Back to the Future

FIX the FINALE Challenge

Back to the Future

by Kevin

Rating: PG (language)
Disclaimer: The characters mentioned within this text are the sole property of Paramount Studios, UPN, and Viacom. I intend no infringement.
Genre: Fix the Finale Fic Challenge
Summary: Our favorite two Temporal Agents’ missions are over and it is time to return home.

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If I leave here tomorrow
Would you still remember me?
For I must be traveling on, now,
'Cause there's too many places I've got to see.
But, if I stayed here with you, girl,
Things just couldn't be the same.

-- Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd

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“May I join you Trip?”

“Of course T’Pol, you don’t have to ask.”

“The Captain told me you received your new assignment.”

“Yeah, I was kind of surprised. We still have almost six months to go and I’ve already got my assignment. I almost feel like the buzzards are picking us apart before we’re dead.”

She had no idea what his reference meant so she ignored it. “What ship will you be assigned to?” T’Pol did not want to reveal that Hoshi had already told her Trip was to be the Chief Engineer aboard the Nagato.

“Actually none. Starfleet’s assigned me to the Montana training facility. I thought I’d be right back on another ship. I know Eckland was lobbying to get me aboard the Nagato before she left dock.”

T’Pol felt like she had been stabbed in the chest.

“Have you found out your assignment yet?”

“No.” She hid her lie from him. After hearing he was to be assigned the Nagato, she lobbied Captain Archer to get her assigned as its Executive Officer.

She sat staring at her tea. He played with his food a bit. The tension in the air was thick.

“You know, my getting assigned to Montana might be a good thing.”

“How so?”

“Well, you know I never stopped caring for you. But I’m always so scared I’ll lose focus and make a mistake and get someone killed. After we lost Elizabeth, I knew I never could handle that.”

He paused for a bit to judge her reaction. He could almost feel her hope.

“But I won’t have that problem now. I won’t be on a Starship. We can try again.”

“I will most likely be on a ship. We will be apart for many months at a time.”

“But you said our bond is now stable enough we can do that without a problem.”

“Yes. We can try again. I find our current situation awkward.”

“I know. I’m sorry about that.” He hung his head down and resumed moving his food around the plate. He felt bad for putting a wall between them the past five years.

“You have been having trouble sleeping lately.”

“Yeah, I’ve been kind of depressed about mothballing Enterprise and returning to Earth.”

“Would you care to resume our neuro-pressure sessions?”

He could tell she wanted to as much as he did. Some small, mean part of him wanted her to admit it though. “Is that what you want?”

“I too am having difficulty meditating. It is affecting my ability to concentrate.”

“We can start tonight if you want.”

“That would be agreeable.”

“Okay. See you tonight. Right now I got to get back. We can’t seem to keep the port injector running within specs.”

“I will assist you. I am not needed on the bridge this morning.”

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“T’Pol, what you are asking me is nearly impossible.”

“I understand Captain. But I would prefer to be assigned to Earth.”

Archer sighed. “T’Pol, five months ago you asked me to get you assigned as first officer on the Nagato. We are less than a month away from Earth and now you want to be reassigned. How’s that going to look? First you want it then before even meeting Eckland, you want off.”

“I understand. However I would prefer not to be assigned to a starship.”

“Have you talked to Trip about this? I can’t believe he would agree to you doing this to your career just so you could spend more time together.”

“I do not believe Commander Tucker needs to be involved in my career decisions at this point.”

Her stubbornness annoyed the hell out of him. “Well, I’m not going to help you unless you are sure this is what you want. Think it over and let me know five days from now. If you still want to be assigned to Earth, I’ll see what I can do. I can’t promise anything though. I called in a big favor to get you on the Nagato.”

She got up to leave.

“But T’Pol, I still expect you to talk this over with Trip. I won’t mention our conversation to him but you need to include him in your decision. This’ll look bad for you and probably end your career. You’ll probably never be offered a first officer position again. I doubt he wants you to sink your career for him.”

“I understand Captain.”

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Archer slowly regained consciousness. The room was still spinning. He struggled to his feet.

Sickbay was a mess. T’Pol tore through there like a tornado. Phlox and Reed were still unconscious on the floor.

He limped toward the chamber where Phlox put Trip to die. He heard her crying and singing something in Vulcan. His heart nearly exploded at the scene in front of him. His knees started to get weak.

T’Pol had ripped open the chamber and pulled Trip out. She cradled his dead body to her chest, crying and singing to him in Vulcan.

She must have received some serious injuries because green and red blood covered them both. The sight made him light headed. He struggled to not faint at the sight.

“T’Pol…”

“Leave me now! Get away!”

He stepped toward her.

She looked up at him. “I said now!”

Archer was scared. She looked insane with emotion. He remembered how she tore through them earlier. They tried to calm her down but the three of them were no match for her.

“I could have saved him! He did this to save your life! And you let him die! How could you!”

She started crying again and turned to Trip.

“T’Pol, there wasn’t anything Phlox could do. His lungs were burnt.”

“I could have saved him! You delayed my reaching him! He was dead before I could reach him.” She returned to her singing.

“T’Pol, there wasn’t anything anyone could do. His wounds were fatal.”

“I could have saved his katra! But you prevented me from reaching him in time! Now he is gone. You let him die!”

“I didn’t know humans had a katra that could be saved. I thought that was only Vulcans.”

Instead of yelling at him, she only whispered, “Now we will never know. You let him die. It was too late for me to try. Now leave us.”

He knew that she and Trip shared something he could never fully understand. She might have been able to save a part of him if they had let her. He looked down at her. She was crying harder now than before. Seeing the damage she caused in her attempt to reach him and her singing softly to Trip’s dead body tore his heart out.

She continued, “This is your fault. You knew he would die to protect you…”

Archer felt ashamed. He put all of them in danger for personal reasons. He had saved Shran’s daughter for the time being. But it had cost him his oldest friend. Now he was sure it would also cost him T’Pol.

He heard her singing stop. He looked back at her in time to see her pass out over Trip. He rushed back to Phlox. He had to get him conscious to help T’Pol. She must have lost too much blood to remain conscious.

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“How are you feeling Commander?”

T’Pol looked up at Dr. Phlox. “I am weak.”

“That is to be expected. You lost a lot of blood.”

“Doctor, I apologize for my earlier behavior. I hope I did not inflict serious injury on you, Lt. Reed or Captain Archer.”

“That is quite all right T’Pol. You were very efficient. None of us suffered anything more serious than some bruises.”

“I assume that you will transfer me to the brig as soon as I am cleared to leave sickbay.”

“No. The Captain, Lt. Reed and I have agreed that there will be no record of the incident. No one will know of it outside the four of us.”

“But I assaulted three officers and destroyed a piece of medical equipment for personal reasons.”

“Nonsense. We all knew how much Commander Tucker meant to you. If any of us had known about the katra and the chance to save some part of him, we would not have reacted as we did.”

“That does not excuse my behavior.”

“No, but it does explain it. The matter is settled. There will be no record of the incident.”

“Then I would request you allow me to help repair the damage I have caused.”

“I would prefer to relieve you of duty so that you may grieve properly. The loss of a bond mate is something you must deal with. You cannot avoid it with work.”

“I will grieve in time. I wish to do so with Trip’s parents after we arrive on Earth.”

“Do they know about you?”

“Yes. They have known we were bond mates since we lost Elizabeth. I do not believe Trip was able to convey the full meaning of our bond, but I do believe they understood the level of affection we felt for each other.”

“Have you met them?”

“No. We have only exchanged messages.”

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Dr. Phlox looked at the Captain who had just arrived in sickbay. “There does not seem to be anything more I can do for her. She will not respond to treatment.”

“Do you think it’s because he’s gone?”

“That is the most plausible explanation. She has called out for him a couple of times. She lost a lot of blood after he died, but her body fully recovered from that before she returned from the Tuckers’ home. This virus should not be life threatening. It would be like you dying from a cold.”

“Is there anything we can do?”

“We need to give her another reason to live.”

Archer looked at her. Without Trip, he had no idea what to do for her. “I was worried about this. Trip told me they never broke their mating bond. He said they realized a relationship on Enterprise was impossible but they still cared deeply for each other. He said he couldn’t imagine ever being interested in anyone else. He hoped someday they would get a chance to try again.”

Phlox was certain they had rekindled their romance. Starting about five months ago Commander Tucker would periodically arrive very early in the morning to treat a particularly deep scratch or bite wound. He refused to answer any questions on how he got ‘injured’. While scratching was common, Phlox was aware of only two species whose females regularly bit their mates. And there were no Klingons aboard Enterprise.

The final clue came seven weeks ago when both arrived in sickbay just before 3am. Commander Tucker had a badly sprained ankle and Commander T’Pol had a broken finger. They gave a weak excuse about getting injured while working out together. Given the fresh scratches on Commander Tucker, the unique contusions on Commander T’Pol’s thighs and their disheveled appearance, he knew they had been ‘working out together’ but not in the way they meant to imply.

Phlox did have fun with them though by making a display of turning the overly large T-shirt right side out before returning it to Commander T’Pol. Both blushed as they most likely realized Phlox assumed whatever Commander T’Pol had worn to Commander Tucker’s quarters was no longer wearable. The memory brought tears to his eyes during this most unpleasant experience.

He looked at Archer who was also about to cry. Archer went on though, “I could tell she took his death hard. She blamed me. She insisted on packing up his things. She even insisted on meeting his parents.”

Phlox put his arm on Archer’s shoulder. “I do not believe she meant to blame you. She had lost control over her emotions. Please Captain, there is nothing more to do here. We need to let her rest.”

Phlox knew without a miracle, Commander T’Pol would be dead in two days. He had to figure out a way to prepare the Captain and crew for her loss.

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She has to be the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. He stared intently studying her every feature. I’m glad this stuff is pretty easy since it’s hard to concentrate with her here.

Just then the object of his fascination turned to look at him.

Uh oh. She caught me. He immediately faced forward and pretended to be focused on the professor. But the blush that rose over his face gave him away.

For the rest of the lecture he willed himself to pay attention to the class. He only briefly looked at her and then only out of the corner of his eye. When the class was over he tried to escape as soon as possible.

“Why do you persist in staring at me?” The voice behind him caused him to turn around. It was her. Oh no.

“I’m sorry.” He looked right at her face. He was helpless to resist. “I… I just have never seen a Vulcan in person before. I’m really sorry.”

“Is my appearance offensive?” She glared right at him. She looked so formidable for someone smaller than him.

“No, not at all.” He tried to stop, but something made him go on. “In fact just the opposite.”

“I am not sure what you mean.” She thought he found her offensive.

“I mean… ahhh…,” he sighed before continuing. “You’re beautiful.” He knew his face had to be bright red.

“I have never heard that word used by a human in reference to a Vulcan.” She was stunned.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable.”

“I am not uncomfortable. I am merely curious as to why you found my appearance fascinating enough to not pay attention in class.”

“Class is easy. In fact it’s the only class I have that’s easy. The rest are pretty hard.”

“What other classes are you taking?”

He listed the others on his class schedule. She cocked her head a bit. His explanation did not make sense. “You find stellar cartography easy but yet you find the other courses hard?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Because those are remedial courses. I am amazed you could even get in the academy without them.”

He grinned at her. “Well, I just don’t have the background.”

She realized why now. “You are the Bramish student, aren’t you?”

It was now his turned to be stunned. “Yes, I am. I hadn’t realized my entrance was so well known.”

“As far as I know they only informed aliens who were likely to come into contact. They warned us the Bramish dislike aliens and to be prepared.” She had been told the Bramish were anti-alien and anti-technology. They were fiercely isolationist and kept to themselves. But the baffling thing was that one had been accepted into Starfleet Academy.

He felt his anger rise. “That isn’t right. Bramish don’t hate aliens. We, I mean they just don’t wish to interact with non-humans.”

“I do not understand the distinction.”

“I don’t want to interact with an alligator either. That doesn’t mean I hate alligators. I just don’t worry about them. Bramish wish to avoid technology and its results. Aliens on Earth are a result of that technology. Therefore we… they avoid them.”

“Then why did you apply to Starfleet Academy?”

It was going to take a long time to explain to her how he was different and had always wanted to go to the stars. Joining Starfleet and leaving his family and his beliefs behind was the only way he could do that. He was hungry and wanted to go eat. This conversation looked like it would go long.

“That’s a long story. You know, I’m sorry for being so rude, we don’t even know each other’s names. My name is Charles Tucker. You can call me Chuck, all of my friends do.”

He held out his hand. He almost detected a smile, but she did not take it.

“I will keep that in mind. Vulcans however do not touch. It is considered inappropriate.”

He blushed. “I’m sorry I didn’t know. My diversity classes haven’t gone into much detail about Vulcans yet.”

“That is quite all right.”

“Say, would you like to grab something to eat? I’m pretty hungry and I would love to continue our conversation. I have never spoken to a Vulcan before.”

“That is agreeable. I have never spoken to a Bramish before.”

“Well, the fact that I’m here, means I’m not much of a Bramish any more. I’m sorry, but I didn’t catch your name.”

“My name is T’Pol.”

“That’s a neat name. Anyway, would you care to join me in the cafeteria, T’Pol?”

“Yes, I would, Chuck.” For some reason that caused him to smile.

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Three weeks later Chuck and T’Pol were having lunch in the cafeteria as they had every day since she confronted him about staring at her.

“You know T’Pol, I really appreciate your help these past three weeks. I don’t think I could’ve adjusted without you. I hadn’t realized just how far behind I was.”

“The topics are not difficult. It requires very little effort to help you.”

“Okay, both of us know you’re a lot smarter than I am, but you don’t have to rub it in.”

“It was not my intention to make you feel inadequate. I was just stating that helping you with your course work is not difficult.”

“Anyway, I would like to show you my appreciation. This weekend there’s a Wagner opera being performed on replicas of period instruments. I would like to take you if that’s okay?”

“I am not familiar with this term. What is a Wagner opera?”

“Opera is an ancient Earth form of entertainment. It was popular about 1600 years ago. Basically it’s a story sung by actors and accompanied by music. Wagner was considered one of the best composers and his ‘Tristan und Isolde’ is very good. I would love to take you to show my appreciation for all your help.”

“Are you sure it is simply not an excuse for a romantic overture?”

He blushed. Well that did have something to do with it. “Would it work if I tried?”

“That will remain to be seen.”

He wasn’t sure what that meant. It sounded neither good nor bad. “Does that mean you will go?”

“Yes. I have not been exposed to this form of human entertainment.”

“Okay.” He decided to push a bit farther, “it’s a date then.” He smiled at her.

“So it would seem.”

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“So what do the two of you do at home?”

Sometimes Frank annoyed Chuck. He was Chuck’s friend but often he was just too nosy. “We study and do chores.”

“That’s it? You’ve been living with T’Pol for five months and all you do is study and chores.”

Chuck narrowed his eyes and glared at Frank. “Just what’s that supposed mean?”

“You don’t do anything else?”

“Well we meditate every night.”

“Meditate hunh. Is that what you call it?”

Chuck was starting to get angry with his friend. Chuck was pretty sure what he was implying. “Yes, we meditate. It helps relieve stress.”

“I’m sure it does. One day I hope Jesse will let me meditate her.” He smirked at Chuck.

“T’Pol and I have not had sex! We aren’t married. That would be a sin!” Chuck was unable to control himself and just blurted it out.

“Yeah right. I know full well you aren’t Bramish any more.”

“Just because I left my family doesn’t mean I have become morally corrupt! Sex before marriage is wrong no matter what.” Chuck was pissed his friend could even think he was having premarital sex. Just because he left the Bramish didn’t mean he had become like Frank.

“Okay, calm down Chuck. I am sorry. I didn’t know how touchy you were about this. I just assumed since you live together something was going on.”

“We moved in together since we are best friends and each of us is alone. It’s nice having someone to come home to. My family won’t talk to me anymore.” He hung his head and played with his food a bit. She was the closest thing to family he had and he had no idea what their relationship was.

Later that night Chuck was still pissed from his conversation with Frank. T’Pol could tell something had upset him but he did not volunteer any information.

While studying her subspace theory lecture, she let her mind drift to Chuck. His scent was stronger after he had been angry and it distracted her.

Chuck studied the details of the mapping routines in front of him. He knew them cold. He let his mind drift to her. He remembered his earlier argument with Frank.

T’Pol was stunned she could picture his argument with Frank earlier that day. She could tell he was upset that Frank just assumed they were having sexual intercourse. She could also tell he was confused about what they meant to each other. He knew they were best friends. She knew he was sexually attracted to her but his archaic religious up bringing meant he would never try to seduce her.

Chuck wondered if they were more than best friends. She and he moved in together so they would not be alone. Although she never asked him about his religious beliefs or about his regular church attendance, she was always a part of the rest of his life. She always attended the opera with him. In return she exposed him to her culture. She had taught him breathing exercises and meditation to help him with stress. He had even gone with her to Vulcan for a week during winter break.

T’Pol thought that although he had left the Bramish, his notions about relationships were still archaic even by human standards. He understood very little about Vulcan culture even now. She had not yet decided if she should inform him she considered him her mate. She could not believe he still had not recognized that moving in together and allowing him to hold her hand while they enjoyed opera twice a month meant he was hers. She found his naiveté amusing.

For a brief moment Chuck had the idea in his head that T’Pol considered him her boyfriend. That was a strange idea though. They had never talked about it. I’ve never even kissed her. The only time I have ever touched her is holding hands at the opera. But he did enjoy that.

T’Pol returned to her Warp equation. She had to solve this problem for tomorrow.

Chuck saw a strange equation appear in his head. He had no idea what it meant. But it was vivid.

He had to write it down. T’Pol would probably know what it was. He looked at the equation on the paper in front of him. It was complete just as he pictured it.

He walked over to T’Pol and showed her the paper. “T’Pol do you know what this is?” He handed her the paper.

She looked at it. It was the same equation she was working on. “Where did you get this?” She could not believe he was snooping at her homework. He always respected her privacy.

“I… I… saw it,” he wasn’t sure how to explain this. “I saw it in my head.” He turned red and said quietly, “I was thinking about you and it appeared in my head. I have no idea what it is.”

“It is my homework.”

“I don’t understand.” He gave her a puzzled look. “Why would I know your homework. I don’t know anything about Warp equations.”

“I am not sure either.” It must have something to do with her seeing his argument earlier.

Two days later Chuck and T’Pol were sure something was going on that neither understood. When they were alone and relaxed in their apartment, they were able to picture what the other was thinking and feeling.

“I have set up an appointment for us with Dr. Sirtis. She is a Betazed and may be able to help us understand what is going on.”

Chuck wasn’t sure about that but he reminded himself that T’Pol was a lot smarter than he was. She also had a lot more life experience at 36 than his barely 23. He had learned to trust her judgment implicitly.

The next day found both of them sitting in Dr. Sirtis’ office. She and her assistant put Chuck through a series of tests over the previous three hours.

“Cadet T’Pol, I am glad you brought Cadet Tucker here for evaluation. Your suspicion appears correct.”

She paused to face him directly. “Cadet Tucker this morning we gave you a battery of tests to measure your empathic ability.”

“But humans are not empathic.”

“That is not completely true. Most have a very weak empathy. In rare cases, though this empathy is strong enough to be detected. In very rare cases, this ability is strong enough to develop into a useful skill. You are the twelfth person we have measured with a strong enough ability to develop.”

“I’m not sure what you mean Doc.” He was scared. He instinctively reached his hand over to T’Pol’s. She took it trying to settle his nerves.

Dr. Sirtis studied the act closely. She could feel both of them. She had encountered human/Vulcan mates before, but never a pair so young or so early in their relationship. So early in fact, that Cadet Tucker was not even aware of their bond. For some reason Cadet T’Pol had not informed him.

“It is important for you to go to Betazed to develop your skills.”

Chuck became even more scared. He couldn’t leave T’Pol. He looked at T’Pol and said, “I am not sure I can do that.” He squeezed her hand harder.

Both Dr. Sirtis and T’Pol could sense his panic. He was terrified to go to Betazed alone.

Dr. Sirtis spoke up, “I think it would be necessary for Cadet T’Pol to also go.”

Both could feel Chuck start to relax after that statement.

T’Pol shifted her focus to Dr. Sirtis, “Why do you believe that Doctor?”

“There are two reasons. The first is that you tested very high as a telepath. Higher than any other Vulcan I have tested. It will be important for you to develop your skills too.”

Neither Chuck nor T’Pol could believe their ears.

“You said there was a second reason Doctor. What would the additional reason be?”

Dr. Sirtis looked at T’Pol. She too was unaware of the mating bond. It seemed neither of them knew.

“I am sorry Cadet T’Pol. I just assumed you already knew. The two of you have formed a mating bond. That is why you can feel each other so clearly. I am afraid that if we were to separate you at this time, it would cause emotional harm to Cadet Tucker. He does not have the mental discipline to handle being separated from you at this time. Therefore it is best if you went to Betazed together.”

“What’s a ‘mating bond’?” Chuck looked to T’Pol.

She simply looked at the floor. This conversation was going to be difficult.

Dr. Sirtis stood up. “I will leave you to alone. I believe this is something you need to discuss in private.”

She left the room. She hoped Chuck would take the news well.

Twenty minutes later and Chuck sat in the office wondering if he was dreaming. He had just found out that he was an empath. One of the first humans. Now he found out he was mated to T’Pol without knowing it. On top of everything Starfleet expected them to transfer to Betazed for a year to learn to develop their skills.

“I thought you said Vulcans don’t choose mates until much later.”

“That is correct. Normally I would not choose a mate for another twenty years.”

“Is this what you want? You have only known me 18 months. I can’t believe I would be your choice for a life long mate.”

“The bond could not have formed unless we both wanted it to.”

“So you mean you want me?”

“Yes of course. I hold a deep affection for you.”

He blushed. “I think I fell in love with you the first time we talked.”

They just sat there holding hands.

Finally Chuck sighed and looked at her. “I guess we’re moving to Betazed then.”

“It would seem so.”

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He stepped out of the shower and dried himself off. He started to put on the clothes that T’Pol had set out for him.

“Are you about ready?”

“Just about.”

“If you do not hurry, we will be late.”

“Why do we have to go to this thing anyway?”

“Because it will be an interesting lecture. Professor Kent is the most distinguished historian regarding the start of the Federation.”

“He’s probably the only historian studying the start of the Federation. I’m still not sure why I want go to a lecture about something that happened over 1300 years ago.”

She returned to the bedroom carrying a cup of coffee for him.

“Because I will be there.” She smiled at him.

He smiled back. “I guess that’s a good enough reason.”

“Besides, for the next two years we are going to be aboard the Prometheus mapping brown dwarfs outside of the galaxy. We need to take advantage of opportunities like this. We will not have them during our mission.”

He sighed. He could tell this was very important to her. “Okay, I will go.” He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. “And for you, I will even try to enjoy myself.”

She rubbed her hand along his arm. “It will be enough if you simply stay awake.”

Thirty minutes later and they were about to enter the lecture hall with two minutes to spare. As they walked in, most of the seats were taken and it looked like they would have to sit in front.

“That’s what I get for being late.” Chuck muttered to himself.

“Yes, you do.”

As they walked to their seats they passed close to Professor Kent. He looked up at them, gasped quickly and dropped his book. The gasp caught Chuck’s attention and he leaned down to pick up the professor’s book.

When Chuck handed the book to him, the professor did not look well. In fact, he looked as if he had seen a ghost.

Chuck wasn’t that impressed with the lecture. Sure the professor knew the material but he seemed nervous throughout the talk, jumped around though history and even ended the lecture 30 minutes early. The lecture lasted just over one hour. The professor didn’t even stick around long enough to answer any questions. He practically shot out the door.

As Chuck and T’Pol were leaving, he saw his friend Jesse Delay and waved to her. She came over to them to say Hi.

( I am starving. Is it okay if she joins us for brunch? You two could talk about the lecture while I eat. )

“Jesse, would you care to join Chuck and me for brunch? He slept late again and has not had anything to eat. We could discuss the lecture.”

“I’d like that. Let’s go.”

After they sat down Jesse looked to T’Pol. “I am surprised you haven’t given up on him yet. At least this time he stayed awake.”

“Indeed. I am slowly exposing him to new experiences.”

Chuck laughed at that. They were talking about him like he wasn’t even there.

“What do you mean slowly? Three years ago I had never met a non-human. I don’t see how anything we’ve done could be considered slowly.”

It was Jesse’s turn to laugh. “He’s got you there T’Pol.”

“Yes, it does seem my choice of the word ‘slowly’ was not appropriate.”

“Speaking of that, when do I get to watch the wedding? I’m anxious to see T’Pol in her wedding gown. I’ll bet you were beautiful.”

Chuck blushed red. “We don’t have video of the ceremony.”

Jesse scowled. “Why not? The most important day of your lives and you didn’t take video?”

“Ahh… well… you know…” Chuck was stuck stammering. He wasn’t sure how to tell her about their wedding.

T’Pol found his reaction amusing. “Chuck and I had a traditional Betazed wedding ceremony. Neither of us felt a video recording was appropriate.”

“You mean you were both…”

“Yes.”

“Wow!” Now she wished there was video. She thought Chuck was cute.

“Indeed.”

Jesse was curious about the lecture. It did not at all live up to its reputation. “So what did you two think of the lecture? He seemed a bit off his game. I was kind of shocked it ended so quickly. I had heard normally it goes past time and he stays around for questions.”

“You know, it seemed like he kind of jumped around. Maybe he shortened it for some reason?” Chuck was glad he did though.

“Yes, it did seem the professor had difficulty with the lecture. He was agitated throughout.”

“Well, it was short, so it was just fine with me. I was starving.”

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“Ensign Tucker, report to my briefing room.”

Chuck stepped toward the comm. panel, “Aye, aye sir. I am on my way.”

As he got closer to the briefing room, he could tell T’Pol was already there. She had no idea what was going on either.

“Ensign, please have a seat.”

He took a seat across from T’Pol.

“Lt. and Ensign Tucker, in fifteen minutes the Roanoke will dock with us. Your orders are to report to Rear Admiral Zonka on board.”

Both were shocked. Chuck spoke up, “Captain, is something wrong? I didn’t think T’Pol or I have done anything wrong.”

“Not at all. In fact, I have been quite happy with both of your work.” He paused for a bit. “I have no idea why the Admiral wishes to speak with you. He didn’t share that with me.”

He looked at the two. He didn’t need to be either an empath or a telepath to tell they were nervous.

“I wouldn’t worry about it you two. There wasn’t anything in his tone that led me to believe his request was bad.”

Twenty minutes later T’Pol and Chuck found themselves alone in a briefing room aboard the Roanoke. She listened to Chuck practice his breathing to calm himself. She was proud of him. He had grown so much beyond the person she met almost four years ago. He was still only 25 years old. She wondered how much more he would become.

Shortly Rear Admiral Zonka entered with a man and woman. T’Pol recognized the man as Professor Kent.

Admiral Zonka spoke first. “First off, this conversation is classified. You are not to speak about it to anyone, including each other. Is that clear?”

They answered in unison, “Yes sir.”

“I believe you have already met Professor Kent. This is Captain Lydia Winters. She is a Temporal Agent.”

Trip narrowed his eyes at her. What would a Temporal Agent want with us?

Professor Kent appeared more composed than their last encounter. “Lt. Tucker, Ensign Tucker, we need to send you on a very special mission, unlike any we’ve done before.”

Chuck was not sure he like the tone of that command.

“One year ago, when you arrived at my lecture, I recognized the two of you immediately.”

“What do you mean recognized us?” T’Pol was curious about that. “I do not believe we had ever met you before.”

“No, but I had read about you, or I guess who you will become, in detail.”

Chuck was confused. Why would this guy know about me?

“Here is a brief history about two people that you might recognize.” He paused as he gave them the information PADDs. “Commander Charles Tucker III and Commander T’Pol”

“Look at that! They look just like us.”

Captain Winters joined the conversation. “They are you. Or at least who you will become.”

“How would you know that?” T’Pol was skeptical but the image in front of her did indeed look like a naturally aged version of herself.

“Because we jumped back for a DNA analysis. They match precisely. They are you.”

“But how?”

“It appears we are going to send you back.” Rear Admiral Zonka continued, “we are working through the details now, but we will be sending you back 1350 years.”

“Why?”

Professor Kent spoke up, “because the two of you help found the Federation.”

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

He opened his eyes and immediately the light blinded him. After he closed them, the pain in his head and chest assaulted him.

“What happened to me?” he groaned to himself.

“Welcome back Trip. Let me dim the lights. I wasn’t expecting you to wake up so quickly.”

There was a brief pause.

“How’s that?”

He opened his eyes again to a much dimmer room. But the pain in his head and chest remained. Someone dressed in a teal gown and hat came over to him.

“What do you remember Trip?”

He searched his brain. It was hard to concentrate with the pain.

“I remember plugging the conduits together. I don’t remember anything after that.”

“Do you know who I am?”

He looked at the person standing before him. Somehow he recognized the face. “You’re Doctor Franklin.”

“Yes, I am. That’s good Trip. How’s your head feel?”

“It hurts like hell. Can’t you do something for me?”

“Sorry Trip. I can’t do anything while you are reacquiring your memories. The next hour or so is going to be pretty painful. I can’t give you pain killers for your chest either until the process is complete.”

“Why does my chest hurt?”

“Well, the extraction wasn’t as clean as we would have liked. We were a quarter of a second later than planned so you received second degree burns from the explosion.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“Calm down Trip. Just relax. It’ll all come back to you. For now just lie still and relax. If you have any problems, just press this button right here.”

“Sure thing Doc.” He paused for a bit. “But my name’s Chuck. Trip was his name.”

Franklin realized that was a good sign. It meant his self-identity had already been reacquired. “Ahhh, good. So you are starting to remember your life.”

As the Doctor walked away, Chuck was confused. He had no idea what was going on. His head and chest were in pain. He should have been dead. Right now he wished he was. The pain was terrible.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Dr. Franklin pushed the button on his comm. system. A gray haired man appeared on screen.

“Ahh, yes, Dr. Franklin. Does this mean Agent Tucker has regained consciousness?”

“Yes Admiral Zonka. He is starting to reacquire his memories now. He should have them back in about an hour or so.”

“Very good. How long until he will be able to jump back for the cleanup?”

“He is still recovering from his burns. I would expect that in a day or two, he will be strong enough to return. I would prefer we schedule the jump for 72 hours from now.”

“If that is what you recommend doctor. I will start setting things up here.”

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Dr. Franklin returned to his patient 70 minutes later to see how his patient was faring. “How you feeling Chuck? Are your memories back?”

Chuck’s head was throbbing and the burning sensation in his chest was killing him. “Yeah, Doc. If I knew how confusing things would be, I’m not sure I would’ve taken this assignment.” He gave a smirk to Dr. Franklin.

Dr. Franklin ran a small device over Chuck just to confirm the memories had been reacquired completely. “Things look good. Here’s something for the pain.”

In a matter of seconds the pain in his head and chest melted away.

“How is that?”

“Thanks. Much better.”

He looked around but didn’t see the person he was expecting.

“Where’s T’Pol? How did her extraction go?”

“There’s been a complication.”

Chuck started to panic. “What happened? Is she okay? Why couldn’t you get her too?”

“There has been an unforeseen problem. We can’t extract her yet. We need you to jump back for some cleanup work. She’ll be fine and we can get her in a couple of days too.”

“What’s wrong?”

“She hasn’t been able to complete her mission. Three weeks after your extraction, she caught a virus. Even though it is minor, she isn’t recovering.”

“Why haven’t you sent someone back to fix it already? What’s the holdup?”

“Chuck, we think she’s dying because she misses you. She didn’t deal well with your ‘death’. We need you to go back and convince her to live. Already the timeline is coming apart without her.”

He was worried sick. He didn’t know what would happen without her being able to complete her mission. “When can I go?” He tried to get up but immediately fell back down.

“Not for three days yet. You aren’t strong enough.”

“Three days? Won’t that be too late?”

“I hope not. But we are preparing for an emergency extraction/insertion just in case.”

He hung his head. He hoped they wouldn’t have to do an emergency extraction/insertion. He wasn’t sure how she would recover.

“Okay Doc.”

“I am giving you a sedative. You aren’t going to heal if you spend the next three days worrying about her. We’ll get her back safe and sound, one way or another.”

As the world drifted away, Chuck was happy for the sedative. Having 29 years of his memories plus 40 years of Commander Charles Tucker III’s memories was confusing.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Admiral Zonka paced the room. He was worried. The timeline changes were coming a bit close for his taste.

Finally Agent Tucker arrived.

“Are you prepared for the jump?”

“Yes, sir. Ready to go.”

“Good, the changes are getting too close. You need to jump now.”

“Sure thing.” He pressed the button and was gone.

Well, it’s in his hands now. Nothing to do but wait for his return.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Chuck looked down at T’Pol in the bio-bed. She looked so pale and weak. It tore his heart out to see her like this. He leaned over her and placed his fingers to her contact points.

“My mind to your mind...”

He was able to find her very shortly. She was sitting all alone lost in her thoughts.

“Hi T’Pol. How are you feeling?”

She turned her head to him. “Why are you here? You are dead.”

“No I’m not.”

“I held your dead body. I felt the bond disappear.”

“I know. But I’m not dead.”

She looked at him with a puzzled expression.

“T’Pol, I need you to live for me. You aren’t finished here yet.”

“But I am so alone. I am not sure I can continue without you.”

“You have to. You aren’t finished yet. You have to live. Please, for me?”

“I do not understand.”

“I know. I can’t explain. I need you to live. I will be back for you. Please promise me you will live?”

T’Pol thought her vision odd. She could not recall dreaming without Trellium. It must have been her unconscious telling her she had to fight the virus. It was using the best motivator she could think of: Trip. Her mind was pleading with her to live.

“I will live. When will you come back?”

“Soon, T’Pol. I promise. I won’t leave you behind.”

“I miss you.” This made no sense to T’Pol. He could never come back to her. It was not logical for her to believe this hallucination. But some how she believed he would.

Chuck broke the meld. The rest would be up to her.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Archer surveyed the gathering of Enterprise’s bridge officers. He had assembled them for a one-year memorial of Trip’s death.

He looked at T’Pol. She had given them all quite a scare shortly after his death. He was certain he would lose her too. She did not succumb to the virus though. Something finally made her choose to live.

He realized he still lost her. Or at least the Commander T’Pol he had come to know. She was no longer the person she once was. She was cold even for a Vulcan. While he could never read her like Trip, he guessed the person Trip had brought out of her Vulcan shell was gone. She died in sickbay shortly after Trip did.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Chuck was happy at least everything was like he remembered it on his return.

“So Admiral, how things look?”

“Good job Agent Tucker. The timeline is restoring itself. You’ll be able to extract her as soon as you have recovered.”

“Okay. I’ll be back tomorrow for the extraction.”

He paused a bit.

“It’ll be nice to get her back. I can’t wait to get our lives back to normal.”

“I imagine so. How are the memories coming along?”

“Okay so far. I have pretty much untangled them.” It had taken almost three days to separate his memories from Commander Charles Tucker’s. They were still so vivid that they seemed more real than his own memories. Although the calendar told him he had been gone only a few days, it felt like a lifetime.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Chuck stood in her quarters. Soon she would be back and they could move on with their lives. He leaned over her for the extraction when she shifted suddenly. She landed a punishing blow to his jaw that sent him reeling backwards.

“Dammit T’Pol! Why’d you do that? It hurt like hell!”

“Because Trip is dead! You cannot be him! You are an imposter!”

She came at him again but he was able to duck out of the way.

“Dammit T’Pol, calm down! I’ll explain! Just stop trying to kill me for a second, okay?”

“No!” She came at him again.

He stepped away from her and drew something from his belt. He pointed it toward her.

“Stop right there. I don’t want to shoot you, but I will if you don’t calm down.”

She stopped short but continued to glare at him. She realized though the bond had returned. She could feel him again.

Chuck saw her relax her body.

“Why don’t you take a seat? I imagine this is a bit confusing.”

“Who are you?”

“I am Charles Tucker.”

“You cannot be. He’s dead.”

“Please, just sit down. I will explain everything.”

He finally got her calmed down, he began his story.

“T’Pol, I didn’t die when in the explosion. During the explosion, I was extracted. I was burnt badly, but it didn’t kill me.”

“What are you talking about?” T’Pol couldn’t believe this. “I held your dead body. The bond disappeared.” However she felt it once again.

“I am sorry about that. The body wasn’t mine. It was replicated but not capable of supporting life. You felt the bond disappear because I returned to my timeframe.”

“What do you mean ‘returned to my timeframe’?”

“Just that. I am a Temporal Agent. I was extracted and returned to my timeframe. My mission was complete.”

“But who are you then?” T’Pol wasn’t sure she wanted the answer.

“Like I said, I am Temporal Agent Charles Tucker. I came back for you. Your mission is complete now.”

“What do you mean, ‘my mission is complete now’?”

“You are a Temporal Agent too. I came back to extract you. It was going fine until you clocked me one.” He rubbed his jaw. “I forgot just how much stronger you are.”

“Who am I?”

Chuck sighed. He forgot that her memories had not been reacquired. “I’m sorry. I forgot. You are Temporal Agent T’Pol Tucker. You’re my wife.”

T’Pol couldn’t believe it. “This is just some trick to get me to come with you. Who are you really?”

“It isn’t a trick. If I can convince you it isn’t, will you come back with me?”

“I doubt that. Why should I trust you?” Although she was already starting to feel she could trust him.

“Three weeks after you thought I died, you were dying of a viral infection. I visited your mind.”

“That was you? I thought it was a dream.”

“No it wasn’t a dream. It was me. I had to convince you to live.”

“But how?”

“A mind meld.”

“Humans cannot do that.”

“No, they can’t. Unless they are empaths and mated to a telepath.”

“Humans are not empathic.” For some reason, she wanted to believe him though.

He looked right at her and focused intently. “Not yet they aren’t. I am one of the first. That is why we were recruited for this mission. Your telepathic abilities are very strong. Our bond is very strong. We went back in time as Subcommander T’Pol and Commander Charles Tucker III. It was believed that our strong bond would eventually overcome our new identities and allow us to be a strong team. The Federation needed us. Without us, both Earth and Vulcan are destroyed by the Xindi.”

“Look we need to get back. This will all make sense in a couple of hours. I can take you back with or without your cooperation. I would rather not stun you. I will if I have to though. I won’t leave you behind.”

She was not sure why, but she trusted him. Of course she realized she was returning with him one way or another. She could tell that as much as he did not want to, he would stun her and take her if that was the only way.

“I will return with you. What do I need to do?”

He put the armband on her. “This will get us home.”

“How are you going to explain my disappearance?”

“You are going to be vaporized protecting the Risan Ambassador to Earth. A Romulan assassin will transport aboard, hit you with a disruptor set to maximum before being killed himself. After disabling the Nagato, the Romulans will transport his remains back and leave. Or at least that is what they will remember.”

“Was my death painful?”

He grinned at her. He loved her sarcasm.

“Yes. Very. A disruptor set to maximum is not the way to go.”

He paused and then added, “My death was more painful though. Imagine slowly dying because your lungs have third degree burns inside. It was horrible way to die.” For effect, he gave an exaggerated shudder.

Just as she was about to continue the debate, he pressed a button on his belt and they were gone.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Chuck stood over T’Pol’s bed. He held her hand. “So how you feeling honey?”

“My head hurts.”

“Yeah, well my jaw hurts.” He smiled at her.

“I am sorry about that.”

“I know. I forgot that you hadn’t reacquired your memories yet.”

“This is confusing.”

“Yeah, you’ll eventually get over it. It took me over three days to untangle all of the memories. You have more, so it will probably take longer.”

“But I am Vulcan.”

He smiled at her. She was back. He leaned down to kiss her forehead. “Well good for you.”

He decided to see if she was ready. ( So can you hear me yet? )

She winced and groaned. “Not that way yet. Using the bond is painful.”

“Okay, sorry about that. But you deserve it for clocking me.”

“I said I was sorry. Let it go.”

“Sure thing. I’ll let you rest up here and go get us some food. I’ll be back shortly.”

He couldn’t though. She wouldn’t let go of his hand.

“I promise I’ll come back.”

She let go of his hand. He had kept both of his earlier promises to come back for her. She was certain he would this time too.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Archer stood with his hands trembling. He wasn’t sure he could handle this.

“You’ll do fine Jon. It’s just us. I am sure soon everyone will be crying.” Hoshi tried to calm him as best as she could. “No one will think less of you.”

“Thanks. It’s just the memorial means so much and I miss them.”

“We all do. It’s wonderful that you were able to get the memorial built.”

He sighed, took her hand and led her into the room. The remaining Enterprise officers had already assembled.

“Thank you all for coming. This room will be officially unveiled tomorrow, but I wanted us to have a private viewing today before the cameras and the public are invited.”

He sighed and walked to the center of the room. Behind him was a pedestal covered by a dark box.

“After our proposal to set up The Memorial to Fallen Heroes, the Federation Council asked me to submit a list of names for initial inclusion. As I had hoped, the Federation Council eventually agreed to my proposal of only two names.”

He paused for a bit to regain his composure.

“I am proud to say that Trip’s service was recognized immediately with no objection. Both the Andorians and Vulcans were insistent.”

He sighed. “On the other hand, I was disappointed at the initial reaction to T’Pol’s inclusion. Even though the Risan Ambassador made a passionate argument on her behalf, the Andorians initially rejected the idea of honoring a Vulcan.”

“Fortunately Shran still has some clout and was able to remind them of her actions aboard Enterprise. Plus Samuels was insistent on them being remembered together. The Andorians lifted their objections to her inclusion so we are able to honor them together.”

Tears filled his eyes and he struggled to get the words out. “As it should be. They made one hell of a team.”

He turned to remove the box.

“At the center of this room will be the memorial to Commander Tucker and Commander T’Pol for their sacrifices in establishing the Federation. Each paid the ultimate price.”

Under the box were bronze likenesses of their heads. They looked at each other through immobile eyes. Archer had insisted that they stare into each other’s eyes. There was a simple inscription below their heads. It read ‘Dedicated to Commander Charles Tucker III and Commander T’Pol of Vulcan. Without their sacrifices, the Federation would not be.’

He knew he could not hold out much longer. He had to make his last words count.

“I’ve never thought much about an afterlife. I hope somewhere they’re together and found the peace they never could in this life.”

He had nearly lost it. His last words were filled with emotion. “They were my friends and I miss them greatly.”

A that point he started to openly weep. As Hoshi predicted, within moments everyone in the room was reduced to tears. The memorial was so right.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

“I am sorry you two. I know you wished to keep the memories of your assignment, but that will not be possible. Chuck is already having problems separating his life from Commander Tucker’s. It will only get worse. There is a danger he will completely lose his true identity in a very short time. Possibly days.”

He looked at Chuck. Chuck stared at the floor. He wanted to keep the memories but the doctor was right. He was indeed having trouble separating his life from his mission.

“Under normal circumstances, T’Pol, a Vulcan should have enough mental discipline to live with the memories. However your addiction to Trellium during the mission has damaged your neural system. I believe you will experience the same symptoms as Chuck in a few weeks or months. It will only be a matter of time. I think it best to avoid that too.”

“I understand doctor. What is your recommendation?”

“I have recommended that your memories be wiped from the moment of insertion. That will be the simplest and safest procedure.”

Chuck looked up. “Doc, is there anyway to record our memories? I would like to remember Commander Tucker if I could.” He was already pretty sure of the answer.

“I am sorry, you cannot. The best we can do is what has been recorded.”

He paused before continuing.

“I have arranged for the both of you have your memories wiped this afternoon. I have a room set aside to give the two of you privacy until then. In case there is anything you wish to discuss. When you awake from the procedure, you will not remember anything that happened after the jump.”

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Chuck looked at this face in the mirror. He still had a hard time adjusting to the age. A month ago he was 29 years old. Now he was 40. He grimaced. Without his memories, he went to bed one day as a 29 year old and woke up a month later as a 40 year old. Eleven years of his life just gone, even if it was for a good cause.

The shower turned off. T’Pol stepped out to dry herself. “Think how I feel. A month ago I was 42 years old. Now I am 74.”

He smiled at her. He stepped toward her and pulled her close to him. “But you are more beautiful today than the day I married you.”

Through their bond, she knew he was absolutely telling her the truth. She could feel his overwhelming love for her. She detected another thought through their bond. “Would you like to have children? You have never mentioned it before.”

“I don’t know. I never thought much about it. We married when you were so young, I never thought it’d work out. I mean I was going to be an old man before you were ready.” He paused and then looked at her. “What do you want?”

“I am not sure either. I felt the same way as you. Now that it is possible, we should consider it.”

He smiled at her. “You know, if you gave my mom a grandchild she would probably forgive you for corrupting me.”

“I find that hard to believe. She still blames me for you leaving the Bramish.” She could not imagine anything causing his mother to accept his Vulcan mate.

He knew she was right. Not even a grandkid would make his mom accept T’Pol.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Chuck lay in bed and stared up at the ceiling. He was struggling with the reality of how his life turned out. Ten years ago he was a simple farm boy fascinated by the stars. His life had been an anachronism. Or 30 years ago. He hadn’t quite wrapped his head around time travel yet. The calendar said one time, his body said another.

He looked at the woman sleeping next to him. He wondered how his life would have turned out if he never left that farm. He knew it would not nearly be as complicated as his life was now. He also doubted it would have been as rewarding.

For the first four years after leaving his family, he focused solely on completing school and building a life with T’Pol. For the next four years he had been so focused on preparing for a mission set 1300 years in the past, he never considered the future. Time travel was so confusing to him he simply focused on what he had to do each day. It was the only way he could cope.

Now the future was a blank slate. Admiral Zonka promised them any assignment they chose. He had no idea what he would do. Remaining a Temporal Agent was out of the question. Both had rejected that option immediately.

T’Pol stirred out of her sleep. She could tell he had been thinking hard about something. She was still too asleep to recognize it though.

“What are you thinking about?”

“What we should do now.”

“Do you have any thoughts on the subject?”

“I’d like to go to the stars. It’s what I left my family to do.”

“You do not wish to start a family?”

There was no point hiding his decision. She would know soon enough. “Not yet. I’m not ready. Are you okay with that?”

She rested her head on his chest. She felt the rhythm of his heart. “Yes. I am not yet ready either.” She too was struggling with the difference between what the calendar said and what her body told her.

“You know the Threvan is heading out on a mission to map NGC 6397. At least we could do the work we trained for.”

“Is that what you want?”

“What do you think we should do?” Even know he trusted her judgment on what they should do.

“I asked you first. I want you to go to the stars. If you want to go with the Threvan to map NGC 6397, then that is where we will go.”

“I want to go. We could focus on our work and each other for four years. It’d give us time to decide what we want to do after we return home. Maybe we will be ready for a family then.”

“Then it is settled. We will be on the Threvan.”

She felt his mood change. He had relaxed and turned playful.

“You know, we don’t have to be anywhere tomorrow morning. And I am not really all that tired.”

She smiled at him and purred, “Neither am I. What do you suggest we do?”

He rolled her over onto her back. As he leaned his body over her, “I can think of just one thing I want to do right now.”

“I do believe you have read my mind.” He leaned in to kiss her as she pulled the covers over them.

The End

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Have a comment to make about this story? Do so in the Trip Fan Fiction forum at the HoTBBS!

A whole mess of folks have made comments

This was well written but I didn't like it for the same reason I didn't like the Mirror Universe episodes; the people weren't our Trip and T'pol. That's one thing that TPTB never seemed to understand. Enterprise was a vessel for the interaction of people we liked and cared about. People who looked like them but weren't them were intrusions, distractions. The Enterprise family should have been allowed to learn and grow, like Hoshi did. We might still be watching them if they had been, instead of playing "Planet of the Week."

wunder bar

i liked the idea although it was a bit confusing in the beginning. i agree with graybear, they seemed a bit out of character. apart from that - great! really.

good story. really good.

Very creative, but I get dizzy going back in forth in time like that.

Wonderful, I liked the different timelines. I like the idea of them being temporal agents. Great stuff.

sigh. some people are just never happy. listen, the "real trip" and the "real t`pol" died in the "real world", therefore kevin needed to write a story to "fix" it. i`d say he did a wonderfull job, although i thought it was amis, not bramish, and betazoid, not betazed. it was original, well written, and made a seemingly unsolvable problem dissappear like water : trip died and t`pol did so too. at least with this story the so called "finale" got fixed, so we dont have to think of the end of our favourite ( or at least my favourite ) series as a rather depressing one. feel proud, kevin, you deserved it.

I wondered if I should include more about "Bramish". It is a made up religion/sect. But I did want people to think of Amish when they read it. I kind of picture "Bramish" as a sort of amalgam of Amish, Mennonite and others who try to hold on to more traditional values. I almost made him Mennonite, but I wasn't sure if how many outside of the US midwest would even know what I was talking about.

Yes, the wedding should have been a Betazoid wedding. That is my mistake. Sorry.

Thanks for the comments. I wanted a story that stayed consistent with what we saw on the last episode. Since it was a holodeck simulation, I had some leaway, but not much. Trip was killed. Once you are dead, you cannot learn and grow. :-)

I understood the intention was to 'fix' that awful piece of **** called the finale. I found the shift to the temporal agents and their life extremely confusing and not explained, although I finally clued in later. Bramish?? I didn't know where/what that was.....this world/future world/off world??

And even though I detest the thought that Trip died such a stupid pointless death, I surprise myself by feeling almost content when I think that T'Pol joined him eventually. Nice to see that someone that it was important that they show the rest of the crew actually grieving his loss.

You've got some very interesting ideas here. The alternate Trip and T'pol thing would have been less confusing if we'd had a means of locating them in the future from the beginning... like maybe them being in school with Daniels or something like that, but I like the idea that somewhere, somehow they ended up together.

INCREDIBLY creative. It was a little hard to see our Trip and T'Pol in those characters but I still enjoyed it because it allowed us to see Trip and T'Pol have a romance in a totally different setting - even with different personality characteristics.

The one thing I really wanted to see though was for you to find a way to turn this into a fix, like having Trip and T'Pol both decide they wanted to stay in 22nd century somehow, via all the time travel.

Ditto the last reviewer. I liked this story and Trip/Chuck and T'Pol's romance, but I would have liked to have seen them stay in the 22nd century. I also thought it hard to see "our" Trip and T'Pol in those characters. But I *really* liked how you kept to canon--it takes a great creative mind to work with what you have. The story was a little confusing and seemed a bit rushed--it would have been better had you slowed down the pace and described everything more, but I can see how you didn't want to make it too long. All-around, a good story, though not quite reaching its full potential. And, just for the record, the Bramish thing wasn't confusing to me at all, but you could maybe have made the name less similar to "Amish" so people wouldn't have been confused.

Thanks for the creative and thought-provoking story!

Sincerely,

Emily

Confusing but creative. I wish the beginning had been from the temporal agents' viewpoint then progressed from there, it would have prevented my spending the first half of the story just trying to make sense of what was going on which detracted from the enjoyment of this tale. I did like how you got around the awful TATV finale. Well done! Ali D :~)

I did enjoy this story quite a lot. I felt that you made a smooth weld over TATV and left us with a wide open future for Trip/T'Pol.

Even better you locked Archer safely away where he can't bother the couple.

TATV is and will be a problem for T/T'P fans. The Archer/T'Pol fans of course love it because it clears the deck for A/T'P stories.

For this reason I have truely enjoyed the stories where T'Pol died shortly after Trip.