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Marked One
White lights streaked in a steady rhythm above your head, as your body laid parallel on a medical stretcher. Your eyes were heavy as the cold white light reflected off falling dust particles creating an angelic halo around you. The moment would have been so utterly perfect if one figure above you, hadn’t had to consistently slap the side of your face whenever your eyes threatened to give in to the darkness.
“Don’t fall asleep.”
The order had been spoken with a commanding tone, however the subtle worried edge which laced it did not go unnoticed. Frowning towards the shadowy figure, you reached your arm up high; clinging to the blue cloth which surrounded them.
“I don’t know if you’ve had to do this before- but it's hard.”
The figure blew an amused raspberry, their face turning away as they begun to murmur to the other unfamiliar shadows which lurked around you. Once finished, the silhouette leaned closer; their features forming clearer as you recognised the face before you with relief.
“I take it that the anti hallucinogenic hypo helped then.”
“Leonard?” You interrupted, your hand falling from his shirt and back to your aching chest.
“Good. You recognise me, thats-” Leonard paused as he nodded to himself in determination, a sense of relief seemingly washing over him. “It's a good sign. Better than earlier.”
“What’s happening?” You tried to sit upwards only for your head to spin drastically, bile rising in your throat as you settled back on your own accord. “I’m fine.”
“Like hell you are (Y/N).” Leonard McCoy scolded, his hand absentmindedly falling to your hair. Enjoying the sensation, you scoured the doctor’s face for details; absently noting the red rings which surrounded his slightly puffy eyes.
“-Nothing you tell me is going to get you out of that bed any sooner. You’re probably on a second wind right now.”
You smiled at the challenge, the drugs which were obviously present in your system shrouding your pain and distorting your judgement.
“Am I in heaven? Because I’m pretty sure I’m seeing an angel right now.”
“Well darn, the fact you can flirt just proves you're fine. Here let me stop and sign you off for duty.” Doctor McCoy managed a small smile as the stretcher suddenly slowed considerably, presumably as it approached a turbolift. “God you’re as big as a pain in the ass as Jim.”
“No need for sarcasm Le-” You paused as a coughing fit racked your body, your muscles seizing as you curled yourself into a tight ball, an agonising pain spreading from your abdomen up and down your limbs. McCoy slowly rubbed your back as the stretcher entered the turbolift, his eyes never leaving even as the coughing subsided.
“(Y/N)?”
Falling into McCoy's hazel eyes, you slowly felt your attention span return. As the tingling in your fingers melted away, a strange foreign sticky sensation remaining in the palm of your hand. Frowning, you allowed your eyes to fall as you brought your clenched fist away from your mouth, uncurling your fingers slowly to reveal a large splatter of blood which had begun to drip down to your wrist.
“Shit. Change of plans, Nurse Hansen prep me 500 milligrams of anaesthetic, that should be enough to make her relaxed, her lungs are starting to-” He paused unable to finish the sentence, “We can top her up with the rest once we are in surgery.”
The world around you became a blur as your mind began to cloud over with a jumble of memories and thoughts. The pain and numbness which encased your body was foreign, a feeling which you only experience once a lifetime. You were dying. You knew it, the nurses knew it… even Leonard McCoy seemed to know it. What was worse, was the fact that there was nothing you could do to stop it.
“(Y/N)!” Leonard announced loudly as he shook your shoulder, reining you in from your reverie. By the look of exasperation displayed across his face, he had been trying to get your attention for a while.
“I really do need you to try and stay awake for me now. What I am going to give you is going to make you feel more tired and dazed, but we need your body to be relaxed otherwise it's going to cause itself more damage.”
At that Doctor McCoy glanced back at the blood which remained in your hand, your eyes following his line of sight before falling back to his.
“Am I dying?” The words slipped from your mouth as barely a whisper, but it was enough to catch the Doctor's attention.
Leonard’s face flickered through a variety of emotions, like a broken cd on repeat. His eyes appeared to shimmer with a barricade of unfallen tears as he prominently swallowed away the dry lump which had formed in his throat. “Not on my watch.”
Feeling your lips quiver in to a sad smile, you forced on the best blaise face you could muster. “Stay awake then…” A loud wheeze escaped your throat as you shuffled into your pillow, “That’s easy, just keep talking to me big boy.”
The turbolift finally slowed as the doors opened, allowing you to be rushed out of the tiny container and down the hallways of the Enterprise. The consistent but repetitive streaks of light overhead returning to their usual pace; instilling a sense of calm to your mind.
Leonard seemed to simply just stare at your face for a few moments, his eyes taking in every aspect of your appearance as if he was never going to see your face again. After a few moments of staring, the doctor’s lips finally parted; asking the one question which seemed to have been poised on his lips the whole time.
“How did this happen (Y/N)? Why didn’t you come to me sooner?”
Smiling to yourself, you felt the knot in the muscles of your back relax as two days worth of memories rose to the forefront of your mind.
In total, five key moments seemed to jump out at you for being the causation for your current predicament. Five factors which no matter how minor and unimportant they seemed alone, when combined, formed a series of unfortunate events had lead to this scenario.
“I can think of a couple of-” You wheezed; your breath catching in your throat causing you to choke for air. Feeling your eyes begin to flutter against the weight of the drugs and tiredness, you slowly released your grip on reality. “-reasons.”
FACTOR ONE: CURSED RED SHIRTS- LITERALLY
DAY 1 - INFECTION
The mission was simple, beam down to the planet, collect some samples from a crash site and then beam the hell out. Only they never seemed to go to plan.
After arriving at the site, the crew had been instantaneously attacked and split up. Unfortunately during the surprise attack of the natives, the three scientists which had accompanied the mission had lost their lives in what only could be described as a massacre; echoes of their screams still haunted you as their skin had been torn like crepe paper.
Their deaths however had provided the creatures with the distraction necessary for the remaining landing party to split into threes and flee for the treelines.
So that's why you - a senior engineer found yourself picking up soil samples for the science crew aboard the ship.
“Got anything?” You called begrudgingly from where you were currently shoveling some dirt into a bag.
Across the way from you stood Captain Kirk and Lieutenant Sulu. Jim seemed to be fiddling away with a communicator, his hair flopped across his face in concentration while Sulu scanned the treeline for any more potential assailants; his katana balanced perfectly between his fingers.
“Never mind me- how's the sampling?” Jim teased as he tilted his head to the side. In doing so, a large click resounded throughout the air as a small rectangular part suddenly pinged off the communicator, flying through the air elegantly before landing on the ground beside your boot.
“Ops.”
“Christ Jim, Why am I doing this? I should be fixing that thing-” You gestured wildly to the half assembled communicator clutched tightly between the Captains palms.
Turning to look at you through his mangled mess of hair, Jim sighed. “Spock needs his samples. Supposedly this planet showed no signs of life on our preliminary scans, so we need to know why.”
“How wrong those scans were.” Hikaru Sulu murmured as he flipped the blade over in his hand, the metal singing as the air graced across its surface. “What were those things anyway? They barely looked human!”
“I don’t know.” Jim paused in his tinkering, his eyes glazing over as he seemingly stared off at nothingness; it was obvious that like yourself his thoughts were constantly falling back to that of his fallen crew.
You opened your mouth to reign the Captain in, however words failed as before you could speak Kirk simply snapped back to the present, shrugging the moment off. Flipping the communicator over in his hands, a sly smile slowly spread across his features. “Engineering have a lot to answer for though”
Noting the Captains attempt to lighten the mood, you smiled in response deciding to go along with the moment.
“Oh I see how it is, you’re punishing me for something I can't change anyway? I am at least seventy five percent sure science are supposed to alter the search parameters, not engineering!”
Sulu laughed breathlessly as he glanced across his shoulder to Kirk, “She sounded an awful lot like Commander Spock then.”
Jim snorted back his chuckle as he nodded in agreement. “Dirt (Y/N).”
“I already have three bags, Jim. Just give me the damn-”
“I got it-” Jim extended his hand defence of the object he was fixing. His eyes fluttering between the device and your own. “-Go collect something else if you have enough soil samples.”
“Like what exactly?”
“I don’t know, do I look like a science officer!”
Sulu laughed loudly as you threw your weight onto one side, your hip jutting outwards as you simply raised your eyebrows in response.
Kirk glanced across momentarily before swaying his head in reluctant agreement. “Point taken.”
“I think I saw some fauna over that direction?” Lieutenant Sulu gestured to their left with his head, his blade steady. “I would offer to go myself, but I think I am the best line of defence we have.”
“Second best.” Jim corrected with a smile, his eyes falling to yours once again. “Well you heard the man Lieutenant (Y/L/N).”
“Thanks Sulu.” You groaned as you climbed to your feet, your fingers encircling the small rectangular part which had flown off the communicator.
“Here, you'll be needing this.” Flicking the rectangular connector across to Kirk, the Captain nodded his head in thanks before returning to his tinkering of the communicator once more.
Slowly you began to wander through the treeline and away from the others, your eyes tracing the canopy above as the sunlight from the blue neighboring star illuminated the purple leaves around you. It truly was a beautiful planet, deadly- but beautiful.
Your eyes fell back down to the floor, coming to rest on a small stubby tree before you. Its bark was black and appeared to have been burnt to a crisp, while its leaves were a stark blood red colour in contrast. Slowly the triangular leaves wilted and fell to the ground around the tree’s roots, a sign of the changing season. Upon one of its branches, was an odd looking fruit. It’s surface appeared to be clear and translucent, the light from the blue sun travelling through its hollow center and providing it with an almost luminous glow. It almost looked as if it had been man made and put on display for all to see.
As waves of sunlight passed through the clear glowing fruit with the rustling wind, you suddenly found your hand rising upwards. An unexplainable sensation of utter desire and longing filling your body with a passion; the longer your eyes lingered on the fruit the stronger it became. Stepping forwards abruptly, you all but snatched the fruit from the branch, the twig releasing a satisfying click as it rested in your hand.
However as you looked at the fruit, it's clear shimmering skin slowly turned opaque and rotten as large protruding thorns extended suddenly outwards from its skin.
“Ouch.” you cursed as you dropped the fruit in shock. Somehow one of the thorns had pierced your skin and detached itself from the rotten skin of the fruit; you watched in horror as it's black tendril slowly sunk deep into your palm, your veins flashing a black colour before disappearing entirely.
“You’ve picked the fruit from death’s forbidden tree. You are marked.”
Snapping your head upwards in surprise, you screamed as two of the inhabitants which had killed your fellow crew earlier appeared. You were able to get a closer look at their appearance as they stepped forwards hesitantly. The creatures skin was a dark blue colour, covered head to toe with iridescent scales which matched their inch long claws. The features however which made them appear to be so inhuman, were the black convulsing holes which rippled where there should have been eyes; a hollow darkness which seemingly pierced your soul.
“(Y./N)!” Sulu shouted in response to your scream, the trees rustling behind you.
Unable to turn and run out of fear, you stared in utter terror at the approaching monsters before you. Their claws rising as they pointed towards your chest, their hand hovering near your heart.
“Death comes for those who are marked.”
“(Y/N)!” Jim Kirk shouted as himself and Sulu broke through the treeline. Turning in relief, you sighed as the Captain approached you quickly, his eyes searching your own for an explanation behind the scream.
Unable to speak you turned back to point to the two figures, only to find they had disappeared along with the tree. Feeling your head spin with confusion, you glanced down at your injured hand only to find that it was completely healed; not even a scratch existed to mark the presence of the thorned fruit.
“(Y/N)?” Sulu echoed as his hand rested onto your shoulder.
You bit your lip as you sighed slowly, resigning to the fact that it must have been your mind playing tricks. After all only moments ago you had seen three officers turned in to shredded cabbage before you, it was only natural to have an adverse reaction to the adrenaline and stress.
Calming your nerves, you made a mental note to speak to Doctor McCoy about seeing a therapist.
Turning around to face the two men, you pulled on a cheery yet apologetic facade. “Sorry, It was nothing. Fixed?” you muttered, your hand indicating briefly to the communicator.
Jim glanced across to Hikaru who watched you for a moment before nodding once in confirmation.
Bringing the communicator close to his face, Jim’s face hardened. “Enterprise, three to beam up.”
FACTOR TWO: DELAYED PHYSICAL
12 HOURS AFTER INFECTION - ENGINEERING ACCIDENT
Deciding you had all seen enough for the day, Doctor McCoy had ordered that all of the away teams physicals were rescheduled in thirteen hours time. He had insisted that the physicals would be administered with the presence of the ships therapist, it was a small gesture but another factor which further illustrated the Doctor’s care for the crew of the ship.
After no luck gaining any sleep due to the nightmares which plagued your mind, you reluctantly returned to Engineering. Your Pad pinged with a message as your assignments appeared to have already been sent to you in preparation for the following day. Lucking enough, many of the assignments you had been given had easily been passed on to the Ensigns who yearned for experience, leaving you with the more beefy job of rerouting one of the cooling systems for the live warp core.
Hesitating in your steps, you stared at the core; your eyes becoming hazy as a strong headache pulsed at your temples. Gasping you clutched at your head, whirling away from the mass of metal to look back towards the doorway where you had come from. As you did, your eyes fell onto an unfamiliar figure.
Before you stood the hazy apparition of a native from the planet you had visited, his finger slowly rising to point towards you.
“Death is coming.”
Suppressing a scream, you turned and headed off towards the only safe haven you knew; constantly repeating the only assuring words you could think of at the time.
‘It's all in my head.’
“Hi Scotty.” You announced with a fake cheery persona as you opened the door to his private office wide and waltzed in.
“By god's lass!” Scotty exclaimed as he pulled his feet off from his desk and sat upright, his hands working to collect the clumps of baguette which had fallen from his hands in fright. “Cannae you knock next time! I would have thought that you would be in the Medbay googling at the Doctor!”
“Sorry.” You murmured as you moved to sit across from your commanding officer. Looking down to your hands clutched across your lap, you began to twiddle with your fingers. It was an understatement to say you weren’t being your usual self, ever since the strange encounter, or rather lack of one your mind hadn't been thinking straight; Instead your thoughts lingered on black bottomless pits of eyes the creatures had. Their words echoing in your head.
“Death comes for those who are marked.”
Your fingers traced the palm of your hand as your eyes slowly rose to meet Scotty once more. That was only the third headache you had experienced since beaming back up from the planet, but with each one you found it harder to convince yourself that the incident with the thorned fruit was all a mirage.
It was at times like these when you found you really needed to be surrounded by your friends.
“My mind hasn’t really been in the right place.” You murmured unknowingly.
“Oh” Scotty exclaimed, his hands discarding the sandwich to one side as he ripped the paper napkin away from his shirt. Leaning forwards slowly, the engineer’s eyes narrowed in on you. “Is everything ok there lass? I can’t have anything wrong with my best Lieutenant.”
You smiled graciously at the compliment, your resolve crumbling under the concerned look adorned by your friend. “Everything is fine. I just- I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“Are you sure that's it Lass? Because I can tell when you’re lying.” Montgomery pressed, his hand reaching out to rest on your arm. For a moment, the small touch seemed to alleviate some of the weight you burdened about telling someone the truth behind the hallucination of the tree on the planet.
You opened your mouth in hesitation. “Actually-”
Suddenly the door to the office burst open once again, the metal slamming against the glass window which lined the wall beside it causing it to shake as a result.
“FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST ALMIGHTY, DOES ANYONE KNOCK!” Montgomery Scott exclaimed aloud as he stood upwards abruptly from his chair, his arms flying up as he turned to the new occupant with an exasperated look.
“Aye ye ye, I am sorry Mister Scott.” Chekov apologised, his eyes wide and similar to that of a young puppy dog. Unable to stay mad at the Ensign for long, Scotty beckoned the kid in indicating for him to close the door behind him.
Discarding your conversation you rose to your feet, moving away from the chair as you slowly wandered back towards the door.
“What is it Mister Chekov, Lieutenant (Y/L/N) and I were in the middle of an important conversation.”
Chekov's eyes wandered across to the discarded napkin and baguette before snapping back to Scotty; seemingly unconvinced of the truth.
“It is Ensign Bailey sir, I just passed him and he appears to be messing with the internal couplings for the power rerouter for the bridge’s scanning equipment sir. I experienced a brief surge on the bridge, I was just on my way down to query the cause when I saw it for myself.”
“Lieutenant, I thought you were overseeing the refit?” Scotty quizzed as his head snapped to you.
“I have my physical sir.” You excused, your eyes flickering between Ensign Chekov and Mister Scott. “So I decided to pair the Ensign Bailey with Ensign Harriet. She is experienced enough in refit unit and is up for a promotion within the next month, I considered it to be a valuable learning experience for herself.”
“Well if Harriet is with Bailey then that's ok.” Scotty mumbled as he fell back ungraciously into his chair.
“Uh-” Chekov paused as he scratched the back of his head. “I believe Ensign Harriet was recently called to the bridge sir.”
“So Bailey is on his own?” You gasped, your eyes flying back across to Scotty as he threw his hand to his face.
“Lad, are ye telling me that there’s an inexperienced engineer fiddling with a power coupling in a system he has near to no knowledge about, and everyone is just walking by letting him get on with it?”
Chekov opened his mouth to answer when a large explosion broke the atmosphere of the room. The proximity of the blast causing the thin glass windows which lined Scotty’s office to rattle in their fixings.
Stumbling to the door, you clumsily clasped the cold handle throwing it aside as you peered out across the console gallery below you.
Small columns of flames began to spread outwards from where Ensign Bailey had been working moments ago, their size manageable for the time being but moments away from becoming out of control. Across the floor several redshirts laid unconscious or injured, their groans and cries for help disguising the sound of the crackling fire..
“Well this is just brilliant.”
FACTOR THREE: THE OVERWORKED AND UNDERAPPRECIATED DOCTOR.
14 HOURS AFTER INFECTION - THE INSULT
Needless to say, the engineering accident caused by your minor oversight of trusting others to get a job done had lead to your physical being delayed even further. Slowly the injured engineers were being escorted and shuttled to Medbay where they were being patched up one by one thanks to the overworked doctors and nurses which graced the Enterprise.
Not only was it frustrating that your physical had been delayed due to the accident, but also worrying. The headaches which had assaulted you non stop since you had been beamed back aboard had increased in strength even causing you to have a rogue nosebleed. Needless to say, for the first time in a long time you found yourself praying for a physical test.
You had tried aiding the cleanup of Engineering, but the worry and pain had eventually passed your threshold. Deciding instead that it was common sense to just see yourself to the medical bay for an early checkup. So before long you soon found yourself roaming the corridors towards the heart of the Enterprise.
The route was fairly simple if you just followed the chargrilled redshirts, but in secret you could easily walk your way from engineering to medical with your eyes closed. Smiling to yourself, you welcomed the distraction away from the pain as you found your mind wandering to the image of Doctor McCoy and his southern charm.
Hell by now it was pretty obvious that you have a minor crush on the ship's doctor. But then, who didn’t?
Scotty was the first person to know. It wasn’t that you had told the man or anything, but the fact that at almost every lunch break you received you would ensure you walked past the medbay, always more or less at the precise time that Leonard would be leaving for his own lunch. The two of you would talk and moan about the work and pressures which the day had brought, all the while laughing at the obscene situations people could get themselves into. It was refreshing.
As time passed your closeness grew, even leading to the point where you had clued the doctor into a secret that not many others knew, the fact that before qualifying as an engineer you had tried to be a nurse.
It was a dark past, but you had almost completed the medical program before you pulled out, McCoy did not appear to be very surprised at the information; Instead citing that you were probably the most sensible engineer in a red shirt that he knew.
Rounding the corner to the main doors of medbay, you swallowed away your nerves as you waddled slowly into the room, your eyes gracing the wounded which surrounded you as you searched for the doctor in question.
The wounded seemed to eye you from where they stood in various positions, one of the ensigns in particular which caught your eye was Ensign Harriet who stood looking rather sheepish off to the side of Ensign Bailey’s bed.
“Listen, I don't have time- I am three seconds away from pulling the hair off his head. Just give the man the morphine and be done with it!”
Recognising the grouchy tone to be that of Leonard’s, you turned slowly catching his eyes just as he waltzed back through the doors of the medbay; an unfamiliar nurse in tow
“(Y/N)?” Leonard questioned as he marched forwards suddenly, his eyes scanning you up and down.
“Leonard.” You smiled warmly as you placed a hand on his arm, guiding him past you. “I thought I would pop by.”
The doctor halted in his tracks as he raised an eyebrow quizzically. “Are you hurt?”
“Uh-” You paused, biting your lip as you considered your answer. “No, I just thought I would stop by.”
“Good, Glad you’re ok.” Leonard brushed off abruptly before spinning on his heel and continuing his march across the medbay. “I’m sorry (Y/N), but I dont have the time to talk right now- If you hadn't noticed, I’m currently dealing with an outbreak of idiocy. Someone let an untrained ensign mess about with a power coupling.”
Slowly Leonard McCoy came to a halt before the door of a medical cupboard, his hand hovering over the handle. Coughing slightly into your hand, you decided to ignore the slight insult. “That would have been me.”
“Wait what?” Leonard exclaimed, as he turned to face you once again, his eyes exploding with a sense of disbelief.
“I let Ensign Bailey work on the power coupling, In my defence I had placed him under Ensign Harriet's watch.”
“Christ of all the people-” The doctor never finished his sentence as he opened the cupboard and began to rummage inside for the equipment he needed. You stood quietly waiting, your mind ticking away at how to word your question in regards to the physical, however you were interrupted as Leonard’s face reemerged from the shadows.
“Listen can we talk later? I am a little over stretched, I am five nurses down and I really need to get back to patching up Bailey’s arm.” McCoy mumbled as he shut the door and fiddled with the handle.
“Let me help.” You blurted without thinking, rolling up your sleeves slightly you signalled that you were ready to jump in at any point. “I caused this, the least I can do is use the dermal regenerator. Plus my hands are just as steady as yours, remember?”
McCoy sighed as marched across to another station, a hypospray in his hand as he began to fiddle with its settings. “I think you probably have done enough for today, the last thing I need is a dropout nurse getting the dermal regenerator wro-”
Alarms suddenly blurted out from Bailey’s station as the ensign seemed to be trying to climb out from the clutches of the Biobed; interrupting McCoy.
“GOD DAMMIT MAN! THAT THING’S GOOD FOR YOU!”
Cursing the doctor marched away without a seconds thought, raising his voice as he hollered at the ensign to calm down and return to the bed.
Frozen, your mind slowly ticked over the choice of words McCoy had used, the headache from earlier returning with a vengeance as your vision began to blur once again. Across you, in the mass of bodies which bustled past stood a lone soldier; the same native you had seen earlier that day. Unlike before, his previously emotionless face had a sadistic smile spread across it.
Nausea swept over your senses as you gripped tightly to a nearby bed in order to right yourself; ringing piercing your ears as he began to laugh menacingly.
“Soon you won't be in anyone's way.”
Blinking away unfallen tears, you sighed as the frightening mirage disappeared. Turning around, your hand remained gripped tightly to the bed as you took a hesitant step forwards; your world rocking with every minor movement you made. Not wanting to be a waste of precious space any longer you decided to take your leave heading to the one place you knew would welcome you with open arms.
FACTOR FOUR: DODGY BRANDY AND A HANGOVER FROM HELL.
18 HOURS AFTER INFECTION - THE DRINK
Slowly you lifted the second glass of Saurian Brandy to your lips, the warm burning sensation which rolled down your throat bringing a welcoming numbness to help mask the pain piercing your skull and heart. Although deep down you knew that Leonard’s words had not meant to cause offence, you couldn’t help but feel some form of betrayal at the fact he had thrown your secret back at you.
That and you just seemed to be getting in everyone's way when they didn’t need you there.
Sighing you took another deep swig of the alcohol, a sad smile filling your face as you noted it was probably the only friend you had left.
“Wow, already hitting the booze eh?”
Gasping in surprise, you almost dropped the glass of Brandy at the new voice. Spinning in the tall chair you sat in at one of the ship's bars, you frowned at the sight of Captain Kirk.
“Oh sorry Captain, I didn't realise you drank here.” You excused, silently cursing at your inability to find a quiet place to drink; Once again you were getting in people’s way. “I'll leave- let me just-”
“Wait.” Jim stated with a commanding tone, walking over slowly Kirk slumped down in the chair beside you; his blue eyes searching your own. “Since when did you call me captain.”
“Since you took command of this ship through mutiny.” You stated bitterly. However as soon as the words passed your lips you found yourself regretting them.
“Ouch.”
Feeling the heat rise in your cheeks you shook your head in embarrassment; cursing the pulsing headache for clouding your judgement. “Sorry. That was uncalled for.”
“Usually I don’t mind, but I wasn’t expecting it from you!” Jim smirked as he nodded towards the tall slim bottle of brandy across from you. “Just pour me a glass of whatever you’ve found there and we can call it even stevens.”
“I warn you, I found it at the very back of a large cupboard.” Clasping the bottom of the bottle, you slid it across the top towards the Captain. “God knows how long it's been gathering dust.”
Raising an eyebrow Jim uncorked the top, raising it to his nose as he slowly took a whiff of the mysterious golden liquid. “Wow, you’re drinking this?”
“Barely.” You muttered as you brought the glass to your lips and devoured another sip. “It’s helping with the headache.”
Jim seemed to nod mutely before grabbing a nearby glass and pouring himself a drink.
“So Spock just got back to me about the samples, told me to praise whoever took them on behalf of science.”
“Glad to hear that I am good at one thing, if only it was my actual job.” You feigned a mock celebratory tone.
Sighing Kirk took a large swig of the Brandy, his face showing no signs of foul reaction as the liquid burned down his throat. “Scotty told me what happened. It’s not your fault you know? Turns out Ensign Harriet wasn’t actually called away to the bridge, instead she was just taking the opportunity to have an early lunch.”
“But I saw her in the medbay?”
“Hm, she felt bad for leaving the kid alone with a power coupling. Don’t worry though, Scotty’s already reprimanded her for abandoning her post.”
“People could have died because of me, Jim. Scotty probably hates my guts round about now, I'm surprised you're even here!”
“But people didn’t die (Y/N). You’re so quick to overlook the good that you do aren’t you? You trust people when others don’t! Half the crew looks up to you because of that, you give everyone a chance regardless of their past.”
“You do as well.”
“It’s different for me, I’m captain and I have to. You on the other hand…” Jim paused as he finished off his first drink, his hands reaching outwards as he quickly poured himself a second. Sighing, you stared down at your own drink between your hands, your fingers wrapping in on themselves.
“Judging by the reaction of my pep talk, I’m guessing that wasn’t the reason for why you’re here drinking.”
You laughed at Kirk’s infamous perception. Feeling the ferocity of the pain in your head beginning to return, you took another long sip of your drink. “Tell me what's yours and I’ll tell you mine.”
“Do I ever need a reason?” Jim smiled charmingly as he rubbed his thumb across the rim of the glass.
“You did when we first met.” You smiled fondly at the memory of meeting Jim all them years ago, it had been at one of the many infamous cadet bars which surrounded the academy. In fact the meeting had been in a similar scenario to now, Jim had spent the majority of his evening searching for a woman to take home while you moped about failing one of your extra credit tests.
“That was a long time ago.” Jim excused with a wave of his hand, “Doesn’t matter either. Come on, what's got you so down in the dumps? Not another test was it?”
“It hardly seems worth mentioning, Jim.”
“You can't play that card.” Kirk downed the remainder of his second drink, his face screwing up tightly in response before blinking slowly. Reaching forward the Captain proceeded to pour his third glass, easily over taking you; as he did his eyes cast sideward to your own. “It was Bones wasn't it?”
Frowning you opened your mouth in confusion for a few moments before closing it slowly. “How… How did you-”
Jim sighed as he held the third glass tightly in his hand, his shoulders leaning closer to your own as a lowered his voice. “He spoke to me earlier, well I say spoke when really all he did was-”
“Jim” You warned as the Captain began to wander of track.
“He mentioned how rubbish his day was going, how some stupid ensign couldn't stay in bed and ruined everything. How he should just keep his mouth shut, and basically never say anything to anyone again. It doesn't take much to realise he was talking about you, especially when you mentioned you had been in the medbay today.”
“Just because I dropped by Sickbay, doesn’t mean he’s talking about me.”
“Oh it's about you alright.” Jim exclaimed as he took a large mouthful of brandy. Following suit you took another sip of your own, leaving half a glass full.
Giving in to the conversation you sighed, “I just- I seem to be getting in the way of everyone at the minute.”
“You’re never in the way. Listen, whatever he said he didn't mean to hurt you- hell that's the last thing he would ever want to do to you. Not many people can get him to smile, but you (Y/N) are one of them people, that makes you special to him.”
Jim’s words settled in your mind as you thought them over for a few moments. Perhaps he was right, you had just blown the whole situation out of proportion; reacting over nothing. Afterall, Leonard and yourself had been eating lunch and talking for months now, and never before did he mention he needed space.
Cursing yourself for your idiocy and clouded judgement you smiled in thanks to the Captain. “I think I am going to call it a night, this brandy tastes awful.”
“It does, doesn’t it?” Jim responded as he smiled back, “This is my last one anyway-”
For some reason the moment clicked for you. Jim only ever drank for a reason and this time he had specifically drunk three glasses of disgusting brandy like it was a mission. Realisation dawned as you noted the significance of the number three, reaching outwards you caught Jim’s arm as he went to down the remained of his drink.
“Uh- (Y/N).”
“I propose a toast.” You announced as you raised your own glass into the air. “In memory of the three officers we lost yesterday-”
“-Ensign Conner, Lieutenant Rodriguez and Ensign Cox.” Jim finished for you, his eyes seemingly watering at the notion. Pressing your glass against the Captain’s with a satisfying clink, you groaned as you threw the disgusting liquid to the back of your throat, wincing as it burned down your esophagus a final time.
Slamming the glass on to the counter, your eyes met Jim’s once more, “You know, it’s not your fault either.”
Nodding slowly Kirk reached outwards as he stood from his chair, his hand squeezing your shoulder in a silent thanks.
“Goodnight Lieutenant (Y/L/N)”
“Goodnight, Captain.”
FACTOR FIVE: FAMILY
28 HOURS AFTER INFECTION - KNIGHT IN A BLUE UNIFORM
It should go on record that the following ten hours had passed like a blur. As soon as you had left the bar that night, you found your stomach to be convulsing and pulsing violently; you barely made it back to your dormitory in time to throw up the contents from the past few hours. Of course at the time you had put the whole thing down to the dodgy brandy you had enjoyed with the Captain; your mind still convinced that the incident on the planet had been a trick of your mind.
Although you weren’t long settled in your bed before the pain exploded all over your body, the nausea forcing you to stand upwards as you struggled to walk across you room back towards the bathroom. The room span erratically as your breathing began to shallow, your lungs aching as they seemingly filled up with a sticky liquid.
Feeling your knees quake from exertion, you collapsed to the floor; your hand reaching outwards and knocking a picture frame from the side of one of your cabinets as you fell. Hitting your head hard on the ground.
With the black haze surrounding your vision growing as you slipped from consciousness, you found yourself staring longingly towards the entrance to your quarters. The last thought on your mind reconsidering your dismissive attitude towards the cursed fruit.
“Lieutenant (Y/L/N).”
Your eyes snapped open at the sound of your name, however the sudden change in light did little to aid your aching head.
“(Y/N)?”
Your heart skipped a beat as the sound of Leonard’s voice drifted past your door. Slowly, your eyes traced its outline; frowning as they came to rest on the lock pad beside it. The screen remained a deep red colour, signifying that you had somehow activated the unique program you had installed to ensure that no one could enter the room expect if they manually entered an override code.
“You’re late for your physical.” Leonard’s stern tone drifted through the door before softening, “And we… we need to talk about yesterday.”
Opening your mouth to call him over, you shivered as your voice didn’t form; instead coming out as a tiny indecipherable croak.
“I know you’re in there, it's the only place you can be.” Leonard grunted as he sounded mildly frustrated. Feeling a stir of determination pass through you, you tried in vain to slip your quaking arms beneath your torso; groaning as they gave way to even the smallest amount of pressure.
“Alright, Look I understand that you don't want to talk. But you still need your physical, so if you want I can get M’Benga to arrange it.”
A deadly silence fell over the room as you made a croaking sound once again, frowning as it obviously wasn’t loud enough to capture Leonard’s attention.
The doctor sighed in defeat before his muffled voice passed through the door once again. “I'll take that as a yes.”
Leonard seemed to stand still for a moment longer outside your door, his shadowy feet barely visible from your position. However after a moment of hesitation his fading footsteps began to echo through your mind. Feeling your chances of help pass with every second, your eyes fell helplessly to the picture frame before you.
The image was one which you treasured deeply, a picture of your family from Earth displayed you all clutched tightly together as you celebrated the new year in with glasses of wine. It was one of the last times you spent together, before a tragic accident left you alone.
‘Not long left now. Death is approaching.’
Your eyes slipped upwards to the apparition of the native before you, their eyes pulsating with darkness as a wry smile filled their features.
Falling back to the picture before you, a sense of strength encompassed your arms as you reached forwards; clutching the glass frame tightly as you pressed a kiss to it one last time. Glancing back to the apparition, you smirked mischievously; a trace of your usual self appearing amongst the darkness.
“You’re not real, and I… I’m not-” A cough racked your body as your lungs burned again, the pain causing you to almost drop the picture frame. “I’m not ready.”
With all the might you could muster, you threw the frame across the room and towards the tiled floor before the door. It was as if time slowed in anticipation, your eyes tracking each and every twist the glass frame performed before hitting the ground and smashing into an oblivion. The picture inside, appeared to crumple from the weight as a large crashing sound reverberated through the air.
And Doctor Leonard McCoy’s footsteps faltered.
“You know what, to hell with it- We need to talk.” Leonard grumbled as his footsteps drew closer and he returned to your door once again.
“I can’t leave with you thinking I meant what i said.” McCoy spoke with a raised voice, his hand knocking on the door once.
“Leonard…” A croak passed your throat once again as the apparition leaned inwards, your head spinning as your vision began to darken once more.
“Right If you won’t open the door then…” the doctor paused as he considered his next words, “Then- I'm using my medical override.”
Slowly Leonard’s hands began tapping away against the control panel on the opposite side of the door. “Afterall I have a valid reason- Seemingly no one has seen you since yesterday, not even Scotty! The last person you saw was Jim last night, and he seems to think you’re nursing an insane hangover. We’re worried to say the least, so consider this me checking that you are-”
Leonard paused as the door to your room beeped in acceptance of the code; the barrier pulling away to allow the harsh white light of the corridor to flood into your room. Wincing away from the sudden change in brightness, you squinted back towards the silhouette before you.
“-ok.”
“Help me.” You croaked simply in response, the apparition still before you as his haunting image continued to weaken you further. Feeling your concentration wane, you watched dozily as Leonard navigated his way past the crushed remains of the image of your family before falling to your side.
“Christ (Y/N) you look like death warmed up.” McCoy hissed as his hands immediately began to fiddle away at his tricorder.
Gasping for air through your filling lungs, you sighed. “Please, I’m not ready to go.”
“Darling it's alright, I’ve got you you’re going to be fine.” Slowly Leonard McCoy’s hand began to stroke the hair off your face, his touch bringing a small element of comfort washing over your senses despite the frightening native before you.
“My god how long have you been like this for-” The doctor’s eyes narrowed as four small crease lines graced his forehead. “Your readings they…”
Shaking his head in disbelief, McCoy reached for his communicator; not hesitating for a moment as he seemingly paged Sickbay. “I need a crash cart on deck three now!”
Letting your head roll to the side, you stared numbly at the apparition who seemed to watch you carefully. It’s eyes narrowed downwards to its claws as it picked at them seemingly out of boredom.
‘No point fighting death.’
“(Y/N)?” Leonard’s hands moved to your neck, scooping your head up from the ground before allowing it to rest gently in his lap. “Can you speak to me? Do you know where you are? Who I am?”
Tears slipped past your eyes as you felt your strength weakening with every passing second, the shadow of the native shifting around Leonard to move in to your view once again. “Tell him to leave.” You whispered shakily, your memories jumbling into a large mess.
“Who?”
“Death.”
Leonard blew a raspberry as he squeezed your shoulder tightly in response. “You’re not dying.” He commanded authoritatively, “Don't be so overdramatic.”
“But I am.” You shivered as a cold sweat began to soak your uniform, “The tree said so.”
McCoy frowned in confusion. “The tree?”
“The one of the mission, the fruit I picked it… It marked my hand… It-” Slowly you brought your hand upwards, exposing what appeared to be a slight discoloration in the skin where the thorn had pricked you.
Intrigued, the doctor grabbed your hand tightly bringing it close to his face as he peered at the marking with curiosity. Slowly your eyes began to droop at the sensation of Leonard holding your hand, however it wasn’t long before he was slapping your cheeks lightly.
“(Y/N)? Come on now stay with me.”
Your next words slipped from your lips in a slur, “Why should I? It hurts-”
McCoy grimaced as he clutched you tightly. “God dammit woman, do you need a reason?”
Slowly your eyes began to droop once again, however they ceased as the doctor shook your head once more.
“Fine have it your way.” He mumbled groggily, before his eyes softened. “You need to stay with me because... there are only a few people I can’t lose, and you’re one of them (Y/N). That's why. So suck up the pain and deal with it like I know you can.”
You found yourself smiling as a result, the confusion clouding your judgement. “That’s nice… Who are you again? I-”
Your eyes fell closed without your permission, the sensation of your body fading rapidly as every tap and shake from McCoy did nothing to stir you from your sleep.
“(Y/N?)” His words echoed throughout your head, seemingly for the last time.
0-=
Like emerging from water your eyes slowly fluttered open as a large breathe filled your lungs. The memories of the past two days melting away as you slowly returned to what you assumed to be the present.
Tracing the room, your eyes mapped your location easily. Judging by the mass of medical equipment and the soft beeping from the biobed monitors, you were definitely in sickbay. The fact that there was nobody else around you signified you had been granted a more private and secluded room, a luxury which was only ever really given to the more serious cases.
Shifting ever so slightly at the uncomfortable position you were in, you smiled at the heavy weight which leaned unevenly on the bed beside you. To your right, a mass of disheveled brown hair graced a crimped blue medical shirt, it’s owners arms draped over the bed as their head leant in to them. Soft snoring sounds emitted ungraciously from their position, signifying that it could only be one specific person gracing you with their presence.
“Wakey Wakey, You're the one supposed to be getting me up.” You hissed, your voice scratching from the lack of water.
The effect was immediate however as Leonard McCoy’s head snapped upwards; his droopy eyes correcting themselves as he stared at you in disbelief.
“You’re awake!”
You paused as you tilted you head to the side in confusion, “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“You don’t remember?” Leonard questioned as he threw himself into doctor mode once more, standing upwards from the chair he had been sleeping in; McCoy’s eyes narrowed on the monitors above your bed.
“No I remember, I just lived through it all again…” You sighed as the haunting thoughts of the native were dragged to the forefront of your mind.
Leonard risked you a glance as he sighed deeply. “Then you know why I am surprised you’re awake.”
Sensing a need for a lighter tone, you smiled brightly up towards him; your hands working their way out from underneath the cover you were tucked tightly into. “Come on, It wasn’t that bad.”
“DAMMIT WOMAN!” Leonard exclaimed as his eyes narrowed considerably, “You were in a coma for four days! How is that not bad!”
You fell silent as the reality of the situation dawned on you, it had only felt like moments ago you were being wheeled to sickbay on the stretcher; your hand grasping tightly to Leonard’s shirt as if it had been your only lifeline.
Taking your silence as a sign of your reconsideration, McCoy slowly lowered himself into the chair once again, his hand running through his hair as his eyes became glazed over; recalling the past few days.
“(Y/N) when I found you, you were almost dead, HECK! you should have been with the readings I had!” Leonard paused as he allowed his hand to fall away from his hair, his eyes falling into yours as he seemingly opened up. “I brought you back and treated you but, every time you started to get better you would deteriorate again. It wasn’t until I remembered what you said, about your hand that I found the thorn.”
“The tree..” Your murmured in response, your eyes watering as you looked away from Leonard. Bringing your hand upwards you studied it closely for the first time; your fingers tracing the remnants of the surgical scar. “It was real?”
Leonard blew a raspberry as he leaned forwards, “It was real alright, that bloody thorn thing was embedded so deeply into you I had to have help just to get it out! Science were working nonstop to configure an antidote, but it was taking too long.”
“What do you mean?”
Leonard froze briefly, sending a sense of dread through your bones. “You died (Y/N).”
The words hung in the air as you looked around the room quickly once before turning back to Leonard. “I’m here now, isn’t that what matters?”
“That's not the point.” the doctor sighed as he leaned away, the tension from the past few days seemingly building up towards his breaking point.
“Then what is the point?” You croaked, your eyes searching his own for an answer.
“The point is... “ Leonard's eyes shimmered slightly as he shook his head in frustration. “Dammit man” He cursed himself before regaining his composure.
“You died thinking I meant the horrible things I said to you, thinking that I didn’t care for you. When the truth is the complete opposite.”
Slowly you felt your own eyes beginning to well, the emotions which you had buckled back for so long threatening to give way. Reaching outwards with a stray hand, you found his own; reigning his eyes back to yours.
“I need to tell you something Leonard, I- I-”
“I know.” He finished for you, his own hand encircling yours tighter and squeezing it in reassurance. Slowly Leonard leaned forwards, his breath hot on your face as you found your eyes fluttering closed as you slowly leaned forwards to meet his lips.
As gently as he could, Leonard’s lips caressed your own as his hand traced the outline of your cheekbone. The barrier of tears which lined your eyes finally slipping away, carving rivers down your cheeks as they met with his own. After a few moments, the doctor pulled away a new glint in his eyes, his cheeks damp as he smiled warmly at you.
“Wow.” Were the first words from your mouth, your mind struggling to focus as your lips longed for another kiss. Using the sleeve of your medical gown, you wiped away the damp patches on your cheeks. “I don’t see why so many people moan about your bedside manner.”
Leonard McCoy laughed in response, his teeth flashing as he squeezed your hand once more. “That's because they don’t get the same treatment as you darling.”
“Don’t get me wrong it's great and all but, can i ask- how did you know that I-”
“Liked me?” Leonard raised an eyebrow as he slowly stood and walked away from your bed, his hands encircling a pad which rested across the room. “I think it was somewhere between the well timed lunches and afternoons you spent in here fixing everything that had a power source.”
Silently you cursed your subtlety, watching mutely as Leonard returned to foot of your bed swiping away at the pad in his hands. “In all honestly, after my ex I wasn’t sure myself but... when you died-” Leonard’s voice appeared to catch in his throat as he quickly shook his head in determination, “I couldn’t imagine this place without you.”
Leaning forwards Leonard handed you the pad which had been in his hands. Following his sight you frowned at the long list of messages in your notifications, the dates seemingly going back for the past few days. Opening a random one up, you were surprised to see an image Lieutenant Sulu and Mister Chekov smiling, the text above it a short but brief message wishing you well and the promise of a drink once you were on your feet again.
Meeting Leonard eye’s once again you smirked mischievously, your head tilted to the side. “I think we should start this over again.”
“So do I.” McCoy agreed as he wandered forwards slowly, “Lieutenant (Y/L/N), I have been thinking and well- would you care to join me for dinner sometime?”
“Why Doctor McCoy.” You paused as your smile widened, “I would love to.”