To Save Today: Act III

Author's Note: Hey, guys! So, I apologize but I am going to be out of town all of Christmas week, so I've been able to keep writing, but have had no time to reply back to everyone's reviews. But, please know that I read them and appreciate them! And I'm so excited for the rest of this episode for you!

In the time that it took for the rest of the staff to reach the bridge, the lights had gone from amber to red. Since so many of the stations were manned by crewmen that Diana didn't know as well, she didn't feel like she needed to remain at her customary place.

Especially when she caught sight of what - or rather who - was on the viewport.

Captain Kirk, still looking quite Romulan but clearly bleeding quite red from a split lip, was in custody by two more centurions. To his credit, he seemed quite cool and calm. Judging from the way he watched Diana walk closer, he had a number of things he wanted to say. Yet, he didn't seem scared. He knows something. He found something important before they caught him.

From the fact that the alert status had changed while they were en route, Diana could gather that Sulu had probably been stalling. At the very least, he had been honest in his belief that they had killed the captain. As Diana stepped down onto the main level of the bridge to stand beside Lieutenant Sulu in the captain's chair, she caught the honest shock on his expression.

And that was why Jim had insisted that some of the crew not know. Sulu's relief was palpable and genuine, even as he was forced to take command.

"I commend you, Lieutenant Sulu." Commander Linvah said. "Either you truly did not realize your captain's deception, or you are a very talented liar. Worthy of a Romulan."

"I can assure you, Commander, I'm just as confused as you are." Sulu finally replied. When Diana spared a glance back over at him again, she found that his emotions were carefully masked once more. She had never seen him at the captain's chair, but he was clearly suited for it. "Seeing as how our captain was supposedly killed on your ship, but now appears to be very much alive, I'm a little concerned you might be responsible."

Linvah's expression probably matched Diana's: honest surprise. Hikaru was suggesting that the Romulans were attempting to do the very deception that she knew they were perpetuating.

"That is quite the accusation. But, ridiculous." Linvah remarked as she pulled a disruptor pistol from her belt. "Let me make this explicitly clear: Your captain and first officer have attempted to access sensitive information that is property of the Romulan Star Empire. You will be brought to Romulus. You will be interrogated, and you will regret this attempt to breach our border. But, first… you will be boarded."

"We will do no such thing." Sulu replied without hesitation. "In fact, if you do not return the captain and Commander Spock, we will destroy this vessel and take you with us."

"Foolish and futile." Linvah replied. She raised her disruptor pistol and Diana felt her heart clench as she leveled it at Jim. The only way to get from one ship to the other would be the transporters, and she couldn't be there in the blink of an eye…

"Lieutenant Sulu, I recommend that we cooperate." The words were out of Diana's mouth before she could stop them.

Linvah's aim lowered, clearly curious at the turn of events. "You are a Federation Ambassador." Diana vaguely remembered that her Federation patch was quite visible on her jacket. "You would have been better to stay silent. The Romulan Security Council will most certainly see your presence here as an act of war."

"As my goal is only to keep peace and to ensure the safety of the Federation, I would like to prevent further misunderstanding." Diana continued, steeling herself. She had negotiated trade, she could dance around in the exhausting waltz of diplomacy, but this was something different. She saw a tactical advantage. She only needed to press it.

"The ambassador is quite smart, Commander," Jim said coolly from her side. "And I'd wager she doesn't have an Achilles' heel like some other ambassadors, so if she's opening the gates, you should take it as an offering. Of peace."

Diana's eyebrow arched. There were keywords in what he had said, and there was an edge of mischief in the tone. Linvah didn't know him well enough, and how could she? But, Diana did. And she knew. Instantly, the plan began to come into focus. "As you can see, Commander, we will cooperate."

Sulu turned to her, opening his mouth to protest, but she simply shook her head at him.

"Very well. Lower your shields. Now."

Diana smiled. "I will meet your men myself in just a moment. Lieutenant, please have Chief Scott meet me in transporter room 1."

Sulu immediately stood and motioned to Uhura at her station.

"I've muted audio." The comms officer said without hesitation. It was as if she had been waiting for the opportunity.

"What are you doing?" Sulu asked, honestly shocked. "First, you don't seem shocked the captain's alive and now you're inviting the Romulans aboard?"

"Jim is trying to warn us. He knows that if we allow a boarding party, the Romulans won't attack us outright. They'd expect it. But, they will find a way to kill us before we reach their homeworld." Diana replied, motioning back to the viewscreen. She tried to keep her body language neutral enough to suggest that they were discussing logistics. "The boarding party isn't what we should be focusing on. Jim mentioned Achilles, opening the gates… as in the fall of Troy." Diana's heart began to pound, though more with adrenaline than fear. "The Trojans fell because they thought they had already won. Just like the Romulans do."

Sulu frowned. "Then we need a strike team."

"No." Diana said with a bit of a smile. "You just need me."

After describing her plan - such as it was - to Sulu and Jaylah, Diana made a brief stop at her quarters long enough to pick up her sword and shield. She also shed her federation garb before she reached transporter room one. As she came through the doors, Jaylah and Scotty were busy at the transporter console, arguing with each other.

"Och, lassie, get out of the way, I know what I'm doin' - "

"You did not build these traps, I did!" Jaylah snapped, motioning off to Diana's left. A quick look in that direction revealed several of the holo-emitters that Jaylah had designed. No sooner than Jaylah finished scolding Scotty, the engineer inevitably tapped a button and the emitter spat plasma sparks in defiance.

Diana turned to look at the chief engineer. "I suggest you let Jaylah take care of the barricades, Mister Scott." She strode over to the two of them, pausing at the glass barrier and console before the transporter pad.

"My traps will make them think there are no doors. It will work," Jaylah said pointedly as she continued to work. "Promise me you will tell James T. I do not like it when he lies."

Diana smiled in spite of the dire circumstances. She told herself that if something had happened since ending the communication with the Romulans, she would have known. Jim had to be fine. "I will be sure to remind him that I told him so." She caught sight of Jaylah's pipe staff, a formidable weapon that the ensign had left in storage on the Yorktown after the Altamid incident. "Just be sure to disable the boarding party as quickly as you can."

Jaylah nodded, then went back to work, shoulders taut and with a stony expression. She was still upset, and that wouldn't change until they were out of danger.

Nevertheless, Diana leaned a bit closer as Jaylah bent down to work on one of the emitters. "It was not Mister Scott's idea to keep this from you. Try not to hold it against him."

Jaylah glanced up at her, her facial markings turning a hair more blue than they normally were. Diana had learned in the last week that she was blushing, slightly embarrassed. She hoped it meant that the woman would let the grudge go.

After a moment, Diana turned her attention back to the chief engineer. "Can you make it work? Can you get me onto the Romulan ship?"

Scotty gave one last look at Jaylah, a bit more longing than he probably meant to and quite guilty, before turning to face the Amazon. "Aye. I can, but it's gonna be tough."

"How so?"

Scotty reached up and dropped the small HUD lens in front of his eye as he brought up a series of calculations on the console. "I'll have to piggyback your transporter signal off of the Romulans' incoming signal. Your pattern could get lost if I'm even a microsecond off, but if ye want on the ship, that's the only way I can guarantee it. It also means that ye need to be on the transporter pad the exact moment that they beam over." He paused, then added as an afterthought, "Which should be any moment."

"Then I better be ready." Diana said, making her way over to the transporter pad and pulling her sword and shield.

"Are… are ye sure ye don't want a phaser rifle?" He asked hesitantly. Diana's reaction to Scotty's suggestion was unimpressed and the engineer quickly dropped it. "Right."

"Bridge to Transporter Room 1. How's it going down there?" Hikaru's voice filled the room with his calm and collected sense of authority. If he had any particular opinions regarding Jim's subterfuge, he had kept them to himself and remained professional. She found herself wondering how much longer Sulu would remain on the Enterprise past the remainder of their five year mission. She had a feeling that the more he got the taste of command, he would continue to be tempted by it.

She only hoped he would escape the pitfalls that she had once fallen into.

You send people to die, you tell them that the cause you want them to fight is worthy of their life. There is no choice more difficult…

Diana pushed the thought away, focusing on the mission at hand. "Diana here. We are ready to receive our 'guests' when you are. Jaylah has configured a holographic barrier that should thoroughly confuse them."

"Glad to hear it. Once you're aboard the ship, I'll send out a distress call to any Federation vessel in range. With any luck, someone will be on the other side of the Neutral Zone barrier and come to help."

Diana scoffed a bit, twirling her sword in her hand as she warmed up her joints. "With any luck, they'll only have to help with cleaning up."

If the commanding officer had anything else he wanted to say, the opportunity left him as Scotty suddenly sat up a bit straighter at the station.

"Sorry to cut this short, Mister Sulu," Scotty interrupted. "But, looks like the transporters are active on the warbird. They're prepping for transport."

"Then I'll let you focus. Please don't splatter the ambassador on the hull of that ship. Sulu out."

Diana blinked at the less than stellar endorsement, then exchanged a glance with Scotty. "I won't splatter." She said, trying to provide him a boost of confidence without giving away that it was almost a plea on her part. "I won't."

Scotty's mouth worked for a long moment before he shrugged and said, "No. Course not."

She nodded once to him, then turned her attention to Jaylah. The ensign stood and pressed a button on her datapadd.

"Signal incoming," Scotty intoned, solely focused on the console in front of him now. "Prepare for transport in 3…"

Jaylah nodded to Diana as the holographic barrier flickered to life. The door disappeared into bulkhead.

"2…"

Diana braced herself, lowering to her knees as she held her sword at the ready and pulled her shield.

"Initiating transport, now."

The transporter room de-materialized.

The Romulan warbird's bulkheads came into view around her as the transporter's shimmer finally disappeared. Unlike the Enterprise, built in white, bright panes and transparent aluminum, the Romulan warbird was gray and dull. Instead of bright lights and sparkling consoles, the transporter room was bathed in sickly green and lavender lighting.

The hints of Klingon Imperial sigils all but buffed out of the bulkhead plating reminded her that this was purchased technology, not earned. The Romulans cared so little for that which they purchased. How much did they care about that which they stole?

She would have to find out once she located Jim. For now, she had another, more pressing issue.

The Romulan centurion at the console before her was staring at her in utter shock. Scotty's plan had worked: They'd had no idea that she was coming until she had arrived. He shouted in Romulan, although Diana didn't quite understand it, but she could understand the universal language of violence. He would see her dead.

He pulled his disruptor pistol and immediately fired on her. Diana's shield went up, deflecting the volley of fire before she slung it back at him and knocked him off of his feet.

Jim had been right to suggest this plan. The presence of a second boarding party off to her left suggested that they would have continued to board the Enterprise once they had access to it. They all pulled their disruptor pistols as well, moving to fire on her. In the space between heartbeats, she moved from her crouching position to deflect the disruptor fire with her bracelets. She managed to ricochet a few bolts back, taking out one of the centurions, but it wasn't enough.

She grunted as one of the bolts hit her right bicep, just below her arm band. It had been sheer luck on the part of the centurion. Her flesh sizzled under the high pressure and heat, but she barely even flinched. Instead, she used their moment of shock and confusion to push off of the ground and charge them. Her sword moved with purpose, cutting down the centurions where they stood.

She rose quickly, kicking one of the centurions into a console on instinct. As the plasma sparks showered over him, she turned to face the rest of them, only to realize she had struck them down in the melee already.

Chest heaving, she took a moment to look at her feet. If they had not fired on her, perhaps she could have subdued them.

The lighting changed around her and a klaxon began to sound.

Diana's sorrow over the loss of life in battle would have to wait. The Romulans knew she was aboard, and they would most assuredly make an attempt to destroy the Enterprise, kill her, or both.

Reinforcements would be in the transporter room shortly.

Diana quickly made her way back over to the console. She stomped on the rim of her shield from where it sat, kicking it up into her hand so she could have it at the ready. As she did so, she unfurled her lasso and pulled the dazed centurion up enough so that the lasso would wind around his arms.

"Tell me where they're keeping the Federation prisoners." She said, watching the Lasso of Hestia shine brilliantly in her hands.

The centurion's eyes came back into focus as he found her face. He opened his mouth, compelled by the lasso, then clamped it shut. She had seen that look many times before: confusion that the truth he so desperately sought to hide would spill from his lips no matter what he did.

"It is pointless to resist, and very painful." She coaxed, tightening her grip on the rope.

The centurion groaned, then finally answered. The communicator tucked into her armor had finally had a moment to hear the Romulan language and now instantaneously translated it for her. "The Vulcan…. Is in the commander's quarters… human… in the medical bay."

Diana's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Why the medical bay?"

"The Sub-Commander… will extract the truth from him."

They were going to torture Jim.

The answer was hardly satisfying, but it was all she needed. She held the lasso tighter, willing for his mind to open enough to share the location of the medical bay. Once she could picture the route in her mind, she knocked him out with a quick hit from her palm.

She had no time to lose, nor did the Romulans have any mercy left from her.

The lasso slipped back onto her hook and she turned her attention to the transporter room doors.

She began to make her way towards them, but they opened sooner than she expected.

Another five Romulans entered, disruptor rifles already firing. Green bolts flew through the air towards her. Shield at the ready, she strafed the room back towards the transporter pad. Unlike before, she didn't use a burst of speed from her godly abilities. She would need that advantage later.

She braced herself, taking another volley of disruptor fire before she made her move. She spun, lobbing her shield again with such force that one of the centurions was knocked clear through his companions and dented the bulkhead in the corridor. She moved to strike one of the others, but caught another disruptor bolt in the side.

Four left.

Never let your guard down…

Antiope's words thrummed through her veins as she whirled her sword and cut down a centurion. Her blade could rip apart Apokoliptian steel, it could easily cut through flesh. She turned her head as green blood splattered across her cheek and shoulder. With her momentum, she forced him off of her blade as he sank to the ground.

Three left.

As another centurion came at her, she pivoted and sliced her sword through his disruptor rifle. She had done so with countless weapons in the past, but never something from this century.

Something told her that she should have expected the resulting flash of plasma sparks as the fuel rods dislodged and went scattering to the ground. The centurion backpedaled just in time for her foot to connect with his chest.

Two left.

Diana whirled, her sword hand slick with blood. Unfortunately, the remaining two centurions were on either side of her. She couldn't attack one without the other one taking an opportunity.

She heard a disruptor whine as it prepared to fire and turned. In the blink of an eye, Diana knocked the disruptor away just a mere inch to the right, the bolt firing close enough to her cheek that she could feel its heat and hear the sizzle as strands of her hair were fried in the process.

But, that gave her enough time to flip the sword in her grip and thrust back, lodging her weapon in the approaching centurion behind her. Before the stunned soldier before her could react, she pulled her sword free and slashed him across the front as well.

Silence finally fell over the room again. She reached for her communicator in her belt, pulling it open as she started on her way down the corridors. "Prince to the Enterprise."

"Diana, good to hear your voice." Nyota's voice was fraught with tension, but seemed slightly more relieved knowing Diana had made it.

"The warbird's gone to red alert here," Diana said as she wiped her sword off on the centurion stuck in the bulkhead and grabbed her shield. She took a long moment to check the man's pulse, but found none. She sighed, stomach swirling with the mixture of sorrow and frustration that accompanied such a battle. "Have they attacked you?"

"Not yet. I think it helps that Jaylah and Scotty took out the boarding party. We did notice that they powered weapons, and we have shields back up. I think Sulu's playing a game of chicken."

Well, at least that was a relief. She had a feeling that was a temporary truce, however. "They've taken Jim to the medical bay. They mean to torture him. Spock, I believe, is safe. But, I will contact you when I have them both. Be careful."

"You, too, Diana. Enterprise out."

Satisfied that, for now, the ship was safe, she turned her attention back to the corridor. The centurions had very specific patrol routes, guessing from her brief glimpse in the mind of the transporter chief. Getting to the medical bay would be straightforward, but there was no way she wouldn't run into several more centurions.

"I hope you meant what you said about this being a skeleton crew, Jim." Diana mused aloud before she started to march down the corridor. "If not, they certainly will be when I am done with them."

Diana was met with very minimal resistance getting to the medical deck. Unfortunately, once she reached the deck where Jim was being held, it was very clear that they knew the value of their prisoner. And they must have been aware that Diana was on board.

The red alert continued, the lights strobing across the corridors, casting an eerie filter over everything and everyone she saw. The gray bulkhead looked burgundy, giving Diana the unfortunate impression that she was walking down into Tartarus, not a spaceship. It seemed fitting, somehow appropriate. She was nothing less than one of the Furies, intent on pricking out the eyes of all who defied the goddess of Truth.

Now that she had taken down so many of their number, she had no doubt in her mind that if she planned on rescuing Jim, it would be quick… and it would be bloody.

But, these were not parademons or Furies or even Medusa. The Romulans were soldiers, being manipulated for a cause. How much blood would be on her hands before she found him? Would it even be worth it?

It was easy to justify, to tell herself that Jim had found something vital to the welfare of the Federation. But, until she saw it herself, it was all smoke and mirrors.

What if I promise to be careful?

Fighting does not make you a hero. Which is why tonight I will tell you a new story. A story of our people and my days of battle. So you will finally understand why war is nothing to hope for.

Her mother's voice brought her to a halt in the corridor.

Her mother had led her Amazons into war against many forces, and they never hesitated when their lives were at stake. Her sisters had died defending Steve. One innocent man was worth the lives of ten with weapons. That was the only way her mother and Antiope kept the demons at bay.

Such was battle. There was a right side and a wrong side. Diana had never been known for straddling such a fence. But, she never hoped for war.

She glanced around, recognized her location and picked up the pace. She wasn't far from the medical bay now. She had avoided a few patrols, but given how heavily fortified this deck was, if she began a fight, she would probably end up fighting every single centurion on the deck by the time it was over.

Diana took a step forward down the hall, spotting the medical bay ahead.

She was suddenly knocked back with a jolt of electricity and felt as if she had stepped into a wall.

Confused, she reached a hand up as she stepped forward again, only to be stopped by a shimmering field. A force field. The Romulans had fortified Jim's position more than she had expected.

"Damn." She breathed, turning to head back the other way. As she did so, a number of centurions came around the corner, weapons ready.

They had not just fortified his position: They had used it to track hers.

"This will only end one way…" Diana warned, holding her hands up. She had not drawn her weapons yet.

One of them rose his weapon, training it on her.

Diana frowned, gently drifting her hand higher until she could reach her sword. "This is your second warning. I do not wish to hurt you any more than is necessary, but you are torturing an innocent man - "

The centurions all rose their weapons in response and her hand paused in its climb upward. They were threatened by her. But, did they deserve death?

You keep doubting yourself. Antiopechided her in her memory. Her aunt, the great General, had never hesitated in the movement of her blade. When one was attacked, one answered in kind. Her hand moved a bit higher.

"Last warning. Do not fire on me, or I will make sure you never harm another person again."

The lead centurion fired his weapon.

Diana hand dropped just enough so that she could block it with her bracelet. Her other hand gripped her sword. The die had been cast. As the Furies pursued Orestes, Diana would as well.

"Very well. Make this difficult," She said, challenging them to open fire.

They certainly did.

While her wounds had healed, there would be more.

Even as she tried to grab her shield, she realized that this would not be such an easy fight. She would have to pick and choose her wounds, because she certainly could not escape unscathed.

Diana's sword moved with ease. As she knocked a rifle out of one hand and pivoted to stab another centurion, she could feel her mind drop into the simple mantras that she had learned since childhood.

Never let your guard down!

Antiope intoned once more. Diana found her instincts stepping into overdrive as she began to cut through a swath of soldiers. It was sloppy, it was messy.

It was brutal.

Don't hold back, Diana. She could hear Kal goading her on, as if they were back on the training grounds of Themyscira.

Diana's sword moved with bone-crunching force. One of the Romulans screamed as she relieved him of his arm, the sound far away in the fog of battle. She did not want to hurt them, but she had warned them. And yet, they kept coming, each more fierce than the last. None of them would retreat. None of them would simply see the senselessness in the violence.

You expect the battle to be fair!

Antiope's words snapped her back to the present, to the heart-stopping primal fear that even Diana faced in battle.

She stabbed another one, but by now her sword was so slick with blood that she lost her grip for a moment. She dropped to her knee and grabbed one of the Romulans, disarming him with a crack of bone. She threw him into his companions and pivoted. She rolled, grabbing her sword from the dead centurion and pulling her shield finally. Her arms were smattered with disruptor wounds against her normally pristine flesh.

She did not want to have to kill them all. If only they would stop...

The battle will never be fair! Never!

Antiope did not teach her to kill because anyone wanted to.

She taught her to win the battle because she had to.

A scream ripped through the battle haze, echoing from down the corridor. It was not a centurion.

Her heart stopped from the sound. She pivoted, turning to look in its direction. It was coming from the medical bay, full of agony.

It was Jim.

Diana rose her shield as the last few centurions fired on her again, then charged.

You are stronger than you believe.

And I believe in love.

Lightning sparked around her, lacing around her fingers and her wrists as she kept her mind on who - and what - she was fighting for. She struck them down with godly speed, the divine lightning of Zeus running through her veins, knocking them unconscious and arcing off to the corridors past.

Sparks showered around them all as the lightning shorted out the red alert klaxons on the deck and burnt out consoles in the walls.

Another scream, more broken than the last, echoed down the hall.

Diana turned, bracelets and diadem glowing with the might of the gods.

No force field would stop her.

Diana rushed forward, bracelets clashing together in an explosion of her power around her like a shield. She connected with the force field, using all her strength to force her way through it.

You have greater power than you know. Antiope's words filled her senses, pushing her forward. Harder! Again!

On the other side of the force field, two more centurions had come out of the medical bay to see the commotion. They watched as Diana screamed in righteous fury, forcing one step closer, then another.

The power couplings that supported the force field began to whine in distress.

She forced another step.

The bulkhead erupted in sparks as the couplings failed and the field disappeared.

Stumbling forward, Diana caught herself and slowly stood straight.

Her hands were balled into fists, her armor conducting the lightning of the gods around her.

Diana had never felt such power. Not even when she fought Ares and channeled the lightning, not in her many years alongside other members of the Justice League, even when fighting Darkseid. It was as if a door within her had opened, freeing something.

Welcome to your birthright, Sister.

The voice was so sudden, so familiar and yet foreign, she blinked out of the power-induced haze.

"Athena?" Diana whispered. Her lips even felt the charge of static.

She shivered, not entirely sure what rush had just gone through her. Whatever it was, it was gone now. She glanced down at her hands, then back up at the centurions who had been watching her.

They lost their nerve. The two of them dropped their weapons and ran off.

Diana made her way to the medical bay. It was only then that she realized her ankle was throbbing and she was limping. She could snap the ankle back into place later.

First, she needed to get to Jim.

The doors to the medical bay blew open as she sped into the room. The torturer – who seemed to think he was the doctor based on the implement in his hand – turned to face her. Jim was trapped to a biobed, clearly conscious but in pain.

Without hesitation, Diana took her lasso and grabbed hold of the doctor. She yanked him to her, then held him tightly. "Why would you do this to him?!" She demanded.

"Because I like to hear them scream." The Romulan replied without hesitation. The lasso opened the truth to her, flooding her mind with the images of countless victims… of experiments, his own countrymen and women… "And I will continue to do so once your Federation frees me from custody."

Diana took a step back, looking at him for a long moment. She remembered several men that had done so, defying the law, exploiting weaknesses. She had never let them do so again.

"No." She simply replied. "You won't."

Diana reached out and snapped his neck. The lasso grew dim and she coiled it back around the hook before turning to look at Jim.

"Diana… what did you do?" He asked, looking her over.

She remembered Antiope's words, her own mother's warnings about the horrors of war.

"I won the battle."