Klingon Hearts 07 Blaze - Sudden Insight

by Tracy Sobieski

  I've had several people write me and ask for this now, and if I'm completely honest, I was toying with the idea, they just gave me the push I needed.

  This story covers the time span from when K'Leena and Lucas are teenagers on the Enterprise, through their academy days and single lives, right up until the beginning of "Timeless".

  Thanks to Junior and Mel for the beta reading. Rated R for adult themes and sexual content.

  Klingon Hearts and Beyond

  Blaze--Sudden Insight

  by: Tracy L. Sobieski

  Revelation

  He felt it the moment it happened. The force staggered him and he gripped the edge of the desk for support. White-hot talons of agony ripped into his mind, tearing at his sanity.

  K'LEENA!

  "Are you all right?" Mike asked him. They were in Riker's office at Starfleet Command.

  Lucas struggled for air, just breathing was painful. Red swam before his eyes and he swayed on his feet.

  "Lucas!"

  "What?" he asked, dazed.

  "You better sit down, you don't look good," Mike reached out to grab hold of Lucas' arm.

  "No!" He pulled out of Burns' grasp and turned around slowly, like he didn't know where he was. "I have to go." Lucas said distractedly and left his second in command standing alone in his office, very confused.

  The dread built up in him as he moved through the halls. Something was very wrong, he could feel it. His pace quickened and he was running by the time he reached Flight Control. It was in chaos, orders being yelled, people moving at breakneck speed through out the room.

  "What happened?" he demanded, grabbing the nearest person.

  "Shuttle accident. Training maneuvers. One of the students didn't follow procedure...."

  "Was Lt. Paris in command?" Lucas interrupted her, harshly.

  "Yes, sir, she was. They beamed her to Starfleet Medical...she's in bad shape, sir. They don't think she's going to make it," she told him gently. Everyone knew that the Rikers and Parises were close, especially the two Lieutenants.

  "Somebody better contact Captain Paris on the Enterprise and make sure my dad knows," Lucas called out behind him as he left the room.

  K'Leena was in surgery by the time he got to the hospital. So he paced, and prayed to a God he was never really sure he believed in, and paced some more. She slipped further from him as each minute passed. Lucas used his link with her like a lifeline. He joined his mind with hers and held on for all he was worth. When his mother and father arrived he barely registered their presence. He only felt her.

  Lucas hovered near the doors to the operating room. He was completely focused on K'Leena.

  Worried about her son, Deanna wanted him to sit down but he wouldn't move away from the passageway.

  "I'm fine," he snapped impatiently.

  Will was so concerned with his son's behavior he tried to get him to leave the hospital for a while, but Deanna's stopped her husband.

  "He won't go, he can't."

  "What do you mean he can't?"

  "Because he's the only thing keeping her alive right now, he needs to stay close to keep the link strong."

  Will looked over at Lucas in shock. "Christ! Can he do this? Will it work?"

  "I don't know...Imzadi are capable of amazing things and Lucas is a strong telepath...maybe."

  "But they're not...," Will's eyes widened with realization. "Of course they are, from the very beginning, right?"

  "Yes," Deanna replied with a small smile.

  "Then why aren't they together?"

  "They're just not ready yet. Look how long it took us."

  "God...I hope he's smarter than I was and doesn't waste years trying to figure out what he wants."

  "I just hope he gets the chance to."

  Dr. Crusher came out to see them after several hours. K'Leena was holding her own, but it was too soon to tell if she would live.

  "Can I see her?" Lucas asked, quiet and broken.

  "I can let one of you in since the Parises aren't here yet," she told him.

  "Go, Lucas," his mother told him and pushed him gently towards the room where K'Leena lay.

  Lucas entered the room and he paused. She was so pale and lifeless, it scared the hell out of him. He almost didn't recognize her without the flashing blue eyes and ready smile she always had.

  Lucas pulled a chair close and sat next to the bed. He picked up her small hand and laced his fingers with hers, it felt cold to the touch.

  "Don't you do this, 'Leena," he begged and tears gathered in the corners of his eyes. "Captain Proton can't battle the forces of evil without Blaze." He drew his fingers through the flame colored hair that tumbled around her shoulders. "Dammit, K'Leena, you can't die on me. Not now...."

  Lucas rested his forehead on the edge of the bed and, for the first time in more than a decade, he cried.

  *****

  Initiation

  "They've been sneaking off to the holodeck in the middle of the night, you know."

  "Really?! The Captain's kid and Paris' girl?"

  "Yeah, every Friday night for the last month they book two hours from two to four, hmmm... I guess that would really be Saturday morning...."

  "Whatever! So...the Klingon brat is doing the 'Crowned Prince.' I wonder if Paris and Riker know."

  "Are you insane?! Riker wouldn't care, but Paris would go nuts! Lucas is crazy if you ask me--screwing the Commander's pride and joy....You ever see Paris when he's angry? The man is more Klingon than some Klingons I know."

  "Still, you got to give the kid credit, he picked the hottest little thing on the ship."

  "She's kinda young, don't you think?"

  "She's -Klingon-, gods I'd love to fuck a Klingon once in my life, I hear they're the best. I'm getting hard just thinking about it."

  "Yeah, I bet she's good, I wonder how much the kid has taught her...."

  Tom had heard enough, he strode around the corner, startling the two crewmen.

  "Commander Paris!" they snapped to attention.

  "Crewmen," Tom just nodded as he walked by them.

  "Do you think he heard?"

  "No way, we're still alive, aren't we?"

  *****

  "You're not really going to do the overprotective father thing? Are you?" B'Elanna couldn't believe he was acting this way.

  Tom sat on the edge of the bed to put on his boots.

  "My fifteen-year-old daughter is sneaking out in the middle of the night, to meet a boy, and you have to ask me that?"

  "Don't you trust her?" she asked. K'Leena wouldn't do this, she just knew it. There had to be an explanation.

  "It's not her I don't trust, it's him. I remember the stories of his father's conquests at the academy. I don't want my daughter alone with him."

  Talk about the pot calling the kettle black!

  "Right," she replied, knowingly, unable to keep the smirk from her face.

  "That's different," he shot back as he left the room and B'Elanna couldn't hold back the laughter.

  *****

  "People of Earth. You now belong to me. I am the new Emperor!"

  "Think again, Chaotica!" Lucas yelled, jumping onto the platform.

  "Captain Proton! I thought you were dead."

  "He would have been, but you forgot one small detail," K'Leena called out from the small ledge she was perched on, just behind Lucas.

  "And what would that be?"

  "Captain Proton doesn't battle the forces of evil without Blaze," Lucas said smugly. "She rescued me...."

  "Computer, freeze program!" Tom called out upon entering the holodeck, then came to a stunned stop himself.

  The suddenn
ess of the stop in the program caused K'Leena to loose her footing on the ledge. She was falling before she could regain it. Lucas was there instantly, catching her against himself. She impacted his chest with a breathless laugh.

  "Captain Proton to the rescue?" she giggled, righting herself.

  "At your service, ma'am," Lucas replied smartly.

  "What is going on here?" Tom finally asked.

  K'Leena looked at him, amused. "We're playing Captain Proton, what does it look like?"

  "At two in the morning?"

  "I told you, it was the only time we could get, you said it was okay." K'Leena was confused now.

  "When did you tell me this?" So was Tom.

  "Last month, when I asked you to help me change some of the things in the program. You said you couldn't do it then because of the crew reviews. You suggested that I ask Uncle Harry to help if I didn't want to wait for you to finish with them. So I did and when we finished the only two-hour blocks we could get on the holodeck...."

  "Were from two to four on Saturdays," Tom recalled it now. "I thought you meant in the afternoon."

  "Oh sorry, I did say oh two hundred...."

  "Yes, you did, I wasn't paying attention."

  "We don't do it on school nights, but I'll come home if you want me to," she told him.

  Tom looked at his daughter, ashamed of what he'd thought.

  "No, this is fine," he smiled and took in her costume. "Who are you supposed to be?"

  "Blaze, Captain Proton's sidekick. Uncle Harry helped us reprogram Buster's role. I got sick of playing Arachnia. I wanted to be a good guy," she told him with a grin.

  He looked at the red velvet catsuit and couldn't stop the next question, "Did your Aunt Ani design the costume?"

  "No, I did, why?" she asked, confused.

  "Never mind, I'll let you get back to the fun." Tom turned to leave and realized why everything felt just a little off since he entered the holodeck.

  "You colorized it!" he exclaimed in horror.

  *****

  "Who's there?" K'Leena called down the Jeffries tube.

  "Captain Proton...who else would be saving your ass?" Lucas said angrily as he rounded the corner.

  "What are you doing here?" she asked.

  "Jesus, K'Leena, do you know how much trouble you're in?!"

  "Why am I in trouble?" Innocent as all get out and Lucas didn't buy it for a minute.

  "I don't know how you sweet-talked Powell into letting you fly those maneuvers, but your Dad -knows- it was you, K'Leena."

  "I don't know what you mean."

  "Your Dad knew, from the first run, who was piloting that ship. He's furious with Powell...and you. He's going to bust that lieutenant down to crewman and you're going to be grounded from now until the end of time. What the hell were you thinking?!"

  "Kahless! Who else knows?" She never wanted Lt. Powell to get in trouble.

  "No one but me and your brother. Robbie let me know your Dad's hunting for you now. Good thing you were smart enough to leave your comm-badge behind, it gave me time to find you."

  "What am I going to do?"

  "Come on, I have an idea." He led her down the Jeffries tube until they came to a junction.

  Lucas stripped off his shirt once they were there.

  "Take your shirt off," he told her.

  "What!?"

  "Settle down! You've got a bra on, right? I've seen you in less when we go swimming. Your Dad's doing a sensor sweep of the ship for your biosigns by now, it won't be long before he gets here. Do you want to be in trouble for flying a Federation shuttlecraft without permission or do you want to be in trouble for making out with me?"

  K'Leena undid the ties on her tunic and Lucas suddenly began to think this idea wasn't such a good one after all. Black lace. In his wildest fantasies, and he had some wild ones, she never looked as good as this. She'd kill him if she knew how often he dreamt about her.

  Lucas dropped to the floor of the junction and settled against the wall.

  "Come here," he held out his hand to her. She hesitated for a second then walked to him. Lucas pulled her down to kneel between his outstretched legs.

  He was probably never going to get another chance to kiss her, so he was going to do this right.

  "Ever kissed anyone before?" he asked her.

  She shook her head, "Have you?"

  "Yeah," and then some, but she didn't need to know that.

  He put his arms around her and drew her against him, the skin to skin contact was just about his undoing. Then he kissed her and it stopped being just for show. Her lips were so soft and sweet.

  Open your mouth, 'Leena.

  Gods, she was everything he imagined. She tasted like some wonderful exotic fruit and he couldn't get enough. Lucas brushed his tongue along her parted lips and she gasped and he explored her mouth further. Her hands moved over his shoulders in a soft caress as she returned the kiss, her tongue meeting his in light, hesitant touches.

  "Put your clothes on!" Tom's cold voice interrupted them and K'Leena jumped back, her face flaming with embarrassment.

  "Daddy!" she grabbed her shirt and held it to her chest.

  He viewed the two of them silently for a moment.

  "Go back to our quarters, I want to talk to Lucas."

  "It's not what you think...," she started.

  "You don't want to know what I think right now, young lady. Get your tail back home!"

  "But...."

  "NOW! K'Leena!"

  She put her shirt back on, fumbling with the ties, tears running down her face. She should have just confessed, now Lucas was going to be in trouble.

  I'm sorry, Lucas.

  Don't worry, it'll be all right.

  Tom made sure K'Leena was gone before he turned back to the now fully clothed Lucas. The grin on his face took the boy off guard.

  "Don't think for a minute I don't know what -really- went on today. I'd know her flying anywhere. The only other people on this ship who could have done what she did today are your father and myself. And since we were both on the bridge at the time...."

  "What are you going to do?" Lucas asked.

  Tom stared at him for a long moment, then said, "Nothing. No one was hurt and I'm pretty sure it will -never- happen again."

  Lucas sighed in relief.

  "Just how far were you planning on taking this little production?" Tom asked quietly. Too quietly, Lucas realized. He was more angry that they tried to deceive him than he was about the shuttle.

  "We knew you were on the way, it wouldn't have gone any further, Commander," Lucas told him honestly. It wouldn't have gone further, he may have wanted it to, but it wouldn't have.

  Tom pinned the kid with a hard stare, trying to figure out if he had been taking advantage of his daughter or just trying to protect her. He was surprised when Lucas laughed out loud.

  "When you figure it out, Commander, could you let me know, because I'm not sure myself."

  *****

  "I wanted to give you this when we were alone," Lucas told her. He handed her a little box, wrapped in shiny purple paper.

  Her birthday party was over and they were just about to leave the holodeck.

  "You already gave me a present," she reminded him. Lucas had given her a new Captain Proton program, he'd worked for weeks on it with her father's help.

  "I know, but this is different. Open it."

  She ripped off the wrapping and opened the little box. Inside was one half of a little gold coin suspended on a delicate chain, it had an inscription, but because it was incomplete, she couldn't read it.

  "What does it say?" she asked.

  Lucas pulled the other half of the coin from under his shirt and placed the two halves together.

  "It's an ancient Earth tradition when two people are going to be separated. It says: May the Lord watch between me and thee while we are apart from one another," Lucas told her seriously.

  He undid the clasp on it and fastened it around her neck.r />
  "It's beautiful, Lucas. I love it, thank you...but it's not like we're apart, we see each other every day."