“I
am sorry Lieutenant, but that’s the best I can do for now,” Doctor Jascar
apologized. He had stopped the bleeding, but it would take some time – and a
fully equipped sickbay – to regenerate the severed muscles and nerves.
Lieutenant
Alvarez tried to move into a more comfortable position and his face twisted in
agony – the painkillers started to work, but not all his pain was physical. As
he leaned against the wall of the underground chamber he looked up to Commander
Enikal. “You still sure it was a good choice to make me head of security?”
Dar
squatted down and handed Alvarez the rifle he had dropped when the Klingon’s
bath’ let cut into his leg. “Yes. No one could have known this man was
standing in a recess, covered from our phaser fire.” The Bolian smiled in
genuine admiration. “You are still alive and I am sure you will make a full
recovery in no time at all. Other men would have been dead by now, but you
managed to avoid the worst and still took out your opponent.”
Still
smiling he stood and looked down at the security officer. “If you think you
have done badly you are asking too much off yourself. Sometimes you just run out
off luck and all you can do at those moments is to make the best of it, which
you certainly did.”
Lieutenant
Alvarez softly laughed. At least that didn’t hurt. “You know, … oh forget
it. What now?”
Commander
Enikal turned to the twisted doorframe that lead into what could only be an
ancient Klingon vessel. “You and Doctor Jascar stay here. You,” he pointed
at the enlisted security man, “go to the head of the tunnel and stay on the
lookout for any Klingon reinforcements.”
The
security guard nodded. If they were unable to beam out, the Klingons would be
unable to beam in as well. He checked the energy reserve on his rifle and
replaced the capacitor cell before he moved out.
Dar
Enikal addressed the Valkyrie’s Ops Officer. “Moira, you are with me.
We are going in.”
* * * * *
Ben
stood and stretched. For over an hour he and Tarin had tried to think of a way
to make the best of a bad situation, but so far they had gotten nowhere. If the
away team got their hands on the Klingon relic they could neither keep it nor
hand it over to Gowron. Either way could lead straight to the war with the
Klingon Empire they needed to avoid at all costs.
He
started to pace up and down Tarin’s living room. Just walking around sometimes
helped Ben to focus his thoughts and now that his fiancée had decided to take a
quick shower he wouldn’t irritate her with his little habit.
‘If
Vontar gets the armor Gowron will get it eventually… If Gowron gets it, it
will strengthen his position on the High Council … He will do something with
that power sooner or later and starting a war is just what a Klingon would
do…’
Ben
clenched his right hand into a fist and slammed it on the palm of his left hand.
‘Damm!’
he thought.
Now,
what if they kept the armor, what would that lead them into? Tarin and he had
been going over everything and that didn’t seem like a viable option either.
As long as the Federation or Starfleet withheld one of their most revered relics
from the Klingons, the war would come sooner rather than later.
Ben’s
thoughts started to run in circles and again his fist hit his open palm. “Damm!”
If this was an engineering problem he would know what to do, but it wasn’t and
all he could do was provide Tarin with a sounding board for her own thoughts and
ideas.
‘Maybe
I should look at it from a different angle’, he thought. “What if this was
an engineering problem? What if I had to handle a volatile substance that could
explode any second and getting it off the ship was no option, what would I
do?’
When
the door opened and Tarin stepped into the room Ben turned around. He hardly
noticed that she was only dressed in a towel. A thought had hit him and he
answered Tarin’s smile with a wide grin. Both spoke at the same time:
|
“I
have an idea.” |
“I
have an idea.” |
* * * * *
"I
can't believe this ship is so well preserved," Dar whispered. The walls and
doors were bent out of shape in some places, rusted and tarnished in others, but
considering the vessel had embedded itself deep into a hill it had survived the
crash remarkably well.
Moira
O'Shea silently agreed with the Bolian as she slowly made her way down the
ladder to the next lower deck. The old Klingon ship must have tried to make an
emergency landing on one of the wider boulevards of the city, only to slam into
the hill that marked one end of the avenue.
Both
Starfleet officers stopped dead in their tracks when they heard faint sounds
from up ahead. Dimming their flashlights to the lowest possible setting they
waited. There it was again - the sound of metal on metal and muffled voices.
As
they slowly made their way down the hallway the voices got louder and now Dar
and Moira could see the light shining from one of the rooms further ahead. They
switched off their flashlights and waited again. The sounds had become louder
and now they could make out two voices speaking Klingon. Whatever they had to
say to each other, they seemed agitated and more than a little angry.
Commander
Enikal re-set his phaser to a wide-angle beam and hoped the Klingons hadn’t
heard them. If he survived this mission he would have to ask Commander Tucker or
some other engineer if it was really necessary to have Starfleet equipment make
so much noise. Under other circumstances he wouldn’t even have noticed, but
now each ‘beep’ from phaser or tricorder seemed to put his and Moira’s
life in danger.
He
motioned for Lieutenant O’Shea to stay a few steps behind him and slowly crept
forward. After a few meters the clanging of metal on metal became faster and
louder, almost furious. Then it stopped. Another meter and a loud ‘Bang’
came from the open doorway, as if someone had hit a wall with all his might.
Now
Dar had almost made it to the door. Slowly he stood. At the same instant he
heard the heavy footsteps from inside, heading for the corridor, but it was too
late.
* * * * *
The
Klingon’s surprise didn’t last long enough. Before Commander Enikal could
bring his phaser to bear, the huge man attacked.
As
the Klingon was over two meters tall and towered above Dar Enikal, Moira
couldn’t get a clear shot. The corridor was just too dark, the fight going too
fast. Franticly she reached for the flashlight on her left wrist and took two
steps forward at the same time. She should have never stayed so far behind
Commander Enikal, but sneaking up on the Klingons was difficult enough for one
alone and it had almost worked.
Dar
dropped his phaser. He needed both hands in a close-quarters fight like this and
now he and the Klingon faced each other empty handed. The Bolian moved in
closer. He had to deny his opponent the advantage of his longer reach, even if
that meant risking a grapple.
As
the Klingon attacked with an uppercut, the Commander’s training took over and
he stopped thinking about his actions. He deflected the blow with his left arm
and hit the Klingon’s face with a palm strike. The huge man stumbled back,
then lunged at him again, his arms stretched forward to grab the Bolian’s
throat.
Commander
Enikal took a quick step forward between the arms of his opponent and the
Klingon reached over his shoulders. Before the Klingon had a chance to grapple
him in a bear-hug Dar turned on his heel and added his body’s momentum to the
force of the strike that hit the large man’s solar plexus. The Bolian finished
his half-turn and executed an elbow strike, backwards into the Klingon’s
stomach.
As
the Commander dropped down on the floor and rolled away from his opponent, Moira
felled the Klingon with a phaser blast.
As
fast as he could Dar grabbed his own phaser again and got on his feet.
* * * * *
Commander
Enikal took a quick glance into the room, then withdrew immediately. “It’s
him, just as we expected.”
“What’s
he doing?”
“Nothing.
He’s just standing there, about three meters into the room, but he has his
sword ready. Still,” he added in a whisper, “I think we could stun him any
time we wanted.” He lowered his phaser. “Are you sure what the Klingons told
you about this guy can be trusted?”
The
Lieutenant considered her answer carefully. Her answer would determine their
next step and maybe their very lives depended on it. “Yes.”
Dar
Enikal holstered his phaser and Moira followed his example. “Then we should
try talking to him. I just wish I knew what to say to a Klingon like him.”
“Do
you want me to handle it?”
“I
thought you weren’t much of an expert on Klingons, Lieutenant.” The
Commander allowed himself a small, wry, smile as he looked at the Valkyrie’s
Ops officer.
“I
never said I was,” Moira replied, “but I guess I know more about them than
you.”
Dar
knew she was right and he motioned towards the open doorframe. “Be my
guest.”
Moira
breathed deeply and took a step forward. ‘Why the hell did I offer to do
this?’
* * * * *
As
the turbolift doors opened and Tarin and Ben stepped onto the Valkyrie’s
bridge, the young Centauran was already in command. “Report.”
“We have a warp signature on long-range sensors, heading our way,” Rishana reported, as she vacated the center seat and took her position at the helm controls.
“Federation
or Klingon?”
Lieutenant
Hagen checked the sensor read-outs again. “I am not sure. It’s coming from
the direction of L-351, but that course leads them pretty close to the Akadon
sun. Unless they get a lot closer I have no idea who or what it is.”
Commander
Tucker had seated himself on the left of the Captain. Now he swiveled his chair
around and looked at his fiancée. “Shouldn't we hail them?” he asked.
Tarin
nodded. “That would be the logical course of action, but… as I am still in
my quarters, that’s not for me to decide.” She rose from the CO’s chair
and headed for the ready room doors. “Lieutenant Hagen, proceed at your own
discretion.”
When
the doors closed behind Ben and her, the last thing Tarin could hear was
Rishana’s order: “Hail that ship, but make it a tightly focused
transmission. We don’t want anyone to listen in on this call.”
* * * * *
Tarin
finished her call to Ambassador Satek and joined Ben on the couch.
“Well,
aren’t you supposed to go back to your quarters?” he asked.
“I
guess I am, but would you?” Commander Tucker just shook his head and Tarin set
down on his right. “Isn’t it funny we both had the same idea at the same
time?”
“Not
really,” Ben slowly answered. “What I can’t believe is that we didn’t
think of it sooner. It seems so obvious now.”
Tarin
leaned back and starred at the ceiling for a few seconds before looking at him.
“I am not surprised. I told Commander Westmore a few days ago that many
Starfleet officers are out off their league when it comes to politics and now I
think it’s even more true than I thought then.” She sighed and gave Ben a
wry smile. “We tried so hard to see the big picture that we neglected the
small, but important details.”
“I
guess we did.” He gently touched Tarin’s shoulder. “I hope you don’t
feel bad about it.”
She
tilted her head to rest her cheek on Ben’s hand. “No, I don’t. I guess
it’s a lesson I had to learn, but… there is something else that really
worries me.”
“What
is it?” Ben brushed Tarin’s hair from her forehead and leaned his head
against hers.
“What
if Captain Blake was right? What if I have done more to start the war than to
prevent it?” For a second Tarin scolded herself for letting Ben see her so
insecure. He was her fiancé and her lover, but he was also an officer serving
under her command and yet she couldn't move away from him and the support his
closeness offered.
“Part
of me thinks I made a terrible mistake. I saw no other way, but maybe I should
have looked harder for alternatives. There are so many things that can go
wrong…”
* * * * *
Moira
took another step forward, her open hands raised to shoulder-height.
“Why
don’t we just talk?”
Vontar
slightly shifted his weight and tightened his grip on the bath’ let. “You
are only trying to distract me so your friend can shoot me.”
Dar
took a step forward and stood behind Lieutenant O’Shea, his arms raised in the
same “hands-up” posture. “No, I am not.”
The
Klingon didn’t relax. He knew why the Starfleeters had come and the female
officer confirmed his suspicions.
“We
can’t let you take what you came for, not after you massacred several unarmed
scientists.”
Vontar
frowned. “I didn’t kill them.”
Moira
O’Shea slowly nodded, as her hand moved down. She didn’t try to hide what
she was doing and the Klingon watched her every move. She couldn’t tear her
eyes away from his face as she reached for her phaser with thumb and forefinger.
Slowly drawing her weapon she let it clatter to the floor and took a step into
the room.
“Then
I take it your honor won’t allow you to kill me now?”
* * * * *
Vontar
lowered his sword by the fraction of an inch. “You are right. I would dishonor
myself if I killed an unarmed opponent, but I still can’t let you pass.”
He
was surprised at the course the woman had chosen, but could he really put his
own honor above the glory of the Klingon Empire? Vontar, son of Dengar, hardly
noticed that the Bolian dropped his phaser too, as the thoughts raced through
his head.
No!
How could the Empire be greater than the honor of the people it was built on? If
he followed his heart, the heart of a Klingon, how could that ever be to the
detriment of the Empire he wanted to serve? And yet, he had already stood by and
allowed Gowron's men to do things his own honor would have never allowed him to
do himself. But wasn't victory the only thing that mattered in a fight?
“I
don’t have to kill you to stop you.”
“No,”
she replied, “you don’t have to, and even unarmed you may be able to take us
both, but that’s besides the point.”
“Which
would be?” Vontar stood undaunted, but his voice betrayed some curiosity.
* * * * *
“You
know,” Ben said after a few seconds of silence, “if I ever doubted your
judgement it is now.”
Tarin
was stunned. Part of her had been afraid that he wouldn't support her decisions
in this whole affair, but to hear Ben say it out loud…
“How can you question your decisions so much?”
Her
mind tried to work out what he had just said, but she was still too shocked to
say anything before Ben continued.
“You
have made so many right decisions in your life, not just because your are bright
and smart – which you are – but because you are smart enough to trust your
intuition when you need to. Why can’t you trust your feelings now? If you
hadn’t trusted Klag, Gowron would have succeeded by now and the war with the
Klingons would be inevitable. At least now we have a chance to avoid it.”
Ben
took her chin into his hand and turned her face towards his. “I know you would
never ask your crew to do more than they can, but why must you always ask
yourself for it?”
* * * * *
Moira
sighed. For a moment she felt the weight of all the people who depended on her
resting on her shoulders and she was unable to speak, but then Commander Enikal
touched her arm and she looked over her shoulder at the Bolian.
She
had expected sympathy or encouragement, but what she saw in his face was a hint
of sadness. He knew what she was going through, Moira realized. He and the other
commanding officers had to face the same responsibility every day - lives
depended on all too many decisions he and the Captain had to make. Suddenly
Moira felt the same sadness she could see in the Bolian’s expression, not
about her own predicament, but for the Commander. If only she could do something
about it all…
“You
are already part of it,” she answered Vontar’s question, before turning her
head back to face the Klingon.
“Unarmed,
defenseless people have been slaughtered. You may not have done it yourself, but
this is your mission, your quest, your honor. Whatever you achieve here, the
blood of those dead scientists will always stain it. I know it and you know it,
too.”
She
took another step forward, away from Dar Enikal and towards the Klingon warrior.
“I know you are a man of honor, but if you retrieve Sabak’s armor, what good
will it do? What good will it be to you or the Klingon Empire now?”
“It
will be good enough for Gowron!”
Moira
spun around. The Klingon she had stunned had come around a lot faster than she
had expected, but she had no time to think about it, now that a disruptor was
aimed at her.
Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3
Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7