Star Trek XI -- "Green Fields and Blue Skies"
Written for picfor1000, this image.
a rescue mission and a quick jaunt into the mind of one Jim Kirk
Green Fields and Blue Skies | G | 1000 words | complete
The captain is unresponsive when Spock finds him, eyes wide and staring. He is propped against the wall of the laboratory, head lolling, like a child's abandoned doll. Considering the experiments Kirk's captors performed, Spock finds the comparison overly emotional but apt.
A quick visual scan indicates that the captain likely has no physical injuries, and Spock lifts the captain into a fireman's carry, leaving his dominant hand free to hold his phaser; the lab seems to be abandoned, but Spock will not allow his vigilance to waver. He carries the captain to the meeting point, where the rescue team has gathered the original away team. They are all alive, though injured. It would be an acceptable outcome if not for the memory of the captain's blank eyes.
"Lieutenant, call for beam-up," Spock says, his phaser still trained on the hallway. He hears the lieutenant speaking, then feels the ice water rush of beaming, and then they are in the transporter room on the Enterprise, loud and crowded with medics and returning crew.
"Talk to me, Spock, what's the captain's condition?" McCoy says, appearing with an anti-grav stretcher.
Spock lowers the captain to its surface, though he is illogically reluctant to let go. "He appears to be physically uninjured, but is unresponsive. There may be mental or psychological trauma."
"Morgans was saying something about the Preolia being interested in Jim's latent esper abilities," McCoy says, running a scanner over Kirk's body. "Damn fool. They'd broken all the bones in her hands, and she's still worrying about Jim."
"Lieutenant Morgans is a competent and conscientious security officer," Spock says. "It is her duty to put the captain's welfare before her own."
"Right," McCoy says, tone derogatory. "Well, he seems to be stable, and I have to get some of the others into surgery right now, so he's going to have to wait. I'll have Chapel set up an IV to flush this chemical in his system; with luck, he'll just come out of it on his own."
Spock nods sharply, and allows a nurse to push Kirk's stretcher away. He does not believe in luck.
Hours later, Spock is sitting in the captain's chair on the bridge, composing his report on the rescue mission on one PADD and tracking the reports from medical on another. The injured crew are all in stable condition, and McCoy is turning his attention to Kirk, who has yet to regain consciousness. Spock stands. "Sulu, you have the conn."
Spock walks through the medbay doors 5.23 minutes later. "Should have known you couldn't stay away," McCoy says. He's standing next to Kirk's biobed, a scanner in hand. "All readings are normal, and his system's clear of whatever drug they gave him, but he's still out."
Spock comes to stand next to the doctor, looking down at the captain's empty face, eyes staring sightlessly at the ceiling. "I will engage in a mindmeld with him to determine his status," Spock says. True, it is a rare case when it is acceptable to meld with another without their express permission, but Spock is certain the captain would permit him if he were capable.
"Hold on one damn minute," McCoy says. "What's to say you won't get dragged under with him?"
"Doctor M'Benga is aware of the procedure for safely rousing me from a mindmeld, should there be difficulty." Spock raises an eyebrow at the doctor. "You would rather I do not help the captain?"
McCoy glares but subsides, and places a call for M'Benga. Spock places his hand on Kirk's face, and closes his eyes.
He is in a field, surrounded by green stalks three meters high, extending out in every direction, topped by blue sky and puffy white clouds. Spock opens one of the pods on a stalk, and realizes he is standing in a cornfield. An endless cornfield in Kirk's mind.
Spock walks between the rows of plants. He does not know how far he walks, but suddenly the stalks stop, and he is in a clearing, containing a small pond and a very familiar figure.
Kirk is wearing jeans and a white t-shirt and is, incongruously, barefoot. He lays on his back beside the pond, arms crossed behind his head, staring up at the sky. For a brief moment, Spock is reminded of Jim's blank stare in the lab.
"I used to hide in the corn when my stepdad and I had been fighting," Jim says, breaking the silence, not looking away from the sky. "Miles of fields, between our land and the farms on either side. We rented the land to neighbors, don't think Frank came out here the entire time he was married to Mom."
"Captain, we are in your mind, likely a composite memory you constructed to protect you from the experiments of the Preolia," Spock says. Part of him wishes to join Kirk on the ground, bask in the sunlight and the breeze and his presence, but he knows this is illogical. "We must return to the real world to guarantee there is no lasting damage."
"I knew you'd come for me." Kirk sits up, smiling brightly. Spock almost smiles back before quashing the urge. "You always do. How's the rest of the away team?"
"Return with me and you will find out," Spock says, and Kirk laughs, pushing himself to his feet. "There were numerous injuries, but no lasting damage to any of the team."
Kirk steps forward, until he is close enough to touch. "Never thought I'd see you here." Spock is unsure if he means his mind or an Iowa cornfield. "It's nice."
"It would be possible to arrange an excursion to Iowa the next time we are in orbit of Earth," Spock says, and Kirk laughs.
"Being with you is nice, no matter where we are."
"Captain--"
"Jim, please."
"Jim," Spock says, savoring the name on his tongue. "We must return."
"In a minute," Jim says, wrapping his hand in Spock's.
Spock lets him.
Feedback is better than chocolate.
a rescue mission and a quick jaunt into the mind of one Jim Kirk
Green Fields and Blue Skies | G | 1000 words | complete
The captain is unresponsive when Spock finds him, eyes wide and staring. He is propped against the wall of the laboratory, head lolling, like a child's abandoned doll. Considering the experiments Kirk's captors performed, Spock finds the comparison overly emotional but apt.
A quick visual scan indicates that the captain likely has no physical injuries, and Spock lifts the captain into a fireman's carry, leaving his dominant hand free to hold his phaser; the lab seems to be abandoned, but Spock will not allow his vigilance to waver. He carries the captain to the meeting point, where the rescue team has gathered the original away team. They are all alive, though injured. It would be an acceptable outcome if not for the memory of the captain's blank eyes.
"Lieutenant, call for beam-up," Spock says, his phaser still trained on the hallway. He hears the lieutenant speaking, then feels the ice water rush of beaming, and then they are in the transporter room on the Enterprise, loud and crowded with medics and returning crew.
"Talk to me, Spock, what's the captain's condition?" McCoy says, appearing with an anti-grav stretcher.
Spock lowers the captain to its surface, though he is illogically reluctant to let go. "He appears to be physically uninjured, but is unresponsive. There may be mental or psychological trauma."
"Morgans was saying something about the Preolia being interested in Jim's latent esper abilities," McCoy says, running a scanner over Kirk's body. "Damn fool. They'd broken all the bones in her hands, and she's still worrying about Jim."
"Lieutenant Morgans is a competent and conscientious security officer," Spock says. "It is her duty to put the captain's welfare before her own."
"Right," McCoy says, tone derogatory. "Well, he seems to be stable, and I have to get some of the others into surgery right now, so he's going to have to wait. I'll have Chapel set up an IV to flush this chemical in his system; with luck, he'll just come out of it on his own."
Spock nods sharply, and allows a nurse to push Kirk's stretcher away. He does not believe in luck.
Hours later, Spock is sitting in the captain's chair on the bridge, composing his report on the rescue mission on one PADD and tracking the reports from medical on another. The injured crew are all in stable condition, and McCoy is turning his attention to Kirk, who has yet to regain consciousness. Spock stands. "Sulu, you have the conn."
Spock walks through the medbay doors 5.23 minutes later. "Should have known you couldn't stay away," McCoy says. He's standing next to Kirk's biobed, a scanner in hand. "All readings are normal, and his system's clear of whatever drug they gave him, but he's still out."
Spock comes to stand next to the doctor, looking down at the captain's empty face, eyes staring sightlessly at the ceiling. "I will engage in a mindmeld with him to determine his status," Spock says. True, it is a rare case when it is acceptable to meld with another without their express permission, but Spock is certain the captain would permit him if he were capable.
"Hold on one damn minute," McCoy says. "What's to say you won't get dragged under with him?"
"Doctor M'Benga is aware of the procedure for safely rousing me from a mindmeld, should there be difficulty." Spock raises an eyebrow at the doctor. "You would rather I do not help the captain?"
McCoy glares but subsides, and places a call for M'Benga. Spock places his hand on Kirk's face, and closes his eyes.
He is in a field, surrounded by green stalks three meters high, extending out in every direction, topped by blue sky and puffy white clouds. Spock opens one of the pods on a stalk, and realizes he is standing in a cornfield. An endless cornfield in Kirk's mind.
Spock walks between the rows of plants. He does not know how far he walks, but suddenly the stalks stop, and he is in a clearing, containing a small pond and a very familiar figure.
Kirk is wearing jeans and a white t-shirt and is, incongruously, barefoot. He lays on his back beside the pond, arms crossed behind his head, staring up at the sky. For a brief moment, Spock is reminded of Jim's blank stare in the lab.
"I used to hide in the corn when my stepdad and I had been fighting," Jim says, breaking the silence, not looking away from the sky. "Miles of fields, between our land and the farms on either side. We rented the land to neighbors, don't think Frank came out here the entire time he was married to Mom."
"Captain, we are in your mind, likely a composite memory you constructed to protect you from the experiments of the Preolia," Spock says. Part of him wishes to join Kirk on the ground, bask in the sunlight and the breeze and his presence, but he knows this is illogical. "We must return to the real world to guarantee there is no lasting damage."
"I knew you'd come for me." Kirk sits up, smiling brightly. Spock almost smiles back before quashing the urge. "You always do. How's the rest of the away team?"
"Return with me and you will find out," Spock says, and Kirk laughs, pushing himself to his feet. "There were numerous injuries, but no lasting damage to any of the team."
Kirk steps forward, until he is close enough to touch. "Never thought I'd see you here." Spock is unsure if he means his mind or an Iowa cornfield. "It's nice."
"It would be possible to arrange an excursion to Iowa the next time we are in orbit of Earth," Spock says, and Kirk laughs.
"Being with you is nice, no matter where we are."
"Captain--"
"Jim, please."
"Jim," Spock says, savoring the name on his tongue. "We must return."
"In a minute," Jim says, wrapping his hand in Spock's.
Spock lets him.
Feedback is better than chocolate.