𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐘 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐒 had he cursed a mission for its inevitable risks to be met with the false promise that all involved would be fine ? too many times . how often had jim’s promise of an incident free mission been kept ? leonard could count them all on one hand , and today’s mission would not be amongst them . a group had been rushed to the medbay under the orders of their captain who himself seemed out of sorts , but the cmo’s attention had been caught up in the chaos of incoming patients . typical .
the various wounds had warranted leonard’s concern ; had they been left without treatment for much longer the toxins would have sent their bodies into shock . antidote had been shared in time , and the patients would recover well much to the doctor’s relief .
as per the captain’s usual request , leonard makes for the bridge for an update . a brief call over the coms would have done the trick , but he was adamant about visiting @sc937 in person ; he’d avoided a med check , of course he had . ❝ jim , you slippery bastard , you didn’t clock in for your check up . ❞ he announces when stepping onto the bridge , his casual manner with the ship’s respected captain long accepted by all by now , ❝ and your crew’s fine , by the way . ❞ a beat , and he watches the captain upon standing level with his seat . eyes rolls when no answer came , and leonard steps forward , ❝ you’re welcome . you need to - ❞ words fall short when he notes jim’s pallor complexion , the sweat lining his brow , and finally the red seeping into the waist of his captain’s tunic . ❝ dammit man , why the hell did you not come to me ? you’re too damn proud . ❞ the doctor is already trying to pry him from his seat when spock is at the captain’s side ; a mere glance between wound and leonard’s panicked expression is all it takes for him to act . the pair lift him to his shaking feet , further crew scatter and call for nurses to attend and prepare for jim’s arrival , ❝ the toxin’s already shuttin’ your body down , it’s too late for my antidote . the hell were you thinkin’ ? ❞
