It took forever for Harrison to fall asleep. Kirk wondered if it was because the super-human truely didn't need that much sleep, or Harrison was just an insomniac.

Either way, now that Harrison's guard was down, Kirk sprung into action.

As quietly as he could, he slipped his hand into his pocket to get to the scissors. He bit his lip as he pulled it out, feeling tips come out of his flesh. He hoped the bleeding had stopped.

Kirk recognized the type of knot Harrison used to tie the ropes. It was a constrictor knot and had Kirk struggled against it, it would have tightened immesnely, cutting off his circulation and rendering his hands useless. It took some awkward manuevering to position the scissors in a way to cut through the ropes.

Once Kirk was confident how he placed the scissors, he began to hack at the rope.

It was slow work. Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down. Snip, snip, snip. He kept his eye on Harrison, freezing every time Harrison twitched or fidgeted. A few times Kirk's fingers would weaken and he would drop the scissors. The fourth time it happened, he laid there anguishing, thinking this was a pointless plan and it would never work.

But when the faces of Spock, Uhura, and the rest of his crew came to mind, he picked up the scissors again and started hacking with renewed vigor.

It took hours. He couldn't feel his fingers anymore. He was afraid Harrison was going to wake up at any moment, see what he was trying to do and break his arms so he wouldn't try this again-

He felt the rope give. Kirk's arms jerked at the sudden looseness and he froze, checking on Harrison. He didn't stir. Kirk tugged and pulled and twisted until finally, his arms were free.

He spent the next five minutes biting down on his lip, trying to keep the noises of pain from leaving his mouth as his shoulders cramped.

Once the pain was manageable enough, he went to untie his feet. Because Kirk knew the style of knot, it was an easy process to undo the rope. He gave himself a minute to let the blood circulate.

Harrison still hadn't stirred. Kirk got to his feet, debating on his next move.

He could try to kill Harrison, catch him unawares. He could try to get the phaser, or even look for a communicator to contact his crew. All were bad ideas. If Kirk made one wrong, Harrison would surely kill him.

Retreat then. Slowly as he could, Kirk moved away from the cave to go hide in the forest. Maybe steal the ship and leave.

He stepped on a branch and it snapped loudly under his foot.

Of course.

"KIRK!" Harrison bellowed from behind.

Throwing caution to the wind, Kirk ran. He threw himself into the forest, changing direction, zig-zagging, and ducking as phaser shots flew over his head. He heard Harrison following him, but not even Harrison had the ability to see in the dark.

Unfortunately, neither did Kirk. He tripped, he stumbled, even with the glowing bushes he occasionally ran by didn't help. But he was putting distance between him and Harrison. That was all that mattered.

Harrison wasn't even shooting anymore. Either he'd stopped or Kirk outran him so far he was out of hearing range.

That's when he heard the screaming.

Anguished screams, in frustration and pain. It sounded like Harrison was engaged in battle.

Kirk grinned. Maybe the Klingons came and now were occupying Harrison's full undivided attention. Feeling like he'd just won, Kirk slowed his sprint to an easy jog.

The screams kept coming. Kirk slowed even more, frowning. What were the Klingons doing? Torturing him?

Oh God, they were, weren't they?

"No," said Kirk as he slowed more, then stopped. "No, I'm not going back. I'm not, I'm not-"

He turned back around. "Goddammit...!"

His thigh was burning from the little stab wound the scissors gave him, his shoulders were begging for a rest, his eyes burned, and yet Kirk ran faster than he has ever ran before. He followed Harrison's cries, thinking rapidly of what he could do if he suddenly found Harrison surrounded by Klingons.

Kirk burst forth through a small gaggle of lighted bushes and stopped. It wasn't Klingons.

Harrison was fighting a plant. A plant. Vines, dozens of them, were trying to wrap themselves around Harrison's limbs, trying to keep him immobile. Harrison was strong, and he kept tearing the vines off like they were paper, snapping them off his body and tossing them to the ground. The forest floor was littered with severed vines.

But with each tear, each vine Harrison torn off, two more took its place.

Kirk didn't know the scientific name of this plant, but he's seen it before in museums and guarded greenhouses. This plant was carnivorous. It snared its prey and held it strong until the prey weakened, too tired to fight back, then it'll slowly suffocate the victim, drag the corpse back into its main body and digest it. This was what the venus flytrap would eventually evolve into after a million years of evolution.

Harrison must have ran right into the awaiting vines while chasing Kirk. The phaser wasn't in his hand anymore and it took Kirk a few long moments to find it. It was on the ground, sitting in between the writhing vines. Carefully to avoid touching the vines, Kirk leaned over and plucked the phaser off the ground.

He jumped back as the vines sensed more movement. No vines followed and Kirk assumed he was safe.

Harrison was not. He was fighting, hard, but nothing was giving. The vines were wrapping themselves around his arms, his legs, his torso, holding him and refusing to let go. Harrison screamed in frustration.

"Harrison," Kirk announced, stepping forward just enough to be seen. "I am willing to help you, to set you free. But in return, I want your guarantee you'll help me get in contact with my crew to keep them from coming here to this planet. Do we have a deal?"

"GO TO HELL," Harrison bellowed, surging forward. The vines held strong and they pulled him back. The struggling renewed.

"Harrison!" Kirk tried again. "I can see you are weakening. Don't throw your life away like this, let me help you!"

It was no use. Kirk could see it in Harrison's eyes, the man was like a wounded animal. It didn't matter what Kirk would say or do, Harrison would refuse help. He was going to die.

His torso was covered. His arms and legs were covered. The vines were wrapping themselves around Harrison's neck and face, ready to suffocate him.

"Harrison!" Kirk yelled desperately. "Your family is alive! They're alive!"

He wasn't sure if it got through. But as the last vine wrapped itself around Harrison's eyes, covering his face entirely, Kirk saw recognition in them. That was all the consent Kirk needed.

He raised the phaser and switched over to kill, shooting rapidly at the base of the plant. The vines exploded, releasing Harrison from their grasp. It tried once again to reclaim its prey but Kirk's shots were too fast for them. Harrison pulled and twisted out of the remaining vines and threw himself forward, landing at Kirk's feet.

Now that Harrison was too far away to grab, the vines relaxed.

Kirk lowered the phaser. He looked down at Harrison. His face was scratched, he was bleeding from dozens of little wounds, he was breathing hard but he was fine. "They're alive?" He choked.

Kirk nodded. "They're alive."