String Theory (Spock/Kirk AOS)

These are the voyages of the starship Hawking.

Its three-month mission: to explore strange new ways to cheat the universe, to seek out new disagreements and co-conspirators, to boldly indulge where no Vulcan has indulged before.

—~—

2257.151

By the time the Hawking reaches its first destination, Spock has made several notable observations about Cadet Kirk.

The first is that he works well into the night. Through half of Gamma shift, the soft, blue glow from the holodesk is still visible underneath the partition that separates the bed from his office. If Kirk sleeps, he does so after Spock has retired for the night. The cadet returns to report for duty on time the following morning, although not necessarily rested. There are well-defined shadows beneath Kirk's eyes, and he consumes roughly three times the amount of synthesized coffee as compared to any other member of the crew.

Spock also comes to the realization that whatever aversion Kirk had to him seems to have dissipated. He is tolerable company, although uncharacteristically quiet when they are alone. The cadet is outspoken and sociable when on duty, and yet speaks only when spoken to in the solitude of Spock's quarters. Spock is surprised to realize that he has grown so used the daytime clamor that he finds the evening quiet unsettling.

The next observation Spock makes is accidental. They are scheduled to arrive at Gersemi Prime in nine standard hours, shortly after the beginning of Alpha shift. He is finishing his inventory of the supplies to be transported down to the colony while Kirk is inserting figures into the computer. He sits on the edge of the table, one foot on the floor and one knee casually slung over the corner, inputting with one hand and moving ship components around with the other.

His movements are coordinated enough that Spock considers he may very well be ambidextrous. But that is not what Spock finds fascinating; Kirk is not using his PADD to input the raw data. He is doing the complex calculations in his head, while simultaneously adjusting the elements of the ship to compensate.

"Am I humming, or something?"

Kirk looks up as he speaks, and Spock becomes aware that he has been staring. "No," he says, glancing at the PADD in his hands; he is displeased to realize that his own progress has suffered due to distraction. "I simply noticed that you have recalibrated the gravimetric dampeners eleven times in succession."

"Yeah, well," Kirk says, glaring at his project, "they're not cooperating."

In the time it takes Spock to decipher the odd expression, Kirk has recalibrated the dampeners once again and is frowning at the readout. The components in question are highlighted in red; the computer still refuses to accept the adjustment. Since Kirk has made no progress on his task in the past twenty-six minutes, Spock abandons the PADD and stands to scan the data, moving to his side. He expects to find whatever fault Kirk has encountered and correct it, so Kirk can continue his work and Spock can return to his own.

"There is an error in your calculation," Spock finds, pointing to a specific part in the equation. "For a ship this of this mass, the amount of power required — "

"My calculation is fine," Kirk interrupts, and brings up the broad specs of the ship. "See?"

Spock blinks. "How were you able to achieve that level of output?"

Kirk grins. "Monocrystalline dilithium. And before you even say it, I know everyone's still hemming and hawing about its stability, but that's only because they think the mining colonies will take a big hit from it. Which is stupid, because we still need plenty of other raw materials and to switch to epitaxy — I mean, the difference in time it takes to harvest and refine versus create them in a lab alone? And the huge chunk of the budget we can redirect towards more important shit, like upgrading the research labs or QOL programs. Not to mention we won't have to worry about imperfections, and the artificial crystals will be able to withstand a lot more use before replacing."