Where No One Has Gone Before Pt. 07

"Everything we have on the Darnok is here, Captain," she said. "I've enabled the auto-translate so you should have no problem reading it."

"Thank you," I told her. Mishita stood up from the table, walked away, and returned with a bottle of dark liquid and a small jar.

"And this is a token of what I hope will be a long and prosperous partnership between our peoples, Captain," Mishita said. "I would suggest not drinking very much at one time," she added with a slight smile. She handed the jar to Kyra. "This is a cream made from dew collected from Gingravik leaves. It does wonders for the skin. I think you'll appreciate it."

"Thank you," Kyra said. I echoed her comment.

"I'll escort you back to the shuttle bay, Captain. Unless there is something more we need to discuss," Mishita said.

"There are a lot of things we need to discuss. But they can wait until later," I said. We left her cabin and went back to the shuttle bay. I spotted several of Mishita's crew warily looking at us on the way back.

"Captain, it has been a pleasure meeting you," Mishita said when we reached the shuttle. "The Gingravik have long sought a lasting partnership with Earth, and I truly hope we can make it work."

"As do I, Senior Commander," I said. "It has been a pleasure meeting you as well. I hope we can build a lasting relationship as well. Please, look after my executive officer," I added jokingly. "I'd like to have him back in one piece."

"I most certainly will, Captain," she said as Jim smiled.

"0800, Number One," I said, looking at Jim.

"I'll be there, Captain," he responded as we shook hands. "Thank you." Kyra entered the shuttle, and I followed. We strapped ourselves in and left the Tere.

"Are you certain you're doing the right thing by letting Jim stay?" Kyra asked.

"I think so," I replied. "I hope so." I turned my attention to the pilot. "I hope we didn't keep you waiting too long, Lieutenant."

"No sir, not at all," the pilot said. "Besides, I got quite a show."

"Yes, they are a bit different, aren't they?"

"Yes, sir."

"Just think, Lieutenant. One day, you can tell your children you were the first pilot to land on an alien spacecraft," I said. I pinged Elizabeth on my wrist communicator when we returned to Enterprise.

"Commander Travers," she responded.

"Commander Jones and I have returned, Commander. Commander Decker is still aboard the alien craft. I will relieve you in about three hours. What's our status?"

"All systems green, sir," Elizabeth replied. "Nothing new to report. I'll see you in three hours." We returned to our quarters and got out of our dress uniforms. Standing in my boxers and t-shirt, I looked at Kyra and felt an irresistible urge to take her where she stood. She looked back at me, and I could tell she felt the same.

The next thing I knew, we were both naked, wrapped in each other's arms and legs on the bed. I savored Kyra's soft body like a man who hadn't eaten in days, and I couldn't get enough of her. No words were spoken as we devoured each other - only moans and grunts of sexual desire.

I loved giving her orgasms with my tongue and dove into her with vigor as she took my raging manhood deep down her throat. Soon, we were fucking like newlyweds, her feet tightly locked behind my back as I drove balls-deep into her warm, wet womanhood. I never wanted this to end, but it did, with explosive orgasms that seemed to originate from the very core of our beings.

"Aaaaagggghhhh," Kyra moaned as I erupted inside her. Her fingernails raked my back as her orgasm hit. We finally caught our breath and lay on the bed in each other's arms.

"Where did that come from?" I asked. Kyra laughed at that.

"Maybe it was something we ate," she quipped. "I've got to get the recipe for that meal." I laughed back. "What do you think Jim is doing right now?"

"I suspect he's doing what we just did," I said. We turned and looked deep into each other's eyes. At that moment, Kyra seemed more beautiful than I could ever remember.

"I love you so much, my husband," Kyra whispered as she rubbed her nose against mine.

"And I love you more, my wonderful wife," I told her. We kissed each other deeply, then closed

our eyes and basked in the afterglow of our lovemaking. I woke up an hour later, kissed my wife awake, then got out of bed.

"Do you have to go?" Kyra asked in a pleading voice.

"I promised Commander Travers I'd relieve her, and I have to prepare my report for Admiral Simmons. Personally, I'd rather stay right here with you, but I have work to do."

"All right, I'll let it pass this time," Kyra said as she snuggled under the covers. I went to the head, showered, shaved, then got dressed in my flight suit. Kyra met me at the door, naked when I left. We kissed each other as I ran my hand over her soft skin.

"Hurry back, sweetheart," she said when we broke our kiss.

"I will," I told her before leaving. Elizabeth stood when I entered the bridge. "Status, Number Two?"

"All systems nominal, sir," she said. "Engineering is using this time to do some maintenance."

"Good," I replied.

"Where's Commander Decker?"

"He's.. uh... doing some follow-up work with our new friends," I said.

"Follow-up?"

"Yes," I said, hoping she would drop the subject.

"Uh huh," Elizabeth said, apparently not convinced. "Tell me, sir, what was it like over there?"

"It was... different, Commander. Quite... different."

"Do you think that we could be friends with them?"

"I think it's quite possible, Commander. They're really not THAT much different from us. We seem to have more in common than I originally thought."

"I never thought we would actually come in contact with an alien species," Elizabeth mused.

"When you think about it, Commander, it was inevitable," I told her.

"Yes, sir," she said before taking her station.

"Have you eaten yet?" I asked. We had been on the Tere for quite a while, and I wondered if she had taken a lunch break.

"No sir, I was waiting for you to return."

"Well, your shift is nearly up. Why don't you call in the second shift operator and take off a bit early, grab something to eat?"

"That sounds good, sir. Thank you," she said, reaching for her communicator. I sat in my chair and looked at the tablet Mishita had given me. The screen lit up when I touched the faceplate, and I watched the "desktop" adjust itself to my language. When it finished, I began reading the first of several reports.

From what I could gather, the Darnok lived on a planet orbiting a red dwarf star the Gingravik designated "System T-107." The system itself was in the approximate center of what Star Fleet had designated a no-fly zone. I saw a somewhat grainy image of a Darnok and was instantly horrified.

The creature had a large bulbous head reminiscent of an octopus. Several long tentacles emanated from the head, with many sporting a large phallic appendage at the end. Several smaller tentacles were interspersed with the thicker ones. The creature appeared to be coated with some kind of slimy substance.

From the reports, I gathered that the Darnok first came to the Gingravik's attention a few years back when they lost an entire ship and all hands. Crew members, both human and Gingravik, reported headaches, hallucinations, and uncharacteristic behavior. The report didn't specify the "behavior," but it was apparently enough to cause the ship to crash through the planet's thin atmosphere.

The native Gingravik died before the ship's crash on the rocky surface due to a "rapid and systemwide cellular degeneration" of their brain tissue. I gathered that meant their brains had basically melted. The surviving humans tried to fight the Darnok but were unsuccessful.

From the photos taken by the ship's remaining surveillance cameras and sensors, it appeared that all of the humans were sexually molested and dismembered while still alive and consumed. All that remained were a few bones. I shivered as I read the report and looked at the photos, which had been remotely retrieved by the Tere.

Curious, I fired up my computer and logged into the Fleet's archive, where I found the logs from two ships that had reported the anomalies, the Constitution and the Voyager. According to the records, both ships passed within 1.6 light-years of T-107. Medical logs from both vessels reported severe headaches and migraines from several crew members. There were no reports of hallucinations, however.

Collating my data and thoughts, I wrote my report to Admiral Simmons, attaching the Gingravik report, which, to my utter amazement, had been left entirely open and available for me to copy as I saw fit.

I also referenced logs from the two interstellar vessels that had reported the anomalies, which I now knew were caused by the Tere to keep the area clear of traffic. By the time I finished, the second shift had arrived, and the duty conn officer, Senior Lieutenant Sandra Connors, was patiently waiting for me to vacate my chair.

"The conn is yours, Lieutenant Connors," I said, standing up so she could take her seat.

"Aye aye, sir," she said, taking her seat.

"I'll be in my ready room if you need anything, Lieutenant. It should be a quiet shift. Engineering is doing some maintenance while we're here."

"Yes, sir," she said. A germ of an idea began to form in my mind as I went into my ready room and poured a cup of coffee. As I read the Gingravik report Mishita had given me, something Dad told me about engineers making things scientists dream up a reality kept coming to mind. I tapped my wrist communicator and pinged Jim, hoping he wasn't too occupied with taking my call.

"Decker," Jim said when he answered my call. I could tell he had been... busy. His face was flush, with rivulets of sweat working down his forehead, and his hair was messed up.

"Commander, I hope I haven't interrupted anything important. How is your... diplomatic mission... coming along?"

"We've, uh, made several important breakthroughs, Captain," Jim replied with a knowing smile.

"I'm happy to hear that, Number One. I'd like to speak with the Senior Commander. If she's available, that is," I said. I saw Mishita's face appear on the screen and noticed that her hair was just as disheveled as Jim's. I also observed a whitish blob on her cheek. I cleared my throat as I ran my hand over my cheek, hoping she would catch my clue.

"I... apologize," she said, wiping her cheek with what looked like a tissue of some sort.

"That's alright, Commander," I said.

"What can I do for you, Captain?" she asked.

"I was wondering if you could bring the scientist working on the, uh, protection device, when you return with Jim? I have an idea and I'd appreciate it if you and your scientist could interface with our engineering and medical specialists," I said.

"Are you... sure... about that Captain?" she asked.

"Why does everybody keep asking me that question?" I asked rhetorically. "Of course I'm sure. That's why I mentioned it."

"Of course, Captain," Mishita said, seeing the possibility of a human-Gingravik partnership.

"Good," I said. "Just do me a favor, please. When you arrive, please cover yourself."

"Does our nudity offend you, Captain?" she asked, seemingly hurt.

"Not at all. But it can be a bit of a distraction, since it's not our societal norm. And I need my people to focus on our mutual problem," I told her.

"I... understand, Captain," she said. "You should know the senior scientist working the problem is a native Gingravik. Will that be a problem?"

"No, at least not to me. If it bothers anyone else, I'll have Jim kick their ass. Good enough?" Mishita looked confused, then glanced at Jim, who barely contained his laughter. She finally got the joke and smiled as she nodded her head.

"Um, yes, Captain. That will be good enough," she said.

"Good. Besides, it's about time our people learned who you folks are and start getting them used to the idea that we're not the only intelligent species in the universe."

"I couldn't agree more, Captain," Mishita said.

"Then I'll see you in the morning. Carry on!"

"Aye aye, sir," Jim declared, tossing a sloppy salute. I smiled back and ended the connection. I pinged Marco, who immediately answered.

"Lt. Ruiz," he said, looking into his communicator.

"Lieutenant, I need you to join us for the morning briefing, 0800 tomorrow," I said.

"I'll be there, sir," he said.

"Good. Carry on, Lieutenant." We ended the call, and I read more of the Gingravik report on the Darnok. As I saw it, there were only two ways they could be dealt with, and both were fraught with danger. After a couple of hours, I shut the pad down, then left the ready room. The second shift comm officer stopped me before I left the bridge.

"Sir, Admiral Simmons has scheduled a secure point-to-point conference with you at 0630 tomorrow morning," she said. So, he's seen my report, I thought.

"Very well, Lieutenant. Thank you." The duty conn officer turned around as I spoke. "I'm calling it a day, Lieutenant. I'll be in my quarters if you need anything."

"Yes, sir," Sandra said. I looked around and left the bridge, my mind filled with disturbing images from the Gingravik report. I tried to push them out of my mind, replacing the pictures with thoughts of my lovely naked bride...

Tonight, I would focus all my attention on Kyra. Tomorrow would be the start of a new series of challenges, I thought.

...

To be continued...

Notes: I had originally planned to end this particular mission with this entry, but decided to stretch it through at least one more part. So yes, there will be a part eight...

Parts of this story reference the seventh entry of my "Plant" series. You can find the link to that in my profile.