Hey readers! Glad to see you after a bit of a writer's block! Thanks for sticking with me, I really adore you all.

I don't own Star Trek or any of these lovely beings except the Ran'Chaah, the Theta and this particular storyline.

Read, review, enjoy!

Chapter 10: An Unexpected Development

"Jim."

Captain Kirk made no response. He was deep within REM sleep and would probably require a more thorough rousing.

"Jim."

This time the Captain shifted slightly, but did not stir. His watcher sighed irritably.

"Jim!" The watcher hissed vehemently, and Jim opened his crystal blue eyes. They focused instantly on the face of the man at his bedside. They widened in surprise.

"Spock?!" he rolled upright in shock, but the Vulcan remained in his crouch. His brow was deeply furrowed, and he seemed to be struggling to move.

"Are you alright? How long have you been awake?" Jim asked, and his First shook his head.

"That is not important. I need...I have information about the ship which we are pursuing," he explained, pressing a hand to his temples, and Jim rested his hands on the Vulcan's shoulders.

"What? Spock, are you sure you're alright? Did Bones give you permission-"

"The ship!" Kirk startled back at Spock's vehemence, and the Vulcan gripped his shoulders in a painfully tight hold. "We are following the wrong trail Captain. It is-" he broke off, eyes snapping closed in pain.

Let me speak young one.

"I was contacted...by a telepathic being. It wishes to speak with you. Shall I allow it, sir?"

"What do you mean allow it? What's going on?"

Spock sighed, regaining his emotional control. "I am currently...hosting another mind inside my own."

Jim squinted skeptically. "Another mind?"

"Yes. It wishes to speak to you but may only do so through use of a vessel. Myself, in this case."

Jim touched Spock's shoulder as the Vulcan straightened, deeply concerned for his friend's wellbeing.

"Spock-"

"Captain," his first interrupted, "I will come to no harm."

Jim gauged the honesty and determination written in Spock's telling eyes, and finally sighed and gave a grudging nod. Spock stiffened abruptly, fell to the ground like a marionette whose strings had been cut, then took a stuttering breath as Jim knelt beside him anxiously.

"Spock?"

"I-I..." he tried to speak and paused, sitting up slowly as if adjusting to the limbs at his control.

"Spock?" Jim tried again, and the being within snapped out of his daze and focused slightly unfocused eyes on the Captain.

"I...a-am t-tha-at wh...which yo-ou...wi-ith wh-whom...s-sp-eech is m-most di-iff...ifficult," he stammered, almost like a child who had recently discovered it could communicate. It was jarring to hear such fumbling attempts at speech from Spock's mouth in Spock's voice, the Vulcan was also so proper and eloquent. The alien was suddenly distracted as he caught sight of his own hand and went stock still, mesmerized by its movement.

"I'm Captain James T. Kirk of the U.S.S. Enterprise. State your name and intent," Jim ordered as mandated by Starfleet Protocol. Spock's eyes moved slowly over Kirk's face, alight with wonder. Had they always been that color, Jim wondered faintly, brown so dark it was almost black-but not quite, he wasn't pure Vulcan-with flecks of sienna and green and gold...

The alien reached out with Spock's hand to touch the Captain's face gently in exploratory curiosity. Jim did not move; he knew that any sudden movement could be considered hostile to unfamiliar forces and send this situation to hell.

"F-F-Fas-scinat-ating," the creature manage, and Jim smiled gently at the familiar exclamation. Oh shit, what if showing teeth was a sign of aggression? He quickly retracted the gesture just in case.

To his surprise Spock mirrored the motion, giving Jim a slightly lopsided grin. It ignited an interesting warmth in Kirk's belly which he decided to ignore.

"You have information I need?" he asked, and the creature took Spock's hands down, away from Jim's face.

"Ye...yes."

"Let's start with your name," Kirk suggested, and Spock's brows drew together sharply, almost automatically. The gesture seemed to startle the creature, who touched his forehead curiously.

"My...my pe-eople h-have no...no ne-eed f-f-for na-a-ames," he said, and Kirk felt his irritation with the situation growing.

"Fine, we'll skip introductions then. What can you tell me about these aliens we're hunting?"

"T-The-They a-are..." he stopped, seeming frustrated with his speech facilities. He froze for an instant, as if sifting through something, then extended a familiar three fingered grip towards the Captain, who started back.

"E-Easy...easier to sh-show yo-you," he insisted, and Jim steeled himself as the Vulcan's fingers pressed warmly to those particular points on his face. He felt a tingling sensation, then his mind's eye burst into life and color as a deep voice-not Spock's-echoed in the silence.

I come from a system in the galaxy you call Andromeda, he began, and Jim found himself floating through space surrounded by unfamiliar stars.

My star is named Shuu'klo'tza, my planet Ran.

A vibrant Class O planet danced with clouds and life and Jim was struck suddenly by the aching fondness the being felt for this world.

My people. A race of long limbed, long necked amphibious creatures, colorful and exotic, lovers of art and philosophy and beauty.

The people of Ran; the Ran'Chaah.

Hundreds of years flashed before Jim's eyes, and the Ran'Chaah's intelligence and curiosity grew. They cultivated their telepathic abilities for generations until they discovered they could separate essence from body.

We wanted to see the Universe beyond our galaxy. Many of us left our bodies in stasis and did so.

The chronometer sped through centuries, millennia.

We stayed away too long, his voice held ominous foreshadowing, and the same thriving planet appeared before them but now it was lifeless, barren. The oceans had been vaporized, the cities leveled, the sleeping bodies of the Ran'Chaah destroyed. The only creatures left burrowed through the baking soil to make their nests.

They came from the eighth planet our ancestors had discovered; we call them Theta, for the first planet they destroyed. They invaded Ran, stole our intergalactic travel, destroyed all of our species which remained.

Jim felt a staggering wave of loss, sorrow, and despair. How had they gone on after that?

Many of us did not, young one.

Small clouds of color and light which Jim knew inherently were the essence of the Ran'Chaah let out harmonizing wails of agony, the beautiful but haunting sound of a thousand hearts breaking. One glowed brightly as its song soared above the rest, then it vanished. Others began to wink out of existence, so consumed by sorrow that they could no longer allow themselves to live.

And the Theta moved on.

A trail of destruction appeared before Jim, zigzagging across the Andromeda Galaxy, burned planets, decimated civilizations.

My galaxy has no protector, no...Federation. Many warring factions tried to destroy the Theta, but could not. Several were destroyed by the technology my people created.

Guilt and shame washed through their conjoined minds. But a small flicker of light and energy followed that trail of destruction, always watching, always waiting.

"You followed them?" Jim asked, and he felt a surge of acknowledgement.

My people neglected our system and allowed this menace to evolve. I am the last of the Ran'Chaah; it is my duty to see that they are destroyed.

"That's why you're here, isn't it?" Kirk realized, "you've finally found a force that can help you to destroy the Theta."

I can only communicate telepathically. The conditions for my contact had to be precise. Destiny has smiled on us this time, young ones.

Jim gasped as he was returned to his body, head spinning from the change of perspective. Spock went limp as he regained himself a moment after Jim did, and the Captain caught his first officer before he could hit the floor.

"Spock?" he tried to rouse the Vulcan, and the dark eyes fluttered open weakly.

"Jim...is he capable of helping us?" he murmured, and the Captain nodded, helping Spock to his knees. The dark haired Starfleet Officer slowly stood, moving as if his whole body ached.

"Are you alright?" Jim asked nervously, and Spock nodded briskly.

"My body is not-mm," he nearly collapsed, his legs giving way, and would have ended up on the floor again if not for Jim's quick reflexes and proximity to the Vulcan. "It is not fit for a being such as him to inhabit. I may grow accustomed to it, but it will take training."

"Whoa, who said anything about you getting used to it?" Jim cut him off as he helped him to sit on the edge of his bed, and Spock raised an eyebrow.

"I presumed it obvious, Captain. He is potentially our only knowledgeable ally against this enemy-whose identity, because of him, we are aware of. We must have access to every scrap of information he possesses if we are to defeat the enemy we have been confronted with. And the only way to communicate with him is through the use of my body as a vessel."

Jim was momentarily stunned by the vehemence with which Spock declared his opinion, and he rested a hand on the Vulcan's shoulder.

"If you think it's the best way."

.

"Jim, do you have any idea what time it is?"

Kirk nodded somewhat pointedly as his Chief Medical Officer and Chief Engineering Officer filed sleepily into the room. He wanted as few people around for this as possible while still attempting to follow protocol. As if there was a set of rules for this kind of situation.

"Yes, Bones, I do. You may have noticed you're missing a patient," he pointed out as he gestured to the chair beside him and it swiveled around to reveal a rather drawn and gaunt looking Spock. Bones' face lit up with fury, but Spock's hands clenched on the seat tersely before he could say anything. Jim rested a hand on the Vulcan's shoulder.

"You sure about this?" he murmured, and his First nodded curtly. He closed his eyes, and Bones cursed in surprise when his head jolted back sharply, eyes rolling back in his head.

"Jim-" he shouted, but Kirk shook his head, holding up a mollifying hand and watching Spock intensely. The stiffness faded and the Vulcan slumped sideways before blinking several times.

"Are you with us?" Jim asked softly, and the figure straightened himself cautiously, as if taking stock of all the muscles he had suddenly been saddled with.

"Spock?" Bones asked, and the dark eyes riveted on the Doctor with unnerving intensity.

"M-M-Mc-Coy," he asserted, and Bones nodded slowly, unsure about what was happening. Scotty fidgeted uncomfortably, even more at a loss.

Spock's normally stoic face split sideways in a wide grin and he said, "M-McCoy!" again, almost celebratory in his discovery, and Bones turned wide, startled hazel blue eyes on Jim.

"What the hell did you do to him?" he asked almost in a whisper, and Jim shook his head.

"Right now you're speaking with a highly advanced telepathic being which has been trying to communicate with Spock for months."

"A telepathic being? You're telling me there's an alien wearing Spock's skin?" The thought actually seemed to make the Doctor ill, and Jim made calming gestures at his best friend.

"I don't like it either. Spock's pretty determined though. Hear him out, we'll debate the ethics of it later."

McCoy fell silent and Scotty spoke up for the first time curiously as he observed the Vulcan who was currently gazing around at his new surroundings with something akin to childish wonder.

"This being got a name then?" he asked, and Jim sighed as Spock piped up.

"M-My pe-eople have no-no use...f-for na-ames," he repeated, and was seeming to gain some amount of control over his vocal facilities.

"Well we can't just call you 'Higher-Telepathic-Being-Currently-Possessing-Spoc k' now can we?" Bones groused, and the creature blinked thoughtfully.

"T-The-en I wi-ill take the n-name of m-my pe-eople," he decided. "C-Call m-me Ran'Chaah."

.

The four officers sat in silence as they mulled over the information which had been divulged to Jim earlier and the other two just now. Ran'Chaah had abandoned Spock's body for the time being and the Vulcan was sleeping in a leaned back briefing chair in the corner of the room. Hosting the alien seemed to cause a strain on his body.

"I don't like it, Jim," Bones said at long last, rubbing a hand across the five o'clock shadow he had developed that nearly sleepless night, and Scotty pursed his lips.

"I see no reason for 'im teh be lyin' to us Cap'n," he put forth, and Jim leaned back, running a weary hand over his eyes. He was inclined to agree with both of them.

"Didn't he say he's been trying to contact Spock for months? Who do you think's been causing him those damned nightmares? I'll bet he caused the attack on the bridge too!" Bones accused, and a soft voice joined from the corner.

"Ran'Chaah did not intentionally harm me." The assembled men turned to see Spock observing them with glittering black eyes. He had made no attempt to move, which worried Jim.

"Are you alright?" he asked, and the Vulcan nodded shallowly.

"I require...rest," he decided after some contemplation, and made to rise, but Kirk saw the shakiness of his limbs and strode to assist him. He slung an arm beneath the Vulcan's, slinging Spock's long thin limb over his shoulders and hoisting him to his feet.

"We should take him to sickbay, see what hosting that thing has done to him," Bones suggested, and Spock frowned slightly, shaking his head as he pressed two pale fingers to his temple.

"I am not physically injured. Simply fatigued. Please allow me to return to my own quarters for meditation and sleep."

The others agreed. Bones and Scotty trailed after their commanding officers and took up respectful positions on either side of Spock's doorway as the Captain helped the First Officer inside.

"There we go, easy does it," Jim said as he lowered Spock onto the edge of his cot, and the Vulcan sighed, resting his head in his hands. "Will you be alright?"

He nodded, but said nothing. Jim waited a few silent moments before he realized Spock wasn't going to instigate conversation and he moved towards the door.

"Captain."

Apparently he had been wrong. He turned back to face his First. Spock did not open his eyes, but spoke again.

"Ran'Chaah and I have decided...that after meditation and physical preparation he will take up an extended residence within my mind."

"What?!" Jim reacted without thinking, and the Vulcan's face tightened almost imperceptibly in pain at the loud exclamation. Jim quickly lowered his voice. "When were you planning on discussing this with us?"

"It is my decision, and I saw no need for Mr. Scott or Dr. McCoy's input. I am, however, currently requesting your permission as my commanding officer," Spock said calmly, and Kirk fell silent. Spock wouldn't go through with it if he told him not to. But could he give up this chance to gain a valuable ally against the Theta?

"The minute you feel like he needs to be out of your head, you tell me. I don't want you putting yourself at unnecessary risk, you understand me?" Kirk demanded, and Spock looked up into his crystal blue eyes and nodded.

"Promise, Spock."

"I promise," he said softly, and Jim nodded, satisfied.

"Good. Now get some sleep, you look like hell."

Spock cocked his head curiously. "Captain, as far as I am aware hell is an old Christian ideal of a place where immoral souls go when a human dies. How exactly do I resemble-"

"Figure of speech, Spock. Get some rest," Jim broke in, and the Vulcan nodded. Jim stepped out into the hall and found himself flanked by his senior officers. He heaved a sigh.

"When he wakes, we'll inform the necessary crew of this new development. Until then, we need to get some sleep ourselves."

Mystery solved! But the story is long from over my dears, Kirk and Spock and the gang have plenty of adventure ahead of them yet.

Love you all!

~Firegirl