Light The Way (And I'll Follow) || Spirk

Chapter 2

"First Officer's Log, Stardate 1367.5. The Enterprise has received her first official mission after Pike's departure, a mission which is still deemed safe for a reasonably new crew; as save as going to a mostly unexplored planet can be. I have, surprisingly, been assigned as part of the away team. It is most illogical to have both the captain and first officer sent on the same away mission, and I made sure to mention this to the captain a moment ago. Captain Kirk, however, only smiled and agreed with me before putting us both on the away team anyway.

"We must prepare to beam down in precisely two point six hours. The captain has decided on a collection of ensigns to take with us. It is a wise decision, as this mission will be an excellent way for them to gain experience.

"We only have to investigate whether this planet a safe territory for a colony to live; beam down, take a few readings, and report back to Starfleet. The planet has already been reported as a class M planet many years ago, so we only have to confirm that fact; I am not expecting any difficulties. Many see the mission as incredibly boring, including the captain, but I find there's nothing unpleasant about a change in environment, and I can possibly discover another anomaly to write a report on."

-

Spock finished taking a sample of water from the river. He looked back to where his captain stood, talking to a member of the away team with a concentrated look on his features. For his first time captaining a ship, he'd been very confident and prosperous so far, and now that a few weeks had passed after Pike's departure, the crew had managed to stabilize and correct the few inconsistencies that followed the change in captaincy.

After Kirk's unexpected visit to the science labs, Spock had become more interested in Kirk's way of captaining the ship. After asking around, Spock had gathered that Kirk was already familiar with most crew members on the Enterprise, as he'd been commissioned on many other ships in his past. In fact, Kirk had already climbed through so many different ranks and positions that even some older captains didn't have as much experience as him.

Naturally, his familiarity with most of the crew worked as an advantage, and it explained part of why he'd been so likeable from the start. When Pike had first come aboard the ship, everyone in the crew had been a new face to him, apart from Spock himself. Building a trusting relationship with strangers was much more difficult than building one with old friends.

However, Spock had been a stranger to Kirk, yet even the Vulcan couldn't deny the slight pull he felt towards his new captain.

Spock checked the time and realized he should report back to Kirk about his findings thus far. With his PADD in hand, he made his way back towards Kirk, "Captain, a moment?"

Kirk quickly gave the lieutenant in front of him orders to check in with McCoy after they'd beamed back to the ship, and then turned around to smile at his first officer. Kirk smiled very often, Spock had realized.

"Mr. Spock. Any interesting findings?"

No matter how often Spock told his captain that the honorific was not necessary, Kirk seemed to ignore his request entirely. It annoyed him more than he was willing to admit.

"I found this unknown form of radiation near the river. I've completed multiple scans, but we have nothing similar to it in our system's database," Spock explained, holding out the PADD in front of him. "It does not appear to be dangerous, but it vanishes after every attempted scan."

Kirk looked thoughtful for a short moment, seemingly searching his mind for what to do. The Captain then nodded a couple of times and his smile returned to his face.

"Well spotted, Mr. Spock. I say we report back to Starfleet for further orders," he said, reaching out to grab the PADD. His fingers brushed against Spock's own and at that moment, it felt to the Vulcan as if some sort of spark shot through his body and mind. A few more seconds to prepare himself would've done the trick, but no such seconds had been granted to him; he had no time to shield himself.

Just as preparing for a mind meld required time and concentration, so did setting one's shields against such communication. In other words, he could momentarily feel Kirk's emotions (boredom; anticipation; determination) and, perhaps more importantly, he was certain Kirk was able to sense Spock's emotions as well. It had left this feeling of.. something. Spock didn't know what to call it. It most certainly wasn't embarrassment because that was an irrational human emotion that he had long learned to suppress.

Spock instantly withdrew his hand, but it was already too late; the meld had already happened. The PADD fell in the mud at their feet with a soft thud.

There was a moment of silence as Spock looked at his hand in obvious confusion, trying to figure out what had just happened. Spock knew for certain that he'd started a mind meld, but that was illogical – the Vulcan had barely touched Kirk, let alone tried to start a mind meld with him. Nevertheless, in the second of contact between them Spock and Kirk had briefly bonded telepathically.

Kirk must've felt the bond too, but he didn't look bothered by it, instead looking slightly amused.

Spock found himself speechless. He picked up the PADD from the ground, the device not damaged but slightly covered with dirt, and wordlessly handed it to Kirk again, this time careful to avoid any kind of touch with him.

"Are you alright?" Kirk asked, regarding the Vulcan with a smile.

"I apologize, I do not know why that happened," Spock said, finally finding words. "I didn't..."

Kirk laughed softly. "Don't worry about it, Spock."

The two just regarded each other for a long moment, Kirk being the first to break eye contact.

"Alright, everyone regroup! We're getting ready to beam up."