This chapter takes place in the normal universe.
(Also, did anyone catch the Fringe reference?)
Note: I apologize for any confusion between the two versions of the characters. I tried to make sure there was no confusion when I wrote this, but just in case, I apologize.
.x.x.x.x.
"What the hell is Amphillicite?" Jim asked, looking over Uhura's shoulder at her PADD.
"It is a rare Earth element. It takes millions of years for the Earth to create even a small amount of it, so it was never really useful. Just another mineral on the Periodic Table." The Lieutenant said as she moved her fingers over the screen of her PADD to zoom in on the photo of an Amphillicite specimen.
"So if it's so rare, and it was never used to mass produce things, where the hell did these things come from?" Jim asked, looking at the various black artifacts laid out on the table.
"It is only logical to assume this Amphillicite is man-made, a mere imitation of the real thing." Commander Spock spoke from his side of the table, intently studying one of the pieces.
"Still, zat doesn't explain vhy. Vhat is it?" Chekov spoke, his eyes darting across a screen that listed everything known about Amphillicite.
There was no reply from anyone in the room. The only sound was the soft scraping noise as Spock stood sliding one piece against another like two broken pieces of a puzzle.
"Alright, well for now I'm calling official shore leave," Jim said, stretching his arms above his head. "I'm sure Scotty will love the alone time with the Warp Core." Jim said, sending a joking smile to his communications officer.
Shaking her head she turned to her console. "I'll relay the message sir. Shore leave is official."
"Fantastic." Jim said, moving closer to his first officer. "What do you think Spock?"
"I think shore leave will be beneficial for the crew's moral-"
"I meant about the artifacts Spock," Jim correctly gently, grinning at his half-Vulcan first officer who cocked an eyebrow at him.
"Indeed. I believe these are pieces to something much larger. Perhaps something relatively the size of an average human. Assuming these are all the pieces." Spock said, his eyebrows pinching together slightly.
"You think there are more?" Jim said. There were at least twenty Amphillicite (or Amphillicite-like) artifacts laid out on the table. Spock had managed to piece together three of the pieces to form a sort of tripod like base.
"That is unclear. Based on the size of the base, the contraption cannot be very large, but there are not many pieces here." Spock said. Jim noticed he was frowning in that very subtle, Vulcan way. That could only mean that Spock was actually stumped.
"Captain, Commander Scott is requesting to speak with you." Uhura piped up from her station. Kirk nodded at her, but turned back to Spock.
"If you learn anything else, I want you to let me know immediately. If there is anyone who can figure this out, it's you." Jim said, clapping his hand on the other man's shoulder in as a reassurance before moving towards an empty terminal. He quickly opened a link with the Enterprise.
"Yeah Scotty?" Jim said into the comm.
"Captain," Scotty's voice crackled a moment. "I'm pickin' up some very strange readin's around tha' station. How's it lookin' down there?"
"Everything down here seems to be working fine." Jim said, glancing at the screens and readouts around him. Everything in the lab seemed to be functioning just fine. "What kind of readings?"
"I dinna yet sir. I'm just hopin' it doesn't interfere with the transporter. I got a lot o' people eager for a shore leave." Scotty said.
"Ok Scotty, keep an eye on it and keep me posted. Start beaming down the crew when you think it's safe."
"Aye, sir. Scotty out."
Jim cut the comm. link. Damn was he exhausted. The finding of these rare artifacts had caused quite a commotion with Starfleet. After what happened with Admiral Marcus and Khan, Starfleet was even more paranoid. Their first concern had been that this was a weapon created by the Klingons or the Romulans and they had snuck it over the neutral zone.
The science team aboard Alpha-3 had been quick to assure the Admirals that it was not a weapon. In fact, it didn't seem to have any defensive or offensive purposes. In fact, no one could tell what it's purpose was. Never the less, Enterprise had been sent to the space station to assist with the artifacts and discover their purpose.
"I just wanted to explore space," Jim sighed to himself.
"Oh, poor baby." Spoke a gruff voice behind him. Jim smiled and turned.
"Bones! Nice to see you've come out of your Sickbay long enough to join the living. What the hell are you carrying?"
"My equipment," piped a very feminine voice laced with a British accent. Carol Marcus appeared next to the Doctor, carrying a box of her own. "I assumed you would want a weapons expert down here, and the good Doctor was kind enough to give me a hand." She said smiling as she strode past them to an empty table on the other side of the room.
"'The good Doctor' huh?" Jim said, fighting the urge to leer at his best friend.
"Don't even think about it, kid." The Doctor said, glaring at the younger man. Jim would have almost been intimidated if it hadn't been for the deep blush working its way up the Doctor's neck. Jim instead bit the inside of his cheek to curb his grin and allowed the doctor to follow the blonde woman across the room. It was nice to see Bones loosening up. Although, he guessed the near-death experience with the torpedoes had given the older man a wakeup call. And if Bones thought Jim hadn't noticed how often he and the lovely Carol Marcus seemed to 'run into each other,' he was unfortunately mistaken.
"They are kind of cute, aren't they?" Lieutenant Uhura whispered to the Captain. She too was watching the two Doctor's as they unloaded the boxes with scanners and other equipment Doctor Marcus had thought necessary to bring. Jim snorted and shared a laugh with her.
"I mean, there is no way she needs half of those things. I've counted two internal scanners." Uhura laughed softly. She had to say, she liked Carol Marcus. She couldn't fathom why Spock still had such an aversion to the woman. Even now, when she got too close to him, Spock would give the blonde doctor the Vulcan equivalent to a death stare.
"He's just mad because she happens to be a science officer as well." Jim said, noticing the Vulcan death glare just as easily as Uhura had. The communication's officer raised an eyebrow at him with a grin on her face.
"Vulcans don't get 'mad' Captain," she scolded lightly. He felt no shame in snorting. They both knew how untrue that was. Although, maybe 'mad' was the wrong word. Jealous, maybe?
.x.x.x.x.
"We've been at this for hours," Sulu groaned as his head slipped off the heel of his hand and smacked into the desk he had been leaning on. "I thought this was shore leave?"
"Yeah, I did say that, didn't I?" Jim said, rubbing his own tired eyes. Here it was, hours later and they knew nothing more now than they did when they started. Although, Spock had managed to piece together quite a few of the pieces. Jim gazed tiredly at what remained of his 'away team.' Carol and Bones had retired about an hour ago, the doctor grumbling all the way. Jim had indulged himself by watching the two of them leave, and was disappointed when they seemed to go separate ways.
Chekov was sound asleep next to Sulu, who had his eyes trained on his PADD, but the lack of eye movement gave him away. As well as his head hitting the desk. Unless Jim was mistaken, it was the navigator who was snoring softly. Uhura had been pacing about the room, refilling her coffee cup a half a dozen times in the past hour. She kept walking past Spock, who was the only one who seemed truly focused at all, and gazing half-heartedly at the work table where Spock was layering artifact after artifact on one another. Jim had no idea what Spock could be building.
"Ok, how about we all call it a night? We clearly are in no shape to do anything but sleep." Jim said, a yawn consuming his sentence as his body demanded sleep. Uhura immediately downed the last of her coffee, and moved to Spock, speaking to him quietly. Sulu began to prod the sleeping Russian next to him, but it seemed with no luck. After a moment, the Asian man sighed to himself and simply picked the smaller man up and began carrying him out of the room. Jim gave him a smile and a nod as if to say 'See you in the morning.' Although, in reality Jim had no idea what time it even was. He himself began to stretch and rise from his seat when he noticed Uhura still talking to Spock.
"I will join you momentarily. Vulcans do not require-"
"Nearly as much sleep as a human, I know Spock." She said, almost too tired to even put up a fight. Never the less, she really didn't want to sleep alone. She always felt safer with Spock in the room, even though she logically knew that there was no danger. It was one of the few small things she allowed herself to indulge on, but Spock seemed too intrigued with the thing he was building. At least he seemed to notice.
"I do not mean to upset you Nyota. However, I do believe that I am getting closer to understanding what this machine was made for."
"And what would that be Mr. Spock?" Jim asked. He hadn't really been eavesdropping, he had just wanted to make sure they weren't fighting. They were both always so calm and composed, it was hard to tell when they were fighting and when they were happy. But now that work had been mentioned…
"I do not have any conclusive theories at this moment, Captain. Until I do, I do not wish to 'jump the gun' as you often say."
"Oh," Jim said. At this point he was almost as tired as the Lieutenant. He spared her a look. She sighed and shook her head. Ignoring both her captain and Spock who was paying no attention to either of them, she leaned forward and placed a tender kiss on the Vulcan's cheek. This captured his attention momentarily and he allowed himself to share a gaze with her. She smiled softly at him and turned and made her way toward the sliding doors. Jim began to follow her.
"Hey Spock," Jim said to his first officer as an afterthought. "Make sure you go to sleep. You may not need as much as us, but-"
"Your concern has been noted Captain. I will make sure I sleep for a sufficient amount of time."
"Ok. Good night Spock," Jim said and made his way to his own temporary quarters aboard the station.
"Good night Captain." Jim heard the soft reply from his first officer as he reached the door.
Jim didn't think he was asleep for anymore than two hours (even though it had been well over five hours) before he woke up to his communicator blaring. He didn't even remember answering.
"Captain!" Scotty's voice rang out over the link. There was more static than the last time they had spoken, but the Scotsman was still heard loud and clear. "There is some kina ion storm forming around the space station. It's starting to block off communication to the station, I kina believe I managed to get a hold of you!"
"So what's your report Mr. Scott?"
"We're trying to figure out how long the storm will last, but it's just forming and steadily growing bigger and bigger. It doesn't look like it's gonna move anytime soon."
"Ok Scotty. Put a stop on the transporter. I don't want anyone getting hurt. I'll alert every one down here. Hopefully this storm ends soon so we can actually enjoy our shore leave."
"Aye Captain." Scott's voice crackled over the comm.. "But I dinna think ya understand. The storm isn't forming around the station. For all our scans, it looks like the storm is forming in the station! We've tried to contact Captain Decker, but the storm is so close to the bridge that our signals kina get through."
"Wait," Jim was wide awake now. He hurriedly swung his legs over the side of the bed and began to pull on his pants. "The storm is inside the station? How is that possible?"
"I dinna sir!" Scott's voice became more difficult to hear over the static. "The storm is at the base of the station sir. With the bridge right over top of it, I can't get a hold of anyone on the darn station!"
"I'm on it Scotty. Keep me posted if you can. If you can't get through to me, try Lieutenant Uhura or Doctor McCoy. Kirk out."
Jim pulled his crumpled gold command shirt on and darted for the door. Below the bridge. That's the lower lab. That's where Spock is. He flipped open his comm. and sent an urgent call to Captain Decker relaying all what Scott had told him about the signal coming from the lower labs. Hopefully Captain Decker could meet him in the lower labs. He doubted that the bridge on the station was anything but calm.
He knew it was futile, but while he was waiting for the turbo-lift doors to open, he tried to reach Spock on his communicator. Unsurprisingly, the communicator beeped at him to let him know that a connection could not be established. He wasn't surprised. He stepped into the turbolift and ordered the lift to the lower lab.
As the machine began to hum, he wished it would move faster.
x.x.x.x.x
Spock couldn't believe the readings he was seeing.
As he had started piecing more and more of the artifacts together to build what looked like an intricate machine, he noticed there seemed to be rising levels of radiation. He had then proceeded to program his scanners to monitor multiple readings that allowed him to observe the radiation at a more detailed level.
From what he could tell, the literal space he was occupying was becoming unstable on a molecular level. It seemed impossible, but if he hadn't been able to see the objects in front of him, he would have thought that the lab itself were starting to disappear. The readings were not making sense, but they were extraordinary.
All other sensors were indicating that the space in the label was experiencing an ion storm. Inside of the lab. It was fascinating. Spock had never seen or heard of anything like it. For a brief moment he thought about what if the room did actually collapse on a molecular level. What would happen to him? He decided it would be fascinating to see it personally.
Leaving the sporadic readings on the scanners, Spock returned to the table that held the artifacts. The glistening pieces of metal were humming on the table, so loudly Spock didn't have to strain his ears to hear it. Spock thought it was silly, but he felt like he could feel the air vibrating with the energy radiating from the artifacts. Although he knew the likelihood of that was slim to none.
He had a very basic image in his head about what the finished product of the machine would look like. There were many pieces that were missing and would not allow for the completion of the machine, but he would be lying if he said the idea of finishing the entire machine didn't excite him. And Vulcans do not lie.
As Spock slid another piece into the half-built machine, a cloud of heat grew under his fingertips and the computer started beeping wildly, indicating that the radiation was beginning to reach hazardous levels.
And then something happened that Spock couldn't quite explain.
When he moved to the computer console to ensure that the levels were not reaching levels that would actually be harmful to his physical state, the air seemed to physically flicker. Spock was not one to believe in anything other than the physical world on a very logical and understanding level. However when the air seemed to sway so violently that it ripped the air from his lungs, Spock was unable to deny that something was amiss. Even as the scientific side of his brain demanded that he continue with the machine, the more primal side wanted him to rip the machine apart and abandon the room. He decided that fleeing was not logical and until he felt in danger he would not abandon this project.
Then the air flickered violently again, and when Spock glanced up to eye the machine, for only a second, he was staring at himself. It had only been a moment, but it had seemed that there had been a mirror in front of his eyes. He had been staring at himself for that one fleeting moment.
Now his brain was trying to determine if he were hallucinating because of the rising energies in the room, or if there could have been a shimmer radiation that caused a mirror-like effect. However logically he tried to process it, he couldn't deny the icy cold feeling that ran through his body. He identified it as fear. He steeled his Vulcan teachings against such an emotion. Something fascinating was happening, and Spock couldn't allow his basic instincts to ruin it.
Spock moved back to the machine. There was only one artifact left on the table, and Spock was determined to fit it onto the half-built machine. He would have been lying if he didn't hesitate on the last piece. And again, Vulcans do not lie. But as he picked up the last slender piece of the machine, Spock once again could not deny the excitement. He only hoped he would not require any more of the pieces to find out exactly what the point of this machine was.
Without allowing himself enough time to contemplate the consequences, he maneuvered the last piece of the machine into the slot which it was meant for. And when it clicked into place, the heat coming from the machine became too much, even for a Vulcan who was genetically built to withstand extreme heat. In fact, the heat was so great that Spock staggered backward away from the machine.
The air began to hum again, this time far more violently than it had before. There was a low whine reverberating in Spock's ear causing a slight pain in his skull. His hands moved to shield his ears from the offending noise. Despite the pain, Spock noted that the machine was beginning to emanate a bright light from its center. The air flickered again, and Spock could see himself again, across the room. It was if he were staring into a warped mirror. He could see himself, hands covering his ears against the noise, his brow pinched with the effort of keeping his eyes open against the growing blinding light, but at the same time he couldn't help but think, that is not me.
He was not wearing a black uniform. He was currently wearing his blue science tunic. This "mirror" image of himself was not completely accurate. The only logical conclusion was that this was not him. His brain immediately began to run through a list of possibilities. Parallel universe. Alternate plane of existence. A warped time loop perhaps. The possibilities were endless.
"Spock!"
Spock turned at the sound of his voice being called. He had not heard the door to the lab hiss open, but it must have happened because his Captain was standing at the entrance, his arm raised against the blinding light emanating from the machine. Spock tried to call out to him, but somehow he could not find the strength to use his voice. What would Spock have said? That out of sheer scientific fascination, he had possibly caused the destruction of the station, and of everyone on board?
The whine of the machine grew incredibly high and for a moment, Spock thought the blood vessels in his brain were going to explode. Then came the silence. Spock had enough time to lift his head to see his counterpart on the other side of the machine. He assumed he must have had the same look on his face. Fear, bordering on horror at what was coming next.
Boom!
As Spock crashed to the floor, he assumed this was what a sonic boom must have felt like. There was a terrible crack in his ear which he assumed was his ear drums exploding. The room felt like it was spinning. All of the different sensations were becoming overwhelming.
"Spock?"
The Vulcan lifted his head to see his Captain also sprawled on the ground, a trail of blood oozing from his nose and his ears. Grimacing from the pain throbbing in his temple, Spock lifted himself into a sitting position.
"Captain, are you alright?" Spock could taste coppery blood as he spoke. He could only assume that the intensity of the boom from the machine had also ruptured a blood vessel that caused his nose to bleed, as it had done with the captain, who was struggling to sit up himself.
"I'm ok Spock. What the hell was that?" Jim said as he raised himself off the ground. The computers in the room were blaring at each other in blind confusion. Jim gripped the edge of the door and tried to pull himself up. Spock of course, was already on his feet.
"I am not sure Captain. I would need to examine-"
"Please refrain from moving any farther."
Spock turned around as quickly as he dared. His eyes landed on the reflection he had seen. The mirror image of himself had a phaser leveled at him. His eyebrow shot into the air. He stared dumbly at this…other Spock.
"I am Commander Spock of the USS Enterprise. Who are you?" He spoke calmly, although calm was not what he was at this moment. The counterpart hesitated for a moment, almost taking a step back.
"You are…I am Lieutenant Spock of the ISS Enterprise." The other Vulcan responded in a slightly confused tone. Noticing the wary glance that the 'other' Spock had given him, Spock repeated the action. He started with the phaser in his hand. This phaser looked nothing like the one that he himself carried. It looked sleeker, yet somehow more intimidating. The uniform was also completely different. The shirt was mostly black, throat high, with solid red lines down the sides, across the shoulders and down the sleeves. There was a solid gold sash tied firmly around his waist.
"Captain," Spock addressed the blonde human without taking his eyes off of his counterpart. "I believe I know 'what the hell happened.' It appears we are in an alternate Universe. Perhaps even a parallel Universe."
The other Spock's eyes flickered side to side as he evaluated Spock and the Captain who looked incredibly like his Colonel Kirk. Based on the limited facts, he could not help but to agree with his counterpart. Evaluating the stance of the other Vulcan, Spock lowered his phaser. The likely hood of the other man attempting an assault on him was less than 8.9 percent.
"What?" Jim said as he staggered upright and looked up to see two Spocks standing in front of him. He blinked his eyes slowly and deliberately. In fact he even rubbed in eyes just in case somehow radiation had affected his vision. But when he looked up, there were two almost identical Vulcan officers standing in front of him. "Parallel Universe. Got it."
For a moment there was silence.
"Captain…Kirk?" the 'other' Spock said timidly, looking at the blonde man. Jim stared dumbly at him before nodding mutely. The Lieutenant's fingers began to twitch nervously as he futily attempted to calculate possibilities and odds in his head. For the first time in a very long time, he had to admit it was giving him a slight headache.
"I believe it would be wise if I contacted the Colonel." Was all the 'other' Spock said as he tapped a Starfleet shaped badge on his left breast. The beep rang loud to announce it was on. "Lieutenant Spock to Colonel Kirk. Please report to lower lab of Alpha-3. I believe you will not believe me if I attempt to explain what has happened."
There was no immediate response. Then came an angry voice.
"What the fuck are you doing down there Spock?" Spock knew the Colonel was angry. But Spock believed this was worth possible time in the Agony Booth. "The whole god damn station is flipping out. What did you do?"
"Colonel, please report to the lower lab of Alpha-3." Spock began repeating his earlier response. "I believe-"
"Yeah Spock, I heard you the first time. Give me a damn minute. It better be good, or I swear I'm going to activate your collar and listen to you scream for at least a god damn hour. Kirk out."
Spock was not worried about his Colonel's threat, although the heavy collar around his neck did seem to tighten at the words. His counterpart, in the bright blue tunic was staring at him with a raised eyebrow, but the Lieutenant saw no reason to think it was threatening. As he continued to stare at the other occupant, the blonde human who looked like the Colonel was wiping away the blood from his nose. Spock determined there was a 94 percent chance that the Colonel would not punish him for this. He turned to his counterpart.
"May I make a personal inquiry?" When his counterpart showed no outward sign of rejection, Spock continued. "Do you play chess?"
x.x.x.x.x
Bullshit. Bullshit. Bullshit.
It was all Jim could think. He thought his head had hurt when he had met Spock Prime. I mean, changed timelines, old wise Vulcans from the future, it had all been hell when it had first happened. But this? Another Spock? How many of them were there? It was starting to get confusing.
He listened to the two Spock's as they indulged in what humans would call 'small talk.' Jim never thought he would see the day where Spock did it, never the less two Spocks. To each other.
I'm dreaming. Jim decided. I'm having some terrible nightmare.
He knew it wasn't true.
So to keep his mind off of the presence of two Spocks in the same room, Jim began to examine the computers in the room and turning off the emergency protocols. No point in making his headache worse. Although his ears hurt like hell. If it wasn't for the fact that he could hear the two Spocks conversing to each other, he would have thought he busted an ear drum. It was when he reached the center of the room, where the machine sat, tall and sleek just as Spock had predicted it would be, did he notice that the entire section of the room looked like two dollhouses had been smashed together. The computers in the center had been smashed into identical computers that were situated opposite them.
"Spock." Jim called. He ignored that both of the Spocks turned their heads to him in a creepy-twin kind of unison. "I don't think we're in a parallel universe. I think we smashed into a parallel universe." He motioned to the mashed together consoles. Jim eyed the machine in the center of the room.
"It's like right here is where the universes crashed together. It's why the consoles are mashed together. They were trying to occupy the same space but-"
"Since two objects cannot exist in the same space, they were entangled." The 'other' Spock piped up, sounding almost excited. Jim just stared at him, baffled. He could see it now this was going to take some getting used to. He was saved from having to answer the other Spock when the 'other' door to the lab slid open, and in walked a man who looked terrifyingly like Jim. He could already feel the headache intensifying.
"Well Spock, what is it? If you blew something up-" the 'other' Kirk began spouting. He was situating a gold sash around his waist, one identical to the one the 'other' Spock wore.
"Hi." Jim interrupted. The 'other' Kirk looked up and froze. That was when Jim noticed the large scar across the man's left cheek. He couldn't help it. "Oh my god! My face!"
And then there was a phaser in his face. Dammit.
"Spock. What the fuck?" The scarred version of Kirk snarled without turning to the Vulcan. The Vulcan Lieutenant immediately stood and moved towards them. "Colonel, they are non-violent, there is no need for-"
"Shut up." The 'other' Kirk snarled without taking his eyes off Jim. He then addressed his doppelganger. "Who the fuck are you?"
"Hi," Jim repeated lamely, lifting his arms in a show of surrender. "Captain James T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise. You?"
The Colonel seemed to take a moment to digest those words.
"Bullshit." The Colonel replied, the phaser still dangerously close to Jim's face. Even though the other man interrupted him, he didn't seem to quite believe his own denial.
For a second that was how they stood, crystal blue eyes staring into identical ones. Finally the phaser lowered. "Colonel James T. Kirk. ISS Enterprise. How the fu-"
"Parallel Universe," Jim said simply. There was no point in making small talk. And Jim was already sick of the other man's overly vulgar language. Just then, a voice piped from behind them.
"Alternate Universe." The 'other' Spock corrected. He stood straight, his arms straightened rigidly by his sides. He was staring at the Colonel, his eyes a little too wide and his lips a little too tight for Jim to think it was Spock. His Spock. His Spock never looked that uptight.
"What?" Colonel Kirk asked in a harsh tone, finally glancing over at the Vulcan. He seemed overly agitated with this version of Spock, although Jim couldn't figure out why.
"A parallel universe is defined as 'a universe that is separated from another by a single quantum event.'" The 'other' Spock said, sounding as if he were reading straight from a book. Jim couldn't help but to share a glance with his Spock. Jim was starting to see so many differences he began to wonder if all Vulcans in this universe were…off. Sure, Jim always made jokes about Spock sounding like a computer when he spoke, but it wasn't really true. Spock spoke in a calm and right-to-the-point tone. The other Spock…well, everything he said just sounded as though he were reading out of a textbook.
"Based on the information I have gathered on their universe," the 'other' Spock said, glancing almost nervously at his counterpart. "I believe there is more than one alternative event that caused our universes to differ. Thus, parallel universe is an incorrect term-"
"Shut up, Spock." The Colonel said dismissively at the other Vulcan, who immediately closed his mouth and adverted his eyes. Jim noticed that his Spock raised an eyebrow at his timid counterpart. "Parallel Universe, Alternate Universe, it doesn't matter, does it?"
Lieutenant Spock did not answer. The Colonel sighed harshly and glared at Jim, who was taken back. Without another word the 'other' Kirk moved toward the 'other' Spock, keeping an eye trained on Jim's Spock. After a brief staring contest, Spock moved away from the 'other' Spock and moved to stand next to his Captain. After deciding that they weren't a threat, the colonel stepped close to the Vulcan Lieutenant, gripping his chin hard and tilting his face upward.
"You're bleeding." The colonel stated simply. The 'other' Spock attempted to reach his hand up and dapped at the drying green blood smeared under his nose, but the 'other' Kirk smacked his hand away. Jim tried not to notice that his first officer flinched a little.
The colonel tilted the other Vulcans head side to side, inspecting the dried blood that had dribbled out of the pointed ears. He sighed irritably once again.
"What did you do?" Kirk muttered, suddenly much softer than he had previously spoken, although Jim wouldn't have described it as kind.
"I assembled the artifacts into a structured form," the 'other' Spock muttered quietly. His eyes were tilted down purposefully towards the floor, careful to never look at the other man.
"I meant, why are you bleeding Spock?" the Colonel said matter-of-factly as he glanced at their two counterparts.
"They are non-violent." Spock muttered firmly. "When the universes melded, something similar to a sonic boom occurred. I theorize that the sound of the barrier the kept our universes apart breaking down was what caused the sonic boom to occur. The sudden pressure increase could have caused slight internal bleeding."
"In your brain." The Colonel said, frowning deeply at the other Vulcan. After a brief hesitation, the 'other' Spock nodded timidly. The colonel rolled his eyes and sighed for the umpteenth time. "I'll call Doctor Chapel."
He turned to their counterparts.
"I recommend you call your CMO as well. I doubt you'll want Miss Chapel to examine you for internal bleeding in the brain." The Colonel said simply and without any further explanation. It was after Jim and Spock had moved to their side of the lab that the Colonel turned his back on them and tapped the badge on his chest.
"Colonel Kirk to Doctor Chapel."
There was silence. After a pause, he tapped his badge a little harder.
"I said, Colonel Kirk to Doctor Chapel."
"She's not here." Came the male response. Kirk failed miserably at keeping the irritation out of his voice.
"Where is she, Doctor McCoy?"
"Dealing with Doctor M'Benga. He tried to corner her in her office. Her orders were she was not to be disturbed."
"That's unfortunate for M'Benga. Tell her I need her in the lower lab."
"Her orders in the event of you needing her were to tell you to 'fuck off,' sir."
Kirk pinched the bridge of his nose, hard. He really did try to reign in his temper, but when he thought of McCoy having the satisfaction of saying 'fuck off' to him, it really became quite a challenge. Although he had no doubt that Chapel had actually given the order. McCoy knew better than to make it up and he had been receiving quite a bit of complaints about M'Benga as of late. Apparently the Agony Booth just wasn't getting the point across.
"Fine, McCoy. Then you report to the lower lab. Bring your emergency med kit. You have three minutes or you'll be in the agony booth for an hour and little David McCoy won't get to speak to his father tonight."
There was silence over the comm.. For a moment Kirk thought the Doctor was going to test him. Oh, how he would enjoy that.
"Three minutes. Aye, sir. McCoy out."
Kirk didn't even try to hide his shark-like grin. If he saw how Lieutenant Spock shivered, he didn't comment.
Over on the other side of the room, Jim was talking into his communicator.
"Yeah, possible brain bleeding. That's all." Jim tried to sound unconcerned as he ordered Doctor McCoy to the lower lab.
"You-what? Brain bleeding? What did that hobgoblin do?!"
Jim sighed. "Please Bones. Just come down here ok? It's complicated."
There was a pause.
"Alright, kid. I'll kick your ass after I make sure you're not gonna die from a brain hemorrhage."
"Thanks Bones." Jim smiled. "Kirk out."
x.x.x.x.x
"So if you are from an alternate universe, what's so different about you? Besides those ridiculous uniforms." The Colonel said, distastefully eyeing the bright gold tunic his counterpart wore. Jim scowled at the other man.
"Says the guy wearing a gold sash." Jim sneered. They were waiting on their respective Doctors to get to the lower lab and they had decided to see just what "quantum event" had caused their universes to differ.
Just as the 'other' Kirk opened his mouth to reply to his smart-mouthed counterpart, 'other' Spock interrupted, this time shocking everyone in the room.
"Nero is the one who destroyed Vulcan in their universe. Not you, Colonel."
For a moment there was dead silence and all Jim could do was stare at this scarred version of himself.
"Wait…what does he mean, 'not you?'" Jim asked, almost breathless. Surely it didn't mean…
"The ISS Enterprise was responsible for the destruction of Vulcan," Kirk said easily, his brows furrowed at his counterpart. He couldn't understand why the other man looked so shocked. "I gave the order myself. Happily watched it collapse in on itself, taking all those worthless rebel Vulcan bastards with it."
This time the silence stretched. Jim just stared open-mouth at the other man. He couldn't imagine himself standing on the bridge of the Enterprise giving an order to destroy an entire planet. He also couldn't imagine referring to an entire race as 'worthless.' He turned away.
"I'm done." Jim said, walking across the room to slump in a chair on his universes side of the room. For a moment he harshly rubbed at his eyes, still hoping this was all some kind of sick nightmare. When he opened his eyes and looked at his first officer, who looked more than a little disturbed, Jim decided he needed to do something. He looked at his counterpart. He opened his mouth, but no words came out.
"What?" The 'other' Kirk snapped irritably. "You wouldn't have wiped them out if you had had the chance?"
"No!" Jim snapped. Before Jim could start rambling about the destruction of Vulcan and his thoughts on the cold murderer in front of him, his first officer stepped between them, his gaze fixed firmly on the Colonel.
"The destruction of Vulcan is the most devastating event to happen in the Federation since it was formed," Spock said calmly, if not a bit coldly. "I can only presume that our universes are vastly different, if a human willingly destroyed our planet."
There was a tense moment where Colonel and Commander stood, glaring at each other. Finally the Colonel grinned crookedly at the Vulcan, as if there was a joke in what Spock had said.
"The Federation?"
Before Spock could inquire, there were twin swoosh noises as both doors to the lab opened and two McCoy's stepped in with almost identical medical kits, followed by two almost identical versions of Carol Marcus.
It took a few moments for the new arrivals to notice there was two of everything in the room.
Then there was a loud, piercing scream.