Journey to the Day

Fanfiction
Title:	Journey to the Day
Author(s):	Merle Decker
Date(s):	1984
Length:
Genre(s):	slash
Fandom(s):	Star Trek: TOS
Relationship(s):	Kirk/Spock
External Links:
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Journey to the Day is a Kirk/Spock story by Merle Decker. It is a sequel to Homecoming.

It was published in two parts in Nome #7 and #8.

Summary

"Now bonded, Kirk and Spock are sent as emissaries to a planet being considered for membership in the UFP but they are abducted and must seek aid from a nomadic tribe."

Gallery

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  from Nome #7

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  from Nome #7

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  from Nome #7

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  from Nome #8

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  from Nome #8

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  from Nome #8, map by Diana King

Reactions and Reviews

1985

The second part of a trilogy started in NOME 5, or bonding, the Shi-vai. So far the joining is platonic. The Enterprise is enlisted to help search for a Vulcan scientific party missing on an essentially xenophobic planet. There are, of course, several difficulties, outlined in slightly plodding dialogue. Kirk & Spock also have problems with their new bond. Spock in particular is busy building barriers. Remember the bond was platonic, now guess the problem! They are tricked by one of the Hal-Ian, the ruling class, by the promise of information & both are injured in an attack by the local inhabitants. An old crone rescues them & they spend a claustrophobic few days on her curtained bed -- difficult to avoid one another in these circumstances... They are helped in their escape by the Intani clan, & alone at last, get down to resolving their 'problem.' They travel on, Kirk is badly injured & the clan leaves them. End of story so far. There are some nice touches in this story. Spock's night long vigil after their 'first-time' & and the stuffing and mounting joke -- but I did find it rather wordy. I suspect that perhaps a third of the words in some sentences could have been blue-pencilled & possibly things are over-explained. There is little left to the imagination which renders the style a mite clumsy. Spock thinks, says & reacts a little too much for me & I find him rather weak as a result. Nevertheless, the story is original & the plot complex & the author's illustrations are illustrations & not merely portraits.

"Journey to the Day" completes Merle Decker's trilogy started in NOME 5. The story begins with Kirk critically injured & both of them abandoned by the Roamers with whom they have been traveling. I don't have space to go into too much of the plot but suffice it to remind readers of the original mission to search for a missing Vulcan scientific party, the xenophobia of the inhabitants of the planet & an act of treachery by one Nor-apth, a young member of the ruling class, the Hal-Ian. The story ties together all these with a sprinkling of hurt/comfort, sex, & a good action/adventure basis. Merle Decker illustrates the story herself; she is one of the few people who can actually capture the Kirk profile & she does it beautifully here. Her writing is a little over-embellished at times though & she does suffer from what I think of as the 'sliding point of view' affliction... All the same, where, let's say, Beverly Sutherland has the greater writing skill, Merle Decker has the better plot.

1986

[regarding the second part]: Merle Decker's "Journey to the Day" (part 2) is routine action/adventure, with a soupçon of hurt/comfort. As with several of the major NOME stories, this is one section of a multi-part story & there are some loose ends left dangling rather portentously. Still, this is a fast-paced & enjoyable narrative.

Merle Decker's "Journey to the Day" (part 2) is routine action/adventure, with a soupcon of hurt/comfort. As with several of the major NOME stories, this is one section of a multi-part story & there are some loose ends left dangling rather portentously. Still, this is a fast-paced & enjoyable narrative.

I was unimpressed with Merle Decker's "Journey To The Day" Part II. Not only was it predictable, but I have no use for the Goddess T'a, as presented. She simplistically rejects Logic and the Reforms as having no value whatsoever, and she seems to be an immortal ancient astronaut. She is altogether a dubious premise. I have always thought that Vulcans were more likely to be ancestor worshippers as in "Yesteryear" than to have developed a pantheon of deities whether they be archetypes or ancient astronauts. The memory cube from the pre-Reform era might be interesting, but this section ends before that can be explored fully.

2002

As far as the stories go it's a mixed bag: I love "Journey to the Day part 2" by Merle Decker. Her art accompanies the story and is set during the five year mission... Journey to the Day part 2 is the end of the trilogy so I was not left hanging at least. And it did have a pre-page that explained what had happened in the other two parts, "Homecoming" and "Journey part 1.

2003

This is a wonderful adventure-filled k/s story that includes hurt/comfort. In the prequel, "Homecoming" in NOME 5, Kirk and Spock are joined in an ancient Vulcan ritual-bonding called Shi-vai. Sarek has given oblique warnings involving the "degree of the blending" entailed in the Shi-vai brotherhood. That it will deepen and grow. This is continued in parti and II of "Journey to the Day", as Kirk and Spock can no longer deny the feelings between them and the sensual need that has grown since the ritual joining. At first, Spock does not think Kirk would desire an intimate relationship with him, and withdraws from Kirk when he begins to realize his feelings. When they are suddenly thrown into a planetary conflict on a routine mission, Kirk reveals his feelings to Spock, they make love, and the story continues. Later in the story, Kirk is badly injured and so this adds some h/c and angst to the story as well. It's very well done and a lot happens that can't be adequately explained here, at least not by me, but I really felt apart of the romance and conflicts as they unfolded scene by scene. There are some neat secondary characters too but the focus is clearly on Kirk and Spock throughout. Some lovely Merle Decker illos accompany the stories as well. A very nice k/s saga I highly recommend.