LINKDING

<blockquote>It is thus with great surprise that I read the recent article by Sleazebaggano [9] that argues that Falleen are "reptomammalians" descended from reptiles that acquired mammalian reproductive strategies—including gestation and bearing of live young and production of a nutritious substance from pectoral mammary glands to feed those offspring—via hybridogenesis, i.e., ancestral mating and subsequent hybridization with a mammalian species. (An academic fight about whether Falleen are reptiles or mammals, because I wanted to write fic in the style of a snarky reply letter.)</blockquote>

<blockquote>Stranded on the planet Sigma Nox while searching for a missing away team, Spock and Kirk find themselves pitted against a disturbing native life form. With the captain out of commission on a regular basis and Spock struggling to preserve his stoicism, staying alive is difficult enough – but when a slim chance for escape surfaces, their resolve is truly put to the test. Together they must fight for survival in the heart of an alien jungle, and in the process, uncover the mystery of the planet’s past. Slow build K/S. Written for the 2011 Star Trek Big Bang on LJ - look for links to the mix and art there! Warnings: Minor character death. Mind control themes and sort-of-zombies. Dark at times due to twisted xenobiological shenanigans. Mild themes of stress-related weight loss. Heaps of TOS references and/or spoilers. Eventual smut. Freakishly long chapters.</blockquote> ➤ A very good fic! I loved the inclusion and importance of Longclaw, and how different she was while still able to work together with them. ➤ I was also very interested by the ecology/history/alien-anthropology of the planet, and although I am sad the fic didn't end by giving us conclusions about exactly what all is going on with this place, it leaves the characters also invested and wanting/intending to know more, which was good and worked for the fic.