Chapter 4: The Things That Test Us
Layla Serena Pike almost could have clocked her own head on the buttons at her tactical station in exasperation and it had only been three and a half minutes into the test.
It didn't help her already grated nerves when she turned around to see James Tiberius "Jim" Kirk sitting languidly in the captain's chair of the simulator happily chomping on an apple. She watched as Nyota Uhura glared down her friend with an almost venomous loathing
"We are receiving a distress signal from the U.S.S Kobayashi Maru. The ship has lost power and is stranded. Starfleet Command has ordered us to rescue them"
"Starfleet Command has ordered us to rescue them…Captain"
There was no doubt about it now. Uhura was giving Jim the look that one would spare for a cockroach crawling in their garbage.
Layla supposed she should have been defending Jim right about now, but Uhura was also her friend and the younger girl could not deny that the elder one had more than enough reason to be pissed off at him.
But Layla didn't have any more time to worry about that for long as Leonard "Bones" McCoy made to speak up from a nearby station.
"Two Klingon vessels have entered the Neutral zone and are locking weapons on us"
"That's ok" Jim shrugged and everyone in the mock bridge crew turned round to stare blankly at him.
"That's ok?" Layla was looking at him as though he had grown a second head, one that was probably nodding in tandem with his normal one as he grinned wide.
"Yeah don't worry about it"
The instructors and senior officers in the elevated observation room that overlooked the simulator also were scratching their heads.
"Did he say 'don't worry about it?'" one instructor glanced to his fellow who frowned worriedly.
"Is he not taking this simulation seriously?"
"three more Klingon warbirds de-cloaking and targeting our ship" Leonard glanced at Jim through his peripheral as he tersely clipped "I don't suppose this is a problem either?"
"They're firing" Layla announced to the room at large her voice almost a groan of aggravation.
Jim's grin only widened.
"Alert Medical Bay to prepare to receive all crew members from the damaged ship"
"And how do you expect us to rescue them when we're surrounded by Klingons, Captain?" Uhura spat pointing at the mock bridge's large front window through which an image of the ensuing attack was being simulated.
"Alert medical" Jim whispered pointedly just as Layla made to speak once more.
"Our ship is taking hits. Shield level at 60%"
"I understand" Jim waved her off but Layla just snapped irritably.
"Of course you do that's why we're not firing back, right?"
"Exactly" Jim smirked and she rolled her eyes.
"Jackass! I was being sarcasti-huh my screen?" but even as she made to press at the buttons on her station her screen began to flicker oddly. She was not the only one confused. Everyone else was tapping their screens desperately as they all turned black.
"What the bloody hell is this bullshit?" Leonard mumbled his face set in a snarl as he held himself back from ramming his fist into his console.
Layla finally spun her chair around to round on her mock Captain who was smiling as smugly as a cat who had caught all the cream.
"Jim what did you do?"
But Jim only gave her a tiny roguish wink and a small finger to his lips before announcing to the bridge at large.
"Layla would you be a dear and arm the photons to fire"
"You mean to tell me you moron" Layla hissed her temper barely being held back by the barest of threads "that you want me to fire at an enemy ship whilst their shields are still up?"
"Oh but are they?" Jim took a chomp on his apple and Layla had to take a deep breath to steady herself before turning back to her console.
However the readings on her screen were nothing that she was prepared for.
"Their shields…" Leonard frowned as he too checked his screens "they're disabled…"
"Fire on all enemy ships. One photon each should do it. Let's not waste ammunition" Jim commanded his mock bridge crew who at once set upon carrying out the order.
"Target locked and acquired on all warbirds." a junior officer beside Layla glanced to her and she nodded.
"Got that Gibson. Firing photons now" she growled as she glanced up at the enemy ships on the simulation screen which all began to blow up into smithereens as small balls of bright energy hit them.
After a couple of seconds, all the Klingon Warbirds were floating around in a mass of debris and exploding metal.
"All ships destroyed, Captain" one of the other cadets announced and Jim's smile returned to his face.
"Begin rescue of the stranded crew"
Layla exchanged a glance with Leonard who was pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation as their mock captain stood up, clapping each of them on the backs as he passed them.
"So, we've managed to eliminate all enemy ships, no one on-board was injured, and the successful rescue of the Kobayashi Maru is underway"
With a smug little smirk Jim Kirk took a cheeky bite of his apple and looked up at the dark windows of their lecturer's observation room.
He couldn't see it through the one way glass but he could tell from the silence about him that they were shocked.
Indeed one instructor turned to his side and said:
"How the hell did that kid beat your test?"
The person to whom he had been talking to turned round to face him. Though his pale, slightly green tinged face was impassive, one swept up eyebrow was quirked so high that it disappeared into the blunt bangs that framed his brown eyes as he calmly replied:
"I do not know"
"Sir! Sir!"
"Yes lieutenant"
"Sir…the Kobayashi Maru test…it's been passed."
"What?! by who?"
"Cadet James T. Kirk sir."
"Kirk eh?…lieutenant"
"Yes sir?"
"Was Cadet Pike apart of his simulation team?"
"Yes… like she always is sir…why do you ask?"
"Because…we'll need her"
"For what?"
"Kirk's first real test"
"Hey Kirk, congratulations!"
"Hey Jim, great job on the test"
"Hey Jim"
"Jim!"
"Jim!"
"Jim!"
Celebrations were underway down in the bar by the San Francisco docks. It was a fairly large building more than three stories. But even so tonight it was completely packed as cadets of Starfleet Academy swarmed in to congratulate Jim Kirk and his mock crew for passing what was supposed to be an unbeatable test. The Kobayashi Maru.
"Hey there handsome"
"Hello Ladies what can I help you with?" Jim Kirk grinned as two very attractive female cadets made to press themselves up against his sides.
"Well" one of them batted her eyelashes up at him flirtatiously "we were just wondering…how you passed the test after two times?"
"Well you know what they say, three times the charm" Jim shrugged in mock modesty before murmuring "But if you two want I can give you both a special private demonstration of my battle tactics. But you've got to keep it a secret alright"
From the sidelines Layla Serena Pike rolled her eyes as both women giggled loudly, pressing their curves even closer to her friend.
"It just doesn't add up" She muttered softly "Just how did he get through my firewall?"
"Well…we are talking about Jim here-" Leonard grumbled from her side as he took a sip of his drink.
Out of all the other Cadets beside her he was by far the only one who shared her rather bleak outlook on the whole success.
"-and let's both face it, he's one of the few people that is smart enough to keep up with you intellectually"
Layla spared the doctor a small grumpy pout as she stirred her straw through her untouched drink.
"You don't get it Leo. The instructors asked me to help reprogram the security firewalls. I had it pretty much air tight. Only me and a couple of other cadets from the computing class were supposed to have the key passwor-"
But then she stopped suddenly in her tracks and clapped a hand hard to her forehead.
"Of course! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!"
"What?" Leonard sighed heavily though he could already guess what she knew.
"Gaila! That silly twitter-brained-AGGH!" Layla hissed angrily almost tugging her hair out before standing to her feet.
"Hey where are you going?" Leonard frowned concernedly.
"I'm going to the gym" Layla spat as she began to harshly shove on her leather jacket. "I need to hit something hard"
"Kid the gym is locked as is every other sports facility on campus" Leonard stood to his feet too "Come on I'll take you back to the dorms ok?"
"No Leo!" Layla roughly shrugged off her friend's comforting hand from her shoulder "I just need a bit of space alright!"
Leonard's frown deepened as she continued to glare at him.
He had seen Layla get angry before, and it had been a rather terrifying experience, but this was different. Her whole body was tense, the muscles coiled as if ready to spring into action and her face…there was something feral and aggressive brewing deep within behind eyes as she snapped at him:
"I'm going outside for some fresh air. I'll find my own way to the dorms tonight"
"Layla" Leonard tried to reach out again but she was already striding off to slide between the bodies of other people in the crowd.
"Goddammit" he growled his eyes darting about. He paused as he caught sight of the glass she had been drinking from. It was still quarter full of amber coloured apple cider but there was something off about it.
He quickly snatched up the drink in his hands and his eyes widened as he caught sight of a small white powdery sediment begin to fall along the edges and to the bottom of the glass.
"What the" he whispered before dipping a finger into it, scooping up a little bit of the powder on his digit before quickly bringing it to his mouth. He spluttered and spat back into the glass as something plastic like and bitter hit his tongue.
Wait a moment...plastic…bitter!
"Whoa Bones!" a slightly tipsy Jim was grinning from ear to ear as two women hung onto each arm "What's up with you? You look like you've seen a…a…"
But Jim's faltered as he saw the expression on Leonard McCoy's face. It was so pale, he was near close to looking like death warmed up.
"Bones? What's wrong?" Jim gulped as the doctor finally looked sidelong at him. When he spoke his voice was shaking.
"Jim we've got to get out now!"
"What?" Jim frowned as Leonard made to grab him away from his two whining admirers "what are you talking abo-"
"Layla's in trouble"
Whatever symptoms of Jim Kirk's tipsiness suddenly seemed to vanish in an instant as his eyes widened. "what? How?"
"Look" Leonard shoved the glass he was holding into a surprised Jim's hands.
"What is it?" the younger man examined the glass carefully.
"It's benzoylmethylecgonine" the doctor's eyes hardened. "More commonly known as Cocaine and there's enough in this glass to kill ten men"
"Cocaine! But Layla would never touch any drugs so how…oh no…" Jim gulped as horror flooded his system as he grabbed Leonard's shoulders and shook them lightly "Where is she? How long has she been gone?"
"Back to the dorms just five minutes ago" Leonard spluttered as Jim let go of him his voice low as he hissed.
"Bones call Captain Pike at once, tell him of what's going on. He needs to know"
"What about you?"
"I'm going to find Layla"
Layla gulped as she felt her stomach lurch and clutched at the dark alley wall to her side.
It was dark all about her. Nothing was moving…she was alone…and all she could hear in her ears was the unnatural pounding of her heart in her ribcage as it pumped excessively hard for its normal standards. Her skin too felt like it was scorching, and that was saying something as her body was almost always slightly warmer than the average person.
Whatever shapes and colours that were before her eyes either intensified or swam in and out of focus. The effect was so disconcerting that she could feel whatever was in her gut rise up into her throat.
No…hold it back! Hold it back till you're-oh shit!
And before she could stop herself she keeled over onto all fours on the ground and heaved heavily.
Something was wrong with her. Something had happened to her in the past few minutes that was screwing with her body. But what had happened she could not tell…her brain was working far too fast for her to even pick out a coherent thought.
"Jim…Leo…" She groaned desperately in between wretches as her sick splattered over the pavement.
She faintly heard the footsteps of someone at a distance and raised her head to look up.
But what she saw only made her heart sink.
She didn't recognise the man at all. He was rugged and dressed in dark street clothes that had many a wear and tear on them. But it was his eyes that got to her…those pitiless smirking eyes, that only glinted with gleeful malice as he stalked towards her from the end of the ally way.
"Well, well, well. If it ain't one of you little Starfleet bitches" he sneered and Layla gulped hard to steady herself as she saw two knives flicker into existence from one of his hands. "All pretty and cute in your little red girl scout uniforms"
"Whoever you are" she spluttered trying her best to scramble backwards from him only for her back to hit a wall. "Leave me alone"
"Ha! Typical!" the man jeered as he caught sight of her predicament "You little Starfleet kids are all the same. You all think you're invincible with your starships. But put you on the ground and you're just as useless as anyone else"
Layla said nothing, she couldn't. She was feeling so sick, her body so stressed, that she felt like she was going to pass out at any moment. She fought hard to keep herself awake but it was difficult.
Her attacker meanwhile was stalking closer…and closer…twirling his knife in his hands over and over till it was a sickening metallic blur in front of Layla's eyes.
She struggled as she tried her best to remember her combat and tactical training, only for each piece of information to fly out the window as one horrible thought crossed her mind.
She was being attacked by someone with the element of surprise…she was alone and disoriented so badly she could barely stay conscious something her attacker was revelling in. He was obviously very disturbed mentally and didn't seem to mind her looks if those licentious eyes were anything to go by.
He'll make sure I'm almost out of it…
A small voice reasoned logically at the back of Layla's head.
Then…he'll have his way with me…and then he'll dispose of me however he sees fit…
Had Layla not been so sick she might've fought back the thoughts and the man before her by now. But even as she craned her neck up to look at him as he leant over her she knew she had no way out.
This was no simulation. This was real life…and it was going to be taken from her at any moment as the man over her made to lean in, his hands stroking the sides of her thighs-
"HEY YOU!"
Layla's attacker turned his head round just in time for a large fist to collide with his nose as a familiar young blonde haired man lunged from behind.
"Jim" Layla could do nothing but stare, panting for breath as her heartrate began to fly through the roof, though whether it was in relief or from her ailment she could not tell.
Jim however kept his eyes fixed solely on the lowlife scum he had pinned hard against the wall of the alley way.
His blue eyes blazed as he made to punch the man, over and over again, his hits almost merciless in their ferocity.
"No wait mister- I can expla-agh!"
But Jim did not stop hitting the man. Not until his eyes rolled back into his head with unconsciousness.
Only then did he let him drop to the floor, but not before giving him a small kick in the guts on the way down.
"And stay there you sonofabitch!" he grunted as he pulled his leg back to kick the knife away from the attackers hand.
"Jimmy…" Layla breathed and Jim turned to see her sitting by the wall limply her head lolling to the side like a ragdolls, tears streaming down her sweaty face.
Jim quickly rushed over to her and scooped her up in his arms muttering softly.
"It's ok Lay. It's ok…I've got you."
"Jim…I feel really…" Layla faltered her hand flying up to her mouth as she tried her best to choke back her vomit once more.
"Layla just hold on, you're going to be alright. Bones is on his way, he's right here"
Layla felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes as another familiar voice reached her ears, this one deep and gruff but worried all the same.
"Jim! Jim!"
"Over here Bones" Jim called still doing his best to cradle the young girl in his arms as carefully as he could as the doctor came rushing over.
"Jim…" Layla's breath was barely a whisper now and it took all the doctor had in him to keep his cool as he caught sight of the scumbag responsible who was still lying unconscious close by.
"Bloody bastard. Don't worry I've got just the tool for the job. Naloxone. Jim keep her still"
Jim barely had tightened his grip on the girl when Leonard swiftly jabbed a hypospray into her exposed thigh, expelling its contents into her system quickly before making to examine her face.
"Her pupils should be contracting" he muttered as he smoothed the dark hair on her forehead away from her face "That's right sweetheart just keep breathing."
Jim's heart was speeding so fast in his body he felt like he would have a heart attack any second as he watched the completely dilated pupils slowly but surely begin to narrow, just as her breaths began to deepen and regulate properly.
"Leo…I still feel sick…" Layla whimpered softly after a few minutes pause.
"Yeah you will for a little bit" Leonard muttered softly, his eyes wells of pity as he turned to look at an ashen faced Jim.
"She'll be fine. She just needs to rest it off at the infirmary"
Jim nodded mutely as he made to stand, still holding on tight to Layla in his arms as Leonard also made to follow.
He just didn't know what to think. It was like stepping into a horrible was one of his closest friends, one of the smartest most strongest people he'd ever known, and she was about to die at the hands of a lunatic after someone plugged her so full of drugs she could barely breathe straight.
But why?
His mind could not help but question even in his fearful shocked state.
Why did this happen? And who wanted it to happen?
But little did Jim Kirk know that when he and his two friends left the ally way, the man that had attacked Layla stirred and put a hand to his ear.
"Agent Kallen reporting in" he rasped "…Miss Pike is safe…I made sure to stall until Cadet's Kirk and McCoy could find me?"
"And did Kirk react accordingly?" another man's voice whispered softly on the other end of the communication link.
The man on the ally floor nodded.
"Yes…he did…"
"Good…" the voice on the other end hissed triumphantly "Very good…. Oh and what perfect timing all the data you collected earlier today has just been sent to Commander Spock…I must say…"
The voice softened to a purr.
"This is turning out to be a very good night indeed."
"Glad I could be of help Sir" the man on the ally floor snorted only to swoon a little as he tried to stand up.
God that Jim Kirk could deal a hard hit.
HELLO EVERYBODY!
sorry it's been a while but X-mas plans interfered and i still got new years shindig to do. so updates might be slower.
keep R&Ring if you enjoy
Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukkah, or Happy/Merry whatever religious holiday you happen to celebrate now AND a happy new year :)
H