Editing Marcius Flavius (section)

== Story 21 ==

"Commander, get back!"

Commander Marcius Flavius of the USS Enterprise, formerly Battle-Brother of the Phalanx, and the first of the Federation-Imperium Officer Exchange Program (along with Battle-Brother Riker) ignored Worf's order and rushed to his side.

The xenos was bleeding through his uniform, a long gash allowing red or pink (it's kind of unclear) blood to flow from it. Worf would be fine, but he was temporarily disabled. Worf's bat'leth lay on the hallway's floor next to him, and Marcius noticed that his com badge was also slashed so as to prevent him from calling for help.

Worf lay in front of a door, breathing heavily, phaser pointed toward the door with his one good arm.

"Battle-Brother Worf, what has happened?" he asked, unholstering his bolter.

"In there, Cargo Bay D." Worf breathed through gritted teeth. "I was just doing a routine cargo check, I have no idea how they got in there. I tried to call for help, but..." Worf winced and his aim momentarily faltered. He finished by nodding to his comm badge.

"What's in there?"

"Do you remember when we fought the Bork?"

"Yes."

"They make the Bork look like nothing. They are the only -- the only -- enemy the Klingons have ever feared. They reproduce like nothing else, right now there are only a few thousand in there, but in an hour, tens of thousands."

Worf grabbed Marcius' shirt, almost ripping it off of his battle armor. "You need to go in there and finish this, before they escape and destroy the ship. They can exert some kind of mind control on most species, Klingons are immune, but a strong willed human might..." Worf winced again, unwilling to scream in pain, but finally collapsed.

Marcius tapped his comm badge. "Flavius to Sister-Apothecary Crusher. Battle-Brother Worf is wounded, deck A-21."

Crusher said something in response, but Flavius wasn't listening. He keyed the door to lock once he'd stepped through, and gingerly stepped forward. He could wait for back-up, but to be honest, Worf was the only back-up on the ship worth a damn, and he was already wounded.

Cargo Bay C was even more horrible than he'd expected. Worf's estimate of a thousand was far inaccurate, it was more like seven or eight thousand. Marcius identified them as some kind of Slaaneshi daemon immediately, though the Federation wouldn't know that, one that invoked the emotion of love to control others. Worf had been wise to call for him.

It was only after he had destroyed the entire deck in his crusade and thirty-five ensigns lay dead that Picard informed him that this type of daemon was called a "tribble." He would have to report this to the Phalanx once he had the chance.