Star Trek Coda

Chapter 3: Sacrifice

OLD NEW JERSEY OUTSKIRTS, 2408

It wasn't safe to travel at night, so Jack and his father waited until morning, sleeping in the small crawlspace. As they walked back in silence, Jack started to feel uneasy. Something was wrong with Ethan - he was in trouble. Jack didn't know why or how, but he had always had this intuition. As they crossed the valley, something was ... different. The air smelt more incipid than normal. He looked to his father and as they made eye contact he saw the feeling was shared. They quickened their pace

Well before they reached the shanty town the smell reached them. It was sour and rotten; it was the smell of burning flesh. They started running. As the shanty town came into view in the distance, they could see plumes of smoke rising into the air. The two men ran even faster, desperate to see what had happened to their home.

They finally reached their destination. The town was razed to the ground. A few haphazard structures remained, ready to fall with a gust of wind. The ground was covered in ash, but there was nothing left. There were no people to be seen. Jack screamed, but then Will grabbed his mouth to silence him, "they'll still be here," he said.

Jack looked at him in shock. He couldn't comprehend his Father's emotions. The shock passed and he remembered Ethan. He started running towards their shack as Will tried to stop him, "We can't! It's not safe!" he whispered.

"I don't give a fuck!" screamed back Jack as he ran.

Will followed behind as they reached the shack. It had crumbled to the ground, but there was an arm sticking out beneath the wreckage. Jack quickly pulled aside the rubble with his father's help. It was Ethan. Jack turned him over and breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Ethan's chest rise and fall. He gently touched Ethan's face to wake him.

Suddenly there was a splash of water on Ethan's face and he woke with a start. Will grabbed him up, "we have to go! Now!"

Ethan was still dazed but made his way with Jack and Will's help, "where are we going?" he asked.

Will replied, "We have to get somewhere safe. We'll go back to the ship. We can hide in there at least."

Jack appreciated his father's help, even though he knew he disagreed. He wondered what had turned him so harsh.

They made their way through the ruins as quickly as they could, with Will panicked. Suddenly phaser beams shot past, and they broke into a run. Ethan lagged behind and Jack and Will had to help drag him along. They ran behind a pile of rubble for shelter. Will grabbed rocks and started throwing them. The phaser beams kept flying over their heads.

Will looked to Ethan, "You better be worth it kid. Be his Imzadi and don't ever leave his side."

Both boys looked at him with confusion, "I'm too old for this," Will said, "I'll buy you some time. Go to the ship. Hide, wait a few days, and then get as far away from here as you can. You'll have to find a new home."

"No, no you can't", Jack sobbed, "I can't do this without you."

Will grabbed his shoulders, "Yes you can! You convinced me that love is real, that means you've got something else to live for. So you've got to let me do this. For him! And then you've got to do this together."

The beams were getting closer, they only had seconds, "I'm proud of you Son. Be the best of Starfleet," he grabbed the Starfleet delta pin and put it on Jack's shirt, "Now when I jump up, run!"

Before Jack could respond, Will was in the air running at their attackers. Jack froze, but Ethan grabbed him, "We need to go!" Pulled out of his stupor Jack ran with Ethan. He turned back and saw Will wrestling a phaser from one of the attackers. They were in a firefight. He turned forward and kept running. He could hear the phaser beams in the background, but they weren't coming his way.

The sound of the beams stopped, he knew what that meant.

They kept running, they didn't know how long they had been running for but it had started to get dark.

Jack stopped and collapsed onto his knees. His body couldn't keep going. Ethan grabbed him, "I'm not letting your Dad die for nothing. We don't stop until we get to the ship. You know the way, you have to take us there."

Jack managed to stand up again, "one step at a time," said Ethan. So that's what Jack did, and soon he fell into a rhythm.

It felt like an eternity passed, but they reached the ship, and Jack led Ethan into the spot where only days before he and his father had hidden. He collapsed. He didn't need to move anymore so the adrenaline had left him. It all came crashing back and he started sobbing. Ethan cradled him in his arms, and they eventually fell asleep.