Special thanks to beta Notes. Check out her latest, "Crossing the Equator" in my faves.

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Chapter 11

T'Spock stared at the empty transporter pad.

"I like this ship," said Maggie, beside her. "It's excitin'!"

T'Spock raised an eyebrow at the strange creature and then exited to the bridge, her hands clasped tightly behind her back.

Did Noyoto know...had he understood that when she put her hands behind her back it was to restrain herself from doing something inappropriate not just by Vulcan code of conduct, but Starfleet's as well?

She took a deep breath and focused on putting one foot in front of the other as she made her way to the turbolift. She felt herself become calmer and paradoxically more alert. It was the work of Sarek's neural pathways, firing alongside her own. She remembered Amanda's answer when T'Spock had asked her when Sarek would stop trying to protect her.

Never.

His calm and prospective protected her now, even as it forced her to contain feelings she'd rather express. But she could see what was done was done. Now she could only do her best to bring Noyoto back safely.

The doors of the lift opened and she stepped out onto the bridge.

"They have activated the drill," said Chekov.

"Communications and transport are inoperative," said the acting communications officer.

"Kirk and Uhura, are on their own now," said Sulu.

A few mumbled words with her hand on his temple and she and Noyoto would never have to be on their own again. It was illogical to feel regret for chances untaken. T'Spock walked to the center of the bridge and sat down in the Captain's chair.

x x x x

"Drop your phasers and turn around, hands in the air," the voice said.

Noyoto looked sideways at Kirk. "He said to..."

"It's okay, I understood."

Noyoto blinked.

"Mind meld," Kirk whispered. "Do what they say,"

Nodding and setting his phaser down beside Kirk's, Noyoto lifted his hands behind his head and turned very slowly.

Facing them were two rough Romulans with mourning markings tattooed to their foreheads. Their clothes were a mish-mash of garments from several different alien species. One held a Klingon rifle, the other a Starfleet phaser.

"James T. Kirk," sneered the Romulan with the phaser. "We've caught Captain James T. Kirk...someday to be Admiral Kirk...well, not in this life. Wait until Ayel and Nero find out."

Captain...Admiral James T. Kirk?

"We should keep him alive," said the other Romulan.

Well, that sounded promising.

"But who is the other one?"

Tilting his head, the first Romulan said, "I do not recognize him from the historical holos. Let's kill him."

Pointing his rifle directly at Noyoto, the second one came closer. "Who are you?" He demanded.

Noyoto gritted his teeth. "Lieutenant Uhura. Serial number..."

The Romulan froze. "Stop!"

Uhura's jaw stopped mid syllable.

"Perhaps he is related to Admiral Uhura. Maybe he could be useful?" said the first Romulan.

Eyes wide, the Romulan with the rifle shook his head frantically. "No, no, the time line is wrong. He is seeking to confuse us like the Vulcan whore. He will pay."

With a scream, the Romulan lifted the rifle up and brought it down towards Noyoto's head. Ducking, Noyoto grabbed the weapon and tried to wrest it from his attacker's grasp.

Trying to take the weapon away was a mistake. He didn't have practical experience fighting someone with three times his strength. He quickly found himself thrown to the ground, rifle pinned to his chest. It felt like his ribs were close to breaking. He gasped for breath.

"Noyoto!" yelled Kirk wrapping his arm around the Romulan's neck.

The Romulan stood up, taking his rifle with him.

Noyoto stumbled to his feet as the Romulan backed towards the bulkhead and banged Kirk against it. "Unhhh," grunted Kirk, but he didn't let go. Forgetting about the first Romulan, Noyoto rushed forward and delivered a perfect punch to the Romulan's jaw.
...that did nothing.

There was the sound of phaser fire, and someone yelled, "Stop."

Ignoring the voice, Noyoto punched the Romulan again - and got butted backwards with the rifle for his pains. The Romulan banged Kirk against the bulkhead again.

There was the sound of another phaser blast. Noyoto froze as the pulse passed right by his head and went directly into the Romulan's gut.

"Stop, I said!"

The Romulan slumped forward. Kirk slid down the bulkhead, and Noyoto turned his head slowly around.

A new Romulan stood behind the first now prone on the floor. Behind him stood four others.

"If you want to save your Captain Pike, you will come with us," he hissed.

"Have to get to Spock's ship," gasped Kirk in fractured Romulan. "Stop. Drill."

"You will not be able to bypass the ship's security," said the Romulan.

"Access code," said Kirk tapping his head. Pointing at Noyoto, he said. "Him get captain."

The Romulan stared at Kirk for a moment, phaser still drawn and aimed at him.
Setting it down he turned to Noyoto and said, "Very well. You will go with Doctor Anil. Do you understand?"

"Yes," said Noyoto.

Noyoto's eyes met Kirk's. This could be a trap, but what choice did they have? Nodding, Kirk said, "You heard the man, let's do it."

x x x x

The ship's override code rolled off Jim's tongue without his even thinking about it.

"Welcome aboard, Captain Kirk," said the ship.

Jim blinked. How had the other Spock known this moment would happen? As soon as the question entered his mind, the answer came to him, a remnant of the mind meld. The other Spock had not known Jim would ever board this ship, he merely hoped - and rationalized this hope as not being unreasonable considering Jim...or the other Jim, often got away with the impossible.

Jim swallowed. He had a feeling he'd be tripping over the lingering affects of the mind meld for years to come.

He studied the bright, clean interior of the ship, so different from the Romulan vessel outside.

"Human," said a Romulan, "we do not have much time if you wish to save your planet."

Jim turned around; he was flanked by four Romulans. Whether they were guards or comrades he still wasn't sure.

Narrowing his eyes, one of the Romulans said, "It is obvious you are very familiar with the ship."

"Uhhh..." said Jim.

"You will fly it," hissed another.

Jim tilted his head. Did he know how to fly it? "Yeah..." He said surprised to be telling the truth - another remnant of the meld. He turned around and began walking to the cockpit. "Yeah, I do."

He heard the Romulans muttering behind him. Turning he saw three of them exiting the gang plank, their long coats lifting in the air behind them.

Menacingly raising a rifle, the one remaining said, "I will stay to see that you destroy the drill, and then the red matter. You will bring no more dishonor upon our houses."

"That was plan," said Jim.

The rifle clicked. "Then get to it," said the Romulan.

"Right," said Jim seating himself in the ship's only chair. It spun around of its own accord, and Jim just looked in awe at the controls. He was in pain. He was frightened. The fate of planet Earth was in his hands. But at that moment all he could think was, "Wow. So cool."

x x x x

Doctor Anil walked in front of him, her hair an unwashed mass of curls, her clothing the same mishmash of designs from a dozen different civilizations that all of Nero's crew seemed to wear.

She'd said only one thing to Noyoto since he'd left the other mutineers and Kirk. "If we hurry we may neutralize the Centurian slug and your captain may avoid permanent paralysis."

The prognosis had been significantly chilling to make Noyoto keep any questions to himself as they she led him at a jog through mishapen tunnels, and strange empty boulevards, first one direction, then another.

It had been years since Noyoto had taken biology, but he vividly remembered looking at a bit of malignant skin cells beneath a microscope. The cells within the tumor were irregular and warped, their spread random. They had filled Noyoto with a sense of wrongness. He felt the same wrongness in the bowels of the Narada.

As they jumped from a ledge to another, Anil drew to a stop. Beckoning with a hand to Noyoto, she led him down a narrow tunnel that was too low for either of them. It appeared to be a service conduit of some kind. At the end was a low door with a single small window of green glass.

Anil peered hesitantly through it. Noyoto carefully did the same. His heart promptly fell. There were at least a dozen Romulans milling directly in front of them.

Drawing back from the window Anil said, "Do not worry. My companions will release the first blast soon, and those guards will run to assist."

Noyoto wasn't sure what she meant, but he didn't have much say in the matter, so he remained silent.

Anil leaned against the side of the tunnel. "I heard you say your name is Uhura."

"Yes," said Noyoto studying the mourning markings tattooed into her olive skin. She might have been beautiful at one point, but she looked too care worn now. Like all of them she looked middle aged. Maybe it was because Noyoto and Anil had kept out of sight, but he hadn't seen any evidence of children or of elders. It added to the ship's timeless nightmare quality.

"We have not had access to the subspace communications of your time," said Anil, startling Noyoto from his thoughts . "Ayel, Nero's aide said it was because of power rationing, and system failures...but we suspect now that it was sabotage."

So they had been locked in time, in their own way.

Looking away she said, "Most of us don't even know Standard. They kept the truth hidden from us."

Meeting Noyoto's eyes she said lowly. "You are proof that are vengeance was misplaced, that we destroyed another people from another universe, that we have dishonored all our houses."

Noyoto tilted his head, unsure of her meaning.

"We were allowed access to historical holos of our own time though," she said. "And we all know about the Enterprise and her crew. Even about Lieutenant Uhura."

Noyoto whispered, "He became an Admiral, didn't he?"

A small twisted smile crossed Anil's face. "There was no he."

x x x x

"Startup sequence initiated," said the ship.

Jim took a deep breath as the ship lifted above the hangar floor. He grinned. And then the door of the hangar bay was coming into view...quickly. Too quickly.

"Fire at the doors!" screamed the Romulan.

"Uh..." said Jim. Of all the things for Spock to forget...

The Romulan leaned over his shoulder and began frantically pressing some buttons.

"Not that...not that...infernal Vulcan engineering..."

Phaser fire burst from the Spock's ship and then they were bursting into the atmosphere above Earth.

Leaning back, the Romulan glared at Jim.

"Thanks," said Jim. "I got it now."

The Romulan narrowed his eyes. Jim spun back to the controls and really hoped he had gotten it.

x x x x

There was a loud explosion beyond the door. Looking quickly through the window, Noyoto saw a solitary Romulan standing in front of a lonely portal.

Anil nodded and began rummaging through her coat. She pulled out a nasty looking hypospray. "We must kill him to save your captain."

With that she kicked the door open with a foot. Noyoto fired at the lone guard.

Running past the prone body, Anil hit a few grimy buttons in a keypad so dirty it was nearly invisible. The door opened to a shop of horrors.

There was Pike, seemingly unconscious, strapped to a bed in the center of a pool of frightening looking green water.

Noyoto ran over, Anil followed.

"Uhura?" said Pike, his voice barely a whisper.

"I've got to get you out of here," Noyoto said.

Pike's eyes went to Anil, brandishing the hypo above his neck.

"Who are you?" Pike said.

"She's here to help," said Noyoto.

"Wha-" said Pike. But he was cut off by the hypo on his neck. Pike's body jerked and he screamed.

Noyoto's eyes went to Anil.

Looking down at Pike now undergoing convulsions, she said, "Good, it is working."

Noyoto heard something behind him. His hands dropped from Pike's bonds to his phaser but before he had it in his grasp, before he could even turn around Anil jumping up onto the table and over Pike screaming a Romulan word, one Noyoto knew from ancient texts, but never heard uttered.

"Intashallisht!"

The hairs rose on the back of his neck. As he spun around and dropped to a crouch, his fingers unholstered his phaser. All he could see was Ayel's back, and then there was the sound of a phaser and Anil crumbled to the floor.

He saw a pair of surprised eyes and fired. The second Romulan fell to the floor too next to Anil.

Staring at them both, Noyoto found himself gasping for breath, Anil's last word ringing in his ears. Intashallisht. There was no Standard translation, but it translated very loosely to bringer of dishonor, an object of blood debt.

Pike's gasps brought him back to reality. Turning, he began furiously working to unbind the captain. Pike's eyes were glazed over and his body still convulsing.

As soon Noyoto had the bonds undone, Pike's torso twisted over the edge of the torture bed. He began heaving and all Noyoto could think to do was to rub his back and say, "Easy, easy," as though Pike was just suffering from a night of heavy drinking.

Pike gave one final wretch and something black and shiny came writhing from his mouth. When it landed on the ground with a plop, Noyoto saw that it was actually an insectoid of some kind. It reminded him slightly of a crawfish, but blacker, and softer. With a shudder it scampered across the floor and into the nearby pool of green water.

Shivering in Noyoto's arms, Pike whispered. "Uhura..."

"Yes, sir?"

"Don't ever eat one of those if you can help it."

Noyoto looked down at the man he was cradling in his arms. Pike was weak and beaten and Noyoto had never been in as much awe of anyone in his life.

x x x x

Kirk didn't even watch as the drill tumbled into the San Francisco Bay. He turned Spock's ship back towards the Narada.

The communicator blinked. He was being hailed.

Kirk hit a few buttons and found himself face to face with Nero.

"Hey, I don't suppose you know me," he said with a smile even though he was nearly frozen in his own sweat.

"Kirk!" screamed Nero. "Where is Spock?"

"Maybe if you catch me, I'll tell you," said Jim.

He cancelled the communicator and jumped into warp.

"What are you doing?" hissed his Romulan passenger stepping closer.

"Red matter. Kill. Nero. Not Earth," said Jim.

"How?" said the Romulan not sounding convinced.

Jim smiled wryly. When Pike recruited him at that Iowa bar so long ago he'd said, "Your father was captain of a star ship for 8 minutes; during that time he saved 500 lives. I dare you to do better."

Well, Jim hadn't made Captain, and he'd saved a few billion lives. But he was still going to the same end.

"You. Me. Ship. Boom!" Jim said.

The Romulan stepped back. "Yes. Yes...that is good."

Jim didn't share the Romulan's sentiment. But then he was being hailed again by the Narada. Jim checked his scopes. They were far enough away from Earth and any inhabited planet. He answered the hail.

"I should have destroyed the Enterprise when I got the chance!" screamed Nero.

"Yeah, well we all have regrets," said Jim, spinning the ship around. "I'm ordering you to surrender now. No terms. No conditions."

There was a hiss of disapproval from behind Jim.

"Never!" Nero screamed.

Jim sighed and hit the controls again.

"Captain Kirk," said the ship, "you are on a collision course. Incoming missiles. If the red matter is ignited, you will be destroyed."

"Understood," said Jim, the incoming missiles' lights of fire before his eyes.

"In the other life, you were a great man as well," said the Romulan.

Jim tilted his head, not feeling particularly great at that moment.

"Incoming ship," said Spock's ship.

And suddenly there was no such thing as no-win scenarios again.

Hitting the hail button, Jim yelled, "Enterprise, two to beam out," and he felt the familiar caress of electrostatic on his skin.

x x x x

The black velvet of deep space disappeared and Jim was standing on the bright, solid, human transporter pad of the Enterprise. He looked to his left, and there was his Romulan, looking around disorientated; to his right were Captain Pike and Uhura. Pike looked a little wobbly but alright.

T'Spock and Maggie stood at the transporter station. Grinning at them, Jim said, "Nice timing, Maggie!"

"Did you see that?" Maggie shouted, "4 targets, 2 locations, 1 transporter pad! Ha!"

Laughing, Jim turned to Pike and Uhura.

"You made it, Kirk," said Pike with a tired smile. Uhura didn't say anything. His eyes were locked on T'Spock.

"It is not over," said the Vulcan. Nodding to Pike she said, "Sir." And then spun around without so much as a nice to see you.

And suddenly McCoy came out of nowhere and was running to assist Captain Pike. Uhura was down the stairs and off the pad running towards the door in step with T'Spock. Kirk wasn't sure if he was imagining it, but he thought he saw their fingers brush. He blinked and the moment was over.

Cupcake rushed up to the Romulan on the pad. "He's with me!" said Kirk. "He saved all our lives," and then he ran after Uhura and T'Spock.

x x x x

As soon as Noyoto's fingers touched T'Spock's, she knew that if he had been underwhelmed by the restraint of her goodbye, all was forgiven now.

She could not lose him now.

Noyoto at her side, Jim Kirk close behind, she headed for the turbolift. As they stepped into the lift Ms. Scott called out from down the hall, "Well, I think I did a great job!"

Before she even had to open her mouth, Kirk shouted, "Get to engineering now!"

As the doors shut, T'Spock heard Ms. Scott's muffled, "Aye, sir."

"Captain," said Chekov as they stepped onto the bridge. "The enemy ship is losing power; their shields are down."

The Narada would be sucked into the rapidly growing singularity.

Staring at the viewscreen, T'Spock contemplated firing the last of the photon torpedoes to ensure their demise and that they didn't become the problem of some other alternate reality.

"Sir, we should hail them," said Kirk.

"I agree," said Noyoto, turning from where he stood beside the communications officer.

The Romulan ship was helpless. And it was the humans who were prepared to treat them as logic demanded.

Their world had not been destroyed.

The patterns of neural networks that were not hers but Sarek's fired to life. What did she have left but logic?

"Make it so," said T'Spock.

The words were barely out of her mouth when the acting communications officer said, "Sir, they are hailing us."

"Answer it," said T'Spock.

On the screen was a new Romulan. His clothes looked like rags. Everything in the field of vision behind him appeared to be on fire.

"This is Captain T'Spock of the U.S.S. Enterprise," said T'Spock, summoning all her inner control. "Your ship is compromised. You are too close to the singularity to survive without assistance." She took a breath. "Which we are willing to provide."

"We require no assistance," said the Romulan in his own language. "It is Intashallisht."

T'Spock's eyes widened, she took a step towards the screen. "That is not logical. We can help you," she said for the first time wanting to help.

Behind the Romulan, explosions roared.

Raising his hand in a very poor version of the Vulcan salute, he said in equally poor Vulcan, "T'Spock, we grieve with thee."

There was a beep as the transmission ended. The view screen seemed to ignite as the Narada exploded, its twisted limbs for an instant a bright new star on the horizon, and then it was sucked into the singularity and was gone.

No one on the bridge made a sound. T'Spock was dimly aware of the sound of the turbolift door, and then there was a collective intake of breath.

Turning, T'Spock saw the Romulan from the turbolift, phaser in his hand. Before any words were out of her mouth he put the weapon to his own head.

"No!" Kirk screamed.

"Intashallisht," said the Romulan, and pulled the trigger.

x x x x

"Status report, T'Spock," said Captain Pike as he strode from the turbolift into the darkened bridge. He wore a Starfleet issued parka. He was clean-shaven. His stride was sure and confident. She had heard about the Centurian slug, but now he looked healthier and more hale than anyone else on the bridge, including herself.

"Ms. Scott and I were able to restore life support," said T'Spock, her breath hanging in the frosty air in front of her, "However, without the warp coils we are short on power. Life support is currently set to minimum."

"Quick thinking on Ms. Scott's part, ejecting the coils to give us enough thrust to escape the singularity," said Pike, adjusting his coat. "How is the subspace array?"

T'Spock straightened. "Lieutenant Uhura was able to repair it with help of the crew from a Vulcan freighter we rescued. He was also able to restore the Universal Translator as well." The last she'd seen Noyoto, she and Kirk had ordered him to report to Dr. McCoy. Noyoto had seriously sliced his arm while crawling through the power conduits and hadn't even realized it. T'Spock still remembered the lonely trail of crimson that had followed in his wake as he'd headed for sickbay.

"And word from the fleet?" said Pike, staring out the view screen.

"They are currently engaged in extensive rescue efforts in the Vulcan System," said T'Spock. "But the U.S.S. Sugihara will rendezvous with us within 24 hours."

Turning Pike fixed his blue eyes on her. "And how long has it been since you had any sleep?"

She had not slept since before Kirk's trial. "39 hours and sixty seven minutes," said T'Spock.

"You are relieved," said Pike.

"Yes, sir," said T'Spock, but she did not move.

"I order you to go get some sleep," said Pike.

T'Spock nodded and headed for the turbolift. The doors opened at the bridge crew's sleeping deck.

T'Spock stared out at the dimly lit hallway for 30.76 seconds. She would not be alone in her quarters. She had given her cabin to four of the Vulcan survivors who had not been able to leave on the shuttle with Spock and her mother.

She did not want to be alone. But she found she did not wish to be surrounded by the collective grief of strangers, either.

She looked down at the controls of the turbolift. "Computer, where is Lieutenant Uhura?"

"Lieutenant Uhura is in his quarters."

T'Spock hit the turbolift controls. When the door opened she walked down the hallway as if in a trance. She would not let herself question the logic of this decision; she would not let herself think of the implications.

She hit the chime to his door. Carefully controlled doubts began to crack through her self-control. What was she doing? Why was she here? Was this logical?

But then the door opened and Noyoto was there, his eyes hooded and sleepy, his frosty breath mingling with hers.

Without a word he drew her into an embrace. It seemed like his arms were the perfect length to wrap around the small of her back. And it seemed like his shoulder was just the right height to tuck her forehead against. She let her hands touch his back and felt the muscles so close to the surface beneath the light black T he wore.

"You must be cold," she said.

He huffed softly. "Come in," he said, drawing her into his quarters.

She did not protest.

A/N:

Action, adventure, romance...this chapter had it all (Well, maybe it could have been funnier). But it did have some twists to the original story for good measure.

If you read and enjoyed please leave a review.