Out of the woods

Care

. ..2233. . .

. . . December 21st. .

"Sybok, what did you do this time?"

"I tried to end their pain."

Jim sat down beside Sybok with a sigh.

"Look," Jim said. "You have a little brother who looks up to you. If you continue to try to end others pain then one day you will get yourself killed."

"You are just saying that because Vulcans do not approve of me." Sybok turned his head away.

"Sybok," Jim said. "Your brother is in the turbocar."

Sybok turned his head toward Jim with wide eyes.

"No, you didn't." Sybok said.

"I did," Jim said. "You are spending the rest of your suspension home on Vulcan until next week. You are lucky I am not the kind who can do mental discipline. What you did was uncalled for."

"But he was calling my father a traitor." Sybok said.

"Did you really have to set him free by facing his mistakes and overcoming them?" Jim said. "That might make the next Khan Noonien Singh."

"It won't, Mr Kirk." Sybok said.

"Please, call me Jim." Jim said.

"You don't understand, Mr Kirk," Sybok said. "We have to accept our emotions and control them to a certain degree so we don't kill ourselves!" Jim sighed, going through his hair. He could not go against the Prime Directive. No interfering in events that are meant to happen and never use beforehand knowledge to prevent a event from happening that affects everyone. He could not tell anything about his future. But Sybok was making that difficult. "If we continue to deny our emotions then we will become cold hard blooded killers who don't have hearts."

Jim looked over toward Sybok.

"You have the right motivation," Jim said. "But Vulcans are a different breed of people. You can accept your emotions but there are many Vulcans who cannot."

"Then I will help them." Sybok said.

"Every single one?" Jim asked, unsure.

"I will get followers and we will go off and make our own civilization that accepts their emotions." Sybok said.

"Romulans followed their hearts and they became eternally paranoid," Jim said. "Are you sure, Sybok, that you want a repeat of history?"

Sybok lowered his head then back up toward Jim.

"Romulans and Vulcans should join together, get over our differences, and embrace our bloodlines." Sybok said.

Jim grabbed Sybok by the shoulder.

"We're going home." Jim said.

Sybok got up and followed Jim.

"Are you mad at me?" Sybok asked.

"Yes." Jim said, flatly.

"Why?" Sybok asked.

"Because pain makes us who we are," Jim said. "I haven't remembered mine but you. . ." Jim stopped turning toward Sybok. "Swear to me."

"To say a word that insults you is entirely. . . unreasonable." Sybok said.

Jim came down to Sybok's level taking the boy's hand and looked into the boy's eyes sincerely.

"Swear to me that you won't do it to me," Jim said. "When I remember it. I don't need to face it. It is mine and mine alone."

Sybok slowly nodded.

"I won't do that I won't give you shit." Sybok said.

"In my case, a swear is a promise. No bad words." Jim said.

"I won't do it to you, I promise." Sybok said.

Jim let go of the boy's hand as he stood up.

"Let's go then." Jim said.

"Can I hold your hand?" Sybok asked.

"Just between us." Jim said.

Sybok nodded.

"Just between us." Sybok said.

"I will see you later Sybok!" Came a gleeful sounding Vulcan.

"You just earned yourself a follower." Jim said.

"I am getting tired of their extreme loyalty to me already." Sybok said, jokingly.

"Don't we all get tired of extremely loyal brain washed Vulcans?" Jim asked, with a tinge of humor.

"Affirmative." Sybok said, as the two walked out of the open doorway.

They both respected each other to a certain degree and had an eye to eye respect ever since then.