Destined | Christopher Pike

Chapter Thirty Two

"You could have warned me that I was going to have to watch her die!" Chris yelled at his future self once he reached his quarters.

His future self sat on a couch causally without a care in the world as to what Chris had just witnessed. "I needed you to be able to understand what happens. That my-our actions have consequences."

He walked over to a decanter with liquor in it and poured himself a large glass. He took a sip and began to pace the room as he tried to understand what was happening. "What happens to our son?"

"Ah. I figured that would come up. Dr. M' Benga manages to save him. He's small, but strong. His name is Atlas. Emma liked the name. It said it reminded her of traveling." He paused as if he were remembering a somber moment. "He's perfect. He looks like her. Acts like her, but you blame yourself every single day. For his sake you become an Admiral, but you distance yourself. He's too much of a reminder of Emma. It causes a strain on your relationship with him until it's too late. He hardly talks to you now. This isn't just about Spock and Emma dying."

"Then what is it about?" Chris snapped.

"They're both important. I'm talking fate of the galaxy important. I've gone through every scenario. One or both of them die every single time except when we die." He explained. "The monks allowed me to see what happens to Emma if we die. I can tell you if you want."

Chris didn't know if he wanted to know. Would it make it harder for him to die when the time came? All he did was nod his head.

"She turns out okay. It takes her a while to get back to herself, but eventually she gets there. She understands why you did why you did it. She gets married to a doctor she went to the Academy with."

"Leonard McCoy?" Chris guessed. He had met him only once, but didn't know him enough to form an opinion yet.

"Yes. That's him. They have three children. Once their first child is born she decides to leave Starfleet and work for the Federation. She becomes one of the best scientists in the galaxy. Her discoveries and works change and save lives." He explained. His older self paused to look at his younger one as the wheels seemed to turn in his head. "I know what you're thinking, you want to be there to see her accomplishments. You want to support her, but she never forgets you. Not once. You will always be the love of her life. She even opens a center for kids to learn about Space and Science and names it the 'Christopher Pike Discovery Center.'"

Chris smiled to himself as his older self listed off all of Emma's accomplishments. He was right. He did want to be around to see everything she did. He did want to be the father of her children. It killed him inside that someone else would be there, supporting her, loving her. "Is she happy?"

"She is. Mostly. She'll never be the same person as she was with us, but she's resilient. There is one thing I'd like you to see before I go. I thought you would like to go meet your son. Just for a few minutes." His older self said.

Chris wasn't sure if he wanted to go meet his potential son. He was scared it would only make things harder on him. There was also a part of him that was naturally curious about what their child would look like and how he would react to meeting him. He looked at the stone in front of him and shoved it into his pocket. He stopped to look at his older self. "Thank you."

The chaos inside of the med bay had died down slightly as he walked inside. Most of the dead bodies had already been placed into coffins that would be delivered to the respective families. A cadet was working on cleaning up the blood from who knows how many people. There was still many injured though. It seemed most of them were stable. He saw Dr. M' Benga leave the side of a patient and make his way over to him.