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"P'Jem" by Voile cha'Krech and T'sai T'Aitlu August 2002 ----------------------------------------------------- P�Jem stands, a Vulcan monastery millennium old, in the base of an off-world valley. The main entrance has long been sealed so that one has to transport directly into the underground complex below from space. There was no other way to enter or exit P�Jem for it had become the prison and rehabilitation center for Vulcans that were deemed unfit to live in society. Contrary to what Vulcan would like the Federation to believe, there are renegade Vulcans in all aspects of Vulcan society even though centuries of genetic manipulation and mental discipline had been employed to avoid deviation and failure. The criminal mind and the retarded are dealt with in the Vulcan way and that means re-education. And so after the sensor array had been dismantled that had been judged as having violated treatied Andorian space from the incident known as �Archers Folley�, P�Jem has been used as an orphanage, a school and care center for the psionically challenged. On the other side of the complex, a rehabilitation center for Vulcans that have committed forbidden �mind crimes� and were deemed �unfit for society� were interned and slated for re-education. P�Jem is kept in secrecy from the Federation at large and is on a need to know basis to off-world officials. Within Vulcan society the knowledge that places like P�Jem exist are accepted just as places like Gol exist. Always shrouded in mysticism and ritual, Gol is now the main stronghold of the Kohlinarhru priesthood and P�Jem is now the prison planet. When I saw her I felt mine mind turn towards hers. Her beauty outside was not indicative of her inner appearance. She seemed to glide through the room, her presence softly touching all that she passed and flowed ahead of her in a wave of her interest. I stood stock still at the bar as she came to me. The wave of her engulfed me and my body responded automatically, my loins aflame so suddenly that I gasped. I knew then that she was the right one for me and I had picked well and she was willing to go through with my offer. In exchange for my survival of my Pon Farr I would make a transfer of watered lands into her families name. She was Reldai. The ancient way of the Priestess class was imprinted into her very being through genetic manipulation. Of course, as was attested to by the fact that she was selling her services out of this seedy bar in foreign territory, she was missing the ability to bond. She was Kalogi, a mishap and thus outcast of Vulcan society. She was incapable of the bond because of her mother�s ingestion of Masu�Komekh or �Motherwater� at the onset of labor. Masu�Komekh was just the opposite of what its name implied. It is an elixir most vile and mysterious and came from the deepest desert caves on Vulcan. Lichen grew upon the rocks in these caves and leeched it alkaloids into the water trapped there. The lichen produced a strong hallucinogen that exponintiated the psionic comprehension of a normal Vulcan child to that of a Reldai Priestess. When it worked it produced the Reldai second sight in addition to the accelerated psionic abilities and the child was indoctrinated into the priesthood. When Masu�Komekh failed it produces convulsions and fever during labor causing both the mother and usually the child to die from the overdose. Occasionally a child survives and thus is quietly shipped to an off-world monastery called P�Jem. The long established underground complex that rest underneath the monastery was used at one time as a sensor array aimed at monitoring the military activities of the Andorians in defense of Vulcan but because of the interstellar incident in history known as �Archer Folley�, Vulcan has long since abandoned the complex as a military outpost and the Reldai has claimed it as its� training facility and also, unbeknownst to most of the inhabitants of Vulcan, as a nursery and orphanage for the outcast of our society and also as Gol�s prison for the criminally insane. One would think that Vulcan, with all its mental disciplines and teachings, from birth to adulthood would be the one people in the galaxy to be able to avoid genetic mishaps. Some people say that the Vulcan people�s beauty and grace, logic and reason are the most impressive in the galaxy. But there is a price to pay for this. There is a reason for the homogenous aspects of the Vulcan physique. We, as a people, have weeded out the outcast and deviants of society. Most Vulcans know of P�Jem. There are things that are referenced during ones growth by one�s parents that later come to light when ones understanding of such things are repeated once again to steer the mental path of young ones to pursuits of study instead of life experience and its� possible mishaps. And so the young one�s minds are trained to a lifetime of duty to one�s parents and duty to society. Thoughts of P�Jem overshadow and remind our people of the cost of the sensual mind. As she approached the bar she was relieved that the one she was to meet was attractive. Many of the ones she had to deal with were not. She bowed her head and introduced herself now that they were face to face. �I am Kisheya. I have received the agreement via sub-space and I have the signed agreement.� She withdrew a small cylinder from her sleeve�s pocket. She opened the finely decorated tube and slipped out the roll of papers. She smoothed them out on the bar then moved back one step. �If there is anything the wishes to discuss, there is still opportunity for changes.� I gathered up the papers and the cylinder, then motioned towards a table. �It would be more private.� I was somewhat surprised at her elegant attire. I had the impression that because of her status that she would be� less refined. I was pleased to discover differently. She nodded once, �It is agreeable.� I watched her as we moved to the near-by empty table, and all the others that watched her as well. It was almost disturbing that parents would have chosen a name that translates as �accident�, especially for one that seemed refined. It seemed somehow insensitive to her condition. It was also strange not to hear the customary ownership before her name. �Dost thee wish something to drink?� �Warmed ale.� I placed the order, and then leaned back in the chair, my hands held the paperwork somewhat protectively. �I can not think of anything that I wish to change in this agreement. As I have not � arranged for this before, dost thee have a residence or do I make arrangements for chambers?� �I have chambers that will serve.� She looked around the room as she sensed others watching her. When she met their gaze they turned from her, then her attentions returned to me. �The chambers are large and furnished for thine needs.� I nodded and sipped on my ale as I read through the final wording of the agreement. I pressed my thumb to the bottom of the page next to mine name. The paper was treated as to pick up the imprint, an almost perfect way to avoid forgeries. I rolled the paper and placed it back into the cylinder, capped it then returned it to Kisheya. This arrangement had come through with perfect timing; I had felt the stirrings of my Time only a few days earlier. When I received the communiqu�, only a day earlier, from Kisheya I was definitely relieved. Kisheya stood, �If thee wishes to see the chambers, we can go now. I will have food prepared for thee. I have a driver waiting, unless thee wishes thine own transport.� I drained my glass, �I have no ground transport. I came directly here from the station. And food, while my appetite is slowing, does sound good at the moment.� She bowed her head. Her hands lifted the hood of her cape up and it almost hid her face totally. When she dropped her hands, the fold in the sleeves slipped down to cover her hands. Not one inch of her was exposed and she seemed comfortable in this manner of dress. The ground car that waited was larger than I had expected. We climbed in, she facing the front and myself sitting across from her. It seemed inappropriate to be sitting beside her. The drive was not overly long but the road we traveled seemed to take us far out from the city�s center. The door was opened for us and she moved out first. When I stepped out I was once again surprised at the elegance that she seemed to be attached to. The residence was large. A balcony surrounded the house, the gardens were well tended and the wall that surrounded what I assumed to be hers was of a sand stone. I experienced the protection she must feel within these walls. The entrance was no less than I expected, and I was surprised when two servants met us at the door. My cape and weapons were taken with care and then I was shown to a large ornate door. The release was pressed and the door slid open revealing what I took to be my residence for the duration of my time here. A very large room, with one wall covered in old- style books, scrolls and computer storage slates. I walked over and began to read some of the titles. There was information here from all over the known universe and on a variety of subjects. Two large chairs and numerous floor pillows were close by for use, and the artwork on the walls and the carpeting on the floor seemed to be of the highest of qualities. All of this was a surprise; somewhere in the back of my mind I had expected her to be barely managing and living in something less than this. A female servant came in carrying a tray with a variety of foods. She placed it on the low table and bowed. �T�sai Kisheya will be with you shortly. She is seeing to other matters.� She turned and left quietly. Kisheya entered the room almost as soon as the servant had left. She sat down on one of the pillows that were close to the table. �Sit. Eat. We can talk if that is your preference. I can show you the sleep area. You will no doubt be spending most of your time there.� I accepted the tea she had poured. �I am somewhat surprised at the quality of your residence.� She nodded knowingly, �It seems as if most associate the vre-kasht (outcasts or exiled) with less than suitable living conditions.� She offered him some of the lighter tasting foods. �It is also fortunate that my family is able to pay for me to remain here� out of sight. It has always been accepted that one does not wish to have the vre-kasht to close to the traditional family residence.� �It is something that I did not give much thought to.� �Not many do, until they are faced with it.� Kisheya stood, �Do you wish to see the sleep chamber?� I nodded, �Yes. Even this trip seems to have been more than I expected.� �Then you should rest.� Kisheya led the way to the large double doors; she placed her hand on the pressure lock and the doors parted almost silently. She stepped into the room and went immediately to the lighting controls. The lights came on slowly and remained at a low setting. The room was lightly furnished, with a very large bed that dominate the room. A chest of drawers elaborately carved that I was told held any extra clothing that I would need. Through another door I was shown a large sonic shower, which also had controls for a water shower and opposite to the shower was a large tub. Every comfort that one could think of was within these walls, and I was also told that if there was anything that I required I was to only inform the staff and it would be obtained. Kisheya bowed, �I will leave you to rest. I will return to share end-meal with thee.� The doors were closed and I was left to explore on my own and to rest. * * * * * Turning from the doors I crossed to the books immediately. Reaching out my hands I brushed the spines and read the titles of the books in front of my eyes and felt the reality of the materials. They were from the old way just as the Kalogi are from the ancient tradition. I felt that knowledge sink into my bones and I turned to look at the rest of the room. Not a computer screen in the room. No com units except for the house intercom system. I wondered about that for moment but dismissed it as I crossed to the bath area and felt a great need to cleanse myself of all the hardships of the day. I was tired as I have never been tired before suddenly and my shoulders sagged. My memories opened for a moment and I closed them down again quickly. I could not think of what had happened in the past to bring me here or I would take the poison capsule I had sewn into my outer cloak in order to quickly dispatch myself if the fires about to be upon me were not quenched by the Kalogi Kisheya. After regaining control over my suicidal thoughts I moved to the bed and sat upon the plush soft covers and began to remove my clothing, placing each piece upon the bed-rest for the servant to pick up for cleaning. Finally and blissfully naked I walked to the bath and switched the water on as hot as it would go and watched the steam hit the tub, the jets churning the water into an emerald froth. Turning to the large mirror and observing mine form I was surprised to find my muscles had hardened with the onset of mine Time standing out all over my body in chiseled relief. My veins were etched across each cut and my fat percentage had dropped drastically in preparation for the ordeal of Plak Tow. I looked at my eyes and noticed that the rim�s had gone green with the lack of rest and the whites were bloodshot as the hormones had robbed me of my meditation abilities. I did not know my appearance had deteriorated and that my condition was obvious. Of this I was sure. I unexpectedly wondered how Kisheya felt about me and then quelled that thought also as I knew that she would not even come close to be a bonding partner. She would not really care as to how I felt but would be simply receiving mine thoughts and processing them through her mind and out, releasing them even as I released into her physically. I knew that my thoughts would search to connect with hers in order to impregnate her mind, as my body would seek to impregnate her womb. Knowing neither would happen, as she was a trained surrogate for a true bond mate I faced the fact and thus I turned from the mirror to step into the swirling water. Sinking gratefully into the steaming churning water I let go the tensions of the past few days. The quick arrangements and transactions and the leave taking of my parents after telling them my decision to resend the offered bonding with my cousin. I shivered at the idea and thought about why I felt that inter-family marriage to be detestable. I had grown up with her and she had been a playmate, a confidant, a friend, and although I knew that she had grown to even have emotions for me I could not take her. She was too beautiful and perfect to be so despoiled by one such as me with my dark thoughts. I literally could not endure the possibility that I might forever sunder her innocence. No I simply could not and I laid my head back on the smooth rock that formed the side of the bath to release that thought to oblivion. My mind seemed to drift off for a moment as my heartbeat slowed and I slept lightly, dreaming in the slow-building burn of Pon Farr. There was a crack of lightening across my line of vision and I saw Kisheya again as in the bar coming towards me but this time she did not have feet. She simply floated, her hair streaming in all directions as if in a slow wind and I shook inside. A warmth spread through my loins and down my legs and a hot breeze flowed over me. I woke and felt my hand stroking my stiff and heavy shaft. I immediately moved my hand away from myself and thought how I had caught myself doing this more and more frequently as the days drew my Time towards me. Usually my erection would immediately subside if I removed my hand and reasserted my bio controls but this time my mind failed me. The jets of fragrant water seemed to swirl around my suddenly sensitive skin and I threw my head back and gasped as my body spasmed into the water uncontrollably and my seed was drawn down into the whirlpools of the bath. I drew myself out of the water exhausted, robed myself and then moving into the bed to fell into a deep dreamless sleep. * * * * * Kisheya moved through the darkness of the house with ease. She had duties to check on her guest. He would have begun to feel the fires of the plak tow but nothing as he would in a week. She sensed he was prepared but only as much as one that had never been through this. She was still curious as to why he required her services. That was not usually discussed. It was not often that she was asked to serve one that did not have a mate; usually it was to serve one that had lost a mate and had not found another. She walked through the guest chambers and placed her hand on the door release. The door opened silently and she stepped in, closing the door behind her. She stood just to the side of the door, her eyes adjusting further to the particular lighting of this room� he was sleeping, if one could call this sleep. It was a fatigue that he was experiencing. She closed her eyes and concentrated on finding the other consciousness in the room� she inhaled sharply� he had begun the faint stirrings, the very embers of the plak tow were seated in his mind, but they were deep. He would not be truly aware of it, just that it was happening. He would have no control, that was her position� to control, to bring him through it without harm. She pulled herself away from him. She had left a connecting thread; that was all she was capable of. No bondings for her, never to be consumed in the fires of mating� only to taste and then to quench them. She moved to his side and pulled the loose covers over him. She would arrange for a strict diet for the next few days, then his appetite would wane, as expected. Without realizing it she reached out to touch his face, her fingertips brushed his skin, it was warm and damp from the bath he had taken� but not really enjoyed. She moved over the contact points without pressing the meld in the least� but he reacted to her touch. She drew her hand back; that had never happened before�. She waited for a moment then turned and left heading for her own bed� and her own dreams. * * * * * She was under me as I released into her again. Her face was contorted as she lost control of her emotions and began to spasm around me, her mind spiraling down into the fires with me. Her mind fought to pull back from me but her body betrayed her once again, jerking her hips wildly to meet me as she called my name. Her mind intertwined with mine and I pulled her body tighter to me. I came awake with a start hearing my own voice loud with a passion that I had never heard before. I sat up in the bed and felt the covers sticking to me with my own issue. Rubbing my face over with my hands I tried to come fully awake but I could not shake the dream. I was not used to dreaming as my meditations usually kept a check on my subconciense and especially not sexually explicit dreams. That was a totally new occurrence to me and I was amazed at the intensity and the frequency of the dreams. Every time the dreams manifested I was drawn deeper into the emotional and physical release peculiar to them. My testicles were swollen and my back hurt from the pressure of my chenesi against my spine at the forth and fifth vertebrae. Reaching back I felt my chenesi and marveled at the size they had become during the night. They filled my palms and from the feel of them I equated my study of the symptoms of Pon Farr and knew I was fast approaching the critical rapid climb to the apex of my Time. I rolled out of bed dragging the covers with me and piled them on the floor to signal that I do need them changed and headed for the shower. I switched it on and set the control for cold water and stood in the deluge to wash my body clean of the night�s unbidden pleasure. Stepping out and toweling dry I heard the door open in the outer room. Wondering whom was out there I wrapped the towel around my waist and stood in the doorway. Kisheya was standing in the middle of the room in her opulent dress and I met her eyes across the room. Immediately I felt her mind connect to mine, although briefly, and again I was erect. I cleared my throat, turned and went to gather some clothes from the dresser that she had indicated before. Her eyes upon me I did not see any need for privacy as I had hired her for intimacy and so I dropped the towel and let her apprise me as I pulled the soft pants over my legs and loins. I then sat down in the deep soft chair opposite of where she stood and looked at her with fire in my heart. �Please sit down T�sai and let us talk.� I indicated the chair across from me. She crossed to me and again I had the same vision momentarily that she had floated across the room to drape herself into the chair opposite from me. She did not relax back into it but instead sat up to light the three tiered heavy candles on the table that sat solidly between us. Silence was still on her lips, I waited for her acknowledgment to my invitation to converse but instead she pulled a small bag from her waist-wrap. Setting that on the table she reached to a secreted drawer opened it and drew a long slender pipe away with her. I watched her in fascination as she slowly opened the bag and withdrew a mass of delicate feathery lavender colored lichen from the innards and then stuffed the pipe bowl full, packing it with her thumb nail. Then as I watched mesmerized she bent to the glow of the candle and flamed the bowl to life. Drawing the smoke expertly into her lungs she then held it inside and offered the pipe to me. At first I was hesitant having only read of the dream moss, but at her gentle persuasion I accepted the offering and slowly, experimentally, I inhaled the substance. As the smoke covered my lungs I felt my heartbeat slow and my plak tow ease. Suddenly I felt more like talking and less like rutting and I relaxed and looked at her gratefully as I handed the pipe back to her. She sat it down upon the table and leaned back in her chair placing her knees together and then leaning them provocatively to the side, her ankles encased in the bottom of her dress as it clung to her form. She was beautiful in a way I had not seen very many times. The Vulcan people were homogenously slender and dark haired but Kisheya was not only a voluptuous beauty with full hips and breasts but her face was also full-lipped and her eyes were of blue from the mother-water. Her coloring was pale. Being raised off-world, her features reminded one of pre-reform portraits of the psychic sirens that lured lost space wayfarers to their deaths upon collision planetside. The ancient mind lords called upon Kalogi to take care of many conquests and their rampart came in the form of protection and as catalyst I reminded myself. Even though I was fortunate enough to be able to hire one for my salvation I was still aware of the risk I ran in doing so. In turning my welfare over to her I was risking my very life. It was not written, but it was rumored that the Kalogi drew ones life essence away and kept it inside katra globes to feed from during fallow times when no one would come to them. One would not even know it had happened because after the initial shock one would simply be trapped inside the globe and the Kalogi would direct the everyday activities of the male inside the globe just as if his life was unfolding in reality. And because it was as symbiotic and thus interactive exchange, the trapped katra would never know there was a difference between the globe and reality. Of course I dismissed these rumors as just that, gossip and superstitions created to discourage one from seeking a Kalogi as the answer to the males Pon Farr. I wast convinced, logically, that this would not happen as my family knew of my whereabouts and also payment had been made to ensure my safety. I was quite comfortable in the assurance of contracts and agreements and so I asked her again. �Let us talk T�sai. I wish to become more comfortable with thee. I am not so hardened into reason that I would dismiss a few days opportunity to become familiar with thee and thine thoughts before we are engaged in the plak tow. The moss had made me bold and I spoke with assurance and confidence. Her lips curled inwards at the corners and I saw her cheeks dimple slightly. Of course I was looking for her every movement and personal idiosyncrasy as my senses were attuned upon hers as my intended. Paid or not that is the role she fulfilled in my mind. My intended and at the very thought my loins flamed again. She shifted over slightly and her heavy breasts moved inside the bejeweled dress she wore. I could barely contain my want to kneel at her feet and bury my face into the heady fragrance I could smell she wore there on her skin. She smelled of the spice and I gripped the arms of my chair. She noticed my fingers pressure and so she offered the pipe again. I took it not able to comprehend for a moment as another wave of desire took me and then I lowered my lips onto the pipe and drew in again and calmed. She had thus not said a word. I wondered how I could be thinking all of this at such and exponential speed that I had not even heard her voice today as of yet? �Let us talk, T�sai.� Once again I asked this of her. * * * * * �What dost thee wish to talk about?� Kisheya drew in another lung full of the dream moss then passed it back. She watched him as he fought the urges that were beginning to take over his body. The dream moss help quell the urges for a time; in a day or two, even this would not help. This is what she wished, to have him without any real control. It was easier to deal with this without the bond melding if the male was passed a certain point. She watched as he drew another lung full of the moss smoke, his eyes became glassy and his body visibly relaxed. This time he did not return the pipe to her, merely kept it resting in his hand. �I know thee dost this because thee can not bond�� He drew in another breath of the smoke; his body was feeling as if it was floating. He smiled. �But dost thee desire a bonding?� �It is illogical to desire something thee can not have.� With the next draw his head dropped back, he was beginning to dream. �M-m-m yes it is.� He thought of the one he would not have. The one that was to be his bond mate and he had refused. He sighed. �So tired now.� �It is the moss. It has relaxed you.� Kisheya stood and moved to his side. She took the pipe from him and placed it on the table. She helped him up and then over to the bed. She pulled back the covers and helped him into the bed. He moved over towards the center of the large bed, and tapped the empty space beside him. He had enough sense to know what he wanted still. She pulled up her dress slightly; then knelt on the bed. He took her hand and placed it on his chest. His eyes closed as he moaned. She began to slowly caress him. Committing to memory the touch and feel of his body, every inch and every curve, even the texture of his skin, all of it would be hers to recall at any time she wished. This was the only pleasure she retained from any joining. She continued to tease and caress his body. She watched him with pleasure as his body shivered and shook from her touch. Slowly, she slipped off the soft pants and dropped them on the floor. She continued her discovery of him, hands caressing his hot skin, lips tasting his lips for the first time. She drew in his scent, committing it to memory. She ran her hands down his body and he moaned softly. He spoke her name in a whispered sigh and then reached for her. Even in this state he still wanted her close. He reached into her robes, caressing her skin, pulling her to him. He strained against her as she ran her fingers over the contact points. He shared his passions and his fire with her during one of these quick passes. He smiled at her surprise with the connection and he pulled her tightly against him. Kisheya placed her hands carefully on his face, touching the exact contact points she would need to share this burning with him. She reached in, his mind beginning to burn for her. The dream moss had quickened this in him. He wanted it so much so that this became his dream. She breathed in deeply, knowing that what she had planned had to be now or never. She reached in with her thoughts and touched his core� she heard his scream as if it was far off in the distance. She had to concentrate and not be drawn into his burning � and the fires that had begun to consume his thoughts. She reached in further, seemingly collecting his thoughts into a single place... and then she pulled out. * * * * * Kisheya looked over the paperwork. She had prepared everything herself. She had spoken to his parents and made the arrangements for the transport of the body. She had the healer come immediately after she had realized what had happened� and now she held the paperwork in her hands. Hands that were shaking as she slipped them into the envelope and sealed it. Before the casing was to be sealed, she had looked over him one final time, reached into his thoughts insuring there was no life embers burning. She tapped in the coding to seal the paper into the compartment and then to seal the casing itself. She had arranged for it to be transported through the safest route possible with the fewest re-integrations. He would arrive at his home in mere hours and the funeral would take place the following day. She was aware that death happened occasionally. She had it happen only once before, and that was from a weak heart. This one though was not from anything as that, this was simply the burning being too much for his body� and it gave out. Simply died. Kisheya bowed to the person that would see to the transport of the casing to the central station and then to see it through the transporters until it arrived on Vulcan. �Take great care.� Kisheya did not wait for a response but left to her own rooms. She informed her staff that she was planning to meditate and did not wish to be bothered. She closed the doors and slipped off her heavy robes, leaving only the light-weight pants and top. She drew the window shadings, turned the lights low and left only a single candle burning on the low table. She knelt down at the table and pulled towards her a magnificently carved globe of jo�sen crystal, it sat on a specially made stand. The carvings were of le-matyas circling the globe, almost as if they were guarding the contents. The blue crystal globe seemed to pulse with life and it seemed to get brighter as she moved closer. She had never done this before. She had heard of it from the elders and learned of the technique in case she ever had to use it� but this was not the intent of the teachings. Now she would have to see if it worked� and if it did� she would have one that was hers for all time. She closed her eyes for a moment and centered herself. She reached out with her fingers and placed them onto the cool surface of the crystal globe, then reached into the globe�s inner energy with her thoughts. She moaned. �Yess�� She whispered. �Thee are here�.� She drew in a sudden breath as the burning and the desire washed over her thoughts. She drank them in and then reached for the katra of the one who died� by her hand. ~Kisheya� I am burning for thee�~ His words were the same words she had heard as she placed him in here. Here he would live for all time, alive and unknowing of his fate... She closed her eyes and allowed his fires to consume her and she reached to touch the memory of his skin and the taste of his lips. �Sha' ek-wak ...Sha'tam'a-ashausu (Forever mine...Mine Spirit Lover).�
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