Chapter Two: Fasten Your Seatbelts. It's Going to Be a Bumpy Ride

As the scream died in her throat, Charlie realized her friends were not waking up, and quickly leaped to attention. Her hands were shaking as she turned Kate onto her back, checking her vitals for life. Her heart was pounding with fear and adrenaline, attempting to understand where they were and how they could have ended up in this position. Soon, both women began to show signs of consciousness as Charlie maneuvered around them, looking for any blood or other outward appearances of distress.

"Oh my head," groaned Kate as she sat up, massaging her skull.

"Are you okay?" Charlie asked, examining Kate's head more thoroughly.

"I think so," replied Kate with a nod, dropping her hand.

"What the bloody hell happened?" growled Philippa, as she too sat up, dusting dirt from her multicolored blouse. "Where in the bloody hell are we?"

Charlie stood up and glanced down at her friends, worrying her bottom lip as she realized the full gravity of their situation.

"Honestly? I don't know," she replied with a sigh before straightening her spine. "But wherever we are, we aren't going to find help sitting here."

"Wait. Are … Are those…..two moons?" Kate gasped, pointing upwards. Quickly, Philippa's eyes darted into the air, growing larger by each passing second. Charlie had hoped to get the women moving before they had seen the sky, praying for the ability to mask their full situation so as not to frighten them. With that plan gone, all she could do was nod as both Kate and Philippa reacted in the same way Charlie had not a half hour before. Both women let out an ear-piercing scream that sent creatures in the nearby woods to fly up into the air with annoyed squawks.

Kate kept chanting, "Oh my god. Oh my god."

Meanwhile, Philippa's eyes filled with fear-induced tears, her mouth moving but no more sound emerging once her scream had died. Finally, she burst out,

"WHERE IN THE FUCKING HELL ARE WE?!"

Kate, her eyes wide with fear as well, looked to Philippa and then up to Charlie who had flinched at Philippa's outburst. Recognizing the situation could get out of hand very quickly, Charlie kneeled down in front of her two very terrified friends, taking one of their hands in her own.

"Listen," she began. "I'm not going to sugarcoat this. I have no idea where we are, or how we got here, but I promise you, to the bottom of my heart that no matter what happens I will get you both home, understand? I will fix this."

"How?" cried Philippa, her tears overflowing to course down her cheeks. "Like you said, you don't know how we got here. How are you going to get us home?"

Charlie sighed, running a hand through her hair and then pulled Philippa into a hug to try to calm her fears. While her own heart was beating painfully in her chest, and her hands felt clammy, she had to be strong for her friends.

"I don't know, Philly," she murmured. "But I'll think of something. Now come on." Charlie pulled back and stood up while bringing the other women to their feet. Spinning around, she picked a direction and headed off towards the woods. "We need to get moving and find water and shelter before the … um … sun … sets. And so I can figure this out." The last part she mumbled to herself as she the led her friends into the unknown.

Several hours later, three dirty, sweaty, and exhausted women were stumbling through the dense underbrush of a forest, the leader using a stick to swipe vines and other vegetation out of the way and clear a path for those behind her. Charlie, her head pounding from dehydration, was trying not to let her growing anxiety alarm the other two. For all the walking they had done, they had only come across a few small springs, none of which was drinkable for the stranded women. Painful blisters were beginning to develop on her heels as she continued to walk, and Charlie thanked the Lord that she had decided to dress casually for the interview. While her knee-high leather boots and brown denim skinny jeans were no means hiking wear, they were much better than stilettos and a skirt. The other two women were lucky also to be wearing sensible shoes for walking in the woods, but they too were beginning to feel the effects of blisters.

"Charlie, can we take a break?" Kate breathlessly asked, her hands coming down to rest on her knees as she bent over to breathe easier. While the woods they were in were not terribly warm, the women were layered for March in England. Already their outer coats and jackets had been shed, and they were close to losing their long sleeve blouses as well.

Charlie looked back and could see exhaustion was prevalent on Kate and Philippa's faces, and while she knew they needed to find water, and find it quickly, she agreed to take a breather, gesturing for them to take a seat next to a large set of boulders.

"Do you think anyone's looking for us back home, yet?" Kate asked timidly, smearing a bit of dirt of her forehead as she went to wipe the sweat off.

"I hope so," Charlie answered, pulling up her sleeve and removing the dirt from Kate's face. Reaching into her purse that was lucky enough to make the journey with her, she pulled out the half-filled water bottle and handed it to Kate first, who then passed it to Philippa, each taking a quick swallow more to wet their throats than parch their thirst. Unknown to the other women, Charlie only took half the amount they had, trying to save as much as possible, especially since it appeared they were not going to find anything soon.

"It's not like they're going to know where to look," Philippa added bitterly. "I mean it's not as if we are anywhere resembling Somerset or Wiltshire."

"That may be true," replied Charlie. "But it doesn't mean we can give up trying to get back."

Just as Philippa was about to reply, a loud crashing alerted the women to the approach of someone . . . or something. Fear locked Charlie's heart, causing her to crouch low and bring her friends with her. She was in a strange land, and something that sounded that big may not be the aid she was looking for.

Motioning for the girls to keep silent, Charlie inched forward around the boulder as stealthily as possible to get a better look at what was approaching. What she saw hitched the breath in fear. It was not one large thing, but a legion of heavily armed . . . things. Their dark hair was long and tangled, and their skin a dark brown to almost black. Large ridges ran up the bridge of their noses and onto their large foreheads. Their frames were enormous and stocky, and Charlie had no doubt they were incredibly strong and powerful, the large curved blades strapped to their backs a menacing clue. Her eyes widened as one spoke, a rough, guttural language rolling from his lips. If she didn't know any better, the creatures in front of her looked like . . .

"Klingons?" she whispered.

But no, that was impossible. Klingons did not exist, at least not real Klingons. However, the sky just above her head where an orange sun different from her own and two moons were shinning bright as day told her that if they existed, so too could real Klingons.

"Well … shit."

Waiting for the group to pass along a small, unmarked path that ran on the other side of the boulders, Charlie quietly retreated to where Kate and Philippa were still hiding. They were sitting with their backs to the rocks whispering fearfully to each other.

"Well? What was it?" Kate whispered as soon as she spotted Charlie.

Charlie looked between the two women, her lip drawn between her teeth in indecision. Should she tell them what she saw and risk scaring them further, or keep them moving, but unprepared if they were to come across more Klingons?

"I . . . um . . . we may have a bit of a problem," Charlie confessed, understanding that the more information Kate and Philippa had, the more likely they were to survive.

"More than what we are already in?" Philippa guffawed.

"Yea, a bit," Charlie sighed rubbing the back of her neck. "Okay, you both are probably going to think I'm insane, but whatever. You know Star Trek, correct?" At the nod of both girls, Charlie continued. "Well, those things over there, they look like . . . Klingons."

"Klingons?" Kate repeated unconvinced, almost as if she was tasting the unfamiliar word on her tongue. "Are you sure you are okay, Charlie? Maybe we should try to make camp here. You've been pushing yourself really hard—"

"I know what I saw," Charlie snapped, interrupting Kate who eyes widened. Never before had the 'wrath of the American' as she called it turned towards her. Taking a breath to calm her growing alarm, Charlie apologized, "I'm sorry, Kate. I shouldn't snap. But I know what I saw, and if they aren't . . . Klingons, then I don't know what they are. But they are not human, that is for damn sure."

"So what do we do?" Philippa whispered glancing over her shoulder as shouting could be heard on the other side of the boulders.

Charlie rose up slightly to see a couple Klingons taking a stand far too close to their hiding spot, shoving at one another in agitation. Realizing that they were in a precarious position, Charlie gestured for silence and then pointed down the slope from where they were perched. The women nodded and as quietly as they could, slinked away down the hill, hiding behind bushes until they could not hear the guttural language anymore.

"So if they are Klingons, like you said," Kate called as they began carefully to walk up another slope further down from their previous location. "Doesn't that make them our friends? I mean wasn't there a Klingon in Next Generation?"

Charlie sighed, running a hand through her dark, sweaty hair as she tried to get her bearings. Glancing back, she reached down to pull Philippa up onto the small cliff she had just climbed.

"Yes and no," she answered, helping Kate up as well. "See the problem is on top of not knowing where we are, I also don't know when."

"What different does that make?" Philippa panted, weaving around a couple of trees as she stumbled up the hill.

"It makes a big difference," Charlie answered steadying Philippa. "If we are in the same timeline as the Next Generation, then Kate's right. They are our friends and could probably help us. But if we're in an earlier timeline….." she trailed off, noticing it was becoming brighter further ahead of them. Jogging up to the top of the hill, Charlie crouched down behind a large bush, pulling braches aside to look upon the clearing on the other side as she quickly caught her breath.

"Then what?" Philippa asked as she and Kate came to crouch behind the bush as well.

Her brown eyes flicking back and forth, observing the events taking place in the meadow, Charlie whispered, "They will kill us on sight."

She glanced back into the scared faces of her two closet friends. Piercing her lips at her own calloused words, she quickly pulled both into a fierce hug, whispering into their ears, "But I won't let that happen, ya hear? I'll protect you."

She glanced heavenward, praying that she could keep that promise. Pulling back to look them in the eye and emphasize her point, she smiled in what she hoped was a reassuring way. Spinning back around, Charlie pulled the leaves out of the way again, watching the action taking place below.

Two groups were obviously battling one another, laser jets of lights flasing between them. One set of fighters wearing different colored shirts were huddled behind a cluster of rocks just down the slope, about 500 feet below where the women were hiding. The valley they were in was riddled with boulders in all shapes and sizes with straw colored grass filling the spaces in-between. Occasionally someone would stand up, or slink around the side of the rocks and send off a volley of their weapons before dunking back again. On the opposite side of the valley, a group of what appeared to be the same Klingons they almost ran into before would follow suit, sending wave after wave of fire on the outnumbered band. A couple members of the multicolored troop had already been hit, their bodies sprawled on the ground, and Charlie could hear them shouting for help, but from where she did not know. Squinting, she could almost believe that the uniforms resembled those of the Original Series but as far away as she was, she could not be sure.

Movement to her left caught Charlie's attention, and she watched as a group of five Klingons took up position on an outcrop just below their hiding place, trying to flank what she assumed were Starfleet officers. Her eyes widening when she realized the officers were unaware of the ambush being constructed before her eyes. She knew that if the group were Starfleet, they would be her and her friends' only hope of rescue, and to have them die at the hands of these Klingons did not fit into her plan to keep her friends safe. Knowing she had to do something, she quickly got the attention of Kate and Philippa who were watching the exchanges going on below them with frightened fascination.

"Okay guys, pay attention. See those people down there in the colored shirts? Yes? Okay. I need you, when I give the signal, to run down to them as fast as you can. No, don't speak," Charlie said, placing her hand over Kate's mouth as she tried to speak. "No matter what you hear behind you, don't look back and do not stop running until you are with them, understand? Do. Not. Stop. Ask them for asylum, or for help, I don't care. Just get them to take you back with them."

"What about you? You're coming with us, are you not?" Philippa asked breathlessly, her fear apparent.

"Of course, I'm going to be right behind you," Charlie assured, gripping Philippa's shoulder. "I just have to take care of something first."

"What are you going to do?" Kate asked as Charlie handed Philippa her bag and walked behind them to grab a thick, long branch from the forest floor.

"Giving you guys a head start." Before Philippa or Kate could protest, and before she could question herself, Charlie had run into the clearing toward the pack of Klingons down below. With as loud a cry as she could, Charlie swung the branch at the first Klingon's head, using all the fear and frustration she had been feeling since waking up in the strange forest into the swing. Taking the Klingons by surprise, she was able to knock the first one off the ridge they were currently standing on, sending him down onto a group of sharp stones.

"RUN NOW!" she screamed as Kate and Philippa took off behind her down the slope. Her goal now was to keep the other four occupied to give her friends a chance to reach the others. Swinging the branch again at the second Klingon, she no longer had the advantage of surprise, but she was able to knock his phaser from his hand. Swearing at her in Klingon, Charlie dodged a blow to her head and spun away, shoving the butt of the branch into his backside and sending him to follow his mate. The next Klingon stepped forward on the narrow ridge, barring his sharp and rotten teeth. Grimacing in disgust, Charlie swung the branch again, but this Klingon was anticipating it and caught the branch in his hand, sending shockwaves down the club into Charlie's arm. With a giant yank, he ripped the weapon from Charlie's hand, a scream drawn from her as several splinters imbedded themselves in her flesh. Backing up and looking up into his gloating face, she stumbled and fell, the phaser from earlier resting by her head. Without thinking, she grabbed the weapon and pointed at the Klingon, pulling the trigger as a burst of light sprang forth and hit him in the chest. Quickly he toppled, to the roar of the two behind him reminding her there were still others she needed to defend against.

Her hand was shaking as the fear finally began to overtake her earlier adrenaline rush. She fired again as the other Klingons came into view, but her panic caused her to hit the boulder next to him, sending a cloud of dust into the air. Both laughed as she began to scramble backwards as they neared, glancing over her shoulder to see Kate and Philippa had reached the group from Starfleet relatively unarmed. Sighing in relief as one problem was taken care of, Charlie's attention reverted to the issue at hand. Climbing to her feet as quickly as she could, she watched as the Klingon removed the very long, very deadly looking curved blade from his back, grinning at the fear reflected in her wide eyes. Shaking, she lifted the phaser to try to hit him again, but with a mighty shout, he swiped the blade towards her defenseless body. She screamed and leaped backwards, falling off the shallow end of the cliff, but not before the tip caught her lower stomach, carving a gash through her shirt and lower abdomen.

With a grunt of pain, she landed hard on her back, the phaser flying out of her hands as her head slammed into the ground, a kaleidoscope of stars bursting in front of her eyes. She shook her pounding skull to clear it, knowing of the danger still near, and watched the Klingon as he made a move to jump down to where she had landed. Before he could take a step, however, two beams of light struck him in the arm and chest, and he went down, blocking his other friend on the narrow ridge. Snapping her head to where the shots were fired from, she saw a man dressed in gold a few hundred feet away pointing his weapon toward the Klingon.

"Come on!" he shouted gesturing for her to follow while shooting several more beams at the final Klingon, preventing him from moving further. Wrapping an arm around her bleeding abdomen, Charlie clambered to her feet and jogged behind the man as he turned and ran down the slope while the others provided cover fire. The pain from her stomach and head made Charlie nauseous, and the world was spinning at an alarming rate, but she gritted her teeth and forced herself to keep stumbling forward. As she came to stand with the others, both Kate and Philippa grabbed her arms, trying to keep her standing as she sagged against them.

The man who had saved her flipped open some kind of hand held machine once he reached the group, shouting into it, "Kirk to Enterprise, ten to beam up! Now, Mister Scott!"

A strange tingling sensation spread throughout Charlie's body as white dots began to swim in front of her eyes. She glanced toward the cliffs she just vacated and watched to her horror as the last Klingon began to run toward the group, a dagger in his hand. Without a second thought, Charlie pulled Philippa behind her as he threw the knife towards her friend before the world dissolved into white.