The time passed slowly for the members of Omega Team--now they would finally see if their guess had been right.

"Dropping us out of warp, going to full impulse," relayed Iv'Oor.

"Getting the first clear readings on the system now--" began Ykinati.

"Reading a few dozen spacecraft like those we encountered previously--they don't seem to be aware of us," continued Rojc.

"There's definitely something here," added Ykinati, "Reading some sort of structure--larger than spacedock--orbiting the star."

"Onscreen."

The display zoomed in on the star. It was unlike anything any of them had seen before.

"I don't know quite how to interpret these readings sir--too much interference from both the star and that...whatever that is," said Ykinati with awe, "It's roughly three times the size of the largest Federation facility--Starbase 7."

"Lifesigns?" asked Knight with a similar awe.

"Registering several million, sir," replied Rojc, "Not all match those of the Unknowns."

"Speculation?"

"The staging point for an invasion," replied Rojc flatly.

"I'm reading a power signature similar to that of the modified Iconian Gateway tech--definitely a transport center," added Ykinati, "There's also evidence of ship building on the side furthest from the star."

"Mr. Iv'Oor--take us in for a closer look."

Acting under the guise of its cloak, Iv'Oor stealthily moved the Fearless closer to the vast alien structure.

"Holding at 500 kilometers--we risk detection due to solar flares if we move in closer without a plan in mind," detailed Iv'Oor.

"The size is immense, sir, but some of the technology seems awfully primitive by our standards," relayed Ykinati.

"Agreed," supplied Rojc, "The weapon and shield technology isn't that much beyond what we encountered on the sentry vessels--only differences are probably due to the size of the installation."

"What can you tell me about their sensors, though?" asked Knight.

"Sophisticated--but going right through us. While they may be aware of cloaking technology, their sensors appear not to be calibrated to detect it," replied Ykinati.

"Makes sense," said Iv'Oor, "They haven't attacked the Romulans, Breen, or Klingons yet, so they wouldn't have firsthand details or cause for concern of retaliation from them."

"Keep going, Mr. Ykinati."

"Their sensors seem to primarily be focused on the star--probably as safety precautions--and long range targeting, like a subspace telescope."

"Their communication networks also seem extremely advanced," added Rojc, "We're definitely not going to be able to interface with their system without them detecting us."

Knight tapped his communicator. "Engineering--are you getting all of this?"

"Yes sir," came Nicot's voice over the comm-link, "I'm trying to calculate a blind spot for us to insert units at."

"What about internal layout--any indications on a main computer core or whatnot?"

"Difficult to tell at this range still, sir. I'm going to try and isolate an insignificant portion of their network to see how it works--if all goes well, I'll try interfacing with the system."

"Keep the blind spot your priority, Mr. Nicot. I don't want you trying to get onto their network until insertion teams are in the starbase."

"Understood sir. Engineering out."

"Mr. Iv'Oor--begin infiltration preparation. Mr. Ykinati--take over at helm."

"Aye sir," the two officers responded simultaneously. Iv'Oor got up and left the Bridge, while Ykinati moved from her station to the helm station.

"Wait a minute--" said Rojc, his voice trailing off.

"What?" asked Knight impatiently after Rojc didn't continue.

"More ships incoming by the looks of it," replied Rojc, never taking his eyes off the display on his console, "I'm trying to ID them--they don't appear to be the same as the Unknowns."

"Can we get them onscreen?"

The display flickered for a moment before showing the far-off view of a small cluster of starships. After a moment longer, the display magnified the images. The identity of the new ships proved to be quite unsettling.

"That's a Dominion battlecruiser flanked by four attack vessels!" announced Ykinati.

Rojc waved off Knight as he began to speak. "Hold on--they're directing a transmission at the alien starbase. I'm trying to tap in."

For a long moment, there was almost complete silence on the Bridge.

"This is Dominion Battlecruiser Thi'ya to Dravic starbase. We have come to respond to your offer pertaining to the Federation ship databases."

"Acknowledged Dominion task force. Welcome. Follow ship Entiliza into Docking Hangar 2. Dravic Frontier I out."

The blood drained from Knight's face. He was speechless.

"I think our timetable just changed," said Rojc quietly after another long silence.

Knight didn't respond to Rojc, instead he just tapped his commbadge. "Mr. Nicot, you have exactly two minutes to find that blind spot."

It was roughly five minutes later that Omega Team stood in full field gear in the Fearless's transporter room.

"I'm beaming you onto the station directly adjacent to where the ship is docked," began Nicot, "After that, its going to be a good five minutes before I can tap into their network and feed you schematics for the station." He paused. "I recommend that you do not try to access any computer stations."

"All right, Team, callsigns from here on out," commanded Knight, "Remember to keep your eyes open and your minds focused--this is going to take a lot of split second thinking." He nodded and the team, excepting Nicot stepped onto the Transporter pad.

"We're all ready to go on this end, sir," reported Nicot, "Energizing."

Omega Team stood frozen as the transporter effect took hold of them and demolecularized them. As the transporter cycle came to a finish seconds later, the Team rematerialized on the alien starbase, inside a dark corridor.

Rojc was the first to act, as he blinked his eyesight to infra-red and readied his phaser rifle. He surreptitiously made his way to the far end of the corridor while Iv'Oor covered him. Meanwhile, Ykinati had morphed to take similar advantage of the darkness and headed towards the other end of the corridor. By the time the three officers had returned confirming the corridor secure, Knight, Estrun, and Einhorn had their infra-red goggles in place.

"Anything significant to report?" whispered Knight.

"Not really sir," answered Rojc, "The larger corridor towards our left is dimly lit--which could indicate that it is a more major corridor."

"Environmental details?"

"Forty-two degrees celcius, eighty-nine percent humidity. Air is mostly oxygen-nitrogen-carbon dioxide, but there are a few other things I can't place," responded Ykinati, "Corridors are a poly-neutronium alloy, same as the exterior of the structure. No apparent markings of any sort on the walls or floor. Computer terminals are at every junction."

"Neutronium--means we'll need to sabotage this place from the inside--the few explosives we brought with us won't do enough damage," Rojc said contemplatively.

"Hold on, XO. Destroying this place isn't within mission parameters," said Knight, "We don't have the time or resources."

"Are you kidding me?" asked Rojc incredulously, "If my guess is right, this is going to be the flashpoint for an invasion of the Federation--we're having enough trouble dealing with the Dominion as it is."

"I agree with XO's assessment, sir," added Ykinati, "The prospect of these Dravic and the Dominion working together is frightening--we need to cripple these aliens now before they can move against us."

"You're both out of line, but I'll take it under advisement," replied Knight with a scowl. "Team Leader to Tech--report."

"I have access to their system with a good deal of freedom, but its a very large and complex system--I'm still trying to locate the station schematics."

"Acknowledged, Tech. Hurry it up. Team Lea--"

"Stand by, Team Leader."

Omega Team stood alert, but idle as they waited for Nicot's latest news.

"Tech..." said Knight, becoming irritated.

"Feeding the schematics into your tricorders now. I've mapped out what I believe to be the best route to each of the major computer cores."

"Good work, Tech." Knight paused. "What can you tell me about station self-destruct?"

"Its too highly guarded for me to look at on this connection, sir. I'll need the direct connection to a computer core to get that kind of info."

"Understood, Tech. Team Leader out." Knight opened his tricorder and glanced through the station schematics before turning back to the rest of his team. "Recon Team--head for the core Tech has designated B. We'll take A."

Ykinati nodded. "We're on it, Team Leader." With that, Ykinati, Estrun, and Einhorn started down the far end of the dark corridor.

Knight glanced at Iv'Oor and Rojc. "Let's go."

It seemed too easy. Security patrols were almost non-existent; no guard stations or checkpoints; and with Nicot blocking their signatures from the station's detection grid, each unit reached their target computer core without incident.

Core A turned out to be a rather large maze-like room. Iv'Oor stayed behind at the entrance they had just come through, while Knight moved to the far side of the room to guard the other entrance; Rojc moved to the main terminal of the computer core and tapped his communicator. "Command Unit is in place for interface with Core A, Tech. Please advise."

There was a brief pause before Nicot responded. "Sorry for the delay, XO--just getting Recon Unit set up. Take your PADD and call up program Delta on the main menu, then run it by the core main terminal to begin the interface. Then your job is done. Just stay put and watch the core."

"Understood, Tech. XO out." Rojc did as instructed and then put the PADD away. He glanced over at Iv'Oor, still in his line of sight, who smiled at him. A barely audible noise from Knight's direction attracted Rojc's attention. He motioned to Iv'Oor to cover him and stealthily advanced towards the far entrance to Core A. As Rojc rounded the last obstruction, he was unexpectedly blindsided. He hit the far wall hard and nearly blacked out.

The Dravic that attacked Rojc began to advance towards him, while another slowly squeezed the life out of Captain Knight. Rojc grabbed for the phaser at his waist, only to have it kicked away after drawing it. Rojc's attacker belted him across the side of the head before pausing.

"Puny creature!" the alien laughed hideously. It again struck Rojc.

Iv'Oor came running, drawing the alien's attention and causing it to turn away from Rojc. In one swift motion, Rojc leapt from the floor and slammed his elbow with deadly force into the Dravic's neck. It collapsed into a heap with a sickening gurgle.

The remaining alien threw the unconscious Knight into Iv'Oor, knocking her down and causing her weapon to fall to the floor. It pivoted to face the wheezing and badly bruised Rojc. The Dravic howled a deafening cry and charged.

The alien never made it. A blue phaser bolt from Iv'Oor's phaser rifle drilled a gaping hole through the assailant's torso. It fell dead.

"Thanks for the save," croaked Rojc.

Iv'Oor nodded grimly. "Team Leader is out cold. You don't look so good yourself."

Rojc slowly stooped down and collected his and Knight's fallen equipment. "We're returning to the beam-in point. I'll carry Team Leader; grab the equipment and take point."

Iv'Oor opened her mouth to protest. "You're in no shape to carry him."

Rojc rose and grimaced as he straightened out. "This isn't the time to question orders, Weapons. Let's move."

Iv'Oor frowned and grabbed the extra equipment from Rojc. Rojc meanwhile grabbed Knight and heaved his unconscious form over his right shoulder. They surreptitiously proceeded into the adjoining corridor, expecting to find an ambush which wasn't there. Instead, the lights were now dimly blinking.

"Tech to Command Unit--the system has been alerted to your presence. Get the hell out of there!"

"A little earlier of a warning would have been nicer, Tech," grunted Rojc annoyed, "We're on our way. Prepare to receive us. Tell Recon Unit to pull out as well. XO out."

The return trip to the beam-in point was far more intense than the journey to the computer core. Three times did a two-person patrol come upon Iv'Oor, Rojc, and the unconscious Knight, only to be promptly shot by Iv'Oor. The final obstacle remaining between them and the beam-in point was a level 7 forcefield.

"XO to Tech--we're blocked by a forcefield. Get it down."

"That's going to take time, XO. Security systems are on full alert--I'm having trouble with them at the moment."

"We don't have time," snapped Rojc, "We're being pursued."

Iv'Oor and Rojc could now clearly hear the footsteps of their pursuers.

"Jump through the forcefield--now!"

They did as Nicot said just as six Dravic turned the corner. The forcefield flickered for only a moment; just long enough to allow the Starfleet officers to get through before it returned to full strength. They stumbled to their feet and took off running once again.

"Do we have Recon Unit yet, Tech?" asked a groggy Captain Knight.

"They just beamed aboard, sir."

"Good, then we're getting out of here. Helm, set course--"

"One moment, Captain. If you can give me five minutes I can set the station's communication software to broadcast and trigger their self-destruct."

"We don't have five minutes," said Iv'Oor from helm, "There's a solar flare which will reveal us in less than two."

Knight nodded. "You've got that long to enact your plan, Tech. Bridge out." He turned to Rojc, "Mr. Rojc--bring shields and weapons to stand-by and prepare to dis-engage the cloak. Mr. Iv'Oor--plot a course that gets out of this system as quickly as possible."

Both officers nodded and responded affirmatively to Knight's orders.

"We've got a minute to go until that solar flare reaches us," updated Iv'Oor.

Knight stared straight ahead into the viewscreen, watching the impending flare. In mere moments they'd find out just how combat capable the Fearless was. The seconds trickled by--the perceived flow of time interrupted only by Ykinati's arrival on the Bridge. It wasn't long before their time was up.

"Station weapons are powering up and locking onto us! Enemy vessels are now noticing us and moving to intercept!" reported Rojc, "Shields and weapons are ready to go. We're at full alert status."

Knight opened the comm-link to Main Engineering. "Nicot!" he shouted.

"Security went up another notch when we were detected. I think my program went through--we'll know soon."

"That'll have to be good enough. Get us out of here, Mr. Iv'Oor."

The Fearless roared to life as it deftly avoided the Dravic station's weapons fire. The approaching enemy ships, however, would prove to be another matter.

"That flare is interfering with warp drive. We're going to have to fight our way out," notified Ykinati.

"Do what's necessary to get us through those ships in one piece, Mr. Rojc," ordered Knight.

"That could be a problem, sir. Dominion ships are entering the battle..." informed Rojc.

The Fearless went into action against the nearest Dravic starships and hastily destroyed them.

"...Or not..." finished Rojc. "USS Endeavour is entering the system now. They're coming in guns blazing."

Between the firepower of the two state-of-the-art Starfleet vessels, the enemy proved to be little threat. Within mere moments, the small armada of Dravic and Dominion vessels was no more than a collection of ionized particles and melted bulkheads. Then the shockwave hit.

The crews of both ships were thrown about as the initial force of the shockwave overwhelmed their ships' inertial dampening systems.

Knight staggered back into his command chair after pulling himself off the floor. "What the hell was that?"

The rest of the Bridge officers of the Fearless resumed their stations. "The Dravic station is...gone, sir," reported Rojc, slightly stunned.

"What?!" bellowed Knight.

"Destroyed, sir, completely," responded Ykinati, "The destruction of the station seems to have had an adverse effect on the star--it's going nova."

"Get us out of here--maximum available speed!"

The Fearless and the Endeavour launched into the highest warp speed available to them and shot out of the system; the explosive force of the Ildari star following closely behind. A parsec later, the two Federation vessels dropped out of warp.

"Endeavour is hailing us," reported a shaken Iv'Oor.

The viewscreen changed to the interior of the Endeavour, where Commander Saria Kintain sat in the command chair. "Glad to see we weren't too late to help out, Fearless. Everyone alright over there?"

"In a manner of speaking. Thanks for the save, Commander," replied Knight glibly. "How bad is it over there?"

"Dark, but with a silver lining. Captain took a nasty blow after that first shockwave. We're running mostly on back-ups right now. We should have everything restored in a few hours."

"Understood, Endeavour. We'll keep an eye on you until then. Fearless out."

"Captain's Log, Stardate 51345.23. Our mission is believed to have been a success. Thanks to Lieutenant Nicot's ingenious use of Bynar programs, we have retrieved a great deal of information on these aliens that call themselves the 'Dravic'. While we were not able to confirm the success of the broadcast of the Bynars cleaning program, Nicot remains positive that his program succeeded in doing so. Also thanks to Lieutenant Nicot, we were able to successfully destroy what Commander Rojc has surmised to be the staging point for an invasion force. All Omega Team members excelled in their respective duties. I have decided to recommend both Lieutenant Nicot and Commander Rojc for full commendation and promotion. End log."