DISCLAIMER: The Star Trek characters are the property of Paramount Studios, Inc and Viacom. The story contents are the creation and property of Djinn and are copyright (c) 2001 by Djinn. This story is Rated G.

Reflections – Broken Bow

by Djinn

Greetings, T'Kan. I had not intended to contact you again so soon, but I find, my cousin, that I need to speak of the things that have happened, and there is no one I trust as much as you. As I told you, I have been serving as science officer for this ship's first voyage. It has been a challenging mission. Not at all what I foresaw when Enterprise was launched. And now that it is over, I find that I am lacking in the equanimity that has been my normal state. I am in a most puzzling situation—one that I neither requested nor wanted...at first. I have been assigned as the official science officer for Enterprise. A part of this crew, and yes, second-in-command—a most unusual position for a Vulcan to find herself in. Aside from the medical officer, I am the only non-human on board. Rationally I know that this is a small crew, but at times the ship teems with these humans. They are everything we expected. And they are not.

Truly, my cousin, I am at somewhat of a loss to explain the conflicting nature of humans. You have been sheltered from contact with those of Earth. I have found, since joining them on this ship, that they are not entirely as the reports say. Not that our diplomats have tried to deceive us; I believe their reports reflect what they see. But our ambassadors have been so isolated, so cloistered. I was part of that community; I remember how we kept ourselves so carefully separate and I think that being apart is not the best way to understand the human character. I have seen more in these few days than in all my time on Earth with the diplomatic service. Seen, heard, smelled, tasted, even touched. A most intense experience.

Intense. The word is apt when discussing a human. The very atmosphere here is intense. Their interactions are intense. Their likes, dislikes, biases, wishes, objections: all intense. They expend so much psychic energy on every single act that one would expect them to eventually waste away from sheer exhaustion. Yet they thrive on their emotional excesses. They appear to enjoy them. And enjoyment seems to be a factor critical to everyday life. It is true that these people are entranced by their own pleasures, their own urges and desires. Yet, in a strange way, they do exhibit a form of efficiency and cohesive discipline. They appear intensely loyal to those things and people they care about. And extremely vocal in defending the same. Even to the commanding officer. Even to me.

I did not expect to be in command of this ship, but I knew that if I was forced to step in, to take over for some reason, that I would respond to the task in a logical manner. But cousin, I have not. I have responded to the emotions of my shipmates. I acted in a manner at odds with prudence. And yet, I do not regret the action. I have analyzed the events that transpired and my behavior. I did not perform in a way that my superiors would have considered correct. But I believe that I acted in accordance with the situation and what it required. The world is different outside of the case studies—very different.

I find myself anticipating learning more of these differences. I am in a unique position, T'Kan. I have a rare opportunity to discover in an organic way the differences and the similarities between the humans and us. When I first boarded this ship, I was sure that our differences would be far more apparent. But I am learning that we might have more things in common than I ever believed. I will tell you more when I contact you next. For now, I must go. I promised the communications officer that I would teach her our dialect. She is the first human I have met that does not mangle our language. It is...refreshing.

T'Pol out.

FIN