Blue on Blue

A month ago, the Concorde was reported missing after a failed diplomatic mission to the Yehjivan Protectorate. It was an important deep space assignment, and the Yehjivan's aggressiveness to withdraw from the UFP caused great concern. Their Protectorate was mainly comprised of a handful of systems at the border with the Beta Quadrant. However, they boasted an advanced level of technology, with sophisticated AI networked fleets, and a prototype Topopolis structure at their capital.

The Yehjivans were naturally proud of their achievements and their integration with the UFP granted them significant resources to pursue their goals. Admittedly, the majority of the friction began when Yehjivan research projects were severely curtailed by "Federation bureaucracy". After tolerating a decade of what they saw as the "Period of Stagnation", resentment towards the UFP peaked during the 2384 Yehjivan Blockade - which was a severe loss of face to the Federation Council. All non-Yehjivans were banished to outlying systems and there has been a diplomatic blackout ever since.

The USS Concorde's mission was the most recent effort to reach a peaceful settlement, and the details of her disappearance have been severely downplayed or directly ignored. There's the hogwash Starfleet cover story and numerous conspiracy theories circulating around the media. But the general consensus among the Starfleet establishment is that she was compromised inside Yehjivan space. Who or what the details may be, now falls to the USS America - with clearance to infiltrate Yehjivan space and recover the missing Concorde.

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I couldn't believe my eyes when we reached the 35th parallel of the Yehjivan border. In plain sight, the USS Concorde in pristine condition, orbiting an aquatic moon. It was like she was waiting for us to approach. In the background was a swirling mass of lights around its sun, generated by some sort of nano-device. Could it be another Yehjivan experiment or a full fledged weapon?

The Concorde's radio silence was highly concerning, but the moment was rattled by a shipwide power surge. In an instant, she cut through our shields and took a chunk out of America's starboard nacelle. "Blue on blue", my tactical officer shouted. At that point I knew we had a knife-fight on our hands.


_{Models by Wiley and DJ_Curtis
Stocks by pixelchemist, freelancah and kire1987}