Forwarded by the ASC-VSO Posted: 28 Feb 2004 18:35:44 -0800 In: alt.startrek.creative From: djinn@djinnslair.com (Djinn) TITLE: The Lost Years: Hellspawn(Slayer Series) AUTHOR: Djinn CONTACT: djinn@djinnslair.com http://www.djinnslair.com SERIES: TOS RATING: PG-13 CODES: Ch, K, U, Others PART: 1/6 SUMMARY: The sixth in the Lost Years series. Kirk stared out his office window, frowning deeply. He was sure he'd forgotten something...again. "Careful. Your face might freeze that way." He swiveled in his chair, saw Lori standing at his doorway. "One of the lies our mothers told us?" Her smiled died. "No. Just a saying. A stupid one." She stepped into his office, carefully, as if she was unsure of her welcome. "Faces don't freeze. Unless they get cold enough." He didn't answer, just watched her as she came toward him. He was more sure than ever that he was forgetting something, was suddenly hit by an odd sense of vertigo, then got a flash of the carrying case he'd made for his sword. And the padd. The padd that Carl had made him take--the padd that Lori wanted. He forced his features to not change; no new expression must cross his face or she would know it was here. He didn't know how he knew that, but he did. He had to keep the padd safe. Protect whatever secrets it held. Secrets he needed to look at. Up until now, he'd forgotten the padd every time he entered his office. "I ran into your slayer." Lori put an almost mocking emphasis on the possessive. "And yet you live." Lori shrugged. "She's not that scary." She leaned forward, her eyes catching and holding his. "She's been bitten, you know." "I'm aware of that." He leaned back, an unconscious reaction to her nearness. "Kinky. And dangerous." "I'm sure you're not one to throw stones on either of those scores." Lori sighed. "You're making this difficult, Jim." "Making what difficult, Lori? I don't even know what you want?" He studied her for a moment. When she didn't say anything, he said, "Is this the approach you used with Chris? Because I can't imagine she'd tolerate it for long." "She didn't." Lori's look turned leering. "She's a great kisser." He tried to hide his shock, knew he failed when Lori's leer turn mocking. "Yes, she is," he said as evenly as he could. She eased up on the mocking. "We're all on the same side, Jim." He wondered if she'd used that line on Carl. "Sure we are." "We are. Your slayer has something we want. She listens to you. Convince her to work with us." "Convince me why I should." "Because we all love Starfleet, and we'd all die to protect the Federation. And if we work together, then maybe none of us will ever have to die for it." "Is that a threat?" She frowned. "No." He looked away. She leaned back. "Jim. It's not." She looked down then back at him, seemed to be weighing how much to say. Finally, she leaned in again, said very softly, "Kirsu, Jim. It's the ultimate platform for peace." "For peace?" He leaned in, shaking his head. "Peace how? And with whom? And what's Kirsu?" She smiled, as if she didn't believe for a moment that he didn't know what Kirsu was. "Peace for the Federation. For those who want peace. Against those who don't." "Are you being deliberately vague?" "We could wage peace anywhere, anytime." Her eyes seemed to become unfocused for a moment, then she stood up. "I have to go. Nogura needs me." "Who needs communicators when there's magic?" She shot him a hard look. "You don't understand anything. Don't think your little magics give you any insight into what he's capable of, or what I'm capable of." He could feel his lips tighten. He bit back the angry retort that he understood all too well what she and Nogura were capable of. He had one less friend because of their magic. Not that he had any proof of that. Yet. She touched his hand, and he felt a jolt. He jerked away; his skin stung where she had touched him. "If you came here to get me to help you with Chris, you've got a damned odd approach, Lori." He stood up. "I don't trust you." "I know. But, Jim, you must know how valuable you are. We'd never hurt you." She smiled, this time the look seemed to only hold simple affection and respect. He didn't smile back. She shook her head and spun on her heel, heading quickly for the door. "She doesn't trust me either. But she trusts you," she said, not turning around. "Work on her." He waited a few moments, afraid that she would walk back into the room the moment he headed for the carrying case. Finally, he got up and walked over to where he'd hung it. The thing seemed to shimmer slightly. For some time, he'd forgotten about it. Why was he remembering it now? He opened the case, reached down carefully and retrieved the padd. He grabbed enough padds to hide Carl's among them and headed out of his office. He had a feeling he shouldn't look at it in his office--they might be watching him. He half expected Lori to be waiting for him in the corridor, hand outstretched for the padd. But she was gone. He hurried out of his wing, heading toward Starfleet Medical. He needed to look at the padd somewhere that she and Nogura wouldn't think to look for him. He was betting that while they might be watching Chris after hours, they probably weren't paying much attention to her when she was leading her non-slayer life. As long as he didn't call her on the comm channel, he'd be okay. Still, her office was too dangerous a place to try to read the padd in case he was wrong. They needed to find someplace out of the way to look at the information Carl might have died for. But first Kirk needed to find her. He slowed at the reception desk, saw the young man on duty look up in anticipation. Kirk waved him off, walking into the busy main hallway. Where would Chris be at this hour of the afternoon? And could he find her? Could he call her the way Nogura had called Lori? Or would that be too dangerous? He didn't know how to shield, much less broadcast just to her. And he had no idea where she was. But he'd found her before. If he wanted to badly enough, he could do it again. He ducked into an empty exam room and closed his eyes, thinking of Chris, of her smile, and her more-frequently-seen frown. He thought of how her blue eyes looked in the sunshine. And how they turned a stormy gray at night, how they seemed dark and mysterious. And beautiful. He sighed. "Chris, where are you?" he whispered. He had a flash of her in the immunology department, talking to another doctor. He hurried out of the exam room, took the elevator up, suddenly wondering how he'd known it had been the immunology department. Magic. He smiled, hoping he was right. As he walked into the immunology anteroom, he saw her through a window in the door that separated him from the labs. Her back was to him. "Chris," he whispered, thinking it as hard as he could, sure that he could reach her. She turned around. Her smile was immediate. He wondered if he treasured the expression because she smiled so rarely. Or was he just lost? Lost for a woman he could never have? A woman he could find simply by thinking of her? She turned back to the other doctor, said something and then turned and hurried down the hall. He saw another bright smile light up her face, felt his own grin grow larger. No. He wasn't lost. Not at all. "Jim?" "I need to look at this." He showed her the padd, hidden among the others. "Is there someplace we can go? Somewhere busy where we can fade into the noise? Somewhere they won't be watching?" She didn't ask who they were, just thought for a moment, then nodded. "I know where." "Lead on," he said, following her out and down the hall to a busy stairwell. They walked down a few flights, then she led him down another hallway and into the adjoining building. He started to chuckle. Why hadn't he thought of this? She smiled slyly. "Well, can you think of a busier place than the Academy library?" "Have I ever told you that you're brilliant, Doctor?" She laughed. "No, Admiral, I don't believe you have." She nodded toward an empty carrel. "Come on." As they sat down, she said softly, "It's so odd to be called doctor." He nodded. "I know. Admiral still sounds like it should be anybody else but me." He could feel a frown beginning. "But then you wanted to be a doctor, you're moving forward." She watched him, waiting for him to finish. He waved her off. Now wasn't the time. He busied himself with accessing the padd's data. "You'd give anything to have the ship back, wouldn't you? To be a captain again?" "Not anything." He turned to look at her. "But almost anything." She nodded, touched him on the arm. "I'm sorry." He shook his head. "Moot point now, Chris." He watched as the padd tried to display. Nothing was coming up. "It's blank, Jim." "That's impossible." He leaned in, told the padd to de-encrypt and display the data. "Nothing to display." The message seemed an act of defiance. He shook his head, leaned in and studied the total lack of results. He'd never actually taken the protection spell off the case, maybe the padd was still affected? Not that he was sure how he'd set the spell, much less how to take it off. "Jim?" "What's the opposite of protect?" "Endanger?" "Something less negative." He exhaled loudly. "I protect you. I...you. What is the word?" "Release?" Yes. That was good. "Release," he whispered to the padd. The screen was suddenly filled with data. "Wow. You did that?" She shot him a look of admiration. He felt a grin starting. "I guess so. And I have no idea in hell how to do it again. I can't believe it's just the word." "It's not. I said it and nothing happened." She smiled at him. "Intent. That indomitable Kirk will." Her expression grew soft. "And magic. Real magic, Jim." She smiled again, then turned to the screen. "Now, what do we have here?" They ran through the data. It was as Carl had said. His science team had seemed to be searching subspace for something very specific. It was all there if you knew what you were looking for. And even if you didn't, it still looked damned odd. Kirk turned to Chris, saw that she was staring at the readings, her eyes narrowed. "Kirsu," he said softly. She nodded. "They want to use it." "I know. Lori came to see me just before I came here." "They'll ensure the peace with it. Or so they say." She shook her head. "And once they've ensured it, then who will they turn their power against?" Like the Tantalus Field that his alter ego had used against his enemies in the mirror universe. Such a powerful weapon in the wrong hands. Or even in the right hands once there were no more enemies to fight. They couldn't let Nogura have Kirsu. "It's theirs, Jim. The slayers. It belongs to them now." He nodded. "I know, Chris. We won't give away Kirsu." He closed down the padd and whispered, "Protect." He felt a shiver as something flowed out of him into the padd. He thought that this time he could probably wear it around his neck and Lori wouldn't notice it. "But they don't need to know that we're not going to play." Her look was deadly serious. "No. Let them think we might. It's safer for everyone." She nodded. "And they aren't the only ones that want it. Silver does too. For the watchers." She shook her head. "At this point, David's the only one who doesn't want it." "Seen him lately?" Kirk said as casually as he could. She laughed. "Since I saw you at dinner on Saturday, you mean?" She leaned in, touched his hand. "No. I haven't. Maybe he's lost interest in me?" Kirk let his eyebrows rise. "I doubt it. I wouldn't if I were David." His hand tingled where Chris touched him. It was a good feeling, nothing like the jolt of Lori's touch. He thought of her odd comment. "So, Lori mentioned that you were somewhat skilled in the kissing department." She looked away. "You're blushing, Chris." He turned his hand, twined his fingers with hers, a possessive move that he knew he should resist. "Something you want to tell me?" "Just power games. Pack behavior." She shrugged. "It was nothing." "Sweetheart, I've never seen wolves kiss." They both seemed to realize what he'd called her at the same time. He looked away, but not before he saw a small smile cross her face. "You've obviously been watching the wrong wolves, my friend." "Obviously." He squeezed her hand, thanking her for taking them back to the ground he'd been the one to insist was safer. Friends--not sweethearts. He let go of her hand. "So what's next?" She frowned. "I need to talk to LaVelle...and take her something. But I need to get to her from someplace that isn't crawling with watchers and werewolves." "Weasel could probably shield you." "I don't know him. And neither do you--at least, not well enough to trust with this." She smiled gently as she shook her head, taking the sting out of her words. She seemed to think of something. "But Tolvar already knows about the Kirsu slayers. He might be able to help." "Yes, he might. He seems powerful. Weasel speaks highly of him." "He just needs to help me find a place they can't spy on me." She began to smile evilly. "On the other hand, I have the bodyguard from hell. David isn't going to like anyone else following me. Odd to think that for once I'm safer at night with him around then during the day." She shot Kirk a funny look. "Why aren't you arguing?" He took a deep breath. "I sort of ran into him." "And it just slipped your mind? Are you insane?" Her voice was rising, causing the cadet at the next carrel to glare at them. "David could hurt you and I'd never--" He stopped her with a gentle finger on her lips. "That's exactly why he won't hurt me. Because you'd never." He shook his head. "If you go up against him, he'll fight you. But for now, he'll leave you alone. And me too. And yes, I agree that he'll protect you." "What did he say to you?" "It's not important right now. Do you want me to keep Lori occupied tonight?" Chris' eyebrows nearly disappeared into her hair. He laughed, earning them another glare from the cadet. "I didn't mean like that." "I hope not. Besides, she'll only be suspicious of your timing." She seemed to sigh. Then she leaned in and said softly, "I didn't tell you the other night, but Emma told me that Nogura--his family, I mean--was involved in Kirsu's manifestation in our dimension." Kirk frowned. Why were they keeping secrets from each other? She seemed to be reading his mind. She shook her head slowly. "We're telling each other now, Jim. Don't think of them as secrets. Just as things we haven't had a chance to say yet." "All right. But we can't let things go unsaid for too long or they will become secrets." He thought of Spock, how their friendship had been torn apart--all because of the secret he'd kept from his best friend. She still seemed to be on the same wavelength. "It's always about him, isn't it?" She got up, put her hand on his shoulder. "I have to get back to rounds." He reached up, laid his hand on top of hers. "Be careful tonight." She nodded. "I always am." He looked up at her, saw that she was unconsciously touching the bite marks that had healed but left a scar on her neck. He touched his own reminders of being bitten and shot her a wry grin. Quite the pair. He wasn't sure either of them knew how to be careful. "See you," she said, easing her hand away from his. "Let me know when you get back." She nodded, walked away toward the doors they'd come in by. He waited a few moments, then walked through the library and headed back to Command. End part 1 of 6 -- Stephen Ratliff ASC Stories Only Forwarding In the Pattern Buffer at: http//trekiverse.crosswinds.net/feed/ ASCL is a stories-only list, no discussion. Comments and feedback should be directed to alt.startrek .creative or directly to the author. Yahoo! Groups Links To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ASCL/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: ASCL-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ From ???@??? Tue Mar 02 10:17:39 2004 X-Persona: Status: U Return-Path: Received: from n39.grp.scd.yahoo.com ([66.218.66.107]) by kite (EarthLink SMTP Server) with SMTP id 1aYbAw3kV3NZFkD0 for ; Tue, 2 Mar 2004 07:13:40 -0800 (PST) X-eGroups-Return: sentto-1977044-13243-1078240397-stephenbratliffasc=earthlink.net@returns.groups.yah