The bridge is alive with hushed urgency. Dimmed lights and the omnipresent pulse of computer consoles reflect the heightened alert status. The main view screen displays a star-dappled void, cloaked in mystery, while overhead panels glimmer with readouts of the ship’s status. Standing near the command center, Rina Davids grips a console edge, her focus sharpening her gaze, while Ebony Okafor monitors data at Tactical. The low hum of the engines underpins the entire room, as if mirroring the crew’s shared anticipation of what they might uncover.

“It doesn’t clear anything, we have no clue if it might be the thing we are looking for, Commander,” Ebony stated a bit in doubt, being more realistic about their situation rather than building on sky castles that disappear with a breeze.

Shaking her head as she taps the console, Rina said, “No, this is the glimmer we caught, Lieutenant T’Prin, back me up on this.” Rina wanted some support in her sudden claim to victory and looked over her shoulder at the emotionally strained woman.

A hum came from T’Prin as her eyes fixated on the incoming data. “While the telemetry of our improved sensors is working,” T’Prin looked at Rina, “it is still inconclusive.”

“Should I return us to normal alert? Also, where is Captain Catalán?” Ebony was surprised that a change in the alert status was a signal for the Captain to come to the bridge. He was confused, did he miss something?

Rina shook her head. “No, Captain Catalán will come when he knows he is needed.” Rina had to get used to Ander’s behavior. For some reason, he knew exactly when he was needed on the bridge and appeared when she was clueless. Him not being here gave Rina some confidence in her abilities and skills.

The lighting remains subdued, casting elongated shadows across the bridge floor as Rina and Ebony huddle over their respective consoles. T’Prin’s station emits a steady glow, and faint chatter from the lower decks filters in through the comm system. Despite the potential chaos lurking beyond the hull, there is an air of precision: voices are kept low, and the beep of each console underlines the importance of verifying this elusive contact.

While Ebony readies the ship’s tactical systems, facing too many uncertainties in this case, T’Prin tries to refine the sensor lock. “I’m attempting to isolate the reading. It’s erratic, but it’s definitely not a standard warp signature.” Finally, some conclusion came through, vague but something.

Giving a pat on Ebony’s shoulders, Rina said, “Keep it cool, Lieutenant. We don’t want that eagerness to boil over.” Referring to him wanting to activate the ship’s weapon system as she looked at the screen, she continued, “We need more than a ghost on the sensors before we move on it.” With that, she walked to her chair at the side of the Captain’s chair and sat down.

“Lieutenant Okafor, we should perhaps synchronize our sweep, using operations resource management and your tactical scanning to reduce potential false positives,” T’Prin proposed, looking at Ebony.

Looking from her chair in their direction, Rina replied, “That sounds perfect, do it.” She didn’t wait for Ebony’s input and gave the order.

While the bridge remains the nerve center, the monitor beside T’Prin’s station flickers with incoming visuals from the Science and Engineering departments. There, Thran’s domain displays a dotted holographic projection of local space, while Dara oversees the warp core readouts on towering consoles. Both departments feed their findings to the bridge, maintaining a constant back-and-forth of data.

“Now before Lieutenant Okafor is going to jump into the air and say his infamous line that he is right, I just want to state that I do not yet have a full readout on this data,” Thran states over the comm. “But the updated sensor logs from the partial contact show signs of possible Klingon cloak patterns mixed with unusual energy spikes.”

Ebony wanted to say his famous line, but seeing T’Prin and Rina glare at him made him stop.

“I can confirm the tachyon-enhanced sensors are stable, but I do warn that I am detecting signs of potential strain on the warp core if we increase the power to scans even more,” Dara stated with some discontent in her voice. “I recommend short bursts to avoid detection and prevent a meltdown if possible.” A certain degree of sarcasm could be noticed.

From the turbolift, Ander strides onto the bridge, his presence bringing an undercurrent of calm authority. Overhead, alert panels continue to blink, and the subtle hum of life support forms a steady backdrop. Crew members at their forward stations glance back, waiting for his orders, as his senior staff await to brief him on what has been found.

“Captain,” Rina started standing up from her chair.

“Please sit down. I was checking on Engineering to see how Commander Ryen is doing,” Ander spoke softly as he walked to the chair. “We are on yellow alert. I would assume we found something?”

“We have a partial reading that could confirm cloaked activity, but we can’t be sure who it belongs to. Lieutenant Thran’s readings so far are leaning towards the Klingons, but he also can’t verify it with 100% certainty,” Rina reported, following with her eyes the Captain as he sat down in his chair.

Leaning back in his chair, Ander let the information sink in. He looked at Rina, “Proceed carefully, Commander. We can’t risk a standoff without proof. Starfleet doesn’t want another fiasco on our hands.” It was a painful reminder of the first time they had an almost identical situation, only having a little less information and more guts that packed out wrong.

A sudden hush descends upon the bridge as a new sequence of sensor pings ripples across the tactical display. The overhead lights remain low, intensifying the glow from the monitors that show rapidly shifting data. A faint silhouette appears on the main viewer, just for an instant, then vanishes, leaving a charged silence in its wake. The atmosphere hums with a heady mix of astonishment and adrenaline as every officer processes what they just witnessed.

Ebony witnessed the partial visual on the main screen and noticed the data on his console. “I got a confirmation of a reading of a cloaked vessel.”

“I am unable to lock onto the signal,” T’Prin reported. She had tried to isolate the signal, but it was gone before she had the lock.

“Calm down, everyone,” Rina said with some authority. “We still have no definitive ID on the ship, but at least we have confirmation it is out there.” The crew experienced a moment of collective adrenaline, they knew this was real, but did they have enough data to act?

Officers stood ready at their stations, exchanging uncertain looks under the subdued lighting. Beyond the bulkhead doors, corridors buzzed with heightened activity as word spread of the confirmed cloak flicker. Captain Catalán observed the star field shifting on the view screen as the Kusanagi approached closer to a potential confrontation. The stakes had clearly risen.

“We should pursue this signal, bait them out,” Ebony suggested, firm in getting his confirmations.

Shaking her head, Rina replied, “No, we should maintain our position. I’m worried that we might cross the borders.” She looked at Ebony. “Again, without proof, we have nothing to work with or defend ourselves if the Klingons are going to ask questions.”

“We have the cloaked ship; the data is there,” Ebony argued.

“That is all we have. No confirmation of what or who that is,” Rina countered, shrugging as she crossed her arms.

A cough came from Ander as the two looked at him. “Any crossing into unauthorized space requires direct clearance from Starfleet Operations.” Ander stated calmly but was clear in his perspective of following a signal blindly. “However, I am fine to shadow the contact if it remains in Federation territory.” He looked at Rina. “What is your suggestion, Commander?”

Rina looked at the screen. “Follow the shadow but stay within our borders. Let Lieutenant T’Prin continue these sensor sweeps.”

A soft smile tugged at the corner of Ander’s lips as he nodded in agreement. “Make it so, people.” He ordered.