November 2255
Soft music filtered through the library as several first year cadets clustered around Arianne, all wishing her a happy birthday and luck on the first group Bridge simulation test the next day.
Grateful to have survived another year, Arianne snuck a gaze over at the librarian and was grateful to see that the librarian had merely slapped on a pair of soundproof earmuffs and was allowing the party to continue. The first years had the entire place to themselves, after all.
Normally, a party wouldn't be permitted at the library but Jim, with his charisma and charm, had talked the librarian into allowing them a "study party", which just happened to have music.
Of course, as it was a study session, there was a table filled with study PADD's and food, yet nobody felt like actually settling down and hitting the books. When it came to a Bridge simulation test, not much could be learned from the books anyway, as it was more of a hands-on class.
Arianne watched for a moment as Cadets Finnegan and Mitchell tried to talk Gaila and Nyota, who were clearly not interested in them, into sharing a dance. She then moved over to a set of chairs near a pod of computers where Jim sat with his casted feet resting on a padded stool.
After about two weeks of riding in a hoverchair, Jim had put up such a fussy tirade about being an invalid that his ankles had been put in walking casts just to shut him up. Now, despite feeling a lot better with his other injuries healed and the many bruises gone, he still wasn't allowed to be on his feet anymore than necessary. Therefore, his activities were severely limited.
"I'm so annoyed with Bones right now, Arianne," Jim lamented. "He's been such a workaholic ever since Puri gave him hospital shifts to help him practice the crap he's learning in class. He even kicked me out of our dorm earlier so that he could get some undisturbed sleep beforehand."
Arianne managed a wry smile, "Hey, Jim, do you wanna go outside for a minute?" she asked, her tone nervous. "It's great that all of you put this party together for me, but-"
Jim's crabbiness quickly vanished and was replaced with concern, "Ah, your party anxiety," he stated, painstakingly getting to his feet. "As long as we're back in time for Captain Pike to bring the cake over, I don't think anyone will miss us..."
Just then, Finnegan wandered over, "Jim, you GOTTA come help me talk Uhura into a dance, buddy," he moaned, aggravated that Mitchell had gotten Gaila to dance with him.
"Oh no, I'd rather kiss a Romulan than try and talk to Uhura," Jim replied, remembering that the last time he had tried to talk to Uhura, he had ended up in a bar fight against five cadets.
Finnegan sighed mournfully, "Ah well," he lamented. "Anyway, Jim, you leaving already?"
"No, Jim's not going, we're just going outside to get away from the crowd for a minute," Arianne replied in a gentle tone. "You know how I hate parties, Finnegan, but you and Jim-"
Arianne was suddenly cut off by phaser fire and she turned around just in time to see the librarian slump over the desk, having been shot. A moment later, black-clad figures entered the commons.
"ALL CADETS LEAVE NOW!" a gruff voice shouted, brandishing a phaser rifle.
Terrified, nobody moved for a moment and then in a flurry of chatter, the group quickly moved towards the door. Jim and Arianne moved forward, but were stopped by one of the figures.
"Cadet Kirk, you can go, but Cadet Pike cannot," a gravelly voice said, grabbing Arianne's arm.
Hearing that Arianne would have to stay, the other cadets suddenly stopped and despite murmured threats of harm from the figures, they focused their attention on Arianne and Jim.
Not wanting his only true friend to be harmed, Jim shoved the figure away, "Get away from her," he snapped with a grim determination in his voice. "I won't leave my friend behind."
The figure pulled Arianne close and as Jim lunged to grab her back, he saw movement and an object suddenly being thrown in the direction of his head. Arianne let out a scream.
As the object hit his head and he fell into blackness, Jim heard shouting and more phaser fire.
Relieved that there weren't any urgent patients flooding the halls of Starfleet Medical that evening, Leonard found himself sitting at a computer in the staff lounge, studying for upcoming exams.
Exams weren't until the middle of December, yet Leonard found it easier to study material bit by bit and then allow his brain to process it properly. Of course, he wasn't one who LIKED studying, however, it was an enjoyable activity in comparison to attending a party with his fellow cadets.
There was suddenly a loud crackle, "Doctor McCoy, to the supply room please." the voice of Dr. Puri sounded over the intercom. "We've got to go out on a field call right away."
Letting out a sigh, Leonard saved his work and closed off the file. He rose, quickly stretched, and moved out of the hallway. It didn't take him to reach the supply closet, the door to which was open.
"Doctor Puri?" Leonard asked, uncertain of whether or not to enter the supply closet.
Almost immediately, Dr. Puri came out of the closet with his arms full of medkits, "There was some sort of cadet study party at the library that was disrupted," he explained, handing some of the medkits to Leonard. "Nobody knows who the attackers were, but there's quite a few injuries."
Leonard nodded, "Are we going to be bringing anyone back here?" he asked, concerned.
"Only if the injuries are severe enough to require hospital treatment," Dr. Puri replied as he shut the closet and they began hurrying down the hallway with the medkits. "Captain Pike and the rest of the instructors are already there and Security's questioning everyone about what happened...We need to round up as many nurses and other medical personnel as we can."
Gritting his teeth, as he had hoped for a quiet night, Leonard continued following after Dr. Puri.
Noise flooded the library as instructors quickly separated the more seriously injured cadets from those who were just overcome with terror about what happened. The dead librarian had been removed from the scene and would be sent to Medical for an autopsy later.
While the instructors worked to keep the injured cadets calm until medical help arrived, Captain Pike and Security busied themselves with trying to get information about what happened.
Most of the cadets were too terrified to talk, but Finnegan and Mitchell were awed about Cadet Kirk's brave attempt to halt the attack and quickly grabbed Captain Pike's attention.
"...What do you MEAN they took Cadet Pike for no apparent reason?" Captain Pike hissed, giving Finnegan and Mitchell angry glances as he stood off to one corner with them and heard their recounting of the incident. "If the attackers were after Cadet Pike only, why was Cadet Kirk taken?"
Finnegan shrugged, "Cadet Kirk tried to fight them off from taking her and he got a heavy object thrown at his head," he recalled. "After that there was a small explosion and when the smoke cleared, the attackers were gone with both of them. Mitchell and I..."
"Yes, I know what you and Mitchell did," Captain Pike said, holding up a hand to stop the shellshocked cadet from talking too much. "Did you and Mitchell talk to Security already?"
Suddenly looking nervous, Finnegan flinched, "Mitchell and I have been too busy, sir," he replied.
Before Captain Pike could reply, he saw a stream of men and women clad in both medical and cadet uniforms enter the library led by Dr. Puri and Leonard. They all were carrying med-kits.
"From what I've been able to discern, Doctor Puri, the cadets were having a bit of a study birthday party for Cadet Pike when they were suddenly attacked by some unidentifiable assailants," Captain Pike explained, angry to hear that someone had taken his daughter for no reason. "When they tried to take Cadet Pike, Cadet Kirk intervened..."
Horrified that Jim had been involved, Leonard interrupted before he could stop himself, "Sir, do you know the current location of Cadet Kirk?" he asked, ignoring Puri's shocked glance.
"Both Cadet Pike and Cadet Kirk are currently missing," Captain Pike explained in a solemn tone.
Dr. Puri suddenly glanced at Leonard, "Doctor McCoy, you take half the group with you and go attend to the minor injuries," he ordered briskly. "I'll take the others with me and treat the majors."
Realizing that he wouldn't be able to find out anything about Jim until after the chaos had died down, Leonard nodded and, yelling an order, he led some of the cadets towards the minors.
While the medical responders and Security dealt with the situation, Chris moved off to an area that wasn't overrun by cadets. He needed just a moment to hope that everything would be all right.
What felt like hours later, Jim felt a cool hand touching his face, "Jim, wake up," a soft voice said.
Suddenly feeling intense pain in his head, face, chest, and back, Jim opened his eyes and found that his wrists were bound together and upward by heavy, tight bindings that were attached to a ceiling chain. He saw Arianne beside him, also restrained, but with one hand worked free.
"It's okay, Jim, I'm here," Arianne said, her voice shaking as she rubbed his face. "You woke up once about eight hours ago and tried to fight...After they tied me up, they tortured you."
Gasping as heavy pressure shot across his shoulders, Jim shivered, "Where are we?" he asked groggily. "Did we...are we at the underworld base of Section 31?"
"Yeah, I think we are," Arianne replied as she worked to free her other hand from the contraption that was holding her captive. "I know what they want from me...I'm prepared to endure it."
Coughing anxiously, Jim almost choked, "Y-You c-can't," he rasped. "It'll kill you this time."
"No, Jim, I can survive it," Arianne stated firmly. "You, on the other hand..."
Just then a door slid open and footsteps could be heard, "Ensign Pike, are you prepared for the testing to commence?" a female Vulcan voice asked.
"I am prepared as long as you keep your promise concerning Jim," Arianne replied in a monotone voice, knowing that she had to lock away all fear inside of her if Jim was going to be set free.
There was silence and more footsteps, "Release Cadet Kirk and beam him back to his dorm," a gravelly voice said. "Ensign Pike has provided the co-ordinates already."
"A-Arianne, don't," Jim gasped, his voice shaking uncontrollably, suddenly feeling more pain as he felt the bindings being unlocked. "D-don't LISTEN to her...you c-can't."
"Give Cadet Kirk a sedative," the female Vulcan voice ordered. "He can't betray us that way."
Before Jim could protest or muster the energy to fight back, he felt a hypo being pressed into the side of his neck, "A-Arianne," he gasped, feeling his world fading to nothingness.
Letting out a sigh, as the previous night was so overwhelming that all cadets had been given the day off from classes, Leonard stepped out of the shower and quickly dressed in his med uniform.
He moved over to the mirror and picked up the electric razor, prepared to shave away the beard that he had used as a shield to get him through the beginning of his new life. Since last night, Leonard had realized that with all of his old life behind him, he had better ditch the beard too and grow up.
As of 0400, there had been no word concerning the whereabouts or conditions of either Jim or Cadet Pike and Captain Pike was no doubt working overtime to find something, if anything. It was nearly 0900 now and all comms systems were triggered to alert the whole campus to any developments.
The number of injured cadets actually requiring hospitalization was surprisingly few and Dr. Puri had a few cadets working shifts today so that Leonard could rest or study if he wanted to.
Until the cadets were found, Captain Pike had declared the entire campus on Red Alert Lockdown, which restricted off-campus travel to everyone but him and the instructors. Admiral Archer had also been notified of the situation and was doing everything he could to help search.
Wondering what on earth he was going to do with his time since he couldn't leave the dorm and was no longer tired, Leonard moved back into the sitting area and suddenly heard weak coughing.
Inclining his ear, Leonard waited and a moment later, there was more coughing and from what he could determine, it was coming from the direction of Jim's sleeping area.
"Jim?" Leonard asked, quickly grabbing his emergency medkit from the corner shelf.
There was weak, incoherent mumbling and then silence.
Frowning, Leonard moved into Jim's sleeping area and his jaw dropped, "Jim?" he asked, shocked by the fact that Jim, who was still wearing his cadet uniform, was sprawled across his bed on his stomach and shuddering violently. His face was swollen and his eyes were closed.
"...run, can't let Kodos kill anyone else," Jim mumbled, unaware that Leonard had pulled out his medical tricorder and was scanning his body. "...That's enough...no more...stop..."
Without any warning, Jim's body jerked violently and he vomited on the carpet, "..let so many starve...so many died...she shouldn't have to take it just for me..." he moaned in a quaking voice.
"Jim, it's Leonard," Leonard hissed, gently placing a hand on Jim's arm. "What happened?"
Jim was silent for a moment, "...Bones," he gasped, his voice a whisper. "..Where am I?"
"You're in our dorm," Leonard replied, appalled at Jim's horrifically unstable vital signs.
As if fighting some invisible force, Jim tried to move but was unable to lift himself, "...They're holding me too tight, run while you still can." he moaned. "...Before they get you too..."
Raising an eyebrow, Leonard quickly moved over to the communications terminal on Jim's wall and sent a message to Captain Pike to contact him immediately, as it was an emergency.
There was instantly a buzz, "Cadet McCoy, this had better be important," the tired voice of Captain Pike sounded out over the audio feed. "You know we're in a Red Alert Lockdown."
"Sir, it's about Jim," Leonard replied, keeping one eye on the trembling Jim. "I came out of my dorm shower this morning and found him laying on his bed on his stomach...He's disoriented and possibly in the beginning stages of shock...He also puked on the floor."
Leonard heard some swear words and muffled orders, "Okay, I'm going to have an orderly from the hospital lock on to his signal and beam him over-" Captain Pike's voice said.
A loud whimper suddenly could be heard and Leonard turned around just in time to see Jim pull himself upright and attempt to stand on his walking casts. Swearing under his breath, Leonard moved away from the comm and placed his arms under Jim's arms to keep him from falling.
"Have to save her," Jim gasped, trying to pull out of Leonard's grip. "She got me out of there."
Leonard kicked Jim's blankets off the bed, "You need medical attention, Jim," he grunted, quickly unbuttoning Jim's cadet shirt and tossing it on the floor, revealing masses of colorful bruises and strange burn-like cuts all over Jim's shoulders and back. "What did they DO to you?"
"F-Feel sick..." Jim gasped as pain shot across his shoulders and down his back. "Bones..."
Nodding, Leonard gently lay Jim down on the bed so that he was laying on his stomach, "There, try and take a deep breath if you can," he said in a soothing tone. "Captain Pike-"
"I'm sorry...Captain Pike...I couldn't protect her," Jim moaned, scared that he was going to be booted out of the Academy by Captain Pike for not protecting Arianne. "...Don't kick me out..."
There was silence for a moment, "McCoy, use whatever you have in that emergency medkit of yours," Captain Pike's voice ordered. "I'll have a medi-shuttle sent over to your dorm instead."
"Any word on Cadet Pike yet?" Leonard asked, quickly placing blanket's over Jim's back to keep him warm and comfortable until the medi-shuttle got there.
"Not yet," Captain Pike's voice replied in what sounded like a tone of solemn defeat.
Suddenly feeling a panic in his chest about Arianne possibly dying, Jim turned a violent shade of green and threw up on his pillow, "C-can't breathe," he moaned. "So much pain..."
"Screw the medi-shuttle," Leonard snapped. "Beam us both to Starfleet Medical NOW."
There was silence, "Hang on, don't do anything impulsive," the voice of Captain Pike stated in a concerned tone. "I've already sent a priority message to Starfleet Medical and they've dispatched a medi-shuttle to your dorm...It should arrive shortly."
Letting out an annoyed sigh, Leonard gently lifted Jim and pushed the vomit stained pillow off the bed, "Just gotta hang on for a few more minutes, Jim," he said, laying his friend back down.
Jim mumbled incoherently and grabbed Leonard's hand in a weak grip, "Stay," he whispered.
"I'll notify Admiral Archer and meet you both at Starfleet Medical," Captain Pike's voice replied, as he could hear that Jim was trying his best to hold on to consciousness. "Pike out."
Gritting his teeth, Leonard continued to hold Jim's hand, hoping that everything would be okay.
Around noon, Finnegan and Mitchell were out for a jog around campus, despite being ordered to stay in their dorms per the rules of Red Alert Lockdown protocol. They were bored and needed distraction from memories of the horror that had taken place the night before.
Their fellow cadets still hadn't been found and the thought of them never being found was so troubling that both cadets had left their dorm and were now evading the Security patrols.
Almost immediately, Finnegan noticed that he and Mitchell weren't the only ones breaking the rules due to sheer boredom: a male officer, who was dressed in full uniform, was lingering near the fountain, humming a strange tune as he stared at the grass in deep thought.
"Oy, you there, laddies, what are you doing out of yer dorm?" the man asked, suddenly looking up and noticing the two cadets. "Ye should be where it's safe, not out in the open."
Mitchell chortled, "We're bored to tears being shut up in our dorm," he whined. "Jim and Arianne haven't been found yet and they're our friends...We feel helpless sitting around doing nothing."
Nodding in understanding, the male officer turned and, gazing out at the desolate campus, he suddenly tensed up, "Laddies, there's something in red walking across the north lawn."
Suddenly seeing what the strange officer was seeing, Finnegan swore, "Oh, crud, that looks like Arianne from what I can see," he hissed in an anxious voice. "We should get over there."
Before the strange man could reply, Arianne, who had been relieved to see that people were around that were obviously Starfleet, made her way over to them, her body trembling despite being in a cadet uniform. She looked shaken and unsure of herself.
"Come here, lass, you've been missed," the man said, gently pulling the shaking cadet into a hug to help her feel safe. "Yer father has been mighty worried about ye."
Arianne gently pulled away, "Who are you?" she asked, giving the man a strange look.
"The name's Montgomery Scott, I'm a cadet here," the man replied. "Are ye all right, lass?"
Blinking, Arianne let out a sigh, "I'm so tired," she stated in a dull voice. "I just want to go see my father and maybe get some sleep...My legs feel so heavy from walking."
Before anyone could stop her, Arianne slowly sank to the ground and leaned against Montgomery's leg for support, "Just call a med-shuttle so I can get some sleep," she muttered, closing her eyes and using the strange cadet's leg for a much needed pillow.
"Get going, Finnegan," Mitchell barked. "Alert Captain Pike and get a medi-shuttle..."
Worried that Jim would never be found, Finnegan nodded and took off running. Mitchell gazed down at his fellow cadet that was now sound asleep and had an almost relieved look on her face.
On the other side of San Francisco, a cloaked figure approached a shuttle that was on the edge of the airstrip of an abandoned municipal airport with a large metal suitcase in hand.
There was a moment of quiet and suddenly, a Vulcan elder dressed in a dark robe descended the boarding ramp and moved over to where the cloaked figure lingered.
"Do you have the samples ready for transport to Vulcan?" the Vulcan elder asked, extending his hand for the suitcase. "I trust the subjects did not struggle like they did on Tarsus?"
The hooded figure lowered its hood, revealing Commander T'Pol. who, since the decommissioning of the Enterprise NX-01, had worked on scientific studies of select subjects for study on Vulcan, "One of them did, Soval, but he was dealt with sufficiently. While he was unconscious, samples were taken and then released because the other negotiated his freedom."
"Watch your emotion when around anyone that knows of the attack," Soval stated as T'Pol handed the suitcase to him. "My hope is that Section 31's carelessness in capturing the subjects will not be discovered by Starfleet and traced back to the Vulcan Science Commission."
T'Pol gave a brief shake of her head, "They will be sufficiently dealt with, I assure you," she replied in a tone that carried much malice. "How long until a complete analysis can be undertaken?"
"A detailed analysis of all of the samples of each subject will take some time," Soval stated. "There are different reasons why James Kirk and Arianne Pike were chosen out of the many candidates we could have selected for analysis...Their vague personal histories is one of them."
"I will continue to observe the subjects from a distance," T'Pol stated. "As more time passes or if there are peculiar findings from the samples, there may be reason to conduct further testing."
Soval nodded and silently gripping the case, he made his way up the boarding ramp.
As the shuttle closed up and departed, T'Pol turned and walked back up the empty airstrip.