Chapter 9: Dark Side of the Moon
There was a meeting for department heads and people who played an important role in the entire thing that I can't even began to describe again.
The meeting consisted of Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, Scotty, Chekov, Olson, Becky, me, and even Johnna. I, of course took a seat next to my 'boyfriend' and Becky sat to my left.
Kirk laid his hands on the table and leaned forward. He quietly addressed Chekov, thinking I wasn't listening and was talking to Becky. I heard him say; "You two better not let emotions get in the way." It was a quiet whisper. I knew Kirk meant nothing by it, but it stung to think I would have to choose duty over a good friend just because Kirk said so. I chuckled to myself after a brief thought.
Kirk wasn't exactly having a lasting relationship, even if this one between us two wasn't real.
Pavel gave me an odd look. A look of worry. Maybe he thought I would choose friends over my career.
He would be right.
"First and foremost, the invasion on Taliaen." Kirk sighed. "We need to find the Kinatchi which watch over the Tali. They may have some answers to why they think that the romulans are there.
"But Jim, they are shape shifters of some sort, don't you think it's possible they could have changed themselves to look like Romulans so they would take the blame?" McCoy said questioningly.
"We have talked to them. They are completely peaceful, and would never be able to do so. They can only shift into animal forms known to their planet. They would not be able to even if they wanted to." Spock said in his normal monotone.
"Of course we can try to get rid of the romulans. It seems they have no ship supplying them." Bones said. "I think I know enough about them to give some medical assistance."
Uhura put in, "We still have their language in our computer banks and the translators are all ready to go."
"It's agreed then. I assume that everyone here and about 20 security guards arranged by Olson go planet-side at 1700 hours."
"Wait" Kirk started, making us stop before we had enough time to leave. "I believe we should have discussed this problem a long time ago."
No one said anything in answer.
"This is, of course a very intriguing dilemma we have seen fit to put on ourselves. Starfleet has no objections to this mission. They want us to figure out the puzzle."
"Where are you goin' with this, Jim?" McCoy drawled.
"I think we should drop this."
"What?" I spoke up. "We can't just drop something like this. If Starfleet wants"
"Miss Hoffmann, I'm sure you already know you can't always get what you want." Kirk gave me a look that said, be quiet. Well I wouldn't be quiet. If he could chase a stupid cloud* around I could finish this mystery.
"Captain, we need to know more about the romulans as a race. This could—"
Chekov kicked me lightly under the table, meaning, Be quiet, I'll handle this.
But before he could handle it Bones put his two cents in. Whatever 'cents' are.
"Ya know, Jim. I think we should let um do it." Bones said. I almost started cheering.
"Please, Doctor, explain." Kirk said obviously not amused. He only called him 'doctor' when he was severely annoyed.
"Well, Jim, they're all kinda new on the ship. I don't see why we can't give them a chance to prove themselves."
Kirk was silent, wondering what he should do.
"Captain," Spock said. "If you allow them to go on with this mission, I would ask to join them, as I am also curious."
Finally Kirk said, "Fine. But Spock we really need you on the Bridge so I'll have to say to no to your request."
"Understood, Captain."
"Dismissed," Kirk told us. "Except you, Chekov." I glanced back at Pavel, with a worried look. Kirk waved me away impatiently.
This is when I really wished I had really good hearing.
"Mr. Chekov. Do you know why I wish to speak with you alone,"
"No, Keptin I do not." Chekov stated calmly looking his Captain straight in the eyes.
"You remember what I said earlier? Yes? Well, another thing about that. As of now, if you keep acting the way you are you could face some serious charges for insubordination as well as mutiny, along with Miss Hoffmann and Miss Korff."
"I am vell avare of this Keptin. I am trying to keep zhe two girls in line. It is proving quite…difficult." Chekov lied quietly.
"And before you go, Mr. Chekov," Kirk smiled evilly.
"Be careful. Women can be quite overpowering."
Chekov smirked. "I know Keptin."
"So what did he want?" I asked him eagerly. Chekov took one look at me and started laughing hysterically, something I'd never seen him do.
"What is so funny? I asked seriously wanted to know what Kirk had told him.
"Kirk told me to be 'careful'. He told me trying unsuccessfully to smother his laughter. When he finally stopped he finished saying, "He vas talking about you, vhen he told me to be careful. Said you vere 'overpowering'."
"That's probably the nicest thing Kirk has ever said about me." I muttered. "Well we should get ready. We've got about an hour before we're beaming down into a war zone."
"I can't believe Kirk wanted us to just drop the mission." Becky said from her room loud enough so I could hear her from her room.
"I know. He gets way more obsessed about stuff then any of us." I walked into her room. "You ready?"
"Now or never" She said with faked sarcasm. She looked anxious and ready to go with her hair tied back and her eyes shifting over everything like this would be the last time she saw any of it.
"Lets go then. Were right on time." I said after looking at my old watch I had put on for luck. I also had retrieved my lucky pencil and had it hidden behind my belt.
When we reached the transporter room everyone was quiet, and everyone kept shifting around from one foot to the other, not really ready for what would come. I noticed with a small smile that Sulu was equipped with his rapier along with Johnna who had one as well.
Chekov came to stand over by me. I took his hand, but not cause I was trying to keep up the pretense that we were going out.
While phasers were being handed out, along with extra charge packs, I whispered to Chekov, "What if this time we don't come back? What if Bones can't save us when we get hurt." I was going to make myself depressed. "Even worse," I started, suddenly terrified, "What if you two die and I somehow survive. How would I live with that?" I shuddered.
"Ve'll survive this. Don't make such a big deal out of all this. Besides," He said solemnly "At least ve're not vearing red." That made me smile again, and then Kirk started talking.
"Starfleet has agreed that this is the only course of action. We are certain that this will not be an act of war as the planet is Federation territory and these romulans seem to have no connection to the Romulan Empire. I have managed to talk to one of the few surviving Kinatchi, according to him, this is only the act of a single group that that roughly translates into 'Burning Fate.'"
Kirk continued by saying. "There are approximately a hundred of them. I want everyone to come back. I don't want any fatalities or injuries. You all can achieve something that simple. Be careful."
We heard the shrill sound of the transporter being activated and we reappeared on the surface.
We all immediately scrambled when the green blast of weapons used by romulans greeted us. I dived behind a rock, and set my phaser to kill. I didn't like killing, but after everything that these people had done to my friends, they weren't getting any mercy from me.
I had downed maybe two of them before I heard another shrill sound of the transporter.
It was T'Shan.
I tried to warn him. I tried to cry out to Pavel, tried to tell him look out that the traitor was behind him with a dagger. He turned around, but not in time to stop her.
T'Shan buried the dagger up too the hilt in between his ribs, and broke off the blade. Chekov fell, downed by the pain.
"No!" I cried out uselessly. I took the seconds my phaser to stun, and shot her full of the beam. I would kill her later, if the captain permitted me or not.
I ran to him, already afraid that he would be gone by the time I got there. He was holding on. Barely.
"Come on." I said taking his hand. "Don't you dare die." I pulled out my communicator out, set it on planet wide frequencies.
"I need a medic right now. We have a lethal injury."
My voice was starting to crack.
"What are your coordinates?" Johnna asked.
I gave her our coordinates, then she asked, "Who is it? Becky?"
"No…" I told her miserably. "It's Pavel." I forced back the tears.
She was silent for a moment. "I'll be right there."
By the time she arrived I was maybe ten seconds away from sobbing.
"We might get hit in cross fire." Johnna said
"We can't risk moving him, he's not stable." I whispered barely even there. I was floating around in my mind, trying to swim to a corner so I wouldn't drown in my own thoughts.
After briefly checking his pulse, took breathed deep. "He needs to see McCoy. I can't help here."
"Graham to Enterprise."
"Enterprise here."
"Four to beam up. We've found T'Shan and she's tried to kill Chekov. He needs Medical assistance now that we can't give him here."
"Copy that ensign. Get ready for beam up."
Just before the transporter took hold on us, Chekov whispered, "I love you."
I squeezed his hand. He wasn't just saying that. He meant it.
"I love you too." I told him.
When we reappeared on the ship, two security guards immediately took T'Shan. Bones was there with several nurses. They took Chekov away. When I tried to follow them, held on my arm and wouldn't let me go.
"Let me go!" I yelled, squirming weakly against her hold.
"We have to go back down there."
"Why? They don't need us to—"
"Becky's down there."
That was the only thing that would bring me back down there. The place where those bastards couldn't leave the Federation well enough alone. The place where my friends we're dying for a cause we had pledged to.
The place where I never wanted to go.
I didn't see the romulan who managed to hit me. I felt the burn of his concentrated fire, and I fell to the ground, paralyzed by pain. I tried shooting from my prone position, sniping those who sniped from higher, better positions, laughing demonically when I got one.
I don't know how many more I killed that day, if any. I was off in my mind, the one place they wouldn't be able to reach me.
In my mind I was just a tiny particle, a drop of paint on the canvas of the universe. Just then Becky appeared in my minds eye. Maybe she was actually, physically there. I don't know. In her hand was an old toy, a rubix cube.
'Jenny.'
'What?' I said my voice soft and shaking with pure fear.
'If you smash the cube, is the puzzle solved?'
'What? I don't know.' I said miserable beyond belief. Chekov might be dying and she wants me to play 20 questions?
'Sometimes you just have to remember math. Everything is fair. You know, the distributive property. The commutative property.'
'What are you talking about? This doesn't make sense.'
'Jenny' She whispered.
Someone new appeared. It was Gregory House, a person that never existed, never would, no matter how much I would wish on a fallen star.
'She's right you know.' He told me.
'Sure. Neither of you are here.'
'We are here because you are here. We are another incarnation of you.'
'What's it matter? It's not like you can tell me anything I don't know.' A pillow appeared in front of me. I grabbed it, shoved it up to my face, and screamed.
'There is more than one way to solve that puzzle.'
House said, pointing to the stupid colored cube.
'They give you everything you need to solve it.'
He continued, 'Your missing the big picture.'
Finally, I screamed at him, 'What am I supposed to do? Peel off all the stickers and rearrange them?'
He smiled. 'Exactly.' He snapped his fingers.
I gasped, awakened by the pure adrenaline that streamed through my system.
I was in Sickbay. Of all places.
I held my wound as white-hot pain lanced through my side sending waves of nausea rolling through. I stood unsteadily, waiting for someone to notice me.
Johnna hurried over and shone a penlight in my eyes. I continued staring forward, to the bed across from mine. It was still occupied, but someone who was there wasn't breathing.
My heart started beating even faster and my blood pressure rose beyond safe levels. I didn't need to look under the sheet to know who it was. Beside the bed was the remains of a broken blade.
Pavel was gone. Forever.
I collapsed to the cold floor, Johnna struggling to help me. I cried there on the floor until someone lifted me up and put me back on the bed, until someone administered a hypo of sedative.
"Who told her?" I heard someone say in the distance, probably McCoy.
"I didn't have to, sir" I heard Johnna say quietly. Seeing me like this was killing her.
"She knew. She always knows."
The hypo they gave me didn't work. Adrenaline still flowed heavily in my veins, My heart refused to slow down, even after it had been broken.
So they gave me another shot, this one to slow down my heart. I could feel it work. I felt only one throb of pain at a time instead of stab after stab of pure agony without so much as a pause in between.
They gave me another hypo, another sedative. This time god decided to be merciful on me and let it work.
Pavel is gone. Gone forever and he isn't coming back. Not this time.
'I'll see you on the dark side of the moon…'