Path: newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.pas.earthlink.net!elnk-nf2-pas!newsfeed.earthlink.net!wn11feed!worldnet.att.net!199.218.7.141!news.glorb.com!border1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!newsread.com!newsstand.newsread.com!POSTED.newshog.newsread.com!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated Approved: ascem@earthlink.net Organization: Better Living Thru TrekSmut Sender: ascem@earthlink.net Message-ID: From: "lyrastarwatcher" MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list ASCEML@yahoogroups.com; contact ASCEML-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: NEW TOS: Sensate Focus 2/4 (K/S)[NC-17] Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Lines: 760 Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 02:55:11 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 209.198.142.218 X-Complaints-To: Abuse Role , We Care X-Trace: newshog.newsread.com 1097463311 209.198.142.218 (Sun, 10 Oct 2004 22:55:11 EDT) NNTP-Posting-Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2004 22:55:11 EDT Xref: news.earthlink.net alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated:85055 X-Received-Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2004 19:56:13 PDT (newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net) Sensate Focus [NC-17] Part 2 of 4 Author: Lyrastarwatcher at yahoo dot com ,=20=20 www.geocities.com/lyrastarwatcher --------- Chapter 3=20 Out of nowhere, Jim saw more than heard Spock's warning in his head,=20 but he didn't have time to wonder how. He threw himself over the=20 President, knocking him flat, and pressed their bodies under the=20 table as the first shots rang out. In his seat, the Chief Advisor=20 howled, and vanished into nothing.=20 The room erupted in chaos. Dishes and utensils crashed to the floor=20 as the head table members took cover. Bradwllch cowered under the=20 table. The waiters and most of the head table were running backstage.=20 One of the Sixers--the War Minister?--was hit before he could reach=20 the back. Two of his tentacles burned off with the first shot. Four=20 still twitched. With the second shot, he was vaporized.=20 Leslie and Kelowitz had dashed for the captain and slid underneath=20 the table as well. Leslie snatched the great carving knife from the=20 clutter and held it up and ready.=20 One of the Altairian guards was racing up the stairs to the stage,=20 all four phasers firing into the room. He was shot down and fell=20 dead, sprawled towards the table. The smell of burnt flesh filled the=20 air. What was still recognizable of the left side of his body was=20 charred black; the adjacent scales welded together in a dull mass.=20 The other two phasers had skittered out of his grip "Secure the President," Jim said to his men as he dove for the first=20 phaser, rolled to the second one and slid right back under the table.=20 Bradwllch still sat tight, tentacles wrapped around himself and=20 shaking. Jim went to toss a phaser to Leslie, but he was already=20 gone. Down on the floor, relatively hidden from view by the table,=20 Leslie was shuffling in a backwards crouch, the knife bared in his=20 hand. Kelowitz was crawling, pushing the president ahead of him,=20 sheltering him with his body.=20 Jim leaned out to the side of the table and clipped off a couple=20 wild, covering shots. The Altairian sidearm was woefully inadequate=20 for a full combat situation. A blast whizzed over his shoulder,=20 burning through his jacket and scorching the skin beneath.=20 He ducked back under the table and squelched his body's automatic=20 response to the pain. With the adrenaline surging, it wasn't=20 difficult. The damage wasn't too deep and he forced the wound from=20 his mind. He searched for a safer vantage point. There was none. He=20 tried his communicator. A computer informed him that there was a=20 twelve-minute wait for a surface-to-ship relay. There was another=20 round of fire, and suddenly he felt before he saw Spock under the=20 table by his side.=20 "Where?" Jim asked.=20 "On the balcony. One sniper and two others with smaller weapons=20 guarding the top of the stairs. All are Fivers."=20 Jim passed him a phaser. "So they have the elevation, position,=20 firepower and first strike advantage. How about numbers? Mattox and=20 Bennett?"=20 "Vaporized attempting to mount the balcony."=20 Two more lives he owed the universe. "That doesn't leave us much does=20 it?"=20 "Indeed not. I would estimate the odds of launching successful=20 countermeasures from here to be less than 9384 to 1." "That good, huh?"=20 Jim turned to Chief Advisor Bradwllch. "What's back there? An exit?"=20 He jerked his head towards the backstage.=20 "No. No doors or windows; it's just work and storage area. We're=20 trapped. They have us trapped." He wrapped his tentacles more tightly=20 around himself and shivered.=20 "What do they want?" asked Jim. "Maybe we can bargain with them."=20 "They want us dead!" Bradwllch spat out the words. "There's no=20 bargaining with animals."=20 "No one kills for no reason; they must have a higher motive."=20 "The minister is correct on one count," said Spock. "One of the=20 assailants is broadcasting a demand that the President and all=20 cabinet members be surrendered for execution."=20 "Can you talk to them?"=20 "Negative. They are unreceptive to discourse at this time."=20 "Think, Spock. We have to do something." Jim rubbed the vicinity of=20 the wound in an attempt to diffuse the searing sensation that again=20 vied for his attention.=20 Eyes drawn to the burn, Spock reached a finger out and peeled more=20 fabric away, assessing the damage.=20 "It's nothing," Jim protested. "Barely a scratch."=20 "Yes," Spock agreed studying the burn. "However the weapon signature=20 is fascinating." He rubbed a scorched edge of fabric between his=20 fingers. "These are not phaser markings. I believe they are from=20 parathermious capacitors. That would also explain how they eluded the=20 weaponry scans." =20 "Whatever they are, they have them, and all we have are these." Jim=20 flipped the little phaser in his hand.=20 "Parathermious capacitors were investigated by Starfleet over one=20 hundred years ago, but abandoned as militarily unfeasible." =20 "Not now, Spock; I need strategy, not history."=20 "That is my point. The weapons were deemed unfeasible as they will=20 only function within thirty meters of a strong radiant heat source."=20 Heat. Sun. Fire. "Ovens! The kitchen!"=20 "Ninety-eight point two percent probable. It is located beneath and=20 just behind the balcony." =20 Jim eyed the side service door across the room. "I think I can make=20 it." He adjusted the phaser, pushing it for every last bit of power.=20 Spock swallowed, the lump in his throat bobbing down, then up=20 again. "It is more logical that I should go; I have been in the=20 kitchen and am familiar with the layout."=20 "I think I can find an oven," said Jim. "Besides, you're the better=20 shot; I'll need you to cover me."=20 "As I recall, my marksmanship score was only 0.47 points higher than=20 yours."=20 "Every little bit counts." Jim clapped him on the shoulder with all=20 the usual confidence. "Besides, you can do that--whatever it was that=20 you did back there--to warn me, guide me. I'll ask you more about=20 that later; right now we have a job to do." He crouched, making ready=20 to start his run.=20 "Jim."=20 The intensity in Spock's voice made him turn. The look he saw was one=20 he'd seen many times before--transporter splits, court-martials,=20 pergium mines, New York City 1930. So far he had come back safely=20 every time. He intended for this one to be no different.=20 Jim put all the reassurance he could muster into a smile, reached=20 back and squeezed Spock's thigh. "We're going to make it; we always=20 have. On three."=20 Spock swallowed again, any other words he had planned seeming to go=20 down with it. "Yes, sir. On three."=20 "One--two--thr--"=20 Roll--left--dodge--drop! The movements came to his mind and flowed=20 out through his body as smoothly as if they had been choreographed.=20 Spock's modulated mindvoice flavored the flow, the only clue that the=20 thoughts were not originally his own. The sound of shots whizzed past=20 his ear as he pushed open the door to the kitchen.=20 There was only one guard; Jim took him down with kick to the hand=20 that had held the weapon and a punch to the jaw. He aimed the phaser=20 at the row of ovens and took them out one by one. The room outside=20 went silent.=20 When Jim mounted the stairs to the balcony, one Fiver was already=20 down and the sniper was buckling under Spock's neck pinch. Jim leapt=20 up the last of the steps and launched himself in a flying kick at the=20 last attacker.=20 The Fiver dropped like a sack of wet hay.=20 Spock called the all-clear and collected the weapons in a pile. Jim=20 stood, bent over, hands on his thighs, to catch his breath. As Spock=20 picked up the parathermious rifle, he glanced over at Jim where he=20 stood jacket torn, half on and half off, shoulder charred black,=20 still breathing hard but grinning from ear to ear.=20 Another job well done.=20 ---------=20 Chapter 4=20 "Unified Altair, both Five and Six, thank you for your service," said=20 Wyddick as they stood amid the rubble of the room. An Altairian=20 security detail had finally arrived, and was marching the three=20 barely conscious assailants down the stairs in restraints.=20 Spock emerged from the kitchen, carrying the fourth man over his=20 back.=20 "We'll take him from here," a Fiver guard thought to Spock.=20 "No." Spock said the word out loud.=20 "Problem, Spock?" Jim looked over and caught his eye.=20 "These men have killed two Starfleet officers in the line of duty.=20 The Federation has first rights to prosecution."=20 A cry broke out as the surviving government members protested in=20 unison. The President spoke the loudest. "They've also killed four of=20 my people here, including two invaluable members of my government,=20 and who knows how many other citizens before this. Millions? I think=20 our interests outweigh yours."=20 "Spock, under the circumstances--" Jim began.=20 Spock's voice was firm. "The Federation Code of Unified Justice is=20 quite specific. You must take these men into Federation custody."=20 The Code said no such thing. In fact, a starship captain had almost=20 limitless discretion in these matters. Jim searched Spock's face, but=20 found no clue. It didn't matter; he'd trusted him with far less to go=20 on before.=20 "All right; we'll take them in."=20 "Captain Kirk! I protest this in the strongest possible language. I=20 will be speaking to your Admiral Komack," said the President.=20 "Protest all you want," Kirk clipped, "but you're barking up the=20 wrong tree. I'm acting for the Federation in accord with Federation=20 policy, and if you want our support, you'll turn them over."=20 "Now I see how the Federation works." Wyddick's lower tentacles=20 swished behind his back.=20 "And what did you see when the Federation saved your lives?" Jim's=20 tone was soft and low, but the danger reined in behind it was=20 unmistakable.=20 Wyddick chirped something in Altairian; the Translators didn't pick=20 it up, but the guards stepped away from the prisoners.=20 "You may reclaim your restraints," said Spock.=20 Wyddick's tentacles thrashed in brisk synchronization. "These are=20 barbarians. How foolish are you people?"=20 Kirk pulled his First Officer aside. "Spock, there's a lot we don't=20 know. And they did kill Mattox and Bennett." He locked eyes and=20 silently asked the question, are you sure?=20 "I am aware of that Captain; I saw them vaporized."=20 Whatever else they didn't know, Spock would not risk his captain's=20 life. Jim squared his shoulders and turned back to the group. "Mr.=20 President, please allow your men to reclaim their property. We'll=20 handle this from here."=20 The President chirped something else that went untranslated, but=20 sounded distinctly impolite. The restraints popped free. None of the=20 prisoners moved a muscle. Leslie and Kelowitz each took one by the=20 back of the neck. Jim stationed himself by the third. Together they=20 marched out the front door and across to the parking hangar.=20 "What's this about?" Jim asked when they were out of earshot.=20 "I am uncertain as of yet," said Spock, "but I believe it is=20 essential that we make clear to these men our beneficent motivation.=20 Some of Captain McElhannon's information has been confirmed. This=20 one," he nodded to the Fiver he had been carrying who now walked=20 unsteadily with the rest, "even wounded and confused, had an=20 intelligent, reasoned interaction with me. There is no trace of the=20 senseless violence we were given to expect.=20 "He was most insistent that he is fighting for the freedom of his=20 people. He asserts that the Fivers we have seen are being held in=20 servitude by nonconsensual mental influence."=20 "The Fivers you interviewed? You called them happy and complacent.=20 That hardly sounds involuntary."=20 "I detected no outside influence or coercion, and yet the very=20 emotions you mention are inconsistent with the situation. A species=20 intelligent and motivated enough to mount such an offensive should=20 not so easily accept such inequity."=20 "Same species, different individuals. Different people are different,=20 Mr. Spock," said Leslie.=20 "Agreed. As I stated, I am uncertain as to the significance. I=20 require more time to interview the captives and I believe it would be=20 unwise to do that on the planet's surface. Some of the Fivers have=20 extensive telepathic range and if any, such as the Foreign Minister=20 are in league--"=20 "Yes, yes. I see," said Jim. In silence they reboarded the Henry=20 Hudson. The prisoners offered no resistance. Still, Spock took the=20 precaution of ordering the lap safety restraints triggered around the=20 Fivers, and locking them into place for the short trip back to=20 Enterprise.=20 Back on the Enterprise, there was a minor disagreement. Kirk wanted=20 the Fivers in the Brig and interrogated; Spock wanted them in guest=20 quarters and allowed to rest and recover.=20 In the end they compromised: secured in the Brig, given food and=20 eight hours of rest. The crew had other business to attend during=20 that interval anyway. There were two men who would never return who=20 deserved a few hours of remembrance.=20 And someone had to break the news to the next of kin. That someone=20 would be the captain. Of all the duties a captain had to bear, this=20 one was the hardest.=20 Funerals he could take. Every person aboard had signed on ready to=20 die for what he believed; he owed them no further explanation or=20 apology. But the families-- The families had not signed up for that.=20 Meeting them outside the airlock, McCoy saw the injured shoulder and=20 leapt at it. "That's a deep tissue burn, Jim; I need to work on it in=20 Sickbay."=20 "Later Bones; it'll still be burnt in two hours. I'll meet you in=20 then. Go see to the prisoners."=20 McCoy had already scanned them as they left the hangar deck.=20 Exhaustion, malnutrition, and a couple bruises, but not much worse.=20 Mattox and Bennett would be just as dead in two hours; the services=20 could wait just as easily as the shoulder--but McCoy had better sense=20 than to mention that. He gave up with grace, and watched Spock hustle=20 Jim back towards their cabins.=20 =20 It took little knowledge of James Kirk and even less logic to deduce=20 that the inevitable question would be asked very soon. It was exactly=20 four point six seconds after leaving the hangar deck that Jim started=20 in.=20 "Spock, how did you get into my head like that? Is it the planet?=20 Something on the planet that augments telepathy?"=20 "No." Ask a Vulcan a closed question--=20 Jim tried again. "So, you want to tell me?"=20 A most illogical question; had he wanted to tell, he would have by=20 now. For zero point two one seconds Spock considered applying the=20 same stall tactic, but deduced it would be pointless; he had run out=20 of time, for patience was seldom ranked among the many and varied=20 virtues of James Kirk.=20 Spock cleared his throat. "It is related to the recent events on=20 Vulcan."=20 "And?"=20 Jim's face stayed open wide with the same easy trust that had led to=20 this very situation in the first place. It was no easy task to=20 maintain barricades against such unconditional acceptance--even under=20 the best of circumstances. So why hadn't he seen this coming?=20 Every time he closed his eyes, Jim was there, tethered to him by a=20 gossamer fine golden strand. Jim spun and bobbed and twirled, nearer,=20 farther, then nearer again, but the string never snapped nor=20 strained. The first few times he passed it off as residual madness;=20 by now there was no denying or ignoring what they had become. The=20 only issue was now control.=20 "And?" Jim repeated.=20 "When my link with T'Pring was severed, it reformed almost at once -- with you."=20 "Link?" Jim barked the word. "You mean, link as in--linked? Linked,=20 as in--bonded?"=20 Spock nodded.=20 "You mean--we're married?"=20 Someone in the passageway coughed. Yeoman Tamula turned to look in=20 their direction.=20 "Certainly not," said Spock, summoning all the feigned indignation he=20 could gather.=20 He waited until they had entered the turbolift. "The link was formed=20 with neither your knowledge nor consent. No Federation world would=20 recognize a union so formed as a marriage. There is no exact=20 translation in Standard, as it is a concept unique to telepaths, but=20 the usual transliteration, as you suggest, is 'bonded.'"=20 "Bonded--in the same way you were to T'Pring?"=20 "Yes." It was close enough to the truth; Jim did not need to know=20 that his link with T'Pring had never been one tenth as intense as=20 this.=20 "To T'Pring--who you introduced as your wife?"=20 "Yes." It was clear enough where this was going, but easier to try=20 and stop a solar flare than James T. Kirk on a roll.=20 "But you say we're not married?"=20 "Not without your prior informed consent."=20 Jim rolled his eyes as the lift came to a halt. "That seems a pretty=20 small detail, considering I'm now in your ex-wife's place."=20 "I doubt that the slave women in the harems of Orion would agree with=20 you, Captain."=20 Touch=E9. They had arrived back at his cabin. As the door closed behind=20 them, Jim peeled off his uniform. "So--why me?"=20 Had he heard any dismay or recoil, Spock would have tried an evasion.=20 He had considered several in preparation for this ultimately=20 inevitable moment. "Unknown." Or, "Possibly because you were the=20 first person I touched after the bond was severed." They were not=20 lies--not exactly. He could have spoken either one with a clear=20 conscience as nature was never a fixed equation, and both fell within=20 the distant reaches of possibility.=20 But he heard nothing except earnest curiosity and a certain ringing=20 resonance that is so frequent when empty spaces are first breached. A=20 sensation with which Spock was not unfamiliar himself. And so he=20 spoke of the theory to which he assigned a 97.87 percent probability.=20 "Because you are the person to whom I am closest."=20 Jim nodded--nothing more, no surprise, just nodded. "So, now what?"=20 "That would be up to you."=20 Jim looked up, surprise now spread across his face. "Me? I don't know=20 anything about it. Aside from the fact that the link just saved our=20 skins. Pretty handy, if you ask me." =20 Jim massaged his injured shoulder, and surveyed the rest of his body,=20 seemed to be checking for other injuries. Apparently satisfied, he=20 sat down in a chair. Naked.=20 Spock averted his eyes. It was not as easy than it should have been,=20 but far easier than continuing to watch.=20 "Give me a risk-benefit run down," Jim said.=20 "Risks to you: your privacy. While it is my intention to maintain=20 barriers against it, hypothetically I could enter your mind at any=20 time."=20 Jim snorted. "I've got no secrets left from you anyway; I'll take my=20 chances. Go on."=20 "A possibility of--distraction, if one of us were to be seriously=20 injured or stressed."=20 "Um. And?"=20 Spock shuffled, and for the second time, averted his eyes. "And there=20 is the obvious obligation." =20 Jim widened his eyes in inquiry.=20 "It is, of course, primarily a mating bond. In seven years--" Spock's=20 voice trailed off.=20 Jim waved that off. "Seven years is a long time in space. Let's say=20 we worry about that one in 6.9 years. What else?"=20 Spock shook his head. "Risks to you, none other that I can=20 anticipate."=20 "And if we break it?" Jim balked and rephrased as if in=20 afterthought. "Can we break it?" He put the stress on the first word.=20 "Yes, on Vulcan with a healer. It may take several weeks."=20 "Too long," Jim said shortly. "The Klingons are getting restless; we=20 can't both be out." He paused.=20 "Unless--"=20 A frown settled down on his brow and his voice dropped again. "Spock,=20 you said it was up to me, but what about you?" Jim hesitated. "Do you=20 want it broken?"=20 The logical answer would have been a single word, but the=20 significance of that word was more than an even half-Vulcan could=20 begin to fathom. And so he chose another not-lie that skated around=20 the truth. "It is untenable for a sexually mature Vulcan male to=20 remain unbonded for any length of time. Should the link between us be=20 severed, I would be compelled to accept rebonding with a stranger of=20 my family's choosing. I find this arrangement preferable and I have=20 no reason to wish it broken."=20 "Okay, so I guess that's settled; we stay married." Jim clapped his=20 hands to his thighs and rose, his tone having lightened considerably=20 in conclusion.=20 "Oh, and Spock, now that we're married and it's legal for you to=20 visit any time, do you think you can get your computer fixed? I'd=20 really like to have mine back."=20 Spock reproved himself for the amount of undisciplined emotions=20 cluttering his reason. He recognized the foremost one as relief; the=20 rest he would harness later. For now the familiar repartee would do.=20 He raised both eyebrows. "I believe the computer repair can be=20 arranged directly, but Captain, we are not married."=20 Jim spoke absently as he made his way to the shower. "Yes, yes, I=20 heard you. It's just as well. I don't know how I would've broken that=20 kind of news to my mother." He stopped just long enough to emphasize=20 the parting shot that he threw back over his shoulder. "She always=20 wanted me to marry a doctor."=20 Spock's eyebrows rose into his bangs. He heard Jim's rich chuckle=20 continuing long after the shower door had closed.=20 The memorial services were held together. Since the ancient days of=20 sail, shipmates lived, died and were honored together. It didn't=20 diminish the significance of individual lives, it elevated it=20 instead.=20 There were memories and tears, duties and vows shared out amongst the=20 survivors. Soon the captain would put in a requisition for=20 replacements. But not today. Today they would all feel the loss.=20 McCoy corralled Jim in the corridor, and hauled him off to a Sickbay=20 bed mumbling something about what burns and icebergs had in common.=20 "No drugs," Jim said, waving away McCoy's hypo. "There's something=20 rotten in the state of Altair; I need to be alert."=20 "The tissue damage is deeper than it looks," McCoy said. "I'm going=20 to have to debride pretty wide, and it's gonna hurt like hell. I'll=20 give you a short acting hypo; it'll wear off within thirty minutes."=20 "Alright. Thirty minutes, no longer."=20 McCoy pressed the hypo in. The biobed beeping waned slower and slower=20 and Jim began falling down and down and down.=20 he was flat on his back, spock above him, his face contorted and=20 intent. heat burned his body; his vision was a wavy haze of fiery=20 red. spock's weight pressed into his chest, his belly, his groin;=20 spock's fingers pressed into his flesh. his breath came hard and in=20 his gut, the pressure built to the nigh unbearable.=20 he forced himself over; the sands shifted as they rolled; now he was=20 on top, riding and guiding with his weight. he put his knee between=20 the wiry thighs and squeezed in tight and held. he leaned his body=20 forward, thrusting and pounding impotently as trousers rubbed=20 trousers, no satisfaction in sight. his shirt collar closed in, a=20 useless irritant, choking him at his neck.=20 now spock moved and was on top again, tossing him casually, flaunting=20 his easily greater strength. the position was awkward--painful, in=20 fact. something dug into the soft hollow of his back. his body=20 cramped; he arched his spine. he spread his hips and wrapped one leg=20 around spock's waist. he choked in exhalation as the bony points of=20 spock's pelvis ground mercilessly into his. heat flared though his=20 neck, his face, and down. he bucked and jerked but spock would not be=20 stopped.=20 something tore? the rear of his pants? he couldn't see, he couldn't=20 breathe; all he knew was spock above him and against him and the heat=20 and the hardness and the weight. his body stiffened in a final spasm,=20 and then went limp in those strong arms. he felt himself gently,=20 tenderly lowered back to earth.=20 the peace, the warmth, the light. Jim bolted upright on the exam table. "Spock!"=20 McCoy looked over from his desk. "That must've been a helluva dream.=20 Maybe I should try some of that stuff."=20 Jim took inventory. His shoulder throbbed underneath the spray-on=20 dressing, but at least he could use it a little more. He pushed=20 himself up to a sit. Something sticky cloyed his pants to his thigh.=20 He looked down and saw the stain; he pulled the sheet over his lap,=20 but not before McCoy saw the damage.=20 "Yeah, I definitely need me some of that," McCoy joked.=20 Jim wasn't laughing.=20 "You all right?" McCoy passed the scanner over him with a=20 frown. "That stuff doesn't usually do things like that."=20 "I'm fine," said Jim, finding that he could stand up. "But I want an=20 explanation too." Holding his shirt in front of his waist, he was=20 already out the door.=20 All was well on board when Spock turned the Bridge watch over to=20 Sulu. He needed history and political information on Altair before=20 his interviews, but more than that, he needed some time alone to=20 restore order to his thoughts, so he headed for Jim's cabin and Jim's=20 computer.=20 He had 6.18 hours--more than enough time. He dropped himself into a=20 light meditation, intent upon quarantining and mastering the=20 multitude of emotions that had nipped and chipped away at his logic=20 today.=20 he pressed the man beneath his body, finally captured, his own need=20 throbbing between them with every beat of his heart. he had never=20 felt such heat, such fever. he reached for him, but jim rolled away-- over and up on top. jim straddled him, held him between his legs, but=20 it was not close enough. the clothing narrowly separated their skin=20 as the barriers of foreign physiology narrowly separated their=20 desires. spock grabbed him hard and pulled him down to the sand and=20 held him right where his body had sorest need.=20 he slid his grip up the body, the neck, not caring if he hurt. the=20 imperatives of biology must be satisfied. jim squirmed against his=20 pelvis, hip to hip, thigh to thigh, cock to cock. the rough fabric=20 chafed between them, but it was nothing compared to the chaffing in=20 his mind. he needed this too much.=20 he must have this man, here, now, in every way. he pulled him closer=20 and closer and closer still until--=20 Spock jolted to alertness, panting for every ragged breath. His body=20 ached again taut and relentless with the fever he had thought was=20 gone. With rising alarm, he fought to force it down. No! This could=20 not be happening again! Not now, too soon.=20 Too his surprise, the fever dissipated at once, like sands cast upon=20 the wind. His organs relaxed, and he was again alone in his barren,=20 and oh so pragmatic mind. The mixture of relief and regret that=20 followed shocked him to his Vulcan soul, possibly even more than the=20 eroticism itself. This was not the pre-programmed insanity of the pon=20 farr, but something worse and far more insidious.=20 The pon farr was of Vulcan, regimented and predetermined even in its=20 madness. The pon farr would leave him be for the better part of seven=20 years, but this all too human madness was a vast and gaping unknown.=20 He put that--those feelings at bay as well. Jim was on his way. He=20 could see it, feel it in the link.=20 He straightened himself and settled his mind. When the door opened,=20 he was unsurprised, nonetheless he found himself completely=20 unprepared.=20 "What the hell was that?" Jim tossed the shirt aside. His upper body=20 glowed with perspiration. Spock couldn't help but notice that his=20 lower body was damp as well with a different moisture--the same one=20 that had threatened to compromise his own composure only a few=20 moments before.=20 "I believe one of those 'disturbing incidents' I surmised we might=20 encounter."=20 "Stress or serious injury, you said. I wasn't expecting anything like=20 that."=20 "Nor I. Perhaps a result of the drugs you were given, or my own=20 unfamiliarity with controlling the link. I would expect it get better=20 in the future."=20 "Better." Jim repeated the laden word, and it rolled around in the=20 air between them.=20 Jim searched his face. "Okay, so it'll get better. But I want to know=20 one thing: was it me--or was it you? I can't tell."=20 Spock shook his head and fiddled with one of the computer=20 switches. "I think the only fair answer is that it was 'us.'"=20 "Us." Jim tossed the verdict around, then he smiled as he had a=20 million times before, the amicable glow of trust utterly=20 undiminished. Spock reevaluated his assessment of the risks.=20 Certainly there were a few things in life that could and would alarm=20 the captain of the Enterprise, but sexuality had never been one of=20 them.=20 "Okay, 'us.' I'll say one thing Mr. Spock," Jim pulled off his shorts=20 and trousers tossing them into the 'cycler, freeing himself from the=20 very physical evidence of 'us', "you are full of surprises." He=20 paused on the way into the head to run a hand over one of Spock's=20 shoulders. No harm, no foul it seemed.=20 Starting to break free, Jim's innocent touch still tingled in the=20 skin beneath his shirt--and someplace deeper as well--threatening to=20 crumble all of his resolve. There was a time he would have yearned=20 for this--for anything more that he could have of Jim. That was=20 before he had seen that a little having would only accentuate the=20 yearning more.=20 There was a Terran saying, "Drink deep or taste not." It seemed to=20 have been written just for James Kirk.=20 "I will complete my research elsewhere." Spock rose to leave.=20 Jim called from beyond the doorway. "No, stay." It had the bark of a=20 command, but listening with the ear of their many years together,=20 Spock heard only the plea beneath it. "You won't bother me tonight.=20 In fact, I wouldn't mind the company. It's been a lousy day."=20 Jim emerged from the head washed and steaming, in fresh white briefs=20 and a weary gray posture. "Did you know that Bennett had two girls-- four and seven. The older one answered the comm. I heard her ask her=20 mother what's wrong. How do you tell a kid something like that?"=20 "I don't know."=20 Jim shook his head. "I wasn't expecting an answer. Sometimes there=20 isn't a right one. Believe me, I remember the call my mother got.=20 Sometimes there just isn't a right one." He dropped himself down on=20 the bunk and threw his good arm over his eyes.=20 Spock watched until the respirations deepened and slowed. He supposed=20 a human would have gone to him; he knew a Vulcan would have left him=20 to his privacy. But Spock who was neither must find his own way=20 through the vagaries of emotion. He turned back to the computer=20 screen.=20 Sometimes finding one's way took a while.=20 Spock completed his study of Altair, then researched Makian=20 hydroponics, then Quivarian genetic mutations, then metabaric quantum=20 theory of black holes. He stayed until the captain roused at 0557,=20 but didn't dare allow his mind to slip to meditation again.=20 ------=20 End Part 2 of 4 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ASCEM messages are copied to a mailing list. Most recent messages can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ASCEML. NewMessage: