3.

"Be careful Sulu, this is what Mr Spock must have caught himself on," Kirk said, pointing out a sharp jagged piece of metal at the door frame. The doorway was so small for humans and it was awkward to get inside.

Once they were both in, Sulu switched a light on and illuminated the room. "It's a tomb, Sir."

There was a small splattering of Spock's blood by the door but no other sign that he had been in the room.

"Where was the lady we beamed aboard, Sir? Where did she stay?"

"Maybe just on the floor. Maybe she... she was moving from place to place, trying to find someone else... so she wasn't alone."

"It's strange we didn't picked her up on the scanners."

"Yes, however the scanners haven't proved very effective recently. I think they may need some fine tuning."

Sulu smirked at that. They had been going down to more and more planets recently that read no life forms that ended up being occupied.

Kirk was looking at a pillar at the end of the room, one that raised out more than the two either side of it, his hand gently touching the concrete. "This whole building is out of place here. The small houses not far from here are basic, not much more than mud huts. And yet here we have concrete and metal."

"Maybe the huts are from a long time ago, Sir."

"It does seem likely. I think we've done all we can here. Let's beam back to the ship and map this area as searched and what we found here. Then we'll search for the largest built up area and see what we find there."

"Aye, Sir."

Spock had showed Lilitu her quarters but had no persuaded her to stay in them and rest. Instead she had followed him around the ship.

He had been unsuccessful in trying to get her to eat and decided the best course of action was to eat something himself and hope that she would join him.

He talked to her telepathically. 'Lilitu, I am returning to my quarters for a meal. You are welcome to join me for food if you wish.'

'That would be good,' she said.

'What would you like?'

She didn't voice anything, but Spock got a strong sense of flesh and meat and as much as it quelled his own hunger, he ordered her something fitting. Spock then ordered himself a Vulcan dish. He lead her to his desk and she sat one side and he the other.

He tried to ignore her as she ate her meal but he got a sense of panic from her. 'I need... ' she didn't know the word to tell Spock what she wanted so she mentally projected to him what she needed. He realised she needed the bathroom and showed her the door a few steps away.

She disappeared inside and Spock was hit with waves of her sickness and fright. The meal she consumed had made her ill. It was logical that she could not stomach human food, just as Spock found it disagreeing with him. But she had a craving for meat and his own Vulcan diet would not her help, even if her readings were the same as his.

She came back through a short time later looking meek and frail.

Spock reached out to support her and lead her to his bed.

Spock woke from a slumber he had not been prepared for.

He tried to remember what happened earlier, why he couldn't recall the usual preciseness and decision making it would take when he decided to retire for sleep. Lilitu was sick, he remembered. He looked for her and found her sitting at his desk, watching him carefully. The thoughts pushed into his mind then, he was tired so he slept. Simple as that.

He sat up, his head protesting as dizziness swamped him. He closed his eyes against the sensation.

He reached out to Lilitu's mind. 'Did I fall before I went to sleep?' he enquired. It might be why his memory wasn't quite recalling the incident clearly. Might be why his logic wasn't so sound.

'No.' she answered, but then he felt a wave of doubt from her. 'Maybe. Not sure. Did not see.' she told him. He nodded in response to her and opened his eyes again. He pushed himself upwards the dizziness not abating any and felt surprisingly weak.

'Are you hungry, do you need food?' Spock asked her.

'I am better.' she told him. Again Spock nodded.

'I need to go and see Doctor McCoy. I will be back shortly. Will you wait here?'

She nodded.

Spock left his room and headed down to sickbay. It didn't seem reasonable to him that he still felt to weak. McCoy did say he'd lost a lot of blood but he thought he'd have improved by now.

"Spock?" McCoy asked upon seeing the Vulcan in sickbay.

"Doctor, a word?" he asked.

McCoy went through to his office with Spock. "Well?"

"Doctor, I was..." Spock started but faltered. "I..." He noticed his left wrist was bandaged and McCoy noticed it for a a split second before his face went blank. "Thanks for coming, Spock. You're in fine health." he said and then walked out the room.

Spock watched McCoy go. Lilitu. He knew she'd done this. She was hiding the truth from McCoy for some reason.

Spock left the office and headed out of sickbay and came across Captain Kirk. "Mr Spock, I've been looking for you. I want you in the landing party. We're going back down to the planet to explore a new area."

"Yes Sir, I shall contact Lilitu and let her know where I shall be." Spock said. He reached out to Lilitu with his mind and conversed with her. She seemed calm and relaxed about him going. He suggested she sleep and she sent a mental image of herself resting in his bed.

Spock waited in the transport room. He peeled the bandage from his wrist to see the damaged skin was still parted, even though McCoy had healed it earlier. It had seeped softly and now he thought about it, there was a pulsing, dull pain in it.

Moments later, Kirk appeared with Sulu and they got on the transporter ready to beam down to a new part of the planet.

When they arrived, Spock almost instantly felt a wave of weakness hit him. His knees buckled slightly and Kirk was calling him and grabbing his arm, pulling him to his feet before he had a chance to say anything.

"I'm quite fine Captain. The transport after the blood loss was a little much for me. Dr McCoy has said I am quite healthy." Spock reassured him.

"Spock, the slight amount of blood you lost should not explain almost collapsing after a beam down."

"Captain, I am quite fine."

Kirk studied Spock for a moment. "Just in case, I want McCoy beamed down here." Kirk said.

Spock nodded.

TBC