AN: I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!
There was an old legend past down from the captain to cadet from the days of the very first space flight.
In those brief, sudden and velocious seconds before another ship, no matter how large and armed, readies its phasers to fire at you, time would stop.
Seconds would compress into a rapid eternity. Microseconds passing by so slowly, a person would be able to recognise and come to terms with their own death, long before they had even drawn in the breath that announced their understanding of what was happening around them.
Those old legends also claimed, that during that endless moment – some individuals could even see the vivid streak of energy firing towards them. See it tear through the black canopy of stars and darkness, brightening the formless vacuum of space. No matter how ludicrous that sounded.
Those moments were rare in battle. So rare, the stories and re-enactments told by those lucky enough to have experienced such situations and survived...became simply that. Stories. As time went on, technology enhanced and those stories turned into myths. The ramblings of old men who longed to relive the excitement of their youth. And all myths become legends eventually.
Time was a continuous and unstoppable dimension. It can not be bent by the will of a person nor the inevitability of death.
However, as her eyes widened in understanding of what was happening in front of her, Uhura felt herself believing in those old stories. From the very moment the indented plasma cannons built into the shuttle in front of her began to heat, the near imperceptible changing of colour from steely grey to a dull orange, Uhura's mind had already come to terms with what was happening.
They were being fired upon. And in that whisper of a moment, she knew what she had to do. It took all of nought point four seconds to fire a plasma cannon (she knew this from extensive studying) and yet, it was almost with a form of detached calmness that her hand began to raise. Her mind and eyes moving faster that her limbs. The restrictions of gravity forcing her movements to seem sluggish and slowed. Her heart had yet to beat, but she had already thrown herself forwards, her hand lowering at a frustratingly slow pace to collide with the delicate button that would activate the embassy shuttles shield.
Her mouth opened, the word she yelled rolling off her tongue.
"SHEILDS!"
And then the spell that had delayed her broke, and reality slammed back into her body with a deafening whoosh.
The first shot impacted against the starboard side of the embassy shuttle with a load groan. The noise alerting her fellow students to the situation. Heat exploded along her right side, and Uhura yelped. Her eyes squeezing shut, not in surprised or shock, but in defence.
Behind her, Hadehi screamed. The surprisingly high-pitched sound masking the answering bleep of the shuttles computer.
'Shield activated'
"What the FU-"
"Seek cover!" Spock's bark command drowned out the cadets curse. Uhura forced her eyes to snap open, her hands gripping the restraints of her safety harness so tightly her knuckles pressed white through her skin. Next to her, Spock was one step ahead. His hands flew across the control panel, the computer bleeping in response. Hadehi and Nabu were suddenly pulled forcefully back into their seats, safety harnesses shooting from the top of their seats to wrap around their shoulders and stomach, effectively trapping them where they sat. Having already fastened his, Hadehi was simply pulled forcefully backwards as the harness locked itself into place.
Uhura risked a quick glance behind her, her eyes wide as she skimmed and then ignored the burning and gaping hole that used to be the right side of their shuttle. Her eyes locked onto Hadehi's, a wave of concern washing through her as the younger man stared back at her in pure horror. He was closest to the hole. Closer to the flames. If they were hit again, he would be seriously hurt. Or worse, torn from the shuttle by the force of the explosion.
Another wave of phaser fire hit them, throwing the four individuals forwards.
Uhura sucked in a breath as her neck snapped backwards, her hands still gripped tightly around the straps of her harness.
'Shields at ninety seven percent'
The shuttle banked, and then they were falling. Uhura focused her attention on the man beside her. Spock's eyes were focused. One of his hands loosely gripped the helm console, long slender digits wrapped almost delicately around the lever handle. The other hand rested on top of the circle shaped impulse and thruster control, the tips of his fingers barely brushing the sensitive screen as he manoeuvred their shuttle into an impossibly tight downwards fall. Effectively moving them out of the line of fire, but also putting a great deal of strain on the abused hull.
At the back of her mind, Uhura noted that gravity moderator was not working. Her hair flew around the her neck and face as they plummeted, whipping her in the eyes and across her nose. She ignored it. If the moderator was still functional, they would not be effected in the slightest by the shuttles vertical angle.
Following that same thought came the realisation that if the gravity control was destroyed, then life support would also be depleting.
Frowning, Uhura released her tight grip on the harness, allowing gravity to pull at her body and fall forwards, her entire weight resting on the harness that now cut into her rib cage, collar bones and stomach. She hung there for a precious second, her legs and rear end hovering almost an inch above her seat, her mind working. Then, taking a short breath, she raised her hands to the panel in front of her, using the angle to her advantage to bring up the shuttles life support readings.
Oxygen levels were at seventy seven percent. Thinking quickly, Uhura tapped in a command, voicing the order in case sensor controls were down.
"Computer, transfer nine percent of life support to the gravity moderator and four percent to the shields on the starboard side of the shuttle!" She called out.
The computer beeped in response, and she was unceremoniously dropped into her seat. The ships nose jumped upwards, no longer facing the ground as they continued their decent. The loud, crunching whoosh behind her suddenly muted as the tear in the shields strengthened, efficiently plugging up the hole in the hull. Well, the hole was still there, but there was no longer a breach. Without the extra flow of oxygen the shuttles free-fall was providing, the flames curling around the raw hole extinguished. Disappearing with a hiss that left a rancid smell.
Uhura darted her eyes to the left, catching Spock's gaze. He nodded his approval, the tiniest speckle of what could be considered pride flicking across his eyes. Then he turned back to the matter at hand. With the gravity reactivated (albeit, weakly) he could steer the shuttle easier. It had been a risk to force them into a dive. Yet the prospect of taking more damage had outweighed the need for caution. He did not know who was on that other shuttle. He was certain it was a member of the federation, a fact that did not sit comfortably with him, but the safety of the three students in his charge was his main concern. He would deal with finding and apprehending the offensive party when he was certain the cadets were no longer in danger.
A sudden attack from the rear of their shuttle had Hadehi letting out another cry, his hands flying upwards to cover his head protectively. His dark eyes started with blind panic at the floor beneath him, breath leaving his lungs in a strangled gasp.
'Shields at eighty one percent'
"They're following us!" He hissed, turning his head slightly to glance at his friend. Nabu simply sat as straight as he could, his eyes and mouth pursed as he clung with all the strength he had to his seat.
"What do they want?!" Hadehi gasped out, fixing his gaze onto the back of his commanders head.
Spock ignored him, his grip tightening on the helm console lever, moving it forwards a carefully calculated amount, increasing their speed. The hull groaned its protest.
Bracing her weight against the edge of the control panel, Uhura stared contemplatively at the view screen in front of her. Not really seeing the dark silhouetted shapes of the nights clouds flying past the shuttle, nor registering the flurry of ever brighting lights below them.
Even though she didn't know the reason why, the restrictions on the planets air space meant that if they were to send out a distress call, a request for help, who knew how long it would take for someone to get to their position? She wasn't even to sure where they were. She knew that any vessel, no matter its rank would need permission to violate the unusual ban on flight.
Saying that, she had not managed to properly identify the enemy shuttle pursuing them. She knew it was of Star Fleet. Its identification code had confirmed that. Yet she had not seen a shuttle of that size or dexterity before. It could be a prototype. A new make of a battle cruiser. But it would take an individual of a very high rank to commandeer such a vessel. Uhura silently cursed. How did that old saying go? Its better the devil you know...
She was uncertain what to do. A fact that did not sit comfortably with her. With her hands resting over the control panel, Uhura chewed on her lip in thought.
It was the enemy vessel that made her decision for her. A startled sound caught in her throat as the view in front of her turned black, the energetic glow of city lights below them disappeared. Only to be replaced by the sleek silhouetted outline of a shuttle Uhura knew should not be there. There was no Star Fleet ship capable of that kind of manoeuvrability. To not only match their speed, but have the dexterity to rotate in the air and place themselves in front of an elite Embassy shuttle that was designed specifically for defence based evasive movement. One that was also free falling at a rather concerning angle at that.
Uhura's eye went wide, her mouth falling open in horror. There was no way they would be able to avoid a direct hit. The next volley of fire would completely obliterate their shuttle. The probability of any of them surviving that attack would be nought.
Uhura's mouth went dry. Both in understanding and remorse. She turned her head, intending to look at the man beside her, to say...to say something, but her eyes stayed transfixed on the view screen.
And then her world went dark.
Letting out a strangled gasp, Uhura's eyes slammed shut. Instinctively bracing her body against what she knew was to come. And then the faintest whisper of a thought crossed her mind. At this distance, she would feel nothing. Herself, and the three men around her would be incinerated in seconds. An easy death...she could have laughed. Even now, as death fixed its neutral gaze upon her, her mind was doing what it did best. Analysing everything around her and focusing only on the facts.
It took her a moment to realise that once again, she was falling.
Almost lazily, her eyes opened. Only to blink in confusion at what she saw. The shuttle was engulfed in complete darkness. Not even one small sensor blinked. No strip of light, no dull red glow of the back up power generator. Nothing. Their shuttle had quite literally been turned off.
Her head snapped sideways, her mouth already opening to form her question. And the sky lit up brilliantly above her. Six streaming beams of energy flew through the air, planting the softest of kisses over the top of the embassy shuttle as it plummeted downwards.
"Brace yourselves for severe turbulence" The command came through the darkness on her left. Spock's voice was calm and reassuring even though Uhura was sure she moments away from having palpations. Unable to speak, Uhura simply nodded. Even though she was unsure if Spock could even see her agreement through the darkness, or if he was even facing in her direction.
Heat began to build beneath her feet. The outer shell of the shuttle heating rapidly as they fell from the sky.
Spock had removed all power from the shuttle. How, she did not know. Technically, it was impossible. Every Star Fleet vessel had a back up power source. No matter how small the ship. Cargo holders, civilian shuttles, even Peregrine class run-arounds. Should a shuttle loose power during flight, for what ever the reason, the back-up generators were programmed to take the strain of all that particular ships systems. Nothing short of the ship blowing up would disable the back ups.
Uhura risked a quick upwards glance, hoping to catch a glimpse of the enemy shuttle but could see nothing but swiftly moving darkness. And her hair, violently whipping around her head at a pace that mimicked the steadily increasing crescendo of the noise around her. The shields had been deactivated. The gaping would scarring the side of their ship now screaming its annoyance as the wind caused by their decent tore into the shuttle. Letting the turbulence around her move her body, Uhura twisted, her hair – having at some point come loose from its standard ponytail – danced around her ears and face, long black tendrils of silk that lashed into her eyes and against the pale cream of her seat. As before, she ignored it, pulling against her restraints enough to glance behind her at her crew-mates. Nabu sat as she had last seen him. His body held immobile by fear, his face taut with the effort of keeping his hands gripped beneath him. Lips white with the strain.
Hadehi was unconscious. His arms and legs flailing around him almost comically as the the wind tore past him. His head lolled forwards, chin bumping against his uniform.
Uhura gasped, and instantly regretting it her intake in breath caught against her throat, causing her to spasm slightly as she desperately tried to stop herself from coughing. She would pass out from lack of oxygen if she was forced into a coughing fit now. The air around her was to frigid, to energetic, to draw in even a small gasp of air.
Using what little oxygen she had in her lungs, she forced herself to hold her breath, her chest instantly burning with the effort.
From her position she could see much, but Uhura could only hope that Hadehi had only passed out. She could not see any injuries, but that did not mean he was unhurt. It was possible that when the shuttle had suddenly fallen a small piece of burnt debris from the tear in the hull had come loose and impacted with the man's head, if that was the case then-
"Uhura! Breath!"
The sharp command startled her, her lungs expanding painfully in surprise as her body jerked. Shocked, Uhura took in a deep painful breath, her lungs screaming their protest. Spock had leant towards her, a hand placed firmly on her wrist. Squeezing hard enough to force her mind back to the present. Gasping, Uhura snapped her head towards Spock, her hair obscuring her view so only the pale skin of his hand was visible.
Light-headed, Uhura brought her eyes up to connect with his, black dots skirting across her already limited vision. She hadn't realised she was still holding her breath. Her face felt hot, flushed red. Not with embarrassment, but with the sheer force of blood she had been unintentionally sending towards her brain.
Spock's pale skin seemed to cut through the enforced darkness, his dark eyes piercing hers. Unable to say anything, she gave a soft nod. Voicelessly telling him she was okay.
For a long moment, Spock kept his hand on her skin, those dark eyes watching her as she controlled her breathing. She could feel the heat of his hand on her bare wrist. His fingers almost to hot against skin that had been dramatically cooled by the air moving around them.
Then, the movement so delicate Uhura was unsure if she actually felt it, Spock ran his thumb softly over the bottom of wrist. The pad of his thumb brushing over veins she knew would be pulsing with fear. The gesture was meant to be comforting. A way of telling her to calm down. From any other person Uhura would have received some relief from that action. But as it was Spock, a man who went out of his way to avoid physical contact of any kind, Uhura's pulse only sped up. The veins underneath her skin beating rapidly as her heart rate increased. Her skin flushing with color as her eyes met with his.
This was not the time for this...yet Uhura felt herself unable to care. Her surroundings disappearing as Spock's thumb moved to brush another tender line across her skin. A sudden and fierce bolt of arousal shot through her. The feeling so intense Uhura nearly whimpered. The sound emerging as a soft gasp. Heat pooled in her stomach, her eyes widening in surprise as she realized what she was feeling...the desire that swept through her...it was not her own. The sensation had begun at her wrist, moving through her body from the place Spock's' skin touched hers.
Her mouth fell open as the realization hit her. Her pupils dilating in surprise and arousal so strong she could have fainted with pleasure. Spock's gaze seemed to mimic her surprise. His nostrils flared slightly, his eyes darkening to an impenetrable black as her arousal was passed to him from their small connection. Uhura sucked in a deep breath, trying to form words. Trying to snap herself back into reality, to do anything that would break their spell.
And then the sky in front of them erupted into flame.