A/N: hurrr have an update
I am such a flake. I am so sorry. But I was moving stuff and had to partially hand-feed a picky alligator lizard and am adopting an axolotl so I was marathoning axie care sites. I'll give you guys art at some point ok?
The Enterprise closed her eyes and leaned back against the wall in her newly-assigned quarters, focusing on her starship body.
They're almost here, she broadcast through her hallways, Hang on.
Captain? She asked through Kirk's chair comm.
"We'll attempt to reason with them. Is Ghirrik on his way?"
With four security personnel, phasers on heavy Stun.
"Good."
The Enterprise nodded to herself and lay down on her bed, leaving her human form as much as possible. It almost felt strange, returning to the existence of a starship, after a few days of being human. She checked her phasers again, forcing herself to leave them powered off.
The five Brizinar ships approaching slowed to warp one, then stopped, only a hundred kilometers from her hull.
She was aware of her Captain conversing with Ghirrik, and Ghirrik in turn negotiating with the rest of the fleet. Her translators caught most of the exchange:
"...Life-debt to be settled..."
"I will lift it..."
"What is your Federation?"
"A community of planets. We are in a mutually beneficial arrangement."
"Weaklings trying to be strong."
Watch yourself. This weakling destroyed two of your ships, she thought.
"We may be... Weak compared to you, but the point is not who is the strongest. The point is, what can each contribute to the whole?"
"Without strength, you would not exist. Those who know strength would crush you and live."
"But if the strong protect the weak-"
"They are made weaker. The Divine Star shall attest to this!"
The Enterprise hissed to herself and watched the five ships move forward.
"Enterprise, can you beam the Brizinar here to the other ships?"
I can try. It seems like there are shuttlebays or something in each ship. They've got atmosphere.
"Send them there."
Ghirrik let out a growl just as the golden glow of the transporter enveloped him.
They're gone, the Enterprise said, backing away slightly from the approaching ships.
"Then let's go. Warp Seven, away from the ones trying to kill us."
No kidding. I'm not stupid.
The Enterprise fled at warp Seven, with five large, black ships following her.
Captain... We need to do something. If we run, they chase us. If we talk, they shut down the conversation. There's just about zero chance of a peaceful First Contact, if we call in Starfleet I'll have to do... something about being human, and I don't want the brass knowing about me yet.
"Let's just get past the reach of the... Divine Star, shall we," Kirk said, giving Sulu a course adjustment. The Enterprise changed accordingly.
"Warp Eight. They're going to keep at us if we don't get away."
The Enterprise sighed and sped up.
We can't keep running forever!
"Just to the outside of their territory, Enterprise, just till then."
The Enterprise made a noise of frustration and sped up to Warp Nine.
"Go back to Warp Eight, I don't want you to burn out your engines."
Captain, don't tell me to slow down! They want to kill me, so I am hauling my shiny metal ass out of here!
"You can handle the strain?"
Duh! I wouldn't be here if I couldn't! I'm a lot tougher than you give me credit for.
The Enterprise felt the five ships behind her inching up, going barely faster than her. Almost within reliable range of their weapons...
She noted a thick band of alpha radiation that she'd missed flying the other way.
Captain, we just passed an enormous patch of low radiation...
"What? That blip we saw coming in?"
I think so.
Spock looked up from his science console. "It is possible that the Brizinar have a sensitivity to alpha radiation that most other species do not."
"Could that patch of alpha be their 'Divine Star'?" Kirk wondered.
We'll find out. I'm stopping outside weapons range from the radiation.
Kirk frowned as the ship slowed and turned to face the oncoming ships... Who stopped just before the boundary of the radiation and fired missile after missile at the Enterprise. She dodged them easily.
"Well, that answers that," Kirk muttered. "Can you contact them?"
"They're not responding to our hails," Uhura reported.
The Enterprise leaned away from a particularly dense cluster of missiles. How about we mark off this section of space as the territory of hostile life forms?
"Good idea," Kirk said. "Let's determine the range of the radiation, first."