History Never Begins with the Victors

Posted on Wed Jul 23, 2025 @ 3:12am by Commodore T'mpest Michaels & Charghwl'IH of the House of Soval & Civilian Hydel Turvan
Edited on on Wed Jul 23, 2025 @ 3:49am

2,124 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Tergum In Tempus
Location: Klingon Vessel Qu'Ro
Timeline: En route to Earth

The cold metal walls of the Klingon brig radiated an almost ceremonial austerity. No ornament, no comfort, just the relentless hum of containment fields and the faint scent of steel and blood.

Hydel Turvan, once a Legate of Cardassian and Ambassador to a Federation outpost, now sat alone behind a translucent crimson forcefield. He was composed, posture straight, his hands folded with military precision over his lap. Still wearing the remnants of his ambassadorial uniform—tattered, but meticulously arranged. He looked like a man awaiting a ceremony, not a trial. His posture was erect, his hands folded, his face composed in a portrait of disciplined defiance. The bruising from his capture had faded. The defiance had not.

A hiss of decompressing air preceded the heavy clank of the brig door. Lieutenant Commander Jacqueline Fernandez stepped inside, her boots echoing against the metallic floor.

She stopped in front of his cell, making sure she stayed several feet away from the containment field. She said nothing, waiting for him to speak.

Turvan smiled with quiet satisfaction as he rose to his feet. "You came. I was told you might not."

She shrugged. "They would rather I not, but I was curious." She watched him cautiously. She didn't know him well, as she'd never worked with any of the ambassadors, but she, like everyone else on the station, knew what he had become. "I can also leave at any time."

"Curious? That’s the first honest thing I’ve heard from a Starfleet officer in weeks. Refreshing." He stepped closer to the forcefield, just enough for the crimson light to bathe his face in a muted glow.

"I've been told that you are going to be escorting me to the pageant you all call a 'trial'. The formalities. The dance of justice before the inevitable sentence. Conviction is guaranteed, of course. The Federation must prove to the Klingons it has teeth. And when the final bow is taken, you’ll hand me off like cargo so they can dispose of me properly. Efficient. Civilized. Sanitized." He said like a punchline.

"They want to take you back to the Empire an execute you," she said bluntly. "If I'm completely honest, you deserve it. But I took an oath to uphold the laws of the Federation." She spoke calmly because he was safely contained and there were Klingon guards nearby. "I doubt the Cardassian government will do anything on your behalf." That didn't need to be said. They both knew she was only stating the obvious. Jacqueline pressed her lips together for a moment. "Why did you ask to see me?"

"I was told you’d be my chaperone to part 1 of my Execution" He responded. "Since you've been tasked with escorting me, I was hoping that we could be honest with one another, Lieutenant Commander Fernandez." He said, taking the time to specifically articulate the formality of her rank.

"We both know this trial is just a formality before I'm gift-wrapped and handed to a Klingon firing squad. The Federation has already made its bargain. It only needs someone like you to see it through—someone who still pretends there's a difference between protocol and punishment." He said as he walked along the side of the containment field, his hands still behind his back.

"I deserve it. . ." Turvan’s said, laced with cold amusement. "No." He said in mild disagreement. "I own what I did." He said, turning to her again. "It would only seem fitting that the Federation own what they refused to do!" He said indignantly.

"Whether it was Captain Isha t'Vaurek or Maritza Soran. . .each one sat by and watched as lives, Cardassian lives were senselessly stolen both on the station and through those portals." He said. "The bombing of the Cardassian Embassy, the kidnapping and refusal to return the Cardassian child through the portals, the destruction of the Viksan at the hands of the USS Skirivri and your so-called rogue Captain Tetsuro." He listed firmly. "Every time an incident occurred with those damned Portals, something worse came through. I begged for action. I filed reports. I followed every process you people hold so dear. Nothing changed. So, I acted!" He said with a small measure of self-satisfaction.

"And now. . ." He said as he threw his hands up in mock surrender and stepped away from the containment field. "My part is done." He said with a drop in his tone. "But your part—your performance—is just beginning. You’ll do your duty. Smile for the cameras. Sign the transfer orders. And when the Klingons execute me, you’ll sleep soundly, telling yourself the Federation remained principled."

"The child was returned." She didn't know much about the portal complex, but she knew that much. "The Federation isn't perfect, nor does it claim to be. But in general, we try to make the galaxy a better place for everyone." She was going to say more, but stopped. "I'm not going to argue with you, nor am I going to believe that anything you did was because of us. You wanted fame and glory. You were willing to murder countless people to help Cardassia win a war it deserved to lose."

She took a deep breath. She was not going to argue with him--at least any more than she had already. There was no point to it. "My job is to turn you over to the Federation Council. They will decide your fate. I will go back to Deep Space 5 and help put it back together. That is my role." She paused. "Was there something more you wanted to say to me or did you simply need to have the final word?"

Hydel Turvan’s brow arched in amused disbelief, as if Lieutenant Commander Fernandez had just suggested the Bajorans had joined the Borg. He leaned forward slightly, the crimson hue of the containment field shimmering over his features like firelight.

"So that’s what you think this was about?" he said, his voice low and incredulous. "That was your theory? That I planned to leap backward through the Pangaea portals, undo the Dominion War, rewrite two decades of galactic history, and… what? Emerge from the rubble with a victorious Cardassia and a perfectly aligned timeline?" He scoffed, shaking his head with the weariness of a teacher disappointed in a once-promising pupil.

"If I'm to trust that you are going to keep me alive during the pendency of my detention, then I am going to need you to utilize more logic." He said passively.

"Even if I wanted to rewrite history—which I did not—how would I account for every branching variable, every decision and reaction that followed? One change in the past and who knows what cascade of consequences would follow? Maybe the Dominion wins outright. Maybe Bajor never joins the Federation. Maybe the Klingons are wiped out in some border war they never prepared for." His voice dropped to a whisper, cold and calculating.
"That’s the thing about time—it's an untrustworthy ally and a devastating enemy."

Hydel paused for a moment and stared beyond the Starfleet Officer as if she wasn't there.

And yet... for all my preparation, for all my secrecy and layered redundancies, my plans unraveled at precisely the wrong moment. Almost as if someone knew what was coming before I did. . .but how. . .? He thought to himself with sudden alarm.

Hydel held her gaze for a long moment, then let out a soft, dismissive breath. The smirk faded, replaced by the cool detachment of a man who had said all he intended to say.

"Before you go, there is one last thing I'd like to request." He said, an air of sincerity in his voice. He stood still for a moment, then smoothed the front of his worn uniform with slow, deliberate care. When he spoke again, his tone was clipped, formal, and utterly devoid of the earlier bite.

"As a detainee under Federation jurisdiction, I am entitled to communication with my government. Article IV, Section Two of the Federation Detainee Accords. I assume those rights will be honored." He tilted his head slightly, "Unless, of course, the Federation has also decided that diplomatic protections are... optional, when inconvenient."

Then he turned, slowly returning to his seat, crossing one leg over the other with theatrical ease as he leaned against the cold wall. "I’ll wait for confirmation. But not too long, Lieutenant Commander. I’d hate to think my people were left uninformed about what you intend to do with me."

He was good at spinning just enough of the truth to suit him. They both knew what he did, she didn't need to argue the point. "First, enough of your people fled back to Cardassia that I have no doubt they know what happened. Second, I spoke with an admiral at Starfleet Command. They will no doubt see that you have the required representation when we get to earth. However, you are not currently in Federation custody and this is not a Federation ship. I will ask the captain of this ship if he will relay a message for you, but if not, you will have to wait until we arrive." She didn't wait for a reply, turning to talk to the captain before she changed her mind.


[Bridge]

The Qu'Ro was center in the formation of Vorcha class battle ships as they warped towards Earth. The Ambassador's ship and unknown others were out there as well under cloak. The Captain looked at the padd he had been given when the doors to the bridge opened, by the sound of the footsteps he knew it was no Klingon. Hearing her coming up on his left he turned and hand her the padd. "Commander, it seems we are to be joined by two of your Federation starships. Seems they too thought the Cardassians might try to recover our guests before reaching Earth."

She took the PADD and looked it over, then nodded. "They'll either try to retrieve him or claim he went rogue and have nothing to do with him. Either way, he's demanding that he be allowed to talk to a representative of the Cardassian government. I told him he was in your custody and, until we reach earth, it would be your decision."

He had managed to hold his laughter until she had finished speaking but then it burst forth as did several others on the bridge. "DEMAND!?" His manner more serious. "He is a prisoner of war...He was lucky he wasn't executed the moment he was beamed up."

She tried and failed to hide a smile of her own. "If he attacked you in your own territory, you would be within your rights. But he attacked the Federation, and we do not execute prisoners. Even those who murder our friends." The only reason she was even giving Turvan this much was because she felt she owed it to Starfleet.

Regaining her decorum, she added, "He also quoted Article IV, Section Two of the Federation Detainee Accords. I will inform him again that he is in Klingon custody."

"Well, if he needs reminding that this is a Klingon vessel I can have the guards break out a few pain sticks."

Jacqueline had to smile at that, even though she probably shouldn't. "I will remind him first. If he has a problem with that... Well, as you said, this is a Klingon ship."

She nodded respectfully to the captain. "Thank you for allowing me to interrupt. I will inform Mr. Turvan that I asked, which is all I can do for him." After what he did to the station, Jacqueline had no problem passing on what the captain said.

She went back into the brig. "Mr. Turvan, As a courtesy to you, I passed on your request to the captain. He said this is not a Federation ship and Federation law does not apply here." She really should have just told him no and walked out, but she was trying to be nice. Why, she had no idea. He was responsible for the death of Commodore Ryan and only cared about his personal interests. "As I said before, Starfleet is aware that you are on your way to earth. You can request council there--if one is not waiting for you. Until then, enjoy the Klingon's hospitality." Then she bowed and left. No one in Starfleet could argue that she had not done her duty now.

A post by

Former Legate Hydel Turvan
Cardassian War Criminal

Lieutenant Command Jacqueline Fernandez
Acting Commander
Deep Space 5

Qu'Ro Bridge Crew
NPC by Charghwl'IH of the House of Soval

 

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