26
Author's Note: I apologize for the length of this story, but it took on a life of it's own, or at least two characters were being stubborn, so it prolonged the tale.
#7 Whiskey and Bannock Bread
Improvements were made in the response time of the crew of the Enterprise. The heat was back on, but ice cream would be added at a later date.
The Enterprise was directed to go to the planet Zeenan. The last star ship to study the planet had been by five years previous. Zeenan was much like planet Earth, but half of it's size. There was more land mass than water, but still highly adaptive for humans. No life forms were ever detected, but enough plant life, small insects and animals inhabited the planet to make it hospitable. Their orders were to further study the make up of the planet, take samples of the medicinal plants found, rock samples and in turn remove only what was necessary.
They would make camp for approximately two weeks. Lt. Scott would be in command of the Enterprise. Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, and Dr. McCoy would lead the detail of scientists, and medical personnel.
Kirk and Mr. Spock and Mr. Scott were in the conference room with Sulu and Dr. McCoy going over the list of supplies they would need. They also discussed which personnel to accompany them.
The Captain looked at the list he and his first officer had made and said, "We'd like to take Ensigns Kirk, Spock, Lts. Granger and Sulu and two security officers. Scotty, I'd like to include Ensign Mary Sampson, too."
"Aye, Captain, it will be good to introduce her to her first landing party. And a bonus, Captain, she is an excellent cook."
Kirk smiled and said, "Good between Bones and Ensign Sampson, maybe they could be our cooks."
Dr. McCoy answered, "I don't mind being a part time cook, we'd all starve if it were left up to the Captain." They all laughed, "I'd like to bring Joanna along, Jim, she can help me reduce the specimens into properties for serums and then beam them up to Sciences to finish. It will take a lot of work to prepare each group of specimens you bring back."
"Dr. MBenga doesn't want to come with us?"
"No, he's not the camping type. I have a bunch of exams I'd like him to finish anyway."
"Very well, Mr. Sulu will you inform the personnel and give them their supply lists to bring along? Also let Ensign Kirk and Dr. Kirk know that we will have women's living quarters and three for the men's quarters. There is no room for a married tent." There was a chuckle heard from the group.
"Yes, Captain."
"Scotty, how long before you can beam our supplies down?"
"Captain, due to the size and quantity, I'd like one of the pilots to take the shuttle down. I'm sure Dr. McCoy would go along for the ride."
"You can count me in. No sense scrambling my molecules if I don't have to."
"All right, all departments will have their equipment sent to the flight deck by tomorrow afternoon. Personnel will then beam down and we'll set up camp. Any questions?"
"No, sir," was heard.
"Good, dismissed. Oh Bones," he walked up to his friend and said, "Don't forget to bring one of your medicinal bottles."
"Top of the list, Jim, I do not travel without it."
By the following afternoon all equipment was stored into shuttle 10. It was to be piloted by Mr. Sulu with Dr. McCoy as co-pilot. Scans of the planet had been rechecked and they had found an area close to a river. The shuttle left the Enterprise and the personnel met in the transporter room.
Kirk sent the first group down to the planet and gave final instructions for Mr. Scott.
"We'll check in every five hours, Scotty. If there is a need it will be sooner."
"Captain, we'll have an eye on the whole group. If trouble arises, we'll snatch you up in a hurry. Don't worry about us up here, I expect the best from these lasses and lads."
The Captain, Spock, the two security guards and the two females beamed down. The Captain wondered why Dr. Kirk did not go with Ensign Kirk in the first group, but let it slip his mind.
The shower and latrine apparatus were set up down wind of the tents. They worked together to raise the tents for the women, the men and the officers. Dr. McCoy had a small area set up for his sick bay. They installed a tent for the science area and a small mess tent. The tents were made of prefabricated soft sided material that went up with ease.
Darkness was coming and the ship had sent warm meals for each of them. They gathered in the science tent to plan their next day.
Kirk, Spock and McCoy had the officers tent. Sulu, Ensigns Kirk, Spock and Lt. Granger bunked in one tent. The security officers, John and Mike were next to the Captain and Mr. Spock. Their jobs were to protect the two top officers at the cost of their lives, if need be. The two women enjoyed a more spacious area in their tent. However, Dr. Kirk had stored a good portion of empty containers on her side of the tent. They would be filled with samples as the days went on.
The next day the Captain was grouped with Sulu, Ensign Kirk, Lt. Granger and security guard Cpl Mike. With back packs shouldered up they started out to their designated area.
Mr. Spock's group included, Ensigns Spock and Sampson and security guard, Cpl John. They lifted their gear and headed in the opposite direction.
Drs. McCoy and Kirk stayed behind to prepare the numerous tests they had planned and to organize the camp better.
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As they started Dr. McCoy set up a table and Joanna handed him sterile trays to set out.
"Thank you, Darlin'. Did you get to say good bye to Lucas this morning?"
Joanna reached into some boxes for more supplies and said, "No, I guess I was in the wash room. Dad, which container are the microscopes in?"
"That gray one there. The power packs should be with them, too."
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The Captain had contacted Mr. Scott as they awoke in the morning. Near 1200 hours he stopped with his group and ate a simple lunch. Mr. Sulu and Lucas had gathered enough samples of the argenine bush to keep the two doctors and biologist Granger busy all week. The roots and leaves were used in healing heart and lung tissues. The milk that was secreted from the tubular stems were reconcentrated into eye drops for serious eye infections.
The day was a pleasant seventy five degrees. The nights were known to drop down to almost thirty degrees without warning.
Mr. Sulu called to the Captain, "Captain, look here."
The Captain brought his water canteen with him and laughed at his helmsman's excitement. He had found a small grouping of pink and yellow flowers that resembled lily's.
"Captain, can I dig up the bulbs and see if I can re-grow them under my grow light?"
"No, Sulu, I'm sorry. We can only take what we need for scientific research, not for your private flower collection."
"But, sir, maybe there are medicinal factors we haven't discovered yet?"
"Have a discussion with Mr. Spock and Lt. Granger tonight and see what they say. I'm not a scientist."
"Thank you, sir."
They marked the coordinates of the area on their tri-corders and began the long walk back to camp.
Mr. Spock's group was returning at the same time. The excitement from the science officers gave Kirk pleasure that these young people loved their jobs. Ensign Sampson joined Dr. McCoy as they prepared a dinner.
SJ walked up to Lucas and they compared notes on their findings of the day. Lucas smiled at the added rocks in SJ's collection.
SJ said, "See the red line running through this plate, that shows iron was deposited here by pressure of the plates as the planet was formed. The green stripping is an unknown. We'll be able to study this and try to identify it."
"SJ, I'm so happy that rocks give you such pleasure," he teased his friend.
"Lucas if you would just learn to appreciate them you would find pleasure, also. What's Joanna been up to today?"
He shrugged and said, "I haven't had time to see her." He walked away and entered the men's tent.
At the mess tent Ensign Sampson was rolling out dough. Joanna watched from their tent.
"Mary, what is that?"
"It's called bannock bread. It goes back to the North American Indians in the northern hemisphere. It's just basically flour, salt, baking powder, butter and water. I'll throw in some seeds for the top. It's just a good snack for camping. Kind of like a bread. I'll pack this in with our lunches tomorrow."
"Lt. Granger, my father and I will be busy all day with the samples everyone has brought back. How far out did you hike today?" Joanna asked.
"Several miles, but the elevation was not bad. It's been a good break from working out in the gym."
The sun was setting and they built a campfire and enjoyed some late night snacks and drinks. Lucas kept glancing over at the women's tent looking for his wife. She had been busy in the mess tent earlier, but he hadn't seen her all day.
SJ whispered to him, "Lucas, go look for her. Just because we're in separate tents, it doesn't mean you can't be with her."
Lucas glanced around the campfire. Everyone was either chatting quietly or starring into the flames.
"You're right. Good night, SJ."
Lucas went to the women's tent and cleared his throat outside the doorway. "Ahem, it's Lucas, Joanna are you awake?"
Mary called from inside, "Lucas, she's not in here."
"Oh, I'm sorry. Good night, Mary."
"Good night, Lucas."
He glanced around the camp and turned on his flash light. He walked down to the latrine, but she wasn't there. He quietly called out her name.
"Jo, are you out here?"
There was no response, but he stood and looked at the starry night. The temperature had started to fall when the sun went down and a steady breeze began to blow from the higher elevations. It would get cold during the night.
He continued to look in the area around the camp. When he returned he went to her tent. "Jo, are you awake?"
The door of the tent creaked open and she stuck her head out. "Lucas, Mary is asleep. I don't want to wake her."
"Could you come out so we could talk for a few minutes. I've been looking all over for you."
"I think it's better if we said good night." She shut the door without a good night kiss.
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The next few nights were cold, but the days warmed up comfortably.
Captain Kirk led his group a long distance following the river bed. They fanned out in different directions. The Captain spent his time relaxing in the sun. It had been a time of reflection. He missed his wife and loneliness was a constant companion. He missed spending most of his day with his first officer. Theirs was a close friendship and he valued the loyalty of Mr. Spock.
The Captain called in his group for a late lunch. They all returned except for Ensign Lucas. He tried repeatedly to raise him on his communicator.
"Sulu, which direction did he go?"
"I sent him west of here. He was within sight for quite a while. He had found the rosamian plants and was collecting a few samples.
Kirk stood up and said, "I'll go look for him. You and Ensign Sampson can call it quits for the day. I think we all need a short break. Mr. Spock is coming in with his group to assist Dr. McCoy and Lt. Granger."
The Captain could see Lucas's trail by following the grass that was lain down. He crossed another small creek and saw his boot prints in the mud. He tried to reach him on the communicator with no luck. He lost his trail as the soil became more rocky.
"Kirk to Enterprise, come in," he said.
"Aye, Captain, how are ye?"
"Good, Scotty, but we've seemed to have lost Ensign Kirk, can you pin point how far he is from my location?"
"A moment, sir."
Kirk looked around for traces of his son's footsteps. "Captain, he's about one hundred yards to your right. He is stationery so he shouldn't be hard to catch up with."
The Captain started out and Scotty said, "That's the right way, sir."
"Thanks, Scotty."
Within a few minutes he came upon Lucas sitting on top of a huge boulder. "Do you mind telling me what you are doing, mister?"
Lucas jumped and spun around. "Captain, I was trying to get my bearings."
He jumped down and walked up to his father.
"Did you loose your communicator?"
Lucas looked down and said, "No, sir."
"Did you hear me trying to get a hold of you?"
He cleared his throat and said, "No sir, I had the volume turned off?"
Becoming impatient Kirk asked, "Why, Ensign?"
Lucas was getting hot standing in the sun. He turned away to find some shade.
"Ensign, did I tell you to walk away?"
"I'm getting, hot, sir."
"You're getting hot. I just walked three miles out here trying to find you."
Lucas stood and did not respond.
"Let's go."
Lucas reluctantly left the shade. He had a few things on his mind but he didn't need an argument with the Captain on top of it.
He followed the Captain back the same way they had come. Captain Kirk turned around about thirty feet from camp and waited for his son to reach him. He put his hand on his son's chest to keep him from running into him.
"Ensign, is something wrong?"
"No, sir."
"Are you ill?"
"No, sir."
Raising his voice he said, "Then what is going on? Where's your bag of samples?"
Lucas spun around and realized he had left them in the shade near the boulder. "Oh no, I'll go back and get them."
"No, you won't it'll be dark before you get back."
"But, sir, I have a flashlight in my gear…"
"I said, no, Ensign."
"Captain, I found that rosamian plant and I haven't seen it anywhere else."
"We'll retrieve it tomorrow, if it's still any good, Bones can analyze it tomorrow."
"But, sir, all my gear is out there."
"Then I suggest you should take better care of it," the Captain yelled.
He spun about and started back to camp.
"It's always what you want, isn't it, Captain?" Lucas hollered as the Captain continued.
Kirk stopped in his tracks and slowly turned to face his son.
The Captain took one step towards him and stopped, "Ensign, I suggest you get back to camp and go to your quarters. I'm going to chalk this up to you being in the sun." He pointed down the trail the last twenty feet.
Fury raged inside of Lucas. He had so many things he wanted to say to the Captain, but for once common sense ruled his thoughts. He was hot, he was thirsty and hungry.
When Lucas entered camp all eyes turned to him. He was sure they heard the argument he had with the Captain. SJ gave him questioning look. He went into his cabin and slammed the door. It was hot and stuffy inside. He opened all the windows and drank two warm bottles of water.
Dr. McCoy walked up to the Captain, "Trouble on the trail, Jim?"
"He is by far the most stubborn person I've had to deal with," he mumbled.
Bones covered his mouth so the others would not see him laugh, "Go look in the mirror, there's someone else who's just as bad."
"Go check on him, Bones, he may be dehydrated. We were out quite a ways,"
"Ok, but get some rest, you look beat yourself."
Dr. McCoy called at the door of Lucas's quarters. "Come," he answered.
It wasn't much cooler with the windows open, but there was a steady breeze that was helping.
Lucas sat on his bunk but looked up at the doctor. "Yes?"
"Just a well check call." He ran his scanner over him and felt his forehead.
"When did you eat last?"
"Breakfast. I just drank two warm bottles of water."
"Come out to the mess tent. You need something to eat and a cold drink."
"I'm confined to quarters."
"Doctors orders."
Lucas put his uniform shirt back on and followed the doctor to the mess tent. He place a large bowl of fruit and a piece of chicken with cold tea in front of his patient.
"Eat. I'll take care of the Captain."
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The night was cold and the next day the two groups set out in search of more samples. Captain Kirk sent Ensign Kirk to retrieve his pack, but he was told to discard his samples.
Near lunch time Ensign Kirk had joined his group. The Captain knew something was wrong with his son. He had noticed that he and Joanna hardly spent anytime together. He chuckled to himself as he looked at the gloomy face of the Ensign.
Sulu lead them further down the trail. They had come upon a great cluster of plants that Lt. Granger had needed. They returned to camp ladened with more samples than they could carry.
Dinner around the campfire was grilled chicken, veggies and somehow Ensign Sampson had hidden a pan of double chocolate brownies. Even the Vulcan's had a weakness for chocolate.
Most of the crew had retired for bed except for the Captain, Spock and Dr. McCoy. McCoy pulled out his medicinal bottle of whiskey. Spock preferred his tea, but the Captain swigged one and held out his cup for another.
"Easy there, Jim, it's got to last us another week. Bad day?"
"Something is bothering Lucas, but I'm not sure what it is."
"I think I can tell you. He and Joanna have hardly talked all week. I see them looking at each other, but there is no conversation. If I were them, I'd be sneaking off for a quick…well you know," he said looking at Spock and the Captain.
Spock raised his eye brows and said, 'Doctor, are you saying they are arguing?"
"I am, Spock."
"So illogical. A total waste of energy."
"Spock, do you mean to tell me you and Christine never argue?"
"Doctor, once again you are asking me something that requires no answer from me."
"Come on, Spock, I work with your wife and I know when there's trouble in paradise. The air is thick with tension."
"As I said, Doctor, this requires no answer from me."
"You pointy eared, stubborn Vulcan, I never will get you to admit that you have angry 'words' with your wife on occasion, will I?"
Spock simply raised his eye brow.
Kirk said, "Alright gentlemen, but this has gone on long enough. Lucas left a perfectly good bag of samples to rot in the sun. It's affecting his work and it's time to change that."
He stood and walked up to the women's tent and asked for Joanna. Spock and McCoy watched from the fire.
McCoy said, "This ought a be good."
He pointed Joanna to the mess tent and walked up to Lucas's tent and soon Lucas was sent to the mess tent.
The Captain said to the two, "It has occurred to me that you two have not spent anytime together this past week. Kirk, your concentration has been abominable, and you've become argumentative in front of the other crew."
Neither would look at the Captain, or each other.
"I don't know what happened between you two, but you have one hour to patch it up and return to your quarters. Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir," they responded.
Kirk returned to the fire and the three noticed Lucas and Joanna walk out of camp together.
"Let's hope this works," McCoy said.
Kirk sighed and said, "Bones, you got anything for a head ache?"
"Yes, back at the tent. Come on gentlemen, let the young lovers figure it out. It's time for bed."
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Lucas held the flashlight in front of them as they walked the trail. Joanna was chilled and Lucas put his arm around her. The moon was waning but they still had some light from it.
Lucas stopped walking and pulled Joanna to his chest. "Jo, I've been absolutely miserable."
Joanna cuddled into his chest and tried not to cry, "I haven't slept all week. I'm so sorry for the things I said."
"Me, too, Jo. It was so stupid. I never meant to tell you what to do that night. I guess I was trying to make sure you had all your gear. I…I'm starting to sound like my father," he moaned.
She laughed, "You were trying to protect me."
"Your dad made me promise to keep you safe. I may have carried it a bit too far."
She looked up and he kissed her. One kiss led to another. The past full-moon, the long week apart, and the soft cushion of the tall grasses led them to rekindle their love for each other.
As promised, they returned to camp within the hour.
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The next day Mr. Spock suggested that he take Ensign Kirk to their area. To save time and energy, they used the shuttle to be dropped off. Mr. Sulu returned to camp to help with drying and restoring the samples.
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Captain Kirk, Ensigns SJ, Sampson and Cpl Mike proceeded to hike to the foot of a mountain. SJ had hoped to find more interesting rocks to bring back.
Mr. Spock and Ensign Kirk were assigned to follow the river further down. Cpl John as they referred to their security detail was along, too. Kirk enjoyed the vast amount of trees and cool shade. He was not a sun worshiper, but he knew Mr. Spock preferred the sunny side of the river.
They took water samples and Kirk found a few fish in a pool of water, surrounded by rocks. There was a flurry of splashing water and the ensigns determination.
"Dinner, Mr. Spock?" he held up three ten inch long fish.
"I prefer knowing they are edible, Ensign."
Kirk followed Mr. Spock up the slope of a hill. Before them was a large grassy field. Trees lined the farthest side of the field.
"We'll make our way across the field to that tree line."
"Yes, sir."
Lucas and Spock engaged in a quiet conversation as they hiked through the field.
"Mr. Spock, how many years did you study on Vulcan before you went into the academy?''
"I left Vulcan after senior school when I turned eighteen."
"Was it hard being the only Vulcan in the academy?"
"It took much discipline to live among your kind. You Humans tend to be illogical, spontaneous and driven by non-sense at times."
Ensign Kirk laughed out loud. "SJ says the same thing, but I think he found it easier to adapt. You paved the way for him, sir."
"It was not my intention."
"Yes, sir, but still, you made it easier."
"Indeed," he responded with raised eyebrows.
They continued to cross the field, Lucas was looking forward to sitting in the shade for a few minutes when his feet came out from under him. He fell straight down and scrambled to grab anything, when he hit bottom and fell unconscious.
"Ensign," Mr. Spock called
Cpl John started to run to the hole but was stopped by Mr. Spock.
"Be careful, we don't know how wide this is."
The two crawled on their stomachs to reach the edge of the hole. John used his flash light to see below.
"Lucas," he called. "He's just laying there, Mr. Spock."
"Yes, I see."
John opened his water canteen and dribbled some down the fifty foot cavern onto Lucas's face. He did not stir.
Spock slid back and contacted the Enterprise.
"Spock to Enterprise, come in."
"Mr. Scott here."
"Mr. Scott, we need two 100 foot repelling ropes, a stretcher and two strong men to help pull Ensign Kirk from a hole."
"Yes, sir, I've got your coordinates. We'll beam the gear down shortly."
"Thank you, Mr. Scott," he answered in his cool voice.
"Mr. Spock to Dr. McCoy."
"Yes, Spock,"
"I need Mr. Sulu to fly you here on the shuttle. Ensign Kirk has fallen into a crevice. We are working to get him out."
"How badly is he injured?"
"He is unconscious right now."
"We're on our way."
"Will you arrange for Sulu to pick up the other group, too."
"Yes, taken care of."
Within minutes two security guards with ropes and medical supplies beamed down in the field.
Sulu arrived seconds later with Drs. McCoy and Kirk.
Mr. Spock roped up Dr. McCoy and himself. They were both qualified climbers.
One by one they repelled down into the crevice. It was barely twelve feet in circumference.
Dr. McCoy ran his scanner over Lucas. His ankle was only sprained and he had a bump on his head. They gently sat him up and Dr. McCoy tried to wake him.
"Come on, Lucas, open your eyes."
He mumbled and tried to see where he was, "Sir?"
"Here, drink some water, just sip," McCoy said, "where do you hurt?"
"My head, sir. Where are we?"
Mr. Spock spoke, "You seemed to have found a crevice which was covered by earth. Your weight broke through and you fell about fifty feet down."
"Is Cpl. John ok?"
"Yes, he's waiting to haul you up."
McCoy said, "Let's stand you up and see how it goes."
They pulled him up by his arms and he yelped in pain from his ankle.
Mr. Spock said, "Lucas, we'll harness you up and send you up first, Dr. McCoy will follow. Are you okay to attempt this?"
"I think so, sir, I'm a little dizzy, but as long as I don't look straight up or down I'll be okay."
Mr. Spock yelled up the cave after they had adjusted the rope around his chest and legs.
"Cpl. John, pull him up gently."
"Yes, sir," came the muffled answer.
Spock and McCoy looked around, "What is this, Spock?"
"It looks to be an crevice formed by an ancient river. It's all caved in around the area.
"Dr. McCoy are you ready?"
"Yes."
They also dropped the other rope for Mr. Spock to ride up on.
Lucas was being taken care of by his wife. The Captain's group were standing around to make sure all was okay.
They pulled Mr. Spock up from the hole and he untangled the ropes. "Captain, I suggest Mr. Scott send some material down to cover up this hole. We could put a small fence around it and put up a marker for future groups who come this way."
"He's already gathering the equipment. It should come down, soon." The Captain answered.
He stepped over to the stretcher and looked down at his son. "Lucas, that was one giant step."
The crewmen laughed and he replied, "I hope I never repeat that again, sir."
Dr. McCoy said, "I'd like to get him to the Enterprise for a quick check."
"Dr. McCoy, it's just my ankle, can't I remain here? I can help in the lab."
McCoy glanced at the Captain, "It just looks like a hard bump on the head and a sprain. We'll try it."
Sulu returned to camp with Lucas, the doctors and four of the crew. Scotty beamed the gear down to cover the hole. He then beamed them to camp.
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Joanna washed off the dirt from Lucas's face. "How deep was the hole?"
Her father answered, "About fifty feet down. Rock hard on the bottom. How does your head feel?"
"I'm okay doctor."
"Yes, we'll see, wait until tomorrow." he mumbled.
Sulu landed the shuttle just outside of camp. They helped him limp to the medical tent.
McCoy put his head inside the tent and said to his daughter, "Soak it in a bucket of ice water, wrap it up and have him rest."
Joanna nodded. "Dad, can you grab him a clean shirt from his tent?"
"Yes, dear," she heard him answer.
Lucas followed his wife with his eyes. She knew his constant accidents kept her worried. "Jo?"
She didn't answer.
"It wasn't my fault this time."
"Kirk, it's always your fault, don't you know that yet. You have this dark cloud that follows you around."
McCoy threw his shirt in through the door way and left. "Thanks, Dad," Joanna called.
"Yes, dear," her father returned.
"We've got four more days of research to do, can you stay out of trouble for the rest of it?"
"I'm stuck here for now, so I don't think I'll have any trouble with that. Come here, Jo."
"No, I'm too upset with you."
He looked at her with his baby blue eyes, "Come, sit, Jo."
She finally sat on the bunk next to him, "Lucas…"
He reached over and gave her a soft kiss on her cheek, "I'm so sorry for worrying you," he kissed her neck next.
She took in a quick breath, "Lucas, if Dad walks in here, he'll send you back to the ship."
"Oh," he said and sat up.
"Lay down for awhile. We have some work to finish and I'll come back and check on you. Have you had lunch?"
"Yes, I'm all set."
She blew him a kiss and he did not wake until he was called for dinner. They soaked his foot one more time and ran the muscle healer over his ankle.
They all gathered at the campfire and told stories of their lives. The Captain got to know some of his crew better this way. Something about the darkness made them less inhibited to share some personal things.
Lucas kept his foot elevated on a stump while Mr. Spock retold the story of his disappearing Ensign. If it hadn't happened to him, Lucas would have laughed harder.
Sulu asked Mary, "Did you bake anymore bannock bread for the trail tomorrow?"
She smiled as others said they liked it, "Yes, it's wrapped and ready to go. I added packages of jam, too."
The two security guards laughed and said, "Too late, we already ate ours."
Mary replied, "I know, I saw you two sneaking in, too bad there is no more."
Kirk said, "Too bad, boys, you'll be without tomorrow while I'm dripping strawberry jam all over mine."
They laughed and many made their way to the tents.
Lucas asked, "Dr. McCoy, you don't have any of that medicinal whiskey with you do you?"
"None for you, lad, you're too young," he laughed.
"Saving it for the Captain?" Lucas asked.
His father replied, "Rank has it privileges."
McCoy said, "Off to bed and stay off that foot."
Lucas limped with Joanna's help to his tent.
He kissed her and said, "I'll see you tomorrow. Keep me in your heart."
"I always, do. Good night."
At the campfire the Captain relished the beautiful evening. The stars twinkled above their heads and Dr. McCoy passed the whiskey around.
"Jim this reminds me of the time the three of us went camping at your ranch. The weather was just like this, the only difference was our Vulcan friend had brought that special wine of his from the mother land. Spock, you told us it had a low alcohol level."
"Dr. McCoy low does not mean zero. Drank in large quantities as you two did will have adverse affect."
Kirk laughed and said, "It was one of the worst hangovers I ever had."
"Jim, I did not force you to drink the quantity that you did."
"No, my friend, we can only blame ourselves."
They sat in quiet and watched the fire as it dyed down. McCoy asked, "I don't suppose you have any with you, Spock?"
"Dr. McCoy we would not want to have to repeat all of our experiments tomorrow because you suffered from a hang over."
"Jim, that means he's holding out on us."
"Perhaps, tomorrow evening," Spock replied, "I too shall retire. Jim, I hope Lucas is better in a few days."
Kirk smiled and said, "Thanks, Spock."
The last three days were spent packaging items and beaming them aboard the ship. The scientists were impatient to get to their labs to begin studying the material they had collected.
The final night Mr. Spock brought out his Vulcan wine to share with all of the crew.
Sulu said, "Mr. Spock, you should sell this in the commissary, you'd be rich in one week."
"And, Lieutenant, the crew would be useless. I have no wish to destroy the competency of the crew and have the Captain disappointed."
Stories were told and laughing kept them up until late. The Captain finally sent everyone to bed. They spent the following day breaking camp and transferring everything and everyone to the Enterprise.
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The Captain and Spock chatted in his office when they returned.
"Captain, I am pleased with the amount of samples that we were able to collect. It will keep my science labs busy for many weeks."
"It's refreshing to see how excited your people are. It's a reflection on you, Spock."
"How so, sir?"
Kirk smiled and said, "You're a good leader and teacher. I can tell they like working under you."
Spock raised an eye brow and said, "Indeed."