Hiya, so this is my first Star Trek fanfic and I've been thinking about it for a long time. Alas, I am a massive fan of Chekov so no doubt this will be a little Chekov-centric. But none the less, I will include all the other characters that everyone loves because I am especially fond of Scotty, Jim and Bones so no doubt I'll write some stuff with them. This will get pretty graphic in later chapters so be warned but all I ask is that you review so that I know if you want more; I have written ten chapters including this one, so please tell me if some of you are interested- it would mean the world to me! xxx
"Energise."
Captain James Tiberius's feet touched soft Earth an instant later, the last of the golden, swirling energy dissipating into the air around him as he unhooked his tricorder from his belt. Beside him, Uhura took a step forward with a slight gasp, her sleek black hair fluttering in the gentle breeze that rustled the leaves. Around them was a beautiful landscape, purely just forest and foliage that seemed to spread on forever around them; the green canopy above allowing just a little sunlight to filter through. The twittering of birds echoed all around and if Jim really listened he could hear the steady thrum of millions of active insects and sometimes the scuttling of animals in the undergrowth. There was a sweet aroma in the air- exotic and mysterious to even a well experienced traveller like Jim-and he struggled to describe the heavenly scent that tickled his nostrils.
Taking a deep breath and squeezing his eyes shut, Jim allowed the clean, fresh air to fill his lungs and enjoyed the warmth of sunlight on his face. Though Jim adored the Enterprise, he sometimes missed the cool breeze on his face and the fresh air, not to mention the natural, caressing light rather than the artificial thing that never had quite the same effect. There was a slight crackle and he opened his eyes to see Nyota Uhura-his communications officer-surveying the landscape with a wondrous gasp and a twinkle in her eyes. Beside her Ensign Pavel Andreivitch Chekov stared out in equal awe though he seemed a little more cautious, his blue eyes glancing around him almost nervously. Jim couldn't blame the kid, this was his first away mission after all and being on a foreign planet without much protection could be a daunting prospect to an eighteen year old that had never left the confined safety of the Enterprise.
"Enterprise to Captain," Spock's voice echoed out of his communicator "Have we established operational radio contact?"
Jim stifled an amused chuckle "Yes Mr Spock, it's all good down here. Keep me posted on any changes up there."
"Understood Captain; please take caution, we have not yet ascertained whether the planet is uninhabited and there are certain dangers we may not be prepared for."
"Don't worry Spock," Jim replied lightly, starting a brisk pace into the foliage "I have Uhura with me if we run into any locals and my trusty phaser at my belt. Besides, we've already scanned the planet twice to make sure there aren't any unpleasant surprises in store."
"Of course, Captain." was Spock's brief reply and Jim could sense the unease in his monotonous tone.
Jim pushed away at the dense foliage until he discovered a small track, trodden down by numerous animals and he gestured for the others to follow him. Being careful to mind where he stepped, Jim navigated the group of three through the woodland until they reached a large clearing. Beautiful flowers were scattered across the lush green grass and Chekov bent down curiously; examining the foreign plant life whilst simultaneously beginning a complex, detailed scan of the plants for Spock's botanical obsession as Science Officer. The young Russian was careful not to touch the unknown flower that sparkled in the sunlight, instead content to appreciate it from a slight distance. Jim couldn't help but be impressed by his diligence, he wasn't taking any chances despite his youth and inexperience; Bones would certainly be proud if the kid could return from his first mission unscathed.
"Zis is most interezting Keptin," Chekov commented brightly, turning to look up at him with wide, bright eyes "Ze plantz 'ere are mozt peculiar for a Clazz M planet."
Jim returned with a tight smile "Great Mr Chekov, glad you're having a lovely time."
He didn't mean to sound sarcastic and by the glare Uhura was shooting him, his disinterest was blatantly obvious and from the slight befallen look on the Ensign's face, even he could tell. Chekov rose from the crouch and moved away toward another collection of brightly coloured plants and Uhura grabbed Jim by the ear fiercely and dragged him into the edge of the trees so that they could not be overheard. Jim tried not to cry out and instead muttered painfully as she dragged him to a position where they could still see Chekov without him being able to listen into their conversation; not that it would have mattered if they were stood right beside him seeing how engrossed the curly haired teen was in his work.
"What the hell are you playing at?" she demanded angrily, placing her hands on her hips and making sure that Chekov was unaware of her scolding.
Rubbing his hot, throbbing ear, Jim frowned at her "What?"
"Don't be an ass, Jim." Uhura sneered furiously, her eyes smouldering with molten lava and it felt like they were digging deep into Jim's soul "Pavel just wants to do a good job and prove himself to you! This is his first away mission and he's nervous; give the poor kid a break and at least act a little more intrigued. You may have seen this kind of thing before but he hasn't; and he's overwhelmed that Spock trusted him to study the planet's plant life instead of him, all he wants to do a good job."
"Okay," Jim replied quietly, averting her powerful gaze "I'm sorry, it's just we have to determine whether the shuttle from the USS Diana did actually crash here; lives could be at stake!"
"Do you not think he knows that?!" Uhura snapped back in a harsh whisper, checking over her shoulder to make sure the young Russian still could not hear them.
Jim ducked his head and nodded "I know…but good officers died on that ship…it would be nice to think at least a few of them made it out."
Uhura's expression softened and she gave a quick nod of agreement before spinning around and strutting back toward Chekov. The coppery haired ensign didn't seem to have noticed that they had even left his side and Jim had to chuckle as Chekov started at Uhura's approach. Pushing off the bark of the tree, Jim followed her back out and placed a confident mask on his face, making sure his stride and posture conveyed the same coolness. It was surprisingly helpful in these situations, for Jim to imagine Spock and copy his Second Officer's mannerisms in a way only he could; able to determine just the right level of stoic emotion though it was a harder façade to keep than Spock's seemed to be. Jim just put it down to practice and refocused on his small away team.
"Right, we should head on." Jim commanded with casual sureness, motioning toward the line of trees ahead "This may still be a rescue mission and I would rather reach the most likely crash site by nightfall. I'm sure neither of you would like to spend the night on an uncharted alien planet."
The two both nodded enthusiastically and Jim stifled a laughed at their paled expressions at the prospect of 'toughing it out'; though if the problem did arise, he would probably just beam them back on board and continue the search in the morning from the same coordinates. Chekov prodded at his tricorder until a satisfied smile came across his face.
"Ze last knovn trajectory suggests zat ze shuttle crashed somewhere to ze northwest of our current position."
Kirk flashed a grateful smile "Very well Ensign. Please lead the way."
Chekov seemed surprised by the request, a little taken aback by his Captain's trust on his very first away mission but Uhura gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder and Chekov hurried off, tricorder in hand. Catching the knowing nod from Uhura, Jim set off behind him; impressed by the young man's surprisingly brisk pace. Not that he should have been, seeing as he had first met Chekov whilst he was on a cross country run and the only reason he had caught up with the fast-footed Russian was because his classmates had tripped him up and the poor boy had landed painfully hard. They had become firm friends after that; Chekov was the one Jim had asked to create the override code for the Kobiyashi-Maru along with the help Jim needed to finish the subsequent new programming. The kid had been happy to install it as repayment; though Jim had made sure not to mention what he was actually using the programme for, so in the event that anyone recognised that Jim wasn't enough of a genius to complete the more complicated mathematics, Chekov could just claim plausible deniability despite the young man's clear suspicions. Jim had to say that when Chekov had bumped into him on his way to board the Enterprise after his little bout with Spock and the Academy senate, the teenager had seemed quite disheartened by the fact that Jim wasn't allowed to join him in their mutual dream.
Jim was brought back to the present as he stumbled slightly on a half-concealed log and fell heavily against a tree, just managing to grab the scratchy bark before he tumbled onto the mossy earth. Hearing his Captain's misfortune, Chekov stopped dead in his tracks and turned back to help, whilst Uhura caught Jim's arm and helped steady him as he rose to his feet again. Slightly embarrassed, Jim tried to hide his growing blush and motioned that he was fine before hurrying into a jog. Uhura rolled her eyes at Chekov and the teenager just giggled under his breath and shrugged absent-mindedly before flying off again, quickly overtaking Jim as he hopped elegantly over the forest ground.
Jim chuckled and leapt forward with new speed, trying to catch up with the younger man. There was a suspiciously close crack of a branch and Jim whipped his head to the right, just in time to see a camouflaged, armour clad figure step out from behind a tree and a large wooden branch swinging towards his face. It connected with a heavy thwak and Jim was knocked over from the force combined with his momentum and landed painfully on his back; the cut in his forehead stinging and starting to bleed profusely as it swelled. Jim heard an anguished cry and managed to spot Uhura being pinned onto the forest floor by two large males, one of them clutching at a dislocated shoulder and the other nursing a broken nose; Chekov was struggling rather valiantly against a couple of similar muscular humanoids but they held him fast and secured his hands tightly behind his back and ignored the teenagers protests. The attacker who had struck Jim stepped over him, her shadow falling across his face and blocking out the sunlight above them. Her dirty blond hair hung over them and she sniffed at him questionably before snatching the phaser from his belt and examining it closely. The armour was in fact only covering the areas most needed to retain a sense of decency and in fact they looked like a bunch of Neanderthal hunters from a far off land; almost like a scary, half-naked, lost cousins of the Flintstones. The woman's face was crinkled into a look of pure disgust as she crouched over Jim and began scrutinising his face and Jim wondered if she had ever seen someone like him before. Then she plucked the insignia from his shirt and chewed on it nervously before sliding it into a pouch at her waist.
"Look, I think we've gotten off to a bad start here." Jim tried to placate, sitting up slightly and trying to ignore the sharp pounding in his head "My name is James T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise, we're part of the Federat-"
A painful smack to the face made Jim's head snap sideways and caused his words to die in his throat as he groaned in pain. The woman seemed contented with this reaction and stood to address her fellow hunters.
"We have more prisoners for the Chief; he will deem their usefulness to us. Come and make sure they do not warn any other humans."
Jim frowned at her and went to ask who the Chief was before he saw the woman smirk and bring the large branch crashing back down on his skull and heard Uhura and Chekov's desperate cries before he was consumed by the inevitable darkness of unconsciousness.
