Twenty Six

You're supposed to be dead anyways…

It wouldn't make a difference if I took you with me…

Those words continued to ring in the back of Emily's mind as she followed the others to the shuttle bay. It was at that point when she reached the conclusion that everyone from Starfleet was the same. From Kirk's determination to make an ass of himself, to Pike's callous behavior towards the reality her parents tried creating.

Emily began to wonder if there was anyone in the Fleet she could trust. None of them had given a reason for her to do so, other than McCoy. And the only reason he had grown to accept her was because they'd practically grown up together. She had a feeling that had it been different, he probably would have reacted in a similar manner to Kirk.

True, Uhura, Gaila and even Sulu had been more than supportive in the beginning. But she had a feeling they would change their minds when they saw how loyal she was to SHIELD. She would still prefer working for the agency over Starfleet any day. The only reason she stuck around for as long as she did was because McCoy was there.

He was the one who encouraged her to stick it through until the bitter end. And while she had no regrets doing so, there were times when she wished things could have gone differently. She desperately wanted to explain to Kirk that the agency was the reason she was still alive. That the agency had given her a second chance and a place in the world.

Instead of arguing with Pike, Emily decided that she would do whatever she could to help these people. If it meant sacrificing what little freedom she had, so be it. The people from Planet Vulcan needed help first and foremost. She wasn't going to let them suffer from the mistakes made by humans. Not if she could help them.

It was that sheer determination that McCoy would often get frustrated with. She knew in the back of her mind that this was something she'd been trained for. And it was with that notion that she was determined to help those who couldn't help themselves.

"Without transporters," Pike began explaining the situation and what was expected of them all, "We can't beam off this ship, we can't assist Vulcan, we can't do our job. Cadets, you will space-jump from the shuttle. You will land on that machine they lowered into the atmosphere that's scrambling our gear. You'll get inside. You'll disable it, then you'll beam back to the ship. Mr. Spock," he paused and tapped on the com, "I'm leaving you in command of the Enterprise. Once we have transport capabilities, communications back up, you'll contact Starfleet, report what the hell is going on here. And, if all else fails, rendezvous with the Fleet in the Laurentian system. Kirk," he paused once again and looked at Kirk, "I'm promoting you to First Officer."

"What?"

Kirk's eyes widened in disbelief when Pike spoke to him directly. Though, Emily wasn't too surprised by Pike's choice. As much as she hated to admit it, Kirk would make a decent Captain if he wasn't such an asshole most of the time. She'd seen it in him from the moment they met on the recruitment shuttle that morning.

Despite himself, Kirk had a brash attitude that most Captains needed. He was also willing to take risks that most people wouldn't, despite being reprimanded by superior officers for said decision. Though she was still annoyed with Kirk, she secretly admired him for his courage and the fact that he was who he was.

"Because he doesn't have a big enough ego," Emily muttered under her breath.

Resentment towards Kirk bubbled up within her. She hated knowing that he would get a promotion while she was likely going to be kicked out of Starfleet if she survived this incident. Pike's favoritism towards Kirk just showed how corrupt the system was. What annoyed her more than anything was that no one else seemed to argue with Pike's decision.

She understood that if things had gone any differently, Kirk would have likely been Pike's first pick as First Officer. But after his fiasco with the Kobyoshi Maru, he was lucky to even be aboard the Enterprise. It was only thanks to McCoy that Kirk was with them in the first place, and Kirk didn't seem to understand that.

His supposedly best friend could have easily been reprimanded for bringing him aboard the ship. Emily had a feeling that McCoy would still pay the price for dragging Kirk with him, despite the council's orders. As it was, she had a hard time trying to block out his angry thoughts swarming in the back of her mind.

She knew McCoy was pissed with the fact that Pike had agreed to take her with him. Worst still was the fact that Kirk had been all but willing to go with them. Things didn't get much better as she guessed what this mission would entail. She'd been trained to handle torture before, and after her experience with those men at the warehouse, she was no stranger to torture.

"Captain," Spock sounded as he joined them. He had been keeping up with the team while Pike listed off the instruction to leave them once they were gone. Spock needed to be the first to feel informed of what they were to do if all else failed. "Please, I apologize. The complexities of human pranks escape me."

I've been wondering the same thing, Emily nearly rolled her eyes. Kirk certainly hadn't earned the position. If anything, Kirk's actions had only proved what an asshole he could be. The only people who actually showed that they cared somewhat were McCoy and Uhura. And that was only after seeing the abuse she had endured between her parents and the system.

She often found herself wondering what life would have been like in the Academy if she and McCoy hadn't enlisted together. She realized with a start that she wouldn't have made it this far if it wasn't for him constantly encouraging her along the way. She knew for a damn fact that if Kirk had been treating her that way from the beginning, she would have given up and moved on to another assignment.

The whole thing was made even more ironic when she thought of how persistent Kirk had been when it came to getting to know her. She wondered how much he regretted choosing to do so. It was clear from the glare he kept shooting her that he wanted nothing to do with her. And she would have been perfectly okay with that notion if they weren't forced to work together.

"It's not a prank, Spock," Pike reassured him. "And I'm not Captain, you are." He paused to let that sink in, and when Spock finally seemed to realize that he was telling the truth, the half-Vulcan spun around and returned to his post on the bridge. "Let's go."

"Sir," Kirk started when they reached the shuttle, "After we knock out that drill, what happens to you?"

A shiver swept through Emily when she noticed he avoided including her in their conversation. She wasn't surprised that Kirk refused to accept her as one of their own. Yet, it also proved that he didn't expect her to survive the outcome of whatever Nero did to them.

My life was never significant enough for you to give a damn, she thought after narrowing her eyes. She wondered what McCoy would say to him once this was all over. If she did manage to survive the ordeal, she would have a few choice words herself. Though something told her she would never have the heart to say it out loud. McCoy was the one who wasn't afraid to run his mouth off at anyone. There were times when she wished she could share similar convictions. It seemed as if anything she said or did only got her into further trouble.

"I guess you'll have to come back and get me," Pike reassured him with a nod.

By now, Emily had gotten used to the accusing glare he threw her. It was almost as if he expected her to give away whatever secrets she had to Nero. Emily almost laughed at the thought of sharing what knowledge she had of the Fleet. It would have been a deserving method of revenge. Yet, every fiber in her body told her that wasn't the answer. She knew better than to spill the beans to a madman determined to bring down everything in his way.

Once Kirk and the others had taken their positions in the belly of the shuttle, Emily's stomach clenched with anxiety. She caught Sulu watching her curiously as she walked past. Their eyes met for a moment, and she thought she saw sympathy flashing across his eyes. Though the helmsman didn't say anything, she didn't miss the underlying message written across his eyes.

Anyone who attended Kirk's trial would have known by now that she worked for SHIELD. Emily doubted that those who worked aboard the Enterprise would trust her. Her fists clenched at the thought. She never planned on betraying Starfleet to SHIELD in any way. What caught her by surprise was when Sulu mouthed 'sorry' before the door slid shut.

Pike kept glancing at Emily self-consciously when he noticed how eerily calm she looked. Any traces of the innocent girl he saw years ago was gone. He swallowed hard after noticing that she'd kept her face void of any emotions. Instead, her eyes told a different story. They were a storm of emotions, telling him that she had complete control over what she was really feeling in that moment.

"I never planned on selling out Starfleet." Pike's blood ran cold when she finally spoke for the first time as the shuttle launched. "It was never about finding secrets and figuring out your weakness."

For a moment, Pike wasn't sure how to answer as he looked at her. The tone of her voice was oddly calm despite the situation they were in, and that made it all the worse. He couldn't help but feel the slightest twinge of guilt for dragging her along with him.

"Your parents claimed that you were killed during the Kelvin incident," he muttered, though Pike knew in the back of his mind how wrong it was to state that.

She was just a toddler at the time… an innocent kid who got dragged into the mess of others.

"Do you honestly think that story is believable?" she suddenly laughed bitterly, sending shivers of unease through Pike. "They would have done anything just to make sure I wasn't in their lives again. SHIELD made a deal with them to ensure that they didn't get their asses sued for child endangerment."

It took Pike a few seconds to comprehend what she meant by that. All at once, his memories drifted back to the interviews with the press. The family hadn't even seemed distressed at the time. Sure, her mother had been upset with the idea of losing her. But, her father was a whole different story. He hadn't missed how nervous she was around her father as a child. Or the fact that the family had always been a little distant with one another.

"They were protecting themselves," he muttered as realization finally dawned on him.

"Actually, SHIELD was protecting me from them," she corrected him without missing a beat. "Do you honestly think they would have wanted a daughter who has the ability to move objects with her mind? Or one who has the intelligence of a computer system? To them I was nothing more than a freak who needed to be controlled."

Pike opened his mouth, ready to answer when he thought better of it. The anger from earlier when he found out she was alive had already subsided into guilt. He knew now that she had been protecting her assets, and that she had been doing her job. It was impossible to imagine what she would have been like if her parents kept her.

The silence that followed as they approached the Narada was uncomfortable at best. Pike shifted uneasily in his seat as they slowly but surely reached the ship looming ahead ominously. Even in the face of eminent torture and likely her own demise, Emily looked eerily calm. It was almost as if she'd faced this kind of situation before.

When the shuttle finally reached the Narada and docked in place, the silence only seemed to get worse.

Emily looked around warily as she noticed that the ship itself looked like it had been a mining vessel. Weird looking mechanical instruments were scattered along the ship. A loud whirring sound echoed in the background every now and then. She could hear the engine working double-time to make up for the lack of speed the ship was meant for. When her gaze drifted towards the metal floor, she noticed a couple of Romulans were already waiting for them.

Unease swept through her when the Romulans guided them towards what she assumed was the bridge. From that point, she could see that the ship was much larger on the inside than it was on the outside. More Romulans who looked as if they'd seen better days were clustered around the bridge. Most of them carried phasers or other weapons, but a few were too heavily built to carry such objects.

"Captain Christopher Pike, and Liaison Emily Hayes," Nero greeted them after leaving his throne. Emily narrowed her eyes when he called her out. "I have been waiting to see whether you would follow through with my orders."

"I never said I would comply to your orders," Pike snapped through gritted teeth.

"Yet here you are, without a weapon or any means of defense," Nero sneered in amusement. The moment his piercing gaze reached Emily was when she glared back with hatred. "It is good to see that you are no different from where I come from, Liaison."

What the hell is he going on about? Emily wondered when she felt his eyes searching her up and down.

Nero seemed to know more about her than she liked to admit. Yet, it also sounded as if he came from another world. That left her mind reeling with confusion and annoyance. She hated riddles that didn't make much sense.

"Where I came from, you were a well-respected Starfleet Officer who managed to save more than a few planets," he went on with a wave of his hand. "In my time, it would have been impossible to get anywhere near Planet Vulcan without your interference."

Not for the first time, Emily found herself glaring at Nero as she wondered where he was getting at with that. All the while, Pike's eyes widened in disbelief when he realized what Nero was implying.

She had worked for SHIELD over the last fifteen years. Starfleet was always at the back of her mind. All she ever wanted was to help people, and she had the chance to do that with SHIELD.

"You're out of your damn mind if you think any of that is true," she snapped irritably.

I'd sooner let myself get captured all over again than go back to Starfleet when this is over, she added silently. She wasn't about to say it out loud with Pike listening to her. All the torment Kirk put her through was just another reminder of why she tried so hard to avoid Starfleet all together. Though, it would also mean leaving behind McCoy, which was something she dreaded doing the most.

It was bad enough that they had been apart before. But to think that she could lose him all over again left her heart wrenching with guilt and grief. Not for the first time, she was suddenly grateful that she closed off their mental link. The last thing she wanted was for McCoy to know what was happening in that moment.

"We'll see whether or not you can hold true to that statement," Nero sneered without missing a beat.

Neither Emily nor Pike were given a chance to argue when they were pushed into another chamber beyond the bridge. She knew at that point Nero had bigger plans in mind for them. The attack on Planet Vulcan was just the beginning, and they were the keys to Nero figuring out where to strike next.

.

.

The destruction of Planet Vulcan had left a heavy, solemn atmosphere throughout the Enterprise. Everyone was stunned to find out that Nero had a device that could form a black hole. The planet had been destroyed by said black hole, with the Narada disappearing shortly after.

Kirk sat on a bench next to Sulu while nursing his injuries and pride. When he jumped after Sulu, Kirk thought they were both going to go with the planet. He was relieved when a kid named Chekov had saved them just in time. Yet, nothing could have prepared either of them for the trauma of nearly falling to their deaths.

He supposed they were lucky compared to the Vulcans who were now suffering from the loss of their planet. Most of the Vulcans that were being kept in medbay were elderly. Spock was able to rescue the majority of the high council, save for his mother. It was impossible to tell whether his mother's death affected him or not. Kirk had no doubt that was the case – everyone had been affected by the losses that followed.

Unfortunately, he didn't have time to dwell on the matter when an exhausted looking McCoy approached them. Kirk stiffened when he noticed just how tired the doctor looked. From what he gathered, Doctor Puri had been on the same deck that suffered a massive blow, thus leaving McCoy as the Chief Medical Officer.

"Bones, you look like you've seen better days," he remarked. He wanted nothing more than to cut through the icy tension that seemed to fill the room. Even Sulu looked uncomfortable with the way McCoy was glaring daggers at Kirk. "Come on, you're not even gonna try and scold me for nearly jumping to my death?"

He winced at his own stupid joke. Truthfully, Kirk knew why McCoy was so pissed with him. It wasn't until Planet Vulcan was destroyed that Kirk began feeling slightly guilty for what happened with Coulson. He knew it was his fault that Pike decided to drag her with him to the Narada.

Now, there was a possibility that neither of them would make it. Part of him dreaded the moment this mission was over, because he knew no matter what it would be a day of reckoning for him. If Coulson somehow survived this mess, she would likely never forgive him for dragging her into this mess. And something told him McCoy would likely follow suit.

He expected that kind of reaction from Coulson of all people. She hadn't shown any signs of holding a grudge against him, but he could see her pulling off that stunt. He wasn't too concerned about losing her as a friend. It was McCoy he worried about. For the first time since enlisting in the Academy, Kirk realized how lucky he was to have McCoy as a good friend of his.

"Dammit man, do you have any idea just how much of an asshole you are?" McCoy finally demanded after grabbing Kirk by the shoulder and dragging him out of earshot from Sulu.

"I've got a pretty good idea…"

It wouldn't be the first time someone had called him an asshole. And frankly, he was beginning to wonder if they were right. He did feel a little remorseful over the fact that McCoy was so concerned about Coulson's safety. What annoyed him more than anything was that the doctor hadn't once seen anything wrong with the way Coulson had lied to everyone. He supposed Coulson's lie had been good enough for even McCoy to believe throughout the years they had known each other.

He winced as he recalled McCoy mentioning that they were always good friends, even as kids. It suddenly made sense as to why they had been so close at the Academy before seeing each other. Kirk swallowed hard at the thought. He couldn't bring himself to admit that he was a little jealous of that close bond they had. There was someone in his family that he once had a close bond with, but that all went down the drain after he drove the car into the gorge.

"You just couldn't keep your blasted mouth shut, could you?" McCoy crossed his arms and glared at Kirk once more as he ran a hand sheepishly through his hair.

"I was doing the right thing by telling them the truth," Kirk snapped, though he knew it was a lame excuse.

He'd only used Coulson's secret as an excuse to get out of a trial that was meant for him. Even after all of that, the Fleet still found reason to keep him off the Enterprise. Somehow, the council still found a good reason not to let him partake in whatever assignments other Cadets were given. He had been annoyed at first, but in the end, Kirk knew he had to face the consequences sooner or later. He wasn't as immune to the system as he liked to believe.

Coulson had suffered the worst blow, and he couldn't help but feel guilty for what he did. Even so, that didn't stop him from pulling the blame card. It saved him from having to deal with the trial that Spock had been so eager to give him regardless of whether the test was a good thing or not.

"You were only tryin' to save your own sorry ass," McCoy fired back. "Imagine what she's gonna say when this is over… and that's if she survives all of this?"

Even with the anger seeping through his voice, Kirk heard the fear within it. He rose an eyebrow after recalling how close McCoy had been with Coulson. It was obvious that they cared about each other even after everything they discovered. Kirk had been hoping that McCoy would take his side after seeing the reports that were left from SHIELD. It seemed as though that only made their relationship stronger in the end.

He did feel slightly guilty for keeping them apart for so long… even if most of it had been Coulson's fault.

"Considering she survived getting stabbed in the stomach by a madman, I'm sure she's going to survive whatever Nero does to her," Kirk deadpanned. McCoy's jaw clenched, and it looked as if he was going to spit something else when Kirk cut him off, "Look, I'm not gonna say I'm sorry for what I did back there. I'm not."

The silence that followed was even worse than McCoy's usual shouting. Kirk half-expected the doctor to slap him across the face right then and there. Or at least punch him in the chest. He knew because they were seeing each other so often, they were obviously closer than most people realized. And, Kirk almost winced at the realization that he had likely torn them apart during the last two years.

Instead, McCoy threw his hands up in the air in defeat and let out a loud huff of frustration.

"You better hope to God that you don't suffer from any injuries, Kirk," he practically growled out the words. "'Cause I sure as hell won't be treating them anytime soon."

Kirk just gaped in disbelief as McCoy spun around and left him standing there, likely storming off to whoever needed actual treatment. He knew that as a doctor, McCoy couldn't just leave his injuries untreated. Yet, he had a feeling that McCoy would hold true to his warning. And all at once, the guilt from earlier suddenly came rushing back. He hadn't seen McCoy that angry since they first enlisted in the Academy. Seeing how angry the doctor was now told him that he wasn't going to be let off the hook so easily, even if Coulson somehow survived this mess. He just hoped that Coulson did survive, otherwise he was in even deeper shit than he first realized.