A/N: oh you guys it's been quite a past few weeks.. I know I'm SUPER late but my friends recently got me into Harry Potter so I've been reading a SHIT ton and also the usual uni work and also my part time job soo yeah sorry for the delay ^^'
This Time Know: A Star Trek Fanfiction
Written by Lady F.S.
Chapter Fifteen: Recovery
The rescue was going to be risky, that much Jim was sure of at this point. Further observation and a planet wide sweep with their scanners had revealed that not very long after they had landed, underneath the planet's crust a severe shift in plates had taken place but because of the structural make up this anomaly was far different than it would've been on earth. Instead of an immediate reaction to the shift, the initial tremors were delayed and that was precisely why scanners hadn't picked up the threat upon first observation. They were still trying to figure out what the pattern of surface disturbance would be but they knew they couldn't risk waiting to find out. A life hung in the balance and Jim was determined to save his crewman from any further damage.
"She remains unaware of the state of her body or her surroundings so I cannot say whether or not she is hurt or if she is any immediate danger. She has yet to regain consciousness and lingers in my mind." Spock had informed him in the briefing room.
His first officer could feel the anxiety rolling off of his captain in waves as he was surely worried a great deal about the alarming lack of information they had to the lieutenant's condition. However, on the exterior, Jim appeared calm and collected in the face of this dilemma. Of what little they did know, engineering had at least been able to pinpoint her location due to the sizable amount of traceable equipment she had in her possession before the fall. They picked a small output signal from her communicator and were ready with exact coordinates.
"It's still very risky though," Mr. Scott had warned during the meeting. "While we know the location of the communicator there are a lot of variables we can't overlook. It might have been misplaced during the fall, the area could be unstable, her actual body might be a good distance from the device itself, and those are just the ones I can think of at the moment!"
McCoy had given him a wary look after Scotty's spiel but Jim seemed unmoved because it was a chance they would have to take. However, he was not with out complete abandon and wouldn't carelessly risk the lives of his crew. He mandated that the recovery party would be small; him and Dr. McCoy would beam down and ascertain whether or not rescue was possible or if she required immediate medical attention. Everyone in the room seemed to be a bit hesitant to allow the captain to perform such a dangerous mission but it was also evident that the subject was not up for debate.
"Captain, I insist on my participation in the recovery effort." Spock had demanded more than requested.
The Vulcan commander looked intent on aiding the effort and had even volunteered when they first arrived back on the ship from Edas V so Kirk felt it was only fair, and he trusted that Spock's presence might increase their chance of success so he allowed it.
"Granted."
The three of them stood on the transporter pads in proper attire and equipped with all the necessary gear. Mr. Scott gave Jim one final look of unease before his captain's command of 'energize' effectively silenced any possible protest the engineer had. The room was illuminated with the swirling lights of transport and in a flash they were gone.
-0-0-0-0-0-
There was a small flash of light and in that brief moment Spock had seen the interior of the small trench they now occupied but found the light had gone too quickly for him to see if Lieutenant Amira's body was anywhere nearby. The three of them quickly took out their flash lights and began searching the cavern for their missing crewman. So far, Scotty's warning had rung true. Amira was nowhere in sight but she had to be close because the communicator's signal had brought them to this location.
"Spock, try to communicate with her again." Kirk urged as he and Dr. McCoy kept a watchful eye on the state of the trench.
With that, Spock closed his eyes and retreated into the recesses of his mind, soon finding himself inside the familiar void. He walked through the now orderly mindscape, brushing away the occasional flourish of spontaneous color from what lingered of his emotional episode back aboard the ship. Eventually, he found himself at the space where he had sealed off Amira from the rest of his mind. He made quick work of the wall and recreated the passage way that lead him towards the hollow that he had allowed Amira to remain in. He found her sitting patiently on the floor with her head resting on her knees, almost as if she had gotten tired while waiting for him. He also noticed something very different in the void, unlike before, the floor that was once solid black now dimly glowed a brilliant sapphire hue.
"Fascinating." He instinctively murmured to himself, his voice echoing slightly as he looked around the space.
Amira looked up at the sudden noise which cut threw the silence that had long permeated after Spock had left her before, only to see that he was back again. She was about to acknowledge his presence and also alert him that she was awake but she too seemed to be immediately captivated upon noticing the state of the floor and the light that now filled the void.
"Commander what is this?" She inquired as she attempted to stand but settled for sitting on her knees.
The first officer was by her side in a minute as he too attempted to help her onto her feet, to no avail. Her legs felt numb and couldn't hold her up for longer than a moment as she fell into Spock each time. Realizing there was no point in repeating their effort, he merely set her back down on the floor. Amira looked irritated but he dismissed the inconvenience as there were more important things to tend to.
"Lieutenant, the Captain, Dr. McCoy and I have beamed down to the surface to recover your body. However, we cannot seem to find you despite your communicator's signal bringing us to these exact coordinates."
The exhaustion that was already evident on the expression of her mental representation seemed to amplify as worry marred her features at this alarming news. Spock sat down in front of her on the cool floor and hesitantly reached out a hand to her shoulder to try and ground her so she wouldn't spiral into further panic.
"I need you to wake up." He ordered.
Amira blinked at this as if he suggested something outrageous. The truth was, she didn't really know if she could. Hell, she didn't even know how she got here in the first place and now she had to somehow find her way back to her own mind through this bond or whatever this was that brought her to Spock's mind and then wake herself up. Spock could vaguely sense her growing anxiety flow through the bond.
"I am not sure how, but you formed a mental bond with me before the fall, the depth of which allows us to have access to each other's minds. It may be difficult because you are a human, therefore you lack the necessary discipline and skill set, but I can help you get back to your mind."
Spock chose not to reveal that this particular bond was one of the most intricate form of bonds that were shared between two minds on Vulcan and it took years to form. It wasn't as intimate as the marital bond but it wasn't something you could just brush off either. To be completely honest, Spock had been shocked to his core upon discovery of the nature of the bond. He had realized it while walking down the long, narrow passage way that lead back to his mind from the space Amira occupied. For a human to cast it on a Vulcan should have been impossible because humans didn't possess nearly enough of the mental ability that Vulcans had and yet, here they were together in his mind. He brushed aside these thoughts to focus on the matter at hand.
"We will begin." He stated.
Amira nodded. "What should I do?"
"Lean forward." He ordered.
Amira looked at him curiously but complied without a word. Spock reached out a hand and carefully placed it on one side of her face, arranging his fingers to link with all her psi points. He felt her stiffen at his touch but he didn't know what he could say to put her at ease so he remained silent. He closed his eyes and focused on creating a link to her mind.
"Focus on opening your mind." He said, keeping his voice even and smooth to try and calm her.
It must've worked because suddenly he felt a familiar lightness and lucidity akin to the many other times he had felt it while performing the mind meld. Hopefully, his adjustments to the method would allow him to transfer their consciousnesses to her mind. He opened his eyes and noticed that it was dark and the coolness of his own mind was replaced with a mild heat. He removed his hand from the lieutenants face and began to carefully stand up.
"Commander, I think we did it." As soon as Amira broke the silence the space illuminated with brilliant color.
Spock looked to see vibrant opal beneath his feet and noticed that the surface was uneven and sloped at odd intervals, almost like waves frozen in mid-current. Above them was pitch black darkness, the extent of which was indeterminable as he could only see as far as the haphazard light of the opal floor would let him. Pausing his observations he returned his attention to the lieutenant who appeared to be attempting to stand once more. Before he could offer a hand she actually managed to get on her feet, although she staggered somewhat. Once she determined she would be able to stand on her own she looked up at Spock and smiled at her success. He felt something sharp inside him at the sight but he brushed it off and focused on the task at hand.
"Now that I have returned you to your mind, it is up to you to regain consciousness." He instructed.
She stared at him for a moment before looking to the ground and then back at him once more.
"Aaand how do I do that?" She asked carefully.
Spock suppressed the urge to raise his brow at her and take the question seriously. He supposed it was a little unfair for him to expect her to be on his level of mental control considering the obtusely different backgrounds they had as well as the special circumstances given his alien heritage. That all being said, he also couldn't help but think that it shouldn't be too hard for her considering he had done it before and he was half human.
"There is not much I can do to help you in that matter." He admitted.
Her nose scrunched up in frustration at his answer.
"Perhaps, if you try to focus on opening your eyes. Not those of your mind like you are now, but of your body." He suggested.
Amira seemed to agree with his method and closed her eyes and began to focus. He would need to leave before she woke up because if he remained in her mind the bond would become harder to sever once this fiasco was over with and he didn't want to risk any damage to his mind or her own. The light from the opal floor went to a dull glimmer which probably meant that she was receding from her mind and regaining consciousness, it was time to go. Spock followed the path he had created during the psi link he established with the mind meld and returned to his own consciousness. He noticed that instead of reappearing back in the small enclosure he was in the bond room but the entry way still remained.
He quickly but carefully sealed it off permanently, effectively severing the bond between them and then drifted out of his own mind and back to cognizance. Upon opening his eyes Spock's senses returned to him and he noticed the once dark cavern now glowed dimly with the familiar purple hue of the moss they had discovered above ground. Now that the cavern was visible he could see that this moss coated the inside of the trench in varying degrees of density depending on the area of the trench.
"Spock!" He turned quickly to see Jim and Dr. McCoy were a good ways away from him further into the trench.
"Quit lollygagging and help us!" McCoy growled as knelt over something.
Spock walked briskly towards them and upon arrival he had to hold back a grimace from taking over his face. They had found the lieutenant, but it would seem they were too late regarding their goal to reach her before further harm could befall her. She had fallen on a thin stalagmite upon impact and it ran right through her upper thigh. A dangerous amount of blood stained the floor near the entry point of the wound. Spock noticed that her eyes were not open but her breathing was erratic; she was going into shock. This was critical because if she didn't die of blood loss the shock could throw her into cardiac arrest and she could die before they even had a chance to operate on her leg.
They had managed to uproot her from the stalagmite and the doctor was now hastily trying to close the wound to prevent further blood loss while Jim applied a steady amount of pressure.
"Spock, tell Scotty to beam us up immediately and alert medical to be ready to receive her upon our arrival." Jim ordered, his voice slightly uneven.
Spock wasted no time and did as he was told. Once the orders were relayed to engineering all that was left to do was to wait for Scotty to lock onto their signal. The first officer knelt to the other side of the lieutenant and watched her intently as she tossed and turned, a cold sweat coating her forehead. For the first time in a long time, Spock was at a loss for what to do. He felt vulnerable and helpless as he watched her endure further poking and prodding as the doctor applied a hypo-injection for the pain. It was only when he attempted to apply disinfectant to counter any foreign infection while they remained on planet did the lieutenant react harshly. She convulsed violently as he made direct contact with the exposed flesh of the open wound.
"Hold her down, Jim! If she opens the wound any more she could lose more blood!" McCoy ordered, desperately trying to hold down her leg.
Jim did as he was told and pinned her shoulders to the ground.
"Amira, look at me! It's going to be alright, we're going to help you get through this. Please, don't fight." The desperation in Jim's voice spoke volumes to the degree of emotion he must've been feeling.
The Lieutenant opened hazy eyes that found her Captain's face and her body seemed to gradually still at the sight of him. Spock watched as Jim reached for her hand and put his other hand to her cheek, rubbing soothing circles with his thumb. Her fingers curled around his palm and she settled for squeezing tightly at his hand as the doctor carefully began to apply the disinfectant again. Spock found himself feeling distant to the scene in front of him. He realized that there was nothing he could do at this point considering the fact that he lacked the emotional capacity to help the lieutenant in the way that his Captain had.
A sense of inadequacy reverberated through out his mind but he knew there was no reason to feel such a thing. In fact, there was no reason to feel anything at all towards the matter, it was simply a fact. He, being a Vulcan, was not capable of providing emotional support nor did he have the ability to sympathize with her. His goal as First Officer, was to aid the rescue party in the effort to get her aboard the ship safely and so far it seemed that their efforts would be successful. So why did this sense of inadequacy linger in his mind? He had no time to dwell on the matter as a familiar swirl of light surrounded them and in a flash they were aboard the Enterprise.
Dr. McCoy helped lift the lieutenant onto a waiting stretcher but as they were preparing to depart to the Medical Bay they could not separate the Captain from Amira's grip.
"Bones, is it possible for me to be with her in surgery?" He asked.
The doctor looked ready to deny the request and cite many reasons from the medical handbook but upon looking at the desperation in his Captain's eyes he let out a sigh that denoted concession.
"You're gonna have to scrub up damn good like the rest of us if you want to come into my operating room." McCoy dictated firmly.
Jim smiled weakly and looked down at Amira, who despite half way between alertness and unconsciousness after being hypo'd with a sedative, still had an iron clad grip on the Captain's hand. They departed without a moment's notice as soon as it was decided, leaving Spock to file the report for the ship's log while the Captain and the Chief Medical Officer were in surgery. The Vulcan Commander made his way to the records room to make the report and all the while pushed back that strange feeling from before as it began to escalate into something he couldn't recognize.
Daaaaaamn son that was a lot to shove in one chapter haha
I really really reeeeally didn't want to have to do another two parter so sorry if the whole search and rescue thing seemed kind of rushed. Looks like Spock is starting to come around though, if not painfully slow xD but still coming around! Stay tuned!