Errand Of Deception
By Islaofhope

Title: Errand of Deception
Author: Isla
Feedback address: islaofhope@aol.com
Series: TOS
Rating: R, m/m semi-consensual sex, m/m sexual teasing and UST
Pairing: Spock/Kor (K/S)
Disclaimer: All things Star Trek belong to Paramount and Viacom. This is a not-for-profit piece of fan fiction, not intended to infringe on their copyright.
Author's Note:This is one of my contributions to the Spock-fuh-q-fest. http://www.kardasi.com/fuh-q-fest/  
Thanks to kira-nerys and hafital for talking me into this. <g>   I asked for permission to write my own choice, but when kira-nerys pulled this one out of the hat, I was stunned to find the story already in my brain.And thanks to my betas, who I couldn't stand to be without:  Animasola, Jane,
and T'Aaneli (I'm so glad you're back, sweetie!).

"Errand of Deception"

The stone dungeon was cold and damp, and the only light was from a flickering wall sconce that burned oil and emitted a foul smoke.  Nonetheless, the only warmth and light that Spock required paced in front of him.

"Jim, it is most illogical to waste your energy.  When we do find a way to escape, you will regret that you did not rest while you could."  Spock demonstrated that he was logical by seating himself on the stone bench that lined one wall of their cell.

A variety of expressions flickered over Jim's handsome face, but his natural good spirits won out, and he smiled at his first officer.  "Did I ever mention to you how irritating you can be, Mr. Spock?"

Spock drew one leg up against his chest and allowed the other to dangle over the edge of the bench.  "Captain, it has been one point three years since you last mentioned that you found me irritating."  He allowed a slight smile to show in his eyes.   "I assumed that you had learned to appreciate the advantage of having a logical advisor for the situations in which we all too frequently find ourselves."

His smile widening, Jim said, "You're right.  If I've gotta be stuck in a dungeon on a Klingon-occupied planet, there's no one I'd rather be stuck with than you, Spock."  He paused and walked back to the entrance to make an additional futile attempt at escape by shoving his weight against the door.  His expression turned solemn.  "Of course, Starfleet Command will probably have my balls for not leaving my first officer on the Enterprise.  Under the circumstances, it was a mistake for both of us to beam down."   Jim pushed a hand through his hair.   "If I had only known - "

"If you had known about the Klingon occupation of Organia, the choices you made would have been entirely different.  It is not logical to berate yourself for making a decision when you did not have all of the facts.  We beamed down in order to obtain those facts."  Spock gestured to the bench beside him.  "Sit down and rest, Jim.  We will not be escaping from this cell tonight.  When was the last time you slept?"

Jim slumped against the opposite wall.  "About the same time you did."   He rubbed a hand across his chin and a wicked glint appeared in his eyes.   "You're beginning to sound like McCoy."

Spock's eyebrow climbed haughtily.  "If you're going to be insulting, sir, this discussion is at an end."  He studied the toe of his left boot, displeased at the scuffmark there.  "The captain well knows that Vulcans can go for several days without sleeping."

"That damn Kor," Jim burst out suddenly, and he took another circuit of the room.  "You know he's probably laughing his ass off that he caught me with my pants down."

Spock pursed his lips before he tilted his head slightly.  "Yes, I was aware of his reaction to you; however, I believe that your reference to your pants being 'down' is an euphemism for being caught in an awkward position."

Jim crossed his arms on his chest.  "You know very well that's what I meant, Spock."

With a nod, Spock said, "Nonetheless, I believe that he would indeed wish to catch you with your pants down.  Literally."  He lifted an eyebrow questioningly.

With a chuckle, Jim said, "I think you're right about that.  A Klingon of his rank would normally have allowed one of his soldiers to be the one who tackled me, but he wanted to cop a feel."

Spock sat up straighter.  "Does it not trouble you that Kor is...sexually attracted to you?"

Jim shrugged.  "As long as he doesn't do something about it, I don't care."

Spock nodded.  "And if he chooses to 'do something' about it...?"  He steepled his fingers on his knee.  "May I ask what may be an impertinent question?"

"Ask your question, Spock."  Jim seated himself on the floor, hugging his knees, and his grin caused him to resemble a mischievous boy rather than a starship captain.

"When he...ah...fondled you, there was some evidence of arousal on your part."   Spock looked away, warmth suffusing his face.

Jim let out a shout of laughter.  "Spock, what the hell were you doing checking out my erection?"

"I was merely keeping my eyes trained on you in case it was necessary to intervene," Spock said in a dignified tone.  "I believe my reaction was logical.  Yours, however, I question."

Jim shrugged again.  "Human male sexual reaction can be strange, Spock.  It sounds weird to admit that it was arousing when he prodded me with his disrupter.   Sort of a sexual fantasy, but that doesn't mean that I would want to act on it.   No, I wasn't aroused by Kor.  My body just reacted to a stimulus."

"Hmm, human sexual response is indeed inexplicable, Jim."  Spock nodded.   "It was impertinent of me to ask, but I was curious whether you desired Kor as he desired you."

"Hell, no, Spock."  Jfor example, it was the price of your safety -- but I'm not really interested in it just for the experience.  I'm past my experimentation stage, and I prefer to share my body with someone that I care about."

Spock studied the scuffmark on his boot.  "But you are not adverse to the experience of sexual contact for purposes of attaining the goals of the mission?"

Jim rubbed his chin.  "Damn, when you put it that way, it sounds pretty bad."  He shrugged.  "Spock, I have been guilty of having sex to obtain a desired result in the past, but I certainly don't want to have sex with Kor."  He tilted his head, considering.  "But it's a possibility.   If you think that I could distract him, I guess it would increase our odds of escape."

Spock leaned forward and said forcefully, "I did not mean to suggest that you should have sexual contact with Kor."

Jim heaved himself to his feet.  "Well, it probably wouldn't work anyway.   He'd probably want to screw me, and I'd prefer not to be that vulnerable to an enemy."  Jim crossed the room and plopped himself down on the bench next to Spock.  "So, if you have any better ideas for how we can escape, now's the time."

Spock sighed.  "As I told you earlier, Jim, I do not believe that we can escape tonight.  I advise rest."   
 
"Actually, I wouldn't mind getting some sleep."  Jim gestured around the cell.  "I don't see a lot of choices here."

"There is room for both of us on this bench, and it is only logical for us to share body heat."  He glanced sideways, barely breathing as he waited for Jim's reaction.

"You're right."  Jim said with a nod.  Then he frowned.   "They could have given us a blanket, at least."

"Doubtful that the Klingons are interested in increasing our comfort."   Spock stretched out on the bench, Jim followed his lead, rolling onto his side, and they spooned together.  He instinctively put his left arm protectively across Jim's chest, and Jim burrowed into the crook of Spock's right arm as though they slept that way every night.  They did not.  Such a mode of sleep was reserved for landing parties that went wrong, trapping them in uncomfortable situations where it was necessary to practice survival techniques.  Illogically, Spock frequently found himself meditating on such occasions with anticipation. 

Jim's heart rate and respiration sped up initially but then slowed as he slipped into a light sleep; Spock knew that he himself would not sleep.  He truly did not require sleep, and he far preferred to stay awake.  He told himself that it was logical to be vigilant, but a part of him knew the truth.  He wished to experience the pleasure of holding his precious friend in his arms.  Jim's muscles gently contracted and then relaxed.  Spock breathed in his distinctive musk -- even though Jim had exerted himself, the scent of his body was not displeasing -- listened to the soft sound of Jim's respiration, and cautiously rubbed his cheek against the silky texture of Jim's hair.

"Spock." 

He nearly flinched at the sound of Jim's voice.  He ceased the light massage of Jim's pectoral muscles that he had not realized that he was performing.  "Yes, Captain?"

A soft chuckle.  "I don't think you need to call me 'Captain' when we're sleeping together.  And you've been calling me 'Jim' all evening."

"Agreed.  Jim."  Spock let out his air in a soft puff of a sigh.   "I believed that you were asleep."

Jim twisted on his back, the back of his head still resting on Spock's right arm.   "I'm cold, and that makes it tough to sleep."  He gazed up at Spock, so close that the first officer could easily count his long eyelashes if he so chose.   "If I'm cold, you must be freezing."

Spock did not confess that he was, in fact, quite warm.  "What do you suggest?"

Sitting up, Jim said, "Remember camping out?  When you use a sleeping bag, it's more efficient to take off your clothes, so that the body heat isn't trapped and it reflects back at you."  He started to pull the borrowed tunic over his head.   When the smooth golden chest appeared, it was a moment before Spock was again able to comprehend Jim's words.  "...fashioned into some kind of blanket.   Logical, right?"

He decided against pointing out that their borrowed Organian clothes had no reflective properties; Jim's suggestion had some merit.  Unclothed, they would nestle together more closely, and the cape that Spock had selected to complete his disguise would work admirably as a blanket.  Spock said nothing as he removed his boots and, out of the corner of his eye, watched the rest of Jim's aesthetically pleasing body appear.   Jim's phallus was soft, probably due to the cold, but was still attractive as it nestled against his testicles.  He hesitated a moment before he removed his own briefs, but if Jim chose to sleep completely naked, Spock would follow his lead.

"Better?" Jim murmured as they lay down again. 

"Immeasurably," Spock responded in a low voice that sounded slightly hoarse to his own ears.  His Vulcan control allowed his own penis to remain soft even though it was fitted against the muscular buttocks that haunted his dreams.  He drank in the sight of Jim's body in the faint flickering light from the wall sconce before he pulled up the cape around them and, when he closed his eyes, the curve of Jim's hip and the jut of Jim's half-engorged penis were burned into Spock's eyelid.  It would be a simple matter to stray his hand down over Jim's chest and abdominal muscles, and capture Jim's penis in his fist. 

He did not doubt that his touch would be welcome; he had researched the subject and felt confident that he could pleasure Jim more thoroughly than any other lover had in the past, but Spock would not give in to the craving.  Perhaps he was overly romantic, but the first time he shared physical love with this man, whom he was certain he would someday have as his own, it would not be in an Organian dungeon, a prisoner of the Klingons, with Jim half-aroused from the fondling of an enemy.  Therefore, he allowed his hand to flatten on Jim's chest, but did not allow his lips to press against the vulnerable nape of Jim's neck. 

Jim sighed softly, wriggled back against Spock, and murmured, "You feel good.  Nice and warm.  S'okay for you, too?"

Spock's lips curved up slightly.  Jim, half-asleep in Spock's arms, sounded more like an affectionate child than his articulate captain.  "I am quite comfortable."  He did not add that he would not trade the softest, warmest bed for the privilege of holding Jim in his arms on this cold concrete bench.
 

He wondered idly that his deeply sexual friend could huddle so naturally against him in this manner.  Could he be unaware of what Spock felt for him?  Or was he aware but disinterested?  Or perhaps Jim felt as Spock did.  That the time was not yet right for them to share their bodies in the same way that they shared practically everything else.  They infrequently shared melds in the line of duty, and it would require little additional effort to touch Jim's mind slightly deeper to answer his questions about his beloved's feelings for him.  But he believed that it would be wrong.  And unnecessary.  The feelings were written on Jim's face for all to see.  Many of their crew assumed that they were lovers already.   

"G'night, Spock."  A soft whisper before Jim settled down to sleep.

"Sleep well, Jim."  Spock sighed again, reminding himself that they were not here to allow him to indulge in fantasy.  They were in a precarious situation as prisoners of the Klingon Empire.  Spock had already been subjected to questioning that had left his head aching until he was able to soothe that ache in Jim's psychic presence.  If the Mind Sifter was used on Jim, Spock doubted that he would emerge intact.  Jim with his vibrant mind damaged was an even more terrifying prospect than Jim raped and physically mutilated.

Jim murmured a soft protest but did not awaken when Spock's arm instinctively tightened around him.  Loosening his grip slightly, Spock's mind catalogued possibilities for escape and considered the actions he might have to take to protect Jim. 

When Jim stiffened slightly in his arms, Spock realized that he was having an unpleasant dream.  His mind rested lightly against Jim's, and he ascertained that their conversation before retiring had manifested itself into a vivid image in Jim's sleep.

Jim, gagged, was tied naked and spread-eagled on his stomach with Kor standing over him, stripping off his shirt.  Kor's expression was an acquisitive leer and his impossibly large erection tented his uniform trousers.  In spite of Jim's casual manner earlier when discussing Kor's sexual desire for him, Jim in this dream was unaroused and nearly trembling with rage over what it seemed clear that Kor intended to do to him.

Spock's own rage mixed with his arousal at the sight of Jim's muscular buttocks lifted and spread for Kor's pleasure.  As Jim turned his head away from Kor's leering face, Spock saw himself striding into the room and felling Kor with one karate chop.  Odd that he did not choose to use the far more subtle nerve pinch.  He dragged the Klingon out of the room and secured his hands and feet before he returned to sink down on the bed.  He removed the gag first, and Jim turned his head and smiled.  "I knew you'd come for me."

"Jim."  Spock pressed a soft closed-mouth kiss on Jim's lips before his hand went up to the rope that cut into Jim's left wrist, but the rope had turned into a silk scarf. 

"Spock, since we're here anyway, why don't you...?"  Jim's smile widened and he thrust his pelvis provocatively against the mattress.  "You know I love you.  I want you to fuck me, t'hy'la.  I know it would feel good for both of us."

Wordlessly, Spock stood up to open his tunic, and, in the dream, his own erection appeared larger than he knew it to be.  Once naked, he lowered himself onto Jim, teasing his erection against the crevice of Jim's buttocks while he kissed the back of Jim's neck and stroked his hands along Jim's muscular back and chest, but not yet penetrating him. 

Jim murmured his pleasure.  "Yes, Spock.  You feel so good.  Nice and warm.  Is it good for you, too?"

The door slammed open, and Spock was once again back in the Organian dungeon, naked and aroused, kissing the back of Jim's neck and pressing his erection between Jim's buttocks.   He rolled to a sitting position and stared in outrage at the two Klingon soldiers who had invaded their cell.

One Klingon stepped forward.  "Kor wants the human."

Spock's eyes swung back to Jim, who was obviously disoriented as he came to wakefulness.   Spock casually reached for Jim's neck and applied pressure.  "He is unwell and should not be moved."

Spock rose to his feet, aware of the Klingons' eyes on his naked body.  He allowed his penis to engorge.  "I am certain that Kor will be more pleased if you bring me."

The Klingons exchanged a look, apparently thinking about their orders, but evidently, Spock had guessed right about Kor's intentions, because one Klingon fastened his eyes on Spock's erection and said, "Kor will be pleased."

Spock had a moment of uncertainty.  He disliked the thought of leaving Jim vulnerable, but he knew that no Klingon would be interested in an unconscious sexual partner.  Jim would be safe for some time.  He arranged the blanket more securely around Jim and pulled on trousers, a tunic, and his boots.  "Take me to Kor."

//////////

Kor's eyes widened at the sight of the Vulcan being ushered into his private chamber.   "Don't tell me that you cannot tell the difference between a human and a Vulcan," he said sharply, but his eyes lingered on the Vulcan, who stood in a relaxed pose before him.  As the heat pooled in Kor's stomach, he initially identified it as anger against his hapless guards, but then he recognized it as arousal.

"Lord Kor, the human appeared to be damaged.  The Vulcan is more desirable."
The Klingon tugged open the Vulcan's tunic. 

Kor glared at the soldier, but his eyes were irresistibly drawn to the furred chest.   He licked his suddenly dry lips.  "Get out."

When they were alone, Kor walked slowly around, admiring the muscular physique and the proud stance.  The Vulcan was tall and thin, but the exposed body appeared very strong.  He'd gone unnoticed because the vibrant starship captain had distracted Kor's attention, but sensuality appeared to smolder under the Vulcan's cool exterior, contradicting everything that the Klingon had heard about Vulcans.  "Why are you here?"

"You desire a sexual partner."  He continued to stand very still even when Kor's hand shot out to grip the erection that strained against the Vulcan's trousers.   "I told your soldiers that you would be pleased with me."

"Vulcans are not like humans.  They do not have the same need for sex."   Nonetheless, this Vulcan appeared aroused.  Well, his cock did.  His face revealed nothing.  No fear, no contempt, and no desire.

An eyebrow lifted.  "Is it necessary to you that your sexual partner has a 'need' for sex?  I can assure you that my captain does not."

Kor's hand slid up to the Vulcan's strong shoulders.  "You talk too much."   With one motion, Kor ripped the tunic off and threw it aside.  He stroked his hands down the broad, hairy chest, amazed at the heat and slightly dizzy as he inhaled the spicy, musky scent.  "I had a taste for the human, but you will do."   He pulled the Vulcan's hard body against him and sank his teeth into one pointed ear. 

The Vulcan's hands gripped Kor's shoulders, and the strong fingers dug into his muscles, inspiring waves of pleasure, but Kor tore the hands away, and pushed the Vulcan down to his knees.  "Suck me, Vulcan."

Kor's lips parted, and his breath came out in a gasp when the Vulcan wordlessly ripped open Kor's pants, allowing them to fall to the floor, and Kor's erection leapt out.   The Vulcan dug his slender fingers into Kor's hips and opened his mouth to suckle the thick shaft that protruded from the mass of hair on Kor's groin.  The heat was like a furnace.  No, a volcano.  Lava flowed over him, and Kor closed his eyes and moaned loudly, grabbing at the back of the Vulcan's head and thrusting deeply into that burning cavity.  When the Vulcan raked his teeth delicately over Kor's shaft, Kor's eyes flew open, but he moaned louder and dug his fingers into the strong neck.   Watching the green welts inflamed Kor further, and he thrust his hips more rapidly.

When the Vulcan clamped his teeth down on the base of Kor's shaft, Kor yelped but the slick tongue continued to bathe his cock in sensation, so he did not protest further.   When the Vulcan surged forward, the Klingon stumbled backward onto the bed, terrified that his cock would snap off in the Vulcan's mouth, but there was only a slight wrench of pain-pleasure before the fire surged through him again. 

Kor moaned in protest when the Vulcan released his penis long enough to say, "If you continue to cry out so, will not your men believe that you are being harmed?"   He clamped his hand around the base of Kor's penis and squeezed vigorously.   Kor writhed under the strong assault. 

Between groans of pleasure, Kor said sharply, "They are used to my strong appetites.   Do not think that you can change your mind about..."

A large hand clamped over Kor's mouth, and the other hand tore Kor's tunic from him.   The Vulcan's hand was still over his mouth, when Kor felt teeth sinking into his chest, and his nipple was bitten hard enough to draw blood.  A purple haze settled over Kor's eyes as he writhed and thrust up so that his groin pushed against the Vulcan's.   He sank his teeth into the Vulcan's hand and tasted copper.

The Vulcan's face was eerily calm as he lifted his hand away from Kor's mouth and wiped the blood from his palm onto Kor's already bloody chest.  He drew back his arm and backhanded Kor.  The sharp pain of the slap on his face was as erotic as the ministrations of the hand that still pumped his cock.  But the slap demanded a response and, with a cry of outrage, Kor attempted to sit up, his hands fisted.  The Vulcan easily pinned Kor down with one hand on his chest while the other still gripped his cock. 

Kor gasped loudly and thrust into that hand.  The Vulcan's mouth captured Kor's shaft again.  One hand curved around the base to grip it tightly as the Vulcan bobbed up and down.  The Vulcan's other hand burrowed between Kor's legs to vigorously roll the Klingon's testicles between his fingers.   Waves of pleasure shot through him, and Kor groaned loudly, clamping his hands on the Vulcan's head again to give him more leverage for more vigorous thrusting. 

Kor shrieked when two fingers slid behind his testicles into his rectum.  The sharp pain was replaced by burning need and his thrusting became more frantic.  The Vulcan sucked harder and faster.  Kor tried to keep his eyes open to stare, but he had to close his eyes when the pleasure became unbearable.  Kor orgasmed with a shout, and opened his eyes to see the Vulcan spit his emission into his hand.  Kor was too limp to resist when the Vulcan manuevered him onto his stomach on the edge of the bed.   The Vulcan's knees spread Kor's thighs, and he slipped his hand between Kor's buttocks to lubricate his anal canal with three fingers.
 
"What are you doing, Vulcan?" Kor growled, but he spread his legs wider, wanting more of the delicious sensation.

"I am fucking you."  The Vulcan's voice was surprisingly level.  Kor allowed the Vulcan to hold him down with one arm while he unfastened his pants with the other.

"Get your hands off me," he said angrily at the first fiery touch of the Vulcan's cock, but he thrust his buttocks up, inviting the shaft in, and the Vulcan buried it with one long thrust.  Kor shrieked long and loud.

Positioning a pillow under Kor's stomach, the Vulcan wrapped one long-fingered hand around Kor's rapidly recovering erection, and sank his teeth into Kor's shoulder blade.  The Klingon yelped and gripped the bed sheets, torn between thrusting into the hot grip on his phallus and back against the shaft buried deep inside.

The Vulcan rose, lifting Kor to an angle that allowed deeper penetration; the Vulcan cockhead hammered against Kor's prostate; and Kor yelped in delight.

"Unngh!   Unngh!"  The cries were wrung from the Klingon as the Vulcan lifted him from the bed; his head grazed inches from the floor, but the Vulcan never allowed him to touch ground.  He could no longer see the Vulcan's face, so he did not know if the cool expression changed.  He only knew that the Vulcan pumped into him frantically.  He thought he heard a single groan that sounded like, 'jihm,' but Kor did not know a word of the Vulcan language and his universal translator had long been discarded.

"Is this how you fuck your beautiful captain?" Kor ground out, but the only answer was an increase in the tempo of the pounding he was taking up his ass.  His cries crescendoed to a shriek before he froze.  At the moment of orgasm, Kor's head thumped against the ground.  The combination of the blood rushing to his penis and the blow on his head sent him over the edge into unconsciousness.

//////////

Spock withdrew from the Klingon's body, and permitted his erection to subside.  After wiping his hands on the bedsheet, he refastened his pants and shouldered on his tunic.   He began a swift but thorough inspection of the room, finding a data solid, which, based on his rudimentary knowledge of Klingon, Spock believed to contain Kor's orders.   Careful rummaging in the drawer produced a set of keys.  He found that one opened the door to the room where the Mind Sifter was stored.

He speculated that he would have perhaps a quarter of an hour before the Klingon guards would become suspicious.  They would hardly expect Kor to settle down for the night with his "conquest."  Spock took as much time as he dared to study the machine, gaining a greater understanding of its workings, before he disabled it.  The part that he removed appeared vital enough to render the machine nonfunctional, small enough to conceal in his trouser pockets, and complex enough that it was unlikely that the Klingons would be able to easily replace it.

He stepped over Kor and headed for the front entrance to the chambers.  Pushing the door open, he encountered two guards who were half-asleep.  "Lord Kor is unwell," he reported.  The guards looked at each other nervously, but they walked into the chamber; he seized the opportunity to drop them both with a pair of neck pinches.  He rummaged in their pockets as well and was pleased to discover the keys to the cell where his captain was still being held.  Softly closing the door behind him, he followed the twists and turns back to the cell.   

When he unlocked the door, he nearly flinched as Jim barreled across the cell, stopping short of knocking him over.  "Oh, it's you."  Jim's look of surprise and pleasure gave way to a stern frown.  "Where the hell have you been?"   Jim reached up to wipe away blood from Spock's ear.  "You look like you've been in a fight."  He peered into the barely lit corridor behind Spock.   "But it looks like you won.  What did you do with our charming jailkeepers?"

"They are otherwise engaged, Captain."

Jim reached up a hand to massage the back of his neck.  "Hey, did you nerve pinch me?"

Spock lifted an eyebrow but his expression neither confirmed nor denied.

"When I woke up, my neck felt like it had been practically twisted off.  It took me a while to piece together what happened."  His voice softened, as though he were talking to himself, "When I woke up earlier, I was having the strangest dream."  Jim flushed slightly and swallowed.

Spock's eyebrow climbed higher, but he said nothing, gripping his hands behind his back.

Jim rubbed the back of his neck again, stretched with a grunt, and his manner became brisk.  "Anyway, you were sitting up next to me when the Klingons came in, weren't you?  I started to sit up, but your hand was on my shoulder holding me down.   When I woke up later, you were gone."  Jim stretched out a hand and leaned against the stone wall, his eyes troubled.  "Spock, what the hell did you think you were doing going off with the Klingons alone?  I thought that they were going to Mind Sift you again.  I've been worried about you."  He drew himself up to his full height and said sharply, "Besides, who ordered you to go off with them?  I'm your commanding officer, remember?"  His hand went out to touch a bruise on Spock's neck, and his expression softened to concern.  "Damn, Spock, what did they do to you?"

Jim's finger was cool on his skin.  Yet it inexplicably caused heat to flow through him.  A heat that no other's touch had ever inspired.  Even during intercourse with the Klingon, Spock had felt nothing that compared to this light caress.  His lips parted to form the word 'Jim,' but no sound escaped.

He swallowed before he said, "Captain, no mental persuasion was applied, and you well know that physical persuasion is ineffective against a Vulcan."  He turned to the door, allowing Jim's hand to fall away.  "Recommend that we depart while we have the opportunity."

"Right behind you, Mr. Spock."  Jim briefly touched Spock's elbow as they exited into the corridor.  Jim paused, looking left and then right.  "Now where do you think we can find Kor...?"

- finis -