Firebird (Star Trek: TOS story)

K/S Fanfiction
Title:	Firebird
Author(s):	Jane Fury
Date(s):	1987
Length:
Genre:	slash
Fandom:	Star Trek: The Original Series
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Firebird is a Kirk/Spock story by Jane Fury.

It was published in the print zine First Time #15.

Summary

"Spock is stranded with “Kirok” after beaming down alone to the planet to rescue Kirk when the Enterprise is disabled."

Reactions and Reviews

This a/u version of "The Paradise Syndrome" has plotting problems and background problems. The most serious plot problem was the delay in rescuing Kirk and Spock. It seems to me that once the asteroid deflector barrage was over, Scotty could have sent a shuttle to rescue Kirk and Spock. Shuttles can go long-distance. They're just slower than the Enterprise. My next most serious problem was with matters Vulcan, beginning with the author's concept of how Vulcans heal. Spock states that metabolic processes speed up during healing. This doesn't make sense. The whole purpose of going into a healing trance is to slow down all metabolic processes so that the body can concentrate on healing. Instead of Spock's hair growing longer due to healing, it should have fallen out because his body couldn't afford to generate the protein to grow hair when he needed it for damaged tissues. The author also has Spock being able to heal himself of serious injuries without going into trance. This is unlikely. If Spock must devote energy to staying conscious and coordinating his limbs for various activities, then he has less for healing. If he is seriously injured, he doesn't have the extra energy to devote to other activities. In this story's concept of telepathic bonding, when the bond is first formed, Spock asks Kirk to try to block the link and Kirk doubles over with nausea when he tries. Spock implies that the link can't be blocked under any circumstances. This means that Kirk nor Spock can ever shield from each other. I find it difficult to accept that Vulcans, who value privacy so much, would never have developed a way for members of bonded couples to have some privacy now and then. Then there are the Native American background problems. First, the author says, "Kirok the Indian was warring with Kirk the human." Native Americans are human beings. There are also a number of problems associated with Kirk being called a "shaman". Salish is absolutely right when he states that Kirk doesn't function as a shaman. Not only doesn't he do what a shaman is supposed to do, but he never legitimized himself as a shaman by going on a vision quest. He legitimizes himself as a chief by fighting off all rivals, but not as a shaman. These are two very different offices. Kirk says at one point that the tribal council chooses both chief and shaman. Shamans aren't chosen by the people. They are chosen by the spirits on vision quest, and serve at the pleasure of the spirits. This is so in every native culture where shamans exist. The author never mentions that when Kirk removed his clothes for a "native sauna" he was entering a sacred rite. Over the months that he'd lived among these people, Kirk should have at least known about the existence of the sweat lodge, and the central role it plays in shamatic healing. This is not to say that I liked nothing about "Firebird". I really loved Spock's response to Kirk's fear that he was "unmanned" because he found himself unable to rape Spock: ."Never before have you been more of a man than you are now." If all men thought that way, there would be no rapes.