Ch 27: Change Is a Scary Thing
The wind blew softly through the trees and over the grassy field that Spock and T'Maire sat in. They faced each other and sat cross-legged on the pink and blue checkered blanket T'Maire insisted they sit on whenever they met through their mind link. Spock sipped green tea from a Japanese styled tea cup while T'Maire sucked a vanilla milkshake through a crazy straw. Spock had long since abandoned the desire to question her actions; he found the answers she provided him with only served to give him a headache.
Licking her lips of the creamy drink, she asked, "So you, Uncle Sarek, and 'Surok' are going to meet with the High Council tomorrow?"
"That is correct," Spock said as he lowered his tea cup. "The Council has decided that the meeting will be held publicly before the entire colony, as our argument is that the rules and regulations that they are enforcing affects everyone as a whole. Perhaps this is their way of determining if there is any truth to our claims, but nonetheless, it will most likely prove to be in our favor to have the meeting be public."
T'Maire drank more of her milkshake through the bright pink straw that curved unnecessarily. Spock couldn't see the appeal of such a frivolous drinking tool, but it was more productive to let her have her way than to scold her when they met. Licking her lips again, she said, "What time will the meeting be held?"
"At sunrise," Spock answered. "The council would like this to be handled as quickly as possible so it interferes as little as possible with the normal work schedule for the day."
Nodding, T'Maire said, "Well, I'll have to make sure I set out as soon as we part."
Spock's eyes widened ever so slightly. "Set out? T'Maire, surely you are not planning to attend the meeting?"
She gave him an indignant look. "Well why not? This meeting affects me too! If the entire Vulcan colony gets a chance to participate in this meeting, I don't see why I shouldn't be able to as well!"
Spock closed his eyes as a way of sighing at his childhood friend. He was beginning to regret ever mentioning the meeting to her, but he had promised to keep her updated on the situation. "T'Maire, I do not think it is wise for you to simply abandon your duties so suddenly. Even if this meeting dictates the direction of our race's future, it would reflect poorly on you to rush away just to attend it. You have your responsibilities to the star base to think about."
"Oh bah," T'Maire said, waving Spock's concerns away. "Things are dreadfully dull right now so they wouldn't miss me for a day! I'll just tell my CO what's going on and tell him I'll be back before he even notices I'm gone! Besides, as much as I do for the star base, they owe me a little bit of leeway in my vacation time!"
This time Spock sighed openly. She was not only incorrigible, but she was hard-headed as well. All things considering, he couldn't help but give her a small smile in response. "I appreciate your support T'Maire. Though I believe you should stay on your star base and await the outcome, I cannot help but feel…happy. It is a strange emotional response."
T'Maire smiled prettily at Spock and rubbed his arm. If the feeling was adverse to him, he didn't show it. "It's not strange at all Spock; it's a normal emotional response for those you care about."
Her straw gurgled as she drank the last of her milkshake. Placing the cup down on the blanket, she rose from her seat and dusted herself off. "Well, I must be off. You still have to contact Jim and I need to make my way to Vulcan if I'm going to make the meeting."
"Indeed," Spock agreed. "I shall expect to see you bumbling into the meeting sometime after it has already started."
Smirking, she gave a quick salute and began to fade away. The instant she disappeared, the world around Spock began to fade away to the stark whiteness of his sub-conscious. Rising out of his sub-conscious, he opened his eyes and surveyed the room he sat in. After returning to New Vulcan a few weeks ago, he decided to move his belongings into his father's home. The guest bedroom was decorated in the typical Vulcan way, with only what was needed present. Spock regretted not having anything there to make it feel like a home, but sadly most of their belongings were destroyed with their planet.
He took a deep breath and rose from the ground he sat on. Taking a bit of a break, he did a few stretches to relax his tightening muscles. Sitting cross-legged on the floor for an hour was nothing for a Vulcan, but that didn't mean he wanted to remain tense.
Hey! Where are you?!?
The sound of Jim's voice in Spock's head instantly caught his attention. He stopped mid-stretch and stood up straight.
Jim?!?
Yes Jim! Kirk's tone of voice was irritated. Weren't you the one who said you'd visit me every night and if I didn't respond you'd force your way into my mind?!?
Spock blinked in shock. Yes, I did.
Well, you're almost two hours late for our usual meeting time! Don't tell me you of all people forgot!
Ah, no I did not. He chuckled lightly. Forgive me. I was speaking with T'Maire about tomorrow's meeting with the Vulcan High Council.
Kirk's tone of voice softened when he found out why Spock was late in contacting him. Oh right, I forgot that was tomorrow. Are you ready for it?
Spock sighed. As ready for it as I can be, he confessed. I have no idea how this will turn out. I am hoping that the presence of the entire New Vulcan population will make things go smoother, but there is no telling what the end result will be.
It'll be fine, Kirk said reassuringly. You've got a lot of Vulcans backing you up; I don't think the Council can ignore the sound of ten thousand displeased Vulcans…
It would be most unwise if they did, Spock said.
Well, since you've got a big day tomorrow, I won't keep you long. You're already up later than you probably should be.
You know that I am willing to go without sleep if it means spending more time with you, Spock said, smiling through their link.
Kirk smiled back and said, I know, but that's not the best thing to do when you have to present a convincing argument to the Vulcan High Council come sunrise. You know where to find me when it's all over.
A rush of love flowed from Kirk to Spock through their link, wrapping around Spock as if Kirk were there with him and hugging him from behind. Spock sent the same feeling of love back to Kirk and remained silent for a brief moment. I pray I have good news for you when we speak tomorrow night my love, he said.
So do I. Good night.
Good night.
Spock felt Kirk's consciousness leave him and sighed. It always saddened him to feel Kirk leave him each night, but he knew it was inevitable. Still, he valued ever minute he got to spend with his fiancé during their time apart, no matter how few he got. His time on New Vulcan was nearly over and with any luck, he'd return to the Enterprise properly engaged to the man he loved.
So much depended on the meeting that was only hours away. Spock couldn't help but be somewhat worried of the outcome, but as he laid his head down on his pillow, he felt strangely at ease.
His eyelids slowly lowered over his eyes and he descended into a peaceful sleep. He would need to be as well rested as possible for the stressful day that lay ahead of him…
It was astounding that there was a building on New Vulcan that was capable of seating the entire colony inside of it. It was even more astounding to see every single Vulcan in the colony seated and awaiting the start of the meeting. Spock felt less like he was conferencing with the High Council and more like he was performing in a play. Though his external appearance was stoic, inside he trembled. His palms were somewhat sweaty and the room felt colder than it actually was. Though he had not eaten that morning, he felt like he was going to be sick.
So this was what stage fright felt like.
Sarek sensed his son's apprehension and whispered out the side of his mouth, "It will be fine my son. Remain calm so that your reasoning does not falter."
"It is not my reasoning I am worried about," Spock whispered back. "It is the contents of my stomach." He thought to himself, If this is some of what humans feel, I should not have been so anxious to merge my Vulcan half with my human half. I was much better off before I embraced my emotions…
The High Council entered the room at last and seated their selves. The gentle murmur of sound that came from ten thousand Vulcans conversing amongst themselves immediately ceased. T'Pau, stern faced as always, spoke in a loud voice that carried throughout the arena. "This is the first time in Vulcan history that a meeting such as this has taken place. Sarek, Spock, and Surok wish to challenge the teachings of Surak. Sarek, as you are a member of the High Council, you are required to state your argument. Spock and Surok will support you as necessary when designated to do so. Step forward and let yourself be heard."
Sarek took a full step forward and stood up straight before the High Council. Now that he was standing before them, he too felt the icy cold grip of fear around his neck. Despite this, he spoke loudly and clearly.
"High Council, it has been brought to my attention that our people are vexed by the Council's decisions in regards to repopulating our race. The manner in which new mates are chosen for those whose mates perished in Vulcan's destruction is unacceptable."
"You choose harsh words to open your argument with," one of the High Council said with a raised eyebrow.
"My words merely convey the feelings of our people," Sarek clarified. "Many believe that their logic is being deemed inferior to that of the High Council."
"We make no judgment of those we assign life mates to," another council member said. "We simply believe that to maintain order, fairness, and efficiency, we would choose the life mates for all who are in need of one rather than doing so only for some."
"That may be the case, but in doing so you are disregarding the wishes of those who still mourn the loss of their life mates."
T'Pau gave Sarek a skeptical look. "Your statement infers that there are those who are showing emotion in regards to those who have passed. Is that your intent?"
"It is."
Some of the crowd gasped at Sarek's bold statement. Those who felt exactly as he described remained silent and unfettered. Sarek continued, "I speak from experience when I say that the loss of a life mate is indeed a terribly emotional thing. Were it only the case that some lost their life mates, our emotions could contained as always. But we deal not only with the loss of life mates; we deal with the loss of nearly our entire race, as well as our home world. Mourning over such a loss cannot be done quickly, nor can it be done quietly. Any other race would express deep sadness in our situation; we should not be asked to do differently."
"It is our renouncing of emotion that sets us apart from other races," T'Pau spoke. "It is also what allows us to remain a civilized people. Would you prefer that we allow ourselves to degrade back to the ways of our ancestors and condemn the last of our race?"
"Of course not," Sarek said. "To think that I wish that would be foolish. I merely believe that our people should be allowed to mourn and to move forward in their life in the way they wish individually."
A portly Vulcan to Sarek's far right spoke loudly. "To do so would go against the teachings of Surak, which we have followed for centuries. Is that what you are proposing?"
"Last I checked the teachings of Surak were not set in stone. They were meant to calm the chaos of our race so that we did not self-destruct. Our situation is different now than it was when the teachings were first introduced. We now know the importance of self-restraint and control over our emotions, but our control should not be so strict that we are not allowed to behave as we are meant to!
"It is not the teachings of Surak I challenge as I stand before you; it is the decisions of the High Council to force the ignorance of emotion of an emotionally compromised people. I do not propose that we abolish the teachings of Surak; I simply propose that we allow the survivors of Vulcan's destruction to choose their own mates, whether their decision is based on love, logic, or both."
T'Pau's eyes narrowed at Surak. "Such a decision was made by you against our better wishes," she sneered. "Your son, a half-blooded Vulcan, was the result. Do you really expect us to allow the remainder of our people the same choice? What good is a race filled with half-breeds?"
Spock had remained silent this entire time until this point. For years he had allowed the High Council to throw it into his father's face that he had chosen a human mate instead of a Vulcan one. For years he had allowed others to make him feel inferior when he was just as good as any other Vulcan. For years he forced himself to ignore who he truly was, hating himself and consequentially his mother for being human.
No longer.
He stepped forward and in a loud, strong voice said, "My father chose my mother because he was the Vulcan ambassador to Earth. Though it was not his intention, he fell in love with her and chose her for his life mate. I am the result of such a bond. Were I born less intelligent, more unruly, or somehow malformed, your harsh judgment on my father for his choice in a non-Vulcan mate could be justified. However, if my ancestry were unknown, one would never be able to determine that I was not a full-blooded Vulcan. Therefore, your incessant harping on my human mother is both illogical and reminiscent of bigotry, which represents poor qualities of those who are supposed to be the leaders of a logical race of people."
"Such insolence!" T'Pau gasped along with the rest of the council.
Spock continued, "You spend so much time focusing on the things that don't truly matter that you forget that you are leading people, not ideals. Surak created his teachings so that he could bring out the full potential of our people, not to scrutinize each one of them and make social exiles of those who do not meet the unrealistic ideal created by his followers. In the centuries that we have followed the path laid out by Surak, we have forgotten what truly makes us great. It is not merely our logic or our intellect which makes us great, and it most certainly is not our breeding. The true source of our greatness is our strength as a people and our connection with one another. That is what truly makes us great.
"Within months of losing our planet we were able to support ourselves without the help of Starfleet. Already we are making technological advancements to make life easier for us on this, our new home. We have recovered so fast, not because of our abilities, but because of our sheer determination to survive. Together we can overcome any obstacle, but if we restrain ourselves as we have during better times, our race will fall. If that happens, the only ones we will be able to blame are ourselves."
The entire arena fell deadly silent. The words that Spock spoke were disturbingly accurate and struck through the hearts of every Vulcan present. Many in attendance had regarded Spock in the same way that the High Council had, others simply pitied him for being so unfortunate as to be of mixed breeding. Few in attendance, if any besides T'Maire, ever stopped to think that aside from his human heritage, he was just as Vulcan as the rest of them.
No, in this, his one shining moment, he had proved himself to be far better than any of them. Perhaps this was the strength he drew from his humanity. In being only half-Vulcan, he was able to look past the haughty view most Vulcans had of themselves and see them for what they really were: beings frightened of their own power and potential.
From her seat in the crowd, T'Maire beamed. She had always admired Spock for his courageousness, but at this moment, she was truly proud to know him. Her initial reaction to the Council's words was to rise up and begin ranting about how illogical they were, but it seemed like Spock was one step ahead of her. Before she could even lift up out of her seat, Spock stepped forward and said the very words she had been thinking for years. She could tell that the words he spoke had plagued him for years. Only now was he truly able to call everyone out on the way they treated him and others that were not Vulcan.
Sarek's heart weighed heavily in his chest. He regretted the strain he had put on his son for so long, but he was glad that he was now confronting those that had oppressed him. With luck, his words reached the High Council. The silence that hung in the air was promising in that aspect.
Prime's words seemed louder than they really were when he spoke. "It is time we set tradition aside and pursued a new course for ourselves," he said. "Surely after centuries of following Surak's teachings we can find a way to successfully balance logic with emotion? Embracing who we are will only make us stronger. Let us begin to forge this brave new world in which we live in to suit that which we are now, not who we used to be."
The High Council remained silent a while longer, clearly contemplating what it was that was said. Finally, T'Pau said, "We will consider all that you have said, but there is no guarantee that we will change how we are handling the repopulation of our…"
"I do not love the man I am bonded to!"
The heads of every Vulcan in the building turned to face the voice of the young Vulcan girl who stood in her seat and spoke. Nine thousand, nine-hundred and ninety nine pairs of eyes stared at her in shock and awe. Her face glowed bright green as the embarrassment of her outspokenness began to sink in. Regardless, T'Valia remained steadfast and continued on.
"I lost my bond mate in the destruction of Vulcan. I was not particularly close to him aside from our bond, but his death combined with our entire planet dying with him affected me deeply. Salonius and I turned to each other to deal with our grief and fell in love. Were it not for the Council's decision to pick new life mates for everyone, it would be him that I would be bonded with!"
Her eyes filled with angry tears that she didn't bother to hold back. "It is not fair! We have lost so much already, yet now you ask us to surrender our freedom of choice! For what? Logic? Repopulation? We are not to be bred like animals to your satisfaction! Whatever life spawns from our loins will be birthed into a society that thinks and chooses for itself!"
Another Vulcan, this one an older male, stood from his seat and spoke as well. "I too lost my mate in the destruction of Vulcan, as well as the entirety of my family. I wish to mourn their loss and continue my life in solitude, yet the High Council would have me ignore my feelings for the sake of birthing more children! Does it not matter that I choose not to start another family?"
"Order!" T'Pau yelled. "Our survival is more important than personal feelings! The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or the one!"
A younger man stood up and said, "We are the many! Our needs are being ignored by the Council because they believe they know what is best for us! Your sole purpose is to ensure our culture continues on, not to dictate how we should live our lives! If this is how you wish to use your power, then we the many have no use for you!"
One by one more Vulcans rose from their seat and began to protest. Before long the entire colony had risen to its feet and was shouting at the Council. There had never been a sight quite like this in all of Vulcan history. In all the years that the High Council had existed, not once had their decisions been rebuked, especially at this magnitude. Even T'Pau, the most composed Vulcan on the Council and in the entire Vulcan race was rattled.
Strangely enough, it was Sarek who managed to calm the near riotous crowd of infuriated Vulcans. He threw his arms up and shouted above the din, "My people! Be silent!" To the surprise of the Council, as well as Spock and Prime, the crowd grew silent. Lowering his arms, he turned back to the Council and gave them a small smug smile.
"The many have spoken. They have made their needs clear. Will you continue to ignore their pleas?"
T'Pau looked at the members of the Council that sat to her left and to her right. They gave her apprehensive looks as they were not sure what to do and looked to her for guidance. At times like this, her fellow council members were useless. Taking a deep breath, she spoke on their behalf, regardless of whether or not they would agree with what she said.
"Effective tomorrow, any and all engagement ceremonies performed before the Council will be null and void unless otherwise stated. You will have until sunset of this day to proclaim if you wish for your current bond to remain recorded. Any and all new engagement ceremonies can be performed before the Council beginning at high noon tomorrow."
To the surprise of the Council, the colony erupted in cheers and applause. Each of the Vulcans before them were voluntarily releasing the control on their emotions and rejoicing in the return of the freedom to choose who to spend their life with. T'Maire rushed down from her seat and tackle hugged Spock on the floor. Giggling madly, she said, "You've done it! You've done it! Now your engagement to Jim will be recognized!"
Spock decided to follow the trend of his fellow Vulcans and smiled openly. He let all of his happiness wash over him and control him for just this one moment. He wrapped his arms around T'Maire and lifted her off the ground, laughing. For the first time in their lives, they laughed and smiled like little children would.
Putting T'Maire down, he faced his father, who had a smile on his face as well. He rushed over to his father and hugged him tightly. Sarek put his hand on the back of his son's head and held him close, smiling with a tear falling down his cheek. He whispered in Spock's ear, "You have made me and your mother very proud of you my son."
Spock let a couple tears of happiness fall from his eyes, but continued to smile and laugh. He had never felt happiness like this before. It was a feeling of pure joy and triumph, a feeling he didn't know if he'd feel again but he hoped he would.
Calling for order once more, T'Pau shouted, "This will come to pass on one condition!"
The crowd quieted down to hear her words. Though she didn't show it, she was pleased that it was her that got the crowd to calm its self this time. She continued, "You are all allowed to marry whomever you wish. Obviously we would prefer they be Vulcan, but surely we will only have to worry about those who are in Starfleet in regards to that." She made sure to cut an eye at T'Maire and Spock. Spock ignored her, but T'Maire childishly stuck her tongue out at her.
"Any and all marriages will be performed before the Vulcan High Council, and upon marriage, you will be expected to begin having children immediately. Those who do not wish to marry and have children will be required to adopt at least one orphaned child of their choosing. If these conditions are not satisfactory, the request to choose your own life mate will be denied and the current documented engagements will be forever binding."
All eyes turned to Spock. For whatever reason, they expected his word to be final. He looked T'Pau in the eye and said, "The conditions are satisfactory. We the Vulcan people agree to these terms."
"So it shall be," T'Pau said, rising from her chair. "The Council will adjourn temporarily before accepting requests to keep current engagements in effect. You are all free to go."
The crowd had regained some of its composure, but there were still a great deal of excitement amongst the colonist. Their freedom had been granted, and they had Spock, Sarek, and Prime to thank for it.