"THE OTHER" CHALLENGE
Omicron Ceti III ... it held such promise for those who wished to colonize there. Lush, rich soil, capable of supporting virtually anything that was planted in it, and a climate that was conducive to year-round growth. It was everything Sandoval and his party would want in their quest to return to a simpler life, free from the technologies so many of us took for granted.
According to the report that Spock was reading, it took the colonists a year to make the journey...a journey that came to an end nearly three years ago. By now, the colony would be well established.
In theory, at least.
It was up to the Enterprise to determine if the long-range sensors had been correct, when they discovered the cloud of Berthold Rays that were bombarding the planet...a discovery that, if true, would cause a slow and painful death for every living being on that planet.
Berthold Rays, discovered six months ago by Doctor Josiah Berthold, have been determined to cause the breakdown of cells; once that breakdown begins, there is no stopping the disintegration of flesh and bone that follows. But it is not a quick process, like a disruptor beam. Research shows that it takes months for the cells to lose their cohesion, and the process is extremely painful.
At present, it was unknown if, in fact, Omicron Ceti III was actually being bombarded by these Berthold Rays, or if it's atmosphere was able to protect the inhabitants from them. It was also unknown how long the cloud had been present. Once Berthold Rays had been discovered in the sector, a wider scan was done to determine if any of the inhabited planets in the area were affected by them...and that was nearly two months ago.
The findings on Omicron Ceti III were inconclusive, but Enterprise was dispatched to investigate, with orders to remove the colonists if they were, in fact, still alive and well. McCoy found that possibility highly unlikely, but he was trying to plan for all contingencies...including finding the colonists in various stages of disintegration, for which there would be little he could do except help ease their pain.
A gasp from Spock caught his attention, and he lifted his head from his reading, and asked, "Something wrong, Spock? Besides the obvious," he amended when he realized that Spock was still reading the report on Omicron Ceti III, as he was.
There was deep sadness in Spock's eyes as he looked at Len, and said, "I know one of the colonists. A...friend," he added with a slight hesitation, continuing, "when I was teaching at the Academy six years ago."
"Someone from Starfleet Academy was one of the colonists?" McCoy sounded a bit incredulous at the idea; after all, Sandoval's group was supposed to be 'flat landers' by the sound of things...a group of people determined to get back to 'nature'.
"Not exactly," Spock said, "her name was Leila Kalomi. She was taking courses on xenobiology at the Academy, but she had no intention of joining Starfleet. I first met her in a class I taught...we became...friends..."
"You seem embarrassed, Spock," McCoy said with a slight smile, "there's no need to be, you know."
"I know," Spock gave Len a slight smile of his own, as he continued, "I am afraid that she had feelings for me...feelings that I...could not share...although I did...*appreciate* her friendship, and now..."
His words trailed off, and McCoy could only imagine what he was going through, after reading the report of the effects of Berthold Rays. "I see," McCoy said,unable to bring himself to offer false hope that she would be OK.
McCoy had a sudden desire to find them all safe, or utterly gone...anything in between would be unbearable for him, as a doctor...and even more so for Spock, as a friend to one of them. McCoy wanted to save Spock from witnessing the suffering of someone whom he so deeply cared for, even if he couldn't admit those feelings to anyone, including himself. The look in his eyes was enough to tell McCoy that Spock's feelings for this woman were...profound.
McCoy shut off his terminal, and crossed the room to sit by Spock, taking his hand as he said, "Look, there's nothing more we can do tonight. We arrive at Omicron Ceti III in a little over five hours...let's get some sleep while we can, as I'm sure it's going to be a long day, regardless of what we find once we get there."
"You are correct," Spock agreed, then shut down his own terminal, and stood, pulling McCoy into his arms as he added, "at times, your logic is impeccable."
"No need to be insulting," McCoy said, but the smile he gave Spock as he said it let Spock know that he was actually flattered by such high praise, and the kiss that followed proved that he was anything but insulted. "Come on, let's go to bed."
***
There was a hushed atmosphere on the bridge of the Enterprise, as she maneuvered into orbit around Omicron Ceti III, as if everyone aboard were holding their breathes, waiting for the results of the scans to be announced. "Standard orbit established, Captain," Sulu said from the helm, then silence once more.
After a moment, the Captain asked, "Anything, Spock?"
Spock straightened up from his viewer, and said, "The planet is indeed being bombarded by Berthold Rays. I have been scanning for life signs, and as yet have been unable to find any," then he bent over his instruments, and continued his scans.
After a few more minutes, Spock stood once more, and added, "I have been unable to detect any life signs, aside from various forms of plant life.
"Very well," Kirk said, and stood, asking, "Spock, is it safe for us to beam down, and if so, for how long?"
"Yes, sir...the intensity of Berthold Rays penetrating the atmosphere is not as high as first thought. We are in no immediate danger from them, and could conceivably stay on the planet for two weeks, possibly three, without any ill effects."
"Luckily, we won't be here that long," Kirk said, and turned to the turbolift, saying, "Spock, McCoy, Sulu, with me...Uhura, please notify the rest of the landing party that we will be beaming down in ten minutes."
"Yes, Sir," She said, then called those crewmen who had been designated as part of this landing party. Silently, she sent out a prayer for their safe return.
***
"Paradise," Kirk said, "At least it was supposed to be for Sandoval and his group."
"To take a year to get here, only to have the dream die," McCoy added, "a rather horrible death, at that."
Spock had been scanning the area with his tricorder, and was silent for a moment, then looked up and said, "I would estimate that they had spent at least a year here, before they died. The structures, cultivated fields, stored foodstuffs in the barns...they all indicate that they had at least one growing cycle completed...possibly more."
"So the Berthold Rays were not here when they arrived," Kirk said as they walked toward a central structure, which may have been a social hall of some sort.
"Most likely not...although, at the level I am detecting them now, they may have been," Spock said, as he continued to scan the area, "it is unknown exactly how long it would take to cause incapacity...and eventual death, at this low level of exposure."
"I just hope they didn't suffer long," McCoy said, although he knew it was a false hope. He was the first to reach the building, so he stepped aside, holding the door open for Kirk and Spock to enter. As suspected, it was a multi-purpose building, intended for social events, community meetings, and a base of operations for the farming community.
It took very little time to find Sandoval's office, and the journal that had been left open on his desk. The last entry had been dated nearly six months back, and it was very brief:
Kirk picked up the journal, and turned back the pages, skimming over the entries until he spotted the first one that mentioned anything about the colonists getting ill. Apparently, they had been here about nine months when the first symptoms started. "My god Bones...if the symptoms started here," and he indicated the date on the entry he was reading, "and Sandoval's last entry was here," and he turned to the date of the last entry, "then it took as much as twenty months for the Berthold Rays to do their damage."
McCoy and Spock looked at each other, and a shudder went down McCoy's spine as he said, "That's assuming everyone was effected at the same rate. I'll need to go over those records, and any others that we find, to determine exactly what happened here."
"Good point, Doctor," Spock said, and then turned to the Captain and added, "I suggest that we search the houses for personal journals, and other records, and return to the ship to analyze the information we gather."
And so they did.
It was while reading through Leila's journal that Spock discovered that they had found a palliative...albeit a temporary one. Apparently, there was a native plant that housed spores...and these spores, when inhaled, seemed to alleviate the symptoms. However, they wore off after time, and with each inhalation, the effect was less effective...and the pain of withdrawal grew worse. In the end, many of the colonists took their own life, unable to take the pain any longer.
On the day of Sandoval's last entry, the last of the colonists died by poison...Leila among them.
~the end
We had a dream, and it failed...but at least we tried.
E. S.