Stardate 2264.174

Doctor's Log.

Survived another dole gamma shift. Dr Osler is resting after assisting me.

I've seen a lot of brutal things but nothing takes the cake like this. Ensign Green fell off a platform and broke her back in three places, not to mention the possibility of head trauma.

Other than that, there's nothing more than the mundane. Most injuries are from the engineers; burns, sprains, and a few abrasions.

Due to the delays, several crew members have not been fully vaccinated. Specifically a total of 133 crew members.

Gorlax Measles—despite its funny-sounding name—is no joke.

On a separate note, Lieutenant Nitu did message me last night. Due to the unusual number of strange and frankly bizarre accidents, I was unable to answer them.

I just hope that it wasn't anything too important.

"Good morning, Doc!"

"Morning, Greg!"

Jenner plastered on his smile as greeted the yeoman.

The caffeine in his system made him jittery but eager to get through his shift. The previous night someone from the gamma shift had their leg crushed while doing repairs on the shuttle crafts.

Naturally, he'd been the first one to call since Dr Osler had a three-day shift and needed his rest.

He had spent the majority of his night using the bone knitter and the dermal regenerator so that the crewman would be able to walk without having to worry about using crutches for the rest of his life.

The worst part was only the fact that he had to go to physical therapy 3 times a week.

A small price to pay for his life. That's how he justified it.

Jenner had allowed himself to sleep once the man was sedated and out of danger.

He made his way to sick bay, a PADD in his hand with a list of crewmen who hadn't gotten their booster shots.

Doctor Osler was already in sickbay, humming an off-key version of 'Living on a Prayer' as he lined up vials of vaccines he had painstakingly generated. He inserted them into the hyposprays, ready to sting whatever poor soul had missed their appointments.

"Mike!" Dr Osler greeted, his old eyes lighting up behind his glasses. "You look like hell."

Jenner didn't correct him on the use of his first name. He set his PADD down and got to work at his station.

"I certainly look better than our patient last night."

"Oh, yeah. Nurse Whittle told me." he tutted. "Can't believe something like that could happen here. It's a good thing you were there."

"I only did what I'm trained to do." Jenner shrugged.

"You work too hard." He said.

"You know." Jenner brushed the invisible lint off the front of his shirt. "You're not the only one to tell me that."

"I'm sure your mother had more words about that last time I met her." Dr Osler chuckled. "Don't mind me, Mike. I'm an old man. I've seen too much in space."

"I'll keep that in mind, sir."

"As long as you keep it in your heart too."

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"I'll try."

"You'll do."

"Yes, sir."

Dr Osler sighed, giving him a hard look. Jenner braced himself for the lecture he was about to receive until she heard The doors hissed open behind him.

"Good Morning, Jenner." A cheerful voice rang out, almost song-like.

He whipped his head around, silently thanking whatever higher beings existed for engineers who had a kink for getting injured in the line of duty.

Dr Osler narrowed his eyes, silently telling him that this wasn't over before returning to the vaccines.

"Tauri," he greeted, turning around. "Please tell me you didn't injure—"

She sheepishly lifted her arm where a long gash oozed purple blood. It was superficial but whoever had been supervising her had decided that it was serious enough to warrant a trip to sickbay.

He sighed, gesturing towards the Biobed. He'd expect nothing less of her.

It's been three weeks since the incident at Starbase 14. The crew had settled down to continue their three-year mission.

Commander Doe-Smith, now Lieutenant Doe-Smith, had been demoted but not dismissed. Chief Engineer Haley had been less grumbly than usual. And Captain Solmani was running missions within the safe confines of the core federation worlds.

The two infamous ensigns had all the eyes of every crew member on them and were trying their best not to cause trouble. Ch'Zynes wasn't delighted by the attention he seemed indifferent to it. Ensign Tauri on the other hand, hated it.

All the excitement was simmering down and Jenner hoped that it would stay that way for the next two years.

Jenner enjoyed the short moments of peace between the chaos. No aliens declaring war, no strange plagues, and no idiots getting space STDs because they couldn't keep it in their pants.

Space was already too unpredictable. Nobody knew what could happen. Jenner prided himself on always being ready.

Tauri, as he was slowly learning, just wanted to get away from the stares of others, and liked to seek refuge in sickbay.

Despite her cheerful attitude, she was shy and indrawn.

Tauri liked to come onto the sickbay even if she wasn't hurt, sometimes to talk or to keep herself busy.

It reminded him of Elaine when she first arrived on the Athena.

Jenner wasn't fond of people in his space. The nurses and his assistants gave him a wide berth when he was busy, only stepping if he required their assistance.

Elaine was an exception only because she forced herself into his space and remained there. She liked gossiping and for some reason unknown to him, he was her favourite person.

The other person was Nitu...and he knew why, even if wasn't going to admit it anytime soon.

Dismantling a bomb and then being scolded by the captain was a highlight for the gossipers of this ship. It only took thirty minutes for everyone to know every single detail despite the captain warning everyone not to talk about it.

It broke Elaine's record. When the 'incident' happened, it only took 45 minutes for the whole ship to know given the obvious reasons.

Whatever or whoever planted the bomb, it was all in Starfleet's hands. It would take months to investigate it and they would still be in space, going where no man has gone before despite nearly being blown up.

He was familiar with the hush-hush nature of Starfleet's inner workings. Jenner didn't expect any answers.

"Do I want to know?" He asked, looking through draws for his supplies.

It was her 'I'm-so-sorry-i-got-hurt-but-it-wasn't-totality-my-fault' smile. Elaine liked to give him her 'you-have-no-idea-what-i-just-heard-let-me-tell-you-everything' grin that would make some of her subordinates shiver in fear.

Nitu...she just smiled at him and he had to pretend it didn't make his insides do something strange. The Orion xenobiologist had come down to visit during the very limited downtime he had, bringing him something to eat.

He still needed to answer her messages.

He brought his thoughts back, reminding himself that he was at work.

Tauri shrugged, wincing slightly. "You're not gonna be happy with the answer."

"Try me."

"Aren't you just a ray of sunshine this morning, Dr Jenner." She held out her arm. "I swear. This time, It was an accident."

He rolled his eyes, smiling at her.

Tauri made for better company. Mainly because she didn't gossip and annoy him like Elaine—even if it was in good humour.

She preferred to help him out, even if it wasn't her shift. Fixing equipment that was long overdue for repairs or simply chatting about the mundane as she helped organize the bio cabinetry.

"Where's Ch'Zynes?" He asked as he got to work.

"Oh. He's somewhere in the computer room, tinkering with something again."

"Don't all engineers tinker with something?" He asked. "You included?"

He watched as her skin knit itself back together. The purple scabs of blood flaked away, leaving behind a new dermal layer that matched her tanned skin.

Purple blood was rare. He only knew three species that possessed it and only one of them was humanoid.

It wasn't that hard to figure out which species Tauri was.

She caught him glancing down at her arm.

Jenner learned another thing about Tauri. She's an open book. And the sad thing is that she isn't even aware of it.

He opens his mouth to say something but it is cut off by the familiar sound of Tauri's communicator.

Jenner was convinced god liked to annoy him.

"Tauri here," she answered, flipping the communicator open with her good arm.

"Good. You're alive," the slightly static voice of Ensign Zynes said. "And here I thought you died of sepsis or some rare form of disease."

Tauri let out a 'ha' that startled Jenner. If it were anyone else, they'd be mortified.

"It will take more than a cut on my arm to kill me," she said. "Although I challenge you to find creative ways for my demise."

"All in due time." There's a drawn-out sigh. "Are you still in sickbay?"

"Yeah?"

"Is it bad?"

Jenner leaned in. "It's a laceration on her forearm, Ch'Zynes. She not dying."

Ch'Zynes snorted. "Oh, Doctor Jenner. I'm so glad that she's in capable hands."

"My hands are certainly more skilled than yours," he said. "Why else would you constantly get yourself injured?"

That earned a giggle from Tauri.

He felt his lips twitch at Zyne's sarcasm. The Andorian liked to snark at him—a defence mechanism as Tauri explained.

"Who could ever compete with you oh great mighty one? Please let me take your blood and put it on the wall of heroes for healing—"

"Ch'Zynes, as fun as this is to watch, why did you call me?" Tauri gently interrupted him.

"Oh, yeah. Listen, I know you're excited about running tests on the warp core with Chief Haley but you'll have to do that later."

"Aw."

"That's the bad news. One of the other engineers got injured last night and he's still not out of recovery. You're replacing him on a mission." He said. "That's the good news."

Tauri blinks. Jenner can see the confusion on her face as her eyebrows nearly disappear into her hairline.

An away mission meant two things on this ship. One, you screwed up majorly and the captain was punishing you. Two, you show exceptional promise and are given a chance to show off your skills. Or three, which was the most unlikely you're about to be transferred off the ship.

Jenner had been on a few away missions. Most of them were delivering vaccines, assessing plagues, or conducting routine health checkups of colonists.

Realistically, Dr Osler should be on most of those missions but he's been slowly phasing out his responsibilities to Jenner.

He's not sure how to feel about it.

Tauri finishes her conversation with Zynes. She bites down on his lip, worrying about the tender skin.

Jenner has read her profile. He knows almost every detail of her physiology, including her genetic makeup and its unknowns.

Starfleet had a whole file that they had provided him since he was her primary physician. His clearance level went up which only made hom

Tauri had given him only the basics of what to expect but refused to go any further than that. He's thought about it for a while, in between her sporadic visits and during his breaks.

He's drawn one conclusion from his time observing her. She's either ashamed or afraid of her heritage.

Jenner has worked with and treated aliens. Vulcans, Bolians, Catians, you name it—he knows about it.

There are a few hybrids—Jenner dislikes the term—that are in Starfleet. The most famous of them is currently serving aboard the USS Enterprise.

Certain cultures are touchy about certain things. For the Vulcans, it's their hands and their minds. For Andorians, it's their metabolism and antennae. Tellarites...well, they had a lot of hang-ups.

If he's right about Tauri, especially about her other half, it's her blood that bothers her the most.

An open book.

Self-loathing and he are familiar friends. It was his only companion when his entire crew was slaughtered. It was there when he testified at a trust. It slipped into his mind when he wanted to sleep.

Even now, it lingers.

"I should get going." Tauri hops off the biobed, her boot-clad feet landing softly. "Are you assigned to the away team too?"

He glanced over at the stack of PADD near his station. "We'll have to see how Dr Osler feels about it."

She gave him a sympathetic look. "That's rough."

"You have no idea." He sighs, debating with himself before he thinks screw it. "Tauri, listen. I gotta ask you something."

There's a flash of worry in her eyes but it's gone within seconds, replaced with a pleasant yet strained smile.

"Sure, Doc. Shoot."

"It's about your blood work." He said cautiously, gauging her reaction. "Is there... something you want to tell me."

It's silent. That scared him the most. Tauri looks torn between bolting for the doors and sitting down.

"Can I trust you, Doc?" She asks.

He glanced around to see if anybody was listening. "I believe in strict patient confidentiality."

"And if the captain asks?"

He feels the familiar feeling of dread settles in his stomach. They both know the answer to that question.

"I'll have to follow Starfleet protocol and answer him." He placed his bio scanner down, putting his hand on her shoulder as what she perceived to be comforting. "But I doubt it will ever come to that. Despite constantly injuring yourself, I doubt you're the type to cause trouble."

She scoffs softly. "How do you know?"

He shrugs. He doesn't but he knows how to place his faith in others.

"Doctor's intuition." He said gently.

Tauri cracked a smile at his deadpan. "You're a nice man, Doc."

He took that as progress.

"I'm a doctor. It's not my place to judge, I can only help you if you let me. So please...let me do my job and you can do yours."

"Look, Doc," she started. "I'm going planet side in about an hour but if you're willing, we can meet on the observation deck to talk about it afterwards."

Jenner smiled, pulling his hand away. "I have an antique game cube."

"Does it have Galactica?"

"How about Super Mario?"

"Even better."

***

Tauri is understandably worried by the time she makes it to the transporter room.

The last few weeks have left her feeling on edge.

Between the bomb, the captain, and the admiralty — the mission was delayed by three whole weeks, leaving them with more questions than answers.

Almost everyone on the ship knew that Tauri and Ch'Zynes were the ones to disable the bomb. She still wasn't sure if it was sheer luck or just her being her typical troublesome self.

Everyone, from the highest officers to the lowest of ensigns, had been questioned. Tauri had been taken in for questioning.

The security officers had her seated in a long corridor, deep in the starbase they were supposedly departing from with nothing but doors and a bland taste in interior decorating. People were also seated in chairs next to the doors, most of them silent,

She remembered how terrified she felt. Ch'Zynes had gone in three hours ago and he still hasn't come back.

Cortez had told her to tell them nothing but the facts.

'Don't get emotional, just keep to the facts as best as you can.' She had said to her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. 'They just want to know what happened. That's all. Nobody is going to kick you out, ensign.'

While others had been questioned for a few hours, she was questioned for a whole day.

They raked through everything in her file, from where she was born, who her parents are, and her ex-boyfriend, to the incident at the academy, and the number of starships she had been transferred from.

It was equally parts humiliating and mortifying.

She was proud of herself for not crying. Tauri palms had purple crescent marks by the time they were done.

The captain and commander Cortez were outside. Commander Cortez gave her a sympathetic look while the captain nodded his head at her.

Captain Solmani looked severe, glaring at the security officers behind her. "Return to the ship, Ensign Tauri. That's an order." He said. "I would like to have some words with our fellow officers."

She didn't have to be asked twice. She left quickly, by the time she went to the turbo lift, she could hear Captain Solmani screaming at the officers.

Ch'Zynes is in the cargo bay, looking bored as usual as he leans against a cargo crate with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He has his away kit with him, slung over his shoulder along with a tricorder.

Tauri counts at least 30 thirty people, all of them chatting excitedly. She brushes past the crowd of red, yellow, and blue.

"Ch'Zynes—"Tauri felt herself falling forward as her foot snagged against something and before she knew it she landed face first.

It obviously hurt. Her nose felt like a putty being smashed by a baseball bat, throbbing almost. She lifted her head with a groan, staring up at Zynes who was running over to her.

"Not again, Tauri." He said. "You just came back from sickbay. I'm not sending you back again.

"How sweet of you, Z."

Someone picked her up by her arms easily and placed her upright.

A tall man with coppery brown hair and freckles on his skin. His dark eyes were wide with worry as he apologized profusely.

Tauri glanced around, realizing she had tripped on the cargo crates he was stacking on the transporter pad.

"It's okay." She said, brushing herself off. "No harm, no foul. It's my fault. I should've been more aware of my surroundings."

That only made him look even more remorseful. "Your face is bruised."

She shrugged. "Occupational hazard."

"Occupational hazard, my ass." Someone slung their arm around her shoulders. "You gotta be more careful, Tauri. Take another fall like that and you'll give me an excuse to bother Jenner."

Elaine leaned her weight on her shoulder, using her as a post. She flicked her auburn hair back, taking in the ensign in front of her.

Tauri could see the stripes on the edge of her sleeve, the gold glinting under the lights.

"You don't even need an excuse to bother Dr Jenner."

"Yeah, but he doesn't need to know that."

"Tauri?" The Sandy-haired man said. "As in Ensign Tauri? The one who disarmed—-"

"Aren't you forgetting Ensign Zynes?" Elaine said.

"I got to meet him earlier." He said.

Tauri felt her ears burn. "Yeah. That's us. Let's never talk about it. Okay? Okay! Great discussion, now let's just—"

"I'm Ensign Garett," he said, holding his hand out. "I'm in security."

Elaine pushed herself off Tauri, taking his outstretched hand. "Lieutenant D'Aureville. You're with me."

She winced at how tightly she held his hand. Garret smiled at her but it was hard to tell if he was wincing or not.

***

Nitu had kept her communicator in front of her as she sorted through the slides that her fellow science officers gave her to examine.

Despite going through slide after slide and analyzing soil samples, she couldn't help but glance at her communicator every 20 minutes.

She leaned back in her chair, stretching her arms over her head.

Note picked up her mug, took a sip of her lukewarm coffee, and decided to take a much-needed break.

If Jenner wasn't going to answer her then she would just have to find him herself.

She didn't believe in a 'six sense' or any sort of nonsense. She was a woman of science, cold hard facts or nothing. But she knew something was off between her and Jenner.

It all started when he left six months ago without saying a thing to her. Even when he had come back, something was just off, he couldn't look her in the eye.

Nitu knew that she was crossing a line but she didn't care. Hey superior officers were getting ready to go on the away mission which left her with some spare time.

One of the nurses brushed past her, giving her a quick hello that she returned.

The sick bay was almost empty except for the bed at the very end near the wall. She could hear the beeping and the soft voice of Nurse Tae'sil as he talked to the patient.

Everyone had heard of the incident that happened last night.

She was just glad that they hadn't died.

Jenner must've been tending to the patient all night, it must've taken a toll on his. She hoped that he had eaten some of the food that she had left in the office.

Dr Osler's office was occupied by Jenner who was packing his away medical kit. It was a big black Starfleet-issued duffel bag that had a big Red Cross on its side. His name was stitched into the side. Nitu recognised it because she was the one who did it.

She knocked on the door frame, clearing her throat.

"Going somewhere?"

Jenner startled, dropping an empty hypospray. She reached down and grabbed it before he could.

"You're like a cat. You know that?" He gently took it from his grasp and placed it in his duffel bag.

Nitu chuckled. "Or maybe you're just distracted."

"Funny."

She leaned on his desk, arms crossed over her chest. "Did you eat?"

He shrugged. "I got a few bites in."

"Jenner." She chided.

"I know," he said, zipping up his bag. "It's just...I need time. That's all."

"Jenner, please." Nitu lifted his chin. "Talk to me."

"I am talking to you."

She narrowed her eyes. "That's not what I mean and you know it."

His hand encircled her wrist. Jenner's hand was larger than hers but she felt no threat from him. It felt like a simple caress over her skin. She liked to trace the creases of his palm, trying to understand what Terrans had found so fascinating about it.

She wasn't used to people being gentle with her.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, shutting his eyes. "I'm trying. I really am."

"Oh, Jenner." Nitu held his face in her hands, her thumb brushing over his cheekbone. There had been a scar there before he had left. "Don't apologise to me. There's nothing you have to apologise for."

He took a deep breath in and let it out. "I'm used to dealing with things alone. It's easier for me to push others away than to let them deal with my baggage. I just...get so blind sometimes."

Nitu leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "We'll figure this out. Maybe not now but one day. Just...don't shut me out. I'm here. Elaine is here. Even those two ensigns you always have to fix up. We're always there for you."

Jenner seemed to relax a bit even if his eyes looked wary.

Nitu didn't think of herself as gentle, life never allowed her to be. But for Jenner, it was as easy as breathing.

Elaine would absolutely laud this over them if she knew. Maybe she did, maybe that's why she kept pushing Nitu towards Jenner. Deep down in that frozen little thing she called a heart, she cared enough about them.

He pulled away, picking up his duffel bag. "I have to go. I'm replacing Dr Osler today."

She frowned at that. She had a lot of things to say about Dr Osler but it wasn't her place to say it. She wasn't the only one noticing how he was shifting his duties over to Jenner.

She patted his shoulder. "Better not be late. I heard Elaine is heading your away team. You know how she is when people are late?"

"Me?" He grinned, his dimples forming little half-crescents. "I'm as punctual as a sunset."

"Well, you're certainly as pretty as one. I'll give you that."

Jenner wrapped an arm around her and pulled her into a side hug. Nitu rested her head on his shoulder, inhaling his scent.

"We'll talk when I come back."

"Promise?"

"Of course."

***

They were separated into five groups of six, each team led by a lieutenant.

Elaine headed their group, guiding their shuttle down gently towards one of the many colonies.

Miram held onto the armrest tightly. The atmosphere of the planet was similar to Earth except for the fact that it had frequent storms.

When she had been left on earth with her aunt's family, she hated the storms that passed through their small town in Mexico. Her aunt had stayed in their family home that had survived revolution, natural disasters, and even World War Three.

Anytime the sea churned and the wind blew, Tauri would hide under her bed. It was the smallest place she could fit.

"Are you alright?" Zynes asked next to her.

His antennae twitch, betraying his worry. She smiled at him.

"I'm alright."

"Yeah right." He scoffed. "Would you like to try again?"

She glanced outside the port window as the skies darkened. The rain and hail pelted the shuttle's frame.

"I don't like storms."

Zynes glanced out the window, unaffected. "I've seen worse storms on Andoria." He said. "You are well aware that this shuttle is designed to fly in such conditions, right?"

She squashed a small thread of irritation. "I know. I worked on it."

He nudged her gently. "Then why are you scared?"

"It's irrational. That's all." The shuttle shook again and her knuckles turned white. "And who said I'm scared?"

Zynes blinked as he stared at her. If she wasn't so terrified, she would've stuck her tongue out.

Instead, He leaned over her seat and flicked her forehead. "It's all over your face, Tauri."

***

The shuttle had a less-than-shaky landing thanks to the recent storms in the area.

Elaine stretched, feeling something in her shoulder pop. She climbed out of the shuttle, smiling as she took in the slightly green faces of her colleagues.

"Now that we've made it in one piece, let's get started." She picked up her PADD. "As I was saying...we've landed at Colony 5 of Ivor Prime. You'll be divided into three teams. I've sent instructions to all your tricorders."

She started to read out their orders, using her 'professional voice' as Jenner liked to put it.

Ch'Zynes and her were separated. He was going to assist the medical team, including Jenner, with vaccinations. She was assigned to help fix the communications tower with Lieutenant D'Auerville.

Ensign Garett was assigned to patrol duty.

Everyone grumbled, gathering their things as they stepped out of the shuttle single file.

Tauri and Zynes were the last to disembark, bickering amongst themselves.

"Vaccinations aren't that hard," Tauri said. "We have already recalibrated the medical equipment. You fixed the code. If it wasn't accurate, why would be using it?"

Zynes made a face, his antenna snapped back in irritation. "I'm not fond of children."

She rolled her eyes. "They're kids, Z. The worst they'll do is ask you too many questions."

"Precisely."

"You'll be with Dr Jenner. He'll be doing most of the talking. You just have to scan them."

Ch'Zynes was about to open his mouth to say something snarky before Elaine interrupted. Normally she would've stayed to watch but she wanted to be back at her station and charting stars.

"Tauri," she said, pulling a Starfleet-issued raincoat over her tunic. "You're with me."

"Lieutenant," Ch'Zynes greeted her. He had that bored expression on his face. He'd almost be Vulcan if it wasn't for the blue skin or the hint of irritation on his face. "Off to the jungle are we?"

"Ensign. Tell the children I said hi, Jenner. I'm sure he'll appreciate it."

"A joy," he said with as much sarcasm as he could muster. "Truly."

Elaine patted him on the back. "Don't have too much fun!"

***

Two hours later, Elaine is sitting cross-legged on the ground near the base of the communications tower. She had sent the security officers away, stating that they should take a patrol of the colony.

Garret has stayed behind, sending the other two away.

"You sure you wanna stay here?" She asked. "There's not much to do other than making sure Tauri doesn't electrocute herself."

He glanced up, finding a small figure on the top. Garret smiled and waved at her.

"There's not much to do anyway. Those guys got it under control." Garret sat down next to Elaine. "Besides, it doesn't feel right to leave you guys alone.

She knew her way around a phaser despite what people might think.

Elaine doesn't enjoy spending time with the colonists. Out of context, that sounds awful but she has her reasons. There are thousands of colonies in federation space, some of them boasting populations of billions.

For example, Her own colony of New Paris has 2 billion people.

But there were the smaller, fringe colonies that persisted at the edge of frontier space. Free people who chose to make those colonies their home were...different. Maybe she was being paranoid. Or maybe she was still pissed off about being assigned for an away mission.

There was just something off about the Ivor Prime's Colony number 5.

The morning sun shifted into a brutal afternoon light, bringing a humid heat with it.

The planet was part tropical, part desert with the most extreme poles being just slightly above chilly. The federation had scouted this planet, hoping to harvest the silicon and minerals from the ground. Several different colonies inhabited the planet, each investigating a different environment for research as well as habitation.

Tauri was still at the top of the communications tower, fixing one of the relay dishes. It had been damaged in a previous storm and the colonists had trouble trying to fix it.

Garret and she started to flick pebbles at the wall, keeping a score of points as she hit an imaginary bullseye.

He was at 6 and she was at 4.

She was aiming for the bullseyes when a voice interrupted her focus.

"Are you with Starfleet?"

Elaine looked up. Garret was faster. He was on his feet with his phaser drawn.

A young boy, probably around nine or ten, was looking at her from between the trees. He stood five feet away, a small group of children huddled behind him.

She felt sweat trickle down her back as the humidity increased and her patience decreased.

"At ease, Ensign. Looks like we have some new friends."

"Obviously."

She looked around, hoping to find some sort of adult.

The small boy looked at them in awe. She couldn't imagine why. Starfleet isn't the worst organization in the Galaxy. It's certainly better than the Romulans or whatever the Klingons had going on.

But even she knew that it had its flaws. They were still recovering from the Narada five years ago which had decimated the majority of the senior class that year and at least three starships. Not to mention, the destruction of one of the core federation worlds was shitty cherry on top of an equally shitty Sunday.

Starfleet had been ramping up its recruitment efforts ever since, hoping to fill the gaps.

"Are you guys on the Enterprise?" A little girl asked her.

She thought about saying something sarcastic. Elaine swallowed it back down.

Garret ruffled the kid's hair even though his palm was the size of the kid's head. "Not quite the Enterprise but the USS Athena is nothing to sneeze at."

These kids were young, still idealistic and full of life.

To them—despite what she knew—Starfleet was this amazing thing that promised adventure and scientific advancement.

She was probably their first impression of Starfleet.

She could hear Commander Cortez telling her to behave.

One kid tugged her sleeve. "Do you also have a phaser?"

"We're issued phasers," she said. "But we only keep them to stun."

A little girl blinked her eyes at her. "What if you can't stun someone?"

Elaine hesitated. "We have a strict do no harm policy."

"What do you do?"

She grinned. "I'm a navigator."

For some reason, that impressed them. They gathered around her, forgetting their wariness.

She felt more like a camp counsellor than a lieutenant.

They asked questions, so many questions.

Did she fly a starship? (No, that was a helmsman.) Did she fight a Klingon? (Technically yes but who's paying attention.) Is Captain Solmani a good captain? (She was obligated to say yes.)

Garret answered their questions too, although a bit more enthusiastically.

It was going well. Until...

"What a load of bull." Someone said.

Elaine resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Would you like to repeat that?"

An older kid stepped out of the brush, wearing a black tank top and long blue shorts. His dark brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail, most likely to keep it from sticking to his forehead.

She saw his dark eyes, the pitch-black pupils being a clear sign of his betazoid ancestors.

She projected her irritation towards him. Mostly out of spite.

"I said you're full of shit."

She snorted. "That's a new one. Keep mouthing off to me, kid."

He seemed to bristle at her attitude.

Garret crouched down to his height, looking him in the eye. Suddenly he went from a threatening giant to a hopefully non-threading adult.

"What's going on with you?' He asked.

The boy regarded them suspiciously, his eyes searching for something. "All outsiders are the same. All you do is take and take. You're no different—"

The younger boy leapt up, grabbing his brother's arm and dragging him back to the underbrush.

Elaine narrowed her eyes, confused by the sudden way the siblings had left.

"Hey, wait a minute—"

"Sorry, ma'am," the young boy said, pushing his elder brother into the bushes. "It's late and we have to be home."

She glanced up at the sky. "It's the middle of the day."

The children left quickly, glancing between her and the boys. One of the girls gave a shy smile, waving goodbye before disappearing into the brush.

All in all, it was weird.

"Garret—"

"I'm on it," he said, setting his phaser to stun.

She nodded, "Comm me once you find them."

"Yes, Maam."

Tauri climbed down several minutes later, her forehead bright with sweat and her hair frizzing in all directions.

"What was that all about?" She asked.

Elaine shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "But I have a weird feeling about this."

***

Zynes had grown used to children trying to pull on his antenna. Two of them succeeded, their plump fingers tugging on them until Jenner coaxed them away with candy.

Elaine and Tauri were working on the communications tower, probably enjoying their time.

Jenner was scanning a mother, his tricorder beeping as he reassured her. Vaccines were delivered through the hypos, which were painless for the children.

They still cried which grated on his already sensitive ears.

Tobin puts down another small child, this one is quieter compared to the other. He's only two and yet he's well-behaved.

His wide eyes stare at Ch'Zynes curiously. He doesn't grab at him, only staring.

For some odd reason, he reminds him of Tauri.

Zynes reluctantly lets the child sit in his lap as Jenner finishes up with the mother.

"Are you alright?" Jenner asked him after the child and mother left.

"I'm filled with joy."

"Drop the sarcasm, Z."

"Only Tauri can call me that."

Jenner grins. "Oh, can she now?"

Zynes gives him a side eye that would make the captain proud. "Don't presume, doctor. I have no such intentions towards her. She is the one I'm most familiar with." He says. "Also...I find it difficult to stop her."

"No kidding." Jenner picked up another hypo. "Elaine and her are tenacious."

"I can see why they're friends."

Jenner hummed, "Elaine isn't good at the whole making friends thing. Trust me, I've tried."

Ch'Zynes lips twitched. "You should tell that to Tauri. For some reason she idolises her."

"At least you don't have to deal with them in the medical bay."

"That's because I like to avoid the medical bay."

Jenner sighed. "I wanted to talk to you about that." Zynes winced. "I know you're not okay, Zynes."

"You can tell that from only a single scan. Truly, you're a remarkable physician."

It was Jenner's turn to give him the side eye. "You know what I mean."

Ch'Zynes fixated on the hypos in front of him, reordering them again even though they were perfectly placed.

He had debated for weeks about seeking out Dr Jenner.

Andorians were known for their temper, fighting spirit, and ale.

There were times he didn't feel as if he fit that mould.

He put down the hypo and turned to Jenner. "Listen, I know I'm an impeccable specimen but there's no need to stare for so long."

Jenner just sat down across from him and crossed his arms. "I have all day."

"Fine." Ch'Zynes threw up his arms, "I'll give in just this once, got it?"

He waved his hand. "Please. Do continue."

"Where do I even start?"

"The beginning usually."

"Well, in that case, it all started the day I was born—"

"Ch'Zynes."

"Okay, fine. Got it. No snark." Ch'Zynes shifted in his seat. "I'm having trouble adjusting to a new ship." He said slowly. "I feel...adrift."

"Why?"

"Dr Jenner, you are aware that most people on this ship are given a 'last chance' per se." Zynes sighed. "Everything was great when I was on my last ship. I got promoted, I got lots of experience, and I even had a boyfriend. But then I fucked it all up because I got too cocky."

Jenner leaned forward. "What happened?"

"I...I don't want to talk about it. All you have to know is that The last ship I was on, I destroyed it to the point where it took a whole year to fix."

"Oh."

'Yeah. Oh." Ch'Zynes spat out. "I have ruined any chance I have of advancing in my field.

"The Captain believes in second chances."

He scoffed. "Starfleet makes him accept the screwups. You know what that means. You think any other ship will take me?"

"If you had a chance, would you leave?"

"Yeah, maybe." Ch'Zynes shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know. dismantling a bomb and then getting questioned by the admiralty on my first day doesn't sound like a good start. All I can is everything going down from here."

"What about me?"

"I don't know. Did you screw up?"

Jenner makes a face. "Not necessarily. But I did pay for the actions of others."

"Why doesn't that make me feel any better?"

Jenner sighs through his nose. He usually did that whenever Tauri came in with an injury or when Elaine strolled into medbay with the intent to gossip.

Ch'Zynes didn't expect it to be used on him.

"Excuse me, sir." One of the women came up to him.

"Ma'am." Jenner greeted, ever so politely.

A child hid behind her, glaring up at Jenner. He looked to be around three to four years of age.

"He doesn't like strangers but I think he's sick," she said, placing a gloved hand on top of his head.

Jenner motioned them over to the issues tent with the Starfleet insignia on its side. The loose flaps shook as a small gust blew by, nearly hitting Ch'Zynes in the face.

There was another storm incoming.

He checked his communicator, hoping that Tauri or D'Auerville would've checked in by now.

The child made a screeching noise as Jenner tried to peer into his mouth. Ch'Zynes decided it was better to keep his fingers away if he wanted them to stay attached to his hand.

He sat down, picking up one of his PADDs. Tauri had been reading about the storms that frequented the areas and how the ionic properties disrupted communications. He had teased her earlier but didn't push any further when she glanced out of the port window nervously.

The both of them had disabled a bomb together, facing certain death if they had failed. Tauri, while being terrified, managed to keep her cool.

Meanwhile, Ch'Zynes wondered if his father would be proud of him enough to add his blood to the wall of heroes on Andoria.

It was such a stupid thought. Of all the things he could've dredged up from his memories, all he could see was the miserable face of his father when he told him that he wanted to go into Starfleet rather than the Imperial Guard.

He put the PADD down as the child and mother thanked Jenner before scurrying out of the tent.

"Um...you're welcome," Jenner said, still hiding the tricorder.

"Did you scare them or something, Dr Jenner."

His eyebrows knitted in confusion as he set down the tricorder on his lap. "No, it was just a normal case of tonsillitis."

Ch'Zynes poked his head out of the tent, spotting the distant figures of the mother and child as they hurried into one of the buildings.

Okay. Definitely Weird...

"Well, what did you say?"

"Nothing. I just told them the time and the mother just bolted before I could give the kid a hypo."

He stopped and looked around, suddenly noticing how quiet it was. The air felt cold, and he could hear the wind ruffle the tall stick-like trees that were native to this planet.

"What is it?" Jenner leaned over. "Where did the people go?"

What used to be a bustling town centre was now dead silent. Even the rambunctious children were gone leaving only Jenner and Ch'Zynes alone.

"I'll pose a better question, Jenner." Ch'Zynes got up slowly, his antenna twitching as the wind picked up. "Where did the security officers go?"

*****

Tauri frowned at the readings she was getting.

Despite the repairs, the communications tower was still down even though all systems were within normal parameters.

She had replaced everything and even ran the necessary test but all she was getting was static. It must've been the storm or something.

"Huh," she said to herself. "That's weird."

She went through each system one by one, making sure she didn't miss anything. Nothing was wrong with the relay dish the couplers or the fiber optic cables. She and Elaine fixed up the circuit board, replacing the damage that the previous lightning strike did.

Tauri tucked her tricorder away and climbed down using the ladder. She jumped down onto the slightly muddied ground, accidentally splashing Elaine with the puddle of water.

"Hey!"

"Sorry!" She said. "Didn't see you there. Any luck down here?"

Elaine leaned against the control panel, her brows furrowed in irritation as she angrily jabbed another sequence of codes in.

"Nothing." She uttered. "Nothing at all. I've run the tests again but everything is in order and yet...."

Elaine took the PADD from her. "Signals are being sent but not received. Maybe it's because of the storm. It's not uncommon for interference."

Tauri looked doubtful. "You could be right." She flipped open her communicator. "I'm calling Z. I'm sure he needs to be saved from the children."

"If you rescue Ch'Zynes, I'm sure he'll buy you all the Cardassian sunrises you want."

"Tauri to Ch'Zynes...come in." All Elaine could hear was static.

Tauri leaned down to look at the screen. "Tauri to Ch'Zynes, comin."

Static once again.

Tauri placed the communicator on a rock, flipping it over and prying the back panel off. She had her tool belt rolled out, picking up a small screwdriver.

Elaine crouched down next to her, watching her fingers take it apart and put it back together again. "Um, Tauri...What are you doing?"

"Repairing it." She answered back simply.

"He's not answering. Do you think it's the storm?"

That could be a possibility but she's had several reports of communicators suddenly going offline for the past two weeks. They didn't have the resources to order new ones despite Commander Haley repeatedly badgering Starfleet.

She's repaired at least 60 communicators in the past week alone.

A cluster of dark clouds lingered on the horizon. Flashes of purple lighting could be seen even with the trees slightly obscuring their view.

She had read up while Elaine played loop de loop with the shuttle, hoping to keep her mind off the churning feeling in her stomach.

Ivor Prime had frequent storms which were known to interfere with signals. But the upcoming storm was miles away, it wasn't anywhere near the colony and it shouldn't have been scrambling signals like this.

Something seemed off.

"What if it's not the storm?" Tauri asked.

Elaine cursed under her breath, she opened a panel that housed the main computer and started to search through past logs.

"Is that a good idea?"

"No but who's stopping me?"

"Starfleet Regulation."

"Not much they can do out here."

Tauri closed her communicator. "Fair point."

===

"I must admit, Captain," Admiral Grey said, "I'm surprised at how efficient you and your crew are despite your late head start."

Captain Solmani bit back a retort when Cortez gave him a stern look from the corner of his eye.

He felt his lip turn up in a press-friendly smile all Captain's were required to learn.

"What can I say, Admiral? I run a tight ship."

Admiral Grey looked unperturbed, his eyes flicking down to a PADD in his hand. "And yet you failed to detect a bomb aboard your vessel."

His crew were trying very hard to look busy despite their ears listening in.

"I believe those were special circumstances, Admiral." He said, leaning back into his seat. "After all, we managed to resolve the issue. Without your assistance, of course."

"Of course. How could we forget to get your... spirited young crew members."

"Thank you, Admiral. I hope their 'spirit' doesn't annoy you too much since they saved your station."

Ha! Take that.

Cortez rolled her eyes.

"And how's your security officer?" He asked innocently. "Oh, forgive me. I forgot that your chief security officer was demoted. I hope she's doing well at her new station."

Admiral Grey leaned back in his seat, hands enmeshed together in front of him as he stared Captain Solmani down.

"She's adjusting well," he said after a pregnant pause. He was still smiling but it was strained. "I can take care of my crew, Admiral. Don't you worry about that.

"I have no doubt about that. If the admiralty sees it fit to give you a three-year mission, then what can I say?" He shrugged. "I just hope nothing like this will happen again."

"It won't."

"We'll see, Captain." The admiral said. "I'll expect your report of Ivor Prime soon. There have been hints of pirates in the area, you should keep your eyes peeled."

"My eyes are keen as they'll ever be. Goodbye, Admiral."

"Captain."

Captain Solmani nodded his head briskly at the communications officer who cut the sub-space call quickly.

The moment Admiral Grey's smug face disappeared off the screen, he let himself sink into the chair. A familiar headache was beginning to form.

"Tea, no milk, no sugar," he snapped as a yeoman.

He gave a hasty salute at his harsh tone. "A-aye, Captain." He stammered out before heading to the turbo lift.

"Rather civil, Captain."

Cortez perched herself near the console. One hand running through calculations and the other holding a cup of spiced tea that she knew irked him.

"I suppose it could be worse."

"I'm sure nobody noticed."

"Do you hear anyone complaining?" He gruffed.

Cortez gave him a look. "Do you want them to?"

"You know what I mean."

"Of course, captain." She said as she returned to her station.

So far, so good.

Captain Solmani took a sip of his coffee as he observed the planet on the view screen.

Ivor Prime was just one of many colonies he was tasked with delivering supplies to by Admiral Grey.

"Captain," Commander Beck said from his station. The communications officer was next to him, staring at her console with conferring.

The tea suddenly tasted bitter.

"Yes, Commander?"

"It's team five, Sir." He said. "We've lost all communication with them."

===

Tauri was thankful that she had taken a survival elective when she was at the academy.

While some of her peers had gone to Antarctica or Mars, she had chosen the Amazon jungle.

Sometime in the 21st century, only 10% of the Amazon rainforest survived the nuclear fallout and subsequent wars of the era. What had remained was quickly plundered for resources.

Thankfully, the tiny bit that remained was protected by a few dedicated humans and conservation efforts had helped the forest flourish. It didn't bring back the lost flora or fauna but at least something remained.

Tauri had done better than the other cadets, not because she was strong but because she was familiar with the terrain.

She had lived near a jungle when she was younger. That was such a long time ago but she can't still remember the feeling of humidity as it stuck to her skin.

"Why is it so fucking hot?" D'Auerville had stripped off her gold tunic, leaving her in her black Starfleet-issued tank top.

"Humidity is to be expected. After all, it's gonna rain."

"Yeah when I said I wanted to go somewhere warmer, this isn't what I meant."

They both trekked through the jungle, hoping to find the kids they had met earlier.

Elaine was certain that they knew something. Tauri couldn't dispute her facts. Nothing about this place was adding up. The kids, the functioning but not quite functioning communication tower, and the storms.

She stumbled over a tree root, landing in the mud. Tauri groaned as she pushed herself up.

Her first away mission and she's a mess.

Elaine drags her back up by the elbow, "you okay?"

Tauri sighed, bringing out her tricorder. "Never better. I'm not getting anything weird from these recordings. Just a lot of flora and fauna."

"I hate this planet. Stupid storms." Elaine kicked a rock, watching it as it sailed through the air and into the forest.

A very audible thunk was heard. Both of them stopped and looked at each other.

It couldn't be...could it?

It can't be that simple...right?

Tauri aimed her tricorder in the direction of the metallic sound they heard, noticing how the readings she got were still the same. Elaine took a more direct approach, grabbing another rock and hurling it in the same direction.

Both of them ran through the jungle, dodging tree roots and vines.

Elaine slowed down, grabbing Tauri by the arm and ducking down underneath a long.

She pressed her finger to her mouth.

Tauri glanced over the edge of the log, counting five people, all of them dressed in black. These guys weren't Starfleet, that was for sure.

Elaine pulled out her binoculars. "Pirates," she hissed.

"How do you know?"

Elaine handed her the binoculars. "See those idiots with the dorky hats," she said, tugging at her shoulder. "All of them have non-federation-issued phasers strapping onto them. Maybe Romulan, maybe something else. Hard to tell from here..."

"Pirates," Miram murmured. "How did they get here though?"

"I have a feeling they've been here longer. Probably before Starfleet started helping the colonists." She pointed towards the crates. "Look, they've been hoarding food and supplies for months."

Tauri felt a pit of dread form in her stomach. Pirates were never a great thing, wherever they went there was always destruction and death. She's heard more experienced officers having hushed conversations about their time on the frontiers of Federation space. Those stories always made her stomach turn.

"It makes no sense," she said. "Ivor Prime is too deep in federation space, there's no way any patrolling ship could miss these guys. Anyone would've noticed their ships."

Elaine huffed, pushing her sweaty bangs out of her face. "What if they never left?"

"Meaning?"

"Think, Tauri." She pointed at the ship that was covered in foliage and tree bark. "You're an engineer. Does That ship look like it can fly?"

Taur took the binoculars from her. Zooming in, she could see the scorch marks on the underbelly of the ship and the darkened cockpit. The engines were cold and powered down, also sporting scorch marks. One of them was exposed, its insides a mess of wires like the intestines of a gutted animal.

Their impulse engines were missing, they probably fell off when they were crash landing and one of the fins on the backside was bent at a ninety-degree angle.

She gasped, suddenly realizing what was going on.

"Oh my god," she hissed, grabbing her shoulder. "They're trying to rebuild the ship."

"They're doing a great job," Elaine drawled. "And they're using federation tech to do it. What bunch of lowlifes."

"That explains why the tower wasn't working. They took the components."

"Bingo."

They watched for some more time, Elaine tried to reach for her communicator but she couldn't find it. She had sworn that she had it on her.

Tauri grabbed her shoulder. "Look," she said, pointing towards the pirates.

There were two cages in the middle. One was full of people; young, old, and in between. Some looked terrified while others looked afraid. One child sat in the corner, huddled up next to a still figure who was lying down. She couldn't tell if they were alive or not.

Two security officers were dragged to the centre of the camp and tossed into the cage, their hands bound behind them. Elaine recognized ensign Gravik, who was bleeding and unresponsive. The other one was ensign Forrester who had her mouth gagged. Both of them had been with Jenner and ch'Zynes.

Another one was in a separate cage, surrounded by a bunch of kids. She could recognize Garret from here.

Elaine knew something terrible must have happened if all of the security team was being held hostage.

And she didn't even have her communicator to contact for help. Right now, it seemed she and Tauri were the help.

"That explains why nobody found out about these guys," Elaine said. "Who knows how long they've been doing this shit to them? How could Starfleet miss something like this?"

"We have to help them," Tauri said, trying to get up.

Elaine grabbed her arm and yanked her down hard, not caring if she was bruising her. "Are you insane?" She hissed. "They have phaser rifles that can slice us to ribbons. We'll get killed."

"What do we do?"

"We go back and regroup with the others."

Tauri pulled her arm away. "What if there's no others?"

Elaine knew that could be a possibility but she didn't want to dwell too long on the thought. It left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"Then we stay alive for those who are left." She said, gently. "Now stay low and follow me."

They barely made it five feet before Elaine knocked against a rock, causing it to tumble down the hill. The camp below went silent.

Tauri looked nervous as she leaned in to whisper to her. "Do you think they noticed?"

Her answer came in the form of phaser fire.

Elaine grabbed her arm, dragging her through the underbrush as wood splintered all around them. "Tauri, run!"

Tauri fell backwards over the log. She landed on her shoulder painfully and continued to roll down the hill, landing in a messy heap at the bottom,

She groaned in pain, turning onto her back.

Several of the pirate had their phasers pointed at her and she was certain they weren't set to stun.

"I think they heard us," Tauri groaned, clutching her arm.

"No." Elaine sat up, pushing the barrel of the phaser away from her face. "What makes you think that?"

There were six pirates in total, all of them dressed in green and beige uniforms that looked as if they came off the set of a B-rated halo movie.

Elaine was really regretting her decision to join the away team.

====

Ch'Zynes has been in a lot of shitty situations. A lot.

This isn't so bad but the lack of people in the town square and the loss of their security officers puts him on edge.

He ventures out of the tent, feeling the breeze rustle his clothes and hair. The town centre is empty, there's not a single person outside now.

The sun was setting, casting a golden glow over the colony.

"That's strange," Jenner said, narrowing his eyes at the tricorder readings. "The colonists are still here."

He looked around, noticing an elderly man was watching him from the window. His pale eyes widened when Ch'Zynes saw him, ducking away.

"They're hiding," he said, pulling his phaser out. He had it set to stun but he felt like that wouldn't be the case for long.

Something was seriously wrong here and it wasn't the strange storms.

He can't take it anymore. His bullshit meter was off the charts and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

Jenner scowled. "But they're not hiding from us, Doc." He crept through the square as the bell started to toll from the makeshift church.

Ch'Zynes plastered himself against a wall, his phaser feeling hot in his hand.

Both of them listened carefully as voices could be heard but these were rough and deep, almost menacingly. And they were getting closer.

Ch'Zynes placed his hand on the trigger and took a step forward. Before he could face whoever was out there, he felt himself being yanked back hard.

He stumbled through an open doorway, landing in a heap atop of Jenner who groaned underneath him.

The young boy pulled the blinds shut, placing his hand on the old doorknob that belonged to another century.

Ch'Zynes peeked outside through the window and crouched down, motioning Jenner and him to do the same thing. He was starting to wonder if he should be nicer to kids.

The boy pressed a finger to his mouth and pointed at the window. Jenner and him exchanged a look.

"Okay, kiddo." He said, whispering. "You want to tell us what's going on?"

He looked up at Ch'Zynes with a wobbly lip. "You have to stay inside!"

"Wow, very helpful."

Jenner shot him a look. He crouched down at eye level with the kid who was trying his best not to cry. "It's okay. We can help. Please, just tell us what's going on..."

"They have my brother," he said in a small voice. "And my mummy and aunt Tessa."

Jenner scooted closer to the kid, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. The kid flinched, staring at Jenner with weary eyes.

Ch'Zynes would've been impressed if he wasn't a little bit irritated with their situation.

"It's okay," Jenner said soothingly. "My name is Doctor Jenner. I'm with Starfleet. We're here to help."

the boy glanced at ch'Zynes and then at his antennae. "I'm...Jacob."

"Alright, Jacob. What happened?"

Jenner was using a softer tone, the one he reserved for people in his medbay that were seriously injured and freaking out. Ch'Zynes knew that Jenner—despite his strong and hard physique—was as gentle as a mother hen with her brood. There probably wasn't a bone in that man's body that could cause someone harm.

He was grateful. He was terrible with kids, he never really knew why.

He never really knew what to do with them.

The kid started to sob. Big, fat tears rolled out of his eyes as he furiously tried to scrub them away. Ch'Zynes wanted to tell the kid that it was useless to cry, just like so many people before his had told him the same thing.

Jacob had been holding a lot in for months.

"They started to take out food...and then they took our supplies." Jenner tucked the kid against his side. "Mummy said they would hurt us if we resisted so...we let them! And then each time someone came to fix the communication tower...t-they started to take us." He choked out. "And they took Dave this morning because he was talking to some Starfleet officers."

Ch'Zynes felt a chill run up his spine. "Jacob," he said slowly, mimicking Jenner's soothing tone. "What did those officers look like?"

"Tobin," Jenner shook his head. He had the same thought too.

He grits his teeth, hating the fact that he is useless. "They could be in trouble."

"The whole sector of this colony could be in trouble."

Ch'Zynes glanced out of the window, towards the mountain. He could see the communications tower sticking up from the base like incense sticks. The light was on meaning that Tauri and Elaine weren't able to fix it—or maybe they had been prevented from fixing it.

===

Tauri could count the number of shitty situations she had been in on one hand.

Some would say she was lucky, others would say she was naive. She would have rolled her eyes and told them to shut up.

The gag pressed against the folds of her mouth painfully, gnawing at the delicate skin.

The pirates dragged her and the prisoners from their cages and into the tone square. Their leader was nowhere to be seen which made the other captured colonists more worried.

Elaine shuffled along next to her sporting a black eye. Her eyes glinted furiously at one of the pirates who leered at her, his ragged phaser rifles pointed towards her heart.

Tauri knew things could get rough out in the frontier but seeing it in person made her doubt if the federation even knew anything. Fancy slogans and shiny glory. How could it have gotten so bad on the fringes of space?

They pushed both of them onto their knees. The prisoners behind them kneeled of their own will, some crying and some muttering mercy.

"Fuckers," Elaine hissed under her breath.

They waited as the bell stopped tolling.

Garret scoffed as a man came sauntering towards them.

He was a shadow as the sun set, dressed in black with an old hat atop his greying hair. Human clearly.

His moustache twitched as he smiled, elated by the fact that he had several Starfleet officers trapped.

"Well, I'll be." He whistled. "May I ask who's in charge?"

Elaine grinned. "That would be me, you piece of shit—"

One of the guards kicked her in the ribs, silencing her.

The man—whoever he was—tutted. "That's no way to introduce yourself, darling." He kneeled on one knee in front of them. Tauri could see the large knife strapped to his calf. "I'm Solis and own this here colony."

Bullshit, Tauri thought.

Elaine's face was contorted in pain but her eyes were furious. "What do you want?"

He shrugged. "The usual. More credits than I know what to do with, a pretty young thing on my arm, and freedom from the law that traps me. You know, the usual."

"What does that have to do with us?" Tauri asked. "If you let us go, we can guarantee that the Federation can—-"

He started to laugh. Tauri felt her mouth snap close. He stopped laughing, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye. "The Federation? Those spineless folks couldn't even piss in the direction of a comet. Now you listen here, girl. I don't give a fuck about what the federation says, as far as I see it, I own this colony and everything on it."

Solis gets back up, drawing his phaser. Tauri could see the blinking red lights. He pointed it at her face, smiling.

Elaine tried to get back up but one of the pirates held her down, slamming her head into the dirt. He placed the barrel of his phaser against her head. Garrett was kicked in the stomach as he tried to protest.

Tauri felt her muscles freeze, counting the literal seconds before her life was to be snuffed out. She could see the faces of everyone she ever loved and hated flashing by like an antique film roll she saw in a museum on Earth.

Solis chuckled. "It's a pity, you would've gone for a good price."

She squeezed her close, offering one last prayer to the goddesses as she heard the familiar sound of a phaser going off.

Only she didn't feel the searing pair.

Solis was screaming as the fingers of his hand had been blown clean off.

"Get the fuck away from them!"

Ch'Zynes stumbled out, standing in the distance. His phaser was pointed towards Solis, blinking a familiar red.

"You on the wrong side—-"

"Shut the fuck up, ass wiper, or else I'll blow off your dick next!"

Elaine exchanged a look with Tauri, mildly impressed.

One of Solis's men raised his phaser and fired at Ch'Zynes, missing completely but hitting a house where screams could be heard from the inside. Jenner stumbled out of the house, a gun in hand.

It was an old-fashioned shotgun, retro and outdated.

And he knew how to use it well.

He fired a shot and it felt as if the sky was booming. Chaos erupted as Elaine launched herself from her haunches and tackled one of the men to the ground, using the distraction to get out of her bindings.

Tauri felt someone undo the bindings and yelled for her to run.

Blindly she got up, stumbling through the mess of bodies and debris as she felt her throat start to close up.

"No you don't, you little bitch!" Solis grabbed her by the back of the neck, his knife pressed against her neck. "If I can't use ya to negotiate, then I'll just slit your pretty little throat myself."

===

Elaine grabbed Garret in the chaos, picking up a fallen phaser as she dragged them both behind a crate.

"Fuck!" She screamed as a phaser shot nearly nicked her ear.

"Nice to see you too," Jenner said, fiddling with his tricorder. "The signals are still jammed. I can't get a distress call out and the Athena can't transport down to us."

"Fuck!" Elaine screamed louder, hitting a pirate square in the chest.

He went down in a heap near them.

Garret knew the effects of adrenaline. It was coursing through his veins so fast he couldn't feel his teeth.

He saw the man Elaine had killed, slumped on the ground. Around his waist was a belt of old-fashioned grenades. He had seen them in old halos, horrified by how such a small piece of ordinance could cause that much damage.

He grabbed Jenner's shaking wrist, determined. "I have an idea."

Elaine ducked down as phaser shits tore up the brick wall they were pressed against. "I'm all ears, Ensign. What do you got?"

===

She felt the cold edge of the knife dig into her neck as Solis wrestled her down to the ground. He had her hands pinned to her sides, his eyes wild and manic.

This couldn't be it.

It just couldn't.

"Sorry, darling but you know how it is."

"Yeah," she said, wrapping her hand around his wrist and squeezing hard till she heard a pop. "I do."

Tauri ripped off the gag. She could taste mud in her mouth as she reared her head back and sank her teeth in Solis's calf, causing him to scream as she bit past his tough leather pants and into his very skin, drawing out the coppery taste of blood.

She could hear Ch'Zynes screaming obscenities as he got the shit kicked out of him. He sounded as feral as she felt.

Solis grabbed her by the hair and tore her away from his leg, throwing her to the ground. He brought his phaser down, the butt of it hitting her skull so hard she saw stars.

She groaned as she crawled into a ball.

"Miram!" Elaine screamed, her voice grating in the fray.

===

"This is Docter Jenner! Come in, Athena! Requesting immediate backup. I repeat, immediately. Several officers are injured!" Jenner felt his hands shake as he screamed desperately into the comms.

Elaine and him were hidden behind a crate. She held their position but they were running out of time.

Garret was supposed to destroy the jammers by now. Why hadn't he?

He couldn't lose someone like this.

Not again.

Please, god. Not again.

"This is Dr Jenner, calling for immediate aid and backup!" He tried again.

Elaine screamed Tauri's name. He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back down behind the crate before she was cut to ribbons.

It was useless but he wasn't going to let her die yet.

"Let me go!" She screamed, clawing at his arms. "Let me go—"

"It's a bloodbath, E!" He tightened his grip. "There's nothing you can do!"

Jenner squeezed his eyes shut, listening to the carnage as phaser fire grew closer and closer. He made his final prayer, his mind flashing to Jana and her lovely eyes.

In the distance, masked by the noise was the sound of an explosion that trembled the earth.

He snapped his eyes open.

Garret had done it!

===

Lieutenant Doe—Smith knew her fair share of battles, personal and physical.

She could feel the buzz of phaser fire as she beamed down.

A bolt of phaser fire sizzled past her ear. She barely flinched.

Her team—even though they weren't her team any more technically—knew what to do, they fanned out and outflanked the pirates, neutralizing them swiftly.

A man in black in black had his phaser pointed towards an ensign on the ground.

Without a moment of hesitation, Doe-Smith pulled the trigger.

The man turned his head, looking her in the eye for a moment before smiling and then crumpling to the ground. The sound of phaser fire grew dimmer and dimmer, and then as quickly as it had begun, it had stopped.

It was over.

The ensign's face was frozen in an expression between horror and awe. She crouched down and picked her up in her arms.

This was turning out to be one hell of a day.

===

The med bay was loud today and Jenner wished he could press a mute button.

Jenner was already run ragged after directing his staff to take care of several injured crew members. He lay on a biobed as Nurse Graves used the dermal regenerator on him.

In the corner of the med bay sat four people, arguing amongst themselves.

"—I didn't ask you to do that!" Tuari grabs a cotton swab from the nurse's tray and hurls it at Ch'Zyne's head. It bounces off and lands on the floor of the med bay where a cleaner bot sweeps it away.

Ch'Zynes glares at her. "Well, what did you want me to do?!"

"Don't get nearly killed, you jerk!" Tauri yells. It's amazing just how loud her voice is considering her size. "I didn't ask you to put yourself between him and me!"

Elaine cracks open an eye, pushing her hair out of her face to reveal several bruises. "Can you two please not yell?" She huffed. "My head feels like I digested Klingon blood wine for breakfast."

Both of them ignore her. Garret glances between them with a worried expression. "Maybe we should all just—"

"Don't even try, ensign," Elaine growls.

Jenner's eyes snap open.

"That's enough," Jenner said, forcing some authority into his voice that makes them all flinch. "This is a med bay, not a food court. You can yell at each other after my staff have fixed you up."

They mutter their apologies, avoiding his eyes. Elaine rolls her eyes and leans back while Garret types away on his PADD with his good arm. Jenner makes a mental note to look at it later while he uses the osteogenerator.

He stops next to Ch'Zynes, his face covered in various shades of blues. His right eye is swollen shut and his lip is still oozing blood. He's not in the best shape but he'll live according to the biobed readings.

Nurse Graves picks up the dermal generator and gets to work, slowly knitting the broken skin together.

"That bad, huh?" He tries to grin but winces. "Tell me, Graves. Will I come out of this with my beautiful face intact?"

Nurse Graves rolls his eyes at his blatant flirting. "Don't worry. You'll be as good as new."

Ch'Zynes winks with his good eye. "My hero."

Tauri lowers the pillow in her hand. "I'm sorry." She said, "I just..."

Ch'Zynes signs, gently pushing Nurse Graves's hand away. "Listen, I'm not sorry for doing what I did. It's not the first time I've gotten a beating and it won't be the last."

Tauri's lower lip wobbles. "I should've been more careful."

He glanced at Jenner who just shrugged. "Yeah, maybe you should have. But it's over now. We're back on our ship and those assholes are in the brig. No harm, no foul."

Nurse Graves shook his head, loading up the hypos. "Tell me something," he said. "Why is it always you guys who end up here?'

Elaine winced as he pressed the hyposray into her neck. "No clue." She glanced at Tauri. "Feel free to answer."

"No thanks." She turned to her right. "Z, wanna chime it?"

"Oh please, I'm so not writing the mission report for this one. Garret?"

He snorted. "Keep my name out of your mouth, Z. I'm still sore."

"Children, please," Elaine said. "Behave."

Jenner shushed her. "Please. I need sleep."

Nitu leaned against him, a smile playing on her face. "Are they always like this?"

He sighed. "Yes. Unfortunately." He smiled a little even though it hurt. "But I'm starting to get used to this."

TO BE CONTINUED...