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I tried my hardest to stay awake. My efforts, however, were fruitless. I soon fell asleep, and woke up hours later. My communicator was still on the bed next to me, but it was closed. I attempted to open it again, but my arms had security restraints on them. Fortunately, being a Vulcan, I am stronger than humans, and most other species. I focused my very drowsy mind, and pulled my arm up, snapping the restraint. I repeated this process until my other arm and legs were free. I rested for a moment after I had broken the other restraints, but got up before I fell asleep again. I got out of bed, grabbed my communicator, and opened it.
"Hello?" I said, forcing myself to keep my eyes open. "Is anybody there? If you are, please answer."
"Ivy?" I heard a voice say.
"Yes. Who is this?"
"It's Dr. McCoy. Where are you?" He asked.
"I'm in the Klingon sickbay." I replied. "Where's the Captain?"
"He's gone to the transporter room with Spock and Liz. They're going to come rescue you."
"No." I said. "Send them back. Don't let them come."
I started to wake up a bit more. The Admiral came into the sickbay, and I hid my communicator. I stood there, and faced him.
"How did you get free?" The Admiral asked.
"You must have forgotten that Vulcans have superior strength."
An intercom whistled. The Admiral walked over and pressed the communication button.
"Yes?" He asked.
"We have the trades for the Vulcan here, sir."
"Trades?" Admiral said, obviously puzzled.
"Yes, sir."
"Send them to my quarters. I'll be there in a moment."
The Admiral grabbed my arm, and pulled me along to his quarters to meet Captain Kirk. He was surprised to find Liz and Spock there. They looked at me, and Liz came over and made the Admiral let my arm go. She helped me to a chair. I didn't look so well, considering I had just woken up from a tranqulizer, my hand was burned badly, and my clothes bathed in my green blood.
"Hey, guys." I said, smiling half-heartedly. "What's up?"
The door opened and Captain Wark walked in. He saluted the Admiral, and stood by me, ready to stop me if I should start a fight.
Liz spoke first. Her comments were directed to the Admiral. "How could you do this?"
"What are you doing here, Liz?" The Admiral asked.
"I came to rescue my friend, Father." She said, defiantly. "And you will release her, along with my friends."
"No, I won't Liz." Her father said. "The two Vulcans will be released, but Kirk will remain here."
"For what purpose?"
"That is none of your business."
"You will not use him for tests." Liz said, her voice getting loud.
"I will do with my prisoners as I please. You will be silent."
"No! I won't!" Liz shouted. "You've infected Spock with the diease spores, and you've hurt Ivy terribly."
Captain Wark spoke. "Ah, so you're her love?" The question was directed toward Spock.
I snapped, "That's none of your business."
Wark silenced me with a slap. Spock stood, as though he was going to throw himself at the Klingon. I stopped him with a hand motion.
"Sit down, Spock." Liz said. "Wark, you will not slap her again."
Wark bowed and apologized. Liz went back to arguing with her father. I noticed she had a small phaser behind her back. It was set on stun. When her father wouldn't agree to any terms, she pulled it out, and stunned her father, and then Captain Wark.
"Come on." She said. "We don't have very long."
"Not long at all." We heard a smug voice say.
Captain Wark stood up, and then the Admiral did.
"Do you really think," Wark said. "That we would be so foolish as to not take precautions when you were brought here. Your phaser is useless."
The Admiral walked over to his daughter, and told her she would be confined to quarters. Liz was escorted by security to her father's quarters. Spock, Kirk and I were taken to interrogation rooms. We all sat in one room, and instruments were brought in. These instruments were used for torture.
Wark walked in, and smiled smugly at the three of us, sitting there.
"Well, well." He said. "The spectaular Kirk and the amazing Spock. How pleasant it is to finally have you where I want you."
"You're weak." I said, under my breath.
"What did you say, young Vulcan?" Wark asked.
"I said you're weak." I replied, louder. "You inflict pain on others because you can't find strength anywhere else."
"We shall see who is the stronger, Vulcan." Wark sneered. "Starting with your darling Mr. Spock."
"Leave him alone!" I shouted. "Do what you want to me, but leave the Captain and Spock alone. They've done you no harm."
"We shall see who's stronger." Wark repeated.
He picked up a tool, which was used to inflict intense heat onto the skin of the being, and causing their skin to burn terribly, and more often than not, caused the skin to dissolve. Using this tool, he pointed it at Spock's arm, but before he could start it, I ran into him, knocking him over. He pushed me away, and used the heating tool on me. I screamed in agony, but inside, I was relieved I had saved Spock from the pain, even for a moment.
I don't know when the Klingon Captain stopped shooting me with the intense heat, but I kept insulting him, doing anything to tick him off. I hoped that Kirk and Spock would leave and get back to the Enterprise, but instead, they seemed to stare in disbelief as I inflicted more pain on myself.
"You'll never be a good enough captain to impress your leader," I shouted, my voice choked with tears. "You're scum, a poor tactic. You're a mere pawn on the chessboard. You're nobody of importance."
Wark said, "I may be those, but I am the stronger. Now, to teach your friends the punishment of disobeidence."
"They did not disobey you." I managed. My skin was burning as though it was on fire, but I kept speaking. "Punish me, but leave them alone."
The Captain pointed the tool at me once more, but was knocked over before he could use it. Spock had tackled him, and was now being punished with the heat weapon. He shouted in agony as his skin burned, as the Captain used as much heat as he had on me.
Kirk tried to grab the tool from the Captain, but was restrained by the guards. He struggled, but the guards held him. I staggered to my feet, using a chair for support.
"You're merely a chess piece." I said, my voice stronger than I felt. "A chess piece. An unimportant one at that. You'll amount to nothing, you are nothing. And your mother's a human!"
Wark said, "You fool. Do you not realize I could kill you now?"
"Then do it." I challenged, walking a few steps, my skin burning. "Kill me on this very spot. Prove that you're important."
"You are foolish," Wark said.
"You're a weakling. You're a bumbling, inept, weak fool! Prove you're stronger than me, kill me now."
Wark grabbed a phaser from the table, and obviously annoyed by my insults pointed it at my head.
"I will kill you now."
Spock tried to stand up, but his skin was badly burned. Kirk was held back by the guards. I could do nothing, I could barely stand. Just as he pulled the trigger, the door opened, and Wark fell dead.
"Not if I kill you first." Liz's voice said. "You will release them all." She instructed the guard. She helped me to my feet, and had the guard help Spock. We were taken to the transporter room, and we beamed back over to the Enterprise. Spock and I were rushed to the sickbay, and were treated for the burns we had received. I had more than he did, since Wark used the tool more on me than Spock.
Dr. McCoy did the best he could on the burns, and the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes after the treatment, was Spock, sleeping in another bed very close to mine. I lifted my arms, and saw that they were black from the burns. I didn't want to think about what happened to my legs.
"Doctor?" I asked. "Where are you?"
"I'm right here." His voice said. He walked over to m bed. "Are you okay?"
"Mostly." I said. "How's Spock?"
"He's just fine, Ivy. It seems that heat killed the spores that infected him. They're gone."
"I'm glad." I smiled. "At least he's okay now. How am I doing?"
"You were horribly burned. What did they do to you?"
"Well, I used the wonderful art of annoyance, and the tool was used mostly on me. Spock only got a touch of it."
"What did you say to them?" McCoy asked.
"I told the Klingon Captain his mother was a human."
McCoy laughed. "You've been on Earth too long."
"Yeah, well, I know how to offend someone."
Spock groaned, and started to wake up. "Ivy? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." I said. "How are you?"
"I seem to be doing well." He groaned slightly. "That was foolish to insult the Klingon like that."
"It saved you, didn't it?" I said.
"That is true, but you would have been killed also, if it were not for Liz."
"Also true." I said. "Where is Liz?"
"I'm here." She walked over to me.
"Thank you, Liz. For saving me, Spock, and Kirk."
"It's not a problem." She said. "They had no right to treat you that way."
Kirk came in, and Liz walked out. "Are you feeling all right?"
"We're both fine, Captain." Spock said.
"Good." He said, smiling a bit. "If you feel well in four days, your wedding will take place."
"Thank you, Captain." I said. "Perhaps Spock would prefer to have the pon farr? Since we are both Vulcans."
Spock thought. "Yes, that would be appropriate. We thank you, Captain. But we shall proceed in the pon farr."
"Very well." Captain Kirk said. "How does the pon farr proceed?"
"It is a sacred ceremony." Spock said. "We rarely speak of it, even among ourselves, so you'll understand if we do not tell you. But if you could, would you take us to Vulcan? It would be understandable to have the pon farr there."
"I understand." Kirk said. "I'm going to leave to let you two rest. Bones, take good care of them."
"I will, Jim." McCoy said.
The Captain walked out, and I sat up. I pulled the blankets back, and got out of the bed. I walked over to Spock, and kissed him softly. He held out two fingers in affection, and I placed two fingers against his. The doctor wanted me to get back into bed, so he had moved my bed closer to Spock's. Our fingers were still touching in the Vulcan form of affection.
We were heading to Vulcan, to have a offical from the High Council to head the ceremony.
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