'Q' Stardate 2258.231

Kirk was about to tell her that he would do no such thing when Q appeared.

"My my Captain...I leave you for a few hours and already you're down one crew member. And by the looks of it...maybe more. Those Romulans seem pretty serious," Q said in a very gloating way.

"You did this Q. You brought Amara to the ship, you brought the Romulans to take her back. You endanger this ship, and my crew...why?" Kirk asked.

"You're being tested Captain, I thought I had made my intentions clear?" Q said. "This? this is part of the test?" Kirk asked.

"My dear Captain, It is such a pleasure to observe you humans. Such delicate creatures," he said with a grin. "Your Enterprise is no match for a D7 Battlecruiser," Q said. Kirk decided to try a different approach.

"Q...I submit that we are inferior beings, to yourself. I admit that. Return Amara to where she came from and release my crew," Kirk asked. Q looked more smug now than he had a moment ago.

"Kirk, the board is set and the pieces are on the board. It's your move...make it a good one," Q said and then he was gone again. Kirk sat down in his chair.

Amara looked at James after Q was gone. "James, we are running out of time. I have to do this to save the others. I'm the reason the Romulans took them, but I refuse to be the reason why they continue to kill them. I have done a lot of terrible things over the course of my life...please...let me do one thing right. Let me save them."

Kirk looked at Amara. He knew she was right but he knew there had to be a way out of this. Once they had Amara, they'd try to leave. Then, he'd likely never see them again. He had to think. He needed to be able to track them with sensors. To track tham...

"Viridium!...Scarlett, Is there any Viridium from Iota Cassiopalae 4? You said you took samples!" Kirk asked. "You said it was easy to detect because its an Isotope. How much could Amara ingest safely?" Kirk asked.

Amara blinked when she heard what James was asking Scarlett, but then it hit her...like it hit Scarlett what he was trying to do. "Yes, I have samples in the lab," Scarlett said as she jumped up and rushed to the lab. They only had a few minutes left before another crew member would be killed. Scarlett quickly came back with the appropriate safe, amount. She put it in a liquid for Amara to drink. Amara drank all of it and looked at James. "I'm ready."

When Kirk and Amara approached the transporter room Kirk relieved the crewman manning it. "If they wanted you dead, they'd have destroyed the Enterprise. Don't give them a reason to kill you Amara...please. I'm going to get you back," Kirk said and then he kissed her. A very moving, passionate kiss as he held her against him. He could feel her tight body under the leather. He didn't let her come up for air until he was satisfied. He released her and let her go onto the transporter pad while he moved behind the controls.

"Uhura, we're ready. Ask them for the coordinates," Kirk said Once they gave them Kirk energized. Once it was complete the Romulans energized and gave them back their crew members. Spock, McCoy and Nathan came down from the transporter pads. "Jim...there was nothing we could do," McCoy said. "I know Bones...and we're not out of the woods yet.

"Spock, Amara has ingested Viridium, Help Scarlett, we're going after them," Kirk said. "Yes Captain," Spock said and left with the doctor and a very troubled Nathan. He had watched them kill Natalie. He tried to stop it but he wasn't strong or fast enough. He left with the others.

Kirk appeared a minute later back onto the bridge. As he did, Q appeared again.

Amara and James were silent as they made their way to the Transporter room. This moment felt eerily similar to one that had happened 4 months ago. She waited while James relieved the crewman manning the Transporter and then looked into his eyes as he stepped up to her. She closed her eyes when he kissed her and she kissed him back. Had he not been holding her against him her knees likely would have given out from under her by how he had kissed her just then. She didn't want it to end, but it did. She moved up to one of the Transporter pads and was transported onto the Romulan Battlecruiser. 

Scarlett looked over at Spock as he appeared on the bridge. He would be able to sense how relieved she was that he was alright. However, they needed to detect the Viridium inside Amara so they could locate the ship. Together, she and Spock began to use the scanners to try and locate her. However, before the could Kirk appeared on the bridge and was immediately followed by Q. The tension on the bridge began to mount as everyone looked over at Q.

"I don't have time for you Q," Kirk said. "Red alert, Scarlett I need a signal," Kirk said but it was clear they were having difficulty. "Elyse we might not get a second shot at this. Aim for one of their nacelles," Kirk suggested. "Sulu try to keep them in front of us," Kirk said.

"My dear Captain, and you're doing so well. The Romulans have what their after. Why risk more of your crew to go after her?" Q asked. Kirk looked at him in obvious irritation. "You wouldn't know anything about that, would you Q? You don't experience Honor or Loyalty or Love. It's beneath you, isn't it?" Kirk asked. "You're so high and mighty that friendship means nothing to you, does it?" Kirk asked. "So you're going after her because of love?" Q said with a surprised expression. Kirk looked around the room.

"That's why you're willing to risk your ship and your crew?" Q asked. Kirk thought about that, was Amara worth his crew?" Kirk closed his eyes as he considered that. He'd never see her again. He recalled her striking blue eyes and the way she liked her hair to tickle his face. He recalled here smile and how much she loved those Jumja sticks. He remembered their time at the Vulcan Spa and the sounds she made when she made love to her. He had given her his word and he knew the price was too high. Kirk sighed and felt wetness come to his eyes.

Elyse saw what everyone else saw. Kirk was considering leaving her with the Romulans.

Elyse looked at Kirk and she knew that he was considering leaving her with the Romulans...sacrificing her to save the rest of the crew. She knew that is what he thought he needed to do. To put the crew above his love for her, but there was something that he wasn't considering and she stood up at her station.

"The Enterprise does not leave crew behind and Amara is a member of this crew. She would do the same for any of us and she already has."

Scarlett also stood up. "No one left behind."

Uhura then also stood up. "We're a team...a family. We do what it takes to get her back."

Then Sulu stood up. "Just give the word Captain," he said. And then Spock stood up. "Jim, in this case, the needs of the one, outweigh the needs of the many," he said. Kirk smiled at him and a strong sense of pride filled him as he looked into hopeful faces. He had gotten them all out of tight spots in the past. Kirk was probably the luckiest man in the galaxy and the hope in their eyes bolstered his own.

"Scarlett, when you get a fix, patch the sensors into navigation. "Elyse, we wont be able to get a target lock but I'm fairly certain Amara will be near the bridge or on it. We'll try to come up behind her," Kirk said.

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On the Romulan ship Two Romulans held Amara as Ren'alor slapped her again. Blood trickled down the corner of her mouth. "I've been given orders to make your stay aboard this ship unaccommodating," he said as he drew out a wicked looking knife. "Such a pretty little human you are. But not for much longer," He said as he brought it up to her cheek. He was going to carve up her face, she knew it, she saw the look in his eyes.

"Sub-Commander, the enterprise has taken position directly behind us," The Romulan helm officer said. "Is there a problem with our cloak?" Ren asked as he rested the knife against her cheek. "No, its working perfectly. "Go to warp 8," He said then turned back to Amara. However before he had sliced her, the ship shook as a Photon Torpedo hit the hull. Then shook harder when one hit the Port Warp Nacelle.

"Sir, their aiming for our Engines!" The navigator said. A third hit, hit the same Nacelle and their warp field destabilized. Ren backed away from Amara and moved back onto the bridge. "Take her to deck 7 and...indulge yourselves," he said and the two men that held her grinned.

"Nice shooting Elyse," Kirk said. "Spock, can you get a transporter lock on her?" Kirk asked. "The cloaking device is still reflecting our sensors Captain. I could get a lock, but not without taking the entire bulkhead with her.," he said. Kirk leaned over and hit the transporter room intercom. "Transporter room 1, Scotty, once you get a lock, beam the entire area into space then beam Amara Novak on board," Kirk said. "Sickbay, I need an emergency medical team to Transporter room 1," Kirk said. "Sulu, once they decloak they will have to charge their weapons. Bring us in right on top of them so they can't get a weapons lock on us," Kirk said.

Just as Kirk predicted the ship began to de-cloak. Scotty got a lock and transported Amara with the bulkhead and the 2 Romulans that had a hold of her. Once she materialized, to her horror she was in space. Her lungs suddenly expelled all of the air in her lungs and the immense cold burned her flesh. She hastily closed her eyes but felt the capillaries in her body begin to rupture. Scotty transported her onto the enterprise and as she materialized she felt to the floor unconscious. The medical team rushed up to her and began working on her immediately.

"We have her Captain," Scotty said.

"Go, Sulu...Warp 7," Kirk said. Sulu punched in the coordinates and the ship lurched into warp just as the Romulans fired.

It had been nearly 24 hours and Amara was still unconscious. Her face had been cleaned up and her vitals had stabilized. Spock and Elyse had been manning the bridge while Kirk remained with Amara in sickbay, though people had taken turns coming to check on her. Slowly though, she began to awaken. Her eyes began to flutter open. She was aware of voices, James and McCoys? Yes...that was it. They were talking a little ways from where she was. She heard one of them mention her name. Slowly, the events that had taken place came back to her. She remembered being on the Romulan ship and then being out in space. It had been so cold that her lungs had burned like nothing she had ever felt before. 

"Jim, I think she's waking up," McCoy said as he looked over at her.

"Bones, give us a few minutes?" Kirk asked. McCoy moved up to him. "Make it brief Jim, she needs to rest," He said. Kirk nodded. Once they left he pulled up a chair and sat next to her as she lay in the sickbay bed. He took her hand.

Kirk waited for her to speak first...

Amara felt James take her hand and she looked over at him and into his eyes. "You should have just left me. You shouldn't have put your crew at risk for me."

"Well, if that's your way of saying thank you...I find it to be...lacking," Kirk said with a deep smile and a chuckle. "You should know by now I hardly do what I should do," he said. "If you must know, every single person on the bridge wanted to come after you Amara. So that thanks would go to the whole crew," Kirk said as he leaned forward and kissed her knuckles.

Amara looked shocked by what James told her. She had been fairly certain that people had hated her after learning what she had done and that had broken her heart as she had come to care for them all. However, knowing that they had all wanted to go after her made her feel like a true member of the crew and that meant everything to her. Tears came to her eyes and a few trickle down her cheeks. "Thank you."

Kirk shifted up to kiss her cheek. "Oh, none of that Amara," Kirk said. Her eyes were still very red and her cheeks as well. His face was close to hers and he wiped a few tears away carefully. "Amara...I think they understand you more than you think," he said. "And I got you back...that's all that matters," Kirk said. He had pulled alot of rabbits out of hats to accomplish it.

Amara looked up into James' eyes. She gently pulled him down towards her and she kissed him. It was a loving, yet intense kiss that would leave James in no doubt of her feelings for him. As their lips parted she looked back up at him. "I have to go back. I have to finish my training. Then, once that is complete, I will be back...I promise."

Kirk reveled in her kiss. He took in her scent and murmured, "I love you," into her kiss. "I know you will," Kirk said confidently. "Without you to love and to hold Amara, I will not be a whole man," Kirk said. "I will be nothing," Kirk said.

Amara was overcome by feelings of love by what James said and she began to kiss him again, but McCoy walked in and loudly cleared his throat. 

"Jim, she needs to rest...and so do you."

Kirk sighed, he knew he was right but he also knew Amara did not want him to leave. "I'll let her sleep Bones but I won't leave her," Kirk said. "I can live with that," McCoy said. "She's going to make a full recovery Jim, But her body's been through alot," McCoy reminded him and then stepped away. 'Sleep now Amara...I will be right here," Kirk said.

Kirk fell asleep at her bedside. He was awakened by being jostled. He sat up just as everyone around him suddenly shifted as if they too were surprised. Amara was sitting in the XO chair. Spock was standing beside Scarlett who sat at the science station. Sulu and Elyse were at the helm and no one was at the communications station.

Once again Q was in an admirals outfit. Kirk looked at Amara who looked alot better than last night. "Well Captain, you certainly gave me a run for your money," Q said. "What do you mean Q, you lost," Kirk said. "Nonsense, you didn't destroy the Romulans and you didn't make it down to the planet," Q said. "Q, the safety of my crew and this ship was far more important than destroying the Romulans or exploring a plkanet," Kirk said. "You want to know more about humans, well there is a first lesson. We only kill when we have to and every one of us matters," Kirk said. "That hasn't always been the case Kirk. I've done a little bit of light reading on your race. 3 world wars? Doesn't sound much like 'every matters' to me," Q said. "We've evolved Q. The human race has 'ascended' as you put it, already. Hunger, war, disease is no more. As a race we are whole and work to better ourselves," Kirk said. "You tried to take my queen and I stopped you," Kirk said. Q wasn't smiling now. "Alright, a draw then. Since there was no clear winner I will grant you one boon," he said. "Bring back Ensign Pierce," Kirk said. "No, I had no part in that. Choose something else," Q said. "Fine, return Amara to where you took her from," Kirk said. Q looked disappointed. "C'mon Q," Kirk badgered. "Oh, very well," Q said and snapped his finger. Amara was gone before they could say goodbye. Kirk had raised his hand but lowered it when she was no longer there.

"Now, get off my ship!" Kirk said. "Very well, But I do so because it suits me," He said peevishly then was gone.

---------------

The entire crew was lined up on either side of a Photon Torpedo track. The starfleet flag was draped over a black Torpedo casing. Kirk was near the wall with the bridge officers nearby.

"We come to say farewell to our honored dead, Ensign Natalie Pierce. She died in the line of duty. She was a good officer and always managed to put a smile on our faces. She was our friend and we bid her farewell," he said then nodded. Scotty played the bagpipes as the tube moved into position. It was fired into space and everyone filed out.