It was dark when they beamed down. And cold. And cluttered.
"Warehouse." Sulu commented. Kirk nodded.
What were they doing in a warehouse? He trusted Spock's guidance, but this was an odd place to beam down.
A scream shattered the silence, and Kirk exchanged a glance with Sulu.
Time is short, Chekov had said. Kirk headed in the direction of the cry, Sulu not far behind. Another cry quickened their pace.
They darted down a hallway as quickly as they dared, alert for any sort of threat. The screams grew louder as they moved, only to suddenly stop altogether. Kirk hoped they weren't too late.
The hallway opened up into a room. A teenager lay in the floor before them, curled up into a ball. He moved ever so slightly as they approached, however, and looked up at Kirk and Sulu with eyes that were wide with terror.
"It's okay." Kirk tried to reassure the boy; the teenager pulled back as Kirk started to move towards him. Sulu placed a restraining hand on Kirk's arm.
"Pavel?" He asked gently. The teenager blinked, his focus was on Sulu. "It's okay." Sulu told him, echoing Kirk's earlier statement. "We're going to get you out of here. Can you-"
Sulu jerked abruptly, and Kirk turned and stared at the blade erupting from his throat. His eyes met Kirk's for less than a second before he fell.
Kirk twisted to meet this threat, but still felt the stabbing pain in his side as his attacker's weapon plunged deep.
His foe was on him in an instant; it was over. Kirk braced himself for a blow that never came.
Chekov entered the fray with a shout; he slit the throat of Kirk's assailant with a grunt of pleasure. The man threw himself at another Klingon, not even flinching as he took a disruptor blast to the chest.
Hikaru was there as well. He hauled Kirk up and dragged him towards the teenager who was still lying on the floor. "Time to go, Captain." He said as calmly as if there weren't a rather one-sided fight going on around them.
How Chekov wasn't dead yet was something Kirk couldn't fathom, and he certainly didn't have time to think about it right now.
Hikaru and Kirk dropped to the ground beside the teen; again Pavel Chekov recoiled in terror. "Easy Pavel." Hikaru said softly. "It's okay. You're going to be fine. It's me, Hikaru. Sulu." Pavel blinked. "Do you remember me?" Hikaru asked gently, as if they had all the time in the world.
After a second, Pavel nodded, and reached forward to grasp Hikaru's hand. Hikaru tightened his grip on Kirk.
The room dissolved and was replaced by the transporter room. Hikaru was up and dragging his bewildered companions off the pads in an instant.
"He set a timer on it." Hikaru explained. He meant Chekov, of course. "Planted some sort of transmitting device in my arm. Said it would transport me and anyone I was touching back in twenty seconds. Said it was my job to get you back." He was now eyeing the transporter controls. "I don't know how to beam people up!" He declared, the stress finally starting to get to him. It was the most upset he had sounded since any of this had begun.
"Here." The teenager lurched unsteadily to his feet. "I get them." He staggered over to join Hikaru.
"You know how to work it?" Hikaru asked doubtfully.
The teenager swallowed nervously. "I read about it." He replied thickly. "Once."
Kirk could only watch as the teenager tried to figure out the controls. He was already too weak to do much else. He had been wounded, and badly. Kirk could see the blood staining his shirt and dripping onto the floor.
Hikaru was by his side again, lifting his shirt clear of the injury to asses the damage. He paled, not an encouraging reaction, and pulled off his own uniform, revealing a dark undershirt. He wadded up the uniform and pressed it against the wound, trying to slow the blood flow.
"Got them." Pavel muttered. Chekov and Sulu materialized; Chekov sank gasping to his knees. Sulu lay still, dead.
Chekov was up again in a second. "Get him to sickbay." He snapped, pointing at Kirk.
Hikaru and Pavel nodded, and Pavel joined Hikaru at Kirk's side. Gently they tried to ease him into a sitting position. He gritted his teeth against the pain and tried to help them help him up.
Kirk had barely made it to his feet when dizziness made his head spin and his vision faded. They were barely able to keep him from falling when he passed out.
Disclaimer: Star Trek does not belong to me.
Author's Note: So the plan, now that school's started up again, is to update once a week, probably on Mondays or around then, but I'm not making any promises. I'll try. Also, of course, please review. Though I hardly need say it, you guys are great about letting me know what you think. It's very gratifying.