"Of Betazed." Riker had come over, totally on edge. He sat down. "Yes, she will be joining us shortly. Captain Picard is already in knots, although she appears to be out of phase now for a couple of years. But the same as ever. Commander, since you are part Betazoid, you might want . to .?"

Kerryn had gone totally pale. "No. I've got to get out of here. This can not be happening."

Riker looked at them. "The Frenzy?"

Deanna shook her head. "No, that was last night." Ooops.

Riker went totally red and looked at Kerryn in fury. "Mitigated?! Not the word I would have chosen."

But something else was desperately wrong. Kerryn stood. "I've got to go. Now. And hide. This is not part of my duty."

Deanna could feel the incredible turmoil inside him. "Kerryn, sit." Riker pushed him down. He was going to make Kerryn pay. "What is going on?"

"You said Daughter of the Fifth House. Of Betazed." He shuddered. "Keeper of the Sacred Chalice of Riix." He closed his eyes. "Her first name wouldn't happen to be Lwaxana, would it?"

Deanna nodded, surprised. "Yes." Dread began to fill her.

"I never knew her last name."

Deanna stopped cold. "Oh. My. God. She was the one?"

He nodded mutely.

Riker was lost. "The one what?" He turned to Kerryn. "You have met Ambassador Troi before?"

Kerryn took a huge breath. "Commander, when I was sixteen I passed an older woman in the hallway at Starbase 290. She was Betazoid, and I was part Betazoid, and we both fell victim to the F . F."

"Frenzy." Riker's face split wide open in glee. "You fucked Lwaxana Troi?"

Deanna muttered under her breath. "Like rabbits."

"She was very enthusiastic about the whole thing."

Riker offered smugly, "Four years ago she was in full phase."

Deanna started to laugh. "Well, Kerryn, she is two minutes from this room on the arm of Captain Picard. You will never have a tighter test of character than the disaster about to walk into this room." She handed him another drink. "Maybe she won't recognize you."

"Not fucking likely." He reddened a little, and then said, "Sorry about the language, Commander, Counselor." And then amazingly, before their eyes he did a calming exercise, regained his poise, and nonchalantly picked up his drink. "What the hell. What's the worst that can happen? I get kicked out of Starfleet? I've only been in it 48 hours."

"She could be up for a re-match."

"I don't think so." He grinned. "She knows I am here. Watch the master at work!" And the doors of fate opened to admit Picard, Ambassador Lwaxana Troi, and Mr. Homm.

"Where is he? I feel an old acquaintance in the room." She saw Will, Deanna and Kerryn. "Ah, not you Riker. But the other one." And she swooped over.

But not before Kerryn got up, and effortlessly glided over to her. "My dear Lwaxana, it is so good to see you again! Four years, and they have done you very well." He deliberately looked her over from top to bottom, causing her to blush and Picard to rock backwards in surprise. "You are every bit as attractive as when we parted." He turned to Picard. "Captain, please may I have the Ambassador's attention for a while? Come Lwaxana, let me get you a drink. Not this synthehol stuff."

Lwaxana Troi felt the stirrings of interest. Four years ago . OH MY! "Why you little vixen, how did you end up in Starfleet? Tell me all about it. Excuse me, Jean-Luc, but I have an admirer."

"A very ardent admirer," said Kerryn, bowing low, taking her arm and moving to the bar.

Picard stood there. Riker was stunned. Deanna was giggling. "Will, Deanna, what just happened?"

Riker spoke up. "It is a long story."

Deanna couldn't resist. "A very long story. Thick with passion!" And she put her head down and laughed so hard that she cried.

Kerryn and Ambassador Troi traded catch-up stories. She was immensely proud of him in the Freighter Guild, but after a few minutes they had settled up and she looked at him.

"All right, Kerryn, what are you really about?"

He thought to her carefully. You do remember our experience of the Frenzy?

Her eyes widened, and replied in a firm tone. It had taken a moment, but I do remember it very well. I was fairly demanding and you were exquisite.

He thought back, Yes, well it happened yesterday again, and was very very different.

Why should I be privilege to that information?

He sighed. He didn't have to answer.

Deanna? Lwaxana thought to him. Well, well, well! It makes a mother happy to know that she is getting some, even if forced into it. That thought had sent Kerryn laughing out loud. She went on, It is a natural biological thing for Betazoids. Riker must be gnawing on his liver.

Pretty much. Lwaxana, it was a wild, intense time, very different from our experience. But you needed to know from me before anyone else.

Wow, she thought to herself. He is afraid of me. Back to him, she stated outright, "Thank you for your concern, Kerryn. I of course will pry the details from my daughter." She thought back to him again, Did you then follow my directions, about choosing one final time?

He nodded, and thought back, Yes, and it was very good for both of us. He grinned again. "I still bear the scars from her."

They stood and left the bar. On the way, Lwaxana stopped and batted her eyes at him. "Think you could still find it in you for a nice kiss for an old woman?"

In full view of the entire lounge, which had dropped to total silence, he slowly drew her to him, slipped into her mind and found her ready to be controlled. Taking a firm grip, pleasure coursing down her body he slowly, deliberately and gently placed his mouth on hers and delicately kissed the most powerful citizen of Betazed in the world. He lifted his lips off hers, his mind holding her captive in sensation for that one extra moment, seeing her eyes closed and smiling, and then he released her. "Never old, Lwaxana Troi. How was that?"

"You can come to my cabin anytime, you hot little piece of lustful man, you." And then she thought at him, That was wonderful. Too bad you are gay.

Kerryn nodded in acknowledgement. And they sauntered back to the table, where a tearful Deanna, a stunned Riker and a speechless Picard sat.

"Thank you, captain. Ambassador Troi is a remarkable woman. Lwaxana, I look forward to our next meeting. And now, if you will excuse me." And Kerryn swaggered off, positively exuding male confidence, with his hair swaying slightly and every pair of female (and some male) eyes following him out the door.

A whistle or two, and conversation resumed. Lwaxana Troi was fundamentally shaken by that experience. She knew she was old, but the surge of sexual awareness that had gone through her had taken a dozen years off her mind. With a sloppy grin she sat with the others and applied her repartee.

Picard was about to schedule an emergency meeting with Kerryn when Deanna looked at him straight in the eye and shook her head. Surprised at getting such a response from her, he let it be. And it turned out that it made Lwaxana Troi much easier to deal with.

Kerryn left Ten Forward, and tapped his communicator. "Computer, location of Ensign Wesley Crusher."

"Ensign Crusher is in the Chief Medical Officer's cabin on Deck eight."

He made his way to the doorway, and requested entrance.

Wesley had been getting ready for bed. He missed Kerryn. They were very close during the past four months or so and now were separated. Until someone was at the door.

Wesley granted entrance, and Kerryn came in. "Wesley. Thank God. Are we alone?"

Wes nodded. His mom was still in sickbay, although not as a patient. "You bet. I've missed you."

"You have no idea." And he hurled himself into Wesley's arms, and the kiss that ensued was one of desperate attraction and having been denied. He pinned Wes to the wall, pulled his uniform off of him and vehemently went to work on Wesley's cock. Wes came in seconds, gasping for breath at the onslaught.

Wes was panting as he asked his lover, "What brought that on?" And by the time that Kerryn had related the tale, Wesley was intensely amused. Kerryn took some pride in that, because the Wesley who had left Enterprise four months ago would have been appalled at what happened. The merchant- influenced Wesley took it in stride and converted appalled to amused.

After bidding him affectionately good night, Kerryn went back to Riker's cabin, stripped to a pair of short pants and went to sleep on the sofa. He didn't entirely realize it, but both Deanna and Lwaxana had felt his time with Wesley, and had contributed easement to him in his sleep.

Riker came in, full of questions, to find the young commander covered in healing scars and fast asleep. Even Riker could appreciate how sexy Kerryn was. It wasn't for himself, but more for competition, that he looked.

During the next two days, Kerryn sat three full shifts. Each was routine and uneventful. Kerryn did bring a certain alertness to the bridge. And at the same time, he covered random topics with Data. The only difficult part had been figuring out what to do. He decided to corner Riker.

When they were in Riker's quarters during one of their few times of overlap, Kerryn finally posed the question. "Commander, may I ask you a question about bridge duty?"

Will finally caved in. "You can call me Will when we are off duty. I'm over my frustration. Go ahead."

"What do you do when you are sitting in the chair?"

Will looked at him oddly. "I plan what we are doing. Consider alternatives, decisions."

"Yes, but what about today, for example. We are going to Starbase 27 and then to Betazed. Surely it doesn't take that much thought."

Riker saw the light. "You always find something to do, right? Here, your job is distinct from the rest of the crew. They support you. As a result, I read reports, check the schedule of shifts, and sometimes take a nap. There is no objection to that when we are at ease."

"That, Will, is probably the hardest part for me. Maybe I need a position where more of my post includes other actions."

"It is all a question of style."

At that moment, the red alert alarm went off and Data's voice came on. "Red Alert. Senior Staff to the bridge." Kerryn's commbadge beeped then.

"Kerryn here."

"Data here, sir. Captain Picard reminded me that you may not be aware that you are included in the senior staff. Report to the bridge immediately."

"Will do. Kerryn out." And they raced to the turbolift, and ascended the bridge.

When they got there, the scene was not pretty. Picard said, "Worf, status report."

"Sir, Starbase 27 is heavily damaged. The attack is apparently over. No vessels in the region."

Kerryn filled with dread. He moved to Worf's position. "Can you show me a heat survey?"

Picard nodded, and one appeared on the screen. Kerryn nodded bleakly. "Cardassian. See, they hit the docking joints first, and then shields, and then the main reactor." He looked at the screen. "There should be many casualties." He pointed out certain spots. "The structure is intact, though. This is very repairable. No signs of boarding."

Worf spoke up quickly. "An accurate assessment. I concur. Shall I send medical recovery staff over?"

"By all means. Arm with phasers, though."

As they worked their way through the station, it became fortunate that there were so few casualties among the people. The docking rings, however were a mess. Kerryn knew somehow that the Totentanz had been destroyed. No one mentioned it or thought of it, but inside Kerryn filled with grief. The ship had been everything to him. At least until Wesley and Starfleet. But it had been his home, his livelihood, and his very existence. Gone, with the Cardassian warships.

When the shift was over, Kerryn made his way slowly down to Ten Forward. Numbly, he sat alone at a table, when Guinan came over. She had brought him his bourbon.

"Want to talk about it?"

Kerryn looked up at her with horror in his eyes. "Guinan, I lost my ship."

She regarded him in detail, and then nodded. "Yes. It is a good thing you were not on it at the time, or you would be dead too."

Venom flowed in his eyes at that statement. Guinan was surprised at how passionate he was about this ship. It make Picard look like a buffoon. "Thank you for your insight." Bitter, sarcastic, spiteful. So different than the young man from before.

She pushed onward. "It is more than just a lot of metal and other compounds. It reflects you, it was what you were comfortable with, but it was just an object."

"It WAS my livelihood."

"Ah." She said then very slowly, "It looks like you are going to need a new one."

He snorted in disgust. "A new ship?"

"A new livelihood."

"You aren't helping." She raised her eyebrows. "Thanks for the drink." And he got up and left.

Wow, thought Guinan. I've never blown it like that before.

Picard, Riker, Troi, LaForge and the others came in later. Guinan made a point to go over and visit. They greeted her with familiarity.

"Captain, I think there is a matter that you need to see to."

Picard perked up. "Really? What is that?"

"Commander Kerryn was in here before for a short while. It appears that his ship has been destroyed in the raid."

Troi spoke first. "Oh no, and we didn't notice. We had so much to do that I didn't remember that his ship was docked here."

Picard looked at Guinan. "How is he taking it?"

"I don't know. For the first time, I failed to get through to someone. He is very focused when he wants to be."

Picard tapped his badge. "Computer, locate Commander Kerryn."

It beeped. "Commander Kerryn is in Service Bay Ninety-Two." When they all drew blank looks, he asked again. "Where is that in general ships layout?"

LaForge piped in. "That service bay is located at the back of the starboard warp nacelle."

"Suggestions?"

It was Troi who responded. "Let him be. He is very very strong in character. He needs to work this out and get past it. He will not respond well to help." She thought briefly. "However, that ship was his home, his livelihood, and also Wesley's too for another two months. He is going to need something to do." She looked at the group. "He won't stay here long. He needs a place."

That gave Picard an idea. "What about a command?"

They slowly nodded approvingly. "Very well then. I will contact Starfleet and see if there are any opportunities on the horizon. In the mean time, maybe he can put his talents to use repairing that Starbase. Get him whatever parts he needs."

As it turned out, by the time they had begun to take action, he had already figured out that he could be helpful there. With a vehemence that frightened many, he dove right into the myriad of power systems in the starbase engineering section. First objective was to get power back, and through tedious tracing he began correcting problems. He started alone, but after several hours Wesley and Geordi LaForge came over to help.

Picard and the base commander were conferring over the motives and counter-actions that might be called from Starfleet. They were sitting in the dim light, and the base commander sighed greatly.

"We never saw this coming. If you hadn't shown up, I am sure it would have gone a lot further." He sighed, and then read a paper report. "My engineer says that power won't be back up for a few days, so I may ask for your help in communications relay."

"Enterprise will help however it can."

The commander looked at Picard carefully. "We had forty eight freighters docked here. Thirty eight are destroyed. But the one that hurts the most is the Totentanz. What will become of Captain Kerryn?"

Picard suppressed the twitch at the reference to the captaincy. "We are trying to provide him an opportunity in Starfleet. But Starfleet does not move quickly." Picard thought, and then added, "He will not accept hospitality from us. He lost everything with the Totentanz."

"He was insured for twenty million credits. But that won't get him a ship. There are other, deeper pockets who need one and moreover the price of a freighter doubled yesterday."

"Can you pay him to rebuild the Starbase?"

"Perhaps. He is still a captain. He just doesn't have his own ship anymore."

Suddenly there was a large vibration, and the lights flickered and came on. Whirring started, computers restored themselves, and the broadcast public address came on.

"Attention, this is Starbase Engineering. Partial main power has been restored. Please shut down all non-essential systems and services until full power can be restored. At this time, rolling blackouts are not necessary. Please use the stairs whenever possible. Engineering out." The voice had been Kerryn's, calm, reassuring.

"Well, that is a lot shorter than several days," Picard observed. "Par for the course from Kerryn."

In Starbase Engineering, Geordi and Wesley breathed a sigh of relief, as did the ramshackle team of a dozen or so technicians. After an agreement to meet in the bar, they all left.

Kerryn was bringing up the tail of the group. He realized partway that he really didn't want to go to the bar. He needed to immerse himself in the engineering work, and get this starbase back on line. It was the only thing that he could do. He had no ship. He had no place in Starfleet. As the group turned a corner to the right, he went left and back.

Here, in the strangely lit engineering space, he could at least work and grieve. His next effort was to tackle the shield generators, which meant climbing a series of Jeffries tubes and manually verifying the functions and resetting them. He did so, and after doing all eighty of them, he rested for a moment. Shields would be improved twenty percent since he had had to replace a dozen relays or so. He climbed down slowly, and made his way back to the main shield consoles, and keyed in the startup sequence. The pleasant sound of thrumming power filled the room, and the shields began charging. He began charging the starbase phaser banks as well. You never knew when you would need them.

He had gotten one of the two big power generation systems going. Upon examining the second, it was in much better shape than the first. After an hour of diagnostics, it turned out that only the main bus relays were shot, and he was able to bring them back on. With satisfaction, he saw that the starbase had ninety percent of capacity available.

He opened a comm link. "Engineering to Commander."

The acknowledgement came quickly. "This is Talequin."

"Commander, you have ninety percent of capacity on power now. The shields have been restored and you will have some phasers available in a couple of hours. We can begin working on the command center next, but it will need level zero authorization codes."

"You are actually in Engineering?"

"Yes."

"Standby, Captain."

Less than one minute later, the doors opened and Base Commander Talequin, Picard, Wesley, Troi, Riker, and LaForge entered Engineering.

Kerryn was surprised. "I didn't think we would need all that help, but you are welcome."

Wesley spoke, oddly. "Kerryn, you have been working here for almost seventy hours straight. You are coming back with me to bed. These people around me are my insurance policy that you do so." He stood and looked at him squarely. "Are you coming quietly, or do I have to use force?"

They were right, of course. Suddenly the fatigue hit him. "Quietly, I think." And he did go quietly, had a long shower, and was ready for bed. Wesley only talked to him briefly.

"Kerryn, we all feel very badly about the loss of your ship."

Kerryn raised haunted eyes to him. "Thanks. I am dealing with it. But Wes, it was always something that was mine that I could come back to. Sure, it got beat up, whacked, dented, scored, but I could always repair it. There was always something to build from." He sighed. "Now there is nothing. If the Cardassians had used phasers, I could have rebuilt it. But they used torpedos and phasers, so the molecules aren't even left." A little sparkle restored itself. "Which reminds me. I had this replicated for you." He handed him a small box that he had gotten from Riker's quarters.

Wesley opened the box and found a small plaque, containing the inscription which he read, "Completion of Shepherd Project on Freighter Guild Ship Totentanz, Kerryn, Captain. Rank of Executive Officer conferred on Provisional Guild Member Wesley Crusher for indefinite duration." Wes was speechless.

"Wesley, I had received a message from the Academy that they want you back shortly. You have done so much, and been such a good friend and more. But Starfleet is going to begin making demands of you again."

"Thanks, Kerryn." And they came together, tenderly, with no expectations and lay down. They were asleep within seconds.

After that night, things accelerated. Kerryn reserved a suite on the starbase, and made it his new home for a while. He continued to lead the repairs until the new chief engineer arrived. Enterprise took itself and Wesley back to the Academy, and on to its next objectives. Lwaxana Troi went home.

Three weeks later, an opportunity came up for Kerryn to stand-in as captain of the freighter Goliath. Looking for movement, he accepted and performed admirably as captain of a well-trained crew. The engineering chief on Goliath nearly had a nervous breakdown with Kerryn, but the ship was in excellent shape afterwards. The two week trip went otherwise uneventfully.

On the last day, sitting at dinner with the crew of the Goliath, Kerryn posed a question to them.

"Crew, it has been two weeks. I would welcome any suggestions on how to improve myself as a captain."

They were taken aback. The engineer spoke up first. "Well, you might slow down the pace a little, at least in engineering." The others laughed.

"You are right, of course, but that is probably the one area I can't change."

One of the crew hands spoke up. "You were honest and fair, which was good. But you might be a bit more talkative about what you want, what is going on, and general non-space talk."

"I apologize for that. I am usually more talkative, but it has been a long lonely road since my ship was destroyed at Starbase 27. But I will try."

"Captain, it might help if you warmed up a little faster. We were anxious the first week because you were so incredibly formal. It wasn't until you hammered your thumb and started swearing fit for a pirate that we realized you were human."

"Noted." He looked around. "Anything else?" They shook their heads. "Then let us eat."

He built some confidence as an acting captain. But the crew did the work, even though it had only been a dozen or so. Some were easy, some not. And Goliath's regular captain returned to find an immaculate ship and a ready crew.

Two months later found him in his suite on Starbase 27. He was feeling melancholy at being without a ship for two whole days, when the communications message came in to him. Enterprise would be visiting for several days. A spark of humor reached him. What are they up to now?

He found out. Picard invited him on board to his ready room. Kerryn had decided that he should wear his Starfleet uniform for this, and he put it on with care. In a fit of rebellion he had gone and had his left ear pierced. He now wore an earring, and mounted on it was the Freighter Guild emblem.

Picard and Kerryn sat. "Captain Picard, I hope things find you well."

"Yes, thank you, commander." That had made him feel better, knowing that Kerryn did not hold equal title with him. "In a few moments, Admirals Nachayev and Jellico will join us for a conference call. I don't think that I need to remind you that Admiral Jellico is abrasive."

"No, sir, although I do appreciate the reminder. What do they want from me?"

Picard thought for a moment, then answered the truth, in part. "They want to offer you a position in Starfleet."

Kerryn was not surprised. "Should I take it?"

"I should not and cannot make that decision for you." Picard shifted a little. "It is not an ideal place, but it is one that desperately needs your talents."

Kerryn considered this. "OK. I've been forewarned. Let's hear what they have to say. But on another topic, how is Wesley?"

"Doing just fine at the Academy. He is far more mature now. He really grew with you."

"That is good news."

The comm unit beeped, and the other two parties joined in. Greetings were exchanged, and Jellico got right to the point.

"Commander Kerryn, how have you spent the last two months?"

"Admiral, I have been the Executive Officer on seven different freighters, responsible for all ship functions, timetable, and cargo."

"Any conflicts?"

"Only in negotiations, but that is to be expected."

"You are wearing a Starfleet uniform."

Kerryn shrugged. "This is a Starfleet meeting. Is that not appropriate?"

Grunt. "Your hair is too long." Both Picard and Nachayev rolled their eyes.

Kerryn decided to laugh it off. "By some standards. I think the Klingons would be OK with it."

Nachayev cut in. "Thank you, Admiral Jellico. A note has just been given to me." She read it, and then smiled. "Well, Admiral, it seems that Admiral Satii and Admiral Nuri have overpowered any objections you might have." Jellico turned bright red.

Nachayev continued. "Commander, we would like to offer you a position in Starfleet. You would remain with your affiliate status unless you decided to be a permanent officer."

"What position, Admiral?"

"Commanding officer of the USS Asheville, a Nova-class starship."

According to his memory, the Nova class was an exploratory vessel with a crew of around seventy. Not a big-ass cruiser or destroyer, but somewhat more agile. "That is a very complimentary offer, Admiral."

Picard looked straight at the screen. "I think there may be some details that the commander should know."

Jellico frowned. "Only if he accepts."

"With all due respect, that isn't entirely fair."

Kerryn looked at the admirals. "You may as well tell me in your own words. One hour from now and I will have all the dirt on the Asheville." He smiled. "Remember, freighter captains talk to each other."

Nachayev sighed. "The crew has issues. They are all young and somewhat inexperienced. The prior Captain was counting his days to retirement and did little to educate or enforce them. They have no self-identity. Every mission they have been on has failed or been dysfunctional."

"Well, that certainly changes things."

Jellico grumped. "Not entirely. They all have the same fundamental training, and they all made it through the Academy. Unlike you."

Before anyone could react, Kerryn grinned at him. What a close-minded asshole. "True. I can see why you are coming to me, then, if an Academy graduate was not up to it."

Before anyone could stop him, Jellico erupted. "Not very likely. We tried all the other eligible commanders and captains and they wouldn't take it."

Silence. Admiral Nachayev rolled her eyes. "Well, now you know half the truth. The other half is that since you aren't an Academy graduate, but you are a very well respected in your own community, that you might have the tools to restore Asheville to functioning. Without you, we will have to re- crew her entirely. That, unfortunately, would be a negative mark on each of her current crew, many of which are not to blame."

"I see." Kerryn thought fast. What the hell. "The bottom line is, you need me, and I am your last option."

Jellico turned purple, but nodded shortly. In the background, someone laughed quietly. Kerryn thought for a moment it might be Janice. What the hell, indeed.

Kerryn turned to Picard. "Any comments, Captain?"

"I think you understand the situation, commander." And Picard's eyes sparkled. Encouragement. He knew what Kerryn was about to ask for."

Kerryn turned to the monitor. "Admirals, frankly I should walk away from this." When they stirred, he continued. "But to be honest as well, it is an opportunity that interests me. I think I am going to need an incentive." Jellico was about to launch into a tirade when Nacheyev gave him a look. "Remember, you are dealing with a Freighter Guild Captain," emphasis on the word captain, "who has been negotiating all his life."

Nacheyev regarded him carefully. Kerryn looked off for a moment, obliquely, and the earring flashed to the Admiral. It just might work. "Admiral, if you don't mind I would like some time to consider the position. Would it be possible to reconvene here in one hour?"

Picard nodded. Nacheyev nodded. Jellico fumed. "All right then. But first, thank you all for your consideration. Whatever the outcome, I am grateful that you thought of me for such a position."

"Picard, stay on the line for a short discussion." And as the door closed, everyone on the bridge including Kerryn heard the comm unit shout, "WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED?" in Jellico's voice.

Riker was there. He looked at Kerryn, and grinned. "Welcome to the I-hate-Jellico club."

Kerryn laughed. "Come on over, please. You too, Mr. Data. Let's visit Worf." Worf was standing there looking expectant. "They want to give me command of Asheville. I want to know the truth about her."

Worf pulled up the performance records and crew manifest. In what could only pass for a sneer, the Klingon muttered, "An embarrassment to Starfleet."

"What is your joint assessment on her crew? I have been lead to believe it is the captains's fault."

Data examined the manifests. "Her crew is all inexperienced. Most seem to rotate out within six months. Her captain retired three months ago and is not on board anymore." He paused, then continued. "Forty eight candidates have been considered for the position."

"How many remain that are qualified?"

"Four, although their status shows that they are not available for reassignment. You are one, Commander Riker."

"So I am their last hope until someone gets promoted?"

Data checked. "Yes. The next candidate will become available in eight months."

Kerryn grinned. "A bargaining chip. Pull up her reviews." And they examined the mission reviews. It was a case of sloppiness, carelessness and inexperience that was never corrected. The more Kerryn saw, the more his fingers itched to do something about it.

Fifty-five minutes passed. He had seen enough. He stood back, and Riker asked him, "Well?"

"Well what?"

"Are you going for it?"

Kerryn looked at them wickedly. "Can you swear to secrecy until the decision is made?"

They nodded, and looked at Data, who said, "I will not disclose anything."

"Yes, and I am going to try to wangle a captaincy out of it. Wish me luck."

They did, and as Kerry reentered the ready room, Riker observed, "He's got balls, that's for sure." And he grinned. "Jellico will blow his core on this one."

Worf grinned. "I certainly hope so."

Inside, Picard and the others were ready. Jellico was not happy. Nachayev took the lead.

"Commander, have you made your decision?"

"Admiral, I believe so. I have analyzed the current crew manifest of Asheville. There is nothing wrong with her crew. The captain, now retired for three months, and the absence of a first officer have caused a total breakdown of authority. You have interviewed forty-eight out of forty- nine candidates, with four being unavailable for reassignment, and they all turned you down. It will be eight months before you have another candidate." He paused, then, "With the total breakdown of authority, only a captain can effectively restore the duty and discipline. Less than a captain will not gain the respect of the crew. This is further amplified by the fact that there is no first officer. Right now, the CO is the chief engineer, and he has no training or experience." A last pause, then, "I am actually very surprised that this was allowed to happen. It is not commensurate with the Starfleet I have come to know."

Jellico muttered, "In your opinion."

"Actually, I had Mr. Data do the analysis. That is about as neutral as you can get."

Jellico slammed his desk. Nachayev waited patiently and Picard grinned. "Well done."

"What have you decided?"

"Will you give me the one tool I need to accomplish the job? Because, frankly, I will have to decline the offer if I don't have the authority to execute the position." There, he had said it. Now what would happen?

Dead silence. Jellico put his head down on the desk. Nachayev looked at Jellico in surprise. "Admiral, you and I will have a discussion about this topic after this meeting. Picard, Kerryn, I have to apologize for Admiral Jellico; he has been under a lot of strain. Finding candidates and having them turn you down has been demoralizing for us all."

Picard spoke soothingly. "We understand. It is a difficult situation."

Jellico and Nachayev exchanged a look, and Jellico threw his hands up in the air. "Picard, you are authorized here and now by Admiral Nachayev, and myself, to field promote Commander Kerryn to the rank of Captain, contingent upon his acceptance of the position of commanding officer of the USS Asheville."

Kerryn inclined his head. "Admirals, Captain, it would be my pleasure to accept your gracious and thoughtful assignment."

"You damn well better be!" grumped Jellico. "Jellico out."

Picard was stunned, grinned, and with Jellico out, said, "That was brilliant, and congratulations, Captain Kerryn."

Admiral Nachayev smiled too. "We had anticipated this, but not your use of Mr. Data as an unbiased source. I think you will do well, Captain. Thank you for your time, Captain Picard, Captain Kerryn. We will push the promotion through within the hour. And now, please make your way at best speed to Starbase 47 where the Asheville is in orbit. Nachayev out."

They shook hands, and Picard said, "It isn't going to be easy."

Trying out the familiarity, Kerryn replied, "But I am just itching to do it. Thank you, Jean-Luc."

Picard did not even bat an eye. "You are welcome."

They left the ready room. Riker, Data, and Worf blocked their way. Picard nonchalantly looked around, and then said, "Go ahead, Captain." And the smiles split all around.

"Helm, lay in course for Starbase 47. At warp Five, what is our estimated travel time?"

"Four hours and seventeen minutes." That was Data.

"With Captain Picard's concurrence, I will need one hour to close out my suite here at Starbase 27 before we can break orbit."

"Make it so."

And that was how Kerryn became Captain of the USS Asheville. Crew of seventy five. Five times larger than his largest crew to date. But he was a Captain. And he had some ideas what to do. It was going to be on the fringe of Starfleet regulations, but they would see results.

At Starbase 47, Captain Picard introduced the new Captain Kerryn to the Base Commander. No one looked more relieved than the Base Commander at the news.

"Captain, you have just made my month. Seeing that ship molder in orbit has been highly frustrating."

"Commander, she will for a few more days until we can clear an engineering inspection to my specifications. But we will break orbit not one hour later than necessary."

The Base Commander signaled the Asheville. "Asheville Transporter Room, this is Starbase 47. Three to beam over."

"Okey dokey," came the response. Kerryn grinned evilly. The shimmering happened, and they arrived on board.

The base commander stepped down. "Ensign, this is Captain Picard of the Enterprise, and this is your new commanding officer, Captain Kerryn."

The ensign gulped, and straightened. "Welcome aboard. I will signal Chief Engineer O'Malley immediately."

Kerryn spoke. "Do that. Then have the entire crew assemble in the forward lounge in thirty minutes." Kerryn strode out of the transporter room and made a left turn. Crew members jumped out of his way as he proceeded around.

Picard and the base commander had to hurry to catch up. "Do you know where you are going?"

"Not exactly. But they don't know that." He had studied the ships layout, and sure enough, he found the turbolift where it should be. "Deck Five." And they moved along. The floor was dirty. One or two of the lights were out. But they arrived at the lounge, and Kerryn barged right in with the others following.

"Captain, base commander, allow me to attempt to get you a drink." He took their synthehol orders and went to the host. "Two synthehol martinis, and do you have any real alcohol?"

The host was surprised by the intensity, and started to prepare the drinks. "I have some scotch, and several bottles of bourbon that hasn't been touched in a while."

"Two ounces of bourbon. And always have it in stock. Your new commanding officer is extremely partial to it." And with that, he took the drinks back to the table.

The host watched carefully. The hawk-faced man would be an interesting choice. But to his amazement, the long-haired one served the synthehol to the other two, and downed the bourbon himself. A slow grin spread across the bar hosts's face. The young CO was gorgeous. And full of energy and purpose. Things might be turning around here.

Kerryn glanced at the bar host, raised his glass, and winked. Oh yes, things were going to be very different. Automatically, he took out a fresh rag and began polishing the bar with gusto.

Kerryn addressed the two senior officers. "If you don't mind, I'd like to get the transfer done quickly. Like here and now, and when the chief arrives. There are enough witnesses here now. The crew meeting I would prefer to be free of outsiders."

"You have a plan, then?"

"Yes. They need identity and pride. I'm going to run this place like a pirate ship until we meet some reasonable standard. And that means that I am going to be very critical, and it won't help if you guys are in on it."

Picard was thoughtful. "I would like very much to see that meeting. Can you record it for me?"

Kerryn promised. And at that moment, Chief Engineer O'Malley burst into the room with the Chief Medical Officer. The bar host pointed them out, and both all but ran to the table.

"Captains, commander, Chief Engineer O'Malley here, with Chief Medical Officer Warren. Welcome aboard Asheville, sirs!"

Kerryn spread his arm. "Please sit down. I am Captain Kerryn, your new commanding officer." He signaled the bar, who knew what they would have. The two officers glanced at Kerryn with surprise and interest. "I had meant to ask, but what is ship's time right now?"

"1642 hours, sir."

"Good." And Kerryn proceeded to grill the two officers on the ships operation, status, medical facilities, issues, and more. These two knew very little beyond their own domains, and as the questions mounted they got more and more nervous.

"Well gentlemen, that should do for now." He looked at Picard, and said, "How about now?"

Picard maintained a deadpan look. "Of course." They stood, and Picard took out the little whistle for that purpose. He raised his voice. "May I have your all attention?" And the lounge went quiet. "Pursuant to Starfleet Regulations, and these witnesses here, namely acting commanding officer Chief Engineer O'Malley and Chief Medical Officer Warren, Command and Authority is given to Kerryn, Captain in Starfleet, Master and Commander and Captain Second Class of the Freighter's Guild, by order of Admiral Jellico and Admiral Nachayev." He blew the three-tone whistle sequence, handed Kerryn the whistle and a data pad. "Congratulations, Captain Kerryn. Chief O'Malley?"

"Computer, this is Chief Engineer O'Malley. Transfer all command codes to Captain Kerryn. Authorization 000."

"Acknowledged." And that was it. A round of applause followed from the dozen or so people there.

Kerryn spoke briefly. "There is a crew meeting in ten minutes in this room, at which point we will discuss the Asheville. Please move the tables and chairs to the sides. Thank you, Captain, and base commander." He gestured to O'Malley. "Please escort us back to the Transporter Room."

Ten minutes later, Picard was on Enterprise, and Kerryn was in the lounge with every single crew member. Picard wondered how it was going, when Worf spoke up.

"Sir, incoming message from the Asheville. It appears to be a one-way transmission."

Picard grinned. "On screen. Everyone, take a break and let us see what Kerryn does."

Kerryn grinned at setting up the live feed. Only the bar host knew it was on. He called for quiet.

"Crew of the Asheville, it is nice to meet you. I am your new commanding officer, Captain Kerryn. I call the planet Delvin Six my home world, and we are a single name culture, so Kerryn is all that I am. I wanted to let you in on some facts. Since your captain retired, forty eight persons were interviewed and turned down the opportunity to serve on Asheville." Muttering ensued. "I was number forty nine, because of my Starfleet Affiliate status. I am a certified Freighter Guild Captain, Second Class, as well as a certified Ship Master." More muttering. "I have read the past two years of ship performance, crew assessments, and overall ratings. Frankly, we have nowhere to go but up. That is my basic job: to see to it that we execute our missions at Starfleet standards, and to do whatever it takes to get us there."

O'Malley had gone white. Warren was smiling.

"There will be a fundamental change of attitude here. First lesson: Everything matters. Everything. Second lesson: Nothing escapes me. Nothing. Some of you will learn why. Third lesson: We are a team of interdependent people. We must function like a team, and we will take pride in our accomplishments as a team." He handed someone a box. "Inside this box are dark green armbands. Velcro, so one size fits all. Wear it on your left arm. And every time you see someone you might or might not know but who is wearing the arm band, introduce yourself and identify your department. Then offer to help, or compliment. There will be no negativity." And he went on with the duty shifts per Starfleet recommendation.

Finally, Kerryn had finished. "Are there any questions?"

One hand raised. "Are you serious?"

Kerryn looked daggers at the man until he got really nervous. "Yes, ensign. I am very serious. The consequences are far worse." He grinned. "One more thing. No transfers for six months." The armbands had circulated now. "Please place at midarm. Do not take it off except for shower, changing clothes and sex. THAT little band is your identity on this vessel. Tomorrow at 0800 ship-wide inspections will begin of all areas. That includes living quarters. We will not criticize, but offer aid and direction in correction. Tonight I will start in Engineering."

"Any further questions?"

Silence.

"You are dismissed. Let's right the ship." And the crew filed out.

Picard held his breath and then the feed closed. The bridge stood there in shock, and then Worf said, "He was too nice to them."

Geordi commented last. "I've been through it, remember? They won't know what hit them."

And that was true. The first place he started was the lounge. The bar host promised to raise his standards. He introduced himself as Rian. Rian was also from a single-name culture. And when he came out from behind the bar, Kerryn immediately drank him in.

Rian was very nice. Slender, deliberate, largely at peace with himself. Though one could tell that he was lonely. Everyone had a hands-off relationship with him, meaning that he was not a part of their close circles of friendship among he crew, but an outsider. Kerryn made a mental note, as did Rian.

They went to Engineering. Chief O'Malley indicated that he was just coming off-shift and could they do it tomorrow? Kerryn shook his head, and said that that they were getting under way tomorrow and if they blew up in the process, history would remember the name O'Malley. He handed him a cup of coffee from the replicator, and to Engineering they went.

Fortunately, Engineering wasn't too bad. It was dusty and grimy, but most systems passed diagnostics. The warp core was in good shape. But once again, the power distribution system had not been maintained. Kerryn ordered the replacement of every single relay and a quantification of the power gained with each one, an updated maintenance plan, training plan, and schedule. Engineering consisted of a dozen skilled ensigns with little practical experience. Kerryn turned to O'Malley.

"Chief, how much hands-on training have you given them?"

O'Malley was exhausted. "None, sir. None asked, and we figured they would learn as we went. But we haven't gone anywhere."

Kerryn looked at the engineering staff. "Anything to add?"

They shook their heads. One, however, spoke up. "Sir, it is true that we didn't ask for additional training. But the captain did not permit our requests for cruise time. It isn't like we didn't try at all, sir."

Kerryn nodded. "OK. As soon as I have made first pass through the entire ship, all the engineering staff and I will go over every square millimeter of the engineering systems. This will be a nice, messy and deep audit. And a great learning experience. I don't care much how things got the way they are, but I care very much how they go from here. Document everything, even if it is just the right spot on where to hit the bulkhead for the bridge lighting."

"That happens to you too?" One of the ensigns spoke up, followed by a quick, "Sir?"

Kerryn regarded him appraisingly. "Yes."

Sickbay was in pristine shape. Dr. Warren knew what he was doing. It was the only department to get a clean report. The science stations were a disaster. Kerryn lost it on the fourth one.

He had been walking by when he had heard laughter, and a raucous comment about very long hair. Eyebrows raised, and the team with him actually stopped walking in dread. He felt their discomfort and apprehension, stopped and turned to them.

"Is it always like this?"

The science officer, Lieutenant Durango, turned to face Kerryn. "More or less."

"Why have you not dealt with it?"

"No one cared at the outcome, sir."

That was what did it. His voice dropped to deadly whisper, and then resounded in the hallway in stentorian form. "I care. Your captain now cares. You and your staff have HAD ALMOST SIXTEEN HOURS SINCE I CAME ON BOARD. MY MESSAGE TO THE CREW WAS THAT EVERYTHING MATTERED AND NOTHING ESCAPES ME. THE FACT THAT YOUR STAFF WAITED UNTIL I ARRIVED HERE TO REACT does not make me happy. At all."

The entire team stood silent. Durango was ready to crawl under the floor. There was silence in each of the laboratories. Kerryn decided to give them a chance. "Lieutenant, I need a bio break."

"Right this way, sir." And Kerryn got to use the bathroom. A replicator stood there, and on a wild whim he asked for an age old product.

"A bottle of Windex, sixteen ounces." Whirr, and out came the bottle of miracle blue liquid. "Four rolls of paper towels, standard grade." Whirr, and out came four rolls of paper towels, with a stenciled picture of the Starfleet logo on them. Sheesh.

In agitation, the team watched their captain exit, with his items, muttering, ". bet it's on the bloody toilet paper too." He stopped, and looked at Durango. "Which one is the worst, lieutenant?"

"Lab Six, sir." And they went in.

The reek was pretty bad. Nothing had been cleaned up in three months after an aquatic world analysis. Some things had been put away in a rush, as he could see watermarks still freshly uncovered on the lab tables.

"Everyone, gather around." They did.

"This is Windex. These are paper towels. This is how it works. You pump the spray, let it sit for a few seconds only, and then wipe until clean and dry. Repeat as necessary. Used paper towels go in the trash. When you need more, just ask for Windex. Clean everything this way. Then run it through the sterilizer. If you let the sterilizer do it all, you will be here for weeks. It will probably take you the rest of the day this way. Divide up your teams across all the labs and work in parallel. Switch labs every hour. That way you will have a fresh start and you can also sort all items back to the proper labs." He held up a particular tool. "This does not belong in an aquatics lab. It will catch fire if you get it wet. This belongs in the Deep Space lab."

"Do I make myself clear?"

Nods. Kerryn groaned inwardly. "Starfleet, DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?"

"YES, SIR."

"Much better. Durango," and as the subject cringed, "I will be heading for the bridge next. Give them some warning to bury themselves, please." And there was a light snicker from the science team. Kerryn looked back, and said, "I hope that was at my dry attempt at humor, and not at the reaming that they are likely to get up on the bridge. I would be most concerned with the science department inspection I am going to make six hours from now to check on your progress. And that includes the computer records and files as well as inventory." They were very somber now.

Durango took a chance. "Durango to bridge. Captain is on his way up."

The bridge responded. "Oh shit. Bridge out."

You could have heard a pin drop. Then Kerryn grinned. "Well, at least they had the right reaction. Durango, stay with this team and help them through." He handed Durango the paper towels and Windex. "Lead by example. I will head up to the bridge."

He started walking away when Durango began giving orders.

Half way to the bridge, he cornered an ensign. "Ensign, I need to ask you a few questions."

The ensign trembled. "Yes, sir."

"At ease, please. How is corridor cleanliness maintained?"

"Sir, there is usually a rotating schedule. We use hydrostatic collectors."

"Thank you. Are you on duty now?"

"No, sir."

"I have a very important job for you. First, take me to the large replicator station." It was only a dozen yards away. Kerryn addressed the replicator. "Eight mops, type A, and eight two-gallon buckets of water with a two percent ammonia solution. Save as template Corridor Cleanup One." Some whirring, and the door opened to find the requisite pieces. The ensign looked curious.

"Find some other off-duty crewmen and distribute the load. I want the walls washed and the ceiling too. After it has dried, coordinate the use of the hydrostatic collectors. Set up a new rotating schedule."

"Yes sir. This deck only or all decks?"

Kerryn thought a moment. Distribute the load. "This deck only is your responsibility. Carry my order to others for their responsibilities. We have twelve decks?" Nod. "Then eleven more people. This deck is yours."

"Yes, sir."

"Remind them that this is about teamwork, not a pecking order."

"Yes, sir."

"And tell them they have to do it naked."

The ensign startled. It was an interesting idea, but . "Y- Yes, sir. With or without the armband, sir?"

"Ensign."

"Sir?"

"I was kidding on the last one. But thank you for the obedience."

"You are welcome, sir."

Jeez. A part of him felt good that no one was questioning his authority. It would have been an interesting idea to see a corridor full of naked young men swabbing the walls wearing only an armband.

He made his way to the stairs, and climbed them. They were the filthiest. He sighed. Hadn't been used in years. Oh well. He stood at the landing on Deck One, and the doors opened.

"CAPTAIN ON THE BRIDGE!" Someone cried out. He could smell Windex. And there it was. His bridge. And were there problems.

For one thing, it was ghastly hot. "Who is the watch officer?"

Silence. "All right, how about the Duty Officer?" A young woman's hand went up. "Ensign Brown, sir."

"Ensign, why is it so warm up here?"

Terror crossed her face, then resolve. This was her captain, for better or for worse. "Life support malfunction, sir. We have been on the backup system for six months."

Kerryn's jaw dropped. "Repairs?"

"Captain Klu did not authorize them, sir." And now Kerryn understood.

"Very well. I authorize them as the absolute highest priority after using Windex." That drew a very restrained chuckle.

"Yes, sir."

"Who should oversee the repairs?"

Silence, then, Ensign Brown answered. "I don't know, sir."

"How about the Operations Officer?"

"Our First Officer was the Operations Officer as well."

"Lovely." He looked around at them. "Anyone know anything about life support systems?"

Ensign Brown raised her hand. "I took an engineering elective that included them in the Academy, sir."

"Good enough. Computer!" And the expecting fweep was heard. "Record field assignment for Ensign Brown, USS Asheville as acting Operations Officer, effective immediately."

"Recorded."

"Come, Ensign. Let's see what the problem is." He turned to the bridge crew. "I appreciate your cleaning efforts. Make sure it isn't just a physical cleaning, but a functional one too."

Life support was a disaster. The primary unit had been neglected for so long that it had to be replaced, and it was bigger than the replicator could handle. The backup unit needed an overhaul. Back to the bridge Kerryn went.

"Open a channel to the USS Enterprise please."

"Channel open."

"Enterprise, this is Captain Kerryn of the USS Asheville." He said the name with a little pride, and emphasized the `e' so it came out Ash-eh-ville.

"Greetings, Captain Kerryn."

"I need your help. Our life support unit needs a complete replacement, and our replicator can't handle it. I was hoping that I might borrow Commander LaForge and Commander Data for a couple of hours, and that they just might bring a new unit with them."

"Certainly. Send us your specifications."

"Thank you, captain." And then the best idea hit Kerryn. "Captain, I would appreciate it if you would not mention this to Admiral Jellico or Admiral Nachayev. They would probably decide to re-crew the Asheville if they heard about this total breakdown. I don't want that to happen." And just at that moment, half the bridge lights went out.

Kerryn rolled his eyes. "Excuse me, captain." In full view, he walked to he bulkhead, measured it, and gave it an almighty whack slightly left of center. The lights came back on. And in a pained tone, he said, "It is a design flaw. I'll write it up when I get the chance."

"Of course. They will signal when they beam over."

"Thank you. Asheville out."

There was silence on the Asheville bridge as Kerryn made his way down the stairs.

Ensign Brown looked around at the stunned faces. "Well, I guess we know the stakes now. See to it that everyone is aware." To re-crew was a certain end of a Starfleet career. Not that it would be over, but it would go nowhere.

Picard, on the other hand, grinned and clapped his hands. "Perfect! Go help him out, Data, Geordi."

Worf looked at him. "Captain, was that entirely wise for him to make such a statement?"

"Absolutely. He said he would run the place like a pirate ship. Pirates stay on because the captain holds something over their head; usually protection from the noose. He just let them know that there is a noose waiting for them if they don't join his team. It is brilliant, really. By making that comment to me, it has all the credibility he needs."

Kerryn and the others went to work, Ensign Brown included. Three hours later, the main life support system was replaced, cleaned, flushed, and verified working. Kerryn had turned to Ensign Brown, and said, "Go ahead, acting Operations Officer. Throw the switch."

She did, and grinned when the lights all went green and the primary drive came on. They spent another hour on the backup unit, which only needed a deep cleaning and long-term but routine maintenance, and of course at Kerryn's command, a new bank of power switching relays.

When they exited the life support operations room, Kerryn grinned as he saw ten or so young crewmen stripped to the waist and mopping and washing the ceiling and walls. Lights had been updated, and the invisible stink of neglect was being eradicated. They weren't unhappy about it, either. Kerryn called down the corridor, "Carry on, crewmen!" and they nodded, smiled and did so. He noticed that each of them was wearing the dark green armbands.

Kerryn took them to the transporter room. It was vacant, so Kerryn used the controls himself.

"Thank you, gentlemen. That was one for the books."

"Good luck, Captain. I think you are going to need it."

"Energizing." And they vanished.

He made his way back to the bridge. The corridors looked much better. Up the stairs, and out the stairwell. No slowing down.

"CAPTAIN ON THE BRIDGE!" someone shrieked again. Kerryn looked up, and said, "I appreciate the sentiment, but that is not necessary at this time, thank you. That is for pristine little prick captains who are so insecure that they need someone to announce their presence. I am NOT that."

He entered his ready room, and shut the door. This would be his domain, his office. It was small, shaped like a sliver. The windows were a mess, and he realized that Captain Klu was a smoker. The room reeked. But the desk would be serviceable. There were piles of just plain crud. He went back out on to the bridge.

"Can anyone spare me some paper towels and Windex?"

Humorously, the security officer handed him some. "Do you require help, sir?"

"No, thank you, this is my part of the project. But you could contact Chief O'Malley and remind him that the engineering inspection will be in another two hours."

"Yes, sir."

And so he cleaned. At least the ship was comfortable for life support and temperature, now. He disposed of the accumulated crud, and stripped the room bare except for the windows, the desk and the computer. The chair and the stuff he had beamed for disposal. He would decorate later. Finally though he realized that he needed a chair, and asked for a standard chair to be sent up.

Ten minutes later, Rian came in with a chair. He looked around the bare room, raised his eyebrows, and said, "Well, it is an improvement, sir."

Kerryn laughed. "It certainly is. What is your rank and assignment, anyway?"

"Ensign, cultural liaison officer. I also double as a maintenance facilitator."

"You are a good guy to know, Ensign Rian."

Something twigged Kerryn. Rian was very attractive. He was the open, friendly type who usually knew more than he would say. With a shock he realized that he could say the same thing about himself. Kerryn shook his head ruefully. He shouldn't let his hormones get in the way. Although he was sure that there was a porn stash on Asheville somewhere, it probably didn't dictate to his gay tastes.

Rian regarded Kerryn appraisingly. This guy was gorgeous, and deep. Hard to figure out. Must be all the years of merchant experience. But again, Rian felt a strange connection building between them. He wondered if Kerryn was gay. But that would be too much to hope for. While it was tolerated easily, all the other ship crew were straight. Rian had tried.

"Anything else, sir?"

Kerryn went for it. "When the furor is down and we are under way, I would like to have dinner with you, if that is all right."

Rian split a grin across his face. "Yes, sir, that would be most welcome."

"I'll make sure I am off duty at the time." Something hit him again. "Oh, where are my quarters, anyway?" And Rian showed him on the ships layout.

They went out onto the bridge, and Rian returned below. Kerryn looked around. "Status?"

No one answered.

"Who is the duty officer?"

One of the ensigns spoke. "Sir, we are at a Starbase. Regulations do not require us to assign a duty officer."

Kerryn fought the urge to strangle the young man. But vaguely he remembered something like that. He was going to have to review the regs.

"I see. Well, for reasons I will explain later, I want one person at all times to have the responsibility for the awareness of the status of the ship. Even in space dock. Even after she is wrecked. Even if we are orbiting Riisa. That person will be called the Watch Officer, which will be the Duty Officer role plus what I have just described. You are?"

"Ensign Garone, sir."

"Ensign Garone, you are now the Watch Officer until your shift is over. Same responsibilities as Duty Officer. Any questions?"

"No, sir." And immediately the ensign went to the tactical station and pulled up the data. "Ship status remains in orbit about Starbase 47. Engineering, tactical, communications, and propulsion shows normal availability. Life support is back to one hundred percent, with a one hundred and ten percent backup." He paused. "She never looked this good, sir."

"Oh yes she did, but it was the day she was commissioned. Have the maintenance crews do an exterior hull survey from shuttlecraft. Unless engineering is a disaster, I want to be under way in three hours."

"Yes, SIR!"

He heard in the background as he left, "Wow, we're actually going somewhere!" Jeez.

Engineering proved to be better than he thought. If nothing else, things were meticulously cleaned. Kerryn prowled over the entire solution for an hour or so, and came up with a list of a dozen things that should be done. He could see their faces fall. No, he thought, let's fly.

"Chief, have you done a full power-up test?"

"Yes, sir. All readings well in the nominal to optimal range."

"This list can wait until later. I will want Warp Five in ten minutes." He looked around at the lightening faces. "Not bad at all."

He left engineering, and made his way to the bridge. Yes, things were much better. No one screamed his arrival. People were at stations. Ensign Garone was sitting in the Chair, and when Kerryn arrived he quickly rose. "Sir, no changes in ship status. All departments are reporting green."

"Good." He addressed the crowd. "All stations, please run a level four diagnostic." A dozen seconds and all stations indicated green for go.

"Communications, open a ship-wide channel."

"Channel open, sir."

"Crew, this is Captain Kerryn. We will breaking orbit shortly. I want to thank you for your diligence, and remind you that that is what Starfleet is about. We will be using systems not exercised in months, and procedures that may have grown rusty. As with any captain, I myself have my own quirks that you will get used to. Be vigilant for any problems. And once and for all, remember that you are the crew, my crew, of this vessel. It's name is properly pronounced Ash-eh-ville. Any prior pronunciations are incorrect, and I have heard several that were less than complementary. Time to correct perception. Kerryn out."

Smiles were all around the bridge. A little bit of pride, too. "OK, crew, let's do it. Helm, plot a minimum gravity course towards the Polansk Nebula. Communications, signal Starbase 47 and indicate that we are breaking orbit."

After a moment, the response came. "Mission, sir?"

"Procedural investigation of the Polansk Nebula."

Another moment, then, "They wish us well, sir. And captain's compliments."

"Humph."

"Course ready, sir."

"Break orbit, half impulse."

He felt the slight jerk. "Diagnostics on the inertial damping system?"

"Sir, now reporting ninety percent effectiveness."

"Proceed on course. Bridge to Engineering. Recalibrate the inertial damping system. Signal Operations when you are complete."

"Aye, sir."

"Spherical sensor sweep, please."

Another moment.

"Nothing to report, sir."

A few moments quiet, then. "Hail coming in from Enterprise."

"On screen."

There was Picard, Riker, Troi, and Beverly Crusher. Picard spoke. "Best voyage, Captain. It is heartening to see a minimum gravity course on a beautiful starship."

"Thank you, Captain Picard. I look forward to our next meeting."

"As do I. Enterprise out."

The Operations Officer, Ensign Brown, spoke up. "Sir, the inertial damper realignment is complete."

"Good. Go to full impulse."

"Full impulse."

Smooth. No bumpiness. He let that settle for a few moments.

Helm, this time. "Captain, we have cleared gravity and are in free space."

"Good. Ready?"

They all looked at him with grins, and nodded. "OK. Warp One please."

The small Nova-class starship gathered herself and leapt forward at Warp One. The starfield came alive and everyone breathed deeply.

"Bridge to Engineering."

"Engineering, O'Malley here."

"Chief, how is the warp field performance?"

"Well within nominal limits."

"Good. Once the coils have worked in again, we will do a field analysis and put them near optimal."

Resignedly, "Yes, sir."

"Time to the Polansk Nebula at present rate?"

"Nine hours, ten minutes."

"Good. Ensign Brown, you have the conn. I will be in the ready room, taking a nap as I haven't slept in about fifty hours."

"Yes, sir."

And Kerryn left the bridge for his ready-room. The sofa he had placed there was specifically for this purpose, and he had put extra uniforms and toiletries in the bathroom that was attached. He lay down and was nearly instantly asleep.

Ensign Brown, on the other hand, sat nervously in the chair. She pulled up the Starfleet guidelines for a duty officer in flight and went through them. Yes, she needed some routine status information. Garone seemed to be a natural alternate for her.

"I'm glad it's you he picked." One of the other ensigns, Ensign Logan, had come over.

"It could be you next time. Here, lets go over the regs again so we aren't caught by surprise."

Six hours passed, and Kerryn awoke. He quickly showered, cleaned up and put on a fresh uniform, with armband. He had slept really well, and felt extremely alert. And he was hungry.

"Kerryn to Rian."

"Rian here, sir."

"Would you like to join me for some dinner?"

"Most certainly, sir. How about my quarters?"

That sounded heavenly. "I accept with enthusiasm. Twenty minutes?"

"Fine, sir."

"Kerryn out."

He went back on the bridge, and Ensign Brown stood. But Kerryn shooed her back to the Chair. "I am going down for dinner, that's all. Have you selected an alternate duty officer?"

"Ensign Logan, sir." Ensign Logan went totally white.

"Carry on. But realize that at Warp One, on our way to the nebula very little is likely to happen. That is by design."

"Yes, sir."

Rian's quarters were near his. He sighed. He would have to deal with his quarters eventually. He hoped they were better off than the ready room was.

Rian welcomed him to his quarters. Rian had obviously been around, as there were select items from a number of cultures. Kerryn could appreciate some of them, but others were lost to him.

Dinner was replicated, and an easy time. It was pretty obvious that each were trying to get beyond the uniform. Rian had an advantage in that he wasn't wearing it, but rather a comfortable civilian outfit. Kerryn was still in uniform.

Kerryn had to break out a little bit. He sighed, and said, "Rian, I am sorry about this uniform tonight, but I haven't anything else to wear right now. I haven't been to my quarters yet, let alone unpacked."

Rian grinned. "I will try to remember that." They cleared their places. "You have an incredible command of a starship, Kerryn. That has been both reassuring and stimulating to the crew." Rian stood in front of the flying star field out his window. "Getting us out of orbit to go anywhere has made all the difference in the world. It is the second most popular topic among the crew right now." He was skirting the issue he so wanted to bring up.

Kerryn fell for it. "Oh? What is the first topic?"

"You."

"How so?"

"Well, you are like everywhere, know everything, and you aren't dwelling in the past. There is more, but captains usually don't want to hear about it."

Kerryn turned and faced Rian. "I'm not an ordinary captain. Tell me."

Rian grinned again, and licked his lips unconsciously. "Well, for one thing one of the female ensigns saw you going down the hallway after you had finished with the science labs. She said that you looked like an incredible storm cloud of lustability."

"Well, I was pretty frustrated."

"Apparently. That's what everyone seems to see. None of us know how old you are, but you have been prowling the ship with years of experience."

"I'm not that old. But I've seen a lot. I think Asheville needs a workaholic for a while."

"Would you be willing to share your age? It won't go any farther."

Why not? "Well, I haven't quite turned twenty one yet."

"Wow. I mean, most of us figured you at not more than thirty, more like late twenties. How did you do it?"

Kerryn laughed. "Coincidence, mostly." He told Rian about his life as a freighter kid, then a self-sufficient orphan who would not let himself become an orphan. "It hasn't been easy, but I have seen an awful lot."

"What happened to your parents?"

"My mother left us when I was small. Dad had told me that she wasn't cut out for freighter life. And my dad was killed at Rana Seven." He got a little quiet. "My best friend, too."

"I'm sorry. I lost my older brother and two of his friends at Rana Seven."

"I don't know which was worse. I felt Imzadi go, and his loss took me off guard; but Dad was on the bridge when they nailed it. I got them back for that. But in the mean time, after I repaired my ship, I ended up here because the Cardassians hit Starbase 47 where my ship was docked, and wiped it out."

Rian stared at him. "You got back at the Cardassians for Rana Seven?"

Kerryn nodded. "Ion cannon. One of their ships was overconfident and when it went by me I nailed it in the engines with a multi-megawatt blast from the ion cannon." He grinned. "I didn't know it was their flagship."

Rian grinned. "Way to go!" And then he smiled in an odd way. "So that's how you do it."

"Do what?"

"You mentioned Imzadi. That's the Betazoid term for first love. Just how Betazoid are you?"

Oops. "Well, if you must know, half. But I have never trained on Betazed. And I haven't used any of those skills on this ship."

"If that's true, you are a formidable opponent." Rian felt he could broach this topic now. "You also mentioned that Imzadi was a he."

"Perhaps. He was a he. I tend to lean that way; well, all right, I do lean a lot that way. Though not exclusively." Kerryn sighed. "It is a Betazoid thing."

Rian smiled sincerely. "I think it is the most encouraging thing I have heard in a long time. Besides us, the rest of the crew is totally straight. Trust me."

"Us?"

"I lean that way too, Kerryn."

A short silence, and then Kerryn said, "Good. I am glad to hear that, Rian." He stood, and walked over to the window. "I have so missed this. I had a friend whom I was shepherding, and the destruction of my ship saw him go back to the Academy. Even when I was a stand-in captain, it was me versus her crew. I was always the outsider." He turned back. "I will probably be an outsider here too, but hopefully you and I won't let that get in the way. I've got seventy-five crew, but no friends."

"You've got one now."

The bridge chose that moment to chime in. "Bridge to Captain Kerryn."

"Kerryn here."

"Sir, we are thirty minutes from the Polansk Nebula perimeter." She sounded anxious.

"I'm on my way up. Kerryn out." A pause, then, "Thanks for hosting dinner. I would like to do this a lot more often."

"You are most welcome. Tomorrow?"

"Definitely."

As Kerryn turned to leave, Rian blurted out, "What? No goodnight kiss?"

And there it hung. Kerryn came to a decision. "It is sometimes a little intense, but ." and he walked over, and took Rian into his arms. Rian fit well, being about equal height, and certainly felt very good. Kerryn's eyes burned golden as he brushed his mouth gently across Rian's.

Rian had closed his eyes and totally surrendered to the experience. Kerryn had stayed out of his mind on this one, and Rian had just relaxed into his arms. "That was nice, hot, and oh soooo tempting."

"That's nothing compared to later."

"I'll keep an open mind."

The doors closed, Kerryn grinned. He liked Rian. And it had felt so good. He made his way to the bridge.

They did some very routine analysis of the particle dust of the Polansk Nebula. He had gone through some basic training- level research on what science teams needed to do, and he figured that some easy experimental analysis would do. So they captured dust and analyzed it. They visited some planets of various atmospheres and collected samples and analyzed them. They spent four weeks building basic skills, and shaking out the kinks in the Asheville, including her Captain.

The crew began to show some pride. The xeno-biologists discovered a new kind of microbe, and they wrote it up for a technical journal. Things functioned smoothly. The warp core was at peak performance. The ship hummed along with activity.

Kerryn had finally dealt with his quarters. He ended up emptying the place, washing it all, and then replicating small amounts of furniture. By the time he was done, a Spartan but attractive room set was his.

He still couldn't get over that. He was captain of the USS Asheville. A starship. A small one, true, but he had seventy five crewmembers to do their jobs at his direction, discretion and support. He could feel the pulse of the vessel as she moved. He had a command staff that was moderately capable now. Ensign Brown had proven to be a very good Operations Officer, with good deputies in Ensign Garone and Ensign Logan. Logan had taken some breaking through, but she was very capable.

He could feel their restlessness, though. When would they stop being in the qualifying run and do some real on-the- edge science stuff? And that was what prompted him to contact Admiral Nuri.

"Ah, Captain Kerryn. How are you?"

"Very well, sir. Asheville is coming along nicely."

"Excellent. I always like a success story. So what can I do for you?"

He explained the problem, that they were looking for a scientific challenge that would help define what they were capable of. Nuri nodded, understandingly. This was a healthy response for such a crew.

"Captain, let me do some inquiring. The Vulcan Science Board has always a list of unsolved mysteries. I will have someone contact you with options."

"Thank you, Admiral."

"One more thing. Admiral Satii says to give you her best, and would you please read her updated philosophy monograph." He shrugged. "Don't know what she is up to, but we'll send it along. Nuri out."

It was several days, but they got their mission. Minute variations among an asteroid field along a major transportation route were causing the maps of the field to be irregular. Something was going on, and they were assigned to find out.

They moved through the field for several days, mapping orbits, charting the motion and mass properties of the asteroids. Historical reports were pulled, and studied. Nothing they knew fit the problem. It was as if the asteroids were pushed about randomly at different times.

It was at one of these meetings that inspiration had struck. The team had been arguing about gravity fields and external influences. Kerryn had had them construct a long-term sequence of motion and variance reports, and he was idly watching it as went when the pattern leapt out at him.

"Oh shit."

The team went silent and looked at him. Durango's eyebrows raised. "It wasn't that bad of an idea."

"No, no, not that. Look at the sequence." He got up, walked to the screen, and traced his finger through the field. "See that ripple? It takes time for the asteroids to be affected. But there is a sequence, and that means the force is being applied to them along a reference path."

They stared at the screen. Finally, one of the younger team members said, "You're right, sir. I see it!" He traced his finger around on an arc slightly. "It also seems to repeat itself, though with slight variation."

Now the team was hooked. They went through some fast analysis and some brain-stretching computations, and determined that it was periodic ever five weeks, and that the disturbance duration was shortening. And it was Durango who put in the clinching clue.

"You know, it almost looks like a snippet of a decaying orbit. But what kind of an object can do that?"

"A quantum singularity."

Aghast, the team turned to look at Kerryn, who had spoken. "Don't you see? We are talking about a very small quantum singularity that is orbiting the asteroid field. No one ever sees it, you can't detect it unless you do a very detailed gravity map, and it isn't fast enough for most analysis to track it." He turned to Durango. "Can you determine the plane of its orbit and keep us out of the way?"

"I think so."

"Do it. When is the next period it will interact?"

Some muttering and discussion, then, "Ten to fourteen days at a guess."

"Team, refine that information. Most importantly, estimate its mass based upon the amount of disrupted mass from the asteroid field. Extrapolate as best you can."

"Yes, Captain!" And as they filed out, they heard him say, "Kerryn to Engineering. Get your most creative engineers up here now. We've got a project."

This would put the Asheville on the map. Both teams would freak out when he told them what he wanted to do, but Kerryn knew this would put themselves in the respected community they wanted.

Shortly later, O'Malley and several other engineers arrived in the conference room. Curiously waiting, Kerryn waited until they had settled down.

"Gentlemen, we are going to build a good old-fashioned gravity bottle." And he went through a good half hour on how it worked. The engineers were enraptured with the idea, and when Kerryn had finished a design frenzy began.

True to form, it would be self-sustaining. The amount of power that Kerryn had specified was extreme. But they went through the design anyway, and it was O'Malley who finally stopped to think.

"Captain, how are we going to power this thing?"

"Once I have the parameters from the Science Team, I can tell you. It will be self-sustaining, and I will give you the standard plans for it." He grinned. "Believe me, I've built these before and I just don't know the scale of what we need."

At that moment, one of the science team members burst in. He saw the meeting, gulped, and handed Kerryn a pad. Kerryn's eyes went wide, and grinned. "OK. Call in the Science Team in half an hour. Then it will all be clear."

The engineering team took a break. Kerryn ran through his mental calculations. This quantum singularity was a thousand times more dense than the weak artificial ones he used on Totentanz, but the design would hold as long as the structure did. Hmmm. The bottle would have to be fifty meters long, twenty meters wide, and withstand ninth-order newtons of force. They would need raw materials.

Excited, the teams assembled in the conference room. It was crowded.

He was the captain, after all. "Mr. Durango, present your findings."

"Sir, after the analysis we did we have concluded that there is a quantum singularity orbiting a point near the center of this asteroid field."

Discussion, and Kerryn held up his hands. "I agree. How big?"

"Small by any standard. However, it is estimated to have a core force at the five meter reference point of about eight- hundred fifty million newtons." He cleared his throat. "Sir, we are tracking it now."

"Are we? Excellent!" Kerryn stood up. "As you are aware, this appears to be the cause of the disturbances in the asteroid field, and in fact potentially to our own navigation systems. Our mission is to explain it and then neutralize it."

One of Durango's team spoke up. "How do you neutralize a black hole?"

Before Kerryn could answer, O'Malley blurted, "You're not serious!"

"On the contrary, Chief Engineer, I am totally serious." Kerryn clapped his hands together. "We're going to capture it, with the largest gravity bottle ever designed."

And that is exactly what happened. It took three weeks, but they caught the orbiting singularity on the first try. It had yanked the entire ship beyond what the inertial dampers could handle, but it held and the bottle kept it trapped. Kerryn now had a power source as strong as five Galaxy-class warp cores. Kerryn had made Durango and O'Malley write the reports and claim credit, analysis, etc, as Kerryn had just basked in the personal feeling of success and the stimulation of working with his team.

Admiral Nuri was bursting with pride, and the Vulcan Science Board was very impressed with the results of the analysis and solution. Both had begun dialogs with Durango and O'Malley, but found in discussion that they kept avoiding certain questions. But when Nuri and T'tor of the Vulcan Science Board traded notes, they became concerned and contacted Durango and O'Malley.

Kerryn was in his ready-room when the message came in. "Captain, this is O'Malley."

"What can I do for you?"

"Sir, Admiral Nuri and T'tor of Vulcan will be contacting you shortly. It appears that they were looking for more information than Durango and I had about the singularity."

"Thank you for the notice. I will be waiting for their call. Kerryn out." Damn. He paced. Why are they digging so deep on this? All they wanted to do was outstanding research that would get them back their respect. It had worked tenfold.

A call from Ensign Logan. "Sir, incoming message from Starfleet."

"Pipe it in here, Ensign." And he turned off the analysis and opened the communications link.

"This is Captain Kerryn of the Asheville."

Nuri was sitting with a Vulcan who only could be T'tor. "Captain, a moment of your time. We have been in contact with your science and engineering teams, and found some information conspicuously missing."

"Oh really? What kind of information?"

"Principles of operation and design." This was T'tor. "Someone helped them design the solution."

Kerryn sighed. "Yes, they had help from an expert."

"A Romulan?" This was T'tor again. Nuri looked uncomfortable.

"No, not at all."

"The requisite knowledge to do this has so far only been seen in Romulan engineering. It is highly suspicious."

Kerryn rolled his eyes. "Sirs, I can personally attest to the fact that we had no Romulans helping us with this. Their designs are much less efficient."

There was silence. "Really? And how did you come by that information?"

He was exposed. Damn. "Years of working with a Romulan propulsion section. Captain Picard can attest to the engineering use of a five-by-two-way pulsed warp drive powered by an artificial quantum singularity contained in a gravity bottle when I showed him such a system."

Nuri's eyes opened. "You designed it?"

"In principle. I let the engineers build it, though."

Nuri looked at T'tor, who looked back at him. "You realize that you have given Starfleet security fits over this."

"Sir, it is a research job, nothing more."

"And what would happen if you connected this thing up to an exawatt ion cannon?"

Kerryn stopped dead. A weapon? An exawatt ion cannon could take out a starbase in one shot. "That would be a most formidable weapon if you could dissipate the heat. It might be a one-time-use solution though, and that would free the quantum singularity again."

T'tor nodded at Nuri, who said, "Thank you, Captain. Congratulations on turning Starfleet and Vulcan upside-down. Nuri out."

Kerryn shut off the monitor, and sat, thinking. This was complicated. They wanted to make a weapon out of this? They had given the gravity bottle and its contents to another starship, which had taken it to a safe and remote research facility. He pondered the ramifications until his stomach said that it was time for dinner. This message tainted his good mood.

Kerryn made his way down to Rian's quarters. They had had dinner together more than half the time, and had enjoyed some very hot kissing and affection, but it had not gone any further yet. He had put on a nice comfortable outfit before realizing that it was his Guild Captain's uniform. Rian might catch on but at least it wasn't Starfleet.

Dinner went fine, as usual, and they were simply enjoying each other's company. This time, however, Rian was being especially attentive and had moved closer on the small sofa so that they were touching all along one side. Kerryn closed his eyes and just drank in the feeling.

Rian watched him for a moment. He had recognized the uniform, and realized that this was how he looked in his former world. And it was incredibly hot and sexy. It had taken Rian's breath away when Kerryn had arrived. Rian had felt a surge of sensuality and desire for Kerryn that he had decided could not be stemmed. Tonight he wanted more. He visualized the compact, toned torso, the narrow hips with that gorgeously understated butt. But how to get to the young man interested? That problem solved itself.

Kerryn was lost in his reverie until he opened his eyes and saw Rian there, hungry. Hungry? Automatically he let his mind open a little and was overwhelmed by the sexual radiance coming from Rian. Kerryn's eyes went wide as he realized what Rian was feeling.

Rian at that moment realized that he had leaked his feelings, and Kerryn had got them. There it was in front of them.

"Well?"

"Is it OK?"

Kerryn pulled Rian down to him. "It is much more than OK."

They took their time. Rian and Kerryn were well matched in height, build, and attractiveness. Rian was a bit lighter- skinned, whereas Kerryn had the slightly darker bronze skin that went with his eyes. Vanilla and butterscotch. Rian was especially sensitive, and when Kerryn finally brought his hand down to graze Rian's cock after so much foreplay, Rian moaned loud and long.

Kerryn paused there a moment, savoring the feel of the other man's cock, before guiding him to the bed and moving to begin a prolonged and intense expert oral stimulation. Kerryn slid his tongue and mouth up and down the shaft, delighting in the taste and the sensation of Rian. He was in his absolute favorite position, laying across Rian's stomach, head full of long and hard cock, with his hands wrapped around and under, cupping and massaging the buttocks beneath, as well as providing the wonderful feeling of trapping that cock, that waist, and that butt under his control. Sensitive thigh skin, sexy and silky balls, and the occasional glimpse of his entrance drove Kerryn high with lust.

A gentle caress of his mind against Rian's, and Rian cried out in orgasm, pumping his creamy cum into Kerryn. They both enjoyed and relished the sensations, Kerryn not quite ready to let go, and Rian not quite ready to let him go.

They slowly relaxed, and separated. Rian was grinning in kind of a goofy manner. Kerryn was so happy that they did this. "I really enjoyed that."

"Ha. I think I was the recipient, you know." He paused, then, "I felt something touch my mind that felt incredibly good."

"That was me. You only got a brush. If we were to fully engage that way, it would be hours before you would recover."

"Have you ever done that before? Fully, that is?"

"Yes, but only when he had hours to recover. Imzadi didn't like it, but my shepherd subject did."

They kissed, again, and curled up together. "I like this." Rian commented.

"So do I."

They had exactly forty four seconds before the reverie was shattered forever.

"Bridge to Captain Kerryn."

Naked, Kerryn got up and got his commbadge. "Kerryn here. I am having dinner, you know."

Rian watched the sex god stand there with authority, still half-hard, with the stars in the background, and had to smile at the slightly petulant tone.

"Sir, message coming in from Starfleet. Captain's Eyes Only."

"Send it to my ready-room. I will be there shortly. Kerryn out." He pulled his casual Freighter Guild uniform back on. "I am sorry. But duty calls."

"I know." A quiet moment, then, "Thank you. That means a lot to me."

"As it does to me as well." He grinned suddenly. "I have so much more to show you."

"Hmmm. I am definitely interested now."

Kerryn exited the room, stopped by his quarters to pick up a breath freshener, and went to his ready-room. The priority message was there, and after the usual verifications, the face of Admiral Jellico was there. It was a one-way message. And he was smiling. That was bad.

"Captain, effective immediately you are relieved of duty and being returned to Affiliate status. The reason is the endangerment of your ship and crew over the outrageous capture of the quantum singularity. Your Operations Officer must receive your command codes immediately. Proceed to Starbase 290 without delay. Asheville will receive Captain Correnti there. Jellico out."

Kerryn sat there, stunned. Endangerment of the ship? That was ludicrous. The only explanation was sour grapes from Jellico, or perhaps he frightened Starfleet enough that they were afraid of him. Tears formed in his eyes. He couldn't stop them. For the better part of a year, the crew and he had worked, learned, improved and become a model solution, both in Starfleet and in the scientific community now. Yet, here were the documents authorizing the action. They were signed by two admirals: Jellico himself and an Admiral Bonbon.

His voice was surprisingly firm as he gave the order. "Bridge, this is Kerryn. Set course for Starbase 290. Warp Five. Ensign Brown, report to my ready-room."

A knock at the door, and Ensign Brown came in. She looked uncomfortable.

"You wanted to see me, sir?"

"You have received a message from Starfleet?"

"Yes, sir."

"Have you set up command codes?"

"Yes, sir. What is going on?"

"Ensign, I have been relieved of command. Starfleet has instructed me to place you in command until you can reach Starbase 290." He paused, and then with a snicker, he called up the computer. "Computer, effective immediately grant a field promotion to Ensign Brown, USS Asheville to Lieutenant Commander and First Officer of the USS Asheville, on Captain's Authority seven-nine-nine."

"Promotion recorded and noted."

Now-Lieutenant Commander Brown's eyes were wide. "Thank you, Captain. But why are they transferring you?"

"Relieved, commander, relieved. Not transferred. Apparently certain members of Starfleet were displeased about the amount of danger I put the ship in during the lasso of the singularity."

"That's preposterous."

"Computer." It beeped. "Transfer all command codes to Operations Officer Ensign Brown. Authorization Kerryn-six- six-seven."

The computer effected the transaction in its moderate tone. "Command codes have been transferred."

"Nevertheless, that is the reason on record. You will pick up Captain Correnti at Starbase 290. That is all. You may return to duty."

"Fuck duty." His eyebrows went up. "What is happening to you?"

A long moment of silence. "I have not planned that yet. Now please, carry on." And she left the ready-room.

Starbase 290 was a few hours away. Kerryn quietly packed his things from his quarters, and his ready-room. He could feel the separation already, and stayed mostly in his quarters. But he could not deny entrance to Rian, O'Malley, Durango, Logan, and half a dozen others who threatened to use security overrides to gain entrance. But despite their protests, Starfleet had made up its mind.

Rian was the last to leave. "This is so wrong. Jellico is such an ass. You know you are being used as a pawn."

Kerryn sighed. "I can't stop it. Then they would really hang me."

Rian folded Kerryn into his arms. "I never even got to repay the favor from earlier."

Kerryn laughed at that. "You are right. But now is not the time, either."

"So what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to see about financing a ship. I am a Freighter Guild Captain, Second Class you know, and one hell of an engineer."

"We aren't going to let this sit."

"It is mutiny or insubordination if you don't."

Time was up. "Bridge to Captain Kerryn. We have arrived at Starbase 290."

He tapped his commbadge. "I will beam over shortly. Call Captain Correnti to meet at Transporter Room 2." And with a final heave of his bag, he and Rian went to the transporter room.

Correnti beamed over without incident. He was a rough guy, middle-aged, and obviously a little nervous. "Captain Correnti."

"Freighter Guild Captain Kerryn, Second Class. Welcome to Asheville. I have already transferred the command codes to Lieutenant Commander Brown, your First Officer."

"Thank you."

"Ensign Rian, would you please show the captain to his quarters?"

Rian seethed, but Kerryn knew they needed to get past this. "Yes, sir." And he and the new captain left. Kerryn stood up on the transporter pad. "Send me over, please."

"Energizing."

And Kerryn left Asheville, returning to Starbase 290. He had rebooked a suite of rooms, and he resettled in. Upon his arrival, a long list of friends and employers welcomed him back. But his first action was to check his credit balance. Fortunately, with the insurance, the station repair work bonuses, the stand-in captain work, and interest, he had over twenty-five million credits. Time to shop for a ship.

And shop he did. Kerryn quickly found that anything new or working was out of his price range. He needed an older or odd clunker, structurally sound but in need of refit work. But there was so much junk around. He realized that looking for Totentanz II was the wrong approach.

He called up a list of ships available for salvage or purchase that were in his price range. It was pathetic. One, however, caught his eye. It wasn't much, but he could afford it. It was a converted Ferengi freighter. Yuck.

He made his way to the Salvage Control office. He requested an appointment, was told to come back tomorrow at 0800 station time, and so Kerryn prowled the station for a while before ending up back in bed. He was hoping this would work out somehow. It was surreal that twenty four hours ago he was Captain of a Nova-class starship. Now he was a vagrant, although a very well qualified vagrant. Somehow, he knew that Asheville was still in orbit. He took the time to compose a note to Rian.

Dear Rian,

The twist of events is astounding. I miss Asheville, and I miss you. God only knows what Jellico is up to. But know that if anyone has trouble with the singularity or the gravity bottle, they can come to me for help. And as for us . I am missing you very much.

Love,

Kerryn

He sent it, and fell asleep.

Rian stood behind the bar. He wasn't sure what to do. Mechanically, he served the customers. The new captain seemed OK, although a little high-strung. Not a leader, really, but more of a whining figurehead. So different from Kerryn. He decided to send a note in his role as Cultural Liaison Officer to Starfleet as an excuse to find out what happened. But his thoughts were of Kerryn, and the wonderful feelings and company they had shared.

Rian did send the note. It was a week later when all hell broke loose over that note. Two things had happened: Admiral Satii had tried to contact Kerryn about her monograph, and Admiral Nuri was trying to arrange a swing by Earth for a lecture on gravity bottles. Both contacted Asheville, both were horrified by the response from the now-Captain Correnti, and both turned on Jellico with an unprecedented fury. But the Admiral's assessment stood. The only option was to interview the crew, and they realized that it was probably too far gone for that. Half of Starfleet called for Jellico's resignation, and instead he was assigned to the aging starship USS Cairo. Reconciliation might have gone further except for the outbreak of the Dominion War.

But the evolution of that sequence was months in the making. Kerryn woke the next morning to find that he couldn't feel Asheville or her crew anymore. A quick scan showed that she had departed. So it was final. He did his usual routine, and dressed and proper he appeared outside the Salvage Office. He was admitted to its modest carpeted sales office, and sat down with a broker.

"Good morning, sir. How may I help you?"

"I need to buy a ship, light cargo, inexpensive. You have listed a Ferengi one as Item 7729 on your menu, and I would like some details and a tour if possible."

"Hmmm, that is quite an affordable choice. Are you looking for financing?"

"No, I have sufficient credit."

The salesman looked downcast. "Let me check on its status. You are?"

"Freighter Guild Captain Kerryn, Second Class."

"Well, captain, I will be right back." And he got up and went back into the plush office. Kerryn hoped this would be good.

Time passed, and then the salesman returned with a very important-looking man. They sat down, and the important- looking one introduced himself as the Head of Sales.

"Captain, the Ferengi cargo vessel is available, and not in bad shape. It is a good value. But I would like to discuss another option with you. The Base Commander is coming down as well."

Kerryn's eyebrows raised as the Base Commander entered, and joined them. "Captain, it is good to see you again."

"Thank you. I admit that I left Starfleet under odd circumstances, but such are the victims of politics. My key question is, though, why all the formality?"

The Base Commander coughed politely. "No one will contest your admirable engineering and captaincy skills. You are young, resourceful, fair and very well respected. Mostly, though, you make impossible things possible. And this is a unique situation." He leaned over, and brought up a picture of a Romulan D7-class Bird of Prey orbiting a space station. "We would like to negotiate terms with you for you to procure the Bombarde."

A Romulan D7! That wasn't a cargo ship, that was a warship. "I don't get it. I am certainly flattered, but I can't afford a D7. It isn't even a cargo ship."

"We will make it affordable."

"Really? OK, I still don't get it. What's the catch?"

"Well, right now it is permanently in orbit around Guild Base Four."

"It is that badly damaged?"

They exchanged looks, and said, "No, actually GB4 is using it as a power source." He straightened. "How much credit do you have?"

"Twenty million total. I was looking to spend eighteen million." He as usual held back some of it.

The Base Commander looked at the Head of Sales, and they both nodded. "Captain, we would like to sell you Bombarde for the price of ten million credits. As an incentive, we will transfer title of GB4 to you as sole owner for the sum of one credit. In addition, we will float you a one hundred million credit loan to bring GB4 back to full functioning capability."

Kerryn was totally astounded. "You are serious, aren't you?" He applied his Betazoid scanning, and found that they were serious. But they were holding something back. "What is it you aren't telling me?"

They slowly responded. "GB4 is very close to the Cardassian border. The nearest Federation outpost is Deep Space Nine, which is near Bajor and the Wormhole." The Base Commander leaned forward. "We need GB4 to continue cargo to the Belt and the surrounding areas. Frankly, we need you to make it functional and defensible. You have the best knowledge of the Romulan systems, a number of which are in GB4 and the Bombarde."

"What is the station's problem now?"

"Lack of leadership. It's command staff abandoned it several months ago. It's maintenance staff are currently keeping it up from the Bombarde. But they aren't anywhere near skilled enough to do this. The main power system is down. The structure is intact, but the systems are all degraded."

"Would I have a timeframe or penalties to meet?"

They looked at each other again, and then shook their heads. "No. We know you will do the best you can. Your acceptance guarantees our trust. But I would say you have four months before things escalate, and we will really need GB4 then."

"Get me some charts."

They pulled them up, and Kerryn saw that a lot of shipping lanes went near GB4. It would have a lot of the cargo commerce, though nowhere near as much as DS9 did. Supplies would be readily available. No area problems. This could work. And after Starfleet, the thought of a few weapons at his disposal was enticing.

"One hundred million credit loan, eh? At current docking fee rates, that gives me a break-even point somewhere four years into it. You won't foreclose early?"

The two looked at each other again, and this time it was the Head of Sales who answered. "I knew you were good. We are placing enough trust in this that we will not issue a lien against that loan."

Wow, thought Kerryn. But he could feel the desperate hope that he would take this emanating from them. He knew he had to take it. This was a unique opportunity. "Normally I would ask for a while to think it over. But you have made it impossible to wait. I would be glad to accept this arrangement."

Everyone visibly relaxed. "You have no idea how happy and grateful we are. You will put GB4 back on the map. We will draw up the papers and meet tomorrow at this time?"

"Yes sirs. Thanks for this chance - it is far more than I had been hoping to get into."

And Kerryn threw himself in the effort. A Guild shuttle took him out to the station. That had been his first and only pleasant surprise; as a Base Commander now, he retained the Captain title (which was higher) but got all the perks of Base Commander, including use of Guild shuttles without cost. And so it was that four days later he circled the base in the shuttle with the pilot.

GB4 was ugly. It looked like a misshapen tomato with toothpicks sticking out of it. What he was going to do to it would totally and completely redo the entire place. The first thing he did was hire a hundred space crews to dismantle and set in orbit the docking pylons. He stripped the station to its original structure, and they redesigned and replaced the pylons into two groups of four, at alternating spacing and in two tiers. Thus he had eight docking stations, none of which were in a single plane.

He had them redesign and change the shape so that instead of the tomato round, it was a cylinder with ten circular decks. The outer ring of each deck was devoted to heavy duranium shielding with phasers and disruptors alternating with ion cannons. The middle rings consisted of offices, cargo storage sites, and hotel services. The inner core consisted of infrastructure and power distribution. Gravity was suspended inside the core to permit ease of operation. Deck One was completely converted to an open dome combination lounge, mall and forum. The dome employed a transparent but highly defensible material that was backed up by an iris- like duranium shield.

The crews indicated that it would take four weeks to get the structure complete. During that time, Kerryn refitted the Bombarde and went after his power source: a true, natural quantum singularity just like the one he had captured for Starfleet. With an even larger gravity bottle, he alone went out with Bombarde after careful surveying for anomalies, and found one just inside Cardassian space. It had been risky, but he had caught it, controlled it and brought it back to GB4.

Returning to GB4 took his breath away. It was beautiful, and only if you knew what to look for would you see the massive amount of weaponry involved. Putting Bombarde in orbit, he beamed aboard GB4. All was going well. The crews would be done in a week, and then would leave. It would be just him. Alone. He had asked the Base Commander to draw up a list of six people willing and interested to be his staff. He had no feedback yet.

Well, until he walked into his command center. Deck Ten was the Command Deck, and rather than number it, he had called it the Command Deck. It was heavily armored, had its own private transporter system, and a direct elevator and stair out to the Deck Eight Auxiliary Control Station. The place was quiet as it limped along on solar batteries. Not for long, though.

Kerryn regarded the young man in his office. Cute. And Romulan.

"I am Captain Kerryn, the base commander. May I help you?"

"Captain, my name is Dyr." He spoke in Romulan. Kerryn knew a little Romulan from his experiences with the Bombarde and also with the Totentanz.

He handed Kerryn a letter. Kerryn saw it was from the Guild Director. Opening it, the note quickly outlined Dyr's history. He was an engineer, part human, whose family had fallen into disfavor in the Empire. They were either dead or exiled, and the Romulan freight carriers had asked that the Guild protect him. The director saw this as an opportunity to get help for Kerryn. It would be na^Ëve not to assume that there was a matchmaking ploy at work as well.

"Can you speak Interlac?"

"Yes." Heavily accented. That gave Kerryn a little thrill.

"Do you know what this says?"

"I am offered as a choice to help you restore this station."

"Tell me your engineering background."

Dyr went through the basics. He had gone through the Romulan Academy, and had served on several cargo ships. There just weren't openings for engineers in the Romulan military. Two years in freight carrying and then the exile. He was twenty one. Some in-depth engineering discussion and some light scanning proved him to be sincere. Kerryn grinned suddenly.

"I think you will do fine, Dyr. We're all still living on Bombarde right now, although the work crews cycle in and out."

"I am very highly qualified." He seemed a bit agitated. "Sir, I find you very attractive. I take orders without issue, am very neat and good with personal hygiene, and I am most proficient in the sexual arts of pleasing a male. I would be honored to maintain your quarters, do your meals, your-"

Kerryn interrupted quickly. "Dyr, I appreciate the honesty. And yes, you are very attractive too. But I don't work that way. I need you for your engineering skills." He decided to drop the bomb. "Like it or not, in tow with Bombarde right now is a ten-exawatt power source that is going to drive this station. We have to get it installed in the next two weeks."

Dyr stared and became a person again. "Ten exawatts? Even matter-antimatter isn't that big."

"I borrowed a trick from the Romulans, and snared a real live quantum singularity."

"No way! Ten exawatts?"

Kerryn smiled. "I think your command of Interlac is showing through."

Dyr grinned. "Yes, well I needed some bargaining chips." He stood his ground. "My role includes being your personal manservant as well as your sexual partner. Romulan culture demands that trust relationship. If you accept me, you accept all of me, and I all of you." He swallowed. "I formally accept you as my commander."

Kerryn stared. So that was what the Bond of Command was about. Dyr was hot. He thought carefully and decided that he could have a minimal pure sexual relationship with Dyr to meet requirements. He really needed the engineer.

"Very well. I formally accept you in the role of my sub- commander until such time that the acceptance needs to terminate by mutual agreement." He nodded. "We can dissolve it, but I can't force you out unless you want to."

Dyr grinned. "That is very kind and fair of you." And he slowly moistened his lips with his tongue. "I am looking forward to this position very much."

That gave Kerryn a delightful shiver. It was unusual for him to meet anyone more forward than himself. While he wasn't exactly forward, either, Kerryn was confident and comfortable in his sexuality. But Dyr seemed to go beyond that. He was determined.

He showed Dyr around the structure, and around the places where engineering would have the greatest role. Dyr was amazed at the level of planning, the attention to detail and most of all the amount of power conduits. The entire station was designed around the gravity bottle. The designs were all practical, made sense, and were close to foolproof. But some things you just can't account for.

Kerryn tried to give Dyr his own quarters on Bombarde, but Dyr refused. He instead took his meager belongings and made to live out of his case. That lasted one minute, and Kerryn realized that this guy meant every word of that Bond. So he replicated him his own dresser, and Dyr settled in. They shared a meal, toured the ship, and finally returned to their quarters. Kerryn was tired, and Dyr was looking fatigued as well.

"Are you always this full of activity?" Dyr asked.

"Mostly. I used to sleep four hours of every sixteen, but now it is more like six of every twenty-four." He removed his shirt and shook out his hair. "Ah, that feels so much better."

Dyr let out a sigh of appreciation. Kerryn was really hot. His shoulders weren't broad, but they were broad enough. Tapering down to his waist, and the hint of a sexy sleek butt. As Kerryn went to the bathroom to prepare for bed, Dyr's hands moved to his own cock. Romulans were built just like humans were, although they tended to have cocks that were a little longer and a little thicker. The anal opening was much more pleasurable to Romulans, and did provide a lubricating secretion of its own, unlike humans. He was becoming more and more excited. It would be unlikely with Kerryn that they would have sex that night. He just wasn't the type. But Dyr was going to work on him.

Kerryn emerged from the bathroom to find Dyr standing with his hands moving quickly away from his waist. Hmmm. As Dyr went in for his nighttime routine, Kerryn observed him carefully. He too was beautiful, and Kerryn had been noticing all day the way he moved. Kerryn removed the rest of his clothing and slipped into the bed. He wondered what Dyr would do. The bathroom light went out and Dyr emerged.

"Oh my." Kerryn couldn't help himself. His skin was slightly tinted green, but the rest of him was sculpted beauty on smooth, hairless skin. He was semi-hard, but it was the whole proportion of him, his outline, his butt, and the sleek sexy legs and chest and back and just plain oh my god.

Dyr smiled widely. "I am glad." He changed his pose, and more of his incredible body was brought to view. "Stand up and join me, that I may appreciate you as well."

Kerryn grinned, and stood, claiming his own utterance of appreciation as Dyr drank him in. "By the High Command, you are an exquisite piece of work." Dyr could not get his eyes off Kerryn's butt, and his long hair. And Kerryn could not take his eyes off that cock.

"Come to bed. There is no where else to sleep."

Dyr nodded, and came closer, brushing by Kerryn ever so slightly as he climbed onto the bed. That act alone was enough to send Kerryn's blood racing. Kerryn followed, and when he killed the lights, he felt the warm presence of skin against his as Dyr had backed into him. Ironically, the first touch had been the contact between Kerryn's cock and Dyr's butt. Dyr was a little bit shorter than Kerryn, but the touch was electric and before five seconds had passed, Kerryn had slid forward and wrapped his arms around Dyr. Dyr simply snuggled in, saying very quietly, "Thank you."

"You are very welcome."

A moment of silence, then Dyr confessed. "Kerryn, this is the only time I have been away from Romulan culture. I am very," and it was obvious he struggled with this, " very scared."

"I'm not surprised. Think of it this way. People and culture create roles for us. All we can do is execute those roles as who we are. Even if I were Romulan, I would do things differently than you would. Maybe not noticeably, but at least slightly differently. Don't be afraid of me. If you need something to be afraid of, try the Founders of the Dominion. Even Cardassia, who is caught up in its role, deserves pity more than fear." Dyr snuggled closer, and the contact was highly erotic. "Learn from me and from others. But I won't let you go easily." And although it was heavenly torture for them, they did make it to sleep.

The pace picked up after that. The Guild Director had been sending secure messages to the captains in the Guild about the tensions building around the Cardassian border again. Kerryn knew that it was a race against time. But a week later, with everyone holding their breath as the huge gravity bottle cylinder was moved into place, the connections were made and near-infinite power was now available on the station. With the structure, shielding and power in place, the interior work began at a frenzied pace. The crews had not only been amazed at his designs, but also at Kerryn's hands-on and authoritative command of what seemed to be every aspect of the station. Being a Guild- Certified Ship Master paid off, and the crews began to call him "The Landlord". Humorously, that had quickly been shortened to "Lord."

Finally, accommodations on the station were possible. While he didn't need much space, he followed the guidelines established by the Guild for the base commander's accommodations. Knowing Dyr, he had enlarged them just a little bit. Dyr deserved his own quarters, and they were designed in and placed next to his, with a connecting door. Kerryn had thought Dyr would be pleased.

He was not.

He saw the spacious room, ready for furnishings, and looked at Kerryn's room with an incredible forlorn and lost expression before bursting into tears. It had taken about ten minutes of sitting together, while Dyr regained control and Kerryn had just rubbed his back gently. They might be the same age, but Kerryn was definitely the older one in many ways.

Dyr spoke first. "You don't truly understand."

"I had thought you would be pleased. Everyone needs a private space once in a while."

Dyr shook his head. "Not true. It would be proper for me to never leave your side. Not in bed, not in command except for duty, not in the bathroom, not ever." He looked at the room. "Attractive that it is, its mere presence shows that you want to separate from me." He turned to Kerryn with a burning look in his eyes. "Say you won't. Say I can stay, here with you. Keep the room for the next one. I don't want it. I only want to be as near to you as I can possibly be." His eyes filled with tears. "You haven't even had sex with me yet. I don't care how. Beat me, rape me, tickle me, enslave me, but I need you to need and want me. I won't be able to stand it if you don't."

Kerryn was at a total loss. Rian would know, but Rian was hundreds of light years away. The alien feeling touched him briefly, and then he looked at Dyr. Dyr was asking for a level of intimacy that Kerryn had never achieved before.

"Dyr, there is nothing in my culture that even remotely describes what you have just told me. You are proposing an unprecedented level of intimacy." He had to stop. "Big words, but the meaning is that I've never been anywhere near that close to a person before, and no one I know, other than you, has either."

Dyr's expression remained. "Say you will do it. Say you will. Promise you will. Please. I am begging you, Kerryn."

Kerryn looked straight at him, amazed, and melted. "Dyr, I will try. I'm going to make mistakes. There will be times that I may appear careless. It is going to happen. But I will try this for you, and for me. For us."

Dyr's face transformed into one of joy, and he leaped onto Kerryn and planted a huge, wet kiss right on his mouth. Ice broken, not to be outdone, Kerryn rolled over so that he was on top, pinned the Romulan boy's shoulders to the bed, and slowly and deliberately kissed the willing young mouth greedily and with such intensity that they both felt it. No mind touches yet, but Kerryn suddenly knew that this pair would achieve new heights in sexual intensity.

From then on, Kerryn was everywhere, and Dyr was with him. The station progressed very quickly, until one day just five months after his arrival, after a lucrative and sincere farewell to the "Lord", the temporary work crews left and Kerryn's staff of fifteen remained. The station gleamed. Deck One was exquisite, with incredible views of the cosmos. Bombarde remained in a vertical plane orbit. There was more power to be had, and they were ready to accept business.

Because of the sensitiveness of the situation, Kerryn and Dyr took Bombarde back to Starbase 290, where to his surprise the Guild Director himself and the Base Commander of Starbase 290 joined the Head of Sales and the Chief Engineer and Inspector for the Guild. Dyr's eyes were wide at the attention they were getting, and Kerryn was a little anxious. He decided he should prepare them a little bit. He had prepared a welcome and overview presentation once they got there, but decided to do it now.

"Gentlemen, I can pretty much guarantee you aren't expecting the reality of GB4." And he showed them how it was when he arrived, an energy-sucking tomato with spines. "Most of the main systems were shot to hell. Bombarde was supplying energy and computing to the station. It was clear we needed to start from scratch. Budget would not allow us to procure new materials, so we reused what we could."

"Reused?" That was the base commander.

"Yes. The main structure was intact, so we stripped it to the I-beams. I chucked the entire infrastructure. The new structure is cylindrical, with eight non-coplanar pylons, ten decks and a duranium frame and skin. Five of the ten decks each contain twelve Type IV Phaser banks, six Romulan D'Deridex Distruptors, and four ion cannons. Shielding is provided through multi-frequency shield generators configured in a rotating hexagonal tessellation grid. Total shield energy dissipation is just under three terajoules." He put up the new graphic of the station, and the gasp was audible from each of the leaders. The Base Commander was first to speak.

"You've built an indestructible war machine."

"Not exactly. When not threatened, we have an exquisite lounge on Deck One with a full-dome exposure view of the cosmos. There are forty large retail spaces, eighty smaller office suites, one special-access deck for a large tenant. Two turboshafts, four staircases. The command center is on the bottom, with an Auxiliary Control center on Deck Eight. The decks alternate between cargo storage areas and user space. Two decks are set aside for hotel use, with hotel services included inside the Engineering ring."

The Chief Engineer and Inspector marveled, "It's beautiful. What did you do for power?"

Kerryn grinned. "I built the first exawatt power source ever made."

"How?"

The Guild Director stared at him in awe. "You captured a quantum singularity, didn't you?"

"Yes, sir."

Silence. Then the Base Commander spoke. "Bravo. Captain, you have exceeded our wildest expectations." He clapped his hands together. "Let's have the tour."

And they did . The Deck One Lounge took everyone's breath away. The Command Deck hummed with activity. They commented on the fact that information screens were everywhere. And they stood in complete rapture at the largest gravity bottle ever created, and the power source inside.

The Guild Director looked at the other two. "Well?"

"Pass."

"Pass with flying colors!"

"I concur." He turned to Kerryn. "Congratulations, Captain. Or should I say, my Lord?"

Kerryn turned red. "How did you hear about that?"

"The work crews that returned to Starbase were full of the experience that `that young lord' put them through." He handed Kerryn a list. "You've become quite the notorious young man. This is a list of tenants who would like to lease space here."

Relief flooded him. "Thank you, sir."

Tensions heightened around the Cardassian border, and Starfleet reacted. They began to heighten their own defensive lines. The Freighters Guild members saw more starships, more tension, and began to share company on their trade routes. And the role of GB4 was never more important. It stood as a bastion of strength, resupply and relief to the harried freighters. Starfleet always underestimated the dependency of its worlds on the basic movement of cargo that the Freighters Guild offered.

Kerryn continued to be everywhere. They accepted their tenants, and with only a few minor glitches the station functioned perfectly. Climate control on Deck Four had been a problem until they found a chicken sandwich resting on the main evaporator sensor grid. And a broken ODN line had caused failure of several systems.

He watched the rent come in. He would clear his loan faster than expected, as he did not have to pay for energy replenishment. He had free power galore. He kept his docking fees modest, and instituted an automated docking reservation system that would allow some of the manual functions to be made available automatically.

He and Dyr did not increase their level of intimacy. Dyr had finally learned that Kerryn was not going to embrace the Romulan tradition fully, and after careful inquiry had realized that he had been most accommodating to Dyr. They still slept together, nude, often clinging together with very hot, intense kissing and stroking, but it did not go further than that.

The true test came several weeks later. Kerryn knew something was going on as the normal traffic routes cleared on the Cardassian side. He paced like a caged animal for several hours, before finally taking a break in one of the lounges. One bourbon, that was all. He actually finished it when the call came over the public address.

It was Dyr. "Station Alert. Secure all compartments. This is not a drill. Captain Kerryn to the Command Deck."

Kerryn ran down the corridor, found the express turbolift he had installed for this purpose and shot down to the Command Deck. As he ran into the command center, he got the short version from Dyr.

"Two Cardassian warships coming in at high warp. Arrival in two minutes." Dyr was very anxious.

"Anyone in orbit?"

"Only Bombarde."

"Good." Kerryn leaned over a console, opened the cover and inside was a complete tactical display from the bridge of Bombarde. He keyed in a sequence, and power went down on the panel until it was only lit from three green lights. "Signal a general distress call for the surrounding area."

After he did so, Dyr asked, "What did you do?"

"I cloaked her."

"Son of a bitch." Dyr pursed his lips. "You think of everything."

"Shields up. Bring all weapons systems to ready state. If they attack, we will respond with phasers first. If they continue, go for the disruptors."

"Yes, sir!" A pause, and then, "All decks report secure. The iris is closed as well, with 100% structural integrity."

Another moment, and then, "Here they come." And two large Cardassian warships dropped out of warp.

Dyr spoke. "They are hailing us."

"I've got it." He stood in front of the small screen, specifically designed to show only a blank wall behind him. Give nothing away. "Cardassian vessels, this is Kerryn, commander of Guild Base Four. What are your intentions?"

The screen dissolved to a snide Cardassian face. "Surrender or be destroyed. No terms."

Kerryn had not had a face-down of this magnitude before. He trembled invisibly for a moment, and looked up to see Dyr watching him. Dyr was scared. And that pissed him off. Royally.

"What a crock of shit. Back off or this station will drive you off."

The Cardassian visibly stood backwards in shock. "You are talking to two Cardassian warships. We are no match for you."

"So confident are you. We are a peaceful though somewhat abrasive installation, and any hostile acts will be acted upon."

The Cardassian smiled. "I'm sure." And he faded from view.

"Maximum power to the shields. Announce battle stations, and get ready to deploy weapons."

Dyr managed to control his voice as it rang through the station. "Battle stations! This is not a drill! Secure for battle stations!"

The Cardassians moved in, one slightly in front of the other. As predicted, their phasers lanced out at the pylons first. The station rang with the impact.

Dyr looked up. "Shields holding. They barely fluctuated at that."

"Good. Deploy the weapons. Phasers first. I'll target their weapons."

A moment passed, and then another ringing impact. Kerryn directed the impact points, and said, "Firing!" as he triggered the phasers. A network of beams crisscrossed and lanced out at and through parts of the Cardassian ship in front. Fully half her weapons array peeled back and disintegrated.

"Has the second ship fired on us?"

"Yes. They are aiming for the other" CLANG "pylons."

"Bring the disruptors online." Kerryn looked at his display. The station was absorbing tens of megawatts of energy. The Cardassians were firing full phasers at the station. And the shields were holding, and holding well.

"Disruptors ready. What are you going to do?"

"Castrate them." And Kerryn targeted the second ship's starboard warp drive, and let loose. "Firing." The beam struck right through the drive section itself, severing it from the ship. That vessel immediately broke off the attack and moved away on conventional thrusters.

"Hail them."

"Channel open."

"Cardassian vessels, if you do not break off this useless attack and withdraw, I will cut your ships to ribbons and recycle the shreds. That is not an idle threat." He turned to Dyr. "Target the drive sections and bridge next." And then he closed the channel.

"Really?"

Kerryn thought for just a second. "Yes, really." And he keyed in the targeting information. He had only spoken so that the attackers would know he was serious. He was now so pissed off and proud of his station at the same time, all it would take would be one shot from them to set him off. They killed his father, they killed Imzadi, they killed his friends, Rian's older brother and his own friends, and Kerryn could be the instrument for payback. What now even enraged him more was that Dyr was at risk.

Dyr. He realized that he loved Dyr. He was not going to lose Dyr to some Cardassian upstart. His fingers hovered over the firing console. He could take care of them once and for all. It would be revenge, and he would enjoy it. They deserved it.

No.

The Guild had entrusted him with this station. He was not about revenge or hate. He was different than that. He was about optimization, about doing things well and right. Right also meant proper, and his position in the Guild counted on his ability to get beyond his personal ghosts. He closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

"They are moving off. One is towing the other." That was Dyr, and relief was in his voice. "They left their drive unit behind."

"Use the tractor beam and push it out into space. Then shoot it apart. It is likely to be booby-trapped."

Minutes went by, and Dyr confirmed it was distant. Kerryn quietly targeted it with the disruptors, and fired. The detonation that occurred was far more than should have, and another good call by the captain paid off.

Dyr chimed in again. "Kerryn, three Federation vessels and a Guild warship are approaching. ETA is three minutes."

"Signal our alert status but cancel the distress portion."

"Yes, sir!"

"And retract weapons. Leave shields up and the iris closed."

Kerryn thought a minute. "Dyr, would you handle this? Starfleet and I don't get along very well."

A million questions rose in his eyes. "All right."

"You don't need to hide anything, but I wouldn't mention our power system. They are likely to be jealous."

"Where will you be?"

"On Bombarde." And with that he de-cloaked the ship in orbit. He walked over to Dyr, and enfolded him in a tender embrace. He said, quietly, "You did very well. I nearly lost it at one point, but just the thought that the Cardassians were putting you at risk made me so angry."

Dyr just held him tight. "Thank you, Kerryn." They separated, and Kerryn went to beam aboard Bombarde. And very shortly thereafter, the four vessels dropped out of warp and hailed the station.

"Guild Base Four, this is the Guild Warship Invincible. What is the nature of your distress?"

"Invincible, this is Dyr, Assistant to the Base Commander. We have just repelled two Cardassian heavy battle cruisers." And he related the incident. "At this time, we are on alert only."

"Our sensors picked up two Cardassian vessels aiming for Cardassian space, one in tow. It is most unusual for a station to cause that kind of damage and repel an attack."

"This is no ordinary station, sir. Since you are here, we would like to extend hospitality to your senior staff."

"Your offer is accepted. Can you extend it to the three Federation vessels as well?"

"Of course. Helsinki, Anduril, and Cairo, your senior staff is welcome."

"We will beam over in about thirty minutes."

"I will meet you at the primary beam-in point."

The Guild Captain spoke up. "I will need to meet with your Base Commander."

Dyr knew he had no choice. "Of course, sir. I will coordinate with him for you."

The channels closed, and Dyr made the arrangements. He had to call Kerryn though.

"Command to Bombarde."

"Bombarde here, this is Kerryn."

"The Guild Captain insists on meeting with you."

"He should. I guess I can't escape this."

"Not very likely."

"All right. Meet them first. I will join you on Deck One."

A pause. "Will you tell me why this is causing you such a problem?"

"Yes, later." A thought crossed his mind. "Did they tell you who was coming?"

"No, but records show the USS Helsinki commanded by Captain Bonaventure, the USS Anduril commanded by Captain Fogart, and the USS Cairo commanded by Admiral Jellico. The Guild Captain's name is Randaco."

There was silence.

"Did you say, Admiral Jellico?"

"Yes, of the USS Cairo."

"Damn. Why me?"

Dyr laughed. "You aren't going to let a Starfleet Admiral get to you, are you?"

"Oh, this is no ordinary admiral." Kerryn paused, and once again figured, what the hell. This was his territory. "I'll be there. Just don't be surprised."

Half an hour later, Dyr received the four captains. He gave them the brief station overview, and they were suitably reassured that the station was more able to take care of itself than any of its prior incarnations. Jellico had sent his first officer, Commander Goral.

Kerryn had checked the arrival records and seen Jellico's absence. Just as well. He swept in to Deck One in his formal Guild Captain's uniform, and immediately found the table where they sat. He came over to greet them.

Randaco recognized the uniform, and stood immediately. Kerryn was nearly legend in the Guild now. "Captain Kerryn, it is an intense pleasure and honor to meet you finally. My compliments on all of your accomplishments, this station being the culminating achievement."

Dyr gaped for a moment, and Kerryn smiled. "Captain Randaco, your reputation for flattery precedes you. But thank you just the same." They shook hands, and sat down. "Captains, I am Freighter Guild Captain Kerryn, Second Class, and Commander of Guild Base Four, as well as an Affiliate Captain of Starfleet."

The others introduced themselves. They discussed the strategic importance of GB4, and the open invitation for Starfleet to dock and re-supply as any other paying visitor. Starfleet offered to pass closer a little more frequently, especially with the Cardassian threat and the now active Dominion War. The session closed pleasantly, and the captains returned. Only Captain Bonaventure seemed to be able to put two and two together, and before they departed he brought up the connection.

"Captain Kerryn, weren't you the captain of the Asheville before Correnti?"

A somewhat wary look from Kerryn, and then a nod. "Yes, I was."

"Asheville was a model miracle in progress under you. May I ask what happened?"

"The records will show that Admiral Jellico relieved me of command, because under my orders and direction the Asheville and her crew were subjected to excessive danger and risk."

Commander Goral sighed. "I wondered why he ended back up on Cairo. Admiral Nachayev went on a vendetta over that one, because all of Starfleet Admiralty was in an uproar. He won't discuss it."

Kerryn nodded, with inner satisfaction. "I wouldn't mention it, either. There are some very sore wounds between him and I over this and other things. I am not in Starfleet anymore, but executing the best job I can here."

They nodded. The Guild Captain snickered a little. "Starfleet dirt is always delectable."

"The Guild has its own dirt, I assume?"

Randaco laughed. "You bet. Kerryn is one, too." He turned to him "Do you know you are the only individual who actually owns a space station entirely in your own name? The Guild's only hold on you is your membership."

Kerryn's eyes went wide, and Dyr laughed finally. "So we really should call you Lord, like the crews have been doing."

"No thank you!" And they laughed at that before separating.

Back on Cairo, Goral had things to think about. Jellico was very abrasive, and Goral tended to avoid him unless on duty. Sighing heavily, he decided that Jellico didn't give a damn. And Goral would have been captain of the Cairo by now.

Several weeks passed uneventfully. It was the most peaceful time since before Kerryn had met Wesley. And then two events in close proximity started the upheaval again.

The first was personal. Dyr announced that his wife and child had been located and he wanted them with him. He would set them up in the quarters originally designed for his own use.

Kerryn was fundamentally shocked. Dyr had been sincere, attentive and ardent in his attentions. Kerryn had naturally thought and believed that Dyr was gay. But apparently not. It was duty to Dyr, or perhaps Dyr was bisexual so he could appreciate both worlds, yet still have the wife and children. After recovering from the shock, Kerryn managed to ask the most telling question.

"Dyr, right now we sleep rather intimately in the same bed. With your family here, what does your culture state is appropriate?"

Dyr looked puzzled. "I don't understand. My duty to you is totally separate from my family."

"Fine. With them here, where are you going to sleep?"

"Wherever we agree."

"We who?"

"Me, you, and my wife."

"So the living arrangements are shared between the commander and the sub-commander and his family?"

"If you had a family, they would be included too. It works very well. My wife is so looking forward to having sex with you. I sent her your picture, and she became quite excited." His voice dropped. "I haven't mentioned that you and I have not had sex yet. It would vex her considerably. But she has to get to know you."

Whoa. "This is all rather sudden."

Dyr began to look anxious. "You said you would try. You promised."

Kerryn held up his hands. "I did. And I will. But having sex with another man's wife?"

"It is mandatory and expected between commander and sub- commander. I would have the adventure of your wife were you married. Are you married?"

Kerryn was getting dizzy. "No, and you don't understand, do you? How does `homosexual' translate in Romulan?"

Dyr was thoughtful. "Same-sex?" Then it dawned on him. "You aren't interested in females for sex at all?"

"No, Dyr, not often. I am quite capable with females, but my pleasure and enjoyment come from the male members."

Dyr was silent. "Then, is it possible that you are in love with me? As a mate?"

Kerryn nodded. And to his relief, Dyr smiled. "I am flattered. And it explains all your odd behaviors in bed." He reached over and they embraced gently. "I am married, Kerryn, to my wife Belann. She is my mate. But you are my very good friend and commander, and Romulan culture mandates the openness between us. I can't return that same kind of love. But we can share the pleasure, intimacy and sensation together, the three of us. It is an experience that is not to be missed."

Kerryn nodded. "All right. It may take a while." He smiled wanly. "I can't seem to find a mate of my own."

Dyr shrugged. "You humans have the most bizarre priorities." Kerryn burst out laughing at that one.

And Dyr's family arrived several days later. Kerryn decided to double Dyr's salary so that they could have some comforts in life, and the three of them were grateful. Belann was young and pretty, but it was quite clear that she was determined to see things achieved and accomplished. But she always gave in to Dyr when he truly asserted himself.

The child was adorable. Dyrann, a girl, was three, and into everything. The connecting door became a curse and a blessing. Kerryn truly felt integrated into their family, although he knew they were obligated to do so. He tried very hard to be friendly and welcoming. Dyrann had no problem with that. Belann herself took cues and explanations from Dyr that allowed her to adjust to Kerryn and his "peculiarities."

Kerryn, however, could not bring himself to join in the obviously energetic sex that took place in his bed between Dyr and Belann. He had taken to falling back on his prior sleep schedule and sixteen hour day. So the number of times that he was there were for sleep and they were too shrank considerably.

The second event was considerably more dangerous but just as personal. With some form of routine in place with him, Dyr and Belann, he was amazed to find one day that his station had been hailed by Enterprise, and none other than Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

When Kerryn had left Asheville, the gravity bottle and the first singularity had been taken to a research station on Carin II. Admiral Jellico had seen the potential for a robust power source, and he pushed Federation research hard to make that captured singularity productive. The problem was, they still didn't truly understand how it worked. And that was where the problem came. During their work, somehow the self-sustaining power stream had been pulled too low, and the gravity bottle failed. The singularity began to move, and the forces of gravity and mass around it pushed it into a decaying orbit around Carin II. No one on the team had been able to recover it, and each orbit it took, it destroyed more of the planet and the facilities around it. They could not stop it.

Asheville had been summoned, and the team that had helped build it met with their research counterparts. Over and over they discussed, but none knew how it worked, why decisions were made in the design, and most of all, how to recapture it. Every single person pointed back to Captain Kerryn.

Admiral Jellico was fuming. It was widely known now that he had relieved Kerryn, and now Jellico received the blame for this disaster. There was one consensus, though. Kerryn was the only one who could recapture it.

A top-level meeting was called at the latest status, when this was disclosed amongst Starfleet. Basically, the topic was ugly. There was nothing they could do. It was Admiral Nachayev who stated the obvious.

"We need Kerryn." At the sound of this, Jellico turned purple. But concurrence spread around the room. "Any idea how to contact him?"

Data had responded. "Our prior links were through Devlin Six and Starbase 290. That was where he departed the Asheville."

"He is likely anywhere right now. He was going to procure a freighter and resume cargo. It isn't clear if he would help us, anyhow." Picard wanted to add salt to the wound. "Consider his circumstances. His ship is blown to bits because he was helping Starfleet. We give him command of a ship that forty-eight candidates turned down, and he turns its potential into a legendary success story. He takes on scientific missions, pushes the envelope, and gets relieved and expelled for it. Why would he help us?"

There was silence. But it was Counselor Troi who spoke. "I believe he will. It is in his nature not to hold grudges. But it will have to be his favorable Starfleet associates who extend the invitation."

"She is right." Ensign Rian of the Asheville stood up. "After he was relieved, I received a note from him saying that he would help us with the gravity bottle if needed. With my captain's permission, I would like to accompany the team that extends the invitation."

Correnti spoke very quickly, and in a high voice. "Permission granted, Ensign Rian."

"I also need to go. And in fact, Enterprise should extend the offer." This was Wesley Crusher. Besides his usual genius, he knew the most about the gravity bottles from working with Kerryn on Totentanz. "Being his Shepherd Project recipient, I know him better than anyone." Ensign Rian's eyebrows went up at that.

"I, too, wish I could go." Admiral Janice Satii stood. "I think we are going to need overwhelming need, and maybe even a little begging." She gave a very dark look to Jellico. "The key is where to find him."

Silence, and then the missing link spoke. "I am Commander Goral of the Cairo. If this is who I think it is, he is currently the Freighter Guild Base Commander for Guild Base Four. A Captain Kerryn, Second Class was in charge of the rebuild of GB4, and I met him and his team when we received a distress call about a Cardassian attack. It would have been Starbase 27 all over again, but he was ready and repelled it. He also has a very good deputy in a young Romulan exile named Dyr."

"That sounds like him."

"If it is, he is truly something special." Goral coughed. "He has some kind of problem with you, Admiral. I'd stay away until he agrees to help us."

Nachayev spoke quickly. "Very wise words."

"How long was his hair?" That was Wesley.

"I'd say about a foot below his neckline. Well kept and attractive, though not compliant with Starfleet."

"He isn't in Starfleet except as an affiliate now."

Nachayev put her hand down firmly on the table. "Gentlemen, go get our help. Picard, you are authorized to exceed the warp limitation. Take these and even if you have to sleep with him, get him here."

Picard smiled. "I don't think THAT will be necessary."

Both Wesley and Rian said quietly, "It might." And Picard glared at each of them. Wesley just smiled in a knowing way; Rian glanced curiously at Wesley.

Four hours later they approached GB4. It had been Data who suggested they send a message ahead so as not to alarm him. They dropped out of warp, and at the sight of the station the entire bridge crew gasped.

"It is beautiful!" That was Troi.

"Captain, I am reading over a hundred phasor banks, more than sixty disruptors, and such advanced shielding that the capability is off the scale." This was Worf, and he was impressed.

Rian was on the bridge. He had been very courteously received on Enterprise, and he and Wesley had been eyeing each other for hours. But when he saw the crystal dome over the mall and lounge area, he whistled. "Man, look at that top deck. That must be a sight from inside."

"We are being hailed." Worf spoke with a new respect in his voice.

At that moment, Dyr was hailing Enterprise. An hour ago, the message had come in that Enterprise was arriving at very high warp, and needed to meet with Captain Kerryn on an urgent matter. Dyr had signaled Bombarde, as Kerryn was out on a routine patrol mission that he took periodically. Bombarde was on its way in. But Enterprise had gotten there first.

Dyr contacted Enterprise. "Enterprise, this is GB4 Command, Sub-commander Dyr speaking. Captain Kerryn will return shortly. In the mean time, I would be pleased if you and your team were to be my guests until he arrives. Will you dock, or do you wish to orbit?"

Picard looked at the others. "Orbit, please. Thank you for your hospitality. We accept, and please send us ephemeris information."

Dyr did so, and they settled into a station orbit. The team assembled in the transporter room. Wesley, Rian, Picard, and Troi. It was no coincidence that Picard was the only one that Kerryn hadn't slept with. And when they transported over, Dyr joined them and escorted them to the Deck One lounge.

Picard was the first to speak informally. "Sub-commander, Kerryn runs all this?"

Dyr nodded. "Yes. Ten decks, thirty staff now, and hundreds of tenants. GB4 is the only starbase owned by an individual. Kerryn owns the entire thing. The way he tells it, he paid several million credits for Bombarde and then got the station for just one credit more. He rebuilt it from the girders up."

"It appears to be immensely successful."

"It is." Dyr was proud. He had related the story about the Cardassian attack. "Since the attack we have had even more business."

The waiter came by. "Drinks anyone?"

Picard said, "Synthehol brandy, please."

The other three, all at once, chorused, "Bourbon." Wide- eyed, the each regarded the other.

Troi laughed out loud. "I'll have a water, please."

Dyr got a message, and pointed upwards. "Look, here he comes." And larger than life, Bombarde de-cloaked in front of them, gliding gently across the dome and into her axial orbit.

Picard spoke up. "He's got a Romulan Warbird? A D7 if I am not mistaken."

Dyr grinned. "Yes, that is Bombarde. Give him a few minutes."

Kerryn had received the recall message. Dyr had indicated an unusual situation on GB4, and Kerryn had wasted no time. He now knew what was going on, as when he approached under cloak he saw the Galaxy-class starship in orbit. It could only be Enterprise, and that means it could only mean that there was a problem with the singularity.

He gave quite the arrival show, cutting it so close he could almost see the people in the lounge before slipping Bombarde into orbit. He beamed to his quarters, made himself presentable yet totally invisible on demand, and went up to the lounge.

The place teemed with activity. But it was not hard to spot the group of people in Starfleet uniforms. Kerryn felt a streak of anxiety pass through him. His entire sexual history since Imzadi was sitting at that table.

Don't worry, Kerryn. It is good to see you. Our need is very great this time. Deanna Troi had thought the message to him.

You have no idea what this is doing to me, he thought back at her. And then he made his way over.

The others didn't see him until he was at their table. And when they did, the reaction was universal. He's even hotter than before, followed by, I wonder if I still have a chance. And then he spoke.

"Greetings to such an auspicious crowd. Welcome to GB4." He sat with them, his eyes hard and challenging. "I hope Dyr has been a good host."

They all responded in the positive, and Dyr smiled. They all smiled, except Picard who didn't understand. Then Kerryn dropped the question.

"So why are you, this motley mix of people who all knew me, why are you here together at my station?"

Rian answered. "Starfleet lost control of the singularity. It is in a decaying orbit over Carin II. They have tried and cannot recapture it. They are hoping that you can."

"Starfleet wants me to recapture an errant singularity?"

Picard said it. "Please."

There it was. Kerryn's drink arrived, and he drank it down. "Bring me another." And the waiter left.

"How did you find me?"

Picard spoke. "Commander Goral of the Cairo recognized you from our description."

Another silence. His bourbon arrived, and he drank that too. "One more, please." And the waiter put one more down on the table. "My thanks."

Kerryn turned to Picard. "Will I have to see Jellico?"

Picard nodded slowly. "He is not the same man he was a month ago."

Kerryn had already made up his mind. "Dyr, can you run the station for a week or so?"

Dyr grinned wide. "Absolutely, commander."

Kerryn looked at the anxious faces across the table. "All right, damn it. I will put it back in the bottle. Now, tell me what was done and how it got out."

The look of relief was palpable. They went through the details, and something in the back of his mind went off as an alert. The singularity had escaped because the internal self-powered structure had collapsed. That simply wasn't possible unless someone had tampered with it. But who?

Dyr's brows were furrowed. "What you describe sounds incorrect. The designs are not supposed to function that way."

Kerryn spoke up. "We'll have to figure out the situation when I am there." He gave Dyr a look, and Dyr instantly recognized it as a we-need-to-talk-later look.

Belann showed up with Dyrann. "Dyr, your duty ended hours ago. I need you back now." And Dyr got up to go, excusing himself.

But his daughter, Dyrann had other plans. She leaped into Kerryn's lap. In perfect Romulan, she said to him, "Mommy and Daddy are really hoping you will join them tonight." Rian turned pink.

Kerryn laughed, and replied in Romulan, "I have to make a trip. But when I get back I will make your mom and dad so incredibly happy. I promise."

She kissed him, and climbed down. Dyr and Belann grinned widely at Kerryn, who nodded. "I promise." In Romulan. And the family headed down.

Kerryn looked back to the various expressions on his guests. Rian was positively red but beaming. Wesley looked neutral but interested. Picard had no clue. And the counselor was looking wistfully into space. Kerryn cleared his throat, and spoke up. "Sorry about that. The little one only knows Romulan."

Picard observed, "That was quite an exchange."

"Well, I never knew how much I liked children until I met Dyrann. Never had the opportunity before." He stood. "When is Enterprise leaving?"

"Within six hours. The next event will happen eleven hours from now."

Kerryn did some fast math. "You have permission to exceed Warp Five?"

"Yes."

"It will take me a short while to get some things together. And you will need to grant a clearance for Bombarde."

They all stood. "We will do so immediately."

"Fine. Let's get this over with. I will see you all presently." And Kerryn strode off towards the turbolift.

The rest sat for a moment, and looked at each other. Picard spoke. "Consensus?"

"He's changed." That was Wesley.

"He doesn't trust Starfleet. And something about the bottle is bugging him. The same as Dyr." Counselor Troi continued, "It was fleeting, but I have a feeling he is going to gouge out the truth on that one topic first."

"He is having an awkward time with his sub-commander. It looks like the Bond of Command is in force, and he has been having a hard time with that." Ensign Rian was pensive. "One thing for sure, his command of Romulan language is perfect."

Troi broke the silence. She knew the real reason Kerryn was unsettled. "It was also all of us, you know. With the exception of Captain Picard, we have all had intimate moments with him. Some more than others. We all belong to the institution that he was evicted from. He has apparently been questioning his decision to go after that first singularity for some time." She sighed.

"Let us go back to Enterprise and get ready." Picard led the group back, although Rian and Wesley walked more slowly. The station was beautiful, and proper. It was done right. And that concept pervaded everything they saw.

Meanwhile, Kerryn ran down to Dyr and caught him in their quarters. Funny how different they were thinking.

"Kerryn, Belann and I are overjoyed at your promise!" Dyr positively beamed. He hurled himself into Kerryn's arms and kissed him soundly. Kerryn gave in for a moment, and then separated them.

"Dyr, this is more important, although that is hard to believe." He took a deep breath. "The self-sustaining power coupling doesn't just fail." Dyr nodded. "Someone caused it to fail. If they did it there, they can do it here. Put some tripwire alarms on it."

"Yes, sir! You can count on me."

Kerryn held him close. "I certainly can." And he shuddered. "Just seeing those three in the same place together was enough to give me a heart attack."

"Why?"

A little honesty was needed. "Because before I met you, I had some kind of sex with each of them."

Dyr could not contain his mirth. "Amazing! No wonder you were so clipped and awkward. Who was the best?"

"Toss up between Troi and Crusher." He grabbed some clothes, and one Starfleet uniform. "Don't tell them I've left until 30 minutes from now."

"You sneak." And Kerryn left the room, beamed directly to Bombarde from the Command Deck. He brought he ship on line, cloaked, quickly laid in a course, and kicked off at Warp 7.

On Enterprise, they were caught again. The minutes ticked onward, and finally they signaled the station.

"Station, this is Enterprise. What is the status of your commander?"

Dyr appeared, somewhat surprised. "Captain, our Captain Kerryn departed with Bombarde more than an hour ago."

Eyebrows raised, Picard smacked his head, and Rian surrendered a small credit chit to Wesley. "Best speed to Carin II."

Enterprise hurtled towards the besieged planet like an elephant on stampede, but Bombarde slipped through at high warp with grace and finesse. Kerryn had spent weeks tweaking the warp core to perfection, and it was paying off now. They wouldn't know he was coming, because he had enough power for all the warp drive he wanted plus running the cloaking device together. He just couldn't fire weapons.

On Enterprise, Rian and Wesley watched the stars go by in Ten Forward. In tackling the singularity problem, they had become friends. Wesley had matured greatly, and was beginning to think beyond the Academy. Rian was a little older, and they had come to rely on each other during this sojourn. It was Rian, though who broke the ice.

As they savored their bourbon, Rian idly commented on Wesley's competence. "You know, I can see why he went for you as a shepherd. You've got an amazing background for one as young as you are."

Wesley snorted. "Ha. Before I met Kerryn, I wore my mind on my uniform. He showed me so much on how to negotiate, and how be discreet. We had some interesting times." And then he blushed a little.

Rian jumped in. "You are lucky, then. We had just broken down some of the barriers when he was relieved. I think I actually had fallen in love with him."

Wesley's eyebrows rose. "You, then are compatible with his lifestyle?"

Rian chuckled. "Yes, I am gay. You?"

Wesley regarded him thoughtfully. "Lets just say I like to have sex, with partners from a close circle of friends."

Rian nodded. "Got it." He chuckled again. "Poor Kerryn. Did you see how antsy he was? I've never seen him like that. But he and that little girl, it was just beautiful."

"I'd never seen him with kids before."

"Me either. To be able to do that, with us all daydreaming about our last times with him, and the adventures that his sub-commander obviously wants to push forward, that's a tall order."

"What is the deal with Dyr, and that comment about joining them when he returns?"

Rian explained the Bond of Command, and its perks and peculiarities. Wesley nodded, understanding now some of the veiled comments that had flown by. "With all that," Wesley observed, "He is probably long over me."

"Me too. I haven't found anyone this conversational in a long time."

They got up and made their way back to their cabins. But, partway down the hall, as if it was perfectly natural, Wesley reached over and laced his fingers into Rian's. Smiling, they entered Rian's cabin, closed the door, and decided to explore some of what they were feeling together.

When Enterprise arrived, Kerryn had already beamed down to the lab, and was running analyses and diagnostics on the bottle. The team quickly realized that Kerryn knew what he was doing, and if he asked for something, better do it fast. And well. Kerryn had been dispensing withering looks and pointed remarks almost every minute since he had gotten there.

By the time that Rian and Wesley arrived, refreshed and excited, along with Picard, Data, LaForge, and the rest of the technically relevant staff, the on-site team was in chaos. Kerryn had been firing questions at them, and getting increasingly irritated when their answers were evasive. This was all so stupid. The team began arguing and finger- pointing at each other as the lack of attention to detail went on. And on.

At some point, Admiral Jellico entered the room to watch. He was not happy. The teams were blaming each other, and generally getting sidetracked. Others kept pestering Kerryn to explain why this was done, what that did, was it necessary, and more. It amused Jellico to see what would happen.

Kerryn was growing more furious as each moment passed. It never showed in his voice, but his eyes were brown-black and snapping sparks. Finally, he had it. Amid the loud discussion and mindless blathering, someone asked him why he had made the structure blue.

That did it.

"GOD DAMN IT, SHUT THE FUCK UP!!!"

Silence. Picard's eyes were wide. Jellico was caught off- guard. The rest were stunned.

Kerryn continued. "YOU ALL SCREWED AROUND WITH TECHNOLOGY YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! WHAT DID YOU EXPECT TO HAPPEN? DO YOU GIVE A DAMN ABOUT YOUR PLANET OR NOT? IF SO," he screamed, gradually quieting to a more normal tone, "then LET ME BE and I will recapture the singularity." He ran a quick scan of the room, and only his outburst of temper saved him from reacting to the disaster he found there. Something amused, satisfied, and very definitely alien.

Like lightning, Kerryn acted. "Jellico, we are going out in the hall to talk. NOW." And he walked out of the room. The admiral, as much in shock as the others were, followed him outside. The door whooshed closed.

The admiral started, having recovered a little. "Now is not the time for personal war."

Kerryn shook his head. "No. Later. You've got a bigger problem. The bottle was sabotaged. And the saboteur is in that room, and also happens to be a Founder of the Dominion."

"WHAT!?" Jellico was stunned. That team was at the core of Starfleet technology.

"Hold on a second." And Kerryn swept through Jellico's mind. Not pretty, but not alien. "OK, now I am sure it isn't you. But I touched on a mind in there that is definitely not human, and is full of the connected one-ness that the Founders are reported to have."

"Shit."

"Do you have a way to contain them?"

"No, every time we have tried they escape."

Kerryn had to trust Jellico. "Then we're going to have to kill it."

"You are serious? Phasers don't affect them."

"I'm carrying a Romulan disruptor."

Jellico put aside his loathing for a moment. "They're illegal."

"I'm not in uniform. You want to split hairs? So can I."

"Starfleet won't allow it. We need to negotiate."

"If you say so." Kerryn had made up his mind, though. The disaster potential was too great. And he wasn't in a Starfleet uniform. "I'm going to spring a trap shortly. Stay out of the way. While I bear no liking at all for you, I don't want you being a hostage. I dislike shooting Starfleet people in the morning." And he turned and walked back in. Once again, Jellico followed numbly.

The staff was waiting anxiously. Kerryn looked around, and said, "What? Get back to work. Why isn't the damn primary field coil aligned yet?" And he began to swear in Romulan.

He swept the room mentally again, and found the mind. It was to his right, close to the bottle, and slightly isolated. He turned and looked in that direction, and his eyes found an older ensign who was part of the planetary team. Name? Ensign Wahl.

"Ensign Wahl, get over here. What is your expertise with this unit?"

The ensign gulped. "I .. I worked with the shielding, sir."

The team leader snapped. "That's not true. You worked power distribution."

A brush of the mind, and Kerryn had him. He lanced out with all the power and skill he could muster, fed by his frustration into the mind of Ensign Wahl, and found the alien sea of consciousness. He shouted, "This is the one, Admiral!" and crushed the resistance inside, pushing it back to its final form. He could feel the alien mind's awareness of him, and he had to get the alien away from the bottle.

In front of him, Ensign Wahl dissolved into the latex-like form of a Founder of the Dominion. The entire team shouted in horror and ran for the walls. It was just Kerryn and the Founder. Kerryn managed to shout, "Seal the room!" as Jellico called out for a Level Five containment field.

Back in its natural form, the Founder twisted free of Kerryn's mind. It spoke quietly.

"So, you discovered me. But we are everywhere."

Kerryn raised the disruptor. "Not for long."

"Try to destroy me now." The Founder grinned, and poured itself into the gravity bottle. The team let out a cry of dismay. They were hopelessly compromised now.

Kerryn took one look at the bottle, set the disruptor on maximum, and fired. As he did so, he brushed the mind of the Founder as it realized its error, on its way to oblivion. The shock of actually killing a Founder echoed as the last thought from its mind, and then the Founder and the bottle were no more.

"Brilliant. Just brilliant." This was Jellico. "Now how the hell are we going take care of our more immediate problem? I SAID WE WOULD NEGOTIATE!"

Kerryn turned to Jellico. "I am not under your jurisdiction. As I said, I am not wearing the uniform."

Rian was the next to speak. "Kerryn, it will take us weeks to build another."

Kerryn shook his head. "No, it won't. I brought one with me. Surely you didn't expect me to trust one that you all had screwed around with?"

The entire team alternated between sheepish and being aghast. They had been had, both by the Dominion and by this little freighter guy.

Kerryn slammed the disruptor into an inner pocket. He looked at Picard, briefly, and said, "Sorry about the language, Captain."

Picard just nodded. The team was silent.

"Admiral, you can drop the containment field. I need to take a bio break."

Wordlessly, the admiral nodded and the containment field came down. Kerryn made his way quickly to the bathroom, and took a very necessary break. He was able to calm down a little bit after this. Dyr and he had immediately realized that something had gone wrong deliberately, and this had been the playing out of a plot line. The Founder, though was a complete wildcard. Sighing, he settled down and washed. The damn paper towels still had the insignia on it. Grrr.

He pulled out a small device, spoke softly in Romulan, and Bombarde beamed him directly to the bridge. It would be interesting to see how long it took them to react. He started the necessary sensor sweep processing that had been collected in his absence, and established the track. It was moving pretty slow, and with high eccentricity. Time to do it. Nudging forward with impulse engines, he released the bottle on the tether and went after the singularity. Once on his way, he engaged the cloak. It would drive them wild.

On Enterprise, it just so happened that Riker was watching the viewscreen when Bombarde began to move from view. He looked at Worf, who nodded. "Enterprise to Picard."

"Picard here."

"Sir, the Bombarde has broken orbit on impulse engines and ." Oh no.

"And what? Captain Kerryn is here in the bathroom."

"Sir, she let out an object on tow cable and then cloaked." Worf grinned suddenly. It wasn't often that Picard was caught out. "I don't think her captain is in the bathroom any more."

Picard and Jellico bolted for the bathroom. Indeed it was empty. Picard smiled inwardly as Jellico swore up and down. And back in the lab, Rian handed Wesley another small credit chit.

Within minutes, Kerryn was right where he wanted to be, and on the first try he snared the singularity. It still pulled so hard that the inertial dampers could not compensate fully, but he had it. He had thought about this a long time. How do you eradicate a quantum singularity? By casting it into a larger one, bottle and all. It just so happened that there was one twenty minutes away at Warp 9 from Carin II. The Landix Black Hole was big, old, and well marked. Kerryn set his course and released the cloak. Let's get this over with.

Worf was very very good. He knew that Kerryn might run for it, but not why. So it was that when he de-cloaked and bolted for Landix, Worf caught the signature.

"Sir, he is making a run. Estimate Bombarde's departure at Warp Nine."

"Heading?"

"Deep space, sir. No planetary systems on his line for weeks."

"Is it towards his station?"

"No, sir."

It is to the Federation's discredit that the tactical charts only mark warning areas as warnings, not why they are actually warned. To realize that he was headed for Landix, one would have to have been a quantum mechanics specialist or specifically call up that data in Stellar Cartography.

"Notify the captain."

Down on Carin II, Picard relayed the information. "It appears that Captain Kerryn is trying to solve this one on his own."

One of the scientists looked up from a display with joy. "Apparently, he did! The singularity impact would have been two minutes ago, and there is no trace of its impact or orbit!"

General relief and cheering broke out. Rian and Wesley looked at each other, and Rian handed over another credit chit. Picard decided after three times at least, he had to investigate.

"Ensigns, why do you keep exchanging credit?"

Rian grinned, and Wesley looked a little smug. "We've been betting on Kerryn's behavior. It's kind of a competitive thing. Rian would probably win if Kerryn were more Starfleet right now, but I've seen more of the renegade. He is really pissed off, you know." Rian nodded in concurrence.

"Well, when he returns the bottle we can take him to the bar to show our gratitude."

Rian and Wesley looked at Picard, amused. "Would you like to bet on that?"

A silence, and Picard was about to agree when Word chimed in. "Enterprise to Captain Picard."

Dread filled the Enterprise captain. "Go ahead, Mr. Worf."

"We have just caught a trace of Bombarde's warp signature. She is moving off into deep space at Warp Nine." And Worf quoted the heading coordinates.

One of the scientists blanched. "That's toward the Landix Black Hole! He's not going to snare a bigger one?"

Another scientist shook his head grimly. "No. How would you dispose of a quantum singularity? By dropping it in a bigger one."

Picard acted. "Worf, he is heading for the Landix Black Hole. Can you stop him?"

"No, sir, he has too far a lead. He would probably be there in minutes, and we can not catch up."

"Do it anyway. Maximum warp. Put him in tow if you have to. Picard out."

And Rian handed another chit to Wesley, resignedly. Picard muttered, "I would have lost."

Enterprise hurtled towards Landix. But Kerryn had known that they might come after him, and as a result he arrived on the edge of the gravity well, and launched the bottle into the hole. He re-cloaked, and began monitoring the bottle's progress. How well did he make the bottle? It was professional curiosity. He had never blown one up before.

With only a hundred kilometers to the event horizon, the bottle broke down and shimmered into nothingness as the small quantum singularity fell into the Landix Black Hole, absorbed into its own like environment, its tiny but highly dense mass adding to the larger and eons older one. Landix didn't so much as burp. But the bottle held under forces of over a hundred thousand exanewtons, fifty times more than he had expected.

Unsurprised, he looked at his rear screens to find Enterprise burst in. Too late. He carefully dove under her main section, impulse only and under cloak, he moved away back towards Carin II. When Enterprise was out of range, he kicked in Warp Two and went to call in to Dyr. Dyr had been sincerely concerned, and they had agreed at one point that if the singularity ever got loose from a gravity bottle that both should be cast into the nearest singularity of size.

Kerryn glossed over the details to him. Dyr was not buying it.

"Come on, there must have been some kind of a row!"

"A small one." He closed his eyes. "I swore like a freight loader. I just did it in Romulan."

"Where did you learn to swear in Romulan?"

Kerryn let out a stream of invective, and Dyr's eyebrows went way up. "I still don't think you can do that and live, but to also insult my mother and clan AND my political party in one breath is certainly offensive. Way to go, Kerryn! When are you coming back?"

"As soon as I can. There are a lot of good people in Starfleet, but other than Enterprise, none of them are here."

A pause. "I am looking forward to your return. So is Belann."

Kerryn smiled, and batted his eyes slightly. "I am looking forward very much to savoring you and your wife, sub- commander." And Dyr shuddered with suggestion. "Oh yes!"

"Bombarde out."

I need a drink, Kerryn thought. He fetched his cloak, made himself presentable, and then as he approached the planet he de-cloaked the ship. Signaling their landing control base, he obtained a landing pad and carefully swung the Romulan D7 through the atmosphere. Gracefully, she flew until the pad was in sight, and then below her, and Kerryn gently set the old warbird down. He opened the rear hatch and ports, began the atmosphere flush and reconstitution, and headed in to the bar with his cloak billowing out behind him. Thank God, they had bourbon. He was twenty one years old and had just blown off the premier Starfleet science team.

Riker kept Enterprise out by the Landix site for forty minutes, at which time it was noted that it was fruitless. Enterprise then returned, and an hour later the team had dispersed aimlessly. When would they get their bottle back?

It was Rian who thought of it. "Hold it, gentlemen. Computer!" It cheeped. "Have there been any arrivals in the past hour in orbit?"

"No new arrivals in orbit."

"How about on the landing pads?"

"At 05:57 the Freighter Bombarde landed on landing pad two." That was fifteen minutes ago.

"Where is the nearest bar?" That was Wesley.

The computer responded, surprisingly helpful. "The nearest lounge to landing pad two is in section A unit 23."

Picard surrendered two credit chits to Rian and Wesley. "Let's go."

Jellico came up. "Going somewhere?"

Picard regarded him coolly. "Kerryn returned to Carin II fifteen minutes ago. I want to find out what happened."

"So do I. I will join you."

The lounge was large. They divided it up by floor. Wesley and Rian elected to stay together, and with some good thinking they found him on the top floor, cloaked and in a corner booth, staring out at the sky and the emerging stars behind it.

Wesley actually found him. Just like during the Shepherd days. "Well, Kerryn, you have caused a stir."

Kerryn looked up, and saw his two friends. "Please sit. I am now just so tired." Four bourbon glasses rested empty on the table.

"You destroyed it, didn't you?"

"Yes. They had no clue. If I had returned with it, I never would have been allowed to leave. This way, everyone hates me and I can go home."

"Believe it or not, nearly all the staff endorsed your disposal. They knew how big a problem it was."

Kerryn looked up, and immediately they saw how haggard and drawn he looked. "Thanks, I think. Would you say I took unnecessary risk in the original capture with Asheville?"

"NO!" That was Rian. Wesley thought, and then shook his head. "No, that is what we are out here for. It was a matter more of Jellico looking for an excuse. You did the right thing, both times."

"Can it actually work on that kind of a scale?"

Kerryn grinned. "GB4 has an exawatt power source inside of it. Guess how."

They all nodded in appreciation, leaned back and drank. It was then that Kerryn caught the mental whiff of affection. He looked at them, surprised, and said, "You two, huh?"

They nodded reluctantly, and then as Kerryn held up his glass, with more confidence. "Good. You each need each other." He put on his most injured look. "My only options left are Romulan, but I've heard soooo many things about them." He stood. "Picard and Jellico are coming. I've got to meet them sometime."

The three left the top floor, and met Jellico and Picard on the second floor. They grabbed a large table, and after sitting down, Jellico asked the big question.

"Where is it?"

"Destroyed. I dropped it and the bottle into Landix."

Jellico growled. "You had no authority to dispose of that."

"I treated it as a salvage operation. Your problem is solved, I brought my own hardware, my actions placed no one at risk."

"I'll court-martial you."

"I'm not in Starfleet right now, Admiral. Remember? I suggest you worry about where else the Founders may have penetrated."

Jellico went gray. Kerryn was so tired, he just said it anyway. "Go away, Admiral. You are pissing me off."

For once, Jellico departed without incident.

"You are right, of course, and as usual." Picard observed. "We aren't ready."

They spent some time in silence. Picard finally spoke. "You have my congratulations, all of you. You are all still young by any standards, yet you have conducted yourselves with decorum and dignity." Kerryn snorted as Picard continued. "Some very difficult decisions were in front of you, and you discharged them very effectively." He paused. "Especially you, Kerryn. You did what Starfleet hopes its officers will do, not what usually happens."

Kerryn looked at Picard, and for a moment the venerable Starfleet captain saw a glimmer of just how much this whole thing had taken out of him. His eyes burned down in their sockets, his eyebrows pinched slightly, and the extreme exhaustion pervaded his face. "Thank you, Captain. That means much to me, coming from you."

A few more moments passed, and then Kerryn straightened. "Jellico is coming back, with security. I am not going through another confrontation with him. I'll see you later. I'm going back to GB4, but by a slightly roundabout way." He stood, and with a credit chit on the table his cloak swirled.

"Kerryn, wait." But he was gone in the mass of people. Amazing, thought Picard, how can he do that so well?

Wesley read the captain's mind. "It has to do with walking such that as you pass someone, you put that person between you and the observer. Your path is irregular, and it is impossible to track."

"Can you do it?"

"Yes, to some degree."

Jellico stormed up. "Where is he?"

Picard answered. "I don't know. He seemed to feel you coming, and departed quickly." Picard saw security staff, and followed it with, "I can't say that I blame him. Why on earth are you here with security?"

"A court-martial!"

Picard laughed. "Admiral, he wasn't in uniform, and was on off-cycle affiliate status. You would never get that to stick."

"I will try! I've got Cairo on shoot-to-kill status. They'll get him."

Kerryn had made it back to Bombarde. He climbed aboard, sealed up and requested departure information. Once granted, even before he left the launch pad, he cloaked and rose through the atmosphere, breaking orbit and leaving the planet. Unlike his statement, he made straight for GB4. Cairo never even saw him.

Halfway there, the call came from Dyr. Dyr was in a high state of excitement. His extended family had been cleared and he and his family were welcome back in the Romulan Empire. A transport was leaving immediately, before Kerryn could get back, and they had to make that one or wait four months for another. Dyr was heartily grateful for the position, the training, and the accommodations, and he bade Kerryn farewell.

Kerryn felt the shock flow through him. He had been ready to commit his life to Dyr and his wife, on their terms, and now just like that they had been plucked from his existence to return home. He was happy for them, really. But he was miserable for himself. And when he arrived at GB4, his station, there was no one to welcome him other than Carstairs, who had been learning from Dyr. And so, after finding that his station was functioning perfectly, the tenants were happy, he was nine months or less from being debt-free, and reentering his quarters to find it neat, clean, and devoid of Dyr and his family, he sat down in a chair. A thought nagged at the back of his mind, though. And it continued to plague him from then on. Could he make the gravity bottle into a gravity piston? It would be a very powerful weapon. He then went to sleep, too drained to do anything else.

Guild Base Four glistened. It was a haven along the routes for freighters. It was an oasis in a tense and unfriendly zone. The quiet and aloof young man who ran it was obsessed with energy and perfection. It became a case study in how to run a space station. The staff knew him, the tenants could recognize him but no visitor knew for sure just who the authoritative sexy guy with the long hair was.

The Dominion War was coming. GB4 was assailed by Cardassians several more times. Each attack, the Cardassian ships would assault the station shields, and then in a moment of respite GB4 distruptors would carve the ships into ribbons. Kerryn always left options for personnel recovery from the ships, but the wreck count for GB4 was growing alarmingly. Kerryn had twice now had to haul debris out of station orbit and recycle it.

The most significant battle took place very close to the all- out war. After the Jem'Hadar had wiped out the Galaxy-class vessel Odyssey, they began making incursions into Alpha Quadrant space. Naturally, the Cardassians being quite vexed over their inability to wipe out GB4, they challenged the Jem'Hadar to destroy GB4. The Jem'Hadar had humphed at this, likening it to the squashing of a bug. And so they tried.

But what a bug. The first go-around consisted of several Jem'Hadar ships. They just appeared and fired. The station, however was ready for them, and the shields absorbed their weapons. They were different from Starfleet shields, the Jem'Hadar captain thought as the overpowering disruptor beams sliced his ships to tatters. There were no survivors from that attack. After that, the Jem'Hadar took the site seriously.

During one of the lulls in the war, Kerryn made routine trips to Deep Space Nine. Knowing that Captain Sisko was on the cusp of the fighting, he made it his business to check in once in a while. Bajor and DS9 had accepted remarkable numbers of casualties on behalf of Starfleet, the Klingons and the Romulans. He would visit Sisko, stop in with Odo, and have a drink at Quark's.

Quark was invariably frustrated by Kerryn. Kerryn would come in, sit, be served two bourbons, drink, and leave. Sometimes they would negotiate for something or other, and invariably Kerryn got the better deal. Besides that, he was incorruptible. Quark could pick out sexual tension a mile away, and Kerryn was always ripe with it. But he could not get him involved, seduced, or anything. And that drove Quark out of his mind.

And so that is how it was when Kerryn, sitting in Quark's with his bourbon, found himself being approached by none other than Odo, Sisko, and Doctor Julian Bashir. Knowing them at least by name, he gestured for them to be seated, which they complied.

"Gentlemen, always a pleasure." Kerryn's usual opening remark.

"Governor Kerryn, I hope things are well?" Sisko knew the value of GB4. DS9 might be the Starfleet front line, but GB4 right now made the cargo go round.

Kerryn winced. "Governor? I suppose. How about Captain?"

Sisko grinned. "Governor is better than Lord, right?" At the emphatic nod, he became serious again. "I wanted to discuss something with you. Odo and I are here at the request of --"

Julian broke in. "Captain, must you be so formal about this?" He turned to Kerryn. "One of my jobs has been the placement of orphans. The babies go quickly, the younger ones almost as quickly." He cleared his throat. "I have one here that I have been unable to place. He is a little older, but is very clever and healthy."

Odo snorted. "He is also the most incredible challenge to security."

Julian gave a look to Odo that was barbed with daggers. "Odo has no appreciation for this situation. But he has been a problem here, and I can not place him." He took a deep breath. "I was hoping you would be able to try on GB4 as his best hope and as a test. It is going to get bad again and DS9 needs an overflow site for the orphaned children."

Kerryn's eyebrows were in the stratosphere. "Julian, I can tell you are sincere. We have a number of families who might take him in. But what aren't you telling me?"

An awkward silence. Then it was Sisko who broke it. "First, he is twelve."

"All right. What else?"

Odo snorted. "Don't ask me."

Sisko and Bashir exchanged a long look. Finally, it was Julian who spoke again. "Look, Kerryn, I'm going to go out on a limb here." He looked Kerryn straight in the eye. "We suspect that you are gay. Is it true?"

Kerryn was taken aback. He had not verbally mentioned his sexuality since Dyr. "Informally, just among us three, yes, I am gay by preference. What does that have to do with anything?"

They other three sighed and leaned back. Julian continued, "Good. We suspect that young Jacen is gay as well. He is having trouble with that, and needs someone who knows how to handle it."

"What makes you think I know how to handle it?"

Julian laughed. "It was Dax who did. She has been trying to get your attention for a long time now, and while she admits that you are the hottest thing she has seen, you are totally ambivalent to her. She's onto Worf now, but it frustrated the hell out of her. The only excuse she could come up with when you were looking so good but not rising to her interests was that you were gay and OK that way."

Sisko grinned. "My son Jake also noted that you had no interest in the typical young male pursuits."

Kerryn surrendered. He and Jake had become reasonable friends, and it stopped there. "OK, so I am used to it. And yes, I'd rather jump you, Julian, than Dax. Don't tell her that, though."

Julian flushed. "I'm flattered. But, um, we are getting a bit far afield." Part of him was enticed by such an offer. It wouldn't be his first. "We were talking about Jacen."

Kerryn became somber. "What am I really dealing with here?"

They sighed, and this time it was Odo who spoke. "A lonely boy, bereft of his family, with feelings he doesn't understand or control, and the need for someone to pay attention and love him." And Julian and Kerryn both felt tears prick their eyes slightly.

Kerryn had already decided, but suggested, "Let's go meet him."

They met him all right. Jacen Vorr was a young lad, lean and slender, of modest height for his age. His eyes were brown, and hooded in wariness. He wore a ship suit, and they had met him in the area allocated to the orphaned children. He was the only one there, and the concierge was only there sporadically. He was forever escaping the perimeter, and causing havoc on the lower decks. His only response was that he wanted to get off DS9 as a stowaway on some ship to another place.

Jacen looked at Sisko with no notice. Odo received a mixture of innocence and benign tolerance, and Bashir a look of betrayal. Kerryn stayed in the background for the moment, but could overhear the conversation.

"What is it? I didn't do anything this time." A young boy's voice.

Sisko spoke. "You have an opportunity. DS9 isn't right for you anymore. How would you like to visit Guild Base Four for a while?"

"As a problem child, or is that where my new family is?"

Bashir caught his stomach as bile erupted unpleasantly. Life was so cruel to this kid. "We are going to look into that."

Betrayal. "Yeah, right. You're just giving me away as a problem."

Odo spoke. "That kind of attitude won't help you."

"Fuck off and die, Odo."

"Watch your language. You are being given a nice opportunity."

"Julian, this is your fault. You are trying to get rid of me."

"No, I -"

"Yes you are." Quiet, then, "I know no one wants me. Its because I'm not Bajoran, and because I like boys. My parents were from Earth originally, but they were killed. I lived with my aunt but she is dead now too. Maybe I'm meant to be dead."

Silence. Then, Julian: "You know that isn't true. We just have to find you the right family."

Kerryn could not take it anymore. He had lost both his own parents, had no family, no brothers, nothing. A wife would have been ridiculous. He stepped into view.

There was Jacen. Cute. Nice looking. Hair needed attention. And so despondent. Good hands. And his eyes rose to meet Kerryn's, the wariness returned.

"Who are you?"

Kerryn smiled. "I am Captain Kerryn of Guild Base Four." He pointedly looked at Bashir, with emphasis on the word captain. He squatted down near the floor, across from where Jacen was sitting. "I lost my parents too when I was younger."

Jacen considered this. "All right. Why are you here?"

"To see if you want to come to GB4 with me, and whether I want to take you there." Kerryn could feel that this kid needed straight talk at this point.

More thinking. "Is there a family waiting for me?" The desperate plea for hope was in his mind, and Kerryn caught the brush of that.

Julian started. "Jacen, we don't-"

"Yes, there is." Silence from the shock. "It isn't your everyday family, and it is very small, but it is ready for you to be a part of it." Kerryn knew this was right. Every strand of his being needed this.

"Tell me more." The hunger for the spark of hope that had been lit.

Kerryn smiled. "It's me, I'm afraid. A family of one. With you, it would make two. But I like you, and I think that you could be happy with me."

Julian's jaw dropped. Sisko's eyes widened, and Odo nearly liquefied in surprise. But Jacen sat and considered this.

"You don't look like much of a family."

Tension hung in the air. But Kerryn stayed smiling, nodded. "You are right. I would probably be more of an older brother to you than a father, but I can look out for you, take care of you, and I can show you so many things about ships and space stations."

Jacen thought again. Kerryn could feel the hurt and rejection in him, and the defenses. "What if I say no?"

"I don't know, Jacen. It would make things more difficult. But I would still take you to GB4 and try to find you the family you want."

"Can I grow my hair long like yours? And get an earring?"

"Yes, to both, if you learn how to take care of them."

"Will you make me eat beets?"

Kerryn laughed. "Probably not."

"Will you beat me or hurt me?" Jacen was still terrified of his aunt in a rage.

Kerryn was careful. "I will be honest. The worst would be a sound spanking if you get into severe enough trouble. I don't hurt kids for any other reason, or just because I feel like it."

"Will you change your mind later?"

That struck Kerryn to the very core. "No, Jacen, I don't think so. If you agree to be family to me, and I to you, then unless someone comes along who can be proven to be your relative and you really want to live with, we are together, and I am not going to let you go."

Jacen stood. "Let me try you out." He walked over, and put his arms around Kerryn. With tears in his eyes, Kerryn folded the boy in his arms, and held him.

Julian was amazed. This was more than they had ever ever gotten from Jacen. Odo looked uncomfortable. Sisko felt the warmth go through him of a very definite rightness. Jacen continued to cling to Kerryn, and Kerryn just held him.

After a few minutes, Jacen released him. "You pass."

"I pass?"

"You didn't make stupid noises, or rub my back like a maniac." A little wonder took his small voice. "You just let me let you hold me."

Kerryn knew it to be true. "You are right."

Jacen turned to Bashir. "I'll take him. Write me up."

Kerryn laughed, and the laugh lifted everyone's spirits. "Yes, Jacen, I would be happy to be written up for you."

They collected his meager belongings, mostly memorabilia, updated the station adoption records, and shortly Kerryn and Jacen found themselves on Bombarde. Jacen was alive with curiosity, and insisted on the ship tour.

It was the docking protocol that tipped Jacen off as to who his guardian was. The Docking Computer welcomed Base Commander Kerryn back quite audibly, and Jacen caught it.

"You are the Base Commander?"

Kerryn nodded. "That's right."

"Who is your boss?"

"Well, I own the station. It's kind of funny, but it's mine."

Jacen took that in stride. But it placed a little bit of awe in him. Kerryn was important, and Kerryn was also responsible for him. And as they wandered the station together, Kerryn showing him the various places that might interest the boy, they began to know each other little by little.

Jacen was into everything. He was sharp, he was alert, and his eyes darted around taking in everything. His outward expression was most often wary, and he did not smile very much, but when they got to the lounge and mall on Deck One, Jacen split a grin wide and the twelve-year-old boy shone through.

"This is fucking cool!" His eyes stared upwards at the cosmos in rapture.

Kerryn startled slightly. "Uh, Jacen, lets watch our language, please." How Jacen reacted would be telling.

Jacen reacted. He turned his head to look at Kerryn. "Really?" His tone was sincere, his face neutral, but the eyes showed just how tenuous he was feeling.

Kerryn nodded. "I know it may not be what you are used to, but let's save the swearing for when we can't avoid it." He nodded at the cosmos. "But it is one awesome view, isn't it?"

Jacen breathed easier again and looked back up. "Absolutely!"

They sat, and the waiter that Kerryn had known for years came over, and took the order. Jacen felt better when he had seen the menu, found normal food on it, and no beets. Kerryn had been keeping them going all morning, and Jacen followed him everywhere. By the end of the day, they made their way back down to Kerryn's spacious quarters, and when the door closed, the two of them sat.

"So, Jacen, what do you think of all this?"

"It is a lot different. Much more human. The people are nice." He yawned hugely. "Where do I sleep?"

Kerryn had thought about this a little bit. "Well, you have a couple of choices. Tonight we will have to wing it. But you tell me what sounds best." And he described how Jacen could have a bed in Kerryn's own bedroom, how he could occupy Dyr's old quarters, or if he wanted something smaller they could build.

Jacen was silent. He knew what he really wanted. He didn't know all the why, but he knew what would make him the most safe, secure and comfortable. "Kerryn, you said you might be like an older brother, right?"

"That's right."

Jacen boldly went on. "Well, brothers sleep all the time in the same bed. I don't have much stuff. Why can't I sleep in yours with you?"

Silence. Jacen held his breath.

Taken aback, Kerryn looked at him curiously. "I thought you would have wanted more room than that."

"I want a family, Kerryn." Forlorn and hesitant. "I want a family more than my own space, or even my own bed."

It would be interesting for sure, fleeted through Kerryn's mind. "All right. We can try it. But we will have to set some ground rules."

"Like?"

"No drooling on purpose." This brought on a mass of giggles. "No kicking, biting, or flailing. Common courtesy like not waking up the other person unless they are supposed to."

"OK, so far so good. I have one rule, too."

"Oh? What is that?"

"No pajamas."

Yikes! "Really? Why that rule?"

"I hate pajamas. My aunt used to put me in these horrible pajamas after she would beat me, and I could never sleep in them."

Jeez, this kid had history. Sending a prayer to heaven, Kerryn nodded. "No pajamas for you. As it turns out, I don't like pajamas either."

Jacen nodded. "Fine." He paused for a moment, and then continued. "I need another rule. It may seem a little odd."

Kerryn was out of his league. This kid was years older than twelve. "Go ahead."

"No being embarrassed about being seen with no clothes on."

"OK." He was kind of relieved at that. It wasn't going to bother him, and if the kid really wanted to be open about nudity, so be it. "But no parading around our quarters in the buff. Only just before and after bedtime. And you will need comfortable clothes - not pajamas," when he had seen the concern mount, "but some kind of loungewear that is pajama-like but isn't pajamas."

"OK." Another big yawn. "Can we get ready for bed now?"

Kerryn grinned. "Sure. Tomorrow we will go buy you some new clothes."

They separated, and Kerryn gave Jacen his own set of toiletries and the grand tour of the bathroom. He then left him alone to finish, got the bed ready, and stripped himself down to boxers. He really wanted a shower, and would get one, too, as soon as Jacen was out.

When Jacen did come out, he was still dressed. Kerryn had grabbed a towel and was making his way to the bathroom, when he noticed that Jacen was staring. He remembered the comment made at the station about how the twelve-year-old had preferred boys, and grinned at him.

"Stare all you like, little boy. I keep myself in shape, and am proud of the way I look." And he slipped off his boxers, tossing them in the laundry pile across the room, and sauntered his way to the bathroom. "I need to take a shower, so it will be a few minutes." He didn't wait for the response.

Kerryn wasn't going to get much of one. Jacen's eyes had locked onto Kerryn and the moment those boxers came off, his eyes had scanned downward to the man's butt, and the half- hard cock that was framed just perfectly at his view. The walking action on Kerryn's butt showed just how taut and firm it was, and it took Jacen's breath away. He had seen other men, older, and far less attractive. Kerryn was a sex god. And they would be naked and sharing a bed together. Jacen wondered briefly if he could get Kerryn to enjoy some sex play with him someday.

Of course, Jacen then wondered at length about Kerryn's length. Twelve-year-olds don't let go of that kind of a topic quickly. Which is why when Kerryn came out of the shower, wearing a towel, Jacen hadn't moved.

Kerryn decided he could play a little. This could be awkward, but may as well let him satisfy his curiosity. He pulled the towel off and began to vigorously towel his hair dry, which left his entire naked body from neck downward exposed to be studied, without Kerryn observing the reactions. A little private innocent peeping, in a way.

Jacen peeped. And stared, and studied. He found himself longing to touch, stroke, and just feel his "brother's" skin and body. His eyes burned into Kerryn's chest, and the defined muscles beneath the smooth coppery skin that was lightly brushed with hair. But he kept coming back to his butt, with the gentle curve projecting slightly down from his back, out around and over each buttock, down to the smooth slope where it became thigh. He kept hoping for a glimpse of his rear entrance, but the angle was never quite right.

Kerryn finished his hair, wrapped the towel around his waist, and straightened the room up a bit. He could tell that Jacen's bravado had run out, now that it was his turn.

"Laundry goes here."

Jacen nodded, and blurted out, "How big are you when it gets hard?"

Kerryn took a moment to finish what he was doing, and then responded. "Hmm. Usually about eight inches or so. I haven't measured it in years."

"Mine is only five and a half," Jacen muttered quietly.

"You've got years to go. Don't worry about it; it isn't like it can be changed. Every man and boy has to use whatever he is born with."

Jacen remained dressed still, and Kerryn was done. He rehung the towel, and made his way to the bed where Jacen was still sitting. They were close, now, and Jacen could see all the delicious skin he had ever hoped for. He took a long, quivering breath.

"Look, Jacen, if this is going to make you nervous we can work something else out."

Jacen looked up, horrified. "No, no. Its just that you are so wonderful." He looked down. "I can't compare to they way you look."

"Why should you? You are you, with your specific beauty and admirable qualities of your own. There is no reason to compare with me. We have very different lives that have just come together. We're still learning." He decided a little assertion would help. "Come on, I did my part. I even posed for you. Now, lets get your clothes off. Maybe you want a shower or a bath?"

Jacen flushed, and then nodded. "A shower would feel very good. And you are right." He got up and made his way to the bathroom again. "After the shower, I want to talk a little while."

"OK. I will leave the lights down low so you can see."

Jacen went into the bathroom, leaving the door open. He pulled his clothes off quickly, and trotted them over to the laundry before going back, closing the door and starting the water. Kerryn got a quick glimpse of a very slender form, pale and just starting pubic hair.

Jacen took a long, hot shower. It felt so incredibly good. He washed his hair over and over, using the soap thoroughly. He toweled the water off, brushed his hair well, and looked in the mirror. Yes, he was pale. Yes, he was really thin. But there was just the briefest hint of his chest, and the start of the little hairs around his cock and balls. He turned sideways, and gasped. The last time he had looked in the mirror, his chest had been sunken in a bit compared to his abdomen. Not now. He actually tapered like he thought he should. Like Kerryn. And the side view of his butt had gotten better too. Legs must have gotten longer. It gave him a spurt of confidence that he was starting to look like he thought he should. Wrapping the towel around him, he breathed deeply and opened the door.

Kerryn saw the door open, and was greeted by the towel- wearing Jacen. He looked a lot happier, and a lot fresher. It was always amazing what some good washing can do for the mood. He noticed that his hair was still pretty wet, and decided to help.

"Come on over here, your hair is still really wet." Kerryn got up and approached Jacen. "Turn around." And standing behind the boy, he removed the towel from Jacen and began to really dry his hair.

"Hey! I was using that, you know." Jacen protested slightly, with just the smallest quiver in his voice.

"You are using it now, actually. I'm just borrowing it." As he finished, he noted that there were long-healed welts on his back and butt. "Looks like you had a rough time of it."

"That was my aunt's doing." Jacen was a little embarrassed.

"Well, you certainly won't see any of that from me." He took the towel. "I'll put this away for now." And Kerryn returned to the bathroom with the wet towel. He had given him the perfect chance to get into the bed without being observed.

Jacen stood naked in the room. Kerryn would be back in seconds and see all of him. He had seen all of Kerryn now. Why shouldn't Kerryn see all of him? He summed up his courage and waited for Kerryn to return.

And he did. Kerryn had an idea that Jacen was trying to be very brave about this. It would be very hard for a twelve- year-old to understand what the feelings were about, let alone manage it. He guessed that casual would be more effective. They were naked. They were going to sleep in the same bed. No doubt there would be some inadvertent touching that was completely non-sexual. So when he saw Jacen standing there, naked, not quite defiant but more defensive, Kerryn decided to just get him past it. He pointedly studied Jacen briefly. Jacen had the potential to be really sexy when he was older. He was really sexy now, but as that thought raced through Kerryn, the alarms went off. Jacen was just too damn young! Kerryn was his guardian, not a child- abuser.

"Jacen, you look very good. Nothing to be ashamed of, and you are already growing like you should. We'll get you some definition, don't worry. And then all the girls will be drooling over you." Let's see what kind of reaction that gets, he thought.

Jacen blushed slightly. "Thanks. I was kind of surprised myself in the mirror."

"Time for bed!" And Kerryn ran the few short steps to him, grabbed him and tossed him into the bed.

Jacen's face looked scared for a moment, but that dissolved to giggles. "Try that again and I'll pin you." And Kerryn jumped into the bed after him.

They divided sides, set up the covers, and were close to sleep. Kerryn remembered his request to talk, and so propped himself up on one elbow and grinned at Jacen. "I am glad that you are here. It is the absolute truth."

Jacen nodded. "I think so too."

"You had wanted to talk."

Jacen rolled onto his stomach, the covers draped across his waist, covering the attractive rise of his butt. "You mentioned girls."

"Yes. Most guys tend to make themselves look good to attract girls of their choice."

"What about guys who want other guys to like them?"

"Them too." He paused for a moment, then, "I am like that, Jacen. I find guys more attractive and more interesting than girls." He let that sink in. "It may be early, but do you know about yourself?"

Silence. "I am almost sure that I am that way too. That's what they call being a faggot, right?"

Kerryn startled at that one. "Well, yes, but that word is insulting. The most reasonable word that is used is gay."

"My aunt said it is a disease."

Jeez, the poor kid! "No, it is not a disease. It isn't even a choice. Your preference is a part of what you are. Nothing you do can change that. What you can choose to do is hide it, like many do, or ignore it, like many do. Or you can embrace it and celebrate it, like many do. It is up to you. Sometimes it is harder than others to choose."

"What did you choose?"

Quietly, Kerryn answered with carefully chosen words. "I chose somewhere in the middle. I embrace it and celebrate it, but knowing that some people don't understand, I don't show it to the world all the time. But among my friends and the few special people I have had sex with, it was wonderful and special."

Jacen nodded. "I will do the same thing too." And then he cried. Kerryn abandoned any hope of decorum, and slid over in bed to hold the naked boy against his own smooth warm skin, and making sure that his own erection was well below the boy's butt so he wouldn't notice, he held him from behind and tried to reassure him. Jacen must have needed this, and neither resisted at the contact that was taking place. And much later, Jacen slept peacefully as Kerryn's thoughts wandered.

In the morning, Kerryn was awakened to a loud gasp. His eyes flew open to find Jacen staring at his morning wood. He had ended up lying on his back and had kicked off all the covers in his sleep, and apparently Jacen woke first. His cock was, as usual, straining hard to achieve its fullest length.

"Good morning to you too, Jacen. I assume you have heard of `morning wood'?"

Jacen nodded, and pulled the covers down to show his own rock-hard cock. "I get it too." He got shy then, and covered up. "It is always so incredibly hard in the morning." His eyes slowly tore away from Kerryn's and back to Kerryn's towering erection. "But I never thought they ever got that big."

"Jacen, I've got ten years on you. Just you wait. We can compare on your sixteenth birthday and it might mean something."

Another moment passed. And then the little boy dropped the bomb. "How do you get rid of it?"

Oh crap. Oh crap. Oh crap. It was a good thing Kerryn had been looking away. "Well, there are two ways. You can either think about things that aren't exciting to it. Or you can wank."

"Wank?"

Oh crap. "Yes, wank." And Kerryn explained the basics on how human male reproduction worked. Jacen turned bright red several times. "So, if you're hard and want to get rid of it, you can wank, and that will make you come and after that, it doesn't hurt and isn't hard for a while."

"How do you do it?"

Kerryn laughed. "You touch yourself wherever it feels nice, and optionally daydream about something that make you excited. You will hit the most intense feeling, and then start spurting the white stuff I told you about." He looked over at Jacen, who had softened. "Looks like you took the first way this time."

They each showered, and dressed. Jacen really only had rags to wear, so the first thing they went out and did was buy him a whole wardrobe of clothes. They put in requests for educational materials, and after some checking Kerryn found where the group of kids spent most of their day. There were several children Jacen's age, two of them boys. Kerryn could feel that Jacen was accepting the new circumstances. He hoped it would work out right.

The first week went well. On the eighth day, Kerryn had full coverage for his work role and he had decided to take Jacen back out in Bombarde. Little did he know the morning would mark a special occasion.

He had been sleeping. It was late enough, and he shifted slightly to find Jacen awake and worried about something.

"Good morning, Kerryn. Did I wake you?"

"Slightly. It is close to time to get up." He waited, and when no continuation came, Kerryn offered an opening. "Something bothering you?"

Jacen nodded. "It's about wanking."

Never a dull moment, he thought. "OK. What about it?"

Jacen whispered, "I can't seem to do it."

"What are you trying?" And as Jacen slowly explained it, Kerryn sighed in exasperation.

"Jacen, generally you touch your cock in the process. This isn't about tickling. It is a grown-up, pleasurable, and sexual feeling."

Jacen looked perplexed. "I don't understand, I guess. Can you show me?"

"Show you?"

"Yeah, show me." He pulled down the covers, exposing his erect cock, spread his legs a bit and put his hands behind his head. God, he was bold about this! Must be desperate. "Show me on me. Please, Kerryn."

Why not? A dozen reasons came to mind, but he remembered things Imzadi had told him that had happened between him and his brothers, and quite young too. Younger than this. Sighing, Kerryn nodded. "OK. But just this once."

He reached over, and with his right hand began to stroke the cock before him. He gently stroked from bottom to top, and back again and Jacen gasped and began to tremble.

"That feels incredible!"

Kerryn continued, staying very gentle, and just brushing the tip every once in a while. Jacen trembled and his breathing was very rough. Although it was a small cock, it looked wonderful and Kerryn ached to lower his hungry lips to it and show the boy what he really was missing. But fortunately, the young hormones prevented that.

"Oh god, Kerryn, oh!" And he felt the boy tighten, and then burst with his orgasm, which of course covered his hands with several small ropes of his cum. Unconsciously, Kerryn lifted his gooey hand to his mouth and licked his fingers clean. He then noticed that Jacen was watching. And so he grinned, and finished the job.

Jacen was quiet for a bit, and Kerryn got up for the bathroom. When he returned, Jacen had cleaned up some. He was looking pensive.

"OK, Jacen, ask away."

"Huh?"

"There is usually one question everyone asks after someone tastes their cum."

Jacen looked at him sheepishly. "What does it taste like?"

"A little bitter. Hot and gooey. Some are OK with it, some aren't. I happen to be very OK with it." He grinned. "If you are ever curious, just wank and then take a little bit off the end of your cock and try it. It won't hurt you at all."

Jacen nodded. "That was awesome."

And that was that. Kerryn did not see Jacen wank for years. They had settled their routine. They got up, naked, did their morning preparations, and Jacen went to continue his program of study while Kerryn ran the station. They met for lunch, dinner, and ran laps through the station. Jacen's hair went long, then short, then long, and finally just shy of shoulder-length. He got his ear pierced, and became very attached to a small Guild earring with a diamond chip that Kerryn had given to him on their one year anniversary together. And each night, they would approach the bed, remove the last of their clothing and slide into bed. More than half the time they ended up snuggled together.

As he grew, Jacen showed an aptitude for administration. Watching Kerryn, he found dozens of ways to streamline the operations of the station from both a personnel and accounting perspective. He was a born organizer and administrator. And so Kerryn acted on his recommendations, and ceased being surprised when they worked out as well or better than planned. This freed Kerryn up to do the engineering maintenance. And freed him to work on his special project, the gravity piston. Not even Jacen really knew what he was doing.

Kerryn watched Jacen Vorr grow, first filling out from the overly thin boy, developing some muscular definition and then the grand stretch as his major growth spurts kicked in. Jacen was beautiful to look at, with all the drama ready to play across his expressive features. He was popular with his friends, of which there were a number, but he had not settled down on any one person. Kerryn was a little concerned, but everyone is different.

Today, though, would be different. It was Jacen's sixteenth birthday. While Kerryn had given him free reign on how to define his life, nevertheless the milestone technically allowed Jacen to make additional choices for himself. Jacen had indicated that he was satisfied working on the station, but Kerryn knew the folly in that.

Kerryn had thrown Jacen a party. All his friends were invited, and with their parent's permission some of the punch had been spiked. Just enough to lend a little flexibility to the attendees. Kerryn watched as Jacen masterfully worked his way through the crowd with greetings, thanks and more. Most had come in pairs: a boy and a girl, a little nervous, a little awkward yet grateful for the opportunity to be together. Jacen, however continued alone, though enjoying himself. Kerryn watched as some of the girls gazed at Jacen with admiration. He could have any one of them, he realized, but didn't seem to be interested.

One of the surprise attendees had been Wesley Crusher. Wesley had by now left Starfleet to learn from the Traveler. Kerryn had always kept a casual contact with Wes after the Carin II incident, and with Rian, but Wesley had decided to visit for the party. They had toured the station with Jacen, and Wesley was very impressed at how confident, how mature, and how charismatic Jacen was, even at sixteen. He had developed into a natural and strong leader.

And so, at the party off in one corner, Kerryn and Wesley surveyed the crowd. It was Wes who made the humbling observation.

"Makes you feel old, doesn't it?"

"What? Twenty-somethings surrounded by hot horny teenagers? It's a little distracting."

"Oh yeah, the Betazoid thing." The high emotion in the room would be mentally pounding Kerryn. "Any scandals?"

"Not really."

Wes ventured forward. "I'm pretty sure he is gay."

Kerryn nodded. "Yup. Told me so before I met him face to face. It was what brought us together. He was twelve, and someone decided he needed me. And once I met him, I realized that he did. Really badly."

"Love is a powerful thing, Kerryn."

"It certainly is. As a side effect, I've got an heir now, legally, although our relationship is that of brothers."

"You get full marks for restraint, then. He is gorgeous."

"That he is."

Kerryn had then laughed out loud when one of the guys decided the dance floor was too warm and removed his shirt. That started a general shirtless outbreak among the guys, and although there were some fine specimens there, when Jacen had removed his shirt and revealed the perfectly formed chest and abdomen below, all the while exposing the skin-tight pants he was wearing, the catcalls and whistles abounded. Kerryn had just grinned and let him prance around for the occasion. Why not? This was a ritual, after all.

Wesley surveyed the room with high amusement. Oh to be sixteen again! He suddenly remembered Kerryn's experiences at sixteen, with Starfleet, the Rana 7 deaths, and his ship, and saw that at twenty-five Kerryn had lived a lifetime. A quick glimpse at Kerryn's face showed his happiness, and just for a moment he caught a flash of the sexual loneliness that must be hiding inside.

A half-naked Jacen had appeared in their corner, and boldly he approached Wesley. "Come on, Wesley! You are still dressed! I need to dance with ALL the guests tonight!" And he yanked him towards the dance floor.

Wes laughed, and pulled off his shirt to reveal the pale but attractive form underneath. Kerryn noted it was nothing like what he had been on Totentanz, but Wes's life was very different now. It was also clear that Wesley did not know how to dance, but that was OK.

On the floor, Jacen and Wesley danced for a bit. Wesley had asked only, "Are you out to your guests?" to which he had received an affirmative reply. The older man indirectly got the teenager ready for the next step in Jacen's plan, which had some elements of risk in it. Jacen's next target was a fearsome entity to be reckoned with.

When they parted, Jacen steeled himself and went back for the one person he desired more than anyone else in the world. He knew that this person would play along, but he really didn't know if he would go as far as Jacen wanted. Jacen was going to make sure he found out. And so, finally standing in front of the young man who had rescued him from DS9, and who had been like a brother to him these last three and a half years, Jacen grabbed Kerryn's hand and pulled him wordlessly to the dance floor.

Kerryn's eyes went wide. Well, why not? He could see a deep, intense, sincere need in Jacen's eyes and features that begged him to get goofy and play along. And so, very slowly and with high drama and some sensual stretching, Kerryn removed his own shirt and tossed it aside, among the loudest set of cheering and hooting yet. He knew he was gorgeous, but he also knew the crowd was so pumped up that they would even love it if Jellico himself had done it. Yuck, what a thought!!

He was propelled on to the dance floor, and there they danced. Jacen was positively vibrating with excitement, and Kerryn was feeling drunk from the intensity around him that he could not shut down. And so they danced, and when the dance was done, Kerryn leaned forward and gave him a little kiss on the right cheek.

"Happy birthday, Jacen."

Jacen now stood as tall as Kerryn, and his response was to move forward and place his mouth directly on Kerryn's, in front of everyone there. It was a fleeting kiss, full of promise and very tantalizing, but only slightly edgy in this crowd. After less than a second it broke, and again amid catcalls and hooting they separated.

Jacen deserved this. This was his moment, his party, and he the center of attention. So, like he had done to Lwaxana Troi so long ago, he stepped back, surveyed him from top to bottom, slowly. Jacen actually caught on and turned for him so all sides were viewed, and then Kerryn smiled wide, gave a thumbs up and exclaimed loudly.

"Man, he is hot!! Anyone got a drink?" And Jacen flushed with pleasure. Kerryn, though, was profoundly shaken at the sexual desire radiating out of Jacen. It was aimed at him.

After that event, Jacen went in search of Wesley. They had not quite orchestrated the event, but when Jacen had asked how to get into Kerryn's pants (which had made Wes choke on his drink) he had given him some highly practical advice.

"Jacen, Kerryn is Mr. Caution, to the max. His one downfall is that he can't resist using his Betazoid skills to skim the minds of people he is concerned about. You've got to catch his interest, and when you think he is skimming you, let it all mentally hang out. He will not be able to avoid at least talking about it." He paused, then, "You may even have to get him drunk a bit. He's got a lot of inhibitions on some things. And he really doesn't have much of a sense of adventure."

"How do you know when he is skimming?"

"For me, I remember whatever was on my mind changing quickly but very clearly, kind of like riffling through a document, for less than a second."

Jacen had had that happen several times, and matching the times with events around him, he recognized what had happened. "Got it. Thanks, Wes." Now he was armed.

The party drew to a close, and the many guests took their leave of the crowd. It dwindled, until only a couple of knots of people were left, including Jacen's closest friends. And then even Jacen himself started on his way back to their quarters.

"You look wiped."

Jacen nodded. "Thanks, Kerryn. That was the best ever." Here was his zinger. "Wesley was just full of interesting tidbits of information. He misses you, too." And he waited for the feeling.

Kerryn was a little startled. "Really? Those were pretty interesting times. Just how much did he tell you?"

Hooked!! Jacen grinned, and replied, "It was fairly random. We discussed tactics."

"What kind of tactics?" And Kerryn automatically skimmed the mind of the young man in front of him.

Jacen felt it, and brought to his thoughts an image of himself and Kerryn, naked and lying together on their bed, deeply engaged in some form of sex, and realizing the moment that Kerryn caught on, brought his eyes up to look straight at his guardian and role model. "Those kind of tactics." And he let his thoughts flow freely, closing his eyes and sighing in the fantasy for a moment, before he felt Kerryn disconnect.

Surprised to the very core, Kerryn just stood there and gaped. Oh, he certainly desired sex with Jacen, but there was a line there defined by the role of guardian.

Jacen grinned his most attractive and suggestive grin. "Caught you off guard, eh? We can talk about it later, but get used to the idea that I am very, very curious and you are like my brother. What's a little sex between consenting brothers?"

Kerryn was speechless as he watched Jacen saunter out of the room. Yes, he did look tired but he was strutting. And he realized that he had seen Wesley do just the same kind of mental thing years ago to Counselor Troi, and himself too. There was no question that that was what the tactics were about. A flare of irritation rose, and Kerryn saw that Wes was still there, one of the last few. He turned and glared at him.

Wesley had seen the whole thing, and it seemed to have been executed flawlessly. The glare from Kerryn was obviously a little much, and Wes had some explaining to do. He sighed with a grin and watched the gathering storm cloud that he hoped would get laid tonight approach.

It was then just the two of them. Wesley looked at Kerryn, and Kerryn at Wesley. A silent battle of patience as to who would break the silence. Kerryn lost.

"He was doing just fine until you had to go and help him out."

"He wants you, Kerryn. You told me yourself, you think of him as your adopted brother. He does too, but he is smart enough to see beyond that limitation."

"I'm his guardian, Wes."

"Not now that he is sixteen."

They were silent for a moment. Wes shook his head. "You don't want him, do you?"

"Of course I want him!"

"No, I mean you don't want to have sex with him. Right?"

Kerryn stalled. Wes just nodded. "Yup. You want to. When did it start?"

Before he could stop himself, he muttered, "Maybe a year and a half ago. He grew so fast, and went from being a cheeky boy to a flourishing hot young man. At fifteen he turned the heads of every teenager on the station. But he always remained non-sexual to them." Once started, Kerryn just kept going. "Never a reaction, nothing. Like an unstoppable wave. I knew his hormones were working but he was fifteen. It seemed like I had just taken him in from DS9. He is just a kid."

Wes stared, and then laughed out loud. "Kerryn, that was no kid prancing half-naked around the dance floor. He knew exactly what he was doing to everyone there. And he used you to eclipse himself. Why do you think that was?"

Kerryn stared in horror. "Oh shit it's obvious, isn't it? To justify anything that might happen." He shook his head, trying to sort it out. "I've been outmaneuvered. And I taught him all of it." Kerryn finally asked the question. "Wes, what I am I going to do?"

"About what?"

"About Jacen, damn it!" And he sat down on a chair. As he did, he noticed one of the congratulations cards on the floor where it has been dropped. He picked it up, and below the sentiment of congratulations was penned a small note, which read:

Jacen,

Happy Sixteen, JV! Dude, real sorry I can't be the one for your big V, but I am your great friend forever! Whatever you do, don't stop until you get the one you want. Don't let BB escape!

Armand

Armand was one of Jacen's best friends. Kerryn stared at the card. He remembered what it was like. The big V could only reference one thing: his virginity. Kerryn realized that Jacen must have trusted Armand enough to approach him about sex. So Jacen still truly was a virgin, and now sixteen. Kerryn could remember a little of what that was like. But he had met Imzadi at fifteen, and that had not presented a problem. He showed the note to Wes.

"Who is BB?"

"They like to use initials for things. JV is Jason."

"Who is BB?!!?"

"BB stands for Big Bro. Me. I only have one name, remember?"

Wes had that tinkling feeling that he had learned to trust under the tutelage of the Traveler. The path was so clear. "The evidence is obvious, then. His friends know that he is after you. Looks like you are the last to know."

"Wes, what am I going to do?"

Wes chose his next words carefully. "You are going to settle your thoughts. Then you are going home, and you are going to gently and sincerely educate Jacen in your sexual mastery of the male body. Then, you are going to show him the rest of the night what the bounds are to ecstasy and pleasure and make all his and your dreams come true." He took Kerryn's shoulders. "He is a lot older than sixteen, Kerryn. As you are a lot older than twenty-five. You two belong together. It's obvious, and I can even see it resonate."

"I don't know if I can do it."

"Of course you can. Can you scan him from here?" When Kerryn nodded, Wes continued. "Do it. What's on his mind?"

Kerryn flipped through Jacen's mind. His eyes widened considerably. "Oh crap, Wes. He's on our bed, naked, and is checking his inventory that he has tissues and lube nearby." Kerryn had to stop. "Wes, he wants me to wildly fuck the hell out of him!"

"What do you mean by `our bed'?"

"We've shared a bed since his first night. He hasn't slept alone since he came here."

Wes grinned. "A little intimate?"

"He was lonely. Turned down his own bed, his own room, his own suite."

"And here it is his sixteenth birthday, and you are denying him the legal fuck of his life from the man he has publicly declared as his highest interest."

"Wes, ."

"When did you and your Imzadi start?"

"That's not fair."

"Oh? Why not? When did you start?"

"Fifteen. But it was Imzadi, you know?"

"And this isn't to him?"

"Wes, you are telling me I should jump off a cliff!" And then the words came back to him. "And then to spread wings and fly."

"Someone else's advice recalled, perhaps?"

"Janice. Admiral Satii."

Wes knew what was needed. "Damn it, Kerryn, you have no sense of adventure, no sense of risk! Jacen does, and you are holding him back. Do you want him growing up like an old lady?"

"No, but -"

"But nothing! He loves you, you love him, and the only thing stopping you from being together is your asinine lack of adventure!"

Stung, Kerryn replied, "Fuck you, Wes."

"No, you had me lots already. I think you need to go where no man has gone before. And show Jacen just what his body is capable of."

They were quiet. And then Wes made the point that would make the difference. "If you don't do it, if you decide to be the parent instead of what Jacen needs and wants, you will lose him. He will look elsewhere and find someone less than you, maybe a lot less." A pause, then, "Doesn't he deserve the best?"

"Who says I am the best for him?"

"Right now, he does. That should be enough."

"And is he the best for me?"

Wes looked around. "I don't see a line of hot young guys looking for you, do you?"

"There's one, anyway, before he exceeded mortality to go off with an alien."

Wes knew the reference to himself. "We're different now. And my guide has shown me so many things that even you couldn't grasp. But really, would you take me over Jacen?"

Kerryn was silent as Wes went to the bar, poured a four- ounce bourbon, and brought it back. He handed it to Kerryn, and waited.

Kerryn was lost in thoughts. The twelve-year-old boy from DS9 was forever in his view. Mentally, Kerryn made the switch and replaced the image of Jacen with one from tonight, half-naked and prancing about. He realized as he mentally reviewed the images that he had been teasing the girls mercilessly, coming up behind them and just barely brushing his naked chest against them. No wonder everyone was so horny at the party. Jacen was living the I-am- available surge from the party, and then the image in his mind surged into Jacen, his eyes closed, his mouth on Kerryn's, for that brief unexpected yet intimate kiss. Jacen had declared Kerryn as his in that moment. And in that moment as he relived it now, his eyes, bright and shining, his sparkling smile and the touch of love and challenge flooded Kerryn.

"No."

Wesley had watched the change happen. He saw the shift in perception and the look of astonished wonder cross Kerryn's face. And then, turning him back into a sixteen year old himself, Wes watched Kerryn's face fill with anticipation and arousal.

Not sure who actually said it, but one of them did. "He isn't twelve anymore."

Pure mischief filled Kerryn. "And he has no idea what a Betazoid is capable of." He sincerely held out his hand. "Thanks, Wes."

"It took a lot of work, you know. You are quite stubborn. But I know it was worth it for all three of us."

They parted ways, and Wesley did not return for a long time. But of all the things he did, he felt that this was one of the most important, and one of the ways he could pay back his own educational experience.

When Kerryn returned to his quarters, Jacen was there in his shorts, stretched out on the bed. It was clear that he had showered and was meticulously primped.

"Kerryn, can I thank you enough for the party? I can't remember having that much fun."

"You are very welcome. That was a great group of people." Kerryn handed over the card. "This was on the floor. I thought you might want it, as the sentiment is about the best you will ever see from a true friend."

Jacen took the card, reread it and put it aside. "I would have missed that one." He got up, and came over to Kerryn. "What took you so long?"

"Wesley."

Jacen stood there, in his moment of uncertainty. Maybe Kerryn wasn't going to be into this. He decided to push into what happened. "I felt you skim me."

Kerryn laughed. "Yes, and what an experience that was. I feel you are going to be a lot more complex now that you can detect it."

Jacen studied that comment. Kerryn stretched. "This is a night unlike any I have ever had. Do you know what you were doing out there?"

Slightly crafty, Jacen raised his eyebrows. "What aspects?"

"You worked the crowd like a nymph. They were so aroused by the time you were done I thought we were going to start having orgies on the floor."

A short moment, and then together they both said, "That would have been interesting."

Kerryn pulled off his shirt, revealing the sleek and attractive skin and body underneath. "I am so happy for you." He could feel them dance around this topic. But he couldn't get himself forward.

Jacen had had it. He moved directly in front of Kerryn, his eyes glowing. He had never seen Kerryn quite so hesitant before, and Wes had warned him that this was likely. And he knew that he was going to have to do some breaking through. "I love you, Kerryn. The best day of my life was when you brought me here into our little family. It is all I have ever needed." He moved close, and wrapped his arms around his guardian brother. "I'm sixteen. I am grateful. I love you, but I am also in love with you." And he closed his eyes and brought his mouth towards his guardian, brother, and desired lover.

Kerryn met the kiss halfway with his own, and joy surged through each of them as their lips parted and the tongues, so close for so many years, began the intricate and delightful process of caressing, dancing, and sharing the love and the rising arousal. Tentatively, first as Jacen didn't know what to expect, and then with more enthusiasm as Kerryn showed him, the passion rose. Each felt the other get hard, and that brought out a moment of laughter from Kerryn and he had to break the kiss.

"What was that for?" Jacen felt like he had been deprived.

"Do you remember our first night? You complained about being five and a half inches, and I promised you that we would measure it again on your sixteenth birthday?"

Jacen nodded.

"Well, we are going to do just that. Among a great many other things." Kerryn grinned. "You are right. You are sixteen. I love you too, and I am just becoming aware of how much in love with you I am. I think it has always been there. But now, now I think I can share that with you."

Jacen blushed. "I'm very, very curious, Kerryn."

"About what specifically?"

"About sharing myself with you. About you."

"Then lets start with the basics." And they renewed the kiss, and Kerryn slid his hands down the warm skin of Jacen's back, where he encountered the waistband of the shorts. He let his hands glide over the shorts, feeling the taut muscle underneath, amid some quiet moans from Jacen. He broke the kiss again.

"What did you do that for again?"

"Easy, boy. Just how much experience have you had?"

He looked down. "Not much. Armand and I made out once, but I know he did it out of pity. I tried with two of the girls, and while they were into it, it just didn't do anything for me."

"And what do you know about sex between guys?"

Jacen grinned. "Well, I read an awful lot about the how. I have some idea what to expect."

Kerryn traced the outline of his face with a finger. "Rule number one. In sex, there should be no such thing as personal space. Sex is all about intimacy and a lot about pleasure, giving and taking. When you are more used to it, then it can become more of a playground."

"Playground?"

Kerryn chuckled. "Playground. Someday I'll tell you about that." He looked directly into Jacen's eyes, and the mutual feeling locked them together. "Just how far are you willing to go?"

His answer was immediate. "All the way, Kerryn. As far as we can go together."

"Then let's start by letting me teach you about you." And with that they moved towards the bed, discarding the rest of their clothes. Kerryn laid Jacen down on the bed on his back, and began to kiss and stroke him, innocently at first, and then with greater ardor. Jacen quickly realized that Kerryn was going to be an incredibly erotic experience, and he surrendered himself to the sensations with relish. He had come for the first time even before Kerryn had touched his cock.

Kerryn had used that opportunity to switch from hands to tongue and gave his chest and abdomen a thorough tongue- lashing. Jacen was so hot and sweet, and Kerryn was careful to slurp all the cum off his torso. And then without warning he settled his hot mouth on the tip of Jacen's cock, and Jacen gasped at the sensation.

"Oh my god, Kerryn that's wonderful!" And Kerryn settled into the best, most prolonged and most heartfelt blowjob ever. Jacen was shaking uncontrollably by the time his second orgasm broke, and filled Kerryn's mouth.

They rested for a few moments, and then he rolled Jacen over onto his stomach. The young man stretched out for him as Kerryn worked his shoulders and down his back, kneading, caressing, and applying a loving touch throughout. Jacen simply basked in the feeling, and when the hands reached his butt, kneading and massaging it was so exciting and yet relaxing at the same time that it just brought him to an incredible awareness of himself.

Kerryn was excited too. The silky young skin of Jacen was magic under his hands, and as he began to work on his butt he could barely hold on. But this was for Jacen, and when he guessed that the young man was just right he traced his fingers along the cleft and brushed right over the tight little entrance.

Jacen shivered and began to tremble. That touch there had been electric. But what happened next Jacen could never have been prepared for, as Kerryn had leaned down and gently slid his tongue along that very same path. It brought out an incredible long moan from Jacen, and Kerryn continued to apply himself to that general region. Settling in for a good long licking, his hands gently raked up and down Jacen's lower back as Kerryn continued to stimulate Jacen.

After a few minutes, Kerryn released him and rolled him back over. Jacen was breathing hard, and his cock was straining incredibly tall. Kerryn reached over for the lube, put a little on his finger, and grinned.

"When I tell you to, push out a little bit. Relax and follow the directions, and you are going to love this."

Jacen nodded, pulled his knees up and spread his legs so that Kerryn would have easy access. It was almost too much for Kerryn - he was so incredibly beautiful, and so incredibly erotic right now. He all but attacked Jacen's cock again with his mouth and one hand, causing yet another eruption of moaning from Jacen. And then he placed his finger on the virgin entrance, stopping his tongue long enough to say, "Push gently now." And he felt Jacen relax, and he gently pushed his finger in.

"OHHHHHH GOOOOD! Oh hell yes, that is so incredible!" Jacen squirmed on the finger, which slid further with tight ease until he touched that magic spot in the male body. Jacen went totally rigid, gasping for breath and whimpering until Kerryn could just make out him whispering, "So good . so good." And so, mouth on cock, finger on prostate, and sexy bodies focused on ultimate pleasure he took Jacen where he had never expected to be and with what was almost a scream Jacen flooded Kerryn's mouth again with cum, his butt clenching violently with the intensity of the orgasm that rocked him. Kerryn continued as long as he thought Jacen could take it, and after a few minutes, the cock in his mouth began to soften, and Kerryn removed himself and let his brother-lover recover.

Jacen was in heaven. Kerryn knew what he was doing, and he was doing it to him. It wasn't just sex, it was love and sex, and it was just the way he thought Kerryn would do it too. But when the time was right, he wanted his turn to lead too, and explore the many facets of Kerryn that he had been dying to get into.

Kerryn watched Jacen recover. Oh yes, he was a sexual entity for sure. This was awesome. He began to have an appreciation for just how gorgeous Jacen was, and how right it was for them.

"You are absolutely exquisite."

"Maybe, but I feel absolutely exquisite. That was everything I had been hoping it would be, so far."

"Good. I was thoroughly enjoying myself too, you know."

Jacen rolled onto his side, on one elbow. He was going to make the ultimate plunge, the request for ultimate intimacy between them. "Kerryn, Wes told me that Betazoids can take sexual activity beyond what humans can do. Is it true?"

Kerryn nodded. "It isn't for everyone. But we can enter the minds of our partners, and together build a level of intensity well beyond what any human normally can feel. It is very, very intimate, for both sides." Kerryn paused a moment. "I wasn't going to introduce you to that for a while."

Jacen looked at him. "Can I handle it?"

"Physically? Sure. Mentally? You have to ask yourself, is there anything in your mind that you object to sharing. Good or bad. During the link, if your mind wanders mine will follow it. Same with me." He looked cautiously at Jacen. "The sex part is usually pretty dominant, too. Except for a casual brush, each time I have done it I was topping my partner quite aggressively."

"Topping?"

"Fucking. On top." Kerryn grinned. "We'll cover terminology someday." Then he had an idea. He got up, and walked over to a table nearby, poured himself a shot of bourbon, and downed it. That would remove the taste of his prior activities. "Come on over here."

Jacen stood, and what a magnificent view it was. They met near the side of the bed, and Kerryn took him in his arms. "We're ready for the next adventure." And his mouth sought Jacen's as the kiss intensified. Kerryn had decided to give him a taste of what would happen if he actually linked their minds. Gaining dominance, he slowly pinned Jacen against the wall, his hands on his lover's shoulders, then on his butt, feeling their hardnesses touch, then stroke, then grind. Kerryn could feel the hard tips of his nipples brush Jacen's chest, and the reverse reaction as well. Jacen totally gave in to the physical experience, and that was when Kerryn acted.

Kerryn let his mind brush Jacen's. What he found there astounded him. The boy was literally drinking in the experience and surrendering in pleasure. No resistance, just eagerness to be used. He touched more firmly, and felt Jacen's entire body shiver against his own and then actually launch himself further in to the experience. Kerryn began to feel like he was riding a wave, and wasn't sure how much he could control this.

They moved to the bed, and Kerryn applied himself all over Jacen's delicious chest, his young sculpted neck and back to the mouth. With Jacen in lost in the sensation, Kerryn had quickly applied some lube to his own back entrance. Jacen was only seconds away from his first fuck.

Jacen could feel Kerryn in his head, holding him, and stroking mentally some special spot in his self that was just flooding him with sensation. It was breathtakingly intense, and it seemed to radiate from throughout his body. Kerryn was around him, surrounding him, and penetrating him with the most deep and satisfying feelings And then a warm glow of pressure slowly broke over Jacen's cock and spread with the best simulation and rapture that he had ever known.

Jacen then realized that it wasn't mental.

His eyes flew open in surprise to find that Kerryn had swung his leg over him, straddling him just below the waist, and he could actually see his long, straight hard cock straining upward and being lost in the warm, pliant place that his brother-lover had accepted him into. With a cry of joy and surrender, he pressed upwards once before orgasm raged through him.

Kerryn felt it happen at all levels, and right on cue with that first incredibly hard spasm he dropped downward to take in all Jacen had. Together they soared through the feelings that held them both captive, and in the mind link Jacen struggled to burst in all directions, but was prolonged by the firm grip of the Betazoid mind that held his in ultimate focus. The desperate sensation held them for too short a moment that seemed like eternity, and then it dissolved into post-coital denouement.

There was only so much that you could do in an evening, and their whole future lay before them. Kerryn leaned over, and whispered to Jacen very slowly.

"I love you."

"I love you, too." And sleep overtook them.

And that was only the beginning. Kerryn realized that Jacen meant everything to him, and there was no way that he was ever going to let his brother-lover go. Each had found the missing part in their lives in each other, and as a pair complete they worked, laughed and loved.

EPILOGUE

They stood on the sloping ridge outside their bedroom window. The three suns set slowly, causing the miraculous colors that had so stimulated them each night. The planet was at peace, the colony prosperous and confident.

The Chief Administrator and Chief Engineer of the freight trading planet of Lindar IV stood, wearing only the briefest of short pants. They were among the richest individuals in the galaxy, having run for fifteen years the Freighter Guild Base Four, and finally selling it back to the Guild in exchange for the opportunity to build and run Lindar IV. The Guild had begged them to do it, and now one year later the planet would be the first to hold dual allegiance between the Freighter's Guild and the United Federation of Planets. Tomorrow the presentation and application would be made, and both Kerryn and Jacen knew it would pass.

The last sun set, and the night fell over the lush planet. Jacen turned to Kerryn, and they shared a gentle kiss together. In all ways, this was paradise as they stepped inside to immerse themselves in each other.

AUTHOR'S NOTES

This was much longer than originally planned. The Federation usually comes off as pompous, and catching Starfleet off guard became a major theme here. I actually did a paper design for GB4, which was a fascinating experience too. I am planning to fill in the prequel story someday for Kerryn, so if you are interested send me an email and I will raise its priority. I am most proud of the dialogs between Kerryn and Admiral Satii, Kerryn and Dyr, and Kerryn and Wesley.

Oh yes, I believe that should Starfleet ever happen, they would imprint the logo on toilet paper. :-)

The Journeyman Harper (journeymanharper@yahoo.com)