Chapter 34- Game Plan
I woke up to what seemed like Hell itself. Unbearably hot, darkness filled with thick, choking smoke, frightening figures dressed in black moving quickly and yelling in the shadows. I might have thought I was in Hell had it not been for the image of the Enterprise floating on the flickering screen. Jim didn't belong here no matter his tendency toward fornication, surely all of the good things he had done would count for something in the end. I held my head up long enough to see another volley of red photon torpedoes streak from the ship and hit the Romulan vessel with a shuddering force that sent everyone scrambling anew; I was almost thankful I was being held into place by my restraints.
I let my head fall and tried to force out the blackness that was creeping in around the edges of my visual field. I was not McCoy, but I knew very well what was going on. There was not enough blood left in my body to supply all of the organs and tissues that required it, so my heart was struggling to pump what was left faster in order to keep up. The brain alone consumes about 20% of the body's energy- the inefficient Hummer energy hog if you will- and it was very resourceful. When faced with a shortage of oxygen and nutrients, it will begin to take non-essential functions offline in favor of parts that control breathing and heartbeat. Unfortunately, that meant the entire neocortex was the first to go since the brain figured that consciousness was not essential to survival. Sometimes evolution doesn't always get it right.
I closed my eyes so I wouldn't have to look at the blood dripping onto my boots nor the unimaginable gaping wound that it came from. If I didn't look, I could pretend that it wasn't that bad, I could believe that if Jim could get me out of here that McCoy could still fix it and put everything back to neat. That was what he did: he worked miracles and pulled off the impossible; he had done it for me before and he could do it again if I could just hold on long enough for my crewmates to rescue me. I knew they would, it was just a matter of racing against the clock. I tried to breathe slowly and remain calm to keep the blood from rushing out any faster and tried not to move too much. I thought of the one person that absolutely exuded peace and centered tranquility: Sulu stayed with me in my mind and I didn't feel so alone. I remained still, borrowing from his quiet strength and visualizing his warm smile. And I waited.
The ship took a particularly hard hit and I could actually hear metal wrenching away from the hull. We seemed to be drifting clockwise from our previous position and one Romulan yelled, "All sensors are down, shields down to 25% and thrusters are offline." None of this apparently bothered Saren, who was too blinded by rage and the thirst for revenge to see that he had no hope of victory. He viciously yelled the order to route all remaining power to the weapons banks and unload on the Enterprise. "Sir, this is madness!" The Romulan desperately protested. "The Federation vessel will destroy us once we drop the remaining shields."
Saren's voice roared in the eerie silence that befell the disabled ship. "Coward! Have you no honor? Better to die fighting in battle than run or surrender to the lowly humans. We will remain to fight until we are no more."
Everything on the ship went black except for the glowing white hull of the Enterprise on the screen. There came a rapid fire blasting sound as each round left the Romulan ship and crossed the distance between them to dissipate into the forward shields with a small burst of light. The shield sparkled and illuminated like the Aurora Borealis as waves of energy were absorbed. It would have been beautiful if I hadn't known that Jim and the rest of the crew were being shaken to bits inside. Despite the heavy assault, Jim didn't fire back. All he needed was one more shot to finish them, but he sat there and took it and this baffled the Romulans as much as it did me.
I flinched when a hand abruptly covered my mouth from around the side of the table. I strained to see in the dark, but I couldn't detect anything. A soft whisper floated to my ear and as soon as I heard the familiar voice I wanted to cry. "Shhhh. Don't make a noise. I vill get you out of here." He slowly and carefully unbuckled the restraints by feel since he couldn't see any better than I and he couldn't risk using a flashlight in the darkness least he draw attention to himself. When he quietly laid the last strap aside he leaned in close to ask, "Can you valk on your own? We have to get to the back of the ship near the shuttle hatch vhere the interference isn't so bad for Scotty to beam us back."
There was an unusual timbre to his voice that I hadn't quite heard before. It was darker, more determined than his everyday friendly pitch and at that moment I saw him in a completely different light. He had bravely risked his life by boarding an enemy vessel to save his crewmate that for all he knew was already dead. There was no doubting that he was anything but a man; he was far more mature and experienced than his 17 years would indicate and I would forever be grateful to him.
He didn't wait for me to answer and he was right to be so wary. The shields on the Enterprise began to flicker and some of the shots got through to damage and mar the pristine hull with ugly, black scorch marks. It was like seeing Helen of Troy with a black eye and if we didn't hurry, the ship could sustain serious damage and put lives in danger. He threw my arm around his shoulder and supported as much of my weight as he could while we tried to quickly but quietly to make an escape.
I could feel the wound reopen wider with every step and the pain made me nauseous, but he kept whispering encouragements that kept me moving toward the goal. When the shuttle bay doors were in sight, he used his free hand to remove his communicator from his belt and flip it open. The screen automatically illuminated to compensate for the dim light, drawing the attention of the Romulans. He muttered something I assumed was a curse word in Russian and began dragging me faster toward the doors. The added strain was too much and I fell to the floor with my head spinning. He doubled back, feet pounding on the metal floor even though the Romulans opened fire with phasers. He grabbed my wrist with one hand and fired with his phaser at the Romaulans with the other while he drug me along with all of his might toward the finish line. I heard him growl a few times, but he kept tugging and firing as fast as he could pull the trigger until we were safely through the doors and he locked them from the inside although it was only a temporary solution.
"Mn ye bowl na." He fell next to me gasping and breathing heavily. His voice sounded pained. The world spun around me and I was barely aware of my surroundings. After all I had waited for, I didn't want to die on the floor of a Romulan shuttle bay, but the darkness was dragging me deeper down and I found I didn't have the strength to fight it anymore. I could faintly hear the Romulans kicking the door in and Pavel yelling, "Scotty! Get us out of here! Spe sheets!" But he sounded so far away even though I knew he was practically laying on me. Then I felt light and I thought that must have been what death felt like. I was dissipating slowly into the universe and it didn't seem such a bad way to go.
Out of the haze, I felt myself pull back together and bright light made its way through my closed eyes. I became aware of a heavy weight across my midsection that was suspiciously similar to what I imagined a 17 year old Russian to be. I opened my eyes and peered through the brightness of the transporter room to see Pavel lying across me slowly stirring and coming to life. He was wearing his black undershirt, a good portion of which had been burned away on his right side revealing a nasty wound that bled freely. I let my head fall back and I closed my eyes, so very tired and thinking it almost funny that we made it this far only to die with our blood mingling on the pad. I should have been disturbed by it, but I wasn't because at least I wasn't going to die alone.
I was brought back around by the sound of footsteps landing heavy by my head and a few light slaps to the face. "Wake up, Collins!" McCoy barked. "Stay with me." I forced my eyes open enough to see him leaning over me with an intense scowl, his eyes absolutely on fire with determination. I tried to force a smile, but nothing happened; I simply had nothing left and my eyes drifted shut again. Pavel groaned in pain when he was lifted off me. "Scotty, get him up to sickbay and tell the interns to get started on him." His voice was drifting further away along with the pain. Everything was peaceful even if I was a little cold. "Goddamn it, Collins!" His voice drifted through the darkness. "Don't you die on me." I didn't want to be part of his body count, but there was really nothing I could do about it. I had gone as far as I could on sheer will. At least I could be satisfied knowing that I died among friends who had tried their best rather than in the company of Romulans.
There was nothing but blackness. Occasionally I could hear voices faintly talking in hushed whispers intermingled with the nothingness. "Bones, seriously man." Jim pleaded. "I get it, but you have to sleep sometime or you won't be worth a damn to anybody."
"Don't lecture me about what I need, Jim." His voice was gruff and irritated.
There was a heavy sigh and the sound of approximately 150 pounds of flesh and bone hitting the floor. A pause and then a female voice commented, "He will be really pissed at you when he wakes up."
Spock didn't sound at all worried. "It was the only logical solution. You were correct about his condition, Captain. Perhaps it would be advantageous to take this opportunity to treat him while he is unconscious and therefore unable to further protest."
Jim's voice sounded weary. "Sounds good, Spock. Help me get him up onto a table."
Sometimes strange thoughts floated through my head. I wondered who would care for my jar of sand if I didn't make it. I was certain it would feel lonely and abandoned. No one could appreciate it as I did. I knew very well that my sand was non-sentient and therefore had no feelings one way or another about my existence, but I couldn't stop obsessing.
"How are you feeling, Pavel?" If a voice could be said to smile, Sulu's did.
"Like I have been shot." Pavel chuckled.
"Yeah, looks like they got you pretty good." He admitted. "But Dr. McCoy says you will be fine. He only gave me a few minutes, but I wanted to come down to see how you were. I will come back when I can spend more time."
"Thanks, Hikaru."
"Anytime, man. You were awesome down there." I didn't need to see Pavel's eyes to know they lit up.
I felt a finger trace its way across the back of my hand and I knew it was McCoy. He would have made sure no one was looking before allowing himself the small indulgence. He was, after all, still on the clock. I assumed he was able to put Humpty back together again, working his magic once more by conjuring up yet another miracle. Rather than add to his body count, I was one he managed to snatch out of the jaws of death against all odds.
I had emerged enough from the thick inky haze of drug induced sleep to open my eyes. The room was dimly lit for the night hours, casting long shadows along the walls of sickbay. I rolled my head to the left to see McCoy fast asleep in a chair next to the bed. His face was etched with worry even as he slept and I wondered how long he had been there. To my right was Pavel, resting peacefully as the monitors around him softly beeped in a steady rhythm.
I winced as for the first time I had to face pain in a fully conscious state. While I was submerged in the darkness, it was an ever present vague sense of unease that existed on the fringes, but now it was an all consuming maddening sensation that burned like fire in my belly. I broke out into a sweat and my heart began pounding harder. McCoy woke with a small jump and reflexively looked up at the monitors before turning his gaze to me. There was a guarded sense of relief in his eyes, but he was still on high alert. He was on his feet with hypo in hand when he bent to whisper, coming so close I could feel his soft lips brush against my ear and the tingling sensation of his breath as it swirled across the sensitive skin temporarily dulled the agony. "You need something for the pain, but none of the non-addictive meds are strong enough for what you need. I will have to give you something heavier. Will you be ok?" I nodded quickly. I just wanted the pain to stop and opiates were never my thing anyway. So long as I didn't take too much for too long, I didn't see myself getting hooked, although it was nice that he remembered and saw to it personally so the rest of the staff wouldn't have to be let in on my dirty little secret.
Thankfully, relief came quickly and I was once again drowsy. McCoy took a few minutes to check on Pavel before returning to his seat with a weary sigh. His eyes were dull with fatigue and he looked as though he hadn't properly slept in days despite his own injuries. It was a struggle to keep my eyes open, but I wanted to talk with him if only for a little bit just to assure myself it wasn't all a dream. "You did it." I slurred lazily. "You fixed me. I knew you would." It was clear by the look on his face he wasn't so sure of himself and a good part of him still expected it all to go to hell somehow.
I didn't remember falling asleep, but I knew I was dreaming when my mind replayed images I knew were old memories. I dreamed of McCoy and I watching the sun rise on the beach and the cool sensation of the sand on my bare feet. The shock and joy that came when Spock smiled over his shoulder at me. The way Jim's eyes lit up when he laughed and small lines that formed at the corner of his eyes. Dancing under the moon and the smell of peaches in the Georgia night air. Uhura's smug smile radiating across the galaxy at Bowman and the way she maintained an elegant style and grace even when she was vengeful that I could never manage. The unrushed stillness of Pavel when he ate and played cards with me every night when I couldn't hear. That one magical moment when McCoy dropped his guard and his eyes revealed his soul for the first time. Scotty's irrepressible good nature and the ease with which he could switch from drinking buddy to saving us by doing the impossible again and again. And of course Sulu, who didn't know that he was able to comfort me while I was on the Romulan ship by his very essence even though he wasn't actually there. There was no pain, no bad memories; just good ones that reminded me of what it was all for.
