Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Easter Bunny's species has been named by MirrorFlowerandDarkWind (T'Slash).
Jim's POV
While the men set about their evening routine, Jim watched them intently. P'Bock was the leader, N'Bylt was the doctor or healer, T'Nem was the security as he was keeping watch, P'Lor was the engineer as he had built the fire and pitched the tent and R'Dan was the cook. The men might have left their military garb behind but it was easy to tell they were part of a larger group; they weren't just a single power but a collective force. Seeing these men interact with each other, moving seamlessly through their assigned duties made Jim's heart ache with longing for his own crew.
R'Dan had brought him a bowl full of stew. "Thanks." Jim took the large bowl with both hands. Hope this is a 'Bones-approved' meal. Guess that would be a point for Bones.
R'Dan laughed. "I forgot that you are small, human. I think that you will find that it is good enough you will be able to eat it all, though." He sat down beside Jim with his own bowl.
Jim nodded in thanks, his stomach growled in demand. Tentatively, Jim took a bite. It tasted like a mix between Chekov's Russian stew and Scotty's 'surprise' goulash, but all in all it was pretty damn good. The other men took their seats with their own bowls; even Easter Bunny was given some of the stew. In the faint light of the camp fire, Jim could almost pretend he was with his friends back on Earth. He sighed heavily as dug into his supper. Yup, I'm as much of a sap as Bones.
P'Bock had watched Jim out of the corner of his eye. He knew the human was tormented by having been kept from his crew for so long. "Jim, tell me about where you come from." His voice was soft; it was an attempt to comfort the human.
Jim was surprised to say the least by P'Bock's request. "I come from Earth. It is the home of the Federation and headquarters of Star Fleet." How in the hell did you tell someone about another planet? Jim had never been good at that, Bones had been better. That is a response that Spock would have given, so a point for the pointy-eared walking-computer.
P'Bock nodded. "I am well aware of that, Jim." He sighed; it truly disturbed him that his father was responsible for this chaos. "Perhaps, you could tell me about your ship?" The rest of the men chorused agreement.
Jim bit his lip as he thought about his ship, his Enterprise. "It is the flagship of the Fleet. She is the fastest, thanks to Scotty, the healthiest, thanks to Bones, the luckiest, thanks to Spock, and the most coveted, thanks to yours truly." Jim put on his most dashing smile and cocked his head to the side. "We are the ones who stopped Nero. I would say that all in all we are relentless. Sure we have a few hiccups but it's nothing that me and Spock can't get out of." Slowly, his smile faded as he remembered his current situation. Worry flickered across his face as he began once more to doubt if Spock was still up there waiting on him.
P'Bock cleared his throat, snapping Jim out of his fall back into sorrow. "You are a hero, so is your crew. I doubt that even this minor misfortune is enough to keep the infamous James T. Kirk out of the running for long." He flashed an understanding smile.
Jim shrugged and ate the rest of his dinner in silence. The men did not bother to encourage him to join the conversation. They had gone back to speaking their native tongue. Jim was musing about what Spock would be doing on the Enterprise at that moment. Then suddenly, like a flash, Jim realized that for a newly-discovered Federation species they spoke excellent standard. Hell, they put Chekov to shame. "P'Bock, how do you know standard so well?" Jim tried not to sound accusing, in face he was trying to sound bland. Point for Spock.
The five men exchanged awkward glances, before P'Bock spoke up. "You are not the first human our species has encountered." He got up and took his bowl back to the fire, refilling it. "Legend has it that long ago we traveled from our home to Earth. Our species met with yours and intermingled, some dare say interbred. Our ancestors knew that your race would one day be strong and we would meet again, so they brought your language home." He turned to face Jim. "Before humans mastered space travel, they became proficient at radio transmission. So, we updated our knowledge with your transmissions. I do not know how true this is, but everyone on Ranum speaks both languages." P'Bock plopped back down. "Who knows? Sometimes fact is stranger than fiction. If it is all true, then it seems that while we have lapsed in our technological advancements, humans have grown with their own." He laughed.
Jim had heard a lot of strange tales in his life; this wasn't as far out there as some of the other things he had heard. "If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, how improbable, must be the truth." He laughed. Point for Spock.
P'Bock shook his head with a smile on his face. "Eh, it makes for good bedtime stories for the children." He dug into his second helping.
Jim had to agree. For centuries there had been sightings of unidentified flying objects in the night air. There were the pyramids that were never explained. Whether it was logical or not, Jim would let it slide. He had no reason to believe that P'Bock would lie to him. They may have just mastered Standard on radio frequencies alone, or had been contacted by another Federation species before humans. It always amazed Jim how the different species were able to learn how to speak his native tongue so easily.
N'Bylt handed his empty bowl to R'Dan and sat down beside Jim pulling him from his contemplations. "I need to look at your leg. It must be cleaned." He pulled his medical pouch towards him. He ran a tricorder over Jim's leg, frowning at the results.
Jim nodded. "Yea, I had to press it into the stone to stop the bleeding for a while. But I have to warn you doc, I've got a ton of allergies." He winced. Add that to the things he despised about himself, along with the no-direction and no-time keeping skills.
N'Bylt didn't seem perturbed about his confession; he just slowly untied the make-shift dressing Jim had tied around his leg. "This will be easier on you if you lie down on your stomach." N'Bylt motioned for P'Lor to throw him a blanket which he spread out on the ground for Jim.
Jim eased down on to the blanket face down as ordered. Easter Bunny had come to lie beside his head licking his exposed cheek. "Are you coming to beg for forgiveness?" He reached out and stroked the leg closest to him. Easter Bunny whined in reply.
N'Bylt was gentle, gentler than Bones had ever been. Point for Spock. He had cleaned the wound with some kind of cool liquid and was wrapping it up with what felt like gauze. "You have lost some blood, but not enough to be particularly hindered. You may sit up now." As Jim complied N'Bylt pressed a hypo into his neck. "While Agowilts' wounds are not known to cause infection, I don't think I've ever heard of a human getting a wound from them before, so let's err on the side of caution. From the tricorder readings, this is one of the few things you are not allergic to." The injection didn't hurt. Another point for Spock.
Jim nodded once more. "Thanks." He was mildly concerned that his thoughts about Spock had not been caused by blood-loss, but then maybe this physician didn't truly know the proper blood volume for humans.
Before Jim could must any more on that particular thought, T'Nem came silently running down the embankment. Crouching next to P'Bock he began shoving Jim towards the caverns. He motioned to P'Lor and N'Bylt to stomp out the fire. "There are atleast fifteen riders headed this way." He whispered to his brothers in arms.
P'Bock nodded and unceremoniously flung Jim over his shoulder. He ran towards the cavern with Easter Bunny beside him. Jim did not make a sound, he might be brash but he was not dumb. Once they were safely inside the cave, P'Bock sat him down gently. "Jim, these men are coming for me because I left camp, but if they find you it will only make matters worse. You must make it to the Eastern Hold with or without me. They will help you. They will tell you everything I have not had the time to share with you." His voice was calm, but Jim was reeling.
Jim shook his head. "I can't just leave you." Damnit it wasn't supposed to be like this.
P'Bock smiled. "Jim, you have to leave me. I will die in peace knowing that you are safely away from here. You will help ensure that my family in the Eastern Hold will be free. My daughter will never know what I have suffered." He clutched Jim to his chest briefly before picking him up and setting him on Easter Bunny's back. "Easter Bunny will get you through these caves and safely to my wife, T'Slaur. She will help you get back to your ship and away from here before they come to collect you and your crew. The fate of this world is in your hands. Good luck, Jim Kirk." He slapped Easter Bunny's backside.
The enormous creature obediently raced away from his owner deeper into the cave. Jim clung to it with handfuls of pink fur surprised at its speed. Behind them, Jim could hear the battle, the phaser fire and the battle cries. Hopefully, P'Bock was right and he would make it away from here in one piece. But it was highly unlikely. Jim was left to his thoughts of what P'Bock might have been implying. The only thing that stood between him and certain death was Easter Bunny. James T. Kirk's life was in the paws of a pink Agowilts as all life on Ranum had been thrust into his own hands.
A/N: Thanks for reading.
I just had to add in the little part about them coming to Earth long ago… Guess I'm too much of an X-Files fan lol.
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