Kaliffee (Star Trek: TOS story)

You may be looking for the zine Kalifee.

K/S Fanfiction
Title:	Kaliffee
Author(s):	Ray Newton and Fiona James
Date(s):	1998
Length:
Genre:	slash
Fandom:	Star Trek: The Original Series
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Kaliffee is a K/S story by Ray Newton and Fiona James.

It was published in the print zine First Time #47.

Summary

From the publisher: "Spock takes refuge in the desert rather than force a bond on Kirk when the two of them and a security guard are on a survey mission."

Reactions and Reviews

Through a series of circumstances, including Spock going into pon farr, he and Kirk are accidently bonded. I really enjoyed the setting, the details, how it happened, the lieutenant’s death, etc. But the heart of the story—that I just loved—involves the two choices that Spock presents to Kirk. One is to formally marry on Vulcan and they would be equal but must have complete fidelity. Two is become Spock’s property as an unsuccessful challenger. Spock uses the term “lorath” (that I’ve seen before somewhere?) and that it would be a secret and Kirk could have sex elsewhere whenever he wanted. But when Spock needed him…he’d better be ready! Kirk ponders the situation and this is really good—a very involving dilemma for Kirk and I thoroughly enjoyed the scenario. It was really well written and very clever use of a situation that centered around Kirk’s independent character. However, considering this marvelously complex dilemma, the ending came way too fast. I was so caught up in the story that it made the ending even more disappointing. But still, a really unique twist on a classic K/S situation.

This story is about 14-15 pages by two established K/S writers. I was expecting a lot and was a little disappointed. This is your basic pon farr story set on a planet called Delgon with Spock, Kirk and a red shirt named Lt. Lofgren. Need I mention what happens to the red shirt? This story really didn’t have much sparkle for me until it got to the part where Spock explains to Kirk his options. I liked Kirk considering the various options and finding it hard to come to a decision. Mind you, there’s nothing wrong with the story, but overall I just found it ordinary and that’s not what I expect from these two writers.

This is a unique pon farr scenario, and well written. It's an inventive treatment of Vulcan ways; it's also a rich, in-depth look into Kirk's and Spock's feelings and the dynamics between them, with the emotional content remaining always clear because of nice, clean writing. This was wonderfully more than "just" pon farr and how Kirk and Spock might deal with it. On a three-person landing party on a planet otherwise empty of people, Spock goes into pon farr, but the circumstances are such that the third person's presence sets the stage for the Kalifee—the challenge. I appreciated and found interesting the details about the planet they're on. Perhaps the details weren't totally necessary to advance the story, but there were just enough and not too much, and they added atmosphere and were creative.... I felt the story moved at precisely the right pace while still imparting a lot of rich information about what this Time means to Spock and Vulcans. That's why the last few pages were less than perfect for me. I had a problem with the structure of the story at this point, although I must say this doesn't diminish the ideas and feelings that were put across. The last pages were long analyses, first by Kirk, then by Spock, of all the relevant considerations of their situation. These considerations were interesting, inventive and unique-and emotionally satisfying-but they were given to us in one solid piece, with very little story-action taking place. I wouldn't want to have missed any word of these ponderings, but maybe they could have been spaced out in a slightly longer story. And then the decision is made and the story ends on a quietly joyful note.