Operation: No Return Chapter 35 Blood Fever Part IV, a star trek: 2009 fanfic

Author's Note: In Chapter 35,Spock fights against a feeling of despair in his desperate effort to find a way to revive Uhura from her unconsciousness, after she has suffered physical trauma as the result of the Vulcan's pon farr state. Spock thinks of a plan to save her, but he unexpectedly must first learn a lesson from Diarmuid before he has any chance of seeing her, again.

The author knows it will disappoint some of you, but she has no intention of rewriting Chapter 34. If you stay with the story, you will learn why the dramatic arc has been set in such a fashion. The writer promises, the "sweetness" you desire will one day come (perhaps, sooner than you think).

Yes, the author knows she has left most of you "hanging" for the last two weeks. However, she decided to deal with grading final exams and calculating semester grades before returning to our favorite twosome.She has been writing like a "crazed woman" for the last four days and will have two chapters posted this week. A third chapter will possibly be available by the end of next weekend. She wisely is no longer pretending she can wrap up the entire story by Christmas. However, these upcoming chapters primarily concern Spock and Uhura, so she hopes that will be enough enticement for you to come along for the rest of the ride (even when T'Lau and Sevat return for the final episodes).

One last note, the Vulcan words and phrases the writer has used in many of her chapters primarily come from the web source – "The Vulcan Language Dictionary." If you Google those words, you will find it easily.

As always, your comments are appreciated.

A gentle whisper . . .

Nyota . . .

Please . . .

Wake up . . .

She was floating . . .

Drifting . . .

On top of the waves . . .

Far out to sea . . .

No land in sight . . .

Nyota . . .

Water . . .

Nyota . . .

Surrounding her . . .

Please . . .

Lapping over her body . . .

Wake up . . .

Pulling her back under . . .

Wake up . . .

Into the deep . . .

Nyota lay in the bathtub . . .

Held up by Spock's arm . . .

The water . . .

The water still showed signs of . . .

Blood . . .

Her blood . . .

There . . .

For him to see . . .

Despite the fact he had bathed every inch of her body . . .

The blood . . .

Her blood . . .

Remained . . .

There . . .

In the water . . .

An unrelenting sexual orgy finally satisfied his all consuming lust for her . . .

But . . .

The cost was great . . .

For her body shut down in an attempt to protect itself . . .

Leaving her to drift in a sea of unconsciousness . . .

Too far away . . .

Much too far away from him now . . .

And, the madness that had burned inside him . . .

Still had a hold of the Vulcan . . .

Despite what reason told him he should do . . .

The Blood Fever . . .

The Blood Fever would not allow another to be with her . . .

Look upon her . . .

Touch her . . .

Not yet . . .

Even if it meant saving her life . . .

And, as a lone tear from the Vulcan's eye fell upon his Ashayam1 . . .

Spock struggled to find a way he could possibly reach her . . .

Index and middle fingers upon her carotid artery . . .

He counted the faint beats that confirmed his visual assessment . . .

Barely alive . . .

She was barely alive . . .

Had to reach her . . .

Had to bring her back to him . . .

But how?

How could he reach her?

How could he save her?

And, it finally came to him . . .

Kash-nohv2 . . .

Despite his biracial heritage, from a very early age Spock displayed a capacity for the mind-meld technique that surpassed that of most other Vulcans. After passing his rite of passage into manhood,3 his father arranged for him to study and refine this ability under the tutelage of his people's elders. Considered an act of great intimacy, the procedure was not to be taken lightly. While mind-melds with humans had been previously initiated in rare instances, they were still considered quite dangerous for these subjects since Terrans had neither the discipline or training to take on the full onslaught of otherwise restrained Vulcan emotions.

Spock, himself, had never before attempted a mind-meld with a human, not even with his former lover - Leila Kalomi. So, secretive was he about this practice, he never even mentioned to her he had this ability. And, while the Vulcan understood the risk involved to be great, he believed this to be the best opportunity he had to retrieve Uhura from her unconscious state.

The water dripped down from her body as he lifted her up from the bathtub. He shielded her from the coolness of the air by pressing her against his warm, bare skin as he carried her into the adjoining room and laid her upon the plush towels he had placed on the bed. He quickly wrapped her body to stave off a chill. For a few moments, he beheld her delicate brown face. It was this face of innocence and virtue that fed his resolve to conduct the kash-nohv, despite the risks to the both of them.

Placing the fingers of both hands upon the meld points of her face . . .

He recited the words of the ancients . . .

"Nahp,hif-bituthroks."4

Closing his eyes . . .

He called to her . . .

"Nyota . . ."

"Nyota, I come for you . . ."

"Nyota . . ."

He called to her one more . . .

"Nyota, your man comes for you . . ."

And then . . .

A bright light . . .

A bright light blinded him upon entry . . .

He waited . . .

And waited . . .

Prepared for her thoughts to join his . . .

But she could not be found . . .

She could not be found . . .

"Nyota . . ."

He called to her . . .

"Nyota . . ."

No answer . . .

There was no answer . . .

"This could not be . . ."

The Vulcan told himself . . .

"I cannot be . . ."

"Too late . . . "

Deeper . . .

He willed himself to go deeper into her mind . . .

Against the blinding light . . .

"I must go deeper . . . "

"I must find her . . . "

"Nyota . . . "

He called to her, again . . .

"Nyota . . . "

No answer . . .

Then despair found passage to him . . .

And, the Vulcan began to feel its fatalistic grip upon him . . .

Pulling him down . . .

Away from the light . . .

Down . . .

Into the darkness . . .

Into a deep melancholy that threatened to overtake his soul . . .

For reason had spoken. . .

He could not save her . . .

Hope was gone . . .

Too late . . .

And, now probably too late to even save himself . . .

As he was seemingly locked in a mental limbo from which he could not find the means of escape . . .

Then . . .

Unexpectedly, the reality of this dreaded fate served to sober him . . .

He told himself . . .

"If this is the end, then I will choose the last thoughts upon which I will ponder until my mind is no longer at my command. And, if I imagine a place where Nyota and I were most content, perhaps, she will find her way to me."

At the House of Diarmuid, Spock sat at small rectangular table amidst the din of patrons filling the teahouse. Wearing a burgundy pique shirt and charcoal pants, he glanced at his chronometer as the Teahouse Manager brought a full tray to the Vulcan's table.

"Do you think she'll come here?" Diarmuid asked.

"We must be patient." Spock replied. "Punctuality for social occasions has never been one of her strong suits."

"I recall the last time my girl was here she was with that Vulcan know-it-all . . . uh . . . Semat . . . Selat . . . "

"Sevat." Spock corrected him.

"And to top that, for some bloody reason I have yet to figure out, you were keeping company with that b***h."

"T'Lau."

"Like I care to actually know her name."

"I believe it would be helpful to have some clarity in regards to the cast of characters to be in agreement on their identities."

"You knew who I was talking about."

"It seems you have used that pejorative quite liberally in regards to the women I happened to have brought to the teahouse over the years."

"Look, Spock, I've known you longer than most people would care to admit, so I can tell it to you straight."

"Tell me, Diarmuid, has there ever been a time when you have actually held your tongue?"

"Stop for a minute with your smart mouth and just listen to me."

"Do I have a choice?" The Vulcan quipped.

"I've got to tell you I've never been much impressed with your dalliances, which for the most part can best be categorized as one night stands. That is, of course, with the exception of Nyota. In such a small package, she's certainly a whole lot of woman."

"Diarmuid, have I ever told you that you are quite a wordsmith?"

"Not that I can recall."

"There is a reason for that."

"Are you going to behave?"

"Are you going to keep talking?" Spock retorted.

Diarmuid glared at the Vulcan, before he continued. "As I was saying, Nyota is a whole lot of woman. She's bright, sassy when she needs to be, and has a good heart. Yes, a heart big enough even to make up for the one you lack!"

"Have you completed your commentary, yet?"

"And, as a bonus, that girl is quite easy on the eyes."

Spock suddenly looked away from Diarmuid as if trying to deduce the possible the meaning of the phrase.

Diarmuid remarked, "You Vulcan bonehead, it means she's attractive as all get-out."

"As all get-out?" Spock echoed. "Diarmuid, is it at all possible for you to speak standard Federation without adding your nonsensical phrases? It would definitely aid our ability to communicate."

"Argh!" Diarmuid cried out. "I tell you if Nyota would give me just one sign . . . just one little sign . . . I'd take her for myself and wouldn't be fool enough to ever let her go."

"It is indeed fortunate Nyota is far too intelligent to ever let that happen."

"Maybe so, but since she was insane enough to get mixed up with you, I can't help but think I might have a chance or, at least, someone else would have a chance to treat her the way she deserves."

A now somber Vulcan again looked to his chronometer and then to the door that was still void of her presence.

"Not here, yet, eh?" Diarmuid asked rhetorically. When Spock did not readily answer, the Irishman added, "Why don't you just make her appear like the rest of us?"

"That which is one's katra or what Nyota might refer to as her soul is not a product of my imagination. It is her very essence. Nyota has to want to be here. If I try to force her, it would be an act akin to rape."

"So, you mean our girl ain't coming? We're not going to see her, again?"

"I don't know."

Silence.

"Hey! What's that you're doing now?" Diarmuid challenged him. "Staring with regret at a closed door, when you should be looking for another one that surely is opening up for us."5

Spock reflected on the statement for a few moments and then spoke from his heart. "It is true . . . Nyota's tender feelings toward me are unmerited. Her love for me is, indeed, a mystery I have still not been able to understand. Yet, although I may find myself in this enigmatic state, I am most grateful . . . most grateful she has bestowed these precious gifts upon me."

Diarmuid stared at him with a skeptic eye. "Haven't we already heard this before? Are you not replaying your pitiful declaration of your unworthiness to be the recipient of her affections? I tell you, Vulcan, this sound does grow tiresome."

"You mock these sentiments, because they are alien to you." Spock contended. "You do not know what you speak."

"Now, look who's calling the kettle black! You think you know about love just because she so freely gives it to you? Listen, Vulcan, it's not a pedestrian sport. You can't just live vicariously through her feelings for you and not give anything back."

The Vulcan's eyes flashed with anger at the indictment. "Nyota knows how I feel about her."

"Are you so sure?"

"Is she not my woman? Have I not come to claim her?"

"She's not a possession, Spock. Something you can pick up at the lost and found. You've got to be willing to let her in. Let down those barriers that keep her from finding out who you really are. A girl like that can show you help you find the answers . . . that is, if you're willing."

Silence.

And, then the Vulcan fought in vain to suppress the fear lodged deep within him, as he quietly confessed, "What if she does not like what she finds? To lose her . . . to lose her would be . . . unbearable."

"There is no shame in having lost at love. The shame is in not having loved at all."

"I do love her." He said with great yearning. "I swear I love her with all my heart."

Diarmuid's face broke out into a wide grin. Then he remarked, "So, why are you wasting your breath telling me? She's the one that ought to hear it."

"Hear what?"

For a moment . . .

The Vulcan was taken aback by her sudden presence . . .

He rose up from his seat and took her in with his eyes . . .

The sight of the petite East African woman with the warm inviting smile . . .

Gave him much comfort . . .

For she . . .

His Nyota . . .

Had finally arrived . . .

Diarmuid took a couple of steps toward Spock and whispered in his ear, "And, this time, Vulcan . . . don't f**k it up!"

Author's Note: In Chapter 36, Spock and Uhura undergo several rounds of verbal and sexual play within the Vulcan's imaginary teahouse world. The author already has most of the chapter written and plans to post it within the next 24 hours.

Your comments are always appreciated.

1 The word is Vulcan for "Beloved."

2 The term is Vulcan for mind-meld.

3 Known as the "Kahs-wan."

4 The Vulcan phrase translates as "Your thoughts, give them to me."

5 This is a paraphrase of one of my favorite quotes by Alexander Graham Bell – "When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us."