Chapter Text
A Glass Half Empty or a Glass Half Full
It couldn’t be true. It wasn’t possible. This wasn’t supposed to have happened.
How will I tell Jim…
He had always mocked Spock for his apparent belief to be invisible. And yet, hadn’t he bought into that misguided conviction himself? Before they had set off from the Enterprise, Bones expected that any member of the two landing parties could end up dead on this mission, including himself, but Spock… nah, not Mr Spock. He’d outlive them all with that superior Vulcan body and mind…
How will Jim ever get over it… And me? Well… I…
Bones just wanted to stop thinking. To stop feeling. He had failed Jim, hadn’t he? He had failed the Enterprise… Sarek and Amanda… how could he call himself a doctor? He hadn’t been able to do anything for Spock. He wasn’t worthy of his title.
Bones anticipated the dark well of grief and guilt to swallow him up at any moment now. Would he fight it? Did he even have the strength left to fight? The others… he mustn’t fail them as well…
Movement. It couldn’t be. But he had heard it. He was certain of it.
A quiet noise coming from where Spock was lying reverberated like an explosion in McCoy’s ear and he instantly turned back towards the Vulcan.
“Doctor, Mr Spock is moving!”, Chekov cried out, awaking Scott and Brown from their own dark contemplations.
Before any of them were able to say anything else, Spock was sitting up slowly and blinked his eyes a couple of times. He sat up straight, a look of disorientation flashing on his face. Then, he turned to McCoy who had knelt down next to him, ashen-faced.
“Dr McCoy…”, Spock cleared his throat which felt dry and a little itchy, “are you quite all right?”
Now it was the CMO’s turn to clear his hoarse throat.
“Am I quite alright…?”
“Mr Spock!”
Overcome with joy, Chekov grabbed the FO’s right arm and squeezed it tightly. When his gesture was met by a raised eyebrow, the ensign quickly let go of his superior’s arm, ordering himself privately to gain composure. Mr Spock had risen from the dead! Or maybe he hadn’t been dead after all… Chekov mused. In any case, did it matter? He was alive, and by the looks of it, well.
Scotty and Brown were equally overjoyed and gently patted the Vulcan on his back who endured it with a slightly puzzled expression. McCoy got hold of Spock’s left wrist to measure his pulse. To his astonishment, the Vulcan’s heartbeat was nearly normal again and the regularity of his breathing appeared to be only slightly below average.
“I shall be damned!”, was all the doctor managed to mutter. All eyes were on him now, Brown, Chekov and Scotty clearly expecting some kind of explanation for what had just occurred.
Spock started to stretch some muscles in his upper body, moving his head from left to right and back.
“Judging by your reactions, I appear to have just woken from a long and deep sleep”, Spock offered as a way of explanation.
“Sleep…” McCoy grunted, feeling how his own body and mind came back to life, too.
“If you want to call it like that, Mr Spock, be my guest!”
“As far as we cuid tell, ye were dead, Mr Spock!”, Scotty chipped in, his head slightly tilted, his eyes shining with amazement and relief.
At this Spock rose both eyebrows before a dark shadow clouded his face.
“Yes, I see. My predicament would have appeared to you rather final I suppose.”
Spock had been back amongst the living for only five minutes or so and Bones already felt that irritation was overtaking his feelings of relief and amazement with incredible speed.
“Would you care to explain what the devil is going on, Mr Spock? You were dead a few minutes ago! Unless my fingers” – at this the doctor held up his index and middle fingers of his right hand, gesturing how to take someone’s pulse – “are malfunctioning!”
A heavy sigh escaped Spock, quickly followed by a small yawn. McCoy didn’t take his eyes off the FO so no movement or gesture would escape him. He was certain that the Vulcan wasn’t firing from all thrusters yet, otherwise he wouldn’t have allowed himself to show even the smallest signs of exhaustion.
“Doctor, your lack of understanding of Vulcan physiology and practices has led, unsurprisingly, to rather hyperbolic conclusions. Evidently, I wasn’t dead.”
McCoy was about to respond with some expletives but thought better of it. He had been so disturbed by Spock’s condition that maybe he had been sloppy in his final examination of the Vulcan. But he would swear on his pop’s life that there hadn’t been a pulse or breathing activity when he had examined Spock for what he had thought to be the last time.
“Zat ghost ting, Mr Spock – it heated up ze room, and zen you came to”, the CMO’s confused face hadn’t escaped Chekov who was keen to help explain what had just unfolded.
“Fascinating”, Spock lifted an eyebrow and the dark shadow that had clouded his face disappeared, “Indeed. A significant rise in temperature must have revived my bodily functions.” Turning to McCoy: “Which indicates that I was able to initiate a hibernation trance after all. This also explains why you weren’t able to detect a pulse, Doctor. It would have been too weak for your human fingers to detect.”
Here we go again… Spock reminding us of our human inferiority, Bones thought darkly. His brush with death didn’t appear to have changed the Vulcan in the slightest, he concluded grimly.
“That ‘ghost thing’ you are referring to, Ensign, must have been able to measure my body temperature and deemed it necessary to revive me by heating up the surroundings. A most welcome intervention”, Spock mused, a hint of astonishment audible in his baritone voice.
I’ll be the judge of how welcome an intervention this was, Bones thought sarcastically, a small smile flashing across his face.
“Clearly an entity of high intelligence”, the Vulcan concluded with a satisfied expression.
“Well, Mr Spock, I know I speak for all of us, it’s good to have you back. From wherever you have returned from”, McCoy had stood up to move his tired bones, and also to keep an eye on the Vulcan, who was still sitting on the ground, from a vantage point, “I advise you take it easy for a while until you’re fully stabilised.”
Spock did exactly the opposite and got up, scanning the area for his instruments.
“Doctor, I seem to have misplaced my tricorder”, Spock deliberately ignored McCoy’s last statement while the doctor watched on with a displeased frown.
“That thing took away all our instruments. They’re all gone”, Brown explained, sounding rather resigned.
Bones was just about to admonish Spock for not obeying his advice, when the subject of their conversation appeared by the entrance.
The ghost-like figure lingered for a moment, before tentatively floating a little closer, and then stopping again. It hovered about 10 meters away from the men who finally were able to take a closer look at the being. It was in the dimmest state they had seen it in, still bright, but not painful anymore for humanoid eyes. The white ‘robe’ it appeared to be wearing seemed to consist of pure light. Other than that, there were no other remarkable features to discern apart from the creature’s size, which was around twice as tall as a grown man.
Spock emerged from behind Scott, Brown and Chekov and stepped in front of them, while McCoy watched on from further back.
As Spock stepped forward, he seemed to detect a short flicker in the energy aura that surrounded the entity. He wondered if this was a reaction to finding him recovered. As the being didn’t react further and just remained where it was, he deemed it sensible to take the initiative.
Bones kept a close eye on Spock. When the FO first got up, he had noticed that he was slightly wobbly on his feet. But now, he looked tall and steady again, like his usual self. He faced the alien with his hands clasped behind his back in typical Spock manner. He explained the circumstances that had led them here, stated their peaceful intentions and queried if the being was able to understand them.
The entity’s aura briefly seemed to flicker again. But it gave no answer. Bones wondered if Spock had overloaded the alien with too much information. He decided to bring its attention back to the basics. Confident, he stepped forward and came to a halt at Spock’s side.
“McCoy. My name is Mc - Coy”, he declared with a steady voice, accentuating each syllable, “Do you have a name?”, he added softly with his arms stretched out towards the light-being to show openness.
No answer. Spock appeared to acquiesce to the doctor’s approach.
“Spock. My name is Spock”, the FO offered.
At this, a deep, calm voice filled the room.
“Words limited. I Ro-n-do.”
Scotty, Brown and Chekov exchanged surprised looks. McCoy turned to Spock with an amazed expression. The Vulcan’s eyebrows disappeared into his hairline.
“Can you tell us where we are, Ro-n-do?”, Bones deemed it best to cut to the chase. But no answer again. The doctor pressed his lips.
“We need to return to our starship. Can you assist us in doing so, Ro-n-do?”, Spock added.
“Disruptors. Leave.”
Bones frowned. Why was he getting the feeling the ghost-creature preferred talking to Spock who now turned his head slightly towards the doctor and spoke quietly.
“Fascinating.”
Bones whispered back, “Not sure if we’ll get much out of him, Spock. And I get the feeling he prefers talking to you.”
“Naturally”, the Vulcan responded with a self-satisfied expression which resulted in the frown on McCoy’s forehead getting even bigger.
“Well, maybe you can convince your new pal here to help us get out of here and back to the Enterprise!”, he growled, trying hard not to raise his voice.
“Indeed, Doctor, that is my intention. I wonder if our host would be inclined to agree to a mind meld, since his communication abilities appear to be limited.”
McCoy grabbed Spock’s left arm at this, so that he was forced to turn towards him.
“Spock, you just woke up from a coma! And now you want to mind meld with this creature? God knows what he could do to you. He might fry your brain in an instance!”
“Do you have any better suggestions, Doctor?”
Bones bit his lip. That blasted hob-goblin. Back from the dead for half an hour and already ready to potentially sacrifice himself again. Ro-n-do seemed nice enough so far, but they all had witnessed the amounts of energy the being was capable to generate in an instant. And Spock was still frail from his near death experience. But as he didn’t have a better idea, McCoy acquiesced and took his hand off Spock’s arm.
“Since there appears to be a significant language barrier which needs to be overcome in order to understand one another, I suggest an ancient practice of my people to communicate by connecting our minds. It is neither dangerous nor is it harmful to you. May I proceed, Ro-n-do?”, Spock spoke confidently and without hesitation. If the Vulcan was still in recovery from his recent brush with death, it certainly didn’t show, McCoy noted privately.
When the creature didn’t react, Spock started to approach slowly but determinedly. The other men exchanged concerned looks with one another and watched on with bated breaths. Spock came to a halt in front of Ro-n-do, whose aura was still dimly lit and who remained still and seemingly unfazed.
“I will now attempt the mind meld. Its sole purpose is to achieve an understanding of one another”, Spock explained calmly, “Please allow me to touch you and explore which is the most appropriate point to connect our minds.”
Spock waited for a few moments. Ro-n-do didn’t offer a response but appeared to be anticipating his touch so he reached forward with both hands. As the alien was around twice the size of the Vulcan, he reached into the energy aura at its sides. The moment they connected, the ghost like figure seemed to shrink and bend forward slightly so that Spock was able to reach into the aura above its upper body.
Bones wasn’t surprised to see that Spock didn’t seem to be negatively impacted by the mind meld. Ro-n-do had appeared receptive to the FO so far and seemed to welcome the joining of minds. Secretly, he admired the Vulcan’s guts. This was not the first time that he had undertaken a mind meld with a species utterly different to Vulcans or Humans. And he never seemed intimated by the prospect to do so. On the contrary - Bones knew that Spock welcomed such connections as it offered him unprecedented insights. The Vulcan always strove to learn from, and form an understanding with, alien species. On several occasions his determination to connect with what at first appeared to be fundamentally different and often extremely hostile life-forms, had saved their backsides. And had at times led to very welcome, and surprising, outcomes. With a little smile, Bones fondly remembered the amazing Horta creature. He hoped that yet again Spock’s communication talents would yield equally positive results as they had done on Janus 6.
“D’ye think this thingie can harm Mr Spock, Doctor?”, Scotty asked quietly as he leaned towards McCoy, both men’s eyes fixed on their FO.
“I think it definitely could. But I don’t think it will, Scotty. Otherwise it wouldn’t have helped him. And by the look of things, it appears to welcome the opportunity to communicate”, McCoy responded softly.
The four men watched on while Spock, his hands now resting in the aura around Ro-n-do’s top half, appeared to be in a deep conversation of sorts. Bones couldn’t detect any signs of discomfort on the Vulcan’s face. On a few occasions when Spock had melded his mind with an unknown species, it had appeared to be a painful experience. If anything, Bones felt he could detect a hint of astonishment on the Vulcan’s face. The raised eyebrows definitely indicated as much.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Chekov couldn’t remember the last time he had felt so curious. He was an inquisitive person by nature, otherwise he wouldn’t have ended up in Starfleet, but the events of the last two days or so had taken his curiosity to new levels.
He was sitting on the floor with the others, opposite Mr Spock. The mind meld with Ro-n-do had lasted quite a while and the FO needed a moment to rest, as his body was still slightly weakened from the coma. After the mind meld, the alien had left and they were alone again in the large and still very warm room. A quick back and forth between Mr Spock and Dr McCoy had followed, the latter urging the former to rest. The Vulcan had complied and sat down, resting his back against the warm wall. He was now sharing his knowledge with the others who listened attentively.
Chekov’s mind was racing, eager to finally get some answers – where were they, how had they ended up here, what was this light-being, and most importantly, how would they get back to the Enterprise? Whenever he exchanged a look with McCoy, Scott or Brown, he sensed that the other men were also desperate to get answers to the same questions. Thankfully, Mr Spock gave a full account of everything he had learned.
Spock gave a detailed description of the race Ro-n-do belonged to, called the Strah-leus, and their energy harvesting operations on this planet they referred to as D-JMA. With astonishment, the men learned that the physical conditions below the planet’s surface had allowed them to construct a perpetuum mobile machine, called the Egnaro.
Spock took a deep breath before he continued. What he would reveal now would be the most consequential part of his report.
The limited knowledge the Strah-leus had been able to attain about Vulcans and Humans stemmed from an indirect encounter with Captain Azar and his transporter ship which had found itself lost in D-JMA’s local vicinity approximately 150 years ago. The Strah-leus highly sensitive long-distance communication and scanning devices, which they usually used for data and communication transfers to their home planet in the neighbouring solar system, had picked up increasingly desperate transmissions from Captain Azar to Starfleet. After his two crew members committed suicide, they observed how Azar started to study accounts saved in the ship’s computer library of how the highly logical Vulcan race had dealt with similar seemingly desperate situations. Intrigued, the Strah-leus were able to copy those files with their long-distance scanner. Since encounters with other species were extremely rare they deemed it prudent to study this incident as closely as possible in order to asses if possible future encounters could pose a threat to their operations on D-JMA. The files they obtained from the ship’s library included audio and visual accounts of Vulcan starship captains that had faced, and survived, existential peril.
All of the men were familiar with the famous Starfleet tale of Captain Azar that now was confirmed not to have been a tale at all but an account. A few moments of silence followed as Scott, McCoy, Chekov and Brown digested what this shocking revelation meant: They had indeed, in all likelihood, ended up in a different galaxy – the Andromeda galaxy!
Thanks for breaking the news gently, Spock, Bones thought sarcastically. Would they ever be able to find a way home now? He looked around to get a sense of how his shipmates were taking in this crushing news. Scotty just nodded like he had feared as much. Chekov looked amazed and worried in equal measure. Brown was gazing into the distance with a forlorn stare. All Bones was able to say was that he regretted that Captain Azar had never been vindicated while he was still alive.
Before anyone could get too despondent at what this meant for their prospects of returning to the Enterprise, Spock quickly continued with his account. Ro-n-do had explained to him that by studying the Captain Azar incident, the Strah-leus recognised that they share similarities with the rational Vulcan species but not with the irrational Human race. Hence, they had concluded that it was best to exclusively liaise with him.
McCoy grimaced at this point, but his wonder at what Spock was reporting stopped him from commenting further.
Spock summarised that the Strah-leus were exclusively concerned with the survival of their kind. Consequently, their main purpose now was to bring this situation to a satisfying conclusion for all involved so that they could continue with their energy harvesting operations undisturbed. Hence, Ro-n-do had overcome his initial fear to involuntarily worsen Spock’s condition and decided to restore his bodily functions by heating up the room. To protect the men from the Strah-leus’ powerful energy auras, Ro-n-do would be their sole contact during their time on D-JMA.
“Despite their obvious differences to Humans, Doctor, Ro-n-do recognised a kinship in your display of duty and loyalty when he witnessed your attempts to help me”, Spock concluded his report. The Vulcan turned his head towards the man who was sitting opposite.
Bones frowned at this unexpected revelation and even more so at the fact that Spock had chosen to share it.
“Well, Spock, what can I say? Maybe this experience will help you with ridding yourself of your prejudices.”
“Prejudice is inherently illogical as it doesn’t serve a constructive purpose, Doctor. But if you’re trying to suggest that I will now fundamentally change my conclusions about human behaviour, I must disappoint you. Ro-n-do and his kind share Vulcans’ conviction that Humans are inherently, but not exclusively, irrational and controlled by their emotions. This leaves room for unexpected discoveries to occur, like Ro-n-do experienced earlier, when he realised that even you, Doctor, are able to display pleasantly surprising behaviour patterns, however rarely they might occur”, the First Officer retorted with a somewhat pleased expression.
McCoy shot a glare in Spock’s direction and was just about to respond when Ro-n-do returned, followed by a small, floating, transport craft that came to a halt next to the Vulcan. To everyone’s relief it carried all of the missing instruments, including the damaged Hoffmann 7 probe.
“We will now return to the planet’s surface with our host”, Spock explained coolly as he handed back the instruments to each of the men, “Ro-n-do will take us to a spot at a safe distance from the Egnaro where our instruments will no longer interfere with the machinery and be able to operate normally again. There, we will also find our rucksacks which we involuntarily left behind earlier, which Ro-n-do kindly retrieved for us. We will be able to asses our circumstances and, all being well, devise a plan on how to return to the Enterprise.”
Chekov felt the wonderful sensation of relief wash over him. Finally, he would be able to help with evaluating their situation and assist Mr Spock with formulating an action plan on how to return home. The moment had come on this rescue mission when he could make himself useful. The young Russian felt how his determination made him feel hopeful for the first time since they had set foot on this strange planetoid.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
After travelling back to the surface in an elevator with Ro-n-do, the five men found themselves on the fringes of the gigantic industrial area, just behind one of the smaller cubes on the very edge of the estate. All they could see in front of them was a flat desert that sprawled to the horizon. Ro-n-do had used the little transport shuttle craft that followed him like a puppy to retrieve Spock, McCoy and Chekov’s rucksacks from the spot where they had initially materialised on the planet’s surface. The light-being positioned itself a good few meters away from the men, making himself available to converse with Mr Spock again at any time to help him with evaluating the overall situation. Ro-n-do was shining a little brighter now, but still at a level that was bearable for the landing party. As the sun was about to set and the temperature was getting noticeably cooler, the being provided some welcome warmth. McCoy distributed food and drink provisions to Scott, Brown and Chekov. The three men sat down quietly on the dusty ground, grateful to finally be able to have something to eat and drink.
Before Bones allowed himself to devour a much needed protein bar, he approached Spock who was standing nearby, taking readings on his tricorder which he pointed towards the white dessert sky above him.
“Spock, you need to eat and drink something, too. Can’t this wait?”
“Since we don’t know how long it will take us to return to the Enterprise, or if it will be at all possible to do so, we need to save our supplies. I don’t need to remind you that Vulcans require far less nourishment and fluids than Humans. It is therefore logical that I refrain from replenishing myself at this time, Doctor”, Spock responded calmly, but with a hint of irritation. He didn’t take his eyes off his tricorder once and appeared to be in deep contemplations regarding the readings he was obtaining.
Bones felt too tired, too hungry and too thirsty to argue. He had been ready for quarrelling with Spock but as exhaustion was threatening to overpower him, he decided he would have to let the Vulcan be for the moment. Once he had rested and gathered some strength again, he would see to it that Spock would do the same.
McCoy sat down next to the others. While he was eating, he kept an eye on the FO. The Vulcan was using the different tricorders and instruments they had brought along to undertake a wide range of measurements. From time to time he would reestablish the mind meld with Ro-n-do, evidently to confirm and discuss his discoveries. Bones knew Spock well enough to notice that he seemed impressed by the conclusions he was able to draw from communicating with the light-being. He was obviously in the process of making some major discoveries. McCoy decided to give the Vulcan more time to draw his conclusions as he wouldn’t react kindly to being interrupted by unwelcome reminders to rest. Now wasn’t the time for arguing, Bones decided. The priority was to get out of here and back to the Enterprise and they relied on Spock to make this a reality.
Meanwhile, Scotty, after having refreshed himself with some very welcome snacks, focused his attention on the long distance communicator. After about 20 minutes, he turned to the doctor, Brown and Chekov with visible frustration.
“I cannae get it to work. It seems to function just fine, but I cannae receive a response from anywhere, let alone the Enterprise!”
“I shall be able to explain why that is the case, Mr Scott”, Spock approached the men, and to Bones’ relief, he sat down next to them for a well-deserved rest.
“Aye. I’ve hoped ye’ll be able to shed some light onto this, Mr Spock”, the CEO replied.
Spock took a deep breath before he started with his report. There would be a lot for the men to process.
“Gentlemen, as we have already anticipated, this planetoid is indeed located on the outer edges of the Andromeda galaxy”, the FO explained, “When I conversed with Ro-n-do he was keen to point out that the Strah-leus suspect a connection between our appearance and Captain Azar’s within, from their perspective, a short time period. For eons they have encountered no visitors on this planet apart from some displaced space seagulls that were led off course by a solar storm. And yet, since the Egnaro has become operational and increased their energy production capabilities by a thousandfold, two such incidents have occurred. I was able to measure that the machine is producing far more energy than the Strah-leus are currently able to harvest and store. As a result, they are producing colossal amounts of superfluous energy that is released into the atmosphere. During the 300 years the Egnaro has been operational, this waste has formed a dense energy cloud 29,090 km above the planet. When the right physical conditions are met during intense solar storms this region in space is experiencing every 70 years, a wormhole appears within this waste cloud. Although the Strah-leus were suspecting that this ‘cavity in space’, as they call it, might be connected to their energy production activities, they didn’t seem it worthy of further attention as it doesn’t present a threat to their operations.”
Spock paused to give the others an opportunity to speak. The men exchanged amazed looks.
“I’m nae surprised that this Egnaro is working kinda’ too well”, Scotty mused with a bewildered look, “What a shame that we cannae replicate it as the physical conditions of this place don’t exist anywhere in our galaxy. Imagine the warp speeds we’d achieve with unlimited energy supplies!”
The Scotsman shook his head in wonder. Bones had to smile at the dreamy look on their CEO’s face. No doubt Scotty was imagining the impossible scenario of the Enterprise’s engine room being equipped with a mini-Egnaro.
“Since it produces the rather inconvenient byproduct of a wormhole, it’s a good thing that it can’t be replicated, Scotty”, McCoy chipped in. There was a good reason why the physics of their world didn’t allow for PMMs to exist.
“Aye, Doctor! Oh ye seekers after perpetual motion, how many vain chimeras have you pursued? Go and take your place with the alchemists”, the Scotsman recited with a long sigh.
“Leonardo da Vinci, 1494. Very apt, Mr Scott”, Spock responded after having raised an eyebrow first.
“You still need to explain why we can’t use the long distance communicator, Spock”, Bones could sense from the rather inpatient looks on Chekov and Brown’s faces that it was time they focused on the most pressing matter. He could feel how he was becoming more restless by the minute himself. It was great to gain a better understanding of the strange and unique world they had found themselves in, but at the same time, it made him yearn to get home to their own reality as soon as possible.
“I won’t bore you with the details, Doctor, but to summarise, the specific composition of our wormhole means that only the Hoffmann 7 probe is able to send compatible electro-magnetic radio waves that are able to penetrate through to the other side. Regrettably, our long-distance communicator is not able to transmit on the specific frequency required”, Spock concluded as he turned his head towards Scott.
“Aye. We’ll fix that tin can, Mr Spock. Thankfully you and Mr Chekov brought a nice set of tools with ye’s.”
“I suggest you, Mr Brown and the ensign focus on the repair, Mr Scott, while I shall endeavour to calculate our exact coordinates which are required for the Enterprise to beam us back. Time is of the essence, gentlemen, as we don’t know when the wormhole will disappear again.” Spock switched his tricorder back on to continue his calculations. Scotty, Brown and Chekov quickly followed suit and got to work on the Hoffmann 7 probe.
Bones knew he couldn’t be of much help to his shipmates right now and he hated feeling useless. When Spock looked up momentarily from his tricorder, he noticed the rather forlorn look on the CMO’s face.
“I suggest you get some rest, Doctor. If your assistance is required, we will let you know.”
Bones could feel how exhaustion was washing over him again. Spock was right. The best thing he could do at this moment was to rest.
“Once you’re done, Spock, please do the same”, was all McCoy was able to respond as tiredness was quickly overpowering him. He leaned his back against the wall of the cube they had been sitting in front of and closed his eyes.
The only audible sounds while Spock, Chekov, Brown and Scotty were busy with the tasks at hand was the humming of their instruments and Dr McCoy’s gentle snoring.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
When Bones awoke he was disorientated for a moment. He was still leaning against the cube wall. But now he was surrounded by darkness. He could hear someone breathing next to him and he turned his head – Brown and Chekov were also leaning against the wall, evidently in a deep sleep. He looked around to get his bearings. Ro-n-do was no longer around and the only light sources he could make out were a few small glowing rocks nearby that had been heated up to provide some warmth and a couple of tricorders and torches a few meters away from him - Spock and Scotty were still awake and were engaged in a quiet conversation.
McCoy got up and a long yawn escaped him as he stretched his limps. He noticed a small red light at the horizon which was slowly becoming bigger, gradually illuminating the dessert in front of them. The sun was rising. Bones felt rested and he was keen to find out what the others had been up to in the meantime. As he walked over to Spock and Scotty, he could see that they were still engaged in repairs of the Hoffmann 7 probe.
“What’s going on? How long have I been asleep?”, McCoy asked as he sat down next to his shipmates.
“Morning, Doctor”, Scotty mumbled while he appeared to solder a sheet of thin metal at the top of the small probe. He was deeply concentrated and didn’t look up as McCoy sat down. Spock was providing some light with a small torch.
“4.5 hours, Doctor, to be precise”, Spock responded, his eyes fixed on the probe and Scott’s fingers, “I take it you are rested and refreshed?”
“Thanks, Mr Spock. I am. I could kill for a cup of freshly brewed coffee though.”
“Aye, me too”, Scotty looked up with a satisfied grin. Spock responded with an appreciative nod. Whatever the chief engineer had just done, it appeared to be to both men’s satisfaction.
“You two don’t look like you got any rest, though”, McCoy noted while he was checking the remaining food provisions in one of the backpacks. He took out two energy bars and held one each towards Spock and Scott. The Scotsman took it with a grateful look while Spock didn’t move.
“Come on, Spock. You gotta eat something!”, McCoy growled under his breath, keen not to wake up Brown and Chekov.
Scotty nodded in agreement and directed an encouraging look towards the Vulcan. A small sigh escaped Spock’s lips but he took the bar. Bones thought he was detecting gratefulness in the FO’s eyes. He gave the two men a few minutes to eat before impatience and curiosity finally got the better of him.
“Care to fill me in what’s going on?”, McCoy nodded towards the probe, “Have you been able to repair it?”
“Yes and no, Doctor”, Spock responded and Bones detected another small sigh from the Vulcan, “We successfully repaired the short circuit the probe suffered after Mr Scott had sent the first message back to us on the Enterprise. We were then successful in sending another message to the ship to confirm that all of us apart from Lieutenant Monet are still alive.” Before the FO could continue, he was interrupted.
“And then the bloody tin can decided to fry itself again!”, Scotty cut short Spock’s report. The Vulcan raised two eyebrows.
“I doubt a non-sentient machine can make such a decision, Mr Scott.”
“And I’m telling ya it can, Mr Spock! It’s a spiteful little thing, probably holding a grudge because I kept it in storage for so many years and we never used it!”, Scotty shook his head, shooting angry looks toward the innocent looking probe in front of them. While Spock looked unimpressed Bones had to smile. He was convinced that Scotty truly believed every word he just said. For his friend, the Enterprise with all her engines and instruments was a living being just as much, and maybe at times even more so, than the next woman or man.
“A highly illogical assessment, Mr Scott. Some of its sensitive components got indeed ‘fried’ as you’ve put it during the beaming process. And earlier, the sending of another message evidently overloaded its processing unit.” Spock explained dryly.
“If our lives didnae depend on that dagone thing, I’d happily overload its processing unit voluntarily!”, the CEO spat out with conviction.
McCoy chuckled at this. How refreshing that, for once, Scotty was having to deal with Spock’s inability to share human frustrations.
Hearing that they had been able to send a message to the Enterprise to confirm that the five of them were alive was wonderful news and Bones happily let the relief about such progress wash over him. With delight he listened to Spock and Scotty’s further exchanges about their differing beliefs regarding Hoffmann 7’s true motivations. But then it suddenly dawned on him that he hadn’t asked the most important question yet. The doctor held his hands up to interrupt the back and forth between the FO and CEO.
“What about our coordinates though? Did we manage to send those before it broke down?”, McCoy suddenly felt anxiety rearing its ugly head again. If they hadn’t, and the probe was continuing to play up, their prospects of returning home were bleak.
Spock and Scott turned quiet and Bones immediately sensed that something wasn’t right.
“Yes, Doctor, we did. Our exact coordinates were transferred alongside confirmation of the surviving landing party members.” Spock explained slowly. Bones could tell right away that he was choosing his words carefully and this didn’t bode well. This wasn’t all. Spock was holding back some vital information.
“So, when can we expect to be beamed back, Spock?”, McCoy didn’t care if he sounded anxious and irritated because he was!
Spock and Scott exchanged a serious look and Bones could detect dread in both men’s eyes.
“I think it’s time now to wake up the laddies”, Scotty sighed and got up. Bones watched him walk over to Chekov and Brown. What in blazes was going on?
McCoy could see clear concern in the Vulcan’s eyes and was shocked that he didn’t even attempt to hide it.
“Doctor, we are able to send one more reserve emergency message before the probe will shut down for good and become irreparable. This final message will convey the time we will agree on for the Enterprise to commence the beaming process. It will also communicate the odds I’ve calculated for us to be successfully transported back through the wormhole.”
“Which are?”, McCoy felt the blood rush to his head now.
Spock looked at him with such a serious expression that Bones felt his heart sink.
“There’s a 50% chance that beaming back to the Enterprise will be successful.”
“So the other 50% mean…?”, Bones didn’t dare to bring the thought to an conclusion.
“Certain death.”