Vulcan Shadows
By Estellio
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Spock goes missing and all evidence points to McCoy while he is following cryptic clues to find him. However, after discovering one of Spock's most shocking secrets will McCoy still be able to help or will he condemn his friend to death and commit professional suicide? First, do not harm.
A/N: the first piece takes place as the Shau-bo attacked Arkhengrad but then we jump about an hour into the future to the Shau-bo coming upon the Igralein freighter. Sorry this chapter's so short and that it took me so long to post. No explanation, I'm just a lazy sod. : ) Also, an explanation about Therris and the gang will be given later. You just don't need to know yet. Oh and, the scene with the faceless man and the funky language is a scene from V'au'spast, I stuck it in because I thoguhtsomethign was needed there, it's kinda pointless. Anyway,onto the fic and don't forget to read and review. I know you guys are reading!
IOIOIO
Therris sat at the bar, knocking back a Telleran Mud water, the most powerful non-alcoholic drink known to the galaxy. He didn't know why he wasn't getting piss-arsed drunk. After all, it wasn't like she was here to give out to him. She had just left him, out of the blue. He woke up and the bed beside him was empty without so much as a note.
It wasn't right, what had he done? Had he said something, done something to make her mad? You'd think she'd give him a heads up but no.
"That's it. Your strongest and don't spare a drop. I want to drink myself into oblivion and wake up naked in a back alley with a tab at the nearest brothel for a few thousand credits." He said, slamming down his glass.
"Woah, what happened you, friend?" Therris fixed him a stony glare.
"You're not paid to pry, you're paid to serve, now, drink!" The Bolian at the bar turned, and taking down a bottle of light blue liquid he began to prepare the drink. He hadn't even poured it out when he was thrown to the floor by a blast that rocked the station.
"WHAT THE!" Therris was on his feet in seconds and running for his ship. It wasn't far and no sooner had he reached the docking clamp had the barrage stopped.
"What was that about?" A nearby Orion asked but he was already busy pulling away barrels form the doorway. It took him several minutes to get the passageway cleared and then he had to crosswire the damaged circuitry to open the door.
"Damn, damn, damn, damn. Open up!" He thought he heard cheering from a bar down the corridor but he ignored it, instead ripping out a fistful of wires. "There we go." He smiled as the hatchway slid open and he jogged up the small passage to his ship.
"Leo, report!"
"Station attacked…sensors down…many explosions." Therris caught the lizard like creature and tossed him out of the chair while he ran through a quick systems diagnostic.
"We got any data from before the attack?"
"No…realigning…sensors." The Lizard rasped, clawing its way back to the chair.
"Get down to engineering and get me back sensors. Where are those lazy Targs? Jyra, have you seen Falco, Deylap or Veryn?" Jyra shook his pale head, his long, beaded braid clacking against his armoured neck.
"If they're not here by the time we can leave, they're being left behind." Jyra loped out of the cockpit as Therris began to power up systems and make repairs from his end. Less than five minutes later Therris saw an all too familiar ship streak past.
"The Shau-bo? JYRA! I WANT ENGINES AND SENSORS NOW!"
IOIOIO
Some time later:
When McCoy came out in into the cockpit he found V'au asleep in the chair. The dark rings under her eyes were evidence enough to how hard she was working and how little rest she had taken so McCoy backed away, to leave her sleep. Before he could get a few steps he heard V'au mumble something and turned back, thinking that she was awake. However, upon seeing her face, scrunched up with fear yet clearly still deep in sleep, he realised she must be dreaming…and not a pleasant one at that.
"Nai." She groaned. Tossing slightly in the chair, a sheen of sweat on her forehead.
That's not right, McCoy thought, Vulcan's don't have sweat glands.
"NAI! Nan'ha!" V'au woke with a start, bolting out of the chair in a panic, her breath coming in uneasy pants.
"V'au, are you alright?" She spun to face him, eyes wide and fear.
"What are you doing here? Why were you watching me sleep? You should have woken me up!"
"You need sleep, V'au. You're wearing yourself out."
"We're going to be on the freighter in…" She checked the timer on the console. "Just over, my goddess. I've been asleep nearly half an hour. We'll be on the ship in fifteen minutes. We gotta get prepared."
"What for? Can't we just disable the ship and beam Spock off?" V'au shook her head.
"My transporters are of a very old design. They only beam up what is on the other end of its transponder."
"What's a transponder?" V'au held out her arm and the wristband popped open to reveal about twelve tiny darts, the size of McCoy's fingernails.
"These, it's what I used to beam up Vargo…Oh My God I forgot about her!"
"What?"
"I was meant to drop her off at Arkhengrad. Dammit!" V'au half made to run back into the cargo hold but she returned to the chair, sinking boneless into it. "I'll do it on the way back, gods, I can't remember to do one simple thing." She shook her head warily. "Alright, basically, I disable the ship and beam aboard, find Spock, get him, get out of here and we all live happily ever after. I'm already up to my neck in trouble, I don't need any more." Pushing past McCoy she moved into the cargo bay and began to route through a locker at the back.
She pulled on a phase proof vest and then pulled out a long leather jacket. Slipping it on she began to pull out all sorts of gizmo's and fit them into her jacket. It apparently wasn't the first time she had done this, McCoy noted, she was moving far too fast.
It only took ten minutes for her to be ready and she handed a pulse-rifle to the Doctor.
"Anyone beams on board, shoot 'em."
"WHAT? I'm a doctor, not a soldier!"
"Improvise! If I'm not back in half an hour…blow the ship up. Okay?"
"No."
"DOC!"
"I'm a doctor, not a demolition derby."
"Is that like your thing? I'm a doctor, not a whatever! Because this isn't the first, nor the second time you've said it." McCoy thrust the rifle back at her. "Doctor, don't be silly." She said, pushing it back to him. "I'll be back. Trust me." Reaching inside her jacket she pulled out a small necklace with a red, circular crystal on the end. "I've had this ever since I was little. It's my good luck charm and in all my years, it's never been parted from me for too long. As long as you have this. I'll come back to you! Okay?"
"I bet you say that to all the men." McCoy teased gently and she smiled. "I'll be back. Promise….and I'll have Spock with me."
McCoy nodded and she ran to the console and punched in a few commands. The sensors had picked up the ship and they were coming up on it fast.
"Three…two…one…Come on…Get a locking solution you stupid hunk of…. Hna'h!" He watched the green beams lance out from the ship and hit the large, caterpillar like freighter, once, twice, then a third time. Immediately it dropped out of warp but she fired again, again, and again. He could see fires along the hull of the ships where there was leaking plasma, but the lack of oxygen in space quickly put them out.
"Okay, shields down, warp disabled, weapons disabled and time to get some kneecaps disabled. Back in ten." She ran to the small, triangular device in the centre of the cockpit and press the small yellow button.
McCoy watched as she disintegrated in the transporter beam and sighed. How did he get dragged into this again, oh yes, Spock…If that Vulcan survived…he was going to kill him.
IOIOIO
"V'au, I'll be back. Your brother and I have to go on a quick journey up north. Alright, I want you to look after your mother." A faceless man crouched down in front of her and put his hands on her tiny shoulders.
"Ad'ha?" She sobbed, hugging him as if he were her last life line.
"Here, take this Au lagga'ju." The man said, producing a necklace from his pocket. It was a plain, silver chain with a red disk at the end, encircled by a silver ring, carved with symbols of luck and good fortune. "As long as you wear this I'm with you. I'll protect you."
"Father? Don't go, what if I never see you again."
"Don't be silly, little one. It is time for bed. I shall see you in one week. I promise I'll bring you something nice."
IOIOIO
"DO WE HAVE SENSORS?"
"No, Sir. All systems are down. We're dead in the water."
"I want repair teams working now! Everyone works in two. One to repair, one to guard. They could try and board us. How's our passenger?"
"He's holed himself up in Cargo Bay Two. The guy had a gun the size of my leg."
Cargo bay Two, eh? V'au thought, pulling up the schematics for the ship from her hiding position, behind a console. That's not far from here.
She pushed the limp form of the engineer from his console and entered a nearby Jeffries Tube. They were smaller than Constitution Class tubes and she was glad she had lost so much weight in the prison, or she didn't think she would have been able to crawl her way to the ventilation shaft.
Peering over the edge she saw a five story drop onto a fan, the cargo bay was beneath that fan and she could see Kek pacing beneath it.
Two words ya pompous git, Flash, Bang.
She unhooked a small canister from her jacket and removed the pin, dropping it down. Instead of falling into the Cargo bay like she planned, it landed on the wing of the fan.
"What are the chances." She breathed before jerking back into the Jeffries tube and squeezing her eyes shut. "He knows you're here now genius." She said, swearing softly. Ten minutes of inaction passed until she saw Kek walk away from the fan duct. She thanked the gods that the walls of the ventilation shaft were so shiny. She could see everything, including a suspiciously familiar foot. Taking her second, and final, flash bang from her jacket she aimed it.
One…two…DROP!
It slipped between the blades of the fan and she squeezed her eyes shut as it lit up the cargo hold. Seconds later she dropped down, her feet smashing into the centre of the fan and loosening it from the walls, allowing her to drop down. With two handheld phasers she phasered all around her, making sure not to aim to low and accidentally hit Spock. Kek was in a corner clutching his ears and firing blindly at the fan. He didn't seem to realise she was in the room and taking advantage of the fact she stunned him.
"Don't move." She felt the nozzle of something pressed into her back and she turned to see an Igralein dressed in a Starfleet officer holding a rifle. "He said you'd come."
"Where is the Starfleet officer?" She asked, realising the trap all too late.
"Oh, don't worry. You'll meet him in sickbay soon enough."
"So he's in sickbay?" The Igralein pressed the nozzle firmer into her back.
"Move, Romulan scum."
"HEY! I ain't Romulan! That Starfleet officer is my father, I'm here to rescue him!"
"Likely story, you're a Tal Shiar Agent come to kill Ambassador Spock and his body guard."
"BODYGUARD! That man KIDNAPPED my father!"
"Yeah, right, like I'm gonna believe you over General Kekamon!" V'au closed her eyes, she really didn't want to do this but….she placed her hands behind her head.
"Please, at least let me see my father, just so I'll know he's alright." The pleading in her voice must have struck a cord and the Igralein nodded.
"When the Ambassador comes to, after your last attack, we'll inform him of your presence."
"Thank you." V'au said, turning slowly. "You are most kind."
"Now, put out your hands, I'm gonna cuff you. No funny business." V'au stretched out her hand, aligning her wristband with the mans neck.
"Lower, stupid! I can't cuff 'em if you hold them that high."
"You wont be cuffing anything." She shot the dart out of her wristband and the Igralein collapsed seconds later. "Now, sickbay, sickbay…" She leapt back up into the shaft and began to laborious task of climbing back up it by her hands and knees jammed against either wall. A few minutes later she was back in the control room and running towards sickbay. She didn't see anyone on her way there but when she arrived at the doors, two guards stood at attention. They were dressed in identical black and blue uniforms and V'au recognised them as Kek's cronies. A well placed phaser blast had them both down but she knew two more would be on the inside.
"What the hell, I've come this far!" Grabbing a pulse rifle from one of the guards she keyed open the door and fired blindly. All a pulse rifle was really good for was throwing things around the place and within seconds, everything was pressed up against the far wall. Throwing the rifle to one side she pulled out a Romulan Bolter. A weapon not dissimilar from a 9mm. The two guards Kek had posted inside the door were toast but she ignored the doctor. Instead running to Spock's side.
Taking a knife from her belt she untied him.
"Sa-mehk? Sa-mehk? Ah zhu-tor meh?" She asked, shaking him. A groan was the only reply she got but she took it. Immediately she moved to activate her transponder but seconds before her finger reached the button, three shots hit her in a triangular pattern on her back and she slumped over Spock's prone figure.
Maybe she shouldn't have over looked the doctor after all?
This is the second time I've lost my father.