The relay chamber was quiet except for the steady pulse of the machine at its center. Green lights rippled through the arrays, casting shifting reflections across the rock walls. Commander Rahal stood with her hands clasped behind her back as her team worked in intent silence. Zemess and one of the Republic engineers were at the primary interface. Lines of Romulan code streamed across the display faster than the eye could follow. Vekar remained near the entrance, rifle lowered but ready, his eyes never stopping their slow sweep of the chamber.

Rahal finally broke the stillness, “Status?”

Zemess did not look up, “We are into the outer control architecture. But this thing is layered heavier than expected. It’s not just a relay, it is a timed broadcast hub.”

The Republic engineer stiffened, “Commander. I am detecting multiple deadman routines. If we interrupt power or sever command input, the relay will execute an automatic broadcast.”

Rahal stepped closer, “Define automatic.”

The engineer sighed lightly, “All queued transmissions will release at once. Full power. Full planetary spread. Council networks first, then public data nets.”

Vekar muttered softly, “So we cut the head, and the body screams.”

Zemess tapped several commands, tightening the trace resolution. “They did not just tie this into the warbird. They hard linked it. Every command packet originates from the ship and routes through at least four falsified signal paths before reaching the core. Even if the warbird breaks orbit, the broadcast will still fire.”

Rahal felt a slow knot forming in her chest, “Time to release?”

The engineer leaned back slightly, his face tight as he examined the display, “Eight minutes. Possibly less. The next command cycle is already staging.”

Rahal tapped her communicator, “Yorktown, this is Rahal. We cannot shut the relay down cleanly. Any hard disruption triggers full release.”

Jeroks voice came back after a beat, controlled but tense, “Understood. Are you able to delay?”

“Negative,” Rahal replied, “We can slow internal staging by seconds at best. They designed this to be unstoppable once primed.”

There was a brief silence on the channel. Then Tolaks voice joined Jeroks, “Then their propaganda narrative will reach the council no matter what we do here in this moment.”

Rahal closed her eyes briefly, “Yes, Admiral.”

She cut the channel and looked at her team, “We proceed anyway. Full analysis of the broadcast architecture. If there is even the smallest seam, we find it.”

The team moved faster now. Fingers flew over controls. Power routing maps unfolded across secondary displays. The relay core pulsed brighter as its internal cycles accelerated toward release. Suddenly, Zemess stiffened, “Commander. New command packets inbound. Heavy encryption lift. They are actively pushing the launch sequence.”

The Republic engineer shook his head slowly, “They are escalating remotely. They know the timing window is narrowing.”

Rahal felt the weight of it settle fully now. The warbird above Quorath III was not simply watching. It was commanding the moment with deliberate malice.

Vekars voice was low, “They are daring us to break it. Its almost like they know we’re here. Or they’re challenging the Yorktown and Devoras.”

The chamber lights flickered once as the relay drew additional power, and the hum of the room deepened into a subtle vibration that could be felt rising up their legs. Zemess turned, “Commander. We can still execute a hard shutdown.”

Rahal stared into his eyes, “And the result?”

“Instant broadcast. Maximum penetration. Council priority networks will receive the first wave within seconds.”

Rahal looked back at the pulsing core. The machine no longer felt passive. It felt poised. “How long now?” she asked.

The engineer checked his display, “Under three minutes to full release. Less if they override safety timing.”

Rahal activated her communicator again, “Yorktown. The Free State is forcing the transmission. We are out of time to stop it.”

Jeroks reply was immediate, “Understood. Do what you can. We will handle what follows.”

The channel went silent. The relay surged again. Data spiked across every display in the chamber. Command pathways flared as encryption layers peeled back in cascading patterns.

Zemess swore softly, “They are punching straight through the staging buffer.”

The engineer backed away from the console, “Commander. The broadcast cannot be stopped now. Even a system wipe will not halt propagation. It is already propagating.”

The relay core flared brilliant white for a fraction of a second as it prepared to launch the signals into subspace. Rahal drew a slow breath. The failure to stop the transmission was nearly complete and undeniable. Everything they had moved to prevent was now inevitable.