Bare These Bones
Into Sinew and Bone
Vahl'Sai could feel the sweat as it trickled slowly down her back in droplets, from the hem of her pants to her shoulders. Her hands supported the weight of her body in a perfect hand-stand, her form making a vertical line. She had pulled her black over shirt off already and was left in the tight black tank that she wore beneath, her feet bare when she slipped her shoes off first. It had been nearly half an hour since she had pulled into that stand, and for a half an hour, she had remained. It was early in the morning, so the few students still at the academy wouldn't be disturbing her. So, she had decided to test how long she could stay in that position.
Her arms were just barely trembling, but the muscles that supported her were burning strongly. She needed to do things like this more often, keep herself exercised so that she didn't lose her stamina, her strength. She didn't believe that she was going to be with Starfleet forever; her people lived long, much longer than humans, so she knew that someday she would be back on Sahvariah, among her people and the rules that kept them alive.
She couldn't let her body become weak in that time.
Inhaling and exhaling carefully, Vahl'Sai looked up on when she heard the chime at her bedroom door, alerting her to someone wanting into her dorm. Dropping her feet back to the floor, she moved over to the small screen beside the door and tapped the blinking yellow button, showing who was on the other side of her door. Her eyes narrowed at the sight of Pike and an unfamiliar man behind his shoulder. Pike's eyes flicked up to the camera before glancing backward with a faint glare. He was warning her of the mistrust he had for his companion.
Tapping the green icon, the door opened with a hydraulic hiss, opening the space between her and them. She was still covered in a fine layer of sweat, her white hair slightly sticking to her shoulders and forehead while her black tank top was stretched tight over corded muscles.
"Can I help you, Admiral?" she greeted Pike, understanding that this was not a time to be overly friendly with the man.
"Vahl'Sai, this is Lieutenant Breaker. He's here to evaluate you in regards to your transition into Starfleet," Pike introduced, stepping aside with a limp while he motioned over to the other man, serious expression in place.
"What happened to Doctor Gall?" she asked, turning acute eyes to the new Lieutenant. "I was assigned as a specialty case to one Doctor Gall with the direct assurances that only he and my doctor would be allowed such information. With the inclusion, now, of Doctor McCoy aboard the USS Enterprise," Vahl'Sai said in a strong tone. She could see the pallor of the man's face take on a whiter tone, causing Pike to hide a smirk from beside them. "Until I see a signed letter from the entire Head Council of Starfleet, you will have to reschedule your…evaluation."
"I am under the direct orders of-"
"A verbal confirmation is not what I am looking for, Lieutenant. It is easy to tell a lie with your lips, but paperwork is a different matter."
Breaker didn't even say a farewell to either of the two before he tuned on heel and dismissed himself from their presence. Vahl'Sai and Pike continued to watch him until he had stepped into the lift at the end of the hall and disappeared. Vahl'Sai stepped back into her dorm and waved Pike inside.
"I'm sorry that I wasn't able to give you a heads up," Pike began as he entered her living quarters, glancing along Vahl'Sai's long form. Her hands pushed at her hair to redo the tie that it had begun to fall out of, clearing the tendrils of hair from her face that were sticking to the sweat on her skin. She motioned over to the kitchenette, where two stools were sat at an island.
"I understand that your hands were tied," Vahl'Sai dismissed on her way passed to the bathroom. The door was left open as she dampened a cloth and wiped at her face and neck to remove the sweat that had collected. A minute later she was inside the small kitchenette making a tea for Pike and herself, her movements relaxed and melodic.
"Why someone was trying to sneak an evaluation in is a concern," Pike commented as Vahl'Sai handed over the cup of steaming tea, nodding his thanks. "I'll have to contact Admiral Bennett. Any and all Sahvarian matters go through him first."
The Sahvarian across from him frowned in concern. "Are you that worried about one man?" she asked in surprise. "It does not surprise me that someone has tried to obtain information in such a way; it was either a direct approach or trying to hack into the database."
Pike's expression only grew more grave. "That man was sent by someone, and I do not know who. That was why there was no written consent; he was sent by a higher-up that does not want to be discovered. If this person is already in a Starfleet position of power and is seeking information on you-"
"He has been intentionally blocked from my files," Vahl'Sai finished, understanding Pike's concern. There were many in Starfleet Command, even a few Admirals, that had voted against the inclusion of the Sahvarian race into Starfleet. A veto had been required by the Head Admiral, Bennett, with the conclusion that 'it is preferred that Sahvarian's be our ally and not our enemy.' Basically, it was a fear of angering the powerful, enormous race that finalized Vahl'Sai's fate. "Do you have any idea who it could be?"
"No," Pike answered with a long sigh, running a hand along his face. "But I urge you to be absolutely careful. Your files have the highest level of security Starfleet can offer so those are already secure, but you need to be sure no one gets close to you." Vahl'Sai raised an eyebrow at Pike over her cup, causing him to huff a laugh. "You know what I mean; you can fight someone off, but there are other ways to endanger you. You're strong, but you're not invincible."
"I understand," she assured, nodding along to his warning. "I'll be careful, Christopher. You have my word."
Relaxing at Vahl'Sai's verbal promise, Pike nodded his thanks to the woman before he decided a topic change was in order. "I was actually planning on coming to see you today, before I was accosted by Lieutenant Breaker. Doctor McCoy, as your new Doctor for the foreseeable future, has to do a physical to clear you for active duty aboard a starship. I'll be a lot like the entrance physical when you were entered into the academy."
Vahl'Sai's face soured at the reminder of her entrance physical, causing Pike to laugh against his will. The healers on her world were very different to the medical professionals on Earth, and in Starfleet, so she was quite baffled and frightened during the exam. When Doctor Gall had produced a long, thick needle and explained he would have to take a blood sample from her, Vahl'Sai had actually hid on the other side of the biobed and hissed at him.
"It won't be that bad," Pike assured. "You know what to expect this time, and we still have all the samples from the first exam. Stop worrying."
"No," she denied, her face still grim.
Of course, this only made Pike laugh harder.
A couple of hours later, into the noon hours, Vahl'Sai made her way through campus toward the medical bay. She had finished her workout after Pike left and worked a couple more hours on her course schedule before leaving to meet with Bones. Pike had given her the information on where to meet the grouchy Doctor before he left; assuring her that McCoy had also been made aware of the sudden appointment.
Still wearing her black Commander's uniform, Vahl'Sai didn't hurry her stride through the nearly empty campus. There were a few lingering students, wearing their comfortable, everyday clothes in place of their uniform. For the most part, she was ignored and that was just fine with her. It made her think back to when Kirk invited her out to drinks with him and Bones, being told to wear something other than her uniform.
Sighing loudly as the medical building came into view, Vahl'Sai continued dutifully onward to make her appointment with McCoy on time. She rather enjoyed the company of the Doctor, as cranky as he may come off to some people, she found that his presence was refreshing. It surprised her that he and Kirk got along so well, since they were near opposites in their personalities. Then again, she wasn't exactly someone most would see hanging around Kirk, either.
As soon as she entered the reception area, the nurse behind the main counter smiled and motioned her forward, having been expecting her arrival. "The vacation gave plenty of time slots, you're the only patient that Doctor McCoy has today," she explained in a cheerful, friendly tone that made Vahl'Sai smile back to her before she even realized it.
"Glad I can give him something to do," she jested, causing the nurse to laugh along before she motioned to an open exam room to her right. McCoy was already inside, standing with his PADD as he looked over her file from Doctor Gall. "Doctor," she greeted upon entering, getting his attention away from the device in his hands.
"Commander," he returned, nodding to the nurse to have her close the door behind her. Vahl'Sai stepped into the exam room with a somewhat sour look on her face. "I take it you don't like physical exams?"
"Not based on experiences," she answered, causing him to shake his head in amusement. "We don't have exams for health on Sahvariah. One only sees the healer when injured," she pointed out; she was a professional for that, since she had gotten herself into as much trouble as she rebelliously could as a child.
"Well, no hissing at me," he ordered, watching as she sniffed indignantly and looked away from him, sheepish at having her past actions come back at her. "Take a seat."
Vahl'Sai was tall enough that she didn't have to hop onto the bed like so many others. As regal as ever, she sat on the edge of the biobed as Bones pulled up her classified file on his PADD, typing in his access code. He'd be doing all that he could without having to undress the woman, but he was required to take an internal bio-scan, MRI, and finally an external body scan, so he'd have to change her into one of the black patient uniforms and then take her out of it completely.
Moving his stool to sit in front of her, McCoy sighed as he realized the first thing he'd have to check.
"Don't you dare bite me," he warned, pointing his PADD at the Sahvarian threateningly. Vahl'Sai's upper lip twitched but she nodded her head in promise. Wearing a pair of gloves, McCoy motioned for the woman to open her mouth, almost immediately sticking his thumbs under her upper lip and raising it to examine her prominently lethal teeth. The fangs were an important aspect of a healthy life for a Sahvarian, especially because their ancestors had survived mostly on meat.
Checking over her deep red gums, seeing a faint purple tinge caused by her blue blood in some areas, McCoy was amazed that her teeth didn't affect her way of speaking. The fangs were longer than he'd originally thought, but the healers from her planet had explained that it was so that they could pierce flesh and muscle alike, reaching deep into tissue to cut major arteries. He checked her bottom fangs as well, then felt along the rest of her sharp teeth and then the roof of her mouth. He had her stick her tongue out to let him examine that, realizing that it was very soft and had taste-buds so small that they were almost impossible to see.
"Alright, now that I'm sure your mouth feels defiled," he muttered, peeling off his saliva covered gloves while Vahl'Sai used a tissue to wipe the saliva from around her mouth clean. "I need to check your ears next."
She was compliant for him as he used several technological devices that seemed to unsettle her, sitting still and staring ahead at the wall of the clinic room. Her ears faintly rang with the machine hum and her vision was a bit splotched after having a penlight flashed in front of her eyes.
After a solid hour of external inspections, McCoy had no other choice but to move on and hand her a black uniform for the X-Ray and MRI scans. He stepped out to meet with the nurse while she changed into the bland, black outfit, made of soft fabrics that differed greatly from the stiffness of her everyday uniform.
"Alright, internal bio-scan," McCoy sighed, motioning for her to follow after him as her bare feet tapped the ground with the faintest sound. "You didn't have one of these done with your last physical."
"No, they did not have the equipment on the starship I was brought on," she answered calmly from behind him. She had yet to see any needles from him, so she wasn't as distressed as she could have been. "How does it work?"
"It's like an X-Ray, you'll lie on the table, keep completely still, and the scanner will run over your body to take an internal scan. Since we can't compare your scans to another Sahvarian's, I'll have to speak with your healer to make sure you're as healthy as when you arrived by his opinion alone." Vahl'Sai hadn't realized that so much had to go into realizing that she was healthy. "They're going to get the same equipment at the settlements on Sahvariah soon, then we'll be able to compare."
"I understand," Vahl'Sai assured, turning into the room that McCoy entered ahead of her, the nurse already waiting there as she finished setting up the scanner. She left as soon as McCoy took over, knowing that she was not allowed to be present when the Sahvarian's medical results were visible. She didn't have a high enough security clearance.
Following the doctor's instructions, she lifted herself onto the table and laid out with her legs straight, feet slightly parted and her arms at her sides, palms flat down.
McCoy stood a couple of feet away with the PADD programmed to the machine around Vahl'Sai, tapping away at the screen as Vahl'Sai watched from the corner of her eye. Her green eyes were focused and curious, keeping track of his movements as she waited for further instruction. "Hold still," he finally said, sounding distracted as he worked on the program. He had to use a default setting since most species at Starfleet had particular programs to match their specific biology.
Vahl'Sai turned her eyes forward once more and did as ordered, keeping completely still as the table underneath her seemed to hum to life. A three inch scanner circled the top of the table, curving over her and slowly moving down her body. As the scanner moved down, McCoy was watching with professional fascination as her results appeared on the PADD in his hands. Her bones were considerably denser than any other species that he'd ever studied before, with several extra vertebrae alone her spine. Her heart was significantly larger and was located lower in her chest, dead center where the human diaphragm would be found—the sternum was broken into separate bones as well, allowing further flexibility while stretching further down to protect the heart.
A frown pinched at his brows when he zoomed in on one of her thighs. There was a prominent mend in one of her femurs; it looked like it had completely snapped in half at one point, but had mended nearly seamlessly. If he hadn't been looking for something he probably would have missed it. For a race that didn't have modernized medicine, he found himself curious about how it had mended so cleanly.
Turning his attention to the larger, full scan again, he watched as it completed with her feet. Again, there were litters of broken bones that had mended together again like there had been no injury at all.
"You've broken a lot of bones," he said once the scan was complete, switching the settings over to the tissue scan. "But no visible muscle or tissue damage."
"When a Sahvarian breaks a bone, not matter the minor break, it released bone marrow into the blood. The bone marrow has reoccurring carbon fiber which heals the break. So long as the healer can straighten the bone it will heal seamlessly," she explained. "Dr. Gall had taken a marrow sample and explained this to me on the trip over."
McCoy nodded along, shutting down the machine once it had returned to the head of the table. Vahl'Sai sat up and looked over to him as he shifted the scan to her hands. Surprisingly, there were no broken bones in her hands. For someone that fought excellently, he'd expected there to be some damage. "How long did it take you to heal from the break in your thigh?"
"One month. It would usually take less but I hate bed rest and movement prolonged my healing," the white haired woman explained as she hopped down from the table. The MRI machine was in the next room over, but McCoy was lagging slightly as he found himself fascinated with the scan that was on the PADD. Vahl'Sai found it amusing, however, and waiting in the doorway as he reluctantly added the scan to her private file and locked it with his code.
The MRI was quick and simple, giving McCoy a chance to see Vahl'Sai's brain activity. It helped to explain why she was such a quick learner; her brain activity was off the charts. Neurons were firing off so quickly he was momentarily concerned that she was having an attack of some kind.
The external body scan was a little more awkward for the two. Vahl'Sai was stripped down from her uniform and stepped into what looked like a metal tube with a scanner that would lower down, scanning the entire circumference of her body at once. Having known one another before the exam made it somewhat hesitant on both ends as Vahl'Sai stepped into the external scanner, completely nude, with McCoy once more monitoring the scan.
He had not known she had markings.
The bottoms of her breasts, ribs, back, forearms, and ankles held the markings, each with a different pattern infusing with her natural skin tone. It was amazing to look at them, trying to figure out what they were there for. On top of the markings, her body was as thin and muscled as he'd expected. There was a thin layer of healthy fat between her muscle and her skin, giving her a feminine softness, but he could still see the musculature without her even needing to flex.
Another thing that surprised him was that her white hair actually reached quite a few inches past her shoulders; he'd been expecting it shorter after seeing it in a small, tight bun so many times.
The areas on her feet with bone fractures showed no signs on top of her flesh as well. After seeing her fight with Spock and evaluate the students in her class, he knew that she used her legs a lot. Those broken bones in her feet were probably from learning to fight so strong with kicks—that would explain the lack of damage to her hands.
He had a feeling that if Kirk ever found out he'd seen the Sahvarian woman naked, he'd never hear the end of it.