A Common Odyssey

Fanfiction
Title:	A Common Odyssey
Author(s):	Elise Madrid
Date(s):	2003
Length:
Genre(s):	slash
Fandom(s):	Star Trek: TOS
Relationship(s):	Kirk/Spock
External Links:	online here
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A Common Odyssey is a Kirk/Spock story by Elise Madrid.

It was published in the print zine First Time #57.

Summary

"Kirk and Spock end up in a Romulan prison after the ship they are passengers on is taken by Orion slavers."

Reactions and Reviews

Once again this author has penned another great K/S story, complete with a gripping, suspenseful plot, plenty of action, wonderful characterizations, and of course some really great sex!

This story starts out in a rather mundane fashion, with Kirk and Spock on board a commercial shuttle on their way to an obscure planet for shore leave. The atmosphere is peaceful, a peace that is soon shattered when the shuttle is boarded by Orions, intent on taking captives for their lucrative slave market. They soon busy themselves removing all the women and children. Kirk and Spock, manacled together to the seat, soon realize that the Orions intend to leave them behind. They also know that as was their habit, the slavers would destroy the shuttle once they had taken what they needed. That realization prompts them to declare their love for each other and their lips meet for their first and last kiss. Events take a sudden turn, however, and instead of dying along with the other passengers on the doomed shuttle, they instead find themselves held captive on board the Orion vessel, headed for an unknown destination. Worse, Kirk is beaten by his captors and his injuries, while not life-threatening, are severe enough to incapacitate him and Spock suffers a broken arm in trying to defend him. While the Vulcan is able to heal himself with the trance, Kirk has no such option. Their situation goes from bad to worse as they soon find themselves inmates in a Romulan prison camp. What follows is a harrowing tale as Kirk and Spock struggle to survive the harsh conditions they find themselves in, conditions made worse by a brutal guard who sets his sights on Kirk. Yet despite everything, they manage not only to remain together and united, but also to nurture their newfound relationship. Rescue, when it comes, is from an unexpected source and Kirk and Spock soon find themselves traversing an alien world in the company of a another prisoner in the form of a young Romulan, who promises them a chance to escape from the planet. Before he can keep that promise, however, tragedy strikes and Kirk and Spock soon find themselves alone once more. Refusing to give up, they soon discover the young Romulan's secret, a secret that does indeed promise freedom and the chance for a future together.

As with all this author's stories, this tale is guaranteed to keep the reader turning page after page, unable to stop until the end is reached. It is another winner from one of the most prolific and talented K/S authors around today.

PLOT. It has a PLOT. Ohmigod, it’s got a PLOT and it’s LONG. It is one of the best story I have ever read. It is definitely a repeat read. I just love this story. It had its peaks and valleys. Not your usual flatliner that’s for sure. It starts out with Spock confessing his love to Kirk when they both realized that the Orion were going to blow up the starliner that they are on so that there will be no witnesses to the kidnappings. I love it that Kirk is in sync with Spock and lets him know how he feels knowing that time was no longer a luxury that they can afford as they were subsequently taken to a Romulan prison as enemies of the Empire.

There was Hoben who hates Kirk because he’s Terran and Ranulf who is after Spock’s bod. It had a lot of twist and turns. Definitely a well written story. The only hole in the story was that Hoben and Traccus were never suspicious of Tal in regard to the disappearance of the Federation prisoners. Considering how much Hoben hates Kirk, you would at least think they would send a search party to try to track them down. Wouldn’t it be an embarrassment to the Empire to lose such infamous prisoners? It would have been more interesting for the last part of the story if that had happen instead of being so anti-climatic after all that build up. Also, small quib in this story is if the writer hadn’t said that this was a Romulan prison with Romulan guards, I would have thought that Kirk and Spock were held in a Terran prison. I was constantly taken out of the story by the Romulan’s dialogue that sounded so human. Traccus saying “ human to boot.” or Ranulf’s “That’s the beauty of it” or “I sure know how to pick them” just to name a few. I kept wondering how come the Romulans talk like humans if they hardly ever seen a human before let alone talk to one if they have kept themselves behind the neutral zone. These were the only two negs in the story, otherwise it is a kick ass story.

I highly recommend it. Thanks Elise, for writing it.

Funny, I haven’t read any Kirk and Spock prison stories in a while and now two of the new zines I bought at Shore Leave each have such a story. “A Common Odyssey” concerns Kirk and Spock traveling on a commercial star cruiser to a wilderness planet for vacation when the ship is taken over by Orion slavers. Kirk and Spock think they are about to be killed, which gives Spock the courage to voice his love for Kirk. They just have time to share a gentle kiss when they are taken from the ship. The Orions have recognized them and taken them off the cruiser, which is then blown up. However, the captain of the slaver ship is a Romulan, and Kirk and Spock wind up in a Romulan prison.

This story deals with the developing relationship between Kirk and Spock as they fight for survival in the prison and attempt to escape. Kirk can’t help but be Kirk, which gets him into trouble. That, plus a prison guard who hates humans because his father died in the war with humans 100 years ago. The story of their daily life in prison is suspenseful and intense, as Kirk is taunted and attacked by the guard who states he plans to kill him. Actually Kirk’s own instincts to fight back first get him into trouble on the slaver ship, where he is badly injured after attacking one of the guards. So we have some nice hurt/comfort in this story, as Spock cares for Kirk initially, and then after he is injured again by the sadistic guard. We see a lot of Spock‘s POV, and his almost overwhelming fear and concern for Kirk. An unexpected source of help from a Romulan prisoner who is infatuated with Spock strains the relationship between Kirk and Spock, but leads to a deeper understanding of their relationship as well. There are also some very nice, very hot sex scenes—Elise has gotten very, very good at writing extremely erotic love scenes!

Although this story has more of a traditional plot than some of Elise’s other stories, it has some twists and turns, and is well told by a skilled writer who just keeps getting better and better with every story. A very enjoyable read by one of my favorite authors.

Another simply unique story by a wonderful author, who, like the other wonderful author Deanna Gray, skillfully tells a detailed and involved plot along with their K/S. In “A Common Odyssey”, Kirk and Spock, innocently on their way to a shore leave together, are kidnapped and held captive in a Romulan prison, where most of the story takes place.

Although not fully explained or made clear why they are in the prison, nor what’s exactly to be done with them, their stay there is harrowing and creates a personal place for them to become closer and more intimate, as well as bond. The characters they encounter are well-drawn, especially the hapless fellow inmate, Ranulf, who eventually falls in love with Spock. His story is so poignant and he becomes more and more tragic as the story progresses. The villain, Hoben, is sufficiently dastardly, but his character is rather unceremoniously dropped after a terrific build-up. The surrounding characters in the prison were well-used, and I appreciated the use of characters we’re familiar with such as the Romulan T al. Kirk and Spock’s eventual escape along with Ranulf was tension-filled and their emotional interactions were wonderfully realistic—filled with anger and pity, resentment and longing. However, a love-making scene in Ranulf’s mother’s house, while Ranulf’s mother is dead in the chicken coop was a little unsettling. But despite this minor lapse of judgment on Kirk and Spock’s part, the love-making scenes were appropriately sexy and involving.

I’m so glad I found my way through my 106 (only kidding) unread zines to read this terrific story.

This story is of the same high standard I've come to expect from Elise Madrid. The overall themes are about love and trust and honour that come up again and again in different ways during the story's intricate and well-paced plot.

Aside from wonderful characterisations of Kirk and Spock, hopelessly in love with one another as their natural affinity deepens into a full Vulcan bond, Elise has created some wonderful original characters. They give the narrative a richness and variety as their stories all weave together in a complex and surprising tapestry that takes the reader through emotional highs and lows. There's an intensity to this story, together with some suprising twists and cliff-hanging moments that gripped me throughout, so that once I started reading, I couldn't stop until I hit the final period.

Elise is to be applauded for creating this superb and ambitious piece. It really is exceptional, and a highly recommended read. My advice is, just make sure you've got a few hours to completely give yourself over to it - you won't be able to put it down!

Kirk and Spock are kidnapped by Romulans. LOVE, LOVE THIS. H/C, first-time and bonding: all my favorites.