Star Trek 5 by James Blish

Author:James Blish [Blish, James]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science Fiction, Fiction, General
ISBN: 9780553143836
Publisher: Bantam Books
Published: 1980-06-01T08:03:15+00:00

TURNABOUT INTRUDER

(Gene Roddenberry and Arthur H. Singer)

The Enterprise had been proceeding to a carefully timed rendezvous when she received a distress call from a group of archaeologists who had been exploring the ruins on Camus Two. Their situation was apparently desperate, and Kirk interrupted the mission to beam down to their assistance, together with Spock and McCoy.

In the group’s headquarters they found two of the survivors, one of whom Kirk knew: Dr. Janice Lester, the leader of the expedition. She was lying on a cot, semi-conscious. Her companion, Dr. Howard Coleman, looked healthy enough but rather insecure.

“What’s wrong with her?” Kirk asked.

“Radiation sickness,” said Coleman.

“I’d like to put the ship’s complete medical facilities to work to save her. Can we get her aboard the Enterprise?’

“Exposing her to the shock of Transportation would be very dangerous. The radiation affects the nervous system.”

McCoy looked up from his examination of the woman. “I can find no detectable signs of conventional radiation injury, Dr. Coleman,” he said.

“Dr. Lester was farthest from the source. Fortunately for me, I was here at headquarters.”

“Then the symptoms may not have completely developed.”

“What happened to those who were closest to the point of exposure?” Kirk asked.

“They became delirious from the multiplying internal lesions and ran off mad with pain. They are probably dead.”

“What form of radiation was it?” McCoy asked.

“Nothing I have ever encountered.”

Janice Lester stirred and moaned, and her eyes flut-tered open. Kirk came to her side and took her hand, smiling.

“You are to be absolutely quiet. Those are the doctor’s orders, Janice, not mine.”

Spock had been scanning with his tricorder. “Captain, I am picking up very faint life readings seven hundred meters from here. Help will have to be immediate.”

Kirk turned to McCoy, who said, “There is nothing more to be done for her, Captain. Your presence should help quiet her.”

As McCoy and Spock went out, Janice released Kirk’s hand, and she said with great effort, “I hoped I would never see you again.”

“I don’t blame you.”

Her eyes closed. “Why don’t you kill me? It would be easy for you now. No one would know.”

“I never wanted to hurt you,” Kirk said, startled.

“You did.”

“Only so I could survive as myself.”

“I died. When you left me, I died.”

“You still exaggerate,” Kirk said, trying for the light touch. “I have heard reports of your work.”

“Digging in the ruins of dead civilizations.”

“You lead in your field.”

She opened her eyes and stared directly into his. “The year we were together at Starfleet is the only time in my life I was alive.”

“I didn’t stop you from going on with space work.”

“I had to! Where would it lead? Your world of Starship captains doesn’t admit women.”

“You’ve always blamed me for that,” Kirk said.

“You accepted it.”

“I couldn’t have changed it,” he pointed out.

“You believed they were right. I know you did.”

“And you hated me for it. How you hated. Every minute we were together became an agony.”

“It isn’t fair …”

“No, it isn’t. And I was the one you punished and tortured because of it.

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