archersline | Christopher Pike

When he got the order to investigate a rouge Star Fleet call signal, he wasn't really sure what to expect. All he could really do was expect the unexpected and hope for the best, which with the way things usually went for them, was asking quite a lot. The first relief was actually seeing a Star Fleet vessel - or at least one that bore the symbol and an appropriate naming scheme.

The design though - that wasn't anything he had ever seen before. And she had taken a hell of a beating from the looks of it. So that distress beacon wasn't fake, at the least. Through a bit of trail and error, it was determined that their comms were damaged in whatever had happened, so signals and old school coded messages was all they could manage. But it worked.

And after much deliberation and quite a few protests, he chose Spock and Bones to come with him to the ship - which by the looks of it was called Disocvery. Interesting. They could assess the damage better on the ship for who needed what, and if it was a threat. Though his gut told him it was no threat, but he had Sulu at the con, just in case. The man knew how to bluff.

At least the beaming went all right. There was that moment of the world right itself, puzzle pieces slamming back together rapidly, and then - he was inside the Discovery, meeting the faces of the transporter techs, all decidedly human and though the uniform was not what he was used to, the symbol was that of the Fleet.

"My name is Captain James Tiberius Kirk, U.S.S. Enterprise, of the United Federation of Planets. This is my First Officer, Spock, and my CMO Leonard McCoy," he said. "And I believe we were expected."

Investigating the red bursts of light had once again proven to be detrimental to the Discovery's health. Upon arriving to investigate the signal they had been immediately attacked by someone, the who Pike nor his crew hadn't really seen nor had he particularly cared to figure out the who at the time. All they had cared about was getting out of there, and it had been sheer luck that Stamets had gotten the Spore Drive up and running before the Discovery became swiss cheese in space. What they hadn't counted on was the unholy screeching and shuddering and otherwise eventful as hell ride that, at least in Pike's limited knowledge of the Spore Drive and it's travel, was not at all as it should be that followed.

Not only had they arrived somewhere in space, as it was at least still space and not a crash landing into some planet's surface or other, they were utterly lost as to where they were. Or at least that's what he managed to gather as he picked himself up from the floor and listened to his crew in the middle of conducting damage control cross the ship, and after he had managed to get that underway and figuring out the where of where they were, they managed to get a distress signal out and began the game of waiting. Not that waiting meant doing nothing, not with the thought of them not being at all in their own universe (which apparently was the second time for everyone but Pike, Nahn, Spock and Culber) and the repairs needed, but it was still really a waiting game.

Pike really couldn't be blamed at all when they got a message through finally to the one starship that came to check them out in his eagerness to do something. His eyes had landed on the design and the information they could get from their sensors, and his gut told him it was in fact, a Starfleet vessel, one that bore a striking resemblance to the Constitution-class ships and that put him a little more at ease. Familiarity was nice after all.

Finally getting across a message to decide to meet face to face with his counterpart was an interesting experience, but one they had somehow managed to get through and he was left picking his greeting crew relatively quickly. He couldn't take Michael, she was busy helping Stamets, Reno and Tilly getting the Spore Drive fixed and analyzing their entire situation, and while he could have kept Spock there with them, he felt better for having him at his side at this meeting, and Nahn wouldn't let him anywhere near the transporter room without her, not when dealing with an unknown. So, leaving the chair to Saru the trio had made it to the transporter room in time to see Kirk and his crew arrive.

There was that moment of silence as they looked each other over, assessing uniforms and insignia and the like and Pike was distinctly reminded of the fleet's new uniforms that Enterprise had in his counterparts design. Which made some sort of ironic sense when he heard the ship name from the captain, and he couldn't hide how his eyebrows rose up, nor he could imagine, could Nahn or Spock.

"Yes you were, Captain Kirk, welcome aboard the Discovery." Pike started as he looked between two versions of Spock with unhidden curiosity. There was some resemblance there and at least his version of Spock had a beard, so he had some ease in which to keep the two apart. "I'm Captain Christopher Pike, commanding officer of the Discovery and this is Commander Nahn, my chief of security and Commander Spock, one of my very best science officers."

Pike finally let his eyes settle on Kirk as he extended a hand out to shake Kirk's in greeting. "I'd ask why the Enterprise was so far out here looking for us, but I imagine a priority one distress signal gets a lot of notice, and we are very grateful for your arrival."

He took his first step down off the transporter, reaching for Pike's hand - only to stop, sucking in a breath. Behind him, he could feel Spock stiffen as well, both of them watching Pike with intense gazes. Spock kept his more flat, guarded, as any good Vulcan would. But Kirk's was unashamedly shocked, even a little distressed. McCoy, for his part, merely frowned deeply, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Ah, hell..." he muttered in that southern drawl of his.

The sound of McCoy snapped Kirk out of whatever shock he was experiencing, coughing before reaching forward and taking Pike's hand, giving a firm shake. "You'll forgive us, but we'll need to confirm that, Captain." His eyes drifted to the bearded Spock, glancing briefly back at his own, who leveled a look at Kirk that spoke volumes on its own for its coolness. "Though, I believe we have a few theories already, given the people currently in the room."

He looked to the transport technician, and back to Pike, holding back the emotional bubbling in his chest, the hotness at the back of his eyes and throat.

"Do we have somewhere private we may speak? McCoy is also available if your people need any medical attention. It looked like you guys had been through a rough ride."

That hesitation makes Pike narrow his eyes some, the following expressions on Kirk's face however make him raise his chin up. More in that way that anyone would, to show he wasn't bothered by the reactions his name brought about and he was just thankful Kirk shook his hand. Though when he glanced at his own Spock with his eyebrows raised, he wasn't to thrilled with the head tilt and brow raise there.

"If you feel the need for that, Captain, of course." He let go of Kirk's hand at that, taking a step back so Kirk and his crew could step down more onto the same level of deck at least. "Can't say that I blame you." At least not with the crew's running theories on what all had happened and where they were and such, he couldn't blame another crew being paranoid after all.

"And of course, we can use my ready room. Along the way, we can share what theories my own crew has devised as they've worked on repairs," and with that it was just as easy for him to start towards the door, but not without looking at McCoy first. "And if Dr. McCoy would like to assist Dr. Culber and the others, we would be thankful for any help we can get. We got dragged here in the middle of a battle and one of our main systems malfunctioned, and it's been a hell of a time."

Kirk motioned for McCoy to go and help, which the man was going to go and do anyways - as if Kirk needed to tell him. Bones would have headbutted him if he had tried to tell him different, a trait he admired in the man. He wasn't getting a bad feeling from the ship, so he suspected Bones would be fine. If they had really wanted to hurt them, they would have done it right when they stepped off the transporter and met them with weapons.

"You'll have to forgive my reaction, Captain Pike," Kirk said as they entered the situation room, glancing around as he did so in the surreptitious way of a captain, taking in everything. "You are... not whom I expected to find on this ship." If it was him, and so far he didn't have a particular reason to think that the man would be lying. Not with the other Spock there who was... well, not quite clearly Spock, but it was also a very odd name to just pick out of a hat.

"I think, perhaps, this might be easiest if you explain to us your version of events, including the date, to us," he suggested as he took a seat, Spock assuming the one beside him, naturally assuming control of the situation.

Pike only had to tilt his head towards McCoy for Nahn to take the hint and show the other man down to sickbay. He wasn't about to hold anyone away from where they felt they should be when on board his ship, and he wasn't about to turn away the helping hand of another doctor. If he had been worried about Kirk and his crew, or felt threatened he would have kept Nahn close and they all would have had phasers on them even if they weren't at the ready. As it was, Spock and himself were more than enough to be around Kirk and his Spock. He hoped anyway.

Entering Pike's ready room had him walking directly towards the panel on the wall, Spock taking a seat near to him. He didn't mind Kirk looking around, the room was set up to be open and frankly he would be surprised if Kirk didn't try to get a feel for the land as it were. "I will admit, Captain Kirk I had a moment of surprise at your own reaction. However, I will also admit you're not who I expected on board the Enterprise." So suspicion was expected, was what Pike meant.

As he rattled off the stardate and year of 2257 to Kirk and Spock, he pulled up a picture of the planet they had been over, where the signal had come from. "We were tracking a signal linked to a Red Angel that we have been pursuing. Upon arrival in system we found ourselves under immediate attack from an unknown force, and with Warp not being effective in our escape attempts," and here he glanced over at Spock to make sure he should fully mention everything and at the nod continued, "we activated this ship's Spore Drive. However between some mix of the attack, some malfunction and who knows what else, we ended up here." He spread his hands out in front of him to indicate Kirk and his Spock and everything else. "

Kirk and Spock listened patiently, letting Pike give them all the information. He sensed no lie in his worlds, and if he was trying to lie, it was a rather elaborate one. It would be hard to pull off in the long run, and this man didn't seem like a Harry Mudd - thank god. He took the picture that Pike slid over, but didn't immediately recognize it. He passed it to Spock, but he took did not seem to know much more about it.

"Well, I suppose first things first," Kirk began. "It seems you are a bit behind compared to us. The Stardate is currently 2264." It was not a massive jump, to be sure, but a lot could happen in a few years. And more than that... His gaze drifted to the other Spock sitting across from them, and he glanced at his own for a brief moment. This would probably be the quickest way to confirm his theory, though it would be painful - beyond the more obvious fact of Pike's presence at all.

"Mr. Spock," Kirk said, pausing for a beat as he gathered his words. "What is the current state of planet Vulcan?"

The more elaborate the lie, the more difficult it was to keep up. At least, in so far as it was Pike's experience and so why would he lie? Besides with his ship stuck in the middle of, wherever they were, he had no reason to. But he wasn't feeling much better when Kirk didn't recognize the planet, or at the fact that they were a few years behind them. Not that it was exactly encouraging, not with what they knew of the future and well time travel. Just time travel.

"That is, not so beyond belief when it comes to the year." Pike started before Kirk's words clicked in his head. Because that question about Vulcan, that was worrisome in and of itself if certain theories were correct. To brace himself, and give Spock some support he stayed standing and rested his hands on the back of his Spock's chair.

"At present, the planet Vulcan is still acting as a sitting member of the Federation, and is home to the Vulcan people." The accompanying eyebrow raise from Spock spoke to his confusion at the question.

Once again, Kirk shared a look with Spock, the two of them seeming to communicate without words for a beat before Kirk nodded gently to his companion.

"Planet Vulcan was destroyed, as of Stardate 2257," Spock said with Vulcan coolness. It was several years removed, though Kirk knew the incident still pained his friend, and the loss of his mother. New Vulcan was thriving, thanks to the leadership of Elder Spock (another great loss in recent years), but it did little to soothe the massive loss to the Vulcan people, and to the Federation as a whole. "Vulcans remain a part of the Federation, but we now reside on New Vulcan - with roughly ten percent of the surviving population."

Kirk let that sit between them all. Planet Vulcan had been destroyed early in the year of 2257. That it was still alive, still well - it could possibly be it simply hadn't happened yet, and Kirk hoped to go it was only an aberration of their own time stream. But he took it as proof enough that his theory was more and more correct. This ship, these people, were from another reality.

"I apologize for breaking it so bluntly," Kirk spoke softly. "But from what we can tell, based on interactions with Spock from another alternate universe, it is the major difference between us and other Federation realities."

While Pike didn't have to look to see his own Spock's reaction to that news, knowing Vulcan coolness would win over human emotion, his grip on the chair only tightened with one hand as he slipped the other down to squeeze Spock's shoulder briefly before replacing it on the chair. That was really the only support he could show Spock, both Spocks really, at the moment without causing insult. Later he would make sure he was fine, after of course gathering all the pertinent facts about who survived, how it happened and everything else surrounding it. Either heads would roll or he would be dealing with breaking the news to Michael as well, but he wouldn't do that without all the facts.

He only needed her breaking someone's nose once.

The fact that it had been destroyed in the same year as they had come from didn't sit well at all with Pike however. That didn't speak well to what the Red Angel could be guarding them from, what Control was willing to do to control the galaxy. Without knowledge of the how, well that was entirely pointless speculation.

"It's fine," Pike had to pause to clear his throat. "I can imagine that it is a rather large difference between realities, and it so far lines up to what we can tell is a different reality from our own. If I may ask, how did it happen?"

Kirk took up the story from there, sparing Spock that pain, though Spock would object to such a characterization of it. For now, Kirk did not tell the other Spock of Amanda's death. That would be for those two to discuss together, rather than laid bare before everyone, even if this particular audience was small.

"A Romulan named Nero, from a future many decades from now, blamed the Vulcans for failing to save Romulan from their star going super nova. He was away on a mining ship, but his wife and child were destroyed when the star went nova ahead of predictions. He went after Ambassador Spock's ship in his time, which was carrying a substance known as Red Matter at the time. The substance detonated, and created a wormhole. Nero came through and was able to gain hold of the Red Matter. His arrival caused a "thunderstorm in space" - and destroyed all Star Fleet vessels that responded before disappearing."

He swallowed, because is father had been among those destroyed. He didn't really have an attachment to the man - he was a memory in pages of history books and a few photographs. But even so, the thought of so much life lost...

"Nero resurfaced roughly twenty years later when Ambassador Spock dropped out of the wormhole. He wanted to make Ambassador Spock pay for what Nero saw as a betrayal and abandonment of his people. When the Fleet initially responded to another "thunderstorm", again, nearly all vessels were destroyed. About 1/3 of the Fleet. We attempted to stop Nero, but his ship was advanced - far more than ours, and we were already behind by the time we received the distress signals. Nero used the mining gear form his ship to drill a hole to the center of Vulcan, and dropped red matter into the center. This created a miniature black hole at the center of the planet. Essentially, it imploded. No trace remains."

He kept his gaze steady as he retold the account, though it was protracted. But he didn't feel the need to wax eloquent about the incident.

"I wish we could compare something more welcoming, but as I said - it seems to be the largest difference, and the easiest to confirm."

In the process of Kirk's story Pike had moved from standing behind Spock sitting down next to him. Not one to interrupt, especially not with a story as intense as he was being given he instead started to chew his bottom lip while he sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. This entire story was, frankly, insane to hear. Time traveling Romulans? A large enough mining ship to bore out the middle of Vulcan and miniature black holes?

There was a reason Pike was a captain versus a scientist, the science of this entire incident was far to difficult for him to grasp. The impact of the events though, those wouldn't stop nagging at him. Losing Vulcan meant losing a founding member world of the Federation, and even if her people still existed on a different world, well that sort of impact wasn't ever missed across the galaxy. Losing a third of the fleet sounded familiar, but he was fully aware of how thin the fleet was at present for him in his time and that wasn't involving an entire incident with a mad Romulan miner.

"That is a significant difference in our realities." And a glance at Spock, who was still as stone faced as ever but at least had inclined his head to show he was still, in fact, paying attention was enough for Pike to continue. "And one that I can confirm has not happened in ours. Instead, we have been facing a Red Angel, a time traveling person from the future out to combat an AI program, called Control, gone rogue from the future." Which he hoped was proof enough of that difference, but the impact of Vulcan's loss was still enough to rattle Pike.

“I can confirm there are no issues with Control and as far as I know, we’ve had no mention of a being called the Red Angel in any available reports,” Kirk confirmed, sitting back in his chair and letting out a soft sigh. His eyes drifted over to the windows, to the stars so familiar and strange. What must they look like to these people, even further from home?

Spock coughed and got his attention, and he considered his friend. He knew what the other was getting at. The elephant in the room for them both. The face speaking to them. It would be something the man would find out anyways as this was reported to command and they decided what to do with their visitors.

“There is one other thing you should prepare yourself for, Captain,” Kirk said slowly, choosing his words as he went. “I think it best you hear it now, as I’m sure command will have more than a few questions about it, and want confirmation, as we asked for.”

He took a breath, steeling himself. Slowly he met Pike’s gaze, resolute, though there was pain there, a welling of emotion tightly controlled.

“Stardate 2258 - Admiral Christopher Pike, formerly Captain of the USS Enterprise, is declared dead, buried with full honors.”

The confirmation that there was in fact, no Control or Red Angel here was enough to make Pike relax, even just slightly. That meant they could attempt to relax, as much as anyone could in an unknown reality so far from home at least. What it all really represented was just that, one problem at a time and Pike could handle that once all the initial hurdles of arriving here were overcome.

The lull in the conversation, even for a moment before it was interrupted by the cough from this reality's Spock was enough to let Pike look out at the stars again. He'd heard from some of the crew, how this reality wasn't at all like the one Lorca came from, at least in that it was actually the same brightness as theirs. It wasn't some dark and dreary place, and just perhaps that meant they might have a chance at surviving it and going home to try and save their own future. Spock's cough however, was enough to make Pike look at his own Spock with some amusement, eyebrow raised and a slight smile. Just how those two behaved, how they acted around each other it honestly also gave Pike hope for the Enterprise here and that it might just be in good hands, after all Spock hadn't yet led Pike astray with his logic.

Then of course, that smile was quickly gone when Kirk started to speak, and he heard the pain in his voice as well as the words. Dead. He was dead? And with full honors so clearly that meant it was in the line of duty. If he were anyone else, he would think the emotions running across his face would be amusing, from shock to doubt to pain to worry, and he was once again thankful for Spock being there to pick up the slack when it came to verbalizing someone's thoughts as he was unable to speak at the moment.

"Which is why you asked for a private meeting, to insure that the Captain Pike here at present is indeed him."

"Yes. And also because that's not exactly news you just shout over comms now is it?" Kirk's mouth twitched in a wry sort of smile. His gaze took in Pike, a depth of feeling there that managed to leak through the starlight blues. He swallowed. "For what it's worth, I do believe you are who you say you are. You don't quite look like the Pike I knew, but you... share a similar energy. An honesty." His hands on the desk squeezed, keeping himself in control as he kept that smile on Pike.

"For however long you stay, I know this universe will be better for having a Christopher Pike back on her shores."

He coughed and shifted, setting his shoulders back.

"The Enterprise will help the Discovery as much as she can. If you need to transfer anyone over for additional medical attention, we will make the room, and escort you back to nearest Federation colony - which I think your ship can manage. Earth is a bit out of range in the current state of your ship, but the colony should have the necessary abilities to repair her. I will personally vouch for you all, but Command will most likely want a more exact debrief. And your people can get some much needed rest and time to process, I'm sure."

Pike almost wanted to point out they could have asked how he was alive, it's not as if he hadn't heard similar reactions from Discovery's crew in regards to Georgiou and her reappearance after, well everything. The crew honestly would have taken it in much better stride then he himself had, if only because people reappearing from the dead and alternate universes seemed to be their bread and butter and he was just a poor, lonely old deep space explorer with a record to make everyone jealous.

The fact that his thoughts went that way as opposed to something more serious was perhaps the first clue Pike had that he was feeling that all too familiar pressure of his own accomplishments. He rarely saw himself as some large, important figure really, to himself he was just Christopher Pike, Starfleet Captain. Katrina had been the one to really drive home just how different his views, his actions, really were in comparison to his fellow officers and to hear this young man say the galaxy would be all the better for having him around? Well, if he was one for ego stroking he would be having a massive head right now.

So really all the response he has for Kirk is a very humble, "Thank you." For his words and a promise to himself to figure out just what all sort of impact he had on both the young men from this universe in front of him. But then it was right back to business and he nodded, sitting back and drumming his fingers on the table as he thought. This wasn't going to be an easy debriefing, not if Starfleet Command was anything at all like the one back home, worried and paranoid from an all to recent war and infiltration from Klingons and Mirror Universe counterparts. At least time at a colony would give them all a chance to recover and brace themselves, or at least as best they could for being so far from home.

"I will let Dr. Pollard and Dr. Culber decide if they need to transfer anyone over to the Enterprise. I'm sure they'll appreciate the help, in whatever way they can receive it." He leaned further back for a moment and nodded to himself as he continued. "And your plan sounds as good as any. Though I am sure that Command will come knocking if we take our time, so I'm not sure how much rest and time to process we will all get." But the offer was appreciated all the same.

“I can keep the wolves at bay while we travel at a pace your ship can handle.” He smiled again, this time the cocky grin of a young captain, his eyes sparking. “They owe me that much for saving the galaxy, again.” The look Spock had beside him was very near rolling his eyes - as close as a Vulcan might get anyways. Kirk just continued to look pleased with himself as he glanced at his Number One. “What? We might as well play off the good will while I still have it.”

Which seemed to signal the end of the meeting as both men rose. They shook hands with Pike and the other Spock, and after a quick conversation over the comms, it was determined that McCoy would remain on the ship to help with the injured and his slightly more advanced Medical supplies. That he was his usual growly, quippish self suggested he had seen nothing suspicious while they were talking, which soothed Kirk’s nerves further.

Questions still rattled his brain, a million at a time. He had wanted to ask them all in the meeting, to reach out and really touch the man who said he was Pike, whom he believed was a Pike. But there was a mission right now - get this ship to safety. He needed to complete that mission, and his personal desires could come after. But god it had been hard not to cry, to bleat out all the apologies and the sorries he had kept inside after the attack. Blaming himself for many years, even now. This Pike could not offer him absolution, he knew that. But it still felt like a small chance, a new chance to get closure.

Spock had merely squeezed his shoulder as they rode back up to the deck, and he gave his number one a grateful smile before returning to business as they stepped onto the command deck, barking his orders to get ready to guide the Discovery to Yorktown.

That bit of travel, at least, was uneventful, though he liked to think that the sight of Yorktown would prove impressive to their new residents (and he was sure Sulu would be excited to get time with his family again, he could see the man shifting slightly in his seat in that way that indicated his excitement over something).

Calls to Command were made, explaining the situation. There was disbelief, but also a sort of resignation over believing it to be true because of who he was. He had a habit and reputation of bringing these sorts of things to their doorstep after all. He requested a short shore leave for his own people as well, and repairs to his ship, minor though they were. Might as well while they were here, after all. Transports were dispatched, and Kirk along with his upper command team went to meet them, along with those of the Discovery. Debriefs all around before shore leave, of course. An annoyance, but more or less routine for Kirk himself.

By the time Pike would be released from his, Kirk was waiting outside of Yorktown HQ, dressed down in his civies - white T-shirt, leather jacket, jeans, boots. He would never admit he had been waiting there for the better half of Pike’s debriefing, almost nervously pacing. Most people thought he was awaiting his lover by the cute smiles he kept being shot. It felt almost that nerve wracking, the barrier of a mission removed, nothing to brace himself against as he prepared to meet Christopher Pike for the second time that day.

The eyebrow raise from both Spock and Pike at Kirk's comment about saving the galaxy, and the overall cockiness of the statement, was perhaps a sign the two had been around each other far to long. Or that perhaps, Kirk was a change of pace from the sorts of crew and officers they had been dealing with all to recently, and that neither man was certain of how to handle it. Tilly at least was a proven entity in regards to how to be handled, but a young, cocky captain with a (supposed) habit of saving the galaxy was new.

Either which way, it was something to be considered when they had a moment to think about things. It most certainly was not to be handled as they were ending the meeting and shaking hands with their counterparts and figured out if their CMO was staying or leaving. The fact that McCoy was staying just seemed further proof that they weren't deemed a threat or that this universe was out to spy on them, but that was again, worries for when they weren't face to face with them. Which truly wasn't so much later as one would think, as soon as Kirk and Spock were off the ship Pike was already calling a meeting for all senior staff to have a long discussion of what he had just learned. It seemed only fair to discuss those differences and inform them all of what precisely was going on, after all Discovery was home to some of the most brilliant minds of Starfleet and if they couldn't understand it then there was a problem.

The fact that the problem still made his head hurt after Saru, Michael and Stamets had explained the whats and hows to him of how it happened was probably proof enough that it was, in fact, real and not a dream. So while the crew of the Enterprise was handling Command for them as they set out for Yorktown, Pike was handling his crew and how they were going to handle being in this universe, this reality for however long it took. Which, according to Stamets could be far, far to long for Pike's liking. So the odd feeling in his gut about being in a reality where he was dead and had just run into a ship full of people who seemed to look up to him wasn't going to go away anytime soon.

By the time the orders from Command, this version of Command at least, had come for debriefings of not only Pike himself, but all his senior staff, they had a plan of attack in how to handle things. Truthfully of course, along with the promise of shore leave for his crew and repairs to his ship but of course, only with the promise of Discovery crew to help repair the engines and spore drive. His staff, and those of the Enterprise had seemed to go before him, and Pike wasn't certain if he should be flattered or not in the uncertainty of Command in how to handle a dead man.

The fact that his debriefing didn't only appear to be not only the last but perhaps longer than he expected, well that wasn't a surprise. The fact that he didn't recognize the officers in the debriefing was a bit of a let down he would admit (what he wouldn't have given to see this universe's Admiral Cornwell, at least she would have some sense and sensitivity to things) but not something he could expect to be in his control. However, the fact that he was not only questioned about himself, his crew, his ship but also apparently the death of his other self, the one from their reality and how in which he could prove he was not, in fact, an imposter posing as Christopher Pike of Mojave, California, former commanding officer of the Enterprise and Commandant of Cadets of Starfleet Academy.

DNA was given, as were fingerprints and a full on account of the five year mission he had only just gotten back from. Talos IV was even brought up, as was Rigel VII and if Pike was a bit terse about those topics he couldn't be blamed, nor could he be blamed for explaining why he had not participated in the Klingon War. In truth, it was an utterly exhausting debriefing and by the time he had left it he had every intention of heading back to his own ship and either running it off by running laps with what few trainees from the Command Track program were still on board or enjoying a few quiet drinks by himself and bemoaning the lack of Philip Boyce and his excellent bartending skills. He had just started to undo the collar of his jacket and brush back his hair as he headed outside into the fresh air when he saw Kirk, dressed down as if he was already on leave and the age old habit of looking presentable for his crew came back and he started to fix his collar.

"You look nervous." The pacing really was key in that and even if he was exhausted he wasn't blind.

He knew it would take the longest for Pike. It always took the longest for Captains, and how could it not? They were, after all, the ones in charge. Even so, it seemed to take longer than usual. This he should have expected too. Command would no doubt still be jumpy after what happened with Krall barely a year ago, the ramifications of that encounter still rippling through the Federation. To suddenly have a man back from the dead - and not in the way Kirk had come back - along with a ship that there had never been record of with a whole crew aboard.. Yes there would be questions. No doubt the Discovery would be in lock down while she was examined and it was decided what was to be done with her and her people.

Kirk was sure Command would be fair, though. And he would argue heavily for that. Star Fleet was not in the habit of punishing the innocent, after all.

"And you look like you need a drink," Kirk paused to watch the man approach, his mouth twitching at watching him button his jacket back up. The thing had to be strangling the man. Kirk hated jackets like that - it was why he hated the formal uniform. Even his survival jacket he had left mostly open when he had to wear it. "And like you could use something comfortable to change into."

He knocked Pike's chest with the back of his hand in a friendly way and nodded his head towards the city.

"Come on. And we're off duty, man, unbutton your jacket. I know I hate it when they make them go that high." He wrinkled his nose and started walking towards the street, raising his hand to flag down a taxi vehicle.

The fact that he had been told, rather firmly, that Discovery would be analyzed heavily by Intelligence as well as Command before he and his crew would be allowed back on board her hadn't sat well at all with him. If not because of himself, he had barely scratched the surface of the Crossfield-class ship in his time on board her, but because of how the crew would react. Stamets especially, and he should probably touch base with Saru to make sure Stamets hadn't started a war with Starfleet over the ship. Or Reno, really he couldn't ignore her being on board either and her special breed of handling people. Or really any one of his crew and a typical Starfleet officer attempting to handle them.

If he came back to his crew not in the middle of a silent feud with the Starfleet investigators he would be surprised.

The jacket itself wasn't necessarily strangling, but it was one of those little things that made him up into a Captain throughout the day. Collar buttoned, jacket zipped up, everything straight and impeccable and ready to uphold the basic tenants of the Federation and his crew. But after today? It was certainly strangling him with what all he had just left behind and what all he had yet to do. Kirk's knock to his chest and comment was enough to make him go back to unbutton the collar and unzip it, enough to feel a little more free.

"I've been through debriefings before, but that was something," because really how else do you describe explaining your entire life to people that knew a different version of himself? "I have to admit, I'm jealous of how you all seem to be lacking in jackets and collars in your uniforms. And here I thought the new ones we got aboard the Enterprise were something different."

He wasn't about to argue about drinks or a change of clothes, Kirk didn't seem the sort to let him go easily. Not especially if he had waited around for him to finish, so following him to wait for a taxi vehicle wasn't really something to argue over. It would feel good to let go of being a Captain for a minute and try to get a grasp of this reality. It wasn't as if he didn't have his communicator on him and they couldn't get a hold of him.

They slid into the back of the taxi, Kirk inputting the address for the apartment he was afforded as a Star Fleet officer. There was a campus for lower officers, of course, kept for those visiting like themselves while permanent residents kept their own houses and apartments elsewhere. As a Captain, he was granted use of an upper level set of apartments that were large and a bit better outfitted than those of lower officers, much like on the ships. He kept his own personal apartment on Earth, but here it was more economical just to use Star Fleet's facilities since they rarely stopped for very long.

He handed Pike a small hand-sized tablet. "Go ahead and order whatever clothes you like. The delivery address is already in there, so just hit buy when you're done. And don't worry about cost."

He smiled gently at the older man. "I hope you like scotch. It's a favorite of mine, and what I had stocked up at the apartment."

It was odd to be stuck on a (new to him) space colony, in a more furnished location for a time that would probably be longer than the average away mission. Pike would admit that being stuck on a space colony for an undetermined length of time was more than likely going to drive him insane, especially if they kept him off of Discovery until they were done with their investigations. Suffice to say, it was all concerns for future Pike, the one that wasn't at present in a vehicle with a younger man who looked at him as if he was a gift from god.

Entering the apartment had Pike finishing unzipping his uniform jacket and taking the offered tablet, with an eyebrow raise. If he wasn't him, who had sense when it came to clothing, he probably would utterly ruin the poor man's bank account. "You are oddly trusting of a man you just met."

But then he followed it with a smile and a shrug as he scrolled through the tablet, picking out comfortable clothes for himself. "Scotch is fine, though I can hear my CMO on the Enterprise now judging me for my lack of ambition when it comes to drinks." Boyce would be teasing him about now for not having a martini or some other concoction of his own design with whatever was present. If the smile on his face turned a little melancholy it was for good reason.

Edited 2019-04-22 04:00 (UTC)

"Perhaps. But I'm pretty good at judging people, and you don't seem like a bad sort."

He shrugged off his own jacket and hung it up. The apartment itself was fairly high up with a nice view, and spacious. Not as large as his apartment in San Francisco, but he couldn't take to much advantage of Star Fleet. A living space, a kitchen, a bed big enough for two - or one to sprawl comfortably - and a balcony with a full bathroom. He'd had his record player brought over from the Enterprise, and a quick tap on his tablet had gentle classical music rolling through the apartment - quietly, though.

"On the rocks or straight?" he asked Pike, going to get out the bottle he had procured and two glasses.

Quarters for officers on colonies or even stations back home weren't nearly so spacious, so to that Pike had to give it to them in this reality. At least Starfleet seemed to try to take care of their own, to some extent. The temptation to take his jacket off and stretch out in a chair won out over attempting to keep up a large amount of his guard and looking professional and soon enough his blue and gold jacket was hung up before he sat down and finished his order for clothes.

"Straight, if you don't mind." And he only kept his eyes open long enough to watch Kirk for a minute before leaning his head back and closing them. "Do you keep the bottle on board ship for yourself or is this all locally sourced for officers?"

Any office stationed out here or out this far had been in space awhile - it was just a fact of the position of the colony. The enlarged size was probably a way to soothe already frayed nerves from being in the tight spaces of the ship for so long, and while Yorktown did support a civilian population, it was by and large a Federation outpost. They could afford to take up a bit more room.

"A man after my own heart," he chuckled, pouring them both simple straight glasses. He liked his that way too, and his scotch. He placed one down in front of Pike and sat beside him, leaning back in his chair, but didn't immediately drink. "This one is for me, but the Enterprise has her own bar, and we keep it as well stocked as we can. Sometimes we do go a bit long between resupplies. Star Fleet is generous with these places to sleep, but not that generous. We have to handle food and drink ourselves."

He shrugged and sipped from his class, looking towards Pike for a moment as he did.

"Look, I... I know this must be difficult - all of this. It's a lot, I'm sure," he started, turning the glass in his hand slowly. "Even harder, when there's someone else, another you, that was already around in this universe. I was shocked when you first said your name, and I'm sure I might have said some things, and Command too, that put pressure on you. While I am glad that there is a Christopher Pike here again, I'm not a little kid. I know you're not him - my Pike. I've made my peace with his passing, and I would never expect you to be him." His class turning stopped. "So to that end, I would very much like the chance to get to know you, Christopher Pike."

The questions may seem odd to Kirk, as trivial and basic as they were but they were Pike's way of figuring out the little differences. This wasn't the mirror reality he had been briefed about in regards to Lorca (nor the one in which he suspected Georgiou hailed from) and it was so similar to his own that he had to keep reminding himself that it wasn't. So really finding those little differences, like Yorktown and how this Enterprise had a bar on board and this young James Kirk was in command of his ship and Vulcan was no longer in one piece, it helped remind him he was the outsider here. He'd learn to adapt to it all, but first he had to know.

He also had to give all the credit in the world to Gabriel Lorca for pulling the wool right over everyone's eyes for so long.

Taking his drink though he did manage to sit up and actually watch Kirk with more curious eyes then not. In this universe, in this case, he was far more open to learning about the people and not imposing change on those around him or, at least at the moment, reminding the young man next to him that he was not in fact his Christopher Pike. The sip he took as Kirk started to talk was probably proof enough of the pressure he felt from all sides at the moment, as it was a rather large one then he normally would have. "It's nothing I'm not used to walking into recently, the expectations of everyone around me and the pressure." He made sure to clarify as he turned to really give Kirk a better look over as he talked, a bit of a smile on his face. "And I would very much like to take you up on that offer, James Kirk, at least so long as we have the time to."

And he even offered Kirk his hand to shake.

"I think we might have a bit of that, as it were," he smiled and took the hand, giving it a firm shake and a gentle squeeze. "At the least we have this evening, and quite frankly your ship won't be in any shape to do anything for a bit. Nor mine, actually. I'm glad inspecting your signal turned out to be a fairly simple inspect and retrieve mission."

He shook his head, tossing back his drink and pouring another one, leaning back in his chair. He looked too Pike.

"Please tell me you're just a simple inspect and retrieve mission - outside of your universe-jumping. We just saved the universe last year, we don't need to be doing it again so soon."

Pike couldn't help the wince at Kirk's comment about having time, because that seemed his lot in life when he met new crews. His ship needed repair and of course ship was the one out of commission for weeks while he was on some other one carrying on like business as usual. "No, I expect she won't be going out anytime soon. Hopefully it's not nearly as bad as what happened before I was transferred to Discovery." Where the Enterprise was just now starting to get her legs under her.

Which really was just a prompt to finish off his own drink and then reach over to pour himself a new one as well while Kirk continued talking. The consequent draining of his freshly poured glass to only half full was probably the biggest indicator of just how bad things were back home for him.

"Our universe jumping was completely unintentional. So unless Control and the Red Angel magically appear here," and weirder things had happened in his life so nothing would surprise him, "your mission should stay a standard inspect and retrieve." He tiled his head back and once again emptied his glass, but this time he didn't pour himself another. "At least for the moment." Until his crew inevitably probably started something or other.

"Ah yes, that special caveat - for now," he shook his head again and laughed softly as he watched the other man. "You sound like you end up in a lot of interesting situations."

His question sounds less curious and more like a statement framed in a curious sort of way. He motions for Pike to come with him as he rose and took the bottle, heading for the softer comfort of the couch and a wall of windows, looking out onto the colony, and beyond it the stars.

"Mind if I put on some music?" he asked, pausing at his record player.

"That's the nature of Starfleet, isn't it? Adventure, exploration and turning grey." He gave Kirk a grin and a laugh back as he stood up to follow him to the couch and the view it presented. Which really only turned the grin into a soft smile as he looked out at the stars.

"Go ahead, just not Kacellian opera." He couldn't help the wince at that. "I don't think your windows could handle it."

"Hopefully not for a little bit yet," he touched his golden fluff a little protectively, looking to Pike and smiling. "Though you pull it off very well, so maybe it won't be so bad."

His gaze softened, seeing Pike smile at the view. He knew this man was not his Pike. He had been turning that over and reminding himself of it and coming to terms with it. He was not his Pike. Would never be the Pike who had given him his chance, set him on this path. And that - that was okay. He didn't want another Pike like the one he had. That would only dilute what he'd shared with the Pike of his world.

This new Pike was just that - new. He shared a name, probably a somewhat similar past, but he wasn't this universe's Pike. He never would be. And that was as it should be.

He set the needle to the board and smiled as the classic tones of Panic! at the Disco drifted out - set to a low volume of course, so they could talk. He would have preferred the Beastie Boys, but they were rather fringe and not to everyone's taste and seemed to aggressive for the moment.

"I'm a glutton for punishment, but I am not a masochist," he scoffed at Pike, settling on the couch beside the other man. He frowned gently at him. "Who in the world has subjected you to Kacellian opera?"

Edited 2019-04-29 03:57 (UTC)

"As I so recently reminded someone, at least I still have hair, so count your blessings." He tipped his glass at Kirk as he said that, watching the younger man touch his hair and settle on the couch.

At least for the moment he could ignore the fact that he was from a different universe and pretend he was just getting to know the next up and coming captain of Starfleet. Nothing he hadn't done before he had left on his five year mission, in fact he had often ended up the mentor of a number of rising stars around the fleet and he was perfectly fine with that. So, if he approached Kirk and Spock and this universe like that, but of course knowing he lacked in critical information, he might actually make it out of all of this okay, at least until he made it back home somehow.

Somehow of course being the operative word, because that all hinged on something about the spore drive and mycelleium and things Stamets had babbled at him rather quickly before they had all been dragged to their respective debriefings. Mushroom travel, the galaxies most complicated piece of engineering.

As the music hit his ears though, he shook his head some at the classic. Not really his usual but he also wasn't one to be overly picky, and so he couldn't scowl at Kirk for his choice. The sigh though, that was perhaps a little over dramatic, at least in regards to Kirk's question.

"I've known most of my senior staff on the Enterprise, my version of her at least, for a number of years, and at one point I made the mistake of getting drunk while on an away mission during our five year mission." So it wasn't too long ago really, in the grand scheme of things for him. "To be fair, it was during a diplomatic dinner with a new planet. Apparently it was bad enough for me to cut out early and leave Number One on her own to finish the discussions and she changed my alarm to Kacellian opera as payback for my, abandoning her to the company of Dr. Boyce."

To which Phil had been horribly insulted and Pike had nursed a hangover the entire day after being so rudely awakened because of the somehow perceived insult of leaving the two of them alone (Pike called bullshit on the entire thing and honestly just thought she did it because it meant he had managed to get out of the diplomatic talks early and she hadn't exactly been thrilled with the planets people).

Kirk pressed a hand to his mouth and laughed, watching Pike with shining eyes as he soaked up the story. It sounded like something he might have done. Had probably done. There had been a lot of incidents, and Bones, at least, was not above getting back at him. Spock might not see the point in it, or maybe he would someday, and then he really would be in for a world of hurt he was sure. He didn't want to know how clever a Vulcan could be at revenge.

"Well, I can't actually say you didn't deserve it," he chortled, hiding the rest of his laughter behind a drink.

Pike had served with both Una and Boyce for far to long to not have a long running list of stupid things they had done to one another. Spock had yet to be dragged into it all, he was to young and logical and the three of them had somehow decided he would enter into their shenanigans if and when he felt ready. The rest of his crew? They had a running pool on such incidents. Not that of course, he was at all aware of such things.

The laugh though, that's what he had been after from sharing the story. Break the ice so to speak and really to stop dwelling on things that were different. "I would say I didn't. Not at least the consequent negotiations while I was hungover and she was allowed to stay on the ship with all the knowledge of what we had discussed the night before." Lesson learned: Don't piss off Number One. Not that he hadn't known it already, but the lesson was always, always better relearned.

Young and logical - a rather odd combination fo words, but Vulcans were odd creators. Especially a half-Vulcan. But Kirk liked to think that he and Spock had grown together, feeding off each other into the men they had become and were yet becoming. He couldn't have made it near so far without him, after all. Thankfully, he never seemed to partake took heavily in the shenanigans of the crew, though Kirk noted he really never did much to curb them either...

"Guess your Number One got things very smoothed out the night before. I'm not sure Spock would trust me to handle that hungover without tucking in the corners, so to speak, the night before," he shook his head. "There was, one time though, that instead of getting my physical in the medbay, I somehow convinced Bones to let me show him I was fit doing some gymnastics. It somehow turned into a near ship wide spectacle."

From Spock, his very Half-Vulcan science officer to Michael, his very much Vulcan raised science officer, Pike had learned that young and logical made an odd but fascinating combination. Typically it resulted in a lot more laughter at someone's expense and a lot of dry remarks, not enough to indicate any sort of inclination towards hijinks but enough to show to Pike at least a sense of humor. Which really, was all he could ask for in somebody on his crew.

"She's good at that, smoothing things over that the rest of us tend to get ourselves stuck in." He couldn't help the moment to chew on his bottom lip at Kirk's choice in words, because he couldn't imagine a time where he didn't have Boyce or Number One around to help harass cadets and junior officers with. But it was Kirk's own story that made Pike smile. "Gymnastics? I can just imagine how much of a sight you were for your crew."

Kirk caught the chewing of his lip, finding it curious. Not for the fact Pike did it, but that Kirk shared a similar tick. A curious thing, a small thing to file away, because he had never noticed his own Pike doing that sort of thing. So many new things to learn, but then, it was a whole new person, after all.

"It did become something of a spectacle," he admitted, and then chuckled. "But we needed it. We'd had a rough time of it not longer before. And while I truly did want to get out of Bones' unique ministrations, giving the crew something to smile at was a very happy bonus."

"Rough times are something Starfleet crews tend to attract, at least the best ones." Because he had to try and lighten the mood a little, because even with their own antics in the midst of them all, rough times always spelled worries about crew, about family. Plus if he thought of his crew as family, he could only imagine what this universes Pike was like and well, again, a path he wasn't sure he was ready to follow.

"I'm glad you could give your crew some happy times. Deep space missions, for all they can be boring at times amidst discoveries, they take a toll." The waiting and then the rushing for the discovery, and of course the inevitable breakdowns for being so far away from home and having to figure out some way to fix it. There was always something going on and it always seemed to pile up at the worst times. "Ever had the pleasure of teaching cadets in the Command Training Program on your bridge?"

He shook his head. "Well, not in recent years. But my five year mission keeps me out here and we don't go in to Earth's sphere very often. Because of that, it's hard for us to transfer crew in and out, and most of my crew has been with me for awhile - I don't get very many new transfers, unless.... well, nevermind. And honestly, I think before now, I wouldn't have made a very good Captain for them to learn under."

He rubbed the back of his neck and looked down at his drink.

"If I'm honest with myself, they gave me the chair way to early, and I was far to eager to accept. I didn't really understand that responsibility when I first took it, and that lack of understanding caused a lot of damage. Now, though, if anyone would be interested, I would welcome it. I'm sure there are some cadets here and on Earth interested - or scared off forever by the last stunt I pulled. We'll find out."

What he had been expecting had been an answer full of bravado, if only because that seemed to be how not only young captains were but just how Jim Kirk seemed to style himself. What he got instead was a pleasant surprise and he can't help but feel sympathy for the younger man as he talks. It's all to familiar pain, what he's talking about.

"It's the ones that are unsure I tend to see thrive in teaching people. I can't imagine that Discovery's crew was at all pleased at first to get cadets aboard, but they all seem to be thriving, both the cadets and officers." It's meant to try and soothe Kirk but he's not sure if it would help or not, but the effort was made. "As to your latest stunt," and here he leaned toward Kirk, "I've always found there are those that will misinterpret things to their own ends. Whether for hero worship or to condemn. Self-reflection is the worst thing possible for anyone's confidence, as is false flattery, but I think you would find the chance rewarding. Teaching tends to make one think things through and reflect, and prove to others why you deserve that ship out there."

He was quiet for a long moment after Pike finished speaking, watching him. Finally, he took a steadying breath and he laughed, taking a bigger gulp of his drink.

"Sorry. Sorry, you just - you sounded a lot like him just then," he smiled, and took another breath, getting up to refresh his drink, motioning for Pike to hand him his glass as he passed. "That's not a bad thing either! I - I'm glad, I think. It's good to know that you have a good soul too."

Christopher Pike | Open Post

The Discovery Lands in AOS-verse

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cheese and crackers life needs to chill

it happens <3