New Year Resolutions (Closed)

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Holodeck 2]

Mahak listened to her question with interest. It was a very thoughtful thing to ask, especially for a human. It showed that she had appreciation and interest in his culture.

"Sha Ke Ree is a location in Vulcan polytheistic mythology," Mahak told her. "It was not unlike your Eden or Elysium. In fact, the entire Vulcan pagan mythology can be likened to your primitive Greek or Roman religions. But no, we do not have anything resembling an earth religion. Perhaps the katra, a Vulcan's spiritual essence, could be construed as such. But I would not do so, because we do not assign a katra to an afterlife as humans do their immortal souls."

[Kali Reyes]

The hammock swayed and Kali listened for the most part. She was just kind of doing it so she could just hear the sound of his voice. It was leveled, perfect intonation, enunciation, and style. It was soothing for someone like her who thought a thousand miles a minute without ever stopping.

Here it does. She wanted to appreciate her own silence for once. Kali settled back down and tucked her head right under his chin and rocked along the hammock. "Why have a katra if you're not putting it anywhere?" she half-mumbled into his skin. "What d'you do with it?"

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Holodeck 2]

Mahak was not usually so given to lassitude. He disdained naps and felt that humans and other beings who took them were being childlike and illogical. He did not need to rest as much as a human, but his high impact lifestyle meant that required more sleep and food than most Vulcans.

But with Reyes sleepily murmuring against him and all of the ambient noise and sensations of the Risian beach the Vulcan felt himself relaxing almost to the point of dozing. Briskly, he shook his head to wake himself up and was glad he had not partaken of any alcohol.

"A katra must be transferred to another Vulcan or an ark before the Vulcan dies," He told her. "It is not transferred or stored it ceases to exist."

Not the most cheery story, perhaps, but it was what it was.

[Kali Reyes]

Kali blinked and pulled away a bit. "Wait... what?" Because she was talking spiritual, hypothetical, things that the church kept drilling into their heads that you can't see a soul or you can't touch it. Lots of things that pushed Kali to see a more scientific side of life instead of become a nun (and probably the best decision she's ever made).

"You're telling me you can take out your soul and put it in another thing?" She eagerly sat up until she was pretty much using Mahak's chest as her own mattress. "How do you do that? Can you do it to me? Can you put me in an immortal android body?"

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Holodeck 2]

Mahak resented the lack of her body next to to his just a bit. He attempted to move her back to her previous position.

"It does not work that way," Mahak declared. "And the katra itself is a highly controversial subject among Vulcans. We cannot say for certain that it exists. And even if I beheld it myself I would remain skeptical. Such is the nature of the Vulcan heart."

[Kali Reyes]

She playfully squirmed when he tried to move her, and then ended up snickering when he got what he wanted, her drink in the air to avoid spilling it. The tiki torches that were lit up not too far away danced on the glass when she put it back down into the sand and got herself comfy again.

"Hm." She decided to contemplate her existence by placing tiny kisses underneath his jaw. "Think I have a katra? Or at least a quarter of one?" 

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Holodeck 2]

"I have often found that whether or not one has a katra is not able to be proven in the traditional sense," Mahak had turned his head, not to speak away from her, but to expose more of his neck and face to her kisses.

"If you believe you have a katra then you will." The Vulcan told her. "This is not logical, but Vulcan priests assert that because the existence of the katra itself cannot be proven by scientific means that belief in it is far more important. Religions from your own planet would say the same."

[Kali Reyes]

"I think it's pretty swell to see Vulcans are scared of death too," she said against his skin because hey, she had no problem talking shop about philosophy while seducing.

There was kind of an ulterior motive. Maybe. Her fingers were flighty down his right arm, tracing out lean, hard muscle from methodical exercise and training. When she found his wrist, she brought it and his palm up to her face and let it slide a bit across her cheek.

She wasn't sure why she did it, but she wanted his hand there and encouraged him with a little nuzzle.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Holodeck 2]

Mahak, too, did not mind philosophizing while they were together. The kittenish movements and tones that Reyes so loved to tease him with were both his bane and his solace. Only with a tremendous amount of Vulcan discipline did Mahak drag himself back on topic.

"If the katra interests you so much, perhaps you would consent to a mind meld?" He asked while his hand rested intimately on her face. "They are practiced often between two mates in order to deepen their physical and mental connection."

[Kali Reyes]

Kali faltered a bit, her grip slacking against his hand, at the mention of mind probing. She recalled every betazoid healer, every curious telepathic entity that wanted to get their fingers in her head. For a second, she feared that, if she let him, that he'd freak out with whatever was in it.

It wasn't a consent issue. It was a housekeeping one. But she subconsciously sought him out regardless. She wanted him there, so who was she to second guess herself now?

"I don't like people putting their mental fingers in me," she told him quietly. "But if it's you, it's okay. Yeah."

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Holodeck 2]

Mahak did not need to be slightly telepathic to sense her discomfort. Instead of melding their minds he began playing with the soft black hair and running his fingers along the full lips that he so enjoyed.

"Please forget I even mentioned it," The Vulcan said as he stared into her eyes. "I can tell that it makes you uneasy."

[Kali Reyes]

Kali fervently shook her head and gripped his wrist. "Don't back out on me," she said a bit desperately. "You said it would deepen the connection - and I am all for that!" She refused to let fear play her down again. That was her resolution for the new Terran year.

She kissed his fingers and tried to grin. "If it's you, it's okay," she repeated. "Just you. You're the only one. Seriously."

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Holodeck 2]

Mahak studied Reyes's eyes. He was becoming more attuned to her emotions the more time they spent together. He sensed that Reyes was taking a great leap of faith for her and that he should continue, despite her misgivings. Wordlessly, he nodded.

"Let us sit up," He stated. "Posture during meditation is very important."

When they were situated, he placed a hand gently on her face,the calluses on his fingers sliding against her softer skin.

"My mind to your mind... my thoughts to your thoughts..." Mahak's voice was steady, a pleasant baritone, and he enunciated every tiny syllable perfectly and said it with conviction.

"With every inhale draw in clean, white energy into your body. With every exhale expel a cloud of negative, black energy. Envision a merging of the minds, a bridge between our subconscious. My mind to your mind... my thoughts to your thoughts..."

[Kali Reyes]

Kali sighed in relief when he relented and listened when he instructed her to sit up. She scooched back for him until he was sitting up and she was sprawled on his lap. Any physical contact for her was needed here. Keeping a short distance while working with any sort of telepathy bothered her and she wanted to at least reach up and grasp something if something went wrong.

She lightly flexed the tips of her fingers nervously against his strong abdomen and exhaled when she felt his fingers along her temple. Her mind was winding fast and erratic the moment she tried to still her thoughts. It was almost like it was trying to rebel against it, but she squelched it hard.

Mahak is good. Mahak is okay.

And then, just when she thought it didn't work, a little bit of something gave, and her breathing stuttered a bit in surprise. For one wild moment, she thought she felt something else there in her head.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Holodeck 2]

Mahak could not help but emit an audible gaps when the connection was made. Reyes's mind was like none other that he had ever been in contact with before. It was busy, a dizzying collection of sights, sounds, and above all speed.

He felt like he was in an escape pod traveling warp 10.

It was so powerful and sudden that he had to fight to keep the intimate connection alive, but he did. His eyes widened but quickly narrowed with determination.

"Can you feel me, Kali?" Mahak asked. His skin was flushed a light green, and his voice came out in a harsh whisper.