Only at great celebrations did anyone ever see more than one Galaxy Class starship in any one place at any given time, but on this particular day, Starbase Hecate had been blessed with the presence of two. The mighty I.S.S. Enterprise, flagship of Starfleet, had just arrived for repairs following heated engagements along the Romulan border, whilst her sister vessel, the newly-commissioned I.S.S. Ghidorah, lay in dry-dock, undergoing final preparations for her maiden voyage. In a day or so, the Ghidorah would make way for her illustrious predecessor, but for now only the Enterprise's internal damage could be dealt with, leaving all her senior officers, with the exception of her chief engineer, free to explore the space station.

"Hecate", murmured Captain Jean-Luc Picard. "The Ancient Greek goddess of magic. A fitting place for a momentous event..."

"I'll say it again", growled Commander Riker. "I don't like it. Handing a starship - a Galaxy Class starship - over to one of... them."

Picard was Captain by right of assassination, but the reins of command were truly in the hands of his "counsellor", Commander Deanna Troi. "What is it you really fear, Will?", she enquired silkily. "An elf in command, or a woman...?"

Riker fell sullenly silent. Troi was a expert at cutting a man back with just a few words, pruning his spirit as though it was merely an unruly shrub. If she ever needed more than words, the results would turn even the strongest stomach. Somehow, Riker knew that Troi would most likely be the next Captain of the Enterprise.

"We are all... interested by Starfleet's choice of Captain, Commander Troi", said Picard. "There must be wisdom behind this, or another would have been chosen. The Empire knows what it needs - strong captains on strong ships. The Romulans and the Cardassians do the same, and woe betide those who underestimate them."

Again Riker felt the barbs, this time from his captain. A momentary slip of concentration on his part had left the Enterprise open, albeit briefly, to a Romulan sneak-attack. Much of the ship's damage was a result of that attack, and his error.

If Troi sought to drive the barbs deeper, she was denied the opportunity by something her telepathically-sensitive mind detected. "Ah", she said, turning to face the shuttle-bay airlock. "At last, we meet..."

All three Enterprise officers regarded Captain Blackfire with silent awe as she stepped through the airlock, the high heels of her glistening black thigh-length boots making the deck-plates ring. She was smaller than they had expected, her eyes on the same level as Troi's chin, and her body was supernaturally slender, but her true power was in evidence through the unearthly gleam in her emerald-green eyes.

Blackfire was not alone. Behind her came another elf, a much shorter male with rougher features and wild, pale hair. He wore the insignia of a Lieutenant-Commander, and in place of the customary dagger he carried a short curved sword. At his side stood a wolf, a great dark beast that constantly sampled the sterile air of the station with its ever-keen nose. As it turned its head from side to side, the Enterprise officers could see a collar around the broad shaggy neck, status indicators blinking.

The wolf growled, and an emotionless synthesised voice came from the collar. "Smell hate", it said. "Hair-face."

The shorter elf glared at Riker. "The feeling is mutual, Tall One", he hissed. "Is your hate strong enough to make you bare a blade...?"

Blackfire snapped her head around, eyes narrowing. Her subordinate frowned, and clamped his four-fingered hand onto the wolf's collar, restraining the animal.

"Your man sounds as though he's got some Klingon in him", commented Picard, not waiting for Blackfire to speak.

"No, not Klingon", replied Blackfire, giving no hint at offense. "Wolf."

"So, it's not just a story, then", said Troi. "I sensed something... feral about the Lieutenant-Commander. You, Captain, are a different matter. I sense nothing from you at all."

"That is the way I wish it", the elven captain replied. "The people of Beta-Zed may be gifted with powers of the mind, but they are nothing compared to the powers of my people. Ask the Cardassians at Sekima Prime - if you can find any left alive, that is."

"That I respect", snorted Riker. "Three Galor Class ships destroyed in one engagement, and all with a ship that could barely manage half-impulse. I just hope you keep your tricks solely for the Empire's enemies."

Blackfire did not respond directly. "The Cardassians have only just begun to suffer", she purred, gazing out of the view-port at the majestic vessel she was shortly to take command of. "Them, and any others foolish enough to oppose the Empire. They will all learn to tremble at the name Blackfire - and the name Ghidorah..."