Disclaimer: Star Trek isn't mine. But I bet I love it much more than Paramount.
Well, this worked out nicely. According to my notes, I first dreamed this story up a year ago yesterday (I was GOING to post yesterday, but no, Fanfiction had to die.)…doesn't feel nearly that long. 'Course, I didn't start writing it until a few months later…but that very first page where I scribbled out the basic idea and, just on a whim, dated the top, was exactly a year and a day ago today. And the relevance is…? Nothing in particular, it's just interesting. I'll let you get to the chapter now.
Chapter Fourteen
After spending all day with members of Starfleet, Kirk concluded it was probably time he checked up on the Sharks. It didn't pay to leave them to their own devices for too long. And regardless of what he might have said to McCoy, most of the pirates were probably over their hangovers by now. In fact, the timing just might be right to catch them before they got drunk again. It took some wandering, but he finally came across them in the Mess Hall. It was there that his search actually became easier, as he didn't have to hunt through the Mess Hall to know they were there. He could tell by the noise as soon as the doors opened.
The music wasn't sophisticated and it wasn't very well sung, but it was enthusiastic:
"What will we do with a drunken sailor?
What will we do with a drunken sailor?
What will we do with a drunken sailor,
Early in the morning?
"Throw him in the longboat 'til he's sober,
Throw him in the longboat 'til he's sober,
Throw him in the longboat 'til he's sober,
Early in the morning!
"Weigh hey, and up she rises!
Weigh hey, and up she rises!
Weigh hey and up she rises,
Early in the morning!"
The song ended, dissolving into laughing and joking, and Kirk crossed the room. He surveyed the boisterous pirates and the many glasses evident on the table, and shook his head.
"Good god, Harry, it's two in the afternoon."
Harry Mudd, who that comment was obviously addressed to, lifted his cup and tilted it towards Kirk to show the clear liquid within. "Strictly water, Jim. The way my head feels today, I wouldn't trust cider."
Kirk grinned and dropped into the nearest chair. "Don't blame you. You were far gone last night." He glanced around the table. "You all were."
Harry nodded. "And we've all got water."
"Didn't know you all had that much restraint." He took a closer look at the Sharks around him. "In fact, you don't have that much restraint. What's the story?"
The Sharks shifted, looked at each other, and it fell to Harry to answer the question. "Well, seems we ordered…a little too much last night. Some kind of secondary program kicked in to stop the replicators from replicating alcohol. Reeves still hasn't figured a way past it yet."
Kirk blinked. "He hacked into the self-destruct sequence in less than an hour."
"Well, the way his head feels today…"
"Point taken," Kirk acknowledged, then had a thought. "So if no one's drinking, explain the song."
Harry grinned slyly. "Oh, well, that's a simple matter of maintaining our reputation. The Starfleet group here seems to expect Blackbeard to show up any time now. No good reason not to perpetuate the myth."
That garnered a fair smattering of laughter, which Kirk joined in as he glanced around the room. Sure enough, the Starfleet crew were regarding them with suspicion, hostility, and perhaps a touch of fear. Kirk told himself that he didn't care, and he believed it.
"Not a bad plan," Kirk acknowledged, then grinned and added, "unless we decide we want to establish a mutually beneficial line of peaceful communication."
That garnered a few stares. "Where'd ye pull that line from, cap'n?"
"Stole it off a guy with pointed ears," Kirk said easily.
The one who had asked still looked blank. The Shark next to him poked him and said, "He means The Vulcan."
Kirk laughed. "Right, I mean The Vulcan."
That brought in more laughter from almost everyone. One primary exception though, and Kirk zeroed in on that pirate. You don't become a successful gang leader by being oblivious.
"You aren't amused, Charlie." It was more a statement than a question.
Charlie frowned. "No. I'm not."
"Something bothering you?" Kirk persisted.
"Yes. I don't know why we're here."
"The Mess Hall is generally where you go when thirsty aboard a starship," Kirk said lightly.
"No, I meant here," Charlie snapped. "On this ship. We strike fast, we take what we want, and we leave. That's the way the system works."
Kirk's instincts, as they usually were, had been correct; this was more serious than a simple matter of a failure to appreciate a humorous comment. "Try to keep in mind who makes the system work," Kirk said in a low voice.
"The point is, it works. And this isn't it. Nowhere in the plan do we sit on the ship while they repair, then take the bloody spaceship somewhere!"
Kirk nodded. "I see…and your preferred course of action would be…?"
"Take what we can, give nothing back, and get the hell out of here, but fast," Charlie said bluntly, meeting Kirk's gaze levelly.
The rest of the Sharks had fallen silent and were watching. Waiting. Waiting for what Kirk would do.
Kirk assumed a considering expression. "Mm-hmm…it's a thought. And there's certainly plenty to take. In weapons alone, we could make a fortune. Medical supplies too. And there's plenty of dilithium in the warp core, if we felt like stranding 430 people in deep space with no warp power. No doubt about it. Definite possibilities for grabbing and running."
Charlie was nodding enthusiastically. "Exactly! You see? We don't need to hang around here."
Kirk turned a contemptuous look on him. "You're thinking small, Charlie," he said scornfully. "This isn't a merchant ship. She's a starship. She's bigger game."
Charlie flushed. "Yeah, and it's not defenseless either," he said hotly. "We're gonna get ourselves shot in our sleep one night."
"Not invalid," Kirk acknowledged, "but I think it's a fair risk. Do you know how much a starship is worth to the Romulans? Worth the risk, believe me."
There was an appreciative murmur. Charlie continued glaring, and Kirk went on.
"Anyway, risks are part of the business. You don't get anywhere without them. Sure, you lose sometimes. But sometimes you win. I usually win. But the point is that I take the risks. And besides…if you're really worried about being shot in your sleep, lock the door." Kirk grinned. "And I don't care how short their skirts are, don't bring any of them in with you."
That brought in several unholy snickers and a furious expression from Charlie.
"Oh like you're one to talk," he snapped.
Kirk shrugged and didn't try to deny that.
"Y'know what you are?" Charlie snarled. "Yer one damn lucky son of a—"
"I wouldn't advise insulting my mother," Kirk said evenly. Though his tone was relatively light and his posture was still slouched, Kirk had gone tense. He knew what was coming; he'd been expecting it for weeks. Charlie, unfortunately, was ambitious.
"Lucky! Damned lucky! And that's it! So high and mighty," he sneered. "With your risks and your wild plans and your great ideas. And all you are is lucky." His chin jutted out in defiance. "I could do just as well."
Kirk stood up, walked around the table, and belted Charlie in the jaw. Unprepared, both Charlie and his chair went over backwards with a clatter, to land in a tangled heap on the floor. The Mess Hall fell completely silent.
Kirk leaned over him. "Yeah, I'm lucky. So what? And y'know something? I don't give a damn whether you can run this group or not. I'm in command and I'm staying here. And that means you listen to me. If you stay in this band you'll follow my commands, and if you can't handle that, feel free to turn yourself over to Starfleet. I have no doubt that Mr. Spock would be delighted to put you in the brig."
Charlie glared at him venomously, got to his feet, and stormed out, brushing past a startled Ensign Chekov on his way out the door. Kirk doubted that Charlie was about to turn himself over to Spock's custody, but he also doubted he was going to go cause trouble. Those instincts again. A glance around the room showed that all eyes were still on Kirk.
Kirk smiled pleasantly. "Minor disciplinary matter, nothing to concern yourselves with, you can all go on with your lives now." As he retook his chair he shot another glance at Chekov, who had obviously walked in while Kirk's attention was on the minor disciplinary matter. "You look a little surprised, Ensign," Kirk called.
Chekov shook his head. "Starship captains don't brawl in the Mess Hall."
Kirk shrugged. "Well now, I'm not a starship captain, am I?"
~~~***~~~
Wedge: You saw Pirates! Good! And I think you reviewed one or two. And wow, I last posted this two days before Christmas? Been a while, hasn't it…
Whatshername: I would be honored if Marvin enjoyed my story. And I'm delighted you liked my description, because you, you know, have awesome descriptions.
Bug the Xanthian Hobbit (covering your bases, I see): Well now, Kirk's planning to give up the Enterprise…but we'll see just how that turns out eventually. And quoting Captain Jack Sparrow is always a good thing. : )
Mzsnaz: Yes, I think that's the Romulans' plans. More or less anyway. Ever find the DVD player?
Silverfang: Of course POTC rocks! And I swear I don't know how it happened that Kirk's like Jack, since, as you should know from the A/N at top, I thought of all of this eight months before seeing Pirates. And yet he is…
Vestie: Yes…Kirk definitely has a reckless streak. It's just a pity Komack couldn't work with it, instead of against it. Which remind somewhat irrationally of Kirk telling Harry about the "special android attendant. She'll help you work with the androids, and not exploit them." Random, I know. And I'm delighted you added me to your favorite author list!
Emp: I'm glad you liked the chapter even though it was sad, because there's a few more sad ones coming…but that's far down the road yet.
RadarPLO: Yeah…I never have liked Komack. Very stupid guy.
Solidchristian-88: History hinges on the little things. If Ogadi (don't recall the spelling) Khan hadn't died, we might all be speaking Chinese. The Mongol hordes (I love that phrase) were sweeping through Europe, but then Mr. Khan up and died and they went home to pick a new leader and never conquered Europe. This random historical fact brought to you care of no one but me. And I'm glad you like the chapter!
Beedrill: I'm glad you latched onto the "fragile relationships," that theme will definitely be coming back. And I assume when you're referring to the story in past tense you meant the Kobayashi Maru flashback, not the story over all… Oh yes, the Denobulan Sponge Fish. I made it up. Phlox (from Enterprise, dunno if you watch) is a Denobulan, so I stole that, and then figured, well, what soaks things up? Sponges. And hence the Denobulan Sponge Fish.
Samantha Quinn: Glad the history matter is settled, you had me a bit worried in the last review. And you're right, the nuclear wessels backs me up, even though I hadn't thought of them myself.
Mimi6: The story's definitely continuing. Glad you like it!
I think that's all. More coming pretty soon. Expect more Harry, and a flashback in another chapter or two…we're closing in on the story of how Kirk became a pirate, I anticipate two more flashbacks in this long-range plan. In the meantime, review! Or the story dies…kidding, only kidding. The story's very firmly alive. My muse likes this one. But then, so do I. : )