Vulcan Cuisine Day (Part 4 of 4)

Posted on 20 Oct 2024 @ 3:47pm by Chief Warrant Officer 3 Lamar Darius & Ensign S'Ers-a M'Lyr'Zor

3,996 words; about a 20 minute read

Mission: Episode 20 - Reconstruction
Location: USS Galileo-A - Deck 4, Darius' Quarters
Timeline: MD 03, 1850 hrs

Previously, on Vulcan Cuisine Day (Part 3)...

Sera stilled. Love. An intense state of deep affection. A most taboo 'feeling' to her people. One that could drive one to all sorts of madness...like what she had done here wasn't just exactly that?

"How exactly have you come to that conclusion, Lamar?"

And Now, the Conclusion...

[ON]

"I don't know, Sera," he weakly confessed while recovering from their escapades. "Your smart. Beautiful," he took a series of post-coital breaths to return oxygen to his head. "You put your fingers on my head and now we're here. Future and present. You're a part of me and I'm part of you..."

Parted from me and never parted... The ceremonial words came to her unbidden. Was that what this was now? She was unsure. The metaphysical threads that pulled at her psyche tugged in a most unfamiliar manner.

"I think...a rather simplistic analogy...yet, I do not wish to discredit what you have said to me. I did not think that humans made such declarations so readily. Does it not take, time, and getting to 'know' one another to feel such a complex emotion as love? I know very little of...love." She replied in a distracted tone, yet Sera was anything but distracted. She felt focused on everything, and there was so much input to decipher through. His fingers on her abdomen felt...possessive. Yes. Reaching up, she trailed her index and middle fingertips over the top of his duty worn hand.

He considered her question which admittedly was grounded in truth. Or was it? "Well...I guess it can take time. Maybe not? I guess don't know. I've never had that feeling for someone before." The confession wasn't something Lamar was shy to admit and his past relationships had all been both fleeting and devoid of the sort of emotional bond he now felt for Sera. "And if our visions are real, wouldn't this mean we've been together before?"

"Hmm." She made a noncommittal sound. "I cannot say. I am not able to construct any meaningful timeline given the fragments and nonlinear manner in which they manifested. None of this feels familiar anymore...something has shifted...I apologize. I do not know how to adequately explain." Her fingers continued to slowly trail up and down the lines his digits in an idle fashion.

"Shifted," he repeated to himself with an inquisitive frown. "Because of us? Did we...change the past or the future of whatever we saw?" He nervously swirled his thumb across the padding of his index finger. "Did we break spacetime?"

"Unknown. Those are very science-y questions, Lamar. I am no scientist. But it is a possibility, given what we have experienced. Whatever occurred could have very well set this crew--at bare minimum--on a different trajectory than what was initially intended." Sera settled her supine form further into his shoulder, finding a sense of languid comfort from such close contact.

That notion unsettled him but he was at least able to take comfort in the fact that the two of them were together again. However selfish that might have sounded in his head, her affection and presence was a bright star in the routine - and not-so-routine - days within the Pleiades Cluster. "Well, if we really screwed things up, at least we have each other." He turned his head, planted a soft kiss on her forehead then caressed the taut muscles in her belly.

Her eyes fluttered closed for a moment as she focused on the feeling of his lips against her skin. It was a tempting thing to shift her pelvis against him in a suggestive manner, but Sera managed to refrain...for now. This all had a reckless, addictive feel to it, and of course she desired more but... "I find myself quite fixated on you. It is unexpected."

"Maybe that's what love is. Or lust. Maybe both?" He trailed his fingers up from her stomach in between her breasts then to her chin where he traced them along the side of her jawline. "What would your parents think about me if they found out we've been together?" he then wondered. "Are they...do they like Starfleet?"

His questions...they were the thing that she had patently avoided since the very beginning of all of this...insanity. Her family. Her clan. Her duties. The other life. "My...parents? This would involve more than them. My foremother, no doubt, would find this knowledge most disagreeable. She was...nonplussed when she heard that I had left Vulcan to join Starfleet. What of yours? I remember...they were not happy you chose to join the Marines...correct? Have they changed their viewpoint on your service?"

His chest rose then fell when he expelled a barely audible sigh. Memories of that month from the distant past returned which hadn't been a great period within his he and his family's relationship. "Yeah, I think they got over it eventually. Maybe not over over it, but enough that they don't talk about it much anymore. They were happy when the Corps was disbanded and I transferred to Fleet. I think the war really stressed all of us out. I don't tell them any stories about my time in. They wouldn't want to hear any of it."

Sera tilted her head so that she could look over into his dark eyes. They were an intensely rich shade of Vulcan mocha in coloration...in fact he more fit within the typical Vulcan phenotype than she did if one were to compare such things. She blinked momentarily at the rather strange musing that happened managed to derail her. Normally things ran much more linearly in her mind. "That is unfortunate. Sharing data and experiences increases knowledge base. You may discuss anything you like with me, if you would find benefit from it. I would find it agreeable to learn more about you, if...if that is how things are done?"

She was uncertain if she wanted to reciprocate in such a manner. There was so much about her--the world she grew up in, her past...a vast number of things really--that she did not know if having someone else know about it would prove of any particular benefit at all. Possibly the opposite. Sera reached out placed her hand on his chest, and her expression softened as she felt the slow metronome that was his cardiac pump performing its required function.

"I might," he responded to her offer. It was a warm gesture which he appreciated from her. "To be honest, that part of my life was different. I was a lot younger and more ambitious. Stupid and careless, sometimes. I'm the same 'me' but I like to think I've grown up a bit. And serving on Galileo is a helluva lot different than in an orbital drop battalion."

"I cannot offer any opinion. We have only recently become...acquainted, and I also have no point of reference regarding serving in an orbital drop battalion. Regardless, our experiences do shape our growth, or at least that is the...adage?" Sera was silent for a for a moment before asking softly, "Would your family approve of your current choice?" She wasn't sure why the question was asked, but, approval apparently was important to him otherwise he would not have made his inquiry, and she was curious if the blade cut both ways.

Uncertainty involving the subject of her question prompted a clarifying question. "My career in the Fleet and aboard Galileo?" he first wondered before proposing another angle to the question which he'd previously asked her several moments ago, "Or me spending time with you?" One was much easier to answer than the other.

"The latter. You are not required to answer if you do not wish to, however. I suppose it is only a discussion of semantics, ultimately. To use your words, we are all that we have left to ourselves." She quickly amended. Did she want to know?

"Oh." A light chuckle vibrated through his chest against her hand. "I think they'd love to meet you. I know my ma would. She's always going on and on about me being single and not being married or having kids - and her not having grand-kids. 'About time, Lamar!'" he mimicked her female accented Philadelphian voice for Sera, "is probably the first thing I'd hear from her. My brothers? You're older and way out of their leagues and they'd be a little jealous," he laughed again. "But I think they'd like you, too."

His family would find his selection acceptable? Interesting to be sure, considering she was...well...obviously, Vulcan. This was all most irregular, yet she couldn't find the impetus to put a stop to all of it. Frankly, she didn't want to, and her lack of control should...should...should. Kroykah. She thought silently to herself in a silent chastisement for the concern she felt even while her hand lightly skimmed along the lines of his arm and chest. "You have two brothers...as do I. One would find you very interesting and would most likely interrogate you out of curiosity...the other? We did not have a harmonious relationship."

Lamar had more questions now. Both about her brothers and her family. "What are their names?" he first asked. "Are they close to your age?" It was at that moment he realized...he really had no idea how old she was. Vulcans lived a long time compared to Humans and Sera might well be into her 60s or 70s without showing a single visual sign. "And...how old are you?" It was a traditionally taboo question to ask a woman her age in his own culture and as soon as the words escaped his lips, he silently hoped things were different on her world.

Sera could feel his curiosity; it was a tangible thing - and a relief, in a way. There was no postulating...in this case she simply knew. "Vanik and Kesh are their names. Vanik is 8 years younger than me; Kesh...16. I am approximating; I have found humans do not appreciate exact specificity. As to my age, I would be 45 of your Earth years old."

Vanik and Kesh. He'd have to remember those names but was now distracted by her revelation. "...45?" His head raised to look down into her blue eyes with an unconvinced tilt to it. "You look 20 years younger. Do all of your people age slowly? Because by the time I hit 45, I might be showing gray hairs and a receding hairline."

"You are applying human maturation onto an alien, Lamar." Sera said with a measure of subtle amusement. "I might be considered young for a Vulcan. I have barely exceeded age of adulthood. We do not age in the same manner." Reaching up, Sera lightly touched the very precisely cut hair at his temple.

"Age of adulthood?" His dark brown eyes searched her youthful facial features for answers. "...What were you doing with your life for the last 40-something years?" How was she older than him yet also referring to herself as a young adult? Was he biologically younger than her yet simultaneously more 'grown'? 'Matured'?

"Vulcan years are shorter than Earth ones. Much of the acceptable methods of measurement are based off your planet. In some ways, rather....human-centric." There was a short pause. She was getting off-track. "If we utilized human timing for ease of understanding Vulcan physical development...I would be in my early 20s...22.63 human years old to be precise. There is a disparity between physical age and developmental one. Consider most Vulcans who go off-world to perform duties such as mine are generally...older."

"As to what I was doing...I received comprehensive instruction on the functioning of my clan, and the machinations that are involved at such levels. I was taught history, military and political strategy, martial artistry, economics, infrastructural engineering concepts, all steeped within a web of intrigue for the purpose of managing clan affairs in the future. My education was rather focused; there is much I do not understand even of my own people, let alone that which resides outside of Vulcan. Is my age...my inexperience a concern?"

While listening to her explanation, Lamar quickly realized the difficulty in understanding the different developmental cycles between their two species was harder to apprehend than he'd ever expected. Despite serving in Starfleet for many years, his interpersonal contact beyond the superficial and duty-related tasks he'd undertaken were lacking with races different from his own. "Concern? No, no. I just...I mean, that's a lot of learning and knowledge. Focused or not, you're probably pretty smart. Much smarter than me."

"I was taught what was relevant at the time; just as you were instructed and trained on how to perform your duties within the corps and then Starfleet. You must be intelligent. Starfleet's entrance policy was rather...rigorous from my experience. However, you do have a propensity for poor judgement."

Both of his eyebrows raised, initially defensive before subtly shifting to display bemusement. She was certainly an observant woman. "Yeah, tell me about it," he smirked to himself. "My drill instructor predicted I'd get my head blown off during the first real engagement I was in. He was almost right." His hand absentmindedly retracted from Sera's cheek to rub the discreet scars on his lower neckline.

"I meant your behavior in the shuttle bay." She tilted her head, studying him before continuing. "They are significant scars. Why did you not have them treated further?"

An uncertain shrug best encapsulated his answer. "Got the injury treated in the field then never really thought to do any followups later. Doesn't hurt, there's no damage, and no one usually sees them. Why? Are they ugly?"

Sera raised a brow. "No, Lamar. They are a remnant of a physical injury. I do not see them as anything that detracts from your physical form. I was simply curious if you had a particular reason to keep them." Reaching out she traced the lines lightly and saw the bruising on his collar bone that she had made earlier and felt a sense of satisfaction in seeing the dark purple marks. "Mine..." she said with a softness that belied the intensity of the word.

Her fingertips' caress along his neck produced a content sigh through his nose and across his chest. "You can give me more scars if you want. Just make sure I can cover them," he winked from one eye. "And about the shuttlebay? Let's just call it even. We're both busy and you came in hot, then I got hot...so let's call it even and forget all the reports so we can do more of..." his hand traveled down to her sticky inner thigh, "this."

Her attention turned to his eyes. "Forget? I cannot do that, Lamar. The logs must be brought back into compliance. You have until the end of your shift today to provide the necessary maintenance reports, otherwise I will recommend to Captain Tarin that the shuttles be grounded until full diagnostics can be performed to ensure space-worthiness." Sera did not offer to assist him again.

A sideways glance inspected her blue Vulcan eyes followed by a light chuckle. Humor. She was quickly learning and adapting, it seemed. "I'll get right on it. And you can try an all-beef cheeseburger while you watch me slave away under the nacelles."

"Your acceptance and efficiency are agreeable. Should I leave now so that you may...jump to it?" That was the saying, correct? "Your offer regarding this 'burger' is acknowledged, however I must decline. I have my own duties to see to."

Wait. What? The tonality in her voice hadn't changed whatsoever and neither had the expression across her facial features. "That was a joke, Sera," he attempted to clarify in a more direct manner. "No, I'm not gonna leave us here and go do dumb routine maintenance checks I can do next week. I thought we had an understanding, now?" He pushed himself up on one elbow while the prospect that she was still going to ride him made him uneasy and irrationally agitated.

"An...understanding?" Sera sat up and pulled away from him, her expression shuttering. "You initiated sexual relations to...to in some way mitigate my orders?" Oh she was incredibly stupid. "I see."

He rolled his eyes at her absurd assumption and its accompanying implications while he, too, sat up. "No...I wanted to have sex with you because..." he shut his mouth before he somehow got himself into more trouble by talking. Which seemed to happen more often than not. "Look, your orders don't make sense. Why can't you just have one of your own team do it? Or at least help me so I don't spend my entire shift on a single task? Why are you picking on me?"

"I attempted to do it myself. You, however, became aggressive and territorial at a perceived slight. You refused to listen to me. I am not 'picking' on you." Whatever that was. "I was attempting efficiency. If anything happens to the shuttle craft, I will ultimately be held responsible. Why can you not follow orders without such...drama?"

"'Perceived slight'?" he repeated her words back to her. "Well yeah, because you came into my workspace unscheduled without informing me and started poking around. Then when I returned the favor, you got all uppity." Her mischaracterization of past events was so Vulcan it made him grind his teeth. "You can toe the ship line if you want but I thought we were past this. I follow orders. Just not stupid ones," he defiantly refuted.

Again with his need to grant permission as if it was his to give, and her request was…stupid? "Your opinion on my lawful order has been noted, Chief Darius." She calmly extracted herself and began looking for her clothing. Her mind was in turmoil. Retreating would be prudent. She had to get ready for duty, and try, in some meaningful manner, to compartmentalize all this so that the mask of logical indifference remained firmly in place. Her outer garments were easy enough to find but her undergarments were another story. Irrelevant. She could return to her quarters without them if needed.

But his words set quite poorly with her. It caused a measure of disquiet within that was not agreeable in the slightest. “I believe you are correct. We are past this. I have attempted to explain myself and the purpose for my order. You have been outright resistant, and frankly at this point, insubordinate and have shown a concerning lack of discipline towards the chain of command. It would be logical to report this incident to Captain Tarin."

She wouldn't. Maybe? Lamar couldn't be certain if Vulcans bluffed but the thought that Sera would - of her own free will - make his life that much harder and blemish his service record just because of a petty maintenance cycle update... It angered him more than anything else had over the past several weeks. "Fine, go ahead then," he dismissively waved, not wanting much if anything to do with her if this was her trivial line in the sand. "And be sure to tell the captain everything. About how you gave me the orders in the first place out of spite because I kicked you out of the shuttle bay. Yeah, I remember that smug look on your face when you said it walking past me down the ramp. Vulcans are good at concealing their feelings but not perfect."

"You have been uncooperative of this process since the very first time we met, and I have no idea what you are talking about. You are ascribing human behaviors onto me. I am Vulcan. I came to the shuttlebay to help you, du lautuv kohmin!" (you stubborn human!) Her tone became strident near the end - still no controls with regards to her logic surrounding him. She quickly dressed with short, jerking movements. He wanted to mate with her, but he certainly did not respect her, or the position she held.

He scooted himself to the foot of his bed then stood up before taking several steps toward her while hugging his arms across his chest to protect from the cool interior air. "So you wanted to help me then, but not now? Now you're going to mark my record because of...what? Pride? Anyone with eyes can see you're Vulcan but that doesn't mean you don't have feelings and that I can't decipher some of them." He frowned then tilted her head. "And now you're raising your voice. Just let this go, Sera. Please."

"Pride. Interesting you would use that word." Sera retorted as she looked for her boots. Finding them nearby was almost a triumph.

"At least I can acknowledge mine." Maybe this was the Vulcan ego, he was starting to realize. The phenomenon had been well-referenced in Earth's historical records dating as far back as to the Age of Exploration and Captain Jonathan Archer's first expeditions aboard Enterprise in the mid-2100s.

Sera took one last look about for the still MIA undergarments before focusing her attention on Lamar standing before her, arms folded. "You do not respect me, or my position. I have nothing further to say to you at this juncture."

His dark brown eyes narrowed and tightened. He'd tried several appeals to reason, one to emotion and one to fortitude, but nothing seemed to sway her mind. Stubbornness. What she'd explained to him earlier was becoming very evident - she possessed the psychological developmental equivalent of a 20-year-old Human despite her advanced years. "You know what you just said is wrong. Everything we've talked about together today contradicts that. But I think you're right - go and leave. I don't want you here and you don't want to be around me." His finger pointed to the door with emotional resentment simmering beneath his folded arms.

Sera unconsciously covered her hand over the right side of her abdomen, as if somehow the gesture would protect her from the sudden squeezing discomfort she experienced from his words. Lamar dismissed her, he did not want her nor to be around her. Apparently males could be quite fickle across species boundaries. Very well. She dipped her head in a formal gesture and turned to leave the conn officer's quarters. He was correct, she did have pride, and she refused to let him see just how visibly all of this affected her.

He ground his teeth again, shook his head then turned away from her. His bare and silent footsteps retreated back to his bed where he sat back down and dropped his hands into his head. His fingers reached into his scalp and uncomfortably scratched the short tightly-curled hair atop his head. Resentment and affliction dominated his heart which now felt cracked.

Sera, meanwhile, walked back to her quarters with her gaze to the ground in front of her so that she wouldn't make any eye contact with anyone that happened to be in the corridor at the time. Not that she had to worry, for she had her walk all to herself. Entering her space, Sera focused on setting her quarters to rights and eliminating any trace of his visit. She was quite thorough, but it did not bring any relief to the disquiet within her. Perhaps meditation before her shift would be helpful? Sera sincerely doubted it.

[OFF]

--

Ensign S'Ers-a M'Lyr'Zor
Chief Engineer
USS Galileo-A

&

CWO3 Lamar Darius
Conn Officer
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Tarin]

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