The rays of the morning sun started to peek through the windows. Sarek did not sleep the entire night instead he meditated. He could feel the lack of proper rest weighing on his eyes. Meditation helped him realize that he could soon select a new bondmate after the Delegation. He logically concluded he could regather the research he was working on. His service and loyalty to the Terran Empire was still intact. The guilt that filled him could be ignored and he could continue his work like he did the last 6 months.
A chime came from Sarek's PADD. He stood up from his meditation pad and walked over to his bedside table to look at it. The Official Imperial Holonews was ready to be viewed. It was mandatory that every citizen watch the holonews within a 24-hour period of it being available. The holonews had a new broadcast everyday. If a citizen failed to watch a broadcast it would be noted on their public record and they would lose credit in the Imperial behavioral system. Once a citizen had 6 marks on their record they were sent to a Correctional Facility to spend a mandatory of 24 hours in an agonizer. After a citizen repeated this offense 3 times the offender and their whole immediate family would be sent to a Correctional Camp on one of the remote colonies in the Delta Quadrant. It rarely happened on Vulcan since most people had a schedule for when they would watch the news. It approximately lasted 15 minutes everyday. Sarek opened the file before he got ready for the day. He sat rigidly on a chair near his bed.
The news started with its typical recap of footage of Imperial Starfleet officers rendering duties to the Terran Empire. It involved assassinations in grim detail, as well as, any notable change in Starfleet captains. The news anchor reemphasized the obliteration of the Klingon insurgents at Barisa Prime the occurred on the previous day. The holonews went on to discuss the deeds of citizens that were involved with building spaceships and weaponry for the Empire. Sarek noticed the Terran boy that was showcased for this spot. The boy's eyes looked slightly sunken in and his cheekbones were protruding from his face slightly. He was obviously malnourished. Sarek estimated the Terran boy was 13 years old. The news spot ended quickly and Sarek quickly felt a sense of...compassion. He killed the emotion inside of him instantly, and estimated it was because of his lack of sleep.
It quickly featured the new Terran Empire Youth Academy that started operating in San Francisco a year ago. It was created to prepare young Terran children to enlist into the Imperial Starfleet once they reached the age of 18. It was an effective recruiting strategy. The interviewers specifically showcased a class of children around 7-8 years of age. The children in the spot were intelligent and well-mannered. Each proudly wore their uniforms and Terran Empire pins. It showed the class saluting together and singing the Terran Empire anthem. On the screen a Terran female appeared her name quickly appeared on screen indicating that she was called Amanda Grayson. For a Terran, she looked like she was in her early 20s. She had brown hair and her eyes were an intriguing green. She had a friendly smile on her face as she answered question about the curriculum of the children. Human facial expressions were alien to Sarek in every way. Yet something about this female's smile was fascinating and Sarek felt that it was aesthetically appealing.
The spot ended and the closing message was always done by the Emperor. He continued to focus on the screen and Emperor Hoshi Sato III appeared.
"Your Empress now speaks. Prepare to receive my word. It has been my honor to protect you from the cancerous ideas the rebels have been spreading. We are seeing the end of insurgent groups across the expanse of space because of my Imperial Starfleet. Let the blood of the insurgents be a reminder of the power and majesty of the Terran Empire. As my subjects you are protected from them because of my grace and mercy. Destruction is what leads to peace. Your freedom can only be obtained through complete submission to me, and power can only be obtained through your own ignorance. Heed my words."
The broadcast ended and the symbol of the Empire appeared on the screen. Empress Hoshi Sato had cloned herself over the past century to stay in control of the Empire. Many have tried to take her seat but no one had succeeded. It was only a matter of time until the next Emperor took her throne. Sarek set down his PADD and went to the sonic to prepare for the day.
At the Vulcan Science Academy, Sarek was faced with the same challenges from the previous day. The results of Phase 1.5 and its 500.45 variables were inconclusive and deemed unsuccessful.
The tests and discussions the team had throughout the day only lead to failure. Sarek decided that in order for Project Satev-tukh to move forward he must recollect that data he deleted the previous day. It took him 2 hours to collect the necessary data files and write down his calculations. Sarek was ready to present it to his team when he felt the concerns from the previous day halt him. This time the emotion of guilt filled him with more intensity than he was prepared for. He took a controlled breath and stared at the data file again. It was illogical for him to delete the file again. It would be an act of silent treason that could hinder the work of the Terran Empire. The struggle he felt inside of him was tremendous. In his mind he reminded himself that he was the son of the Governor of Vulcan. The S'chn T'gai clan was known for its strong loyalty to the Empire. The only logical path before him was to share his findings.
Sarek deleted the file again. He had to meditate and resolve these emotions inside of him before he could present it to his team and ultimately the Emperor. One day soon he would be able to present this information with complete fidelity to the Terran Empire. It would not be treason; he would only be postponing the delivery of his research. Sarek felt his emotions reach their equilibrium at his rationalizations.
"Sarek, you have been starting at your PADD for 3.4 hours. Are you in need of a healer?" The voice of T'Lara brought him back to reality.
"That will not be necessary. I will retire from here soon to obtain rest."
"It is not wise to ignore your health. I recommend you see a healer soon."
"Understood." Sarek replied and started to gather his belongings to leave.
Once he was back at the fortress he went to his private quarters to mediate and prepare to leave Vulcan. He was determined to overcome his inner turmoil.
Planet: Terra
City: San Francisco
Stardate: 2227.08
Terran Empire Youth Academy
"Ms. Grayson! Ms. Grayson!"
Amanda looked over at the young boy dressed in his uniform, "Yes, Alexander?"
"Did you see the holonews yesterday! I was in it!"
Amanda smiled for a moment, "You told me yesterday and the day before. Don't forget your classmates were in it too."
"I know, but did you see the executions of those Klingon rebels? They showed it again today! It was so cool. My other brother knows someone who was serving on the ISS Forge! I want to be assigned to that ship once I graduate from the Academy."
"That's a long time from now, Alexander. You should go sit down since class starts soon."
Amanda tried to shake the image of the Klingons getting slaughter. Amanda knew that insurgents had no place in the Terran Empire but showing the executions to children everyday seemed wrong. Amanda grew up watching the Official Imperial Holonews (OIH) and some of those reports still haunted her and she was 24.
She sighed. The Empire was only doing what was best for them. The school chime went off stating that class was in session.
All the children stood to do the Terran Salute and sing the anthem. Once that was over, Amanda started by teaching children about the First Invasion of Vulcan on Earth.
"Class, what do you know about the First Invasion? Did anyone study ahead?"
Janice Rand raised her small hand. She excitedly waited for Amanda to pick her. Janice was a book worm and an over achiever when it came to her studies.
"It looks like Janice is the one who studied ahead. Janice, why don't you tell the class about the First Invasion?"
"Of course, Ms. Grayson. The Vulcans came to Earth to invade us so Zefraum Cocrune-"
Amanda cut off the girl with a small chuckle, "It's Zefram Cochrane, Janice."
The young girl blushed briefly before continuing, "Zefram Coc..Cochran saved us by killing the Vulcans that tried to invade us."
"Great summary of the event, Janice. Now because of that the Terran Empire was able to take Vulcan technology and advance our society."
Amanda went into detail about the events that followed, and the kids seemed very intrigued and asked many questions.
"Ok let's see how well all of you were listening. We are going to have a pop quiz."
The kids looked devastated but Amanda had them take out their PADDs and take the small test. The morning consisted of history and math. After their lunch, they went over the basics of their solar system. Everything went smoothly and all the children behaved well. Amanda knew they were on their way to becoming excellent Imperial Starfleet officers one day. She gave out their homework assignments and soon the day was over.
Once the children were all gone she looked at her lesson plans for the next day. She heard a knock on the frame of the open door to her classroom.
"Hey, Grayson!"
Amanda looked up at the 40 year old man. It was the school director, John Michelson. Amanda made a tight smile. She did not like Director Michelson, he had ulterior motives in regards to her. The look he gave her as his eyes slowly ran over her body made her extremely uncomfortable.
Amanda composed herself and spoke carefully, "Director Michelson. What brings you to my classroom?"
"Oh nothing much." She could see the wicked grin on his face appear as he went to sit on her desk.
Amanda felt for the dagger that was attached to the bottom of her desk. "I am working on my lesson plans for tomorrow, Director. In our last faculty meeting you emphasized the importance of prepared lessons. You said we would get a deduction in our behavioral credits if we failed. If you are present I won't be able to prepare for tomorrow, sir."
Director Michelson scoffed, "I didn't mean you, Grayson. You are thorough and your class has some of the best test results in the division."
The man grabbed her by the wrist and tried to bring Amanda to his chest. She resisted and tried to grab the dagger under her desk, "I know what you are hiding under your little desk. There are no secrets here. If you want to advance in your career I suggest you listen to my suggestions very carefully."
Amanda scowled and was about to speak until someone walked through the door of her classroom and spoke, "Hey, Amanda are you ready-Oh-Oh my God! I'm sorry, I can come back later, Director."
Amanda was not going to let Jean Price leave her here, "Director, Ms. Price is my ride home. I need to go."
She yanked her wrist free from his hand. Michelson looked displeased and she saw the anger seething from his eyes. "I'll see you tomorrow, Grayson."
Amanda quickly gathered her things and felt John's eyes on her the whole time. Jean looked at her flabbergasted. Amanda silently mouthed to her, "Not now."
They remained silent as they left and Amanda got into the hover car and Jean started to drive out of the parking lot. Amanda looked at her wrist and sighed she was going to have bruises there. She looked at Jean whose brown eyes were wide with concern and questions.
Jean spoke, "Shit! Amanda! What was that all about? Are you really sleeping with John just to move forward in your career? Did you see what happened to Joyce only a month ago! She got killed! How can you forget about that faculty meeting last month? There was blood everywhere! If you play with fire you will get burned!"
Amanda let out an aggravated sigh, "Jean! Would I really go for a guy like John? Hmm? I know all of us have used different tactics to progress in our careers, but that is not how I do it! I typically use my father and his connections instead."
Jean face held relief, "Thank God. Well, Director Michelson is a man with a ridiculous sex drive. So, watch out Amanda. You could lose you life if you don't bend to his will."
"I think I will be fine. Next time, I will tell him that Admiral Thomas Grayson will see to it that he is removed from his position."
"You are lucky that your father has so much power in the Imperial Starfleet."
"I wouldn't say it was luck. He worked really hard in his career to get to that point."
Jean gave her a sideways glance, "Suuuuure."
Amanda rolled her eyes, "Jean, tell me about your class. Are those 10 year olds still driving you crazy?"
"Yes! I thought all the kids were screened before they entered this school. This kid in my class brought a real dagger to self defense class and pinned another student to the ground. He told me he saw it on the holonews and wanted to get rid of his enemies too. The kids aren't even suppose to be training with real weapons yet! They are way too young to be killing each other. They have many years ahead of them. When they are adults they can kill each other to their heart's content."
"My class is the exact opposite of that."
Jean made a fake frown, "I'm mad as hell about that. You get these obedient kids and I get the wild ones."
Amanda laughed. She could feel the tension leave her shoulders from earlier. Before she knew it she was at her apartment.
She got out of the car and did the Terran Salute to Jean, "Thanks, Jean. I'll see you at work tomorrow."
Amanda opened the door and walked in. She was surprised to see her father sitting on her couch reading something on his PADD. She smiled. "Father! I thought you said you wouldn't be back for another month?"
Admiral Grayson was a man many people feared because of his physical appearance and confidence. He was a man who had obviously done many things to help the Terran Empire. In the presences of his family he was more gentle and unguarded.
Her father had a fake smile, "The Terran Empire Delegation is here tonight. I was personally invited to attend. Then I'll be leaving for an very long time again."
Something in her father's manner made Amanda worried. He seemed nervous, "Is everything all right?"
He wore the fake smile again, "There is no problem. I just came by to see if you would come with me to the Terran Empire Delegation."
"Of course. I will."
Admiral Grayson smiled nervously and gave his daughter a quick kiss to the top of her head. Amanda knew something was wrong but knew her father would never discuss anything personal with her, "How was the Delta Quadrant?"
A grim look appear on his face, "We were able to get more intel about an insurgent group consisting of Betazoids. We are now planning to get rid of them soon."
Amanda nodded, "Sounds like good news to me."
He looked at Amanda, "It is. I think we both need time to get ready for tonight. I'll send the Kelpien slave to help you get ready. A hover car will get you at 1700."
The Admiral walked out her apartment and she was left with a strange feeling that something was off about her father. She started to look at her closet to find something appropriate for her to wear. Soon the Kelpien was there to help her with her hair and get ready for the night. She wore a red gown that exposed her shoulders and showed part of her back. She signed she hadn't worn this dress in awhile. Ever since her mom died her father rarely went to any diplomatic events unless he was personally summoned.
As she was thinking she still couldn't shake the feeling that something was off about her father. He usually carried a confident air that demanded respect. Amanda decided she would try to talk to him about it on the hover ride over to the delegation.
A small amount of Amanda was intrigued by the idea of meeting other species, but a part of her felt unsure if they were safe and could be trusted. She recalled her day and thought about the First Invasion. A feeling of prejudice towards the Vulcans rose in her chest. They had tried to invade them, so could any Terran really trust them? Let alone be friends with them? She felt like she was out of her element. She worked with children everyday and she had some interest in Terran linguistics, but that was it. Her diplomatic experiences were little. She never had a desire to be apart of anything like that. Her father wanted her to but she refused. Instead, she graduated from college a linguist but started teaching instead.
Amanda's communicator went off and she picked it up. "Hello?"
Admiral Grayson spoke evenly, "Amanda, I'm out front. Get in the car."
"I'll be there in a moment."
Amanda grabbed her clutch and threw on her heels. She locked the door and walked to the hover car that was waiting for her. The driver opened the door for her and she stepped in.
Admiral Grayson wore a small sad smile, "You look just as beautiful as your mother."
"Thank you."
Most of the hover car ride was silent and Amanda felt afraid to mention her concerns. Even though her father treated her differently than the rest of the universe he still had a temper and was extremely stubborn.
She would mention it after the night's event were over. Her eyes scanned the streets they were driving on in San Francisco. It was a dazzling city that had so much Terran history and heritage. They had to drive through the mission district to get to the event. Amanda saw the homeless and poor conditions of those living there. Amanda was fortunate to be a part of a family that had some wealth and connections. She couldn't imagine living in conditions like that. It was a true fact that the rich were extremely wealthy and the poor were in extreme poverty in the Terran Empire. Her father told her a long time ago that the poor usually had low behavioral credit and had put themselves into those circumstances so she should feel no compassion for them. She diverted her eyes from the scene and looked over at her father who was as deep in thought as she was.
Soon they arrived at the delegation. The building glistened in the moonlight and long red banners with the Terran Empire symbol were on either side of the entrance. Many Terrans wore the most fashionable dresses and accessories. They were laughing and drank champagne right at the entrance. Amanda and her Father walked up the steps and were greeted by another Starfleet Admiral, Juan Abarca. The latin man did the Terran Salute to her father and smiled. They returned the greeting.
"So the devil himself decided to show up? I'm jealous of all the success you have had recently. You better watch out or I'll just have to kill you!" Admiral Abarca was joking but Amanda could sense there was a small degree of severity to it.
Admiral Grayson laughed it off, "You better watch yourself you, bastard!"
The laughter from both of them died out and Amanda could sense some hidden rivalry between them. Admiral Abarca looked over at the woman holding on to Admiral Grayson's arm, "Is this your daughter?"
"Yes it is, Juan. Amanda this is Admiral Juan Abarca."
Amanda shook the man's hand, "Nice to meet you, Admiral."
He let go of her hand quickly and gave her father a smirk and winked at her then walked away. Amanda wanted to slap the man's face but she felt her father get rigid next to her. She looked at him and he looked furious.
"Let's go Amanda."
"Yes, sir."
They walked in and Amanda was shocked to see so many other species present. Most of them kept to themselves and weren't interacting much with the Terrans. It was shocking to see how blue the skin of Andorians were and to see how ghastly Tellarites looked in real life. How could any sentient being resemble a pig so closely? And why were Andorian teeth so sharp? Amanda continued to scan the room when she noticed a group of Vulcans standing to one side. They had a very outdated haircut, according to Terran standards, and all the men had the same facial hair. Amanda could start to see why Cochrane killed them when they invaded. There was something daunting about them. They couldn't be trusted. What caught Amanda's attention was that they nearly looked human. The only difference was their elf like ears and the upward sweep of their brows. It reminded Amanda of a children's book she read as a child. They looked like elves but they were far more dangerous. As she was lost in her analysis, one of the younger men turned to stare at her. They made eye contact and the man raised his eyebrow at her. He had a haughty air about him and Amanda felt defensive by his prideful air. How could a Vulcan come to Earth and act like that? Who did he think he was? Amanda felt anger well up inside of her and she turned away.
Sarek noticed the school teacher he had seen on the holonews when she entered. For a Terran, she was aesthetically pleasing. When he looked over to observe her again they made eye contact and he was fascinated by the obvious emotion of curiosity and intrigue on her face. He raised his eyebrow in question of her prolonged staring. Was it in Terran custom to stare at others for long periods of time? Sarek did not know much about Terrans or their customs. Her face turned into a frown and anger filled her eyes. She let out a breath as she turned and averted her eyes to another place in the room. This left Sarek confused. He was only returning her gaze. He did not understand the significance of her facial expressions. Sarek returned to his conversation with the Vulcans and tried not to think of the strange interaction that just happened.
Author's Note:
Surprise! I did not expect to get this written so quickly. I just couldn't stop myself from writing this. It will be awhile until the next update. At least Sarek and Amanda are in the same room! All of you will just have to wait and see what happens next chapter.
Please leave a review and tell me what you think! Also please PM me if you are interested in being a beta. I'm sorry for any errors that I missed! But seriously leave a review!
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek.