22.) Air
Something as simple as breathing can often be taken for granted, that is until your ability to do so is threatened. On a planet it wouldn't be too much of a problem, but on a starship, it was a truly deadly situation if it wasn't resolved quickly.
Limping back to Earth, worrying about having breathable air was just one of many problems he had to worry about. Unfortunately the engineering department was swamped keeping the Enterprise flying and what few systems they still had from crashing. No one could be spared to fix the air re-filter, as it was only slightly damaged and could wait until the ship was more stable.
After being kicked off the bridge to get his injuries treated by Bones, Jim decided a quick detour was in order. A half-hour later the air re-filtering system was as repaired as he could possibly manage, a very good thing considering a surge of power could have completely fried the system at any moment.
When he finally showed up in medical, Bones showed his gratitude that he still had air to breathe by using it to snarl and snap at him in a rather thick drawl. As a hypo was gently pressed into his neck, Jim knew his friend would still be there when he woke up, he could breathe easy for more than one reason.
Written: 7-9-2011
Word Count: 227