Chapter Seven
Shuttlecraft Honeycut
Main Power Station
Southern Continent, Lyshan IV
Stardate 53429.1
The shuttlecraft landed near the large structure which the Lyshani called South Power Five and Lieutenant Commander Taylor Farrell immediately saw the problem. The Dominion had hit the power stations first, destroying infrastructure that the Lyshani resistance would use against them. The other power stations had not been too badly hit but this one had taken the brunt of the damage. While the others were repaired, this one remained offline. It was therefore Farrell's job to bring it back online as quickly as possible, to provide power for the southern and western parts of the continent. Her eight-strong team followed her out of the shuttlecraft with all their gear before it lifted off to return to the ship.
'Sir, I'm picking up lifesigns inside,' Lieutenant Mitchell reported as she stared at her tricorder. 'About thirty Lyshani but I can't be more specific from here.'
'I guess we should go and find out then. They're not supposed to be there so phasers on stun. And keep your eyes open. There's no telling what is waiting for us.'
They strode forward, walking just a metre or so apart in case they were attacked. The power station was geothermal, taking its energy directly from the region's seismically active volcanic range, and Farrell knew from experience just what it took to keep something like that working properly without upsetting the delicate balance. If the people living there were dangerous, the whole region would be in trouble.
Another member of her team sidled up to her, and the formation adjusted to compensate. 'Sir, look at the writing on the wall.'
Farrell glanced at the wall and it took her a moment to recognise the imagery. There was an image on the wall that was a cross between the Dominion's insignia and the Republic of Lyshan. She halted and turned to the others.
'There may be a Vorta or even some Jem'Hadar here that we can't detect. Whoever these Lyshani we have to believe that they are victims unless they give us cause to think otherwise. Is that understood?'
A chorus of “aye sirs” and “yes ma'am” answered her.
'Good, let's get moving. The sooner we're able to get this power station working, the sooner the people can try to get back to their lives. We have plenty of work to do here. The sewage system needs repairing and the other continents need plenty of work.'
No one said a work as they closed the last hundred metres.
Farrell was the first one to notice that the door was slightly ajar and held up her hands. 'I am Commander Farrell from the starship Stonehouse. We've come to help you get the power station working again.'
'We have enough for our needs, interloper!' a male voice called out.
'What about the rest of the people in the region?'
'They do not believe in the Great Revolution and need no power. The Dominion will rule over us all in benevolence.'
'The Dominion have gone from this world.'
'And we are it's caretakers until they return.'
Farrell sighed and took a step forward. An energy blast hit the ground less than a metre in front of her.
'You will come no further!'
She tapped her combadge. 'Lieutenant zh'Meras, we have a situation here.'
'Go ahead, Commander,' the ship's chief engineer and Corps. Liaison replied.
'There's a Dominion-worshipping cult holed up in the power station. About thirty of them. We need to get them out if we're to get it up and running again. Apparently they have part of it active, enough for their needs, but that's all.'
'Let me speak to the Captain and I'll get back to you, zh'Meras out.'
Farrell's engineering team moved closer together to discuss the situation and try to figure out a solution.
'We should beam in a flash-bang grenade and knock them out,' one said.
'We should just beam them out and move in; get the Lyshani militia here to deal with them,' another suggested.
'Why don't we leave them in there and do something else until we're allowed in?' asked a third.
'We'll wait until the Captain gives us an order,' Farrell replied. 'You've all worked on detachment before, you know how this works.'
'We usually work on small jobs, Commander,' Mitchell said. 'This is a large job for the nine of us. We have a whole planet to fix.'
'Zh'Meras' engineers will assist us once we know what needs doing and how long it is likely to take. Once the technological stuff is done, we'll have to teach the Lyshani survivors how to look after everything themselves.'
'What do you mean, survivors?'
'They lost almost forty percent of their population to the Dominion's war machine. The government is a puppet regime to Clan Jerin and we have play nice with everyone so the Cardassians can have this world in one piece once they sort themselves out.'
'Zh'Meras to Farrell.'
'Go ahead, Lieutenant.'
'Captain Cole has authorised you to do whatever is necessary to gain entrance to the power station short of murder. This station represents a major part of rebuilding this world's infrastructure. He is speaking with the Premier at the moment to send the militia out to your location.'
'Aye sir, Farrell out.'
'This is going to go badly,' Mitchell stated. 'The militia are probably controlled by the largest clan and will likely kill the cult members. They might even damage the power station. We have to get in there first, Commander.'
'Suggestions?' Farrell asked.
'Diplomacy is usually the best way,' Ensign Qala muttered in her insectoid tongue, 'but with the cult, I'm not so sure that would work. At least not in the time we have available.'
'We need to gain access. Scan the roof and see if there are any entrance points.'
'You have a plan?' Mitchell asked.
'The beginnings of one. See if you find anything we can use to get up on that roof.'
'I can get up there,' Crewman Raih said, stepping forward.
'How, Crewman?' Farrell asked.
'I'm what you humans would call an arachnid. I could scale the wall easily.'
Farrell smiled and Mitchell whispered into the young enlisted man's ear. 'Now you've done it.'
'Do you have all eight legs?'
'Yes ma'am,' Raih answered and adjusted his uniform to unfurl them.
'Isn't that uncomfortable?'
'Natural ability.'
'Excellent.'
Makes sense 
^^
