AN: Usual disclaimer, the rights to Star Trek etc. belong to someone else. The entire

story is complete on my PC, and I'll try to load up a new chapter every few days.

Please read and review – constructive feedback will help me finalise the remaining

chapters.

Chapter 13

The following few hours were a blur for Samson. Securely held in the medical wing, both Perpetuan and Starfleet personnel relentlessly questioned her. Still she did not break; repeating the same story over and over, soon even she thought she would believe it. It was now known throughout the complex Kirk was missing and Freedan was the number one suspect. Without proof of her involvement, of which she was assured there was none, she was left her alone for now.

It was late in the afternoon when Sulu called Uhura to the bridge. Somehow he had managed to keep the news away from her, which in her current condition was not too hard. Away from the communications laboratory and seconded in her quarters, news about Kirk was strictly limited to bridge staff. Hobbling along, Uhura insisted to Carol she was able to get to the bridge herself. It was the second day she had ventured round to check in on Uhura; McCoy could be very persuasive. As she entered the turbo lift she wondered why she had been summoned; from Sulu's voice something was wrong but he refused to discuss it over the comms channel. Arriving, she was met with a frenetic scene, crew darted around her going places unknown. Chekov could be seen trying to triangulate the position of something or someone.

'Anything?!' Sulu fretfully asked as he sat in the Captain's chair. Watching him, Uhura thought the role suited him. He had grown in stature over the past four years. It was time for him to take charge of his own ship. He had been offered the opportunity many times before, but had declined it to stay on the Enterprise.

'Commander...', a sympathetic voice alerted the team to her presence. At ease she ordered making her way to her station. Like second nature, she forgot she wasn't on duty. Attempting to manoeuvre her stiff leg into a seated position, a warm hand touched her shoulder.

Sulu lent in, his soft voice implored 'please, come with me...' It was only then she noticed the hush, dozens of eyes on her.

'What's going on Hikaru?' She anxiously met his gaze, without thinking she had slipped into informality. Something was wrong. Her mind played over the scene she had witnessed on arrival...they were doing the standard process for locating missing personnel. 'Oh my god, what's happened to Spock?!'

Chekov spun back to his terminal, others taking the hint to carry on with their duties. No one wanting to be the privy to what would happen next. The quiet prickled at her, she couldn't understand why she was the focus of the news. Letting Sulu guide her to the ready room by her elbow, she quickly caught the arrival of McCoy. Whilst the momentum carried her forward, she watched his mouth, pursed into a thin line, eyebrows knitted, worry flowed from him in waves. Chekov gave a negative nod to the unsaid question, whatever he was doing had failed, deflated he carried on.

'Sit down please Nyota', in Kirk's personal space she caught the faint whiff of his aftershave, it was comforting. Even with all the angst and turmoil, she wanted nothing more for everything to be sorted between them. However, her heart was not going to be overruled by her head, not this time. For the first time since McCoy introduced her to their child, her hand fell towards her stomach. The gesture hidden by the large table that stood between her and Sulu. Directly opposite, his soft brown eyes searched her features. The heavy silence punctuated by the low hum of the ship.

'Does Christine know? What about Jim?...' The lack of response from Sulu was interrupted by the arrival of McCoy.

His features grave; Sulu reluctantly acknowledged the doctor's presence. McCoy quietly slid next to Uhura, his body partially facing hers, one hand resting on her backrest she immediately felt trapped. 'What?' Instinctively moving away, neither yet to speak. 'Wha-' they both spoke in unison, gradually her eyes widened, she felt as if the air had been sucked out the room. Grasping the table for stability, she felt like being sick as the room spun around her, nothing made sense. Somehow she was sipping water, with no recollection of how she received it. Mouths were moving, options being discussed, but all she heard was white noise. Legs that didn't feel like her own lifted her up and carried her back and forth in the compact space. Time held no meaning, she could have been there 5 minutes or 5 hours. Sudden comprehension about the last thing she had said the Kirk, she froze in position arms wrapped around her slender frame. Uhura squeezed her eyes shut as the hysteria bubbled below the surface, she willed it away.

'Nyota, we will find him...Jim will be ok...' McCoy tried his best to reassure her. For several minutes unbeknown to Uhura, she had been babbling uncontrollably. McCoy led her back to the table, gently sitting her down. He furtively glanced at Sulu, neither sure how to proceed. The signs of shock plain the see - her pulse was fast but weak and she was now angrily describing in detail how she would make Freedan pay if he hurt Kirk in any way. The vehemence of the retribution was frightening. This was not the Nyota Uhura they knew.

Sulu and McCoy backed away, and huddled near the door attempting to muffle their conversation. 'Christ, that was not the reaction I expected from her', Sulu exclaimed. Kirk had been in danger countless times before, and she had never reacted in such a manner. 'What do we do to help her?' He asked McCoy.

McCoy could not break doctor patient confidentiality, unless she was a direct harm to herself or the ship and its crew. 'She will work through this...in her own way' Uncertainty clouding his voice. Uhura had been through so much over the past few days, enough to break anyone. 'You asked how we can help, we find Jim...'

By the time Freedan arrived at the cave, word had spread about his 'attack' on Samson. After more than 14 hours, several vehicle changes and a 15-kilometre hike, he was in no mood to be reckoned with. With a face like thunder he passed through the tunnels sending his subordinates scurrying like rats. With Samson incapacitated, the Sunstone exchange would need to be postponed. Nothing to do with family loyalty; they each held a unique password which combined would permit the acceptance of funds into their accounts. A failsafe in case either decided to abscond with the other's half. He had no choice but to wait for her.

A slow moving guard received the brunt of his ire, Freedan slamming his forearm across the fleshy part of his throat pinning him to the rocky wall. With his feet now dangling several inches off the ground, he desperately clawed at the wanted man's arm. His kicks barely registered and soon he struggling to breathe, the spittle collecting at side of his mouth; his eyes darting around pleading for help. Everyone knew what Freedan was capable of so melted back into the shadows, thankful not to have been so misfortunate. Unexpectedly releasing the man, he hissed 'you're not worth the effort', at the cowering Perpetuan slumped on the floor, before continuing onto his room. Having expunged some of his anger he could think clearly once again, in a chillingly calm voice he commanded into his headset 'bring her!', pouring himself a locally produced spirit. Similar in strength to vodka, he downed it in one taking comfort in the burn coursing down his throat. .

Shyloh struggled against the guards as they unceremoniously dumped her to the floor. Her split lip tender to the touch. Standing up and nervously facing down her capturer, for the first time she felt the balance shift within their twisted relationship. Freedan nodded to the guards, hands once again roughly hauled her towards a set of hooks dangling from the ceiling. Shyloh whimpered and pleaded, she kicked and she screamed, she shouted till her throat was hoarse. A gag muffling the last of her pitiful pleas. Dismissing the guards, he unhurriedly sauntered over taking pleasure in the fear he could see in her eyes. Finally, in front of her dangling body, taking advantage of her position he lacivisiously stroked her. She flinched, but undeterred he casually followed the contours of body, with each pass his excitement rising. Lost in the moment he let out a contented sigh. 'I'm very disappointed in you...' he breathlessly stated looking up at her. 'Because of your inability to subdue the Vulcan, I find myself in an unwanted predicament'. His touch no longer so gentle, resting his hands on her hips yanking her closer to him. 'However...I'll give you last chance to redeem yourself'.

Four days had passed since Kirk's kidnap and Freedan's disappearance. The Enterprise remained in orbit, awaiting the return of Commander Spock and his companions. His disappearance unknown to the crew. The intervention had ended several days prematurely under the management of Getta and Dr Shanay. Uhura refused to return, demanding to be left on board to help in the efforts to find Kirk. For days she intently listened to any comms that might lead her to his whereabouts. Barely sleeping, she refused calls to be relieved, and was acutely aware of McCoy watching her like a hawk. He had pulled her aside and warned if it looked like she was in danger of harming the baby he would force her to step down. She, Sulu, McCoy, and Scotty now sat in Kirk's ready room, awaiting a meeting with one of the seniors back at Starfleet. The view screen on standby, comms expected at any second.

'I want to speak to Samson again. She knows something, I'm certain of it...' Their last discussion ending with Uhura manhandled out of the room. Pregnant or not she would never allow herself to be intimidated by the 7ft female, especially one complicit in Kirk's kidnapping. Samson's smug smile wiped off by the fierce open hand slap from Uhura, her reaction was priceless. No doubt given the chance Samson would make her pay. It was only the quick action of Getta, and Kulj'ita's admiration of Uhura, that the incident did not escalate into a political headache.

With no chance for anyone to respond, the face of Admiral Samantha Routledge appeared before them. From her office in a sunny San Francisco, she oversaw the search efforts.. In her late 50s, with shoulder length silver hair contrasting against her coffee coloured skin; her French accent softened by her time spent in Starfleet. A stickler for regulations, she was not going to be swayed by impassioned requests from the Enterprise crew.

Cursory greetings exchanged she began. 'The official capacity of the Enterprise at Perpetous is over. The crew of the of the USS Reliant are here to take over the inoculation program. I know it is not what you want to hear, but it is time for you to leave-'.

The room erupted into a fit of noise, Sulu fighting hard to be heard. 'The captain said Samson's involved, and we believe him. There must be more we can do?' Everyone fell silent to hear the response.

'Without definitive proof, there is nothing we can do', Routledge's official reply, her grey eyes betrayed a steely hardness.

'That's horseshit and you know it! If Jim says she's guilty, she's guilty!' McCoy spat out.

Ignoring McCoy's outburst, she continued, 'you have your orders. Make your way to Starbase Pearson 13, as soon as Commander Spock and his team return. I and my team are in contact with Prime Minister Irin and Provost Kulj'ita, and are handling the situation...' Uhura stiffened, her superior's callousness upsetting. Routledge shifted her focus to Uhura, 'we will do everything we can to find him. Routledge out'. The observation screen faded to black.

'What does Admiral Pike think?' McCoy scanning the faces of his friends, Kirk's mentor and closest ally would certainly have something to say.

'Same as Routledge...leave it to the search team'. Uhura whispered quietly. Officially he had to toe the line. Already under the watchful eye of higher up for the amount of leeway he gave Kirk and the Enterprise crew, it pained him to tell her there was nothing he could do. However, unofficially he was calling in favours to ensure the return of Kirk was the number one priority.

Wearily standing up, 'I need to return to my lab...' without looking back she exited the ready room, three pairs of eyes monitoring her.

'Doctor, that woman is working on vapours can't you do anything?' Scotty begged, Sulu nodded in agreement.

'Whoa there! You know her better than me. Maybe when Spock returns he can talk some sense into her. That infallible Vulcan logic and shit'.

Chekov's voice rang from the comms terminal, 'Sir, an urgent message from Perpetous. Patching it through now...'

Onscreen Kulj'ita appeared. 'Captain Sulu', he intoned looking pensive.

'Is it about the Captain? Has he been found?', Scotty shot at him.

'We received a message this morning...', he patched through to the observation screen. It split into two. One half showed Kulj'ita, the other half a grainy dark recording. Freeze framed, Freedan was sat at the controls of a shuttle. There was no sign of Kirk as the recording played, a relaxed looking Freedan greeted the team.

'In exchange for the Captain I want the search parties called off and the bounty on my head removed. As a sweetener I might even reveal a clue about the destination of the Sunstones, once I am sure my demands have been met. I'm sure you're wondering if the captain is alive, he is...but for how long depends on you...you have 72 hours to comply'.

The recording stopped, all eyes returned to Kulj'ita. 'Why are you showing us this', Sulu shuffled in his seat. It was clear to him the Admiral had seen the message but chose not to inform them. This did not bode well for Kirk.

Defensively Kulj'ita replied, 'would you preferred I had not? I thought you wanted to be part of search efforts...' Biting back his irritation, he continued 'Admiral Routledge seemed very keen that you not see this message, however knowing how important Captain Kirk is to you I decided otherwise...'

Sulu coolly thanked Kulj'ita, and waited for his image to disappear off screen. He knew what they were all thinking, 'Starfleet is not going to negotiate...'

'...But they'll happily let the Perpetuans do it, in return for the Sunstones and hope for the best...' finished Scotty.

Both McCoy and Sulu agreed, McCoy spoke next 'whose going to tell Nyota?', he fixed his gaze at Scotty. The Scotsman began to protest, 'she'll take it better from you', Sulu chipped in. Scotty sighed heavily, the decision made for him he thought about how to break it to her.

Chekov interrupted once again. 'Provost Kulj'ita needs to speak to you again...'

'I'm sorry, I have some bad news...Commander Spock and his team...', he gravely explained Shyloh had been found badly injure. Unable to summon help sooner, she reported Spock missing assumed dead, and the two accompanying officers definitely dead. The cause, a horrendous cavern collapse. 'That area now unstable, it would be weeks before it is safe for anyone to venture within'. He swallowed deeply, before finishing 'I am sorry for your loss'. The crew were visibly overwrought, incredulous about the news, it was a few minutes before there was acknowledgement.

Sulu solemnly looked at McCoy and then Scotty, they had all joked in the past about bad luck following them around like a bad smell, but this...it was totally unbelievable. Out the corner of his eye, he saw Kulj'ita awaiting some sort of response. 'Are you absolutely sure there is no way we can reach the Commander?' twisting back to face the screen, his enquiry startling the other two out of their stupor.

'Not at this moment, no. We're doing what we can to scan the area, but the cave's unique properties are hindering this...'

'I can help!', Scotty eagerly volunteered, he refused to sit there any longer. He might not be able to actively help find Kirk, but science and engineering he could do. Clearing his throat, 'Permission to transport down to Perpetous and help with the search effort', he formally requested both Sulu and Kulj'ita.

'Yes...' emphatically replied Sulu.

'No...' unexpectedly replied Kulj'ita. They swiftly turned to him, confusion etched on their faces. 'Your offer is appreciated, but Admiral Routledge has already got the matter in hand...' his voice dropped, compelled to explain he had been in contact with her moments before communicating with them. With that he ended the call, leaving the bereft crew speechless.

Samson was now confined to her quarters, her injuries healed she had been relieved of duties pending clearance from Irin. Restlessly, she had monitored the comings and goings of the search party for Kirk from her bedroom window on the third floor. A team of five Starfleet officers deployed to Perpetous from the nearest Starbase, following the trail she put in place. Frustratingly, she was unable to see through her plan and was relying on Freedan not to mess things up. Her aides were not allowed to be alone with her, and the guards outside were not ones involved in her extracurricular activities and thus could not be trusted. From her window, she casually observed Kulj'ita making his way to the building, no doubt to see her. Samson gently padded over to the door awaiting his entrance. Before he could buzz for admittance she opened the door. The low whine, leaving them face to face, he stepped around her bidding the guards to remain outside. She chose to perch on the arm of her sofa, waiting to see what he wanted.

'Your cousin is a fucking menace', angrily shouting before settling down next to her. Long arms outstretched across the headrests, his ankle rested across the opposite leg. 'What possessed him to do something so heinous...', waiting for Samson to respond, when she didn't, he didn't hide his disapproval.

'I have already told you, I did not know about his plan...the kidnappings...'

His hand flew up to silence her, 'well I guess it diverts all the attention to him...' And he paced towards her. Directly in front of her she pulled him close by his belt and kissed him hard. He responded to her fervour, wrapping his arms around her waist. In between kisses 'are you sure nothing can be traced back to us?' He dropped light kisses down her neck, her growls letting him know she was enjoying the attention.

Samson forced him to look to look at her, stilling his advances 'of course not...nobody knows about your involvement and there is no proof linking me to anything'. Before sweeping him to the floor and straddling him, no longer on duty she was attired in a orange floor length body con dress. Every one of her curves accentuated, a slit on each slide permitted him access to her thighs, he let his hand slowly explore. She slowly ground against his erection, whilst undoing his dress shirt, his smiled as shallow breathing betrayed his excitement. His chest exposed, she suckled at his chest. 'Now, enough about Freedan...' she murmured.

Scotty dejectedly found himself face to face with the comms labs doors. A single step forward would set into motion a complex set of computer algorithms, which would admit him into the room. He hesitated, taking one last opportunity to rehearse what he'd say to Uhura. KISS, the acronym had served him well keep it simple, stupid! He'd pull her to the side, tell her what Freedan wanted, and console her. He took that step, telling Uhura would be a hell of a lot easier than Sulu's conversation with Christine Chapel. Now in Uhura's domain, he scanned faces looking for her, in the far corner he could see her hunched over a terminal with her headset pressed to her head. Getta was stood behind her, animatedly conversing with Behan gesturing to his PADD. Though he could not hear what was being said, it looked Kirk related. All of a sudden Uhura stood, dismay evident on her features, Getta lay a comforting hand on her shoulder before moving off to his terminal. Behan following behind. Scotty weaved through the busy room, finally reaching the Uhura.

'I know...Kulj'ita sent me a copy too...' Uhura told him. Not surprised to see Scotty, her friends were quite predictable. 'Getta is seeing if he can pick out any unique identifiers so I have a lead where to find Jim'. Having listened to the recording over and over, her exhaustion stopped her functioning effectively, she needed a break. 'Walk with me, please?', Scotty mutely nodded yes. Before leaving, her demand to be updated about any breakthroughs rang around the room.

On their way to her quarters, she leant against her friend for moral support. Their slowness contrasted with the fast motion of their crewmates going about their daily tasks.

'Nyota...' He gently called, needing to complete the second part of his mission. 'Nyota...' He tried once again, a little more forcefully as they entered the turbo lift.

'I'm pregnant Scotty...' She continued in a far away voice looking for his reaction. As expected, his mouth hung open. I imagine that's how I looked when Len told me...it was now his turn to use her as support. 'Anyone would think this is all about you' she deadpanned as they entered her quarters soon after.

Settling him down on the sofa, she ordered water and placed it within his hands. He distractedly sipped at the cool beverage. Regaining his composure, he waited till she sat opposite him curled up with a cushion protectively covering her stomach. Not quite ready for him to drop his gaze to that region. The power of speech slowly reasserting itself within Scotty 'how far along?' As she answered, he realised it explained the change in her figure, at least she had an excuse.

'It's strange...'

'Huh?', not catching her meaning. She'd moved back to discussing the recording.

'-usually there some trace associated with a recording no matter how obscure. With Freedan nothing...like it was created in a vacuum...' she sounded so sure. 'I'm too tired to see what it is, but-'

'Nyota...' He was now determined to tell her about Spock. Christine would know by now, and need support. Moving next to her, he grabbed her hand and held it tight 'Something's happened to Spock'.