Bonds Know No Distance

[mirroredcommand]

The night was dark and deep and long in space, never ending, without a dawn to break the line between waking and sleep, day and night, beginning and end. It made existence endless, broken only by the silent running of the clocks on the wall, the movements of work, food, and sleep. Without these things, without the sureness of a schedule, time became meaningless. Even the stars could not keep him company.

So after Kirk came and 'visited', time resumed its endless patterns, moving on and on without pause or break or concept. For a man used to near-constant action, it was a form of torture more exquisite then any bit of pain or distress. More then anything, it was a torture that gave him nothing to focus his mind on anything but the swelling pain of the broken bond. It was swiftly becoming over whelming, completely and utterly. There was nothing left to keep the pain away, and with his shields designed only to block out Spock's light intrusions instead of a full on force, they were failing after being buffeted for so long. In short, he was going mad.

His expression showed little of the internal war except for the strong brow being furrowed and the age-lines at the edges of the eyes and corners of the mouth looking thicker. It was his hands that gave him away, gripping fiercely into the fabric of the bed he was reclining on. A headache was throbbing behind his eyes in time with his heart, a thick red-hot band of light that was searing like a knife into his mind. Deeper, deeper with every beat of his heart.

Every part of him was focused on maintaining the failing shields, rebuilding them as Spock had taught him those years ago. He had survived torture from Vulcans who knew precisely what to do in the mind, but could not stop this. This bond that had been forced onto him but in the end welcomed, this bond that had saved his life many times in the past, that had saved the life of his first officer and friend, this bond that had been a respite from a world where one could never relax... this bond was killing him. It would destroy him as surely as any blade to the heart.

SPOCK!

Never screamed aloud, never aloud. Instead, strong white teeth bit firmly into his lip, hard enough to send a trickle of crimson along his chin, down to his jawline. The pain, the strain, had been steadily increasing since James Kirk's visit to his cell, as if the reminder of the bond and speaking of it had started a chain reaction. He had long since started to keep his eyes closed [was it hours? minutes? weeks? centuries?] because at least this way the room would not spin. He was starting to feel that same spinning in his mind, making his world wobble like a child's toy.

It seemed hours passed this way. A day? Perhaps. He vaguely heard someone calling him, but did not dare respond. Still trapped in the arms of the enemy, he could not let a weakness be seen. The smell of food made his stomach swell and gurgle, but not from hunger. It felt like his entire body needed one thing it could not have. [a universe away]

He did not feel when he stood, instead he felt the world sway, go sideways. Could not feel the floor beneath his feet, the slap of his hand against the wall in an instinctual attempt to keep himself upright. Did not feel when the world tuned him out, blew him out like a light bulb, did not feel when the pain consumed him and his shields finally fell, did not feel when he hit the ground.

The darkness had claimed him instead.

Comments

[iron-command.livejournal.com]

Inside the doors was, without a doubt, the core of Pike's being. An oasis in the desert, sprawling and beautiful, subtle and simple. There were plants spreading tendrils across the way, the stream bubbling up and going across the way. It was completely surrounded in stone about four feet high, then spread out into an open view of the sky above.

It was immediately obvious that something was missing, and that was the stars. There were none, just an empty dark sky that was settled into sunset-dusk.

Across the way was another huge set of doors. Trailing down the pale stone were streaks and handprints in blood. At the foot of the doors was Pike, his eyes closed and very still.

[sehlatbear.livejournal.com]

They-who-were-Spock did not need to confer with one another. They rushed to his side, name on their lips, a strangely doubled sound even in this entirely mental construct.

Christopher.

[cso-spock.livejournal.com]

The blood, the doors, and the scenery were all taken into account at once, while simultaneously they focused on Pike, examining him and his quiet anguish. At his side, they reached out (because Spock wanted to reach out, to touch and console), and continued to speak. Let us soothe you.

[iron-command.livejournal.com]

No matter the verse, a bond was a bond. Nearly a month of strain, kept out of sight of the enemy, weakness held in check, and now it had all come to a head like a cancer. Without a doubt, Pike's Spock knew what had happened, possibly it was even the reason for contact between the two ships.

Pike's eyes opened and focused on Spock, combined and yet single, and stared at the younger Spock. Here, the gloves seemed to be gone or had been torn off, as his hands were torn up on stone, bloodied heavily from mental attempts to contact his bond mate.

SpockSpockSpockSpock. It was a litany of sound, one that vibrated low with pure need and exquisite pain. A different state then the older Spock had found himself in after his bond mate McCoy had been removed from the universe under different circumstances, but Pike had no second bond mate to stabilize him at all.

[sehlatbear.livejournal.com]

They-who-were-Spock arranged themselves around Christopher, the elder at his head, cradling it, the younger at his side to grip his hand, touch his face. They-who-were-Spock offered up their own bonds as balm, fitted to the ragged ends of Pike's mind, flavored with his own Spock, across dimensions.

We are almost here. Let us ease you until we are here.

[iron-command.livejournal.com]

Their saving hands and minds protected Pike's from the darkness of madness, pushed back the night that was threatening this private place within his mind. The bond that needed repair, needed its mate, stretched too thin to sense, coiled around They-who-were-Spock and their own bonds and latched on, finding, feeling, needing.

Spock! A single word that spoke of such longing, such love, fell silently from Pike's lips and heavily from his mind. They were in his inner most more, where only his t'hy'la had gone before, where there were no boundaries of training and there were no masks of strength and bravado and command.

[kirktastic.livejournal.com]

Kirk walked across the room to the nearest comm and quickly linked up to the bridge, "Navigation. Head at warp 4 to the coordinates Uhura and Spock provided."

"Yes, sir!"

Kirk leaned his forehead against the wall, eyes closing. Fuck, it felt like there was something going on that he should know about, something that fucker had going on inside of his head. Didn't matter what happened, as long as Spock and Spock were safe and Pher's Spock came and got him. Took him away. They'd be vulnerable for who knew how long, open to attack, dangerous...

He sucked in a hard breath when he felt something pop like a bubble in the back of his mind. Kirk turned and stared at the bed, whole body going tense. He could feel it, feel them, almost acutely aware. "Spock..." Whispered unconsciously, not even realizing it.

[cso-spock.livejournal.com]

There was blood on their hand, the manifestation of his pain and struggles to get through. But they didn't care (he didn't care) about that, fingers slipping in between his. Their body (his, his alone, unprotected, open, untethered, and uncommitted--so much better to accommodate this, to cool the pain and the bond) pressed close and comforting, the warmth of his their thoughts coalescing with Pike's.

The love tempted him them closer with its purity, fingers coming up to brush his temple. It was only one manifestation of the affection, the soothing...It will not be long.

[sehlatbear.livejournal.com]

A thread of warning inside the mind of They-Who-Were-Spock, a frisson of worry that the younger would be overwhelmed, was not sufficiently healed to be in this place.

[iron-command.livejournal.com]

Won't be. Can't-! Each word seemed to be a struggle, but then he looked to the younger Spock, eyes burning in their sockets.

[original-fine.livejournal.com]

Jim felt it--the sudden tug in the place he thought of as the bond, that strange new presence, the whispered "Spock" escaping his lips at the same time as Kirk. He could not navigate what he was sensing, could not parse it into anything that made sense, but he had to hold himself back from the bed, from going to him/them, from stopping this.

He knew it had to be, knew that Spock needed to do this and that Pike needed something. But it tore at him, just the same.

Next to him he felt the other Jim, and unconsciously he reached over and grabbed his arm, just to have that anchor, that presence there, and perhaps also because they were them and it strengthened him.

[cso-spock.livejournal.com]

The concerns of the elder were brushed off carelessly, his focus entirely on the matter at hand. The words of warning were taken into more consideration--but only for a moment, until their thoughts wrapped a tighter support around Pike, ignoring the shared pain that came with doing so.

(He knew he should probably leave from this place and withdraw from the meld before something happened. Consequences he couldn't escape, images that he couldn't forget. But a falter here meant a failure outside. Failure was unacceptable.)

Ina. No. They weren't going anywhere. He will come for you.

[sehlatbear.livejournal.com]

The elder incarnation of Spock would never have admitted it ordinarily. But deep in this very human mind with its powerful influence, the blended identity that was They Who Were Spock felt a surge of intense annoyance, from one to the other. The blend shifted subtlely, until the elder Spock's mind stood as a barrier between the searching ends of Pike's bond and the empty reaches of the younger Spock. They Who Were Spock could not afford to be duhik in this place - it would cost Pike his sanity, his bond, perhaps his life. It could cost them even more.

It is possible. He comes - will you not wait for him?

They Who Were Spock shared the memory of their own pain, filled themselves with it to drain it from Pike's identity.

[iron-command.livejournal.com]

I would wait forever, Even the mental voice strained in this place. Just how had a human suppressed this pain for so long? Forever won't wait for me. Pike's fingers gripped at Spock's where they were laced together, flickers of embarrassment biting through at being seen in such a weakened state. Over head, the sky rumbled like the beginning of a storm, blocking out the sunset.

[sehlatbear.livejournal.com]

Christopher. We are Spock - we cannot lie to you. Wait with us just a little longer.

[kirktastic.livejournal.com]

"Bridge to Captain."

Kirk twisted a little from where he was looking at Pher and both Spocks, then hit the button on the comm, "Kirk here."

"Sir, we're at the coordinates."

...Thank fuck. He thought quickly - they could reach out with this, with a communication, and link up to the other Enterprise. Surely Pher's Spock had to be waiting for them, and that was part of what worried him.

"Kirk to transporter room."

"Yes, sir?"

"Prepare for incoming transport. Beam directly to sickbay."

"Yessir."

Kirk looked over his shoulder at the group, biting the inside of his lip for a moment. Bones, himself, Jim, George, and possibly the two Spocks were here to defend against Pher's Spock if needed. Security might make things worse, make Pher's Spock feel threatened. Just had to get that Spock in here, and get him out.

But what about the transport back? McCoy had been a healthy man, and he had barely survived the transport, ending up in a fucking coma. Pher was in a sorry state... would the man survive?

He sighed and nudged the comm button again, "Kirk to communications." Who would be up there, right then?

"Communications."

"Uhura should have left notes on the broadcast we received earlier. Record my following message and broadcast back on the same frequency in reply."

There was a brief silence before, "Recording now."

Kirk's eyes closed before speaking calmly, his voice rich, "This is Captain James T. Kirk of the U.S.S. Enterprise, Federation Space, responding to Commander Spock of the I.S.S. Enterprise, Terran Empire." It was beyond weird to say all of that. How had the other Spock known about them? About him? Fucking hell... "We have Captain Christopher Richard Pike. He has collapsed and is currently being held in sickbay. If you wish to retrieve him, you will need to lower your shields entirely and allow us to link up to your computers to coordinate transport."

Was that everything? Keep it short, simple. "End recording. Broadcast."

"Yessir."

[original-fine.livejournal.com]

Jim glanced at Kirk as he spoke, pulling his attention away from the Spocks--at least on the surface--to observe and support. He laid a hand on the other Jim's shoulder, silently approving. He did not want Pike to die. Nor Spock. The knowledge that this was not the Terran Empire Spock he had met--not just because of the time difference--stuck with him but refused to entirely integrate into his feelings about it.

"You're doing the right thing," he said, low and strained. His tone implied, even if this fucks everything up.

[kirktastic.livejournal.com]

Kirk turned his eyes to Jim, eyes glancing to the three in the meld, then back again. "I wish it felt like that." His voice was just as strained, and it showed in his eyes. They were going to leave themselves completely open, at incredible threat. "...I don't know if Pher can even transport in this state."

[original-fine.livejournal.com]

"We must take that risk," Jim said. "Or we've as much as executed him ourselves." He glanced back at the trio. "Spock seems to think he's worth saving. And so do I."

His grip on Jim was unconsciously tight, as if he was holding himself back as much as anything else. He knew he could not interfere, despite the interference that roiled within him around the bond, tugging and twisting and making him think he'd be lucky to retain the contents of his stomach. A light sheen of sweat had broken out about his temples, a headache, dismissed for now, having begun at the base of his skull.

[kirktastic.livejournal.com]

"The risk is huge." Kirk whispered. "If he dies on transport, his Spock might want revenge just as much as if we'd killed him ourselves." He was barely even feeling the bruising grip Jim had on his arm, feeling much the same. "I hate standing here, feeling completely useless."

Spock had dropped his shielding that usually kept them separated, and the half-bond was throbbing in the back of his mind like a pulled muscle, giving him a quickly building headache.

[mirroredspock.livejournal.com]

Communications relayed the message to Spock in the transporter bay where his fingers were flying over the screen.

"Acknowledge it."

The words were harsh and clipped.

Christopher Christopher Christopher.

There was something wrong and Spock would not waste time. He locked the coordinates in and initiated a link between the two computer systems. Lowering the shields was nothing to him.

He stepped onto the transporter pad and waited for the familiar feeling to take him.

I am almost there, Christopher.

[kirktastic.livejournal.com]

"Bridge to Captain!"

The urgency in that voice made his heart go cold. "Kirk here."

"We need to drop shields now, they're--"

"Do it! Drop shields, get him over here! Drop him right here in sickbay, transport room should be ready!" He turned away from the comm.

Kirk looked to Jim, and almost on instinct, his fingers clenched tight into a fist. "It's happening."

[original-fine.livejournal.com]

Jim didn't know anymore whether he was holding Kirk or using Kirk to anchor him. He just nodded.

"He just wants Pike," he said. "We can't do anything that might make him feel threatened in the accomplishment of that goal." Because then they had something altogether different to deal with. Not his Spock. Not the slightly angrier younger one, or even the coldly ruthless one he'd met in the other universe. This was someone entirely different, unchained by logic except where it served his revenge. Or so Spock had implied.

[kirktastic.livejournal.com]

"Fuck I hope that's all he wants." Kirk breathed out, giving Jim's arm a hard squeeze before separating himself. They couldn't afford to appear weak in the eyes of the enemy.

[mirroredspock.livejournal.com]

The transporter took him and when he shimmered back into existence the surroundings would have fascinated him - if he had had eyes for anything other than the man restrained on a bio bed, two Vulcan (himselves-not-himself) leaning in with their hands on his face --

"Usurpers."

It was a hissing whisper before Spock sprang into motion, the bond like a ringing bell in his mind, throughout his body, something like adrenaline coursing through him as he stalked to the bed on the side of the younger, slighter self, and placed his fingers on Christopher's face, overriding the meld points used by the others.

Christopher!

Inside Christopher's mind, the doors that had been barred were flung open. Spock had come for him.