Spirk - Yours

Chapter 8

The hours passed slowly for the 3 trapped men. They were alone in the dungeon with no one to talk to but themselves. The guards were silent and no noise could be heard from the ends of the tunnel. An eerie stillness filled the air, pressing in on itself to create a seemingly impenetrable wall of silence. They all had too many thoughts in their brains to sleep, so Kirk, Spock, and McCoy simply laid there quietly on the hard, stone floor.

After their mind meld, Kirk and Spock remained separate, keeping a few feet between them as they sat against the dungeon wall. They didn't feel the need to show McCoy any more than they already had, and Spock needed time to recover.

Finally—after what seemed like ages—the cell door suddenly rattled. The 3 men looked up in surprise. There, out of nowhere, the mysterious Asmodeus himself had appeared. The door swung open and he slid gracefully inside. He was followed by several of his shadowy guards. Like before, they seemed to appear out of thin air—and all were armed.

"Greetings, Captain Kirk. I'm glad you've had a chance to rejuvenate. This unforgiving rock doesn't offer much in terms of comfort, but unfortunately, it was the best we could do. I am sure you understand the benefits of a 'change in scenery,' as you would call it. Now is the moment we have been waiting for; my people and I are ready to depart." Despite having a face entirely covered in shadow, it was surprisingly easy to discern the calculating, satisfied grin stretched across Asmodeus' features.

Kirk, Spock, and McCoy looked up at the tall figure looming over them. Somehow, even though the inside of their cell was fairly well-lit, Asmodeus managed to keep almost his entire body hidden in darkness. Already filled with contempt for this creature, Kirk wasted no time getting straight to business.

"Go to the devil," he said, keeping his tone neutral.

"Why, Captain, haven't you enjoyed your stay here? I've done my best to make you feel... appreciated." The iciness of his voice seemed to chill the air, and it took all of his willpower to resist the urge to shiver.

"Oh, I'm sure you're just itching to find a way to escape, to warn your precious ship and crew. Well, Captain, since I've already been your gracious host this evening, I think it's only fair that you return the favor." Asmodeus once again detached his arm from his body, holding a communicator out to Kirk for the second time. "Your communications device," he announced.

Hesitantly, Kirk reached out his own hand and took the communicator. He was suspicious, of course, but he had already seen what this creature had done to Spock. He wasn't too keen to discover what would happen if he tested its patience any further.

"Now, signal your ship and tell them to beam me aboard as her new captain," he continued.
"Don't plan any tricks, Kirk." Asmodeus' voice hardened. "Any sign of treachery and I promise you will regret it."

Kirk looked up at Asmodeus with a determined set to his face. "I'll beam you aboard the Enterprise. Once there, no tricks," Kirk promised in a calm, steady tone.

"Jim, you can't hand over the Enterprise," McCoy protested.

"Order everybody in this area to be transported up. All weapons on him," Asmodeus demanded coolly.

Kirk stood silently for a long moment. Finally, he flipped open the communicator. "Enterprise, come in Enterprise, this is the Captain."

"Scott here, sir," Scotty's voice replied. "Are you all right, sir? We lost you for a while there."

"Yes, yes, we're fine," he answered in a conversational tone. "Mr. Scott, we have guests. Adjust transporter to wide field. Beam up everyone in the target area," Kirk ordered. As he lowered the communicator to his side, he managed to subtly press one of the buttons on the device's front panel. This would cause a warning light to flash up on the Captain's chair–where Scotty was presumably receiving his message.