NOTE from the PHOENIX: I just wanted to say happy holidays and thank everyone who is reading this Salen based story! I never thought that I'd have enough fans that wanted to read a story that was based on an OC! Hugss to all my readers, I love you all.
Chapter Seven
"Are you alright, Salen?"
"Yes, Captain."
"You've barely said a word since we left Natala."
"I do not have anything to say."
"That never stops me." Kirk chuckled softly.
Salen glanced at Kirk as he came to stand next to him by the large window. Ever since his return to the Enterprise two days ago Salen had stood vigil at the window. Disinterested in eating or even sleeping he spent the entire journey staring at the aurora. With the madness of pon farr over he had time to reflect on the deal he had made with T'Pring.
"You're going to make an excellent Officer, Salen." Kirk said suddenly.
"What are you basing such a judgment on?"
"Intuition."
"You are renowned for your intuition, so I will take your comment to heart."
"Can I give you a word of advice?"
Salen looked Kirk and nodded.
"McCoy's daughter loves orchids."
"Orchids?" Salen repeated confused.
"Yeah, the flower, purple ones."
"I do not understand the relevance of Joanna McCoy's choice in plants."
"Just keep it in the back of your mind, I'm sure you'll get it one day."
Salen knit his brow together, but didn't question Kirk further. The Captain put his hand on Salen's shoulder and smiled before leaving. It wasn't long before Spock showed up. Salen had noticed that Spock had been avoiding him. Spock walked up to the glass window and put his hands behind his back.
"I understand that the past week was not easy for you, Salen. However, you handled it admirably."
"I do not feel the same way."
"Do you have a logical reason for your feelings?"
"It does not seem very admirable to leave my child behind."
"It is unusual for a Vulcan female to wish the father to have no contact of any kind with the child, even if the father is not her life long mate. However, it was her wish, and you agreed."
"I should not have." Salen sighed. "I hate the idea of my child being raised without a father."
"Salen, the sad truth is that most Vulcan children are being raised without fathers."
"These are difficult times." Salen nodded.
"Difficult times can bring out the best in us, you are an excellent example."
Salen looked at Spock and saw a touch of pride in the older Vulcan's eyes. Feeling better Salen smiled. He sought Spock's approval as much as the Admiral's. Outside the aurora had been replaced by the blue and green sphere of Earth. Salen had been anxious to see Earth once more. He found the planet's beauty from space to be unsurpassed by any other.
More than ready to return to the Academy Salen said his good-byes and made his way to the transporter room. McCoy had taken a breath to say something to him, but whatever it had been the doctor had kept it to himself. Salen beamed down to the outskirts of the Academy and jogged back to his dorm. He was glad to be back, although he suddenly felt exhausted and the guilt of leaving T'Pring was creeping back into his mind. It was pushing midnight, but entering his room he found his roommate was still awake and studying.
"Salen!" Douglas greeted enthusiastically. "How are you feeling? Joanna told me you were sick."
"I am fine now."
"Are you sure? What happened? You look like you've been ridden hard, and put away wet."
"I am not entirely sure what that means, but it sounds fairly accurate."
"I know just what you need."
Douglas went into his closet and rummaged around. After digging deep in the mass of dirty uniforms on the floor of his disorganized closet Douglas made a noise of triumph. He brought out a large bottle of bright blue liquid and displayed it proudly.
"Please tell me that is Romulan Ale."
"That it is, my Vulcan friend."
"I love you." Salen smiled.
"I thought your kind was supposed to be emotionless?" Douglas teased.
"Do not get me started."
"Come on," Douglas threw the bottle into a backpack "let's go find some place where we are less likely to get caught."
"Logical."
Douglas laughed and slapped Salen on the shoulder. The odd display of friendship was not something Salen had every fully understood, but he accepted it as normal human behavior. The pair left the dorm and traveled to the forest that was near by. They climbed to the top of a natural cliff that over looked the Academy and sat down. The lights of the Academy below glittered and the moon bounced off the metal buildings.
Douglas pulled out the bottled and took a swig before handing it to Salen. He had never had the illegal drink before and found that it had an impressive kick. They drank nearly half the bottle in silence. Becoming more than a little tipsy Salen shook his head.
"Good stuff, eh?" Douglas giggled. "It's making me forget today's quantum mechanics exam...which is no easy task."
"Where did you get Romulan Ale in the first place?" Salen asked as he knocked back more of the bright blue drink.
"My father gave it to me."
"He is a good man." Salen chuckled as he handed over the bottle.
"He was." Douglas said solemnly.
"I am sorry, I did not know he was deceased."
"Four years ago, an accident aboard the USS Valiant."
"Is he the reason you entered Starfleet?"
"No." Douglas shook his head. "He didn't want me to enlist, but I've always known that one day I would end up here."
"Why are you here?"
"I don't have anywhere better to be, it was this or the dilithium mines." Douglas took a pull on the bottle. "What about you?"
"I want to be somewhere that I can use the courage that Commander Spock and Admiral Pike taught me."
"How did Admiral Pike end up being your father anyway? Does it have something to do with those scars?"
"Yes."
"I see, even in a drunken stupor you're not interested in sharing, eh?" Douglas slurred.
"Do you know Langlin?"
"Trevor?" Douglas asked. "That guy's a dick. Someone broke his face, and I mean really broke it. Busted the bridge of his nose, cracked his cheek bones, and gave him a concussion."
"Really?"
"Yup, he looks like a raccoon with this huge black mask of a bruise over his face."
"He deserved it."
"No doubt." Douglas chuckled. "Wasn't his father the leader of some big alien hate group or something?"
"Yes." Salen nodded and requested the Ale. "His father paid to have my parents murdered."
"Murdered?" Douglas asked shocked.
"Slaughtered like animals to get to me."
"W...why?"
"I do not really know."
"I heard he's in a nut house somewhere."
"Yeah...I put him there." Salen muttered.
"What?"
"I used a Vulcan mind meld to rip his sanity from him when he tried to hurt Admiral Pike, and I would do it again..." Salen swallowed more of the powerful Ale. "I wish I had done it the moment I met him, I wish I had been able to help my parents...my father hesitated to use violence to defend his family and it cost us all our lives."
"You didn't die." Douglas pointed out the obvious.
"Not physically, but it cost me the life I should have had, the person...the Vulcan I should have been. If Admiral Pike hadn't taken me in...I do not know what would have become of me." Salen rambled. "Vulcan Council would probably have locked me up somewhere as a breeding stallion, the Vulcans would have given up on me, as it is they tend to see me as incurably emotionally insane...even Spock fears I will end up killing someone in a blind rage."
"Wow...you've got quite the past, Salen." Douglas furrowed his brow in a drunken attempt to put the pieces of a mental puzzle together. "Hey, was it you?"
"What what me?"
"Were you the one who pounded on Trevor?"
"I did not pound on him, I only hit him once."
"Wow...ouch, what the hell did you hit him with, a steel bat?"
"No." Salen shook his head. "Just my hand."
"Damn, Mate. Remind me to stay on your good side."
"Are you afraid of me now?"
"No...well, maybe a little."
Salen forced a sad smile and took another drink before handing it back to Douglas. Salen's thoughts suddenly wandered to Joanna. He wasn't sure why, but he was fearful of facing her. He wasn't even sure that it was fear, part of him felt it was shame. Beyond his attack on her he felt that he had somehow betrayed her.
"Something bothering you, Salen? ...I mean besides all that crazy shit you just told me?"
"The other day I had sex with a woman I had never before met, and now she is carrying my child who I will never know."
Douglas choked on the swig of Ale he had been taking. Salen lifted one his white eyebrows and looked at Douglas as he sputtered on the potent alcohol. Clearly speechless Douglas just stared at Salen for a moment.
"You're...you're kidding, right?"
"No."
Looking at the last inch of Ale left Douglas offered it to Salen. Salen gratefully accepted it and drained it. The pair sat in drunken silence for a while, neither one of them sure of what to say next. Eventually Douglas staggered to his feet, using Salen's shoulder for support.
"I gotta go find a tree, Mate."
"They are all over the place...it is a forest after all."
"I meant to piss on."
"Ah."
Feeling more conflicted than he could ever remember being Salen stared out over the Academy. In the center of the campus was a giant flag pole that proudly displayed the flags of both the Federation and Starfleet lit up by a bright spot light. Seeing the symbols helped him push aside his dark thought about T'Pring and gave him something else to focus on. He had been able to control so little in his life, but if he could make it into the Command crew of a Starship he'd finally be in a position where he could make a positive impact on the chaotic world that surrounded him.
Fearing that he was about to be sick from far too much Romulan Ale Salen forced himself to his feet. He'd never been truly drunk like this before and was surprised by his lack of coordination. Stumbling forward he headed right for the edge of the cliff and the forty foot drop below. Unable to get his feet under him he steped on the crumbling stone edge.
Salen found himself staring down over the edge of the cliff at an unnatural angle that seemed to defy gravity. Shaking his cloudy mind he looked over his shoulder and yelped. Beckett, the man who had cornered him in the locker room, had a fist full of the back of his shirt. Beckett hauled Salen away from the dangerous edge.
Falling back to the ground Salen scrambled back, nearly going off the edge of the cliff again. Beckett put his hands up in a show of peace and took a few steps back to calm the frightened Vulcan. Salen's fear quickly flashed to anger and he forced himself to his feet to confront the older man.
"Why are you doing here?!" Salen demanded.
"Keeping you from splattering your green Ale soaked blood all over the landscape below." Beckett chuckled as he stepped closer again.
"Stay away from me!" Salen snarled. "I swear I will kill you if you take more step."
"Now that's the kind of talk I like to hear." Beckett grinned.
"You are insane."
"You're not the first to say so." Beckett admitted. "However, I have a very special offer for you..."
"I do not want to hear anything you have to say. If I ever see you again I will report you to the Academy and Starfleet."
"Salen, I am Starfleet."
"What?"
"Brigadier Jack Beckett, at your service."
"Brigadier, I have not heard of that rank before."
"Special classification." Beckett winked.
"You really are out of your human mind." Salen raised an eyebrow. "Look, old man, I do not want to hurt you..."
"And I'd rather not be hurt. You're far to drunk to reason with right now, but I want to met with you. I want to offer you a place amoung the most elite of Starfleet."
"I am not interested."
"Wait till you hear me out."
Salen tensed as Beckett stepped closer again. Freezing in place Beckett put his hands back up for a moment before slowly reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a small black card and laid it down on the ground before backing away and disappearing into the forest. Salen stayed on his guard for a moment.
Out of pure curiosity Salen reached down and picked up the card. The front of the shiny black card simply said 'Diamond Dogs' in bold letters. The back had a name of a local coffee house with the time 0900 scrawled on it in silver ink. Salen caught sight of Douglas returned in his peripheral vision and he tucked the card into the waistband of his pants. Douglas was weaving as he made his way back to Salen.
"Salen? Who were you talking to?"
"No one."
