Author's Note: Alright, from here on out, and you'll learn soon enough why, this story will be in Jim's POV. It will still be written in italics. Please leave a review.
Chapter Seven- Delta Knox Mission: The Strike Team
Silence fills the usually chatter-filled air surrounding the Bridge of the Enterprise. This can't be happening. My First Officer. My Chief Medical Office. My best pilot. All of them, imprisoned on some random planet. Our first rescue attempt ended in failure. Our second attempt, also a failure. Even our third attempt ended without results. A feeling fills my mind; a feeling I haven't felt in over five years.
Uselessness. Hopeless. A sense of failure. Self-hatred.
"Captain," the somber voice of Uhara causes me to pull from my thoughts, allowing me to grunt in acknowledgment, "We have a transmission coming in from Admiral Pike, sir."
Nodding to her, it isn't a moment longer before the familiar face of Admiral Christopher Pike fills the screen before me, "Admiral Pike, this isn't the best time to be receiving a new mission."
"Good, because I'm not giving you one, Captain. In a few moments you will be receiving a three new passengers," Pike states, his eyes completely void of any emotion.
Tensing, I clench the arm rests of the command chair, "I am not taking replacements, sir."
"They aren't coming aboard to replace anyone. They are part of a special strike team, assembled to help the Federation take out any tyrants or psychopaths who have come to oppress the civilians of many planets pending introduction into the Federation Pact," Pike states, blinking as he leans forward, his chin resting on the back of his interlocked hands, "You're actually lucky they have business to attend to on Delta Knox, otherwise it would be impossible to get their help."
"Why sir?" I ask, unable to contain the slightest curiosity I feel toward this news.
Pike shrugs, a small smile forming on his lips, "They are very busy people and have a clear idea of what their newest mission is. Once they get a mission together, they rarely stray from their path. Be careful though, they keep their identities a secret for a special purpose," Pike waves his hand in a nonchalant manner, "Their guidelines call that any person, no matter who, that witnesses their faces, are to be terminated on sight."
My body straightens at this knowledge, "What? Why would Starfleet even allow that kind of rule?"
"Why? Captain Kirk, you must understand, they are often in the act of assassinations. If anyone is able to place a witness statement to the situation, it can cause a rather messy deal. They do it to keep the peace, although they have rarely had to act on that perticular rule," Pike informs, glancing off to the side at something that catches his attention. "Oh, they should be arriving in two minutes, so please, greet them warmly."
Nodding respectfully to one of the only men worthy of such respect, I watch as the transmission is cut off. Standing from the Command Chair, I give Chekov the conn before exiting the bridge. Making my way down to the transporter pad, I watch as Scotty prepares for the new arrivals.
Three figures appear on the pad in a flurry of silver light, and Pike sure was right about their hidden identities. All three were clothed from head-to-toe in black, each outfit trimmed in a different color: one green, one gold and one silver. Solid black cowls wrapped around their faces, covering all except their strangely colored eyes from view. The one with the silver outlined seemed to be the shortest, the tallest sporting the gold trim. I soon realize their colored trimmings matched their eyes colors almost perfectly.
"Welcome to the Enterprise. My name is Captain James Tiberius Kirk," I greet respectfully.
The three glance at each other, the one in silver giving a barely perceptive nod, before the one in green steps forward, motioning to each of them, "I'm Jayde," I pick up on the barely noticeable feminine tone in the voice of the green figure, as she motions to the one in silver, "This is Alpha," and her hand motions then toward the one in gold, "and this is Topaz. We received a distress call from Admiral Christopher Pike."
Motioning for them to follow me, I make my way out of the transporter room, "I can't thank you enough. The three imprisoned on Delta Knox hold important statuses on this ship. Commander Spock, my First Officer, Dr. Leonard McCoy, my CMO, Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu, my best pilot, were captured on a routine scout mission."
"I've assembled as many as three teams to make rescue attempts, but those turned out to be nothing more than failures," I sigh out, running a hand through my hair as I make my way down the halls of the starship.
It turns out Topaz is definitely a man, hearing the deep voice leave the figure in gold, "You seem awfully concerned for people who can be easily replaced."
I don't bother heeding Pike's warnings of being kind. I don't bother following standard protocol as I whirl around on heel, glaring into the dull gold eyes, "They are my friends. Without them to complete my bridge team, I am nothing more than just a man in charge."
"Humans can be so easily toyed with, don't you two think?" Topaz jeers, obvious trying to get a rise out of me.
Green eyes turn on him, giving him a pointed look, "Topaz, we are here to help. Please stop toying with the Human's emotions."
"What does it matter? After we hold our end of the bargain, we're out of here anyway," Topaz comments with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Look, I don't care who you are, or what you've done. I don't even care what happens after this. I'm just thankful you are willing to help me in a time of great need," I sigh out once more, feeling at a loss without my usual team around me.
"Well, before we do anything, I'm starving. You mind if we grab some food? It's been a while since we've eaten," Topaz questions, his personality changing drastically, causing me to falter slightly.
"Um, sure. The Mess Hall is down in Sector B, down hall 4 and to your left," I instruct, glancing out of the nearby window and down at the planet where my friends are being held against their will.
My gaze focuses on the sharp silver eyes staring at me through the reflection. I open my mouth to speak, but find myself stopping as I watch through the reflection as the figure turns on heel to follow after the other two. Strange. I don't think Alpha said a single word.
I find myself on the Observation Deck, gazing out at the countless stars. It's impossible to try and get any sleep with my heart so heavy with worry. What if one of them is badly hurt? Then again, Bones is with them. The three-person strike team had vacated to a private room to talk over a strategy and that had been hours ago. Hell, I'm not even sure what time it is.
A strange feeling prickles at the back of my neck, causing the hairs to stand on end. Something feels out of place. Pulling out of my thoughts, I take a quick glance around the empty, dimly lit Observation Deck and I push back the paranoid feeling. No one, except the Delta-shift bridge team are up at this hour.
"You shouldn't worry about your friends," a cold, unfamiliar voice shatters the silence around me, causing me to whirl around.
Seeing nothing, I tense up, "Who's there?"
Movement out of the corner of my eye causes me to glance over, empty silver eyes staring back at me as Alpha steps out of the shadows of the room. I can't stop myself from sneering at the man. Damn him and his freaky comrades. Why would I honestly want a bunch of assassins wandering around my ship anyway?
"Ever think maybe I don't want people sneaking around on my ship?" I sneer out, unable to stop the words from leaving my lips.
Nothing. Not a single flicker of irritation at my blatant disrespect. Not even a bat of an eye is revealed as the figure stares at me unblinkingly. Definitely assassin material.
"I never figured the infamous Captain Kirk would be so jumpy," Alpha states, his tone bare of any emotion but damn him if he thinks I can't hear the underlying tone of sarcasm.
"What the hell are you doing wandering around my ship at this hour anyway?" I hiss out, my recent lack of sleep and worry causing me to be particularly agitated.
"I find it difficult to sleep for very long. My comrades and I are no threat to your entire crew, I can promise you that," Alpha states, not even responding to my rude behavior.
Quirking an eyebrow, "Comrades? Aren't they your friends?"
"I have no desire for such trivial attachments," the rather short figure retorts easily.
"What? Are Human emotions beneath your standards as well?" I shoot out sarcastically, remembering the several times Spock and I had this conversation at the beginning of our time service, after the Nero mess.
"Beneath my standards? No. I just have no desire for it. Our line of work is dangerous and it is pointless to make such attachments when they will eventually break away," I hear him respond calmly.
Emotionless bastard, "You mean when they die?"
"No. I learned that a person's death is the easiest form of loss to deal with," he replies before turning on heel.
Something in my chest clenches tightly as I hear the words spoken so softly, "Wait? You mean, someone betrayed you?"
The figure pauses and I stare at his back, wondering if I was even going to get an answer, "No. Betrayal, while it isn't the easiest to deal with, it isn't the hardest."
"Then what?" I ask, curiosity once again rearing its ugly head.
"Abandonment."
That one word echoes in my head as I watch the figure move down the dimly lit halls. Abandonment? As harsh as it sounds, who the hell would have the balls to abandon someone like him? I'd be afraid he'd cut my head off if he was given the chance.
Alpha-shift came quickly and I find myself sitting in the Command Chair, staring down at the planet once again. Where was this Strike Team? It's obvious Alpha wasn't sleeping, and surely he wouldn't allow the others to sleep in so late in the morning. Giving Chekov the conn, I exit the bridge, going to the nearest computer location device.
"Computer, locate passenger Alpha," I sigh to the inanimate object.
Reading the location, I quirk an eyebrow as I realize the silently cold-hearted man seemed to be located in the Rec room. Making my way down the hall, I silently wonder why he would be there? Shouldn't he be with his fellow teammates, looking for a way to save Bones and the others? Entering the Rec room, I come to a sudden stop as I stare at the two fighting figures that had seemed to take over the entire fighting mat.
Alpha, cloaked in black and silver once more, and Topaz, cloaked in his colors of black and gold, seemed to be in an intense spar. I silently watch as the two aim forceful blows toward each other, and it seems like neither were holding back. It shows in their spar that they have worked together for many years, their ability to read each other obvious as they dodge, block and reciprocate blows. Turning to a random officer, I question the length of the fight, and I'm surprised that he had arrived at the beginning of Alpha shift and they were already in the midst of a spar.
Alpha's body bends back to avoid an oncoming blow and in a flurry of black and silver, the lithe fighter placed his hands on the mat, his body in a simple bridge stance for only a split second. I watch, slightly in awe, as Alpha pulls his feet through the bend, Topaz barely dodging the foot aimed for his chin. As if Alpha already knew the move Topaz made before the taller man made it, Alpha allowed his elbows to bend, his stomach landing on the ground and in a simple twist, the fighter's second foot connected with the back of Topaz's legs.
In the same fluid-like movement, Alpha spun around on the floor, his feet kicking off the floor as he moved into a handstand-like stance and in another twist, the fighter bridged his body once more to place his feet to the ground. Alpha's body didn't seem to register the seemingly dizzy-inducing movements as he moves back into a fighting stance, not even giving Topaz time to recover as he rushed toward the taller man.
The gold-eyed fighter barely caught the oncoming foot, but the move didn't seem to hinder Alpha for a moment as the fighter leaps in the air and in an impressive twist, Alpha's second foot connected with the side of Topaz's temple. The blow forced Topaz to release Alpha's foot, allowing the lithe fighter to land on his feet easily. I watch in amazement as the two suddenly stood still, Topaz reaching up to wipe away the blood trickling from a cut under his eye.
"Damn. Looks like you won this one again," Topaz sighs out, bowing at his waist just as Alpha did.
"You're getting a lot better on judgment calls, although you still allow yourself to think strength will give you the advantage," Alpha replies, silver eyes locked on the red marking the man's cheek.
"You mean, I could have won this one?" Topaz questions as he grabs a random bottle of water and tossing it to Alpha, who doesn't even try to open it.
A snort comes from the shorter of the two, "No. Had I been taking this as a real fight, I already spotted nearly fifty different moments during the fight that I could have served your head on a platter."
Topaz lets out a bark of a laugh, "Ha! You know you'd do it the old fashion way and impale my skull on a stake."
"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," Alpha retorts as his body moves to sit on the edge of the mat, allowing some of my own officers move onto it.
Clearing my throat, I'm greeted by two pairs of passive eyes, "I don't mean to interrupt, but aren't you supposed to be looking for my friends?"
Topaz waved at me nonchalantly, "Oh relax, Captain, Jayde's already been sent well before Alpha-shift to scout out the best way to get to your friends."
"I don't remember authorizing someone to beam down to the surface of Delta Knox," I reply, quirking an eyebrow.
"Aye, that's for sure," Topaz replies, "but in all honesty, Captain, you don't think the people in your engineering department are the only ones that know how to transport someone to the surface of a planet, do you?"
I clench my hands tightly. I hate it when people do shit behind my back. It makes them less trustworthy than they seem. Trust me, they don't exactly exude the ability to trust them.
"Relax, Captain Kirk," Alpha's calm voice breaks through my thoughts, "Jayde is only on the surface to get information that will better suit our attempt of rescuing your friends. Better to have a plan that covers all areas, rather than a barely put together plan that only covers the main objective."
"Pike says you guys are all about the main objective," I sneer out, unable to stop myself.
"The main objective of our own missions, yes, but seeing as though there is more to this mission than just 'our' objective, it infers that we have to cover a more broad range of scenarios," Alpha corrects, silver eyes staring at the water bottle in his hands, "Our own main objective on Delta Knox is not saving your crew," he won't even call them 'my' friends, "but seeing as though Pike called in a favor, I had Jayde do a second route through the compound holding them."
"And you think she can get in and out of the compound without being detected?" I ask, quirking an eyebrow in response.
Topaz snorts as if the answer is obvious, "She's never been caught yet."
"If my calculations are correct, Jayde should be back in just a few minutes," Alpha says, cutting off the beginning of what would have most likely been another argument.
As if the argument would've been my fault. This Topaz guy is a complete self-assured asshole. Alpha moves to his feet, his silver eyes watching the two officers on the mat. I'm not sure what he's doing really, maybe seeing how my crew members handle themselves to ensure the best possible solution to taking us out in our sleep. One of the sparring officers lands on his back at Alpha's feet, to which the short, and rather intimidating, man moves down toward the officer.
"Focus more on your opponent's moves rather than thinking about your next move. You should allow your body to move with its built up momentum rather than moving against it to find an opening," Alpha states simply before standing upright once more.
I watch as the short figure walks past me, Topaz immediately at his side, and I find myself following the duo down the halls of the Enterprise. After just a quick moment, I realize we are heading toward the transporter room, Scotty obviously hearing a call to beam someone up. In a swirl of silver energy, Jayde's figure appears on the pad.
"I take it everything went accordingly?" Alpha asks, to which the green-eyed, masked figure nods. "Good. Captain Kirk, hopefully you have an area where we can discuss our strategy."
"Yeah. We can take the discussion to the bridge," I reply without room for argument.
It isn't long before we are on the bridge, Alpha motioning for Jayde to speak. The figure clad in black and green pulls out a small chip, slipping it into the PADD she seemed to be carrying under her clothes. A holographic image that seems to be a 3D blue print of a building appears above the PADD.
"Alright, here is the main compound. The facility is rather simple to navigate through," Jayde states, setting the PADD down on a table before motioning to an area that flickers a deep blue color, "Alright. This here is their holding cell, and I can't believe I'm saying this, Alpha," Jayde's green eyes move to Alpha, "but your 'wild guess' happened to have hit spot on."
Alpha's silver eyes sharpens as he nods for Jayde to continue, "The four captives are being held in the blue area. There are three shifts of a two-man guard system, a five minute interval between shift changes."
"So, given this information, it should be easy to break them all out," Topaz comments thoughtfully, but something different registers in my mind.
Bones. Spock. Sulu. That's three people. "What do you mean by four captives?"
Topaz glances over at me with a relatively calm gaze, "The fourth captive is one of our own."
"Jayde, continue," Alpha states, ceasing the conversation.
Jayde nods once more, her finger touching something on the PADD, causing the 3D holographic model to move in a flurry of blue, white and yellow before it stops, this time a red color containing one of the rooms, "This here is the mainframe. It's relatively easy to access from what I gathered, but getting to it is completely different."
Mainframe? Why would we- my thought is cut off as Jayde motions to a green light that forms, "Here resides three relatively simple security measures. Three pairs of vertically perpendicular laser-activation alarms, which is easy to by pass. Here," Jayde motions to an orange square much larger than the green, "Is not as easy. This area dictates a pressure sensitive floor mechanism that without the by pass sequence code, any pressure placed within the limit will trigger a series of silent alarms and most likely a trap to capture the intruder."
Jayde pauses, glancing up at Alpha, "So, now that we know where everything is, what's the game plan?"
"Easy. Jayde, Topaz, you will enter the facility two point six minutes before the changing of the guards. Take out the new shift guards before moving onto the ones already in position. I'll take care of the mainframe since I know what we're looking for," Alpha states.
"Now wait just a second. This is my ship, and that is my crew down there. You can't expect me to allow you guys to think this plan of yours will work. If you got this information, then there's the possibility they know someone is going to plan an attack of some kind," I argue.
Alpha's passive gaze turns on me, "You forget, 'Captain' Kirk," I inwardly wince at the stress of my title, "That we are here because you obviously can't succeed where we obviously can. This is now 'my' mission to dictate what goes on and seeing as though you are using 'my' comrades to perform this rescue mission, it is 'my' word that will be followed."
I feel myself stand straighter at the tone of authority. This ass is used to giving orders and hardly following them. I know that tone because it's the tone I use.
"You can't expect me to sit by and do nothing other than wait for you to bring my team back," I argue, looking down at my hands.
"You know, Alpha, we can use him," Topaz breaks through the argument. Alpha glances over at him, "If Jayde and I show up, his crew members may not believe us. It would be beneficial to bring him along, only for a sense of trust from his team."
It did make sense. While Bones and Sulu would jump at the chance to get out, Spock would definitely think of a million different 'logical' outcomes and hesitate.
"What happens after we get to the captives?" Jayde asks logically.
"You wait. It shouldn't take long for me to get to the mainframe and I will come to collect you all before we leave. None of us are to break out alone. I'm sure there are other security measures taken set up to notify someone of prisoners breaking out," Alpha states simply.
"So when do we do this?" I ask.
"Tomorrow," Alpha replies before turning on heel and exiting the bridge.
Staring after him, I feel a hand on my shoulder, sympathetic green eyes staring back at me, "What?"
A smile flickers through the green eyes before they move to Topaz's figure, who follows after their leader, "I only want to warn you that you're treading on a very thin patch of ice."
"You mean the ice around his heart?" I shoot back.
Jayde doesn't seem bothered by my comment as she shakes her head, "No. Something very important to us was taken two weeks ago and we've been following a never-ending series of dead ends and I think, as much as Alpha doesn't show it, it's starting to get to all of us."
"Is is the fourth captive?" I question.
"No. Although our fourth companion is very important to our team, it is something even more important," I quirk an eyebrow in response, "Alpha is fighting through fire and brimstone to get back Kayden McCloud."
My shoulders tense, "W-who?"
"Kayden McCloud is the son of Kyra McCloud, our once prized Amethyst," Jayde says, green eyes softening behind the cowl.
"That's impossible. Kyra McCloud died over five years old during the Narada incident," I argue.
Jayde shakes her head, "No. Kyra McCloud, or Amethyst, came to us over five years ago after leaving the Academy."
Leaving the Academy? "W-what?"
"Amethyst was lost to us three years ago and it was very hard on all of us," Jayde's eyes are softer now, glancing through the lift that Alpha had disappeared through, "Alpha definitely took it harder than the rest of us. Kayden is the last piece of Amethyst that we have."
Son? Dead? A familiar burning sensation prickles behind my eyes as a strange feeling burrows into the pit of my chest.
"They were close?" I whisper, my gaze moving to the lift Jayde's eyes were focused on.
A soft smile appears in her green eyes, "Very much so. They are so much alike, and yet, there are things about them that made it impossible for the two to stand each other for very long."
Jayde grants me one last glance before stepping aboard the lift, the doors sliding shut. Staring down at my hands, I hear a question I never wanted to hear.
"Who is Kyra McCloud?" Chekov's voice asks softly from the front panel.
"Kyra McCloud," I sigh, "she was a woman who held the respect of many of her peers while at the Academy. She was brilliant, strong and a very fierce combat specialist. Her exotic looks and her personality made her impossible to dislike. She held so much strength in her, and the most important thing..."
I glance out of the front, standing from the Command chair, "She was the only woman to hold my undying love."
I heard a gasp come from behind me, the news obvious something Uhara wasn't expecting from a playboy like me, but I knew it was true. Kyra McCloud had been the only constant woman in my life that didn't make me feel as if I was just my father's son. So many women wanted a piece of the infamous Kirk name, but she had never been one.
Tears build in my eyes and I fight them back as a single thought moves through my mind, 'If I hadn't been such a selfish idiot, she would probably still be here with me.'