Two Starfleet vessels destroyed in battle with ex-Starfleet fugitive

VEGH’LAH CLUSTER — Starfleet Command confirmed the losses of USS Avalon and USS Albion, the latter of which was assigned as StarBase 118’s primary auxiliary vessel.

The two starships were both assigned to apprehend wanted former Starfleet officer turned renegade Haz Arrihmen. Documents obtained by the Federation News Service indicate that Arrihmen had captured a Romulan D’Deridex-class warbird, although neither Starfleet nor Romulan officials revealed how he gained possession of the vessel. Prior to the battle between Arrihmen and Starfleet, Arrihmen had attacked two Klingon colonies.
The battle was brief but brutal, with the USS Avalon destroyed almost immediately. Arrihmen used the natural properties of the nearby Jenatris Cloud as cover to elude sensors. Starfleet confirmed that the vessel was lost with all hands aside from its commanding officer Captain L’Trena and a small number of medical personel that were later rescued by the Albion prior to its destruction.
The Klingon Defense Forces have also confirmed that the IKS S’Tarakh under the command of Councillor Dempok was conducting its own investigations into Arrihmen’s attacks and eventually joined the Albion as it attempted to flush Arrihmen back out of the Cloud. According to officers who spoke to the FNS on condition of anonymity, a plan was devised to “detonate” a patch of the Cloud. These sources confirmed that the plan worked and that Arrihmen’s vessel was lured out of the Cloud and swiftly destroyed by the S’Tarakh and Albion.
The destruction of Arrihmen’s vessel, coupled with the damage caused by the detonation of the Jenatris Clous, caused a warp core breach aboard the Albion. Although reports suggest that the core was ejected, it did not reach a safe enough distance before it destroyed the secondary hull of the Albion. In accordance with interstellar law, the crew of the Albion were beamed to the S’Tarakh, which then subsequently destroyed what was left of the wrecked starship.