Author Note: I think you'll like this chapter, it's a good one! *Excited nod* Thanks for reading, following, favorites, etc.! You're awesome!
Chapter Nine: Gemini
The ship landed nearly in the dead of night. McCoy was glad to have no neighbors, since the mechanical bird came in squawking and lighting the plains. A real clunker, he thought. Claire was inside sleeping, or had been, and came out a minute later.
"What the heck is going on?" She yawned.
McCoy laughed as T'Pala crawled out of the ship. "Looks like your ride is here. Though, I'm interested to know why it's not the one she left in - the one I loaned her. I'm sure T'Pala will gladly explain?"
The Vulcan girl looked perplexed. "I have an explanation, though I hesitate to do so 'gladly'. This is Pharen's ship, and has just enough energy to get one where they need to go." She looked at Claire, who was smiling at her. "I told you I would return."
Now fully awake, Claire stepped forward to hug her. "I know. I'm glad you're safe, T'Pala."
The gesture was foreign to the girl, so she only nodded with warmed understanding. The contact was brief, as she chose quickly to pull away. "Yes, I'm safe. Are you ready to travel?"
"Uh..." Claire stuttered. "Well, I...I haven't really had the chance to say..." She looked up at McCoy, who was looking back; he seemed to be at peace. "...Goodbye."
"Very well. The hour is yours to prepare, but there is something to consider. This ship is one of two, and as I began to leave, I noticed another ship landing - that of my Mother."
"How do you know it was her?" McCoy asked.
She glanced at him seriously. "I know her ship. I don't doubt that she has taken the other one to go back - to the Enterprise."
Claire bit her lip nervously. "Why the Enterprise?" She asked, but she somehow knew before T'Pala replied.
"That's what ruined her life."
Sighing, Claire turned on her heel and headed toward the door. "Well, it didn't ruin mine! Give me half-an-hour, and we're out of here. Let me just wake up - " As she reached the front of the house, her son nearly collided into her. "Leo. Hi, honey."
He smiled tiredly. "Been up for a while. Do you need anything?"
"No, I think I'm just going to get ready. I'll be out in a minute." She patted his shoulder and stepped around him. This was all happening way too fast, but there wasn't really time to waste. Freshening up meant she could delay a little longer from the farewell. She didn't want to leave, but she had to go back - to save her son, to secure her own life, to decide on staying...she just didn't know about that one. The conflict still resided in her, and she just couldn't finalize it. One step at a time. One step at a time. As she brushed her teeth and combed her hair, she repeated that in her mind. As she dressed, she muttered it under her breath for confidence. Taking on Black Mirage was going to be intense, and she couldn't imagine what would ensue. It's like I finally get to face this part of me, she thought. The idea made her pause as she laced her boots. This dark, confused part of me.
There was a knock at the door. "Come in," she called.
It was McCoy. He entered cautiously, then smiled as he closed the door. "You doin' all right? It's...about time, isn't it?"
She smiled up at him. "In a hurry to send me on my way?"
McCoy didn't acknowledge the joke. He sat next to her, and shook his head. "No. I'd have you stay as long as it took."
"...For what?" She asked quietly. As he placed his hand over the side of her face, she tried not to shiver.
"For you to know how much I love you."
Claire guiltily lowered her gaze. "Oh, come on," she murmured. "I...know that you love me. I love you, too." As she said it, the words sadly didn't have the effect she'd wanted. She did love him, but she couldn't let him in if she wasn't going to stay. Her time with Greg - fifteen years of it - would have to be set aside. Not forgotten, but she wasn't quite ready to move on. Yet, when McCoy leaned in and kissed her then, she couldn't pull away. It felt more right the second time, and more desperate. They might not see one another after everything.
McCoy was the first to break it, and he looked extremely conflicted as he did so. "I'm sorry, I just..."
She smiled, guided his eyes back to meet hers, and said, "Don't be. Thank you for everything you've ever done for me, and for Leo. You're his entire world."
"I could say the same about the both of you. Please, Claire, be safe there."
"I will." She kissed his cheek, and the two of them stood and walked out. T'Pala was already waiting in the ship, but Leo had stayed behind. He stood from his seat at the table, and immediately embraced Claire in a tight hug. It was probably the tightest hug he'd given since he was little.
"I love you, Mom," he whispered. His voice was emotional, and his breath wavered. "I love you so much."
"I...I love you, too," Claire struggled to reply. "I wish I could stay here with you. I wish I could make up for lost time."
He pulled away, revealing the tears in his eyes. He smiled as he said, "That's the great thing about time-travel. You're going to go back, and I'll be there waiting for you to spend that time with me. Just...don't get yourself killed, or I'll never forgive you."
She laughed; she was crying, too. She hugged him a final time, and stepped out into the fresh air. She knew she would see them soon, but saying goodbye to her guys was still hard. As she entered the ship, she closed the hatch door, found the co-pilot chair, and buckled in. Tears fell freely down her face, and T'Pala was looking at her somberly. "Will you manage?" She asked.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm just being a baby, it's okay. I'm just glad you're coming with me."
T'Pala nodded as she began lift-off. "I would not leave you to fight this alone. Also, you do not know the first thing about flying a ship."
Claire wiped in vain at her eyes. "Very true," she agreed with a laugh. "I just hope we end up in the right place. I hope everything is going okay."
T'Pala hesitated, then said, "I believe my Mother is already there. However, in the time each of us has taken to arrive, I don't think too much of it has elapsed to make a difference. We will not let her win."
To Claire's surprise - and relief - travel hadn't taken long or been difficult. It had felt like they'd been going at warp speed, only they'd gone backwards. Now they traveled the dark expanse, and within minutes a large ship was sighted. It was the Enterprise, and Claire let out a low breath. Her home away from home. As they neared, a smaller one, their ship's twin, sat still outside. Claire looked at T'Pala, who kept her eyes forward.
"Will we be able to get on?"
T'Pala reached into her pants pocket, and pulled out an unexpected, though familiar item. It was a communicator, which she handed to Claire. "Let's find out."
"How did you get this?"
"Doctor McCoy gave it to me. It's the same one he's had for years, so he figured using it now would be useful. You may be able to talk to him, or even the Captain."
"Shouldn't we hail them?"
"I'm not sure that's wise. If Black Mirage is there, there's no doubt she's on that bridge. It gives her complete command over everything; however, she won't know we're here unless someone mentions it to her."
"So...you think trying Leonard would be better?" Claire suggested. Saying McCoy's first name felt strange to her, but she figured that they were already on that basis at this point. She had no idea of how the younger him would be, or - she shook her head. It doesn't matter right now, Claire, she reprimanded herself. "Would that give us away?"
"If he's wise, he won't answer if he can't. I have enough confidence to trust in him."
Claire shrugged, then flipped open the device. Awkwardly, she said, "Er, L-Leonard, are you there?" She tried to ignore T'Pala glance at her, and the blush in her cheeks. It had been a long time since she'd used one of these, and doubted on if she'd even done it right.
Suddenly, a voice said quietly, "Who is this?" It was him.
"What do I tell him?" Claire asked.
"Ask for a way on board - through the hangar, or transporter, it doesn't matter. Let him know who you are."
She nodded. "Uh, Leonard, it's me, Claire. Can you...get us onto the ship? Is there trouble?"
It was quiet for a beat. "You don't know how good it is to hear your voice. Are you all right?"
"Fine, a-are you?"
"I'm in medical bay. We definitely have trouble here." He sounded stressed.
"Doctor McCoy," T'Pala interjected, "we need a way onto the Enterprise. Is there one?"
"...I can try to get down to the hangar. Do you know where it is?"
Claire didn't, but her daughter nodded. "Yeah, it's good. We'll wait for you there."
"Okay, I'll do what I can."
T'Pala maneuvered the ship around, until she finally reached the hangar doors. As the wait went on, She looked at Claire and said, "Are you ready for this?"
"Not really. One step at a time, right?"
T'Pala nodded. She stood, moved over to her bag behind her seat, and pulled out two weapons. One she carefully handed to Claire, the other she kept and checked the charge. "Do you know how to use this?" When Claire shook her head, T'Pala moved over to instruct her. She pointed to a knob and said, "Right now, this is on stun. You only need to turn this to switch the energy source, in which it will kill anyone who crosses unfortunately into its path. Do not hesitate in shooting an enemy, because they certainly won't show you the same kindness. Do you understand?"
Solemnly, Claire nodded. T'Pala moved back to the controls, and found that the hangar doors were opening. With no time to waste, she eased the small ship inside, and guided it safely to land. After a delayed moment, the gigantic doors closed, and there was no turning back. After receiving the all clear, the two women stepped out from the ship, finding two sole men waiting for them. The first was Scotty, smiling anxiously, and the other was Leonard McCoy.
Claire just couldn't control herself. She just wanted to have the one moment she'd been missing, and took it gladly. She ran right up to him and into his arms, practically drowning in happiness. "I never want to let go of you," she whispered. "I've missed you so much."
"Claire, darling, I've missed you more."
"Well, I've missed you the most!" A voice sang from behind them. Claire blinked a couple of times, trying to wrap the idea of an evil twin around her head. It had been done a thousand times, but she'd never thought it would happen to her. She'd been right, too; Black Mirage seemed to personify everything bad and ugly about her, just from the manic expression on her face. "Finally. I was beginning to worry you wouldn't show. I have my dear daughter," she shot a mean glance at T'Pala, "to thank for that. It's a shame we couldn't catch up on...whatever that miserable planet was. Why didn't you stop to say hello?"
T'Pala didn't answer, mirroring her father's calculated expression on her face. Black Mirage just shook her head, and stepped right up to Claire. "It's weird, isn't it, Claire?"
"What do you want?" Claire asked. She was forced to project the question, because McCoy was standing in front of her. His hand clasped hers tightly, and as Mirage moved closer, he moved with her. "Where is the Captain?"
Her doppelganger laughed. "Would you believe how easy it is to take over this ship? They're all taking naps in the holding cells, until I decide to pick them off, one by one. I wanted to have a little fun, first, and our dear Leonard and Mr. Scott were willing to help."
"What are you talking about?" Claire asked. She looked over at the engineer, who avoided her stare. McCoy was looking at the ground, as if trying to find a way through it to escape. "How did they help you?"
"Oh, I sort of forced them to. Don't think they wanted to for a second, but when I got here, I learned something. There's a young boy on this ship, not a crew member, not the son of anyone here. Oh, wait, yes, he's yours. And before you bluff, or say you don't have a son, I already know the truth. I've seen him, and I could tell. He's here, somewhere, and I'm going to find him."
Claire took a bold step forward, her gun raised. She was wishing she'd reset the power, to end this right now. Before she could do anything, though, Mirage smacked the weapon from her hand, and brought a swift hand over the top of her head. She was out before she hit the ground, panic being the last thing she remembered feeling.
It was also the first feeling she had when she woke next. As her eyes fluttered open, she winced against the pain throbbing in her skull. Disoriented, she realized that she was sitting in the Captain's chair, or, strapped into it. Tape covered her mouth, and there was no use in struggling - she was stuck. Into her limited view came Black Mirage, and in horror, Claire realized that their outfits had been switched. "Feeling all right, Mirage?"
Claire shook her head, but mostly to wake herself more. Mirage removed the tape in a quick, painful swipe, and unlocked the cuffs attached to the arms of the chair. "It was just a precaution, though fun to keep you locked up. Your son is on his way up here, now, so I'll bet you can imagine what's going to happen next."
"Why...are you doing this?" Claire asked. "Why not just end it now?"
Mirage pouted. "That's no fun. I did the same thing to that Klingon General, the one who kidnapped you - I did you a favor, Claire. You should be on your knees, thanking me."
The Klingon General...Du'Ralle? "He's dead?"
"Of course! He thought he was going to have it all, and I led him on for hours about it. Then I just took it away, and poof! He was dead. It was kind of...boring, to be honest, so I hope this more fun. By the way," She said, and without warning, she pulled out a short knife. Claire cried out, but the blade had pierced her shoulder before she could fight back. It hurt more than she'd thought, and it left her useless on the ground. She moaned and tried to crawl, but Mirage pinned her from the back. "Now, now. From the way he'll see, you're the one who's defeated the Black Mirage! No matter what you say, he's going to think that you're me, and then I'll win! And just when he starts to trust me..." She crouched down, and grabbed the handle of the knife to twist it. Claire wanted to cry under the pain, wondering how it could hurt so badly. "I'll end him." Mirage smiled, waved her phaser in front of Claire's face, and stepped away.
Not minutes later, the bridge door was opening. Claire took one last chance to glare up at Mirage, and muttered at her, "You won't win. You know nothing about him, how smart he is. He's going to know, and you'll be the loser. Just you wait."
"We'll see," Mirage answered, and turned her eyes back to the boy who'd just walked in.
I had fun with this one. I admit, the idea is cliche, but I've always liked those good twin/bad twin showdowns. We'll jut have to see how this one plays out! Thanks for reading!
