textfiles/sf/STARTREK/betrayal

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From: petersm@jacobs.CS.ORST.EDU (Marguerite Petersen)
Subject: Betrayal - A Saavik Story
Message-ID: <1992Jul14.061443.5492@leela.cs.orst.edu>
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Date: Tue, 14 Jul 92 06:14:43 GMT
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With the release of ST VI on Video and the recurring discussions
re Saavik vs Valeris, I got to thinking.  This short story is the
result of my musings.  Enjoy!

This story occurs just before the beginning of Star Trek VI.  It
is sort of a prequel to The Undiscovered County.  Part of it
takes place at the beginning of Star Trek IV, The Voyage Home. 
It has no basis in fact.  Just my own ideas of how Star Trek VI
should have been introduced and with the Saavik character back on
the Enterprise.



                             BETRAYAL

CHAPTER I



The Romulan Ambassador, Nanclus, closed the door quietly and
looked carefully about before continuing down the hallway. 
Better that no-one see him coming out of Lt. Saavik's office.  No
one was around.  Good.  He couldn't help smiling to himself.  His
mission was successful!  He had Saavik's extremely grudging
cooperation but he had it!  

Her cooperation was necessary.  They needed someone with skill,
knowledge of the participants and character above reproach for
the plan to proceed to a successful conclusion.  It would work! 
He was certain of that.  There would certainly be commendations
forthcoming for his hand in this.  And best of all there would be
no peace between Klingons and the Federation.  That was to be
avoided at all costs.  Peace would mean a unified front against
Romulan expansion and that was not to be tolerated!  He almost
chuckled, then caught himself and once more assumed the haughty
demeanor of a Romulan Ambassador. 

Saavik sat at her desk.  Her hands steepled in front of her.  She
was in a state of meditation.  Her face was calm but her hands
shook.  What had she done?  How could she do what she must?  If
she revealed what Nanclus had told her, her son would die. 
Nanclus had revealed that he would kill her son if she did not
agree to cooperate.  Nanclus had her son!  

It had taken all her Vulcan learned self-control to not kill him
where he stood.  "Nanclus!  Romulan!"  Leering in his cold-
blooded way as he told her the plans and the part she would have
to play to subvert the Federation's proposed Peace Conference
with the Klingons.  The Peace Treaty that her mentor, Spock, had
arranged.  "Romulan bastard!" she thought.  All her old hatreds
rose up in her and memories she had thought were put to rest now
came back to torment her.  She must cooperate or cause the death
of her son.  What possible choice did she have?

If she did as Nanclus wanted, others would die.  Worst of all,
she would be involved with betraying those she most admired.  She
did distrust Klingons for what they had done to David, but she
hated Romulans!  She had never been able to forget her beginnings
and her own half-Romulan heritage.  Now it was all coming back to
haunt her.  How could she even consider working with them?  

But if she didn't, she would never see Savid alive.  She slammed
her hand on the desk top.  Damm!  How did Nanclus find out about
Savid?  She thought she had kept that secret well.  Working in
the Diplomatic Service had given her the opportunity to learn
many tricks and she thought she had hidden her tracks well.  But
Nanclus had discovered her secret somehow and was now using it
against her.  What could she do?  Perhaps there was a way.  If
she could pretend to go along and somehow accomplish the
conspirators' goals without harm to Spock or Capt. Kirk, then
maybe, maybe things would work out.  She had to protect her son's
life at all costs!  There had to be a way!

Calmer now, she rose and put a call through to Admiral
Cartwright.  She would request transfer to The Enterprise as she
had been instructed to do.  Perhaps he would turn her request
down.  After all, it had been many years since she had served on
a starship.  She might find a way out of this after all.

The appointment made she turned her chair to the window and
looked out, but she wasn't seeing the view from the tower.  She
was instead seeing a different landscape a long time ago.




CHAPTER II


Saavik and Amanda watched silently as the Bird of Prey, renamed
the HMS Bounty lifted off from the desert of Vulcan, stirring
great puffs of sand into the air.  The space ship flew past the
canyons of the mountain range and disappeared from their sight. 
Saavik felt comforted by Amanda's presence and felt Amanda's hand
rest on her shoulder.  

Saavik was having some difficulty maintaining her stoic Vulcan
facade.  Amanda knew too much.  Saavik wished she could have been
allowed to return to Earth with Spock, Admiral Kirk, and the
others.  Together they had survived the machinations of the
Klingon, Kruge and their ordeal on the Genesis Planet.  However,
she had her orders and she was to remain on Vulcan until
reassigned.  

When Spock had come down the steps of Mount Seleya and looked
into her eyes, she had not been able to meet his gaze.  She was
not ashamed of what she had done.  Her only intention had been to
save Spock's life for he had saved hers long ago.  He did not
seem to remember what had taken place on Genesis, but she did. 
However, it would not be correct for her to remind him and his
teachers had not asked her to explain.  She had not seen him
alone since the refusion of his Katra and she would not dare to
intrude.  

She had a deeper secret she wanted to keep from Spock and one
that she would have to find an answer to, soon.  Ever since Spock
had saved her from the non-life of Hellguard she had tried to be
as Vulcan as possible.  She had studied hard and with Spock's
tutelage and support had finally gotten into the Academy and
eventually had the opportunity to serve with him on the
Enterprise.  The old Spock knew her mixed heritage better than
anyone.  It was he who had told her to follow her own path, not
an easy thing to do, and confusing as well.  The reborn Spock
dwelled still in her mind and heart but she had no part in his
life anymore.   

A sigh escaped her and she quickly turned away from the closeness
of Amanda.  She wouldn't let her know the truth.  It wold be
unfitting.  Deep down it hurt to keep this secret from Amanda who
had given her nothing but love and support through the years of
study.  

It seemed that from the very first day that Spock had brought her
to his parents' house, Amanda had welcomed her and accepted her
as part of the family.  The only family she had ever known.  She
couldn't, wouldn't, burden them with her problem.  But what to
do?  Where to go?  She was barely acceptable to many Vulcans
since she was half Romulan and now she felt she would be even
less acceptable.

She could have returned with Captain Kirk and the others but they
had their own destiny to follow and she had her orders.  Besides,
it was very difficult to face Admiral Kirk.  She felt it had been
her responsibility to protect his son David, a civilian, and she
had failed to do that.  Spock had seen her potential years ago
and the least she could do was try to be the Starfleet Officer he
had thought she might be.    

As they walked back towards the temple, she thought back over the
difficult time after Spock's death fighting Kahn.  She had felt
as lost as when on Hellguard.  Spock was gone and she had no-one
else.  She was alone.   His words, "Follow your own path,
Saavikim" kept whirling in her mind.

Then, there was David.  She had been attracted to his father at
first, but there were too many years between them.  And a Vulcan
doesn't commit lightly.  David was lost in his own pain.  He had
discovered a father he never knew he had and one that he was
having difficulty accepting.  He had always disliked the military
type and his father was the epitome of that!  Both young, both
wounded by their individual pain, they had been drawn together to
seek comfort.  And comforting, it was.  Spock had said she should
follow her own path.  Well, she had done just that!  Their
relationship had been new and glorious and had helped to ease her
loss.  But it had been confusing as well.  

When David had the opportunity to return to the Genesis Planet to
conduct a scientific exploration it had seemed perfectly logical
for her to go with him.  After all, he was a scientist and it was
partly his project.  He could use her help and Starfleet agreed. 
Admiral Kirk, Dr. Carol Marcus and the others had returned to
Earth to give their explanations of what had gone wrong.  David
Marcus and she would explore Genesis together!  They could
contine their relationship without his parents around to wonder.

Then the discovery of Spock alive!  And then the quickness of
David's death.  It was no wonder she was disoriented.  She had
behaved as she felt was logical under the circumstances, but
David was still dead.  Killed by Kruge's orders and to save her
life!  She wondered what he would have thought if he had known
the secret she carried.

They finally reached Amanda's aircar. She slid into the passenger
side while Amanda got in the other.  Before touching the controls
Amanda looked her way and with her soft spoken but knowing voice
said.  "What is troubling you, Saavik?  I know you too well to
believe you are missing your friends."  Saavik started to protest
but realized very quickly how foolish that was as Amanda raised
her hand in that fashion that said, "I will accept nothing but
the truth."  Saavik told her of the child she was carrying.  And
about David.




CHAPTER III


It was a long time later.  The house was quiet and night had
fallen on Vulcan.  It was still hot but there was a cool breeze
coming in the open door to the courtyard.  Saavik donned a robe
and went out into the night.  She found Amanda's favorite bench
and sat down.  She could smell the sweet fragrance of the roses
that Amanda so lovingly cultivated.  Everything was quiet and
peaceful yet Saavik did not feel peaceful.  She and Amanda had
talked about her situation for hours and a decision had been
reached.  It was a logical one, even if it was Amanda's idea.

Amanda had a sister on Earth and Saavik would be welcome to stay
with her until she had the child.  It solved that problem.  There
was never any doubt that she would keep the child.  It was all
she would ever have of David.  She realized that she wanted to do
this.  She would take a leave of absence from Starfleet.  It
would not be difficult.  After all her first experience on a
starship had been a rather disastrous one and Starfleet would
certainly understand if she had lingering doubts about her choice
of career.  After the child was born she would have other choices
to make.  She would deal with them later.

She had made Amanda promise never to tell Spock.  Amanda had
argued with her about that for quite a while.  But she had
finally agreed with Saavik.  Spock's knowledge had returned and
he even acknowledged some of his past friendships but he did not
remember Saavik.  No-one knew what had happened on Genesis except
she and David.  Spock had no memory of Genesis and David was
gone.  Saavik felt too much guilt and a sense of having failed
Spock's hopes for her to dare to be near him.  What she didn't
reveal, he would never know.  It was not what she wanted but she
could not face Spock.  Her sense of failure at not being able to
protect David was too great.  And she was sure that Spock would
never understand her relationship with David.

So her future, at least for a time, was set.  Not upon the path
she and Spock had invisioned, but a path nevertheless.  Where
would it lead? 




CHAPTER IV


Saavik turned from the window.  The years had flown and she had
returned to Starfleet, not to space but to the Diplomatic
Service.  Her son had been born and Amanda's sister had agreed to
raise him with her own 3 children.  Saavik visited him when she
could but only the family knew Savid was hers.  He looked very
much like David only with darker hair.  She felt that David would
have been proud of him.  Sometimes she thought about telling
Captain Kirk of his grandson, but her guilt about David's death
had become stronger as the years went by.  

Now she was about to betray those she cared about.  She had
failed in protecting the father but she would not fail his son! 
She went to the door and prepared herself for her meeting with
Admiral Cartwright.  Maybe it would work out!  She went out to
face her destiny.

                              THE END

Marg
aka Elvira