high-energy physics

[warpfairy]

Federation political prisons are not particularly uncomfortable. She's not going anywhere, but she can read, she's considering taking up an instrument, the only really awkward thing is that she doesn't particularly want to be supervised while she's sweating her way through her next pon farr one way or another but that's years off. That and she wishes she'd taken longer to get caught. But she was running out of the really low-hanging fruit anyway.

This is what she signed up for. She makes up imaginary profiles of people on the planets she got to, people who can live longer fuller lives with the stars in reach, one per day. One per day and she'll have loads of estimated impact left unused when she dies. Perfectly reasonable tradeoff and she can still read books.

Someone wants to interview her about Vulcan; they don't want to lose anything that anybody remembers; she gives the interview and then picks up some poetry.

Comments

[warpfairy]

"It's... Should I just actually explain it? It's normally Vulcans-and-people-involved-with-Vulcans-only information but I do not feel strictly obliged to abide by that."

[lintamande]

"That's entirely up to you, unless you want our help figuring out the best magic-that-might-pass-as-tech cure to it."

[warpfairy]

"...It would actually be fairly easy to pass something off as a technological cure." She sighs. She goes emotionless. "Vulcans, and some but not all half-Vulcans, have an obligatory seven-year mating cycle. It can be disobeyed, not comfortably, with drugs, meditation, and approximately a ten percent chance of death, which is what I did when I was caught in the middle of deep space alone and discovered I was not one of the lucky half-Vulcans - full-blooded it hits at a predictable age, but I couldn't make arrangements for it ahead of time because it could have been any or no occasion in a span of years.

"Normally, Vulcans are betrothed as children so there's no last-minute scrambling, the elder of the pair reaches the relevant age, they can sync up their cycles via telepathic contact during sex which leaves an enduring psychic bond that is considered equivalent to marriage, and then they make sure to be convenient to one another every seven years. There are ways to shuffle partners around, if the match is disagreeable to the principals - my father and mother were not engaged as children; his intended had to find someone else.

"I was not betrothed as a child either - my mother thought it would be barbaric - but even if I had been, when Vulcan was destroyed many people were left widowed or without their affianced. The Council is acting in loco parentis to pair us off. It's possible that they are typically announcing this to people beforehand but I did not make myself available to them in a - lucid state - and was thus surprised. I can only assume they knew my schedule because I provided it as medical information to my mother in case it was ever relevant and I couldn't disclose it."

[lintamande]

"Oh dear," Rúmil says. "A ten percent chance of death each time? And you arrived at this event to discover they'd picked you a spouse? I am very sorry. That's apalling."

[warpfairy]

"Yes, each time, but marriage isn't the only alternative because the telepathic contact part is optional. They'd found someone on almost my schedule, delayed my intended departure to pursue alternate treatment, and expected that would be that, but I managed to call Bella. Who then had to duel my affianced as though competing for my hand, because otherwise he would have died, but fighting is an acceptable substitute on a biological level - if seldom orchestrated to leave both parties alive in the state of nature. She put up enough of a fight to calm him down, knocked him out, and hauled me to my destination."

[lintamande]

He nods. "I'm sorry. That sounds very scary and unpleasant. They could also have told you several weeks ago when you were here.... a magic fix to this specific affliction might be much more tractable than general resurrection."

[warpfairy]

"I do not believe the Starfleet officer knew anything about the trap that was set."

[lintamande]

"Is any of this permitted under Federation law?"

[warpfairy]

"Federation law officially doesn't know about this feature of Vulcans. Vulcan was a founding member and has some latitude. However, I believe public opinion would be strongly negative."

[lintamande]

"Are you planning to pursue that?"

[warpfairy]

"I'm considering it."

[lintamande]

"It seems inappropriate to make observations about our larger political goals and how this could fit into that, unless that's something you'd want to discuss."

[warpfairy]

"No, that's exactly the sort of thing I'm considering. I don't want to make an enemy of the Federation or its members, but a carefully moderated statement - perhaps a series of them, this and genetic engineering and the Prime Directive, say, so it doesn't look like I'm taking my original grievances beyond the bounds of appropriateness - could coax its approach closer to ours, or lure worlds into the Elendil."

[lintamande]

He nods. "A series might be the best way to present that - also keeps it at the forefront of peoples' minds. Is there much precedent for peoples leaving the Federation, does it tend to be good for them?"

[warpfairy]

"It hasn't happened yet, but there's a provision for it in the constitution."

[lintamande]

"Sanctions? Lose access to any tech? Are any of the unfriendly neighbors inclined to attack newly vulnerable places?"

[warpfairy]

"It depends on why they leave. Voluntary exit by a qualifying member, no, they just downgrade membership into alliance. If they flagrantly violate a membership requirement - if they institute a caste system or practice slavery or commit war crimes or something, and they don't accept the appropriate penalties and inspections and top-level restructuring - then it'd be less friendly."

[lintamande]

"But we're not going to cause problems if we do succeed beyond our wildest dreams and lure some members out."

[warpfairy]

"Right."

[lintamande]

"I - appreciate that it's not likely helpful to have strangers of a different species angry on your behalf. But. If it ever does seem helpful we can definitely be very very angry on your behalf."

[warpfairy]

"The people I need to convince are Vulcans and people who, for this purpose, need to think of me as a Vulcan. This means I will probably record my impassioned speech with exactly zero passion."

[lintamande]

"A useful skill. Are they likely to be persuaded? Is this unacceptable by Vulcan mores?

[warpfairy]

"Vulcan mores are about what is logical, in contrast to what is driven by instinct or emotion. Obviously, this approach is very susceptible to different opinions about what tradeoffs are appropriate to seek what goals, but I have a case to make, even if there will be a faction of the opinion that the continuation of the species and acknowledgment of Council authority should supersede what are after all merely my feelings about whether I should be married to a complete stranger. My argument will probably have to be mostly that the Federation would not admit a species that made a habit of this practice and Vulcan's founding membership should not logically grant it special status, and they must stop or exit; they'll choose the former if it does come to that."

[lintamande]

"It seems also that not informing someone in advance, as a policy, only makes sense if you expect that they wouldn't give informed consent, and that the only marriages that would be undermined by changing their approach are marriages that the parties would not have so given their consent for, and that the parties being Vulcans might have logical reasons for declining which the council denies itself any chance to become informed of."

[warpfairy]

"Well, I'm a half-Vulcan only and was principally brought up on Earth. They do not assume I am impeccably logical. It's possible they're informing most people."