DISCLAIMER: I Don't Own Star Trek. And I'm not making any money from this.

LN324-Delta : Part 2

One of the security personnel behind Kirk began retching. Kirk's arm instinctively went to cover his mouth from the smell of the bodies and the smell of fresh vomit. In the dim emergency lighting he saw Spock, Bones and Cupcake do the same.

Bones was the first to move. He took out his tricorder and went to the bodies. "All human. All male. They appear to have died due to asphyxiation."

The doctor put his tricorder back in his belt. Stepping between the bodies, he put one hand over his mouth and gently turned one of the prone forms. His eyes closed momentarily and he looked up at Jim. Bowing his head Bones said, "It's Doug."

Jim's jaw clenched. He was too amped on adrenaline right now to feel sorrow. That would come later. Right now his brain focused on looking for possible causes for his friend's death…and trying to keep himself from vomiting.

It was possible that the life support in this area of the station had temporarily malfunctioned. That would explain why the two remaining member's of the station team were holed up behind the security field in the living quarters.

"Okay, Lieutenant Giotto," Jim said to the large security guard he mentally thought of as 'Cupcake', "How do we get past the security field?"

Cupcake was already scanning the door to the living quarters where the security field began. "I'm on it now, Captain."

Spock stepped over and looked at Cupcake's tricorder. "It is possible if we reset our phasers to..."

Just then the hallway's normal lighting came on and the door to the living quarters opened of its own accord.

"The security field just dropped, Captain," said Cupcake.

There was really only one option in Jim's mind. "Let's go."

Cupcake looked at the two security guards behind Kirk and Bones, nodded, and then turned to Spock. Both Spock and Cupcake took out their phasers and stepped through the door.

A moment after they disappeared. Kirk heard the sound of Cupcakes heavy footfalls running beyond the door.

Then Spock's cool voice came from the other passage. "Hallway secure, Captain."

Bones and Kirk stepped through the door...and it immediately closed behind them. From the other side of door came the sound of pounding by the two security personnel they'd just been separated from, and then a light electrical hum.

Kirk's hand immediately went to his comm. "Kirk to Enterprise. Enterprise come in."

There was no response. Without any orders from him Spock moved to be point man.

Cupcake ran to the door and took out his tricorder. "The security field is back up Captain. We won't be able to hail the Enterprise or beam out now...Captain, I'm also detecting two life readings down the hall and to the left." Cupcake motioned to the end of the hallway where Spock stood.

Right. There was only one thing to do now thought Jim, "Let's get moving gentlemen...we're going to have to figure out what's going on if we want to get out of here."

The four of them moved down the hallway. Spock stayed on point, Cupcake covered Bones and Jim from behind.

One of the things about being Captain was that whenever you went anywhere, you always wound stuck in a security sandwich. There often wasn't much for Jim to do but stand or walk between his appointed guards and wait for someone to die or be injured so you could make an important decision. Sometimes he really wondered if Spock didn't have the better job.

Ahead of them a door opened. Bones looked at his tricorder and over to him and said, "They're in there, Jim."

The opening faced a closet, so the room's occupants weren't visible from the hallway. Spock went through first stepping to the left and out of Jim's view. Yes, the first officer's job was definitely more exciting…

From the other room came a voice that wasn't Jim's first officer, but was as calm and serene as Spock's ever was. "I did not expect a Vulcan. She needs a doctor."

Bones was past Jim and through the door before Spock could even give the okay. Not hearing any screams Jim decided to follow. He knew Cupcake would keep their exit covered.

The scene that met Jim took the air out of his lungs.

There was a male Vulcan, sitting cross legged on the bed, wearing only a loose pair of trousers. Jim would have said he looked to be in his mid thirties, of course he was Vulcan…he was probably older than that. The Vulcan had a human female's unconscious head in his lap, and was gently massaging her temples. The rest of the woman's body was draped by a sheet. It was obvious to Jim's experienced eye that she was naked underneath.

Something in a corner of Jim's brain was just screaming wrong. The Vulcan's intimate movements and the woman's near nakedness were just so incongruous somehow. Vulcans just didn't sit around half naked with completely naked women and invite in four strangers.

Of course Vulcans also didn't attack you on the bridge for being a smart ass, slice you with large sickle like weapons, or grind your body into red dirt...where the fuck were those thoughts coming from?

"What the Hell happened to her?" Bones was grumbling, scanning her fast with a tricorder. "Broken ribs, multiple abrasions..."

The Vulcan ignored Jim -- and Bones and Cupcake too. He spoke directly to Spock. "They really need physical contact, much more than us. I did not understand that before. She does not want me to leave her."

Spock had his phaser down at his side. "You must come with us," his first officer said softly.

"I would like to explain first," the Vulcan said.

"Please do! What the Hell, happened here?" said Bones.

Not responding the Vulcan bent down towards the unconscious woman. Jim could see green marks in the white skin of his back and shoulders as he leaned forward.

"You are Doctor Zenak, are you not?" asked Spock.

The Vulcan nodded. "It came on so suddenly...I did not expect it. My bond mate died on Vulcan, and it happened so fast there was no where to go."

Jim's mind was buzzing...what came on suddenly? He knew the answer to this, didn't he?

"I have always had high regard for Lieutenant Lee. When my bond mate died, the regard only grew," said Zenak.

"What's going on here, Captain?" asked Cupcake. "Is he hurting her or helping her?"

"I'm not sure," said Jim. The Vulcan's movements were so gentle, but the scratches on his back indicated that there had been some sort of struggle.

Cupcake whispered in his ear, "I can set my phaser to stun..."

Suddenly Zenak snarled, "Do not fire your phaser! You might hurt her!" What came out of his mouth next could only be described as a long growl.

Jim instinctively took a half step back, and cursed himself. Wasn't he just mentally complaining about being the baloney in a security sandwich? He looked to the side and noticed Bones and Cupcake had also dropped back half a pace.

His first officer on the other hand had stepped forward, put his phaser in his belt, and outstretched a hand to the other Vulcan. "Doctor Zenak, you must leave her. You must allow the doctor to help her."

Zenak took a deep breath and closed his eyes. The low growl in his chest dissipated. "I had to bond with her. I could not allow her to think I was only an animal." Jim watched as the Vulcan looked up at Spock as though he was the only other person in the room. "You know, they do not feel as deeply as we do. But they do feel. She loved me...she loved me...if I had only known before..." His eyes closed.

Enough of this. There were three men dead in the hallway. "What happened to the other members of the crew?" asked Jim.

Doctor Zenak opened his eyes. "I killed them."