Bonds of Change (Star Trek 2009/RPF Xover)

2. DNA

"Jim, can you hear me?" That was Bones and he sounded worried. Since Bones could look a major disaster in the face and just grouch about it, this in turn worried Jim.

"Yeah," he said, finding that even one word was almost more effort than he could manage.

"You've had a seizure. I just want you to lie still while I run some tests."

If he'd had the energy, he would have laughed at that, because moving was the furthest thing from his mind. About all he could do was look over to where Spock was hovering in the corner of the room. That made him feel a little better and, for once, he managed to follow Bones' advice.

"If the Captain is stable, I will return to the bridge," Spock said after a few moments.

It was almost exactly what the Vulcan had tried to do only moments before, but this time Spock didn't have a chance to follow through on it. As Spock turned to leave the door to sickbay opened.

"That would be a spectacularly bad idea," the somewhat short Sonarian standing in the entrance said.

Jim thought he might have met the man at one of the diplomatic parties, but his memory was a little fuzzy, so he couldn't be sure. He definitely remembered Protector Lambert who was standing directly behind the stranger though.

"Who are you and what do you think you are doing in my sickbay?" Bones all but demanded.

"Kris Allen, Dr McCoy, cultural attaché and I apologise for the intrusion, but my partner and I are here to offer our assistance. Captain Kirk, Mr Spock, please forgive us for the sudden arrival."

Greeting visitors to his ship while lying on his back, mostly helpless, was not something Jim liked, but he barely managed to make it to one elbow before collapsing back onto the bed.

"Stay put," was all Bones said, and since there was no berating with it, Jim assumed his friend knew he couldn't have moved if he wanted to.

"You have ascertained what was done to the captain," Spock said, it was not a question.

"It took some time to untangle the computer records," Allen replied with a nod, "but, yes, our experts have recovered the data we retrieved from the raid. I'm sorry, Captain, but the dissidents were trying to turn you into what we call a submissive."

Jim managed to half sit up at that; he was submissive to no one.

"Please explain," Spock said in his annoyingly reasonable tone before Jim could voice an objection.

"Of course," Allen replied, stepping further into the room, shadowed very closely by Lambert and a member of the Enterprise's security. "Submissives are a subset of our population, both male and female. Approximately one in ten thousand of our race are born with this genetic prerogative."

"What do you mean submissive, submissive to who?" Jim did his best to demand, but he wasn't really feeling strong enough to be imposing.

"To their mate, Captain," Allen said apologetically. "At a certain time in their life submissives go into heat and seek out their balance. This heat has several stages and we have very specific non-interference laws when it comes to allowing a submissive to find their match. When they find their mate the submissive offers themselves to their chosen mate and their match may accept or reject them with a touch. It is considered a great honour to be chosen and only those with a very good reason ever refuse."

Jim didn't like where this was going.

"Why would they do that to the captain?" Bones asked.

"The dissidents altered Captain Kirk's DNA and chemically forced him into heat. We believe their plan was to mate him to one of their own. Once the mating bond is formed it cannot be broken and a submissive's mate has a great deal of power over them," Allen explained.