I got it out before monday! YAY MEEEE lol
A very special thank you to Spock4Eternity. Her review on my last chapter made me cry... Ok I admit it, I'm a sap! whatever... She's been very accepting of my hectic schedule with the release of this chapter. My tablet died, (first it crashed and I had to reboot it, and then i was tripped while holding it, and i cracked the screen) and i had to re-write this chapter from scratch, and i'm leaving for camp Tuesday, not to return until Monday... I'll miss you people!
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"Klingon war vessel, sir." I said, my screen now alive with activity. So much for uninhabited. Why hadn't I picked up readings on them before?
Kirk was trying his best to maneuver us away from the Klingon vessel, but his best wasn't working.
"May I remind you, Captain, that this ship has no offensive capabilities." Spock said, working on his station as quickly as I did mine.
"Not necessary to remind me, Mr. Spock." Kirk said, a little irritated, "I'm all too aware of it. We're simple merchants, that's all. Though right now, I wish it wasn't that simple. Give me full power; everything down to emergency backup, all this ship's fuel cells."
Spock didn't hesitate. "Aye, Captain."
Our ship banked abruptly. Intended for basic shuttling between the surface of a planet and the ship in orbit, it was not designed for high-speed atmospheric maneuvers, a fact that the Captain seemed to overlook as he wretched us over and sometimes through the towers of the abandoned cityscape. Repeated blasts from the pursuing ship just missed our ship. The next good shot could take out our engines, or if we were especially unlucky, the back end of our ship.
Uhura leaned forward suddenly, shouting, "They're closing fast, bearing two eight five!"
"Dammit!" Kirk said, trying his best to veer out of harm's way. He suddenly straightened. "There! We can lose them there!"
Staring straight ahead, Spock spoke up softly but urgently. "If you are suggesting we utilize what might or might not be a passage between the approaching structures, this ship will not fit between them."
"We'll fit." Kirk said, tilting us sideways in an attempt to squeeze through the narrow slot between the buildings.
"We will not." Spock said, his demeanor calm, though I could tell he was nervous.
"We'll fit, we'll fit!" Kirk insisted, the ship sliding between the buildings. I mentally groaned as the ship ground the wall several times, noting Kirk's grunting as he kept us from smashing to pieces.
When we emerged on the other side of the cluster of tall buildings, the pursuing vessel was nowhere in sight, or sensor range. But sensors meant nothing now, unless it had been my fault and had missed a reading earlier... I cursed quietly, slapping my hand on the console. I should have been paying closer attention. Spock raised an eyebrow at my actions, but no one else seemed to even notice.
"I told you we'd fit." Kirk noted, gasping for a long breath.
"I am not sure that qualifies." Spock said, slowly turning his attention from me back to his monitors.
"You can put that opinion in your report." Kirk nodded at the instrument panel spread out before me. "Any sign of them?"
"No, which worries me." I said, still frustrated with myself.
"Relax." The captain deftly guided us through a vast, now-empty staging area, further ensuring we would not be seen. Darkness momentarily enveloped our battered craft. "We lost 'em."
"Or their jamming our scanners." I said quietly, Uhura nodding and seconding my thoughts.
Kirk's voice rose slightly. "Or, we lost 'em."
As we emerged once more into the open air, Spock nodded forward as I glanced at his screen. I gasped slightly, and verified on my monitors. We were doomed. "I suggest slowing to a hover here, Captain." Spock said calmly.
"Why?" It took the Captain another couple of seconds to focus on the source of Spock and I's concern. "Oh. Damn." He muttered under his breath, reluctantly bringing our ship to a halt.
We were now surrounded by not one, but three Klingon warbirds. It wasn't a perfect military englobement, but their mere presence was enough to ensure that we couldn't try to run.
"I thought we only had to deal with one of them." Kirk growled.
"Your use of the past tense is unfortunately accurate, Captain." Spock peered outward through the forward viewport. "I do not think we can escape from this formation."
The Captain snapped an angry response, "Tell me something I don't know, Spock."
"Where would you like me to begin, Captain?" Spock said, his eyebrow raising slightly.
"Really, guys?" I muttered, pinching my nose. We were going to get killed and they were arguing over this?
The Captain was obviously ready with another response, but was cut off by a burst of consonants from the cabin's communications system. Even for a Klingon, I thought the speaker sounded more than usually irate.
The message was spoken quickly, and I could only hope that Uhura was catching it all.
"They're ordering us to land. They say any further attempt to flee will be met by immediate destruction." Uhura said, looking forwards. "Captain, they're going to want to know why we're here. We'll give them the story, about being weapons dealers. They'll listen politely. Then they'll torture us, question us, and they're gonna kill us."
"Not a good list of options." Kirk murmured. "So we come out shooting."
Uhura shook her head. "We're outnumbered, outgunned. Captain, with all due respect, there's no way we survive if we attack first."
"More wonderful options." the Captain muttered. "I'd be open to alternatives if there were any."
"There is one, sir." Uhura said. Shocked, everyone turned to look at her for her response. "You brought me here because I speak Klingon." She stared down at the Captain, "Then let me speak Klingon."
Kirk nodded, and landed the vessel as gently as he could. The nearest warbird followed suit, landing far more gracefully. As soon as the ship's engines shut down, a dozen armed Klingons in severe military attire emerged from it. Close-fitting helmets the color of bruised antimony sat upon their heads, while multiple layers of faux leather protected muscular arms and torsos.
Uhura walked confidently out, never breaking her stride, never looking down to her feet. I admired her courage. She stopped a few yards from the Klingons, and began speaking. My throat hurt just listening to her.
I wish that I had been more attentive when in extra-solar speech classes. A bit of the knowledge of Klingon I could have gained would have been helpful at this moment.
"This isn't going to work." Kirk whispered.
"You don't know what she's doing." I replied, "None of us do."
"It doesn't matter." Kirk hissed, "Whatever it is, it isn't going to work."
"It may..whatever it is." Spock interjected, "And if you interrupt her now, you will not only incur the wrath of the Klingons, but that of Lieutenant Uhura as well."
"What if they just decide to shoot her?" Kirk muttered, moving to get our phasers ready. He handed us each one, set to kill.
"Let's just hope they don't." I whispered, trying not to think about it.
Suddenly, the Klingon that Uhura was speaking to reached out and grabbed her face, lifting her up off of the ground. We scrambled to get out of our craft, but not before a mysterious figure released a barrage of laser fire from above the Klingons.
We charged out as fast as we could, firing phasers as fast as we could take aim. We were forced to split up, the confused Klingons unsure of where to fire first. When I had found suitable cover, I glanced up to the person that had released the first barrage of laser fire. He was hooded, and carrying a Klingon gun with an impossibly large power rifle in his other hand. He shot with precision, never missing one that he had aimed at. I was forced to move before I could observe any more.
Our fight on the ground was messy and confusing, and every once in a short while I would catch a glimpse of my crewmates. I had just finished a Klingon when I heard a phaser fire behind me. Turning, I saw Uhura's phaser poised to shoot, with a dead Klingon behind me. We nodded to each other, and I ran to her, keeping close for safety's sake.
The other two Klingon ships dropped more enemies among us, but the stranger shot down one ship before they could hit the ground. The rest, the stranger killed with hand to hand combat. Whoever this man was, he was extraordinarily skilled in killing.
But he wasn't a mystery man for much longer. He pulled his hood back, grabbing a Klingon rifle as a replacement for his long-abandoned machine rifle. John Harrison stood, walking quickly. Uhura and I followed his train of sight, and dashed madly for the Captain and Spock. We made it to them mere seconds before Harrison, his gun poised and ready.
"Stand down!" Spock ordered, raising his own confiscated Klingon rifle.
Rifle still focused on Kirk, Harrison ignored the warning as well as the Vulcan who had spoken it. "How many of the new torpedoes are on board the Enterprise?"
"Stand down!" Spock repeated, more insistently this time.
Raising his weapon, Harrison fired with the same uncanny speed and skill he had already demonstrated to such devastating effect in the course of the preceeding confrontation. The shot blew Spock's weapon right out of his grasp, causing me to start and gasp.
While an equally stunned Kirk simply stared back at him, the renegade raised his weapon to point it directly at the Captain's face. "The torpedoes. The weapons you threatened me with in your message. How many are there?" His voice was insistent, demanding, and devoid of any indication that its owner had just participated in a lengthy battle so physically debilitating that he ought to have been fighting for breath instead of issuing calm commands.
Kirk didn't reply. I could see his hands shaking, and rage subtly masked on his face. I could understand, before him was the man responsible for killing Admiral Pike, Kirk's reason for joining StarFleet. Kirk's gaze moved to the gun in Harrison's hands.
"I wouldn't, Captain Kirk. I assure you that my feet can move faster than your hands." Harrison gestured ever so slightly with the weapon that hung easily from one hand, "Not to mention a phaser blast. I'll ask one last time: How many torpedoes?"
Kirk was still unable to answer, and I could tell his self control would not last much longer.
"Seventy-two." Spock said calmly, but I could tell that the Vulcan harbored disdain for the man across from him.
Clearly, the number that meant nothing to me, meant something to Harrison. While noting Spock's response, the renegade shifted his attention back to Kirk. "In that case," Harrison said, throwing his weapon down, "I surrender."
I was dumbfounded. Glances towards Uhura and Spock didn't get me any closer to enlightenment. They were equally bewildered by Harrison's action in voluntarily disarming himself. That didn't prevent Spock from recovering his own weapon and training it once more-with greater alertness-on the unexpected prisoner.
After a brief pause, Kirk rose to his feet, glaring at Harrison with such a look of pure hatred, that it made me want to hide behind Spock.
"On behalf of Christopher Pike," he said tightly, "I accept your surrender." Following which he struck out as hard as he could at Harrison.
Blow after blow landed as what I could only assume rage coursed through the Captain's veins. Spock stepped forward, only to stop when it became apparent that the object of Kirk's fury was not fighting back. Harrison didn't even raise his hands to defend himself. Making no attempt to ward off Kirk's fury, Harrison occasionally stumbled once or twice, staggering backwards under the repeated impact. Only when blood began to flow from his face did he reach up. Eyeing the red stain on his fingers, he smiled. His response was not contemptuous, not accusatory. Much more like the tone an exasperated adult might use with a child.
"Captain!" Uhura finally yelled.
Kirk paused, and looked at his bloodied knuckles. Stepping away from Harrison, his face was still twisted with hate, and I was nervous. "Cuff him." he said, walking back to the shuttle.
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ok ok i get it, not the best cliffhanger in the world. But to get a good one, I'd have to write a WHOLE lot more. And i don't have time for that before camp. Again, a massive thank you to Spock4Eternity. she's amazing, y'all.
Well I know there wasn't much Spock and Turner action in this chapter, but given the setting, I didn't really think it appropriate. Maybe Next chapter?
Reviews are my life-force!