Chapter Nine

"Okay, so you're saying Christmas break was spent at the bar, and the party at the mess hall?" Kayla asked, smirking in amusement as Emily revealed some of the many pictures she had taken with her data PADD during the Christmas party.

After that night in the bar, on Christmas Day, the mess hall had shared its own celebration with the Cadets who couldn't visit their families. She had met Pavel Chekov that way, learning the kid was from Russia and had enlisted in Starfleet at the age of fourteen. Not only was he one of the youngest recruits, but he was also some kind of mathematical wizard. She had to admit, she loved Chekov's sense of humor and that sense of child-like innocence he seemed to have. Then, she had met Nyota Uhura, who apparently was also in Kayla's class, and at the top of xenolinguistics.

Surprisingly, it really had been one of the most memorable Christmas parties she'd attended. Emily never wanted to admit that agreeing to go out with Jim and Leonard had been the best choice she could have made. Her mood had switched from feeling hopelessly lost and depressed to happy within a matter of hours as they talked about their pasts and previous Christmas's.

"Yeah. It was actually one of the best Christmas breaks I've had in a long time," she admitted with a shrug.

"I'd imagine," Kayla grinned. "Wait, is that Pavel Chekov?"

She almost burst out laughing when she caught hold of the pictures Emily had taken with her data PADD. She couldn't resist taking a picture of Pavel trying to explain a difficult mathematical equation to Hikaru Sulu, another Cadet who had been at the party. The poor man's face was full of confusion, mostly because it was difficult to understand what Pavel was explaining when he talked too fast.

"Yeah, he and Sulu were there that day," she explained. "Remember that Asian guy from combat practice?"

Kayla's grin turned to a frown as she remembered all-too-well what had happened at combat practice. Sulu had been Emily's sparring partner at the time, and she had beaten him with surprising strength. Ever since that incident, they had earned each other's respect.

"Well, I'm glad you were able to have some fun," Kayla rolled her eyes once she switched the data PADD off. "And, you have two boys trailing after you, now," she laughed.

"God, you're seriously going there?" Emily groaned and threw her back on the bed. "We're friends, nothing more, nothing less."

"Sure you are," Kayla rolled her eyes. "I've seen the way you eye McCoy. And the way he looks at you. It's obvious he's trying and failing miserably to hide his feelings for you."

She only rolled her eyes at that. There was no way in hell she was ready for any kind of relationship. At least not in the way Kayla suggested. She was only just beginning to adjust to life in this universe. Besides, she doubted Leonard was in any hurry to jump into anything that was out of his comfort zone. She didn't plan on pushing him any further than she already had, and the feelings were mutual.

"How was Christmas for you?" she asked, hoping to change the subject as she sat up.

"Great," Kayla replied with a grin. "Mom and dad had the whole family over this time. Usually, it's just the three of us."

Must be nice. She tried brushing the bitter thought aside, knowing full well it wasn't fair for her to blame Kayla for her misery. Kayla was lucky to have a family that cared for her. Heck, her family actually encouraged her for enlisting in Starfleet. They supported her choices and encouraged them, which was something Emily never had the pleasure of feeling.

"Em, you okay?" Kayla frowned when she noticed something was wrong. Emily closed her eyes and tried to picture her family. But, as she did, she could only see what looked like an empty void. "Emily, what's wrong?"

Kayla's voice became more frantic, and, when Emily finally opened her eyes, she saw her friend looking more concerned than ever.

"Nothing," she reassured her with a fake smile, "I'll be fine, I promise."

"Right, of course you will be," Kayla rolled her eyes as the two of them got ready for bed.

She knew that something was wrong. She should have noticed long before that conversation that something was wrong, but she hadn't had the heart to point it out. And, something told her that she would regret that decision.

Sleep didn't come easily for her that night. She was used to waking up from nightmares, but this one was different from the others, more painful.

Her senses were going haywire, at the moment. The room she was being held in was dimly lit. But, the musky odor and dampness told her that she was in a dungeon of some kind. As she tried looking around when her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw that she was surrounded.

Figures, dressed in cloaks, surrounded her. Their faces were shrouded in darkness. It took everything she had not to scream out in panic as one of the figures moved towards her. The shadowy mist trailing behind the figure was what really freaked her out. They looked like some kind of demon-figure, like the ones from so many horror movies she had seen.

As she tried struggling to sit up, to move, she realized that metal cuffs were digging into her wrists and ankles, holding her down to prevent escape.

"T'Mhal will be pleased with this one," one of the cloaked figures spoke, their voice deep and husky. "She has fire in her."

"Good," the figure standing beside the first one replied. "The others were not so lucky."

Others? Her eyes widened with terror as she realized they saw her as some kind of experiment. The cloaked figure that had moved towards her took hold of her hand, and it took everything she had not to scream out when she realized it was nothing more than a bony hand clasping hers.

"Such a spirited little human," the figure sneered. "That will serve you well, for what we have planned." There was a pause, and a shuffling noise as the figures moved about. "For this procedure to work, you must be awake. The pain will tell us whether it is successful or not."

"W-What are you planning to do with me?" she asked fearfully, hating how her voice came out in a squeak.

"We are giving you a chance," the first figure who spoke replied, "A chance at a new life… a better life."

She felt her body tense the moment the lights began to dim just a little more. "Relax, the pain will only feel worse if you are tense," the figure standing beside her growled.

Her teeth ground together as a fiery wave of pain erupted within her body. It felt like thousands of needles were pricking at her skin, tearing her apart piece by piece. This was like nothing she had felt before. The intensity felt as if it would last forever, and her vision began to blur within seconds.

The figures were still speaking to one another in low whispers. For all she knew, they were probably laughing at the pain. They probably enjoyed watching their victims writhe on the exam table, until the pain subsided.

"… Vulcan will not know what we have done," she overheard one of the figures snarl. "Their mind-meld tricks can only reach so many."

Vulcan… why did that sound so familiar? Her mind was trying to wrap around the terms these strange figures were using as the pain slowly began to ebb away, replaced with something far worse. Her heart was throbbing, and the pounding in the back of her head couldn't prepare her for what happened next.

"Subject is still alive; they show signs of already adjusting to this world, and they are ready for transport." She felt her blood pulse with dread at the ominous way the figure had spoken. "Prepare for transport."

At that point, her vision began to blur again. The figures had started moving around her, surrounding her until she was shrouded in darkness. Black spots appeared along her vision when she had finally passed out.

Kayla could only watch on in horror as she continued thrashing in her bed. She had tried every trick in the book to wake her roommate, but nothing seemed to work. It was hard to tell whether she was having a seizure, or if this was another nightmare. Whatever the cause, nothing had prepared her in any this. She was forced to call in an expert, the only other person who might be able to figure out what was wrong.

A knock sounded on the door, making her jump, before she raced over and answered. She wasn't surprised to find a disheveled looking Doctor McCoy glaring at her. After hearing the numerous rumors that spread around the doctor, she wasn't in any hurry to reach out to him.

"I'm sorry, I would've taken her myself, but…" Kayla peered over her shoulder to where her roommate still hadn't woken up, and by now, she was crying out in her sleep. "I've tried everything, and nothing seems to work."

She resented having to call in McCoy for help. Yes, the guy had his Southern charm, but the rumors didn't help him much. But, the moment McCoy stepped inside their dorm was when she saw him put on a professional stance.

Kayla watched carefully as he knelt down and gently took hold of Emily's hand. For all the bad rep he seemed to get in the hospital, he was nothing like what the rumors had claimed. She frowned as she realized this was a different side of McCoy, the side of him that few people were lucky to see.

"Dammit, Emily, you're gonna be the death of me," he muttered as she began to relax from his touch.

"Will she be okay?" she asked warily, noticing that it seemed safe to talk.

"It's hard to tell," McCoy frowned, still kneeling beside her, still holding her hand as she finally stopped thrashing and looked more peaceful than ever sleeping. "How long has she been waking up like this?"

"Usually, it's not this bad," Kayla admitted guiltily, knowing she should have reported it the moment Emily had woken from her first nightmare. "She usually forgets what happened the next morning."

His frown only deepened. Kayla chewed the bottom of her lip when she understood that this should have really, really been reported the moment it happened. But, she had promised Emily she wouldn't, unless it got to this point.

Something wasn't right. Kayla should have known the signs when she saw them the first night she had woken up from these night terrors. But really, how was she supposed to know they would get this bad? Emily rarely talked about her nightmares to begin with. Kayla had known all along that something was wrong; people didn't normally suffer from the night terrors Emily did.

"Son of a bitch!" Kayla flinched when he suddenly swore after minutes of awkward silence followed.

"Leonard, what the hell are you doing in here?"

Her eyes widened in utter shock when she realized Emily must have punched the poor man out of sheer instinct. She suspected that he was already beginning to regret answering her urgent call while he tried hiding the pain that followed.

"Emily, I called him," Kayla sighed with a shake of her head. She would have laughed at the glare McCoy was giving her, and Emily, if it wasn't for the situation. "You were screaming in your sleep, and thrashing. Nothing I did could wake you."

Emily frowned as she looked between McCoy and Kayla, before holding her hands over her mouth as she realized what had happened.

"God, Leonard, I'm—"

"It's fine," McCoy sighed, though Kayla could see that he was wincing from the impact of her fist. Clearly, Emily had a harder punch than everyone first thought. "Just a natural reaction."

"So, Doctor, what's your prognosis?" Kayla asked with a smirk, earning a glare from them both.

"I want you to stop by medical after your classes are done," McCoy told her.

He didn't say much else, just shot Kayla another glare before leaving the room and muttering under his breath about women and their temper. By now, Kayla was struggling to hold back her fit of laughter as Emily scowled at her.

"What the hell was he doing here, really?" she demanded once he was gone and the door closed.

"Look, I really couldn't do anything to wake you," Kayla explained after sitting down across from her. "I knew McCoy would most likely know what to do. Plus, he'd answer the call faster knowing it was you. Looks like it worked."

Emily let out a sigh as she buried her face in her hands. Kayla just watched in amusement. After the way McCoy handled the situation like any other professional, she knew now that the feelings were clearly mutual. Most people would have written a report on bodily injuries they suffered from, but something told her that wasn't going to happen this time.

"God, he's never going to let me live that down," she muttered crossly.

"Something tells me he already forgives you," Kayla reassured her with a smile. She wasn't even sure how McCoy had done it, but, he did work wonders. "All he had to do was hold your hand."

Kayla's smile turned to a smirk when Emily blushed at that. There was definitely something going on between the two. Whether they wanted to admit it or not, Kayla didn't care. People didn't usually react that way towards each other unless there was some mutual respect for the other, or unless they cared for each other.

"I'm going back to sleep," Emily groaned as she threw herself back against her pillow.

"Em, are you sure you'll be fine?" Kayla asked worriedly. "I really don't wanna have to call him in again."

Dealing with him once was bad enough. Dealing with him twice, and losing sleep over it would drive her crazy.

"I'll be fine, Kayla," she reassured her.

Kayla breathed out a sigh of relief, knowing it would go against her better judgement, but happy to finally get some sleep. They had enough classes to worry about tomorrow without having to worry about a lack of sleep.


AN: I figured for someone who suffered from post-traumatic stress, she would have nightmares. And T'Mhal will be making an appearance much later into the story, after the first two movies :) Big thanks to Howling2themoon for reviewing, and no worries, I'm just thankful you review at all! :D