Forwarded by the ASC-VSO Posted: Fri, 30 Jan 2004 00:47:28 -0500 In: alt.startrek.creative From: quills the_quill_pen@yahoo.com Title: "Enemy of the State" 7 Author: Quills Contact: the_quill_pen@yahoo.com Series: ENT Rating: PG-13 Disclaimer: Paramount owns Star trek and I derive no financial gain from this story. Codes: A, T/Tu, Ma, S, R, P, So angst, drama, romance, humor, action/adventure Summary: The starship Enterprise is on a desperate mission to save involving the Vulcans, which threatens not only Earth, but also the entire galaxy. Now it is up to Archer and his crew, with the help of Soma, to unravel the Xindi plot and prevent Earth and the galaxy from falling at the feet of their greatest threat...Vulcan . ***Special note: This story takes place after the season three episode, "Carpenter Street", but before the episode "Harbinger". Archer brushed past the sickbay doors as they slid open. T'Pol followed several steps behind her captain as she noted the heightened agitated state Archer was in. She had observed the captain's stress level had increased by thirty six percent since they had undertaken the search for the Xindi weapon. In fact, the entire crew's stress levels were sharply up. But Captain Archer's stress level was higher than any other crewmember. T'Pol had spoken to Phlox about the matter, but the doctor had told her the captain was being extremely reticent about taking any kind of sedatives. In Archer's own words Phlox told her, iI'll relax once this mission is complete. Until then...I need to have a clear head./i Archer hurried towards the isolation room Phlox had placed Soma. He needed answers from his Vulcan counterpart and waiting for them was not something Jonathan Archer was about to do. There was already to much at stake and with an new unknown danger awaiting them, it was vital Archer find out what Soma knew. But before he made it to the isolation ward entrance, Phlox stepped in front of him, blocking Archer's way. "Captain, before you go in there.." Archer gave Phlox a hard look. He iwasn't/i in the mood for this again. "Doctor, I thought we settled this." T'Pol caught up to Archer, but stopped when she saw Phlox standing in the doorway. Listening intently, she heard Archer's last comment and wondered just what it was the captain and doctor had isettled /i. "Captain, all I'm asking is that you keep in mind that Captain Soma is still in a weakened condition," explained the doctor, trying to make his point with Archer. "iHe/i may be willing to talk, but that doesn't mean he's ready." Archer looked at Phlox and then turned to T'Pol. The female Vulcan gave him a cool and impassive stare, but her eyes betrayed her true thoughts. He could see a flash of concern for the Vulcan captain. Archer wondered, once again, how much T'Pol knew or even suspected about Soma. Either way, he knew it was only her loyalty to him that kept her from siding with Phlox. The captain nodded slowly at T'Pol as he addressed Phlox. "You have my word doctor." T'Pol remained a masque of calm and dispassion, but as before he could see the relief in her large brown eyes. Phlox gave Archer a slight smile as he stepped aside. The human captain never ceased to amaze the Denoubulon physician. It was one of the reasons Phlox had elected to stay with the iEnterprise/i during her mission into the Expanse. For all of Archer's faults, the human captain was a genuinely good man and, in the end, he always overcame his own adversities, enabling him to make the right decision. Entering the isolation room, Archer saw the lone occupied bio-bed, with a tired and worried looking Captain Soma propped up against the bed's elevated back. As soon as Soma saw Archer, he straightened and a look of alert calm came over his features. "Captain," said Archer politely. "I have some questions I'd like to ask you." Archer glanced over at Phlox. "Are you sure your up to it?" The Vulcan nodded his head. "Yes, sir," he replied. "It's important you hear what I have to tell you." Archer pulled up a stool, sitting down as he nodded at Soma. Soma took a deep breath, pursing his lips. iWhere should I start? /i he thought; Then it seemed obvious. The beginning... Soma stepped over the adjacent seat and dropped down into the co-pilot's chair. T'Cel followed him taking a seat in the pilot's chair to his left. In front of them was a large curved view port that afforded a view of the iEnterprise-C/i, just aft and starboard of the Starfleet vessel. Soma looked out at his ship as streaks of warp distorted starlight passed by. Both the iEnterprise/i and the temporal shuttle were at a sustained warp six point two. He smiled ruefully as he stared at his ship. He hated to leave her. Rachel Garrett was a first rate XO and the ship was in good hands, but Soma couldn't help feeling that he was leaving his child unattended. He knew it was a ridiculous feeling and he chalked it up to that time old illness many a ship captain has fallen ill to and for which there was no cure…love of his ship. Seeking a distraction, Soma looked inside the cockpit of the shuttle. He could see a number of glossy black panels on either side of the cabin and running along the front of the view screen. They looked like instrument panels but Soma couldn't see any lights or interface buttons. Looking over at T'Cel, he gave the female Vulcan a slight smile as he let his eyes move over the ship's cabin." T'Cel arched a brow as she gave Soma a sideways glance. She attributed his curiosity to a precocious child being shown some new and interesting puzzle to solve. She decided she would give Soma what humans called, "the fifty cent tour". Waving her hand across the glossy black panel in front over her, it instantly lit up with a rainbow of colors highlighting a number of display panels and what looked to Soma like interface systems. T'Cel passed her hand over a section of the board and a two-dimensional screen spread open in the center of the view port. Soma studied the screen as a stream of data flowed down it. "What you are seeing is the interface to the ship's temporal coordinate system," explained T'Cel. "From this panel or voice activation, any time period may be selected and input for travel or observation." Soma gave her a smile. "Show me?" T'Cel turned to the data screen as she considered what point in time she should choose. Logically, as an example, any one would do as well as another, but T'Cel decided she would show Soma something relevant and applicable to him personally. Then a thought occurred to her and she prompted the computer. "Computer, temporal display...Terran calendar...April 16, 2156." The data screen suddenly changed and a voice prompt from the computer sounded. "Specify please." Soma snapped his head towards T'Cel. The voice sounded like it was right next to him and not coming from some localized speaker. T'Cel glanced at Soma and he could swear he caught her smiling. No doubt, his being startled by the shuttle's computer voice amused her. Even in his own time, when technology had become rooted in everyday life activities, a person could distinguish a computer voice from a living being and be able to tell where that voice was coming from. It was just another example of how even the most cutting edge technology is eventually relegated to obsolescence. "Starfleet vessel Enterprise...1030 hours...Captain's ready room...standard view reference." answered T'Cel. Soma looked at the Vulcan curiously. iWhy does that sound familiar?/i he thought. Turning towards the data display he could see the stream of information had changed once again. This time to what looked like a video image. Soma could see a person was moving across a room. It was a man. Soma recognized him immediately. It was Captain Archer. Apparently he was speaking to someone outside the frame. Then the image panned and Soma's brow shot up. It was T'Pol, she had just entered the room and stood at attention; she handed Archer a padd. Suddenly it occurred to Soma just what he was watching and a smile formed on his lips as the image panned to a third person in the room. He could see a smile on the man's face as he spoke. "I took a shower this morning," said the man. "How 'bout you Cap'n?" "I'm sorry," Archer said trying to restrain the urge to laugh. "This is Commander Charles Tucker III...Sub-Commander T'Pol." Soma watched as the man Archer had just introduced, stood up and approached T'Pol. Hand extended, the man smiled. "Trip...call me Trip," T'Pol glanced at Tucker and then briefly at the hand he offered her. "I'll try to remember that," she said coolly as she turned back to Archer. "Freeze image," said T'Cel. Soma turned to T'Cel, a wide grin on his face. "I always wondered what that was like...their first time meeting." "It would appear your mother was not very taken with her future husband." Soma nodded as he continued to smile. "Well, my father had a way of disarming even the most reticent of women," explained the captain. "It's a family trait." T'Cel gave him a cursory glance. "Indeed." Soma looked back at the still image of his parents and then a thought occurred to him. "How did you know the exact date my parents met?" T'Cel glanced at Soma and then looked back at her instruments. "I make is it a practice to be thoroughly informed of the history of any individual I am assigned to," she replied curtly. She glanced at him one more from the corner of her eye and chided herself for the awkwardness of it. "I see," said Soma in way that made it obvious he didn't believe T'Cel's convenient explanation. "Thank you." "You are quite welcome," replied T'Cel turning back to her display panel. "What you were seeing was not a video image as you might suspect, but an actual point in time that the ship's temporal sensors are able to locate and observe." Soma's brow furrowed as he looked at the image in confusion. "If that's so then why can't we simply observe the time-stream from here?" "Unfortunately, the temporal plane is multi-dimensional," explained T'Pol. "There are numerous variations to a given event. The history of our universe is an interwoven tapestry of just one of each of those variations to a given event." "So...what you might see for a given event," said Soma. "May not actually be an event in our universe." "Or it may be an event that has been changed," added T'Cel. "This is going to be like finding a needle in a haystack," sighed the captain. "Unless the change is sweeping and wide spread," replied T'Cel. "Your analogy is correct." Soma watched T'Cel wave her hand over a display in the upper right hand section of the main panel. The display information changed. Suddenly a cascade of light appeared across the shuttle's view port, coalescing into a two-dimensional map with points running along a line crossing from one end of the image to the other. Soma stared at the map intently. It didn't look like any star chart he had ever seen. The translucent map showed a light green grid pattern that was cross-sectioned by a second red grid pattern. A winding yellow line traversed the entire distance of the map with blue points of light dotting all across the grid. "A time-stream map?" said Soma questioningly. T'Cel raised a brow. "Very good Captain." He gave her a smile and nodded his head at her. "This is a two dimensional extrapolation of the course we need to follow on our investigation of the time stream." She reached out and touched the closest point to Soma. Instantly the image zoomed in on the point and then re-expanded out for a close up of that single point in the time-stream. "This is one hundred years prior to your century," she explained as Soma studied the map. He could see streams of data cascading down as three-dimensional representations of people, ships and planets streamed past him. He turned away from the map to look at T'Cel. "Any particular reason for this point in time? "It is as good a place as any to begin," she replied approximating what she believed to be a shrug. "I have also selected a sector of space one-half of a light year outside of Vulcan space. Our appearance should attract little attention and we may proceed to Vulcan with dispatch." Soma nodded and turned back to the map. T'Cel left the image open for Soma to study as she waved her hand across a second display panel on her board. A moment later, the computer voice filled the cabin. "Coordinates entered. Temporal-shuttle is now prepared for temporal jump to time cluster A-198760, Terran year 2233." "Initiate temporal jump," responded T'Cel. "Wait...don't I need to strap myself in or something?" asked Soma half joking and half serious. T'Cel gave him a puzzled look. She often found his human expressions fascinating while at other times she failed to comprehend their meaning. "Why would you wish to do such a thing?" "I don't know," replied Soma "I suppose I'm just being overly cautious about my first time-jump in a temporal shuttle." T'Cel raised her brow. "We have already made the jump," she replied coolly. Soma's own brow shot up. "That was it?" he said not hiding his dismay. T'Cel cocked her head towards the captain. "You were expecting some pyrotechnic display?" "Well...yes, I guess I was," answered Soma a little disappointed. In truth, he had always enjoyed the visual display that a ship going to warp made. Looking out the view port he could see the iEnterprise/i was no longer there and even the star configurations were different. "This vessel operates on the same principle as our hand held devices," explained T'Cel as she checked the data display that now appeared in front of the view port. "The primary purpose of the shuttle is to allow a temporal agent to travel through a given time period under conventional methods, if required." "Takes all the romance out of the trip," replied Soma. "When this mission is over, remind me to show you the warp trails ships leave passing through gas clouds surrounding the Murasaki 312 quasar. They're something else." T'Cel gave Soma a questioning glance. The captain gave her a smile, "From a scientific standpoint that is." She nodded at the captain and looked away as his gaze lingered on her. She did not dislike the captain looking at her. In fact, she found that, regardless of her Vulcan training, she found the thought of him looking at her so intently to be...ipleasurable/i. As she checked the arrival coordinates for verification, a thought crossed her mind and disregarding her urge to suppress it, she consciously chose to voice it. "Jonathan, may I ask you something?" she said as she continued to study her panel readout. Soma nodded his head. "Go ahead." "Why have you never taken a mate?" His brow shot up in that way all Vulcans seemed to when given some curious query. iWhy is she asking?/i he wondered. It was certainly not something she had asked him before. He chose to answer her question with a question. "Do you mean bonded or gotten married?" "Either," she clarified. Soma considered the question and more importantly, his answer to it. He liked T'Cel and he was fairly certain the Vulcan female was interested in him as well. They had done this dance before but never quite so directly. He wondered if now was the time to address how they both felt. He might not have the opportunity later and seemed as if T'Cel was trying her Vulcan best to steer the two of them in that direction. "Well…I suppose I could say the right woman never came along," he replied. "But the truth is I'm married to my career...What about you? Were you ever bonded?" "My parents bonded me when I was young," replied T'Cel. "When the time came for my mate and I to complete the ritual, I declined." Soma looked at her curiously. He wasn't as surprised at her choice to not complete the bonding as he was at her willingness to tell him. For as long as Soma knew the female Vulcan, she had always remained a mystery to him. Perhaps that was part of his attraction to her. "I found that the universe had more to offer me than a life with a bondmate could." "That sounds vaguely familiar," he said smiling as he considered the choice his own mother had made so long ago. "Do you ever have any regrets?" T'Cel considered the question. Most people had regrets about one thing or another in their life. It mattered little if you were Vulcan or human or any of the many species that existed in the universe. "I do not regret the choices I have made, but…I-I would like to find…someone to share my life with," she said looking at Soma as she completed the sentence. "T'Cel…" Soma said softly as he met her gaze. The two Vulcans studied each other intently. Slowly, they drifted closer until their warm breath intermingled. Vulcan lips gently brushed against Vulcan lips. Soma jerked back in startled surprise as a blaring alarm sounded in the cockpit. "What's that?" he asked as T'Cel swung around to her display panel. "Proximity sensor alarm," she answered as she viewed the data streaming across the panel. "An object is dropping out of warp near our position." "Object?" said Soma in surprise. "Not a ship?" "It is too large to be a ship, it must..." T'Cel's words were cut of as the shuttle lurched violently. The tiny shuttle started to spin and tumble along its axis as the display panels in the cockpit faded in and out. Soma grabbed the display board in front of him as he tried to steady himself. "Systems are overloading," reported T'Cel as she desperately tried to regain control of the craft. Soma felt like a fish out of water. He didn't know this technology well enough to be of any real help and the one person who did was having little success. He struggled to remain upright as the centripetal forces exerted by the shuttles own artificial gravity were forcing him back into his seat. He remembered old Earth pilots called them g-forces and without pressure suits even two Vulcans of superior strength and constitution wouldn't last long at a sustained threshold. As the ship continued to be rocked and buffeted, the captain glanced out the view port. The normally open expanse of space was a distortion of shimmering starlight that was having a vertigo effect on the starship captain. Tasting bile in his mouth, Soma forced himself to remain focused as he looked out the viewport again. Almost instantly he squeezed his eyes shut as the effect of vertigo magnified. "T'Cel?" he called out, but the Vulcan woman didn't respond. Soma gritted his teeth. He had to assume she had blacked-out as he was about to do. His mind was becoming unfocused as he could feel himself losing consciousness. His last thoughts were a struggle to remain conscious. He didn't know this technology but he was counting on it having at least the same counter measure in case of an emergency. "Computer...thrusters!" he shouted. "Fire emergency thrusters!" For a long moment, no response came and then the computer voice replied. "Emergency thrusters firing." The ship suddenly lurched as it assumed a new direction. The spinning effect began to slow and Soma opened his eyes as his head pounded from the rush of blood. The internal lighting of the shuttle continued to wink on and off forcing Soma to rub his eyes as he tried to focus. Weakly, he looked over at T'Cel. The Vulcan woman was unconscious, but appeared to be un-injured. He leaned over and gently shook her. As she opened her eyes, she sucked in a breathe of air and gasped. At first Soma thought it was the sudden shock of waking up after being violently rendered unconscious. But after a moment, he could see that she was staring out the view port. He had not bothered looking out it since the shipped had come to rest. He followed the line of her gaze opened his mouth in shock "Oh my god," said Soma as he looked out the view port. The entire view port was obscured by a large mass that Soma knew could only be the hull of some immensely large vessel. He looked down at T'Cel's instruments. If he was reading them correctly, they were at least five hundred kilometers from the vessel and it still obscured their view. The vessel was sleek and black. Not in a beautiful way, like the Andorian corsairs but in a threatening and menacing way. A ship like that could have only one purpose...to threaten. He could see long garish iarms/i coming out of what looked like the font end of the vessel. Those arms looked far from friendly and though Soma had no way of knowing, he was certain they were weapons of unimaginable power. "That...ship...is immense," said T'Cel swallowing hard. "We must have been in its gravity field!" he said. "It's so large it generates its own gravitational force. We have to get away from it before we're pulled into it. The shuttle will be crushed against its hull." T'Cel moved her hand over the display panel and a weak chirp sounded. "Engines are not responding," said T'Cel checking her system boards. "We have minimal power." Soma could hear a new sound in the cockpit and noticed a light flashing on the far console. "We are receiving a transmission," she said. Soma nodded. "Let's see it." T'Cel tapped a panel on her display board and an image appeared on the data screen. "...have entered restricted space. You are ordered to surrender your vessel in the name of the Alliance." Soma studied the Vulcan on the screen. Physically he looked like a Vulcan: shallow eyes and angular features that most Vulcans had along with the ever present pointed ears and arched brow. However, his hair was not of the standard Vulcan style, which is an expression of the Vulcan belief that physical beauty was transitory and therefore a waste of energy. He had dark black curly locks that were tied in the back in a que. He wore a black buttoned up jack with a silver sash crossing his chest, which gave the suggestion that he belonged to some elite group or unit. "You will power down your vessel," said the dark clad Vulcan "and prepare to be tractored by the Vulcan battle platform iVortac./i" Soma looked at T'Cel in surprise. "Vulan battle platform?" he mouthed. T'Cel shared her fellow Vulcan's confusion. "Can we respond?" he asked. She checked her instrument and then nodded. "We have audio capability only." "Put me through," he said T'Cel moved her hand over her instruments and then looked back at Soma, giving the captain a brief nod. "This is Captain Soma, we did not mean to violate restricted space. If you..." "We have scanned your vessel," said the Vulcan cutting him off. "The fact that your Vulcan is the only thing that has saved you from immediate destruction. You will not be given any further icourtesy/i. The image winked out as the transmission closed. "Courtesy, he calls it," said Soma sarcastically. Suddenly the shuttle shuddered. For a moment he thought they were caught in the mammoth vessels gravity again, but looking at T'Cel, the idea was quickly dismissed. "Tractor-beam," she said. "We're being pulled in." "Can you get the engines online," he asked. "Maybe we can break free." T'Cel's hands glided across her display panel as she tried to input commands to activate the ship's engines once again. Turning to Soma, she looked at him gravely. "I-I'm sorry Jonathan…" "Don't sell us short yet," he said. "Do a manual shut down. All systems." T'Cel deactivated the central processor and the ship's internal systems immediately powered down. "How long do you need before you can reinitialize?" asked the captain. "Fifteen seconds." "Let's hope this works," said Soma. "We do not want to find out what kind of personal icourtesy/i they have in store for us." "I would have to agree with your assessment," said T'Cel nodding. "Alright, try reinitializing the computer." "Override the diagnostics, we don't have time." "Systems are coming back on line," reported T'Cel "engines are nominal." "Then lets hope this shuttle has it where it counts," said Soma "Fire all engines." The temporal shuttle fired its engines as it attempted to come about. Soma could hear the structural integrity generator whine as the tiny shuttle strained against the tractor-beam. "The tractor-beam strength yield is too strong," said T'Cel. "We cannot brake free." "Do we have weapons?" T'Cel nodded, passed her hand over a new panel. Instantly it came alive with what was unmistakably tactical data. "I will attempt to disable the tractor emitter," she said as a new alarm sounded. "Let me guess," said Soma. "They're targeting us with their weapons?" "Yes...I'm firing weapons...now!" A succession of red beams fired from the small shuttle, traveled through the shimmering blue tractor beam. Making contact the emitter, the red energy beams caused a cascade of blue energy to dance around the housing. The energy cascade continued to build until a bright white flash appeared causing the tractor-beam to suddenly stop. "We're free," said Soma feeling forward momentum "get us out of here." "Firing thrusters," said T'Cel. "Engaging cloak." The temporal-shuttle rocket away from the mammoth Vulcan ship; several blue steaks of disruptor fire followed them as the shuttle faded from visual site. T'Cel glanced at her sensor display. "The vessel does not appear to be pursuing." Soma shook his head. "A ship that big won't but I have the feeling we can expect company." A familiar alarm began sounding once again. "Proximity alarm," said T'Cel tapping her console and bringing up a two-dimensional tactical map. "Multiple contacts closing." "Attack fighters from the mother ship," said Soma as he saw the display. "Are we still cloaked?" "Yes, but our warp drive is still offline," replied T'Cel. "What about the temporal drive?" She looked at her board for a moment and then at Soma, "Functional…the power cells have been damaged. We will only be able to make one jump" "Then lets get the hell out of here," said the captain. "We'll go back to the iEnterprise/i get help. "No...we must find an alternate location," countered T'Cel. "The time-stream has been changed. We cannot count on your crew or my people." "Then..." Soma was about to protest when a large concussive blast struck the shuttle. "Torpedoes," shouted Soma "They're firing randomly. Hoping to hit us. If one of those detonates near us we're finished." T'Cel's fingers raced frantically over her controls; she needed more time, but she didn't have it. The concussive blasts from the enemy torpedoes would eventually strike close enough to cripple if not destroy the shuttle. She needed to find a safe period, but if the time-line had been changed then no period would be safe. She would need to find a place outside the timeline; a place or period that would not be affected. Suddenly her head snapped up and her brow arched. Scrambling her fingers across the system board, she struggled frantically to input her request to the computer. "Proximity sensor," said Soma as he glanced the sensor data. "It's a torpedo!" Suddenly the shipped jarred violently as instrument panels overloaded, showering the occupants with sparks. A forward panel exploded shooting debris at the two occupants. Soma's head snapped back as a piece of the panel struck a glancing blow across his forehead. His head lolling as he tried to stay focused. He could feel a trickle of blood run down his forehead as it started to throb. Struggling to stay focused, he looked over at T'Cel. Straining his eyes, he could see her outline, but something didn't look right. There seemed to be something an object intersecting the outline. 'T-T'Cel," he said weakly. She didn't answer. Soma's vision began to blur even more and he could feel consciousness slipping away. "Temporal coordinates set," announced the computer "Initiating jump to temporal anomaly 27896." Soma's head fell to one side as he slumped down in his chair, but he was certain he heard T'Cel's voice before he lost consciousness. ________________________________________________________________________ "Then I remember coming to," said Soma looking at Archer. "I-I wasn't sure where I was...then I looked out the view port and saw you coming towards the shuttle." "Then you didn't pilot the shuttle?" asked Archer. Soma shook his head. "I was unconscious...even if I wasn't...I couldn't have piloted that ship." "T'Cel," said T'Pol Soma and Archer both looked at T'Pol. The Vulcan raised her brow as she felt the stare from the two men. "It is a logical conclusion." Soma shook his head. "The last thing I heard...I thought I heard was her voice." He looked down thoughtfully as he tried to remember. "'I'll bring you home' she said." Archer looked at Soma, the Vulcan was flushed and he could see perspiration forming on his forehead. Glancing up, he looked at the readouts on the bio-scanner. All elevated to high levels. He hadn't even seen levels that high on T'Pol so he was certain they weren't normal. "Easy Captain," said Archer putting his hand on Soma's shoulder. "Captain, I know it all sounds too incredible to be true," said the Vulcan starship captain, his breath haggard and racing. "But you have to believe that what I have told you is inot/i a delusion or some form of space psychosis. I am in full possession of my faculties, sir. I iknow/i what I saw." Archer stared at the Vulcan. He was right. It was all so incredible that it was impossible to believe. And he wouldn't believe it if it weren't for the fact that something ihad/i been changed. Something T'Pol had shown him only a few hours earlier convinced him that anything Soma had to say would be taken as the truth. "I do believe you Captain," said Archer reassuringly. "We've made some unbelievable discoveries of our own since you've come aboard." Turning to his science officer, Archer gave her a nod to elaborate. "T'Pol" T'Pol looked at Soma for a moment. The two Vulcans hadn't said a word to one another since T'Pol had entered the room. Soma gave her a small smile and he swore T'Pol blushed. But if she did, she regained her composure almost as quickly as she reported her findings. "We have run scans to the limits of long range sensors," she began. "I have been unable to detect any trace of the subspace anomalies or the spheres we believe create the anomalies; ship's sensors cannot even detect that they were ever present. It is as if they never existed." Soma looked at her in disbelief, "The spheres were over a thousand years old." He had studied their history when he attended the Vulcan Science Academy. They had offered few clues as to their mechanics or makers. Even in the twenty-fourth century they were still one of the great-unsolved puzzles of the galaxy. Now, to never have even been created. Soma shook his head as he considered the great loss to science and history that would be as well as the magnitude the change he spoke of truly encompassed. "If your right then that means whatever has been changed in the timeline happened a long time ago." "But if your right," said Phlox. "How can we know where and when that change occurred?" "We need to pool our resources," said the captain shaking his head. Turning to T'Pol he issued a new set of orders. "Trip expects to have the engines realigned in three hours. As soon as he's done I want the senior staff assembled for a briefing. Include Major Hayes as well. We may need the M.A.C.O.S." "Yes, Captain," T'Pol nodded. Archer turned back to Soma. He gave the Vulcan a smile. "Thanks, you've been a big help Captain. You risked a lot getting here. Take it easy and get some rest," said Archer turning to leave. Soma immediately sat up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. Phlox moved to steady Soma, but he waved the Denobulon away. "Captain, I'd like to return to active duty." Archer looked at Soma "Jonathan..." He sympathized with the Vulcan. If he were in his place he would want to be part of what was going on and not sitting on the sidelines. But he was also mindful of what Phlox had told him. "I think it would be best if you remained in sickbay," said the captain. "Doctor Phlox feels your condition warrants further recuperating and I agree." Soma looked at Archer for a moment. His jaw tightened. "I could make it an order." Archer straightened. But then allowed himself to relax. Soma was acting out of desperation. He could see that and he understood how the man felt. "I think I have you on date of rank, Captain," smiled Archer. "I have more time in grade," countered Soma taking a step towards Archer. He was now directly in front of the captain and staring at him icily. "I'm the senior officer." iHe really is seriousi Archer thought. /iWell, I'll set him straight right now./i "This is imy/i ship, captain," replied Archer coolly. "Mine is the first and the last decision aboard this iEnterprise/i, mister." Soma bristled at the statement. He knew Archer was right. He also knew he couldn't bully the man with his rank, which was in question to begin with. Deciding to change tactics he allowed his features to soften and nodded in concession to Archer's authority. "Captain...I-I owe iher/i more than to just sit in this bio-bed," said Soma. Archer looked into the man's eyes. He could see the pain Soma's was feeling. The death of T'Cel had cut deeply into the Vulcan captain. For a moment Archer wondered whether Soma wanted vengeance on whoever was behind all this. Then Soma said something that convinced him it wasn't. "I must complete her mission, Captain." Those words rang through Archer's ears. A chill rode down his spine as he remembered saying words very much like that. Looking over at Phlox, he eyed the doctor for a sign. Phlox frowned for a moment. He still believed Soma was in no condition to return to active duty, but he also knew the steps a driven man would take. Reluctantly, he gave Archer an agreeing nod. Looking back at Soma, Archer gave him a somber look before allowing himself a smile. "Doctor…get this man a uniform." Soma gave Archer a slight smile, "Thanks Jon." "You can thank me by preparing a report for the senior staff," replied the Captain. "I want them brought up to date before we have that meeting." The captain had granted Soma his request, but if Archer could, he'd make sure Soma's duties remained light. "I'll have it ready for you within the hour, Captain." "Good, then I'll see you at the briefing," replied Archer as he headed for the exit. Turning back, he looked at Phlox. "Doctor, I'd like to see you for a minute." "Of course Captain," answered Phlox as he turned to Soma. "I'll just be a few minutes captain and I'll send for a uniform." "That won't be necessary doctor," said T'Pol. "I will assist Captain Soma." Phlox gave the two Vulcan's a broad grin. "Alright...I'll leave you two alone." Soma looked at T'Pol as the female Vulcan eyed him warily. Seeing Soma again was proving to be as difficult as she believed it would be. Soma, a veteran Starfleet officer was old enough to be her father, but was in fact her son...hers and Commander Tucker's. A fact she continued to have difficulty over considering she had no intimate relationship with the man, but would one day have a child with him. It was all too overwhelming for any one person to accept without at least some trepidation. "Does he know?" he asked her. T'Pol cocked one brow. "I assume you are not referring to either the doctor or Captain Archer." "Mother," he said stressing the word, "You know whom I'm talking about." iMother/i, the word echoed through T'Pol's mind. iI am his mother,/i she thought repeatedly. iHe is my son,/i but as much as she tried the iword/i would not come and she turned away as she gave Soma his answer. "No, Captain, Commander Tucker is not aware of your lineage." "Captain?" said Soma clearly hurt. Shaking his head he looked around the room and then something occurred to him. He returned his gaze to T'Pol as he posed another question. "It's Sim isn't it?" She turned suddenly and looked at Soma. Her face was a mass of conflicting emotions trying to break to the surface. He could tell that she found his prior knowledge of events in her life to be disconcerting. "I'm sorry," he said. "I-I should have known better." She looked at Soma in surprise, but then realized that she truly was an open book to him. It frightened her a little. To be so exposed to another person like that. Soma shook his head. "Must have been hard." She nodded slightly. "It was…unsettling." "You never knew?" T'Pol took a deep breath and let out a low sigh. "For an emotionally open man, Commander Tucker is capable of concealing his emotions quite well...when he wishes." Soma shook his head. "And you...how do you feel about ihim/i?" She looked at him. His blue eyes twinkled and he gave her a gentle smile...just like ihim/i! "I-I don't know," she said and quickly turned making for the exit. Stopping, she turned back briefly, but did not look at Soma. "I will have a uniform sent to you shortly. You may wish to begin working on the report Captain Archer requested." Turning away, she exited the room, leaving Soma alone. He took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. "Yes, Mam." TBC... -- Stephen Ratliff ASC Stories Only Forwarding In the Pattern Buffer at: http//trekiverse.crosswinds.net/feed/ Yahoo! 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