The Greater Good - Part 2

The Greater Good: Part II

By Peter Simons and Clicks

E-Mail: simons@cryp.to
Rating: PG13
Genre: Drama, Romance
Disclaimer: It all belongs to Paramount, no infringement intended.

Summary: Sequel to Part I.

»I am an explorer, Captain. I thought this area of space was curious.«

»Really? I thought Vulcans wouldn't enter the Expanse? We sure would have liked a Vulcan ship or two to help with our mission, but they flat-out refused to enter the Expanse.«

The Vulcan looked at T'Pol as if he was asking her a question, but he didn't say anything. T'Pol returned his gaze and nodded. Then Serat answered.

»I don't believe the true reason why you are alone here, Captain, has anything to do with the Expanse. I believe the Vulcan High-Command has concluded that helping Humanity would not serve their own interests.«

Trip and Archer exchanged a look of confusion.

»What reasons could there be for that?«

»Many of the bureaucrats who make the decisions in the High Command, Captain, are very narrow-minded. They interpret the teachings of Surak in way I am sure he would have never intended it to be read. In my opinion, many of the decisions made by the High Command are driven by isolationistic tendencies.«

»How do you know all this? What has happened to Earth, about our mission, what the High Command would think?«

»I have some very sophisticated communications hardware, Captain. And I have trusted former colleagues in the right places.«

»You have worked for the High Command?«

»Yes, Captain. I was an Ambassador to Andoria for 5 years. I have worked in public service all my life.«

Again he looked at T'Pol with an almost gleeful expression, before he added: »Even as a child.«

Now Trip addressed Serat: »I hope you don't mind my asking, but if you have been an Ambassador before, why do you spend your time in a one-man vessel in the Expanse?«

»I have … given up on Vulcan, so to say. I chose exile.«

»Exile?«

»Like I said, Commander Tucker, many of the leading bureaucrats are very narrow-minded.«

»We have noticed.«

»This narrow-mindedness isn't limited to their dealings with alien affairs, Commander. It extends well into the Vulcan society. And the effects have become worse over the decades. When I grew up, Vulcan was a planet that welcomed visitors, a planet that welcomed diversity. My parents raised me by the motto Va'Vuhnaya s'Va'Terishlar — infinite diversity in infinite combinations. But this motto is no longer cherished on Vulcan.«

»Then what motto do they cherish?«

»Control.«

»Control?«

T'Pol looked at Trip while she spoke: »Today, Commander Tucker, the temple of Mount Seleya is protected by armed guards. Children can no longer enter it.«

»But that's so sad! How can such a thing be logical?«

Serat answered him: »Security, Commander. Many of my fellow Vulcans have — in my opinion — lost perspective. They no longer aim to control their emotions, they aim to control everything. They have become afraid of change. They want all things to stay exactly the way they are.«

»But that is impossible!«

»Yes. And it is very ironic. The bureaucrats believe their actions are motivated by control over emotions, but in fact, they are motivated by fear. Isn't that curious?«

»But you do not believe in control?«

»I believe in understanding, Commander. Vulcan children learn to control their emotional reactions by understanding them. During meditation, they reflect on their actions. We all do. We analyze our actions in retrospect; we determine whether our emotions have influenced our actions. And if they have, we learn to avoid it. After years of disciplined training, the process becomes completely subconscious. The mind has so much practice that you could say an adult Vulcan doesn't experience emotions anymore. They won't even reach the conscious thought process.«

The humans thought about that for a moment. Then Captain Archer said: »So what you are saying is that you cannot control something you cannot understand, right?«

»Nobody can.«

»And how does that apply to the High Command?«

»The bureaucrats in the High Command wish to control. But at the same time, they are unwilling to learn! Just look at the situation regarding Earth, Captain. The High Command wishes to control Humanity. So they send Ambassadors to influence the decisions of your government. At the same time, though, the High Command refuses to accept any new ideas from Humankind; they refuse to learn about Humanity. They even refuse to engage in real dialogue: there is no Human Ambassador to Vulcan.«

»You are right. There isn't.«

»Once more there is a beautiful irony in the fact, Captain: Since they don't understand Humanity, they will be unable to control you! Their efforts are bound to fail. Curious, isn't it?«

Trip shook his head in disbelieve. »But it doesn't make any sense! How is it possible for the High Command to act like this and yet at the same time they are guided by logic?«

»No, Commander. They say they are guided by logic. They even believe they are. But that does not mean they are.«

Captain Archer fell back in his chair and sighed. »This is very distressing news, Captain Serat. I have had no idea the problems where that extensive!«

»Our society has reached a state where many of the most brilliant minds leave the planet. Progress necessitates change. It is not possible to exercise free thought if the outcome of the research has to conform to the policies of the High Command. So I have chosen to explore space, to explore other cultures.«

»Captain Serat, I am sorry to hear all that. We have had some … troubling experiences with the High Command, but I really thought it was just problems between our species.«

»Don't waste your time with sorrow, Captain. It would be much more appropriate to appreciate the coincidence that our paths have crossed. You cannot know it, but the crew of this ship has had a certain significance in my life. I am pleased to be on the ENTERPRISE in person.«

»Now I am really curious, Captain! In what way has ENTERPRISE been significant to your life?«

»I have resigned my post on Andoria after the spy station on P'Jem was uncovered.«

»T'Pol, you appear to be much more content than you were the last time we have met.«

»You are right, Serat. I believe I have found a way to live a meaningful life. Living among the humans has given me a new perspective.«

»You realize that you have not changed at all?«

»I have changed very much, Serat.«

»No. You have not.«

»You are wrong, Serat. I am a very different person than I used to be.«

»You are exactly the person you used to be, T'Pol. Did you listen to your own words when you greeted me?«

»I thought it was appropriate.«

»I would have never expected that you would refer to our childhood in public.«

»Why not?«

»That is the question I asked myself when you did it. Why not? It was a refreshingly curious surprise. A child would have done something like that.«

»You believe I acted like a child?«

»You acted like the T'Pol I knew when I was a child.«

»And you replied in kind!«

»You just did it again, T'Pol.«

T'Pol blinked several times.

»You are right!«

»You had not realized it?«

»No!«

»How is that possible?«

»It is Commander Tucker's fault!«

»T'Pol …«

»Right.« She closed her eyes and breathed deeply for a moment. Slowly her face grew calm and devoid of expression.

»My assessment was correct, Serat. It is the influence of Commander Tucker. I am acting like a child in his presence. I indulge my imagination. I even play with him.«

»I have noticed.«

She looked at nowhere in particular and spoke more to herself than to Serat: »Charles makes me feel like a child …«

»It is only logical that you feel content then, T'Pol.«

»I am losing control, Serat. I indulge my emotions. I realize I have become irrational.«

»Now that you understand it, T'Pol, you can suppress the emotion.«

»Yes.«

»Will you?«

»What do you think I should do?«

»What would your chosen one think you should do?«

»He would encourage me.«

»What would he think if you decided to suppress those emotions?«

»It would hurt him.«

»Could he deal with that?«

»Yes.« Was that right? »Probably.« He had said I need you to care for me …

»No.«

»Fascinating.«

»I simply don't understand it, Serat. His presence affects me in ways I had not known before. I have no control.«

»You mean no complete control, T'Pol.«

»Correct.«

»I thought it was very refreshing.«

»I appreciate your advice, Serat.«

»That's the only reason you survived out there, T'Pol. If I had not been by your side to question your horrible plans, we would never have made it into the temple.«

T'Pol blinked. Instantly something changed in her expression.

»If it weren't for me, Serat, you would have stood in the temple without a pen!«

Then she blinked again. Serat's expression was deadpan.

»Your emotions are very easy to reach, T'Pol. I am not certain the High Command would approve, but I think it is refreshing.«

»I wonder whether it is dangerous for me to exist like that. Can it be right to indulge emotions? Am I leaving the path of Surak, Serat?«

»I don't know.«

»My logic tells me I am leaving the path. I had not realized it before, but I let my emotions determine my actions when it comes to Charles.«

»You cannot trust your logic then, T'Pol.«

»Why is that?«

»If your emotions do determine your actions concerning your chosen one, then you do obviously not act logically. Your thoughts are always influenced by the emotions.«

»But what other means would I have to decide? Other than logic, I mean?«

»I don't know, T'Pol. I have never experienced what you are now going through.«

»I realize, Serat, I may also have chosen exile.«

»By bonding with a human you certainly will, T'Pol. But when I made that choice, I asked myself what I had to lose. Why not try something entirely different?«

»New diversity? New combinations?«

»Exactly, it is only logical that your emotions would be closer to the surface, T'Pol. You live on a starship full of emotional humans. You would probably not have been able to adapt otherwise.«

»I have learned many things, Serat. You would be surprised how much like children humans are.«

»It must be wonderful to live among children, T'Pol.«

»It depends.«

»Why did you leave Vulcan, Serat?«

»I had no other choice. After I left the High Command, I wondered about other means of bringing progress to Vulcan. There are groups of people who embrace innovative ideas, who research new concepts. I studied their work for a while, but nothing really conclusive came out of it.«

»What did you do?«

»I turned my attention to old ideas instead. I discovered the mental disciplines, the more abstract capabilities of the mind. Knowledge which Vulcans have had for a long time but have chosen to ignore.«

»You became a melder?«

»Yes. I have experimented with all kinds of techniques. It appears that our species has an amazing potential for development in that field. It is hard to predict what forms of communication alone could be discovered if we would use our telepathic abilities.«

And suddenly T'Pol drew a perplexing conclusion.

»You have contracted the Pa'nar Syndrome?«

»Yes. Eventually it became impossible to work on Vulcan.«

»This will be a surprise for you, Serat. …«

Serat decided it would be necessary to find a moment of calm. He had to reflect on what he had just found out. This coincidence was too incredible to just ignore it.

He sat down on at one of the tables by the window in Mess Hall. He looked at the stars.

It had been pleasant to meet the Denobulan physician. A curious man! Full of ideas and very enthusiastic. Serat appreciated individuals like him. Doctor Phlox had been thorough in the examination. It was obvious he was very intelligent. Serat had been amazed by the progress the Denobulan had made with the treatment. Had he met him earlier, his disease could probably have been cured, or at least been stopped from progressing.

Serat had continued to speak with the Doctor for quite a while after the physician had given him the diagnosis. Doctor Phlox was interested in many sciences; they had even talked about physics. Who would have expected that? The Doctor knew quite a bit about it. It was a small surprise the Denobulan was a good scientist, he embraced new knowledge.

The Vulcan High-Command had not embraced the knowledge. Doctor Phlox had offered them his results several times, but they had refused to even look at it. Curing Pa'nar Syndrome had not been a problem that was worthy of their attention. Their attention was dedicated to building spy arrays on P'Jem. They focused their research on building more powerful weapons instead.

He understood his sadness.

Now he controlled it.

»I'm not disturbing you, am I, Captain Serat?«

»Not at all, Commander Tucker. Please, have a seat.«

»T'Pol has shared some of her childhood memories with me, Captain. It is a strange experience for me now, because I see you and have the feeling that I know you since you were a little kid. But in fact, I have met you just 8 hours ago.«

»I believe that must be distracting, Commander. I am sure many of the experiences you have made were very new?«

»Ever since I got together with T'Pol, you mean?«

»Yes.«

»I can tell you. After this ritual … « Trip held up his hand. »… the world hasn't been the same.«

»The outcome is exceptional, Commander.«

»That's what T'Pol said.«

»The connection is assumed to be very strong if the minds can ignore the pain long enough so that blood is drawn. A wonderfully archaic ritual.«

»T'Pol said, it's performed by children?«

»Indeed, Commander. Sometimes Vulcan children perform it. Nobody knows their reasons. What were yours?«

»I had no reasons. My words were let's do it.«

Serat was obviously amused by this.

»I had hoped new insights could be gathered from your case, Commander. But it appears not.«

»Isn't that a very illogical ritual then?«

»Of course. It is very rare.«

»What do Vulcan parents say to their kids doing illogical things like that?«

»We teach them how to do calligraphy, Commander.«

T'Pol's chosen bond-mate was a very pleasant man. Quite intelligent. And openly curious. He wondered what it was like when they played. An adult Vulcan and an adult Human playing games together, that was something he would like to observe.

It was unfortunate that he would not have the opportunity.

But he had an even more important opportunity. He had the opportunity to bring change to Vulcan. Doctor Phlox had mentioned the virus in passing while they were talking about biology. Serat had not thought such a thing was possible, but the Doctor had shown him the data. This virus could change sentient beings into Loque'eque. Amazing.

This solved a very delicate ethical problem. If he would use the virus, he wouldn't even cause lives to end. He would merely bring change! It was wonderful.

He knew the Andorians well enough to predict how they would react. If they found out that Vulcans were immune to the virus, they would immediately suspect a deliberate attack. They were very paranoid. They would expel all Vulcans from their planets. There would almost certainly be open hostilities. This was the part that still wasn't quite right. There would be loss of life.

But there simply was no other way! Both Vulcans and Andorians had armed themselves to their teeth, of course there would be open hostilities. But they would happen in any case, it was inevitable. They had steered towards hostilities constantly for the last few decades. In a manner of speaking, it would release the tension.

Once open hostilities broke out, there would be a massive movement on Vulcan. His people would never dare to step into war. The bureaucrats might even be willing to do it, but not the Vulcan people. There would be a powerful force of change. If the force would not be strong enough, if there would be war, then war was obviously inevitable. Then there would definitely be change. The Vulcan people would have to decide which way they wanted to go. Into peace and dialogue, or into war.

He wouldn't make that decision. He could only set the trigger that would make it happen.

The ethics still were problematic. The situation was very complex, it was not easy to reach a pure logical conclusion. Too many factors of belief came into the equation.

But the point was: Change was only possible when someone did something. There were many on Vulcan who could not see the logic in the High Command's actions, but nobody ever did anything. It was only logical, how could an individual do anything that influenced a system this large and this powerful?

He could. He had the chance. He had detected the ENTERPRISE on his sensors, T'Pol had reminded him of a time when change still seemed possible, he had found the virus on the very same ship that had caused the incident that made him the Vulcan he was. Was this coincidence?

Was the greater good he had always sought available right here at his fingertips?

The needs of the many outweighed the needs of the few. His whole species was in need. He had the chance to bring the history of Vulcan back into movement after decades of stagnation. He had the chance to bring change. And according to the Doctor's diagnosis, it might be the last chance he would ever get.

Would he pass up on it, his whole life would have been meaningless.

He blinked.

The problem was how to acquire the virus. Sickbay was relatively close to the airlock where his ship was docked. The airlock had a trivial number code, he would be able to open it. There were no sensors or security cameras in the direct vicinity. Even if there were, it was unlikely anyone would pay attention to him going back to his own ship. It would take less than 30 seconds to get the weapon.

The virus was deposited in a rather secure locker in Sickbay. Shooting it open was not an option because he might destroy the virus. Probably only senior officers would know the codes. T'Pol would never give them him without a lengthy and detailed discussion, but this course of action was too risky. There was no telling whether she would be willing to accept the logic, she was emotional right now. That left him with Commander Tucker and Captain Archer.

Clearly Commender Tucker would be vulnerable because of T'Pol. If he threatened to harm T'Pol, the human would do anything, he was certain. This was the most logical course of action, there was little to no risk that the human would resist. On the other hand, Commander Tucker knew of his appreciation for T'Pol. The human might not believe that he was willing to hurt T'Pol. Perhaps Captain Archer was the key? He could not estimate his reactions at all. If he had made it Captain of the first Human starship, he was most likely determined. He would probably not give in to extortion.

It would be necessary to ascertain authority if he wanted to reduce the risks. He knew little about Human customs, but violence would almost certainly achieve this. He would have to injure either Captain Archer or Commander Tucker to put pressure on the other and to make sure they understood he was not playing games with them. Injuring T'Pol was not an option. Injuring her chosen one was no option either.

He would injure Captain Archer and then threaten to injure T'Pol in order to extort the virus. Commander Tucker would comply.

This meant four unknown variables in Sickbay. He could stun Doctor Phlox right away. That would reduce the risks. He would injure the Captain seriously enough to take him out of the equation. T'Pol was very dangerous. He had to be extremely careful with her. Under no circumstances could she be allowed to interfere, the risk that he would have to harm her was too great.

Serat paused for a moment.

If it came to it … would he injure T'Pol? He had to decide this before he proceeded.

No.

This was not an option.

He would stun her the moment the Commander had complied. This would reinforce the threat and protect her. If she managed to interfere before that, then he would have to improvise. But hurting her was not an option.

Once he had the virus, he would stun Commander Tucker as well. The way back to the airlock would take him 38.2 seconds. He could observe the junction before Sickbay for 14.9 seconds. No-one could enter it and discover the incident without him knowing it. That left a window of 23.3 seconds in which the incident might be discovered.

It was a risk, but there was nothing he could do to reduce it.

It was imperative that he disabled ENTERPRISE's engines as soon as possible after returning to his ship. He was fairly certain that a single directed hit at a point on the starboard nacelle could do it. The Vulcans had given the Humans design plans of their old nacelles, and they had that problem. It would trigger an energy overload and shut down the warp reactor. But the hull plating had to be powered down so that it would work. He had to be quick.

What if the Humans had fixed that design flaw? His sensors would be able to detect the overload. He would know whether it had worked within approximately 1.3 seconds. If it would not work, he would have to damage the nacelle. It would be very regrettable, but it would be illogical to risk a failure of the mission so close to success.

How to assemble them. He would see Doctor Phlox and broach the topic of his disease once more. That would be inconspicuous. Then he would ask the Doctor to call the senior officers under the pretense that he wanted to talk to them. He would pretend that he wanted to stay aboard to be treated. The Doctor would not be able to make that decision without the Captain, and it would appear natural that he would want to speak with T'Pol and her chosen one as well.

Essential for the success was the element of surprise. Right now he was alone and unobserved. He could not know whether he would get that chance again. He had to act now.

It went perfect. All three arrived at once. He waited until they had put a distance between them and the door.

»You wanted to tal—«

Just as the Captain addressed him, Serat took aim and fired. He hit the human squarely on the shoulder. The impact sent him into a spin and he tumbled, only to lose consciousness and fall flat on the ground.

With a flick of his thumb, he set the phaser on stun, took aim, and shot Doctor Phlox. He hit the Denobulan straight on the chest and he collapsed immediately.

He flicked the weapon back to a higher yield level and made sure T'Pol and Commander Tucker saw him do it. The whole incident had lasted 2.6 seconds so far.

»Listen carefully. Do not interfere. The Captain is not mortally wounded, Phlox was only stunned. If you cooperate, nobody will be seriously harmed. I don't wish to. So don't force me. Do you see the logic, T'Pol?«

T'Pol just looked at him wide-eyed. She did not answer. Serat understood. With her emotions closer to the surface it would be more difficult for her to remain in control under the circumstances. He was causing her distress. He had to make this as quick as possible.

He took a step towards T'Pol and placed the phaser squarely on her brow. There was a distinct sound as the yield regulator of his weapon hit the maximum setting. T'Pol tensed up awkwardly. She became so rigid, Serat wondered whether she could even move her arms in this state.

He changed his position slightly so that he could see both Commander Tucker and T'Pol. He kept the phaser to T'Pol's head.

»Do not destabilize the situation, Commander Tucker. I need you to open the bio-hazard locker in the Doctor's compartment. Will you cooperate?«

To his surprise, T'Pol yelled at her chosen one: »It contains the virus, Charles! Under no circumstances can you cooperate!«

Serat focused on T'Pol. He could not risk her attacking him. The Commander would not dare to interfere while he had the weapon to her head. He noticed that the Human was just staring at them with his mouth open. He was clearly not in control.

»I will count to three, Commander Tucker. Then I will fire. I advice you not to misjudge my determination, answer yes or no: Will you cooperate? … One.«

»This is an order, Commander, you will NOT cooperate.«

»Two.«

»I will do whatever you say, Serat! Just do not hurt her, I beg you!«

»NO, CHARLES!«

Serat flicked the phaser back to stun, took a step back, and fired at T'Pol. She collapsed immediately. He kept aim at her body as she lay on the floor. He noticed that the Human's face had become as white as the walls in Sickbay. An interesting reaction. He had had no idea his species could do that. Fascinating.

»I stunned her to protect her, Charles. I wanted to make sure she would not force me to do something we both do not want. Don't be concerned. I will not harm her. Simply open the locker and all will be over in less than one minute. No serious damage will have been done. Please proceed.«

»Lieutenant, the Vulcan ship has just undocked.«

»It has?«

»Yes, Lieutenant.«

»Ensign Sato, hail the TALAR — Ensign Beerman, scan them.«

Lieutenant Reed got up from the chair in the center of the bridge and walked over to the weapons console.

»One life sign aboard, Sir. A Vulcan.«

»Is it Captain Serat?«

»Strange … I can no longer read anything, Sir. The TALAR seems to be jamm—«

»Phaser impact on the starboard nacelle, Sir!«

Reed immediately reached for the console to power up hull plating. Then he triggered a tactical alert.

»Ensign Beerman, damage report!«

But Travis answered first: »The TALAR just went to warp, Sir.«

Trip was worried sick. Phlox had assured him the Captain would be okay, but Jonathan had not regained consciousness yet and probably would not for a while. T'Pol was in command, and her condition worried him even more. He had absolutely no idea what had happened. It was a disaster.

»How long until we have warp drive back on-line, Commander?«

»I cannot say for sure, there was a massive overload on the starboard nacelle, and it went straight into the reactor. Lots of the parts were not designed to withstand that kind of energ—«

»How long, Commander? Give me an estimate.«

»At least four hours.«

»Four hours?«

»At least.«

Trip could see that T'Pol was devastated. Her emotions felt horrible. He knew that she controlled them right now. Or rather, tried to control them. He could feel it. He could feel her distress. She felt horrible. And he shared her emotions. He felt horrible, too. He was devastated.

»We will work as fast as we can, T'Pol.«

»That is unnecessary, Commander. He will be long gone by then. If it had been 40 minutes, we might have had a chance.«

»We still have a chance, T'Pol.«

»Charles, we have no chance at all! The ship is far too small to leave a significant warp trail, in four hours there will be nothing left. It is illogical to assume we could still catch him. Serat would never have attacked us if he had not been certain he could escape.«

»We can't simply give up.«

»We have no alternative. We are completely out of options.«

»Don't talk like that, T'Pol, please. He might make a mistake, he might have an engine problem, coincidences happen all the time.«

»Why did you give him the virus, Charles?«

»Why! Because he had a phaser put to your head, T'Pol.«

»Do you have any idea how many individuals will perish when this virus is released? It might affect billions of sentient beings!«

»We don't know that is what he wants to do.«

»Of course we know! Why else would he do such at thing? For research?«

»We simply don't know it, T'Pol. We have no idea what will happen. Don't assume the worst!«

»How could you violate my direct order, Charles? How could you do it? You MUST have realized the implications of this virus getting into the wrong hands!«

»T'Pol, you are talking about some abstract threat that may or may not become true. But he had a phaser put to your forehead. The implications of that threat were far more pressing in that moment.«

»Your decision was grossly unethical, Charles! It is the most unbelievable act of illogic I have ever seen you commit! Why did you do it? What were your reasons? How can you explain that? Billions of lives, Charles!«

They stood in the Captain's ready room and glared at each other. Trip could not stay calm when she was upset. T'Pol could not stay rational when he felt strongly. The air threatened to explode around them, so many excess emotions boiled in them after this experience.

They stared at each other for several moments, before they both took a step backwards at the same time.

Trip blinked. He had no idea what was going on. All he knew was that it was wrong. He looked at T'Pol again and her emotions had changed too. She was hurt. She was badly hurt. And so was he.

»We will continue this discussion later, Commander. See to it that the repairs are done as quickly as possible.«

»Aye, Subcommander.«

T'Pol never ceased to amaze Captain Archer. She was completely calm. She was perfectly in control. How was this possible? Just an hour ago, her best friend had put a phaser to her head and threatened to kill her. But here she stood and explained the situation to him without any trace of an emotional reaction in her voice or her face.

He sure envied her sometimes, because he felt terrible. The wound was severe. Phlox had said, lasting damage was unlikely, but it would takes days before it was healed.

»Do we have any idea what he is up to?«

»We can only speculate, Captain. But his options are somewhat limited. It is safe to assume that Serat planned to release the virus somewhere. Had he just wanted to study it, it would have been unnecessary to resort to violence — Phlox said he had shared the data with Serat already.«

»Where could he want to release it?«

»Serat's goal is — and has always been — to bring progress to Vulcan society, Captain. He believes, this necessitates change. Whatever he is planning to do, it will be something that would directly affect Vulcan.«

»But he cannot do that it in the Expanse. It will takes his ship months to reach Vulcan. This doesn't make sense, T'Pol, he can't assume nobody will catch him for the next several months!«

»Vulcans are largely immune to the virus. I doubt Vulcan itself would be his target. He would achieve very little by releasing it there.«

»How else could he affect Vulcan?«

»He has been an Ambassador to Andoria, Captain. If he released the virus on an Andorian colony, the act would most definitely have severe repercussions for the relations between our species. If it came out that he did it, the Andorians will necessarily assume that he was backed by the High Command.«

»Going to Andoria will take as long as going to Vulcan, T'Pol. This time frame is too long for my taste. If I were him, I would want a target that I could reach quickly.«

»This is speculation on my part, Captain, but I believe there might in fact be an Andorian colony in the Expanse.«

»You are kidding?«

»No. We know that the Andorians have had an interest in the Expanse for decades, Captain. Andorian ships have definitely entered it. We have never been able to confirm it, but intelligence strongly suggested that the Andorians had colonized a planet in the Expanse, near the outer rim. We assumed, they would use the outpost to allow their ships to stay in the Expanse for prolonged periods of time.«

»An outpost?«

»So we assumed.«

»How many people would live there?«

»I don't know.«

»Do you know where it is?«

»I don't even know whether it exists, Captain. We found only vague hints that it did.«

»But if it did, Serat would know?«

»He was an Ambassador to Andoria. It would be logical to assume that he has privy to more accurate information.«

»Assuming it does exist, what would he gain by releasing the virus there?«

»I don't know.«

»Wouldn't this act lead to war?«

»It is very likely.«

»But he cannot want that, T'Pol. How would war help anything?«

»I don't know.«

»This theory is very speculative, T'Pol.«

»Yes.«

»Do we have any chance of picking his ship up on sensors?«

»No.«

»Do we have any idea in which direction this colony might be?«

»No.«

»Is there anything we can do, T'Pol? Any idea?«

»No.«

»Great.«

His headache had subsided before, but now it returned with full force.

»I will resume command, Subcommander. I may not be fit for a fist fight, but I can sure sit in my chair on the bridge.«

»Phlox has advi—«

»Forget it, Subcommander. Have Ensign Mayweather set a course to Andoria. If there is a colony, it would be at a point on the rim that's close to their home planet, they would certainly not colonize a planet on the other end of the Expanse.«

»Aye, Captain.«

»Direct full power to the sensors. We will scan for anything, Subcommander. Anything. Let's just try it, maybe we'll get lucky.«

»Aye, Captain.«

Captain Archer looked at her for a moment longer.

»Are you all right, T'Pol?«

»I am fine, Captain.«

He wondered what fine meant.

Trip was paralyzed with fear. It was impossible what was happening right now. He stood in his quarters and looked at the ghost of T'Pol. There it was. It stood right before him. It breathed and moved and spoke to him, but it was not T'Pol. She was not here. This ghost had entered his quarters and T'Pol had not come along with it. He could not feel her. He could not see her. Whatever it was, it was a ghost. It could not be real.

His mind was numb. It was impossible to focus on her words. He could not focus on anything. He was cold. Never before had T'Pol's absence been so painful. He longed powerfully for her. His blood rushed in his ears so terrible was it to miss T'Pol. But only the ghost had come.

»… we can only speculate about it. But whatever Serat's motives have been, Charles, he would never have harmed me. It is impossible. It was a mistake to give in. Even if, it had still been a mistake. I realize that I carry a significant part of the responsibility, Charles. Your ability to make rational decisions was diminished. The chain of command had been compromised with a private affair. You did not have complete control in that situation — because of me.«

He just looked at her.

»Neither did I have complete control — because of you.«

»T'Pol …«

»This should never have happened, Charles. I realize now that being together with you necessitates that I share your emotions. But this makes me emotional. And being together with me makes you irrational. We cannot do it.«

»T'Pol …«

»We must handle this situation logically, Charles. We must ascertain our options. I realize that breaking up our relationship will hurt you. Is it possible? Can you deal with it?«

Trip realized T'Pol could not feel him either. She did not allow herself to feel anything. She had no idea what he felt, or she would not need to ask that question.

»I don't know.«

»Charles, we should defer the decision until tomorrow. I can see you are in no condition to think rationally. I apologize.«

What difference would it make? Why not end it now? Where was the point in going on with the knowledge it would come either way?

T'Pol looked at him for a moment. Then she turned and walked to door.

»T'Pol.«

She stopped, but did not turn around to face him.

»This is all wrong, T'Pol. What is going on? What has happened? Why do we talk to each other like this?«

»Try to sleep, Commander. Good night.«

Return to Part 1

Continue to Part 3

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A whole mess of folks have made comments

*cries* Noooooooooo!

That bastard! That is the worst plan I've ever heard of. There are so many other things he could of done, and he picked the weirdest and most illogical one! Stupid Serat. He better die in the next chapter Peter.

It was good though. I've gotten to drunk on the shippiness around here lately that this was a breath of fresh air. :)

Why'd he do that??? I *liked* Serat! And I can't believe T'Pol can be so cold. I mean, I guess that her actions are sort of logical, in a twisted way, she's trying to distance herself, but still... POOR TRIP!!!!

I no longer like either of you. Clicks, Peter... you disappoint me. How could you do that to poor Trip and live with yourself? I didn't think it was possible... unless... you guys are A/T shippers? Is it true guys... have you gone to the dark side of the ship? It cannot be! T'Pol will turn around... how could she not.

(Little note... I mean no disrespect to any A/T shipper out there... just joking! I repeat... just joking!)

Keep this going... and make it a happy ending will ya guys! I want to be happy!

Ah, no, no, no, no! Don´t do this to TnT. No, no, NO! And please post soon - otherwise my week-end is ruined...

I must add something more: Until now, this was a wonderfully drafted, very funny, tender and shippy fic. Why was all this ruined by inserting hurt and pain? I really hope not for any so-called "quality" reasons. Even good "funny, tender and shippy" needs a lot of skill and can give a lot of depth. The first parts of this fic were surprisingly different from other fics. By adding the usual dose of misunderstanding and pain I really feel that this fic is ruined. I´m sorry. And this has NOTHING to do with "we like shippy and nothing else".

I feel as if I have been reading two different stories, the first part was spectacular, the second feels out of phase with the first. I cannot believe the Serat from Part 1 would do something as illogical and dastardly as this in Part 2, and as for T'Pol wanting to end her relationship with Trip thereby hurting them both that makes even less sense. Sigh. Being an optimist I am hoping this story gets back on track. Please don't prove me wrong. Ali D

Don't lose faith of the heart, guys. :-)

I'll have the conclusion of TGG finished by tomorrow, I promise. I think there will be some good answers in part 3.

Oh, and by the way: It's all Clicks' fault!

Hey! You're not aloud to blame me!!!!!!!

I'm going to go have a sulk now. !-)

(that's allowed by the way...I need a mega-blushing smilie right about now!)

Don't worry Clicks... I know how sneaky Peter can be... if he says it's your fault it was probably all his fault!

See Peter... it doesn't pay to be sneaky... especially when we all know just how sneaky you truly are!