"Sit down there," Bones ordered. Alex plopped down on the bed gratefully, knowing that she wouldn't have been able to argue even if she had wanted to. Blood seeped through her uniform in a large blotch, staining the rag they had been using to stem the flow. He picked up the utensils he needed and turned back to her. "Remove your shirt, please." It hadn't even registered to him that Spock must have disarmed the bomb, considering the Vulcan was nowhere to be found.

Alex tried, but the searing pain from her shoulder forced her to stop. McCoy cursed. "What I thought." He quickly cut around the wound, removing what he could of the cloth so he could work without hindrance. Unfortunately, quite a bit was melted into the wound. "Damn fabric." Why was it made out of some plastic substance? What idiot decided on that?

"This is going to suck," he told her. He yanked the fabric from her wound, piece by piece. She winced, but Bones found himself impressed that she didn't cry out or struggle- she'd give Spock a run for his money in this situation. "Who were those people?" he asked, hoping that the conversation would keep her awake.

"Apollans," she told him quietly. "They're with the Klingons."

"That was some nice fieldwork there; you made Scotty squeal with delight."

"Thanks."

"I'm literally cutting your clothes off you. Don't thank me quite yet."

"I've only known you for a day," she said, smirking lightly at the insinuations.

Making jokes. This was good, Bones reflected, as a sign that she wasn't in incredible pain, and good for him that they could talk in this manner. "Knew my ex-wife for an even shorter time." She laughed and then cut herself off sharply when it made her shoulder jerk. "Yeah, don't do that."

She didn't answer to that.

All the fabric was gone around her shoulder and in, at least what he could visibly see. "Time to clean it." He dumped some thick liquid onto a fabric cloth and warned her, "This is gonna hurt like hell." Then he wiped it on the ragged flesh. "But it almost always prevents infections and other problems."

"Almost?" Good response, Bones thought to himself.

"Sometimes it makes them worse."

Her face paled. "Like the vaccine earlier?" She didn't like his side effects- they seemed almost pointless for preventing disease.

"Worse. But it almost never happens. You're good. Stitch time."

Alex flinched but kept her shoulder still with every needle puncture. She appreciated that Leonard was making the treatment efficient, comfortable, but still professional. And then Kirk crashed into the room, bellowing Alex's name.

Leonard jerked with noise, tearing a new cut. "Damn him- sorry! I'll fix that, too-,"

"You hit all those missiles?" Kirk demanded, halting in front of Alex.

Bones whipped around. "Out, now! You can talk to her later!" Kirk blinked, taken aback. He had seen his friend serious, but never angry. "Go talk to Spock- he disarmed a bomb left by the Apollans."

The Captain left immediately. Leonard whipped back around to his patient, scowling. "You've quite the authority," Alex remarked.

Bones shook his head and bent back over her wound, making sure his stitch-work was flawless. He sure wasn't feeling professional, not with the thoughts flitting through his head; he couldn't stop thinking about her smooth skin and her pain-glazed, beautiful golden eyes. "Kid needs to be put in his place."

A few seconds of silence. "Finished." He patted her back lightly. "Take it easy here for a while, until I give you the all-clear."

Alex breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn't experienced any of the extra effects. Watching the doctor move swiftly away, she leaned forward, placed her head on the hand of her good arm and closed her eyes, thinking. She hadn't been expecting that move by the Apollans. And if she knew them well enough, she knew that her cover was blown; within the next few days they'd work to their advantage and get her and Mia off this ship. And that meant mission failure for saving Faunus.

"Alex?"

Her eyes snapped open and she looked up at the girl. "Mia!" Next to her stood another man, Chekov, she thought, who was talking to Spock.

Mia cast a glance back at them. Once she was sure they weren't listening, she asked, "Are you alright? Did they say anything?"

Alex shook her head. "But I have a feeling we'll be discovered because of them. I don't know what to say. Just keep the mission in mind and move forward; if it comes out then it comes out. Maybe we can still convince Captain Kirk to continue this mission."

"Uhura?"

"No. But to get Spock on our side we have to-,"

She broke off. Spock had stepped forward. "Ms. Wade, on behalf of the ship I would like to thank you for your honorable deed." He had already thanked Mia. "Once you are recovered I believe the Captain would like to converse with you, and we all would appreciate sharing knowledge of this space system."

Alex inclined her head. "Of course, Mr. Spock. But not until Dr. McCoy gives me the all-clear. I suspect he will have your head, otherwise."

"Or my ears, as he has threatened before."

Alex laughed. Mia bowed to Spock and Alex. "Please excuse me. I need to attend to my post."

Spock nodded. "I shall return, too. Mr. Chekov, your presence will be requested as well." The Russian jumped but nodded, running off to the Bridge with Mia and Spock close behind. The brief chaos in the sickbay was coming to a close. And now a eulogy was to be expected from the Captain, just a quick memorial to sustain their memories until they received a proper burial on their home planet.

Alex noticed Bones shooing Kirk out of the medical bay into the lift, obviously getting into an argument with him. "Pike was a terrorist!" She heard snapped in a hushed voice. Kirk wheeled on the doctor and said something into his ear too quiet for her to catch. Bones' eyes went wide for a second. But before he could shout something back Kirk hopped into the lift and was gone.

And then Scotty appeared. The Scotsman stared at Bones and then ran past him to Alex, hoping to put in a few words before the doctor pushed him out. "That was some nice maneuvering, lass! Might I say that I'm impressed?"

"Only if I can say that not everyone can hold their own in a stand off; you have some calm nerves, there, and a good shot."

"Aye, well, thanks!" He decided that telling her it was Keenser who had shot would be detrimental to her impression of him. "But we'll need ta discuss the weapons on board. I'd say we're a bit short now. What do ya suppose we bring back?"

She blew a breath out. "I suppose some advanced heads. And maybe another timer. But, if it isn't too much to suggest, I'd propose a few winged shuttle heads be brought on board. They're much easier to handle."

"They've the in-flight controls, right?"

"Yes!"

"Well, we'll put Keenser on tha' right away!"

"Scotty, I'm going to have to ask you to return to your post. Sorry. Captain's orders for the unwounded." And Bones sounded genuinely sorry. Alex glanced around, conscious that the only people wounded were her and the Apollans. Everyone else was lost in space or walking fine.

Scotty looked at the doctor and nodded. "Well, tha's fair enough. We'll see you both aroun', then." He didn't look back when he exited the sickbay, but his mind did linger on the asset the Enterprise had just gained in the form of a trigger-happy lass.

When he was gone Bones glanced at Alex. "My prophecy was right. Give it two more days and we'll have another crisis."

"I'd say I hope not, but after the accuracy of your first statement I won't fight it." She tried to stand, but Bones hurried to her side and forced her back down. "I have to return to my post-,"

"You're excused. You lost a lot of blood and need to take it easy." He looked around as if he weren't the person in charge. "I suppose I can shorten your stay, though. Let me bring you some food while you lay down for an hour, maybe an hour and a half."

"What am I supposed to do for that long?"

Bones shrugged. "Explain to me why you have that sword at your side." But he left without waiting for a reply, off to find food and water for her, possibly some juice.

Alex closed her eyes briefly, but all she could see was the mine collapse. Shaking her head, she opened them and stared at the pearly floor. Bones returned with arms full of various snacks and drinks; he sat down on a chair next to her and handed across a can of Brisk. "Here you are."

"Thanks." She took it and popped it open. He did the same, except he had a can of cold beer.

"For the nerves," he explained when she glanced at him with a raised eyebrow. "Drink up." Alex smiled. Both lifted the cans to their lips and drank deeply, concentrating on the cool rather than the heat of the ship. Normally it was frigid aboard starships in order to keep the equipment from overheating, but with the adrenaline of battle they found themselves sweating. "So, your sword."

"You were serious?"

Bones looked at her. "How many people do you know carry swords with them? Guns, maybe. But swords?"

"I suppose." She paused for a few moments, thinking. "Well, despite the Apollans' advanced weaponry, Faunus is still relatively primitive. Swords and muskets are our means of defense, but even the Apollans like to use them for sport. It's a battle-driven system, this place."

After taking her words into consideration for a few moments, he tossed her a bag of chips. "Eat up, too. I suppose that's reason enough. How often do you use that at home?" His dark eyes sparked with curiosity.

Alex felt her face get a bit red as he watched her, but she couldn't tell if that was from blood loss or not. She opened the bag and began eating slowly. "I use it mostly to harvest in the gardens. If someone tries to break in I don't hesitate, but that's a rarity for my house."

"Why is that?"

"I have a pet of sorts," she vaguely answered. "Just scares away most." Or all. Ghost was nothing to scoff at.

He was silent before accepting the answer. And that's what Alex decided she liked the best about this man- he didn't read too much into things. It was much easier to just accept things, she gathered from him.

And Bones found that he liked the mysteriousness about this woman. He wouldn't pry, of course, because that was rude, but he wasn't afraid to ask the questions he could. She was comfortable to talk to. And she was the first to not protest his medicines; that always earned bonus points with Bones. Not to mention her face was easy to look at.

But he didn't let those sorts of things get too far into his mind. He just kept telling himself he was making a patient comfortable. It made everything easier. They talked for twenty minutes, and then Bones decided he had better go and attend Kirk and make sure he hadn't done anything that had nearly got himself killed.

"Hey, Leonard," Alex spoke up as the doctor left. Bones halted and glanced back, wondering what she had to say. "Thanks." He nodded briskly and then continued his journey. Perhaps there was a small jump to his step. Or perhaps that was just how he normally walked- Alex hadn't really studied him before then. But she couldn't imagine that man happy for anything.

Kirk stared at Uhura. "What? Are you serious?"

She stared at him. "Would I have abandoned my post for any other reason, Captain?"

He expelled air through his mouth. "No. But I wish you had. So the attack was just a small form of fun? There's more to come? The Enterprise will sustain irreparable damages if we stay too much longer in the system?"

Mia listened intently to the conversation whilst appearing to be completely engaged in everything Chekov was explaining. She did feel bad for using the Russian in this manner, but she steeled herself against it and told herself that once everything was done she could truly get to know him.

Uhura showed her exasperation in a nod. "This isn't some joke, Jim. I can play you the message back and have Spock translate it, too, but it'll be the same. If we don't leave the system soon the Apollans plan to attack us with everything."

"What does Scotty say about this?"

"I haven't told him anything- I thought that the Captain should be the first to know." Mia agreed with that.

Kirk sighed and bent his head, blue eyes staring down at their feet. "Get Scotty up here, and as soon as Bones lets us near our new member get her up here, too." He shifted. "I suppose Spock is kind of needed, too."

"I'll assemble them."

"Thanks."

"So what's ze first zteep?" Mia jerked out of her eavesdropping, staring blankly at Chekov. He frowned. "I thought so. Vat are you so focused on? Is there something I can help you vith, so that you can focus on thees?"

Mia opened her mouth and then shut it. Guilt pierced her. Even though she hadn't been paying him any heed he was giving her all the attention in the world, taking his trainee incredibly serious. But she owed Alex more. "No, I'm sorry. The first step is the thrusters, right?"

Relief broke across his face. "Yez! And then?"

She hesitantly began, "The-,"

And then Kirk interrupted them. "Ms. Mia, may I please speak to you?"

"Yes, Captain!" She stood and sprang over to him, glad to get away from Chekov's impromptu test. The Russian turned back to the ship. There had to be a way to speed up the process of repairs, but he found his fingers hesitant to touch anything in case it made something worse.

Jim motioned her closer. Uhura watched with slight alarm as she bent forward and he whispered in her ear, inaudible for Uhura, "What gun did Jon Pike use?"

"A-92, if I remember-," She froze. And then she backed away, staring at Kirk as if he were a viper. He grinned.

"Gotcha." He looked back at Bones, who had just walked in the door. "Hey, could you bring Alex up here for me?" The doctor didn't say anything; he simply glared at Kirk for making him walk all the way up only to turn around and go back down. "Thanks!"

Uhura tapped Kirk on the shoulder. The captain turned around and answered her unasked question with, "Maybe I'm not so crazy." The woman's eyes met his. She then nodded and retreated back to where Spock was trying to fix the shattered computer screens. A sinister feeling had planted itself in her stomach. Maybe the Apollans were just the beginning.

Alex stood and glanced around to make sure no one was watching her. When she decided that the few cadets milling about the area were only double-checking the supplies and had little to do with her, she took off to the lift. Her mind was set on finding Scotty. As soon as she reached the lift, Bones stepped out of it.

She halted, staring at him with a deer-in-headlights expression. He stared evenly back, face lined with exasperation. "Up so soon, without my permission?"

"Sorry."

"Sorry to be caught." He gruffly corrected, and then shook his head but then motioned all the same for her to follow him. "The Captain would like to speak with you. For better or worse. He's more antsy than two ferrets in a bag."

Alex glanced at him. "Is that a common practice, where you're from?"

He shrugged. "I suppose like your sword. A form of sport."

She nodded and then looked about the lift, half expecting it to have changed appearances since she had last been in it. It hadn't. But the atmosphere had changed considerably. Maybe it was just Alex, but the air seemed a bit more tense than when Spock had accompanied her. Of course, that had been before the Apollan attack. So there was probably good reason.

The doors opened and they stepped out. Bones inwardly scolded himself for letting the elevator ride be so awkward- but he told himself that it was only to be expected. After all, when was the last time he had spoken to a woman that wasn't Uhura? A rush of excitement greeted them and whisked away all his self-pitying thoughts.

"There's the lass!"

"Ms. Wade, the Captain is this way."

"Dr. McCoy, glad to see you've joined the party."

The small group showed Alex and Bones to where the Captain was regarding Mia, arms crossed across his chest. He nodded at Alex. "Thank you for what you did against the Apollans."

"Anyone would have done it," Alex dismissed.

Kirk shrugged. "Try telling Scotty that. But, please, if you would be so kind as to tell you everything you know about the Apollans. Lieutenant Uhura intercepted a message that contained information regarding the Enterprise as the target for a, all-out attack."

Alex tilted her head. "Were you able to discern the reason why?"

Kirk looked at her with a long, thoughtful gaze. "I suppose they feel threatened by any sort of Star Fleet presence, just as Earth would with Klingon presence."

"That would make sense. If they stick to their traditional means of attack, they'll very likes use advanced long-distance torpedoes, some new lasers, and probably some small, more manipulative starships. Size enough for a crew of two or three." Her golden eyes steadily held Kirk's azure gaze. "I suggest we figure out a plan of defense or negotiate with them before hand."

"And why shouldn't we just run?"

That made Spock join their conversation, instead of standing quietly like he had been so inclined to do so before. "That would directly violate our orders."

Alex looked at them, a shadow crossing her face. "What exactly are your orders here?"

Kirk answered, "To explore Faunus. Star Fleet is interested in its variety of animals and plants, and seeing as it is not officially under any one international force, it was thought that exploring was not a problem."

"So now that you know this is a hostile place, are you going to contact Star Fleet? I'm sure they'll relent the orders if this is made clear," Alex pointed out.

Spock turned to Kirk. "I would agree with Ms. Wade. We need to contact Star Fleet."

Kirk shook his head. "Not an option."

"For what reason is that?" Alex and Mia wished that Kirk would tell Spock the real reason why- that it was all for a promise made to a terrorist. The expression Spock would make would have been priceless.

"Ms. Wade, you are dismissed. Go plan with Mr. Scott the best way to go about our continued presence here."

"Captain." Alex turned and went off to the other side of the room where Scotty was describing with vivid facial details his experience during the attack.

Mia watched her go, trepidation filling her stomach. Kirk turned to Mia, winning smile on his face. "Would you care to tell Spock how you two first met? How we first met? And that's an order."

Spock looked between them, dark eyes bright. "I do not understand, Captain. Ms. Mia and I met when she first came aboard the Enterprise to work under Ensign Chekov."

Kirk gave Mia a long, hard look. She looked around, hoping to find some sort of distraction or inspiration. No such luck. "We met in Iowa. I saved the Captain from Jon Pike's gun, and after I subdued him and you took over I escorted Captain Kirk out of the farm."

Kirk smirked at Spock. Evidence. The Vulcan merely stared at Jim. "You have molded Mia to support your mental illness."

"What- no, Spock. No!"

Relief pounded through her body. Spock turned and opened his mouth, calling, "Dr. Mc-,"

"No!" Kirk slapped a hand across the Vulcan's mouth. He glared at Mia. "Keep telling him."

Her heart fell. There was no getting out of this. "I erased your memory." Spock's eyes widened. "It was part of my orders."

That was new information for Kirk. "Who gave you those orders? And why only Spock's memory, and not mine and Jon Pike?" His brows furrowed together, waiting for the girl to reply.

"I am not allowed to say who. But it was to get you to come to Faunus- please, listen to me. Faunus needs your help. And if you need any more evidence to support your cause, look into the indigenous species of Faunus. I think you'll be alarmed."

Kirk put his mind on hold briefly to gloat to Spock. "See? I have no mental illness."

"I think that is the least of our worries, Captain. Shouldn't we begin planning our next move?" Mia agreed with Spock, but she remained silent, afraid that she would be pinned on treason against Star Fleet. But Kirk had decided to dismiss that. After all, he had broken rules to save a planet from destruction, so to punish someone else for it would have been a bit on the hypocritical side.

"Yeah. For now, we need to focus on what repairs we can do." He looked around the broken ship, concern lighting his eyes. "After Scotty and Alex get back to me we'll decide whether to stay and fight or run. Spock, why don't you look into Faunus' native population, too?" The Vulcan nodded and went off. Kirk watched him go and then turned back to Mia, face blank as he thought of what to do with her. "I'm going to alert Chekov to all this, and he'll keep an eye on you. Unfortunately we can't spare anyone right now."

"Thank you."

"Yeah. Don't mention it."

She moved away and Kirk turned back to the windows where Faunus was becoming a distinctive hue of green in the distance. But Apollus was only a white dot. He closed his eyes, trying to calm his own nerves and set his priorities out. Jon Pike was last on the list. He had to protect his own family, first.

Hope you guys are liking it. Thank you to those who have stuck with this for so long! I need to buy Microsoft Word for my new computer, so I'm thinking I'll wait to update until then; I'll let the ideas formulate a bit, and then we'll crash through the rest. So I'll see you guys again in maybe a week or so. Thank you, again!