RIGHT HERE WITH YOU.
When Michael is called away on an unexpected assignment, Spock starts to wonder if things are not as they appear.
Spock had been trying to run into Michael all day. They had their different duties and their own separate schedules, but it was unusual not to cross paths at least once or twice. She got out of bed earlier than him, her shift was due to start at 0800. He on the other hand didn't need to be on the bridge until several hours later. Normally an early riser, the late nights and the physical exertion of lovemaking made him sleep longer than what had been his norm. This morning however he had heard her in the shower. A water shower, instead of a light one. He didn't really understand why she sometimes chose water, when a light shower was quicker and much more efficient at removing the dirt and bacteria of the day. He'd never partaken in a water shower. He'd never seen the need.
He stood in the doorway for a long time. The shower cubicle was clear glass and if it were not for the steam he could have seen every part of her. She spent most of her time using a scented substance from a bottle to lather and clean her hair. Once, twice and then another bottle, but this didn't lather like the first. She left the cream like liquid on her hair as she used soap to make her body hygienic.
"I know you're there, Spock," she said as she continued to rub the soap over her hips.
"I do not understand why you use water to clean yourself. Light seems much more timely and effective."
She waved a hand and the front chamber of the shower cubicle opened. He could see her fully and whole now. The white cream in her hair did nothing to distract from how beautiful her body was. It was fascinating to watch the water run over her shoulders, down her breasts and small droplets pool in her navel. It ran down her hips and caught in the hair below, before dripping in-between her thighs.
"It's the feel, I guess," she explained. "Light showers are so... I don't know... sterile."
"Is that not the purpose of a shower?"
Michael smiled. "Sometimes." She reached out a hand in an invitation for him to join her.
The cubicle wasn't intended for two people and it was illogical to think the water would clean them both, but he wasn't stupid, this wasn't an invitation to become clean. He slipped off his night robe and stood naked in front of her for a moment, before moving forward and stepping tentatively into the cubicle. Water and soap made the base slippery. Michael reached up and put her hands around his neck, tilting her head sideways and then kissing him. The kiss deepened and their tongues clashed as the water ran over their faces and made it harder to breath. His heart rate elevated, but it wasn't due to lack of oxygen. The feel of her wet body flush against him had done that. His arousal was obvious, hard and between their lower stomachs. Michael broke the kiss with a gentle push, her eyes locked on his, staring and intense, they were almost all pupil as she lowered herself to her knees. He sucked in a breath that sounded too much like a gasp as she took his penis into her mouth. The cream on her head had washed away and he brought his hand to her hair, instinctively grabbing a fist full, closing his eyes as he rocked gently into her mouth.
Michael coughed, then pulled back and Spock's eyes flung open. Had he pushed too hard, triggering the choking reflex at the back of her throat? "Michael?" It was both a question and an apology.
She swiped a hand down her face and another small cough. "No, no... It's okay. Water got up my nose." She stood up, smiled and turned the water off. She grabbed a towel and started to dry them both. "Let's finish this in bed, shall we?"
He did not let her kneel beside the bed as she had intended, instead he pushed her onto the bed, onto her back and drove himself deep inside of her. In the motion, in their lovemaking he had pushed deeper, harder, more desperate than he had ever done before. This was not about reproduction; it was about the giving and receiving of pleasure and love. He was rewarded for the effort with soft and sometimes guttural moans from the woman beneath. He liked those sounds and he was learning more and more how to elicit them.
She laid in his arms for several moments before she gasped and looked over at the time. "Oh my god, I'm going to be so late," she said as she sprung up and threw her legs over the side of the bed, stood and started to gather her clothes.
Spock was sleepy and content, a giddy euphoria from his orgasm. He was acutely aware how it made him say things that he would normally not. Michael called it 'afterglow speak.' "I wish you didn't have to leave me."
"I'm not leaving you, I'm going to work," she said looking under the bed. "Have you seen my other shoe?"
It warmed and amused him to watch her dress frantically and search for clothes spread across his quarters. He wished he could find it within himself to make a joke of some sort, but that was just a little, too human. He did think about offering her a drawer, though. Somewhere to keep a spare comb or toothbrush. Yes... he was tempted to smile, she still cleaned her teeth the old fashioned way. It was endearing and... he had to concentrate to not let it be so... arousing.
She was now fully dressed and quickly glancing at herself in the reflection of his window.
"You look beautiful." The afterglow clearly still present. "At the risk of repeating myself... I truly wish you were not leaving." Spock sucked in a breath and his face turned sombre when, for no particular reason, he remembered a communication he'd read. "I understand Commander Tyler's ship will be docking sometime today."
She smiled, more of a cheeky grin as she walked to the bed, sat down and kissed him quickly on the lips. "So I understand." She ran a finger across his bottom lip. "You wouldn't happen to be a little jealous by any chance, would you?"
His instinct was to deny emphatically, but that would be a lie. They had promised they would never lie to each other. "He has... touched you as I do and... I know it is illogical, but I find that..." He fumbled for the correct word. "...disturbing."
She stared at him for a moment and her grin faded. "You know Spock; if we are to be a couple, then at some point we have to... you know... let people know about us."
Spock nodded. "Indeed." He took in a breath and the afterglow was all but gone. Totally illogical, but they were just discussing Commander Tyler. Why was she bringing this up now?
"Anyhow... a topic for another time, I guess... but just so you don't go over thinking it, I just want to be crystal clear."
He raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.
"I love, Ash... I always will."
Spock felt his muscles tighten at the combination of Commander Tyler's name and the word love in the same sentence.
"Thing is, Spock. You're the man I am IN love with. There's a big difference. There is nothing or no one that could ever tempt me to leave. I'm staying right here... with you. You are, now... and forever stuck with me, okay?"
Spock let his lips turn slightly upward and reached out to touch her hand. "As you are with me."
She had turned and walked out after that and Spock hadn't seen her since. Now though, his shift was over and he looked forward to getting back to his quarters. Michael would be there, as she had been almost every night since the first time they confessed their love for each other.
Spock walked briskly down the long upper-deck corridor. He needed to actually concentrate on not running. Oh, how life had changed. As the days went by, he gave himself more and more permission to simply enjoy. The first few weeks had been fraught with self doubt, a feeling that it was all too good to be true. An unrealistic fear that Michael would suddenly rediscover her love of Ash and tell him it was over. Michael's reassurance and patience had bought him out of his emotional darkness and now... now he was learning to just be in the moment with her.
"Mr Spock!" a familiar voice called out from behind him.
He turned to see Ensign Tilly moving quickly towards him. "What can I help you with, Ensign?" he asked when she caught up to him.
"Ahh, I'm sorry..." She sounded a little out of breath. "I was wondering if you had seen Commander Burnham. She was supposed to meet me on Holodeck 4 for a tennis match, but she didn't come."
Spock frowned. It was unlike Michael to miss her exercise appointment with her friend.
"I did, you know... try to call her on the comm., but... "Tilly shrugged and smiled, but Spock could see there was real concern in her eyes.
"But?"
"Well, she didn't respond. I mean, I only hailed her on her personal channel, didn't put it all over the ship or anything. I was just a little worried she was unwell or something?"
"I have not seen her since this morning," Spock said and clicked his comm. "Spock to Commander Burnham."
Silence.
He clicked the comm. one more time. "Michael, are you there?"
Again... silence.
Spock continued to walk towards his quarters, acutely aware that Tilly was beside him. He hoped that she was there, of course, but he also hoped she wasn't lying naked on his bed as she had been a few nights before.
"Michael," he called out the moment his doors opened in a tone that would hopefully give her warning that something was up and he wasn't alone.
"Commander," Tilly called out as they both looked around. "She doesn't appear to be here, either." Tilly looked disappointed and the concern in her eyes rose a notch. "I tried our quarters... I mean... not that she's often there, lately, but..." She shrugged and looked up at him, finally admitting her concern, "I'm getting a little worried. This is really unlike her."
He hit his comm. one more time. "Lieutenant Detmer, this is Lieutenant Spock. Could you please locate Commander Burnham on the ship?"
Tilly grinned. "Frack, wish I'd thought to do that." Her grin slipped when Spock looked at her. "Sorry."
"Lieutenant Spock, I'm sorry, but Commander Burnham isn't on Discovery. Transporter logs have her leaving about 4 hours ago."
"What?!" Tilly exclaimed.
Spock let out a slow breath, trying hard not to reveal his shock. "Where did she beam to, Lieutenant Detmer?"
"I'm sorry, Lieutenant, it... it doesn't say."
Spock walked out of his quarters, down the long corridor, towards the lift. He was heading for Captain Pike's ready room. He had been there an hour ago and would most likely still be. Tilly was beside him, matching his steps.
"No destination... That doesn't make any sense," she said as they both got into the lift. "Transporter records are very precise. I mean... we can't just have people beaming out, here or there or... and why would she go somewhere and not tell anyone?" Tilly rambled. "Maybe not me, why would she tell me, except we did have a Tennis date..." She frowned. "...but you... you're her brother. She should have at least told you. Something strange is going on here. It's not like Michael to-,"
"Tilly," Spock interrupted sharply. "I am sure there is a rational explanation for this. I am also sure Captain Pike will know where she has gone and why." He looked up. "Deck 7," he instructed. The door whished closed and Spock was grateful for the moment's silence. He needed to think. He needed to compose himself. Tilly was right. She should have told him where she was going.
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Captain Pike was in a hologram call with Admiral Trist when he and Tilly entered the Ready Room. They stood respectively just inside of the door, waiting for him to finish. Spock could only see his profile, but it was clear he was not happy.
"I would like to lodge a formal complaint," Captain Pike said, drawing in a large breath. "This is truly unacceptable."
"That's you're prerogative, Chris. I don't think it'll do any good, but..."
Pike lowered his head, another large breath before looking up again. "Thank you, Admiral, for speaking with me at such a late hour."
"I'm sorry, Chris. I don't know much about it, but it comes from the highest level"
"Good night," Pike said and ended the call. He turned to look at them and walked around his desk to sit down.
"Captain, I-,"
Pike held up a hand. "Before you say anything, I can tell you that I already know Commander Burnham has left the ship."
Spock frowned. He was strangely relieved, but it still didn't make sense. "May I inquire where she has gone?"
"You may not," he said, looking from him to Tilly and then back again. "Apparently it is highly classified."
"I don't understand, Captain." Spock kept his voice low.
"Neither do I, Spock." Pike shook his head and huffed out a breath. "I got word about 3 hours ago that Michael had been seconded to a highly classified mission. Apparently she'd known about it for days, but was sworn to secrecy. At first when I got an alert she'd used the transporter without authorisation, I figured she may have snuck off to see Ash, but I spoke to him and it wasn't the case. About 30 minutes later I got an encrypted message from Starfleet command telling me that Michael was on mission and should return in a few weeks."
Spock balled his hand into a fist, in an effort to keep his demeanour. A few weeks? His first thought was this wasn't true.
"Captain," Tilly piped up. "I can't believe Commander Burnham would just leave like that. Not without saying a word to anyone."
Pike nodded and looked at him. "Did she say anything to you, Spock?"
"No," was all Spock dare say. His heart rate had escalated and his anger was starting to bubble.
Pike sighed and looked at Tilly "I agree with you. I can't see her saying nothing either, but it would appear she was ordered to. I've made a few calls and as you saw I just finished speaking to Admiral Trist. Whatever this is it's at a very high level and I'm sorry to say, I wasn't even looped in."
"Thank you, Captain," Spock said, turned and walked out. Tilly wasn't far behind him, but mercifully she didn't follow or try to speak to him. He just needed to walk. One step after the other. He just needed to breath. In, out, in out. He just needed to focus and make it back to his quarters. How could she have done this? Classified or not, this was a betrayal at a level he could not even comprehend. One step after another. In, out, in, out.
Once he was behind closed doors... that's when he could fall apart.
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The first few days were the hardest. Others would ask where she was, that they hadn't seen her and had noticed her absence. He would answer politely, saying she was on an assignment for Starfleet, but that was all he knew. Some who did know were curious as to the type of mission it was and again, he would explain he had no idea. The bandaid was ripped off everytime. They were, human, with human curiosity. Some were genuinely concerned, but mostly just inquisitive. They didn't know, how could they, that even the mention of her name was like tiny little needles piercing his skin.
It took 5 days for him to finally start to let go of his anger. Anger and rage were the enemies of logic, he had told Michael that, he knew that too, but it was difficult to reconcile his feelings of betrayal. Not only were those feelings illogical, they were irrational also. He'd thought long and hard about what he would have done, if Starfleet command had asked him instead of Michael. If the orders were to say nothing, would he have? The question was simple really, as much as he would have wanted to, he would have obeyed and told no one. Not even Michael, at least that is what he told himself and it helped. So why then was he so angry at her? He found comfort in her words on the last morning they'd spent together. "I'm not leaving you, I'm going to work." Still... time was passing slowly and a few weeks, even a few days without her, seemed so long.
"Lieutenant Spock," Captain Pike's voice sounded over Spock's comm. "I need you on the bridge right away."
"Yes, Sir. On my way."
He walked onto the bridge to see Saru, Tilly and Captain Pike looking particularly serious. "We have an incoming communication," Captain Pike explained. "She specifically asked you be here."
"She?"
"Commander Burnham, Spock."
Spock's eyes widened slightly and then there was a blip, giving him no time to process.
"Patching and... Putting her on screen now." Lieutenant Detmer said. Then suddenly she was standing there, feet apart, hands behind her back looking directly at Captain Pike.
"Hello, Commander," Pike said. "This is an unexpected pleasure."
"Hello, Captain." Michael looked around the room, her expression unreadable. "I... I felt, I needed to see you all to explain and..." She swallowed hard.
"Commander," Pike said stepping forward. "We understand you're on a mission. I hope it's going well and you'll be back to us very soon."
Spock balled his hands into fists. The first thing Spock noticed was how drawn she looked. The second thing he noticed was she was wearing a section 31 uniform. Anger flared internally as he wondered if the ship she was on was Ash Tyler's command. He'd told Captain Pike she wasn't with him, but...
Michael's bottom lip quivered slightly and then she glanced sideways for a second as if someone else was there. "Well... that's just it, Sir. I've been given special permission to... to tell you all personally that I won't be returning to Discovery and... to... say goodbye."
"What?" Tilly let out a sob as her eyes filled with tears.
"Listen," Michael said sucking in and then blowing out a large breath. "I need you all to listen very carefully."
Spock's eyes were wide. He could barely believe what he was hearing. He stood frozen as Michael said nice things about Discovery being her home and everyone being her second family. His internal dialog was louder than Michael's speech as she mentioned everyone on the bridge.
"Captain... I... you have been someone I look up to. I've learnt so much from you... so so much. I can't tell you how grateful I am for your leadership and... your compassion."
Michael sniffed, holding back tears. "Tilly, Saru... if only you knew how much I've valued your friendship. You both kept me going, when..." Michael's voice trembled. "...when I really thought all was lost. You've been there for me and I... I love you." After a moment she added. "I'm sorry I missed our Tennis game, Tilly."
"We love you, too," Tilly said moving forward towards the screen and Saru nodded his head in agreement.
Up until now, in the few minutes that she had been speaking, Michael hadn't looked directly at him and the moment she did, her tears spilt over. "Spock..." She looked sideways again. "I only have a moment, but... Spock... Brother... Please," her voice lowered and cracked. "Please, it's important."
Spock found himself trembling, every single muscle in his body coiled tightly. "What is it... sister?" he said and it was angry even to his own ears. To call him brother at a moment like this, belittled their relationship.
"Remember... remember the very last thing I said to you when I left your quarters the other morning. It was true then and it still is." She looked at him, eyes wide full of something unrecognisable. "Do you understand?"
Spock blinked and then frowned. "I..." he started, trying hard to work out what he was supposed to understand.
"I have to go," she said sucking in a breath.
Something strange crossed Michael's face. An expression that Spock could not fully read. Was that fear?
"Good-Bye," she sobbed and the screen went black.
"We've lost connection, Sir," Lieutenant Detmer said, voice low and full of tears. "Would you like me to try and get her back?"
"No," Pike shook his head. "I think she said the things she needed to." He looked at Saru. "You have the chair I'll be in my quarters if anyone needs me."
Spock waited a few minutes before leaving the bridge to walk back to his quarters. He really wasn't sure what had just happened. He was sure though that something was not right as he tried to remember exactly what Michael had said to him that morning.
"I'm not leaving you, I'm going to work."
No... Spock shook his head slightly as he walked. She had been specific about it being the last thing she said as she left.
"There is nothing or no one that could ever tempt me to leave. I'm staying right here... with you. You are, now... and forever stuck with me, okay?"
Spock turned on his heel to change direction. This made no sense. I'm staying right here... with you. Michael wasn't saying good-bye. She was trying to tell him something. She was asking him to understand.
"Come in," Captain Pike said without turning around. His quarters were large and his view of the stars from his window was breathtaking.
"Sir... I believe there is something strange happening with Commander Burnham. I don't believe she is there willingly."
Pike turned around and his face was oddly neutral, maybe a little sad. He had a glass in his hand that had a small amount of brown liquid in it. He bought it to his lips and took the last sip. "I agree, but... she's following orders. I don't think she realized this was going to turn out to be such a long term assignment."
"No, Sir. I think it's more than that."
"What do you mean?"
"I believe she was frightened. I think she was trying to tell me something. Tell me that she was not there of her own free will."
"Frightened?" Pike shook his head. "Like I said. She didn't realize it was-,"
"No!" Spock interrupted sharply. "Captain, something is very wrong. Her... message to me. She is in trouble somehow. You have to find out what section 31 ship she is on."
"And what exactly was her message, Lieutenant?" Pike looked annoyed.
"That she wasn't going anywhere. That she was staying on Discovery."
"That's weird," Pike admitted. "Considering she knew about the mission before she took it."
"I don't believe she did, Captain. In fact I am certain of it."
"Spock, you saw the communications. I even spoke to Admiral Trist."
Spock took in a breath. He didn't know how to explain his instincts. He didn't know how to tell Captain Pike that Michael wanted him to know she didn't go on this mission, whatever it was, with prior knowledge or with consent. "Captain," Spock kept his voice low. "She would have told me. She would have told me to keep it a secret, but she would have told me."
"I know you're her brother, Spock, but she was under orders-,"
Spock thumped the desk in front of him. Frustration at not being understood. "She would have told me!" he spat, immediately regretting his tone.
Pike's eyes widened and he blinked at the sound of the bang. Spock could tell he was unsure how to respond.
"I... I'm sorry, Captain. I didn't mean to..." He shook his head. "She did not know she was going on this mission, of that I am certain. I can't explain how I know, but I do."
Pike's face hardened. "Try."
Spock let out a slow deliberate breath. "Because we talked that morning... we discussed our future..." He looked into Pike's eyes, looking for comprehension and understanding. "Our future... together."
Pike walked over to his cabinet and grabbed a bottle, pouring more of the brown liquid into the glass still in his hand. He took a gulp and nodded his head. "So you are lovers?"
Spock had no hope of keeping the shocked look off his face. "How..." was all he could manage to say. An intense insecurity building in his chest.
The Captain's features softened. "Whenever I wanted her, she was always in your quarters." He smiled. "That on its own wouldn't have been enough, but... the looks... Spock I'm not even sure you know how you look at her..." He sighed as he continued. "The banter." He put his glass down and moved closer. "The incidental touches." His smile grew a little wider. "You're not a touchy feely kind of guy, Spock, but with Michael... It wasn't that hard to figure out. Should I go on?"
Spock felt suddenly, inexplicably vulnerable. How many others had noticed? "We are not blood related," he started to explain, to justify. "We didn't mean-,"
Pike held up a hand. "No explanation needed, Spock. I'm not judging you... or Michael."
"The depth of my commitment to her is something I... I cannot even find the word for."
"Can I ask a personal question, Spock?
He furrowed his brow. "Yes, Sir."
"In your discussions about the future, had you decided which ship?"
"Which ship?"
"As soon as a replacement is appointed, you and I will be heading back to the Enterprise. I'm surprised those orders haven't come through already. Would Michael have come with you, or would you have requested to stay on Discovery?"
Spock looked out the window. It wasn't like he hadn't thought about that. He knew one day it would need to be addressed, but it was something he had chosen to not think about. If the truth be told, it was something that would have forced him to think about the more uncertain questions in his mind. The ones he had avoided discussing with Michael. How would others react to them as a couple? Would everyone understand and especially, how would Sarek and Amanda respond? Would they ever accept that their children... siblings could be more than brother and sister? "We have yet to talk about that," he said simply. "May I inquire why you ask?"
Pike smiled again and this time it went to his eyes. "Truthfully?" it was a rhetorical question. He shrugged. "Guess I just wanted to know if I would have been gaining a daughter or losing a son."
Those words created an uncomfortable, yet warm feeling inside and he didn't know how to react, how to respond. The fact was, he could not see himself under the command of anyone but the man standing in front of him. They looked at each other and there was a moment of silence, but it wasn't awkward, it was... it just was.
Pike broke their contact and walked over to his desk. "I'll try to dig deeper, Spock. Someone out there must know where she is."
"We spoke about staying together forever. Her last words were that nothing or no one could ever take her away. If she knew she was going on this assignment..." He looked at Pike, eyes pleading him to trust his words. "I do not believe she could have said those things if she knew she was in fact leaving. Even for a few days."
"I do believe you, Spock and I agree with you. Give me 24 hours."
Spock swallowed hard. He needed to control the urgency he felt. "Thank you, Sir." Spock nodded and started to walk towards the door.
"Oh, and Spock?"
Spock turned to face him.
"That commitment to Michael you spoke about just before... The word you're looking for... is love."
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"Personal log, star date 1.217. Captain Pike has just informed me that he has been unable to locate any further records or communications that could lead us to Michael's whereabouts. He said he would continue his search and speak once again to Admiral Trist in the morning. It would appear that whatever mission Michael has been sent on, it really is at the highest classification level. I am still certain that she is not there willingly and with each passing moment I become more anxious. Why would she have asked me to understand her last words, if it were not a message? As much as it pains me to do so, I have requested a meeting with Commander Tyler. He is now a high ranking officer within section 31 and he may have access to information we do not. I have no choice but to follow every possible avenue."
Spock concentrated on his breathing and turned his log entry off when he heard the blip of his door.
"Enter," he said and the doors opened. He stood up as Commander Tyler approached.
"Good afternoon, Lieutenant. I understand you wanted to speak to me."
"Yes, Sir," Spock responded. He was after all, his superior. "Thank you for beaming aboard. I could easily have come to you."
"It's fine, Spock. What can I help you with?"
"It's about Commander Burnham."
Commander Tyler's demeanour softened and he smiled. "First of all, if we're going to have this conversation, you can call me Ash. Second of all, I was kind of expecting this. Well... I mean... things have... shifted, I guess, between us, Michael and I. Me with my own command now, there's been no time, but that hasn't changed the way I feel about her."
Spock furrowed his brow in confusion. "You were expecting this conversation? Then... you must understand why I need to know?"
"You're her brother, Spock, of course I understand. A gatekeeper in the absence of a father. You're only looking out for her." Ash paced away and then turned to face him. The smallest tinge of red in his cheeks. "The thing is, not seeing her for so long. There's been barely any contact except at an official level." Ash averted his eyes. "I get a sense something has changed for her, but... not for me. I still love her." He looked back at Spock and his face turned earnest. "I would never hurt her, Spock. You have my word. My intensions are truly honourable."
"Your intentions?" Spock's eyes widened a little when he fully comprehended the conversation they were actually having. "Your relationship with..." the words stuck in his throat. "... my sister is not why I've asked to speak to you."
Ash tilted his head slightly. "It's not?"
"No, Commander Tyler, it is not."
"Ash," he reminded. "Then what is this about?" He looked and sounded a little embarrassed.
"Michael is on a mission. Some sort of assignment. It appears she has been... drafted. I do not believe she is there of her own choosing."
"I was aware she was away." Ash frowned. "What sort of mission?"
"That is what I am hoping you can tell us. We have had communications from Starfleet command stating that it is highly classified, but..." Spock's jaw tightened. "Michael has now informed us... she will not be returning to Discovery."
Ash blinked. "What?"
The look on Commander Tyler's face answered at least one of his questions. Ash did not know about the outcome of her secondment. "Captain Pike has made inquiries and..." He shook his head. "Nothing."
Ash lowered his eyes to the floor as if concentrating. "So you're asking me if I know something... or... if I can find out where she's been sent?" He looked back up and met his eyes. "Why would you think I could, when Captain Pike couldn't?"
"She was in a Section 31 uniform when she... she said good-bye."
Ash's face paled instantly and he took in a breath. "Goodbye?."
"I'm asking if you could, at least, make some enquiries of your own?"
Ash nodded slowly a distant look still in his eyes. "Of course, Spock. If she has been... drafted and..." He cut his words short and blinked. "If she has been ordered on an assignment she doesn't want to be on, then I want to know about it, too."
Spock placed his hands behind his back in a respectful stance. "Thank you, Commander."
Ash started to walk away, before turning back. His face still pale. "And just so we're clear. I meant what I said before. I love her... So if she's working on a Section 31 assignment..." He sucked in a breath and for the first time, Spock could read his face. That thought had truly disturbed him. "I'll keep you informed."
The moment the doors closed behind the Commander, Spock sat back down at his desk. He felt something very unfamiliar. He couldn't be sure if it was because Commander Tyler was deeply concerned by the fact Michael was working for Section 31, or... was it hearing a confession of love for Michael from another man? Both were deeply unsettling. He clicked a button and brought up a bookings log for the holodecks. He could not sleep, so maybe an intense physical workout was what he needed. Running up the mountainous terrain of Sparitas 4 sounded ideal.
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The mountains on Sparitas 4 were steep and dirt kept slipping from under his feet. It made it challenging and also a little dangerous. He felt like he was almost climbing vertically, rather than running as he intended. Still, he'd worked up a sweat when he finally made the other side. He pushed a button and the dirt, trees and yellow mountains disappeared. He was a little out of breath and he didn't like that. He prided himself on his fitness. He hadn't needed the holodeck as much over the past months. It was surprising how the excursion of sex was as adequate. Spock closed his eyes as the memory of her touch washed over him. It was comforting and painful at the same time. When he opened his eyes he typed fast on the holodeck keyboard, creating an algorithm not previously programmed. If he were to think about it too long, he would delete and scorn himself for being so childish. He hit the green button and suddenly, there she was. Michael was standing in front of him.
"Spock," she said and ran into his arms.
He took hold of her tightly, almost lifting her from her feet. "I have missed you so much," he said pushing her back so he could look at her face, before bringing their lips together in a crushing kiss. Long, hard, it felt so real and for a second it consoled him.
"Let's not do that again," Michael said when the kiss broke. "I don't ever want to leave you again."
"Nor I you," he whispered out, touching the side of her face.
"I'm not gone, Spock."
Spock tilted his head in a question. That was unusual. He would need to ask what she meant by that and really he should know. He wrote the script. A sense of... something... touched his skin as he watched the Michael in front of him flicker. The programming was crude and he knew that, so as illogical as it was, he continued as he had planned. He just needed to hear her say it. His meeting with Commander Tyler had shook him more than he had wanted to admit.
"I love you, Michael Burnham. More than you could possibly ever know."
"I love you, too, Spock. I will never love another man as I love you."
Spock sucked in a breath as the hologram flickered once more and it was enough to remind him this wasn't real. "Computer, close and delete Michael 0.1 program."
"Closing and deleting Michael 0.1" the holodeck voice confirmed.
She flickered one more time and he saw her facial expression in his peripheral vision. If he had to describe it, he'd say it looked like disappointment, but then she was gone.
Spock sighed. He couldn't quite work out if this had been a help or a hindrance to his aim of being able to sleep. He needed a shower and as he walked back to his quarters, he already knew it was going to be with water.
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Michael sat on her bed leaning against the head rest. Her knees were to her chest and her arms were wrapped around her knees. Her chin rested on her hands. She was fully aware that she was pouting.
She looked over when she heard the door open. "What is it now?" she said, her tone irritated.
"They're still digging. Looking for you."
She shrugged. "I don't know what you want me to say. I did as you asked and said good-bye."
"That was your idea, Commander. You said they'd be suspicious if you said nothing and just vanished."
"Well that's true. They would get suspicious if I just didn't come back. They'd dig even deeper, secret assignment or not." Michael got up from her bed and walked towards the bathroom. As similar as this room was to her own it wasn't quite the same. The bathroom door was blue not white. Her desk was off to the side of the room, instead of dead centre and the window was the wrong shape. "Do you mind," she said, staring with the contempt she felt as she turned the handle.
"You take a lot of showers."
Michael narrowed her eyes. "Do you have a problem with that?"
"Good-night, Michael. Breakfast will be at 0700 hours. I will see you then."
Michael watched the door close and entered the bathroom. She needed the familiar feel of water all over her body. "I'm still here, Spock," she whispered. "I'm still here."
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Spock woke to a buzz coming from his command screen. "Incoming message from Commander Ash Tyler."
He quickly got out of bed and threw on his trousers and shirt. It was still only 0500 and that time alone gave him hope. Why would the Commander be calling this early, if he had no news. He waved a hand over the console and then Ash's hologram was standing in front of him. "Commander," Spock said by way of a greeting.
"I'm sorry to be calling so early, Spock, but-,"
"It's fine," Spock said impatiently. "Do you have any news?"
"I did a really deep dive and either this mission is so covert the top brass know nothing, or..."
"Or?" Spock suddenly felt a sense of foreboding.
"It doesn't exist. It's a cover story. I have checked with every section 31 ship, everywhere. Top secret is one thing, but this..." He frowned. "Are you still docked at Deep Space 8?"
"Yes."
"I'm turning the ship around and I'll be back there in 3 hours."
Spock tensed. "There is no need for that, Commander. I think-,"
Ash's face changed and he stood taller. "It wasn't a question, Lieutenant. I'll see you then."
The call disconnected and Spock was left standing there confused, unable to pinpoint the differences between feeling and thought. He was just told that the mission may not even be a mission at all and the man he'd least like to see in the entire universe, was on his way back to Discovery.
He got fully dressed and left his quarters, uncertain of where he was actually heading. He was tempted to roll his eyes, when a familiar voice called his name out from one of the records room. He chose to ignore her and just kept walking.
"Mr Spock... oh hi," Tilly said as she ran up behind him and fell into step beside. "You're awake early. I mean, I am too, but I'm on an early. I thought you didn't start until 0800?"
Spock kept going, not acknowledging the question or her, increasing his walking speed just enough to make her almost run if she wanted to keep up.
"Okay, well, anyhow. I've been thinking. I mean not thinking exactly, but it's been bugging me and... well... you know what I'm like. I haven't found it yet, but the Transporter logs shouldn't-,"
Spock stopped mid-stride and turned to face her. "Ensign, have you anything to report?"
"Well, no, not yet, I just started, but I thought-,"
"Then this conversation will need to wait for another time, Ensign," Spock barked it as an order and he watched as Tilly's usual bright face and features dropped.
"Of course, Sir. Sorry Sir."
A speck of guilt rose in Spock's chest before he dismissed it and kept walking. He needed to clear his mind before dealing with Commander Tyler again.
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Tilly sniffed as she hit keys and swiped the screen in front of her. She'd only wanted to tell him what she was doing. Her theory about the Transporter offline back up. He didn't need to be so dismissive, so rude. She wiped away a tear and berated herself. That was over 2 hours ago, so why was she still dwelling on it? Oh, that's right... No one ever took her or her ideas seriously. Spock, however, had been different and had shown interest in all of her side projects. He'd even helped her work out the corrections she needed to get her calculations right for her next exam. She understood that he was worried about his sister, she was too. If she could work out exactly where Michael had beamed to, it might put all their minds at rest.
"Yes!" Tilly smiled. She had finally found the correct offline server. That in and of itself was no mean feat. There were thousands of backup servers and each server held trillions of bits of information. Narrowing down a Transporter log, for one single transfer, weeks ago, for one specific ship at one specific time, was hard, not to mention time consuming.
"Right," Tilly said to herself as she gained momentum, keying in codes, dates and times. "Where exactly did you beam to, Michael, enquiring minds want to know?"
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Ash was anxious when his ship finally docked. It had taken the estimated 3 hours, but it felt so much longer. He wasn't sure why it was so important to get back to Discovery quickly, perhaps it was because he felt closer to Michael, just by being there. He missed her terribly, but he had taken this command in order to keep section 31 in check and their love affair was a casualty of that choice. Still... for the first few months, there had been calls and a few rendezvous. He'd hoped that would have been the case when he found out Discovery was also docked at Deep Space 8. He was disappointed when Captain Pike explained she was on assignment. Now, though, she was effectively missing. His instinct had told him that the people he'd spoke to weren't lying. Michael had not beamed aboard a Section 31 craft of any description. "Where are you, Michael," he mused as he walked the long corridor towards Spock's quarters. He was surprised to see Tilly outside of his door.
Tilly saw him and ran. "Ash!" she squealed, hugging him tightly around the neck. "Back so soon? I thought you left orbit hours ago. I was disappointed we didn't get to catch up."
"Hey, Tilly," he responded when the hug broke. "We did, but..."
"What are you doing here?" Tilly's face dropped as she clearly second guessed herself. "I mean... not that I... I mean you don't have to tell me if it's Section 31 business, it's not like-"
"It's okay, Tilly. I'm here to speak to Lieutenant Spock."
"Oh, okay, well he's not there," she said indicating to his quarters. "I need to speak to him too." Her eyes widened. "Are you... would you be here about Commander Burnham by any chance?"
Ash smiled. "Yes, actually."
"She didn't go anywhere!" Tilly responded wide eyed. "Well, I mean she did, obviously, but she didn't according to the transporter logs."
Ash shook his head. "I'm not following."
"Well..." Tilly took in a breath. "When you beam off a ship, any ship, not just Discovery, there is a record of who, from where, destination, time of arrival... right?"
Ash nodded. "Are you saying there wasn't one for Captain Burnham?"
She looked at him with expectation. "Our records only show her transporting 'off' the ship."
"Okay," he said, still not really understanding.
"They didn't say where she was beamed to. That's impossible. It's automatic. You can't show someone leaving and not show where they went."
Ash frowned. "I am not liking the sound of this, Tilly. Why wasn't that a red flag?"
"Everyone just assumed it's because she's on this mission and the records were firewalled or something."
"And you don't think so?"
"I don't know so." She grinned. "I mean... the records were altered... scrubbed in some way, but there's a back up. The records were changed from inside of Discovery."
Ash didn't understand. He knew what Tilly was saying to him, but the concern he felt had just now escalated 3 fold. "Someone on Discovery hid where she went?"
"It looks that way."
"You said there was a backup. Could you access it?"
"Yes, but... well it doesn't make sense. It says she beamed back inside the ship, but we know she's not here."
"What does Lieutenant Spock have to say about all this?"
"He doesn't know yet. That's why I was looking for him. I mean, I tried to tell him, about the backup except..." Tilly frowned. "I didn't actually know-,"
"Commander," Spock's voice came from behind them and they both turned and watched him approach.
Ash was now really concerned, he was also really angry. Something in his gut told him this was all kinds of wrong. "Tilly tells me you ignored vital information about Michael and in doing so you have put her and this ship in danger."
Spock's face was unreadable, it was an annoying ability he had mastered, but his head tilted slightly and he looked at Tilly."
Tilly's eyes widened and she shook her head. "Oh, ahh... no, I didn't say-,"
"We need to speak to Captain Pike immediately," Ash said and started to walk forward. Spock grabbed him by the arm and halted his movement. His face was readable this time. A mixture of anger and anguish.
"How do you know Michael is in danger?"
Ash looked pointedly down at the hand holding his forearm and Spock let go. He took a step back but his face didn't change. "Tilly found information that confirms the Transporter records of Michael's destination were altered by someone here on Discovery."
"That is totally illogical. Why would anyone here want to do that?"
"You tell me," Ash said impatiently. They were wasting time. "They also say she was beamed somewhere within the ship."
Spock's face dropped. As good as he was at covering, he couldn't cover his distress. "That makes no sense."
"No it doesn't." Ash started to walk and he was flanked by both Spock and Tilly.
"I... I didn't say you ignored me," Tilly explained to Spock as they walked. "I just didn't get a chance to say I hadn't located the records when I spoke to you."
Ash blinked, but kept up his pace. He didn't realise she hadn't actually conveyed to information to Spock. Still... if he had known, that would have been the first thing he would have investigated.
"It's fine, Ensign. I apologise for not listening to your plan when you tried to explain it to me."
"That's okay, Sir. My plans are usually pretty lame, so I understand."
"On the contrary, Ensign. You have one of the brightest scientific minds on this ship. If my ignorance has caused any further harm to..."
Ash heard Spock trail off and could see his profile when he stopped to push the lift button. Spock looked very conflicted about not listening. Good, he thought. So he should be. If he had known, he would have been tearing the ship apart looking for her.
They all rode the lift in silence.
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Captain Pike didn't know what to think when the 3 of them entered his Ready room. He wasn't expecting to see Commander Tyler quite so soon. Something was clearly wrong. "Commander?"
"Captain, I'm sorry to barge in like this, but Ensign Tilly has discovered some very disturbing information about Commander Burnham."
Pike felt his stomach drop. "And what would that be?"
Tilly explained in typical Tilly fashion how she'd been curious about the Transporter records and went searching for answers. He listened as she went into much more detail than she needed to and finally revealed the 2 startling pieces of information. Someone on the ship changed the records and Michael didn't actually beam anywhere.
Both men stood quietly as Tilly explained but he could feel the negativity for each other coming off of them in waves. He understood why Spock would feel it, this man, after all, was Michael's lover before him, but what did Ash have against Spock? He blinked and tried to analyse everything he'd just heard. Now was not the time to be thinking about Spock and Ash's obvious animosity.
He stood up from behind his desk and hit his comm. "Lieutenant Nilsson. Could you please do a bio-thermal DNA intuitive sweep of the entire ship?"
"Yes, Sir. Who's DNA am I sweeping for, Sir."
"Commander Michael Burnham."
There was a second of silence, before Nilsson responded. "Yes, Sir. Right away."
There was another moment of silence and the anticipation was almost palatable. Tilly looked hopeful, Tyler looked angry and Spock had his, I'm not giving you any insight to how I'm feeling look on his face.
"Sir," Nilsson responded. "I've only found 3 sets of DNA larger enough to be detected. Her old quarters she use to share with Ensign Tilly, Lieutenant Spock's quarters and here on the bridge."
"Thank you, Lieutenant." As much of a long shot as it was, he was disappointed.
Ash let out a breath. "I didn't think it would be that easy."
"Captain," Spock said. It was the first time he spoke. "Have you spoken to Admiral Trist again? I believe with this new information he might-,"
"New information that should have been discovered weeks ago," Ash spat and turned to look Spock.
Spock met his gaze and for a second Pike actually thought Spock was going to react with a punch. "Now is not the time to ponder decisions that might have changed this situation. We need to work out who, only then may we be able to work why."
Ash took a step toward Spock. "If she's hurt because you couldn't see the trees from the forest."
Spock's jaw tightened and to anyone else the twitch of his eye would have been invisible, but Pike knew Ash had hit a nerve. "Commander Burnham spoke to us, a week after she left. There was no reason to think-,"
"There was every reason, Spock," Ash's voice rose. "Your records were missing."
"That's enough, Commander," Pike intervened. "In case you didn't notice, I didn't call for an investigation into the missing record, either."
Both men glanced at him and he hit a few buttons on his console. He took in a breath and let it out as he waited for the call to go through.
"Hello," a sleepy sounding man answered. He'd declined the visual call and Pike suspected he was still in bed.
"Admiral Trist? I'm sorry to wake you."
"Chris? I thought we had a meeting at 010:00." There was a beat of silence. "It's only 9.00."
"Yes, Sir, I'm sorry, but this couldn't wait. It's about Commander Burnham."
"Oh, God..." Admiral Trist sounded a little too light hearted. "What's she done this time? Kidnapped a General? Commandeered someone's space shuttle? Started another Klingon war?" he chuckled.
All 4 of them looked at each other. "No Admiral. We've dug up some information that doesn't make much sense. We assumed that her mission was too highly classified for the details of her whereabouts to be disclosed. That included our Transporter records. We've since discovered that it was someone on board Discovery that altered those records."
"Hang on," Admiral Trist said. "Let's just go back a step. What mission are we talking about here?"
Pike's brow creased and once again they all looked at each other with not only a question in their eyes, but fear. "You explained that it was highly classified, but you didn't say anything about someone on Discovery ch-,"
"I explained?" the Admiral's voice and tone changed. "Chris, I have no idea what you are talking about."
Pike felt his breathing and heart-rate quicken. "We spoke the day Commander Burnham left."
Ash swiped his hand down his beard. Tilly looked wide eyed and Spock paced a few steps away.
"Chris... I'm sorry. I got your message that you wanted to speak to me today, but that was the first contact I've had from you in... I don't know... 6 months?"
"Oh my, God," Ash said in a whisper and glanced sideways at Spock.
Pike hit his comm. "Commander Saru? Take us to yellow alert. I want all senior crew and security in my Ready room in 5 minutes."
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Michael drank from her water bottle and concentrated on the differences. It had become a game. The room was supposed to be a mirror image of her room on Discovery. That in itself was a bit of a joke, because she was still on Discovery. It took her a while, but she realized about day 7 or 8 that the reason it wasn't identical was because the images were from her own mind. The place she felt safe and comfortable. The window shape, the positioning of the bed, they were familiar, because they were Spock's quarters. A place she always felt safe in and had practically, but not quite, become hers also.
Her captors had gone to a great deal of trouble to make her life as close to her real one as possible. They'd even projected holographic images of her loved ones to come and speak with her, keep her company, play tennis. She hadn't accepted it at first, she knew it wasn't real, but she was lonely and if the truth be told, she was bored. Still, she resisted. It wasn't until they had brought Spock to her that she succumbed to living in the fantasy life they had created. To feel him, to hear him, to touch him, it took some of the anguish she felt away. She would, of course, only go so far with fake Spock. Not because it wasn't really him and it felt like betrayal, which it did, but because she knew they were there. Like an animal in a cage at a 20th century zoo. They were watching her, studying her, taking notes and analysing everything she did. She was their lab rat and she knew it.
At first she had refused to eat or drink. She had laid in bed, trying to think of ways to escape her prison. When she did venture out of her room, she found the entire ship had been recreated, but it was baron of others. Soon though, they started creating the holographic images of the crew she would expect to be at their station, but her captors, also known as Dyad and Bril couldn't comprehend how much that hurt her, so she just stayed in her pseudo quarters and they started bringing the 'people' to her. What good was it to study a species in their 'natural' habitat if the specimen didn't cooperate?
She'd come to know the aliens as being of the Kepler people. She'd never heard of them and they claimed they came from stars not yet explored by the Federation. She had no idea what they really looked like as they only showed themself in human form. Her questions were slowly answered over time. In the 19 days she'd been there, they had disclosed just enough for her to put it all together. It was sad really and the first time she'd held out hope that she could negotiate with them. Their planet was dying. Resources were all but gone and their children had died from lack of food or clean air. They'd managed to build a compound that housed over 1 million of their race and it was sustainable for the first 100 years or so, but their elders were wise enough to know life would not continue with no births allowed in this artificially made city, only to find out when they did try, that many of the woman were sterile. They were fighting for the survival of their race and that was something Michael could sympathise with, could understand. What she couldn't understand was how such an advanced race had got themselves in such a state. They clearly had advanced technology and they were obviously telepathic to some degree, it made no sense that they studied species in this way. They had told her they wanted to assimilate and were trying to figure out which species was the most compatible. This she understood on an intellectual level. Clearly they had other lab rats like her to choose from, but it seemed such a primitive way to go about it.
Her talks, her 'negotiations' explained that the Federation would help them find another habitable planet and resettle them. They wouldn't need to lose their identity, their culture if they'd just let her go, she could help them and speak on their behalf. They didn't listen of course, otherwise she wouldn't still be there. It was in fact the first time she'd seen anything but patience from them, when they took away all the glamour of the holodeck and left her in a dark, black walled, 20 by 20 room with only a bed, for 2 days. It was the first time she realized that these 'people' were not exactly what they seemed. Yes they may wish to find a new home, but was their studying with the view of assimilation or annihilation?
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Spock stood in the background, a little away from the centre of the conversation. He looked pale and Pike knew he was beating himself up. Ash hadn't helped, taking every opportunity to remind Spock about the fact this was the 11th hour and Michael had been gone for almost 3 weeks.
"Okay." Pike turned back to everyone. He'd sent them all to do deep dives into any anomalies aboard the ship and told them that nothing was off limits. It would be easier, now they had an idea of what to look for. That was over an hour ago and now they'd reconvened. "Okay, where are we at? I don't care how small. I want to know who the hell has been messing around with my ship, creating false communications and false contacts."
"Well, Sir," Saru started. "It would appear that there was a 0.004 fluctuation in the incoming messages system on star-date 0.211. "That may explain the incoming encrypted messages, supposedly from Starfleet. There were similar fluctuations on 4 other occasions. All coinciding with messages you received."
Pike nodded. Good, they were getting somewhere. "And what about Michael's message. Was that fake, too?"
"No," Spock said, taking a step forward. "I have checked the incoming portal screening sensors. It was a live transmission."
"That doesn't mean anything." Ash chimed in. "How can we be sure it was actually even her and not some hologram like Admiral Trist?"
Spock glanced at him and Pike could see the resolve in his eyes, but his tone was quiet, making him sound indecisive. "It was her. She... she mentioned things that only she could know."
"Such as?" Ash asked with a venom that was just unlike him.
Pike once again was about to intervene when Tilly, God Bless her, spoke up.
"Yes, Sir, the hologram of Admiral Trist. I was actually able to trace that. There was a looping link sensor imbedded in your console. Which..." She held up a hand. "...before you ask, should be there, but it was looping, it shouldn't be doing that." She smiled very briefly. "It means that someone anticipated the call and used it to project Admiral Trist."
A sickening feeling washed over Pike. This had to be an inside job. Someone from his crew was doing this. "Okay," he said with a sigh. "We can explain what's happened and to some degree, how, but why?" He shook his head. "And where is Commander Burnham?" He looked at Tilly. "You said she was beamed back onto the ship, but that can't be right."
"Unless she's being cloaked," Ash said, narrowing his eyes. His Klingon part rising to the forefront of his brain.
"You would need a major energy source for that," Spock said. He looked at Tilly. "Have there been any unusual energy drains?"
"No, Sir... Well..." She swallowed and swiped at the tablet in her hand. "There are lots of things that drain energy, nothing that unusual. I mean..." Her eyes widened. "Damn it." She swiped again. "I have to check something, but I need to do it from the main console. I'll be right back."
Pike nodded and looked at Saru. "Go get me all the analytical data you can find on cloaking devices and how to detect them. Spock, I want you to bring up all power surges, cuts, and anomalies of any kind in the past 3 weeks."
Spock hesitated. "Have we not just done that?"
"Run it again," Pike barked and took in a breath. Then, in a quieter tone, "Make sure we haven't missed anything, okay?"
Spock raised an eyebrow to cover the confusion he clearly felt. "Yes, Sir."
Both Ash and Pike watched Spock leave and Ash turned back to him. "I should help Saru with his analytics on cloaking. I've seen Klingon technology, it might help."
"Yes it might, but first I need to ask you why you've been riding Spock's ass so much?"
A look of shock crossed Ash's face. "Excuse me?"
"You have niggled and poked and ridden him since the moment you got here. Why?"
Ash stood taller, hands behind, but didn't look him, instead his eyes were firmly fixed on some point in the corner. "He of all people should have known. He should have raised the alarm the moment she supposedly left. She might be hurt or..." he looked back to meet Pike's eyes with a glare. "... even worse, because he didn't. Not to mention, now Discovery has been compromised."
"Let me tell you something Commander Tyler. Spock did raise red flags. He did say something didn't add up. I was the one who was complicit in all of this. I saw the orders, I heard Admiral Trist tell me it was an important assignment and that was pretty much where I left it. It was Spock who made me take a harder look. He's the one that brought you in on it, for god sake."
Ash's jaw tighten. This anger, bordering on hate, didn't make sense, until suddenly... it did.
"You know, don't you?" Pike asked and Ash confirmed it by the smallest of flinches. "How?"
"I have no idea what-,"
"Don't lie to me, Commander," Pike interrupted. "I'll ask you again. How do you know about Michael and Spock?"
Ash stood there for a moment, before he nodded. "I was reviewing security footage just before and up until the day Michael supposedly left."
"Security footage?" Pike didn't quite understand.
Ash blinked contemplating his confession. "I tapped into Discovery's onboard security. Section 31 has the ability to tap into all main security cameras on any federation ship."
Pike frowned at the thought, he hadn't known that. "Of course it does," he mused out loud. "And?"
"And... I saw Spock pull Michael into a small room off Deck 4A. It was late and nobody was around. He kissed her..." Ash breathed out and the sternness on his face changed instantly to pain. "... and she kissed him back."
"I see," Pike said, soft and with empathy. "I understand why that would hurt."
"He's her brother," Ash said and there was distain in his voice. "She'd just lost her mother all over again, we were fighting Control. She was vulnerable. How could he have taken advant-,"
"Let me stop you right there, Ash!" He shook his head. "If that's how it sits better in your head, then fine. Deal with it as best you can, but let me ask you just one question. You know Michael better than most. You know how strong she is. Tell me... Do you really think anyone, ever, could take advantage of her in that way if she didn't want them to? Yes they were brought up as sibling, but they're not. Not really. She loves him, Ash and Spock loves her to. There was no coercion here.
Ash's eyes crystallized with the start of unshed tears. "I know," his voice was barely audible.
"Good," Pike said. He didn't like anyone thinking Spock was capable of such a thing. "I don't know if you want to hear this Ash, but in my mind this was pretty much inevitable. Spock once told me that Michael was his balance and every moment he ever spoke about her, he didn't realise it, but his face lit up. He's been in love with her for a very long time. I just think it took Michael a little longer to come to the same conclusion."
Ash nodded and a tear finally spilt from his eye. It was half way down his cheek when the doors to the Ready room hissed open and Tilly ran in. "Captain..." she said, stopping only for a second when she noticed Ash's face. "I... I'm sorry to interrupt, but I think I have something."
"What is it, Tilly?"
"Holodeck 4." She hit her head with the palm of her hand. "I'm so stupid; I don't know why I didn't notice it before."
"Notice what," Pike and Ash said in unison.
"It has been occupied for the last 19 days, 22 hours and 7 minutes, without a break. The power in a single program is more than enough to..."
"Cloak someone," Pike finished for her.
"Exactly," Tilly said with a smile. "I bet you my bottom teeth, that's where Michael is."
Bottom teeth? Pike and Ash looked at each other for a moment before he hit his comm. "Spock, Saru, meet us at Holodeck 4. We may have found Michael."
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"They've found her," Bril said. "They are trying to unlock the door.
"Hmm, yes." Dyad nodded. "They won't be able to. Still... They're pretty resilient, these humans."
"And smart. We didn't expect them to work it out for many more weeks, maybe months.
Dyad hit a button on the screen and it zoomed in.
"Stand back," Pike said, calibrating his phaser to the highest setting. He fired and a burst of red light shimmered and ran over the door like water down a window. He fired a 2nd time, but not even a dent.
"There's some sort of force-field around it," Saru offered.
Spock stepped up to the door and banged his fist hard against it. "Michael!" Another hard thump. "Michael!"
Pike looked at Tilly. "Bring up the blueprints for this Holodeck. There has to be a way in."
"Yes, Sir," Tilly said. "She typed and swiped on her tablet. "Damn it, they're archived. This might take a moment."
Spock thumped again. "Michael!" His voice wavered as distress and anger set in.
"Spock." Ash moved to be beside him, but he kept thumping. "Spock!" Ash said louder this time and waited for Spock to look at him. "She can't hear you," he said softly and there was compassion in his tone.
Spock took a step back from the door. His face slightly red from his exertion. He acknowledged Ash with a small nod, before moving to stand in front of Pike.
"Found it," Tilly proclaimed and they all hovered around.
"They're looking for a weak spot," Dyad offered. "They won't find one."
"You said it yourself, Dyad. They're resilient. I don't think they're going to stop."
Dyad looked across to Brill. "We've invested some time in the study of this human Michael. Are you saying we should just give up?"
"Yes, I know, but she still has not succumbed to the image of her mate."
"She is strong, this one, but it's only a matter of time. We need to understand why they copulate if we are to..." Dyad squinted at the screen. "Why are they moving into the other Holodeck?" He waved a hand and tapped the screen so he could now monitor Holodeck 3.
"What is she doing?" Bril asked. They both looked up when the overhead light flickered for just a second.
"It's powerful, but... it's just a program," Tilly explained as she typed, swiped and rearranged data on the main console. "If we can get this Holodeck to talk to that Holodeck, then..."
Saru nodded. "Yes... theoretically we could override its programming. Tell it to shutdown."
Tilly kept working. "No, not shutdown, because if you don't close the program completely there could be ramifications. There's a failsafe to stop that from happening."
"What does that mean?" Ash asked.
"Well... If someone was, I don't know, flying in space without a suit or diving off a mountain and then it shutdown, but it took a few seconds..."
Pike looked thoughtful. "They could be hurt."
"And we don't know what scenario Michael is trapped in," Spock said. "It's too much of a risk."
"I'm trying to tell it we need more space, like when Michael and I play tennis." Tilly blushed slightly. "Sometimes we book out two decks, so we could build a stadium and pretend we're playing a grand-slam in front of thousands of people."
"Really?" Pike said with a smile. "I didn't know you'd need two decks."
"Oh... it's a big stadium, Sir." She didn't look at him, or any of the others. "It was... well... it was our secret, kind of... I created a bridging program, which, of course, is totally against protocol, but..." She glanced at Pike.
Pike looked at her reassuringly. "It's okay, Tilly. In this case, I'm glad you did."
"Right!" Tilly said with a smile. "Got it. It would take too long to program the whole thing, but..." She hit the last button. "I've managed to create a small door."
A door appeared, open just a crack and before another word was spoken, Spock pulled his phaser and ran through it.
"Spock, wait!" Pike shouted.
"I think we underestimated this red-headed earthling," Bril said.
"She is brilliant," Dyad agreed. "But we are superior." He kept tapping and within seconds the door was gone.
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Michael sat up and frowned when she saw Spock run through the... hmm... wall? He had a phaser in his hand and he looked worried. "Well this is new?" she said, getting to her feet.
"Michael?" Spock breathed out and holstered his weapon. He moved forward quickly to stand in front of her and reached to touch her face with both hands.
"Oh, no." Michael took a step back and shook her head. "Let me guess, you're here to save me and you're going to take me into your arms and tell me how much you love me, right?"
A look of total confusion crossed Spock's face, it was almost believable.
"Then what?" Michael said with distain. "You think I'm going to be stupid enough to go with you and think I'm safe, only to fall into bed with you and let you win?"
Spock raised an eyebrow. "Michael... I am here to rescue you." He looked towards the wall and his face fell. "It's gone."
"What's gone?"
"There was a door. That's how I got through."
"Oh, really?" Michael said and looked upward. "Dyad, Bril, this isn't going to work!" she shouted. "Stupid plan. You're never going to find out what it takes to breed with humans from me."
"What?" There was alarm in Spock's voice. "Have they... have they hurt you?" Fear and a touch of panic in his eyes.
Michael blinked to give herself a moment. She didn't like this, it was too real. "Like you'd care," she spat. "A means to an end, right?"
"Who has kept you here, Michael, and why?"
"Stop it, okay... just stop it." She felt tears forming in her eyes. "This is... cruel."
"Michael..." Spock looked around the room. "I realise you think that I am... a hologram, but it really is me. You've been here for almost 20 days. I've been trying to locate you. Ensign Tilly, Commander Saru, Captain Pike and Commander Tyler are all on the other side of that wall. We're here to free you."
"Ash? Ash is here?"
Spock furrowed his brow. "You find that strange?"
"Yes." A single tear dripped from her eye.
Spock looked at her in question. "Why?"
"Because all of this is from my head." She waved a hand. "I didn't think... I didn't know if you'd understand my choice of uniform when I contacted you, but more than that... I really didn't think it would be Ash you reached out to."
"I would reach out to anyone to find you, Michael."
Michael sucked in a shaky breath. Was this real? Was this really the man she loved standing in front of her? "When was the first time we kissed?"
Spock's eyes softened. "It was star-date 0.199. It was in your quarters after I expressed my concern for you over losing your mother once more. I held you and then... I kissed you."
Tears were now flowing freely. "They could know that. If... if I know it, they could. I don't know how it works, but... they can pull things from my mind. They don't get it right every time. This room is part mine, part yours. There are clearly some things they can't read, but..." She sniffed. "I don't know what to believe."
"Then it would be logical to assume that I could not know things you have not thought about, or mentioned."
Michael swiped her tears away and stood taller. "That's true."
"We were able to create an opening, a door to this Holodeck because Tilly had already devised a bridging program between 2 decks. She'd done that so you and she could play championship Tennis in front of thousands of people."
"Huh..." She let out the breath she'd been holding. "Spock?" Michael didn't hesitate to close the gap between them. He took her face in both hands and the kiss was bruising.
"I can't believe it's you," she said the moment the kiss broke and reached up to touch his lips with her fingers.
"I understood your message. I knew you could never leave, at least not without telling me."
She looked into his eyes. "I could never leave, period."
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Dyad shook his head. "If it is this bond between them that makes them reproduce, then we would need to waste time developing it. That is not in our culture."
Bril sighed. "Yes, it would appear that they do not mate, just for reproduction."
"Vulcan's do," Dyad offered.
"Spock is only half Vulcan and Vulcan itself is not a race we could assimilate and breed with. They are biologically incompatible."
"I know, I know. I had high hopes about humans, though and we are running out of time. Our generation is growing older and..."
Bril reached out a hand and placed it on Dyad's shoulder. "We will brother. We have only looked at 15 galaxies so far. We have at least another 200 to choose from. We will find a new home and a people willing to be the mothers of our new population."
"And if we don't?"
Bril waved his hand over the console and placed his hand on the ID scanner that allowed their location to be known. "Then we may have to return to somewhere like this Earth, Michael comes from. I do not understand this love and bonding thing, but it might be that we would have to learn."
Dyad nodded. "It looks complicated."
"Emotion usually is... now..." Bril smiled. "Let's go home."
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The lights had flickered and suddenly Spock and Michael were standing in the small space of Holodeck 4. The door from Holodeck 3 opened and everyone came through. Smiles and relief on their faces.
Searches had found traces, but nothing to speak of, so going after Dyad and Bril for false imprisonment seemed a long shot when they couldn't even find a mention of their planet or race. Commander Tyler had promised he would keep trying and would throw all of section 31's resources into the search.
Now though, he stood with Michael and Captain Pike in the Transporter room because Tyler was going to beam back to his ship.
Spock kept a small distance as he watched Michael hug Tyler and then kiss him on the cheek. "Thank you, Ash." Their eyes looked at each other, longer than Spock found comfortable, but he needed to understand they had a bond that was important to her.
Ash moved to Captain Pike and smiled. "Thank you, Sir... for everything."
Pike smiled back and placed a hand on Ash's shoulder. "I'm glad to have been of help."
Spock looked at the exchange, but didn't really understand it. There was clearly something underpinning the words. Then Tyler was standing in front of him.
"Lieutenant Spock," he said, stance respectful. "I would ask that you do one thing for me." He stared and then added, "Look after Michael."
"That is a given, Commander."
Tyler moved forward and leaned in, voice low. "I mean really look after her. In every possible way." He stood back and looked at him again. "Do you understand?"
Spock wasn't confused, he was more shocked. Ash knew about he and Michael?
"Sir," The ensign at the transporter panel said. "We're ready to transport when you are."
Tyler broke eye contact and moved onto the platform.
"Ash!" Spock said and that name felt strange to his ears.
Ash's eyes darted to his.
"I do understand and you have my word."
Spock just caught sight of his smile and a small nod as the white light of the transporter beam ran over him and he was gone.
Michael moved to his side, a grin on her face. "Did I miss something here? What do you understand?"
Pike walked to stand in front of them both and looked between them. "Sorry to interrupt. I've just had word Enterprise is on route." He turned to Spock. "This may be it, Spock. Son or daughter. Understand?"
Pike slapped Spock on the shoulder and walked out, leaving Michael looking up at him. The same questioning grin on her face. "Okay, come on. Why is everyone asking you if you understand all of a sudden? I totally feel left out."
Spock breathed out slowly. "Michael, I believe we need to talk."
THE END