CHAPTER THREE

Nathan tapped his pen against the desk top, finding it to hard to concentrate. Most - everyone basically did everything electronically nowadays - Nathan liked to do it by hand. Liked the feel of having it right there in front of him, being able to hold the actual report in his hands. That way, it was in his control, he could choose whether or not to put something down or erase it. THIS he could control, THIS was under his power.

He knew full well the reason why he couldn't concentrate, the reason why he felt like he was loosing control. He hated that feeling and when he left Earth, he thought that he had gotten something back into his own control. His check-up with Commander Spock had caused things to go haywire. Nathan thought that here he would be a stranger; no one would his back story - not about how he grew up or his broken marriage. None of it! But then Doctor McCoy had to make him remember and someone did know some of his back story. Not all of it, not the dark intent he had grown up around, but of Haley, his most resent failure.

And that's what worried him the most, because that memory was still so fresh, it was on the surface. And from what little he did know of Vulcan's, some were telepaths; with just something as simple as skin contact they could read the emotions that were fore most on the mind. Sure, Spock probably couldn't know what the emotions Nathan was feeling pertained to, and he was sure the Commander couldn't really tell anyone. And if he tried, what was he going to say? Spock didn't really have anything on Nathan, but then again there was someone that he could tell.

As second in command of the USS Enterprise, it was Commander Spock's duty to know the mental and physical well being of all the crew members aboard the ship. And if he had felt something that he thought would compromise the safety of others or themselves, than who other than to report it to the officers CO. Like for instance, Doctor McCoy. And the Doc would know the reason for Nathan's condition.

Nathan figuratively and literally almost had a heart attack as the comm. unit by his door chirped. His heart started to beat almost erratically; could the Commander really have worked that fast? Nathan couldn't fathom why this was happening to him, why this was still happening to him. Ever since the day he was born . . .

When the comm. chirped again, Nathan finally got up from his chair and very reluctantly made his way towards his closed door. He held down the button on the key pad as he spoke.

"Who is it?" he asked, his voice slightly strained.

"Nathan? It's McCoy," came the reply.

Nathan was silent - he knew it, if he hadn't thought about it, it wouldn't have come true.

"Nathan!" McCoy's voice crackled through the comm. with intense worry. "Are you all right?"

Nathan cleared his throat of the sudden lump, his eyes squeezed shut. "I'm fine," he reassured. "What can I do for you, Doctor?"

"I'm off duty, Nathan." came the bland reply. "Leonard or McCoy would be just fine."

"Okay, what can I do for you, Leonard?" Nathan repeated his question.

Leonard sighed. "We need to talk, can I come in?"

Nathan squeezed his eyes shut even tighter, pinching the bridge of his nose as he hung his head in defeat. Why delay the inventible? Pressing a few keys on the pad, the door unlocked and slid open to reveal Leonard McCoy clad in his plain blue shirt and black pants. Forgetting his worries, Nathan stood blocking the doorway as he just looked at Leonard.

Nathan sputtered with laugh, doubling over with the force of it. "Oh My God!"

Leonard didn't comment as he squeezed his way past Nathan, the door sliding closed behind him. He looked at Nathan, his arms crossed over his chest and his brows raised. "And what do you find so gut splitting?"

Nathan was hunched over, his hand holding his side as his other wiped the tears always. "Your clothes!" he gasped out.

Leonard down at himself, pulling his shirt away from him as he inspected it; after finding nothing wrong he let the material fall back against his chest. "What's wrong with my clothes?"

Nathan finally calmed down enough to stand up straight and he took a moment to catch his breath. "Your off duty clothes are exactly the same as your on duty clothes." he finally pointed.

Leonard looked down at himself again. "Good God, man!" he can't believe that he never noticed it before. "What about you?"

"What do you mean? What about me," Nathan asked.

"Lieutenant Red," was all he said.

Nathan looked down at himself, now just realizing that he was wearing a red sweater - the same colour as his on duty uniform. He looked back at Leonard. "This is just a coincidence,"

Leonard just nodded his head sarcastically. "I believe you,"

Nathan shook his head in turn, his lips pursed. "This is very unprofessional," he observed.

Leonard let a quick grin flash across his face. "On that note, let's get down to business." there was a gleam in his eye.

Nathan sobered at that; this was the reason why he had come after all.

"Jeez, Nathan. Why do you always pale when I say something like that?" Leonard's brows furrowed.

"Because," Nathan sighed a hand pulling at his dark hair. "What you say after always does more damage then not."

Leonard was silent as he searched Nathan's eyes. "This is good news, I swear it."

Nathan just looked at him.

"I hope," Leonard rescinded. "I am almost positive . . ."

Nathan sighed and sat back in his desk chair, swiveling it around to face Leonard. "I'm ready," he told the MCO, only half telling the truth and half lying.

Leonard nodded. "Your first patient," he started and Nathan interrupted.

"Commander Spock?" Nathan asked. How could this be good news?

"The one and the same," Leonard nodded. "As you know, I'm the Commander's personal physician - you could saw - taking care of all of hia medical issues and what not. And after your check up with him, I asked him how it went; evaluating how you did."

"And?" Nathan prompted when Leonard paused, very nervous about where this was going.

"And. Let's just say that I heard good things and I'm giving your job description an upgrade." Leonard grinned at him.

"What?" Nathan exclaimed, standing up with the surprise of it. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean, Nathan," Leonard placed a hand on Nathan's shoulder. "Is that you are now in charge of Spock's health. You are now the Commander's Doctor,"

"But I'm not a Doctor," was all Nathan could think to saw.

Maybe their skin to skin contact hadn't result in anything after all, Spoke's eyes had only glazed for a second and for all Nathan knew, the Vulcan could have been lost in thought. And by God, did Vulcan's still fascinate him - and by being the Commander's Doctor, it would help him learn more and more about their species.

"You ARE a Doctor," Leonard told him firmly. "You wouldn't be on the USS Enterprise other wise." he let his hand fall from Nathan's shoulder and made his way to the door.

"Doctor Scott," Nathan tried it out, it sounding weird but some how right on his tongue. "Doctor Nathan R. Scott."

Leonard turned back to Nathan as the room door slid open. "What's the "R" stand for?" he asked curiously.

"Royal," Nathan said, not realizing he had said; his mind still occupied with the thought of him as a real Doctor.

Leonard didn't say a word as he left Nathan's room with a grin on his face; he would have to remember that.

Nathan sat back down in his desk chair and spun back around to his desk; he picked up his discarded pen and started to fill out his report with renewed energy. All pressing thought were lifted from his mind and he felt light and filled with relief. When he had first boarded the USS Enterprise, but now for some odd reason - possibly the fact that he got assigned a patient - he felt like a Doctor and that lifted his spirits of all worries.


Spock almost gave a sigh of relief and slouched in his chair on the Bridge as the torrent of fear and anxiety stopped emitting from Nathan's mind and started to emit a giddy excitement instead. It came at him in waves and he felt the tenseness in his shoulders finally relax.

After what had happened in the Medical Bay with the Lieutenant, Spock knew that it was no use. He had tried to shield his mind form Nathan's, but his mind kept piercing the shield. He could dim down the feelings that Nathan was projecting so that it was only a Hum in the back of his mind - but Spock wasn't able to block him out completely.

"Chekov, find Doctor McCoy and have him come to my ready-room." Captain Jim Kirk ordered the young Russian, stepping into the doorway of his ready room.

"Aye, Keptain." Chekov nodded, pressing the appropriate buttons on the console in front of him.

"Sulu, I've sent you some coordinates; enter them at warp-speed 8." Jim continued.

Sulu turned and raised an eye brow at him before turning back to his console and inputting the coordinates. "Aye-aye,"

"Spoke," Jim called.

Spock spun his chair around to face him. "Jim," he raised an eye brow.

Jim jerked his head behind him, indicating that the Vulcan should join him before he turned and went back into the room. If Spoke were a human, he probably would have rolled his eyes, but he wasn't so he didn't and fallowed Jim into his ready room without comment. Spoke sat in one of the chairs that were placed in front of Jim's desk, while Jim sat in the one behind it.

"Have you met any of the new officers yet?" Jim asked as they waited for McCoy.

"I have made acquaintance with one officer, yes." Spock told him, somewhat reluctantly.

"And how's he fairing?" Jim wondered.

"I believe Lieutenant Scott is adjusting well to life on the Enterprise," he informed.

"And what does Scott do?" Jim asked his First Officer.

"He is colleagues with Leonard,"

"A Doctor than? That's good, we seem to be really lacking those - and more the anything, we need as many as we can at the moment." Jim commented idly.

"Why's that, Jim?" Leonard asked as he finally made it to the ready room, the door sliding closed behind him.

"Bones!" Jim grinned as said Doctor took the seat beside Spoke. "It's about time you got here,"

"I can't come running every time you call, kid. You are supposed to be the Captain after all," Leonard deadpanned.

"And what was so important that you couldn't come running?" Jim pouted.

Proving Leonard's point, Spock noticed.

"I was giving Lieutenant Scott a job upgrade," Leonard answered.

Usually Spock didn't pay any mind when Jim and Leonard had their hourly squabble it would seem, but as the conversation turned to the one that was literally on his mind, his interest was piqued.

"You can't just give out promotions like candy, Bones!" Jim protested. "It has to go through me first, and Scott just boarded a few days ago."

"I never said anything about a promotion, Captain!" he said the word in a slightly mocking tone, not taking Jim's very well. "I said an upgrade,"

"Yeah? And what was this 'upgrade'?" Jim made air quotes.

"Well, DOCTOR Scott just became the Enterprise's resident Vulcan Doctor." Leonard shot a quick grin in Spock's direction before turning back to Jim.

Spock had cocked his head slightly at that; this, he was not expecting - to say the least he was surprised.

As was Jim, who sat back in his chair. "Where did this come from?"

"With M'Benga gone, there's only like five-to-none Doctor's in this whole ship with more than 400 officer's - I have my hands full as it is with just you. Nathan's a good Doctor, just ask his first patient." Leonard turned and looked at Spoke.

Jim did too, his brow raised.

"Dr. Scott is very efficient and thorough in his chosen profession." Spock agreed with Leonard's assessment of the young man.

Jim was silent as he searched Spock face for any indication that he was lying, but the Vulcan's face was as passive as ever and Jim didn't think that he would lie for Bones.

"Back to business, I presume?" Spoke raised an eyebrow.

"Right," Jim sat up straight in his chair, his hands folded on the top of his desk as he got straight down to business. "I was contacted by Star Fleet Command, it seems that one of the Earth colonies on the planet Kawartha, are getting ill. And this isn't just the flu or virus - this is something else, something bigger." Jim told them.

"Big how?" Leonard asked.

"It was reported out that it started out slow, just a few getting sick here and there; and that was why they thought it was just a simple virus. But people having been getting sicker faster since then - and this started out about three weeks ago. From the last report it was said that the death total was 347." Jim read from the PADD in front of him.

"And they have no idea what it is?" Leonard asked, both sickened and intrigued at the same time.

"None," Jim confirmed. "We should be arriving with in the hour. The Markus should arrive in a week or so to help, but well just have to hold on until then."

"If this is as big as you say it is," Leonard told him. "We don't have the man power for this."

"We'll just have to make it work," Jim told him sadly. "People are dying, Bones. And we might be able to help stop it,"

"You're right, Jim, we'll just have to make do with what we've got until backup arrives."

"A whole week . . ."

ST09-OTH - NOFM-ce