to give Karsul a chance to seize the advantage by taking Maslin."
"Oh, Kor," she cried, her voice breaking a little on the words. "What if
they kill you and I am far away9 I cannot bear itt I cannot bear it," she
repeated and, throwing her arms around his neck, clung to him with a
desperation that almost snapped his own control.
He held her slender body tight against him, and rubbed his cheek against
the top of her head, breathing in the fragrance of her hair. "If things
should go badly, go to Kirk. He win protect YOU21
"Leave my people?" she asked, aghast.
"It will surely be better than life with Karsul, don't you think?" he
asked, lifting her chin so he could look into her eyes-
"What are you, Kor? You're clearly not a Klingon anymore. t9
With a sigh he sat down on the steps of the shuttle and pulled her down
next to him. "Yes I am," he said gently. "It's just that I'm an older
Klingon now, and I've seen too many
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The Tears of the Singers
things to blindly accept Imperial dogma anymore. I say it now Kirk is an
honorable man and a fine soldier. I would welcome a chance to test my skill
against his-but not here, not now. He has shown his integrity by maintaining
the uum and sharing all the discoveries made by the landing party. I would
not willingly prove myself false in the face of his probity. Besides," he
said, pressing a soft kiss onto her cheek, "you said it well only a few
minutes ago. Why mug we always kill? Is there no other way for us? And if
there is, is this perhaps not the time to try it?"
She ran her hand down his cheek, and sighed. "I will go back to Thygeta,
but please let me transport down from the Enterprise. Grant me a little
more time to be with you."
"I can think of nothing that would please me as much as having you with
me." That crooked little smile that she so loved twisted his lips, and he
leaned in to whisper in her ear. "And as for time to be with me ... you,
woman, will never escape from me. You will have to guide my tottering feet
as I enter my dotage, and everyone will envy this old man with the
beautiful young wife."
"Just see to it you stay alive to enjoy it," she retorted as she stood and
stepped into the shuttle.
"Drink?" Kirk asked from where he stood near the beverage dispenser on the
wall of the conference room.
"Just tea. If I start on anything stronger I might not stop," Kor said.
"Problems?" Kirk asked casually as he dialed up a tea and a coffee.
"Oh Kirk, you are a sly one," the Klingon said as he leaned back in his
chair, and regarded the human with amusement. "You would just love to learn
my weaknesses, wouldn't you?"
"I can probably guess some of them. Why else would you come alone in a
shuttle, and send your wife back to the planet from the Enterprise rather
than from your own ship?"
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The Tears of the Singers
Kor-waved a dismissing hand. "None of that matters right now. What concerns
me more are the findings of the landing party. I must know your mind, Kirk.
Otherwise, I may be forced to destroy you."
"You're welcome to try, but my crew and I will have something to say about
that."
"Don't you think I know it? You are a legend, Kirk. Th fight you and win
would bring me great honor. To fight you and lose is not something I wish
to contemplate."
"How about not fighting me at all?" the captain asked, leaning back to
place his boots on the table, and regarding Kor over the rim of his coffee
cup.
"That is the issue, isn't it? To fight or not to fight? To use the power of
the Thygetians for good or for destruction? And if I leave the Thygetians
to you what will your Federation do with them?"
A frown wrinkled Kirk's forehead. "Do with them? What do you mean do with
them? We'll set up diplomatic contact, we'll send scientists to study them,
and have them study us, and ultimately we'll offer them membership in the
Federation which they can take or leave as they choose."
"You are either very nalve, Kirk, or you bluff very well." He rose from the
chair, and began to pace the room. "But what about the other option,
Captain? My young officers have seen it. Why not use the Thygetian power to
destroy worlds?"
"It could be done, but it's not our style.,,
"Well, it's not my style either," Kor said harshly, as he whirled to face
Kirk. "A clean fight-ship against ship, man against man, that I can accept;
but as for the rest . . . " He ran a hand wearily across his face and sank
once more into a chair. He sat silent for several moments, then gave Kirk
an ironic glance. "I guess I'm getting old, but I seem to have lost my
taste for wholesale slaughter on a planetary scale."
"If that's the result of aging, I could almost wish we could spread a dose
of that radiation poisoning I ran into on
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The Tears of the Singers
Gamma Hydra IV around the galaxy. Iben, once we had all decided that peace
was better than war, we could reverse the process.11
"You're a dreamer, Kirk," Kor said with a humorless smile, and took a sip
of tea. "War is the natural condition of all races. We'll no doubt stop
fighting when the last living creature is gone, or the universe dies."
"I think you're too pessimistic. Peace is possible. Mike the Vulcans or the
Organians."
Kor made a face. "'Mank you, I would rather not. In some ways the Organians
are responsible for the problems I currently find myself beset with."
Kirk laced his hands behind his head, and regarded the Klingon for a long
moment. He then swung his feet off the table, and leaned in on Kor. "Okay,
enough of this discussion of philosophy. You obviously didn't come over
here to debate the relative merits of war and peace, nor did you come
solely to confess your own inner doubts. So what is it you want?"
"You are a man without subtlety or diplomacy, Kirk."
"As a Klingon you ought to find that refreshingly familiar."
Kor gave a short bark of laughter, and held up one hand. "A hit, indeed I
concede the hit." He sobered quickly and, setting aside his tea mug, leaned
in on Kirk until they were almost eye to eye. "All right, we will dispense
with all this fencing. I am frightened." Kirk raised an eyebrow. "Yes, it
is the truth. We are orbiting a planet whose inhabitants hold a terrifying
power, and I don't know where my duty lies. If I leave Thygeta to the
Federation will you use this weapon against my own people? And if I take
Thygeta. I will have to fight you, and . . ." He paused and, rising from
his chair, turned his back on Kirk. He sucked in a deep breath as if
steeling himself for some unpleasant confession, and said, "And frankly, I
do riot trust my own government not to misuse this power that I will give
into their hands if I deliver the Singers. 'Men that leaves me with the
third option, which
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The Team of the Singers
is to destroy the Thygetians, and deny their secret to both sides."
"There's a fourth option that you've overlooked."
"Oh, what?" Kor demanded somewhat truculently as he rounded on Kirk.
"How about a situation in which the Thygetians, as a free and independent
species, provide their talent to various races in exchange for goods and
services?"
"Barter? Become merchants?"
"Sure, why not? You say many of your planets are poor and hostile,-so let
the Singers improve them for you, and you pay them for the service."
"You would allow this?"
"Ile Federation doesn't own the Thygetians. They'll be free to make any
arrangements they wish."
"I don't know," Kor said so quietly that Kirk had to strain to hear him. "I
don't know if I can trust you."
"There has to someday be a time for trust, Kor, and I think we've gone a
long way toward proving that this just may be that time." Kirk rose, and
moved around the table to the burly Klingon. They stood face-to-face for a
moment, then Kirk said, "I pledge my honor that the Thygetians will not
become a weap on-in the hands of the Federation," and he held out his hand.
Kor slowly, hesitantly placed his dark hand in the human's fair one. "That
is a pledge worthy of great respect. Very well, Kirk, I will leave Thygeta
for the Taygetians."
191
Chapter Twelve
Kirk was escorting Kor back to his shuttle when Chekov's voice, agitation
deepening his accent, came resounding over the open ship intercom.
"Captain! Captain Kirk, please report to the bridge at onceP9
The two commanders exchanged glances, and Kirk leaped to a wall com, and
thumbed it on. "Yes, Mr. Chekov, what seems to be the problem?"
"We're not quite certain, sir, but the Klingons, seem to be doing something
odd."
"On my, way, Kirk out." He flipped off the com, and gave Kor an inquiring
look.
The Klingon held out his hands helplessly, and shook his head. "I am as
confused as you are, and perhaps it would be best if I did not set out in
a small shuttle until I know precisely what is going on. May I accompany
you to the bridge?"
"That might not be a bad idea, and frankly, Commander, I'd like to have you
where I can keep an eye on you."
"A wise precaution, Captain," Kor said, falling into step
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The Tears of the Singers
with the human. "Even though I can assure you I'm not going to sabotage your
phasers."
They entered the bridge on the run, and indeed something odd was happening
with the Klingon ships. They had pulled abruptly out of parking orbit, and
were peeling off to either side of the Enterprise. Kirk leaped to the
navigation console, and leaned in over Sulu's shoulder.
"Obviously trying to outflank us, and get us trapped against the planet.
Take us out of here, Mr. Sulu."
"Aye, aye, sir. Which heading?"
"Straight up. I want maneuvering room."
They began to drift upward, and Kirk cursed the decaying dilithium
crystals. He had forgotten how low they were on power, so instead of
springing out of the trap that was closing around them they were crawling
like an aged tortoise. Fortunately the two Klingon cruisers weren't in much
better shape.
"If this was by your order, Kor, your timing was lousy," the captain called
over his shoulder. "You should have given yourself more time to get off the
Enterprise."
"Fortunately or unfortunately, this was not by my design. I would not have
handled matters so crudely." He paused to clear his throat. "You see, I
regret to inform you, but I think I am no longer in command of my ships."
"Well, we still have a few tricks up our sleeve. Who are we up against?"
"On Klothos, no doubt Karsul, my exec. On the other ship I don't know. I'm
certain Kandi would not have betrayed me, but I don't know who they would
have replaced him with. Karsul is behind this, however."
"What can you tell me about this Karsul?"
"Young, bright, but he is also hotheaded and inexperienced."
"A plus for our side," Kirk said, swinging back up to the command chair and
seating himself.
"You seem awfully eager to spill your guts," Scotty sudden193
The Tears of the Singers
ly rumbled from his position at the engineering consol. "How do we know we
can trust you? Why would you want us to win over your own people?"
"He does have a point," Kirk said, cocking an eye up at the Klingon.
"Mr. Scott, believe me, I am fervently hoping that you will succeed because
if you don't I'm either going to die with this ship or be executed by my
former first officer, and in either case he will then take my wife. None of
these prospects fills me with much joy."
"I'd say those are pretty compelling reasons for trusting you," Kirk said.
"Mr. Sulu," he said, turning his attention to the navigator. "Bring up the
shields and have phasers at the ready. As soon as we clear the planet I
want to turn and get a shot at those two ships."
"Aye, sir."
Tense seconds passed as they waited to clear the planet. Kirk felt the hair
on the back of his neck rising, and he hunched his shoulders as if
expecting a blast of disruptor fire from behind them. They cleared the
planet, and he began to release the breath he hadn't even been aware he was
holding, when suddenly a new sight drove all the air from his lungs.
cruiser winked out of warp space. It raced down on them like some avenging
bird of prey, and it was apparent it wasn't suffering from the power drain
that afflicted the Enterprise and the two other cruisers.
"Captainl"
GodV1
440h MY -"What do we do?" "Captain, lookl" The bridge exploded into a
discordant babble of frightened voices. Kirk ignored them all, as did
Sulu, who kept his eyes riveted on the captain's face. "Down! Take us back
where we came from."
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The Tears of the Singers
"Karsul must have summoned them in secret, and they have been holding
beyond the range of the harmonic effect. I should have killed that young
man months ago," Kor murmured almost to himself.
"I hope you won't think me gauche for saying so, but I wish you had too,"
Kirk said ironically while Sulu's deft fingers played over the console, and
the Enterprise struggled to respond. A blast of disruptor fire hit the
upper edge of their shield as the ship dropped back behind the protective
bulk of the planet. The great ship shuddered under the impact of the blast,
and people struggled to remain in their seats. Kor gripped the back of
Kirk's chair, and in a low voice said, "We are going right back into the
fine of fire from two other ships."
"I know, but at least we know they don't have the firepower of our friend
overhead."
"Unfortunately he will soon come to join the party."
"And then we very well may be damned, but we'll deal with that when it
happens." Kirk glanced down at a computer graphic of the tactical
situation, and a small smile curved his lips. "Mr. Sulu, take us up to warp
speed, and then bring us out at coordinates zero, two, seven."
&n
bsp; "Captain, you're burnin' up what little power we have left!" Scotty
objected, taking a few steps toward the command chair.
"I have no choice, Mr. Scott. We can sit here while they batter down our
shields, or we can use what power we've got offensively."
Kor, who had been staring at the schematic, suddenly smiled and nodded. "I
see what you are up to, and yes, Karsul will fall for it."
Seconds ticked past, and the third Klingon cruiser came plunging into warp
space after the fleeing Enterprise.
"Captain," Chekov said, and there was a nervous catch mi his voice.
19S
The Tears of the Singers
"I see him, Ensign, but you keep your attention on those other ships. Ready
phasers."
"Phasers ready, sir."
They hit the coordinates, and Sulu brought them out down from warp speed
directly between the two Klingon vessels.
"Firel" Chekov hit the firing button, and twin bearn of energy lanced out
at the ship before them. "Nowl Take us out of here Mr. Sulu! Nowl"
The Enterprise drifted down between the two Klingon ships as they each
discharged their disruptors, and caught each other in a vicious crossfire.
'Mere was a loud cheer from the bridge crew.
"Very nice, Captain, but what do you do for an encore?" Kor asked as he
watched the third, fully powered, cruiser come haring after them.
"Ask me again in a minute. I might be able to tell you by then," Kirk
replied as he knuckled at his chin with one hand.
"Holy shit!" Ragsdale yelled as a burst of disruptor fire sizzled the air
next to his left ear. He went one way, and the tray of food he had been
carrying went the other as he dived frantically for cover.
Maslin, who had been staring with maniacal fascination at the keyboard of
the synthesizer while a group of nearly one hundred cubs sat clustered
about the instrument waiting patiently for his next musical passage, went
diving behind the synthesizer. He realized that he would only draw the fire
toward his precious machine so, keeping low, he made a mad dash for one of
the tents. Behind him he heard one of the cubs scream in agony as a blast
of disruptor fire hit its unprotected flesh, and he almost raced back to