The Possibility of Affinity (1/2)

[alaylith]

Title: The Possibility of Affinity
Artist: ileliberte 
Author: alaylith 
Rating (both art/fic): art - G / fic - PG13
Genre/Pairing: Gen
Word Count: 15.829
Warnings: a little bit of blood, language
Fic Summary: An apparently easy mission leads to a dangerous flight for Kirk, Spock and Uhura as nothing is as it appears. But it also leads to a fateful decision concerning the possibility of a very special affinity.
Link to Art: Art Master Post
Link to Fic: @My Journal

~~~ Part 1 ~~~

Captain James T. Kirk smiles warmly and gently talks with the old woman holding his hands in her own wrinkled ones. The crew of the Enterprise has just finished with their latest mission on a colonial planet and the Captain and the crew members are about to beam back on board.

A terrible illness had afflicted the inhabitants and it was thanks to Dr. McCoy, Spock and the rest of science team that the Enterprise was able to find a cure and help the people. The old woman tearfully thanking Jim had almost lost her youngest grandchild and Jim warmly accepts her words. As the woman finally takes her leave, Jim proudly oversees his crew as they bid their goodbyes.

His crew had performed remarkably and Jim already has several letters of commendation planned for those who had outdone themselves this mission. His eyes land on his stoic Vulcan commander and he smiles lightly. Spock stands at one side, a little apart from the others, and even though he appears cool and distant, the people had seen his caring side in the last few days and now warmly offer their sincere thanks for his hard work. They all know that he worked almost non-stop on the discovery of the cure; understanding that as a Vulcan he needs less rest than normal humans do.

Jim walks over to him and talks with the last remaining inhabitants before he lightly tugs on Spock's sleeve and they silently walk back towards the others. "Come on, people, it's time to go!" All crew members look up at their Captain's joyful shout and quickly gather around him. Spock takes his usual position at Jim's shoulder while the others gather in a circle at his back. Jim grins at them and then takes out his communicator. "Oi, Scotty, you can beam us up."

' Aye, aye, Captain.'

Jim looks up and right before they disappear he sees the old woman tightly embrace a little child.

His smile is still on his face when they reappear on the Enterprise and he turns to the others behind him. "Unpack your things and then get some rest. You all have the next two shifts free, so use that time."

Exhausted, but happy approvals are murmured and Jim walks towards the door with a nod at Scotty. Jim isn’t surprised that Spock follows him to the bridge, but he turns to him when they are in the lift. "I also meant you, Commander."

"I am in perfect working condition, Captain, and do not require any rest," Spock says coolly, but Jim recognizes the signs of satisfaction and relaxation in his expression. He smiles and steps out as soon as the door opens. Both walk to their seats and Jim falls back into the command chair. "Alright, Mr. Sulu and Mr. Chekov, let's get going."

"Aye, aye, Captain," both answer good-humouredly. Finally able to relax, Jim lets out a contented sigh as he lazily watches the stars on the view screen.

"Captain, Starfleet on line 1," Uhura calls and Jim groans. "Can't even sit down for a break. I’ll take the call in the conference room,” he says as he pushes himself out of his chair. “Don’t want to get my head bitten off in front of an audience.”

"Is there any reason Starfleet would - as you say - 'bite your head off'?" Spock asks.

Jim grins widely. "You should know me well enough to know the answer yourself!" He cheekily winks before the door closes behind him.

Spock shakes his head a little. "I thought as much."

Amused chuckles flitter through the air, before the crew concentrates on their work again.

xxx

Jim stands in front of the screen and tugs at his gold tunic before he pushes the button on the table. "Alright, Lieutenant, patch them through."

'Aye, aye, Captain,' Uhura answers and in the next moment the screens flickers and Admiral Pike appears on screen, a smile tugging at his lips.

"Kirk," he greets. “You look well.”

Jim grins. "You too, sir."

"Everything alright on board?" Pike asks.

Jim shrugs easily. "No one has tried to kill me in the last few weeks - so yes, I would say everything’s alright."

Pike laughs, but then sobers. "We've got a new mission for you, Captain. The Medomai of Vahan wish to start trade with Starfleet and it's your job to negotiate with them about the terms. You've got all the relevant information on your computer and the Enterprise is to set course to Vahan immediately."

Jim nods seriously and is about to salute when Pike's voice stops him. "Jim?"

"Yes, sir?" Jim asks, surprised.

Pike frowns. "I can't tell you anything else, but be careful, Jim."

Jim blinks, bemused, but nods and Pike ends the call. For a moment Jim continues to look at the screen, then he sits down at the table and looks through the data.

xxx

Jim is standing at the window, watching the stars when the door chimes. At Jim’s acknowledgement, Spock, Bones, Scotty, Uhura, Sulu and Chekov enter the room and stand at attention. Jim looks at their reflections in the glass and smiles. These people are his most trusted members of the crew and he not only thinks highly of their career abilities, but of their personal abilities as well. There is no other group of people he is more proud to call friends and comrades.

"Sit down, guys," he calls finally and everyone finds a seat. Jim is amused to see that, like always, Spock and Bones take the chairs on either side of his own.

"What's up, Jim?" Bones asks informally and leans back in his chair. "Head's still on your shoulders, I see."

Jim grins and steps back from the window to take his seat. "You would be surprised what my head can handle before it is separated from my body."

"I don’t even want to know," Bones drawls.

Spock sighs slightly, before looking at Jim. "Did we receive new orders from Starfleet, Captain?"

Bones mutters something and Jim rolls his eyes, but then nods and turns serious. "Yes, we just got our new orders."

He leans forward, folding his arms on the table in front of him.

"The Medomai are a humanoid race living on the planet Vahan. The planet has a huge supply of a special mineral – the RBT2009, which is used in some experimental technologies. Most planets only have a small amount of this mineral; Vahan is the first known planet with such a large quantity of it.

The Medomai themselves don't need the RBT2009, but they are interested in trades with Starfleet for other goods they may need. It's our job to negotiate the terms of a trade agreement with them."

The others nod, but Spock looks at him with raised eyebrow. "There is something else."

Jim's lips twitch slightly upwards and he nods slowly. "Yes, there is something. The RBT2009 gives off some light radiation. It's not dangerous to biological life, but it hinders most electronic signals and technology. The Medomai adjusted their technology to work around this, but we will have some problems.

Transporter beams and our communicators won’t work on the planet - except for a few areas where the RBT2009 doesn’t occur. This means that we will not be able to communicate with the Enterprise or with each other and beaming won’t be possible.

We’ll beam down to one of the places where it’s possible and the Medomai will collect us. Then they'll bring us to their capital - which is inside one of the mineral fields."

He turns his head towards Spock. "Spock, you'll accompany me to the surface. I will not only need your assistance in the negotiations, but your scientific expertise as well. I've already sent you the data about the RBT2009." Spock nods and Jim turns his head to Uhura, who looks up in surprise.

"Uhura, you will accompany us, too. Medomaian is not a complex language, but it relies heavily on accentuation and tone of voice. The universal translator is able to translate the language, but cannot convey what the Medomai express with their voice. As a trained xenolinguist you should be able to help us with the finer points of the language."

She nods and Jim looks at Scotty. "Scotty, with Spock and I absent, you will take over command of the Enterprise. The plan is for us to stay 10 hours in the capital before we will return to the pickup point and contact you again. The Enterprise will stay in orbit, but you will have to be careful to keep a steady distance. Because of the rich deposit of the mineral it can be dangerous if the Enterprise draws too near to the planet. We will have to specify the correct distance as soon as we arrive."

"Aye aye, Captain," Scotty acknowledges.
Bones raises one hand. "Captain?"

"Don't worry, Bones," Jim says, leaning back in his seat. "There are no known diseases on Vahan or any bacteria or viruses or whatever that are dangerous to humans or Vulcans. There is nothing for you to worry about."

Bones frowns, his gut disagreeing, and he shrugs slightly. "Even if we were to visit the healthiest, cleanest and safest planet in the whole galaxy, you would still be able to get sick, Jim."

Jim laughs.

Sulu dips his head slightly. "Captain, is it alright for you three to go on the planet by yourselves? Are we sure there aren’t any more dangers?"

< I can't tell you anything else, but be careful, Jim. >

Jim just shrugs and folds his arms behind his head with a grin. "Don't worry, the Admiralty checked and double checked it. They wouldn't send their flagship to a planet if they thought there would be any kind of danger. I’m sure that it will be a piece of cake."

He winks cheekily before adding. "I am the best after all."

He laughs heartily as the others grin slightly, with only Spock shaking his head and Uhura sighing slightly with only one thought in her mind. 'This is going to be fun...'.

xxx

Spock is kneeling on the ground, his eyes closed in mediation, when the timer of his computer beeps and he raises his head. He collects himself for a moment before he rises and walks towards his desk. He adjusts the temperature and gravity of the room, which resemble the temperature and gravity of the lost Vulcan, to more comfortable settings for a human.

Not a minute later his door chimes and immediately opens for the only person who has instant access to his room.

"Spock?"

Not understanding why the Captain still asks for permission to enter, Spock turns around and looks at him. "Captain."

Jim grins, and then enters the room and the door closes behind him with a whoosh. "Don't tell me you were waiting for me?"

"As we agreed on this time to meet it would be illogical to wait for you as I already know when you will arrive," Spock answers calmly and is surprised by the emotion which is visible in Jim's eyes for a moment. It looks like amusement and fondness, but as he is not well versed in the feelings of humans - even after living for years among them - he cannot be sure.

Spock shakes himself mentally and holds his hand toward the table where the chess game is already set. "Please sit, Captain. Would you like anything to drink?"

Jim shakes his head, wandering over to his seat and sitting down and looking to Spock who takes the other chair. They silently start to play, but after a few moves Jim hesitates and Spock looks up at him.

"The last move was a mistake; you have already lost the game."

Jim nods, but still makes his next move. Spock counters, even though there is no sense in continuing.

It would be an understatement to say that Spock was surprised when Jim asked him if he would be willing to teach his Captain the game. Jim has a clever mind and is able to come up with brilliant strategies. He could be an incredible chess player, but somehow it is not easy for him to learn the game.

Spock tried several approaches to teach him, but besides the basics Jim is not able to play properly. And they are only playing normal chess as three-dimensional chess is absolutely impossible for them to play, even though Jim asked especially for that kind of game. Nevertheless they play often, several times a week, because Jim is not willing to give up.

Spock cannot understand why Jim is so vehement about this.

< "I want to do this, Spock," Jim declares strongly, a strange fire burning in his eyes.

Spock just shakes his head. "Why?"

"Because...," Jim falters and turns his head. "Just because." >

Spock never tried to reason with his Captain again or ask for any reasons. He accepts it as one of the many confusing aspects of Jim's personality, something which he is still exploring even after weeks of their shared living on the Enterprise.

As Jim makes another disastrous move without any outward reaction, Spock is not sure what Jim hopes to gain from these evenings. It is in no way logical and therefore Spock finds that he is unable to understand. He wonders if there will ever come a day that he will be able to understand his captain.

xxx

Bones growls while treating one engineer with a slight burn on his arm. The engineer casts scared looks at the doctor and shudders with each growl. Nurse Chapel stifles giggles as she assists the doctor and keeps a calming hand on the engineer's shoulders - otherwise he would have already fled the sickbay.

A whoosh signals the opening door and a blonde head peaks around the door. Jim grins slightly when he hears Bones growling at his patient. "Heya, Bones, watcha doing?"

A loud growl and a whimper from the engineer are his answers and Jim shares an amused look with Chapel.

"If you are not deathly hurt or ill, it would be better if you get your hide out of my sickbay, Captain," Bones threatens.

Jim raises his hands in surrender. "Well, you see - when I walk through the corridors there are always some snippets of conversation going around which I just can't ignore. Some of those snippets are about how every crew member at the moment is extra careful to not get hurt because, plainly said, everyone is scared to enter sickbay."

Jim enters the room fully and points at the poor engineer. "This guy included, if I may point out."

Bones raises his head from the wound and looks the engineer directly in the eyes, causing the man to whimper and draw back slightly, his eyes almost filled with tears of fear. Chapel bites down on her lips to keep from laughing out loud and Bones throws her an annoyed look.

A hand on his shoulder prompts Bones to turn and look into the blue eyes of his Captain, which are mostly filled with amusement. But McCoy knows his friend well enough to see the worry hidden beneath the calm facade.

"Why don't we let the beautiful and charming Chapel tend to this poor guy and we'll have a little chat in your office about how we can assure the crew that their heads will not be bitten of as soon as they enter sickbay," Jim says with a short nod to Chapel. He grins. "Well, at least not before you treated their wounds."

Bones grunts and lets Chapel take over. Jim pulls him from the room and they walk into the doctor's office. The door closes and McCoy walks over to his chair to wearily sit down. He rubs his forehead and then looks up to see Jim still standing in front of the closed door and watching him with questioning eyes.

"I’ve got a bad feeling about this mission," Bones admits, knowing that there is no sense in beating around the bush.

Jim's eyebrows draw together and he leans slightly on one foot, a movement Bones recognizes as confusion and that Jim isn’t sure how he should react.

"Do not ask," Bones sighs before Jim can open his mouth. "I can’t say why, it’s just a gut feeling. A bad gut feeling."

"Bones, you always worry," Jim says slowly, still thinking about the right thing to say to calm his friend's worry. "You’re a doctor – it’s your job to be worried. But there is really nothing about this mission that should worry you like this. You worry yourself sick this way and that’s not helpful."

"Damn, Jim, I know that logically there’s nothing to be worried about," Bones growls and rubs his forehead with both hands. "But this premonition is so strong that I can taste it. There is something just wrong with this damn mission and there is nothing I can do about it."

A cold shudder runs over Jim's back as he remembers Pike's warning and for a moment he almost shares Bones' bad feeling. Then he shakes his head and walks over to sit on the desk at his friend's side. "Hey, don’t worry. There’s nothing wrong, all the information we got guarantees us that this is an easy assignment.

While we are on the planet the Enterprise has nothing to do and the crew gets a well earned rest. Everyone's already looking forward to the calm days ahead. And there is no need for you to worry about me."

Jim smiles softly, knowing that Bones' greatest fear is always for him and he feels extremely honoured to have such a man to love him enough to worry so much about him. He puts his hand on Bones' shoulder and kneads the tense muscles. "I won’t be alone. Spock will be there and even if I am at my wits’ end, Spock will be sure to figure something out. And there's Uhura, too. She can be quite scary when she's angry - I should know that."

Bones snorts, amused and they both share a wide grin before Bones sobers and gives Jim a serious look. "Just promise me that you are going to be okay."

Jim blinks, realising that 'to be okay' is different from 'won’t get hurt' and he frowns as he recognizes the helpless plea in his friend‘s eyes.

It has to be painful to live with the knowledge that you aren’t able to protect your friend against injuries; that you can only watch and hope for the best.

"Don't worry, Bones. I’m always going to be okay."

And if the time ever comes that he is not, Jim silently prays that Bones will not be there.

xxx

When Jim, followed by Bones, enters the transportation room, Spock and Uhura are already there talking with Scotty at the controls.

Jim grins when he hears the low curse from behind and then walks over to the others.

"Ready to go?" Spock and Uhura both nod and Jim looks at Scotty and Bones. "And you two behave up here. I do not want to come back to find the whole crew cowering in fear or totally drunk. Understood?"

Scotty sighs dejectedly and Bones snorts. "You know how to take all the fun out of it, Captain."

Jim chuckles and then looks seriously at his chief engineer. "I’m serious, Scotty. You have your orders and I demand that you follow them to the letter."

Scott nods, somewhat bemused by Jim’s vehemence.

Bones puts a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Be careful down there. You’re always finding trouble, Jim."

"It's not my fault, Bones," Jim laughs cheekily. "The trouble always finds me."

Bones rolls his eyes, but squeezes Jim's shoulder for a moment.

Spock turns towards the pads. "It is time, Captain."

Jim nods his head shortly, then all three move to stand on the pads. "Alright, energize, Mr. Scott."

"Have fun, Captain," Scotty winks and in the next moment all three are gone.

Bones shudders slightly. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

He’s surprised when Scotty turns towards him with a frown on his face. "Aye, me too."

xxx

Vahan is a planet very similar to Earth, its flora especially. The greatest difference is that there are almost no oceans or lakes on Vahan, but there are several regions covered in snow and ice in the middle of the green landscape.

Jim, Spock and Uhura appear on a small clearing at the edge of a great forest. Spock takes out his tricorder and scans the area while Jim folds his arms across his chest and smiles at Uhura.

"Nice place, kinda reminds me of Earth."

"Yes, it is very similar to our planet," Uhura says and looks around. "But it’s very silent... I can’t hear any birds."

"There are only a few species of animal life on Vahan," Spock explains while studying the readings on his tricorder. "There is no type of flying creature, likely due to the mineral's radiation."

"But the radiation isn't dangerous," Uhura says.

Spock puts his tricorder away and looks at them. "It is not, but it influences the magnetic fields of the planet. It would disturb any flying creature's sense of equilibrium, just as it disturbs our technology. Vahan’s fauna is completely land bound and even those are limited."

A roaring sound cuts through the air and red lights appear over the edge of the trees.

"I think our taxi's coming!" Jim calls and only a few minutes later a huge dark vessel with glaring red lights appears over their heads.

It hovers over them and lowers to the ground, until the three are almost able to touch the metal over their heads. A door opens and a ramp is extended. Two Medomai appear and walk down towards them.

The Medomai are mostly humanoid, but they have longer limbs and smaller torsos. Their necks and faces are longer, as well. Their eyes are like the eyes of an insect, totally black, and their ears are flat and small.

Their clothing consists of a suit which completely covers their torso, but their limbs are free and their long feet end in claws just like their long fingers.

The two Medomai reach the ground and come to a stop in front of him. They fold their arms over their head and bend their knees.

"Welcome, Starfleet. We are honoured by your presence," one Medomai says, his voice kind of scratchy, but the tone wavers a bit.

Jim, Spock and Uhura bow slightly, the expected greeting of foreigners on Vahan. "It is our honour to be welcomed on Vahan," Jim answers calmly, his voice carefully even. As the Medomai are extremely influenced by the voice you use, foreigners should always keep their voice even and neutral to not accidentally convey an unintended meaning to their words.

"My name is Med'Are," one of the Medomai introduces himself. "And the other is Med'Achos. We will be your escorts for your stay."

"My name is Kirk," Jim introduces himself. Medomai only have one name and cannot really understand why other beings need more than one, so it is best to introduce yourself with one name. "And the others are Spock and Uhura. We will be your guests for our stay."

Both Medomai nod, pleased by Jim's correct execution of their own customs and they turn towards their vessel. "Follow us. We will bring you to our capital for the negotiations."

Uhura looks up, surprised, noticing a shift in voice, but is unable to decipher the meaning of it.

They enter the huge vessel and are led to a room at the front of the ship. There are benches and tables and a huge glass window allows them to look outside.

Jim strides confidently to the window and looks outside. Both Medomai, recognizing him as the leader of the group, follow him and stand slightly behind him. Uhura walks to one bench and sits down. She's determined to fully concentrate on the speech patterns of the Medomai to learn the tones of their voices quickly. Spock walks nearer to his captain, but stands several feet away so as not to be seen as intruding to the conversation.

"What is the name of this ship?" Jim asks. "It is an extraordinary piece of technology and she is quite graceful in mastering the effects of the radiation."

"You honour us with your perception, Kirk," Med'Are bows slightly. "This is one of our greatest - the Pertho."

Kirk nods, crossing his arms in front of his chest and rubbing them slightly. Since meeting the Medomai he can't help but feel a sense of unease. There is something quite fishy about these two. And he had noticed Uhura's reaction, which convinced him that it was the right choice to take her along.

He wasn’t able to notice any difference in the speech of the Medomai, which she clearly heard, even though she couldn’t be sure about the reasons yet. She would need to hear more of the language to be able to recognize the reasons.

A small smile tugs at his lips, unseen by any other. It seems that his work begins before they even reach the capital.

After all - talking is one of his specialities.

xxx

Uhura sits silently on the bench and watches her captain, while he talks animatedly with the two Medomai.

Since the Pertho started her engines, Jim has been talking almost non-stop to their companions, always asking questions and telling different tales, prompting the Medomai to respond in kind to his chatter. He covers a variety of topics, sporadically jumping from one to another in a matter of minutes.

It is quite noisy and somewhat boring - if he were talking to Uhura like this she would have already given him a hard smack. But his chattering helps her to analyze the voice patterns of their hosts; she already recognizes most of the emotional nuances and can easily distinguish what the Medomai are saying with their words and what they are really meaning with their voice.

And it makes her uneasy, because she is now pretty sure that the tone of voice used earlier when they entered the vessel indicated that the Medomai were lying.

She is so absorbed in her observations that she doesn’t notice when one of the two Medomai walks over to her and waits patiently in front of her. She blinks and turns her head from the back of her captain, who's still talking with the other, and looks up at the Medomai. She doesn’t know his name because the Medomai all look almost identical.

"We never heard what your task in Starfleet is, Uhura," the Medomai - Med'Are, she (realizes,) now recognizing his voice - says slowly. The words themselves are a simple statement, but she can clearly hear the questioning undertone of his voice. And there is something else... something sinister...

"I am a communications officer," she answers the unasked question, ignoring her hunch. A subtle shift in Med'Are's body alerts her to his surprise.

"A communications officer? Then what is your part in our negotiations about a trading partnership?" Now she can clearly hear the distrust and suspicion in his voice.

Before she can answer a cool voice interrupts her.

"She has no part in the negotiations."

Both turn to look at Kirk as he appears at their sides and coldly watches Med'Are. His whole demeanour is relaxed and friendly, but Uhura can see the hard look in his eyes and how tense his shoulders are beneath his golden tunic.

"As far as I know you have several problems with your long-distance communication because of the radiation," Jim explains evenly. "I asked Uhura to accompany us to have a look; she may be able to give advices about changes to the communication technology which may be helpful."

There is no hint of a lie in his voice, but she recognizes in his eyes the order to not even think about correcting him. So she numbly nods when Med'Are looks to her and Jim turns back towards Med'Achos who he left by the window.

"I would like to ask you a few more questions, which Med'Achos wasn't able to answer," Jim announces and walks back to the window, making sure that Med'Are follows him.
Dumbfounded, Uhura looks after them, surprised that Kirk not only lied to Med'Are about her, but that he also seems to be monopolizing their whole attention on purpose.

He is already in deep conversation with the two again and Uhura turns to look at Spock who stands several feet from their commanding officer and seems to be absorbed in his tricorder. But he immediately raises his head to meet her eyes and she can see the same confusion in his eyes which she herself experiences.

Something was definitely not right about this mission.

xxx

It seems an eternity before the Medomai excuse themselves and leave them alone.

Jim remains at the window, unmoving, his hands clasps behind his back and his eyes looking off into the distance. Spock and Uhura both wait several minutes before they nod to each other and walk over to their captain.

"Captain," Spock says calmly.

Jim nods at his reflection. "Yes, Mr. Spock?"

"There is something we need to talk about," Spock continues.

Uhura nods, a small frown on her face. "You asked me to listen to the Medomai and to learn to understand the tone of their voices, but you told Med'Are another reason for my attendance."

"And what did you learn, Lieutenant?" Jim asks slowly, his voice still even from his conversation with the Medomai.

Uhura looks for a moment at Spock, then squares her shoulders and holds her head high. What she is going to say will have a huge impact on the mission. She has to be sure and she is.

"The Medomai are not always truthful. Any kind of statement which is somehow connected to our mission had the undertone of deception; their voice always indicated that they were lying. Many of their questions were tinged with distrust and were meant to spy for information. I don’t believe they truly have negotiations in mind, but something else."

"I have to agree with her," Spock says quietly, mindful of any spies. "I studied all of our information intensely and everything is not as it seems. The Medomai stressed that they are in dire need of a trading partnership with Starfleet, but truthfully there is nothing of value we are able to offer them. They have everything they need - there are no logical reasons for them to ask for our support. I cannot see what they hope to gain from these negotiations."

"Well, there may be nothing they could gain from the negotiations," Jim finally speaks, his mouth set in a grim line. "But I don’t believe that there are even going to be any negotiations."

Uhura and Spock look up, surprised, and Jim points with his chin out the window. The vessel still flies over a forest, but in front of them glitters a lake and the tops of mountains are visible in the distance.

"The moving pattern and slow speed of the Pertho easily cover any directing movements and the landscape is almost identical on the whole planet," Jim continues, his voice tight. His whole demeanour changed from an amiable conversationalist to a stern captain within moments of the Medomai leaving the room.

"But the Pertho has slowly changed her course since we started. We are now heading north and the capital lies in the eastern regions of the planet. The negotiations were only a decoy. There is something else the Medomai want."

"You knew all along!" Uhura accuses. "That's why you took me with you, not to help with the negotiations, but to find anything wrong with what they are saying. You suspected even before we left the Enterprise that there was something not right with the mission."

"Why did you not inform us of this, Captain?" Spock demands to know. Jim sighs a bit before turning around and looking directly at them.

"There was nothing definite to base my suspicion on, especially nothing official. There was just... When Pike gave me the orders he warned me to be careful, even though he was not able to tell me anything. For him to say something like that had to ring some alarm bells. The Admiralty gave us the information that there was nothing dangerous or difficult about this mission. But Pike..."

Spock frowns darkly. "So the Admiralty withheld important information, risking the Enterprise in the process. Admiral Pike may be forced to obey, but he is a man of honours. He would never allow us to run blindly into danger."

Jim nods. "Exactly, but I still had to made sure. That's why I needed your assistance, Uhura. I saw that you noticed something wrong with the Medomai which I wasn't able to realize. I tried to give you as much input as possible so you were able to learn fast and as soon as Med'Are got suspicious I drew his attention away from you."

Uhura blinks surprised. "So that's why you were talking with them non-stop... And you were always looking out of the window to measure our route...?"

"What do we do now, Captain?" Spock asks when Jim falls into a thoughtful silence. "There is no way to contact the Enterprise and they will not be suspicious for the next 7.25 hours. Even then they will not be able to do anything except contact the Admiralty, but the Admiralty already assumes that there are going to be complications. And we know nothing about the true intentions of the Medomai."

"That's all quite true, Spock," Jim says finally. "We have to find out what the Medomai have planned and then we need to get away. We have to reach a place where we can reach the Enterprise."

He walks towards the door and looks out into the hallway. "We will go to the cockpit, our two Meds and the commanding officer will be there. Maybe we’ll be able to hear something. And then we'll get the hell out of here."

"But do you know where the cockpit is?" Uhura asks.

Jim looks over his shoulders and grins brightly.

"Of course. They told me."

xxx

Jim walks carefully through the corridors, Spock and Uhura right behind him. All three move as silently as possible, so they can hear if anyone is coming. Already they had narrowly avoided detection when Spock had heard three Medomai coming towards them.

Jim enters another long hallway and slows his steps. He stops in front of a door at the end and looks at his two companions. They both stand to his sides and they silently open the door a bit - as most technology is influenced by the radiation, the Medomai only use technology where they really need it. Because of that their doors are old-fashioned and can be opened by hand.

A small opening lets the sounds from the inside drift out and Jim peers carefully through it into the room.

It’s the cockpit. Inside, Med'Are and Med'Achos are talking with a third Medomai. He differs greatly from the other two - he is larger and wears a different more military style of clothing. Jim recognizes him as the commander of the Pertho.

"We will arrive at our camp soon," the commander informs his companions. "The Starfleet officers should not notice anything until they are already in our hands."

"Starfleet will have to bow to our demands as soon as we have their most valuable commanding officer in our hands," Med'Are says and Uhura shudders at the greed she can hear in his voice. "He will be no more than a puppet."

"What about the other two?" Med'Achos inquires. "Do they have any value?"

"No, they are useless to us," the commander decides. "We will kill them as soon as we apprehend Kirk."

Jim cringes, a scowl twisting his lips. Spock and Uhura share a look as Jim straightens. He turns halfway, his hand raised to indicate that they should move, when he catches sight of Medomais entering the hallway behind them.

"Damn!" he curses, jumping forward and startling Spock and Uhura. Jim crashes with full speed into the two Medomais, knocking them over, and then turns back. "MOVE!!! "

Uhura and Spock jump over the Medomais and run back the way they came. Jim rises to follow them, but just after a few steps a Medomai grabs his ankle and he falls flat to the ground. Spock stops and turns around, but Jim interrupts his movements before Spock can return. "RUN! That's an order!"

For a short moment Spock is indecisive, but then his obedience wins and he turns to run after Uhura. Jim feels relief, knowing that both will be able to get away. Then he is grabbed by long claws and pulled back to his feet. They push him into the cockpit and dump him in front of the commander.

"I believe we underestimated you, Kirk," the commander growls.

Jim grins cheekily. "Most do. Makes my job easy."

"But it does not matter. Your companions are of no use to us and they will not be able to leave the planet. Whether we kill them directly or they die in the wilderness is of no consequence to us. We have you. That's all we need."

Jim's eyes wander over the room, recognizing the similar design and functionality to other ships and finds what he is looking for. "Well, you may have caught me, but are you able to keep me?"

Faster than anyone is able to react Jim jumps over to the pilot seat and wrenches the helm around, simultaneously pushing all the buttons he can reach on the console.

A high wailing sound vibrates through the Pertho and she rolls to one side, her nose dipping downwards. Through the window Jim can see the lake in front of them, the Pertho heading straight for the water.

Then pain blossoms at his side and he screams hoarsely, instinctively kicking back and hitting one of the commander's legs. It buckles and the commander falls back with a grunt, painfully pulling the knife out of Jim's side as he does so. Jim grits his teeth and presses one hand to the wound, then staggers towards the door.

All members of the crew are desperate to control the ship and only Med'Are and Med'Achos are watching him. He looks at them for a moment, but both are taking steps back. These Medomai may be cunning and evil, but most of the population are not brutal. Only members of their military are able and willing to fight.

Jim leaves the cockpit before the commander is able to get back to his feet and runs as fast as he can through the corridors. He hopes Spock and Uhura were able to reach the exit and have already left the vessel. Any moment they will crash into the lake and he is not sure how much damage the Pertho can sustain before she explodes.

A sharp pain reminds him of the wound and the warm blood trickles through his fingers. He would like to stop, but he has to go on. He has to make sure his crew is safe.

He has to protect them at all costs.

xxx

Spock and Uhura reach the exit when a huge impact throws them of their feet and they bang against the walls. Screeching sirens and red lights fill the air and water starts to fill the ship.

"It seems that we crashed into the lake," Spock comments.

Uhura snorts uncharacteristically. "It's more like Jim crashed us into the lake."

Spock shoots her a short look, but then his ears pick up the sound of uneven steps and in the next moment Jim staggers around the corner.

"What's the holdup?! Open the damn door and get out!" he hollers and makes shooing moves with his hands.

Spock, assured that Jim is behind them, turns and uses his superior strength to open the door. Water gushes in as they are just above the surface and Spock grimaces almost unnoticeably. "We have to swim to the bank," he says and then grunts as he is pushed out of the door.

"Then SWIM!" He hears Jim's shout and then he's already in the water.

Jim turns to Uhura, holding his arm out. "Do you need any help to get off the carriage, my dear lady?" Uhura just rolls her eyes and dives elegantly into the water. Jim waits until both have surfaced and are swimming towards the dry land before he takes a deep breath and jumps into the water himself.

The water is icy cold and completely dark. Only the red lights of the Pertho indicate where the surface is and Jim struggles painfully upwards. His head breaks the surface and he takes a moment to orient himself before he turns and follows Spock and Uhura.

They reach the bank and run towards the forest, Spock leading the way and Jim bringing up the rear. Jim stops for a moment and looks back towards the Pertho. She is already half drowned and huge red lights illuminate the outline of the black vessel.

Jim feels satisfaction for a short moment, then cringes and presses his hand back to his wound. It’s dark enough that the wound isn’t noticeable and the water had washed the blood away. Now he has to make sure that the others don’t notice anything until they are back to safety.

With a last look towards the sinking Pertho, he turns around and follows the others, disappearing into the shadows of the trees.

~~~ Part 2 ~~~