Ch. 2 - The Klingons

Chekov's first thought was that his head felt heavy. He knew that whatever drug the Ferengi had given him was still affecting him and he lay still, eyes closed, for several minutes. He didn't move, but he listened. Scotty had taught him how to listen to a ship's engines and hear what the ship was doing. The thought of Scotty comforted Chekov as he realized that he couldn't move his arms or legs. He strained his ears, struggling to understand what was happening around him despite the fog in his brain. The whine of the engine and the rumble of the ship's walls told him they were at warp in a small vessel.
The haze in Chekov's brain cleared and the young ensign opened his eyes. He was looking up at the ceiling of a small transport ship – empty except for him and piles of weapons and boxes of supplies. Chekov heard the doors open on the other side of the room and he struggled to raise his head against his restraints. He was expecting to see Ferengi.
What he saw made his mouth go dry.

Three Klingons in full battle gear entered the small room. They seemed to fill it completely with their broad shoulders and black manes of tangled hair. One had a silver sash across his body and Chekov instantly identified him as the leader. It was this Klingon who smiled evilly at him, gnashing pointed teeth together.
"Human," he growled, struggling with English, "You here...give us information...human attack on Kronos. Stay silent...unwise..."
"We aren't planning an attack on..."
"Lie!" The Klingon interrupted Chekov. "There was attack! A patrol, killed all! Long time take, but we find a human ship was there! Do you deny?"

Khan.

Admiral Marcus' obsession with attacking the Klingons.

Using the Enterprise as bait.

It had happened but how could Chekov explain? What could he say to convince this angry Klingon who barely spoke English about the truth? And the restraints were digging into his skin and his heart was beating so fast that he was becoming short of breath and that Klingon near the door was rummaging through a box full of weapons...

Chekov hesitated too long, the leader was impatient and growled something in his language to his men. That Klingon in the back came forward with a long, black knife.
"Speak," the leader growled.
"The Federation has no intention of attacking the Klingon Empire," Chekov said. He could hear the blood pulsing in his ears, feel the sweat trickling down his neck.
"Liar," the leader said. His man handed him the black knife. Chekov closed his eyes.

They didn't stop until he started to scream. He screamed for a long time…

"Bones! I need to get to the bridge!"
"You need to hold still while I fix your leg! That's a fourth degree phase pistol burn! Any hotter and you wouldn't have a leg you stubborn mule!"
"One of my officers has been kidnapped by Ferengi flying an unmarked ship and you want me to sit in sickbay?!"
"I want you to let me do my job!"

April moaned slightly and the two men stopped arguing. She blinked her eyes, and tried to sit up.
"Lie still," McCoy said, grabbing his medical triquarter and scanning her.
"That was an interesting rest stop," Ensign Mayweather said quietly, blinking a few times.
"The drug is completely out of your system," McCoy said. He picked up a cup and handed it to her. "Drink this. And don't go on duty for another hour."
"What is it?" April asked warily, sitting up carefully.
"Water," said McCoy. "Now drink."
April half-laughed as she complied.

"How do you feel, Ensign?" Kirk asked her.
"A little groggy but I'll be fine soon." April looked around and asked, "Captain? Where's Chekov?"
Kirk swallowed hard before replying, "We were under heavy fire; they managed to kidnap Chekov."
April's mouth opened in surprise and then she closed it without a word. Worry was evident in her dark eyes.
"We'll get him back, Ensign," Kirk said.
"I know, sir," April replied, "You don't leave your people behind. Chekov knows that, too."
Kirk smiled wryly, a bit sadly. "Does my crew really have that much faith in me?"
"Absolutely, Captain," April replied. "You gave your life so that the ship would survive during the Khan incident. This crew will follow you anywhere."

McCoy knew this was true, but he was still amazed by the conviction in the young woman's eyes. And he could tell Jim was too. April probably couldn't tell, but this loyalty surprised, and flattered Jim Kirk. But above all, it strengthened his resolve to find Chekov as quickly as possible.

The silence in the medical bay was broken by Kirk's communicator beeping, and Jim flipped it open. "Kirk here."
"Captain," came Spock's voice, "We have reached the end of the warp trail, but it ends in empty space."
"What?" said Kirk. He pushed McCoy aside, and began walking to the bridge.
"Jim!" McCoy protested, "Good God man! I just finished, you need to rest!"
"I have a missing navigator, Bones! I'm not resting!"
"Oh, why do I bother?" McCoy growled, he grabbed his portable med-kit just in case, told April to stay put for at least twenty minutes or else, and ran after his friend.

April sat still for about twenty seconds and then took off for engineering - Scotty would need help eventually and she wasn't going to sit still when her friend was in danger any more than the Captain!

"As I said, Captain, the warp trail ends," Spock explained calmly as Kirk sat down at Spock's station and stared at the readings.
"How the hell is that possible," Kirk muttered, his eyes narrowed.
"I have a theory," Spock said.
"Go ahead."
"The ship rendezvoused with another vessel and is now parked within the hangar bay of said vessel."
"But there's no warp trail," Sulu pointed out. His arms were crossed and his brow furrowed with worry.
"Some ships are equipped with cloaking devices that can also mask their warp trail," Spock said.

"Wait," said Scotty. He stood from the bridge's engineering station and looked from Spock to Kirk. "Only Klingon bird of preys use that type of technology."

For a second, the bridge was quiet and everyone looked at Spock.
"They are not the only, Romulans can cloak as well. But it is the most logical option," Spock said.
"Yellow alert," Kirk announced walking to his chair. "I want everyone at battle stations. Uhura scan for Klingon transmissions, ANY transmissions, understand?"
"Yes, sir."
"Spock, Scotty, is there a way we can scan for the residual warp trail?"
"If Mr. Scott can..." as Spock explained his plan to the engineer and Captain, Uhura scanned the space around them and found, not Klingon but...

"Captain," Uhura interrupted Spock, "I found transmissions in Ferengi."
"Right," said Kirk, "Contact them." Kirk looked at his first officer. "I think it's time we talked to our guest."