ken_ichijouji (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
ken_ichijouji) wrote2012-10-19 12:40 pm
ken_ichijouji) wrote2012-10-19 12:40 pm
Fic: Phoenix Invictus Book One: Child of Light (7/9)
Same headers apply from prologue.
“Captain?” Spock said as he entered Bones’ hospital room.
Jim turned to look at him; Spock carried a wooden chest under one arm5. “Hey Spock.”
The Vulcan nodded to him before looking at Bones. “Doctor McCoy.”
“Hobgoblin,” Bones said with a smile. Something crossed his face, and he turned more serious. “You’re not here on a social call.”
Spock blinked twice before replying with, “I am afraid not. The tricorders are unable to explain what exactly the Phoenix entity is doing to you. I have devised another method to test your newfound abilities.”
Bones sighed, and Jim felt sorry for him. It had to be annoying, being treated like a rat in a maze by a friend. “I’m not turning evil, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“I did not believe that to be a concern,” Spock continued, and Jim turned his gaze back to Bones. “I simply wish to see how you are handling your newfound powers.”
Bones sighed a second time and rested back against the pillows. “It’s like…I see more than you do, but not clearly. It kind of…it’s like it bleeds together, like synesthesia. All of my senses are tied together somehow, and…” he trailed off. “You both think I’m crazy.”
There was a long pause.
“I think what you’re saying makes as much sense as everything else you’ve been talking about,” Jim said, smiling at Bones to reassure him.
“It is logical that hosting an entity such as Phoenix would augment your perceptions,” Spock added. “Resurrecting yourself, and the visions you have shown us, should not be possible.”
“If I think it, I can do it,” Bones said. “But right now, I get so tired.”
Jim took his hand in his. “It’s okay, Bones. We’ll do what Spock says, and then you can rest more. Promise.”
“Fine, fine,” Bones groused. Spock set the chest down on the foot of the bed and opened it; inside it was a set of fine silverware. Bones rolled his eyes, and within seconds, the silverware lifted out of the case and into the air. “This is novice shit.”
Jim looked up as the knives all turned in 360-degree circles a foot above his head. The forks and spoons circled around Spock.
“Fascinating,” Spock said. “There are dozens of moving parts, yet you are not taxed by this. Even the Starfleet officers who tested high on the psychic sensitivity examinations would have difficulty performing this task.”
Bones shrugged, although he did start to look a little fatigued. “I actually tested pretty high on them.”
Raising an eyebrow, Spock looked at him with a curious expression. “But you are not…”
“I refused the training,” Bones continued as he made the knives swordfight each other. “I’m a doctor, not a fortune teller. I told them where they could shove it.”
“He actually used those words, too,” Jim said as he watched the spoons form the shape of a star.
“It’s in my medical file, but that’s classified except to Geoff,” Bones added. “Well, and Arisugawa, I suppose.”
“Your sensitivity would perhaps explain why the Phoenix has chosen you as its host,” Spock said.
“That’s not why,” Bones said, but he didn’t elaborate. He made the silverware spell the words I’m Bored. “Is this all, Spock?”
“Wait, why did the Phoenix choose you?” Jim asked.
Bones didn’t answer, though. “Are we done?” he asked a second time.
“Not quite,” Spock said as he reached toward a fork. “Tell me, Doctor, can you feel this?” He pressed a finger against the metal.
Bones sat straighter and furrowed his brows. “I didn’t know I could do that.”
Jim looked at Bones and then back to Spock. “He can feel you touching it?”
“I can feel your skin, and you really need to moisturize, Spock,” Bones said. “And your pulse, I can feel your pulse through the metal.” He looked out the window. “I can see your fingerprints.”
Spock let go of the fork. “Doctor, the Vulcans have a legend about psychic sensitivity this extreme. It is called the Manifestation of the Phoenix…”
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Bones said through grit teeth, and Jim patted his hand to soothe him.
“There was a previous Phoenix manifestation on Vulcan thousands of years ago,” Spock continued. “However, the Legend does not specify anything about The End of All That Is.” He folded his hands behind his back, and he sounded unsure. “Tell us about the End of All That Is.”
“Oh I know that now,” Jim said. “It’s something called an M’Kraan Crystal.”
“Lilandra has it,” Bones said, again looking out the window at the sky. “D’Ken is coming for it. We can’t…” Something stopped Bones in midsentence. The room was silent, and then he turned back to them with wide eyes. “Lilandra’s in danger!”
The silverware dropped, raining down on Spock and Jim’s heads. Unable to help himself, Jim dropped to the floor with his head bowed as he covered the back of his neck with his hands. Forks and spoons bounced off his back, and a knife dropped right between his fingers, which he threw on the ground. It stopped, and Jim raised his head to look at Bones.
“I have to go now,” Bones said, and he got out of the bed. “I have to go to Foucault. They’ve got her, and D’Ken is almost here!”
Jim stood. “You need to rest, Bones, you’re still not…”
Energy bled off Bones, and flames licked at his hair. “Phoenix must go,” he said as his eyes turned white. The hospital gown he wore transformed into clothing and flaming wings formed on his back. He lifted up into the air; his body also turned to flame, and he shifted into the shape of a firebird. It reared its head back and screeched. The windows shattered, and it flew out over the water.
“Bones!” Jim screamed as he rushed to the window, Spock right on his heels. “Bones! Come back!”
Too far gone to hear him, Bones didn’t return or even so much as look back.
Without hesitation, Jim grabbed the knapsack Chekov brought him and ran into the bathroom.
“Captain, what are you…”
“He’s going to Foucault,” Jim said as he pulled the door closed. He changed out of the scrubs into his uniform. “He’s going to Foucault, and we’re following him.”
Seeing that Chekov thought to put in a communicator, Jim grabbed it and flipped it open as he ran from the bathroom out the room and down the hall. He could hear Spock running behind him.
“Kirk to Sulu,” he said into it. “Get the others and meet me at Starfleet General. It’s a priority Alpha situation.”
-----
Nyota raced up to the front of Foucault just in time to see a large man with purple skin and a Mohawk carry out a woman who could only be Lilandra. A man in all red held Admiral Pike back, and as Nyota got closer she realized that he was arguing with the Mohawked man.
“I have Lilandra,” the man in red shouted, desperate.
“But you do not have the crystal,” the purple man proclaimed. “You were ordered to retrieve both. You have failed the Majestor, Shakari.”
Nyota grabbed the phaser that was slung on her hip. She aimed at the purple man. “Stop where you are.”
The man looked at her, not letting go of Lilandra. “You dare threaten the Praetor of the Shi’ar Imperial Guard?”
“Gladiator, stop!” Lilandra said as she struggled to get out of his grasp. He looked to be barely holding her, and yet she could not free herself.
Nyota wondered what she had gotten into, but her stance didn’t waver as she kept the phaser aimed at Gladiator’s chest. “I’ll ask you again to stop,” she said.
Letting go of Lilandra, Gladiator disappeared, suddenly reappearing right in front of Nyota. She gasped as he reached out and grabbed her phaser, crushing it in his fist. Nyota’s eyes widened as she took an involuntary step backwards. Gladiator’s eyes glowed red as he stared down at her, and Nyota closed her eyes, steeling herself against whatever was to come.
A loud screeching filed the air, and a bright light shone on her face. She opened her eyes, and saw in the sky a great firebird.
In the middle of the firebird, amazingly enough, was Leonard.
“I don’t believe it,” Pike said as he shielded his eyes.
“Stop,” Leonard said, his eyes glowing white. “Lilandra is under my protection.”
“The Phoenix,” Lilandra said in awe.
Gladiator flew up from the ground, facing Leonard. “Stand aside, creature. I have the orders of Majestor D’Ken.”
Leonard regarded Gladiator before saying, “Your master is unworthy; the judgment of the Phoenix burns through his deception. If you would serve he who is a pretender, then you shall share his fate.”
Stunned, Nyota watched as Gladiator’s eyes turned red, firing beams at Leonard. They had no effect, however, and instead just dissipated into the ether. Gladiator inhaled sharply, and blew a large gust of wind at Leonard. This, too, had no effect. Making a disgruntled sound, Gladiator reared black and flew at Leonard, punching him. One of the firebird’s flaming talons reached out and grabbed Gladiator, and he cried out in pain as he tried to free himself.
“You may survive,” Leonard said, “to warn your master that the Guardian of the Crystal is watching.”
With that, Leonard reached an arm back, and the talon followed his movements. He then hurled Gladiator into the sky. Nyota watched Gladiator turn first into a small dot and then become invisible to the naked eye.
He was gone.
Nyota turned, and Leonard descended from the air. He stood before falling to his knees.
“You are the Guardian of the Crystal?” Lilandra asked, and the red man shook where he stood.
“Yes,” Leonard answered, and the firebird faded into the sky.
“You are the Phoenix of legend,” Lilandra continued, and she sounded so relieved it moved Nyota almost to tears. “You can help me stop my mad brother!”
Leonard looked up at Lilandra, and his eyes were no longer white. “He is here.”
Lilandra’s eyes widened, and Shakari ran.
Pike walked over to them with a frown. “Who is here?” The admiral demanded. “And what the hell is going on with you, McCoy? What was that just now?”
“D’Ken is here,” Leonard repeated, and it sounded foreboding. “He is here, and he is searching for the crystal.”
“It is on my ship,” Lilandra said, and she reached down to help Leonard up. He took her hands gratefully and stood. Nyota realized how tall Lilandra was, as Leonard had to look up at her. “I have hidden it, but who knows how long that will last.”
Leonard nodded and looked off into the sky. “Gladiator will tell him about me. I will do everything I can, but I’m still…” He grimaced and let go of Lilandra’s hands to clutch his sides. “I’m still healing. I’m not quite strong enough.”
Nyota walked over to him. “You should be in the hospital,” she said, and Leonard looked at her with a frown.
“D’Ken is here,” Leonard answered. “There’s no more time; we can’t afford to wait until my body is ready.”
“D’Ken, the Majestor of the Shi’ar,” Nyota said.
Pike and Lilandra gave Nyota looks; Pike’s was startled, and Lilandra’s was grateful. “You deciphered my message,” Lilandra said with a smile.
“Yes, Princess, I am only sorry that it took me so long to do so,” Nyota replied. She turned to Pike. “Lilandra’s older brother is the Majestor and Emperor of the Shi’ar Empire. He plans to use the M’Kraan Crystal to take over the galaxy.”
Pike put his hands on his hips. “So I’ve been told.”
“It is the nexus of all realities,” Lilandra said, trying to explain.
Pike rolled his eyes and threw up his hands. “That doesn’t tell me much more than I already knew.”
Lilandra continued. “If the Crystal’s power is harnessed, it will cause the End of All That Is.”
Leonard took a step away from Lilandra, still holding himself.
Nyota frowned. “Leonard…”
“No, I’ll be fine.” He then flew up into the sky. There was no firebird this time, but it didn’t make it any less startling. Leonard hovered about forty meters in the air, his arms outstretched and his eyes closed.
Nyota continued to watch him; she thought back to her earlier conversation with Spock, about the Phoenix of Vulcan legend. The legend was true, and the Phoenix now inhabited her friend’s body. It was a lot to take in on top of everything else.
Pike let out a frustrated sound. “I have no idea what the hell is going on,” he grumbled as a hover car pulled up. Within seconds, Jim, Spock, Scotty, Sulu, and Chekov tumbled out of it with phasers and in their uniforms.
“Bones!” Jim shouted; before he could move further, Nyota stood in his path.
“He’s fine,” she said as reassuringly as she could. “The best I can tell, he’s looking for something.”
Jim nodded, staring up at his friend. He walked over to under where Leonard flew. “Bones.”
Leonard’s eyes opened, and he looked down at Jim. He descended, and Jim immediately pulled him into an embrace.
“It is good that you’re here,” Leonard told him, and Nyota noticed he sounded strange. Not quite distant, but there was quality to his tone that bothered her. “And you’ve brought the others.”
“Tell me what’s happening,” Jim said as he pulled back to look him in the eye. His voice shook with relief. “Tell us what we can do.”
“There’s a lot I don’t know,” Leonard continued. “And there’s more I must do alone.” Nyota walked up to them, and she realized all the others had followed suit. Leonard turned away from Jim and faced them. “In our hands lies the fate of a million worlds…the very destiny of all creation…”
Nyota looked at her friends; Chekov’s eyes sparkled and his grin was bright, Scotty raised both of his eyebrows, and his eyes too sparkled, Spock had an eyebrow raised with his hands clasped behind his back, Hikaru’s eyes were filled with fear as he nervously cracked his knuckles, and Jim couldn’t take his eyes off Leonard.
“It is time to go,” Leonard proclaimed as once more he rose into the air. A firebird appeared, wrapping its wings around Nyota, her friends, and Lilandra. She jerked back, expecting the flames to burn. Instead they felt warm and gentle; she relaxed, letting them caress her skin.
The Phoenix shrieked as it lifted itself – and its passengers – into the sky.
With that, they were gone.
-----
The Phoenix dissipated inside an alien ship. An incredibly alien ship, Jim noticed as he took in his surroundings. He’d never seen anything like it before, and judging from the way Scotty and Chekov salivated, they hadn’t either.
“Yikes,” Scotty said as he swayed a little. “I honestly have no idea how you have a problem with the transporter, but you’re fine with this, McCoy.”
Bones floated down from midair, doubling-over once he landed. Jim pulled him close. “No, I’m all right,” Bones said as he collected himself. “I’m fine…” He pulled his arm free of Jim’s grasp.
Jim reluctantly let him go. “Sure, Bones.”
Lilandra walked over to a stasis field; inside it was a faceted pink crystal, about a meter across. “We have the crystal secured, and with the Phoenix guarding it, my brother will not be able to use the negative galaxy.”
“Excuse me,” Sulu said, and his voice shook. “But…everything that’s been going on has been for that?”
The look on Scotty, Chekov, and Sulu’s faces could only be described as unimpressed. Jim placed his hands on his hips, as he was sure his own face didn’t look any better.
Raising an eyebrow, Lilandra looked at the helmsman. “What were you expecting?”
“Something not pink,” Jim said. “I mean, this thing supposedly can kill us all, but it’s the least threatening color ever created.” Nyota made the noise she made when Jim fucked up a diplomatic mission, causing Jim to raise his hands as a sign of surrender. “I mean no disrespect,” Jim added. “I just…well…”
“The crystal’s faceted configuration allows for unlimited storage capacity,” Spock explained. “There is no limit to what can go inside it, particularly not refracted ambient energy.”
“Precisely,” Lilandra added with an arched eyebrow, and Jim coughed.
“Sorry,” he said. “We’re getting off on the wrong foot. Captain James T. Kirk, USS Enterprise.” He then gestured to his crew. “Commander Spock, Lieutenant Uhura, Lieutenant Sulu, Ensign Chekov, and Engineer Scott.” He then looked at Bones, who was now sitting in a chair. “Something tells me you know my Chief Medical Officer, Doctor McCoy.”
Lilandra looked at Bones with a curious expression, but Bones didn’t notice. She then turned her attention back to Jim.
“Admiral Lilandra Neramani of the Shi’ar Imperial Fleet,” she said as Jim extended his hand. It only took her a second to shake it. “The Majestor, D’Ken, is my brother.”
“Now we’re getting somewhere,” Jim said, happy to have some questions answered. “What’s D’Ken want with your crystal?”
“My brother wishes to harness its power in order to extend his dominion over not just the Shi’ar Empire, but all of creation,” Lilandra explained, and Jim was suddenly struck by how beautiful she was. There was strength and likewise a fear radiating off of her that also did not escape his notice. “My brother is a mad man. Power has become the only thing he understands, and he would doom us all to acquire more of it.”
“So the name of the game is keeping D’Ken away from it,” Jim said. “We can take it. Starfleet, I mean.”
Lilandra’s eyes turned sad. “My brother has the entire Imperial fleet at his disposal, in addition to the members of the Imperial Guard. While your organization may hold it for a time, I am afraid D’Ken would cause a war to get it back.”
“Which is where I come in,” Bones said, standing from the chair. Jim’s heart swelled, and his stomach dipped at the sight. “I will keep him from taking it. You have my word.”
Lilandra nodded. “We must move quickly if we are to safeguard the crystal.”
Before Bones could agree, he got a faraway look in his eyes. “They’re coming…”
Jim stiffened, and Lilandra’s face tightened. “D’Ken,” she whispered.
“No, it’s…” As Bones tried to explain, Lilandra’s ship got hit. The shields held steady, but the vessel rocked from the impact.
“Main screen,” Lilandra said. A ship appeared on the view screen; it also was completely alien to Jim, which he supposed was par for the course. It was a weird peach color, and had three engines sticking out of it. “Evasive maneuvers!”
Lilandra’s ship turned to its starboard side and moved; the other ship continued to fire, overpowering Lilandra’s shields.
“Is that your brother?” Jim said as he held onto the nearest console to keep from falling.
“No, I do not recognize them,” Lilandra said. “Or understand why they are attacking us.”
Her ship fled, but the attackers fired a different weapon at them; this acted like an electric pulse to the life forms on Lilandra’s ship. Jim and his crew cried out, falling to the ground.
There was silence for a few minutes, and then Jim opened his eyes. “What the hell was that?” he asked no one in particular.
“I feel awful,” Chekov concurred from where he lay.
Nyota got up onto her hands and knees, pausing to look around the ship. Spock stood and gave the Shi’ar crew a curious glance. “It appears that weapon, possibly some type of stun ray, was attuned to the life signs of the Shi’ar,” Spock said. “All of them are unconscious.”
Bones stood, shaking his head a little, and Scotty messed with one of his ears. Jim went to ask how Bones was when the door to Lilandra’s bridge opened. In the hallway stood a large green lizard-like creature with sharp fangs, a white-furred woman who looked to be some kind of skunk person, and a human man with brown hair and a mustache who carried two guns.
“Aliens, Corsair,” the lizard said. “Ones that got beaten by the ugly stick, by the look of it.”
Jim narrowed his eyes, which was his standard operating procedure for being called ugly. “I beg your pardon, scale-face?”
“Get the crystal!” the human shouted. He then opened fire on the Enterprise crew. Not having time to take cover, Jim grabbed his phaser and returned fire, Sulu and Scotty following suit.
“They aren’t with D’Ken,” Bones said. “They’re pirates. They call themselves the Starjammers.”
“They do not look like pirates,” Chekov mumbled. “No eye patches or parrots.”
The firefight escalated into a full brawl. Sulu grappled with the skunk woman; a cloud of something shot out of her tail, and Sulu coughed and doubled over. She smirked at him and aimed her weapon; unfortunately for her, Sulu recovered and hit her with a roundhouse kick to the face. She dropped to the ground, and it was effortless for him to stun her.
Scotty and Chekov struggled with the large lizard. He managed to hit Scotty with a blast, causing him to drop his phaser. Chekov had the element of surprise on his side as he snuck up behind him, but the lizard sensed him and struck out with a fist, catching Chekov in the solar plexus. Chekov wheezed a little but climbed up the lizard’s back. He covered his eyes with his hands.
“Hey!”
Chekov clung to him. “You cannot fight what you cannot see,” he coughed.
Spock and Nyota focused their energy on trying to get them away from the pirates. Spock stared down at the console that housed the ship’s controls; unfortunately, they were in the Shi’ar language.
Nyota peered over his shoulder. “I think this is the throttle,” she said as she pointed to a section of the screen.
Spock nodded. “We shall see.” It was, indeed, the throttle, and he steered them away from the pirates’ vessel.
Ever the doctor, Bones checked on Lilandra. He opened one of her eyes and saw it had rolled back into her head. “Damn it,” he said. He reached out with his hands, which glowed. “I think I can wake her.” As soon as it started, the energy flickered and died on his hands, which trembled. “Damn it,” Bones said a second time.
Jim fired at the man called Corsair; he missed, and Corsair returned fire. He, too, missed, and Jim took advantage by tackling him to the ground. He straddled the pirate’s hips as he punched him in the face.
Corsair turned to the side and spat out blood. He raised his wrist to his mouth. “Raza,” he said as Jim hit him a second time. “Recalibrate the stun ray for humans.”
But Captain, a voice said through his communicator.
“Do it, Raza, or my face will never be the same,” he ordered as Jim punched him a third time.
Wait.
Shit! Jim registered Corsair’s order too late; the energy wave pulsed through the ship again, and all of Jim’s crew including himself dropped like a sack of bricks.
----
When Jim awoke, it was because water had been thrown at him. He sputtered and coughed, and he tried to wipe his face when he realized he couldn’t move his arms.
Jim looked up; his arms and legs were held in special restraints out from his body. Then he looked straight ahead; the lizard guy from back on Lilandra’s ship was the water-thrower, and this time Jim noticed the white puffy thing not unlike a tribble on his shoulder. “Corsair asked me to wake you up so you can talk,” he said. “He has a proposition for you.”
“He might have wanted to make it before this whole mess with the stun ray and abducting me,” Jim said.
The lizard rolled his eyes. “We shoulda picked the pointy-eared guy,” he grumbled as he started to leave.
As he exited through the door, Corsair entered. “Sorry about Ch’od,” he said. “He gets funny about strangers.”
“Can’t imagine why,” Jim said. “Where’s my crew? Where’s Bones?”
“I didn’t bring them with us,” Corsair explained.
Jim bit back a curse. “You left my crew unconscious and at the mercy of a mad man?”
Corsair looked at him with appraisal. “We both care for our crew. We have that in common.”
“Then you understand why I’m incredibly pissed off,” Jim said. “And also if you understand that, then you’ll forgive me for being skeptical of someone who would kidnap me away from them.”
Corsair smiled at him, and from the way his eyes lit up, Jim knew it was genuine. “You know…I come from your planet. Not a colony or anything, but from Earth itself. I grew up in Alaska.”
Jim blinked at the change in conversation. “How nice for you.”
“I was actually a Captain in Starfleet until the Shi’ar abducted my wife and I while we were on leave twenty years ago.” The smile ran away from Corsair’s face. “We were put in the slave pens, and D’Ken…he fixated on Katherine.”
Jim listened; something about a Starfleet captain disappearing sounded familiar.
“He tried to…” Corsair struggled with the words, and Jim’s stomach sank down into his knees in sympathy.
“I get the picture,” Jim said in a kind voice.
“Thanks,” Corsair said. “I stopped him from…taking what he wanted. But to punish me, D’Ken slaughtered her right before my eyes.”
Jim closed his eyes for a second; hearing Corsair’s story made him think of Bones, and it hit a little too close to home. He knew without a doubt if someone did that to Bones in front of him he’d lose it. “Why are you telling me all this? We don’t know each other.”
“Do you have someone you love?” Corsair asked.
Jim narrowed his eyes. “Why does that matter?”
“Is there a person that you would give up everything for to avenge if they were taken from you?” Corsair prompted.
He could have said no. Instead, Jim said, “Yeah.”
“Good. I just needed you to understand before I ask what I’m going to.” Corsair took a step forward, looking Jim directly in the eye as they were the same height. “D’Ken considers me a pirate and a festering wound in his side. If I attempt to kill him, he’ll see it coming. But if I bring him a prisoner, and the prisoner makes the attempt…”
“Wait a second,” Jim said, and he felt not only manipulated but also angry. “You’re using me as an assassin? You know as a Starfleet officer I can’t do that! It’ll cause the Shi’ar to go to war with the Federation!”
“I know that if D’Ken gets his hands on the M’Kraan Crystal, there won’t be a Shi’ar or a Federation for a war at all,” Corsair said. “I’m asking you to take one life in order to preserve countless others.” He turned, and took several steps towards the cell door. “I remember the oaths you take when you enlist. This is in keeping with Starfleet’s ideals.”
Jim looked down at the floor.
The problem wasn’t what Corsair asked; D’Ken was crazy if he thought harnessing the crystal was a good idea. If Lilandra and Bones were right, and Jim had to admit he had no reason to think they weren’t, then the Federation was doomed.
He could leave it up to Bones and Phoenix, as apparently Phoenix was the guardian of the crystal. The problem with that was how Bones collapsed every time he used his powers; he was still far too weak to be reliable. It hurt for Jim to think that way about Bones, but facts were facts: Bones’ powers weren’t stable.
If something could be done to take the burden off Bones, then it needed to happen.
Jim wasn’t afraid to kill; he had done it more than once in the line of duty on the Enterprise. This was different, though…it was calculated, whereas those other instances were in the heat of the moment.
It had been them or him.
Although, this situation wasn’t much different: it was D’Ken or the Federation. Jim had a duty to uphold as a Starfleet officer, first and foremost. If he could prevent the End of All That Is, he had no choice.
“Wait,” Jim said, and Corsair turned around. “I’ll do it.”
Corsair smiled and flipped a switch on the wall. The restraints fell away, leaving Jim free to move. “I had a feeling you would come to that conclusion,” the pirate said.
“I’m not doing it for you or for your revenge,” Jim said. “I’m doing it because there’s no other way.” It occurred to him who he was talking to. “Captain Christopher Summers.”
“No one’s called me that in decades,” Corsair admitted with a shrug. “I’m pretty much just Corsair now, ever since my compatriots and I busted out of the slave pens. Although I returned the favor with Hepzibah because it is literally impossible for a human to pronounce her real name.”
“The skunk lady?” Jim asked as Corsair walked him through the ship and to its bridge.
“Better you call her that than a cat, she gets offended by that comparison,” Corsair said with a laugh.
They arrived on the bridge, and Jim saw in addition to Ch’od and Hepzibah, there was a red-haired man with an eye-patch and something that looked like a cross between a helicopter and a dragonfly.
“You’ve met Hepzibah and Ch’od,” Corsair said. “The swashbuckler is Raza, and this is Sikorsky,” he said with a point to the helicopter thing. Hepzibah immediately walked to Corsair and wrapped her tail around his waist. Corsair put his arm around her shoulders, and Jim chose not to comment.
“So how am I gonna do this?” Jim said. “I can’t exactly go in with my phaser.”
Raza held up a flat piece of plastic. “We will strap this to your back,” he said, and his voice was tinny, like a robot’s. “They will not expect it coming from a prisoner.”
Jim nodded; it was a valid point. If they told D’Ken they brought him an offering, he wouldn’t suspect Jim until it was too late.
Jim hoped he wouldn’t get killed in the process.
Chapter Five | Chapter Seven
“Captain?” Spock said as he entered Bones’ hospital room.
Jim turned to look at him; Spock carried a wooden chest under one arm5. “Hey Spock.”
The Vulcan nodded to him before looking at Bones. “Doctor McCoy.”
“Hobgoblin,” Bones said with a smile. Something crossed his face, and he turned more serious. “You’re not here on a social call.”
Spock blinked twice before replying with, “I am afraid not. The tricorders are unable to explain what exactly the Phoenix entity is doing to you. I have devised another method to test your newfound abilities.”
Bones sighed, and Jim felt sorry for him. It had to be annoying, being treated like a rat in a maze by a friend. “I’m not turning evil, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“I did not believe that to be a concern,” Spock continued, and Jim turned his gaze back to Bones. “I simply wish to see how you are handling your newfound powers.”
Bones sighed a second time and rested back against the pillows. “It’s like…I see more than you do, but not clearly. It kind of…it’s like it bleeds together, like synesthesia. All of my senses are tied together somehow, and…” he trailed off. “You both think I’m crazy.”
There was a long pause.
“I think what you’re saying makes as much sense as everything else you’ve been talking about,” Jim said, smiling at Bones to reassure him.
“It is logical that hosting an entity such as Phoenix would augment your perceptions,” Spock added. “Resurrecting yourself, and the visions you have shown us, should not be possible.”
“If I think it, I can do it,” Bones said. “But right now, I get so tired.”
Jim took his hand in his. “It’s okay, Bones. We’ll do what Spock says, and then you can rest more. Promise.”
“Fine, fine,” Bones groused. Spock set the chest down on the foot of the bed and opened it; inside it was a set of fine silverware. Bones rolled his eyes, and within seconds, the silverware lifted out of the case and into the air. “This is novice shit.”
Jim looked up as the knives all turned in 360-degree circles a foot above his head. The forks and spoons circled around Spock.
“Fascinating,” Spock said. “There are dozens of moving parts, yet you are not taxed by this. Even the Starfleet officers who tested high on the psychic sensitivity examinations would have difficulty performing this task.”
Bones shrugged, although he did start to look a little fatigued. “I actually tested pretty high on them.”
Raising an eyebrow, Spock looked at him with a curious expression. “But you are not…”
“I refused the training,” Bones continued as he made the knives swordfight each other. “I’m a doctor, not a fortune teller. I told them where they could shove it.”
“He actually used those words, too,” Jim said as he watched the spoons form the shape of a star.
“It’s in my medical file, but that’s classified except to Geoff,” Bones added. “Well, and Arisugawa, I suppose.”
“Your sensitivity would perhaps explain why the Phoenix has chosen you as its host,” Spock said.
“That’s not why,” Bones said, but he didn’t elaborate. He made the silverware spell the words I’m Bored. “Is this all, Spock?”
“Wait, why did the Phoenix choose you?” Jim asked.
Bones didn’t answer, though. “Are we done?” he asked a second time.
“Not quite,” Spock said as he reached toward a fork. “Tell me, Doctor, can you feel this?” He pressed a finger against the metal.
Bones sat straighter and furrowed his brows. “I didn’t know I could do that.”
Jim looked at Bones and then back to Spock. “He can feel you touching it?”
“I can feel your skin, and you really need to moisturize, Spock,” Bones said. “And your pulse, I can feel your pulse through the metal.” He looked out the window. “I can see your fingerprints.”
Spock let go of the fork. “Doctor, the Vulcans have a legend about psychic sensitivity this extreme. It is called the Manifestation of the Phoenix…”
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Bones said through grit teeth, and Jim patted his hand to soothe him.
“There was a previous Phoenix manifestation on Vulcan thousands of years ago,” Spock continued. “However, the Legend does not specify anything about The End of All That Is.” He folded his hands behind his back, and he sounded unsure. “Tell us about the End of All That Is.”
“Oh I know that now,” Jim said. “It’s something called an M’Kraan Crystal.”
“Lilandra has it,” Bones said, again looking out the window at the sky. “D’Ken is coming for it. We can’t…” Something stopped Bones in midsentence. The room was silent, and then he turned back to them with wide eyes. “Lilandra’s in danger!”
The silverware dropped, raining down on Spock and Jim’s heads. Unable to help himself, Jim dropped to the floor with his head bowed as he covered the back of his neck with his hands. Forks and spoons bounced off his back, and a knife dropped right between his fingers, which he threw on the ground. It stopped, and Jim raised his head to look at Bones.
“I have to go now,” Bones said, and he got out of the bed. “I have to go to Foucault. They’ve got her, and D’Ken is almost here!”
Jim stood. “You need to rest, Bones, you’re still not…”
Energy bled off Bones, and flames licked at his hair. “Phoenix must go,” he said as his eyes turned white. The hospital gown he wore transformed into clothing and flaming wings formed on his back. He lifted up into the air; his body also turned to flame, and he shifted into the shape of a firebird. It reared its head back and screeched. The windows shattered, and it flew out over the water.
“Bones!” Jim screamed as he rushed to the window, Spock right on his heels. “Bones! Come back!”
Too far gone to hear him, Bones didn’t return or even so much as look back.
Without hesitation, Jim grabbed the knapsack Chekov brought him and ran into the bathroom.
“Captain, what are you…”
“He’s going to Foucault,” Jim said as he pulled the door closed. He changed out of the scrubs into his uniform. “He’s going to Foucault, and we’re following him.”
Seeing that Chekov thought to put in a communicator, Jim grabbed it and flipped it open as he ran from the bathroom out the room and down the hall. He could hear Spock running behind him.
“Kirk to Sulu,” he said into it. “Get the others and meet me at Starfleet General. It’s a priority Alpha situation.”
Nyota raced up to the front of Foucault just in time to see a large man with purple skin and a Mohawk carry out a woman who could only be Lilandra. A man in all red held Admiral Pike back, and as Nyota got closer she realized that he was arguing with the Mohawked man.
“I have Lilandra,” the man in red shouted, desperate.
“But you do not have the crystal,” the purple man proclaimed. “You were ordered to retrieve both. You have failed the Majestor, Shakari.”
Nyota grabbed the phaser that was slung on her hip. She aimed at the purple man. “Stop where you are.”
The man looked at her, not letting go of Lilandra. “You dare threaten the Praetor of the Shi’ar Imperial Guard?”
“Gladiator, stop!” Lilandra said as she struggled to get out of his grasp. He looked to be barely holding her, and yet she could not free herself.
Nyota wondered what she had gotten into, but her stance didn’t waver as she kept the phaser aimed at Gladiator’s chest. “I’ll ask you again to stop,” she said.
Letting go of Lilandra, Gladiator disappeared, suddenly reappearing right in front of Nyota. She gasped as he reached out and grabbed her phaser, crushing it in his fist. Nyota’s eyes widened as she took an involuntary step backwards. Gladiator’s eyes glowed red as he stared down at her, and Nyota closed her eyes, steeling herself against whatever was to come.
A loud screeching filed the air, and a bright light shone on her face. She opened her eyes, and saw in the sky a great firebird.
In the middle of the firebird, amazingly enough, was Leonard.
“I don’t believe it,” Pike said as he shielded his eyes.
“Stop,” Leonard said, his eyes glowing white. “Lilandra is under my protection.”
“The Phoenix,” Lilandra said in awe.
Gladiator flew up from the ground, facing Leonard. “Stand aside, creature. I have the orders of Majestor D’Ken.”
Leonard regarded Gladiator before saying, “Your master is unworthy; the judgment of the Phoenix burns through his deception. If you would serve he who is a pretender, then you shall share his fate.”
Stunned, Nyota watched as Gladiator’s eyes turned red, firing beams at Leonard. They had no effect, however, and instead just dissipated into the ether. Gladiator inhaled sharply, and blew a large gust of wind at Leonard. This, too, had no effect. Making a disgruntled sound, Gladiator reared black and flew at Leonard, punching him. One of the firebird’s flaming talons reached out and grabbed Gladiator, and he cried out in pain as he tried to free himself.
“You may survive,” Leonard said, “to warn your master that the Guardian of the Crystal is watching.”
With that, Leonard reached an arm back, and the talon followed his movements. He then hurled Gladiator into the sky. Nyota watched Gladiator turn first into a small dot and then become invisible to the naked eye.
He was gone.
Nyota turned, and Leonard descended from the air. He stood before falling to his knees.
“You are the Guardian of the Crystal?” Lilandra asked, and the red man shook where he stood.
“Yes,” Leonard answered, and the firebird faded into the sky.
“You are the Phoenix of legend,” Lilandra continued, and she sounded so relieved it moved Nyota almost to tears. “You can help me stop my mad brother!”
Leonard looked up at Lilandra, and his eyes were no longer white. “He is here.”
Lilandra’s eyes widened, and Shakari ran.
Pike walked over to them with a frown. “Who is here?” The admiral demanded. “And what the hell is going on with you, McCoy? What was that just now?”
“D’Ken is here,” Leonard repeated, and it sounded foreboding. “He is here, and he is searching for the crystal.”
“It is on my ship,” Lilandra said, and she reached down to help Leonard up. He took her hands gratefully and stood. Nyota realized how tall Lilandra was, as Leonard had to look up at her. “I have hidden it, but who knows how long that will last.”
Leonard nodded and looked off into the sky. “Gladiator will tell him about me. I will do everything I can, but I’m still…” He grimaced and let go of Lilandra’s hands to clutch his sides. “I’m still healing. I’m not quite strong enough.”
Nyota walked over to him. “You should be in the hospital,” she said, and Leonard looked at her with a frown.
“D’Ken is here,” Leonard answered. “There’s no more time; we can’t afford to wait until my body is ready.”
“D’Ken, the Majestor of the Shi’ar,” Nyota said.
Pike and Lilandra gave Nyota looks; Pike’s was startled, and Lilandra’s was grateful. “You deciphered my message,” Lilandra said with a smile.
“Yes, Princess, I am only sorry that it took me so long to do so,” Nyota replied. She turned to Pike. “Lilandra’s older brother is the Majestor and Emperor of the Shi’ar Empire. He plans to use the M’Kraan Crystal to take over the galaxy.”
Pike put his hands on his hips. “So I’ve been told.”
“It is the nexus of all realities,” Lilandra said, trying to explain.
Pike rolled his eyes and threw up his hands. “That doesn’t tell me much more than I already knew.”
Lilandra continued. “If the Crystal’s power is harnessed, it will cause the End of All That Is.”
Leonard took a step away from Lilandra, still holding himself.
Nyota frowned. “Leonard…”
“No, I’ll be fine.” He then flew up into the sky. There was no firebird this time, but it didn’t make it any less startling. Leonard hovered about forty meters in the air, his arms outstretched and his eyes closed.
Nyota continued to watch him; she thought back to her earlier conversation with Spock, about the Phoenix of Vulcan legend. The legend was true, and the Phoenix now inhabited her friend’s body. It was a lot to take in on top of everything else.
Pike let out a frustrated sound. “I have no idea what the hell is going on,” he grumbled as a hover car pulled up. Within seconds, Jim, Spock, Scotty, Sulu, and Chekov tumbled out of it with phasers and in their uniforms.
“Bones!” Jim shouted; before he could move further, Nyota stood in his path.
“He’s fine,” she said as reassuringly as she could. “The best I can tell, he’s looking for something.”
Jim nodded, staring up at his friend. He walked over to under where Leonard flew. “Bones.”
Leonard’s eyes opened, and he looked down at Jim. He descended, and Jim immediately pulled him into an embrace.
“It is good that you’re here,” Leonard told him, and Nyota noticed he sounded strange. Not quite distant, but there was quality to his tone that bothered her. “And you’ve brought the others.”
“Tell me what’s happening,” Jim said as he pulled back to look him in the eye. His voice shook with relief. “Tell us what we can do.”
“There’s a lot I don’t know,” Leonard continued. “And there’s more I must do alone.” Nyota walked up to them, and she realized all the others had followed suit. Leonard turned away from Jim and faced them. “In our hands lies the fate of a million worlds…the very destiny of all creation…”
Nyota looked at her friends; Chekov’s eyes sparkled and his grin was bright, Scotty raised both of his eyebrows, and his eyes too sparkled, Spock had an eyebrow raised with his hands clasped behind his back, Hikaru’s eyes were filled with fear as he nervously cracked his knuckles, and Jim couldn’t take his eyes off Leonard.
“It is time to go,” Leonard proclaimed as once more he rose into the air. A firebird appeared, wrapping its wings around Nyota, her friends, and Lilandra. She jerked back, expecting the flames to burn. Instead they felt warm and gentle; she relaxed, letting them caress her skin.
The Phoenix shrieked as it lifted itself – and its passengers – into the sky.
With that, they were gone.
The Phoenix dissipated inside an alien ship. An incredibly alien ship, Jim noticed as he took in his surroundings. He’d never seen anything like it before, and judging from the way Scotty and Chekov salivated, they hadn’t either.
“Yikes,” Scotty said as he swayed a little. “I honestly have no idea how you have a problem with the transporter, but you’re fine with this, McCoy.”
Bones floated down from midair, doubling-over once he landed. Jim pulled him close. “No, I’m all right,” Bones said as he collected himself. “I’m fine…” He pulled his arm free of Jim’s grasp.
Jim reluctantly let him go. “Sure, Bones.”
Lilandra walked over to a stasis field; inside it was a faceted pink crystal, about a meter across. “We have the crystal secured, and with the Phoenix guarding it, my brother will not be able to use the negative galaxy.”
“Excuse me,” Sulu said, and his voice shook. “But…everything that’s been going on has been for that?”
The look on Scotty, Chekov, and Sulu’s faces could only be described as unimpressed. Jim placed his hands on his hips, as he was sure his own face didn’t look any better.
Raising an eyebrow, Lilandra looked at the helmsman. “What were you expecting?”
“Something not pink,” Jim said. “I mean, this thing supposedly can kill us all, but it’s the least threatening color ever created.” Nyota made the noise she made when Jim fucked up a diplomatic mission, causing Jim to raise his hands as a sign of surrender. “I mean no disrespect,” Jim added. “I just…well…”
“The crystal’s faceted configuration allows for unlimited storage capacity,” Spock explained. “There is no limit to what can go inside it, particularly not refracted ambient energy.”
“Precisely,” Lilandra added with an arched eyebrow, and Jim coughed.
“Sorry,” he said. “We’re getting off on the wrong foot. Captain James T. Kirk, USS Enterprise.” He then gestured to his crew. “Commander Spock, Lieutenant Uhura, Lieutenant Sulu, Ensign Chekov, and Engineer Scott.” He then looked at Bones, who was now sitting in a chair. “Something tells me you know my Chief Medical Officer, Doctor McCoy.”
Lilandra looked at Bones with a curious expression, but Bones didn’t notice. She then turned her attention back to Jim.
“Admiral Lilandra Neramani of the Shi’ar Imperial Fleet,” she said as Jim extended his hand. It only took her a second to shake it. “The Majestor, D’Ken, is my brother.”
“Now we’re getting somewhere,” Jim said, happy to have some questions answered. “What’s D’Ken want with your crystal?”
“My brother wishes to harness its power in order to extend his dominion over not just the Shi’ar Empire, but all of creation,” Lilandra explained, and Jim was suddenly struck by how beautiful she was. There was strength and likewise a fear radiating off of her that also did not escape his notice. “My brother is a mad man. Power has become the only thing he understands, and he would doom us all to acquire more of it.”
“So the name of the game is keeping D’Ken away from it,” Jim said. “We can take it. Starfleet, I mean.”
Lilandra’s eyes turned sad. “My brother has the entire Imperial fleet at his disposal, in addition to the members of the Imperial Guard. While your organization may hold it for a time, I am afraid D’Ken would cause a war to get it back.”
“Which is where I come in,” Bones said, standing from the chair. Jim’s heart swelled, and his stomach dipped at the sight. “I will keep him from taking it. You have my word.”
Lilandra nodded. “We must move quickly if we are to safeguard the crystal.”
Before Bones could agree, he got a faraway look in his eyes. “They’re coming…”
Jim stiffened, and Lilandra’s face tightened. “D’Ken,” she whispered.
“No, it’s…” As Bones tried to explain, Lilandra’s ship got hit. The shields held steady, but the vessel rocked from the impact.
“Main screen,” Lilandra said. A ship appeared on the view screen; it also was completely alien to Jim, which he supposed was par for the course. It was a weird peach color, and had three engines sticking out of it. “Evasive maneuvers!”
Lilandra’s ship turned to its starboard side and moved; the other ship continued to fire, overpowering Lilandra’s shields.
“Is that your brother?” Jim said as he held onto the nearest console to keep from falling.
“No, I do not recognize them,” Lilandra said. “Or understand why they are attacking us.”
Her ship fled, but the attackers fired a different weapon at them; this acted like an electric pulse to the life forms on Lilandra’s ship. Jim and his crew cried out, falling to the ground.
There was silence for a few minutes, and then Jim opened his eyes. “What the hell was that?” he asked no one in particular.
“I feel awful,” Chekov concurred from where he lay.
Nyota got up onto her hands and knees, pausing to look around the ship. Spock stood and gave the Shi’ar crew a curious glance. “It appears that weapon, possibly some type of stun ray, was attuned to the life signs of the Shi’ar,” Spock said. “All of them are unconscious.”
Bones stood, shaking his head a little, and Scotty messed with one of his ears. Jim went to ask how Bones was when the door to Lilandra’s bridge opened. In the hallway stood a large green lizard-like creature with sharp fangs, a white-furred woman who looked to be some kind of skunk person, and a human man with brown hair and a mustache who carried two guns.
“Aliens, Corsair,” the lizard said. “Ones that got beaten by the ugly stick, by the look of it.”
Jim narrowed his eyes, which was his standard operating procedure for being called ugly. “I beg your pardon, scale-face?”
“Get the crystal!” the human shouted. He then opened fire on the Enterprise crew. Not having time to take cover, Jim grabbed his phaser and returned fire, Sulu and Scotty following suit.
“They aren’t with D’Ken,” Bones said. “They’re pirates. They call themselves the Starjammers.”
“They do not look like pirates,” Chekov mumbled. “No eye patches or parrots.”
The firefight escalated into a full brawl. Sulu grappled with the skunk woman; a cloud of something shot out of her tail, and Sulu coughed and doubled over. She smirked at him and aimed her weapon; unfortunately for her, Sulu recovered and hit her with a roundhouse kick to the face. She dropped to the ground, and it was effortless for him to stun her.
Scotty and Chekov struggled with the large lizard. He managed to hit Scotty with a blast, causing him to drop his phaser. Chekov had the element of surprise on his side as he snuck up behind him, but the lizard sensed him and struck out with a fist, catching Chekov in the solar plexus. Chekov wheezed a little but climbed up the lizard’s back. He covered his eyes with his hands.
“Hey!”
Chekov clung to him. “You cannot fight what you cannot see,” he coughed.
Spock and Nyota focused their energy on trying to get them away from the pirates. Spock stared down at the console that housed the ship’s controls; unfortunately, they were in the Shi’ar language.
Nyota peered over his shoulder. “I think this is the throttle,” she said as she pointed to a section of the screen.
Spock nodded. “We shall see.” It was, indeed, the throttle, and he steered them away from the pirates’ vessel.
Ever the doctor, Bones checked on Lilandra. He opened one of her eyes and saw it had rolled back into her head. “Damn it,” he said. He reached out with his hands, which glowed. “I think I can wake her.” As soon as it started, the energy flickered and died on his hands, which trembled. “Damn it,” Bones said a second time.
Jim fired at the man called Corsair; he missed, and Corsair returned fire. He, too, missed, and Jim took advantage by tackling him to the ground. He straddled the pirate’s hips as he punched him in the face.
Corsair turned to the side and spat out blood. He raised his wrist to his mouth. “Raza,” he said as Jim hit him a second time. “Recalibrate the stun ray for humans.”
But Captain, a voice said through his communicator.
“Do it, Raza, or my face will never be the same,” he ordered as Jim punched him a third time.
Wait.
Shit! Jim registered Corsair’s order too late; the energy wave pulsed through the ship again, and all of Jim’s crew including himself dropped like a sack of bricks.
When Jim awoke, it was because water had been thrown at him. He sputtered and coughed, and he tried to wipe his face when he realized he couldn’t move his arms.
Jim looked up; his arms and legs were held in special restraints out from his body. Then he looked straight ahead; the lizard guy from back on Lilandra’s ship was the water-thrower, and this time Jim noticed the white puffy thing not unlike a tribble on his shoulder. “Corsair asked me to wake you up so you can talk,” he said. “He has a proposition for you.”
“He might have wanted to make it before this whole mess with the stun ray and abducting me,” Jim said.
The lizard rolled his eyes. “We shoulda picked the pointy-eared guy,” he grumbled as he started to leave.
As he exited through the door, Corsair entered. “Sorry about Ch’od,” he said. “He gets funny about strangers.”
“Can’t imagine why,” Jim said. “Where’s my crew? Where’s Bones?”
“I didn’t bring them with us,” Corsair explained.
Jim bit back a curse. “You left my crew unconscious and at the mercy of a mad man?”
Corsair looked at him with appraisal. “We both care for our crew. We have that in common.”
“Then you understand why I’m incredibly pissed off,” Jim said. “And also if you understand that, then you’ll forgive me for being skeptical of someone who would kidnap me away from them.”
Corsair smiled at him, and from the way his eyes lit up, Jim knew it was genuine. “You know…I come from your planet. Not a colony or anything, but from Earth itself. I grew up in Alaska.”
Jim blinked at the change in conversation. “How nice for you.”
“I was actually a Captain in Starfleet until the Shi’ar abducted my wife and I while we were on leave twenty years ago.” The smile ran away from Corsair’s face. “We were put in the slave pens, and D’Ken…he fixated on Katherine.”
Jim listened; something about a Starfleet captain disappearing sounded familiar.
“He tried to…” Corsair struggled with the words, and Jim’s stomach sank down into his knees in sympathy.
“I get the picture,” Jim said in a kind voice.
“Thanks,” Corsair said. “I stopped him from…taking what he wanted. But to punish me, D’Ken slaughtered her right before my eyes.”
Jim closed his eyes for a second; hearing Corsair’s story made him think of Bones, and it hit a little too close to home. He knew without a doubt if someone did that to Bones in front of him he’d lose it. “Why are you telling me all this? We don’t know each other.”
“Do you have someone you love?” Corsair asked.
Jim narrowed his eyes. “Why does that matter?”
“Is there a person that you would give up everything for to avenge if they were taken from you?” Corsair prompted.
He could have said no. Instead, Jim said, “Yeah.”
“Good. I just needed you to understand before I ask what I’m going to.” Corsair took a step forward, looking Jim directly in the eye as they were the same height. “D’Ken considers me a pirate and a festering wound in his side. If I attempt to kill him, he’ll see it coming. But if I bring him a prisoner, and the prisoner makes the attempt…”
“Wait a second,” Jim said, and he felt not only manipulated but also angry. “You’re using me as an assassin? You know as a Starfleet officer I can’t do that! It’ll cause the Shi’ar to go to war with the Federation!”
“I know that if D’Ken gets his hands on the M’Kraan Crystal, there won’t be a Shi’ar or a Federation for a war at all,” Corsair said. “I’m asking you to take one life in order to preserve countless others.” He turned, and took several steps towards the cell door. “I remember the oaths you take when you enlist. This is in keeping with Starfleet’s ideals.”
Jim looked down at the floor.
The problem wasn’t what Corsair asked; D’Ken was crazy if he thought harnessing the crystal was a good idea. If Lilandra and Bones were right, and Jim had to admit he had no reason to think they weren’t, then the Federation was doomed.
He could leave it up to Bones and Phoenix, as apparently Phoenix was the guardian of the crystal. The problem with that was how Bones collapsed every time he used his powers; he was still far too weak to be reliable. It hurt for Jim to think that way about Bones, but facts were facts: Bones’ powers weren’t stable.
If something could be done to take the burden off Bones, then it needed to happen.
Jim wasn’t afraid to kill; he had done it more than once in the line of duty on the Enterprise. This was different, though…it was calculated, whereas those other instances were in the heat of the moment.
It had been them or him.
Although, this situation wasn’t much different: it was D’Ken or the Federation. Jim had a duty to uphold as a Starfleet officer, first and foremost. If he could prevent the End of All That Is, he had no choice.
“Wait,” Jim said, and Corsair turned around. “I’ll do it.”
Corsair smiled and flipped a switch on the wall. The restraints fell away, leaving Jim free to move. “I had a feeling you would come to that conclusion,” the pirate said.
“I’m not doing it for you or for your revenge,” Jim said. “I’m doing it because there’s no other way.” It occurred to him who he was talking to. “Captain Christopher Summers.”
“No one’s called me that in decades,” Corsair admitted with a shrug. “I’m pretty much just Corsair now, ever since my compatriots and I busted out of the slave pens. Although I returned the favor with Hepzibah because it is literally impossible for a human to pronounce her real name.”
“The skunk lady?” Jim asked as Corsair walked him through the ship and to its bridge.
“Better you call her that than a cat, she gets offended by that comparison,” Corsair said with a laugh.
They arrived on the bridge, and Jim saw in addition to Ch’od and Hepzibah, there was a red-haired man with an eye-patch and something that looked like a cross between a helicopter and a dragonfly.
“You’ve met Hepzibah and Ch’od,” Corsair said. “The swashbuckler is Raza, and this is Sikorsky,” he said with a point to the helicopter thing. Hepzibah immediately walked to Corsair and wrapped her tail around his waist. Corsair put his arm around her shoulders, and Jim chose not to comment.
“So how am I gonna do this?” Jim said. “I can’t exactly go in with my phaser.”
Raza held up a flat piece of plastic. “We will strap this to your back,” he said, and his voice was tinny, like a robot’s. “They will not expect it coming from a prisoner.”
Jim nodded; it was a valid point. If they told D’Ken they brought him an offering, he wouldn’t suspect Jim until it was too late.
Jim hoped he wouldn’t get killed in the process.
Chapter Five | Chapter Seven