Consuming Fire

By: Maranni123

Chapter Seven

Disclaimer: My God, this was a hard chapter to write. Yes, readers and watchers, I'm back. I'm sorry for the long absence. Real Life was having fun handing my ass to me and I've only now just managed to break free from it, if only for a short while. I just got my wisdom teeth pulled, which was all sorts of fun, and I'm just about to start college, which means that my life is pretty crazy at the moment. Nevertheless, rest assure that "Consuming Fire", along with the rest of my projects, will be finished in all due time.

I've gotten some reviews about drawing the story out longer than I should, and while I must admit that prolonging the story's end is a bad habit of mine, I can't simply end this in just a chapter or two, so you'll have to put up with about two more chapters after this one until you get an ending. Sorry, but I want quality and if I have to cut a chapter in two for the story to flow more easily, then I will. But anyway, I'll never own Star Trek of the characters, but I do own Ra'na, hooray for me. :D Enjoy!

(xXxXxXx)

It took McCoy only a moment of listening to Jim's soft cries and Spock's raspy screams before he began to speak, his tone urgent and demanding. "Jim," he said, pulling against his chains to get the weeping man's attention. "Jim, talk to me."

When Jim didn't answer or even acknowledge McCoy's voice, the doctor tried again. "Jim," McCoy pressed, his tone rising to the point where Spock managed to stop screaming long enough to shot him a glare. "Jim, darlin', I know you're hurting right now but I need you to talk to me, okay?"

A moment passed with Spock glaring silently at McCoy. From his spot on the cell floor, Jim managed a weak nod as he shook away his tears, looking over to McCoy with weary eyes.

"Okay Bones," he sighed. "I'm listening." His voice was rough and scratchy from screaming.

McCoy signed with relief and he managed to offer Jim a small smile. "Thank you Jim."

Jim gazed at his best friend for a moment before a weak smile managed to make its way to his lips. Spock, however, was apparently not happy with Jim showing another any type of affection. Letting out a snarl, Spock lunged at McCoy, baring his teeth. Both Uhura and Sulu jumped in surprise and McCoy glanced over to the half-Vulcan with his hands raised upward respectively.

"Calm down Spock, I'm not going to steal him, I promise," he assured the crazed half-Vulcan. "I'm just trying to help."

Spock glared at the doctor, the man's words not being able to reach him through his Pon Farr. All he knew was that his mate was showing the man in front of him, the doctor, affection that should be his and his only. Thankfully, however, Jim was able to break through to Spock's reason.

"Spock," Jim mumbled fondly, immediately catching Spock attention. The half-Vulcan purred softly before turning towards his bond mate, his glazed brown eyes holding only affection and want.

Jim smiled again. "Spock, listen to me, okay? I know that it's hard for you right now, but I need you to trust me. Bones, he just wants to talk. Just talking Spock. I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere."

Spock stared at Jim, his hazy mind trying to understand Jim's statement. That man, the doctor, did not pose a threat? Spock narrowed his eyes for a moment, and then let out a soft sigh. No, the doctor was no threat. If Jim, his T'hy'la, trusted the doctor, then he would allow them to speak, but nothing more than that. Slowly, Spock turned to stare at McCoy, ignoring both Sulu and Uhura completely. He glared at McCoy, who was smart enough to lower his head and avert his gaze, showing the Vulcan the two universal signs of submission.

"I just need to know what Ra'na did to Jim, Spock," McCoy said slowly, although on the inside he was rolling his eyes. 'Damn hobgoblin and his overprotective nature.' "I just need to talk to him. Nothing more, I promise."

Spock continued to stare at McCoy for what seemed like forever. The silence was nearly suffocating as Uhura and Sulu watched their half-Vulcan stare down at McCoy with weary eyes. Jim remained silent as well, his eyes on Spock, hopeful that his fevered mate would trust him, would trust McCoy. More time passed.

"Dungau kal-tor nash-veh kah."

The words were harsh and bitter, causing McCoy to raise his head up in alarm. It sounded to him as if Spock wouldn't allow him to speak with Jim. Spock gave McCoy one final glare before he turned back to Jim, his expression growing softer. With a soft huff, Spock slowly dropped to his knees and continued to purr, attempting to sooth his distressed mate.

Although it took him a moment, McCoy looked over to Uhura with doubt written across his face. "What did he say?" he asked softly.

Uhura made a slow motion with her hand over towards Jim. "Spock said he'll let you talk to Jim," she whispered, not daring to interrupt the purring man beside her. "But I'm not sure how long he'll allow it. So you'd better hurry!"

Realization creeping over his face, McCoy nodded and turned over to Jim, ignoring the soft growl that escaped Spock's throat.

"Jim," he said softly, still unable to raise his voice at the hurting man in front of him. "I know that you're hurting right now darlin'. You and Spock both are going through absolute hell right now and I'm sorry that I'm fucking useless to ya."

McCoy paused, waiting for Jim to respond. The blond gave him a small nod, allowing the doctor to continue. "Jim, I need to know what happened when Ra'na took you out of here, okay? He did something to your bond with Spock and as your doctor, I need to know what he did, if you can remember."

The softness in McCoy's voice was noticeable, but not surprising. Everyone knew that Jim was the key to McCoy's softer side and the man couldn't help but be gentle whenever Jim was really in trouble. His softness was also for Spock's sake as well. Speaking to Jim respectfully and gently was the best way to win Spock over in his current state and if they were going to escape, then McCoy, Sulu, and Uhura all needed Spock to see them as allies, not enemies.

Jim took in a breath as he let McCoy's question roll around in his mind. "They didn't do much," he said slowly, closing his eyes in an attempt to bring his memory into focus. "They just took me into a long hallway. The two muscle-heads had me by the arms and Ra'na was leading the way."

Jim paused then, trying to kick-start his memory. He gave McCoy an apologetic glance. "Sorry Bones," he mumbled. "It's a little hard trying to remember what happened... before."

McCoy's face tightened, but he nodded. Judging by Spock's reaction to Ra'na's tampering with his and Jim's marriage bond, it had no doubt hurt Jim just as much. Judging from his rough voice and rubbed-raw wrists, Jim had been through the same hell as Spock.

Shaking his head slightly in frustration and earning himself a soft coo of affection from Spock, Jim tried again, keeping his voice clipped and cold, as if relaying a report. "They led me into another room, but before I could see anything, they blindfolded me. They chained me back against a wall and left me there for awhile, roughly twenty minutes."

Twenty minutes of absolute torture. Of course, having Spock there in his mind from their bond had helped Jim greatly, but then...

Jim kept his eyes focused on a spot on the wall near McCoy, obviously trying to put as much emotional distance between him and the memory as possible. McCoy couldn't blame him. From Spock's outburst and the importance of the bond, it was no surprise that the mere memory of Ra'na tampering was probably causing Jim some discomfort. But McCoy had to know, for Jim and Spock's safety.

"Then Ra'na came back and injected something into my arm," Jim said suddenly, the words rushing out of his mouth as if they burned. He lifted up his golden sleeve and Spock snarled as a small bruise was revealed.

Seeing Spock's distress, Jim quickly pulled his sleeve back down. "After that," he finished quickly, give McCoy a small shrug. "Well... you know."

"Yeah," McCoy agreed. "I know Jim." He sighed and raised a hand to rub at the bridge of his nose. Jim had been injected with an unknown substance that had apparently damaged, if not destroyed, his bond with Spock. Wonderful.

Jim went quiet, as did McCoy, causing that now familiar blanket of silence to drape over the cell once again, smothering the five prisoners who were left to their own thoughts. Jim look over to Spock, who was glaring at his chains, as if offended that they would even dare to separate him from his mate. Noticing his mate's gaze, Spock's expression quickly went from rage to adoration and he purred loudly, causing Jim to smile softly despite himself.

God, Jim felt like shit. Plain and simple. He felt like shit. His body hurt, his throat was raw from his own screams, his bond with Spock was blocked and causing his to have a massive headache, Spock's Pon Farr was literally killing Spock right in front of his eyes, and his crew was still trapped by three crazed aliens. Letting out a tired sigh, Jim tried to remember his usual "no such thing as a no-win scenario" attitude. But it was hard, he had to admit.

Still chained to the wall, still unable to free his crew, still helpless, it was difficult to even think about thinking positively. But he had to think positively, he had to. That was just how Jim worked. And if there was anything, anything, to be positive about in their certain situation, it was that Jim's mind was much clearer thanks to Ra'na's mysterious injection. No longer was he infected by Spock's Pon Farr. Although still not one hundred percent, far from it, Jim was at last able to think semi-clearly.

And Jim needed his mind at the moment. Filled with a sudden determination, Jim straightened up the best he could and pulled back his usual "Captain" attitude. He was going to get his crew out of this cell. He would save Spock, he would save his crew. Even if it broke him down, even if he and Spock ended up not making it, Jim would save his crew. It's what he wanted and he knew that it is what Spock would want as well.

Letting that determination take him over, Jim looked over to McCoy. "Bones," he said, his tone practically screaming for attention. Immediately, McCoy, Sulu, and Uhura straightened up themselves, an automatic reaction to their Captain's no-nonsense, let's get serious tone. "I need to know if Ra'na hurt you, in any way. Did he do anything to you, Uhura, or Sulu?"

McCoy let out a surprised sharp laugh and both Uhura and Sulu felt small smiles start to worm their way onto their faces. "No Jim," McCoy answered, finally letting the weariness he was feeling start to show. "Ra'na didn't pay us any attention. Just you and Spock."

Relief washing over him, Jim felt the muscles in his should start to relax. His crew was shaken, but still unharmed. It looked as if Ra'na was going to stick to his word; he wouldn't touch Jim's crew until he was finished with Jim and Spock. That, at least, was something to be thankful for.

Clinging to that one ray of hope, that his crew was still at least unharmed, Jim moved onto the next subject. "Alright," he started. "At least we have that going for us."

A pause. Then, "Bones, we have to get out of here."

"I know Jim," McCoy said, rubbing at the bridge of his nose again. "I know."

From his place on the floor, Spock let out a soft keen of pain as another wave of heat washed over him, causing his hands to raise to his temple. Jim bit his lip at his bond mate's pain and looked to McCoy.

"Bones," he said softly, concern clear in his voice. "Tell me... how bad is he? How far is he? I... I can't tell."

McCoy sighed and shifted his gaze over to Spock, who was now leaning against the wall, panting as he tried to draw in air. Narrowing his eyes, McCoy tried to get a sense of how much time Spock had left before he hit plak tow. It wasn't easy, seeing as they were too far apart for McCoy to take in the details, but from just the basics of what he could see, the doctor could tell that Spock didn't have much time left.

Lifting his hands to scrub at his face, his tone full of weariness and bleakness, McCoy said, "It doesn't look good Jim. Whatever Ra'na gave you, it didn't just block the bond. From Spock's reaction and from yours as well, I'd say that it did much more than that. I'd say that the bond has been severely damaged, at best."

McCoy paused, and then continued softly, "There might even be a chance Jim, that the bond was completely broken. You might not even be bonded to Spock anymore."

Jim flinched at McCoy's words, despair starting to take over again. He might not be bonded with Spock? Their bond might be broken completely? 'No,' Jim thought desperately. 'That can't be true. The bond isn't gone, it's just blocked! That's it.'

Almost instinctively, Jim reached out towards the barren emptiness in his mind, where his bond with Spock normally resided. Reaching out, Jim hoped against all logic that instead of that sharp coldness, he would feel Spock usual calm and logical thoughts. He wanted to feel those well-hidden emotions that he knew Spock felt for him, the emotions that Spock hid from everyone else, but never from Jim. Hell, he even wanted to feel Spock's Pon Farr start to take him under again. He just wanted to feel anything that would prove McCoy wrong, that the bond was still there.

But when Jim reached out for his bond mate, all that met him was coldness. A shaky sigh escaping his lips, Jim fought to stay together. "Alright," he said softly. "Okay." He could deal with this. He could. He had to.

McCoy, knowing that Jim was shaken but also knowing that he needed to know, also said, "And if I had to give you a time limit as to when... it'll be too late?" He sighed and shook his head. "I don't know how long we've been down here, but with the added stress of this entire situation and with Ra'na's actions, I'd give Spock another day before it'll be too late to save him."

Jim nodded, staying silent as he let McCoy's words wash over him. 'Come on Kirk,' Jim thought harshly. 'Keep it together! You're going to save him! You won't let him die!'

"Alright," he said again, more forcefully this time. "Okay Bones. So we have a day to figure out how to get out of here." After a moment's pause, Jim looked up to his crew and managed to offer them a small smile. "Now, I'm not so sure about you guys, but I'd like to take this short time we have together to brain storm some ideas of escape."

McCoy couldn't help the sharp, slightly deranged laugh that escaped him as Sulu shook his head fondly at his captain. Uhura herself also managed a weak laugh, although to Jim, it sounded more like a sob. But this time, it was stemmed from happiness and relief. They had thought their captain dead. And now, their captain was with them again and showing off hints of his usual "captain" attitude. It was like a breath of fresh air, despite the seriousness of the situation.

They had their captain back and with him, their determination to escape and rescue their two commanding officers was renewed with great vigor.

"You're damn right we're going to brainstorm Jim," Uhura said, a hopeful smile on her face despite the chains on her wrist. "We're going to get out of here." And with her words, a light lit up in Uhura's head. A picture appeared, a picture of Spock's chains. Her smile turned hesitant, but she didn't relent, that picture in her mind refusing to back down. Her idea was painful, but no less painful than what Jim and Spock were going through now. "And I think I know how we're going to get you and Spock out of here."

(xXxXxXx)

Ra'na didn't return immediately, which gave Uhura plenty of time to share her plan with the rest of her fellow prisoners. At first, the communication's officer had been reluctant to share, her discomfort becoming clear to the rest of the crew once she voiced her plan to them.

After she explained to them what she had in mind, the cell was completely silent. Even Spock was quiet, although that was probably more from sheer exhaustion than anything else. All four humans were seated, curled onto the floor in their places in the cell, each going over Uhura's plan in their heads.

Taking in a breath, it was McCoy who finally broke the silence. "It could work," he said softly, not meeting Jim's gaze as the man looked towards him. "Baiting him with what he wants the most; Ra'na would fall right into our hands." Finally looking up, McCoy met Jim's stare and shook his head. "It could work Jim, but I don't like it."

Sulu bit his lip and nodded in agreement. "I don't like it either," he said. He glanced over at Uhura with an apologetic look. "It's brilliant and like McCoy said, it could work. But I still don't like it."

"I agree with you and it's my plan," Uhura said seriously, with no trace of humor in her voice. "But it's all we have at the moment. You heard McCoy, Spock only has a day, maybe a bit more, until he goes into plak tow. We need to get them out of here while we can. And right now, this is the only plan we've got."

"But we'll probably end up doing more harm than good," McCoy argued, looking over to Spock. The half-Vulcan was paying them no attention, his eyes set on Jim and Jim alone. "We could end up killing them both if things went south! It's too big of a risk."

Uhura huffed out a breath and rattled her chains. "And if we don't go through with it, Ra'na will continue to torture Jim and Spock until they're both dead. And then he'll move onto us."

"She's right Leonard," Sulu said quietly. "We've got to risk it. If there's even a chance at getting Jim and Spock out of here, then we have to take it. If we don't, then we might as well just give up now."

McCoy shook his head, a pained expression on his face. Yes, Uhura's plan was all they had. And yes, her plan was brilliant and would most likely work. But the price was too steep. With everything that Ra'na had put Jim and Spock through, it seemed cruel to pile on more stress onto their already weighted down shoulders, even if it was to escape. Even though they meant well, McCoy knew that the road to Hell was paved with good intentions. If things went wrong, they would end up killing their commanding officers.

Breaking away from his thoughts, McCoy looked over to Jim, who had been silent throughout the entire conversation. The man was staring at Spock, who was staring right back. Both men were obviously in pain and the look of absolute heartbreak on Jim's face caught a hold of McCoy's heartstrings and pulled.

"Jim," McCoy said suddenly, quietly, his tone soft.

Jim looked over to his best friend and smiled softly at him. It nearly broke McCoy's heart.

"Jim," McCoy said again. "I want to get you out of here darlin', you know I do. But if we do this, if we go through with this and you don't make it... I don't know if I could ever forgive myself." His normal gruffness gone despite himself, McCoy continued, "What do you want us to do Jim? If you think we should go through with it, then we'll go through with it. It's up to you."

A small sigh escaping his lips, Jim looked from Spock, to McCoy, over to Sulu, and then to Uhura before he finally settled back to McCoy. And the good old country doctor knew what he was going to say before the man had even opened his mouth.

"Bones," Jim began softly. "You're one of my bestest friends. You're the only doctor I like and that's saying something. You're there to call me on my bull-shit and to knock me down to size when I need it." Jim smiled at that and McCoy couldn't help it, he smiled back. Jim then moved to Sulu. "Hikaru," he said. "You're like a brother to me. You're the best helmsman a captain could ask for. You and Chekov both, I don't know what I'd do without you. Who would practice Prank Week with me?" Sulu smiled sadly at Jim's praise and stayed silent, his eyes cast downward. Then, Jim moved to Uhura. His smile grew.

"And Nyota," Jim continued softly. "You're the sister I never really had. You managed to see pass my cocky attitude and became my go-to-girl. You helped me get through my first major fight with Spock and you taught me Vulcan so that I could get closer to your ex-boyfriend. Only one hell of a woman could pull that off." Uhura smiled weakly and felt tears start to swell in her eyes again.

Jim looked down at the floor for a moment, took in a breath, and then looked back to McCoy. "I trust you all with my life," he said quietly, looking McCoy straight in the eye. "And I know without a doubt that Spock trusts you too. Even if he's too overcome with his fever at the moment, I know without a doubt that he would be telling you the exact same thing if he could."

Another pause. Then, "So I'll trust you guys with this plan. I know that it will hurt and I know that there's a chance that Spock and I won't make it through if things go wrong. But I have full confidence in you guys. We've been through some tough stuff together and I know that I can count on you to help us get out of this mess. And if you think that Uhura's plan is worth the risk, then I'm all for it."

Struck silent by Jim's small, heartfelt speech, it took McCoy a moment before he could speak again. "Okay Jim," he managed to say, no one bothering to acknowledge the slight hitch in his voice. "Okay."

The doctor turned to Uhura and nodded. "Looks like we're going through with it," he said, clearing his throat loudly. "So you tell us what we need to know and you'd better tell us fast because that bastard come could barging in here any minute." Looking over to Sulu, the helmsman managed a weak smile as Uhura let out a sigh. For a moment, she was silent.

"Alright," she said finally, sitting up straight and trying to muster up as much confidence in her voice as possible. She looked to her fellow crewmates, and then to Spock and her captain. Seeing them both looking so defeated and broken, only caused her anger at Ra'na to intensify and her determination swelled.

Her mind set, she began to speak. "Here's what's going to happen..."

(xXxXxXx)

A/N: I'm so sorry for cutting it off there but this chapter was way too big for just one chapter. I couldn't possibly fit in everything that I wanted to fit in or else it would seem rushed. And the next part is my absolute favorite chapter ever to write so I want to do it justice so I'm sorry, but you'll just have to wait a few days while I make everything look all pretty for you guys, okay? :D If you liked the chapter, review! If you didn't like the chapter, review! If you hate me with an undying passion, review! :D Can you tell that I love reviews? Please point out any mistakes. The next chapter will be up soon. Good night everyone!

Translation for the Vulcan: "Dungau kal-tor nash-veh kah." - "I shall allow it."