I do not own Star Trek, any of the canon characters, nor do I make any profit from my writings. I write this disclaimer to guard myself from legal action. Otherwise, there might be Hell to pay later.

Hellguard II

So far, so good. They had arrived at Hellguard, still in the Romulan Neutral Zone, but very close to Romulan space proper. The cloaking device had worked and all of the adaptations made to it had held up so far.

Lt. Uhura signaled the Hellguard command center, stating that the "Colius" was now in Hellguard orbit. Tirell's communications officer had transmitted the coordinates for beam down.

Kirk assembled his team in the transporter room. They looked quite convincing in their Romulan uniforms, especially Spock and "Cupcake" Giotto. The Security Chief was quite imposing with his padded shoulders and thick-soled boots, not to mention the fact that his usual expression was a sneer and he was angry about having to shave his beard and mustache. "Cupcake's" demeanor almost made Kirk feel sorry for the Romulans.

Hamed Mofasu arrived right on schedule, pushing two carts laden with the sumptuous but drug-laced feast he had prepared for the Romulans. Bones gave each member of the away team a long-lasting injection of the antidote. Now they were ready.

Kirk, Spock, Sulu, and Giotto stepped on to the transporter platform and beamed down to the surface of Hellguard. Four others beamed down a few moments later with the food carts.

Tirell and Aichus hurried to the entrance of their Headquarters. They had directed Demus and his men to transport just outside the low, flat structure. Hellguard was an inhospitable place, barren, windswept, and subject to sandstorms. It was the site of a failed mining colony. The dilithium mine was rich, but the miners found the conditions too objectionable to remain voluntarily. Now the labor was done only by those who could be compelled to do so by force.

When the entire party had beamed down, Aichus quickly them ushered into the building.

"Please hurry, Commander Demus. We are expecting a sandstorm momentarily."

Demus (Kirk) nodded.

"Thank you for the warning, Subcommander."

The away team surveyed their surroundings and greetings were exchanged. Demus introduced his officers as Subcommander Malkus (Spock), and Lieutenants Hirust (Giotto) and Rhulan (Sulu).

Commander Tirell looked at "Malkus" and smiled, then gazed at the portraits of the Praetor and Quiros on the wall behind him in the entryway. Malkus looked remarkably like a much younger Quiros.

"Subcommander, my backside!" he thought to himself. "I am unfortunate enough to have to play host to another of the Praetor's bastard sons. Ah, well, at least the food they have brought smells good."

"Come, Commander Demus. Let us partake of this wonderful meal you have brought with you. I have ordered the banquet table set in anticipation of it."

"Yes, of course, Commander Tirell. Please lead the way. I would not want the food to get cold. We have brought plenty, enough to share with your men."

Demus dropped his voice to a whisper.

"However, I think that we will keep the ale for ourselves."

Tirell smiled at this. It had been a long time since he had enjoyed ale. He showed his guests into the banquet room.

"Demus" ordered his enlisted grunts to take food for themselves and the men in the Hellguard Command Center. They were to stay there and eat with Tirell's men.

Again, "Demus" took Tirell aside and whispered.

"There is no need for us to dine with peasants."

Tirell found himself in total agreement with that statement. Also, his men would not miss the ale if they did not know about it. He sent food to the men guarding the "brothel" and to Quiros and his servant.

Tirell was feeling well fed and somewhat tipsy from the ale, also much more talkative than usual. He answered all of Demus' questions about the mining operation, such as how many guards and workers there were and how much dilithium ore the mine produced annually. Tirell was proud of his work and held nothing back.

One thing bothered Tirell, however. Demus had the strangest accent and sometimes it took him a bit too long to respond to questions posed to him. Perhaps the man was raised speaking a different dialect and the ale had slowed his wits somewhat. It did not matter, as Demus was pleasant enough company and Tirell was enjoying his tales of alien sexual conquests.

Tirell was vaguely aware of "Malkus" questioning Aichus about the "brothel" women, their numbers and species. Tirell was now even more convinced that the man was one of the Praetor's "love children." If Malkus was not careful, he would meet the same fate as his brother.

Hirust was engaged in conversation with Tirell's Security Head, while Rhulan chatted with the Weapons Officer. It seemed both men had a fondness for blades.

Tirell was feeling quite groggy. His officers and most of his guests had passed out, their heads on the table or in their plates. He struggled to rise, but he, too succumbed to the effects of the ale.

Spock stood over Tirell, scanning him to verify that he was indeed unconscious. The other Romulans were also in the same state. He sent a discreet signal to Hirsch in the Command Center, who indicated that the Romulans there had also passed out. All the Romulans were bound with heavy restraints.

"We are ready, Captain."

"Good, Spock. Let's go rescue those women."

The layout was exactly as Aichus had described. There were twelve rooms along a corridor, with four guards posted, one for each three rooms. These were aged men, now snoring in their chairs. The away team bound them as well, then they entered each room.

In every case, the women were chained to beds, dirty and half-starved. There were two Romulans, five Vulcans, three Humans, and an Orion. Three of the ladies were pregnant. The most lucid of the women, T'Genna, told Spock of the "nursery" where the "brothel" offspring were raised until they were old enough to become mine workers. An old Vulcan woman delivered the babies and cared for them. "Cupcake" and Spock broke the chains away and the women were beamed up to the Enterprise.

The elderly guard had passed out in his chair in front of the twelfth room. Jim could not budge him, and had to get Spock's help. The door was locked, so together they forced it open. Neither one could quite believe who lay chained to a bed behind it.

Her door burst open with a loud crash. In the darkness, she could not make out who had come in. It did not matter, they were all the same, cruel and demanding. Now they had come again to abuse her, just days after she had given birth. They took away her child, a daughter, calling her an abomination. Romulans and Orions should not be able to breed. The child was Tirell's, also, but he regarded her as a zoo specimen.

"Perhaps I will have her dissected." He laughed as the nursery worker carried the infant away.

Now she was weak, perhaps too weak to recover. If she died, she would take her secret to her grave. The Romulans would never learn that she had been a Starfleet cadet. They would not torture her for information.

Spock found the control for the room lighting and switched it on. The female shielded her eyes. She was an Orion, so he spoke soothingly to her in her own language.

"Do not fear. I have not come to harm you, but to free you."

She recognized the voice.

"Commander Spock?"

"Gaila!"

Spock broke the chains around Gaila's ankles as Jim gathered her up into his arms. She was very weak and quite confused.

"Jim, is that you? What happened to your ears?"

"I'll explain it to you later. Right now we have to get you out of here."

"Jim, you have to find my daughter. They took her away from me. She's only ten days old, if she's still alive."

"We'll find her, Gaila. Right now I'm sending you up to Bones. You need a doctor."

When Gaila was safely on the ship, Spock led Jim and the others down a second corridor. An ancient male Romulan sat outside the door, weeping. He saw the away team and assumed they knew of his failure.

"I am undone!" he cried. "I have failed my master." With that, he plunged his own weapon into his heart and breathed his last.

Jim opened the door the old man had been guarding. Inside on a bed lay the dead body of Quiros. Spock scanned him and discovered that he had choked to death on piece of Hamed's roast beef. In the end, the Praetor's son's appetite had truly been his undoing.

"Good riddance to bad garbage!" said Jim. "Let's find those kids."

T'Vedna was very old, to old to be a "comfort woman" any longer, definitely too old to labor in the mines. Instead, she had been given the task of raising the children born in the "brothel", keeping them fed and teaching them enough language skills for them to carry out the overseers' orders. She also gave them names. She nurtured them as much as her masters would allow, not enough to suit even a logical Vulcan such as she.

Currently, she had seven in her care, including the youngest, just ten days old. This one was a pretty child, with the green skin and red hair of her Orion mother. T'Vedna had just picked the babe up to rock her to sleep when four strange men burst through the door. T'Vedna put the child back in her crib and stood between the intruders and her charges.

"You will have to kill me first."

Spock spoke to her in Vulcan.

"That is not our intent. We are here to rescue you."

"In that case, I will give you every assistance."

T'Vedna rounded up all of her youngsters. They were beamed up to the Enterprise, followed by the away team.

Nyota breathed a sigh of relief when Spock and the others returned to the ship. Through their bond, she had sensed that he was uninjured. However, it was much better to see him and hold him in her arms. He allowed her to cover him with kisses in their quarters for a moment, but then stopped her.

"Beloved, the mission is not ended yet. We must still rescue those who labor in the mines. However, there is someone in sickbay who would like to see you, someone we did not expect to find alive and on Hellguard."

Spock sat on their bed and pulled Nyota onto his lap.

"This may be a shock for you, but it will be a happy one. We found Gaila in the "brothel". I do not know the details of how she came to be there, as there was no time for such things. She recently gave birth to a daughter, whom we also rescued. I believe that her spirits would be greatly lifted by a visit from you, if you are up to it."

Nyota could not speak and tears were streaming down her face. She simply nodded at Spock, who had produced a handkerchief for her. She dried her eyes and washed her face. Then she walked her husband back to the transporter room before making her way down to sickbay.

TBC