A/N

For those of your who have read my 'Christine's Story' Si'len and Be'na's ages are listed. Looking back at the math, I must say, 'What was I thinking'. Be'na's age there is an impossibility considering Lo'vaak's age, and it is too late to make changes in that story. So, dear readers, in this story I have to come up with a completely different reference as to Lo'vaak's parent's ages. Disregard the other mathematical blunder. Again, thank you for continuing to read.

I wish to thank nyotarules, a loyal reader, for bringing this matter to my attention.

Botsey

Chapter Five

At the prescribed time Be'na hid her face as S'Mat raised his hand to slap Si'len into wakefulness. After the second blow, Si'len's hand grasped his rescuer's arm and said,

"Enough! I have revived."

Si'len's voice was strong and he raised himself up on his elbows. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Be'na walking towards him with a large glass of water. Tears were streaming down her cheeks and she knelt at his bedside. His crew did not need a hint and they all filed out to allow their captain and Be'na some privacy.

She whispered,

"You have returned to me. You kept your word. Thank you Kakhartausu. (One who shows the way by leading, directing or advising)

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While it is a known fact that the Vulcan trance is a regenerator of the body and its organs, the question is, where is the Vulcan mind during the body's addressing this task?

Si'len clearly remembered that in some of the visions that appeared in his mind Be'na was present. One of the most vivid of the mental images appeared prophetic, Be'na body was swollen with life and he was standing next to her. His recall of that vision made a sense of deep need come over him.

He rose from the bed and she stayed at his feet with her head bowed. He said,

"I must cleanse my body and then we shall talk."

There was no odor for there was no perspiration. But Si'len knew that the time in the shower would allow him to align his thoughts. As he passed her on the way to the sanitary facility he touched the top of her head and she trembled.

He was attempting to identify the reason why she was still crying, and it left him puzzled. As he looked into the mirror while removing his facial hair he studied his seventy year old face. It was not lined or worn, his body was well kept and strong. Never had he leaned toward any form of debauchery and The Vulcan Way was treasured by him and his crew. He was in perfect health and he was fully capable of fulfilling those enlightening visions.

He was dressed in a formal robe when he appeared before her crouched figure and she looked up and continued weeping.

He knelt before her and asked,

"I have returned, you still shed tears, clarify."

"You would not understand."

"You are not able to determine that."

"You do not know? You not understand?"

"What is it you want me to understand, Be'na?"

It was the first time he had ever spoken her name to her and her eyes shot up to his.

"You have never spoken my name."

"There was never any need before this time."

She then replied,

"Now, I weep for me, not for you. I am not deserving of your attention and I so much wish that I was."

Realizing that serious talk was necessary immediately, Si'len requested,

"Stand up, your present position does not afford you the dignity you deserve. You do not understand your own worth. You are highly valued by me because you used your wits and escaped harm while still a prisoner under Grup. You responded to and carried out instructions given you by T'Mat and myself in areas of labor and education. You now speak, read and write Vulcan, can name and describe scientific experiments, and even have a basic knowledge of star charts. Be'na, you are no longer child, but a mature woman to whom I now declare kun'ut kali-fi (marriage proposall)

Her lips trembled and her hands went to her heart.

"You want me as your bondmate?"

"That is my decision."

She closed her eyes as she said in a trembling voice,

"Si'len, so deep is my attachment to you I was almost tempted to give to you freely, what the others could not take away from me by force."

"So I ask, Be'na, will you bond with me and bear my sons?"

The look on her face was one of disbelief,

"I love you with all my heart Si'len."

He did not correct her, to comment on the fact that her statement was illogical, for the heart was a pumping organ, instead his next words were,

"I will only allow you to make this choice after you hear about me and all Vulcan males. I have not ever set foot on Vulcan but I am still governed by the planet's seven year cycle, it is written in our DNA. On this ship none of my family practiced koon'ul, the seven year old betrothal bond. Mates were chosen from other families of Vulcans who were also space travelers.

Centuries ago, my people were vicious, clannish and blood thirsty. A wise man arose from our midst who was first of all a warrior. It was because of his exposure to that life he was able to see how futile it was to allow passion and emotions, which run very deep in the Vulcan psyche, to govern all decisions, to color and taint us. He encouraged us to adopt logic that would allow us to subjugate emotions and allow peace and calm to become the dominate feature of Vulcan life. It is true that we are a logic driven people, but the emotions that we keep buried inside, trapped in the deepest reaches of our mind, have never been eradicated and that eventually these do erupt during a period in the male Vulcan's life. These build until there is a breaking point, where passions, emotions, lack of logic take over and we are reduced to the way we were before. It is called the 'Pon Farr' 'the time for mating'and it's biological presence can be noted by a biological imbalance. All living things on Vulcan are tuned to this requirement of nature and at that time we as a species are driven by sexual forces that we are unable to control. The condition is terminated by the adunas' body accepting life from her bondmate and starting to create a body for an offspring. This immediately corrects the imbalance that has brought about his time of madness.

The length of time for Pon Farr differs when another species is involved, because a Vulcan female becomes fertile upon her bondmate's entering into Pon Farr or 'His Time'.In the case of many non-Vulcan females pregnancies are governed by the female's monthly cycle not by the male's response to her. For this reason the length of time that the male experiences 'His Time' or Pon Farr would be governed by the non-Vulcan female's natural cycles. Based on those physical facts, each experience with a non-Vulcan female can either be of short or long duration. All life on Vulcan is joined in this experience of this seven year new regeneration.

The normal interval for this experience is seven years but extreme stress, emotional upheaval, any intense reaction to a stimuli can trigger a male's Pon Farr, so as Vulcan males we attempt to avoid these situations and continue in a mindset that is both calm and peaceful.

A Vulcan male can perform any physical act of intimacy at any time, and can even sire children. The difference that marks this time is that without a bondmate who can satisfying this totally physical need, he will die a drawn out, painful death. It is for this reason that Vulcan custom dictates that children are bonded, or we could say engaged at seven years of age, so that a bondmate is guaranteed at the time of the Vulcan male's need, His Time.

Usually, the male will experience his first episode in his third decade of life. I have experienced six Pon Farr and have survived by enlisting the services of a female who will bond with me temporarily and then the bond is severed. My life in space never provided me with an opportunity to seek out a permanent bond…until now.

Pon Farr is a time of loss of control by the Vulcan male and because we are so much known to be quite the opposite, this matter is never discussed with outsiders, and rarely among ourselves. Such is the way for a Vulcan male.

Our females, who have the same bone density as we males do, go through the ordeal with very little consequence to their physical person. Be'na, you are not a Vulcan female, and while I would never intentionally do anything that would harm you, during this time of uncontrolled behavior, I might cause you injury, but, in the deep recesses of the Vulcan male's mind he knows that his continued survival depends on his aduna or wive's survival. so serious injuries are virtually non-existent.

I have never had intimacy that was truly personal. It was a paid for performance by a person I see every seven years. We never speak, never caress, it is merely a function that is carried out and I leave with no further thought of the matter or the person until the next time I require such services. I now realize how much I have missed and how that same act will now become precious to me, because of you.

You now have all the information set before you. I would never allow you to make such a commitment without having all the information presented to you, so you can make 'an informed decision'.

In barely a whisper Be'na said,

"I accept you and it."

Si'len next informed her,

"For me to perform the marriage bond I must touch you and our minds will become one before our bodies are also made one. I am a healer, and have performed this service for others many times. Once we are one mentally, then we can become one physically. You will know my thoughts, my deeply held emotions, I will know how to please you and you will likewise know my need. I will always know where you are, be aware of your continued safety and if anything should dare to threaten you in any way, it is I who will rescue you and punish whoever thought so lightly of our bond.

Be'na, do you understand that the bond is a lifetime one?"

She nodded and then for the first time, Be'na looked Si'len in the eyes. She did not shed one tear; her voice did not tremble as she made her next reply,

"Si'len, I am yours."

He did not hesitate, instead he brought her forward and placed his hands on her psi points and the healer Si'len bonded with this female whom he had determined was indeed remarkable. As he withdrew from her consciousness she collapsed into his arms and placing her forehead to his he sent,

"Rest now My Be'na, when you wake I will make you mine. Do not fear me, for I am your protector for the rest of our lives."

She initiated a kiss upon his lips and while it was a first for both, it would not be the last.