Prologue
The ship floated seemingly gently through space, and Uhura felt the quiet as she had not felt it for a long while. She hummed softly as she watched the stars go past. The last few days had been as hectic as any she had ever known. Problems with equipment erupting all over the ship, a first-contact with a group of aliens who thought the word 'peace' was a derivation of their word for 'ugly'... Uhura almost laughed as she thought of Kirk's face after she had managed to communicate the misunderstanding to him. "They think that I'm saying they're ugly?" he had asked in wonder. Checkov, sitting at his usual console, had muttered under his breath "So what if they think that? I've seen better looking..." What he had seen better looking, Uhura would never know, as a burst of laser fire from the other ship had drowned out the rest of his sentence. It had taken all her negotiation skills to get them to open a channel. And then it had taken an inspired flash of quick talking from the Captain to get them to stop shooting and listen.
But now the crisis was over and Uhura felt... empty. The distance between destinations seemed to weigh upon her, holding her back. Even her music, her sole consolation of many a lonely night, seemed to have dried up, leaving her with only the humming echo of her normally clear voice. She had tried reading, tried not to think about her past, and all she had succeeded in doing was wasting time. Not very much time either. "Lieutenant Uhura," came a frazzled voice over her communicator. Uhura recognised the voice of Anna Stevens, a communications ensign only three years out of the Academy. While Ensign Stevens had been on another ship previously, the system she had been using had been nowhere near as advanced as the one aboard the Enterprise. "Yes Ensign?" responded Uhura crisply. The adrenaline had started pumping through her veins. This could be an emergency. Stevens could have done anything... "Umm... Lieutenant, I'm not sure what this signal means. Would you mind coming up and taking a listen?" Uhura could hear the signal in the background, and knew she could explain it over the link. But still, it wouldn't hurt to go up and check things out. There might be something else up there that needs doing. "I'll be right up," she responded.
The ship floated seemingly gently through space, and Uhura felt the quiet as she had not felt it for a long while. She hummed softly as she watched the stars go past. The last few days had been as hectic as any she had ever known. Problems with equipment erupting all over the ship, a first-contact with a group of aliens who thought the word 'peace' was a derivation of their word for 'ugly'... Uhura almost laughed as she thought of Kirk's face after she had managed to communicate the misunderstanding to him. "They think that I'm saying they're ugly?" he had asked in wonder. Checkov, sitting at his usual console, had muttered under his breath "So what if they think that? I've seen better looking..." What he had seen better looking, Uhura would never know, as a burst of laser fire from the other ship had drowned out the rest of his sentence. It had taken all her negotiation skills to get them to open a channel. And then it had taken an inspired flash of quick talking from the Captain to get them to stop shooting and listen.
But now the crisis was over and Uhura felt... empty. The distance between destinations seemed to weigh upon her, holding her back. Even her music, her sole consolation of many a lonely night, seemed to have dried up, leaving her with only the humming echo of her normally clear voice. She had tried reading, tried not to think about her past, and all she had succeeded in doing was wasting time. Not very much time either. "Lieutenant Uhura," came a frazzled voice over her communicator. Uhura recognised the voice of Anna Stevens, a communications ensign only three years out of the Academy. While Ensign Stevens had been on another ship previously, the system she had been using had been nowhere near as advanced as the one aboard the Enterprise. "Yes Ensign?" responded Uhura crisply. The adrenaline had started pumping through her veins. This could be an emergency. Stevens could have done anything... "Umm... Lieutenant, I'm not sure what this signal means. Would you mind coming up and taking a listen?" Uhura could hear the signal in the background, and knew she could explain it over the link. But still, it wouldn't hurt to go up and check things out. There might be something else up there that needs doing. "I'll be right up," she responded.