A/N: This is it. The final chapter. Thank you all so much for your reviews, follows, and favorites. It really means a lot. This was hard work, but oh, so much fun! Rest assured, I am already interviewing plot bunnies for future stories.

Chapter 10

Christine shook the reins and clucked her tongue at the horses. The wagon lurched forward as they adjusted to the weight. Leonard McCoy sat on the bench beside her, Kirk and Spock were mounted and rode alongside. They were questioned at the gate and she quickly explained that more soldiers were expected at the Mormon Camp* tonight and extra supplies had been requested.

They clattered over the bridge and drove slowly toward James Marshall's ranch, guided by Spock's extraordinary memory and night vision. They all felt the need to hurry, but their volatile cargo made caution necessary. On the way, Christine considered the dance she had shared with Spock. Never in her wildest dreams – well, maybe in the really wild ones – never would she have imagined Spock willingly dancing with her. She thought back to the morning and the feeling of his arm wrapped around her. And the night before, when he showed his concern over her riding out with them. She thought she had gotten over being in love with him, but now she wasn't sure. Was he beginning to feel something for her? It seemed the last two weeks had changed his mind-set about her. And here they were, riding out to reset the time-line so they could get back to the Enterprise and resume their normal lives. Normal. That meant no more special attention from Spock.

They arrived at the hacienda around midnight. Both the house and the barn were dark. McCoy searched the vicinity with the tricorder. "They're all asleep in the house," he whispered. "No, wait, Turek's in the outhouse." Chapel pulled the wagon to a stop near the back of the barn. The three men unloaded the gunpowder while she kept the horses quiet. After the last barrel had been taken into the barn, she took the wagon and the mounts to a safe location.

Kirk, Spock and McCoy arranged the gunpowder kegs around the three extractor crates and attached the end of the spool of fuse to the one nearest the door. Walking slowly backward, Spock unrolled the spool as they made their way to where Christine was hidden, then connected the cord to the detonator.

In the meantime, Turek had finished his business and exited the outhouse. Seeing movement behind the barn, he headed in that direction to investigate, just as Kirk depressed the plunger.

A series of explosions rocked the valley and the barn ignited in a ball of fire. Eight Klingons, in various states of dress, spilled out of the house followed by one angry half-Klingon in an embroidered bathrobe. K'lahD was shouting in a combination of Klingon and Standard English. "What the (Klingon expletive) is going on out here? Who is responsible for this?"

"We are," announced Kirk, standing between Spock and McCoy a few yards away from the angry man.

K'lahD could clearly see two phasers pointed at him. He peered at Kirk then Spock, and his eyes widened. "Commander Spock?" He turned to one of his men. "I thought you killed him!"

The Klingon shook his head and said, shamefaced, "I couldn't do it. We transported them to the surface instead."

K'lahD shouted several incomprehensible words in the man's face. The other Klingons looked away. It was then that the Enterprise officers noticed only one of the guards had thought to bring his disruptor out with him. Their suspicion that these men were not warriors was confirmed.

The now red-faced leader stomped furiously toward the one holding the weapon loosely at his side. He grabbed for the disruptor and in a confusing burst of movement and light the weapon discharged while pointed directly at K'lahD. His scream hung in the air a moment after his molecules disintegrated. Kirk and Spock focused their attention on the group and the Klingon immediately dropped the weapon in the dirt. "We will not harm you," he said in a gravelly voice, bowing his head in surrender.

"Captain!" Christine called from what had been the back of the barn. "Over here!" The three officers ran to her, followed by most of the Klingons. Lying in the dirt was Turek, a long piece of metal pinning him to the ground. A pool of green blood surrounded him. McCoy quickly scanned him and looked up at his Captain with a shake of his head.

The dying Vulcan's eyes opened and met Spock's. "Spock," he called weakly. He raised his hand in a tired Vulcan salute and whispered, "Ni'droi'ik nar-tor." His hand dropped, his eyes closed, and his breathing ceased.

"What did he say?" asked Kirk, looking directly at Spock.

"'I'm sorry.'"

They all stood a moment in silence. Then the Klingon who had spoken earlier asked, "What will you do with us, Captain?"

"Well, I can't let you stay here and continue to contaminate the time-line. And if I help you get home, you'll be tried as criminals; which means life imprisonment in the Federation…"

"Or execution in the Empire," finished the Klingon. The whine of a phaser discharge interrupted the discussion. Jim Kirk turned to find his First Officer with his weapon still pointing to the charred ground where Turek's body had lain. He waited for his friend's eyes to meet his.

"We could not risk his body being found," Spock stated quietly. Kirk nodded his agreement.

The Klingon Kirk had been speaking with took a moment to confer with his comrades, then spoke, "Captain, if you will allow us, we will take our ship and leave this planet. We will return to Klingon space and search for a place where we can live out our lives."

Kirk offered a smile of relief. "I think that's a wonderful idea. And I think you'd better do it quickly. I'm sure somebody heard that explosion and saw the smoke. They'll be riding out here to investigate soon." The Klingon nodded and gathered his men. They all went into the house to retrieve the rest of their gear. The Enterprise officers used their phasers to eliminate any critical remains of the explosion and gathered up any supplies for the Klingons to take with them.

The sky was just beginning to brighten when the Klingons were ready to depart. Kirk sent them on their way, then he and McCoy entered the house. They opened the cellar door and released the five people that had been trapped there. McCoy checked them over as best he could without using his scanner. "Gracias, Señores," said one of the men. "We saw the banditos coming and we hid in the cellar. Eduardo and Hector stayed to fight them, but…"

"It's all right, now," offered Kirk. "You'll find a wagon outside. Take it and get everyone to the fort. You'll find Mr. Marshall there." After the household servants were gone, Spock and Christine came in.

"Captain, we must leave," said Spock. "Several men on horseback are approaching at a rapid pace."

Kirk looked around at the modest ranch house. "Right. We can ride double for a ways, then walk and let the horses rest. Let's go."

Outside, Kirk and Spock pulled themselves into their saddles. Kirk helped McCoy up behind him. The Doctor put his arms loosely around his Captain. "Well, this is embarrassing," he mused. He watched as Spock easily lifted Christine up and helped her to get comfortable, pulling her arms firmly around his waist. Christine smiled and clasped her hands together, leaning on his back. They rode off as fast as the horses would run. Within minutes of their departure, John Sutter, James Marshall, and several other men arrived to find the still-smoldering ruins of the barn.

Arriving at the fort, Kirk instructed his officers to gather anything they wanted to keep from their quarters and meet him outside the back wall in twenty minutes. Christine gathered what little supplies they had and left most of it outside the neighbor's house, keeping only her flannel night gown and the tortoise shell hairbrush. Spock kept only a knife he had made in the blacksmith's shop.

At the fort's back wall, Captain Kirk found the marker he had left. "Guardian!" he called, facing the wall. "We've completed our task. The time-line is restored." A flickering point of light appeared on the wall and rapidly expanded, until it resembled a large view screen. The image of roiling mist appeared and the wall round the image began to glow. As the only one who had never witnessed this phenomenon, Christine was amazed by the process. She could see ancient ruins through the mist and feel the hot wind blowing in her face. "On three!" she heard Kirk shout. Spock took her hand, and on three they walked into the wall and out onto the dry, dusty plain of the Time Planet.

Dr. Stafford stepped forward to greet them, his wife and Dr. Highfield right behind him. "Welcome back, Captain. I see you found your friends. I take it you were successful."

"I believe we were. We'll soon find out." He pulled out his communicator and flipped it open. "Kirk to Enterprise."

"Enterprise. Scott here," came the reply. "Cap'n? I don't remember ye beamin' doon, but the ship's scanners show six Humans and a Vulcan at your location. I don't even remember how we got here. Is'na this the planet we were at when Doctor McCoy…"

"Yes, Scotty, it is. I'll explain it to you later. Stand by to beam up four." He closed the communicator and extended a hand to the historian. "Doctor Stafford, I want to thank you and your people for all your help."

Oh, thank you!" Stafford gushed. We just did the research, you're the ones who risked your lives." As Stafford shook the Captain's hand the glowing circle of the Guardian caught his eye. Kirk noticed the shift in his focus and turned to see what was happening.

The mist began rolling again as the stones flashed. "Captain Kirk," it began speaking, "Thanks to you and your associates the time-line has been restored. What once was will be again. My gratitude for your services." The lights flashed around the opening and the mist parted. "One piece of history is available." A newspaper came into focus within the mist. The headline read: THREE MEN DEAD IN RAILROAD CONSTRUCTION BLAST. Everyone present scanned the story. It told about an explosion during the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad and how two men had tried to save another and all had died. One of the men listed was named Terrence McHenry. Kirk and McCoy looked at each other and nodded in understanding. The Captain opened his communicator again and the other three officers took up positions around him, ready for transport.

As always, Kirk was the first to step off the pad. He whirled on his companions. "Showers for everybody," he ordered, then pointed at Spock and Christine. "You two are off duty for forty-eight hours. Eat, sleep, do whatever you need to get reconnected with the twenty-third century."

McCoy interjected before they could leave, "But first, I want everyone in Sickbay. I don't even want to think about what kinda little critters we picked up back there."

Two days later, Captain Kirk sat peascfully in his command chair watching the stars streak by on the view screen. The lift doors opened and Doctors McCoy and Chapel stepped out. McCoy stepped down to stand at his friend's left as Science Officer Spock came to the Captain's right. Christine leaned against the console beside Lt. Uhura, who turned to speak. "Captain, I'm picking up a message from the Klingon Empire. It seems the Emperor's brand new private yacht is missing. They're actually offering a reward for its return."

The Captain turned toward the Doctor with his lop-sided smile in place. "Well, Bones, should we go back and find their ship for them?"

McCoy smirked and answered, "Not for all the gold in California!"

The bridge of the Enterprise rang with Kirk's laughter, McCoy's guffaws and Christine's giggles. Even Spock chuckled. Almost.

THE END

* If you've read the information about Sutter's Fort and Mill, you should know about the Mormon Camp by now. If not, you know where to find it!