| Stardate: 91641.5 | Report Submitted: FCAPT Perim |
At Stardate 91640.6 DS13 received numerous distress calls from a nearby system. The number of signals reporting under attack in such close proximity was a cause for concern. Captain Pailes took a small task force of DS13's defense vessels to respond to the area of the distress calls.
Shortly after arriving, they encountered a powerful burst of radiation. Long range sensors and communications were disrupted, and warp travel was inadvisable in the area. It was during this time that the ships were ambushed by pirates, apparently hired by a Romulan. The source of the civilians distress calls was nowhere to be found. Either they never existed, or they were already destroyed. However, it would be some time before the task force would be able to clear the radiation field and warp back to the starbase.
Simultaneously with the loss of contact with the task force, four explosions occurred inside DS13. Science Labs on Decks 74 and 99, as well as Engineering Labs on Decks 201 and 230 were completely destroyed. These were deliberately planned explosions, which were coordinated to disrupt the EPS grid junctions on those decks. As a result, main power was disrupted on all decks above Deck 200. Backup power systems functioned appropriately in all locations except Main Operations, which remained without power. When we were unsuccessful in restoring power from within Main Operations, we attempted to venture out of the room, but found that exit points where blocked by a forcefield.
Meanwhile, crewmembers throughout the station worked diligently on repairs. Temporary starbase command was established in the Auxiliary Control Room on the Promenade Level, and teams began investigating the explosions, working to determine the cause.
Under the guise of assisting station personnel restore power, 'Divan' Mandukar gained entry to Auxiliary Control and proceeded to assault several crewmembers with a previously concealed bladed weapon. She realigned the Transwarp Gateway and further locked out the station's systems using a Starfleet Captain's command codes. She then activated a transporter. Captain Buchanan and Uhlan Aev attempted to stop her from escaping, but were caught in the beam and found themselves aboard a Romulan Warbird.
At the same time, Kirina t'Nalah attempted to incapacitate several crewmembers investigating a science lab, and was also transported away.
Once they had left the station, twelve additional Romulan Warbirds decloaked and began moving towards the now-active transwarp gate. The task force of five defensive ships returned and positioned themselves between the gateway and the hostile vessels. 'Divan' made contact with the friendly vessels, stating her true identity to be known Tal Shiar war criminal, D'Kera Mandukar. A short engagement ensued, in which one enemy vessel was disabled and self-destructed. The remaining ships traveled through the gateway unhindered. Friendly vessels involved took significant damage. However, Buchanan and Aev were successfully transported off of the enemy vessel before it escaped through the gateway.
Further investigation has revealed that the labs in which the explosions took place were in use by Ahnar tr'Veras. He was arrested by Starfleet Security in a shuttle outside the station. He claims that he used the labs at the direction of Kirina t'Nalah, and was not aware that the experiments were dangerous or intentionally designed to explode. He currently resides in DS13's detention facility.
It is not clear, at this time, exactly what the motives of D'Kera Mandukar are. She and her supporters apparently took great care to use only the minimum amount of force necessary to effect their travel through the Transwarp Gate. No significant permanent or lasting damage was done to the starbase, and there were no fatalities reported. The same cannot be said for the ambushed defense vessels, however.
A full review of the occurances is in progress, but at this stage, I don't believe anything could have been done to prevent this incident, short of recognizing Divan as disloyal to the Republic and the Federation at an earlier juncture.
I am putting resources into researching possible motivations for Mandukar's actions, as well as those of her supporters. Attempts are being made to to trace the destination of the transwarp flight. At this time, I don't feel that any additional security measure are required or appropriate. I intend to continue all normal operation until such time as an opportunity for further action presents itself.
//SIGNED//
Fleet Captain Neema Perim
Commanding, Deep Space Thirteen