Chapter 12- Fight or Flight
I stood motionless near Uhura gaping in wonder at the fierce looking spaceship on the screen. It looked like it was built to kill and I hoped I had not inadvertently attracted danger to the people on the ship. They had all been extraordinarily kind to me and I would hate to be the death of them.
"Capitan," Spock called, "we have received an incoming hail from the Romulans."
"On screen." Capitan Kirk sighed as he turned to face the giant wall.
The screen was filled with an image of a man's head. I swooned at his countenance, it was all so familiar. The harsh, cruel glare, the menacing facial tattoos that were outlined in black, and the overall blanket of oppression that permeated the screen. I closed my eyes as my heart pounded. I remembered him, but most of all I remembered an overwhelming sense of fear and dread. I instinctively backed away until I bumped into Uhura's chair as if he could somehow reach through the screen and grab me.
Uhura stood and grabbed me by the shoulders, temporarily blocking my view of the awful man that loomed godlike. "Are you ok?" She asked, but she sounded miles away due to the blood rushing in my ears. Spock quickly glanced towards us, but retrained his focus on the screen and stood at the ready.
"Capitan," the man on screen nearly hissed, "I believe you have stolen something that belongs to us. We want it back."
I could just see Capitan Kirk under Uhura's arm. He casually swiveled back and forth in his chair while doodling circles on the control panel with his finger. "Yeah, about that…" His tone was playfully mocking and the man on screen did not appear to appreciate it. "I would really love to and all, except for the fact that you were clearly in violation of the Federation treaty by being in the neutral zone. Besides, you scuttled your prize when the Klingons came to kick your ass; it wasn't like we beamed on board your ship and took her. You know what they say, finders keepers."
"You will return the human to us!" He yelled. "This is our only offer for diplomacy. Take it now or prepare for battle!"
The screen went black and Capitan Kirk stopped twisting in his chair. Whatever sense of bravado he may have felt was replaced by steely determination and his voice reflected it.
"Mr. Sulu, raise the shields and ready on my order, warp 8. Mr. Chekov, plot a course for the nearest habited zone."
"Capitan, the nearest zone vould be Klingon airspace." He warned after consulting with his computer screen.
"We will deal with that later, Mr. Chekov." He replied, "Just do it."
Just then the entire ship rocked violently and I reflexively squatted and covered my head while Uhura resumed her position and adjusted her earpiece. The noise was unbelievable, but the crew didn't seem to be bothered by it. I suddenly remembered why I hated flying in airplanes, the slightest turbulence made me think the plane was crashing and I couldn't bear the thought of hurtling toward the ground at 600 miles an hour trapped in a metal tube. At least if I were to die now, it would be sudden as my body would be sucked out into space through the gaping hole in the fuselage. I would only have a split second of full consciousness at best.
"Damage report, Mr. Spock." The Capitan barked.
"Shields down 32% and minor damage is reported on decks 20-23." He said placidly.
"Damn." He muttered to himself. "Mr. Sulu, I think it is time to get moving."
"Negative, Sir." Sulu said shaking his head. "There isn't enough power to maintain shields and full thrust."
"Goddamn!" he said more exasperated. "Bridge to engine room!"
"Aye, Capitan!" came Scotty's voice from an unknown location.
"Scotty, you have to work some magic for me. We have to get out of here in a hurry." He instructed with a friendly voice.
"Ach, more power?" He asked incredulously, "Want me to pull it out my arse, Capitan?"
"Grab your ankles and smile then because we need a lot." He replied tersely.
"That I will. Give me 20 seconds and all will be bonnie." He drawled while banging on something metal in the background.
The ship shook again and on the Capitan's orders, Spock put up an image of the Romulan vessel lobbing a volley of red lasers toward us. Once more the ship trembled violently and most of the lights went out while the crew struggled to maintain their footing.
"Scotty…" Capitan Kirk called with rising tension in his voice.
"Just aboot there." He answered.
"Scotty…" The Capitan said with a little more urgency.
"Aye! You are full go!"
"Hit it, Mr. Sulu!" He commanded.
In a fraction of a second, the enemy ship receded in a blur of light in the large viewing screen. After a few minutes, the light refocused into familiar tiny points against the black field and the crew issued a collective sigh.
"Bridge to Scotty." Capitan Kirk called while again swiveling and letting his head fall back with a thud on his chair.
"Aye!" Scotty answered somewhat breathless. It sounded like he had just run a marathon.
"Great job, my friend. Score yet another amazing save for Scotty and his merry band of intrepid engineers." He said with a great measure of sincerity that I found touching.
Over the intercom I could hear the muffled sound of people celebrating before Scotty replied, "Cheers! Wanna know how we managed, Capitan?"
Capitan Kirk laughed heartily and said, "Knowing how you operate, Scotty, it is probably best you not tell me and just fix whatever you broke to make it happen. Dispatch teams to repair the damage to the ship and report to the bridge at your earliest convenience. Kirk out."
"How are you?" Uhura asked placing her hand gently on my shoulder as I sat slumped next to her chair. I looked up at her and noted the genuine concern on her face, but I was completely numb. I was distracted by another pair of legs encroaching on my field of vision and I followed them up to the Capitan's face, which appeared perversely amused considering we had all been just millimeters away from total annihilation.
"Well," he said with a widening smirk as he placed his hands on his hips, "it appears you may be even more important than we thought. They must be desperate if they have the balls to attack a Federation ship."
"Why didn't you shoot back?" I asked quietly.
"Because I didn't want to start another war," he explained, "and besides, I have a better idea."
I thought I saw Spock roll his eyes, but that seemed an impossibly human reaction for him in retrospect. "Won't they chase you?" I asked looking back at the Capitan.
He chuckled and folded his arms across his chest. "Not here. They may have the nerve to fire on a Federation peacekeeping vessel, but they would be insane to challenge the Klingons. At least that is what I am counting on."
"Are you friends with the Klingons?" I inquired.
He scratched the back of his neck nervously and his blue eyes sparkled mischievously. "Not in so many words, exactly. The Klingons are more or less mercenaries, but I have a plan."
This time I was certain I witnessed Spock sigh as though he badly wanted to offer a dissenting opinion, but knew doing so would be a waste of effort. "Thank you, Capitan Kirk." I said standing on wobbly legs to shake his hand. He took it, but looked confused. "You could have just turned me over," I reasoned, "instead you and the crew risked your lives to protect me. Believe me, I appreciate it; I am just not sure I am worth it."
His smile was warm and reassuring. "Oh, you are most definitely worth it if the Romulans would tempt fate like they have. I don't know why they want you so badly, but it is clear we are now holding a trump card."
"Capitan," Sulu alerted, "we have a fleet of D7 cruisers closing in fast. Raise shields?"
"Negative, Mr. Sulu." He responded as he turned to look at the screen that displayed four ships in tight formation. "It looks like the welcoming committee has arrived."
