Chapter XIX - It's time to face the consequences
Finally, Kirk decided he should return to Earth. There was nothing he could do for Spock here, and his more responsible side informed him that he must accept the consequences of his actions. Scotty had finally completed repairs on the Klingon ship, although it still looked like it would fall apart when coming out of orbit. But if Scotty said she could get them to Earth, he would take his word.
His friends received the news with enthusiasm, even Bones, who was recently released from the hospital. Spending months in a coma did nothing for his mood, he still was a grumpy old country doctor. In a way, Bones was the one who could vaguely understand how he was missing Spock. After all, he spent months with the other's mind melding with his. None of them wanted to leave Spock behind now that it seemed obvious that he would soon recover, but being practical, aboard a stolen ship filled with criminals wasn't the best way to return to Earth.
None of them had discussed what would happen when they returned. They knew they would face court martial, but didn't want to think about the possible punishments. In the situation they were in, just doing something crazy like saving the Earth (again) could save them from the sanctions. What a pity that no super powerful entity was about to attack the planet, at least as far as they knew. This would be a good opportunity to get them rid of the problems.
Anyway, the day of the departure had arrived. And they weren't even allowed to say goodbye to Spock. The training that Sarek imposed to he was rigid and didn't provide a break to give a final goodbye to friends for what could be a long time. Or even forever if Scotty had made some wrong calculations and the ship burned in the atmosphere, but Scotty wouldn't make a mistake. Well, not too big of a mistake.