Stranded
Chapter 2
"We'll meet again
Don't know where, don't know when
But I know we'll meet again some sunny day"
Lyrics by Ross Parker and Hughie Charles
Nyota unlocked her small chest of drawers and pulled out the communicator. Jim would comm in four minutes. He was always prompt even though the comm signal to and from the ship went through several communication relay stations. He had been since Enterprise had left them behind to rescue the colonist ship. Every other day Leonard and Nyota would answer one of their comms to see the faint furrow on his forehead. The furrow meant Jim was frustrated and worried about the fact that Enterprise was staying away too long and not returning for them.
Today, to their surprise, it was Spock on the comm in Jim's briefing room.
"Spock!" Leonard blue eyes opened wide. "Where's Jim? Is he alright?"
He waited anxiously for Spock's response. You never knew with Captain James T. Kirk. Even a seemingly innocent rescue mission could turn on a dime, and, somehow or other Jim would be injured, kidnapped, drugged, mind controlled, or something else dire would befall him. And Bones, healer of all things that had so far befallen said Captain Kirk, was not on hand to fix him if something went wrong. Dr. Geoffrey M'Benga was a fine doctor, but he didn't know the ins and outs of Jim's body like Leonard did, nor did he have years of medical experience behind him. You needed both those things to deal with a hurt or ailing James Kirk.
"Calm yourself, Doctor. The Captain is well. Presently he is on a conference comm call with Rear Admiral Komack, Mr. Scott, Commodore Alfonso, and Admiral Barnett, who as you know, is sector chief, for the entire Starbase 9 sector. The Captain has told me privately that it is Admiral Komack who is causing our delay in returning for you. He has been most irate with all the delays."
"If that ain't the Vulcan understatement of the century," Leonard muttered sotto voice to Nyota.
Spock ignoring the comment, went on. "Starbase 9 has taken over the colonists' repatriation situation, but Admiral Komack keeps finding further tasks for the ship and for her Captain to do. After the colonist ship was towed here, he ordered Commander Scott to do a level one diagnostic on the towed ship and told him to draw up a detailed plan to fix the ship's problems. This has put a strain on our Engineering Department, as we are presently without a CE and Lt. DeSalle has taken over Mr. Scott's duties as well as having to do his own. This was but the latest incident, and the one which caused Commodore Alfonso, to, as the Captain put it, "go ballistic." Before this incident, when any ship was towed into a Starbase, it was always that Starbase's Engineering Department who oversaw the task of repairing said ship.
Commodore Alfonso took umbrage with Admiral Komack's order, insisting that it has cast doubt on the expertise of his Engineering staff, and he angrily conveyed his deep resentment to Captain Kirk. The Captain explained that Mr. Scott had received the order directly from Admiral Komack himself, and that he had no choice but to obey it. A very angry Commodore Alfonso then contacted the Sector Chief, Admiral Barnett, to complain about Admiral Komack's orders. Admiral Barnett, who as we know, is very protective of all who serve under him, and who outranks Rear Admiral Komack, called this meeting with Captain Kirk, Commander Scott, Commodore Alfonso, and Admiral Komack. It has now been 2.15 hours since the conference comm began."
Spock paused and steepled his fingers. "I do not anticipate that the meeting has gone well for Admiral Komack."
Leonard whistled softly at the news.
"So you think Admiral Barnett will release the ship to resume our First Contact Mission, and you can come back for us? And release Scotty from his duty on the crippled ship too?" Uhura asked.
"I do not know for certain, Lieutenant, but I estimate a 94.2 percent probability that it will be so."
The briefing room door hissed open and Jim came bounding in, his sunshine smile back in place on his handsome face.
"Captain," Spock intoned, politely vacating the Captain's chair.
Jim waved him down. "I've been sitting for two hours, Mr. Spock, I'd like to stand. Bones, Uhura!" he beamed at them. The lines of tension that had been on his face since the ship had left them behind were gone. "Good to see you. I have good news!"
Leonard grinned. "Did Komack get his comeuppance, Jim?"
Jim chuckled. "He certainly did, Bones. Admiral Barnett minced no words. Komack got a severe reprimand for keeping us here so long, interfering with our Mission orders, and taking our CE off the ship and away from his primary duties. Especially when there's a whole team of competent Engineers on Starbase 9 who can do the job. Komack also got a severe reprimand for throwing his weight around and it will go on his permanent record. Best of all Admiral Barnett warned him that if there was any more of that kind of behavior, he'd get demoted." He grinned gleefully. "And here's the best part!" He paused dramatically, his hazel eyes sparkling.
"What, Jim, what?" Leonard growled impatiently.
"We're no longer under Komack!" Jim announced triumphantly. "Admiral Barnett said he's played fast and loose with the Fleet flagship one too many times. We're temporarily under Admiral Barnett's Command until he assigns us to another Admiral!"
"Well, now, don't that beat all! Glory hallelujah! Good for Admiral Barnett. I'm gonna' send him a bottle of the best scotch in the galaxy, see if I don't."
"Doctor, that would be most unseemly. A Lieutenant Commander sending an expensive gift to an Admiral!"
"Don't get your knickers in a twist, Spock. Admiral Richard Barnett and I go way back. He and my Uncle Beau, my daddy's brother, are great friends. I've known him since I was a kid...good friend to all the McCoys. Jim knows."
Spock turned an inquiring glance at the Captain; Jim nodded smiling.
"I've often suggested to Jim he should complain to Richard about Komack and his blatant abuse of power, but he never has. Our Captain is too honorable sometimes. Didn't wanna' ask for any sort of special treatment. Komack's been the bane of your existence for far too long." He looked at Jim affectionately. "I even offered to drop a broad hint in Richard's ear, but Jim wouldn't hear of it. Glad it finally worked out, Jimmy."
"Me too, Bones."
Leonard was happy to see that the broad golden shoulders were relaxed now, the worried frown gone. "As soon as we tie up a couple of loose ends here, we're coming for you and Uhura; it'll take us about a week to get back to you."
"We'll be ready. The village council has known from the beginin' our stay here was temporary so it won't come as a surprise when we tell them we're leaving. Our First Contact report is ready too. Uhura and I have taken copious notes on this society while we've been here. We'll send that along to you ASAP. The Sarenans are good people, Jim. Peaceful, hospitable, kind, literate, and educated. Low tech though, very low tech, but they seem to be very open to new ideas. Ny has done extensive linguistic work and found mentions of their desire for interstellar flight, a definite yearning to venture outside their world, but it seems there's a definite lack of credits to accomplish that."
Nyota nodded. "I also have a full linguistic report complete with the language algorithms for the universal translator data base, Captain."
"Excellent work, Lieutenant." Jim looked pleased. Another accolade would be forthcoming for one of his excellent crew.
"There appears to be no economic or social class distinctions here, Jim. Seems they're all humble folks," Leonard went on. "Apparently Sarena is not a wealthy planet. They get by, but from what we've been able to find out, the government doesn't seem to have the wealth and resources we've seen on other planets from trade, agriculture, mining, commerce, or anythin' else. Also, there doesn't seem to be any kind of a defense force or military personnel here, at least none we've seen or heard about, only local peace officers who carry no weapons. It's idyllically peaceful here, and I hate to think what would happen if the Orion Syndicate decided Sarena was worth their time. They'd raid all the small towns and take the people as slaves. It wouldn't be difficult, there's nothin' here to fight the Orions with. We cain't let that happen, Jim."
"Doctor, the Orion syndicate is the most powerful criminal organization in the Alpha Quadrant and after their treaty with the Klingon Empire they are a formidable force to be reckoned with, even for Fleet. They are certainly not to be trifled with. I agree the Sarenans would not stand a chance against the Syndicate."
"Spock is right, Bones. On our way back to you, we'll gather as much Intel as we can find. I'll check in with Gavin, see what he can tell me. Find out if SIS knows what the Syndicate is up too, where they're focusing their attention. I'll brief Admiral Barnett and see if he's heard anything from the other sector chiefs or reports from any of their ships. Meanwhile, keep gathering as much positive information as you can for the eligibility of the Sarenans to join the Federation."
"We'll do our best, Jim. Uhura and I have gotten real fond of these folks, haven't we darlin'?"
"We have. Captain, will you have Xeno forward everything they've found on the Sarenans to us? I'm sure there's a lot more than what we got during our mission briefings. I want to comb through every bit of information we have on this society."
"I'll have Lt. McMasters send you everything, Uhura. Stay sharp, you two. Keep your eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary that you may see or hear. We may be borrowing trouble, but I prefer to err on the side of caution. Talk to you in a couple of days. See you soon, Kirk out."
Uhura closed the comm and locked it back in her drawer. "Well that was an interesting update," she murmured.
Leonard snorted. "Jim was dancing a highland jig...on the inside of course," he added. "Getting Komack off his back must rate up there as one of the greatest days of his life. 'Bout time too. Man was a prejudiced, jealous, incompetent jackass, a poor excuse of a Starfleet Officer. He's always been jealous of Jim, of his brilliance as a Captain, his charisma and popularity; the youngest Captain in the history of Fleet, with the most loyal crew. How he ever got his promotions is beyond me."
"I heard he comes from a prominent Starfleet family, with a long illustrious history. Maybe that's what helped him advance," Uhura mused.
"Well Richard Barnett comes from an even more illustrious background, he's up there with Admiral Archer, and Archer is practically Starfleet royalty, but you never hear about either of them throwing their weight around. Komack's antecedents obviously didn't intimidate Richard one whit."
"I'm just relieved they're coming back for us, "Nyota admitted. "I've missed the ship, my friends, and the bridge. Len, I'm getting hungry. Let's go fix dinner and afterward we can go for a walk. You heard Jim, he wants us to keep our eyes open, and we can't do that just sitting around here," Uhura stated.
"Sounds good to me. I could use some fresh air, been inside all day."
The veggie omelets and baked potatoes were soon done. They always had plenty of eggs, the town folks sharing their bounty with the doctor on an almost daily basis. The eggs came from avians very much like Terran chickens. As Leonard said, there's not much to a chicken evolutionary wise, and most humanoid worlds they'd visited had chickens or chicken like creatures of some sort and, of course, the eggs from them. As for tubers, the ones Uhura had bought were very similar to Earth potatoes, just smaller, mealier, and starchier. Local butter on top made them delicious and satisfying. All in all the food here was very similar to Earth food, far tastier than any replicator food on the ship which the crew had to fall back on during times when Chef couldn't replenish his stores or when they got hungry for snacks before or after shifts.
Leonard, to Uhura's satisfaction, pronounced the omelets and baked potatoes delicious. She took this for the high compliment it was, because Leonard had been raised by his mother and grandmother, both excellent cooks. They accompanied their meal with the local ale which was of low alcohol content, but pleasing to the discerning palette of Dr. Leonard McCoy.
They cleaned the kitchen quickly and put on warm jackets, the pleasant spring days on Sarena always turning chilly in the evenings.
The vista as they stepped outside their small house on the knoll was lovely. Spring blooms dotted their path as they made their way down to the center of the village. Both sides of the road were beautiful with yellow daffodil and bluebell like blooms interspersed and wound around each other. It was about two kilometers to the town center from the house. Leonard and Nyota could see all the low stone farmhouses in the distance, built snugly against the hillsides.
"Pretty idyllic place, isn't it, Ny?" Leonard murmured softly for her ears alone. "It would be sad if somethin' were to disturb this beautiful peace."
"It would be criminal," Nyota responded. "We can't let that happen, Len. Surely we can do something to ensure the safety of this planet. It's small and out of the way, not really much here to attract Klingons or Orions."
"Nothin' except good honest people to turn into slaves," Leonard muttered darkly. "Free labor to use for mining, for construction, for sexual exploitation, for whatever they want them for." They walked on, a deep, troubled silence between them, thinking of all the possible dark horrors that might befall the Sarenans.
Throughout Fleet, the Federation, and indeed the whole Alpha Quadrant a lot of fact and rumor about the Orion Syndicate was bandied about. The Enterprise, along with other Fleet ships, was updated on a regular basis with all available Intel about the Orion Syndicate. Starfleet Intelligence Service undercover agents had to deal in both fact and rumor in order to acquire as much information as possible about the secretive machinations of the Syndicate. They knew that the Orion Syndicate operated in all areas of criminal activity, including illegal gambling rackets, loan sharking, extortion, blackmail, smuggling of goods and weapons, illegal salvage, and piracy.
The Syndicate also traded in secret information, used and harbored pirates, and employed professional thieves and assassins to use for their own ends. Worst of all though, was the capturing and trafficking of slaves. Individual Orion pirate ships operated along the frontier regions and the little-used and poorly mapped space-lanes in order to kidnap and acquire the slaves they wanted to sell and barter with. Recently, SIS agents had verified that the Syndicate, which shared a border with Qu'nos, and the Klingon Empire, had agreed to a tentative alliance with the Klingons. This did not bode well for planets on the frontier of Federation space or those in the neutral zone. Because of all the Intel SIS had gathered, the agency had placed the Orion Syndicate at the very top of their list of dangerous criminal groups. However, they were still no closer to infiltrating their upper ranks, let alone bringing them down.
Jim Kirk, along with all other Constitution and Constellation Captains of the Fleet, were tasked with patrolling the Alpha Quadrant, making sure Federation planets were aware of Fleet protection. However the Alpha Quadrant was so vast, that planets were on their own a lot of the time, and the Federation insisted they had to have defense protocols of their own in place. Treaties and occasional shows of strengths by Fleet went a long way to insure peace in the Alpha Quadrant, particularly along the Neutral Zone. But, other planets not under the direct protection of Fleet or the Federation, like Sarena, were at risk from raiders, pirates, Romulans, Klingons, Cardassians and other unknown dangers.
Therefore, along with upholding the Prime Directive, Jim and all the other Star Fleet Captains took their oath to explore the Alpha Quadrant and to defend and protect those who resided in it, as their highest calling.
