Chapter Text
Ortegas gave Maya and La’an no opportunity to escape. She wasn’t bold enough to walk all the way to the transporter station with her phaser drawn, but she kept her right hand on her weapon and insisted they walk one either side of her. They drew little attention to themselves until they reached the station, and the technician greeted La’an and Ortegas with a Terran salute. Ortegas gave La’an a quick sideways glance. As an Admiral, she was supposed to be the one in charge.
“We’re going to the Capitol,” La’an commanded. The technician stole a glance at the stump where her hand used to be, but the glare La’an gave him in return was enough to prevent him from asking any questions.
“Of course, Admiral, but you should know, there are new security measures in place. I can’t get you into the building itself, at least not until further notice.”
“Only a minor inconvenience,” La’an answered. “As close as you can get us is acceptable.”
The trio stepped onto the transporter pads, and once they were in place, the technician entered some commands into the console, and all three banished.
They materialized several meters away from the Capitol. Even though Spock had begun to reshape the ideals of the Terran Empire, he built the Republic on its old infrastructure, and in some places the old aesthetics could still be seen. The exterior walls of the capitol were dark and laid in with gilded filigree in sharp geometric designs, and it was surrounded by ornamental grounds.
“The gardens used to be bigger,” Ortegas explained as they crossed the grounds. She still walked between her two captives and kept a hand on her phaser. “Spock said that usable space being left open was ‘illogical.’ or something like that. And all the plants were poisonous.”
Just outside the entrance they were greeted by a security guard. No Terran salute, only a slight but respectful bow of the head. While the old guards of the Terran Emperor wore showy golden armor, those entrusted with protecting Spock’s life wore more utilitarian attire: simple gray uniforms with black armor.
“Admiral,” he began. He gave all his attention to La’an. They recognized each other, as this man had been in the security rotation on a handful of La’an’s prior visits. “My apologies, but we’ve had some recent protocol changes. I can’t admit anyone without an appointment, and you weren’t on today’s schedule.”
“I’m not used to not getting what I want,” La’an played the part of her Terran counterpart well as she took a step closer, but the guard showed no signs of backing down. As she spoke, Ortegas did a quick scan of the guards outside the building. “Surely there’s someone I can speak to. This is an urgent matter.”
“No exceptions.”
“I don’t think you understand.” La’an inched even closer and tried her best to imitate the entitled, demanding tone of her Terran counterpart. “Ortegas and I have been Spock’s close friends for decades. There are few people he trusts as much as us.”
“I know, Admiral, and I’m sorry, but…”
“And what if I told you that we need to speak to him because we have information on a very real threat?” Ortegas spoke up to interrupt this time, and she pointed an accusing finger at the guard.
The guard narrowed his eyes and he considered the offer. “I’ll let you speak with the security chief.” He glanced to Maya. “Not her.”
“Why not?” Otregas demanded. “Maya is Admiral Noonien-Singh’s cousin, and she’s got information as well. You can trust her just as much as us.”
“As an unknown civilian, she lacks the proper security clearance, and she doesn’t have the same rapport with Spock. You can state your case to the security chief, but I can’t let her in.” He narrowed his eyes on Ortegas and let his gaze drift down to the phaser on her belt. “You’ll have to leave your weapons behind. Including knives, I’ve lost count of how many people who don’t think a blade counts as a weapon.”
“Absolutely not!” Ortegas snapped as she instinctively moved her right hand to the hilt of her knife. “Phasers, I understand, but carrying a dagger is a time-honored Terran tradition. Only a coward would disarm everyone around him because he can’t defend himself.
“Be that as it may, I still can’t allow it. Either leave your weapons behind, or you can forget about speaking to the security chief.”
Ortegas furrowed her brow. “I don’t like it all, but if you won’t give us any other choice.” She glanced to La’an. “Well, Admiral, what do you think?”
“I don’t appreciate being treated with such suspicion, but as Ortegas said you’ve left us with no choice.” La’an replied.
The guard gave a slow nod. “Come along then.” He beckoned for La’an and Ortegas to follow him then turned and took his first few steps toward the entrance.
Before she followed, Ortegas turned to Maya and pointed a finger at her. “Stay right here.”
The two women stayed close behind the guard. La’an managed to move with quiet confidence, hardly different from the way she usually carried herself, except that she kept her injured arm folded and tucked close to her body. Orgetas, however, couldn’t help but let her right hand rest on her phaser.
Maya watched as La’an and Ortegas ascended the stairs. She kept her eyes on them until they disappeared from view behind the doors, and not a moment later she rushed over to another security guard. “Sir!” She called. “You have to stop Ortegas! She can’t be trusted.”
The guard turned toward her and crossed his arms. “And why are you only mentioning this now?”
“Because she had a phaser, and I’m not ready to die.” Maya took a deep breath and ran her hands through her hair as she tried to think of the best, quickest, and most believable way to describe the situation. “Ortegas is going to use La’an to get close to Spock and kill him.”
The man raised an eyebrow. “So La’an can’t be trusted either?”
“No, no that’s not it at all.” Maya looked up and rubbed the back of her neck, how could she explain any clearer? When she continued, she spoke rapidly. “Ortegas has been threatening her and coerced her into it. I’m sure La’an has some exit strategy, but she’ll need support. And Ortegas isn’t the only threat. Uhura, Sulu, M’Benga, and eight genetically enhanced augments…they’ve all been planning to assassinate Spock and reinstate the Terran Empire.”
“Those are some pretty bold accusations. What evidence do you have?”
Maya opened her mouth to speak, but stayed silent for a moment. All she had was her own testimony. “I overheard them planning everything.”
“So, no concrete proof?”
Maya ran her fingers through her hair again and let out a frustrated sigh. “If I’m wrong, you have nothing to lose, if I’m right your entire society is likely to fall back into fascism.”
The guard crossed his arms. “I’ll inform the chief of security immediately and see what he has to say. In the meantime I suggest you stay out of the way.”
“Don’t have to tell me twice.” With that, Maya turned to walk back across the grounds at a clipped pace. To where, she did not know. She couldn’t guess how similar the layout of this place was to Earth, but that knowledge would have been of little use with her own lack of experience getting around the planet she now called home. As she wandered the streets, her mind raced. Maybe the chief of security would believe her, and maybe La’an would find a way to save herself and Spock, but there were still about a dozen other would be assassins at large. By now it would have raised suspicion that Ortegas had not dragged them back, and from what Maya had seen the Terrans she didn’t take them to be the sort to bide their time and wait before going to extremes. Every time Maya tried to take action her poorly conceived plans backfired horribly, but no one else knew about this threat. The poorly conceived plans would have to do.
Maya rushed toward the first person she saw: a tall Terran woman with pale skin and red hair. “Excuse me! I need your help.” The stranger tried to back away, but Maya grabbed her arm in an instinctive act of desperation. The woman tried to pull away, but she couldn’t match the strength of Maya;s grip. “I just need to know where the nearest transporter station is.”
The woman wrinkled her nose. “Five blocks to the left.”
Maya let go of her arm, and the woman shrank back. “That was all I needed. Thank you.” She dashed off again, blocking out her surroundings and thoughts to focus solely on putting one foot in front of the other until she entered the station. Maya’s eyes were wild and she was short of breath, which caused the technician to stare at her with a raised eyebrow.
“May I help you?” he asked, flatly.
“Yes, actually.” Maya took a deep breath to steady herself and gather her reeling thoughts. This man was a Vulcan, which might make him more sympathetic to her cause. There was no time to try to get a feel for who this person was or where he stood. “I’m trying to stop a coup, and I think you might be the only person who can help me.”
There was no perceptible change in the Vulcan’s face, but he did give an understanding nod. “Recently, there have been many attempts on Commander in Chief Spock’s life. It would be illogical to allow him to come to harm by inaction.”
Maya breathed a sigh of relief and shook her head. That was the easy part, to convince him to protect Spock. The challenge would be in explaining everything else. She took a deep, grounding breath. “I’m sure this attempt is under very different circumstances…” Another deep breath. The Vulcan was still listening attentively. “Hikaru Sulu, Nyota Uhura, and Joseph M’Benga are planning a coup, and they have the cooperation of eight genetically engineered augments.” Giving the minimum made everything more believable. It wasn’t necessary to go into detail about alternate universes or Khan and his followers surviving in space for hundreds of years.
The Vulcan raised an eyebrow. “That is unusual. How did you come by this information?”
Another sigh. “It’s a long story, but what matters is that I’m one of the augments. I don’t agree with them, and I was forced to go along with their schemes against my will.”
“Understood, but I fail to understand how I can be of assistance.”
“We share genetic markers, enough that your transporter's sensors can differentiate us from unmodified humans…Terrans. I know it can work, I’ve seen it done before. You can use my scans as a template, and then find them and beam them…” she paused. Not long ago she had suggested beaming them all into space, but when the time came to make the decision she couldn’t bring herself to do it. “...I don’t know, to some deserted island, or anywhere uninhabited on this planet, if such a place even exists.”
“What you suggest is theoretically possible, but highly impractical. To select a handful of individuals with a few genetic markers would require a precise location.”
“If we’re lucky they’re still at La’an’s home, and if we’re not they’re right outside the capitol, is that precise enough?” Maya was growing impatient.
“Perhaps. I will need to have a scan of your genetic profile to determine how strongly the scanners can detect these markers, but before we proceed I have concerns on my own.”
“Go ahead.”
“I’m sure you understand that it is logical to have some suspicions about the validity of these claims…”
“Just do a damn mind meld!” Maya held her hands up in defeat.
Again, the Vulcan raised his eyebrow. “Most Terrans do not consent to melding so freely.”
“I don’t like the idea, but I have nothing to hide. I’ve done a mind meld before, and I hated every minute of it. If there’s any other way I can convince you that I’m telling the truth, let me know, but I have no proof other than my word.”
The Vulcan considered this for a moment before he stepped from behind the console and approached Maya. “I cannot in good conscience perform a mind meld without full and unquestioning consent.”
“And I’m giving you my full consent. I can complain about something and still agree to it.”
“Very well.” The Vulcan stepped closer and reached out to place his fingertips on the side of Maya’s face. “I advise you to try to control your emotions, especially feelings of fear and worry.”
Maya closed her eyes and tried to breathe slowly and deeply. She reminded herself that no matter how unpleasant the last mind meld was, she had been safe. The same would be true this time, and now she knew what to expect.
“Your mind to my mind, your thoughts to my thoughts…”
Her mind became one with the Vulcan’s–Sirit was his name, she now knew. While it was still uncomfortable to share every thought and secret with someone she just met, this was easier to endure than her first meld. Sirit had access to all of her private memories and thoughts but had the tact to ignore anything but the relevant information. He saw how she and La’an were brought here from their own universe, everything that happened aboard the ISS Portland, the meetings with the augments and the conspirators, and how their escape was foiled by Ortegas. When Sirit took his hand away and stepped back, Maya's heart was racing.
“I have the information I need.” Sirit went back to console and began to work. “Please step on the transporter pad.”
Maya’s heart was still racing as she stepped on the platform. “This won’t talk long, will it?
“Only a few seconds. Energizing.” With a beam of light, Maya vanished and then reappeared. Even after she re-materialized Sirit still did not look up from his work. Curious, Maya walked over to stand behind him and look over his shoulder to try to make sense of what he was doing. “I’m detecting only seven Augment biosigns. They’re just outside the capitol.”
“Then get them out of there!” Maya leaned closer and scanned the displays on the console and tried to make sense of what Sirit was doing. “Send them…somewhere, anywhere that won’t kill them instantly.”
“Point to point teleportation is a precise and delicate maneuver. I cannot do it without exact coordinates for the destination. Furthermore, one of the augments is unaccounted for.”
“Probably killed during their infighting,” Maya guessed. She stepped away from the console and looked up to the ceiling. They couldn’t spare another moment. “I don’t want to send them into space, but what other option do we have?”
“This is a penal colony in New Zealand, I suggest we send them there.”
Maya nodded. “Yes, yes that’s perfect. Do it.” It wasn’t perfect. Seven furious augments suddenly displaced and imprisoned, that might cause more violence than beaming them into space to die, but it felt easier on her conscience.
Maya kept a bit more distance between herself and Sirit, but she still watched him closely, trying to figure out just what he was doing and how much longer it would be until the augments were no longer their problem.
“I have beamed four of the augments to New Zealand.”
“And what about the other three?” Maya stepped up close again and leaned in to read the display. In this moment she realized that she would have to take Sirit’s word on trust alone; she couldn’t make sense of anything she saw. “Why can’t you get rid of them too?”
“The Capitol is shielded to prevent unauthorized transport. The most logical conclusion is that they have made it inside. It is also logical to conclude that Sulu, M’Benga, and Uhura are with them.”
The room began to spin, and knots formed in Maya’s stomach. She stepped away to lean against the wall, sure she couldn’t stay upright if she had to support her own body. “So…that’s it then.”
“Not necessarily,” Sirit answered. Through everything the Vulcan, unsurprisingly, remained calm and unfazed. “We do not know what is happening inside the Capitol, or what will happen.”
“There’s nothing more that I can do, at least.” Maya let herself slide down the wall to sit on the floor, trying to feel grounded even though everything felt as though it was falling apart. There would be no more poorly thought out, wildly impulsive schemes, that sort of thing was certain to get her killed. “Do you might if I stay here? I have no where safe to go.”
Sirit nodded. “You may stay as long as you need.”