Kirk sat in his apartment, the previous night's events remaining fresh in his mind. Outside of his window, emergency vehicles were removing debris from the scorched Starfleet Headquarters, the airspace around the building having been blocked off. He was sitting in silence, still contemplating what had happened, what he had seen, and wondering what would happen now. With Pike gone, he had lost the man that he looked up to the most, and also his last chance to be on the Enterprise again.
"But with the region's senior command mostly dead, what's the fleet even going to do?" Kirk thought.
Starfleet was currently in a state of panic, as no plan had been finalized for finding Harrison before his attack, and now the man had disappeared from Earth without a trace. Kirk had explained that he had seen Harrison beaming away, but no-one had been able to figure out where he had gone. Admiral Marcus had sent Starfleet officers out to check local beaming stations and their records. Kirk was also waiting for an answer.
His communicator beeped, and he snapped out of his thoughts, picking it up. "Yeah?" He asked into it.
"Commander, Mr. Scott thinks that he has found Harrison's beaming records." Spock's voice reported. "He has asked to see us right away."
Kirk and Spock ran down a crowded street towards a sectioned-off area. Starfleet agents and the local law enforcement had blocked off the entrance to a Starfleet beaming station, and were currently swarming around it. The two of them glimpsed inside, seeing that it had multiple blast holes in the walls, and that bodies were being transported away. A small crowd of civilians was assembling around the building, curious about what was going on. Kirk and Spock pushed their way through to where Scotty was waiting for them, holding an electronic data pad.
"Captain!" Scotty called. "I think I figured out how the bastard got away!"
The three of them walked away from the crowd to where they could keep their conversation more private.
"What happened here?" Kirk asked.
"Well, I was in one of the teams searching the beaming stations for any suspicious activity." Scotty explained. "And when we got to this one, we found it ransacked, and every officer inside was dead. There was only one transporter still working."
"And the records were intact?" Kirk asked.
"Aye, sir." Scotty nodded. "The two latest transports showed the approximate co-ordinates of Starfleet Headquarters, and the other, well..."
"What is it, Scotty?" Kirk asked.
"You're not going to like it, sir." Scotty shook his head.
"Scotty, where is he?" Kirk asked.
"Well sir, he's...he's gone to the one place where... we just can't go." Scotty answered, holding up the electronic pad.
Kirk and Spock looked at the pad, reading the co-ordinates . They looked at each other nervously, knowing exactly where those co-ordinates lead.
Scotty was right. There was no way that they could go there.
Admiral Marcus was convening another meeting, a group of Starfleet Admirals gathered around a white table in the centre of an open, brightly lit, white room that connected to Marcus's own office. Several files were being passed around between the senior officers. Kirk and Spock ran into the room, interrupting the search party orders that Marcus was giving out.
"Admiral, sir, he's not on Earth!" Kirk exclaimed.
Marcus stopped mid-sentence, everyone in the room looking at the young Commander.
"He's on Kronos, sir." Kirk continued. "I request my command be reinstated and your permission to go after him."
Marcus paused for a second, before turning to the Admirals. "Give us a minute." He ordered.
The Admirals got up and left while Marcus walked past Kirk and Spock, leading them to his office.
"Kronos." Marcus repeated.
"Yes, sir." Kirk replied.
"So, Harrison's gone to the Klingon home world." Marcus thought out loud. "Is he defecting?"
"We're not sure, sir." Kirk answered.
"He has taken refuge in the Ketha Province, a region uninhabited for decades." Spock added.
"He's got to be hiding there, sir!" Kirk interjected. "He knows that if we even go near Klingon space, it'd be all-out war. Starfleet can't go after him, but I can. Please, sir."
Spock gave him a concerned look.
"All-out war with the Klingons is inevitable, Mr. Kirk." Marcus replied, turning away from the two Commanders to face his desk. "If you ask me, it's already begun."
He started to walk along the length of a long wooden table which was covered in small models of flight machines, starting with the Wright Brothers plane, to the early space shuttles of the twentieth century, and stopping before the model of a Constitution-class ship.
"Since we first learned of their existence, the Klingon Empire has conquered and occupied two planets that we know of and fired on our ships half a dozen times." Marcus continued, his eyes lingering on the last model on the table. "They are coming our way."
Marcus turned to the two Commanders. "London was not an archive." He admitted. "It was a top-secret branch of Starfleet, designated Section 31."
Kirk and Spock moved closer to his desk, confused looks on their faces.
"They were developing defense technology and training our officers to gather intelligence on the Klingons, and any other potential enemy who means to do us harm." Marcus continued. "Harrison was one of our top agents."
"Well, now he's a fugitive and I want to take him out." Kirk replied.
Spock looked between the two with concern, while Marcus just smiled. Whether it was one of pride or amusement, the Vulcan didn't know.
"Pike always said you were one of our best and brightest." Marcus nodded. "You should have heard him defend you. He's the one who talked you into joining Starfleet, wasn't he?"
Kirk nodded. "Yes, sir." He answered quietly.
"Did he ever tell you who talked him into joining?" Marcus asked.
Kirk slightly shook his head, and Marcus nodded, looking downwards.
"His death is on me." Marcus said regretfully, looking back up at Kirk. "And yours can't be."
"Sir, please. All I-" Kirk started.
"Mr. Spock, you said the province where Harrison is hiding is uninhabited?" Marcus interrupted, earning himself an annoyed look from Kirk.
"Affirmative, sir." Spock nodded.
Marcus took a moment to think, a new idea clearly formed in his head. He walked forward to his desk, tapping an electronic pad a few times. "As part of our defensive strategy, 31 developed a new photon torpedo."
A hologram image of a white torpedo appeared in front of them, its statistics also appearing in various places around it.
"Long-range and untraceable, it would be invisible to Klingon sensors." Marcus went on. "I don't want you hurt, but I want to take him out. You park on the edge of the Neutral Zone, you lock onto Harrison's position, you fire, you kill him, and you haul ass."
Kirk nodded. "Permission to reinstate Mr. Spock as my First Officer." He said, receiving a confused look from the Vulcan.
"Granted." Marcus nodded.
Starfleet's main shuttle hanger was, as usual, bustling with activity. Officers walked back and forth along the enormous building's floor while shuttles flew slowly in and out of the hanger bay door, delivering officers and supplies. Large crates were floating along, filled with all manner of supplies from food to weapons, as well as shuttles being re-fueled or repaired. Steam filled the air as Kirk walked steadily towards the shuttle that would take him up to the Enterprise.
"Jim!" Kirk turned from his focused walk, seeing McCoy running toward him.
"Where were you?" McCoy asked.
"For what?" Kirk asked, keeping up his fast pace.
"Your medical exam." McCoy answered, as if it was obvious. "Ten hours ago, you were in a damn firefight. Now, it's my duty as ship's-"
"I'm fine, Bones." Kirk interrupted, the both of them stopping outside of their shuttle.
"The hell you are." McCoy snapped.
Kirk shook his head. "I'm fine." He repeated, walking away and entering the shuttle.
McCoy looked after his friend with concern for a moment, before following him into the shuttle.
Spock was already inside the shuttle, and was sitting silently while staring downward, deep in thought.
"Status report, Mr. Spock." Kirk said, snapping the Vulcan back to reality.
"The Enterprise should be ready for launch by the time we arrive." Spock reported.
"Good. Good." Kirk nodded noncommittally, while McCoy took a seat in the row behind them.
"Captain." Spock added. "Thank you for requesting my reinstatement."
Kirk smiled at him. "You're welcome." He replied, while McCoy held a small medical sensor to his eye from between the seat rows.
"As I am again your First officer, it is now my duty to strongly object to our mission parameters." Spock continued.
"Of course it is." Kirk nodded.
"There is no Starfleet regulation that condemns a man to die without a trial, something you and Admiral Marcus are forgetting." Spock went on. "Also, pre-emptively firing torpedoes at the Klingon home world goes against-"
"You yourself said that the area's uninhabited." Kirk pointed out. "There's only going to be one casualty. And, in case you weren't listening, our orders have nothing to do with Starfleet regulation."
"Wait a minute." McCoy broke in, leaning forward. "We're firing torpedoes at the Klingons?"
"Regulations aside, this action is morally wrong." Spock added.
"Regulations aside, pulling your ass out of a volcano was morally right." Kirk shot back. "And I didn't win any points for that."
"Whoa, Jim, calm down." McCoy warned, reading the scanner connected to the sensor.
"I'm not going to take ethics lessons from a robot!" Kirk exclaimed.
"Reverting to name-calling suggests that you are defensive, and therefore find my opinion valid." Spock pointed out.
"I wasn't asking for your opinion." Kirk replied, as McCoy attached a small glowing pad to his cheekbone. It let out a small whistling noise, and Kirk gritted his teeth. "Bones, get that thing off my face." He growled. Bones retracted the pad.
"Captain, our mission could start a war with the Klingons and it is, by its very definition, immoral." Spock said. "Perhaps you should take the requisite time to arrive at this conclusion for yourself."
"Captain Kirk." A new voice entered the conversation.
Kirk looked up to see a beautiful, tall, blonde woman standing in front of his seat row.
"Science Officer Wallace." The woman introduced herself. "I've been assigned to the Enterprise by Admiral Marcus. These are my transfer orders." She held out the electronic pad she was holding towards Kirk.
Kirk didn't say anything, but continued to stare at her, a grin on his face.
"You requested an additional science officer, Captain?" Spock asked.
"I wish I had." Kirk replied, taking Wallace's pad and reading the file opened on it. "Lieutenant Carol Wallace. Doctorate in applied physics, specializing in...advanced weaponry."
"Impressive credentials." Spock noted.
"Thank you." Carol smiled.
"But redundant now that I am back aboard the Enterprise." Spock added.
"And yet, the more the merrier." Kirk smiled at him. "Have a seat, Doctor."
"Thank you." Carol smiled again, taking the seat between the two seated officers. Spock watched her suspiciously.
"Shuttle crew, stand by for lift-off." The shuttle pilot called back, as the thrusters fired loudly.
The shuttle flew out of the loading bay, taking off into the air and flying by multiple high-rise buildings that formed the San Francisco skyline. It then flew upwards, passing through Earth's atmosphere, heading towards the main Starfleet space dock. The enormous space station held multiple ships, but the shuttle holding Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Carol sped toward the Enterprise. It flew around to the loading bay of the ship's aft end, landing lightly and beginning to unload its cargo, human and technology.
"No! I'm not signing anything!" Scotty exclaimed, clearly extremely annoyed at the Starfleet representative still holding the signing pad. "Now get these bloody things off my ship! Captain!" He added, seeing Kirk enter the engineering bay.
"Is there a problem, Mr. Scott?" Kirk asked.
"Aye, sir." Scotty answered. "I was just explaining to this gentleman that I cannot authorize any weapons onboard this ship without knowing what's inside them." He explained, gesturing to one of the torpedoes that Marcus had supplied them with. Carol walked around to the other side, slowly examining the weapon.
"Mr. Scott raises yet another point that the-" Spock started.
"Report to the bridge." Kirk cut him off, handing the Vulcan his electronic pad.
"Captain." Spock nodded, taking the pad and walking away.
"Mr. Scott, I understand your concerns, but we need these torpedoes on board." Kirk continued, turning back to the engineer.
"Due respect, sir, but photon torpedoes run on fuel." Scotty explained. "Now, I cannot detect the type of fuel that's used in the compartments on these torpedoes because it's shielded. I asked for the specifications, but he said..." He trailed off, pointing with his thumb to the Starfleet man standing behind him.
"It's classified." The man said.
"It's classified." Scotty repeated. "So I said, "No specs, no signature"!"
"Captain." Sulu called from a hallway above them. "Flight check's complete. We're good to go, sir."
"Thank you, Mr. Sulu." Kirk called back.
"Yes, sir." Sulu nodded, also heading towards the bridge.
"Now, if you'll excuse me, sir, I have a warp core to prime." Scotty said, walking away from the group, yelling at his small alien friend to get off of one of the missiles.
"Report to the med bay." Kirk said quickly to McCoy, before going after Scotty.
When he finally caught up to the Scottish man and the small alien, they were outside the large warp core structure. "Scotty, I need you to approve those torpedoes." He repeated.
"Do you know what this is, Captain?" Scotty asked, pointing up at the warp core.
"I don't have time for a lecture, Scotty." Kirk replied.
"Do you know what it is?" Scotty repeated.
"It's a warp core." Kirk answered, rolling his eyes.
"It's a radioactive catastrophe waiting to happen." Scotty corrected, while the small alien looked between the two of them. "A subtle shift in magnetic output from, say, firing one or more of six dozen torpedoes with an unknown payload could set off a chain reaction, which would kill every living thing on this ship. Letting those torpedoes on board the Enterprise is the last straw!"
"What was the first straw?" Kirk asked.
"What was the..." Scotty trailed off in disbelief. "There are plenty of straws. How about Starfleet confiscating my transwarp equation? And now some madman's using it to hop across the galaxy! Where do you think he got it from?"
"We have our orders, Scotty!" Kirk yelled over him.
"That's what scares me." Scotty replied. "This is clearly a military operation. Is that what we are now? Because I thought we were explorers."
"Sign for the torpedoes, that's an order." Kirk replied assertively.
Scotty sighed. "Right, well, you leave me no choice but to resign my duties." He said.
Kirk rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on, Scotty."
"You're giving me no choice, sir." Scotty replied. "I will not stand by-"
"You're not leaving me with much of a choice!" Kirk exclaimed. "Will you just make an exception and sign-"
"Do you accept my resignation or not?" Scotty asked.
"I do!" Kirk yelled, ending the argument.
Scotty paused, staring at his Captain in surprise.
"I do." Kirk repeated, more quietly. "You are relieved, Mr. Scott."
Scotty nodded rapidly, a sad smile and look appearing on his face.
Kirk sighed, looking at the ground. "Why couldn't this whole thing have gone over easily?" He thought.
"Jim, for the love of God, do not use those torpedoes." Scotty warned, before handing over his engineer's pad to the captain and walking away. After a few seconds, he stopped, turning back to look at the small alien. It walked forward, handing a smaller engineer's pad to the captain.
Kirk was left standing alone in front of the core, while the words "Attention. Warp core anti-matter containment check in three minutes." echoed through the engineering bay.
Kirk had changed out of his dress uniform into his yellow captain's shirt, and was currently exiting Engineering, walking down a hallway towards the main elevator that would take him to the bridge.
"Captain!" He heard behind him, turning to see Uhura catching up to him. "I'm so sorry about Admiral Pike." Uhura said.
"We all are." Kirk nodded, slowing down slightly to match pace with her.
"Are you okay?" Uhura asked, clearly concerned.
"Fine, thank you, Lieutenant." Kirk answered dismissively.
The two of them entered the elevator, facing forward as the door slid closed before them. There were a few seconds of silence between them before Kirk broke it.
"Actually, Scotty just quit." He admitted. "And your boyfriend's second-guessing me every chance he gets."
Uhura just sighed, straightening her back.
Kirk noticed her change in posture, realizing his mistake. "I'm sorry, that was inappropriate." He added. "It's just that sometimes I want to rip the bangs off his head." He trailed off, thinking for a second. "You know, maybe it's me. I-"
"It's not you." Uhura added quickly.
Kirk stopped, confused, looking at her. "It's not?"
Uhura didn't answer, but something was clearly bothering her.
Kirk turned to face her completely, folding his arms. "Wait, are you guys...are you guys fighting?"
"I'd rather not talk about it, sir." Uhura answered, turning to face him.
"Oh, my God!" Kirk replied, surprised. "What is that even like?"
The doors slid open, revealing the bridge. Spock was standing in front of the door, and he looked up, standing at attention.
Uhura walked by him, holding eye contact but not saying a word. Spock turned with her, his face betraying no reaction to her clear anger.
"Your ears burning?" Kirk asked as he exited the elevator, earning a confused look from the Vulcan.
"Captain on the bridge!" Chekov's voice rang out through the large room.
"Captain." Sulu greeted him as Kirk passed the pilot.
Kirk nodded back, leaning over Chekov's console. "Mr. Chekov. You've been shadowing Mr. Scott. Are you familiar with the engineering systems of this ship?"
"Affirmative, sir." Chekov nodded.
"Good." Kirk smiled. "You're going to be working with a new Chief, but I want someone who knows Scotty's methods. Go put on a red shirt." Kirk patted the young Russian's shoulder, walking back to the captain's chair.
"Aye, Captain." Chekov nodded, a scared look on his face.
Kirk sat in his chair, taking a second to enjoy the feeling of being there again, while simultaneously regretting the circumstances that had led to it. "Retract all moorings, Mr. Sulu." He ordered.
"Yes, sir." Sulu answered, clicking a few buttons on the console before him.
Outside, the large moorings disconnected from multiple spots around the ship, retracting back to the space dock. When the ship was free of all three moorings, the Enterprise's engines fired, Sulu steering the ship backwards and turning it away from the dock, facing outward to open space. Another navigation officer took Chekov's empty seat.
"Lieutenant Uhura, open a ship-wide channel." Kirk requested, clicking the comms switch on his chair.
"Mr. Chekov, how we looking down there?" Kirk's voice came through the comms near the warp core.
Chekov, having changed into his red shirt, ran over to the console, clicking a button. "All systems nominal, Captain." He reported.
"Copy that."
"Warp available at your command."
"Thank you, Mr. Chekov."
Chekov nodded, clicking the console again to close the channel, returning to the warp core.
"All right, let's ride." Kirk said.
"Yes, sir." Sulu replied, turning to his console and beginning the rapid pressing of buttons that led to the start-up sequence. When everything was ready, he grabbed main the silver lever, slowly pushing it forwards. Stars elongated on the main screen before the bridge crew, and the twin thrusters fired, sending the Enterprise speedinginto warp speed.
Uhura clicked a few switches above her head. "Channel open, sir." She reported.
"Attention, crew of the Enterprise." Kirk spoke into the comms. "As most of you know, Christopher Pike, former captain of this ship and our friend...is dead." He took a moment to collect his thoughts. "The man who killed him has fled our system and is hiding on the Klingon homeworld, somewhere he believes we are unwilling to go."
All across the ship, the crew stopped their duties to listen to their captain. The red-shirted engineers stood around as steam wafted through the air, McCoy and his blue-shirted medical team paused from preparing the med bay. Carol was walking across the bay where the torpedoes were being stored before being loaded, only half-listening.
"We are on our way there now." Kirk continued. "Per Admiral Marcus, it is our essential that our presence goes undetected. Tensions between the federation and the Klingon Empire have been high, and any provocation could lead to an all-out war."
Kirk paused before continuing. The crew around him in the bridge turned, waiting for him to finish his mission briefing. Kirk swivelled his chair to face Spock, and after a few seconds of silence between the two of them, Spock's neutral look repeating his point of view, Kirk turned back forward. He hated when Spock was right, but he was right.
"I will personally lead a landing party to an abandoned city on the surface of Kronos, where we will capture the fugitive, John Harrison, and return him to Earth so he can face judgement for his actions." Kirk said. "All right, let's go get this son of a bitch. Kirk out."
Spock stood up, walking to stand at Kirk's side. "Captain, I believe that you have made the right decision." He said. "If I can be of assistance, I would be happy to accompany you on the away team."
Kirk looked up at the Vulcan. "You? Happy?" He asked.
"I was simply attempting to use your vernacular to convey an idea." Spock replied.
Kirk smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Mr. Spock."
Down in a lower bay of the Enterprise, the torpedoes were being moved via cranes into their weapon ports. Carol was examining one of them as it was wheeled away with a small scanner. When it moved past her, she turned with it, and noticed that Spock was now standing in the bay, watching her.
"Mr. Spock. You startled me." She said, again putting on her smile.
Spock didn't react to it. "What are you doing, Doctor?" He asked.
"Verifying that the torpedo's internal-" Carol started to answer.
"You misunderstand." Spock interrupted. "What are you doing aboard this ship? There is no record of you being assigned to the Enterprise."
"Oh, really?" Carol laughed a little. "That must be some sort of mistake."
"My conclusion as well, Dr. Marcus." Spock said.
Carol's smile faded.
"Except that you have lied about your identity." Spock continued. "Wallace is the surname of your mother. I can only assume that the Admiral is your father."
Carol walked a few steps towards the Vulcan. "Mr. Spock." She said, now speaking more quietly and slightly more nervously, all pretense of her cover gone. "I'm aware that I have no right to ask this of you. But please, he cannot know that I'm here-"
Before she could continue, the entire ship jolted with an electronic groan, sending every crew member scrambling unexpectedly, many of the bridge crew falling forward out of their seats. The Enterprise had dropped out of warp, and was now stopping in space, having emerged not quite near the neutral zone between Federation and Klingon space.
"Engineering manually dropped us out of warp, sir." Sulu reported, once the bridge crew had recovered.
Kirk hit the comms button on the console he had braced himself on. "Mr. Chekov, did you break my ship?" He called into it.
"Sorry, Captain, I don't know what happened." Chekov reported quickly, running through the engineering deck while steam billowed around and red lights flashed. "The core overheated, I had to activate the emergency stop. It must be a coolant leak, but I need time to find it. Sorry again, Captain."
"Damn it." Kirk muttered. "Mr. Sulu, time to our destination?"
"Twenty minutes, sir." The pilot answered. "But that's twenty minutes in enemy space we weren't counting on."
"All right. We better hop to it." Kirk nodded, turning around and noticing an absence. "Where's Spock?"
"Here, Captain." Spock answered, having just exited the elevator, and walked to stand next to Uhura.
"You're coming with me to Kronos." Kirk said. "Lieutenant, how's your Klingon?"
"It's rusty, but it's good." Uhura answered.
"Good. You're coming too." Kirk said, before walking closer to them and speaking more quietly. "This isn't going to be a problem, is it? You two working together?"
"Absolutely not." Uhura answered, a hint of anger in her voice, before walking away.
Spock turned to his captain with a confused look. "Unclear." He answered, before following Uhura away.
"I'll meet you in the shuttle bay." Kirk said, shaking his head as he realized that maybe this wasn't the best idea.
"Jim, you're not actually going down there, are you?" McCoy asked, approaching his friend. "You don't rob a bank when the getaway car has a flat tire."
Kirk clicked the comms button on his chair. "I'm sure engineering will have us all patched up by the time we get back." He replied. "Isn't that right, Mr. Chekov?"
Chekov paused, thinking for a second. "Yes, Captain." He answered, not entirely sure. "I'll do my best, sir."
Kirk smiled and nodded to McCoy, before turning to his pilot. "Mr. Sulu, you have the conn. Once we're en route, I want you to transmit a targeted comm burst to Harrison's location. You tell him you have a bunch of really big torpedoes pointed at his head and if he doesn't play nice, you're not afraid to use them."
Sulu didn't reply, but looked nervously away from Kirk's eyes.
"Is that a problem?" Kirk asked.
"No, sir." Sulu answered. "I've just never sat in the chair before."
"You're going to do great." Kirk re-assured him, turning to exit the bridge.
"Jim! Wait!" McCoy stopped him. "You just sat that man down at a high-stakes poker game with no cards and told him to bluff. Now, Sulu's a good man, but he's no captain."
"For the next two hours, he is." Kirk replied. "And enough with the metaphors, all right? That's an order." He turned away from the doctor, calling back. "Mr. Sulu, make sure that K'normian ship is ready to fly."
Sulu nodded, slowly standing up and walking towards the captain's chair, the rest of the bridge crew watching him. Sulu sat tentatively, but relaxed into the seat, his doubts erased as he settled in. He felt more confident in seconds, and a new persona seemed to emerge when he spoke.
"Acting Captain Sulu to Shuttle Bay Two." Sulu said into the chair's comm. "Please have the trade ship we confiscated during the Mudd incident last month fueled and flight ready. Captain Kirk is en route to you now."
About ten minutes later, the away team made their way into the shuttle bay, having changed into completely black clothes. Kirk was holding a small black case containing phaser pistols, but not the Federation's design. Two more crew members were waiting outside of the K'normian shuttle they were deploying in.
"Lieutenants, lose the red shirts." Kirk ordered as he, Spock and Uhura reached the shuttle. Kirk handed the two a change of similarly black clothing. "You are K'normian arms dealers. Put those on."
"Sir?" One of the lieutenants asked, confused.
"Look, if this thing goes south, there can be nothing tying us to Starfleet." Kirk explained. "Unless, of course, you want a war, Mr. Hendorff."
"No, sir." Hendorff and the other lieutenant answered simultaneously.
"Good. Me, neither." Kirk replied, walking past them and into the shuttle.
The round shuttle took off out of the shuttle bay door, flying away from the Enterprise and towards Kronos. As the planet came more into view, Kirk noticed that a moon had collided with it, with huge brown fragments floating in space.
"I am detecting a single life form in the Ketha Province." Spock reported. "Given the information provided by Mr. Scott, this is most likely John Harrison."
"Mr. Sulu, I think we found our man." Kirk said into the shuttle's comm. "You let him know you mean business."
"Aye, Captain." Sulu replied.
Sulu took a deep breath, preparing himself. He clicked a few buttons on the chair, preparing the comm for a targeted burst. When it was set properly, he put an extra layer of threat and menace into his voice. Or, at least, as much as he could manage.
"Attention, John Harrison." He said into the comm. "This is Captain Hikaru Sulu of the U.S.S. Enterprise. A shuttle of highly trained officers is on its way to your location. If you do not surrender to them immediately, I will unleash the entire payload of advanced, long-range torpedoes currently locked onto your location."
As he spoke, the torpedoes were loaded into the weapons bays, supervisors watching them as they clicked into place. All across a length of the ship's hull, small ports opened, readying the torpedoes for launch.
"You have two minutes to confirm your compliance. Refusal to do so will result in your obliteration." Sulu continued. "If you test me, you will fail." He clicked the console, ending the transmission and letting out a small breath.
"Mr. Sulu, remind me never to piss you off." McCoy said, joking but still sounding slightly nervous.
Sulu just smiled proudly.
KRONOS
The round K'normian shuttle sped lower into the atmosphere of the Klingon homeworld. It had reached the Ketha Province, and now ancient ruins were visible above the clouds, buildings long abandoned by the planet's inhabitants.
"We will arrive at Harrison's location in three minutes, Captain." Spock reported. "It is unlikely that he will come willingly. I calculate the odds of him attempting to kill us at 91.6%."
"Fantastic." Kirk replied.
Uhura sighed, realizing a second after that it was louder than she had meant.
"Is something the matter, Lieutenant?" Kirk asked.
"No, Captain. Nerves, I suppose." Uhura answered, not entirely truthfully.
"Lieutenant , if it has anything to do with your annoyance with me, I wish to resolve it now." Spock said, giving his best attempt at a romantic gesture. "Given the odds being firmly against us-"
"Spock, it would be better if we discussed this in private-" Uhura started.
"I merely think that given the threat that Harrison poses, with the additional risk of a Klingon incursion-" Spock continued.
"Guys-" Kirk tried to break in. "Are we really doing this now-"
"Captain, just two seconds, okay?" Uhura asked.
"Okay." Kirk nodded, focusing on flying the shuttle.
"Look, Spock you know that I've been concerned about you for a while." Uhura said. "And about...about us. At that volcano, did you think about what it would do to me if you died? Did you feel anything? Did you care?" She paused, leaving the shuttle in momentary silence. "And I'm not the only one who's upset with you. The Captain is, too."
"No, no, no." Kirk objected. "Don't drag me into this." He turned back forward, the sun shining in his face, before he turned to Spock. "She is right." He added.
"Your suggestion that I do not care about dying is incorrect." Spock said quietly. "A sentient being's optimal chance at maximizing their utility is a long and prosperous life."
Uhura sighed. "Great."
"Not exactly poetry, Spock." Kirk pointed out.
"You misunderstand." Spock continued. "It is true that I chose not to feel anything upon realizing that my own life was ending."
Kirk and Uhura stopped their comments, listening closely.
"But later, as Admiral Pike was dying, I looked into his eyes, and I could see various emotions. Anger, confusion, loneliness, fear." Spock reflected. "I had experienced these feelings before, multiplied exponentially on the day that my planet was destroyed. Such a feeling is something I choose never to experience again, so I felt justified in my choice while inside the volcano, a choice which I made purely to experience a peaceful passing."
Kirk and Uhura didn't have a response, and all of their complaints had been forgotten.
"Nyota, you mistake my choice not to feel as a reflection of my not caring." Spock continued. "Well, I assure you, the truth is precisely the opposite."
Uhura leaned back against her seat, and smiled in relief.
Kirk turned to say something, but suddenly, the entire ship jolted with the sound of a phaser blast. The officers inside winced with the impact, and the shield alarm started blaring.
"What the hell was that?" Kirk asked.
Back on the Enterprise, the shuttle's signal disappeared from their sensors.
"What happened? Where's their signal?" Sulu asked in panic.
"It cut out. I'm working to get it back." The acting communications officer answered.
The K'normian shuttle was undamaged, but it was now being pursued by a Klingon shuttle, and the two ships weaved through the ruins that jutted into the sky.
"We are being pursued by a D-4 class Klingon vessel." Spock reported.
"I thought this section was abandoned!" Kirk exclaimed.
"It must be a random patrol." Uhura suggested.
"Hold on!" Kirk yelled, twisting the steering nozzle to the side and downward, causing the Lieutenants to wince at the sudden force as the shuttle pitched downward. But the Klingon ship remained in pursuit.
"This ship has no offensive capabilities." Spock warned.
"It's got us." Kirk replied. "Give me all six fuel cells."
"Aye, Captain." Spock replied, and clicked a number of buttons.
The steering display in front of Kirk lit up, and the captain gained full control over the steering of the shuttle. He twisted the controls suddenly, now able to maneuver the ship deep into the ruins, weaving between the dead, old buildings. The Klingon ship stayed on their tail, continuing to fire green bursts, one of them igniting an explosion that burned around the shuttle. The flames and force of the blast rocked the shuttle again, Kirk cursing under his breath. No matter how many complicated his moves, the pursuing shuttle kept up with them.
"They're closing fast, bearing 285!" Uhura reported, watching her scanner.
Through the front viewport, Kirk could see a narrow passage between the ruins. His scanner gave him measurements, and the possibilities of it being an escape route. "All right, there! There! We can lose them there." Kirk yelled, dodging another Klingon blast.
"If you are suggesting that we utilize the passage between the approaching structures, this ship will not fit." Spock warned.
"We'll fit." Kirk replied.
"Captain, we will not fit." Spock repeated.
"We'll fit, we'll fit!" Kirk yelled, trying to convince himself just as much as the other members of the away team.
He twisted the control nozzle, turning the shuttle on its side. The ship just fit into the gap, while the Klingon ship stopped its pursuit before it smashed into the structures. Inside the gap, the K'normian shuttle bounced off either side of the tight space, barely fitting. The jarring, sparking impacts had the away team gripping their seats tighter than they thought possible. Just when it seemed like the space was getting too tight, they emerged from the gap, the flight smoothing out.
"I told you we'd fit." Kirk said to Spock, still breathing heavily.
"I am not sure that qualifies." Spock replied.
"Any sign of them?" Kirk asked Uhura.
"No, which worries me." Uhura answered, still watching her scanner.
"We lost them!" Kirk exclaimed happily.
"Or they're jamming our scanners." Uhura countered.
"Or, we lost them." Kirk repeated.
The shuttle took a left turn through the ruins, seemingly free of their pursuers. But, as it emerged into a large clearing, it slowed to a stop, as three Klingon patrol ships shone spotlights onto it. They were surrounded, with nowhere to go. Angry Klingon yells were sent out through their ships' comms, and everyone inside the K'normian shuttle tensed. Kirk sighed, trying to think of a way out of the situation.
"They're ordering us to land." Uhura translated. When she got no response, she continued. "Captain, they're going to want to know why we're here. And they're going to torture us, question us...and then they're going to kill us."
Kirk thought for a moment. "So we come out shooting." He suggested.
Uhura stood up from her seat, walking over to stand over her Captain. "We're outnumbered, outgunned." She pointed out. "There's no way we survive if we attack first."
Kirk nodded, looking downward, clearly still trying to figure out another way.
"You brought me here because I speak Klingon." Uhura continued. "So, let me speak Klingon."
Kirk nodded, while Spock looked away from the conversation with a look of worry. Kirk set the shuttle down slowly in the midst of an open space in the ruins, two of the Klingon shuttles following closely and landing around it. When they landed, the K'normian shuttle's door opened, Uhura waiting alone in the doorway.
Uhura exited the shuttle, walking towards one of the Klingon ships, but only after she took several deep breaths, unsuccessfully trying to eliminate her worry. It was at times like these that she wished that she could suppress emotion like Spock. As she stepped onto the stone ground, the harsh winds of Kronos blew through her hair, ash flying around the eroded, unidentifiable structures and ripped flags spread around them. The crew of one of the Klingon ships stood in formation at the top of a small staircase, holding rifles, their armoured masks identical and intimidating.
"This isn't going to work." Kirk muttered from inside the shuttle, while he and the rest of the away team watched Uhura approach the Klingons.
"It is our only logical option." Spock replied. "And, as undesirable as it is, if you interrupt her now, you will incur the wrath of the Klingons, an option that would be better avoided."
As Uhura continued her slow walk towards the Klingons, one soldier walked from the back of the group, stopping at the front of them. He was clearly the leader.
Uhura stopped, still leaving a large space between her and the Klingons. "I am here to help you." She said, speaking in the guttural Klingon tongue.
The Klingon leader walked down the steps, closing the gap between them.
Kirk, feeling that something was going to go wrong, ran from the shuttle's cockpit to its main bay, opening the small case that he'd brought with him. He pulled out the phaser pistols, passing them to the two Lieutenants, who nodded in thanks, and dropped one phaser in front of Spock while preparing his own. Spock looked at the gun, slowly placing a hand over it. Just in case.
The Klingon leader has stopped in front of Uhura, but didn't make another move.
"With respect." Uhura continued. "There is a criminal hiding in these ruins. He has killed many of our people."
There was silence between the two for a moment, the only noises coming from the wind and the Klingon shuttle hovering over them, spotlights facing down. The Klingon leader slowly reached up and removed his helmet, revealing his dark skin, with an angular nose and a head covered in traditional piercings. His piercing blue eyes stared forward at the much shorter woman.
"Why should I care about a human killing other humans?" He growled back.
Uhura paused for a moment to come up with an answer. "Because you care about honor." She eventually answered. "And this man has none. You and your people are in danger."
The Klingon captain stared at her for a moment, again letting the whistling of the wind fill the silence. But suddenly, he lunged forward, grabbing Uhura's face. Inside the K'normian shuttle, Kirk began to panic. Spock tightened his grip on his phaser. The Klingon leader slowly drew a long knife from his boot.
Before he could use it, there was a rapid whirring, and red phaser blasts flew through the air, cutting into his Klingon crew members. Kirk and the Klingon leader looked around, confused. At the far end of the ruin, a man was moving rapidly, covered in head to toe in black, a phaser rifle in one hand, which was still firing red bursts across the abandoned structures. In the other hand, he was holding up what looked like a small cannon.
Before the Klingon captain could kill her, Uhura grabbed a knife from his other boot, stabbing it into his leg while Klingon soldiers drew weapons and ran towards the attacking man. Kirk and the away team ran out of the shuttle, Kirk firing forward with his phaser, a blue burst stunning the Klingon leader.
The air was now filled with mechanical whirring, red, blue and green phaser blasts, and the sound of Klingon yells. The man and Kirk's crew continued firing, phaser bursts stunning and burning holes into Klingon torsos. Every one of the combatants ducked for cover between the maze-like ruins, phasers blasting chunks away from the ancient stone.
The man weaved back and forth along his long stone walkway, firing an enormous red phaser blast from his cannon into the sky. It collided with the still-flying Klingon ship, causing it to spiral out of control and crash into the ruins.
Kirk had seemingly found a clear spot, and he advanced slowly. A Klingon soldier appeared out of nowhere, swinging an enormous axe at his head. Kirk managed to duck down before he was decapitated, and smashed his phaser across the Klingon's helmet. But all that that resulted in was a metal ping and pain in his hand. The Klingon let out an annoyed growl and kept advancing on the captain, swinging the axe again and again, while Kirk dodged again and again, sparks flying from where the weapon clashed with stone.
Spock moved cautiously through the maze of ruins, firing stun bolts into every Klingon he encountered. He was trying to find the other members of the away team, but they had all been separated in the initial assault.
Back up on the walkway, the man in black kept spinning and firing his weapons rapidly, moving with lightning speed to dodge green blasts that exploded rock around him. One Klingon tried to sneak up behind him, but the man spun around, slamming his cannon into the Klingon's legs and sending it flying.
Uhura was running right through the centre of the battle, bolts of multiple colours flying all around her. She tried desperately to find cover, as the man continued to kill Klingons all around her.
The Klingon that Kirk was fighting eventually got the upper hand, kicking the smaller man to the ground. As the alien raised his axe, Kirk finally had a moment to fire stun blasts into its chest, sending the Klingon sprawling to the ground. Kirk found his feet again, raising his phaser to aim at the man on the walkway, who was firing a blast out of his cannon, destroying another of the Klingon patrol shuttles. Before Kirk could fire, another Klingon tackled him to the ground. The Klingon started to slam the captain against the ground repeatedly, yelling in their growling language.
The man in black was unstoppable, and even more Klingon ships flew into the vicinity, dropping down more teams of soldiers from their bays. The man just fired continuous blasts from his rifle and cannon, knocking ships out of the sky and cutting down Klingon soldiers as they ran towards him, none of them even getting a chance to properly aim.
Kirk managed to break the grip that the Klingon had on him, firing blue blasts into his chest, but another soldier appeared, roaring and slamming the captain across the face with his rifle, the impact sending Kirk falling to the ground. The Klingon stood over him and snarled, raising his rifle to Kirk's head. Before the Klingon could fire, the man in black leaned over and fired a cannon blast down the row of ruins.
The bottom half of the Klingon soldier fell next to Kirk, and he turned in shock, staring at the man in black, who hadn't stopped his vicious onslaught. He still hadn't even been touched. Uhura and Spock reached their captain at the same time, both of them helping him behind a wall where the man's fire wouldn't hit them, as Klingon soldiers continued their rapidly failing advance on the black-clad warrior. Spock managed to run out as the final Klingon shuttle was shot down, and he retrieved a Klingon rifle, carrying it back over to the away team. Kirk slowly leaned out, watching the man in black.
The man continued his brutal destruction of the Klingon soldiers, firing long cannon blasts and killing them five at a time, while using his rifle to dispatch stragglers. He crossed arms, spun around to avoid incoming fire, all seemingly without breaking a sweat. The Klingons were starting to get to close now, so as he fired several rounds into a nearby enemy's chest, the man shrugged off the cannon, sending it clattering onto the walkway. He pulled down the coverings over his face, revealing the angry glare of John Harrison.
Kirk was shocked. Clearly Harrison was skilled to be as important of an agent in Starfleet as Marcus had shown him, but what he had seen the man do simply seemed impossible.
Harrison ran forward, jumping off of the walkway. But he flew through the air like nothing that Kirk had ever seen, shooting down another Klingon before he landed. He landed on his knees, pushing himself up on his feet, and threw a long knife into a Klingon's throat. Before the other Klingons could react, he threw his rifle down and lunged forward, pulling the knife out of the Klingon and slicing through the few alien soldiers that were left with brutal efficiency. Harrison pulled out another knife, using all four of his limbs in succession to kill every last one of the patrol members. The last Klingon fired a shot from his rifle, but Harrison moved his head to the side, the blast missing him, and threw one of the blades. It spun through the air and stabbed into the Klingon's throat. The alien dropped, and the battleground ruins suddenly grew much quieter. Harrison retrieved his abandoned rifle and raised it, advancing on the remaining members of the Starfleet away team.
Spock slowly rose to his feet from his crouch, raising the Klingon weapon. "Stand down." He ordered.
"How many torpedoes?" Harrison demanded, pulling the black hood off of his head, his long black hair hanging scraggily over his face.
"Stand down!" Spock repeated.
Harrison didn't reply, but simply raised his rifle and fired, blasting the Klingon weapon out of Spock's hands. "The torpedoes, the weapons you threatened me with in your message." Harrison demanded again. "How many are there?"
Spock gave him a confused look, a mixed result of the Harrison's curiosity about the weapons, and why the man hadn't simply killed him.
Kirk just stared angrily up at Harrison, silently refusing to answer.
"Seventy-two." Spock said.
Harrison looked up at the Vulcan, his expression breaking from anger to shock for just a moment before it turned neutral, and he slowly looked back down at Kirk, who was still staring at him with pure hatred.
"I surrender." Harrison said, dropping his rifle to the ground.
Spock picked up the weapon, raising it at its previous owner. Kirk slowly pulled himself to his feet, groaning, and stood face-to-face with the fugitive that he had literally chased into hell.
"On behalf of Christopher Pike, my friend, I accept your surrender." He hissed.
Kirk turned away for a moment, and it seemed that the battle was over. But Kirk yelled angrily, turning and punching Harrison across the face. He didn't stop after just one, and threw blow after blow against the criminal's face from both sides, but Harrison barely reacted, certainly not with pain. Kirk continued to beat the man, punching him in the gut, and grabbing his head, punching downward with all of his strength, but Harrison didn't even flinch. Uhura and Spock watched in confusion, while Kirk's frustration at being unable to hurt the man only caused him to attack more.
"Captain!" Uhura yelled.
Kirk punched Harrison one last time before leaning over, now exhausted. As he breathed heavily, slowly steadying himself, Harrison stared into his eyes with the same neutral expression.
"Captain." Harrison hissed mockingly.
Kirk looked like he wanted to restart his beating, but he instead took a deep breath, turning away from Harrison and walking between Uhura and Spock. "Cuff him." He spat.
As Kirk walked back towards the K'normian shuttle, Harrison stared after him.
So, there's Chapter 2! Again, not too many changes, just subtle little changes her and there, but the big stuff's coming in the next few. I've got some positive reactions to this story so far, so hopefully you'll all enjoy this chapter as well!