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Jim and Chekov had only walked a few miles when Jim decided it was too dark to safely continue. They managed to find a relatively secure small cave that was devoid of any life and hunkered down for the night, trying to avoid the pangs of hunger and thirst.
It had been almost twenty-four hours since they had crashed, though it was only just now going dark, indicating that the rotation of this planet took longer to complete than Earth. In any event, both men were exhausted, and though Jim had at least had some experience in going without the necessities of food, water, and rest, Chekov was something of a novice. He handled himself well though, and never complained about the situation. They had passed a stream earlier, but given a lack of ability to test the water and make sure it was safe, Jim wasn't quite willing to take the risk.
"We'll get to that signal tomorrow," he said, settling down on the cave's floor. Chekov sat next to him and leaned back against the wall, eyes slipping closed. "Just try and get some sleep, Pavel," Jim continued. "We'll figure this out."
The Navigator fell asleep easily, but Jim couldn't force his brain to shut off as quickly, no matter how exhausted he was. Somewhere out there, Carol was probably wondering where the hell he was and if he was still alive. He refused to consider the possibility that she was dead.
He had to find her. He had to make sure she and their baby were safe and healthy.
Somewhere out there, McCoy, April, Spock, Uhura, Sulu, Scotty, and the rest of his crew were probably also wondering where he and Chekov were. He could only hope that when they got to whatever was sending out this outdated Starfleet signal, they would find help.
With that slightly optimistic thought, Jim settled himself back and let himself doze off. He wouldn't go into a deep sleep now, not when there was a chance they may be surprised and attacked at any point, but he allowed his eyes and his body to rest a little, so that he could continue strongly tomorrow.
XXX
McCoy managed to half-drag Spock away from the ruined ship. The Commander was conscious and making a valiant effort to ignore or function around the pain in his abdomen, but still hurting. McCoy was moderately impressed with the Vulcan's tenacity – it reminded him of Jim's superhuman ability to push pain aside to do what needed to be done.
But he wasn't about to tell Spock that, so they just stumbled forward in silence. They had to stop frequently to rest, and eventually, McCoy spotted what looked like a few caves a short distance away. "Come on," he huffed, "let's get in there and I'll take another look at your injury."
Spock didn't waste any breath replying, he just followed the doctor. With his injury it felt like an age – though his Vulcan brain knew it couldn't have been more than fifteen minutes – until they were tripping across the entrance to a shallow cave.
McCoy set Spock down immediately, resting him against the wall a few feet into the cave, before he took a few more minutes to look around their temporary haven. It wasn't too deep, no more than ten or fifteen feet, and less than ten feet wide. There was no back entrance, so anyone trying to surprise them would have to come through the front.
McCoy spared a moment to wish he had a phaser, but then he wasn't that good a shot anyway. Neither he nor Spock had any weapons on them, which would definitely make things more difficult if they were discovered.
His survey of the cave done, the doctor returned to Spock's side and gently pushed his shirt up. His expression darkened as he saw the vivid green bruise covering the Vulcan's right side.
Spock opened one eye as he felt his clothing moved. "Am I to extrapolate from your expression, Doctor, that my injury is more grievous than you had anticipated?"
Even speaking a full sentence seemed to exhaust him.
McCoy almost smiled at the thought that even seriously injured, Spock still insisted in speaking in such professional terms. Letting the slight amusement go, he sighed and pushed Spock's shirt back down. "It's not great," he admitted. "I think you're still bleeding internally, but without actual equipment, I can't be sure, and I can't do anything about it." He hovered his tricorder over the wound for a moment, but it wasn't telling him much beyond significant bruising, so he set it aside, annoyed.
McCoy sat down next to the Commander and let himself relax a little. "Just try not to move too much for now, we'll get some rest and keep going in a little while."
Spock didn't bother trying to protest. He knew he couldn't go any further right now. "I trust your judgement, Doctor."
McCoy raised an eyebrow. "Wow, was that actually a show of support?"
He was joking, of course. He would consider Spock a friend, but over their years of service together the two of them had managed to establish a relationship that seemed to revolve around their continued attempts to rile the other up.
Spock seemed to actually take his question seriously though, and McCoy was suddenly worried about that injury doing more damage than he had originally thought. "I trust you implicitly, Leonard. Your skills as a doctor are unparalleled. In addition, I find that your character as a human can be matched by very few."
McCoy blinked. That was probably the first time Spock had ever used his first name. "Thanks," he said, not knowing what other response he could give.
Spock inclined his head and settled back against the cave wall.
The two sat in silence for a while. McCoy was trying to gather strength to continue supporting the Vulcan as they tried to find a way out of this mess, and he assumed that Spock was meditating in an effort to do the same.
It startled him then, when Spock suddenly spoke, over an hour after they had first entered the cave. "I have recently found myself contemplating my relationship with Nyota." McCoy opened his eyes and looked to his left, observing the Commander. Spock's eyes remained closed. "I have observed your progress with Doctor Vanderbilt from significant other to engaged couple to husband and wife. Similarly, the Captain and Lieutenant Wallace are advancing through the same stages. It has caused me to reflect upon my own relationship, and the logicality of progressing forward."
McCoy frowned. "Are you thinking about asking Uhura to marry you?"
Spock gave a half shrug and finally opened his eyes. He didn't look at his companion though, just studied the far wall of the cave. "Vulcans do not marry in the human sense. We initiate bonds with our mates. Being that I am only half Vulcan and Nyota is human, I am uncertain if a full bond is possible, but it would make logical sense for Nyota and myself to be able to initiate a partial bond."
McCoy tilted his head to one side. "How does Uhura feel about that?" he asked curiously. "I know she respects your heritage and culture; does she want to have a Vulcan bond?"
Spock almost grimaced. "I find myself hesitant to ask her," he admitted.
McCoy rolled his eyes. "Why do I have to be the relationship guru here," he grumbled. "First, I had to get Jim's head out of his ass to fix things with Carol, now I'm counseling a damn Vulcan!" Spock looked over at the doctor, finally, his expression showing minute confusion. McCoy shook his head. "Talk to your girlfriend, Spock. You've definitely been together long enough to know whether or not you want to get married."
Spock pursed his lips. "You are correct, Doctor. I do believe I should approach the subject with Nyota. My concerns stem mainly from a thought that asking her to bond in the Vulcan manner would be asking her to deny her own human heritage."
"Why can't you do both?" McCoy asked reasonably. "If she wants a human wedding, and you want to bond, surely you could combine the two ceremonies, or have separate ones."
Spock blinked, startled. "I confess I had not considered that," he confessed.
McCoy nodded. "You do that, then. In the meantime, try and get some rest." He glanced at the mouth of the cave. "Looks like it's getting too dark to continue on tonight, so we'll stay here for now."
Spock leaned back against the cave wall. "Doctor, in your own opinion, what do you think is the likelihood that our friends are unharmed?"
McCoy was surprised. "Don't you already know all the probabilities?" he asked curiously.
Spock looked surprisingly unhappy. "I can make calculations," he acknowledged, "but I find myself not wanting to believe what my calculations are suggesting."
McCoy nodded slowly. The chances that all of their friends were out there, unhurt and in no danger, were slim to none. But he had to believe that they were alive. God damn it, he had just married April, she had to be OK. And Jim and Carol hadn't gotten that chance yet. With Chekov, Sulu, Scotty, Uhura, and the other fifty crew members who had been on board also unaccounted for, there was really no chance that there were no injuries. "Don't play the odds," he advised. "You've seen all kinds of crazy and logic-defying stunts on the Enterprise. If I know Jim at all, he's out there somewhere with half a plan already developed to get us all out of here. Our job is to recover as much as possible so that when he finds us, we can help him."
Strangely, Spock actually looked relieved to hear McCoy's assessment. "I find your reasoning is sound," he said simply, and then closed his eyes once more and went back to meditating.
McCoy watched him for a few minutes, before he let out a soft huff and settled himself back. It was an uncomfortable position, he was cold, hungry, and thirsty, but he needed rest and it was the best he would get right now so he better make the most of it.
XXX
Scotty had managed to make a valiant effort to start on the repairs to the Franklin, but he was exhausted and hungry. Reluctantly, Jayla agreed that maybe it would be best for her unexpected guests to eat and get some sleep before they tried to fix anything.
So it was with renewed vigor that Scotty got to work the next morning, feeling refreshed and ready to go after a good night's sleep and a decent meal. April and Carol were no help whatsoever, so they spent the next few hours poking around the ship, coming across everything from personal effects to old logs from the Franklin crew.
A loud wailing sound interrupted Scotty just as he felt he was starting to make some progress around midmorning, and Jayla quickly came running in, her expression angry and determined. April and Carol soon followed. "Somebody has set off one of my traps," the newcomer said as an explanation. She grabbed her staff and headed for the exit. "Come."
Scotty looked at the two women next to him. "Stay here," he instructed, and then grabbed an old phaser from a box of them that they had found on the ship the night before. These phasers used physical projectiles instead of pulse energy, so they didn't have to worry about the devices losing their charge over the course of however long it had been since the ship had crashed on this planet.
Scotty ran quickly to catch up with Jayla, and followed her for almost a mile, until they reached a rocky outcrop. Scotty stumbled to a halt in shock, seeing what was waiting for them.
XXX
Jim and Chekov set out early the next morning, both still tired and hungry, but unwilling to sit still any longer. They walked in near silence for miles, continuing to head towards that strange signal on Jim's makeshift scanner.
They were making their way through a dip between two rocky hills when a loud crack startled them out of their thoughts. "Watch out!" Jim shouted, ducking down just in time to avoid a net flying at him.
He managed to avoid the projectile, but Chekov wasn't so lucky. The younger man's arm was caught, and the rest of him had no choice but to follow along as it pinned him to the rock that made up one of the walls of the little ravine.
Jim moved quickly, studying the net to see how he could get it to release his friend. "You all right?"
Chekov nodded slowly, winded. "I think so. My arm hurts a little, but I don't think it's an injury, just being stuck in a bad position right now."
Jim nodded, relieved. "Let's get you out of that and get out of here before whoever set that trap comes looking."
Chekov looked like he agreed completely, and Jim set to work.
He had just managed to wiggle one corner of the net free – it was really stuck in the rock – when they heard a rustle from the woods around them. Jim quickly dropped down, picking up a rock that would do as a makeshift weapon. He wished he had a phaser on him, but it wasn't regulation to carry one around on the ship unless you were Security, so he hadn't had one on him when they had evacuated.
Jim gripped the rock tightly as a minute later, two figures ran into the ravine.
"Jim!" Scotty yelled, almost wilting in relief. He would never admit how worried he had been for his friend, even knowing how much the man liked to defy the odds.
Jim's grip on the rock lessened. He looked just as relieved. "Scotty," he breathed, smiling a greeting as the older man quickly grasped him in a tight hug.
The rock dropped back to the ground, and Jim turned to face the stranger that had come with his Chief Engineer.
Scotty immediately turned to the woman as well. "Jim, this is Jayla. She saved me from that woman who came to Yorktown. I ran into them yesterday sometime, her and a few others. What the hell is with that, I thought we were helping her? They attacked me, but Jayla saved me. The woman escaped, but Jayla killed the others. Jayla, this is Jim. He's my ship Captain. The other one is Pavel Chekov, he's part of our crew as well."
Jim smiled gratefully at Jayla. "Thank you for saving Scotty," he said. Jayla inclined her head in acknowledgement. Jim looked back at Chekov. "Any chance you can free him from that? We really don't mean you any harm."
Jayla smirked, and moved forward with her staff. A moment later, Chekov was free, and he rubbed his arm to relieve some of the aches as he stepped forward, away from the rocks.
"Thank you," the Russian said, though his voice sounded a little disgruntled.
Scotty meanwhile was looking at Jayla. "We're lucky we found Jim, he's probably the best one to help me with the repairs."
Jayla nodded. "Come on then."
They all turned to head back the way Jayla and Scotty had come, and Jim looked at Scotty, confused. "What is it you're trying to repair?"
Scotty just grinned at him. "You're not going to believe this, Captain."
XXX
Scotty refused to explain any more, and they headed back in near silence. Jim stopped short when the trees opened up, showing what looked like a very familiar ship design. "Is that… Starfleet?" he asked curiously. The exterior looked like an old-fashioned version of the current models. It was also clearly what had been emitting the frequency he and Chekov had been tracking, but he hadn't expected it to be an actual Starfleet ship.
Jayla didn't bother to answer and just headed inside. Scotty grinned at his Captain and followed her.
Jim and Chekov were left to bring up the rear.
"Scotty, what was all that about?" A feminine voice that Jim knew as well as his own echoed down the short hallway as he made his way inside.
Jim practically ran the last few steps, and the hallway opened up to a circular room he definitely recognized as the Bridge of the ship.
April and Carol were waiting inside.
Carol saw Jim just as he entered, and her face broke into a wide smile as she hurried forward a few steps, the two of them meeting in the middle of the room.
"Carol," Jim breathed, hugging her tightly. She wrapped her arms around his waist and gripped him back just as forcefully. She buried her face in his shoulder, her own shaking slightly as she tried not to cry in relief.
"Thank god," her own voice was just as soft and reverent as her fiancé's. "I was so worried."
Jim pulled back and gave her a searing kiss that lasted several long moments.
When they finally pulled apart, Jim grinned. "Don't tell me you doubted that I would keep my promise?"
Carol frowned, and then her expression cleared as she remembered a conversation they had had years ago, just after they had started dating. He had been injured, and though he told her he couldn't promise he would never get hurt, he had promised her to always do his best to survive.
The Lieutenant finally returned his smile. "Never," she assured him.
Jim gave her another quick kiss before he stepped back and looked at the other familiar face that had been patiently waiting for them to finish.
April's own hug was every bit as tight as Carol's, though they separated without the kiss of course.
"I'm so glad you're safe," he said quietly. April beamed and then gave Chekov a hug as well.
Scotty quickly captured Jim's attention, telling him what they were trying to do and the progress he had made.
As the two Engineers got to work trying to make more progress, April and Carol filled the others in on what had happened to them after they had landed. When they finished, Chekov filled the silence, telling them about his and Jim's own adventures, complete with Lenore's betrayal.
That done, Chekov then asked if they knew anything about any of the others.
April shook her head, biting her lip in worry. "We didn't see anyone, but that really isn't saying much," she admitted. "It seems like a pretty big planet, and the other pods could have landed anywhere."
Jim nodded from his position under one of the consoles where he was stripping wires. "I rewired my broken communicator to turn it into a scanner, and I did manage to pick up a couple faint Starfleet signals. It would have picked up anything emitting a Starfleet frequency. That's why we were headed in this direction," he looked over at Jayla. "It was the strongest signal; I recognized the code as Starfleet, but it was incredibly outdated."
Scotty realized that Jim hadn't even looked around him before getting to work, so he probably hadn't noticed the name of the ship. "Jim, this is the USS Franklin."
Jim stopped his work, surprised. "How is that possible?" he asked.
"Our working theory is the ship stumbled through a wormhole," April filled in. "It wouldn't have been able to make it out here on its own with the capabilities the space-ready ships had back then."
Jim nodded slowly. "A wormhole could have bent space and time around the ship," he agreed. "Completely plausible." He got back to work and continued his explanation of the scanner he had built. "If we can get the scanners on this ship running, and tune them to Starfleet frequencies, we should be able to find more of our people."
"But we won't know who they are," April sighed. "And they'd have to be carrying a device with a Starfleet frequency."
Jim looked at her compassionately. "Yes, but it's not just communicators, April. The scanners would pick up tricorders as well, and when was the last time Bones went anywhere without one of those?"
April smiled and nodded, feeling slightly more optimistic. "You're right. So get to work and fix the ship!"
Jim chuckled, and did just that.
Well, he went back to helping Scotty fix some damage that could only come with time and harsh weather conditions. Chekov was the one who got to work at a computer console, rewriting the code so that they could scan for their people.
April, Carol, and Jayla took seats around the room, acknowledging that they couldn't do anything to help the trio. Jayla seemed impatient, but April was too busy trying to get a read on Carol to really pay much attention to anyone else.
Carol hadn't stopped feeling nauseous since they had landed on this planet, but at least she hadn't thrown up since yesterday afternoon. She had even felt slightly better this morning after eating a good meal and getting as decent a night of sleep as she could without knowing where Jim was or if he was still alive. She had thought maybe she was done for the time being, but a sudden swell had her making a beeline for the nearest trash can. She didn't even have time to ask where the closest bathroom was.
April moved with her, rubbing her back gently as the young woman heaved.
Scotty stopped his work at the sudden break in silence and pulled himself up to a sitting position. "Are you all right, lass?" he asked, concerned.
Jim also looked up and winced sympathetically, but Carol glared at him. "You keep your ass right there, Jim. Just fix the ship." Jim nodded quickly and stayed put, continuing to work.
Carol tried to muster up a smile as she answered the Scotsman. "I'm fine," she assured the room.
Scotty didn't look convinced. Neither did Chekov. "Is it an injury, or did you pick up a bug or something?" the Engineer wanted more information.
Carol groaned and stood up. "More like a parasite," she muttered as she headed back to the seat she had just vacated so quickly. "And I'll be stuck with it for the rest of my life."
From his position under the console, Jim called out, "Only the next eighteen or so years. Could even be less if it's as brilliant as its parents."
Carol glared at him, but he didn't see it from his position.
Scotty looked between the two before his expression cleared to amazement. "Are you pregnant?"
Chekov gasped, and Jim finally pulled himself out from under the console. He sat up and grinned.
Scotty beamed and reached over to clap him on the shoulder. "Congratulations!"
Chekov bounded over and practically tackled Jim in a hug. The two fell over in a tangle of limbs, and Chekov pulled back, embarrassed. He stood back up and gave Carol a hug as well. "I'm so happy for you!"
Carol smiled widely. "Thank you," she said to both men.
April beamed from her spot next to Carol and waited until Jim had straightened himself out after Chekov's enthusiastic response, before she kneeled down and gave him a hug as well. "You guys are going to kick serious ass at the whole parenting thing," she whispered in his ear. After her conversation with Carol, she knew that was something he worried about. "This kid's going to be so lucky."
When they pulled apart, Jim smiled gratefully. He didn't reply, but his nod of thanks spoke volumes all the same.
Jayla sat back and watched as the group celebrated. She wanted them to keep working, but she could understand that these people were all close friends, and allowed them their time to rejoice over the happy news. She had been alone ever since her family had sacrificed themselves to let her live, and she could hardly remember what it was like to be happy anymore.
She hadn't even remembered what it was like to hope, until she stumbled across this Scotty, who said he could help her fix her house and get off this planet. Meeting the others had been just as unexpected, but suddenly she found herself surrounded by people who seemed to want to help. Last night she had spent time with April and Carol, and they seemed genuinely interested in who she was as a person; despite her attempts to keep herself at a distance, Jayla found her walls eroding little by little.
When April and Carol joined Jayla again, watching as the men all got back to work, she couldn't help but offer up a small smile and a nod to the pregnant woman. Nothing more, but she could see that Carol understood by the way the woman's face lit up at the gesture.
A few minutes later, Chekov let out a triumphant shout. "Jim, I think I got it! Can you take a look at this, and then we'll see if it works?"
Jim immediately pulled himself out from the console he had been working under and joined the younger man at his computer. They focused on the screen for a few minutes, Jim checking over Chekov's work. Finally he nodded with a grin. "That should do it." He typed in a few commands, and they all gathered around the screen, waiting.
Slowly, dots began to appear on the screen. There were a few overlapping dots coming from a position many miles away, but closer, there was what appeared to be a very faint signal on its own.
Jim looked at Scotty. "Does this ship still have beaming capability?" he asked curiously.
Scotty nodded, frowning in thought. "Yeah, I checked out the Engineering deck last night. It's old, but it still should work."
Jim sighed in relief. "Let's get whoever this is on the ship then."
He and Scotty quickly headed down to Engineering, the rest of them following behind eagerly.
At the console, Scotty quickly fired up the machines, typing in commands. After a minute, he frowned in confusion. "Jim, there was only one signal on the screen up there, but I'm picking up two life signs from that location."
Jim bit his lip. Two people then, with only one Starfleet device between them. "Can you beam them both out?"
Scotty pursed his lips. "Not together," he admitted. "I mean, I probably could, but it's an old machine, not sure I'd want to risk it unless we have to."
Jim nodded. "One at a time then."
Scotty immediately got to work, and they all focused on the transporter pad as lights began to swirl.
XXX
McCoy and Spock set off once they had both woken up, though by the light around them McCoy thought they had probably missed dawn by a good few hours. They had both been tired after yesterday's hike.
Spock looked better after the rest, though he still seemed to be moving slowly. It gave McCoy hope that any internal bleeding was minimal and healing on its own.
They were winding their way down from the cave they had hunkered down in, when the telltale sound of an engine drew their gaze upwards.
Off in the distance but moving rapidly closer were several small ships, just like the ones that had attacked the Enterprise and like the one they had taken to this planet's surface. "Shit," McCoy muttered, looking around for somewhere to hide. There's no way they would make it back to their cave.
Spock frowned minutely. "You should continue on," he said reasonably. "In my condition I will merely slow you down."
McCoy glared at him. "I didn't know you were so sentimental."
Spock offered up a half shrug. "It is simply logical. One of us should survive."
McCoy's glare intensified. "You're a damn fool," he growled. "Jim would never forgive me if I left you behind, never mind Uhura's reaction. Plus, weren't you the one who was telling me about my human character yesterday? What have I done over all the years you've known me that makes you think I'd actually leave you behind to save my own skin?"
Spock didn't get a chance to respond, as three ships surrounded them. They stood back to back, watching the enemy vessels for some sign of what was to come.
"Well at least I won't die alone," the doctor grumbled, trying unsuccessfully to hide his fear or the knowledge that he'd be leaving Joanna, and would never know what happened to April or if she made it out of this cluster fuck.
A familiar whirlwind of lights cropped up, and he turned around just in time to see Spock disappear. "Brilliant," he muttered. "Just perfect."
He turned back to the ships around him and set his jaw in determination. Before he could think any more though, another set of lights formed around him, and he could feel his molecules begin to scramble.
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