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Time to ramp it up now!
Chapter Six: Gattaca
The ground was covered in thick snow at the top of the mountain, the land silent expect for their cloudy breaths. Once there, Rachel led the group over to a lean-to hidden near their target where everyone began to dismount. Uhura and Sulu rubbed their thighs with a grimace while Scotty hobbled around bowlegged, the crew trying to loosed unused muscles. Charlie felt the familiar ache in her thighs, but her sore knees were a surprise. As she tried to dismount, she stumbled when her feet hit the ground, her knees giving out from the force. Jim had just secured his horse when he turned in time to catch her.
"Thanks," she blushed, pushing off Jim and nonchalantly leading Spirit away from the other horses.
The side of Jim's mouth smirked, amused by the red stain to her cheek. "Thought you could ride?" he teased.
"I'm going to hit you," she grumbled without heat. Jim just laughed.
The snow crunched under their boots as they followed Rachel's flashlight over to a metal outbuilding painted a soft tan. The group was undeterred by the giant red sign warning of electrical shock, the door's only fastener a simple bumper lock to keep people out. Soft orange lights illuminated the mountain top near the various radio towers, shadows thrown around as the wind picked up.
"Ok," whispered Rachel. "The minute I open this door, alarms are going to alert the security team that someone's up here. We need to be prepared to move quickly."
"How is the alarm triggered?" Spock asked.
"Magnetic sensor on the inside," she pointed to the upper left corner. "When the contact is broken, it sets off the alert down at security and they switch on the camera. Now, I think if I can kill the sensor lights quickly it might buy us some time."
"That is unnecessary. Mr. Sulu, may I see the tricorder?"
"What do you mean unnecessary?" Rachel blurted. "It's an alarm. Seems pretty important to me."
Spock took the device, and after a few deft key stokes ran it along the perimeter of the door. It beeped a few times before Spock closed it with a snap.
"That should render their security inoperable. You may proceed."
Rachel glanced at the door and then back at Spock. "Bullshit."
"Rach," Charlie exasperatedly rolled her eyes. "Trust him. It's disabled."
Skeptically, Rachel cut the lock off the door, and with a deep breath threw it open and jumped back. When the sensor lights refused to come on, they knew they hadn't triggered the alarm. The orange glow from the outside lights revealed a turbine machine in the center with a window on the opposite side. Otherwise the room was bare.
"Nice work, Spock," Jim said, clapping his first officer on the back and as he followed Charlie and the others inside while Rachel stared dumbly at the door jam.
"I need to learn that trick," Rachel grumbled as she moved to the back corner, her flashlight illuminating the hatch on the floor. If they hadn't been looking for it, the door easily could have been missed as it seamlessly aligned with the tile. Tapping the center, a circle popped up that revealed a handle and a keypad.
"Ok, let me see if they got this right," Rachel mumbled, pulling out her phone and typing in a six-digit code. The keypad flashed green then a solid click was heard. Grabbing the handle, McCoy and Jim hefted the two-foot solid latch open, revealing a ladder that descended into the dark.
"Good work, lassie," Scotty beamed. "Where'd ya get the code?"
Rachel beamed as she shrugged, slipping her phone back into the pack around her waist. "Called in a few favors back at campus. So, who's first?"
"Me," Charlie answered, already throwing her feet onto the first rung.
"Here." Jim handed Charlie a small light and the tricorder. "Be careful."
"Never," she smirked.
"You should end up in basically a closet," Rachel added as Charlie started down. "In a maintenance wing. I don't think anyone should be there this time of day."
"Famous last words," Charlie muttered.
First twenty feet, then thirty, and just when she reached the point that the metal bars were beginning to kill her feet, she landed on a flat surface. Glancing up, the opening above her head was only the size of quarter, its light pale.
Spinning round, Rachel had been right. The space was maybe five feet squared, with the ladder and a door the only defining features in the blackness. She opened it slowly, waiting for a creak or the sound of footsteps. The hallway was wide and dark, the only light coming from down and around the corner. The floors were shiny and reflective, and the concrete walls bare. She stuck her head out further, listening for the slightest sound. Other than the soft blow of the air units that pushed in fresh air throughout, there was no other noise.
Closing the door softly as she retreated back in, Charlie flipped on the flashlight and shined it above, clicking it on and off in a specific sequence. Rachel answered back with her own, and Charlie knew the message was conveyed that all was clear.
As the light was covered while someone else made their way down, Charlie slipped out the door to keep watch. She crouched in the shadows near the corner as she listened and waited for the others to join her. Her heart thundered in her chest, and she took several deep breaths since she noticed how shallow her breathing had become. She remembered the same feeling of anxiousness as she waited in the air ducts on the Cairo during her security final, but experience taught her that patience would get her the results she wanted. While she waited for the Enterprise crew, she flipped opened the tricorder and followed the readings as it scanned for base personnel.
Charlie sensed movement behind and glanced over her shoulder as a dark shadow slipped out the door. Jim paused, surveying the hall before he saw her gesture in the corner.
"Anything yet?" he whispered as he crouched down next to her.
"Not yet," she answered back, the tricorder showing no bodies near them.
"Cool trick with the flashlight," he added as McCoy joined the pair. "Morse code?"
"Yeah," she nodded. "We learned it as kids. Came in handy when one of us wanted to sneak out. Or sneak back in." Uhura came next, radioing up top they were still all clear.
"Man, being an only child sucked," McCoy grumbled. "Couldn't get away with nothing."
"Sometimes I wish I was an only child," Uhura added as the others radioed back. "I have brother and sister too. They could get you into trouble as much as getting you out of it."
"True that," Charlie derided.
Scotty followed next, taking the tricorder from Charlie as he began scanning at different levels of the base. After a few minutes, the rest of crew had made it down the hatch.
"So, what's next?" Rachel asked, after she closed the door behind her and tiptoed over.
"I need ta get ta one of the main computers," Scotty whispered loudly, both Jim and Charlie shaking their heads. "Get me hands on anything ya may have that can point us in the right direction."
"I second Mr. Scott's assessment," Spock added, albeit much quieter. "I would like to accompany him."
"Aye, that would be a help, Commander."
"And if I can get to a communications station, I might be able to see if they've picked up when we arrived. Or if the others did," Uhura said.
"Let me go with you," Sulu stated. "I might be able to see what ships they have. Maybe use one to get home."
"The IT department is three floors down, on the north side," Rachel pointed out on the tricorder. "It would have everything you're looking for. We don't keep the planes here on base – their either at the Academy or Peterson but you'd be able to see what's on the ground."
"So not only are breaking into a military base, we're going to steal from them too?" Charlie clucked. "Well, I guess if we're going to go big, might as well go nuclear."
"It's not stealing a plane," Rachel argued. "It's borrowing without permission."
"Except we don't have any intention of bringing it back."
"Semantics."
"I don't want us splitting up too much," Jim interrupted the sisters. "Spock, Sulu, Uhura, and Scotty, go as a team and get as much information as you can. Try not to steal a plane if you can avoid it, until we know for certain we need it. Bones, Charlie, Rachel and I will try to find her parents. Meet back here in three hours. And if you come across someone, Spock, you know what to do." Spock frowned, but nodded.
"What if the worst should happen?" Scotty asked the question no one wanted to answer.
Jim sighed. "We stick to the plan. Do not let anyone know where we're from or what we know. We don't exist here, and even if we told them our names, I doubt they'd believe us."
"Use last names only," Uhura said. "We've all gone through the classes. This will be no different."
"If something happens, radio the other team, and we'll figure it out from there," Jim added.
Eyes shifted between each other, but everyone nodded.
"Good. Let's go."
The teams divided in opposite directions, Scotty and the others heading to the stairs while Rachel led them toward a ramp.
"What does he mean 'know what to do?'" she whispered to Charlie as they slinked against the walls.
"Vulcan nerve pinch," Charlie explained as they ducked around a corner. "Renders the person unconscious without killing them."
"Has he done it to you?"
Charlie grinned, remembering the story. "Not me. He got to experience it though." She jerked her head back at Kirk.
Jim subconsciously reached up and rubbed the left side of his neck.
"Did you deserve it?" Rachel smirked.
"No—"
"Yes," McCoy said at the same time, much to Jim's annoyance. "What? You were right in the end, but you were acting like an ass."
"What's different than any other time?" Rachel commented.
"I like this girl," McCoy grinned.
Charlie laughed, and took Jim's hand, his face etched in a scowl. "Remember, we kid because we love."
He rolled his eyes but squeezed her hand in response. "Could ya turn down the love a bit then?"
Halfway down another hall, they heard voices coming toward them, shadows of three people cutting across their path. Charlie's heart leapt in her throat when she realized they didn't have the tricorder with them. They pressed themselves against the wall, their eyes shooting around for an escape. Charlie backed up against a door, her hand instinctually finding a handle that surprised no one more than her when it turned and opened. Falling back in the room with a soft squeak, Charlie sat up as the other three rushed in, Rachel quietly shutting the door behind them just as they heard the voices pass.
"Well that was close," McCoy grumbled. "A little too close to my liking."
"Let's not do that again," Rachel agreed, her ear pressed to the door.
Jim helped to haul Charlie to her feet, glancing around the dark room. It looked like an observatory, with chairs set up on tiers facing a wall of glass. The room on the other side was also dark, only the soft emergency lights adding any glow to the room.
"How close are we to medical engineering?" Jim turned to Rachel.
On the wall was a map, the fire exits marked. Rachel studied it quickly, remarking, "It's the next floor down. If we take the stairs to the right, we should –"
The room was suddenly awash in yellow light, the group throwing their hands up in alarm as their eyes burned from the brightness. Voices were heard, the room naturally amplifying the sounds from below. Blinking against the illumination, Charlie listened intently to the familiar tones as she sided up to the glass for a better look.
"What is the current absorption rate?" she heard her mother ask.
Rachel, Jim, and McCoy followed suit, their eyes adjusting to the room below. It was obviously a medical wing, different instruments, monitors, and apparatuses lining the walls. Several metal cabinets stood to the side, as well as metal tables covered with beakers, and glass tools. The main focal point, however, was in the center of the room; a long, cylindrical device very similar to the cryotube used to save Jim a year ago. Wires and tubes ran from it into the floor as it seemed to pulse with life.
Charlie saw Margaret circled it lazily, checking readings at different points both on the machine and the computer pad in her hand. Along with her mother, several technicians in white lab coats stood around with clip boards or running scans. Her father and another official entered a few moments later, their blue uniforms a stark contrast to the medical attire worn by the rest of the room.
"Eighteen-point two percent," came the answer to Margret's question, her head cocking to the side as she listened.
She shook her head in disappointment.
"Not good enough."
"It will be difficult to increase the readings ma'am and keep stability."
"We're not here to judge difficulty," Margaret chastised. "We're here to get results."
"Do you want to risk it?" the other uniform officer asked, his hands behind his back as he stood next to Robert.
"We're already behind schedule," Margaret responded, barely glancing up from her screen. "It's a risk I'm willing to take."
"Any further increase could have negative effects on the host," her father explained patiently, a pad in his hand as his finger roamed across the screen. "We don't want to have start over like last time."
"Last time the host wasn't strong enough," her mother snapped, finally glancing up.
Robert took the hostility in stride, turning softly address to one of the lab assistants by the long device. Whatever their answer was seemed to please him as he grinned and nodded.
"Increase to nineteen percent," he ordered. "And let's interface the neural tissue with the RNA sequencer and add in thirty ccs of metoprolol. Last time the molecules dissolved while still in stasis. Let's stop that from happening again, shall we?"
"Bones, what's he saying?" Jim asked the CMO, his brows drawl low over his eyes.
McCoy was glaring down at the image below, his arms crossed over his barreled chest.
"From what I gather, their 'host' or whatever it is, is being injected with some kind of drug. I think. They did it before, but the molecular structure of the RNA . . . disintegrated, from what I can tell. That's advanced for this time if they're at that molecular level."
"What would that do?" Rachel asked.
"Well, you would be dead for one."
She scowled in response, crossing her arms. "Thank you Captain Obvious. I got that."
"Well, what do you want from me? I'm a doctor, not a biomedical engineer. I fix things, not play God."
"What do you think they're trying to do now?" Charlie stepped in before her sister could snap back at the surly doctor.
"Well if it were me, I'd introduce whatever the hell it is they've developed to living tissue and see what reaction I'd get. When I was testing Khan's blood, I used samples I had in the lab before I moved on to that tribble."
"I don't think their using tissue," Rachel mumbled, her eyes wide as the technicians seemed to crowd around the stasis machine in the middle of the room, someone's bare feet seen lying on the table.
"Do you think . . . are they . . ." Charlie didn't want to say it, didn't want to believe that her parents were creating their own Frankenstein.
"It's not conclusive," McCoy muttered, his scowl growing. "But they're definitely trying."
"So, if we can get down there, we could see what they've done. Maybe even see what reactions they've had," Jim commented.
"Yeah, I would start there," he agreed.
"Alright, let's wait until they leave, then—" Jim's sentence ended abruptly as he turned.
Charlie spun, her heart dropping into her stomach as three, heavily armed soldiers stood behind her, their M-16 rifles aimed at their heads. They were fully decked out in tactical armor. Their helmets, vests, and belts were solid black, bulking their size to be far larger and more intimidating than normal. Their eyes were narrowed in focus while their stances were strong as they glared at the four intruders.
"Hands up!" the leader barked in a commanding tone. Charlie and Rachel's hands shot up in an instant, with McCoy and Jim far more leisured about their new predicament.
"What authorization do you have to be in here?" he barked again.
"Uh—" the rifle snapped to Jim's head.
"This is Captain Kirk, here to observe by permission of Colonel Noland," Charlie said before she could think. The rifle moved to her, but his eyes stayed on Jim, a brow disappearing into the helmet.
"Captain . . . Kirk, huh?" If there wasn't a good chance she would be shot, Charlie could have smacked herself in the head.
Jim shrugged, his arms still raised as he played along. "Yeah, I get it all the time."
"Why aren't you in uniform?"
"This is an informal observation," Rachel added, a rifle from the one to the left pointed at her.
"Who are you?"
"Cadet Noland, Colonel Noland's daughter." The rifle dropped a fraction, the soldier now taking stock of the group.
"Who's he?" the leader gestured at McCoy.
"Doctor Bones," Jim said, smirking a bit as he heard a low rumble from his CMO.
"Bones? Really?"
"Let's just say I'm in the right profession," McCoy growled.
"Where's your identification tags?" the last soldier questioned the group. "They should have been issued at the front."
"Uhhh," Charlie glanced between the group, stumped on how they were going to get out of trouble now.
The soldiers flexed, re-aiming their guns when no answer was forth coming.
"I think you better come with us," the leader ordered, making to grab for Charlie. Before they could blink, Jim had grabbed the barrel of the gun and pulled, throwing the surprised soldier off balance as his fist connected with the man's nose.
"Jim!" Charlie cried, surprised by the captain's actions.
Something seemed to take over him. Jim moved faster than humanely possible, faster than Charlie had ever seen. As if in a blur, Jim was behind the second soldier, his arm reaching around as he grabbed the soldier's gun, driving the heel into his neck and causing the man to lose consciousness as if he has been grabbed by a Vulcan. Charlie and McCoy rushed forward as Jim turned to the last soldier, the man clearly unprepared for such a vicious attack. Before Jim could take a step however, Charlie and McCoy grabbed his arms and held him back. The second her skin connected with his, Charlie felt the heat of her hand flow into him like a river, the ice under her fingers melting away.
The tension released from his shoulders as fast as it came, and Jim was surprised to find himself held back. His startled gaze shot around, confused by the men at his feet, and the pair holding onto his arms. Slowly, he removed himself from their grasp and raised his hands, lacing his fingers behind his head as he noted the concerned faces. Charlie, McCoy and Rachel followed the captain, their hands moving to behind their heads as they regarded the last soldier standing.
"Jim, what was that?" Charlie whispered, concerned as she stared at him like she'd never seen him before.
"I- I don't know," he whispered back, his gaze unfocused as he tried to figure out what the hell happened.
"C-come with us now!" the soldier shouted. The leader groaned and sat up, blood pouring from his broken nose. Smearing the liquid across his lip, he picked up his gun with his eyes narrowed in anger at the group. Coming behind the captain, he shoved the barrel in between Jim's shoulders harshly, ignoring as he stumbled while he was forced from the room. The other gestured for the three to follow behind, radioing central command that they needed medical up to the observation room.
Quickly, they were led down the stairs and into the medical wing, the large metal double doors swinging open with a hiss as they neared.
Charlie could feel her heart thundering in her chest as she was forced into the bright light as those in medical hall turned when the group entered. Shocked didn't even describe the looks on her parents' faces when they noticed their two daughters with a loaded M-16 pointed at their backs.
"What in the hell is going on?!" her father barked, his narrowed glare jumping between Charlie and the security officers.
"We found these four up in the observation lounge," the leader said, ignoring as more blood dripped down his vest. "This one here attacked me." He thrust the barrel into the back of Jim's head, the captain shooting a glare behind him. "But it was only because they said they knew you that we didn't shoot them right away."
"Sooooo, this isn't how it looks—" Rachel tried before Charlie kicked her to shut her up. She still hadn't learned. Silence was best in these situations.
"And how doesn't this look like my children just broke into a secure military base, attacked active duty members, and may have completely destroyed their and their parent's career," Margaret shouted. "And to drag civilians into this is grounds for court martial. I thought we raised you better. What in the hell were you thinking?!"
Silence greeted her, the two girls shuffling their feet while avoiding looking either parent in the eye.
"Speak. Now." The softness was worse than a slap.
"It was my idea," Charlie asserted before her sister could dig a bigger hole. "We heard what you were working on and—"
"How the hell could you have heard," her father barked. "You didn't even show up till two days ago."
"My crew has excellent hearing, Father," she spat, unable to help herself, her arms still raised with no word she could lower them. "And no matter the problems between us, I had to warn you."
"Warn us about what, Charlotte," her father growled back, his eyes narrowed threateningly.
"That what you're working on isn't worth it. They will become too powerful, too advanced. You won't be able to control them."
"And you know this how?" the other uniform officer spoke, a Major Byrd by the name on his uniform.
Charlie turned to him, forgetting that there were the others in the room. "It's complicated. Sir."
"Did you have an experience from your . . . trip?" her mother asked, catching herself before she said where Charlie really was.
Charlie locked eyes with her mother. "Yes, we came across someone who – was following a similar line of research and development. It didn't end well."
Major Byrd scoffed. "The private sector doesn't have near the advantages we have – most notably anonymity. Colonel, this is really out of line to have your civilian children here. I will call for security immediately and have them removed."
"Stand down, Major," the Colonel barked, the other man's brows rising in surprise. "My daughters are both cadets, and the other two are a captain and, I'm sorry who are you again?"
"Dr. McCoy," Bones grumbled.
"I thought your name was Bones?" the security said.
"Bones, McCoy, whatever," he shrugged. "I'm a doctor, that's all you need to know. Might want to get that nose looked at."
"Doctor McCoy and the captain were asked to be here," Robert continued, Charlie and Rachel catching each other's attention, both with the same look of confusion on their face. "I just hadn't told Dr. Noland. You may leave Lieutenant, Staff Sargent."
"Colonel, I –"
"Your opinion wasn't asked for, Major." He turned back to the soldiers. "Dismissed."
The lieutenant glared at the back of Jim's head as he lowered his weapon and turned to walk away, running a hand under his nose to finally stop the bleeding. Charlie and the others lowered their arms, the girls automatically moving to an at ease position with their legs spread and their arms behind their backs.
"Robert what are you talking about?" Margaret turned to her husband, emulating the same puzzlement as her daughters.
Robert ignored her. "The rest of you, out. OUT!"
The technicians all scurried from the room, the door closing with a soft whoosh behind them.
"Colonel, Doctor Noland, what is going on?" the major asked, his expression pinched. "Why didn't you tell me we'd have guests? Now is really not the time, not when we're so close to getting the serum correct."
"They weren't supposed to be here, but I'm not going to destroy their careers for this. Rick, if you could give us a moment. And I'd appreciate your discretion with this."
Rick regarded the scene and gave a curt nod. "I won't report this. Not yet. But you'll owe me, Noland. For my discretion."
Robert scowled but nodded. The major glanced once more at the group in puzzlement, then shaking his head left as well.
"Why did you protect us?" Charlie asked hesitantly when the doors closed, her brows drawn low.
"I guess you have finally lived up to our name," Robert said as if it was the most obviously thing in the world. "It was brave to sneak in here. Stupid, but brave."
"Sometimes, I don't know with you," Margaret rolled her eyes. "Charlotte, Rachel, I am not kidding. You've put yourself in serious trouble coming here. And bringing the captain and doctor with you."
"I understand, Mom," Charlie said. "But you can't work on augments."
"Why not?"
"Because they're raging psychopaths?" McCoy butt in. "Listen, Dr. Noland, I'm a medical doctor, with experience in what you're trying to do. Let me tell you augments are not kittens. They're as strong as ten men, they're ruthless and cunning, they have a dramatically low moral compass, and they regenerate at a rate that's unheard of."
"Which is exactly why we need them."
"Are you even listening?!" Charlie shouted.
"Charlie, you've been gone so long you don't know what's going on here. ISIS is growing at an alarming rate, their influences are shoving people out of their home countries, they're bombing schools, parks, festivals. We need to stop them."
"Then there's got be to another answer. There has to be another way."
"If you wanted to give us some of what you know, maybe we wouldn't need them." Robert had a calculating gleam to his eyes.
"You know we can't do that," Jim said, steel behind his tone as he glared at her father. "We have a prime directive we have to follow."
"So, wouldn't stopping our research go against that?" Robert challenged.
"We're not giving you an advantage," Charlie argued, exasperated. "We're just trying to stop you from making a mistake that could cost this world more than it's willing to spend."
"Charlotte, you see one thread in a tapestry that's being woven here. There's more than you think."
"Don't patronize me, Mother," Charlie spat. "I know a hell of a lot more than you give me credit for. I've seen threats that would make your blood run cold. I won't stand by while you put this family, this country, and this planet into needless danger."
"We're trying to save it!" Robert shouted. "You've been gone for three years. You haven't seen the changes, seen the chaos that is slowly consuming this planet. If we can rid this strong threat, we'll be safer."
"When has that ever worked, Colonel?" Charlie challenged. "Can you honestly give me a time in history when this planet was without conflict? Certainly wasn't when we were scratching a living out of the soil. Or when the Romans were in power. It definitely wasn't during the crusades, or colonization, in fact it seemed to have gotten worse after we dropped the damn bomb. So tell me, when will we actually be safe?"
"That's why we're doing this now, Charlotte. To create a better world."
"But they won't. Sure, I suppose this world will be safe under a global dictatorship."
"Dr. Noland, we understand your motivation," Jim tried to placate. "But even with all the advancements we've made in our century, augments still tried to destroy what we had built. They killed without a second thought; murdered to get their way. We couldn't control them. How do you think you could?"
"We will take your concerns into consideration, but I will not stop this project," Margret confirmed.
"We owe it to the people to protect them," Robert continued. "I'm sorry that as whatever you are, you can't see the truth in that."
"The first duty of every Starfleet officer is to the truth, whether it's scientific truth or historical truth or personal truth," Charlie quoted with a glare at her parents. "It is the guiding principle on which Starfleet is based. And if we can't find it within ourselves to stand up and tell the truth, we don't deserve to wear that uniform. I deserve to wear my uniform."
"Mom, Colonel, when was the last time you saw Charlie like this?" Rachel said pointing at her heated sister. "When was the last time you remember her this determined by her convictions? Because I don't. Even when she went to England, she wasn't like this. She's serious, and she's confident, and I believe her. Why can't you?"
Robert and Margaret shared a glance, uncertainty shining in her mother's eyes. Margaret took a breath, her hand coming up to wipe her forehead just as the doors behind them blasted open, throwing everyone to the ground. Charlie blinked, once, twice, and then everything went black.
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