Fic: Que Sera Sera (10/15)
Fandom: TOS/TNG/ST XI -slight AU where there isn’t a 16 year gap between the events of Generations and Star Trek 2009.
Pairings: Kirk Prime/McCoy Prime/Spock Prime, Kirk/Spock/McCoy, Scotty/Uhura
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: minor character death
Summary: Spock Prime went to save Romulus from a supernova and failed, leaving him in a universe that is similar and still so different from his own. Meanwhile in another part of the galaxy Kirk Prime was freed from the Nexus by Captain Picard and survived. Not believing that Spock Prime is dead Kirk Prime goes in search of him, and travels to the universe created when Nero went through the black hole. In that universe Kirk and Spock are starting on their five year mission, determined to write their own destinies after their encounters with Spock Prime. Unlike them McCoy doesn’t trust destiny as far as he can throw it, and he has his own problems to deal with, like getting custody of the three year old daughter he didn’t know he had.
Que Sera Sera
The mission to Omicron Ceti III, despite the embarrassing hiccups with the spores for many in the landing party, was a success. A rousing success in fact, no one could deny it. All the colonists had been rescued alive and well. The landing party had suffered no lasting effects from the spores or the Berthold rays. Also once one of the plants had been safely secured and put in one of the Enterprise science labs to be, very carefully, studied it could be used to provide more information on Berthold rays. Between that and their defeat of Nero it was easy to see how the crew would get cocky, that they would be over-confident and try to do too much at once.
All of those thoughts were swirling through Kirk’s head as he stared out the viewscreen to the collection of planets in front of them.
“Uhura, anything?”
“Nothing, Captain.”
There next mission was a run of medical supplies to Marcus III. On the way they passed a quaserlike system and Kirk just knew they could do it all. That they could fill their standing orders for exploration and still get to rendezvous point in plenty of time. So a team had been sent out to investigate the system.
The Enterprise had lost contact with the shuttle almost immediately. Now they were running the risk of being late to the rendezvous point and leaving seven crewmembers behind, likely to die. And worst of all Kirk had sent Bones and Spock on that shuttle hoping they could work through some of their lingering hostility. Now he might lose the two men that meant more to him than anything in the galaxy.
***
“All right that’s it,” Boma grunted as he tossed the last chair out of the shuttle. “It won’t be a comfortable ride home, but we’ll make it.”
Scotty sighed. “Well we would have, lads, but now even that’s not going to be enough.”
“Why not!?” Boma yelled. “We got all the weight off without leaving people here to die!”
“The fuel line was damaged when the aliens attacked us. I cannot guarantee that we can maintain an orbit with what’s left, and we cannot even take off with all of us onboard. We either need to get more fuel or have someone stay behind.”
Bones turned to Spock. The Vulcan logically thought he was better than everyone else, because he saw people as numbers and data, let him try and puzzle his way out of this. Let him tell them which one he thought wasn’t worthy enough to be saved.
“Well you said you would make the decision as the commanding officer, Spock, so command,” he growled out.
Spock nodded calmly.
“Ensign Boma, make sure Latimer and Gaetano are secured to the floor of the shuttle as best you can. With the extra floor space we must try to keep them flat for the take-off of the shuttle to prevent further injuries. Mister Scott, how long can you stay up if the required weight is lost?”
“If the orbit is high enough, indefinitely, but considering the shape of the shuttlecraft, Mister Spock, I give us an hour at best.”
“Thank you, Mister Scott. You will be in charge of making sure that orbit is achieved and making contact with the Enterprise.”
“Me, Commander?”
“Yes, I am officially turning command of this mission over to you. I will stay behind.”
“What!?” the others cried.
Spock stepped back onto the ramp of the shuttlecraft.
“My muscle density accounts for more weight than a human's. You will have a better chance to achieve an orbit without me. Also my increased strength from those same muscles gives me an advantage should I have another encounter with this planet’s inhabitants.”
Bones looked stricken and moved towards Spock. “You can’t, Spock, this mission needs a commanding officer, I’ll stay.”
“Doctor McCoy, our party has injuries and your skills will be needed on the ship. You also have your family to consider and I do not.”
There was an animal screech from close by.
“If you do not leave now there will not be another chance, this is no time for further discussion.”
Swiftly Spock pushed Bones back into the shuttle. Then he grabbed the edge of the ramp, and pushed it up and closed.
“Spock, no!”
Bones ran over to the front window of the shuttled and continued trying to call him back, but Spock ran over the nearest rock face, a spear in his hand, and was gone.
***
With no other choice the landing party got the shuttle up and into orbit, but Scotty turned out to be right. They couldn’t maintain a high enough orbit and they couldn’t get any contact with the ship. Scotty gritted his teeth and did what was necessary. Spock had trusted him to take care of the team.
He reached out and hit the button to jettison the last of their fuel.
“Scotty, what are you doing?!” Bones cried out in alarm.
“Giving the ship a signal. Spock didn’t give up his life for us to fail!”
Back on the Enterprise, that was moving away from the planet at the slowest possible speed, a bright green flare suddenly appeared on the viewscreen.
“Sulu, turn this ship around we’re getting them!” Kirk commanded.
“Aye, Captain!”
“Chekov, magnify the image.”
He did and those on the bridge could finally get a clear view of the shuttlecraft.
“Uhura, tell the transporter room to lock on to the shuttle and beam everyone back here the moment we’re in range!”
Kirk watched as the minutes ticked by and the shuttle slowly lost its orbit and broke apart in the atmosphere.
“Uhura, did we get them?”
“Captain, the transporter room reports six people on the pad. They’re alive.”
Alive, but someone was missing, who?
“Sulu you have the conn. Get us to the rendezvous point, full speed.”
Kirk ran down to the transporter room to find that the away team was already in sickbay. When he got to sickbay he found Bones treating Latimer and Gaetano while Nurse Chapel looked over Scotty and Boma.
But Kirk didn’t see Spock anywhere.
“Where is Spock!?”
Bones looked at him gravely. “He stayed behind, Jim.”
“He what?!”
“It was the only way, Captain, the shuttlecraft would never have been light enough otherwise to get us in orbit,” Scotty said.
Kirk bolted from the room and Bones found him an hour later sitting on the floor in his office, hiding from the world.
“Jim?” Bones asked in concern as he knelt down next to him.
“I as good as killed him, Bones.”
“No, Jim, you gave us a mission and we went on it. Spock was in command and he made his decisions based on his own judgement.”
“I’m the captain. Everything the crew does is my responsibility. I should have just gotten us to the meeting spot and said screw the whole standing order bullshit! This is my fault.”
“Jim, I know it hurts, but you can’t punish yourself like this or you won’t stand the pressure of command. We can, and will, lose people on this five year mission no matter how well prepared we are. It happened with Oslen on your very first away mission for god sakes.”
“I know, Bones, but that was him being over-confident, not because of a hostile alien we knew nothing about or some random ray or plant; and I wasn’t the one who ordered him down there.”
How could he expect Bones to understand? Kirk already knew things of a world that wasn’t his. He had had nightmares of Spock leaning against the glass of an engine room, his skin burnt from radiation, the life draining out of him. To have that happen in his reality, that it might have already happened, wasn’t something Kirk was sure he could face. If he could face endless days looking at the chess set in his quarters, knowing Spock would never touch those pieces again. Never go down to the labs to bug Spock while he performed some experiment. Never again hear Spock and Bones argue over anything and everything. Kirk dropped his head on his knees. He should have known better, he should have done something to prevent this.
Bones gripped Jim’s arm firmly, trying to offer more comfort. “He had to stay behind it was the only way to save the rest of us. We’ll go deliver the medicine and then come back for him. And I’ll find him, Jim I promise.”
***
The moment he was off duty Bones went to his daughter. He needed reassurance that she was all right, and that there was still something in the world to feel good about. She was already in bed, but he gathered her up in his arms anyway and hugged her tightly.
“Daddy, you’re crushing me.”
“Sorry, Jo, I’m just so happy to see you.”
He set her back down on her bed and noticed that she seemed sad.
“What’s wrong, Jo?”
“Spock didn’t come today.”
“What do you mean?”
“He comes to see us at daycare on Mondays.”
“Well we had an important mission today and Spock had to go on it. What does he usually do, Jo? Maybe I could help you with it instead.”
“He teaches stuff, but he promised to play chess with me. It’s like how we play checkers, Daddy, but his game has horsie pieces.”
“He does that?” Bones asked. He never knew Spock did anything but hang around the bridge and the science labs. Outside of playing chess Bones thought they only thing Spock might do for fun was hit himself in the head with a hammer.
“Yeah, he says I’m a model student, that’s good right?”
“Yes it is.”
Bones tucked her into bed and looked at her sadly.
“Joanna, Spock couldn’t come and play today because he had to stay behind on the planet so we could get medicine to other people and help them. Do you understand Jo?”
She nodded. “Uncle Jim will go back and get him soon right?”
“Yes, as soon as he can. Then you and Spock can play chess.”
Bones kissed her hair.
“Goodnight, Jo.”
“Night, Daddy.”
Bones left his daughter’s room and hoped against hope that he hadn’t just lied to her.
***
The transfer of medical supplies was the fastest in the history of the fleet and the Enterprise was back to find their missing crewmember. Now having a far better idea of what they were getting themselves into the shuttlecraft landed without incident on the planet and the medical and security teams spread out to find Spock.
Just as he promised Bones tracked Spock down first in a small cave about a mile from where the shuttlecraft he been. Spock clothes were torn and caked to his skin by dried blood. His breathing was shallow, he was running a fever, had cracked ribs. There was a green trail of blood running from his mouth that indicated a strong chance that one of the ribs had punctured a lung.
But he was alive. He was alive!
As the rest of the medical team began prepping Spock for the trip back Bones ripped his communicator off his belt and shouted into it.
“Galileo Seven to Enterprise, we’ve got him! I repeat we’ve got him!”
***
It was a long surgery, but Bones came out of it smiling like a loon. Spock was going to make it.
When Bones announced that Spock would be okay Kirk actually hugged him.
“Thank you, Bones.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
Bones really meant that too. He shouldn’t be thanked just for doing his job, especially after the way he had treated Spock during that mission. Bones knew had been wrong about the Vulcan. Spock really did care about others. They weren’t just facts and figures to him. The education of the children was important to Spock, the lives of the landing party were more important to Spock than his own life.
After Bones chased Kirk out of sickbay, telling him to get some rest after he had waited until Spock woke up so they could talk.
He didn’t have to wait long as Spock’s Vulcan metabolism worked the anesthetic quickly out of his body.
“Doctor McCoy?”
“You’re in sickbay, Spock. I’ve treated your injuries and you should recover just fine so long as you don’t try to get back on duty for the next two days.”
“Y-you came back for me.”
“Of course we did, Spock. We don’t leave anyone behind if we can help it.”
“I see.”
“Spock...first I want to say thank you, and then I want to tell you how sorry I am.”
“For what, Doctor McCoy?”
“For acting like a complete asshole when we were trapped on that planet. You should bring me up charges of insubordination. I got mad at you for doing what any command officer is supposed to do, look out for the well-being of everyone they can. It was a hostile environment with a time limit to ensuring the survival of all of us. We all should have known better than to think that just because you gave the grim details to us in less…soft language than we would have liked didn’t make you callous or wrong.”
“Then I accept you apology, Doctor. We all have our own weakness to work on in order to move forward as the captain says.”
Bones chuckled. “Every once and a while Jim gets something right.”
He put a hand on Spock’s shoulder and squeezed gently.
“Thank you again, Spock, for everything.”
“You are welcome.”
When Spock was well enough to return to duty Bones made it a point to share dinner with him and Kirk from then on. He even invited them to Joanna’s fourth birthday party. At the end of it with Joanna and her friends asleep on the floor, a movie that Bones forgot the name of playing as a projection on the wall, and him, Kirk, and Spock draped over each other on the couch with popcorn strewn everywhere Bones had to admit that it was one of the most enjoyable days he had in a long time.
Chapter 11
Pairings: Kirk Prime/McCoy Prime/Spock Prime, Kirk/Spock/McCoy, Scotty/Uhura
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: minor character death
Summary: Spock Prime went to save Romulus from a supernova and failed, leaving him in a universe that is similar and still so different from his own. Meanwhile in another part of the galaxy Kirk Prime was freed from the Nexus by Captain Picard and survived. Not believing that Spock Prime is dead Kirk Prime goes in search of him, and travels to the universe created when Nero went through the black hole. In that universe Kirk and Spock are starting on their five year mission, determined to write their own destinies after their encounters with Spock Prime. Unlike them McCoy doesn’t trust destiny as far as he can throw it, and he has his own problems to deal with, like getting custody of the three year old daughter he didn’t know he had.
Que Sera Sera
The mission to Omicron Ceti III, despite the embarrassing hiccups with the spores for many in the landing party, was a success. A rousing success in fact, no one could deny it. All the colonists had been rescued alive and well. The landing party had suffered no lasting effects from the spores or the Berthold rays. Also once one of the plants had been safely secured and put in one of the Enterprise science labs to be, very carefully, studied it could be used to provide more information on Berthold rays. Between that and their defeat of Nero it was easy to see how the crew would get cocky, that they would be over-confident and try to do too much at once.
All of those thoughts were swirling through Kirk’s head as he stared out the viewscreen to the collection of planets in front of them.
“Uhura, anything?”
“Nothing, Captain.”
There next mission was a run of medical supplies to Marcus III. On the way they passed a quaserlike system and Kirk just knew they could do it all. That they could fill their standing orders for exploration and still get to rendezvous point in plenty of time. So a team had been sent out to investigate the system.
The Enterprise had lost contact with the shuttle almost immediately. Now they were running the risk of being late to the rendezvous point and leaving seven crewmembers behind, likely to die. And worst of all Kirk had sent Bones and Spock on that shuttle hoping they could work through some of their lingering hostility. Now he might lose the two men that meant more to him than anything in the galaxy.
***
“All right that’s it,” Boma grunted as he tossed the last chair out of the shuttle. “It won’t be a comfortable ride home, but we’ll make it.”
Scotty sighed. “Well we would have, lads, but now even that’s not going to be enough.”
“Why not!?” Boma yelled. “We got all the weight off without leaving people here to die!”
“The fuel line was damaged when the aliens attacked us. I cannot guarantee that we can maintain an orbit with what’s left, and we cannot even take off with all of us onboard. We either need to get more fuel or have someone stay behind.”
Bones turned to Spock. The Vulcan logically thought he was better than everyone else, because he saw people as numbers and data, let him try and puzzle his way out of this. Let him tell them which one he thought wasn’t worthy enough to be saved.
“Well you said you would make the decision as the commanding officer, Spock, so command,” he growled out.
Spock nodded calmly.
“Ensign Boma, make sure Latimer and Gaetano are secured to the floor of the shuttle as best you can. With the extra floor space we must try to keep them flat for the take-off of the shuttle to prevent further injuries. Mister Scott, how long can you stay up if the required weight is lost?”
“If the orbit is high enough, indefinitely, but considering the shape of the shuttlecraft, Mister Spock, I give us an hour at best.”
“Thank you, Mister Scott. You will be in charge of making sure that orbit is achieved and making contact with the Enterprise.”
“Me, Commander?”
“Yes, I am officially turning command of this mission over to you. I will stay behind.”
“What!?” the others cried.
Spock stepped back onto the ramp of the shuttlecraft.
“My muscle density accounts for more weight than a human's. You will have a better chance to achieve an orbit without me. Also my increased strength from those same muscles gives me an advantage should I have another encounter with this planet’s inhabitants.”
Bones looked stricken and moved towards Spock. “You can’t, Spock, this mission needs a commanding officer, I’ll stay.”
“Doctor McCoy, our party has injuries and your skills will be needed on the ship. You also have your family to consider and I do not.”
There was an animal screech from close by.
“If you do not leave now there will not be another chance, this is no time for further discussion.”
Swiftly Spock pushed Bones back into the shuttle. Then he grabbed the edge of the ramp, and pushed it up and closed.
“Spock, no!”
Bones ran over to the front window of the shuttled and continued trying to call him back, but Spock ran over the nearest rock face, a spear in his hand, and was gone.
***
With no other choice the landing party got the shuttle up and into orbit, but Scotty turned out to be right. They couldn’t maintain a high enough orbit and they couldn’t get any contact with the ship. Scotty gritted his teeth and did what was necessary. Spock had trusted him to take care of the team.
He reached out and hit the button to jettison the last of their fuel.
“Scotty, what are you doing?!” Bones cried out in alarm.
“Giving the ship a signal. Spock didn’t give up his life for us to fail!”
Back on the Enterprise, that was moving away from the planet at the slowest possible speed, a bright green flare suddenly appeared on the viewscreen.
“Sulu, turn this ship around we’re getting them!” Kirk commanded.
“Aye, Captain!”
“Chekov, magnify the image.”
He did and those on the bridge could finally get a clear view of the shuttlecraft.
“Uhura, tell the transporter room to lock on to the shuttle and beam everyone back here the moment we’re in range!”
Kirk watched as the minutes ticked by and the shuttle slowly lost its orbit and broke apart in the atmosphere.
“Uhura, did we get them?”
“Captain, the transporter room reports six people on the pad. They’re alive.”
Alive, but someone was missing, who?
“Sulu you have the conn. Get us to the rendezvous point, full speed.”
Kirk ran down to the transporter room to find that the away team was already in sickbay. When he got to sickbay he found Bones treating Latimer and Gaetano while Nurse Chapel looked over Scotty and Boma.
But Kirk didn’t see Spock anywhere.
“Where is Spock!?”
Bones looked at him gravely. “He stayed behind, Jim.”
“He what?!”
“It was the only way, Captain, the shuttlecraft would never have been light enough otherwise to get us in orbit,” Scotty said.
Kirk bolted from the room and Bones found him an hour later sitting on the floor in his office, hiding from the world.
“Jim?” Bones asked in concern as he knelt down next to him.
“I as good as killed him, Bones.”
“No, Jim, you gave us a mission and we went on it. Spock was in command and he made his decisions based on his own judgement.”
“I’m the captain. Everything the crew does is my responsibility. I should have just gotten us to the meeting spot and said screw the whole standing order bullshit! This is my fault.”
“Jim, I know it hurts, but you can’t punish yourself like this or you won’t stand the pressure of command. We can, and will, lose people on this five year mission no matter how well prepared we are. It happened with Oslen on your very first away mission for god sakes.”
“I know, Bones, but that was him being over-confident, not because of a hostile alien we knew nothing about or some random ray or plant; and I wasn’t the one who ordered him down there.”
How could he expect Bones to understand? Kirk already knew things of a world that wasn’t his. He had had nightmares of Spock leaning against the glass of an engine room, his skin burnt from radiation, the life draining out of him. To have that happen in his reality, that it might have already happened, wasn’t something Kirk was sure he could face. If he could face endless days looking at the chess set in his quarters, knowing Spock would never touch those pieces again. Never go down to the labs to bug Spock while he performed some experiment. Never again hear Spock and Bones argue over anything and everything. Kirk dropped his head on his knees. He should have known better, he should have done something to prevent this.
Bones gripped Jim’s arm firmly, trying to offer more comfort. “He had to stay behind it was the only way to save the rest of us. We’ll go deliver the medicine and then come back for him. And I’ll find him, Jim I promise.”
***
The moment he was off duty Bones went to his daughter. He needed reassurance that she was all right, and that there was still something in the world to feel good about. She was already in bed, but he gathered her up in his arms anyway and hugged her tightly.
“Daddy, you’re crushing me.”
“Sorry, Jo, I’m just so happy to see you.”
He set her back down on her bed and noticed that she seemed sad.
“What’s wrong, Jo?”
“Spock didn’t come today.”
“What do you mean?”
“He comes to see us at daycare on Mondays.”
“Well we had an important mission today and Spock had to go on it. What does he usually do, Jo? Maybe I could help you with it instead.”
“He teaches stuff, but he promised to play chess with me. It’s like how we play checkers, Daddy, but his game has horsie pieces.”
“He does that?” Bones asked. He never knew Spock did anything but hang around the bridge and the science labs. Outside of playing chess Bones thought they only thing Spock might do for fun was hit himself in the head with a hammer.
“Yeah, he says I’m a model student, that’s good right?”
“Yes it is.”
Bones tucked her into bed and looked at her sadly.
“Joanna, Spock couldn’t come and play today because he had to stay behind on the planet so we could get medicine to other people and help them. Do you understand Jo?”
She nodded. “Uncle Jim will go back and get him soon right?”
“Yes, as soon as he can. Then you and Spock can play chess.”
Bones kissed her hair.
“Goodnight, Jo.”
“Night, Daddy.”
Bones left his daughter’s room and hoped against hope that he hadn’t just lied to her.
***
The transfer of medical supplies was the fastest in the history of the fleet and the Enterprise was back to find their missing crewmember. Now having a far better idea of what they were getting themselves into the shuttlecraft landed without incident on the planet and the medical and security teams spread out to find Spock.
Just as he promised Bones tracked Spock down first in a small cave about a mile from where the shuttlecraft he been. Spock clothes were torn and caked to his skin by dried blood. His breathing was shallow, he was running a fever, had cracked ribs. There was a green trail of blood running from his mouth that indicated a strong chance that one of the ribs had punctured a lung.
But he was alive. He was alive!
As the rest of the medical team began prepping Spock for the trip back Bones ripped his communicator off his belt and shouted into it.
“Galileo Seven to Enterprise, we’ve got him! I repeat we’ve got him!”
***
It was a long surgery, but Bones came out of it smiling like a loon. Spock was going to make it.
When Bones announced that Spock would be okay Kirk actually hugged him.
“Thank you, Bones.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
Bones really meant that too. He shouldn’t be thanked just for doing his job, especially after the way he had treated Spock during that mission. Bones knew had been wrong about the Vulcan. Spock really did care about others. They weren’t just facts and figures to him. The education of the children was important to Spock, the lives of the landing party were more important to Spock than his own life.
After Bones chased Kirk out of sickbay, telling him to get some rest after he had waited until Spock woke up so they could talk.
He didn’t have to wait long as Spock’s Vulcan metabolism worked the anesthetic quickly out of his body.
“Doctor McCoy?”
“You’re in sickbay, Spock. I’ve treated your injuries and you should recover just fine so long as you don’t try to get back on duty for the next two days.”
“Y-you came back for me.”
“Of course we did, Spock. We don’t leave anyone behind if we can help it.”
“I see.”
“Spock...first I want to say thank you, and then I want to tell you how sorry I am.”
“For what, Doctor McCoy?”
“For acting like a complete asshole when we were trapped on that planet. You should bring me up charges of insubordination. I got mad at you for doing what any command officer is supposed to do, look out for the well-being of everyone they can. It was a hostile environment with a time limit to ensuring the survival of all of us. We all should have known better than to think that just because you gave the grim details to us in less…soft language than we would have liked didn’t make you callous or wrong.”
“Then I accept you apology, Doctor. We all have our own weakness to work on in order to move forward as the captain says.”
Bones chuckled. “Every once and a while Jim gets something right.”
He put a hand on Spock’s shoulder and squeezed gently.
“Thank you again, Spock, for everything.”
“You are welcome.”
When Spock was well enough to return to duty Bones made it a point to share dinner with him and Kirk from then on. He even invited them to Joanna’s fourth birthday party. At the end of it with Joanna and her friends asleep on the floor, a movie that Bones forgot the name of playing as a projection on the wall, and him, Kirk, and Spock draped over each other on the couch with popcorn strewn everywhere Bones had to admit that it was one of the most enjoyable days he had in a long time.
Chapter 11