Chapter 8: Catacomb Rescue: Part 2: The Search

While searching for Christopher Pike, Spock watched as Dukat had his men break down a door and ransack the house to look for the Christian.

"Sometimes I don't understand." Spock said to Mudd, who was busy with some chicken he'd grabbed, which equated to talking to himself. "Even if they are different, these Christians don't seem so bad. Still Nero is my god, and I logically must do as he commands. Guards, search that house!"

Spock's men entered a house across from where Dukat was.

()()()()()

Jim was walking down the street with some bread when he noticed all the soldiers, led by Dukat.

"You there!" Dukat snapped. "What are you doing?"

"I was just making deliveries." Jim said nervously.

"Deliver this!" Dukat called out as he cracked his whip at the cart Scott was pulling as it tumbled over. Avoiding the whip from Essex, Jim ran into Spock, the soldier who had captured Nerys last week.

"Hey, watch where you going, boy!" Spock called out.

"Why don't you get your hands off of me?!" Jim shouted as he wrenched himself free.

"And why don't you get off the streets?" Spock retorted calmly.

Jim rushed off.

"One day, you're going to pay for this!" Jim called out. "You're all gonna pay!"

()()()()()

At the bakery, everyone had finished eating, and the children crowded around Chris.

"Tell us a story!" Carol pleaded.

"Yeah, a story about Jesus!" George said as well.

"Chris will tell another story tonight." Benjamin said with a smile. "Right now, we have to discuss our plans to get him out of California."

"Does he have to leave?" Carol asked sadly.

"I'm afraid so, Carol." Chris said. "There are many people on Remus who have never heard the stories of Christ, and I have to plant the seeds."

Chris then left with Benjamin to talk as Kasidy sat down.

"He's gonna plant seeds on Remus?" George asked.

"I thought he was a Story Keeper. Not a farmer." Worf said.

"Well Worf, telling the stories of Jesus is like planting a seed in someone's heart." Kasidy explained.

"Kasidy!" Benjamin called from the staircase. "Tell them about the sewer!"

"Ah, yes." Kasidy said with a smile. "One day, Jesus was teaching a crowd by the sea.

"'Listen to this!' Jesus said. 'A farmer went to plant his crop. Now some seeds fell on the path, and the birds ate them. Some seeds fell on rocky ground. These shot up quickly because the soil was thin, but they were scorched by the sun. Some seeds fell among the thorn bushes, and the thorns grew up and choked them, so that they never ripened, but some seeds fell into good soil and made thirty times more grain. Some up to sixty, and others up to a hundred times more grain.'

"And Jesus then said, 'He who has ears, let them hear.'"

"Hear what?" Worf asked. "I don't understand."

"Well, neither did his Disciples." Kasidy said. "At least, not at first. You see, after the story, Peter turned to Jesus and asked, 'Master, why do you speak in stories. Why not say what you mean, like you do with us?'

"Jesus responded, 'When I'm talking to you, I can talk about God's way plainly, about how God cares for everyone everywhere, but those who see me as I pass through their villages don't know me as well. I put things into stories. That way, those who want to hear me can, but those whose hearts are closed never do. Like the scriptures say, they look, but they don't really see what's there. They listen, but they don't understand.'

"Because if they did understand, they'd change their ways." Kasidy finished.

Just then, Jim burst in.

"Ben, Ben!" Jim shouted out. "The soldiers are coming! We've gotta hide Chris!"

"Jim, you and Carol take Chris to the catacombs and wait for me." Benjamin said quickly. "I'll keep the guards busy."

There was a knock on the door.

"Open up in the name of Nero!" A voice called out.

"Hurry!" Benjamin asked.

As Jim and Carol took Chris to the kitchen to get him out by the window, the children and Kasidy quickly cleaned up.

"I said open this door!" The soldier called out again.

"I'm coming." Benjamin said. "I'm coming."

Benjamin opened the door to find Mudd.

"Mudd!" Benjamin called out with a smile.

"Oh, Ben." Mudd said in shock. "I didn't realize this was your bakery."

"Come in." Benjamin said kindly. "Come in."

"I'm afraid I'll have to." Mudd said. "Nero's orders. We're searching the whole district."

()()()()()

In the kitchen, Jim tried to push Chris out while Carol pulled.

"Come on, Mr. Pike!" Carol groaned.

()()()()()

"So, are you searching for anyone in particular?" Kasidy asked.

"Well actually…" Mudd began before he turned to some bread Kasidy had just pulled out of the oven. "Wow, those look good."

"By all means, help yourself." Benjamin said kindly.

Mudd began to eat a loaf of the bread when Dukat came in.

"Well Mudd, hoping to find a Christian beneath that crust?!" Dukat asked.

"No." Mudd said nervously. "Sorry sir. I was just about to-"

Dukat shoved the bread into Mudd's mouth when he turned to the others.

"Search this place!" Dukat called out, and the guards pounded through the whole bakery as Kasidy held George and Worf close to her.

After their searches turned up nothing, there was a loud thump.

"What was that?" Dukat asked as he went into the kitchen to find a portrait of Benjamin kneeling before Nero.

"Nero's baker, eh?" Dukat asked as he turned to Benjamin. "If I find you've been hiding that Story Keeper, I'll bake you."

()()()()()

Outside of a rundown road, Carol helped Jim and Chris sneak into the catacombs that ran throughout Southern California.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Jim asked.

"I know these tunnels like the back of my hand." Carol said offhandedly. "I had to live down here for a month after the fire."

They then walked on.

()()()()()

Back at the farm, Benjamin, Kasidy, Worf, and George cleaned up.

"At least the children are safe." Benjamin said reassuringly. "And they didn't find Chris."

"Ben." A voice whispered.

"What was that?" Worf asked.

"Ben." The voice whispered again as George noticed it was coming from the picture in the kitchen.

"The picture's talking." George said in awe.

"George, it's just Nerys and Odo." Benjamin said good naturedly as he lifted the picture as the wall covered where the window was as the extra bit of wall melted down and turned into Odo as Nerys hopped in after him.

"Ben, you won't believe it!" Nerys said excitedly. "We've gathered a whole cartful of food and clothing for Chris to take to our friends on Remus!"

"That's wonderful!" Kasidy said.

"Yeah, and I've got these!" Nerys said as he pulled out a piece of paper with Nero's seal on it. "Traveling papers."

"Traveling papers?" George asked.

"Nero set up check points all over the city, but with these, once Chris' out of California, he can travel anywhere in the empire!"

"Excellent." Benjamin said. "Nerys, Odo, tell everyone to bring their gifts to the Remus Christians to Geordi's cave, here. We'll meet you there tonight."

"But that's outside the city." Worf said confusedly. "How will you get Chris there?"

"Catacombs, my boy." Benjamin said with a laugh. "They don't call us underground Christians for nothing."


Oh, now that was a good stroke of luck for the gang.