oOo

A few hours later, after taking care of the first part of her plan, Uhura was making her way toward the Brig when a hand clapped itself over her mouth. She felt herself being jerked back through the doorway from which the arm had presumably emerged, and tried to fight back. Terrified and outraged, she lashed out at her attacker, fought against the arm pinning her own arms to her sides, then gasped as she was suddenly released and whirled around to face her attacker.

James Kirk.

Her eyes widened in disbelief. "How did you escape?"

"I still have allies on this ship. People who understand that this situation with Spock is only temporary. Unlike certain others," he spat out.

Uhura stood firm, although she was shaking inside. "I did what I had to do to save our baby," she replied. "You know Starfleet protocol in situations like this."

Kirk stared at her through narrowed eyes. "DNA results say the baby's McCoy's."

"We both know how easy it is to falsify such reports, especially when the Chief Medical Officer is the one performing it," Uhura replied dismissively. "When it's safe, you can have your own people run the scans to show you I'm telling the truth." He appeared hesitant, and Uhura pressed her point. "We were just covering ourselves, the same way you would have. Covering ourselves and protecting your child," she added. "Not to mention protecting other valuable assets."

As she'd hoped, Kirk was diverted by that revelation. "Assets? What assets?" he asked warily. But his stance had relaxed somewhat, and Uhura felt a fraction more confident that he wasn't going to kill her. He didn't seem to entirely believe her, but she didn't expect him to. Not until he found a doctor of his own to double check McCoy's results. Uhura wasn't worried about it; the child was his, and his escape proved to her that he was going to come out on top of this situation, as usual. Once again, she'd made the right decision.

"Marlena Moreau was going to show Spock exactly how you rose to the top so quickly," she replied, and waited for the explosion.

It wasn't long in coming. "That bitch!" Kirk paced the length of the cramped quarters several time, chest heaving, hands clenching and unclenching as he sought to contain his rage. "She betrayed me with Spock, she told him my secrets! I'll kill her!"

"That would be a bad idea," Uhura put in as his furious pacing finally slowed. "Spock's made it quite clear that she's under his protection. That's the only reason she's still alive," she added, making her own loyalties quite clear. "But I kept her from telling Spock about that alien device in your room."

Kirk stared at her. "You kept her from telling him about the Tantalus Field? How?"

Tantalus Field. So that was what it was called. "I stole it," Uhura said simply. "So she has nothing to show him, nothing except a monitoring device." Its resemblance to such a piece of equipment had been vital to her plans, especially since she knew she was racing against time. "One several times more advanced than anything on this ship, but nothing that could do what she claimed, invisibly kill enemies from a distance. I think I managed to put a bit of a wedge in Spock's reliance on her," she gloated.

"Where is it now?" Kirk was grinning, his tension completely eased, and Uhura exulted in his attention. She had it fully now, and not just because of the baby. She'd proven herself to him, proven her loyalty and courage and coolness under fire. What a team they'd make!

"Somewhere safe," she replied, not bothering to keep the elation from her voice. Let him think it was only because she'd outmaneuvered Moreau and Spock. "I've rigged the internal sensors so it looks like no one ever entered your quarters." They'd run into a Klingon patrol, further delaying Moreau's attempt to show Spock the weapon. The Tantalus Field; she'd have to get used to calling it by its name. As if the Universe itself was helping her, one of the guards was injured during the attack, his partner forced to carry him to Sickbay and leave Kirk's quarters clear just long enough for Uhura to make the trade. She'd gladly sacrificed one of her own, highly sophisticated monitoring devices, exchanging it as quickly as possible for the alien device.

Once she left Kirk's quarters, luck stayed with her; she ran into no one on her way to her own quarters, where she quickly hid the device and made her way to the Bridge for her duty shift. "What should we do now?" She already had a good idea, but it never hurt to let Kirk think he was the one with all the answers.

"We have to get off this ship," Kirk said, just as she'd expected. He started pacing once again, but thoughtfully, his eyes full of schemes. "Take the Tantalus Field and leave. For now," he added.

"Why not just kill Spock and take back your command?" Uhura asked. Just to be sure.

Kirk shook his head. "Not if Starfleet wants me out. If it was just a typical coup, I'd stay. But I have to lean on some people who owe me before I come back, otherwise they'll just have someone else take me down. This is something I've expected," he added. "I have as many enemies in Starfleet Command as I do allies. Time to tip the balance in my favor."

"Using your device?" Uhura guessed. Kirk's slow grin was answered by one of her own, and she dared step closer to him, reaching out to stroke his cheek. "Empress Sato seized power by her bold use of alien technology," she reminded him. "With what you've got, there's no telling how far you could go."

"Just remember, I'm no Jonathan Archer," Kirk reminded her, taking her arm in a painful grasp. The First Officer of the first Enterprise was still synonymous with stupidity in Starfleet circles. "I'm not easily duped by a pretty face and protestations of loyalty." Uhura refrained from pointing out his recent betrayal by Moreau. "You try and double cross me and you'll end up dead."

"You're all I've ever wanted," Uhura said truthfully, startled by her own honesty. This time, the percentage wasn't in lying or covering up her true feelings.

Kirk was startled too, she could see it in his eyes. His grip slackened from painful to firm as he pulled her toward him for a passionate kiss.