Kirk and Jaylah crept through the silent city streets. The smooth tinted glass surfaces of the skyscrapers were silhouettes in the growing darkness.

Storm clouds gathered in the distance, the faint rumble of thunder echoing through the dark skies. Glowing orange displays flashed on the buildings, warning citizens to stay indoors. The two went through the quiet streets, barely seeing more than a few people hurriedly walking by.

They entered a large square between the tall buildings. An ornate concrete fountain stood in the middle, flanked on all sides by perfectly rectangular boxes filled with unfamiliar plants. A statue made of a glassy black stone, stood in the middle of the fountain. It depicted a human male, standing very regally among the streams of clear water around it. Below the statue was a plaque. OUR GREAT LEADER.

Captain Kirk scanned the square for a long minute, searching for any sign of movement among the still shapes. There was no way they had made it this far into the city without being monitored by some sort of security system. He was shocked than no one had found their sudden arrival at the city at all suspicious.

Other than the flashing storm warnings on the various screens, no security seemed alerted to their presence.

"What we do now?" Jaylah asked.

Suddenly a figure stumbled out of the shadows. Kirk inconspicuously grabbed his phaser, ready for an attack.

But the figure that emerged wasn't security force. It was just a young human girl. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she sobbed.

The captain nodded at Jaylah, who moved to the opposite end of the street without drawing the attention of the young girl.

Kirk watched the girl carefully, looking for any sign of it being a trap. He waited a long minute, during which time the young girl sunk down onto a nearby bench, holding her shawl over her face as sobs racked her thin body. Nothing the captain observed made him think it was any sort of trap. He signaled for Jaylah to stand down before he cautiously walked towards the girl.

"Hello?" He said quietly, stopping several feet in front of her.

The girl gasped and raised her head. Her eyes were wide with fear as she stood and backed away.

"It's okay," Kirk said, holding up his phaser for her to see before slowly leaning down and setting it on the ground. "We're the good guys." He held his hands up.

The girl continued to stare at him, her chest heaving with each sob.

"It's alright," Kirk reassured. "It's okay. I'm here to help." The girl was silent, her eyes streaming with tears as she watched the captain. "We're just looking for our friends".

The girl took a long shaky breath, before she was overcome with sobs once again. She stepped forward, wrapping her arms around the captain and burying her head into his chest.

Captain Kirk was momentarily confused and exchanged a glance with Jaylah who still hid in the shadows. He looked down at the sobbing girl, wrapping his arms around her.

"It's okay," He told her in a low voice, uncertain what else to say.

"No..." She cried, pulling away. Her cheeks were glistening with tears and her messy blonde hair fell over her face. "It...they..."

Kirk noticed the small pewter cross dangling from around her neck and instantly recognized it. He remembered the ensign in the transporter room, holding the small cross up to his lips before they were beamed down to the planet surface. Kirk held the small pewter necklace around her neck. 

"Where did you get this?" He asked.

The girl sobbed. "I... they...they took him!"

"Elden? Was his name Elden?"

The girl nodded. Jaylah stepped into the square, walking towards the captain. Kirk held the girl's arms, and tried to look her in the eyes. "Can you tell me who took him? That way I can help."

The girl's thin shoulders shook as she sobbed. "A monster," She moaned, burying her face against Captain Kirk's chest.

"Shhh...It's going to be okay," Kirk tried to comfort her, knowing deep down that he was probably lying.