Her face flushed red with anger, Major Kira stormed straight into Captain Sisko's office at warp speed. "I can't believe it! I can't believe Starfleet has invited them to the station!"
Captain Benjamin Sisko of Deep Space Nine resisted the urge to raise his hands to rub at his forehead and get rid of his instantaneous headache. Standing in front of his desk was a very irate Major Kira yelling about Starfleet's latest orders.
"Major, if you would just calm down for a moment..." Sisko was actually able to start saying.
"Calm down. Calm down!" Kira all but sputtered, clenching her hands into fists. "How do you expect me to calm down when I find out, through the rumour mill I might add," she said with a glare at the Captain, "that the Federation had invited Cardassians aboard this station to discuss refugee status. Refugee?! What exactly is that suppose to mean! We're at war with Cardassia and The Dominion, but the Federation deems it appropriate to discuss refugee status with them? What in the name of the Prophets are those pompous Admirals...."
Sisko managed to control his instinctive wince. *Female, Bajoran redheads. Five years on this station and I still don't know how to deal with them. There should be a survival course offered at Starfleet Academy.*
Kira threatened to go on *and on* in this vein until Captain Sisko held up a hand to silence her.
"Major I can understand your concerns but there are special circumstances that you need to be aware of."
Kira flopped herself down in the chair that faced Sisko's desk. "What circumstances would those be, sir," she said trying to contain her sarcasm, not really succeeding.
Sisko leaned forward in his chair resting his arms on his desk and steepling his fingers. "My official orders from Starfleet Command came over subspace an hour ago. I apologize that you had to hear from other sources before I could inform you, but that is not my fault."
Kira nodded her understanding of that point. She had heard the rumour from a Bajoran official and had immediately came to Ops to find out if it was true. "And just what are your official orders, sir?"
"I have been informed that the Federation Council and the Bajoran government have agreed to hold talks with a group of Cardassians that are seeking political refugee status with us." Sisko leaned back in his chair again and waited for the explosion. He did not have to wait long.
Major Kira shot back out of her chair. "WHAT! The Bajoran Government has agreed to this? I can't believe it! On whose authority? I have a hard time believing that we would grant refugee status to a species that oppressed us ruthlessly for so long. What is Shakeer thinking of?" Kira started pacing in front of his desk muttering a few choice Bajoran curses under her breath.
"Major, please, calm down," Sisko ordered sharply. "I am calling a meeting of the senior staff in one hour. I will be giving you all the details of our mission then. I expect you to be there with an open mind. It is the opinion of both our governments that there will be some benefit to us to conduct these negotiations and I will not have them disrupted. Do I make myself clear, major?"
Kira drew herself up to attention. "Perfectly clear, sir," she replied stiffly
"Fine then. I will see you at the briefing. Dismissed"
As Kira left his office Sisko could not help but think that this was going to be a very interesting couple of weeks.
)*()*()*()*()*()*()*(
Sitting around a vast conference table, talking amongst themselves, the senior staff of Deep Space Nine waiting for Captain Sisko to join them.
"Does anyone know what this meeting is about?" Chief O'Brien asked curiously.
Doctor Julian Bashir leaned back in his chair. "I hope it's not another mission into Cardassian space. I'm getting a little tired of playing target for The Dominion." Julian glanced around the room and noticed Kira turning an interesting shade of red. *Interesting, that's her �I'm-as-mad-as-hell-and-some-one-is-going-to-pay' look.* "Major do you know what this is all about?"
Kira opened her mouth to reply but snapped it shut immediately when Captain Sisko entered the room.
Taking his chair he looked around the room noting the curious looks coming from his crew.
"I am going to come straight to the point. The Federation Council and the Bajoran Government have agreed to hold talks to see if we will grant refugee status for a group of Cardassians that are seeking political asylum." Sisko held up is hand as his staff threatened to break into debate. "Let me finish."
"A group of Cardassians calling themselves Hebitians have petitioned the Federation for asylum based on persecution due to their political beliefs. The Hebitians will be coming to the station to negotiate with Admiral Ewen MacDonald and Bajoran Minister Garrett R'ef . In return the Hebitians will give us tactical knowledge of the Cardassian home system and any other information that we deem necessary."
Sisko could see the look of amazement that his senior officers tried to cover. He smiled inwardly. *I don't blame them for looking stunned. It's not every day you hear of Cardassians willing to �betray' their great State.*
He looked curiously at Julian who seemed to be the only one handling this unexpected news with an outward appearance of acceptance. *Not surprising really.* Sisko thought as he remembered how Julian had surprised and shocked everyone two months ago by marrying the Cardassian tailor, Garak. Everyone on the station had been aware of the obvious friendship between Julian and Garak as the pair was usually seem sharing lunches at the Replimat together. But no one had noticed the deep, consuming passion that had sprung up between the two men.
Sisko was still amazed at the level of attachment displayed between Julian and Garak when they were seen in public together. Somehow, their relationship had taken on a whole new dimension without any of Julian's friends being aware of the change.
The residents of the station had been floored by the revelation, to say the least, Sisko thought, but Julian and Garak's obvious devotion and love for each other was slowly changing everyones opinion.
"When will these Hebitians be coming to the station?" Odo asked bringing Sisko back to the present.
Sisko noticed the Changeling stealing a quick look at his lover Kira. The major's face was still a bright shade of red. Odo nodded slightly to himself as if finally understanding what had put her in an incredibly foul mood.
"A group of twenty Hebitians will be docking here in two days. Their leader's name is Gul'en Larin Darheel. Admiral MacDonald and Minister Garrett will be arriving tomorrow to prepare for the discussions," Captain Sisko looked over at his Chief of Security. "Odo, you will be in charge of coordinating the security precautions with Starfleet security. There are to be strict security measures set up to ensure the safety of the Hebitians."
"How are the Car.. Hebitians going to get out of Cardassian space? The border is heavily guarded by the Dominion," Julian asked with a frankly puzzled look on his handsome face.
"According to the communique from Starfleet, the Hebitians slipped around the Dominion blockade into the Badlands and entered neutral territory a few days ago," Sisko replied.
"And how do we know that this is not some sort of trap set by the Cardassians" Chief O'Brien asked skeptically. "No one has ever heard of these "Hebitian" Cardassians. Definitely sounds like some Cardie trap to me. You know you can't trust them," Miles O'Brien shot a quick glance over at Dr. Bashir. It was apparent that Miles still had some problem with Julian's marriage to Garak.
Julian looked away, trying to control his anger at his friend. The rest of the senior officers looked uncomfortable at the turn in the conversation until Sisko stepped in again.
Noting the look on Julian's face, Sisko was moved on. "I understand your concerns, Chief, but the Federation and Bajor have decided to take a chance that this opportunity is for real," Sisko replied. He tapped a few commands into his PADD. "I will make all the information that was sent to me available for you to review. If you have any concerns I want you to bring them up to me tomorrow morning."
Sisko's gaze flickered across the room at his senior staff. He knew that many of them would have personal feeling wrapped up in this mission. "Off the record, I know that this will be a difficult assignment for you all. But we owe it to ourselves to act accordingly and give these talks a chance. Dismissed"
)*()*()*()*()*()*()*(
Julian slowly wandered down the promenade on his way back to his quarters. He wasn't needed in the infirmary and was looking forward to spending some time with his new husband.
When the staff meeting had finished, Captain Sisko had asked Julian to remain behind while the rest of the senior officers filed out of the room. Coming quickly to the point, Captain Sisko had requested that Julian ask Garak for any information on the Hebitians that his husband might know. Since Julian was already planning on asking Garak about the Hebitians, he readily agreed to find out what he could.
Extremely curious about this new circumstance, Julian quickened his pace to get back to his quarters. Hitting his commbadge he said, "Computer, location of Elim Garak."
The steady female computer voice answered him, "Elim Garak is in his quarters."
At least he did not have to track Garak down. His curiosity would soon be answered.
Julian entered their quarters. "Garak?" He called when he did not immediately see his husband.
Garak came out of the bedroom when he heard his named being called, a pleased smile on his face when he saw the Julian was home from the infirmary earlier than usual. "You're home early, Julian."
Julian threw himself down on the couch. Stretching languidly, he straightened out and patted the seat next to him. "They didn't need me in the infirmary this afternoon. Which suits me just fine because Captain Sisko told me the most interesting news today."
Smiling at his mate's enthusiasm, Garak sat down on the couch beside him. "What news would that be, my dear?"
"The Federation and Bajor are going to be holding refugee talks for a group of Cardassians calling themselves Hebitians. Have you ever heard about them?"
"Hebitians?" Garak asked with a slightly puzzled look. "I seem to recall some stories about a group of Cardassians going by that name," he paused as he tried to recall what he knew. A slight frown crossed his face as he fought to recall what he had heard.
Julian waited patiently while Garak roamed through his memories, mildly surprised at the delay. He was continuously astonished at the speed that his mate's mind worked as Garak seemed to have the ability to retrieve information from his mind so fast that it rivalled the working of Julian's genetically enhanced mind. This pause was unlike his husband.
"Ah yes. The Hebitians. I can tell you that the Obsidian Order does not care for them very much. Considers them trouble makers. The Hebitians are always rebelling against some government decision or other. They were firmly opposed to the occupation of Bajor as well. A lot of them were thrown into prison if I remember correctly."
"Amazing," Julian said as he listened to his husband. "I thought that all Cardassians were raised to see the State as being all powerful and omnipotent."
"Oh we usually are," Garak replied. "But the Hebitians are a very tight society and they tend to keep to themselves. They moved their society as a whole off of Cardassia Prime centuries ago to live on Cardassia V. They're quiet proud of the fact that they make their own living off of the land and sea there, and are surprisingly self-reliant. On Cardassia the Hebitians are thought off as an old remnant of Cardassian society. Most citizen view them as being quite backward actually."
Julian looked at Garak thoughtfully. "You say they live off the land and sea. They haven't rejected technology have they?" Julian asked curiously. "I've heard of some societies that look upon technological advances as a tool that they can live without."
Garak shook his head as he tried to explain. "No, they haven't rejected it. They use it to compliment their nature-based lifestyle. It is sort of complicated to explain their lifestyle actually. The closest I can come to is that they follow the old ways."
Garak turned on the couch to look at his Terran mate. Little was known about the history of Cardassia outside of the empire. Seeing Julian's curious look, Garak felt the need to reveal his planets history to the younger man.
"Before the Great Famine, Cardassia was a very peaceful planet. We worshipped the land and we believed in spirits that were similar to the Bajorans prophets. During the famine the military took over and the people started looking at other planets to obtain the resources we needed. The majority of Cardassians left behind the old way and embraced the new government. The Hebitians were the only ones to continue on with the old beliefs. The military saw that they were small in numbers and that they didn't have a very strong enough influence on other so they tended to ignore them. When what remained of the Hebitian nation moved of the home world there was even less contact with them."
"Have you ever been to Hebitia?" Julian asked. He was intrigued by Garak's description of the Hebitian way of life. In his own opinion, any society that went against the Obsidian order and the Cardassian military was worth finding out more about.
Garak frowned at the question. "I don't believe so," he said after thinking for a moment. "I'm sure I would remember being in a place like that. I would probably hate it. Not enough intrigue," he said with a laugh.
Julian smiled at the truth of that statement. "You are probably right, love."
Garak reached over and pulled his mate into his lap. "Do you have any more questions my curious one?" He said as he held him.
Julian rested his head against Garak's strong chest. "Hmmmm...yes actually. The captain said that the leader of the delegation is a Gul'en Larin Darheel. I have never heard the term Gul'en before. What does it stand for?"
Julian could feel Garak stiffen slightly. He raised his head to look him in the eyes. Garak's face wore that faint look, like the older man was trying to remember something that eluded him again. He raised his hand and laid it against Garak's cheek. "Garak?" He said softly.
Garak's eyes came back into focus and he smiled down at his love. "Gul'en...that is a term I have not heard in a very long time."
"What does it mean?" Julian asked. "I know that Gul is a military rank but I have never heard Gul'en before."
"The best translation I could give would be Lord. Gul'en is a gender specific term referring to a man. For a female it would be Gul'ena."
"Lord? As in a feudal system?" Julian asked.
"No, that title doesn't relate to the Earth's feudal system at all," Garak said with a shake of his head. "You have to refrain from thinking of the Hebitians in Cardassian or Terran terms. The Gul'en was responsible for the well being of the people of Hebitia. It was an almost symbiotic relationship. The Gul'en supported the people, and in turn, the people supported the Gul'en. You couldn't have one without the other."
"Before the military took over we were ruled by a hereditary monarchy system. The highest station was Gul'en Riel which would roughly translate as King-Protector. Gul'ena Riel would be Queen-Protector. Gul'en was the next in the line of power," Garak explained.
"So your saying that Gul'en Larin is the hereditary lord of the Hebitians?" Julian asked in surprise.
"Yes he is," Garak replied. "The government of Cardassia wouldn't acknowledge his claim but to the Hebitians he would be acknowledged as their leader and they would follow him as such."
It was Julian's turn to be lost in thought. *How interesting. I can't wait to tell Captain Sisko about this at tomorrows meeting.* He continued to think about what Garak had told him until Garak start to rub his back slowly, distracting him from his thoughts.
He raised his face to look at his husband who was smiling down at him.
"Are we done for the night, love?" Garak asked as he brought a hand up to caress Julian's cheek.
Julian started to breathe a little faster. "Done talking at least," he replied with a smile.
His grin got bigger as Garak lower him down to lie on his back. Then the grin disappeared entirely as his husband moved over him and gently covered his lips with his own.
*Definitely done talking* was that last though he had as Garak's hands started to move over his body. Then he thought no more as he gave himself over to his husband's ministrations.