A/N: Keep in mind that Rin was raised with Spock after his father saved her from the hands of the Klingons years ago. He was like a brother to her. I never finished this either.
"Wait, wait, what do you mean, gone?" she asked with a frightening expression on her eagle face and she rounded on her crewmate. "What have I missed? What has happened to Enterprise's first-mate, Scotty? And don't you dare 'little lass' me to get out of the question!"
The Scottish engineer stared at her with sympathy in his eyes and he muttered, "He's gone, Rin. Mr. Spock is no more." Her expression was a cold one and her eyes looked like they could burn holes in the strongest metal. He averted his gaze to hide his sorrow and turned away. "I'm sorry for yer loss. I canna' imagine what you must be feelin' at this time."
He quietly left the room so she could be alone and closed the door behind him. She shook her head in disbelief and clenched a talon into a fist. 'It is not possible,' she lied to herself. 'He cannot be dead. I would've felt it… sensed him… making his final voyage…' She sat on the floor in silence and closed her eyes, attempting to control the raging emotions inside of her. "Why was I not informed sooner?" she asked the unresponsive ship and she let out a slow breath and rose again. 'I am the only one who knows of the proper Vulcan traditions surrounding this matter. I must take control of this situation, for his sake.'
"Scotty!" she called and he nervously reentered the small transporter room. "Please, I'd like to have a little chat with Admiral Kirk, as soon as humanly possible."
"Right away, sir," he obeyed and he promised, "I'll meet you on the bridge, then."
Rin nodded at him as he departed once again and she took a slightly different path. She was trotting along an old hallway that was not used as much, and most of all, was quiet. The peace aboard only that part of the space vessel was soothing amidst her grief and sorrow. Those who had raised her had told her that emotions were weakness, and she dared not drop a tear out of respect for her Vulcan friend.
The bridge was completely empty besides Scotty setting up the communications relay and he targeted a coordinates. "Sir," he finally said, awaiting commands, "whenever yer' ready."
She nodded to him and turned her gaze at the screen. It took a minute before Kirk's familiar face popped on screen. "Greetings, Admiral Kirk," she addressed him with an emotionless tone and before he could speak she went straight to the point. "Sir, I require a private word."
"If it is about recent matters," he began, "I believe the rest of the crew can hear your message." She noticed his face whiten slightly and he had to think about his words before he had spoken them.
Internally, she was already frustrated, though she did not show it. "No, Jim, they cannot." The way she had said it and with that cold tone struck him as hauntingly familiar and she finished, "It is, how you say, for your ears only."
Kirk quietly stared at her stern face for a moment and agreed. "Very well. Hold the line. I'll speak with you in my quarters in a moment."
The screen darkened as the conversation ended and she sat in the chair behind the communications controls and she looked up to Scotty and said thankfully, "I appreciate your help, but I'm afraid you may not listen to what I need to discuss. Not now, anyway, for it is not the time. Please, tell the crew members that the bridge is off-limits until I physically exit this room, or I say otherwise."
Scotty nodded after a second or two, but just before he exited, he asked, "Rin, I know this time's been difficult for yeh, but are yeh ever gonna snap outta yer sullen mood?"
She thought about it a moment and quietly said, "To be frank with you, Scotty… I haven't the slightest clue. For all our sakes, I hope so."
He left the room without another word and a little light on the control console began to flicker. She pressed a button beside the light and the screen lit up.
They stared at each other in solemn silence and Kirk broke it. "What is it you need, my friend?" he asked, and she could tell he was already uncomfortable.
"We need to discuss the loss of your first-mate…" She hesitated and whispered the name, "…Mr. Spock."
He looked away from the screen for a brief moment and asked, "What do you want to know?"
"Firstly," she began as her voice became firm once more, "I want to know why I had to be informed by Scotty that my brother-like companion is dead." Rin's voice shook at the last word and she took a breath. "How long has it been? Days? A week? Month? One would think I would've been informed immediately!"
He didn't respond right away to what she had demanded and he apologized, "I'm sorry you weren't informed of his passing sooner."
"Sooner?" she questioned nervously. "How much sooner? You are, of course, still on possession of his remains, are you not?" This time he did not respond and fear jolted through her like electricity. "Oh, Jim…" she moaned as she realized exactly how much she had missed. "Please, be honest with me… have you already honored him and sent him to float amidst the stars for all eternity?"
Jim stalled a little before he answered. "Well, you see… on the Enterprise…" He looked away again and nodded. "Yes… we already have."
Rin slid out of the seat and paced around the room in a huff. She stopped in front of the Captain's chair and rose up on her hind legs. Her frustration was obvious now and she exhaled slowly in attempt to relieve some of her anger. "Before he… passed," she calmly continued, "he should've mind-melded with someone to preserve his knowledge and memories. Traditionally, it would've been with the person who was mentally closest to him, and because I was not there, the position would have been transferred to you. Tell me, did he make any contact at all with you before he died?"
"No. He did not," he admitted regrettably and explained, "We were separated by a transparent wall. He couldn't have possibly mind-melded with me."
Rin rubbed her forehead with a talon and said, "There is one of two things that could have happened, then. He could've melded with someone else, or, he may have failed to contact anyone, and all he knew will have been lost."
He sat in silence for a moment and offered as he pushed a few buttons to his left, "I'll look through Enterprise's camera recordings and see if I find anything." Another screen flicked on behind him and she recognized the room shown on the screen.
"Admiral, where are you, exactly?" she asked curiously. "Have you arrived in the docking bay yet?"
He hesitated with his answer and asked, "If I say yes, is my life in danger?" She shot him a look. "Yes, that's where I am," he answered her. "Should I expect you?"
"Yes. I'll be there in a few moments." Rin made eye contact with him a last time before closing the link and she jumped into the elevator.
She found herself boarding the Enterprise minutes later and she knocked on the door at his quarters. It slid open almost immediately and her eyes found Kirk instantly.
"Have you been at all successful in your search?"
He shook his head and he turned to look at Rin as she entered the room. He looked like he wanted to say something but decided against it and turned back to the screen. "If he melded with anyone, it would've been in this time-frame. There's only three hours here, so we should find it soon."
She was staring hard at him with cold eyes and she asked, "What were you going to say?"
Kirk wisely contemplated his answer before speaking and finally made eye contact with her. He took a deep breath and said, "The way you're speaking and thinking… is comparable to that of Spock… but colder. You now have less emotion then the most emotionless Vulcan."
Rin blinked at him a few times and nodded. "So I've realized," she responded. "I'd like to assure you it's temporary, but…" She shrugged. "It's all out of respect."
He could see the caged emotion in her eyes and he turned back to the screen. He was jumping through random spots in the tape and stopped at a spot. A few familiar faces walked past the camera a few days ago and she followed McCoy with her eyes. He was moving about in a hurried manner, checking the health of the surrounding men. She assumed there was something in the air and all were vulnerable. A chill raced down her spine when she saw Spock assisting the doctor and she looked at the ground.
"Doctor, I need to speak to you urgently," Spock requested but McCoy continued his rounds.
"Not now, Spock, I've got patients to treat," he answered and he glanced behind him to make sure one of the men had stabilized.
The Vulcan was silent a moment, and then informed, "Doctor, the man to your left requires attention." The second McCoy turned, Spock pinched the nerve in his neck and McCoy collapsed onto the ground. "Forgive me McCoy," he muttered, "but it must be done."
He carefully placed his fingertips on McCoy's temples and concentrated. "My mind… to your mind… our minds are one…"
Rin exhaled and stopped the video. She didn't speak as the situation turned itself over in her head. She clenched a fist and asked in a tone a little more harsh than it needed to be, "Is McCoy dead too?"
Kirk blinked at her and informed, "He was found in Spock's quarters mumbling nonsense. He was submitted to the sick-bay on base to recover a few days ago."
She nodded and glanced around the ship. "How soon will it be before the Enterprise will be able to depart?"
Kirk gaped at her. "At least a day. Is our departing that urgent?"
"Of course!" she responded quickly. "We must retrieve him!"