This is the first chapter of a completed novel length story. Hope you enjoy. I'll post chapters regularly if people are enjoying the tale.

Aurelan

CHAPTER ONE

The planet filling the viewscreen was mesmerising in its beauty; every pair of eyes on the bridge not engaged in monitoring a console or analysing data, was drawn to it inexorably. "It's so…blue." Chekov said, with more than a hint of a wistful sigh in his tone.

"Quite like your Earth both in hue and in its atmospheric composition." pointed out First Officer Spock, looking up from his science station, his gaze transferring to the viewscreen where it lingered a moment before seeking out that of his commanding officer, Captain James Kirk, himself in thrall to the planet's charms.

Indeed the planet's blueness was startlingly similar to Earth's, and the curls of milky cloud that shrouded its landmasses lent it an air of fragility reminiscent of the iconic early images of that marbled blue planet captured by the first space missions. It resembled Terra most strikingly in the shape and size of its continents and in its proportion of land to water.

As well as being beautiful, the planet was also something of an enigma. Lying on the fringes of the neutral zone, but just inside Federation space, it had been explored by the landing party of a Starfleet spaceship several years previously and its population had been made up of primitive humanoids. In accordance with the Federation's policy of non-interference with the development of other life forms, these beings had been left to evolve naturally, and Skara placed off limits to further exploration.

The current puzzle surrounding Skara was that it appeared to be the source of a distress call that Uhura had picked up a few hours ago, then lost. Kirk's present dilemma was that it would take at least a week by subspace radio to obtain clearance from Starfleet to send a landing party down to the planet's surface. By its very nature a distress signal demanded an immediate response. What to do?

Kirk acknowledged his First Officer's look with a nod. The signal from Skara presented the Captain with a double dilemma. For the past several days, the Enterprise had been in pursuit of a Klingon battle cruiser that had crossed the invisible line separating Federation space from the neutral zone, a buffer zone of neutral space created under the terms of the Organian peace treaty. Their chase had been hampered by the presence of a hazardous maze of asteroids and a build up of ionic activity that was threatening to gather into a storm. If Kirk responded to the distress signal, he would have to abandon the chase. Under other circumstances, Kirk would have followed the Klingon ship deep into the neutral zone to encourage it on its way, but it was no longer a threat and the mayday was the more pressing issue.

The fact that Lieutenant Uhura had inexplicably 'lost' the communication – meaning that the transmission had abruptly ceased and she was now not even sure of its source – only heightened the sense of urgency he felt in reaching a decision.

"Abandon pursuit. Mr Sulu, maintain orbit around Skara. That battlecruiser was headed into the neutral zone, I doubt it will be back."

He tapped a button on the command chair and summoned his Chief Engineer, Lieutenant Montgomery Scott, known less formally as Scotty, to the bridge. At the touch of another button he was speaking to Dr Leonard McCoy, the Enterprise's irascible but genial Chief Medical Officer and, along with Spock, another of Kirk's particular friends.

"Dr McCoy to the transporter room. Spock and I are on our way."

In the turbolift, hands neatly folded behind his back, his head slightly bowed, Spock cleared his throat before speaking, "Jim," He began, immediately commanding Kirk's full attention; when Spock used his captain's first name, it was deliberate.

"It is exactly one year today since your brother Sam died on Deneva. I believe it is appropriate to offer my condolences." Despite his low mood, Kirk smiled at the formal nature of Spock's expression of concern.

"Thank you, Mr Spock, is, I believe the correct response." As he expected the Vulcan's right eyebrow arched into his brow and before he could say anything else, Kirk cut him off with a raised hand. "It's alright, Spock. I don't need reminding about Sam." He regretted that his words sounded reproachful, but he was aware that Mr Spock was the last person on the ship to take offence.

It was true, Kirk was in sombre mood. Exactly one year ago to the day his brother Sam and his wife Aurelan had died in agony on Deneva, victims of an amoeba- like parasite that had claimed millions of lives and threatened his entire crew. Spock had suffered agonising pain and been nearly blinded before the creature was overcome. Not a day that he would have wished to be seared into his memory but there it was, and the passing of a year had merely distanced him from the pain of his loss, not lessened it.

"You okay, Jim? I was intending to drop by this evening with a bottle of Saurian brandy." Kirk felt his irritation rise at McCoy's greeting.

"If this is about my brother Sam, spare me your compassion. Mr Spock has beaten you to it." This time the reproachful tone was sure to sting. Dr McCoy was definitely not the last person on the ship to take offence. Before McCoy could retaliate, Kirk mumbled an apology. "Damn!" he thought, regretfully, knowing his friend as he did, and, true to form, McCoy's quick blue eyes were the last thing Kirk saw boring into him as they dissolved along with the rest of him in the transporter's fractured light.

Kirk was aware that they were beaming down into a situation where the risks were incalculable; he was also risking invoking the censure of his superiors at Starfleet Command. Kirk sighed. It wouldn't be the first time he had beamed down into trouble.

From the records of the previous Federation visit to Skara, they knew where the Skarran natives were concentrated and a sensor sweep had confirmed the presence of humanoid life forms in a primitive stage of development, on the largest of Skara's five continents. Clearly, they could not have sent a signal into space, and but Kirk was no longer naïve enough to take that as an absolute. He had encountered plenty of worlds that threw up surprises and he was taking no risks. Two armed security guards, John Visnic and Ben Ryan, made up the rest of the landing party and Kirk's first words on this world had been to order the guards to set their phasers to stun.

Spock's tricorder was in action immediately they shimmered back into existence on the planet's surface.

"Captain. There is a river approximately two miles northeast of here. It is likely that any settlements would be found around its banks."

"Agreed. Let's head in that direction." Kirk snapped up the lid of his communicator, "Kirk to Enterprise."

"Scott here, Captain."

"Scotty, Keep your eye on that ion storm. If the situation up there changes, I want to know about it." They had been riding out the storm for the past couple of days and it had been showing signs of blowing away from them, but these storms could be unpredictable and it was as well to be cautious.

"Aye, Captain. You'll be the first to know. Scott out."

"Captain" The urgency in Spock's voice caused everyone in the landing party to turn towards him. "We are being observed." Kirk swivelled round to face the direction Spock had subtly indicated with a movement of his eyes. Nothing. He knew Spock too well to question his judgement.

To a man, the landing party stood still, tensed, ready as they had been on countless other occasions, to act or react instantly. Nothing stirred, no sound disturbed the silence. Kirk relaxed his shoulders and shot his first officer a questioning look. McCoy could not resist a dig, "Hearing things, Spock? Time I tested those ears of yours." Spock had not relaxed his alert stance.

"It was not an audio signal that I tuned into Dr McCoy."

"Well then, what was it?"

"Something keener, an awareness of the presence of a sentient being close by."

"Do you mean you 'felt' something, Spock? Isn't that a little vague, imprecise…"

Spock, anything?" Kirk, ignoring McCoy's taunts, looking questioningly at Spock The Vulcan First Officer was taking readings on his tricorder.

"Negative, Captain. Whatever it is that I am sensing is beyond the range or capacity of our instruments."

"McCoy?"

"No ideas, Jim. The only parallel I can draw is with the Wraiths on Sallun V."

"Yes, an interesting comparison, but the Wraiths would register on our instruments." Spock commented.

"Would someone care to illuminate?" Kirk asked, impatiently.

"The Wraiths of Sallun V Captain, are invisible to the naked eye, have no constant physical form and can only be contacted through telepathic communication initiated by the Wraiths themselves. But they are not undetectable."

"Whoever or…whatever sent that distress signal seemed pretty keen to communicate." Kirk looked around him, sharpening his senses, as though heightening his awareness might put him in touch with whatever Spock was experiencing. The First Officer's senses were more sensitive than a human's. He was also a touch telepath. It bothered Kirk that this might make him vulnerable in ways that the others were not.

They had beamed down to a wooded landscape that was not unlike that of one of Earth's North temperate zones; the atmosphere was similar to Earth's. Kirk was aware of a chill in the air; the planet's sun hung low in the sky, emitting little warmth and a cutting wind was rising. It must be late in the year, if that had any meaning here. He rubbed his chin, conscious of the need to make a decision. "Let's get moving," he said, briskly, raising an arm to indicate a rocky prominence in the near distance.

As they moved ahead, Spock's awareness that they were accompanied by some intangible presence grew stronger. He offered no suggestions though he frowned at the readings on his tricorder as if unable to believe that a presence so keenly felt could go unrecorded.

It took them longer to reach the rocks than any of them would have supposed. A combination of thick, prickly undergrowth and inappropriate clothing slowed their progress. Even Spock, with his superior Vulcan strength and agility, seemed less spry than usual; the temperature was dropping as the day advanced, becoming too cool for someone born and bred in the searing heat of Vulcan. He had become accustomed to the Enterprise's controlled environment and was shivering perceptibly in spite of his exertions, when the ground under their feet became stonier and the incline steeper. "Cold, Spock?" McCoy asked quietly, his keen eyes missing nothing. Spock did not even grace him with a nod.

"Gentlemen, I suggest we rest here for a minute or two before attempting the ascent." Kirk said, good-humouredly, for the first time that day.

"What are you expecting to find on the other side of the mountain, Jim? Greener grass?" McCoy's question caused a raised eyebrow from Spock,

"Doctor, it is quite inaccurate to refer to the prominence before us as a 'mountain'. To qualify for that status it would need to be considerably more elevated in comparison with its immediate surroundings. I would estimate its height at no more than two hundred feet, which would place it firmly in the category of a hill."

Kirk enjoyed the look on McCoy's face and waited for his Chief Medical Officer's retort. It would be immediate and scathing and then his First Officer would retaliate with a withering look or a crushing word. He smiled inwardly, finding comfort in the reliability of his friends' behaviour; sometimes it was good to take refuge in the familiar, the known and predictable when so much in the universe they explored was unfamiliar and seemingly random. But Kirk never heard McCoy's retort. Something whizzed past his ear and he put a hand to the side of his head to rub the stinging sensation left on his scalp; his fingers came away warm and sticky with blood. "What the blazes…" he mouthed reeling round to see the other members of the landing party duck and swerve as they were assailed with a shower of arrows.

"Down!" Kirk yelled as he and the others hit the ground. A second shower of arrows cascaded over their heads and Kirk risked a look to see how the others were faring. He saw Spock, looking back, straining to see where the onslaught hailed from, catch an arrow on the back of a hand shielding his face. The sight of green blood shocked Kik as it always did. He looked around for cover but there was no need. The attack had stopped as suddenly as it had begun. Tentatively, Kirk rose to his feet. Immediately Spock's voice was in his ear,

"Captain we cannot assume that our attackers are out of ammunition."

"If you have a more helpful suggestion Mr Spock, I suggest you air it now."

Spock raised an eyebrow but did not reply. He too stood up and looked around. "An invisible enemy." He remarked.

"I don't think so, Sir. Captain, look at this." One of the security guards, John Visnic. He was bending over what looked to be just another of the local rocks scattered over the hillside, pointing to a thin, frayed rope of twisted green creeper.

"A tripwire?" Kirk asked, questioningly. "We triggered a trap."

"It would explain the randomised attack. A shower of projectiles aimed over a wide area to cause alarm and confusion." Spock interjected.

"It certainly achieved that." McCoy observed. He was examining the wound on the back of Spock's hand, which was still oozing blood. Ignoring Spock's protestations that the wound was minor, he extracted a spray from his medikit and directed it at the back of the First Officer's hand. When he had finished, Spock knelt down to examine the trap.

"A rather crude construction, Captain, with limited range. The level of skill required to construct such a device would approximate to that of this planet's primitive humanoids." Spock looked around. "Most probably designed to catch wild creatures of some kind."

"Jim, these arrowtips have been impregnated with something." McCoy said, alarmed, "Most likely a toxin of some sort. Was anyone else hit?" Visnic's arm was grazed slightly and Ryan poked a finger through a tear in his trouser leg to reveal a small cut. Only McCoy seemed to have escaped unharmed. He waved his tricorder over the others and shrugged, "No sign of anything sinister." He concluded, "But I'll take regular readings. In the meantime, let me know if any of you have symptoms."

"Let's carry on. Proceed with caution." Kirk said. "Stay together. Look out for more traps.

They reached the summit of the hill without further incident. The vista they enjoyed from the top revealed nothing more than a continuation of the landscape they had left at their backs – an expanse of dense woodland apparently devoid of any trace of settlement by intelligent beings. "Pity there's no time to go hiking." Kirk remarked, almost wistfully; the landscape reminded him of long, happy days spent hiking in the vast wildernesses of North America's national parks.

"And no time to study the creatures that inhabit this world. Perhaps it would be possible to spend time here conducting a scientific survey of the flora and fauna, and the mineral resources. At first glance this world looks perfect for colonization." McCoy smirked. Spock was itching to be let loose with his scientific instruments and recorders and was not above couching his desire in terms that would justify spending more time here. Jim too, smiled. Spock was an excellent First Officer; he was also an excellent Science Officer and he recognised an opportunity when he saw it.

"Let's not allow ourselves to be seduced by this planet's abundant charms. I, for one would like to know where that distress signal came from." McCoy said, voicing what the others were thinking.

Kirk did not answer. The Enterprise's sweep of Skara's surface had detected no signs of advanced life; no settlements, no cities, no hints of emergent civilisations, no life forms capable of making that leap from merely inhabiting a world to leaving some kind of a mark to prove their existence to future generations. In the back of his mind, as he surmised from McCoy's remark must be in the back of all their minds, was the question of what other beings were on Skara with the technological know how to send messages into space?

Kirk was experiencing a moment of uncharacteristic indecision. He was acutely aware that there was little more than a day to be lost if they were to outrun the approaching ion storm. Much as he abhorred a mystery left unsolved, time spent chasing chimeras was time that could be better spent – they could always return when the storm had passed. He was on the point of signalling the Enterprise to give the go ahead for beam up when Ryan's voice grabbed his attention,

"Captain, over there!" Kirk followed the direction of Ryan's pointing arm and saw immediately what the young Security Guard was so excited about. Nothing much. Just a glint of reflected sunlight, probably nothing more than a rock with a thread of metal ore running through it, but it warranted further investigation.

It took nearly half an hour of descending slowly through tangled, jagged undergrowth to reach the remains of the spacecraft. It lay almost concealed by the encroaching vegetation, upended, splintered, the markings and the writing on its side instantly recognisable.

"Jim, that's a.."

"I know what it is, Bones." Kirk answered, "The question is, what the hell is a Federation shuttlecraft doing in this part of the galaxy?"