Plot: 7/9. It’s a really excellent yet gratuitous work on AO3, though before beginning this work, make sure that you have read through all its warning tags, including the explicit description of the homosexual relationship between two males.
1
Gates, the captain of Galapagos, solicited Kirk, her former student at the academy and also the captain of enterprise, to rescue her team lost on the planet called Sigma Nox several days ago. Kirk and McCoy found Taylor, their ex-classmate, was on that list. Gates’ attempt to tag along with Kirk and Spock was stymied by McCoy, and her science officer Brady requested a contact as long as they found Kallie Lombard.
During their exploration, had it not been for the prompt from McCoy and Kirk, Spock wouldn’t have realized a possible favor from his teammate Morgan, who afterwards became the first to spot Gates’ unconscious biologist, Phillips, lying in the exotic forest. McCoy reported Phillips’ receptor didn’t pick up acetylcholine insomuch as an unknown compound messed with his limbic system, and overall he seemed like on a bender.
Granted that Gates’ team got themselves misplaced following sunset, McCoy expected them to return immediately, which, of course, dismissed by Kirk, who extremely worried about the dwindling window of action. So all crew except Spock were commanded back to the ship, leaving Spock and Kirk alone in the rainforest. Momentarily following the sunset, when Spock was about to report an unusual signal he received, only to find Kirk just disappeared right behind his back.
2
Spock immediately notified Nyota, who detected that Kirk’s communicator was moving fast several hundred meters away. Spock subsequently hurried to get after it, only to find a communicator intentionally disabled by its owner.
Scott informed him of the unusual electrical interference, yet Spock was determined to stay there until his captain was found.
Luckily, Spock caught his somnambulant captain, who was totally bewildered by his own action before being brought around by Spock, as well as Kallie Lombard, one of Gates’ missing crew, who was heading in the same direction as the previously possessed captain.
In intermittent signals, they realized that a strange spaceship had attacked their ships like a bolt out of the blue sky, leading to the loss of Galapagos and the retreat of Entrepreneur. Meanwhile, Kirk’s sudden vanish obliged vexed Spock to let out Lombard for the destination.
The culprit turned out to be Bulbweed, the largest angiospermous plant on the planet, from the maw of which Spock struggled to save Kirk intact, while using his body to endure the annoying stings and clamps of enormous, noxious Cattlebugs.
3
The next morning, when Spock went out for edible food, Kirk regained his consciousness gradually, checked the electronics, and collected the kindling. After Spock brought souvenirs back and managed to light the fire, they ate their adventurous dinner together on this godforsaken planet for the first time.
4
Watching Kirk’s listless mental state sapped day by day by his nightly possession, Spock felt obliged to put aside his vegetarianism and hunt animals for better nutrition to nourish his captain. The sense of thrilling self-accomplishment reminded him of his previous ostracism by his paternal tribe owing to his once savage attack on one innocent tribesman.
Kirk was responsible for cooking and mending, and once found a luminous artificial object surrounding the planet which was supposed to be the abandoned Galapagos.
Their raised Cattlebugs died of the ongoing separation from their coexisting Bulbweed, boding ill for the prospect of the captain.
5
Kirk found an ancient dome under the hill, which, deduced from the mural, was possibly left behind by bipods who had shepherded Cattlebugs centuries ago.
To keep up Spock’s spirit, Kirk intended to make the disinfectant from the local materials he had just found.
Upon observing the meteor, they set off for its crash site.
6
Beside a swollen stream caused by the constant rain, Spock replied to his inquisitive captain that it was the emotional incompatibility that had led to his previous breakup.
Suddenly they found unconscious Taylor whom Kirk was determined to tend, although Spock’s opposed that it was highly likeable that Taylor’s brain had been damaged so severely by the compound of Bulbweed that he could not survive the cut-out. Eventually, to confirm his theory as well as comfort guilty Kirk who had to kill an old friend with his own hands, Spock autopsied Taylor’s brain and found the lethal lesions. As a response, Jim hugged and thanked Spock.
When they watched a clear Milky Way in the sky for the first time, Spock paid more attention to his captain’s rapturous expression rather than to the resplendent space.
When a giant, tough mantis attacked, paralyzed and devoured Spock, Kirk, who had been always stalking Spock clandestinely these days to bring out his better energy, rescued Spock in time, merely because the mantis was so repellent of the taste of Kirk’s flesh that it escaped immediately and abandoned its souvenirs strangely.
Kirk demanded that Spock entered his healing trance, which Spock obeyed reluctantly.
7
Kirk almost got himself killed when he tried to impede the unnecessary assault from fight-fogged Spock, who indulged himself in the spree of the massacre at the bare sight of a giant lizard approaching his captain, because, as it turned out from their communication, the lizard, called Longclaw and also the only survivor of an expedition team from another advanced civilisation, had no inimical intention to speaking species.
Spock confessed that all the times he lost self-control recently, albeit his strict discipline since the childhood incident, were all closely related with Kirk, who acknowledged Spock’s apology and even consoled the distraught Spock that he had actually made substantial progress in self-possession, judged from the different consequences of his emotional breakdowns.
8
In order to approach Galapagos in the exceedingly sweltering geothermal fields, they were determined to make a thermal protection suit, and Spock volunteered to venture into the literal hell because of his innate thermo-regulatory structure.
Subsequent to many failed attempts, they found the ideal material might possibly be the armor of the aforementioned mantis, which was called Snapnecks by Longclaw, perhaps owing to their weakness of their brittle necks exposing at their snapping.
On their way to hunt, Kirk dared Spock to kiss him, and Spock did, much to Kirk’s surprise.
9
Immediately after Kirk came to from their failed besiege of a Snapneck, Longclaw led him to rescue Spock, who had been just abducted to Snapnecks’ den. Not only was Spock found there comatose, but also Kallie Lombard’s remains were hanging on the branches.
Kirk managed to kill the male with the assistance of Longclaw, and freed Spock from the web. But Bulbweed again degenerated his mentality at the very same moment that a more potent female was about to come back.
In such a delirium, he sensed fragmentary memories belonging to his alternative self, including a scene where his other self was kissing his own Spock, for, in that universe, they were apparently mates.
10
As soon as the shock of falling to the ground brought Spock back to full consciousness, he regained the enthralled captain. Meanwhile, Longclaw bound the required carcass to her back, and thus the two began their stampede away from the female fury. In the end, all of them were safe and sound, fortunately, save for Kirk’s fever and Longclaw’s laceration. Before long, furnished with the suit that nearly cost both of their lives, Spock succeeded in getting through the scorching geysers, only to find the nacelle unapproachable because of the astonishingly high temperature caused by the crater in which it was buried.
In great disappointment and pessimism about their future, Spock suggested drinking down the sorrow and frustration with the remaining alcohol on his own initiative, and Kirk concurred.
11
They visited another old relic and concluded from its basic infrastructure that the brainless Cattlebugs had once actually been an intelligent species, who were somehow mentally controlled by the invaders, aka Bulbweed, centuries ago.
Longclaw carried their luggage here so that they spent the next weeks in decoding their language and researching the operating system of alien spaceships. Several failed takeoffs edified Spock to connect all three with his capability of psychical meld so as to drive the spaceship more smoothly. Their final departure from the planet coincided with a similar space chase in the beginning between Entrepreneur, searching for their lost crews, and the sentinels of Cattlebugs, which had destroyed both Galapagos and the original ships of Longclaw. If they could not reach Entrepreneur in time, they would be trapped in the crossfire.
At this very moment, Longclaw showed her excellent talent for muscle memory and accomplished the incredible space wrap towards Entrepreneur in thirty seconds.
They finally made it home.
12
They were greeted by their astonished colleagues, including McCoy who discovered Bulbweed could release two types of chemicals targeting in organisms holding hemoglobin or similar iron-based proteins: One was able to hack the acetylcholine receptors through direct contact, causing the death of victims during withdrawal, and the other, wrenching into the limbic systems, was only emitted in the night through the air to attract victims to approach the former chemical. Soon, observing captain’s chronic health issues as well as post-traumatic syndrome, Spock proposed a healing vacation for them both in his own hometown, where Spock declared to his people that the teachings of masters were no longer suitable for him and hinted he would mate with Kirk, an earthling just like his mother.
13
Even after accepting the obliteration of additional memories that had been messing him up all the time, Kirk still said yea to his own message questioning whether he was in love with Spock.
14
Kirk made it with Spock, however they reached the concurrence of keeping it quiet until they were caught for violating the banning of intimate relationships in workplace.
Core: 6/9. To my way of thinking, it would perhaps be more appropriate if the plot were spiced up with more heartbreaking conundrums to highlight their bonding in more desperate circumstances and the work ended up with more rich social aftermath or solution.
For example, under the federation’s decision, scientists developed a new chemical to liberate sentient Cattlebugs from the slavery of Bulbweed and helped them rebuild their civilization.
Character: 7/9. In spite of the humorous banter, witty puns and fabulous reactions throughout the context, the background of most characters and their individual development seemed obscure, especially regarding the reason why Spock was determined to downplay the discipline imbued within him from childhood and why Longclaw didn’t miss her hometown. It also embodied large potential for improving the building of minor characters, such as the motivation of the unfriendly General and the response of friends and families towards their relationship.
Jim failed to treat the Longclaw.
Jim even made a stubborn bid to clean Longclaw’s wounds against her will. She led him in a circle around the fire, waiting until he was just within reach of her tail to scurry away. Spock observed their behavior with interest.
“Would you just–”
“No touch.”
“Give me five seconds.”
“No!”
“I’m trying to help you!”
“No help. Am strong.”
“If you’re so strong, why do you keep running away?”
“Am not running.”
“Stop acting like a toddler.”
Their mutual scramble halted as Longclaw stopped abruptly and peered back at Jim. “Toddler?”
“Like a damn hatchling!” he snarled, lunging for her.
Eventually Jim gave up and threw the entire contents of the pouch at her. It was not a very effective method. Spock estimated he had covered approximately twenty-four percent of the wound surface area at best.
Nevertheless, Longclaw hissed and thrashed in a dramatic fashion. “Stupid, weak male!” She stalked away, her tail lashing.
“Overgrown gecko!” Jim shouted after her. He sank down gracelessly next to Spock and stared into the fire, his gaze distant. His face reminded Spock of the mission he was introduced to the Gallatians and informed that they regularly ate their young.
“I think I just channeled Bones,” Jim mumbled. He stared at the empty pouch in his hands. “I guess I need to make more booze.”
lovely moment
dimming firelight. “Hey, Spock,” he said. “I can’t sleep. Truth or dare?”
“Dare,” Spock said.
His response had the desired effect. Jim gaped at him and hesitated. “Wow. Um… what can I dare you to do here that isn’t stupidly dangerous?”
“That is why I had not bothered to select that option before,” Spock said.
“Then why did you select it now?”
“Curiosity,” he admitted.
“Curiosity, huh?” Jim’s face grew serious, and he looked away for four point two seconds. Suddenly he snickered. “Dare you to kiss me.”
Longclaw was assigned with the comfort button.
Approximately the opposite of a useful function, Spock thought carefully, in the same tonepeople used for spelling out ‘walk’ in front of dogs. Jim was impressed.
Longclaw exposed Kirk’s lie.
“Have you eaten your daily allotment of our provisions?”
“Yeah.”
“Did not,” the scaly bundle across the fire said. “Gave mine, made eat. Stupid male too small.”
Jim glared at her but did not defend himself,
Hell Puns
They watched the clouds of steam turn orange in silence, and the last wash of sunlight slide off the peaks of distant mountains. The Galapagos was transformed into an amorphous, dark mirage on the boiling desert plain.
“Damn it all to hell,” Jim said weakly.
Spock thought about that. “According to the descriptions of many human religious traditions, we may already be there.”
The captain punched his arm in response.
funny moment
The three of them sat in total silence for what felt like a long time. Jim caught his breath, gingerly cleaned his injuries, and tried to figure out what to do next. This whole situation was the setup for a terrible joke, he thought. A druggie captain, a Vulcan having a breakdown, and an overgrown lizard are stranded on a planet, trying to kill each other. He wished he knew the punch line.
When Kirk was so sensitive,
“Absolutely.” Kirk let the turbolift doors slide closed, and almost immediately he sighed and slumped his shoulders, kneading a hand into his forehead. “I bet it’s some stupid technical error. All three of them are so fresh out of the Academy they’ve got dirt behind their ears.”
“Approximately seventeen percent of all starship crews now consist of recent graduates,” Spock reminded him. “Yourself included.” Survivors of Narada, commended and promoted disproportionately during reconstruction.
“Do you know what that sounds like to me? A lot of kids getting into trouble. Myself most definitely included.” The captain shot him a faint smile, although Spock had not intended his last comment as a jibe.
banter of teammates
Three bored-looking lieutenants were waiting for them in the transporter room when they arrived, outfitted in landingparty gear. “Where’s Dr. McGrouch?” Morgan hopped down from the edge of a control panel and adjusted the phaser onher belt.
“He’ll be along in a minute,” Jim said. He retrieved two free sets of equipment from the corner locker, tossing one at Spock. “He has to nag someone to death first.”
“Another casualty,” Davis moaned. “When will his reign of terror end?”
Lautner rolled his eyes as he checked their emergency packs. “Not everyone has the singular talent of turning a five-minute appointment into a half-hour ordeal, Davey-boy.”
banter among the trio
“She likes you,” Kirk said lightly once they were out of earshot. Spock was puzzled to find that the captain’s eyes were trained on him.
“Sure seems that way, doesn’t it? Maybe I should give her a psych exam,” McCoy muttered, glancing around with obvious unease.
witty retorts
“But sir, if you think it could be too dangerous for us, then it’s sure as hell too dangerous for you,” Morgan protested. “Mr. Spock, talk to him!”
And say what, Spock wondered. He had no more influence over Kirk than a dwarf planet over its sun. “Lieutenant, I have learned that once the captain has made up his mind, very few forces in the universe can sway him.”
(…)
Spock approached him. “Sir, why did you not insist I return to the ship as well?”
“I can persuade some junior officers just fine, but a battle of wills with you? No way.” Kirk heaved a sigh and smiled mischievously. “I learned a long time ago that once you’ve made up your mind, very few forces in the universe can sway you.”
when Kirk found himself tied by Spock, his comment was this:
“You know, standard human protocol says you have to take someone out a few times before you get to tie them up.”