Swallow the Fire
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| Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Swallow the Fire |
| Author(s): | Sharon Pillsbury |
| Date(s): | 1989 |
| Length: | |
| Genre(s): | slash |
| Fandom(s): | Star Trek: TOS |
| Relationship(s): | Kirk/Spock |
| External Links: | on AO3 art from Within the Mirror for Swallow the Fire by Virginia Lee Smith |
Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Swallow the Fire is a Kirk/Spock story by Sharon Pillsbury. The zine art for it was by SBL, Kay Wells,, Virginia Lee Smith, and Dragon.
It was published in the print zine Within the Mirror #2.
Summary
"Spock forces Kirk into a bond when he realizes his captain tried to kill him with the Tantalus field."
Reactions and Reviews
1989
Most stories where Spock rapes Kirk, yet somehow they end up in love, don't really make it as far as I'm concerned. This one does. After the rape, Kirk shows the type of rage and despair that a rape victim would feel; he determines to take out a terrible revenge. Spock learns to feel genuine regret for his actions and is willing to forfeit his life. There is a very believable tentativeness and wariness between them at the end as they decide to make a try at a relationship, in the harsh, "mirror" universe. [1]
2008
This is an older zine that I bought recently, to take advantage of the dollar-pound ratio, and fill a gap in my collection. I haven‘t always enjoyed this author‘s stories—I‘ve found her portrayal of Kirk hard to accept at times—but this story certainly held me throughout its 30-odd pages. Some interesting art illustrating this one, too...
As I‘ve said before, Mirror stories are one of my guilty pleasures: This one begins from Commander Spock‘s point of view as he is aware of his Captain‘s efforts to seduce him, and of how he keeps his response muted, maintaining, he thinks, their 'tenuous relationship‘. We learn that Spock has secretly altered the Tantalus Field, so he knows not only when Kirk is watching him (when he puts on a HOT show), but also the moment that he presses the button to eliminate him... And this moment changes everything! Spock‘s fury is frightening, as is his revenge. The thought of a naked Spock, striding the corridor, is quite diverting, too! It‘s here that the pace of the story really takes off. Spock forcibly bonds Kirk to him, we see him totally vulnerable, and Spock feels a brief moment of pity, alongside his 'cold, deadly anger‘. In the aftermath, Jim‘s feelings about the rape are explored as he and McCoy find out all they can about Vulcan bonds. I found the use of the Doctor pretty good here: It‘s a harsh, Mirror universe, of course, but we see glimpses of 'our‘ McCoy, the man he could be. This is just the sort of thing I love about Empire stories...And we certainly get the devious, bitter side of Kirk as he plots revenge on Spock, totally convincing himself—and me, too, much of the time, of his hatred. The twists then are clever as he sets out to convince Spock that he cares about him, and, against his will, the Vulcan begins to let down his guard... In the end, Jim‘s revenge is shocking and almost final. I have to say that Spock came up with an equally devastating solution to their problem that I didn‘t see coming and how this eventually leads to a new start for them is quite compelling. It‘s not always an easy read, and sometimes the story‘s perhaps somewhat uneven, but I had to finish it. There‘s hope at the close, although all is not resolved between them. But then again, this IS the Mirror Universe, so that‘s ok, I guess. [2]
2021
3.5/5. I didn't enjoy this one. It was well written and the smut was pretty good, but I just hate it when relationships start with rape.[3]
References
- ^ from The LOC Connection #8
- ^ from The K/S Press #139 (2008)
- ^ K/S Fanfiction by uss-genderprise.tumblr.com/