Sorrow
by Starsinger
Sorry, this is what happens when my brain is bored, at work. What if Spock wasn't the only one Scotty called to come see Kirk. What if he'd called Bones as well. Don't own any of them.
"Engineering to Sickbay," Scotty said sounding sad.
"Sickbay here," McCoy responded. He sounded frazzled. Casualties were still coming in.
"Ye'd better get down here, Doctor, hurry Bones," Scotty's use of the nickname only Jim used made McCoy's heart clench. Something was terribly, desperately wrong. His headlong dash into Engineering was just behind Spock. Spock looked at Scotty, who was white, his mouth pinched.
"Open it," Spock commanded. The look of panic on his face stunned McCoy.
"I cannae do tha', sir. You'll flood the whole compartment with radiation," Scotty said barely glancing over at McCoy. McCoy shook his head, unable to comprehend what was going on. Then, he heard it. Heavy breathing on the other side of the barrier. Some poor bastard was behind it, dying. He watched as Spock dropped into a crouch. McCoy approached Spock trying to figure out who it was. Then, he saw it, Jim. Pain etched in his face. Breathing coming in gasps as he reached up and pulled the lever closing the outside door.
McCoy reached for his communicator, "McCoy to Sickbay."
"Sickbay here," M'benga responded.
"Come up to Engineering, bring a gurney and a…and a…body bag," he forced himself to say.
"Yes, sir," M'benga responded.
McCoy crouched right beside Spock as Kirk squinted up at them. The professional detached part of him noted the symptoms: yellowing skin and eyes, liver failure, labored breathing, respiratory failure, coughing, fluid filling the lungs as well as a futile attempt by Jim's body to rid itself of the fluid buildup caused by the poison. McCoy's desire was to reach in and ease the pain, ease the passing, but all he could do was crouch here and helplessly watch his Captain die.
"How's the ship?" he asked, peering up at his best friends.
"Out of danger," McCoy heard Spock reply. He was as emotional as he'd ever heard Spock. "You saved the ship, you saved us all."
"You used what he wanted against him, nice move," Kirk said. Kirk coughed again.
The conversation continued until Kirk looked at Bones, "Take care of each other. I'm sorry…I'm sorry I won't be there to see the great adventure," Kirk picked up his hand and put it on the glass. McCoy couldn't even fathom the effort is must have taken him. Spock responded by putting his own hand there in the Vulcan salute as McCoy also put his hand on it. Kirk tried to emulate Spock before looking at McCoy and Spock with a smile.
Then, he was gone. His eyes turned away and stared straight ahead. His hand slipped from the door. McCoy's tears ran down his face, unable to stop them. Spock looked at the ground beneath them. "Khaaaaaan!" ripped from his throat. The anguish and terrible hate contained in that cry made the ship seem to tremble.
They both crouched there, waiting. McCoy heard M'benga arrive and his team unzip the body bag, laying it on the floor. It was all a waiting game now, waiting for Scotty to open the door so they could get their friend. No, the body of their friend. Their friend wasn't there anymore.
Scotty announced that he was about to open the door. Spock and McCoy looked at each other in perfect understanding. The door slid open and they went in. Spock put his arms under Kirk's shoulders while McCoy picked up his feet. Together, they carried Jim's body to the body bag. The carefully inserted him into it. Not bothering to fight back the tears, McCoy reached out and closed Jim's empty eyes. Spock closed the top of the bag and they lifted it onto the gurney. Then Spock took off at a run as Scotty and McCoy followed the gurney back to Sickbay.
There was no day more terrible in McCoy's mind than the one where he lost his best friend.
We know how this ended, no need for me to recap. I'll be posting a new chapter of A Long Road soon, need a nap.
