The Taking of the Enterprise part 3

The sleek, futuristic bridge of the USS Enterprise is bustling with activity. Crew members are focused on their consoles, performing their tasks with precision. Captain Pike, a composed and authoritative figure, stands at the center of the bridge, observing the proceedings. At a nearby station, Jamie is dressed in the standard uniform of a lieutenant.

The plan had been simple. Jamie would still try to isolate the terminal that was being used so that whoever it was that was altering systems on the Enterprise wouldn't know that Pike and she were onto them. Whoever was doing this was clever - too bad that Jamie despite not being able to unscramble the jamming signal had other ideas on how to find the perpetrator. The other part of the plan - she had to act like nothing had changed. That she and Pike were still at odds. Her resignation was still thoroughly logged in the system, not even the Valiant had been informed of the change of plans. The third part of the plan, they were currently exactly where this person wanted them to be. Navigating the Delta Quadrant.

"Lieutenant Kirk, status report on the ion storm ahead."

Jamie steps forward, her voice steady but her eyes betraying a hint of frustration. "Yes, Captain. The ion storm is intensifying, but we should be able to navigate through it with minimal adjustments to our course."

Pike nods, his eyes briefly meeting hers. There is a silent understanding between them, but Pike's expression remains unreadable. "Good. Make the necessary adjustments, Lieutenant. Scotty, make your way to the bridge."

Jamie turns back to her station, fingers flying over the console. She takes a deep breath, trying to maintain her composure.

"Captain, sensors indicate increased electromagnetic interference. It may disrupt our communications and navigation systems." Garret states.

"Understood. Lieutenant Kirk, initiate countermeasures."

"Initiating countermeasures Captain."

The Turbolift opens, as Scotty makes a bee-line for her console. Of course, they program the Enterprise to navigate through the storm perfectly. It should have been completely smooth.

That is until the alarms go off. The bridge hums with activity as Jamie works swiftly. Her hands move with practiced ease, despite the constraints of her current role.

Captain Christopher Pike stands resolutely at the center of the bridge, his eyes fixed on the main viewscreen, showing the swirling chaos outside.

She feels the Phaser at the back of her head rather than see it. "Nobody move!"

The bridge falls silent, the hum of the ship and the crackle of the storm the only sounds.

"This isn't the way, Matthew. Put the phaser down."

He fires. The phaser blast hits Pike in the chest, and he collapses to the deck, gasping in pain. The crew leaps to their feet, but Garrett whirls on them, his phaser still raised.

"I'm in control of this ship now."

"What are you doing, Matthew? This is mutiny!" Marshall shouts.

Garrett steps over Pike's body, eyes wild. He fires again, this time at Marshall, who crumples instantly, lifeless. Webb tries to reach for an emergency communicator, but Garrett is too fast, a single shot silencing him forever. The remaining bridge crew freeze, their expressions a mix of shock and terror.

"Anyone else? Does anyone else want to challenge me?"

The lights flicker once more, casting deep shadows across the bridge. Garrett's face, illuminated by the sporadic sparks from damaged consoles, looks almost maniacal. He steps back, trying to compose himself, then turns to the helm. "Alter course, we're heading to the Vidiian's territory."

As Takara hesitantly inputs the new coordinates, Garrett lowers his phaser, his breathing still ragged. He looks around the bridge, at the fallen bodies of his comrades, and at Pike, who lies barely conscious.

"You'll... never... get away with this..."

Garrett's eyes flicker with something almost like regret, but he hardens his expression once more, turning his back on the captain. "I've been getting away with this since I joined Starfleet - only this time. I finally get revenge. Considering where we're going I need you alive. The Vidiians will pay handsomely to harvest all the organs I'm about to hand to them. Garrett to Sickbay. Can a doctor, report to the bridge immediately? There's a medical emergency."

"You're Thomas's son," Pike states. "We ... I had no clue what the Vidiians were like back then. I wasn't to know they-"

"Figured out who I am now. Took you long enough, but then I do have my mother's name and looks. Helped me hide in plain sight. I've been taking out your team one by one all this time and you never once looked my way."

But Jamie had. The turbolift doors opened once more. Jamie had to shut her eyes. Bones rushes in, medical kit in hand. His eyes widen as he takes in the scene, then narrows at the sight of Garrett and the wounded Captain.

The rest of the crew had no clue that they were heading into danger. There were nine hundred lives innocent lives left on the ship.

Bones doesn't say a word, he walks across to Pike, pulls out a hypo-spray, and injects Pike with a painkiller, pulling him onto a stretcher then begins working on the wound with a dermal regenerator.

The atmosphere is thick with tension. The once bustling command center of the Starship Enterprise was eerily quiet, save for the hum of the ship's engines and the occasional beeping of the consoles. Captain Pike lay on a stretcher, his injuries severe but stable, while the remaining crew members exchanged fearful glances.

'I told Pike I didn't trust him,' Jamie thought and she mouthed to Bones, nodding her head in Pike's direction. "How's he doing?"

The glance she receives tells her all she needs to know. They needed to get to safety - fast.

Several glances around at the crew and she notices that no one is in the right frame of mind. She had been training for this carefully under Pike's supervision. Now was not the time for careful. Now was the time to break the promise she had made to him when she had entered Starfleet.

"Lass, what are you thinking?" Scotty whispered to her.

Jamie gave him a wink.

"I'm taking back control of this ship." Jamie finally replied leaving her plan of how to do so within her thoughts. She slips her earpiece in. 'By breaking the law.'

Her eyes scanned the room, searching for an opportunity. The rest of the crew is preoccupied, focusing on their consoles and screens. Jamie moves quickly but silently to a maintenance hatch at the back of the bridge. She kneels inputs a security code, and the hatch slides open. She slips inside, the hatch closing behind him.

"Whatever you're going to do Lass, do it quickly."

Jamie shuffled and made her way through the crawl space opening the hatch of her destination.

"Lass, are you alright?" came Scotty's voice through her earpiece.

"Just peachy!" she hated the crawl space but she was on a one-woman mission currently. Finally, she hauled herself up onto the engineering deck.

She opens up her PADD linking it to the central computer system. Jamie forces herself to remain calm. She closes her eyes and whispers: "Sorry Christopher," before she starts hacking into the system. She turned to the ship's computer, issuing a series of commands to lock down non-essential areas and restrict access to critical systems. The screens flickered to life, showing the status of the ship's various sections. Setting everything she possibly could to need her authorisation code so that she get the computer to change randomly every time it was used.

She hails the closest Starship she can find, she doesn't care that it's Admiral Blackwell's ship at this very moment and she knows the risk she is taking at this very moment will result in her being kicked out of Starfleet once help arrives - the safety of the crew members left on this ship outweighed the risk. Pike had told her, that her father had been Captain for approximately twelve minutes saving eight hundred lives, including his wife and their newborn daughter - Jamie: Pike had dared her to do better.

"This is acting Captain Jamie Tabitha Kirk of the USS Enterprise - I have not got a lot of time for explanations. First Officer Garrett has betrayed us all - severely injuring Captain Pike who is currently rendered unconscious and has killed all the other Senior members of the crew. Garret is steering the Enterprise deeper into The Vidiian's territory with intentions of selling the remaining nine hundred souls left aboard to them. We could really use some help right now."

"What do you need?"

"I have a plan to get a lot of the crew out, I need someone to pick up the shuttles I manage to launch. Then I need a distraction - a big one to help me get the victims who are currently in the line of sight out. Contact this PADD directly. I have it linked to my earpiece. I may not be able to respond but I can get you onboard this ship if need be."

"We're on our way - Hang in there Kirk!"

'Time to start overriding every system and start getting people to safety.' Jamie thought to herself cutting her hail. "God I hope this works."

Jamie isolates the cameras putting them on a loop and gets up from the floor from her hiding place, she spots her Phaser on Scotty's desk. Which gives her an idea.