ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klingons

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

15​

Kirk strode onto the bridge six hours later, feeling a bit more human than he had the night before. One thing he had gotten accustomed to in the past eight years was regular hours. At this stage of his life, all-nighters really took their toll. Everyone else was already present, looking to him as one for leadership, guidance, and answers. He was the captain- those were the things it was his job to provide. He stepped down to the command station and took the center seat. “Lieutenant T’Val, let’s see that torpedo hit one more time,” he said. She nodded, actuating the library computer. The viewscreen shifted from realtime to recorded playback, and once again they were looking at Kronos. As they watched, a photon torpedo arced gracefully up and struck her amidships. “Hold,” Kirk snapped at the point the explosion began to blossom. The picture froze, and there was complete, somber silence on the bridge for several moments, broken only by Demora Sulu.

“It was Enterprise,” she said in a small voice. “We fired.”

Scott’s face screwed up angrily. “That is not possible! All weapons are visually accounted for! Sir!” he added, with a quick nod at Kirk, who said nothing.

Spock had been pacing back by the science station, but now he made his way down in front of the helm console and leaned against the railing, still looking at the viewscreen. “One of my ancestors maintained that once you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”

“Meaning what, sir?” asked Lieutenant Castillae.

“Meaning that if the Enterprise did not fire those torpedoes, then somebody else did.”

“Who?” asked Scott. “That bloody Klingon garbage scow
dinnae fire on herself, and there were no other ships present.

“Just before the attack, we registered a very large surge of neutron radiation.”

“Not from us!” Scott claimed.

“A surge that size could only have come from another ship,” Demora said with authority.

“The Kronos?” asked T‘Val.

“Too far away,“ Spock countered. “No, very near us. Perhaps beneath us.”

“But if there was another ship beneath us, both we and the Klingons would have detected her,” Scott countered.
“Would we?” Spock asked cryptically. He stopped his pacing, looking back over the helm console at all of them.

“A bird of prey,” T’Val said softly.

Spock nodded. “A bird of prey.”

“A bird of prey cannae fire when she’s cloaked,” Scott reminded them.

“All things being equal, I would be forced to agree, Mister Scott. However, all things are not equal. This one can.”

“We may not be able to detect her presence,” Kirk finally said, “but can we prove that she was here?”

“Problematic at best, admiral. If she is at least similar to the typical configuration, she is small and would leave very little trace of herself. Between the plasma exhausts left behind by Enterprise and Kronos, coupled with the energy disturbances caused by weapons fire, it is doubtful we’ll be able to detect anything that would prove conclusive.”

“Doubtful at these coordinates, Mister Spock,” Ensign Sulu cut in, “but what about our course prior to the attack? We were moving in a straight line at constant warp velocity. That ship would have had to creep on up, snuggle in under us, and match velocity. If we backtrack our original course we might find something.”

“Officer thinking, ensign,” Kirk replied. “Plot a course back toward the Neutral Zone. Warp two until we are past the point where the first shot occurred, then proceed at full impulse. Mister Spock, I’ll want detailed sensor scans.”

“Of course, admiral,” Spock replied. “I’m going to put Commander Talrev on that task. He was my science officer during our initial trials, and scheduled to resume those duties under Captain Harriman. I will be otherwise occupied.”

“Very well,” Kirk replied.

“Course laid in, admiral,” Sulu added.

“Warp two,” Kirk ordered. “Mister Scott, I have a task for you as well. If we assume that Mister Spock is correct about the bird of prey, then there is a Klingon vessel out there that has the capability to fire while cloaked. I need a countermeasure, Scotty- a way to detect such a vessel under combat conditions. I think we may need one before this is all through. Don‘t necessarily limit yourself to equipment we have on board, either. If there is a piece of technology out there you think will do the trick, I want to know about it.”

“I’ll get right on it, admiral.”

“Mister Spock, please join me in sickbay. Lieutenant T’Val, you have the conn.”

“Aye, sir,” she replied.

“Admiral, may I ask what you are planning?” Spock once they were enclosed in the lift. “While this search for evidence falls in line with the orders given us by Starfleet, it hardly addresses the problem of what to do about General Chang.”

“I’m working on it,” Kirk assured him. “We need to kill a little time anyway. I can’t make my next move until the Klingons contact the Federation Council.”

“They may not contact them at all, Jim,” Spock replied. “Sonok’s advice, while strategically sound, leaves us in a vacuum.”

“If there is no contact by the time we‘re finished loitering around here, I think I may have you contact Azetbur directly. Sometimes you have to beat the grass to startle the snakes. In the meantime, I need you to find out who the mole aboard our ship is. I don’t believe for a minute that we’ve accounted for all the rats.”

“Nor I, sir,” Spock replied. “That was the task I alluded to on the bridge. There is only one other officer aboard with a computer rating matching my own. I set him up in lab one last night after we left Sonok‘s quarters, and I’ll be joining him shortly.” Spock’s voice took on the grave tone of a mortally offended Vulcan. “It was a grave error for anyone aboard this ship to think that they could falsify computer records and hide it from me.”

Kirk halted the lift. “You already know who it is, don’t you?” he asked incredulously.

“I have a suspicion,” Spock allowed. “Admiral, that is all I’m prepared to say at this time. You’ll have an answer soon. It‘s going to take a day or two.”

“Very well, Mister Spock. I leave the matter in your capable hands.” Kirk re-engaged the lift. A few minutes later found them in sickbay, where Doctor McCoy and ship’s surgeon Doctor Zhen were chatting over hot coffee. “Well gentlemen,” Kirk said as he strode in purposefully. “You two appear to be having a relaxing morning.”

“Good morning, Jim,” McCoy said. Zhen echoed the greeting a little more formally. “Are you here about Burke and Sandoval?”

“Yes. Anything interesting turn up in the data?”

“Not really, admiral. What you see is what you get.”

“The identities of both men are verified by DNA analysis, sir,” Zhen added. “Without the bodies we could not do a full analysis, but Dr. McCoy got pretty thorough scans of the remains. No traces of drugs in their bloodstreams that we could detect, and based on the short examination he was able to make, no evidence of mind-tampering of any kind. Both men were human, apparently healthy, and acting of their own accord. That’s the medical analysis, so far as it goes.”

“One thought did occur to me, Jim,” McCoy added. “Two humans boarding a Klingon warship by themselves was a pretty ballsy thing to do, if you ask me. Under normal circumstances, they’d have been cut to shreds long before getting anywhere near the chancellor. Based on what we saw, these two beamed almost to his exact location aboard Kronos. Now I don’t see how they possibly could have done that without some pretty solid inside information.”

“So you think they were assisted by someone aboard the Klingon cruiser?” Kirk asked.

“It’s the only thing that makes any sense,” McCoy shrugged. “Would you have known where to beam to find someone aboard their ship?”

Spock raised an eyebrow. “An astute observation, doctor. In fact, it ties in with what we already know. I shall factor that into my investigation.”

“Glad to be of help, Spock. On that happy note, is there any clue as to why Burke and Sandoval would do this, or for who?” McCoy asked.

“We’re chasing down a lead or two,” Kirk replied cryptically. A sudden thought occurred to him. “Bones, have you seen Carol this morning?”

McCoy smiled his old country doctor smile. “Had breakfast with her about two hours ago, admiral. She told me to tell you she’s fine; no ill effects from being attacked by Klingons, and she’s still working on her pet project. She knows you’re up to your ass in…well, y’know,” he finished sheepishly. “So Jim, I take it you’ve talked to Starfleet. Just how much trouble are we in?”

“The typical amount,” Kirk replied. “We just assassinated the chancellor of the Klingon High Council, and the entire Klingon fleet will probably be coming across the Neutral Zone for blood inside a month.” Kirk headed for the door.

“Another day at the office, eh?” McCoy mumbled. “Uhh, Jim? What are you planning to do about it?”

Kirk paused, and looked expectantly at Spock. The Vulcan turned to McCoy with his typically serious demeanor. “We are going to stab General Chang in the liver.”

McCoy stared after them as the doors swished shut, absolutely speechless.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

16​

Azetbur sat across the table from Chang, each surrounded by their aides. Kronos had become neutral territory for them, at least for a time. They were back on the Klingon side of the Neutral Zone, stopped at an outpost so more extensive repairs could be carried out on the Kronos before the ship proceeded home to Klinzhai.

Although she maintained a calm outward façade, Azetbur was terrified. Her father had been the Thought Master, and she understood very clearly that she was playing well out of her league. What was more, she was female, an Administrator, and she carried the taint of human blood. Her father had gotten her her seat on the High Council. It was up to her now to keep it, and if she failed, then the House of Gorkon would fall with her. Nel komerex, khesterex applied to Klingon family lines every bit as much as it did to the Komerex Klingon at large. With the advantage of hindsight, she could see that the only reason she had survived to this point was that her father had maneuvered Chang into making the trip to Earth with them. Had Chang not been along, Kronos would not have survived the aborted battle with Enterprise. Azetbur had no idea how Chang could have engineered events so that the outcome could go either way he chose, but she knew that somehow, he had. He was clearly the superior Thought Master- her father was dead, his plans defeated, and she was as good as defeated. Part of her wanted to draw her blade and challenge Chang on the spot, but the one-eyed Force Leader of Klingon Marines would have been more than a match for her on her best day, and she knew it.

In turn, she also understood that the only reason she still drew breath was that Chang didn’t consider her a threat to his plans. Without her father, her influence on the council would wane, and there were many who had resented her being there in the first place. Chang might yet have use for her as a tool, but she doubted she would survive his use of her. She considered it a shame on more than just the obvious level: she and her father had truly believed that Gorkon’s proposed alliance with the Federation was in the best interests of the Komerex Klingon, and there were others on the council who agreed as well. Then there were those who were at least interested in keeping the throne vacant- they weren’t powerful enough to claim it themselves, but a decentralization of power worked in their favor. After a generation or two, the idea of a High Council headed by a chancellor would have taken root and become an accepted practice, thereby institutionalizing a more decentralized power structure within the empire.

“Azetbur,” Chang said softly, shaking her out of her reverie.

“Yes, general?”

“I have been in contact with the other members of the High Council. A new chancellor must be selected. The empire must have leadership.”

“You dare ask for my support?” Azetbur asked incredulously, her liver contracting angrily in her chest. Her brow furrowed dangerously, and she began to stand. All around them, their bodyguards tensed and hands strayed towards weapons. Chang sat back slightly, raising a hand to forestall violence.

“No!” he replied sharply. “I am willing to offer mine to you.”

Azetbur sat back down, hard. “General, a thousand pardons for the implied insult,” she snarled, “but I find that nearly impossible to believe. What’s more, the rest of the council wouldn’t have me! I’m not of full Imperial blood-”

“The councillors will be willing to overlook their prejudices,” Chang growled softly, “as I am in this case. I admit it,” he went on easily. “In the past, I’ve made no effort to quell my public denigrating of the one's ancestry. Your father was my opponent in the Perpetual Game, and he was most worthy. I defeated him, but I find myself no closer to my own goals. His mistakes need not be yours, Azetbur. You are now the nominal head of your line, and as I sit here, I see you weighing your options and figuring your chances. You understand that with the death of your father, your line is doomed to extinction. You alone are not powerful enough to ensure its survival.”

So far as they went, Chang’s statements were the absolute truth. “You propose an alliance,” she said flatly.

“A temporary alliance,” Chang corrected. “One that will allow me to achieve my ends. I will ascend the throne and rule the empire, Azetbur. It is my destiny.” He turned back to one of his guards. “Open the viewports!” he barked. The guard nearest the viewports saluted, and carried out the order. Large, external blinds irised away, bathing the room in the light of the naked stars. “What we say here will be remembered,” he intoned. Azetbur’s eyes went slightly wider, and she sensed that she was being plunged right back into the komerex zha, like it or not.

“Speak,” she said.

“I could attempt to attain the chancellorship now,” Chang admitted. “I might even succeed. From there, it would be a simple matter to take the throne. However, there are still too many arrayed against me. What is more, your father was successful in infecting others with the notion that having no emperor would be advantageous to the weaker lines. The strength of his position was that he was right. Too many of the ruling lines want to see power stay decentralized. The House of Mogh, the Rustazh Line, and others. The epetai-Kempeth and epetai-Duras could potentially challenge me for the throne. You, Azetbur, offer an interim solution that everyone can embrace. You would act as placeholder, and would be chancellor in fact as well as name. But everyone knows you could never ascend the throne, which makes you a safe choice. Everyone wins, at least in the short term. Those who want the throne empty shall have it so. For those who wish to challenge for it, there is time to plan, form alliances, and cement positions. You understand as well as I that you will only last as long as it takes for one of us to move ahead with our plans, and then you’ll meet your end. But for you, especially a female of your…bloodline, ascending to the chancellorship itself would be considered a brilliant endgame to the komerex zha. You would be remembered with honor, Azetbur. It would also buy you the time you need to safeguard the members of your family.

“You know as well as I that when you fall, the line of Gorkon will be exterminated. It is an inevitable fact- it cannot be stopped. If it happens now, your family and line are taken by surprise and massacred. With the time you buy and the power you wield during your tenure as chancellor, your family can take the measures necessary to safeguard their livelihood. Children can be fostered, wealth hidden, daughters can be married off, and those with sufficient klin can attempt to found their own lines. Some will undoubtedly succeed. Your bloodline if not your name shall survive, and frankly, Azetbur, that is the best you have left to hope for.”

Azetbur smiled slightly, showing the tips of her fangs. “If I do this, Chang, I will pursue my own agenda. I am not straave. The one will not stop me.”

Chang laughed, a full, Klingon belly laugh. “Kai kassai, Klingon!” he howled. “Seek your alliance with the Earthers, if that is how you wish to spend the time that remains to you. I have no further concerns on that count. Kirk disappointed me greatly, and showed me what I needed to see: the Federazhon is soft, full of kuve, and they have no Thought Masters left. Garth of Izar was the last worthy opponent we’ll ever see from them,” he added, tapping his eyepatch for emphasis. “If Kirk possessed an ounce of klin he would have blasted this ship out of the stars, and us with it. That was his only opportunity to stop the utter destruction I will wreak upon them once I am emperor. I could not have stopped it- this ship is no match for Kirk’s. Upon such missed opportunities do empires rise and fall, eh?”

“Your blind hatred of the Federazhon is a weakness, Thought Master,” Azetbur taunted, pointing at her own left eye to emphasize the double entendre. “One that might be exploited, when the time comes.”

Chang laughed again. “That sounds like a challenge to me, zantai-Gorkon. You have the klin, I’ll grant you that. I accept your challenge. Will you accept the chancellorship?”

“It appears I must,” Azetbur replied. “Let us contact the High Council and let the matter be decided formally.”

Chang smiled, and Azetbur felt the cold hand of death
tighten its grip on her liver. “Of course, madame chancellor.”

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

17​

Captain’s Log, 9109.17. We have finally completed backtracking our route from the rendezvous point with IKV Kronos up to the coordinates of the attack. Despite the ship’s sensor upgrades and our best efforts, the results have been inconclusive at best. This new Klingon vessel, if she truly exists at all, is proving a difficult nut to crack. The good news is that Chief Engineer Scott reports that his team may have a solution for any future encounters. There has been another development as well: Azetbur zantai-Gorkon has been elected chancellor of the Klingon High Council, and she is pressing ahead with her father’s peace initiative. When we relayed this information to Sonok, he showed no surprise and I believe I understand why as well. She has been in contact with Ambassador Sarek and the Federation Council, and a new conference has been scheduled for two weeks from now at a neutral site. This was the break I’ve been waiting for. The Khitomer Star System, which lies near the convergence of the Federation, Klingon, and Romulan boundaries, is where the future of both the Klingon Empire and the Federation will be decided. The issue will be settled by General Chang and myself; he and I are now locked in a literal death struggle- peace or war will be determined by the victor. End entry.


Kirk strolled into engineering maintenance bay one, where Mister Scott was waiting along with Science Officer Talrev and a few junior officers and technicians. “Well Scotty, have you engineered up one of your miracles for me?” he asked.

“It was a group effort, admiral, but I believe we’ve come up with something that’ll do the trick. Commander Talrev?”

The Tellarite scientist stood up, his thumbs hooked casually into his belt as he began pacing while he spoke. “It’s really very simple, admiral,” he began. “Cloaking devices are designed to foil ship’s sensors and the like, and at the distances and speeds we are dealing with during warp flight, they are damn near impenetrable. But,” he added, raising a porcine hand for emphasis, “at impulse power and sublight speeds, the conditions are more favorable. All starships expend exhaust, admiral. Ionized gas, or in some cases plasma, when the power outputs are high enough. This energy forms a trail, or an energy wake if you will, behind even a cloaked ship. At warp speeds this wake is far too thinly dispersed to be readily detectable, as we’ve found to our chagrin over the past few days. However, at impulse speeds the trail is much more concentrated. Detectable. Usable. We‘ve done some research and determined that there are specialized gas sensors available that can be adapted to track this wake. In fact, they are part of the standard Starfleet package used for studying and cataloging deep space and planetary gaseous anomalies. The bad news is that we don‘t have that package aboard Enterprise.”

Kirk cocked an eyebrow. “Your method pre-supposes you know where to start looking for a cloaked vessel‘s trail, and can then take the time for detailed sensor scans. Which will prove difficult if all belligerents are maneuvering and exchanging weapons fire.”

“Aye, admiral,” Scott replied. “We thought of that. Ensign Barrow here is a history buff, particularly with regard to mid-twentieth to twenty-first century naval combat. He has re-introduced the rest of us to an archaic concept in weapons technology: the wake homing torpedo. I pulled the schematics on the Mark VI, and I’ve worked out a way to adapt our photon torpedoes with this gaseous-detection sensor equipment. If you wait for the Klingon to fire first and get a general position on him, you can pop one of these beauties into his wake and let it sniff him out. He’ll have one of two choices: either drop his cloak to raise his shields, or take the hit unshielded. Either way, admiral, you’ve got him.”

Kirk’s face broke out into a Cheshire grin, and he turned to Ensign Barrow. “Wake homing torpedo, eh?” he asked. Barrow flushed red- it wasn’t every day an ensign came up with a solution a flag officer needed. Kirk nodded his approval. “Excellent work, son. Excellent. That goes for the rest of you, too.”

“But sir,” Scotty added, “we don’t have-”

“Don’t worry, Mister Scott,” Kirk interrupted him. “Three years ago, I cut the operations orders for Excelsior’s first deep space assignment. Captain Sulu has the package you’re talking about, and he’s nearby, patrolling the Neutral Zone. Put together your design specifications, complete with the theory and how the weapon should be employed, then send the file to the communications officer for encryption. I’ll take it from there.”

“Aye, sir,” Scotty replied. “Hopefully the bloody thing will work. It’s an untried concept.”

Kirk grinned and gestured toward Ensign Barrow. “Have faith, Scotty. Young minds, fresh ideas. Remember?” Scott chuckled, shaking his head, and gestured for his team to follow him. Kirk was about halfway back to the bridge when he received a call from Lieutenant Castillae. “Sir, we’re receiving a tightbeam communication from Chancellor Azetbur of the Klingon High Council. She is requesting to speak with you and Captain Spock.”

“Signal Spock to meet me in my quarters,” Kirk replied. “I’ll take it there.” Well, he added to himself. It never rains, but it pours.

***
​

“Chancellor,” Kirk said by way of greeting. “I apologize for the wait. I was away from the bridge.”

“You may dispense with the pleasantries. There is no time for the mincing of words, Kirk,” Azetbur stated harshly. “I need your help if the peace initiative is going to survive.”

“If we’re not going to mince words, then let’s not mince them,” Kirk replied with equal harshness. He sensed Spock‘s alarm behind him at his words and his tone, but he had already told Spock to keep quiet during this communication until Kirk had said his piece. “What you mean to say,” Kirk continued, “is that you need my help if you are to survive. You know that it wasn’t me who instigated your father’s assassination. It was General Chang, aided by traitorous elements in my own Starfleet.”

If Azetbur was surprised, she didn’t show it. “Of course I am aware, Kirk! That is why I need your help!”

“Good. For my part, I know your father’s proposal of alliance was genuine. I know you intend to carry through with it if you can. I also know that you are doomed to fail unless the House of Chang is brought down, and quickly.”

Azetbur’s eyes narrowed. “I see now that Chang has miscalculated you, Kirk. Badly.”

“I need only one thing from you, madame chancellor,” Kirk said. “Do you have the power to bring the entire High Council to Khitomer for the conference?”

“I have already ordered this,” she confirmed. “All will be in attendance. If my father’s vision is to be realized in spite of the komerex zha, then all of the councillors must be made to see the truth in it.”

“What was the response of the other councillors?”

“They have agreed, for they are trapped by their own ambitions. For now, they must at least conform to the illusion of my authority over them. To do less would jeopardize the shaky compromise that placed me in the chancellor’s seat. They can afford to be play along in this regard; they know my power is temporary, and even though they jockey amongst themselves for position, they must follow the accepted rules of governance in order to maintain the support of the empire at large.”

“One more question, chancellor,” Kirk asked. “Did Chang support your elevation to the chancellorship?”

“I would not be alive right now if he hadn’t. He told me to my face that he needs me as a placeholder for a time.”

“He’s lying,” Kirk said flatly.. “He doesn’t need you at all.”

Azetbur’s face creased in a frown. “I assumed as much, but I am not the strategist my father was, Kirk. You had better be sure of your own moves, or you and I shall perish and Chang shall wage his war against your people from the emperor’s throne.”

“Madame chancellor, all you need do is attend the conference on Khitomer, along with the High Council. Convince them your proposal is in the best interests of both our people. I myself hope that it is true.”

“And what of Chang?”

Kirk’s voice went as cold as interstellar space. “Leave the one to me.”

***
​

Captain’s Personal Log, USS Excelsior, Stardate 9109.18. I have received confidential orders from Admiral Kirk; orders sent without the knowledge of my reporting flag officer at Starbase 12 or Starfleet Command. Once again I find myself in the uncomfortable position of either having to adhere to procedure, or providing aid to Jim Kirk that goes beyond the scope of my current patrol orders. If I leave station as Kirk requests, I’ll be opening a substantial gap in the defensive deployment along the Neutral Zone. Should the Klingons decide to invade, I‘ll have left them an engraved invitation. Of course, I trust Admiral Kirk implicitly. He knows exactly what he is asking me to do, and he’s asking me to do it anyway. There is also giri. Always giri. I would never have been given a command at all if it weren’t for James Kirk, and I could never, ever let him down when he needs me. Let the record show that I made this decision with a clean conscience and the firm belief that what I’m doing is right. End entry.


Captain Sulu strolled onto the bridge of the Excelsior and took the center seat. Saavik surrendered it wordlessly, relieving the lieutenant manning operations. “Helm,” Sulu ordered, “make your course three one three mark six.”

“Aye, captain,” the helmsman replied. “Course laid in.”

“Warp five.”

“Warp five, sir,” helm replied. The subsonic hum in the deckplates changed ever so subtly, and on the main viewer, the stars began moving out of their stationary positions in the heavens, sliding past Excelsior ever faster as she accelerated effortlessly.

“Captain!” protested Commander Rand. “Aren’t we going to inform Admiral Stone that we’re leaving our patrol station?”

“Negative,” Sulu replied. “No outgoing communications from this point forward without my express authorization. I’ll take full responsibility for any consequences resulting from this action and those that follow. Understood, Janice?” he asked. Rand nodded slowly- Sulu was not one to go all informal on the bridge. She understood the simple message he was sending her, loud and clear.

“Acknowledged, captain,” she replied. “What about the encrypted package for relay that came along with Admiral Kirk’s transmission?”

“We’ll send that transmission exactly when he asked us to, and not one minute before or after. One thing though,” Sulu added in slight puzzlement. “Did you recognize the addressee code on the message?”

“Nope,” Janice replied. “But Kirk’s postscript said specifically not to worry about that. He wants us to bounce it off the Epsilon Three relay station, and he claims that will get it where it needs to go. Strange stuff.”

“I’ll take him at his word,” Sulu shrugged, sharing a smile with his old Enterprise shipmate. Janice nodded, and turned back to her console.

“Commander Saavik, have you looked over Mister Scott’s schematics for modifying the torpedoes?”

“Yes sir.”

“Your assessment?”

“It’s a good idea, captain. We have the necessary equipment to begin making the modifications, and the technology should work the way Mister Scott suggests. It’s the second part of Admiral Kirk’s order I find questionable.”

Sulu smiled. “You ought to know by now that whatever he’s doing, he’s got it all carefully planned out.”

Saavik’s lip pouted out just a hair- nobody who hadn’t known her for years would have noticed that crack in her Vulcan reserve. “I’ve never been comfortable being used as a chess piece,” she replied. “It is illogical to ask us to operate without sufficient information-”

“Apparently the admiral believes that we have sufficient information for what he’s asked us to do,” Sulu interjected, cutting her off. “Which is to modify a half dozen torpedoes and drop them in deep space at the coordinates he gave us, then proceed to the designated holding point. Seems simple enough.”

“It would be simpler still to merely rendezvous with Enterprise and transfer the weapons directly,” Saavik complained. “Logically, the risk of the shipment being intercepted, lost, or damaged would be greatly reduced.”

“Your logic is correct, except on one point,” Sulu noted.

Saavik’s eyebrow went up. “Indeed?”

“Indeed,“ Sulu echoed. “Who said anything about the weapons going to Enterprise?”

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

Typically, you'll receive more and better feedback from readers if you post the story by chapter every few days, giving people a chance to get caught up with the work. I'm liking what I've read so far, you've definitely caught my attention.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

18​

Kirk, Spock, and McCoy sat around the guest table in Kirk’s quarters. Both humans were nursing steaming cups of coffee, while an untouched mug of tea sat in front of Spock. The latter looked about as crestfallen as it was possible for a Vulcan to look. “I should have seen it sooner,” Spock said grimly. “I was blinded by her accomplishments as a Vulcan.”

“It’s not your fault, Spock,” Bones said with kindly gruffness. “We all have our blind spots. Even you.”

Spock shook his head grimly. “I have rarely seen such a cold, precise application of logic for a purpose so…nefarious. Starting with the beam-out of Burke and Sandoval.”

Kirk nodded, sipping his coffee. “First rule of assassination: kill the assassins. She made damn sure there was no way they would survive.”

“Not only that, admiral, but she drew me in to supporting her. It was a logical decision at the time, brought about by her alerting us to the unauthorized use of the transporters. Furthermore, by convincing us to raise the shields when she did, we basically telegraphed hostile intent to the Klingons. At every turn of the engagement, she was subtly pushing for escalation, but never with the overt appearance doing more than any prudent, well trained Command School graduate would do.”

“All of this is circumstantial,” McCoy pointed out. “Do you have any real proof?”

“The forgery in the computer databank. It was her work, doctor, and I’ve successfully traced it back to her. It wasn’t easy; it took myself and two other computer specialists the past several days to work through the blinds and smokescreens she put up. T’Val has a very high computer rating, but there are only a handful of people in Starfleet who are as skilled as I am in working with starship computer systems.”

“No need to be modest about it, Spock,” McCoy jibed, sharing a grin with Kirk.

Spock wasn’t in the mood for the typical back-and-forth with his old friend, but old habits sometimes reared up in spite of everything else. “Really, doctor, I do not suffer from the various afflictions of ego. I have simply stated a fact. In this case, T’Val was simply not skilled enough to cover her tracks. She is guilty, and the evidence will stand at her court martial.”

“One thing I’m unclear on,” Kirk said. “Forging the databank entry was the only thing that could have given her away. Why did she even bother? By the time we were even looking at that, the damage had been done and the chancellor assassinated.”

“It caused us serious confusion and lost time, Jim,” Spock replied. “It took several hours to visually inspect the torpedo inventory. It distracted us from the matter of Burke and Sandoval. It gave us reason to doubt ourselves when we engaged the Klingons. And quite honestly, I think T’Val genuinely thought she could get away with it- her one gross miscalculation.”

“Well Spock, you’ve sold me,” McCoy replied. “Mind if I ask what the hell she’s still doing on the bridge?”

Kirk smiled, and McCoy recognized that particular vintage: Jim was plotting like a damned Klingon again. “Lieutenant T’Val has one more task to perform before I reassign her to the brig. Spock, have you figured out how she’s been sending out her reports on our activities?”

“Affirmative, admiral. Actually, it was none too difficult to determine, given the fact that she has operational control over ship’s emissions from her duty station. Unfortunately, the signals, once sent, bounce around through Starfleet’s communication system, replicating themselves at various points and shooting off down literally thousands of false trails. It is beyond our ability, out here at least, to determine who the actual recipient is.”

“I finally have a notion about who that is,” Kirk mused.

“Admiral Cartwright?” Spock asked.

Kirk was surprised. “Yes. What was your angle?”

“He’s led the Command School for the past several years- a perfect position from which to influence, and in this case, gradually corrupt young, impressionable officers to his line of thinking. Ever since I discovered T’Val’s betrayal, I’ve tried to determine who could have seduced her to such a course of action, and how. Logic would dictate that it be a senior officer- someone with the weight of authority and enough experience to convince her on his own merits. It would also need to be someone highly placed at Starfleet Command- highly enough to access and show her classified information that might persuade her to enlist in their cause. Lastly, the process would have necessarily been gradual. This implies sufficient time of association to foster the relationship and build the necessary trust. Admiral Cartwright was the only logical candidate, given these criteria.”

McCoy was aghast. “Cartwright! But Jim! You’ve known him for years! He couldn’t-”

“He could, he did, and he still is,” Kirk stated firmly. “I’ve been after this mole for almost a decade, Bones, ever since we learned that the Klingons had somehow caught wind of Genesis. Intelligence was able to backtrack to a female Klingon operative named Valkris, but she disappeared along with the small, independent trader that we think she hired to transport her back to the frontier. The Klingons we tangled with at Genesis got the information from her, somehow, before she vanished. Until now, we’ve tried every trick in the book to expose the leak on the Starfleet side, but he’s always stayed one step ahead of us. Part of the problem is that we could never find anyone at the Admiralty level with an apparent motive to betray Starfleet and the Federation- especially to the Klingons. For a long time we were looking very hard at staffers, aides, and even non-cleared personnel who had access to areas where classified information was stored. But now, in hindsight, it all falls together. Pieces of the puzzle that made no sense before fit perfectly when you figure in Cartwright as the leak. Did you know Cartwright lobbied for two years to take over the Intelligence desk? Thank God he never got it, or Starfleet’s entire intelligence network would have been compromised. Even now I have no idea why Cartwright would do this, but he’s been doing it for years. He’s an honest to God, old fashioned, dyed in the wool traitor.”

“But you can’t prove it.”

“Knowing that it’s him, I’ll be able to prove it once we get back to Starfleet Headquarters,” Kirk replied. “For now, though, he has one more task to perform as well. Gentlemen, the trap has been set, and now we’re going to lay down the last morsel of bait.” Kirk snapped on the intercom. “Kirk to bridge.”

“Bridge here,” Lieutenant T’Val replied.

“Have we received the information I requested on the makeup of the Federation delegation?” he asked.

“Yes sir.”

“Summarize for me, please.”

“USS Shran under the command of Captain N’Theliam is en-route to Khitomer with the Federation delegation, admiral. Ambassador Sarek and the charter members of the Federation Council make up the primary body, along with aides and staffers. Admirals Wilder and Cartwright are along as well, representing Starfleet.”

“Very well. Please encode and send the following to Admiral Wilder, eyes only: I am proceeding to Khitomer with Enterprise for rendezvous. I have vital information regarding our intelligence leak at Starfleet Headquarters, directly pertaining to the assassination of the Klingon chancellor. This information is too sensitive to transmit; we can meet in person under cover of the diplomatic conference. Admiral Kirk sends. Got it?”

“Acknowledged, admiral,” T’Val replied without missing a beat. Then she added: “There is an intelligence leak at Starfleet Headquarters?”

Kirk smiled grimly at Spock and McCoy; he was on audio only. “You heard it here first, lieutenant,” he replied dryly. “That message goes straight to Commander Starfleet, eyes only. Understood?”

“Aye sir. Bridge out.” Kirk closed the channel and sat back, swiveling in his chair slightly.

“That’s it, then. Spock, monitor her and let me know when she slips that out to Cartwright on the sly.”

“Why do you want Cartwright to know that we’re going to Khitomer, Jim?” McCoy asked. “Wouldn’t it be better to surprise him?”

“Doctor, that information was for General Chang, not Admiral Cartwright,” Spock explained.

“Well wouldn’t it be better to surprise him too?” McCoy wanted to know.

“We’re not playing by standard rules, Bones,” Kirk explained. “We’re playing by Klingon rules. I merely sweetened the pot a bit. I think Chang has us right where we want him, gentlemen.”

“Well I’d appreciate it if you explained what the hell is going on!” McCoy growled testily.

“Chang is about to finish the game,” Kirk explained. “He’s removed Gorkon as an obstacle to his ambitions. All that remains now is to remove the others blocking his path, and Azetbur has graciously gathered them in one remote spot for him, along with most of the Federation’s senior leadership. He’s going to blow Khitomer to pieces, Bones, leaving him as the sole surviving member of the Klingon High Council. If he succeeds in wiping out the entire upper strata of the Klingon power structure, the throne is his. What’s more, he’ll have wiped out Starfleet and the Federation’s senior leadership in the same stroke- an act that will absolutely guarantee war yet leave us in a very weakened position to wage it.”

“And how, precisely, is he going to blow up an entire planet? Antimatter?”

“Protomatter,” Spock corrected him, steepling his fingers as he habitually did when analyzing information. “A device identical to the one used to destroy Praxis. Security will be tight at the Khitomer conference, doctor. They’ll be alert for something like an antimatter weapon. Protomatter is a substance known only to scientists, generally speaking, and has never been considered a weapons-grade material. It is doubtful they will even be scanning for it. The detonation will destroy Khitomer completely, as well as any starships in close proximity to the detonation point. The resultant energy wave propagates at just under lightspeed- Chang will warp out ahead of it, making good his escape, while any starship that caught that close to the detonation will be destroyed. He is the only one who knows precisely when zero-hour will occur.”

“Well it looks like you two have it all figured out, Jim. But what’s to stop him from detonating his weapon as soon as we show up?”

“Carol has assured me that it isn’t possible,” Kirk replied. “The carrier wave effect has a build-up to detonation, just like the Genesis wave. Once you initiate it, the energy is immediately detectable out to several million kilometers. He’ll have to wait until we’re all in his kill-zone. Technically, Chang doesn’t have to wait for Enterprise at all, but he will. If he knows he can destroy one more experienced flag officer and a brand new Excelsior Class cruiser with his initial strike, he’ll wait. There is no reason for him not to- he believes he is in complete control. He’ll be waiting, probably with that stealthed bird of prey of his, and he’ll engage us as a distraction and try to draw us in close. He’ll taunt, play, and in the meantime, his weapon will have gone active. He’ll go to warp speed under cloak at the last possible moment, leaving us with no reaction time when the weapon detonates.”

“You are painting a grim picture, admiral; Chang’s plan sounds pretty damn good to me. How do we beat him?”

“I’ve got a couple tricks up my sleeve, doctor, never fear.” Kirk replied. “The timing, however, will be fairly critical. Spock, I’m going to have to take a risk here that would normally be out of the question: I need you to give Carol Marcus a crash course in Starfleet landing party procedures, and help her put together a kit of what she might need to disarm this Klingon device. You’ll only have a few days to train her, but she’s a quick study. When the time comes, she is probably the only one with a prayer of disarming this Klingon weapon in the amount of time we‘ll have. We’ll also need someone in the landing party fluent in Thlingonaase- the components aren‘t going to be labeled in Standard. Nothing gets left to chance, Spock. Everything depends on it.”

“Understood, admiral.”

“Jim?” McCoy asked. “How on Earth did you work all this out?”

“I’m in training to become a Klingon Thought Master,” he joked. “Seriously, I did what any good chess player would do: I put myself on the other side of the board, and looked at the problem from Chang’s perspective. What does he want, and how can he achieve it? I’ve had to analyze everything I’ve seen from him, assume nothing, and figure that most of my own perceptions have been manipulated from the outset. Klingon guile is nasty stuff, Bones, but I’m finding I rather have a knack for it.”

“Well here’s hoping you’re right about all this, Jim. What about Cartwright? Isn't he going to get blown up along with the rest? I thought he was Chang's inside man!”

“Cartwright has served Chang's purpose- he's no longer necessary, and could in fact be dangerous to Chang once the war starts. If I’m wrong, Bones, it’s over- and not just for us.” He looked at Spock, and there was no hesitation in his voice. “Let’s get this ship to Khitomer.”

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

19​

Captain Kell sutai-Chang stood with Malik epetai-Chang and the science officer, zan-Akarn, on the bridge of IKV Deathwing. The ship had performed perfectly over the years, fulfilling every assignment and meeting every expectation that the epetai-Chang had set for her, save one. Despite years of trying, Ashar had never been able to fully stabilize the trilithium power cell the ship used to augment its power supply in those critical moments when she had to fire her weapons systems while cloaked. Trilithium was a very tricky substance- far too dangerous to integrate into the ship’s main power system with any measure of safety, so the entire design of Deathwing’s power systems was a compromise bordering on occasional overload. Under normal circumstances she ran like any normal bird of prey while under cloak, but with the trilithium power cell tied into her fire control computer. When the time came to place the increased demand on her power production so she could fire, the trillithium cell provided a momentary surge in available energy, allowing the ship to get off her shot without dropping her cloak. The power cell would then depower into a safer standby mode, awaiting the next fire order. The system only worked with torpedoes; Deathwing was not able to fire her disruptors using this method, nor was that desirable anyway. A continuous stream of disruptor fire would give an enemy an aim point; a torpedo really didn‘t.

Chang’s ultimate goal had been to engineer this prototype into a standard configuration that Klingon ships of all classes could employ, but zan-Ashar and his design team had failed. Chang had executed him after growing weary of hearing his pathetic excuses, and placed his immediate family in the agony booth for a time as a lesson to others regarding the penalty of failure. In hindsight, Chang wasn’t all that broken up about the failure of the prototype technology- Klingon warriors ought to face their opponents openly, employing tactics and raw courage to achieve victory under the full view of the naked stars. When he was finished here today, Deathwing would be handed over to Imperial Intelligence, to better serve the empire once Chang sat on the throne. Kell, as he had promised, would have an entire cruiser squadron to command. After eight years in the shadows doing Chang’s bidding, the one was burning with klin, almost mad in his desire to throw himself against the Federazhon Starfleet in open battle. Chang would fulfill Kell’s desire for glory- his and thousands of others just like him.

They were standing on the brink of the most glorious era in Klingon history.

“We will review the details one last time,” Chang growled at the two junior officers. “When the Federazhon battlecruiser arrives, you will engage them under cloak, Captain Kell. zan-Akarn, when the first shot is fired, you will send the activation code to the surface of Khitomer. At this point, the countdown sequence will begin. Your only task from that point forward is to act as the timekeeper. No matter what is happening around us, you must not be distracted from this task, or we all go to the Black Fleet. Understood?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Kell, I don’t doubt the one’s ability to cripple or destroy the Federazhon cruiser- even one as large as Kirk’s ship. Just be careful not to frighten the Earthers into withdrawing- if you penetrate their screens, target their warp drive first. The blast wave will finish the job for us.”

“This need not be said, general,” Kell growled. Rank aside, the Klingon captain didn’t feel the need to be lectured in the most basic naval tactics by a Marine Force Leader, even one who was a Thought Master.

“Make sure your helmsman has our escape vector plotted and standing by,” Chang continued. “zan-Akarn, you will give a ten second warning before time zero, and then a two second warning. The one will disengage and lay in our escape course at the ten second warning, no matter what. At two seconds, the one will order us to warp out. We’ll proceed to the staging area at Kreth Noor and rendezvous with the First Fleet. Remember, the timing is critical and each of us must play our role exactly as scripted. There is no room for error here.”

Both junior officers straightened, thrusting their fists out in salute. “Kai, Chang!” they barked. “QaPla, my lord!” Kell added, the klin of battle burning in his eyes.

Chang regarded the two for a moment with a narrow, calculating eye. He saw nothing ahead but pure glory.
“Stations,” he barked in battle language.

***
​

USS Enterprise streaked toward Khitomer at Warp 7. On her bridge, the crew was grimly silent, attending to their duties with calm efficiency. Lieutenant T’Val was conspicuously absent from the operations console- she was cooling her heels in the ship’s brig under the auspices of a long list of charges, under a special form of suicide watch. Spock had given specific instructions to Doctor Zhen, and he’d injected her with neuron-blockers that would prevent her from using Vulcan mind disciplines to simply die. Spock intended her to stand trial for her crimes, and she would be a key witness at Admiral Cartwright’s court martial as well. Operations was being handled by Lieutenant J.G. Patel, who was normally the Beta shift helmsman. “Admiral, all decks have reported in. The ship is at battlestations,” he advised.

“Maintain yellow alert status for now, lieutenant,” Kirk ordered. He turned to Castillae. “Lieutenant, open ship to ship command channel bravo, standard scramble.”

“Channel open, sir.”

“This is the Enterprise, calling USS Shado. Captain Chekov, please respond.”

There was a burst of static over the bridge speakers, and the returning transmission was slightly garbled. “Keptin Chekov here!” came the familiar sounding reply. McCoy, who was perched in his usual position behind the command chair, expressed sudden, curious interest at the reply. He had been badgering Jim for months about where Chekov and Uhura were assigned, and he’d run into nothing but stone walls. Eventually, Jim had actually pulled rank and told him to stop asking about it.

“It’s good to hear your voice, captain,” Kirk said amiably. “Are you in position?”

“Ready and waiting, admiral.”

“Very good. Were you able to ascertain the location of the Klingon protomatter bomb?”

“Easily, sir,” Chekov replied, and even through the interference there was no mistaking the smugness in his voice. “We’ve been monitoring those cossacks since they arrived! They located the device in a deep ravine, on the mid-size continent in the southern hemisphere. It’s almost completely on the opposite side of the planet from the main colony where the conference is taking place, well away from prying eyes. Uhura is transmitting the coordinates to you now.”

Kirk looked over at Castillae, who had a hand to her earpiece in a very familiar gesture. She nodded. “Coordinates received, admiral. I’m relaying them to the transporter room.”

“Tell the landing party to stand by,” Kirk added. “Chekov, you are certain you weren’t detected?”

“We have not been detected, admiral. Chang’s ship broke orbit an hour ago and cloaked herself. We don’t have her current position, but she’s waiting for you, admiral. There are no other Klingon vessels in-system. Are you sure you want to stick to the original plan? We could reach the weapon well in advance of your arrival.”

“That would mean revealing yourselves, and I doubt you can disarm it without Doctor Marcus’ assistance,” Kirk replied. “I need you where you are at, Pavel. We’ll handle the bomb. On that note, did you retrieve the package Captain Sulu left for you?”

“Yes sir. No problems.”

“Excellent work, Chekov. You know what to do next.”

“It’ll be a pleasure, admiral. Shado out.”

McCoy stepped to the command pedestal and turned to face Kirk. “Jim, you are one devious son of a bitch! You could have at least told me..”

“Didn’t I tell you to quit skipping staff meetings, Bones? This is what you get for lounging around in Sickbay over coffee with Doctor Zhen.” McCoy shook his head in feigned disgust, and turned back to watch the main viewscreen.

“Lieutenant Castillae,” Kirk added, “open ship to ship command channel alpha, standard scramble.”

“Channel open, sir.”

“Excelsior, this is Enterprise. Captain Sulu, are you in position?”

“In position and awaiting your signal, admiral,” Sulu replied.

“We’ll be depending on you. Keep this channel open and stand by.”

“As ordered, admiral,” Sulu replied.

“Red alert!” Kirk ordered. Lieutenant Patel acknowledged, and the bridge lighting changed subtly. “Tactical overlay on the main viewer, please,” Kirk added.

Demora Sulu was watching her console. “Initial point coming up, admiral. Five seconds…mark!”

“Go to impulse power for Khitomer orbit,” Kirk ordered, feeling a fresh surge of adrenalin rushing through him. This was it. “Full shields, ahead full impulse. Plot the necessary orbit to beam down the landing party and lay it in.”

“Aye, sir,” Demora replied.

“We’re being hailed,” Castillae called.

Kirk nodded. “On audio.”

“Welcome, Admiral Kirk,” Chang’s voice rang out across the bridge. “Face to face, at last. Be honest, admiral, you do prefer it this way, don’t you? Warrior to warrior? No peace in our time.”

“You lose, Chang,” Kirk said simply. “Your weakness is the manner in which you are straave to your ambitions. Tokhe straave, Chang, that’s all you are.” Willing slave, is what Kirk had called him: the deadliest, most vile insult one could lay on a Klingon. The sort of insult that required an immediate, lethal reply for honor’s sake.

“Sir! Incoming fire from-” the tactical officer didn’t even finish the sentence before the Klingon torpedo struck Enterprise’s shields. The ship shuddered violently, but the screens held firm against the first blow. However, all of them were uncomfortably aware that even this ship couldn’t take hit after hit with impunity.

Kirk re-opened command channel alpha. “Now, Captain Sulu.”

“Acknowledged,” came the one word reply.

“Steady as she goes, helm,” Kirk said. Demora nodded, thrilled to hear the sound of her father‘s voice. She felt a surge of pride unlike any she’d felt before in her entire life, and resolved to make him even prouder of her than he was already. She turned her attention back to the task at hand. The admiral’s tactical pre-brief had been very clear: no evasive maneuvers, no jinks. She was to keep the ship at full impulse, headed straight as an arrow for Khitomer no matter what. This would rapidly limit the possible lines of approach available to the Klingon ship, drawing her into an inevitable stern chase. Of course, showing their hind end to the Klingons was a pretty bold risk.

“Admiral,” Spock interjected, “new energy reading from the surface of Khitomer. It matches Doctor Marcus’ expected parameters. The weapon has been activated and is on a buildup to detonation.” Spock’s news was accentuated by another shudder as the next Klingon torpedo hit them, this time from their stern quarter. The ship shook violently again, and the bridge lights dimmed for a harrowing moment before returning to full strength.

“Why do you run, Kirk?” Chang taunted him over the open channel. “Is this what I should expect from your kuveleta Starfleet when the time comes?”

Kirk smirked derisively. “Chang, you targ-faced petaQ, you should have stuck to leading troops on the ground. Thought Master or not, the one is a miserable failure as a naval commander.” Kirk grunted explosively as a third Klingon torpedo hit them, from somewhere directly astern. Scott’s voice suddenly came over intercom.

“Admiral!” he protested. “We can take some licks, but we cannae keep taking them in the same spot! One or two more of those and she’ll be dead in the water!”

“Hold her together; aux power to the aft shields. You know the drill, Scotty.”

“Aye sir,” came the resigned reply.

“Turn and fight, Kirk!” roared Chang. “If you reach orbit and drop your shields, I’ll simply put one through your bridge!”

“General, I regret to inform the one that you are not worth my time or effort. In your cowardly plotting, your backstabbing, and fighting from the shadows, you’ve managed to forget the cardinal rule of all direct engagements: you must amass sufficient forces to ensure victory at the point of contact. There comes a time when guile and subterfuge must yield to courage and the force of arms, Chang. If they let such a coward as you into the Black Fleet, you’d better ask your gods for a bigger ship. Kirk out,” he added, drawing his thumb across his throat. Castillae killed the link, grinning broadly.

***
​

“General!” Kell shouted from his command chair. “Another bird of prey is decloaking astern!”

Chang scowled. “I ordered all units clear of this sector!” he snarled. Then, to their astonishment, the ship fired two torpedoes in rapid succession and disappeared back into cloak. “What ship was that?” Chang bellowed, looking instinctively at the science station. Lieutenant Akarn was fixated on a digital chronometer, which was counting down steadily. Chang turned back to Kell.

Kell sutai-Chang was no fool, and he stroked his mustache thoughtfully. “I think we’ve finally located Commander Kruge’s missing vessel,” he said with a pointed look at the general. Eyes all over the bridge turned to stare incredulously at him. On screen, they watched two photon torpedoes trace an initially erratic course before diverging. One seemed to wander off aimlessly, into deep space. The other straightened it’s course as though it had just made up its mind about where to go, and streaked directly toward them from astern. On the tactical plot, a second Excelsior Class battlecruiser dropped out of warp, running a lead-intercept pursuit angle on the torpedo at full impulse power.

“Kai kassai, Kirk!” Chang shouted, baring his fangs. The torpedo struck.

***
​

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

“Explosion, twelve o’clock relative!” called Commander Saavik. “Target: bird of prey, decloaking!”

“Lock weapons on target. Full phaser barrage, all forward batteries!” Captain Sulu snapped. “Fire torpedo tubes one and two!”

In space, red-orange phaser beams seemed to instantaneously link Excelsior and Deathwing, almost giving the illusion that the phaser beams were tractors holding her down for the torpedoes that arced in behind them. The Klingon bird of prey glowed brilliantly under the energy of a full phaser barrage, but that glow yielded to a spectacular explosion as Excelsior’s torpedoes blew her asunder. Unable to slow her momentum in time, Excelsior flew right through the dissipating explosion and debris cloud at full impulse speed, her deflector shields glowing faintly as they shunted aside the remains of Chang’s ambitions.

“Target destroyed,” Saavik reported without emotion.

“Well that wasn’t a very fair fight!” Janice Rand remarked from communications.

Saavik didn’t miss a beat: “Admiral Kirk has never been about fighting fair,” she admonished, “only about winning.”

“Amen to that,” Janice conceded, turning back to her station.

“Helm, bring us in to cover Enterprise,” Sulu ordered. “Maintain alert status and maximum shields. Just in case the Klingons left any more little surprises for us.”

“Aye, sir,” the helmsman replied. Excelsior’s flight
path curved gracefully, swinging into a new pursuit trajectory that would bring her into orbit alongside her sister ship.

***
​

Scotty joined Kirk and the landing party in the transporter room, relieving the duty transporter chief to take the controls himself. There were six of them: Kirk, Carol Marcus, Ensign N’Relkam from communications, and three security team members armed to the teeth. N‘Relkam, an Andorian, was their house expert in Thlingonaase. Kirk would rather have had Uhura with him on this one: she and Pavel Chekov had spent most of the last five years either in the Neutral Zone or behind Klingon borders, conducting espionage operations for Starfleet Intelligence. Their highly automated vessel, the former Klingon bird of prey re-christened Shado, was stuffed from bulkhead to bulkhead with the best sensors and cryptographic equipment the Federation could devise. Uhura could belt out Thlingonaase in about three different dialects with no discernible accent, and she was literate in it as well. Even Chekov spoke fluent Imperial Thlingonaase these days. The last time Kirk had actually laid eyes on him, two years before, his former navigator had even grown a Klingon-style mustache and beard just to stay in the spirit of things. As it turned out the Shado was the only real windfall they’d gotten out of the whole Genesis fiasco, and Starfleet had put her to good use ever since.

“Admiral,” Scott said with concern, “are you sure we just can’t beam the bloody thing and disperse its molecules into space?”

“No,” Carol answered firmly. “The wave-effect will interfere with the transporter, and if you push it, you may cause the weapon to detonate. Don’t worry,” she added with a smile. “I’ll take care of it.”

“If ye have the time, lass, if ye have the time,” Scott groused. The six of them assembled on the transporter pad, the security team with drawn phasers. “Admiral, I’ll be maintaining a continuous transporter lock on all of you.”

“Energize,” Kirk ordered.

When they materialized, they were facing a small metal platform, not more than three meters square. There was a mass in the center roughly the size of two standard torpedo casings fitted together, accompanied by a control panel and some other equipment. They were deep in a ravine, outdoors, and on this part of the planet it was late afternoon. The entire area was cast in long shadows, and it was both chilly and breezy. Kirk turned to the security team. “Defensive positions. Shoot first if you see anything.”

“Aye sir,” the team leader replied. Carol and N’Relkam were already stepping up to the platform to make their examination. Kirk looked around, taking in the features of the terrain. The Klingons had picked the location with care- an orbital phaser strike or torpedo bombardment on this position would merely bury the Klingon device under countless thousands of tons of rubble, but without destroying it directly. Kirk and Marcus had discussed that option during the planning phase; Carol had made an extensive study of this theory of this device, having essentially designed one from scratch herself over the past two weeks in order to give herself a strong working knowledge of the principles the Klingons had used. While there were similarities, it was not a Genesis device. Unlike the latter, this wave-energy buildup could be arrested once it was started, or the device could be destroyed without causing a full detonation, provided you hit it in the right spot. In short, they weren’t caught the same way they had been when Khan had detonated Genesis. Jim followed Carol and N’Relkam up to the platform, but he saw from their body language that there was already a problem.

The Andorian’s antennae were weaving in agitated alarm, as he read the chronometer on the display timer and made the mental conversion. “Admiral! We’re too late!” N’Relkam shouted. “Eight seconds!”

“Back off!” Kirk snapped, jumping down off the platform and pulling Carol with him. He let her go and stepped out wide to one side as he flipped open his communicator. “Scotty! Emergency beam out! Now!” he cried. As soon as he spoke the words, he flipped his communicator away as hard as he could with a snap of the wrist. Carol Marcus’ expression dissolved into one of horror, and her cry of denial was washed out in the noise of the transporter beam as it caught her, N’Relkam, and the three security team members, carrying them safely away.

Someone once described a starship captain as a man who had to make one hundred life and death decisions every day. For James Kirk, making those decisions had been his life’s blood- the driving force that kept him thriving. When the time came to make the most important command decision he had ever faced, he made it the same way he had made all the others: without hesitation, and with confidence in the knowledge that it was the correct one. There was no more time to look for alternatives- he’d already done everything he could to stack the deck in his favor, but in the end it wasn’t quite enough to get away without cost. Everything he cared about, everyone he loved, and the future of every principle he had given a lifetime’s worth of service to protect and defend were all hanging in the balance, right here and now in this one moment in time. Kirk could see exactly where the power cell fed into the device, and Carol had covered the basic mechanics of this device with him enough times in the past two weeks to prepare him for this eventuality. In that instant, James Kirk saw that he had reached the moment defining his life‘s purpose- the endgame of his own, personal komerex zha. And he knew he’d won the ultimate triumph.

Oh my, he smiled to himself.

He thumbed his phaser to full intensity and fired it straight into the power node with his eyes wide open.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

20​

The departure lounge at Starbase Orbital on Earth was sprinkled with officers and guests, including many members of the media. Just outside the viewports, the colossal shape of the USS Enterprise just about filled the entire available field of vision. Captain Harriman had assumed command three days before, and today was the day of departure for her first five year mission. With the Khitomer Accords signed into a preliminary treaty, the region formerly known as the Neutral Zone was as quiet as it had been since first contact with the Klingons had been made. The starbases were still there on both sides, but they were talking to each other these days rather than scanning one another coldly and silently across an interstellar no-man’s land. As for the starships patrolling the border, most of them were now free to pursue other duties.

As for Enterprise and her crew, they would soon be doing what they did best. For the past eighteen months, deep space communications station Epsilon 7 had been picking up weak, distant transmissions from an unknown civilization far beyond the limit of any previous exploration. That was where Enterprise was headed, and there was the usual excitement about the potential for this to turn into a genuine first contact mission.

In the lounge, Leonard McCoy and Spock stood silently next to the windows, each lost in his own thoughts. From the moment the Enterprise sensors had registered the explosion in the ravine on Khitomer, as powerful as a tri-cobalt warhead but posing no danger to the planet at large, their lives had changed forever. There had been jubilation on the bridge over their success at first, as one might expect. It was only when Scott’s anguished report came from the transporter room that they finally understood what their victory had cost them.

There had been beneficial, unintended consequences. Spock had sent all of their logs, data, and information down to the conference, both to the Federation delegation as well as the Klingons. Azetbur zantai-Chang had gone before the assembly shortly thereafter, and made a speech for the history books. She spoke of Admiral Kirk, highlighting his most Klingon qualities, and reminding her people that his had been the ultimate act of honor- an example that more Klingons should strive to emulate. Kalor sutai-Mogh, the Imperial Governor of Khitomer, had made a speech of his own, one that wasn't as difficult for the Starfleet personnel listening to interpret as the Klingons might have thought. The sutai-Mogh had reminded all of them that in the realm of the komerex zha, “mere life was not victory and mere death was not defeat.” His words struck an obvious chord with the Klingon delegation, and he proclaimed that Kirk’s act of honor alone proved that the Komerex Federazhon was worthy to stand in alliance with the Komerex Klingon. The speeches had been full of fire and klin, and when it was all over, Azetbur had won. While not a Thought Master like her father, she was at least twice the orator. So it was that in death, James Kirk achieved a much bigger victory than he would have imagined possible. None of the Federation personnel would ever forget the absolutely surreal experience of standing in a hall full of Klingons with their ceremonial knives raised in clenched fists, crying: “Kai, Kirk! Kai Kassai!” at the top of their lungs. McCoy had worried that the ceiling was going to come down on them. In any case it was something that none of them would ever forget.

Carol Marcus sidled up between the two officers to lean on the railing and gaze out admiringly at the Enterprise. “My God, that’s a big ship,” she said with a smile. “How are the two of you doing?” she asked.

Spock turned to face her. “I grieve for the loss of my friend,” he answered truthfully, “but it is a selfish indulgence. Jim’s death was filled with noble purpose- it was logical. I once spoke to someone I cared about with regards to having faith; that faith has been vindicated for me.”

“I’m more day to day, myself,” McCoy replied brokenly.

“We spent some time together, those last few weeks,” Carol remarked. “When we weren’t busy with work, we talked a bit. He was going to have to retire, and he was lost just thinking about it. Retirement would have been a slow death for him, doctor. But for those few weeks on Enterprise,” she added intently, “he was the Jim Kirk I knew all my life. He was himself. All these years, I always assumed he’d go out with his boots on. When our son died, I thought I’d never recover, but I did. This will be no different, and in time we’ll appreciate Jim’s death as a good one.”

McCoy didn’t say anything. He knew she was right, deep down, but this wound was raw and painful, and would be a long time healing. A hint of movement outside the viewport drew his eye. “Look,” he said, “there she goes.” The three of them fell silent, each thinking about what they were seeing and what it meant to them.

Enterprise was on the move. She backed away from the docking gantry on thrusters, then gracefully yawed full about in place and then headed for the open space doors. Beyond them, an entire galaxy beckoned her forward like a siren call. People in the lounge were cheering and clapping, while behind them, the Federation News Service was replaying Harriman’s words from the change of command ceremony a few days before:

“As we will honor and cherish the memory of those who have gone before us, so too will this ship carry on the finest traditions of her predecessors, journeying to all the undiscovered countries that await, boldly going where no man has gone before.”

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

~Finis~​

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

I’m already enjoying the portrayal of the Klingons in your story. They are more thoughtful, militant, and overtly dangerous than their TNG-esque counterparts. I can’t imagine what Imperial Intelligence or the Klingon High Command will do with these revelations, and the potential power it seems the Federation may now command from their perspective.

A fantastic opener, leaving me eager for more!

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

Great work here, Jedi. I really like what you did with John Ford's Klingons and how you intertwined them into the canon. I can't wait to see what you wow us with next.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

We all have the late John M. Ford to thank for this style of Klingon, their culture, and their belief system. He showed us all the way.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

Damn this was fun to read! I've never read The Final Reflection, but I just might pick it up after this.

(Spoilers ahead.)

It felt like a Myriad Universes tale; really enjoyed all of the call-backs to the original stories. I liked how Kirk had to face the consequences of STIII and really liked how Klingon activity in STIII was tied to the Klingon story of STVI. (And was very glad STV was skipped over! )

Though the story could be integrated into Prime Universe canon, I'd prefer to conceive all of it as an alternate reality, with a POD hundreds of years ago, somewhere in Klingon history. (You could explain away the environmental differences on the Klingon homeworld as the result of different long-term environmental policies.)

There were a couple of places where Kirk seemed slightly out of character, but only a couple. I rarely felt taken out of the story.

I like how there was so much intrigue and plotting in this story. Not as reliant on major emotional or heroic scenes (like Kirk's escape from Rura Penthe or Spock's confrontation of Valeris in STVI).

I realized just before Kirk died that none of the main cast members had died, and that surely there was going to have to be some major sacrifice (particularly since Gorkon comes across as more alien in this story, imho, and so his death seems more like an impediment than a loss). I liked how he went out and how it was handled, though I sorta wish there had been more foreshadowing (more emphasis, say, on what Carol describes after he dies: "What am I going to do when I retire?").

That said, one major problem for reading Trek stories for me is that I'm so excited to see what happens next that I don't always read as carefully as I should... So I probably missed stuff.

Question: I assume it's covered in The Final Reflection, but what are the meanings/significance of those titles like "epetai" and "zantai"?

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

While not addressed directly by Ford in his narrative, they are clearly honorifics. He gives you the benefit of the doubt as the reader, assuming you are smart enough to ferret it out. As you read through the story, as a Klingon gains power, prestige, and glory, his honorifics gradually ramp up, although there is never a solid benchmark provided for how/when this happens. In Descending order, the honorifics are as such:

Epetai
Zantai
Sutai
Vestai
Tai

You really, really ought to read The Final Reflection if you never have. It is not only the best ST novel ever, it is one of the most tightly scripted novels you will ever read, period. It could have stood completely on its own as a non-ST tale and been just as good.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

Ah, that makes sense. Sorry to have been dense, I guess I had been figuring it was a lot more complicated than that. Thank you.

I will find The Final Reflection on eBay and add it to my to-read list! Thank you for the recommendation.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

Really enjoyed this version. Good job!

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

Thoroughly enjoyed reading this. And I'm going to add The Final Reflection to my reading list.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

Kai Jedi Marso! Kai Kassai!

The one has written a very engaging tale--the product of a talent worthy of a Thought Admiral.

As someone who is not much of a fan of TNG/DS9 Klingon culture, this was really, truly impressive. I've always thought the FASA/Ford Klingons were what the Klingon culture should've been, and you've shown us just how well it could have worked.

What's particularly striking is that with the Ford Klingons, you'd have all three major Alpha Quadrant adversaries having cultures based on intrigue--the Romulans, the Klingons, and the Cardassians, yet all three still retaining their own unique, credible cultures. (I say "credible" because the TNG/DS9 Klingons are about as credible as the Kazon, to me, in their chances of controlling an interstellar empire.)

The story itself was impressive, and you worked with the Perpetual Game in a way that rivals Ford himself. Good job--I'd love to see more of these sorts of Ford-Klingon re-writes.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

A tremendous story which gave us Klingons we could respect and awarded James T. Kirk the kind of death he deserved.

You've got a masterful knack for storytelling. The fluid way in which you included certain canon elements and dialogue while discarding others and inputting different (and dare I say superior) plot elements is refreshing and very welcome.

Damn. Fine. Work.

 

Re: ST, the Undiscovered Country, redeux. Complete with John Ford Klin

So, I take it there was no Whale Probe, or did all that take place "off screen?"