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By Root 363 0

where Guinan was. He quickly cleared a space at the front of the spacious lounge. Beverly, assuming the role of the bride’s mother, hurriedly moved Lu Tung and the Pearl into place before Picard. Both father and daughter were gaping wide-eyed at Ten-Forward, not to mention the panoramic starscape visible through the lounge’s windows, so Beverly had to physically drape Lu Tung’s arm over Yao Hu’s. Meanwhile, Riker stood to the left of Kan-hi, appointing himself best man. The groom’s hands were still in shackles, but there was no time to deal with that now. Deanna held on to Hsiao Har’s shoulders, lest the jealous teenager tried to latch on to Riker again. The Dragon, looking totally at a loss, collapsed into one of the many chairs scattered throughout Ten-Forward. The sturdy duranium-alloy structure sagged beneath his weight. “I don’t understand,” the Emperor said. “What are we doing here?”

“As captain of the Enterprise,” Picard explained, “I am authorized to perform weddings aboard this ship. Right now, we need a wedding with all deliberate speed.”

“Oh, that’s all right then, I guess.” The Dragon settled down at his table, apparently content to be a spectator from now on.

Another jolt rocked the Enterprise. The floor tilted abruptly, then righted itself. Riker grabbed on to Kan-hi, now the Dragon-Heir, while Beverly steadied the Green Pearl. Hsiao Har fell on top of Deanna, but they managed to untangle themselves without too much difficulty. Picard glimpsed a flash of green through the starboard windows. So far, the shields seemed to be holding up, but for how much longer?

“Captain,” Deanna said breathlessly, “I recommend the short ceremony.”

“Agreed,” he said. Facing the young Pai couple, he cut straight to the chase. “Do you, Kan-hi, son and heir to the Dragon, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?”

“I do!” Kan-hi said. He reached for Yao Hu, but his chains held him back.

“Do you, Yao Hu, called the Green Pearl of Lu Tung, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

“Most gladly!” breathed the bride. She seemed delirious with joy.

Green energy burst over the port side of the lounge, only partially deflected by the shields. Picard struggled to keep his balance, seizing the edge of a tabletop. Bride and groom fell toward each other, each one holding the other up. The overhead lights flickered briefly, then came back on again. The Enterprise was taking a beating, Picard realized. Even a pack of lizards can take down a dragon—if the dragon is restrained and can’t fight back.

Here, at this moment, there was only one way to free the dragon… .

“By the power vested in me by the United Federation of Planets, in accordance with the temporal ruler of the Dragon Empire, I now pronounce you man and wife.”

That’s it, he thought. The wedding is official, so the treaty goes into effect.

He tapped his comm badge. “Mr. Data, fire at will!”

The wide front window of Ten-Forward offered him a perfect view as half a dozen photon torpedoes shot forth from the bowels of the Enterprise. Two of those torpedoes converged on a G’kkau ship that was directly facing the front of the Enterprise. That has to be the Fang, he thought, feeling a surge of satisfaction as the torpedoes slammed into the G’kkau flagship. Bands of blue-white energy crackled like lightning over the hull of the Fang, leaving its gleaming green surface pitted and scarred. This “fang” was going to need a lot of dental work after the battle was over. He doubted if the G’kkau would be so quick to encroach on the Dragon Empire the next time they felt the need to expand their own territory.

The Enterprise followed its torpedoes with a bombardment of steady phaser fire. Talk about fireworks, he thought, wondering if Geordi could come up with anything to match this show. Picard turned away from the window to find Kan-hi and Yao Hu still staring at him expectantly. What now? he wondered. I thought we were finished.

At the back of the room, still holding tightly to Hsiao Har, Troi caught his eye, then puckered her lips.

“Oh, yes,” he said. “I almost forgot.