17th February 2258
Vulcan
(3rd person POV)
"I like comedies. I don't like tragedies."
"Let's call him Ben."
"Benjamin Carter. My dear boy."
"Whatever world you build, let me be a part of it."
The voices echoed through the darkness, distant and dreamlike. Then, abruptly, the darkness shattered.
Ben's eyes snapped open. He blinked repeatedly and turned his head, taking in his surroundings.
"Whoa, whoa. Take it easy, champ."
The familiar voice came from beside him. Dr. Leonard McCoy stepped into his field of vision and placed a reassuring hand near his shoulder. "You just came out of a week-long coma."
Ben frowned. He shifted experimentally and immediately noticed the soreness running through his body. Nothing particularly severe, but enough to remind him that he had been through something rather unpleasant.
He sat up on the biobed and placed a hand against his chest. "Minor Heal."
A soft golden light emanated from his palm. Warmth spread through his body, easing the lingering aches and discomfort almost immediately.
McCoy stared at the display of magic with open curiosity. "What's with the light show?"
"Just a minor healing spell," Ben replied casually. "But never mind that. What happened to the Narada?"
McCoy folded his arms. "After you fixed the warp core, Captain Pike and the others on the bridge were able to fly the ship away from Vulcan. It's currently docked in orbit around the planet."
Ben released a long breath. "That's a relief."
He looked around the room for the first time. Unlike the clinical interior of the Enterprise's sickbay, this medical chamber possessed an unusual elegance. Advanced medical equipment stood alongside furnishings and architectural elements that seemed distinctly non-human. The room was an understated blend of traditional and modern design.
On one side, enormous floor-to-ceiling windows offered a breathtaking view of the landscape outside. It stretched beyond the building in an endless expanse of arid terrain—harsh, barren and unforgiving, yet strangely beautiful beneath the planet's brilliant sky.
Ben looked back at McCoy. "Where are we?"
The door opened. Commander Spock entered the room.
"We are on Vulcan. More specifically, we are in my home."
Captain Pike and James Kirk entered behind him.
Spock continued, "After you lost consciousness, I suggested to the Captain that we relocate you to Vulcan, as the planet's medical facilities are superior to those of the Enterprise's medical bay. After my father learned of your role in saving our planet, he extended to you the hospitality of our home while you recuperated from your injuries."
McCoy snorted. "Not that there were too many injuries in the first place. Just the radiation. Tons of radiation."
The doctor stepped closer to Ben, examining him with a mixture of professional curiosity and disbelief. "If it were a human—or even a Vulcan—in your place, they would have dropped dead from the amount of ionising radiation in that warp core. Especially after it had been nearly overloaded." He shook his head. "However, your body seemed to handle it remarkably well. The coma was, in fact, your body going into some sort of sleep mode while it somehow absorbed all that deadly radiation."
Ben smirked. "Well, I have been known to exceed expectations."
Pike stepped forward and extended his hand. "When I heard about what you'd done, I feared the worst. You took a great risk, Mr. Carter."
Ben took his hand and shook it. "A calculated risk, Captain. I know what my physiology is capable of handling better than anyone else." He released Pike's hand. "Trust me, I would never throw my life away. I have too much to live for."
Pike smiled. "I'm glad to hear it."
Kirk stepped forward next and gave Ben a quick embrace. "How are you doing?"
Ben smiled. "I'm fine, I think. What happened to Nero?"
Kirk stepped back. "He and the other Romulans were taken to Starbase One."
Pike continued, "Starfleet is keeping them in holding until a proper trial can be arranged. Meanwhile, researchers from the Daystrom Institute and the Vulcan Science Institute will be studying the Narada and its systems while it remains in the Vulcan system."
Ben frowned. "I had thought Starfleet would have some kind of rule or directive against pursuing or studying future technology."
Commander Spock answered the question. "While there isn't a formal directive against it, temporal contact outside our era is indeed generally discouraged."
Pike nodded. "However, given the volatile situation at present, with the Klingons becoming more and more aggressive, the Admiralty believes that studying the Narada's systems could provide us with the edge we need to protect ourselves and prevent an all-out war."
Ben nodded thoughtfully. "Smart choice. Personally, I believe any chance of the timeline remaining intact went out the window the day Nero showed up."
Pike gave a small nod. "Anyway, I'll let you get back to your rest. I can already feel Dr. McCoy's irritated gaze on me."
Pike smiled as he reached into his uniform and retrieved a communicator. He held it out to Ben. "Here. My number's on it. If there's anything you need, anytime—call me."
Ben accepted the communicator. "Thank you, Captain."
Pike smiled. "Please, after everything we've been through. Call me Chris."
Ben smiled back. "Thanks, Chris."
Pike nodded and turned toward the door.
Kirk paused beside Ben. "I'll see you soon."
"You too."
Kirk left. Commander Spock gave Ben a grateful nod before following him out.
McCoy watched the three men disappear through the doorway before turning back toward Ben. "Well, now that your posse of concerned well-wishers is gone, you really need to—"
The door opened again.
"I'm afraid there is one more."
Ambassador Spock entered the room. The elderly Vulcan looked toward Ben and quietly exhaled before giving him a small nod.
"Mr. Carter."
Ben smiled calmly. "Mr. Spock."
Ambassador Spock looked toward McCoy. "Could you please give us a few minutes, Doctor?"
McCoy looked from Spock to Ben. "Sure." He walked toward the door, then paused at the threshold. "Just don't take too long. He still needs to rest."
Ambassador Spock nodded. McCoy left, closing the door behind him. Silence settled over the room.
Spock regarded Ben quietly for a long moment before pulling a nearby stool closer and sitting across from the biobed.
"It is a common misconception that Vulcans are naturally emotionless beings," he began. "That we do not feel joy, sadness, anger, love...or fear." He paused. "Nothing could be farther from the truth."
Ben listened silently.
"Vulcans actually feel emotions much more strongly and violently than humans do. Ancient Vulcans were a wildly passionate and brutal species. To suppress their volatile inner turmoil and prevent self-destruction, they adopted the philosophy of Surak. Logic is not a biological trait or something encoded in our DNA. It is a strict cultural and mental discipline."
Spock's gaze lowered for a moment. "But even the most logical and disciplined mind cannot fully suppress the most powerful and primal instinct of the soul..."
He looked directly at Ben. "The fear of death. Of certain death, at that."
Spock folded his hands in his lap. "I felt that fear once, long ago, when the Enterprise faced a great enemy. To save the ship and our crew, I chose to enter the ship's warp core and subsequently died from massive radiation poisoning." His voice remained steady. "It was only through the unlikeliest series of events that I later came to be resurrected. But I will never forget what I felt that day...at that moment."
His eyes seemed distant now, as though he were looking at something far beyond the room. "Anger. Sadness. Loneliness." A brief pause. "And above all...fear."
Spock drew a slow breath. "Those feelings were so intense that I chose never to feel them again."
He looked back at Ben. "And yet, by a cruel trick of fate, we were placed in an eerily similar scenario a week ago. Once again, I had to make the logical yet painful choice necessary for my people to survive." He paused. "Until I didn't."
Spock rose from the stool. "Benjamin Carter..." For the first time, his voice carried unmistakable warmth. "I am thankful...thankful to see you alive and well. And grateful...for all that you have done."
Spock straightened. Then, with deliberate formality, he bowed.
"Know that I, Spock, son of Sarek, am forever in your debt."
Ben stood from the biobed. "Please, Mr. Spock. There's no need for that. I was merely doing what was right."
Spock straightened. "And I am merely doing what is right and proper." He regarded Ben for a moment. "Tell me what you need. There must be something I can do for you."
Ben considered the offer for a few moments. Then his expression brightened slightly.
"Actually, now that you mention it, there is something I could use your help with."
Spock inclined his head. "Go on."
"As I told you before, I came here to prevent a great tragedy I had foreseen." Ben paused. "But that wasn't my sole reason. This is actually my fourth time intervening in such a manner, and in every universe I travel to, I try to learn or acquire anything useful for future interventions."
Ambassador Spock listened quietly.
"This universe is especially promising, what with the replicator technology, advanced power-generation systems, medical knowledge, and everything else I've seen so far." Ben glanced toward the communicator Pike had given him. "If I could learn...even a fraction of all the wondrous things here, I would be able to change the lives of so many people for the better."
He gave a small, self-conscious shrug. "Unfortunately, I don't think I'm smart enough to learn everything I'm interested in by myself without spending years doing so."
Ben looked directly at Ambassador Spock. "You asked me if there was anything I needed help with." He smiled. "There it is."
Spock was silent for a few seconds, considering the request. Finally, he spoke.
"You want me to tutor you to better your understanding of Federation sciences and technology?"
"Essentially, yes." Ben gave him a hopeful look. "That is, if you are up for it."
A small smile appeared on Ambassador Spock's face. "It will be my honour."
---
19th February 2258
Vulcan
McCoy looked up from the PADD in his hand, his expression somewhere between fascination and disbelief.
"Are all your people monsters like you?"
Ben stared at him. "Excuse me?"
The two of them were sitting across from each other at a small table in the medical suite at Spock's home, the same room where Ben had awakened two days earlier. Most of the medical equipment had already been removed, but McCoy had still found a few reasons to keep the suite operational. Over the better part of the last two days, he had subjected Ben to an exhaustive series of scans, examinations, blood tests, and physiological measurements.
Apparently, he still wasn't satisfied.
McCoy glanced down at the PADD again. "I've spent the better part of the last two days going over the results of your bodily scans. And they are, to say the least, baffling."
Ben raised an eyebrow. "Baffling? In what way?"
McCoy looked back at the PADD.
"Let's start with your musculature. Your muscles are incredibly dense, but somehow they're also remarkably supple. That's not supposed to happen. Dense muscles normally come with a trade-off in flexibility and metabolic demand, but your tissues don't appear to follow the normal rules. Your lactic-acid recovery time is also ridiculously short. Your muscles clear metabolic by-products at a rate I've never seen in humans—or any other species, for that matter."
He looked up at Ben.
"That combination means your muscles can produce enormous amounts of force without sacrificing speed or flexibility. You should be capable of accelerating and moving at speeds that would be physically impossible for an ordinary human."
McCoy returned his attention to the PADD.
"Your kidneys are like supercharged filtration systems. Your renal filtration rate is extraordinarily high, but your electrolyte balance remains perfectly stable. Your body is exceptionally efficient at removing metabolic waste without losing useful compounds in the process."
He swiped across the PADD.
"Your digestive system is equally ridiculous. Your pancreas is particularly interesting. You're extracting an extraordinary proportion of the available nutrients, proteins and carbohydrates from everything you eat, while producing remarkably little waste."
Ben shrugged. "Waste not, want not."
McCoy gave him a dry look before turning back to the PADD.
"Your lungs are even stranger. Your pulmonary tissue is lined with a naturally occurring surfactant unlike anything in Federation medical databases. It significantly improves the efficiency of gas exchange, increasing both oxygen uptake and retention. That should make you extremely resistant to hypoxia, while also making you capable of processing airborne toxins and foreign gas mixtures that would rapidly incapacitate an ordinary human."
Ben nodded. "That's good to hear."
McCoy swiped the PADD again.
"Your cardiovascular system is another marvel. The muscular tissue of your heart and blood vessels is substantially stronger than normal human tissue. Your circulatory system can tolerate extraordinarily high pressure and flow rates. Your maximum heart rate is far higher than a normal human's safe limit, but your cardiovascular tissue is reinforced enough to handle it. That means your body can sustain massive adrenaline surges without the same risk of stroke, vascular rupture, or cardiac arrest that an ordinary human would face."
He paused before continuing.
"Then we get to your stem cells. Stem-cell production is off the charts. And yet, somehow, you're not developing cancer. Normally, that much cellular proliferation would be an enormous red flag. But your stem cells are being produced, differentiated and regulated with extraordinary precision. Your tissues are operating at what I'd call peak human performance—and in several areas, significantly beyond it."
McCoy shook his head.
"The result is accelerated cellular regeneration and an extremely robust immune response. Your body can repair damage many times faster than a normal human, while simultaneously identifying and eliminating abnormal cells before they can become a serious problem."
He continued scrolling through the results.
"The blood-vessel density beneath the rods and cones of your retinas is also significantly elevated. More blood flow means more oxygen and nutrients reaching the photoreceptor cells. The result is a marked increase in visual perception. Better sensitivity. Better low-light performance. Faster visual processing."
McCoy's expression became increasingly incredulous as he reached the next section.
"And then there's your nervous system."
He shook his head.
"The bioelectrical nerve transduction in a normal human nervous system relies primarily on ionic conduction along neurons. In your case, the signal pathways are surrounded by an unusually dense and highly ordered myelin sheath with conductive properties I've never encountered before."
He tapped the PADD.
"It effectively provides an additional layer of electrical insulation and signal optimization. Your neural impulses are transmitted with substantially less interference and far greater efficiency."
McCoy looked directly at Ben.
"That makes your reflexes approximately 300% faster than those of an ordinary human."
Ben's eyebrows rose. "300%?"
"Approximately. The exact figure varies depending on which pathway we're measuring."
McCoy continued.
"Your neurological optimization may also have secondary effects. Faster neural processing could contribute to increased memory retention, faster learning, enhanced pattern recognition and potentially even greater creativity."
Ben nodded. "Well, that's good to know."
McCoy didn't comment. He simply continued reading.
"Your neuroendocrine system is also optimized. Your hormones, neurotransmitters and autonomic responses are regulated with extraordinary efficiency. It appears specifically adapted to handle the enormous physiological demands being placed on the rest of your body."
He paused. "Then there's this."
McCoy turned the PADD slightly, examining the data again before continuing.
"A naturally formed layer of carbon nanotubes distributed throughout your body. Your skeletal system, internal organs and even your skin contain a microscopic network of these structures. They're integrated into the surrounding biological tissue rather than simply existing as foreign implants."
He tapped the display.
"The nanotubes reinforce your bones to an extraordinary degree. Your skeletal structure is, for all practical purposes, virtually unbreakable under conditions that would pulverize human bone. Your skin is also extremely resistant to penetration."
McCoy paused.
"And that's not even the most interesting part. The nanotube network appears capable of conducting and redistributing certain forms of directed energy. I don't know exactly how much energy it can handle. The scans aren't giving me enough information to establish an upper limit. But based on the structural properties I'm seeing, the network might diminish, redirect, or even partially absorb directed-energy attacks."
Ben leaned forward slightly. "Interesting. How much punishment do you think I can take?"
McCoy gave a small shrug.
"Well, I'm no weapons engineer, but I believe even multiple hits from a phaser on stun setting would probably not be enough to incapacitate you. In fact, I suspect you might even survive a phaser blast or two on a kill setting."
He lowered the PADD slightly.
"Your joints are reinforced as well. Your ligaments and cartilage are unusually strong and resilient. Your body has essentially been optimized to withstand forces that would severely injure an ordinary human."
McCoy lowered the PADD a little further and looked at Ben.
"And then we get to the part I still can't explain."
Ben raised an eyebrow. "Which is?"
McCoy looked back at the PADD.
"There is some form of exotic energy constantly being absorbed by your body from the surrounding environment. Whatever it is, it's circulating throughout your tissues and seems to be contributing to the gradual strengthening of your body."
He frowned as he examined the readings.
"I don't know whether that's a natural trait of your species or whether it's a consequence of your recent exposure to the warp core. What I do know is that your cells are saturated with this exotic energy. And it's particularly concentrated in your chest area."
Ben looked down at his chest.
"Near the heart?"
McCoy looked up sharply.
"Exactly. How did you know?"
Ben shrugged.
"I guessed. What else?"
McCoy gave him a suspicious look but decided not to pursue it. He swiped the PADD again.
"The most unbelievable part of your physiology... is your telomeres. In a normal person's genome, telomeres gradually shorten as cells divide. They're essentially protective caps at the ends of chromosomes. Once they become critically short, cellular senescence begins to set in."
He paused. "But that's not what's happening in your case."
McCoy tapped the PADD.
"Your telomeres are constantly stabilizing. Your body releases appropriate quantities of telomerase at set intervals, effectively counteracting the natural erosion associated with cell division. Continuous telomerase activity can lead to uncontrolled cellular proliferation and cancer. Your body somehow regulates it precisely enough to maintain telomere length without triggering malignant growth."
McCoy looked at Ben. "Do you understand what that means?"
Ben considered the implication. "I won't age normally."
"Not if these conditions persist."
McCoy looked down at the PADD once more.
"Based on the rate at which your telomeres are being stabilized, your cellular regeneration, your stem-cell production, and everything else I'm seeing..."
He slowly lowered the device.
"You could remain biologically young for thousands of years."
Ben sighed.
"I'm betting you don't see that every day, huh?"
McCoy took a deep breath.
"Mr. Carter, this level of optimization in virtually every aspect of your physiology cannot possibly be natural. Federation science and technology are still centuries away from creating anything remotely comparable. We've experimented with genetic engineering, cellular modification, augmentation and artificial enhancement, but what I'm looking at here borders on genetic sculpting."
He looked directly at Ben.
"So how did you come to be this way?"
Ben remained silent for a few seconds. Then he took a deep breath.
"You're right. My current physiology isn't what I was born with. My people have the ability to manipulate energy. We generally live a few decades longer than normal humans, and we're somewhat more resilient. But we're nothing like me. My current physiology is the result of a magical ritual I underwent a few months ago."
McCoy stared at him.
"A magical ritual?"
Ben nodded.
"Yes."
McCoy's expression became more serious.
"You deliberately did this to yourself?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Ben thought about the question for a moment.
"Powerful magic can only be channelled through a powerful body. I was being held back in my studies because my physiology couldn't safely handle everything I was capable of learning and doing. So I decided to correct that limitation."
McCoy frowned.
"So you did it to gain power?"
Ben answered calmly.
"I did it to gain choice."
McCoy remained silent.
Ben continued.
"Do you really think that I would be here right now, in this universe, if I were just another fifteen-year-old schoolboy? I'd have to think twice before coming here, not being certain whether I'd be returning home alive."
He looked directly at McCoy.
"It was because I had the power that I was confident enough to come here and help stop Nero. And because of that choice, six billion Vulcans and thousands of Starfleet personnel are still alive today."
The accusation in McCoy's eyes gradually disappeared, replaced by a more subdued expression.
"You're right. I'm sorry. That came out harsher than I intended."
Ben smiled faintly.
"It's all right, Doctor. I know Federation citizens are naturally suspicious of enhanced individuals. Especially considering your own history with the Augments. But I believe people should be judged by their actions, not by their abilities."
McCoy nodded after a second.
"I'll keep that in mind."
Ben pushed himself to his feet.
"So...am I free to go?"
McCoy stood as well, still holding the PADD.
"Your latest scans are normal. There's no sign of radiation damage. Your cellular regeneration appears to have repaired whatever damage the warp-core exposure caused. Still, I want you to continue taking the pills I prescribed for another week. Just to be on the safe side."
Ben nodded.
"But otherwise, you're good to go."
Ben offered his hand.
"Thanks, Doc."
McCoy looked at the offered hand for a moment before taking it and giving it a firm shake.
---
19th February 2258
Mess Hall, USS Enterprise
Ben took another bite of his cheeseburger before leaning back slightly in his seat.
"...so anyway, I will be staying here a bit longer. Thanks to the effects of time dilation between our universes, I still have about seven months before I am needed back in my homeworld."
Across the table, Captain Pike swallowed a mouthful of steak and nodded.
"That's great. Do you have any plans?"
"I do. Ambassador Spock has graciously accepted me as his student. I intend to learn about Federation science and technology as much as I can during my time here."
Ben glanced at Pike.
"I hope that's not a problem?"
Pike's expression became slightly thoughtful.
"While the Prime Directive indeed bans Starfleet officers from interfering with the natural development of alien civilizations, it is mostly aimed at societies that have not yet invented faster-than-light travel and do not know about alien life. I am not sure how it applies in your case, a visitor from a parallel universe who knows about alien civilizations and can travel across the galaxy by opening wormholes."
He shrugged.
"But if there are any complications, after what you did for Vulcan and the Federation, I'm sure you'll be fine."
Ben smiled.
"Thanks, Chris."
He finished his burger and wiped his hands with a napkin.
"So, I hear you are leaving soon?"
"Yeah. Command wants me back on Earth ASAP. Everyone's on their toes about the whole Nero situation, and there's only so much I can explain over subspace. I delayed until you were awake, but now I'm all out of excuses."
Ben grinned.
"Bet that's a nice feather in your cap. Who knows, you might even make admiral."
Pike sighed.
"Don't remind me. I've been dodging that particular bullet for years. But now it looks like I might just have to take it in the ass."
Ben chuckled.
Pike looked at him.
"Which reminds me, you're getting a medal."
Ben's eyebrows rose.
"What?"
"High Command has decided to present you with an award for your part in the operation."
Ben shook his head.
"I didn't do much."
Pike stared at him incredulously.
"You informed us about this whole thing. You made it possible for us to board the Narada. You went inside a malfunctioning warp core and fixed it, saving an entire planet."
He took a drink from his glass.
"If it wasn't for you, things would most likely have progressed in the same manner as you showed us. If there's anyone here that deserves a commendation, it's you."
Ben looked around the Mess Hall.
The room was busy with the ordinary activity of a starship at rest. Officers and crewmen ate, talked, laughed and exchanged stories. For a moment, Ben simply watched them.
Then he looked back at Pike.
"I once knew of a man named Harry Hart, codename Galahad. He was a part of an independent international intelligence agency, the Kingsman."
Pike listened quietly.
"In Harry's home office, one of the walls was dotted with tabloid front pages. The news on every page was mundane, usually celebrity nonsense. The reason Harry kept them was because each tabloid cover corresponded to a major covert operation he had completed."
Ben smiled faintly.
"A silly headline about a soccer match marked the day he broke up an international spy ring. A celebrity puff piece marked a day he defused a dirty bomb."
He paused.
"No one beside his fellow agents knew about his accomplishments. Nobody ever thanked him for saving the world. And he was fine with that."
Ben leaned back.
"Harry didn't need public praise or recognition for doing the right thing. And neither do I."
Pike regarded him for a few seconds before slowly nodding.
"I will pass it up the chain of command. Is there anything I can do for you before I leave?"
Ben smiled softly. "I'm good."
Then he seemed to think of something. A grin slowly spread across his face.
"You know what, on second thoughts, there is something you can do. Although it's more for you than for me."
Pike raised an eyebrow.
"Name it."
Ben's grin became distinctly mischievous.
"You might wanna remove your uniform for that."
Pike looked at him curiously.
"Why?"
"It will be more fun that way."
---
An hour later
Starfleet Outpost, Delta Vega
The Starfleet outpost on Delta Vega was about as far from a luxurious assignment as a posting could get.
Inside one of the facility's enormous warehouses, piles of junked starship components, damaged equipment and discarded machinery were stacked in seemingly random arrangements. In the background sat an old shuttlecraft, almost completely concealed beneath a heavy tarp.
In the middle of the vast and depressing space stood a small table.
Montgomery Scott was asleep.
Or at least as asleep as a man could be on a half-empty stomach filled with nothing but Starfleet Protein Nibs and the promise of a real food delivery.
The disgruntled Starfleet officer had his legs kicked up on the table and was leaning back in his chair, a hat pulled down over his face.
Someone tapped his leg.
"Hm?"
Keenser, his diminutive assistant and companion, answered.
"Visitors."
Scott pulled down his hat and looked toward the entrance. Two humans stood there, one younger and one older, both dressed in winter gear.
At the sight of them, a wave of cool anger passed through Scott.
"You realize how unacceptable this is?"
Pike looked confused. "Excuse me?"
Ben merely smirked.
Scott pushed himself out of the chair.
"I'm sure it's no' your fault, and I know youse lads are just doing your jobs, but could you no' have come a wee bit sooner?! Six months I've been here, living on nothing but Starfleet Protein Nibs and the promise of a good meal. Six months, boys!"
He threw his arms outward.
"It's pretty clear what's going on here, isn't it? Punishment! Ongoing! For something that was clearly an accident!"
Pike looked at Ben.
Ben was still smiling. "This is Mr. Montgomery Scott."
Scott straightened.
"Aye, that's me. You're in the right place. Unless there's another hard-working, equally starved Starfleet officer around."
Keenser raised a hand.
"Me."
Scott immediately turned toward him.
"You shut up! You don't eat anything. You can eat like a bean, and you're done."
He looked back at Ben and Pike.
"I'm talking about food. Real food. But, you're here now, so thank you. Where is it?"
Ben smiled. He moved his empty hand behind his back. A second later, he brought it forward carrying a bag of food.
"Right here."
Scott stared at the bag.
"How did you do that?"
He looked at the food again.
"You know what? Never mind."
He snatched the bag from Ben and began rummaging through it.
"Ah yes! This is it!"
He pulled out a wrapped grilled cheese sandwich, tore away the wrapping and immediately took a bite.
Scott closed his eyes. A blissful moan escaped him.
"So good!"
Ben looked at Pike.
"Mister Scott postulated the theory of transwarp beaming."
Scott was still chewing.
"That's what I'm talking about."
He swallowed.
"How d'ya think I wound up here? I had a little debate with my instructor on the issue of relativistic physics and how it pertains to subspace travel. He seemed to think that the range of transporting something like a...like a grapefruit, was limited to about a hundred miles."
He took another bite.
"I told him that I could not only beam a grapefruit from one planet to the adjacent planet in the same system, which is easy by the way, I could do it with a lifeform! So, I tested it on Admiral Archer's prized beagle."
Scott grimaced.
"Which...was a mistake."
Pike looked at him.
"I know that dog. What happened to it?"
Scott swallowed.
"I'll tell ya when it reappears. I don't know."
His expression became somewhat more subdued.
"I do feel guilty about that."
Ben looked toward Pike.
"Despite Mr. Scott's little mishap with the Admiral's dog, his transwarp beaming theory is indeed correct. He just didn't have the proper equation that accounted for the relative motion of planets and ships."
Scott looked at Ben.
"I haven't been stationed here that long. If such an equation had been discovered, I'da heard about it."
Ben shook his head.
"The reason you haven't heard about it, Mister Scott, is because you haven't discovered it yet."
Scott stared at him.
"I'm a, uh, what... Are you from the future?"
"Parallel universe, actually." Ben smiled. "Allow me to introduce ourselves. I am Benjamin Carter, wizard, traveller, adventurer."
Scott stared at him skeptically.
"Did you just say 'wizard'?"
Ben gestured toward Pike.
"And this is Christopher Pike, captain of the USS Enterprise."
Scott turned toward Pike and his eyes widened. He looked at the sandwich in his hand, clearly unwilling to put it down. After a moment of indecision, he quickly shifted it into his left hand and saluted Pike with his right.
"Sir!"
Pike couldn't help but look amused.
"As you were."
Ben turned toward Pike.
"Mr. Scott is one of the most brilliant engineers in all of Starfleet. The Enterprise would be lucky to have him."
Pike nodded.
Ben then looked at the confused Scott.
"It is indeed possible to beam onto a ship that is travelling at warp speed, Mr. Scott. You just need the correct field equation. I don't know if this will help, but...think of space as the part that's moving."
Scott's facial expression passed through a whole sequence of emotions.
First confusion.
Then dawning comprehension.
Then disbelief.
And finally, unmistakable delight.
"Great Scott!"
---
A few minutes later, Ben stood alone outside the outpost, watching snow fall quietly through the darkness.
He had just sent Pike, a very surprised Montgomery Scott, and his assistant Keenser to the Enterprise through one of his portals. He had told Pike that he would be returning directly to Vulcan and had bid him goodbye.
But before opening a portal to his assigned room in Ambassador Sarek's home, there was something he needed to do...something he needed to check.
Ben walked away from the outpost for about a mile, putting sufficient distance between himself and the Starfleet facility.
He stopped. Then he took a deep breath.
Ever since he had awakened two days ago, he had been plagued by a nagging feeling. Something was different. He felt different. Stronger. Not just physically, but magically as well.
The Draconic Bloodline Evolution ritual had changed him fundamentally before.
Now, Ben felt as if something unfinished inside him had finally been completed.
He closed his eyes. Then he willed his transformation. His body began to change.
Bones shifted and expanded. Muscles restructured themselves. His limbs elongated as scales spread across his body. His form grew larger and larger until the fifteen-year-old wizard had disappeared completely, replaced by the massive golden dragon.
As the transformation completed, Ben felt something else.
Magic.
The energy of the universe itself seemed to rush toward him. It poured into his transformed body from the surrounding ether, flooding through his scales and sinking into his flesh.
The sensation was intoxicating.
It was like taking a deep breath of the clearest mountain air after living in a smog-filled city all your life. Or drinking a glass of cold water after suffering from eternal thirst.
Ben closed his eyes and savoured the sensation. For several moments, he simply stood there, allowing the energy to flow through him.
Eventually, he opened his eyes and looked down at himself.
He was right. He had changed.
Before, his dragon form had been approximately twenty metres long.
Now...
Ben estimated that he was roughly thirty-five metres from snout to tail.
His scales had changed as well.
They had once been pure gold. Now, delicate splashes of platinum traced the edges of his golden scales, catching what little light there was and giving his enormous form an almost regal appearance.
Ben flexed his claws. Magic poured into him from the surrounding ether, nourishing him and strengthening him.
But there was something else. Something far more powerful. He could feel it in his chest. A blazing furnace.
The sensation was unlike anything he had experienced before. The energy inside him seemed to burn with a power that was both magical and something else entirely.
Abandoning all restraint, Ben threw his massive head backward. And roared.
The sound shook the frozen landscape. Snow cascaded from nearby rock formations as the earth itself seemed to tremble beneath the force of the roar.
A blinding light erupted from Ben's throat. The light spilled through his open jaws, illuminating the snow around him.
His fire had once been golden-yellow. It wasn't anymore. After surviving the energy of a matter-antimatter annihilation reactor, his fire had changed.
A concentrated beam of brilliant Cherenkov blue erupted from his mouth, almost laser-like in its intensity. The beam pierced the clouds and shot into the heavens, illuminating the dark sky like a second sun.
For hundreds of miles around, the native predators of the frozen planet—fearsome beasts capable of terrifying even the bravest sentient species in the galaxy—fell silent. Every creature capable of understanding fear learned the same lesson.
A king of monsters had come to the frozen world.