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winked off the screen. In his place, his beautiful spaceship appeared, with the stars beyond it. The ship was moving slightly.
    I sighed. "Once," I said, "just once, I would like to encounter a strange group who did not enjoy being mysterious."
    No one laughed. No one was supposed to.
    I sat down in my command chair, and surveyed the bridge. My crew was working as efficiently as always, but beneath that efficiency was a tension that I had seldom felt before.
    "What are our new friends doing, Mr. Worf?" I asked.
    "They appear to be changing position," he said.
    "Just like Captain Victor said they would," Dax said.
    I nodded.
    "Captain," Worf said, "the Klingon ships are still heading this way."
    "Have they responded to our hails yet?" I asked.
    "No, sir, but they are heading directly for us."
    "Is this some type of battlefield behavior that I'm not familiar with, Mr. Worf?"
    "No, sir."
    I frowned. "Let me know when they get here."
    "Aye, sir," Worf said.
    "Still no response from Deep Space Nine, sir," Nog said, anticipating my next question.
    "The station is acting exactly by the book," Dax said, "following procedures that indicate there's an emergency on a ship. To the station we've gone missing."
    I nodded as on the screen the alien ship turned like a bird on a gentle wind and moved off at slow impulse.
    "Keep a very close eye on them, Mr. Worf," I said.
    "I have been, Captain," Worf said. Then he bent his head slightly. "Captain, the Klingon ships will arrive in less than a minute. They are heading directly for our position."
    "Hail them, Cadet. On all channels. Priority one."
    "Yes, sir," Nog said.
    I drummed my fingers on the arm of my chair. Victor wanted us to move out of the way of the Klingons. He knew that something was going to happen. Perhaps the Klingons couldn't see us. But they would be able to read our energy signature. Klingons knew how to search for cloaked ships.
    "I'm getting no response, sir," Nog said.
    "Captain," Worf said, "the Klingon ships are approaching uncloaked and fast. They have shields up, but have no weapons powered."
    "Acting as if they don't see us," Dax said to herself.
    "Hold this position. These are the last coordinates they had for us. They will search for us here," I said. "And continue hailing both the station and the approaching Klingon ships."
    "Yes, sir," Nog said.
    "Klingon ships dropping to impulse, slowing," Dax said.
    That was what I had wanted to hear. I had expected it, but I was relieved nonetheless. The alien ship had settled into a position some distance from its original spot, but it was still close to us.
    "Cadet, have you reached the Klingon ships?" I asked.
    "No, sir. There's still no response." Nog's voice went up as it usually did when he panicked. But he was working hard, no matter how out of control he sounded.
    "The lead Klingon ship is a Vor'Cha-class battle cruiser, the Daqchov," Worf said. "HoD Sotugh in command. He is not usually like this. He is quite responsive"
    "Too fast!" Dax said. "Two thousand meters and closing too fast. They don't see us."
    I had not expected this. I had thought they would come near these coordinates, not fly through them. "Get us out of their way!"
    My order came too late.
    As the Defiant moved, the Daqchov suddenly was on top of us, and then without the slightest hint of impact, we were inside the Daqchov.
    Not just rammed through the side, but we actually passed through their hull. For a brief instant I got a glimpse of Sotugh sitting in his command chair, seemingly interested in his viewscreen, but clearly not braced for any impact.
    Then a wave of nausea swept over me, as if the entire world had been turned inside out, along with the insides of my ear. I had no memory of ever being so dizzy before. The ship spun, and I had to cling to my command chair to keep my balance.
    The rest of the crew was clinging too.
    We were all superimposed on the inside of the Daqchov. It was as if the Daqchov had swallowed the Defiant, as if we all