THE EXPENSE OF SPIRIT
Prologue
Spock stood silently, trying to watch without being seen.
A blur of red and gold.
There was a sound like screaming, and the ground exploded. Spock threw himself to the earth as Captain Kirk and the security team raced by, the air overhead whizzing with fireballs. From his vantage point on the ground, Spock could see fifty Sirians ranged along the top of the nearest mountain, poised behind tank-sized, rudimentary firearms, raining fire down upon the intruders.
This mission should have been a peaceful one.
A probe from Sirius III had been discovered in Federation Space nearly six months ago. The Federation could have made First Contact within three months, after studying from afar the life-forms of Sirius III, but President Kring had wanted to save the job for James T. Kirk. The Enterprise had been lurking in orbit around Sirius III for the last week and a half while Kirk and Spock negotiated with the Sirians. At first, the centaur-like creatures seemed in favor of joining the Federation. It was only when they realized that they would have to abide by certain rules that they had turned against the idea. Kirk and Spock had redoubled their efforts, knowing that the Klingons or Romulans were sure to swoop in if the Federation failed. Unfortunately, once the Sirians had got wind that there were other governments, fonder of violence and force, they abandoned the Federation completely.
Spock kneeled up cautiously, his eyes trained on Kirk and the security team. A fireball screamed overhead. Kirk ducked and two of his guards caught the blast. They were hurled away from the group, their flesh burning as they fell. Only four were left now to guard the Captain as he sprinted towards the waiting shuttlecraft.
Spock stood up and slowly approached the two dying crewmen. He knelt near the first, laying his long fingers against the less-damaged side of the Human's face. He initiated a quiet mind-meld, sending thoughts of peace to aid the man in his passing. He did the same to the other, then took both of their phasers and tucked them into his belt along with his own. Then he headed after the Captain.
As Kirk neared the shuttle's hiding place, the Sirians began to abandon their firearms and converge upon the Humans. They fired flaming arrows into the group. Kirk dodged aside, his hands over his head. Three of the arrows struck security officers, igniting their uniforms in the oxygen-rich air. The officers dropped to the ground in an effort to put out the flames, but only succeeded in setting the long blue grass on fire as they rolled pointlessly back and forth. Spock ran faster.
The last surviving security officer hurtled himself onto the nearest Sirian, trying to drag it away from the Captain. Spock ran faster still, drawing a phaser from his belt. He fired it at the Sirian, just as the fiendish creature buried a long silver blade to the hilt in the Human's back.
A dry sob echoed out of Jim's throat as Spock reached him. He stumbled, and fell flat on his face in the grass. Spock stood over him and emptied his phaser into the swarm of approaching Sirians. They will not take the Captain, he repeated to himself. They will not take the Captain! Stooping, he lifted Kirk to his feet.
"Call the ship," he said urgently into Kirk's ear, holding him up with one hand and firing another phaser with the other.
Kirk had lost his communicator some hours earlier, so he pulled Spock's off his belt and flipped it open.
"Kirk to Enterprise, we're being attacked, we don't have time to reach the shuttle. Beam us up now."
They stood there, arms around each other, trying to present as small a target as possible while still firing their phasers at the Sirians, waiting for what seemed like hours until the transporter beam placed them gently back aboard the Enterprise.
Kirk pitched forward, his body crumpling against Spock's, his stomach heaving with dry sobs. Spock tightened his arms around Jim in an attempt to keep the Human upright.
A distant memory crossed Spock's mind as they stood there: his mother, dead, and Jim's voice saying softly, "I'm sorry." Spock bent his head toward Jim's ear.
Jim tried to will his body to relax, but his muscles were tight and trembling with exhaustion and fear. Spock's breath was warm and comforting on his neck as the Vulcan whispered three words of comfort that he did not believe in.
"I am sorry."
A/N: Well, there 'tis, the very beginning of my latest story. I hope you've liked it so far. I'm going to TRY to update regularly. I've got the whole thing planned out so it shouldn't be too hard, but college life can be a bitch sometimes. Loves and Spirk-flavored candies to you all!