Ten
The next morning, McCoy awoke to find himself in a most pleasant tangle of limbs and bedclothes. From the moment he took her in his arms, he had felt that he and T'An fit perfectly, as if they had been made for each other. Everything since had only served to convince him of that fact. She stirred and opened her eyes to find him smiling at her.
"Mornin'"
"Good morning," she murmured as she burrowed closer to him.
"How are you?"
"Quite well, and you?"
"Fantastic. No regrets?"
"Only one."
His heart clenched and he asked, even though he didn't think he really wanted to know, "What?"
"That I cannot open my mind to you and show you what such an experience with a telepath can be."
"Why can't you? I've seen you meld with Uhura and I know Spock has melded with several other species."
"If I open my mind to you, I would be unable to prevent a bond from forming. Some of my people are capable of forming temporary bonds, but such is not in my nature. It would be a permanent bond, unbreakable, and any separation from each other would be painful. I cannot in good conscience allow it, not only for the pain it would cause the two of us, but also for the betrayal it would be of the marriage bond I must some day make."
"Remind me not to ask questions like that next time," he grumbled.
Her eyes smiled and she reached for him, only to be interrupted by a hail from the Bridge, "Commander T'An and Doctor McCoy, report to the ShanaiKahr for a medical emergency. Commander T'An and Doctor McCoy, report to the ShanaiKahr for a medical emergency."
T'An started throwing on her uniform, attempting to put on her boots as she walked to the door. Only someone with the coordination and strength of a Vulcan, born on a world with higher gravity and less oxygen, could have done it not only without breaking their neck, but also gracefully. McCoy grabbed the clothes he had worn the night before, trying not to break his own neck as he put them on, and hit the com panel, "We're on our way."
They both raced for the transporter room, T'An easily outpacing him even though his legs were longer. She was just dematerializing as he entered the transporter room, grabbing the medical kit he kept there for emergencies as he raced in. He made it to the ship just as she disappeared off the bridge and one of the Enterprise crew members gave him directions. He headed there as fast as he could, heart racing and sick with a cold fear. The area was part of the crew quarters converted to cold sleep and the only reason to call both himself and T'An was if there had been a problem with the cold sleep capsules.
Spock and Scotty were seated outside one of the rooms, covered in frost and being tended to by a med team. "What's going on here?"
Neither man could speak clearly and a junior engineer spoke up, "We had a glitch in one of the cold sleep capsules, sir. We've isolated the problem and fixed it, but they had to go inside to do so."
McCoy started treatment for hypothermia and called for an emergency transport to Sick Bay. He could only spare a quick glance for T'An, who was standing outside the room, fingers pressed against the door and a look of intense concentration on her face. As he faded away in the transporter effect, he heard her say, "I can sense no immediate problems with the crew in this cabin. Were any others affected?"
The sick feeling faded a bit from his stomach and he was able to devote himself more completely to treating his patients, hoping that none of the Vulcans had been lost.
Back on the ShanaiKahr, T'An and the engineering crew were checking the cabins one by one for any other problems. The computer should have alerted them long before it did to the problem and she could no longer trust it. At the door of each cabin the engineers would scan everything inside while T'An looked for any hints of consciousness or distress in the minds of her crew. They had just completed their last inspection when Kirk joined them, reassuring everyone that Scotty and Spock would be fine.
"All is well here, Captain, but I am concerned that the computer did not give the advance warning it is supposed to when a problem occurs. I did not want to take my crew out of cold sleep so early, but I can't risk their lives."
"Was it a problem with just the computer or are the cold sleep mechanisms breaking down?"
"As far as we can determine, it was a problem with the computer, but this equipment is old and never designed to do what it has done the last six centuries. I can make no guarantees that it will not be the cold sleep mechanisms next time."
"If we have someone monitoring the cabins in person would we be better off than trying to revive all of them so far from any Vulcan healers?"
"It would take 20 people at a time to provide adequate monitoring, Captain."
"That's not a problem. I have a full security staff with nothing much to do and quite a few others I can free from their duties to help out. Between those people and volunteers helping out between their own shifts, we could easily cover that and then some, so don't let lack of crew influence your decision."
T'An composed herself and ran numbers and probabilities through her head until she reached a resolution. "I would be most grateful, once again, for your assistance, Ca… Jim. I still think it would be best to keep my people in cold sleep as long as possible. If there are any further problems, though, I will have to start reviving them."
"I'll have my yeoman start working up a rotation. Did you have a plan in place for emergency thawing?"
"Yes, we decided long ago that the healers would be woken first so that they could assist with everyone else. They are all on the deck below this and I will ensure that the cabins are marked as such and everyone is notified of the plan. The healers' spouses have received medical training as well so that waking both occupants of each cabin will provide even more assistance."
Kirk and T'An discussed more specific plans and then he excused himself to return to the Enterprise and check on Spock and Scotty. T'An started a more thorough check of the system now that the immediate concern for her crew had passed. She didn't generally second-guess herself or allow self-doubt to plague her, but so many terrible things had happened the last ten years, or six hundred depending on how you looked at it, that she no longer felt that any decision she made was going to turn out to be the right one.
She struggled with her doubts for a moment longer and then put them aside as illogical and a waste of her time. The decision was made and could be unmade at any time, but for now she still felt that it was the best decision available.
Back on the Enterprise, Kirk tried not to let McCoy notice that he had noticed the doctor wearing the same clothes he had the night before. Given that they were definitely not a uniform and were decidedly the worse for wear, it wasn't easy. But, he was pretty sure that it was neither the time nor the place to tease his friend, no matter how tempting it might be.
McCoy ensured that his patients were out of danger and excused himself to his office, where he grabbed a spare uniform he kept there and changed into it. He came out of his office a moment later and Kirk continued to keep his comments to himself. He hoped Bones appreciated it, but based on the glare he was getting, it was unlikely he would say anything about the matter.
"How are they, Bones?"
"They'll be fine, but they'll need to stay here for the day so we can monitor them and get them warmed up."
Both men started to protest, but he cut them off, "The emergency is over and T'An and the engineering staff can handle things for a while. If you behave yourselves I might let you out by dinnertime and if you're really good boys I might even let you work from the computers here in Sick Bay."
They both considered protesting, but knew the doctor well enough by now to recognize a lost cause, and decided to keep quiet. Spock turned to Kirk, "What is the status of the ShanaiKahr, Captain?"
"The cold sleep mechanisms all seem to be operating properly now. It was the computer that had a problem. We've started monitoring everything manually and will continue to do so until we reach the Vulcan colony or until there is another problem and we have to wake them all up from cold sleep."
"Captain, I received information from the Vulcan colony last night and have determined the exact coordinates where the debris from the ShanaiKahr was found in the other timeline. It is less than three light years from here. Since it was never determined what exactly happened to the ship, I recommend proceeding with caution. It is a part of space that the Federation has not had a chance to explore."
"Let me guess, it's also our most direct route home and any detours would add significantly to the journey."
Spock quirked an eyebrow at his Captain and continued, "Indeed it is and it would. There was no time constraint on our journey, but with the equipment aboard the ShanaiKahr experiencing breakdowns, you will have to decide which option poses the least amount of risk."
"I'll beam back over and speak to T'An about it. It's her crew, so she should be the one to make the decision."
"I'll come with you, Jim. I want to go over those emergency procedures with T'An so I can make sure my staff is prepared. We don't have to wake people up from coldsleep very often these days, waking up 300 of them will be a mess even with a plan in place."
Kirk looked at his friend, opened his mouth, closed it again, and then motioned for him to precede him out of the room, "After you, Bones."
On the walk to the transporter room, McCoy turned to him, "If you have something to say, say it now."
Kirk smirked at him, "I''m not sure what you mean, Bones."
"All those looks, the almost-winks, the smirk? Not to mention you've opened your mouth to say something at least six times and then shut it again. So, what's your problem?!" the doctor faced him belligerently, hands on hips and fire in his eyes.
"No problem, Bones. Just wanted to say I was happy you were happy... or at least whatever passes for happy in Curmudgeonville."
McCoy narrowed his eyes dangerously, "Leave it alone, Jim. Leave me alone, too, while you're at it!"
"Whoa, Bones, hang on a minute. I know you're a gentleman and would never kiss and... er, would never discuss a lady and any relationship you may or may not have with her. But, I am your friend and I think I've earned the right to tell you that I'm happy you've finally decided to join the land of the living again."
McCoy sighed, "Listen, Jim, you don't know what you're talking about and I'm not going to talk about it no matter how much you nag me. Can we just leave it at that for now?"
"Sure, Bones, I... sure, but remember I'm here if you do decide to talk."
His friend just turned and walked away, leaving Kirk to wonder what the hell had just happened.
McCoy stopped at the food synthesizer they had installed in the office just off the ShanaiKahr's bridge and ordered a couple of breakfasts, "Jim?"
Figuring the offer of breakfast was the closest thing to a truce or explanation he would receive, he accepted. He grabbed his meal and the two coffees while McCoy grabbed the two other meals and an herbal tea. They headed down to engineering to meet with T'An.
Kirk might have promised not to talk about whatever was going on between his friend and the Vulcan commander, but that didn't stop him from observing the two together. He noticed with interest how her eyes warmed from silver to grey when she saw him, the extra touch of their hands when McCoy handed her breakfast over to her, and the way his friend just looked at her, unable to stop himself. Kirk thought to himself that it certainly proved a point that opposites attracted. The only pairing he could think of that was less likely was if McCoy and Spock had taken a sudden and inexplicable fancy to each other!
Neither of the two sharing breakfast with him struck him as the sort to engage in public displays of affection, especially not on duty, but it was amazing how often they managed a small touch here, a glance there. It made Kirk happy to see his friend, who had been so badly damaged by his divorce, act like that. It also made him feel a little melancholy until he turned his thoughts to his ship.
The Enterprise was more of a commitment than he had ever imagined himself capable of, and was the only woman he had room in his life for at the moment. Perhaps someday that would change. Although, according to the other timeline, he would have to do something pretty drastic to change it. A string of failed relationships and lost loves seemed to have followed that other Jim Kirk. Even a son he knew nothing about until it was too late. Kirk reminded himself to be very careful if he ever met this timeline's Carol Marcus, or at least look her up a few months after any relationship with her ended, just in case. Then he shook himself out of his reverie to find Bones and T'An looking at him.
"Sorry, I was just woolgathering."
T'An quirked an eyebrow at him, "Your language has a fascinating amount of colloquialisms in it, Jim. It intrigues me that such an imprecise and illogical language became the standard language for your Federation."
"Well, it was the one that most people spoke going in to the formation of the Federation, so it just made sense. With the translator implants most of the people who conduct business with the Federation have now, there doesn't seem to be much need to make a change. Especially since it would take a couple of centuries just to decide which languages to put on the ballot to vote on."
"T'Nal will likely produce a paper or two out of it once she settles in to life in this century. My sister is by training and inclination a healer, but she also has an interest in languages."
"That's the first time you've said her name," McCoy told her.
She thought about it for a moment, "You are correct. It was not an intentional withholding of information, believe me. I merely find it difficult to speak of her after being separated for so long. Our bond has existed since before we were born and not having her mind somewhere in the back of mine has been difficult."
"You could sense her even when you were far from each other?"
"Yes, always. The further away the more tenuous the connection, but it is there until death, for close family and bondmates. Coldsleep does not produce the same effect on bonds as death, fortunately, otherwise I would have had to prohibit spouses from going into it separately.
"But... it is difficult to explain, especially to those who are not telepaths. I cannot sense my sister, but I cannot not sense her... which is as precise an explanation I can give without having you learn Vulcan and then take an intensive course in the nature of telepathic bonds."
"I can't even pronounce your clan name, never mind your full name, so you'll have to count me out of the Vulcan language lessons," McCoy joked.
Kirk shrugged and held his hands up in self-deprecating defeat, "I occasionally have trouble with Standard." In the back of his mind, though, he was thinking furiously about the implications of McCoy knowing not only T'An's clan name, but her full name.
A clan name might or might not be found in the public record, depending on the individual Vulcan's decision on levels of privacy, but a full name was something never given to outsiders. It was something that was rarely given even to Vulcans outside one's own family. Kirk filed that under 'Fantastically Interesting Things I'd Love To Know More About...And Probably Never Will' and moved on with the conversation.
Now that he had stopped trying to flirt with T'An and she had warmed up enough to call him by his first name, he found they had a lot in common. Both had become captains of large, state-of-the-art starships very early in their career, with all the self-doubt and stumbles that brought. Unlike him, though, she had no interest in command and claimed to have no talent for it either. But, any person who could bring her people through what she had was obviously one hell of a leader. Having brought his own crew through some pretty horrific things, Kirk could understand what it took to not only survive but to bring almost an entire crew through unscathed.
McCoy watched the two captains talk and wondered where all his jealousy had gone. In the beginning he hadn't wanted Kirk within a parsec of T'An and now he was enjoying watching them become friends. He decided he had done enough self-analysis for a while and just sat back to enjoy himself.