Grayson. Why was that name in Spock's mind?
Raven looked nonchalantly at their alien guest. An alien whose ship had Earth markings on its hull. The meal was over and Robin rose, and began to collect the dishes from the table. Raven also rose and collected the empty pizza boxes. Spock rose and reached for an empty box.
"Mr. Spock, you're our guest, Robin and I will clear the table. Please sit down." Raven quickly interjected before following Robin into the kitchen. Spock nodded and sat back down. Starfire quickly asked him about Epsilon Eridani, which was the star Vulcan orbited, and they were joined by Cyborg as they discussed the star's properties.
After tossing the pizza boxes down the recycling chute, Raven joined Robin at the sink, and they whispered to each other, which Beast Boy noticed. He wanted to join them, but decided to stay put at the table, even though he couldn't follow Spock's scientific discourse on Epsilon Eridani.
Over at the sink, Raven ran the water at full force and rinsed the dishes, hoping that Spock wouldn't be able to hear what she was going to say. While her face remained nearly expressionless, Robin could tell that something was afoot.
"Is something wrong?" He whispered.
"He knows your name."
Raven was the only Titan who knew that Robin was Richard John Grayson, which she learned years before when she entered his mind when he was hallucinating about Slade.
"My name, you mean my real name?"
"Just your last name. I sneaked into his mind, but as I warned you he sensed that something was going on, so I got out as fast as I could. I don't think he saw me, but I'm not sure. But as I was leaving I saw the name Grayson."
Robin continued rinsing dishes, handing them to Raven, who loaded them into the dishwasher.
"This is too much of a coincidence. His ship is from Earth, probably the future." He mumbled as he handed the last dish to her.
"Do you think he might be connected to Warp?" She replied.
"Maybe … we need to be careful."
"We could put him in a holding cell, just to be safe."
He subtly shook his head. "Not yet, we're going to need more evidence before we do that."
Robin returned to the table and Raven followed him. She sat down next to Gar, who didn't say anything. She planned on filling him in later when they went to bed. Robin sat down next to Cyborg.
"So, Cyborg, do you think you and Star can help Mr. Spock repair his ship?"
"I don't know, man. I've never seen tech like that before."
"Neither have I. Not even the Citadel has such technology." The princess added.
"That is interesting. Mr. Spock, your ship, it's a Vulcan ship, right? Perhaps you could contact Vulcan to send someone to repair your ship?" Robin asked.
"It would be pointless to contact the Vulcan high command to ask for assistance."
"Dude, why won't they help you?"
Spock was much better than Raven at concealing his emotions. While he hid them from manifesting themselves on his face, he also suppressed them internally. Raven's empathic senses rarely registered anything coming out of the alien.
"First of all, Vulcan has not made first contact with Earth. Your world is quarantined, Vulcans are not allowed to visit, so they would not come for me."
Robin hid his frown. Spock had artfully dodged the question about the shuttle.
"But a Vulcan ship, a very advanced Vulcan ship is on Earth. Surely the would want to recover it, so there won't be any … technological contamination."
"The high command does not know that I am on Earth."
"Well, dude, call them and let them know you're here."
"BB's right … I don't think I can make the parts for your ship in my workshop. It's just too advanced."
Spock cocked his head. "That should not be a problem. I can replicate any parts we need."
"Replicate?" Raven asked.
Starfire raised her hand, pointing upward with her index finger. "I have heard of such devices, but have never seen one. I am told they assemble any object from the molecular level, though to be honest on Tamaran they are considered to be but a legend."
"Wow, so Vulcans have such technology?" Robin asked in an inquiring tone. "That's impressive."
Spock pressed his fingers together. He knew he had a problem. The Galileo not only had external Federation markings, all the controls in the interior were in Federation Standard – in other words they were in English. It would be impossible to conceal this from his hosts.
"My ship is not Vulcan."
Spock could tell from their reactions that they already knew.
"So … if it's not Vulcan, what is it?" Robin asked.
"It is a Federation vessel." He replied in a deadpan that would have made Raven proud.
Starfire cleared her throat. "I do not know of any Federation. Is it a space business consortium?"
Spock weighed his options. Vulcans were said to be incapable of outright lying, but that didn't mean they had to disclose everything. He could repair the Galileo himself, assuming the replicator wasn't damaged in the crash.
"The Federation is a political alliance of worlds."
Robin nodded. "I see, is Vulcan a member of this Federation?"
"Not yet." He replied.
"Can you tell us who the current members are?"
Spock knew he was backed into a corner. The Vulcans had avoided first contact with Tamaran because of the nature of the Tamaranians, which they knew only by reputation, and that they were even more emotional than humans. The first contact was never made, and there was no trace of Tamaranians anywhere, hence why they were believed to be legendary … until now. This was a precarious moment, one where the timeline could be irreparably damaged, possibly with disastrous results.
"I can, and will if you pledge to not share this information with anyone."
"That's a big pledge to make." Raven interjected.
"It is, but I ask it for a very good reason: the safety of this world."
"Dude, are you saying that Earth is in danger?"
Spock regarded the changeling. Of the five, he was the least logical. But as his mother had taught him, sometimes emotions could be positive. He recalled the time he asked his father, Sarek, to tell his mother that he felt fine.
"The Earth is not in any danger at this time, at least none that I know of. But if the information I wish to to share with you, which will help you understand who I am and why I am here, is divulged then Earth could be endangered."
Robin frowned. "I'm not sure we can make that promise."
The changeling leaped to his feet and pointed at Spock. "You're from the future!"
So much for the green Titan being illogical.
"You already knew?" Spock asked, tapping his fingers together.
"Your ship is way too advanced." Cyborg quipped. "You aren't working with Warp, are you?"
"I need more context to give you a proper answer."
Robin crossed his arms. Spock knew that gesture signaled a lack of trust. "Warp is a time traveler from the future, one who has given us plenty of trouble."
Spock recalled reading a highly confidential dossier about Captain Archer, a stranger called Daniels and the Temporal War. Perhaps this Warp person was a rogue time traveler from the 30th century and a contemporary of Daniels.
"I am not affiliated with, nor do I know anything about this Warp individual."
"So why are you here?" Raven asked.
"I will answer that question if you take the confidentiality pledge."
The changeling sat back down. "So, like if we take this pledge, we can't tell anyone, not even the Doom Patrol or the Justice League?"
"I do not know who either of those groups are, but the answer is that you cannot tell anyone, not even them. The timeline is already in great danger of being contaminated, and the consequences are possibly disastrous if that were to happen."
Robin gestured his team to follow him into the kitchen, where they huddled, with their arms around each other like a football team and they spoke in hushed whispers.
"What do you guys think?"
"I think he as a point." Cyborg remarked. "Plus he didn't deny that he was from the future when we outed him."
"We don't really know that, maybe only his ship is from the future." Raven remarked.
Robin cleared his throat. "There's something else, Raven just tried to probe his mind. She wasn't very successful, but she found out that he knows my name, my last name actually."
"Dude, we don't know your last name. How does he know it?"
Robin pursed his lips. "Probably because he's from the future. And I want to know why he knows it."
"Robin, perhaps you could make that a condition for the pledge?" Starfire suggested.
The boy wonder frowned. "I don't like the idea of taking this pledge. Let's take a vote."
One by one his teammates agreed to take the pledge.
"OK, then, I'm in too. And just so you all know, my last name is Grayson."
"Dude, you mean like Dick Grayson?"
Raven gently elbowed him, her not so subtle way of saying 'not now'. The huddle broke and they walked back to the table. Spock regarded them will mild curiosity.
"We will agree to the pledge, but under one condition."
"And that would be?"
Robin stared at the alien. "That you tell us what the name Grayson means to you and why you know it."
Spock look startled for a moment, then after resuming his dispassionate expression looked at Raven.
"I see, that presence I sensed, that was you. You are a fascinating person, Miss Raven. Though I will say that it was rude of you to attempt to invade my mind. If you had questions, you only need to have asked."
He turned back to Robin. "I accept your condition. Do you all pledge to keep secret and to share with no one else what I will tell you about who I am and where I am from?"
"I do." A chorus replied.
Spock nodded.
"Very well, to answer your first question, the Federation has no current members because it does not exist at this time. As for your second question, I know the name Grayson because I am a Grayson."
The look on everyone's faces was reminiscent of when they heard Soto's dog speak for the first time. Beast Boy was the first one to talk, in his usual excited state. He waved his arms as he shouted.
"Are you saying that you and Robin are related?"
"Distantly, yes; though it has not be confirmed beyond any doubt."
"I can do a DNA test, my lab can handle it." Cyborg offered.
"That won't be necessary, I can verify that with my tricorder, with your permission of course."
Robin still looked dumbfounded. "Are you a direct descendant? I don't have any siblings, cousins, or any other relatives."
"I believe that I am."
Gar looked flabbergasted. "Dude! Is Star also an ancestor?" His outburst earned him a not so gentle elbowing from his girlfriend.
"Ow, what the heck, Rave? That hurt!"
"Did you stop to think that maybe she isn't, and how she'll feel to learn that?"
His ears drooped. "Oh crud, I just assumed …" His voice trailed off.
"It is believed that Miss Starfire, or as my mother likes to call her, grandmother Kori, is also an ancestor. I say this with the caveat that our Earth family records from the distant past are possibly spurious and were transmitted only via word of mouth."
Starfire brightened. "So, Mr. Spock, you are saying that you have the human and Tamaranian ancestry?"
"I know that I have substantial human DNA, as my mother is human. As for Tamaranian DNA, I cannot say."
"Was your Tamaranian DNA diluted away over the generations?" Raven asked.
"It is quite likely. But that is not the reason why I cannot verify its presence or lack of presence."
Starfire looked puzzled. "I do not understand, why is that so?"
Spock pressed his fingers together. "There are no Tamaranians in the future."
-(-)-
Back in Spock's room ...
The tricorder made its high pitched whine while Spock held the small medical probe, which sparkled as he waved it ove Robin.
Starfire looked devastated, and Raven could feel the grief that emanated from her. The sorceress could understand how she felt, having experienced the same grief when Trigon destroyed Azarath. She also wondered if the princess from the stars would keep her oath of secrecy. Then again, it was entirely possible that informing Galfore of Tamaran's doom would be the trigger that lead to Tamaran's extinction. Temporal mechanics gave Raven a headache, even with her IQ of 154, it was better to not think about it.
Spock completed his scan. He prodded the tricorder for a few more seconds.
"I have confirmed that you are a direct ancestor."
Robin was unable to conceal what he was feeling, amazement and disbelief.
"Mr. Spock, I would still like to have Cyborg confirm this in our lab.
"As you wish, it is unnecessary but if it will put your doubts to rest, I will cooperate."
Spock turned to Starfire. "Miss Starfire, you do understand that a negative test result does not mean that you are not 'grandmother Kori', as there are many possible explanations should that be the case."
She put on a brave face. "I understand, it is possible that my DNA did not reach your generation. It is also possible that Robin will conceive a child with another woman, for a variety of reasons."
"Do you wish to proceed?" He asked.
"Please begin the scanning,"
-(-)-
CLIFFHANGER!
OK, so what do you think? Is Starfire "Grandmother Kori?", or maybe it's "Grandmother Barbara Gordon", or someone else?