Thanks to all who read and reviewed! I had a comment about Beverly being able to pilot a shuttle craft. Remember, she's a Commander and can stand watch on the Enterprise bridge, so I figured she could handle a shuttle. Here is the next chapter, hope you enjoy~~~~~~~
Chapter 3
Beverly brought the shuttle into a descent. There was still no sign of pursuit, but she was taking no chances. Entering the upper atmosphere at a steep angle, she hoped to distort their sensors and better hide her location. The last thing she did before communications were blacked out, was to send a distress beacon on all the Starfleet wavebands, giving her coordinates.
The shuttle was overheated, but made it through the atmosphere, and Beverly hoped it was an M-class planet. Since it was the planet with the retraining center, she reasoned it probably was. As she got closer to the ground she saw the terrain was rocky and mountainous, with very little vegetation. She put the shuttle down with a jolt in a small depression. Her hands shook and she had to take several deep breaths before she could move out of the pilot chair. No time to crack up now, Howard, you've got to get moving, she scolded herself.
Checking the back of the craft, she saw the usual survival gear, including bedding, food, water and medkit. Beverly quickly opened the door and removed everything that she thought she would need. She knew she couldn't stay with the shuttle, the Son'a could be just minutes behind her. The air seemed thin, and she panted with the exertion. However, the gravity seemed not as strong as Earth or the Enterprise, so that could be to her advantage.
"I need a diversion. What can I do?" The thought came to her that if she blew up the shuttle, they would think she crashed on impact and died. But that wouldn't workâthere would be no DNA traces. How could she do it? Her clothes wouldn't have enough trace material on them . . . . She found a knife from the survival gear and climbed back into the shuttle. She grabbed a hank of her long red hair and started sawing with the knife. A handful finally came off, and she threw it on the floor of the shuttle. That should be enough DNA, she thought as she set the controls to overload the engine. Then she scrambled out, gathered the gear and moved up into the rocks.
Beverly thought she was in good shape with dance training twice a week, and the Mok'Bara classes, but she was not prepared for the thin atmosphere. The climb was tough going, especially with the pack and she had only made it about a quarter of a mile when she heard the shuttle explode. The shock wave knocked her off her feet, and she slid a bit down the loose rocks. She was busy picking herself up and looking at her scraped hands when she realized she was not alone. Her mouth went dry in
fear as she looked at the men surrounding her. They had appeared out of nowhere and were staring at her.
There were six of them, dressed in rough clothing. Beverly noted it was woven cloth, so they were not primitives. They were humanoid, not very tall, had beards and carried staffs or pick-like implements. She dropped her pack and decided to take the offensive. She went to the tallest and looked at him.
"Greetings. I am a stranger here, and need your help." She hoped he would understand her.
They spoke among themselves, but Beverly could not understand the language, and didn't have a translator. The tones they used, however, did not seem hostile.
"You come from the fire?" The tallest spoke in broken Federation Standard. He pointed down the mountain toward the shuttle.
"Yes," Beverly nodded. Then looking more closely, she noticed one of the men leaning on his staff, his calf wrapped in a bloody cloth. Immediately, her doctor self took over. She opened the medkit and approached the man to examine the wound. The other men spoke excitedly and moved toward her threateningly.
"It's all right, I'm a . . . healer. I will help him." Beverly spoke again to the tall man. He said something, and the others backed away. She quickly cleansed and healed the deep cut using the photoplaser. She pulled away the bloody cloth and the other men crowded in and looked at the mended leg.
"You are the healer." The tall man nodded in approval. "I am Tem, speaker for the Bodun hills."
"I am Beverly. Some strangers are looking for me. Can you hide me?" She hoped he would understand her meaning.
Tem spoke with the other men and she could see their assent. She breathed an inward sigh of relief. The man whose leg she healed came over and picked up her pack.
"Come with us, Bev'ly." Tem said and they started up the mountain.
On the way, Beverly positioned herself near Tem, who appeared to be the only one who spoke Federation. He explained they were miners, living in the caves that had already been mined out. Some of their women were there, and they would take care of her. Beverly gathered that their society was separated strictly by the sexes, but it seemed she had special status.
The caves were not too far and by now, she was very weary. Tem entered the largest cave, calling out. A dark-haired woman appeared. Tem spoke with her, and she held her hand out shyly to Beverly and motioned her to follow.
The cave was dark after the bright daylight, but Beverly noted there were ventilation holes in the ceiling that let in a little light and let out the smoke from the fires she saw. Beverly attempted to communicate. The woman smiled and Beverly tried to get her to understand with sign language. At last, the woman, said, "Onya," pointing to herself.
"Onya," Beverly smiled back at her. They reached deeper into the caves, and Onya sat down near one of the fires. She motioned to Beverly to do the same. Grateful to be sitting, Beverly leaned against one of the rocks and closed her eyes. Onya spoke to someone and a small girl brought Beverly a cup filled with liquid. Beverly took the cup, hoping it wouldn't be something inedible. Several Klingon dishes came to mind, but when she sipped the liquid, it seemed to be some kind of broth. A warmth stole over her and she started to doze off. "At least I got away," she thought as sleep overtook her.
Beverly woke with a start in the Bodun cave. Tem came to tell her that on the way to the work caves the miners had seen strangers in the hills. The strangers spoke their language and asked about her. Tem assured her that the Bodun had not revealed her presence. The strangers seemed satisfied and went back down the mountain. Beverly thanked Tem and heaved a sigh of relief.
So, they found the shuttle and wondered if they presumed her dead. She knew Starfleet protocol would entail a search, but she wasn't sure who in Starfleet might be in league with the admiral. She didn't dare try to find the Federation search party. She had to contact the Enterprise.
TBC
Beverly is safe, but what about Jean Luc?
