Many, many thanks to my awesome beta TheWindowView.
Some of you had questions about Jacek and Grego. I hope this chapter clears it up.
As always, please read and enjoy! All comments are welcome :)
Inside the shelter the air was cooler by about ten degrees, but was still as dry as outside. The lighting was poor and ventilation was nonexistent.
Still, it took very little time to discover why this was the larger shelter. Just under two dozen beds were lined up in the central area, meager monitors and other supplies set up around the occupants. Not all the beds were filled, but at least three quarters were. A few Paladian medical staff walked between the beds, working on different tasks.
The two women hauled their charge up onto a bed and Wena took the time to put restraints on the man's arms. McCoy stepped up to the dark haired woman and the pair began discussing the situation in earnest.
Kirk stood nearby and Sargent made drifted over to him.
"I'm guessing you know him?" Kirk asked, lifting a hand in mad man's direction.
Nia nodded. "Jacek, my cousin."
He glanced at her in surprise.
She caught it and smiled grimly. "He's not usually like that. It was what we call 'heat madness'." Idly, she rubbed her side where her cousin had caught her in a tackle. "Some have hallucinations, visual and audible. Others lose all sense of time, place, and familiarity with loved ones."
"And some get violent." Kirk surmised as he looked back at the man restrained to the bed.
"No." Nia said.
Kirk merely raised his eyebrows as he looked back at her. "No?" he asked.
"No." She said. "All get violent. Some are fortunate enough to collapse before much damage is done. Others –"she paused, not really wanting to admit to this side of her people. "Others have killed."
Swallowing shallowly at the thought of the hundred potentially violent Paladian settlers on his ship, Kirk asked "Is there a cure? Can those afflicted recover?"
Nia sighed. "There is no cure in the truest injection McCoy gave me helps as a preventative measure. A cooler environment, with plenty of food and water for both drinking and bathing can greatly reduce the effects. The madness results from an essential hormone for our brains being denatured in our bodies. Humans get heat stroke, Paladians get heat madness."
The two doctors finished tending to Jacek and approached the group.
As they did so, Nia caught sight of the patient in the bed immediately next to Jacek.
"Grego." She breathed. "Jacek believes him to be dead."
Wena heard her and followed her gaze. "Jacek and his brother have been fighting the madness. Jacek was doing fairly well, but Grego took a turn for the worse. He flat lined and Jacek lost it and ran out of here while I continued working on him." Wena met her friend's gaze. "We almost lost him."
Nia shuddered. Grego was the quieter of the two siblings and had a very powerful personality. Without him, there would have been many times when Jacek would have strayed into trouble.
As it were, he only strayed a few times.
Turning to the captain, Wena eyed the man. "And you are?" She asked.
Slightly taken aback by the blatant suspicion on the woman's face, Kirk stood up straighter. "James Kirk, Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise. I assume you are Doctor Wena Verde?"
Wena nodded. "You assume correctly. So, are you here to rescue us?"
Nia was appalled. "Wena!" She chided her "How can you think otherwise?"
Her friend eyed the captain warily, before answering with a question of her own. "Do you trust them?"
"What?"
"I asked, do you trust them?"
Nia stared at her friend then forced herself to take a step back from the situation. Something wasn't right and Wena needed the reassurance that Nia could provide. Humoring her friend, Nia looked long at each individual, taking extra time on the faces of Kirk, Uhura, and McCoy.
As she did so, Kirk cast a look at Uhura, who nodded in response. Whatever the Paladians were saying, Uhura was following the conversation and would report her findings later.
Finished with her scrutiny, Nia turned back to Wena. Grey eyes met green without hesitation. "I do." She told her, her use of Standard reinforcing the sentiment.
Wena met her gaze unflinchingly and seemed to accept her friend's judgment without reservation.
Kirk was surprised by the noticeable change that overcame the woman, the sudden dropping of her shoulders and the open expression on her face. She turned back to Kirk and held out her hand. Surprised, he shook it.
"I apologize, but things have been rough here. Yes, I am Doctor Verde." She gestured behind her. "As you can see, we are rather desperate for some help."
McCoy stepped forward. "Name's McCoy. I'm the Chief Medical Officer on board the Enterprise." He scanned the room and then looked back at Kirk. His intentions were obvious.
Kirk nodded. "Go ahead, Bones." The two doctors began examining patients before the captain had even finished speaking.
It took time for the Wena and McCoy to make their way to all the patients and for McCoy to do what he could for each one. Admittedly, what he could was much more beneficial than anything Wena had been able to manage.
Once all in the make shift medbay had been seen, Wena asked "When can we start transporting the people to your ship?"
"At any time. We'll start here and get all the sick transported into the medbay." Kirk paused for a moment. "How many settlers are here?"
Wena went still. She opened her mouth to answer the question, but found herself unwilling to expose her failure, her inability to keep everyone alive. She found herself unable to continue looking any of them in the face. She was such a fool.
Nia seemed to sense this and reached out to touch her friend's arm, only to be startled when the woman jerked her arm away.
Heat flared in Wena's face, and Kirk noticed how red the blush was in comparison to the pink that often tinted Sargent's cheeks. The female doctor was saved from answering the question or from explaining her actions when another voice spoke up from behind her.
"There are fifty three survivors."
The answer hit everyone who heard it, even as the speaker was scrutinized.
Nia blinked hard against the sudden tears in her eyes. She'd been warned, by the captain, by Dr. McCoy and even by Spock. She just hadn't wanted to believe the true scope of the casualties suffered by the group of survivors.
There had been eighty seven settlers originally.
Thirty four. Thirty four lives were lost.
So great was her shock that Nia had barely registered the face of the speaker. Not until Kirk asked for the man's name, did she truly take notice.
"Mig." She and the man said at the same time.
The man nodded to Nia. "It's been a long time, Nia."
Her lips twitched into a faint smile. "Yeah Mig, it has. Your hair is longer than it was at the institute." She turned to Kirk. "As you've heard, this is Mig. He was a classmate of mine at my educational institute." She turned back to Mig. "You are a medical technician now, right?"
He nodded. "Yes."
Trying to smile again, Nia said "Your mother must be proud."
She inwardly cursed her words when pain flared behind the man's eyes. "She was." Mig looked at the captain. "Captain, I couldn't help but hear that you are planning to begin transport of the patients."
Kirk studied him for a moment more and then nodded. "Yes we are." He looked over the three medical professionals standing in front of him. "What needs to be done so that we can start doing so?"
There were exactly nineteen bedridden patients to be transported. McCoy grumbled about having a full medbay and cursed the conditions the settlers were in multiple times.
Nia watched Wena take each comment like a blow, and saw the visible relief when the man finally beamed up to the Enterprise with the first few patients.
A few nurses were beamed down and in less time than expected the rest of the patients were prepared for transport.
While the medical staff was working, Nia, Mig, and Uhura went outside to speak with the healthier settlers.
So, so many were exhausted and worn down by their conditions, and quite a few treated Nia and Uhura with suspicion. Uhura's Starfleet uniform seemed to be the biggest deterrent since several Paladians recognized Nia, but there was nothing that could be done about it. A few young mothers were overjoyed though, one nearly flinging herself at Uhura in an effort to thank her.
Nia gained a surprise at one of the last enclosures the trio visited. When she stepped past the opening, a woman with a rounded stomach stepped forward.
"Layla!" Nia gasped.
Both she and the pregnant woman reached out to embrace each other. A Paladian male appeared from a sectioned off portion of the shelter. Nia squealed "Nethi!" and wrapped her arms around his neck too.
The couple shared a look as Nia stepped back. It was a look of hope re-found.
In shock, Nia asked the first thing that popped into her head "When did you get married?"
Layla shrugged. "A near four months ago. We conceived days after." She delicately ran a hand over her abdomen. "You are here to help us, yes?" She asked in Standard.
It was then Nia noticed the wary look both gave to Uhura. "Yes, we are." Nia motioned for Uhura to step forward, and the dark skinned woman did so. "This is Lieutenant Uhura. She is a part of the crew of the Enterprise, the ship that has come as support for the Exeter." Nia told them.
Uhura smiled and promptly gave a traditional Paladian greeting, her hand lightly touching her collarbone as she did so.
The couple seemed to relax when faced with Uhura's earnest smile. Many of the Paladians they came across had responded equally well to the linguist's gesture, and Nia was eternally grateful for the woman's foresight and expertise in Paladian customs.
Mig stepped forward. "A transporter is being used for those in the most need of medical attention. Everyone else who is able will aid with the readying of supplies and equipment for shuttle transport." He then directly addressed Layla. "Due to your condition you will be transported onto the ship. The medical staff will tend to your needs on board."
Nethi smiled at his wife and gripped her hand. "What do we need to do?"
"Begin by gathering your things together." Uhura said. "The captain is assigning teams from the crew to pack up items in the shuttles." Left unspoken was the fact that even the most capable Paladian would not be able to help with the needed tasks for very long.
Dipping his chin in a curved arc, Nethi gave Uhura a Paladian nod.
After that, not much more was discussed before the three left the couple's shelter. Layla procured a promise from Nia though, that the two would sit together and 'catch up' once the excitement had died down.
Only a few more shelters remained, with almost half of the survivors fallen ill or working with the ill.
To Uhura, it felt like little time had passed when the shuttles finally arrived and loading began. To Nia, it was too long. The Paladian was already exhausted and she hadn't helped with any of the real heavy lifting yet. She knew they would need her to, eventually.
At least, that's what Nia thought until someone just as strong as her beamed down to the camp.
Her lips lifted into smile as he approached.
As he neared her, the corners of his mouth folded down slightly. The smile Nia had sent his way was worn and she had begun to look quite poorly. Her hair hung limp around her face in collection of sweat and dust. While she still looked the best of all the Paladians, she still did not look well.
She noticed his scrutiny, but didn't bother asking if she looked alright. Nia already knew the answer to that question. "I'm glad you are here, but don't you have duties to attend to? I know alpha shift is over, but –"
Spock interrupted her. "Clearly the heat has begun to adversely affect you." He said and he took a step closer to her, the fold of his lips increasing slightly. "Aiding the settlers is a priority and as such all, but the most pressing of matters will wait. Sufficient time has passed to address those matters."
"Oh, right." She told him and then shook her head. Grabbing her pack from the ground beside her, Nia pulled out a lard bar and one of the last containers of water in the second pack one of the crew had been kind enough to bring her. "I think I need to sit down for a little while."
Privately, he agreed and followed her into the nearest shelter. She sat down heavily in the now open area.
"You know, it's a good thing my cousin Grego is so paranoid." She took a large swallow of water. "I heard from somewhere that it was his idea to bring the equipment needed to pull ground water to the surface. Wouldn't have mattered if they hadn't found an oasis, but made all the difference since they did."
"Perhaps it is not paranoia, but precautionary foresight." Spock told her, gracefully settling down next to her. He was not yet needed and possessed a short amount of time to spend with her.
Nia chuckled. "We only called it that to tease him. Our family would go on trips and Grego would be the one who'd packed that one little item that made all difference in the world. Our world, I mean. Because obviously we didn't affect the whole world, that just wouldn't make sense." Nia snapped her mouth shut. Perfect. Now he's really going to think you've been affected by the heat. You're babbling. And you still are; only now it's in your head. Just perf-
Her inner tirade was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Vulcan's face all too close hers. She squeaked and leaned back to quickly, knocking herself off balance and rolling onto her back. Her legs were locked together in a crossed position and she was certain she looked ridiculous as she untangled herself.
He didn't say it, but she looked remarkably like a Terran turtle, stuck on its back. He wondered if she was going to require assistance to get up.
Seeing him hovering, Nia tried to pull herself up as quickly as she could. She just barely managed to keep the remainder of her dignity intact.
"You should return to the ship." He stated.
"Maybe." Nia shrugged. She was exhausted, but if she left the settlers wouldn't have a familiar face. Still, thoughts of the ship were tempting. "With all the help the boys are putting into this, I'm going to end up owing them a card game." She frowned. "You too, if you play cards."
"I have played."
That got her interest. "But you don't usually play?"
"I find chess to be of greater intellectual stimulation." He informed her.
Despite the fact she should be pleased he shared that bit of information with her, Nia stared at him. "Chess? Really?" With a small groan, she shook her head.
"Please, explain your reaction." He implored of her.
"I've tried to play chess. Either I don't have the patience for it, or my opponent didn't have the patience to teach me. In either case, it wasn't a great experience." It had ended with her being called 'snippy' before losing her queen. At that point, she realized her partner was merely prolonging the game and not actually trying to win. Nia then threw her king at him. Yeah, definitely not the best experience.
Spock seemed to accept her answer before stating "Then we shall endeavor to provide you with a better experience."
"Are you asking me to play chess with you?" She asked, surprised.
"The recreation rooms have adequate boards. We can play there, if you desire."
He is asking me to play chess. Maybe it won't be as bad as last time. "It is a date." She quipped.
"Is it?" He asked her, head tilted slightly to one side.
She was beginning to recognize the tilt as his 'please explain' look. It took a moment for Nia to realize he hadn't just tilted his head, but had also spoken. "What?" She asked. Her brain just wasn't up to its normal speed.
"Is it a date?" He asked again.
Frowning, Nia thought about it. "I don't know."
A/N: I know, I know terrible place to end it, but at least you have something to look forward to with the next chapter.
Thank you to crusherccme, Tsovy, QHJumper, and Lilena for reviewing. I really appreciate it. Also, thank you to everyone who has added this story to their favorites and/or alerts. I'm glad you are enjoying it.