Departure
Captain
Storvik had already made arrangements in advance to schedule the
USS Murgatroid's departure from
Starbase 668. For whatever reason, the station's officers always gave the Murgatroid priority for departure, assigning them the earliest possible slot in the queue. Thus, their departure expedited, they had already cut the umbilical to the station and turned onto their exit vector when Lieutenant Heavens alerted the Vulcan captain: "Sir, we are receiving a high priority communication from Starbase 668."
"I'll take it in my ready room," Storvik replied, standing up and turning over the command chair to the nearest
Mib Khan. "Continue departure. Do not alter the planned course without my direct orders." He walked through a door into the tiny room which Counsellor
Lothar referred to as his "ready closet."
"Captain Storvik," began station commander
Mason Gallaway immediately, "it has been brought to my attention that you are leaving
Brother Lothar behind. We will not stand for-"
"Brother Lothar is not a member of my crew," the Vulcan interrupted, and saw the Betazoid on the screen nod to the commander. This was the first time he had ever been subjected to an empathic lie detector on this station; but it did not bode well for future visits. Then again, neither would the presence of Brother Lothar on the station. "Nor," Storvik continued, "am I under any orders to confine or control him in any way."
"But you can't leave him here!" pleaded Galloway.
"Does he pose a threat to the station or the lives of the people therein?" Storvik asked, eyebrow akimbo.
"Well, no, not as such," stammered Galloway, recalling the two occasions in which he had been subjected to hugs from Counsellor Lothar's mirror-universe analog. "But still-"
Whatever else the commander was going to say was cut off as the Murgatroid's cloaking device engaged, all communications and emissions were shut down, and the ship went into warp. "It is fortunate that I became aware of the Betazoid before I claimed that Brother Lothar was not my responsibility," mused Storvik to himself, "as that would not have been technically true. I am partially responsible for his presence in this universe, as he was instrumental in
Evil Storvik and I escaping from the
ISS Murgatroid."
He returned to the bridge, ready to give the crew the good news. He had not yet informed any of them of Brother Lothar's absence from the ship.