The second everyone was warped back to the Enterprise, Bones was already there waiting for them. He had two sets of nurses flanking each side, his face a shocking mixture of concern and outright anger. Scotty and Spock were the two in most need of medical attention, and fast, but that did not stop either Kirk or Uhura from following close behind the nurses all the way to the Sickbay. Kirk had to shake off hailing questions from the crew, assuring them that he'd get back to them whenever he could. Chekhov and Sulu had shared an equally worried glance before watching in uncomfortable silence as their Captain and Commander disappeared behind the doors of the Sickbay.

Scotty had suffered from severe head trauma, having been struck with the butt of Khan's blaster and left behind in the cargo port of the USS Vengeance while Spock was incapacitated and dragged away. The Scotsman was still conscious whenever they made it to the Sickbay, surprisingly, only drifting off to a dreamless slumber once he had eyes on Spock, making sure the half-Vulcan was being stabilized.

Kirk and Uhura would not leave Bones alone until he was able to give them a status on Spock's injuries, and how he would fair in the future. If he had a chance at all. To their dismay, Bones looked sick. The doctor was doing his best to stay patient, of course, explaining that Spock had sustained three broken ribs, a broken nose, a laceration to his cheek, and (obviously) he'd been dealt some sort of telepathic trauma. That would be harder to figure out, and he feared that without Spock here to explain the extent of the mental damage, and what exactly happened they would have to wait until he regained consciousness again. Kirk mentioned that he and Uhura had seemed to share in the pain before Spock lost consciousness and they were able to return to the Enterprise. Bones looked at Lieutenant Uhura as if she were a beacon of unexplored answers.

"We'll get to that, later," was all he managed to huff. "You experiencing any pain?"

"My head feels like it's been split open."

"And that is only half of it?"

Uhura nodded once, quickly. She had wished not to dwell on the fact that only half of the pain she'd been inflicted was enough to make her nearly pass out. How her ears were still ringing and her brain felt as if it'd been cut in half. She could not stand to think of it that way, because knowing that before they'd gotten to the USS Vengeance, Spock was experiencing a whole new level of agony. A level at which she knew she would not be able to bear even if she tried.

"Nevermind," Bones had dismissed. "Jim, give her these painkillers." He handed the Captain a hypo before rushing to pull some gloves over his sweaty hands. "I need to get to work. Out, both of you. Out!"

And so they had left. 'Left' was not completely accurate, however, as they made themselves quite comfortable outside the Sickbay, waiting in chairs just beside the doors. They could see the shadows of the plethora of doctors and nurses as they scurried around in a frenzy, though their voices were incredibly muffled. Jim did as he was instructed, administering the hypo to Uhura in a half-decent attempt to put an end to her splitting headache. For a long while, they did not speak to each other, only waiting in strict silence for someone… anyone to confirm that Spock would be okay. So, when that did not happen after the initial forty-five-minute wait, Jim Kirk was the first one to fold and open his mouth:

"Are you okay?" He probably should have asked her that before, of course, instead of stalling for nearly an entire hour.

Lieutenant Uhura simply nodded. "Yes. Fine."

"You act a lot like him," Kirk prodded, attempting to elicit a sort of humorous response. Uhura did not look impressed. Her eyebrows quirked slightly in offense, and her muscles tightened, instantly going into defense mode, ready to stand up for Spock in a place where he could not stand up for himself. That had not been Kirk's intention.

"What does that mean?"

"No, no, nothing bad. I-I just mean, that, you know… you're very rigid."

"Oh, well I apologize, Captain, that I am not in the most talkative of moods."

"No, ah, I mean yes. Yes, of course. I understand." He returned to staring at the floor, his sweaty hands clinging together in a desperate attempt to try and give himself a sense of solace. If Spock were here, he'd probably say something dense and static, although doing his very best to offer the Captain his support. He'd say that his emotions of anxiety were illogical, but then upon seeing that they had not been quelled, would have continued to say something along the lines of:

"I am sorry, Jim. How can I assist you?"

"I'm sorry," came Uhura's voice. It nearly startled Kirk out of his skin. "I'm being rude. He's your best friend, you…" She sighed, shaking her head. "You must be… I can't imagine."

"Me?" Kirk whispered. "Lieutenant, I saw how that… meld affected you. I knew you two were serious, sure, but… damn…" He paused, trying to pick his next words carefully. "Did you… see anything?"

Uhura's eyebrows pinched together in thought. "No, not really. Just flashes of images. Old memories. Mostly…" She cleared her throat. "Mostly bad ones. His… you know, his mother… Vulcan. Painful memories. Scary ones." Her eyes met Kirk's. "I trust you won't… tell him I told you any of this. It's… well, you know how he is."

Kirk nodded. "Of course."

"It was just… it was just so painful. It was bad, Kirk. Very bad. My ears felt like they were popping, but… it was so bad I thought my eardrums would burst. And, God, the headache…"

"Is it still bad?"

"It's… it's very present, yeah. But not nearly as bad. I think because he's unconscious. Or, you know…"

"Right."

Tears started to form in her eyes. "It was just… he was so… exposed. His mind was jumbled. Completely torn apart. He couldn't protect himself, you know? And it was… it was so violating. Jesus Christ, if that shame was only half of it, I can't imagine how much… how frightened-" A tiny sob tore through her throat. Kirk instantly straightened his posture, grasping her shoulder. "It was unwarranted. Unwelcome. Khan's presence was strong. Like, he was able to reach into Spock's mind and just… fuck with it! Just fuck with it because- because he could! Because he wanted to!" Her voice was rising to a dangerous degree, now. Kirk saw that same flash of animalistic rage shoot across her irises before disappearing. She stood to her feet, clenching and unclenching her fists as she paced back and forth. "It's not fair. I thought we'd gone over this! He just- he just throws himself into danger if it means nobody else will get hurt. A-and that isn't bad. It's admirable! But he- how could he not think about how others would feel? How I would feel? How you would feel, Kirk!"

She whirled back around to face the Captain, her face hot with rage, expecting to find him surprised and cautious, and instead finding tears slipping down his cheeks as he struggled to bite his lower lip hard enough to keep from making any noise. Uhura's face instantly softened, and worry filled her chest. She sat back down, placing a tender hand on his shoulder. Kirk shook his head, pressing his knuckles up to his lips.

"N-no, no, it's… you don't have to stop. I-I know. I know, you're right," he managed, his breaths coming out unevenly as he fought off the pain that seeped through the words he spoke. "I just… god dammit! That's why it's supposed to be me. I am the Captain, you guys are my crew. I can't just… Spock can't just-"

"You are his friend," Uhura assured him. Despite her previous fit of rage, she knew she had to think logically. She had to offer the Captain some sort of consolation. "He does what he does, and… I honestly don't even think he understands why he makes half of the decisions he does, now. But he feels very deeply and very fondly of you. You are like a brother to him, Kirk. Whether or not those feelings are reciprocated, that's how he feels."

This only made Kirk sob harder, completely hiding his face in his hands. "He is my brother. I-I don't know… I don't know what I'd do without him. And he just- he doesn't get it. It's like he can't understand how…"

"How much you care?"

"Exactly."

Uhura nodded slowly, understandingly. "Trust me," she began, unable to contain the fond smirk that spread across her lips, "I get it."

This made Kirk snort, though it was hardly a response at all. "I'm sure you do…"

Lieutenant Uhura thought carefully over what to say next. "But, listen. Perhaps we should consider that… to him, maybe we do not understand the extent to which he cares. Because he does care so deeply. Even if he doesn't show it." A brief pause. "And it took me a long time to figure that out."

Kirk sniffled, stifling his sobs for a moment to meet Uhura's gaze. He wiped the remaining tears out of his eyes, his shoulders hitching. "So, he's just stubborn."

Uhura grinned. "As much as the rest of us. Especially just as much as you are."

"Yeah, well… it'd be a lot easier if he wasn't."

"Hm, yeah. Sometimes it would be." Uhura offered Kirk a kind smile. "Are you okay?"

He nodded, clearing his throat. "Yeah, yeah, sorry. I'm sorry, Uhura. It's just… I was just scared. I was… I was really scared this time."

"I know," she agreed solemnly, wrapping an arm around his shoulders in a half-embrace. "I was, too."

All was barren. The air was cold. No, not cold. It was freezing. And Spock was alone. He was clearly, utterly, terrifyingly alone. One look around and that much was obvious. That, and the fact that he was completely exposed. Exposed to what? Everything. Everything. Somewhere in the back of his fractured mind, there were eyes staring him down. Boring into his skin and throwing him into a panicked haze. Vaguely, he could recall screaming for his Mother. For Uhura. For Kirk. He knew he should not. They would not hear him. They would not answer him.

They could not.

Spock awoke in a cold sweat, pain exploding from behind his eyes the moment he gained consciousness once again. He was hardly able to take in his surroundings, but he managed to make out the familiar aura of his sleeping quarters. The automatic doors. The polished, perfect white floors and walls. Almost too white. It hurt his eyes to assess his setting, so he simply squeezed them shut once again, breathing in hastily through his nostrils (which seemed to be insanely clogged?) and out through his mouth. The back of his throat was painfully irritated and sore, so much so that breathing was nearly impossible without having to withstand an entirely new (and incredibly irritating) spike of discomfort. Gaining consciousness quickly showed Spock that if he believed things were far worse in the confines of his mind, waking up and still feeling that identical sense of dread, only heightened by the physicality of reality, was far worse.

The half-Vulcan was so focused on breathing, and only breathing, and not at all crying because that would accomplish nothing, that he was completely shocked when Lieutenant Uhura suddenly appeared by his side, her face drawn out and exhausted.

"Hey, hey," she whispered, being careful to keep her voice low and soft. "You're alright. Easy, breathe easy." There were hands in his hair. Very long, thin, gentle fingers were sifting through the dark tangles, nearly massaging the pain away altogether. Uhura had that power over people. Spock groaned, attempting to sit up and address her properly, but his ribs screamed in protest. He could only gasp, unwilling to let out the scream he wanted so badly to be rid of, as Uhura shushed him and pressed him gently back into the soft pillows that kept him slightly elevated. "You're safe, Spock. Don't move around too much."

"I did not-" he rasped, trying his hardest to calm the racing of his heart thrumming against his side. His voice sounded grave and… weak. He hated it.

"No, no, no, shh. You're okay, you don't have to speak. Just rest-"

"Y-you do not unders-tand-" Spock continued, hysteria clouding his mind. "I-I did not- I did not wish to be- For Khan to-"

"Stop it, Spock," Uhura murmured, holding his battered face in her hands. "Do you really believe that I blame you? For this? For everything that happened?"

"H-he… my mind-"

"I know," she interrupted, finally moving her body so that she was sitting on the side of his bed. "I know, you don't have to explain yourself to me. I know it hurts, and I know everything is too much right now. I know… I know how scared you feel. But I am here." She placed a kiss against his head, swiping his disheveled bangs out of the way. "I promise that I will not let anything happen to you."

And then her arms were wrapped around his neck, pulling him as close to her as she possibly could without aggravating his injuries. There was a large bandage over the deep cut on his left cheek, and since his nose had been severely broken, he was now sporting a bandage right across the bridge, and the area around the fracture was littered with dark green and gray bruises, especially under his eyes, which were shot to all hell. Uhura felt his arms, after a long couple moments of stillness, finally start moving up to curl around her back. She could not completely blame him. The half-Vulcan seemed to be in a whole other world, swooning with fatigue and battling with the muddled state of his own head. It was probably difficult for him to move. Because of that, yes, but also because of the pain.

Despite all of this, it seemed as though the closeness was something that Spock needed. His crushed whimpers turned into pleading cries, which eventually turned into wet, tired wails. And Uhura could only hold him. She could only hold him and hide her own face. She glanced over to the right, where both Kirk and McCoy were standing, faces crumpled with sadness and defeat. They were both in need of at least seventy-two hours of sleep, but they would not rest until their friend had shown any improvements, or signs of life at all, for that matter. Uhura was not sure if she'd call this an 'improvement', especially since Spock was so out of it that he did not even notice the two other figures looming in his room. Kirk met her gaze, worry creasing his brow as he slowly, quietly, retook his seat in the corner of the room. McCoy was close to follow, placing his head in his hands and shaking it, a new wave of guilt crashing down on his shoulders.

Uhura was a witness to all three of the strongest people she knew breaking down that day. And she could not mourn with them. She could only sit, holding Spock in her arms as he clung to her as tightly as a child would, using her both mentally and physically as a shield.

"It is… so cold…" the half-Vulcan muttered, to himself or to Uhura, nobody was sure. But everyone was inclined to believe him; he was trembling within the Lieutenant's hold, even under a mound of soft blankets and dressed in a baggy blue sweatshirt and black sweatpants. He'd been promptly moved back to his room after McCoy and his team had managed to stabilize him over twenty-four hours prior. It had been Uhura's idea, insisting that the familiar atmosphere combined with the adjustable temperature would make it more comforting to Spock whenever he finally came too. Still, despite these adjustments, it seemed his body only wished to work against him. "I-I am… lost."

"No," Uhura replied sternly, holding him even tighter. "No, you are not. You are right here with me, do you understand?"

"Nyota."

It was the first time he'd called her by her first name in what felt like ages. Lieutenant Uhura treasured the sound of her name slipping from his tongue, even if he was tired and his speech was starting to slur. Her name was clear. He was speaking to her.

"Yes?" she inquired, resting her face in the crook of his neck.

"Someone is here."

Uhura felt her heart rate elevate for a split second before realizing what Spock was referring to. His walls were down, meaning he could feel the presence of other people, whether or not they were in large or small quantities. The Enterprise was constantly bustling with people, so it was no wonder why he had been so out of it the moment he woke up. It was like a mental onslaught, and Spock could do nothing but sit and wait until he had strength enough to even attempt to rebuild those walls. Still, the way he spoke those few words showed Nyota just how strong and unbridled those senses were. No wonder Vulcans needed those walls up; if they did not exist, those abilities would be running wild, affecting their way of life so much that they could hardly function.

"We aren't in danger," Uhura assured him, pulling back in order to look him in the eye. "It's Kirk and McCoy, they're here."

"Y-yes," Spock agreed, pinching his eyebrows together. "You are correct."

"Do you want to see them?"

"Please."