2278

Part 1 - Vulcania

He awoke with a start. He wasn't sweating. Vulcans didn't sweat unnecessarily. He did not let out a sound, for the same reason. But he did wake with a start. His wife woke with him, knowing without asking that something disturbed him. She knew every aspect of him.

"What happened on Earth, darling?"

'Darling' was a gauge of his troubles. Depending on how he corrected her use of such a word, she would know exactly where his mind was. For the first time in their long marriage, he didn't even comment on it. By human standards, he would be close to sobbing now. Of course, he was not human. He spoke to his wife of things he had never spoken on. Even the bond would not have shown her these things. That had been how he had wanted it--til now.

"Wife, I was not born on Vulcan, though I am a Vulcan, bred to peace. My parents, S'Chon and T'Lara, were expecting me when they and a group of others settled a world so far off that all then-current short burst techniques were used merely to reach it. Even with today's advanced warp drives, it is still quite distant. It was founded to avoid what the settlers saw as the Terran rewriting of Vulcan culture, beyond IDIC's precepts."

Amanda nodded.

"I didn't know you were born there, but everyone's heard of the Lost Colony at Vulcania. In fact, wasn't the USS Constitution also lost while trying to discern its exact fate?"

Sarek was glad his wife knew much of this, already. It would make what followed easier.

"The Enterprise's first Captain, Robert April, was in Command after Captain Pike took over the 1st ship. But April had the Constitution, and its 1st Officer, George Samuel Kirk, Sr. All hands lost, mere scraps of wreckage found. Another "Vulcanian Expedition" later, and still no reason for all that occurred."

"Sarek, how long did you live on Vulcania? I knew your parents died on an exploration mission, and that you were raised by T'Pau. But this is the first I've heard..."

"Amanda, please. My self-control is currently not at its apex. This subject is not pleasant for me, but you are owed an explanation."

Sarek took Amanda's silence as a cue.

"As I was born, the skies over Vulcania grew violent. Wave Lightning struck the ground, three beams at a time, wiping away all they touched. My parents then locked me into a pod with warp drive, meant for messages of a personal nature. As the world they intended to raise me on fell, I was found many light-years distant and taken to Vulcan. I knew very little of this until I went to Earth to investigate the death of James Kirk's mother and the kidnapping of his nephew, who now sleeps fitfully in the room that was once our son's. In treating the boy, a healer found my parents' final gift to me, unnoticed in all the confusion over Vulcania. T'Pau did not see it before, because no one would suspect such a thing would ever be done to an infant."

Amanda looked down, then at her beloved husband.

"Oh, Sarek! You mean to say that you've been carrying their katras for over a Century?"

"T'Pau finally removed them, at Seleya. But they also sent a grim warning. The force behind Vulcania's destruction will one day soon return. Their message was brief, but unsettling. It speaks volumes about the parties who kidnapped Peter Kirk, and why they needed him for their irrational purposes."

 Amanda briefly looked in on their young visitor. He suffered from 10 years of cryo-sleep, and from odd psi-enhancing drugs his kidnappers had given him. Barely 13 by one counting, he was almost 24 chronologically. Sarek could feel her unrestrained rage toward anyone who would cheat a boy out of his life, and abuse him so. He did not ask her to restrain her emotions. Even T'Pau had said something unlike her, when told of Peter's treatment, especially when she heard that the kidnappers led Captain Kirk to believe his nephew was dead. On Vulcan, family-sundering was still considered a hideous crime.

"Have you told Jim? Or Spock?"

"Amanda, I shall. But young Peter must be prepared, first. A great task awaits him."

"Sarek, what task? Tell that boy's uncle he's alive! End Of Story! What could possibly be more important?"

The Ambassador renewed his self-control, for he would now need it.

"Wife, do you recall the writings of Surak's Final Vision, before he was lost to the living?"

"Sarek, I....all right! Surak had a dark and disturbing vision in which he foresaw a dire situation where his lessons would have no value, but he couldn't see things very clearly. What did he say again?"

"IDIC falls away. Logic falls away. Three Heads Do I Remember, the Heads of The Ancient Destroyer. That, Amanda, was my parents' warning. He is returning, and may already be in the Alpha Quadrant. It is certain that this was the cause of both Vulcania's destruction and that of the Constitution."

Amanda sat down. She would want to hear about the so-called 'Section 31' and why they had kidnapped Peter Kirk, the only native survivor of Deneba not to die within a year of the madness. But for now, the reminder of Surak's Yeats-like vision had her uttering just one word.

"Ghidorah."

Grimly, Sarek nodded.

"Ghidorah."

A scream from the fitfully sleeping Peter rang out, making Amanda grateful for their isolation and sound dampeners.

"GHIDORAH!"

Somewhere on the edges of the known galaxy, a three-headed, two-tailed dragon the size of eight Constitution-class Starships moved through the void. The Enemy of Life was coming back.

Kudos to Randy Landers, whose view of Section 31 I lifted and do
acknowledge here, along with the characters, owned by Paramount and Toho
Pictures.

 Part 2 - Ever wonder about the Admiralty?...

One couldn't live on Vulcan without developing some psi-sensitivity. You simply developed it unknowingly, just through the process of keeping your thoughts and emotions back in a culture of disciplined telepaths. It would happen, eventually, to any off-worlder who dwelled there long enough. Certainly Amanda Grayson was one of those. It was a low-grade psi, but it was there nevertheless.

So it was that she felt the pain of the abused child who quietly ate his meal and returned to his bed three times a day. Someone had destroyed Peter Kirk, and it seemed they had fun doing it. At least Spock's tormentors had not known any better, she thought. She sought answers, now. Answers that Sarek had kept back for a month. She used her most formal manner of speech to indicate redundantly the graveness of her feelings.

"Husband, I would speak with thee."

Sarek, had, of course, known she was coming. How could he not?

"Amanda, my beautiful wife. I, too, would speak with thee. On a great many things."

Amanda's eyes grew wide. Sarek took on a look that she knew to be a very gentle smile.

"We are past siring and bearing, wife. Are we past the effort?"

It was not only an Un-Vulcan thing to say, it was Un-Sarek. Un-Vulcan Sarek might be, but never Un-Sarek. Concern and an all-too human passion had her in his company for the next 3 hours. Then, she spoke.

"Sarek, what's wrong? In all our years, I've never seen you this..."

"Emotional?"

"I'm sorry, husband, but yes. I love all this, but now I have concerns. A dear young boy sleeps and screams out in our son's room. Worse, I find out that its all somehow connected to a Monster that isn't supposed to exist outside of nursery rhymes!"

Shockingly, Sarek sang.

"Ready Now for Gh'draeh! Ready Now For King Death! Unlife! Unlife! The Three Heads--STRIKE!"

"Sarek, please! Don't fall away! I need you to be you!"

Sarek saw that his wife was truly upset. He hoped what he next said would comfort her. He rather doubted it would.

"My emotional control should return within two weeks. Its absence is a short-term side-effect of the removal, after better than a century, of my parents' katras. But there are also long-term effects. No one has ever carried a katra for that long, let alone two, and certainly not since infancy. The pod's memory had been damaged during the creature's attack. To relay their message, S'Chon and T'Lara had no means to convey their warning-except through me. That this was necessary makes what the healer told me almost bearable, even in light of my shattered self-control. Amanda, I am dying. I have twenty years at most, to live. During the last 10, my emotions will claim me outright."

Amanda tried doubly hard to keep her self-control, actually finding humor in the thought of the Stoic Human Wife keeping her emotional Vulcan hubby in line. But there was no humor in the thought that Sarek was dying. Like the caramel-cheese popcorn she was so fond of, the bitter mixed willy-nilly with the sweet. She found her center, and yet she felt lost.

"All this because of Ghidorah! He killed your parents, Jim's father, and who knows how many others? We'll warn the Federation! Starfleet will want to..."

Sarek interrupted his wife's brave front with grim words.

"Amanda, it was StarFleet's Admiralty that kidnapped Peter Kirk. They, through the secretive Section 31, wish Ghidorah to enter our region of the galaxy. For reasons I have yet to discern, I might add."

Amanda sat in stunned silence. How deep could this thing go?

The next day with his wife as anchor, Sarek mind-melded with Peter Kirk. This was a risky undertaking. While he had suffered no brain damage, the boy was in agony. The healer told Sarek that the chemicals used on Peter to bring out latent psionics had no apparent purpose, since his thoughts were directed so far outward, there would be no one to contact. But Sarek and Section 31 knew otherwise.

Section 31 was a descendant organization of the infamous human traitors who sought to gain power on Earth late in its 20th Century, through a deal made with alien-human hybrids of still-unknown origin. This vast, worldwide conspiracy had been brought low by two lone agents of justice, but remnants had survived. When the Federation formed, its infamous 31st Section formed with it, to carry out secret, illegal policies. But what purpose their actions of 11 years prior served was anyone's guess--til now. Peter's mind now told all.

He walked through his grandmother's home, looking for her, hoping to find out whether his tests came back okay. Of all the survivors of Deneb 3, only he and Spock were still alive. On the floor, he bumped into something, and fell over. The last sight Peter saw before being sedated was Brianna Kirk's body being set up to look like death might have been an accident. In his mind, he again saw the monster, who had now claimed his parents, younger brother, and both grandparents. For these agents of Section 31 served the Admiralty of Starfleet. And with a few exceptions, the Admiralty of Starfleet served the Order Of The Ancient Destroyer. People had often joked that all Admirals were insane. But not all of them belonged to the Order, and not all of them were insane. You didn't have to be crazy to worship King Ghidorah. But, as the saying went, it didn't hurt.

Through cryo-glass, Peter saw Cartwright's baleful face. The Admiral was not pleased.

"WHY is he resisting? How are we supposed to bring HIM in to purify the galaxy, if this little moron wants to play hero like his uncle? Whatever you're doing, TRIPLE it!"

Year after year, it continued. In a hideous state of consciousness, never truly permitted to rest, the boy saw a succession of every Admiral except for Nogura and one obvious other. They all wanted results, before now. Sarek saw the scenes degenerate. Pagan rituals held in secret, calling upon Ghidorah by every name he had. In the middle of it all, was Peter Kirk's cryo-chamber, like a coffin containing the living. One very sadistic  Admiral, a woman known for public propriety, would delight in disrobing in front of the 13-year old. Whenever he would become aroused, the metabolic regulators would kick in, to keep their prize from being damaged, and then she would repeat it, for the regulators were not gentle in their efforts at behavior modification. She knew, though, that a 13-year old Terran male simply cannot be broken of certain habits, certain desires. Then, one day it stopped.

In his expanded state of hellish semi-consciousness, Peter noticed that the Admiral was laying on top of the glass a good deal longer than usual. By this time, he was honestly so used to her features, he felt only the slightest arousal, that a perfunctory one. He was still 13, body-wise, after all. As she continued her sick show, Peter had only one thought.

"And they say Uncle Jim is self-impressed? Lady, you are just NOT that good-looking!"

Then, she slid off, and Peter realized she was unconscious. He also realized that he could think. Another, a Vulcan girl, took her place. Her he found attractive, despite a form-concealing poncho. He felt himself being beamed out, and awoke in the Vulcan Embassy. He learned the girl's name was Saavik, and that in concert with Ambassador Sarek, she had snuck into the inviolate Admiralty Hall to rescue him. His healing began, but it would be long in coming to fruition.

Sarek pulled away, knowing now what he needed to. Through the meld, Peter now knew that Sarek had heard his cries in dreams, and found him by means of finding out who denied what, and when. Saavik's entry had been quick and brutal, a legacy of her outcast half-Romulan upbringing. That someone heard him crying made it easier to deal with, somehow. For the first time in years, he spoke coherently.

"Thank You, Ambassador. But why did those lunatics want me? How can anyone worship Ghidorah?"

"Peter, The Order Of The Ancient Destroyer has acolytes scattered throughout known history, and known space. They are amoral fanatics, and they will do anything to hasten his coming--including using a boy tainted with Ghidorah's touch---as a transmitter, with which to call their god to them."

This was no surprise to Peter. He had known in his heart that the one-celled monstrosities that savaged Deneba had their origins in Ghidorah. He allowed himself no guilt over what had been done to him, how he had been used. His mind was now clear, even of vengeance. What he and Sarek next said together was born of nearly pure logic.

"Above all else, King Ghidorah must be destroyed!"

Amanda asked a question, then.

"If I may, let me concur with you two on that, but just add this : HOW?!"

The silence that reigned was telling. Historical legend was riddled with stories of super-weapons that were jokes to The Ancient Destroyer. Here, something more was needed. For Ghidorah's coming was now inevitable. But for the first time, Peter Kirk knew real hope. Six hours later, Captain James T. Kirk received joyous news. But, at Sarek's request, Peter claimed not to know  who had held him all these years, or why. To defeat such highly-placed Terra-Centric conspirators would mean operating in secret. Slowly but surely, though, Peter's life began to resume, albeit with still-fitful sleep, punctuated in screams by a familiar name.

In Federation space for the first time in a century, the Creature felt its transmitter halt. Lacking direction, it headed inexorably for the Ceti Alpha system. The events were in motion. Life itself awaited the gas chamber. For who could hope to stop King Death?
 Part 3 - The Book Of Ghidorah

Vulcan, 2280

Peter Kirk had finished the extensive report that Ambassador Sarek had asked for. It was a grim report, about a grim subject. An unspeakably powerful force of pure evil was rapidly approaching the known galaxy. Worse, it had allies - actually worshippers -  within Starfleet Command itself. Both the Vulcan Ambassador and the nephew of StarFleet's greatest Captain had been touched by this evil as children. It gave them a hideous bond. The highly-placed nature of their foes forced them to operate in secret.

When xenophobic Admirals within StarFleet had kidnapped Peter, it was through Sarek's receptive dreams he had been rescued. But not before the maniacs had used Peter as a transmitter, to call this evil to them. Like many an acolyte of evil before them, they had been promised power. Like many others---they would be disappointed. Peter began his report.

"Using the frequency that they sent through me, and that Saavik wisely recorded before my rescue, I have some hard facts, Ambassador."

It was an odd alliance. One, the shattered boy, only known relative to a legend. The other, himself a legend, and father to another legend. The way Peter turned his grief toward logical analysis gained Sarek's quick respect. The way Sarek simply dealt with his terminal illness had Peter's admiration. Together, they would find a way to best the Ancient Destroyer, King Ghidorah.

"Firstly, Sarek on StarDate 3287.2 ,The Enterprise found Deneba 3 overrun by one-celled parasites, said to be cells from a much larger macrobiotic being. It is my belief that these cells achieve a much larger size upon leaving their host. But they are not cast-offs, or dead skin."

Sarek nodded.

"A spore. To show his coming, Ghidorah is marking his territory as many lower animals do. Bio-Frequency Match, Peter?"

"98.5318 percent, Sarek. Also, the frequency matches the pain spasm patterns exhibited by Denebans one year after the attacks. I and Spock are the only survivors of Deneba's plague. Those seeking Ghidorah's coming kidnapped me because they could not hope to get your son, Ambassador. Now, later, on, specifically StarDate 4307.1, The Enterprise encountered a virus of Brobdignanian proportions, also giving off this same frequency...."

Redjac. Gorgan. The Zetarians, who faced "one final disaster. Sargon's people, who faced an "Ultimate Challenge" that they failed. The vampire-cloud of Tycho IV, never seen again in cosmic nature. One by one, Peter's report found a common link between them all.

The frequency, undeniably artificial, recurred again and again, and not merely in the Enterprise's travels. Sarek studied Peter's work, looking for errors in logic or wishful thinking. Once again, the boy's properly channeled rage served him well. There were no errors. In so many unusual circumstances, diverse beings were possessed of this vibrational frequency. Some were victims of disaster. Some were incorporeal Masters Of Disaster. Some appeared to be mere by-products. But in this frequency, all possessed the mark of Ghidorah. The Alpha Quadrant was under assault and had been for some time. But these assaults had been but precursors to a three-headed blitzkrieg.

"It is good work, Peter. Do you have anything else you wish to show me?"

"Yes, Sarek. There are at least two instances of something possessing the opposite frequency to The Mark. One is the so-called 'Galactic Barrier'. I believe it may have been created to keep this monster out of our galaxy. I must believe it has failed."

"Grim, but logical. What of the other instance?"

"See for yourself."

Sarek did just that.

"Then all the legends are true. It is said that The Ancient Destroyer's Bane is the Maw Of Hell. Still..."

Sarek let the thought go.

"Any other conclusions, Peter? We must know as much as possible, or his followers will have us."

Peter tried to hide his frown. Sarek's emotional control was slipping already, from the katra-based overloading of his mental control systems. But if S'Chon and T'Lara hadn't done what they did to deliver their warning, things would be even worse - assuming that such a thing was possible.

"Just one, Sarek. I believe the creature entered our Galaxy, circa Old Earth Date 2000, somewhere in the Delta Quadrant. The path of its spore at least gives me that speculation."

"Then, my young friend, that is where The Line of Blood begins. I must logically wonder who fell first. What sort of resistance did they put up? Was it effective---or futile?"

Peter, now leaving Vulcan for StarFleet Academy, did not know the answer to that. He was travelling back to the belly of the beast, there to goad his own personal bullies into being caught in the act. Especially after Peter smashed a certain graven image the Admirals kept. If they wanted war, we'll give it to them, he thought. But still, he thought of what must've been the start, when Ghidorah entered our galaxy. Where Did The Line Of Blood begin?

Circa 2000- The Delta Quadrant

"Borg-Hive X934677839. Report."

"We are the collective. Our knowledge serves the collective."

"Species Codex?"

"Species is The Unassimilated. It is Species Zero. Course of......"

The Borg Cubes shattered like toys, as the monster showed it true abilities.

Species Zero--Ghidorah-- was in the galaxy. Let Life beware.

 To Be Resumed....