Into Benjiro – 21003.01

By Ensign Tiguaq

My eyes stung. They dared to prevent me from beholding my goal on the viewer, but it wasn't their fault, it was from the fever. My body was weakening, giving up on me, but I knew we would make it. Only a few thousand kilometres left....

A scream sounded from behind me, I turned and saw another officer fall. Drayton had a wonderful mind for science, but she couldn't comprehend our mission. A tragedy I was becoming used to. So few of us understood what we were meant to accomplish, and why my duties to Starfleet, to the ship and her crew were forcing this on me. I felt the heat from a phaser beam almost directly over my head, watching as it burned a hole into the viewer.

“Course correction: bearing 213 mark 12.” I commanded hoarsely.

More mutineers were pouring onto the bridge, a look behind me revealed that my loyal crew were becoming fewer and fewer.

“Lock those coordinates! Choose a code only you would know!” I shouted with difficulty to Hasley, who could not force the words out to acknowledge; she nodded instead.

We were all sick, but moments away from the cure. Those who had met the aliens with me understood this, the others could not. It was more than a cure... it was pure unadulterated harmony, for the entire crew... for the entire galaxy. True serenity exists. I felt it then it its pure form, but I knew it wouldn't last; I had to bring us there to make it eternal.

Our Federation claims to stand for peace, justice, serenity for all... as if we'd invented these concepts ourselves. The Federation understands its own limitations, that's why we have our policies and directives, protecting our values but dooming us to a role of galactic referees. I would have never found true peace on my own because I was never looking for it! It had to have been shown to me as it was by the aliens who had discovered it, in its pure form ages before us. Was it not my duty then, as a Starfleet captain, to seek out this harmony for my ship? To pass this wonderful discovery on to the worlds and races of the Federation? Everything we wanted was right there in front of us, as promised. We needed only to reach out and grasp.

I forced fog from my mind, and rose from my chair. The physical pain from the sickness was intense, but the aliens had told us it was a natural part of the process. My body was dying, but only because it knew the truth. Soon I wouldn't need it anymore. None of us would.

I turned to meet the mutineers, who were killing their way onto the bridge.

“Embrace this truth!” I shouted with all my heart. “We're heading for paradise!” I reminded them all.

I heard no reply other than shouts of scorn and damnation of my actions from many of those who did not understand as they forced their way past the last of my enlightened few.

I retched from the sickness, but forced myself to grab my phaser. A crack-shot from lieutenant Huong's phaser tore a hole in my left shoulder, forcing my weapon to the ground. There was no pain, only a glow emanating from the viewer behind me as we approached our destiny. Despite the lack of pain however, my body responded as it was used to: I fell hard on my hip and involuntarily clutched my shoulder. We were much closer now... the red glow from the star on screen was bathing the entire bridge in a right light, intensifying with each second. “There is no need for killing! Death is irrelevant now! We will all soon be truly part of the universe! We will become peace! We will become the reason we joined Starfleet!!”

The man who was once my best security officer fired another well trained shot at Lieutenant Hasely, knocking her to the floor and sealing our fate. She alone held the code that locked us into a collision course with the star. The Benjiro star as the aliens instructed us to call it.

“Take us in Lieutenant Hasely!” I shouted as her body made the sacrifice.

Killing us wouldn't stop anything. I could feel the alien's promise deep in my soul. We would be at peace in Benjiro. We would live beyond our bodies, beyond ourselves.

Shouts of fear came from the crew who still did not understand our great purpose as the vessel approached Benjiro's outer corona. The USS Hemingway opened up to naked space as it burned, and we were all washed away.