Within The Stars

Chapter 13

The door slid open and multiple boots thundered across the floor, the shadows darted back and forth in front of me. I pushed myself further deeper into the vents to avoid being seen. They started looking through the escape pod that I came in through.

Time to move.

I began to clamber through the vents and before I realized I was crawling underneath thousands of Romulans, how is this an air vent? It's built into the floor and not hanging in the air, that is not how air vents work.

I quickly maneuvered myself through the vents until I reached someplace quiet and deserted. I was able to shoot one of the corkscrews off the vents and detached it from the ground. After slipping the vent door back to its rightful place, I took a sniff at the air hoping I can get a scent of Captain Pike.

It smelt so bad, the air was full of oil and the smell of plastic burning. I pushed past my instinct to gag and tried again and again. While I was busy searching for Captain Pike's smell, I was also walking around the ship in hopes of finding something useful. This ship was a disaster, there are no directions nor is there any sign. I had to guess and also peak into some rooms to get an idea of where I am.

"If this ship doesn't get destroyed at the end of this, I'm gonna come back here and organize everything in place then blow it up myself." I snorted as I stroll down the corridor.

Suddenly, I got a sudden scent of chalk and cigarettes. My ears perked at the sudden distinctive smell. My heart raced with joy. It's Pike.

I'm coming, hang in there.

I followed the scent and ended up in a room that was dark and had only light shining down in the middle of the room. My eyes zeroed onto the body laying on the bed, unmoving. My breath hitched and I can feel my hands starting to shake.

"Captain? Captain Pike?" It was meant to be a cal but it came it as a whisper.

It was a call for reassurance. To make sure that he was still alive, breathing, living.

Stumbling towards the bed, million thoughts course through my mind. Is he dead? Like my people, like my family. How many more times do I have to endure having someone I care about slip through my grasp. What if more people die because of Nero? Kirk? Sulu?......Spock? Wouldn't that just contradict my reason for revenge? If I fail, all the people that died because of all this shit, gave their life up for a meaningless purpose?

Fuck, shut up! Focus first Leona, you can have your existential crisis later.

I let out a breath and turned my attention back to Pike, brushing away his damn hair and strained my ears to listen. Forget about killing Nero, forget about revenge, forget everything. Just focus for any signs of living, movement of air, the sound of cloth rustling, bloodstream rushing through the body.

Focus. Focus. Focu-

Thump. Thump. Thump.

It wasn't the footstep of a soldier nor was it the sound of the engine. It was a heart beating, Captain Pike's heart beating. He's alive! My body was shaking so much with joy that I had to wrap my arms around myself to be stabilized.

"Captain! Can you hear me? Captain! Captain Pike!" I yelled whilst shaking him lightly, he groaned and his eyelids fluttered

"D...don't yell into m..my ear," his eyebrow furrowed as he opened his eyes, "I thought I told you to stay on the ship."

"Worry about that later. Come on, let's get you out of here first." I cut open the straps with my nails

I pulled free a strap and when I was just about to cut another one free, a force pushed me away from the table. I let out a grunt as I crumbled to the floor, my gun fell from my shoulders and slid under the table. 

I let out a small cry as a burning white pain flooded through my arm and my ears picked up the sound of Captain call my name and this time, thumps that belonged to soldiers and surrounded me. I could see dark boots and gun barrels a few meters away from me, it parted and the boot that walked towards me was still dark in color.