A/N well guys I hope you like this first chapter.
J.T the Fighter
My name is Tom Leighton I am 10 years 6months two weeks and two days old when my world changed forever.
It was a normal peaceful day. Days so common on Tarsus IV that the thought of any thing bad happening was almost laughable.
Well when something bad finally did strike the paradise in space, that I'd lived in since I was two years old, no one was laughing….just crying.
It started for me when my dad came back from one of the science labs with a worried and somewhat fearful expression on his face.
"Mary Ann, Tom, Kelsey, meet me in the family room now!" My dad hollered his voice echoing loudly through the small three-bed room cottage so much like every other dwelling on this peaceful planet.
His voice was tighter then usual and didn't seem to hold that natural warmth it always did when he spoke to his family.
I was already in the family room so I just turned the T.V. off and turn my attention to dad as he stepped in to the room obviously tense. A second later my mom and little sister appeared from the kitchen where they had been baking cookies.
My father, who had been pacing around the room, like a caged tiger, mumbling weird half sentence about fungus, eating, gone, store, danger, Kodos, and something about the fields, glanced up as they walked in. His eye flickered down to their powdered covered aprons and suddenly flared up with uncharacteristic anger.
"What the hell do you think you doing!" He shouted out making us all jump.
My mom whose eye had gone wide at the outburst stuttered for a second before finally getting out the words out, "Making cookies, dear."
"Oh your making cookies are you?" Dad shouted, "Just harmlessly spending our limited amount of food on surgery treats! Don't you have any respect what so ever for the things we got to not go carelessly tossing them in the garbage just to satisfy your sweet tooth? You ungrateful little brats! You should only be eating when you hungry! From now on no more snacks! And any time you want something to eat you have to tell me first do you understand!"
Moms and Kelsey eyes where as big as saucers, a look I'm sure was mirrored on my face, as my dad finished his rant by suddenly grabbing the antique lap, that had been passed down in his family since the early twenty first century, and chucked it across the room and into the opposite wall.
"RICHARD!" my mother shouted as little Kelsey began to cry, "Stop! You're scaring the children!"
Mom words where UN needed because the second the sound of a shattering lap stop regret filled my fathers eyes.
"I'm sorry Mary Ann…I'm sorry kids," Dad said his voice was more tired then I had ever heard it and it looked as if he had suddenly age 20 years in the short few hour between the time he had left this morning to the time he stumped back in.
"Tom…Kelsey…kids go to your rooms. Let me and you mother talk for a bit ok." Dad asked tired sighs escaping every few words.
To shocked to arguer that it was unfair to be sent to our rooms when we had done nothing wrong I put my arm around Kelsey's should and guided her down the hallway that led to our bed rooms.
As soon as I was in my room I tossed myself on my bed the shock of the out of character way my father was acting disappearing into anger at the unfair treatment.
I didn't have time to let it brew, however, cause less then two minutes after I entered my room the door opened. Assuming it was my parents I just curled tighter into a ball and ignored it.
That is till I heard the soft sniffle. Turning I barley had time brace myself as Kelsey suddenly launched herself from the doorway and into my arms,
"Tommy, why is daddy so angry with us," Kelsey sobbed into my shoulder as I slowly set up.
"Shush Kelly, Daddy isn't mad at us. He just mad about something," even as I said it I knew that was a crappy way of comforting her.
"But what is he mad about Tommy? Why is he yelling and throwing things?" Kelsey asked her tone pleading for me, her big brother, to tell her why the fun gentle daddy they knew and loved had decided to take a vacation leaving a mean one in his place.
"I don't know Kelly. I don't know." Was all I could respond
Before Kelsey had time to ask more question the door opened and our parents stepped in.
Mom was crying into the old handkerchief that I recognized as my fathers and dad if it was possible looked even more strained then he had a few minutes before.
"Tommy…Kelly I'm sorry but we got to talk," Dad said as mom let out a hard sob and buried her face into his neck.
Kelsey almost immediately let go of me and suddenly flung her self at mom.
"Don't cry mommy, its okay whatever it is it can't be that bad can it?" Asked Kelsey staring up at mom with tear filled innocent eyes.
(I didn't know it at the time but that would be one of the last few innocent things I heard or saw for a very long time…because what mom was crying about really was that bad.)
Mom picked her heard up and looked at Kelly for second before dropping to her knees and pulling her into a tight hug.
"My precious baby ….My innocent beautiful little angel," Mom sobbed into Kelsey hair,
" How I wish this wasn't happening."
Alarmed by mother action I quickly stood up off my bed a ran forward,
"MOM! DAD! What's going on?" I asked hearing the despite plea in my voice the tone begging to know what was causing my family to act so strange.
Mom barely glanced at me before pulling me down into the arm lock she had Kelsey in.
I didn't say nothing and after a few seconds, of seeing nothing but the blue of my mother shirt as my face was pressed into her shoulder, hearing nothing but heart broken sobs, and feeling nothing but the cotton from her clothing and the violent tremors shaking my mother body, I heard my dad drop to his knees joining us on the floor and felt his strong warm arms wrap around us almost like a last way of protecting us from something unpleasant.
Then as my mom's sobs slowly began to quite down my dad explained what happened, holding us there as if he hoped to he could some how shield us from the horrors to come.
(Though none of us had ever imagined just how truly bad it was going to be in just a few short weeks from now.)
It seems that a fungus unlike any that had ever been seen before was eating away at the main fields that provided food for the colony and being so far out in space it would be weeks before Starfleet would even receive the message that Tarsus IV was in danger and weeks after that before the finally got here to drop of supplies and food rations. (Who could have ever guessed that Governor Kodos was soon going to be purposely blocking any and all messages to and from all Starfleet?) It was suspected that before then most of the food portions would be gone and over half the population starving.
People could only go thirty days with out food before they dropped all together. It would be nearly double that time before Starfleet got here.
Being so young and innocent I only understood a couple of things. 1: we would be more hungry then normal, 2: we weren't aloud to eat anything with out mommy or daddies permission, 3: we would be storing food down in the cellar below the house that dad had built for storage of spare science equipment for when ever he had to bring work home, and 4: under no circumstance where we aloud to tell where we where hiding our food not even to our friends.
We stayed in that hug long after dad finished telling us what was going on…. How long? I'm not really sure, long enough that Kelsey breathing to began to slow and even out giving up the fact that she'd fallen sleep standing up leaning into mom.
When dad and mom finally released us, dad picking Kelsey small body up into his arms to carry her sleeping form, it was with orders to go to sleep and that it was late.
I hadn't given it much thought, to tired from the sudden emotional turn of this day, but it was only 8:30 and since it was summer on this planet the sun was just starting to set lighting the end of the fields that we could see from my window a deep gold.
I was just beginning to drift off when I heard a voice speaking from my door.
I reluctantly pulled my eyes open and rolled to face the voice. My father silhouette against the dull light from the hallway was the sight that greeted my brown eyes.
With a sigh my dad stepped into the room closing the door leaving the only light in the room coming from the setting sun outside. He walked towards me slow and measured steps and so hypnotizing I almost fell asleep. Only him sitting on the edge of my bed pulled me back out of dreamland.
"Thomas…Tommy…Tom…," My dad seemed to have trouble deciding what name he wanted to called me by, "Listen son first I want to apologize for my behavior earlier it was uncalled for and I'm sorry."
I frowned my mind once again on the brink of shutting down. He was still on about that from what I could gather he had perfect reason to be upset. Still I just said, "It's okay dad I understand."
I expected him to nod his head maybe ruffle my hair or give a small weak smile and leave but he didn't.
"…Tom….I need to ask you a favor. Do you think you could do something for me?" He asked.
My mind was only a inky blackness now with only a small light of consciousness left that I used to nod my head and say, "Sure wat…that?"
"Tom…starvation can do funny things to people I need you to promise me, if something happens to your mother and I, that you'll protect Kelsey. Keep her safe can you do that for me?" Dad asked.
By now his voice was so far away I wasn't for sure if I was dreaming or not.
"Sure dad I promise," I heard myself say though I never remember thinking the words.
And then I felt the pressure lift of my bed, the lightest ruffle of my hair, a breezy "Thank you son" near my ear and then the presence of my father slowly beginning to leave.
The last things I remember after that were a whisper so low I was sure I dreamt it of "Remember son," and the smell of burned chocolate chip cookies floating down the hallway into my room from the kitchen and making my stomach rumble. 'I went to bed without dinner,' was my last thought.
But in the weeks and months to come that would be far from the last time that thought would cross my mind.
A/N okay guys I know I have two other stories to go and update but I got hit with this idea and I just had to do it. This is my first attempt at a star trek story so be gentle but know I am completely open to advice. I hope this catch your interest since I'm going at the Tarsus IV from an angle I have yet to see used though I'm sure somewhere that it has been. Any way I'll try and be quick with updates and I really hoped you liked the first chapter I spent most of the night typing and retyping it lol.