Star Trek II: Distress Call Read online

  The first face he saw was that of Lieutenant Commander Pavel Chekov!

  “Chekov! What are you doing here?” McCoy demanded angrily.

  Chekov grinned sheepishly. “Sorry, sir. We fell through some kind of trap, or maybe the stone had just rotted away. We were lost and…” He grunted as he climbed to his feet. Around him others were getting up and dusting themselves off.

  “We couldn’t go back, so we kept going,” Chekov said. “We climbed and then…again, the floor just collapsed. And here we are, Doctor.”

  “Are you hurt? Any of you hurt?” McCoy went quickly from person to person. He set a broken arm and shielded it with inflated tubes of plastic, holding the arm rigidly. He injected two others against infection from cuts, then got all the team members to their feet.

  “I don’t like this place,” McCoy grumbled. “Let’s find Jim and the scientists and get out of here.”

  In a few moments they came out on a ledge surrounding a vast pitlike room. Far below they heard voices—human voices. Chekov heard his name mentioned, and realized it was Captain Kirk.

  To rejoin Captain Kirk, proceed to page 107.

  Page 68

  From page 51.

  Kirk stopped in amazement as he passed one of the open arches. Inside this treasure room were piles of translucent globes, from the size of baseballs to some larger than a man could encircle. Within each globe were dimly visible collections of mysterious objects.

  One globe held what appeared to be golden disks. Another had a hundred or so glowing fuzzballs of amber light. Two had dull gray bars of metal. Several were filled with liquid, dull green in color; when one of the security men came close, the liquid warmed up in color, into the blues, then orange, then a sparkling red causing the crewman to jump back, leveling his phaser.

  “Hold it!” Kirk snapped. “No shooting! We don’t know what we might be releasing!”

  Reluctantly, the security man lowered his armed phaser, eyeing the globes suspiciously.

  “Keep moving!” Kirk ordered.

  Moments later, they found the pit of protoplastic gel.

  Proceed to page 99.

  Page 69

  From page 51.

  Kirk hurried his team past the storage rooms, with their mysterious stores of odd items, and on toward the faint echoes of sound ahead.

  There was one prime loyalty in Jim Kirk’s heart: the Enterprise and her crew. That had always been and always would be Kirk’s first priority. That one of his officers and several of his crew were in danger—possibly even dead—filled him with anxiety and set his senses on their keenest awareness.

  The echoes ahead grew louder. There was someone—or some thing—there.

  Proceed to page 66.

  Page 70

  From page 52.

  “Hold it!” Kirk yelled as others of the team ran forward. He didn’t want any of them captured by whatever it was in the pit.

  They could see the red jacket of the struggling security man moving sluggishly within, and the thin red beams of his phaser firing stunning blasts.

  Then, just as suddenly as it had begun, it ended. The gelatin substance flowed away, piling up around the edges of the tank, slopping over onto the floor, leaving the gasping and wild-eyed security man floundering in the center of a hole, surrounded by quivering walls of gel.

  “Come to the side!” Kirk ordered.

  “But, sir!”

  “It’ll move out of your way!” the Admiral insisted, and it did. Sluggishly it parted before the amazed crewman, letting him through to the side, where two of the Enterprise team lifted him out.

  The security man looked down at himself blinking. When Kirk asked him if he was all right, the man said, “Sir, I, I don’t believe this, but…I had a scar here, on my hand. Now it’s gone!”

  Proceed to page 85.

  Page 71

  From page 53.

  A monster filled the passageway, scaled and steaming, all teeth and claws, its many eyes gleaming in their lights. Instinctively one of the security men fired, but the “stun” beam had no effect. The creature took a step toward them, its claws scraping on the stone, its massive jaw swinging open, giving them far too much of a look at rows of teeth and a maw of pulsating red meat.

  The security man thumbed his weapon to “kill” and fired again, then again; another one of the red-jacketed men fired as well. The great beast only quivered and advanced on them, jaws dripping, eyes bulging, long, sharp tail whipping back and forth.

  Spock ordered the men to stop firing in a sharp command, then stepped before them. “Mister Spock!” Nakashima cried out and grabbed at his arm. But Spock shook him off and advanced slowly, his phaser in its holster and his hands out in the ancient Vulcan gesture of friendship.

  “He’s mad!” exclaimed Nakashima, gasping, then his mind clicked over into a new line of possibilities. The Vulcan never did anything without a reason, he knew. Nakashima prepared to back up the actions of his commander.

  But it made him very nervous.

  Go to page 116.

  Page 72

  From page 55.

  “We are Federation personnel,” Spock called out.

  “We don’t know that! The Guardian is very clever,” Tripp yelled. “At first it seemed to be human, like us. That’s when we lost Alicia. Then it came to us like a beautiful woman and we lost Abdullah. Then it—” The voice choked. “It came as my wife…my dead wife.”

  “How can we prove we’re not the Guardian?” Spock said.

  “You can’t!” Tripp growled, firing again, exploding a section of wall. The security men hunched under the shower of broken stone and looked at Spock.

  “I’m coming to you,” Spock said.

  “I’ll shoot!” screamed Tripp.

  “No, I don’t believe so,” Spock said.

  “Mister Spock!” Nakashima said, reaching for him.

  But Spock was standing in the center of the corridor. Then he began to walk slowly into the darkness.

  Proceed to page 86.

  Page 73

  From page 35.

  The first thing they found was a sleeve, ripped from a uniform, and bloody. Grimly, Kirk’s team moved ahead. Their lights shone on a pyramid of dull cubes. Farther on, another stack of cubes, but these had been topped and one of the cubes broken into. Inside, they saw, was a tangle of soft white tubular shapes.

  Near the wall of the cavernlike room they found a raised platform and, on it, a dull gray sphere. When Ensign Larek stepped onto the platform, a light began to glow within the sphere, which was larger than a human couple could embrace. Larek leapt back, but the glow continued to grow, pulsating and brightening redly.

  …urr…ahh…

  The sounds were in their heads all at once, like distant groans. The humans stepped back, but the sounds continued. It made their heads throb slightly, but there was no escaping it.

  …ooo…you…murr…you…arr…you…are…strang…gerrs…

  “Yes,” Kirk said quickly, his eyes squinting against the pain in his temples. “We are from the United Federation of Planets. We received a distress call from others of our race. We mean no harm, we will not interfere. We did not know there was intelligent life here.”

  …I…am…not…life…I…am…Guardian…

  Turn to page 74.

  Page 74

  From page 73.

  “A robot?” Kirk asked. “We wish only to remove the other humans. We will not interfere.”

  …I…am…Guardian…humans…here…violate…

  “We had no intention of intruding. The archaeologists were here on a valid scientific mission, but we will take them away and—”

  …my…masters…dead…

  “Yes, we’re sorry about that, but—”

  …humans…stay…

  “I’m sorry,” Kirk said. “I can’t permit that. We must take them away with us. We will leave you alone.”

  …no…

  Kirk paused and glanced at Ensign Larek. “No, we
cannot take them away, or no, you do not want to be left alone?”

  …not…alone…

  Kirk smiled in sympathy. “You’re lonely!”

  …lonely…

  “If we can see my men, Mister Chekov and the others, then perhaps we can discuss with the archaeologists about staying—unharmed, of course.”

  …yes…

  “Where are they?” Kirk said.

  “Here, Keptin,” Chekov said. The lights of Kirk’s team swung to cover a distant wall, where could be dimly seen a long line of human figures. Kirk recognized Chekov and his team, just coming out of a daze. The others were strangers.

  Proceed to page 87.

  Page 75

  From page 37.

  Ahead, the dark stone passage opened into a large, well-lit room filled with gleaming machinery. The contrast, after the medieval atmosphere of the ancient stones, was considerable.

  Larek waved Admiral Kirk ahead, but with a cautionary gesture as well. Kirk looked around her and saw the huge room filled with the smoothly functioning machinery.

  Quietly, they all advanced, phasers ready. They paused in the shadows and looked into the big room. It was several hundred feet long, the walls of the same ancient stone, but the center was all gleaming, ultra-modern machinery.

  Whispering into his communicator, Kirk ordered Commander Scott to beam down, and in a few moments he was there. “What do you make of it?” Kirk asked.

  The Scot frowned as he traced the maze of tubes, tanks, pumps, storage bins, and other sleek machine shapes. It was quiet, considering its size, with only a soft hum and rhythmic soft thumps and gurgles. There were no human or nonhuman supervisors in sight, and whatever it was making or doing was not discerned.

  “It’s some kind of factory, sir,” Commander Scott said. “And I can tell you one thing: it’s Klingon!”

  For trouble with Klingons, go to page 89.

  For more trouble with Klingons, go to page 90.

  Page 76

  From page 59.

  Suddenly, Chekov startled himself by laughing. His voice ran out across the great square, and Narva Moktar glanced at her superior officer as if he were insane.

  “Fantasy!” Chekov said, choking with laughter. “It’s not real!”

  Even as they watched, the tanks and soldiers faded, the walls of the Kremlin became the dull stone walls of a large room. The colorful domes of St. Basil’s faded, too, leaving only nine grumpy-looking scientists staring ruefully at Chekov.

  “You’re no fun,” one of them said.

  “I told you we should have been using some really scary illusions,” another said.

  One of the men sighed loudly. “I’m Galen Tripp, whoever you are.” He waved at a golden cone with a number of dots and squiggles on it. “We found this Vardan illusion machine, and I’m afraid we just…stopped being serious.”

  “We played,” giggled a gray-haired woman.

  “Almost got you, though,” another man smiled.

  “Maybe next time,” Galen sighed.

  Chekov pulled out his communicator. “Enterprise, this is Chekov. Mission accomplished.”

  “We should have tried Tolkien,” one scientist said. “Or Attila the Hun.” He smiled in fond memory. “Or Disney.”

  END

  Page 77

  From page 58.

  “You didn’t play the game,” one of the men said, pouting. His caricature of a face had softened and changed into a rather homely but ordinary face. The queen became a he who needed a shave.

  “We found an illusion generator,” the former Queen Galena said. “It has really been fun.”

  Chekov sighed. “I’m certain it has.” He flipped open his communicator to contact the Enterprise.

  “I told you we should have tried A Thousand and One Nights on them,” one of the scientists grumbled. “They wouldn’t have caught on so quickly.”

  END

  Page 78

  From page 62.

  “Bridge, this is Lieutenant Commander Chekov. Security Clearance Alpha Gamma Ten Slash Omicron Beta Six.”

  “Proceed, Mister Chekov,” Captain Kirk said briskly.

  Chekov gave the Klingons a sick smile, his hand trembling. The turbolift hummed softly, and he kept an eye on the indicator. Just before the lift stopped, he groaned and bent over, his face stricken. “I…I…” Then he fell down to his knees and slumped toward the wall, unconscious.

  “Humans,” sneered the Klingon.

  The doors hissed open and phaser beams slashed into the elevator, crumpling the two Klingons.

  “Are you all right, Mister Chekov?” Admiral Kirk asked.

  Chekov rose with a smile. “Yes, Keptin. I’m glad you understood the signal.”

  Kirk smiled. “I’ve dealt with Klingons before, Mister Chekov. Now, the scientists.” He pressed a stud on his command module as crewmen removed the unconscious Klingons. “Sick bay.”

  Dr. McCoy reported. “Some kind of defense mechanism still exists down there, Jim. It zapped everyone who entered. There’s even a Thrix here.

  Continue on next page.

  Page 79

  From page 78.

  He’s a historical treasure house all by himself! The Thrix have been extinct for three hundred years!”

  “Excellent, Bones. Kirk out.” He turned to Chekov, smiling. “Good job, Mister Chekov. Return to your duties.”

  Chekov smiled and entered the turbolift. He wondered if the medic, Narva Moktar, had plans for dinner.

  END

  Page 80

  From page 63.

  The stone corridor seemed endless. Dark, dank, and mysterious, it went on forever, twisting and turning, slanting down, going up. Then they heard a slithering, and they all took a tighter grip on their phasers.

  They found the Guardian—or it found them—as they rounded a turning. It filled the corridor floor to ceiling and side to side, a thick, sluggish wall of wet grayness. But even as they watched, it began to change shape and color.

  One of the security men gasped as a human being seemed to step through the grayness. It seemed to gain color in moments, first in the flesh of the “face,” then in the details of the clothing it wore. A United Federation of Planets Starfleet uniform was “colored in” as they watched, an exact replica of the ones they wore, complete with admiral’s stripes and the face of James Tiberius Kirk.

  Kirk—the real Kirk—noticed that a thin string of gray still reached from the duplicate’s back to the hall-filling mass behind it. “Who are you?” Kirk asked.

  “I…am…the…Pro…tect…tor.”

  “I understand,” Kirk said slowly. “We did not mean to intrude, but only to rescue those whom you have, um, put in stasis.”

  Continue to next page.

  Page 81

  From page 80.

  “They…were…in…vaders.” Kirk found it eerie to talk to a blank-faced replica of himself. “You…may…re…move…them.”

  “We have,” Kirk said. “May I ask what you are protecting?”

  “I…pro…tect…my…mas…ters.”

  “The people you imprison were seekers of knowledge. They meant no harm.”

  “Yes.”

  Kirk didn’t know what to say next. “Do you have any knowledge your masters did not specifically tell you to protect?” he asked.

  “No…I…pro…tect…all.”

  Kirk nodded. “We did not wish to interfere. We will go now, if you’ll permit us.” Kirk pulled out his communicator and spoke softly into it. “Scotty, prepare to beam us up.”

  “Aye, sir.”

  “Is there anything you need? Anything we can do for you?”

  “…No…”

  Kirk nodded. “We’ll leave you to your job, then. Scotty, we’re ready.”

  Kirk watched his duplicated self step back, and he trembled as he saw the figure being absorbed into the mass. “Yes,” he murmured, “stand guard.”

  Go to page 91.

  Page 82

  From page 6
3.

  Lieutenant Commander Hikaru Sulu flashed his light along the dark stone corridor. It seemed innocent enough, he thought, but he had been in space long enough not to rely on appearances alone.

  Something, after all, had put members of a wide range of races into stasis. Neither Romulans nor Klingons were pushovers, so he had better be very, very careful.

  When that “something” came at them, it was from an entirely surprising direction. With startling speed a green mass of dull green goo flowed out of the side passages, welled up behind them, and flooded down the passageway ahead of them.

  Surrounded, the Enterprise crew members beamed blast after blast into the tidal wave of gooey protoplasm that engulfed them. Their phasers seemed to make no difference. As fast as the beams of raw energy disintegrated great gobs of the green stuff, it replaced itself, and came on, silently.

  The green tide flowed up and over Sulu and his men. They went down firing and yelling, but in moments there was no one left, only the sluggishly flowing river of green goo.

  Continue to page 92.

  Page 83

  From page 66.

  “Find out about the disease, Spock!” Kirk ordered. “The rest of you, stay back.”