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“Ma’am, I just got a message from Starbase 1. Zormonk is-is dead.”

The president’s face fell. “What?”

“According to Dr. Emmanuelli’s report, the cal-tai was too advanced. If she had been able to get to him sooner-even as little as a month sooner-she might have had a chance to save him.”

“Damn.”

“There’s more, ma’am. According to Chirurgeon P’Trell’s report, Dr. Emmanuelli went to extraordinary lengths to try to save him, long past the point where most doctors would have given up, and he’s put her in for a commendation.” She took a breath, then added, “She accepted the commendation right before she resigned her commission, effective immediately.”

The president’s office grew very quiet. It stayed that way for some time.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

NAN BACCO ADMIRED THE VIEW through the shuttlecraft window of the verdant field where the signing ceremony would be taking place. Thousands of Koas-large arach-noids with octopus-like heads-were already gathered to watch the event, which would end with Koa’s official entry into the United Federation of Planets.

The shuttle belonged to the U.S.S. Venture, which had escorted the president to the Mu Arae system for the ceremony. That vessel was in orbit, alongside the U.S.S. da Vinci, which was formally representing Starfleet at the signing ceremony. Normally a tiny Saber-class vessel attached to the Starfleet Corps of Engineers wouldn’t be assigned to represent Starfleet at a signing-indeed, that was the type of duty that the Galaxy-class Venture generally had-but it had been the da Vinci crew who’d aided the Koas when they’d moved their planet to its new home, including deciphering the controls on the box into which the planet had been placed and opening it to let the planet out. The da Vinci crew were heroes in the Koas’ eyes.

When the shuttle touched down, Nan started walking slowly to the rear. Esperanza was next to her, and she said, “You’ve been awfully quiet, ma’am.”

Chuckling, Nan said, “I’d think you’d have been relieved.”

“Well, going an entire shuttle trip without a lecture on the physics of traveling in a box, or the history of the S.C.E., or more gnashing of teeth about the Pioneers not making the Series was something of a relief, ma’am, but it’s pretty out of character.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Nan sighed as she disembarked. They had landed about thirty meters from the backstage area, where Caliph Sicarios, as well as Councillors Mazibuko and Jix and several members of the da Vinci crew, were waiting to greet her. As they traversed that distance, Kenshikai, Aoki, Rydell, and T’r’wo’li’i’ walking alongside them, she said, “I’ve just been thinking about all the crap that’s come down. The Tzenkethi are hopping mad about Zormonk, the Imperial Romulan State is making things even worse in Romulan space, which I wouldn’t have thought possible, it’s looking increasingly likely that Gelemingar’s bill is going to pass, which is gonna be an absolute nightmare, and the Tholians are acting up again. Plus, of course, there’s the Pioneers, which I’d managed to put out of my head until you kindly reminded me, thank you so much.”

Esperanza smirked. “My pleasure, ma’am.” Then her face grew more serious. “Ma’am, do you remember when you visited my parents one time when I was about nine-it was right after I had a fight with one of my friends in school?”

Nan frowned. “No.” She chuckled. “Honestly, Esperanza, there was no way in hell I could keep track of what you were carrying on about at that age-I just nodded a lot and let you babble on incoherently.”

“That explains why I find the tactic so useful against you, ma’am-knew there was karmic justice in the galaxy. In any case,” she said quickly to overlay another snide remark, “there was one time where I’d gotten into a fight with my best friend, Irina. All our other friends took her side, and I felt like I was all alone. I told you that I hated all my friends and I was never gonna speak to them again. You told me that I shouldn’t say things like that, because friends are too important.