Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek. I don't make any profits from this fic. The only profit I get from it are the reviews you send me.
A/N: So this chapter is a bit unusual, in respects to naming the child. However, like I have said before, most things I write about will come back in future fics in some form or another.
P.s. I stole the page number from Harry Potter. If you've seen or read Prisoner of Azkaban, you'll understand what I mean when you come to it. I don't own Harry Potter; I just couldn't help myself.
Ten more chapters to go. The countdown begins. Adorable baby Spock and cute little Nyota coming your way.
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Origins: The Journey Begins
Chapter 20: One Of A Kind
STARDATE: 2231.241 (Mon, Aug 29th, 2231) [1 Day Old]
Only hours after his arrival, the doctor and his team collected the baby Vulcan and headed to the hospital. The baby was fine and healthy, but he was the first successful hybrid infant born to human and Vulcan. The doctors wanted to study the small child on his first day.
Sybok, too, was asked to join the doctors. D'Torres, being the royal family physician, knew that Sybok had trouble with his Vulcan discipline and his inability to perform mind melds. So when Sybok came into the room after the child was born claiming that it was the newborn who had called to him, D'Torres knew the hybrid child had some strange ability.
D'Torres kindly asked to take both children and run a few tests on them to make sure they were performing to the best of their abilities. D'Torres respected this family and was considered one of Sarek's most loyal companions. D'Torres only wanted what was best for the growing family. Even if it meant running a couple of examinations on the children to figure out how they functioned, both mentally and physically, and to what extent can they push themselves until they reached exhaustion. He wanted these children to function at the best of their capabilities without going overboard.
Even though D'Torres was faithful to the family, Sarek would not allow him to take his sons. D'Torres and Sarek debated about the positive and negative influences and outcomes of the tests and examinations. D'Torres strategically fought with logic giving Sarek all the information and explaining how each test and examination will benefit his sin in the future. Sarek's determination deteriorated with every logical explanation D'Torres supplied.
Sarek agreed to the testing. However, he must be present to ensure that they were unharmed and relaxed throughout the examinations and procedures. Sarek didn't like the idea of his sons in the hands of Vulcans who were not of his family. Sarek decided that it was best for him to go with the doctor and keep an eye on the other doctor's present. No one was to touch or examine his son without his permission.
Sarek drew his newborn son into his chest to protect him from the eyes of curious Vulcans. His right hand sought out Sybok's and held on to it tightly as they left the mansion for the hospital.
While the baby, Sybok, Sarek and the doctor were at the hospital Amelia took it upon herself to look after her sister. She had slept alongside her sister the night of the birth while the rest of Amanda's family were at the hospital.
It was now 11:00 a.m. on the 29th of August. Amanda had been transferred back to her quarters after the birth. The newborn was to be moved into the room later that day after he returned home.
Amanda was still asleep. She had had a rough night and was catching up on some much-needed rest. However, her sister was wide awake and trying to figure out a way to get up off the mattress without waking her sister.
Amanda had been dreaming about her newborn son; with his pointy ears and porcelain white skin. In her dream, she was holding her son in her arms whilst lying down on the couch in the library.
Dream Amanda rocked Dream Baby in her arms she told him story after story of an ancient Earth crime detective. Dream Baby wasn't complaining, he was content and intrigued with the story that his mother was telling him. His eyes were trained on his mother's mouth as she continued to tell him stories.
All of a sudden Dream Baby disappeared followed by all the other things in Amanda's dream. Soon Dream Amanda disappeared from the dream too. Real Amanda must be waking up. Who would pull her away from such a nice dream?
Amanda woke to her sister next to her trying to get up off of the low mattress.
"What time is it?" Amanda groaned as she sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes with balled fists.
"Amanda!" Amelia squealed in shock as she fell back onto the mattress. "You're awake!"
"Time?" Amanda persisted. Her voice was hoarse and she felt extremely thirsty. She licked her dry lips and swallowed hard. The lack of saliva in her mouth made it difficult to talk. Even her tongue felt dry and heavy in her mouth.
"11:00 a.m." Amelia answered. "How do you feel?"
"Sore," Amanda smiled, completely forgetting about how dry her mouth was. She had gone through a lot of pain, emotional and physical, but it was worth it. And she had a baby to prove it.
"I bet you are. You were in a lot of pain last night." Amelia said as she scooted over to her younger sister. She thought about putting her arm around her sister, but when Amanda started to stretch out her arms Amelia brought her knees close to her chest instead.
"I'm not in as much pain as I thought I'd be. To be honest, I expected to feel worse than this." Amanda confessed as she plumped up the pillows behind her and rested back down into their cushioned embrace.
"Well, you didn't have a natural birth. That could explain it." Amelia replied as she copied her sister and fluffed her own pillows before sinking back into them a little more aggressively than her sister.
"Most likely. I think I'd be in more pain if I went through with the natural birth." Amanda said and furrowed her brows in concentration as she tried to remember the birth. She remembered the doctor coming in late and her sister was just as nervous as she was but then D'Torres said something about anaesthetic and then every went black.
"I'm so grateful that I didn't." Amanda continued as she realised just how much pain she was in while she was conscious.
The sisters shared a comfortable silence before Amelia started speaking, "Can I get you anything? A drink of water? Some food?"
Amanda looked lovingly at her sister as she suddenly remembered how dry her throat was, "A drink of water would be nice."
"Stay right here. I'll be back shortly. I won't get lost this time." Amelia said as she managed to hoist herself off the bed.
"Wait!" Amanda called from the bed. She was shifting awkwardly.
"What? What is it? What's wrong?" Amelia asked as she scurried around to the other side of the mattress to help her sister.
Amanda chuckled, "I just want to come with you."
"Uh-uh. No way. You're staying right where you are." Amelia retorted almost shoving her younger sister back into the pillows.
"I'm not that sore. I can walk." Amanda protested. She crossed her arms over her chest and huffed.
Amelia just eyed her sister. She was torn between being the bossy older sister or the compassionate friend. The 'bossy sister' would tell her to lie down and rest while the 'compassionate friend' would give in and allow her to get up and stretch her legs.
Amelia decided to mix the 'bossy sister' with the 'compassionate friend' and become the 'compassionate sister'.
"Fine. But the moment you start to get tired I want you back in bed. Got it?" She pestered. Okay, so maybe she was more like a 'bossy friend'.
"Yeah, yeah. Now help me up." Amanda gestured for her sister to help her up, waving her arms up high.
Amelia grunted as she helped her sister up off the mattress. It took effort from both women to finally get Amanda up on her own two feet without falling forward or stumbling backwards.
"Ok. Let's go to the kitchen." Amanda said as she started to make her way over to the door. She was a little shaky on her legs even if she did have her hands slightly out to the side to balance herself.
"Just take it easy," Amelia replied as she walked alongside her. She too, had her hands out, ready to catch her sister in case she started to fall or decided to spontaneously collapse. Suddenly this whole idea of Amanda walking around wasn't resting well with her, but she knew Amanda would go at her like a wild stallion if she was told to get back into bed. Amelia thought it best to just be there for support.
They made it to the kitchen to find both Zahntu and S'Reiyah there talking about the delivery of their newest master.
"Lady Amanda. How can I serve you?" Zahntu acknowledged his master as she entered the kitchen with her sister in tow.
"Do not worry yourself, Zahntu," Amanda replied before vanishing into the walk-in freezer.
Amelia, having helped S'Reiyah with Amanda over the past couple of weeks had gotten very used to helping herself to the kitchens supplies. Amelia greeted the Vulcans before taking two small glasses from the cupboard overhead. She filled them up with cold water from the large ceramic jug that was in the fridge and placed them on the table.
"Lady Amanda, how is your youngest son faring?" S'Reiyah asked Amanda as she reappeared from the freezer with a bucket of ice-cream in hand.
"I'm not sure," Amanda said softly and lowered her head. "He's still at the hospital." She said as she came to a nearby drawer and retrieved two silver spoons. She placed herself at the table and motioned for her sister to take a seat.
Amelia sat down at the table and took the spoon Amanda was offering. Amelia opened the lid of the container to reveal bubble-gum flavoured ice-cream. Amanda's favourite ice cream.
Upon seeing the small glass of water in front of her Amanda quickly grabbed at it and greedily sculled the contents.
Realising how thirsty Lady Amanda was, Zahntu went to the fridge and pulled out the ceramic jug. He refilled her cup and waited until she had finished drinking. She motioned to him to refill the cup once more. He did, and like before, Amanda emptied the glass once more. Zahntu refilled the glass once again and was about to stepped away with the jug in hand but was stopped by Lady Amanda.
"Just leave the jug on the table, Zahntu. I'm sure I can handle refilling my own glass." She looked up at him with a small smile on her lips.
Amanda and Amelia continued to converse with Zahntu and S'Reiyah in the kitchen. 20 minutes had passed when Amanda suddenly jumped off of her chair and ran out of the kitchen. S'Reiyah followed closely, followed by Zahntu then, of course, Amelia.
"My Lady!" S'Reiyah called after her.
"It's Sarek! He's returned! He's back! I can feel him!" She yelled back before escaping through the front door of the mansion. Her legs were no longer shaky and her throat was no longer dry.
She almost ran into Sarek as she exited the mansion. Sarek had told her through their tel that he had returned home with their sons.
Noticing the small baby in Sarek's arms, Amanda quickly took him and drew him into her embrace. This was the first time after the birth that she had seen her new son. He was just as perfect as she remembered him to be; his small pointed ears, his slanted eyebrows and his pale skin.
The child was awake, staring up at the woman who was holding him. His eyes were strikingly similar to her own. It was once said that some human babies were born with blue eyes, but this infant wasn't human, nor was he Vulcan. His eyes were a deep brown, almost black. Amanda remembered hearing that the eyes were the window to the soul. As she gazed into the eyes of her son couldn't help but get lost in the depth of them.
He wasn't like the rest of them. He wasn't like the babies from earth, nor like infants from Vulcan. Yet he was a child of both Earth and Vulcan.
Sarek pulled his wife from her reverie, "I must speak with you."
Through their tel, Amanda sensed delight and comfort. The news was not bad then. She smiled then allowed her husband to lead the way. She waited for him to pass her before she fell into step behind him with Sybok by her side.
"It is good to see you so well, Mother Amanda," Sybok spoke with a genuine smile.
Amanda stopped to bend down next to Sybok as best as she could with her young son in her arms. She pulled him into a bone-crushing hug. He responded in kind, making sure he didn't crush his younger brother. He loved the hugs he received from Mother Amanda.
"It is good to see that you are well, too." She said as she released him from the hug.
Sarek led them into the library. Amanda found this quite interesting. Whenever Sarek and she discussed things in private, they would either do it in the privacy of their quarters or in the main office on the ground floor. The library was a place to speak openly with anyone in the household, including the servants. Whatever Sarek had to say, was now open for anyone to hear.
Zahntu, S'Reiyah and Amelia followed the family into the library. Amanda sat down on the long sofa, cradling the infant in her arms, while Sarek remained standing, waiting for the last person to enter the room.
"As you all know my youngest son was born at 00:00 last night. However, after much discussion with Doctor D'Torres, it has been made clear that the child was born within the first second of the 29th and not the last second of the 28th. Therefore, the child's gestation was not precisely 13 months, but 13 months and one day."
Amelia, who had seated herself next to her sister, leant over to whisper in her ear, "I'm glad they sorted that out. I would have been up all night just thinking about that." Suppressing a giggle Amanda refocused on her husband.
"The child is healthy and is considered to be born with advanced abilities beyond that of the average Vulcan. His vision is better, his lung capacity larger, his endurance longer, his hearing finer, his strength stronger, his weight heavier and his mental capabilities greater." Sarek paused to take a slight breath before continuing, "This is why Sybok was called to the room the night of the birth."
At these words, both Amelia and Amanda leant forward. "So it really was the baby that called you?" Amelia asked.
"Vulcans do not lie," Sybok answered truthfully.
"Yes, but, I thought with you being… you know what, never mind. Please continue, Mr Sarek." Amelia said as she tried to divert the attention back to Sarek.
"It was the infant that called Sybok," Sarek answered. "Everyone present in this room knows of the inabilities my older son, Sybok, suffers from. He is no longer capable of performing a mind meld. The only logical outcome was to assume that the child did, in fact, call Sybok to the room."
"Hang on a second. Sybok hasn't been bonded to the child yet. We agreed to wait until after the child was born to link Sybok's mind to the baby's." Amanda said. She was starting to get confused. Sarek had better explain this in simple terminology. She wasn't in the mood for scientific lectures.
"That is true. However, the testing at the facility has had some fascinating results." Sarek began again, "The child has the ability to feel, or speak telepathically through one degree of separation. This means that the child can speak telepathically to a bonded one, and anyone the bonded one may be telepathically linked to, even if the child himself is not bonded or linked to them."
"This is doing my head in," Amelia said whilst rubbing her brow. "Do you have an example for those who aren't as smart as Vulcans?" She asked seriously.
Sarek looked at Amanda to see if her sister was being serious or not. When Amanda mentally told him to give an example he continued, "As the father of the child, the child is naturally bonded to me. The child is not bonded to Sybok, but I am. So, in order for the child to mentally connect with Sybok, he must use me as a link between his own mind and Sybok's. I was merely used as a vessel."
"So the child spoke to him," Amelia began pointing towards Sybok, "Using your established bond with Sybok?"
"That is correct," Sarek said.
"Geez... That's creepy." Amelia said softly, forgetting that half the room were Vulcans and that they had incredibly good hearing.
"I'm curious," Amanda said, not taking her eyes off of her sleeping child who lay in her arms. "What exactly did this one say to you Sybok?"
"He didn't say anything. He showed me images." Sybok spoke. He stood tall next to his father.
"Images?" Amanda queried.
"Yes. Images from a past memory. Your memory." Sybok stared at Amanda.
"My memory? The child showed you parts of my memory?" Amanda was shocked. Her own son, her baby, had taken memories from her mind without her even knowing about it.
"Yes." He answered honestly.
"What were the images of?" She continued to question.
"A book," Sybok said as he ventured over to the bookcase that covered the wall behind the long sofa that Amelia and Amanda were occupying. "This book." He said as he grabbed a book off of the third shelf and handed it to Amanda.
Amanda read the title out loud, "The Logic behind Logic." It was a book made up of 33 chapters. Each chapter had a different author.
"Page 394." Sybok said from behind the sofa, "If I remember correctly." He added.
Amanda flicked through the book until she reached the page. She instantly remembered this chapter just from reading the chapter title, "What if there were no hypothetical questions?" She chuckled to herself as she read the title.
"I remember this chapter. It made me laugh. It has one of my favourite quotes in it, 'Discretion is being able to raise your eyebrow instead of your voice.'" Amanda quoted without even looking to the book for guidance.
"That's the image he showed me." Sybok said as he leant over the back of the sofa leaning forward between Mother Amanda and Aunty Amelia. He reached out his right hand and pointed at the quote with his finger. "He showed me the quote and the name of the author." Sybok flipped the page and pointed to the author's name.
"Spock P'lin V'er," Amanda said softly. "It was on my list of potential baby names."
"What else was on your list?" Amelia asked now curious.
"Bruce. After our granddad." Amanda confessed quietly.
"Sheesh, no wonder the child chose this name!" Amelia said through a loud fit of laughter.
"Spock, it is then," Amanda said whilst smiling down at the sleeping child in her arms.
