Ahepkur is grumbling worse than the nacelles are by the time we drop out of warp at Vulcan. I'm trying to ignore both, but ignoring an angry Klingon is probably even more dangerous than ignoring a malfunctioning warp drive. Some time, I really must get the hang of this diplomacy thing. It's so much easier on the fixtures and fittings than massive violence.
Vulcan local space is scarily empty. The only ships in sight are Spirits of Earth and Messalina. OK, so they haven't been shot down, this is a good sign. On the other hand, there is some debris showing on my tactical scan....
"Messalina is hailing, sir," the comms ensign - Leo - reports.
"On screen."
T'Laihhae's face appears in the viewer. "Vice Admiral Grau. You made good time from Andoria."
"Well, you know, fair seas and a following wind and all that. Um. Starfleet Command kind of wants you and Tylha to back off a bit -"
"Our arrival has precipitated a revolt by the non-Hegemony Vulcans," says T'Laihhae. "They seem to have been planning it for some time - and have taken full advantage of the absence of the Hegemony fleet."
"Right. Right. Yeah. It's hard to run a military dictatorship when you've lost most of the military. Um. Dare I ask how it's going?"
"Tylha and I concocted an approach which we thought would yield the best results." T'Laihhae flashes an on-off smile at me, but it looks - I don't know - strained, somehow. "Affronted dignity, and holding to Federation principles despite intolerable provocation. It seems to have worked. The remaining Hegemony die-hards were very few in number, and have mostly died, hard, or been forced to surrender. The leader of the Vulcan counter-revolution has even asked for the planet to be readmitted to the Federation."
"Oh. Right. Starfleet's going to be a lot happier when they hear that. Come to think of it, I'm a lot happier. Ring out sweet solstice bells and all that."
"I'm relieved to hear it," T'Laihhae says dryly. "I'm not sure what we could have done to reverse the effects of our actions, had they disapproved. I suppose we could try to reinstate the Hegemony, if your commanding officers require it -"
I laugh. "You know what? I think they'll stretch a point. All righty, then. What state are you in, and what can we do to help?"
"Vulcan's forces seem to have most things well in hand. We asked for the known conspirators - T'Nir and her clique - to be handed over for trial. We are... still working on that."
"That's a major chunk of the Hegemony leadership, isn't it?"
"Probably the central element. D'Kalius, of course, died at Andoria... of the Romulans, Vorram was shot by the Vulcans while resisting arrest. Tylha is on the planet's surface now, attempting to take T'Nir and the three Vulcan ministers into custody."
"Sounds good.... Wait." She skated over something. I slap the side of my head, and Two of Twelve sulkily serves up the information. She's been sullen ever since that transwarp jump. "The last Romulan on the list. Vorkov. What happened to him?"
T'Laihhae's expression closes up like a bear trap. "Vorkov is in custody."
That total lack of facial expression speaks volumes. "Whose custody?"
Her eyes flash. "Mine."
Oh, God, little Ronnie is going to have to tread carefully, here. "You've got some sort of history with this Vorkov, right? You sure you ought to have hold of him? Um, for the sake of, uh, avoiding the appearance of conflicts of interest -"
"I am quite sure." You could cut metal with her tone, and there is no compromise in her eyes. There is never any compromise in Romulan eyes. Never was even in the old days, when we never even saw their eyes.
"We'll need to... um. I don't know. What are you going to do with him?"
"Tylha and I decided that we should demand extradition to the Federation for all T'Nir's associates. The Romulan Republic may have additional claims to make - after all, the Hegemony has been attacking Republic citizens since its creation. Until matters are decided, I will retain Vorkov in custody." The last six words sound like they've been engraved in solid neutronium.
"All right." I don't know how far I can - or should - push this. "For the moment, right, until matters are decided, fair enough. What's the situation with the rest of the Hegemony? They can't have had their whole force at Andoria...."
"The Hegemony's hold has been broken swiftly. I rather think that Dorok and his people have been planning this for some time. Hegemony security was thinly stretched, and has -" T'Laihhae breaks off, and turns to something off-screen. Someone says something - I can't make out the words, over the comms link, but whatever it is, it sounds urgent. And it raises some kind of reaction on that closed-off Romulan face, too. Concern, maybe?
T'Laihhae turns back to me. "News from Vulcan," she says. "T'Nir and the Vulcan ministers have retreated to her family home, where they have used the katric ark of Bresar to create... some sort of psionic field." She pauses, then adds. "Tylha seems to be caught in it."
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