Say Not the Struggle Nought Availeth - Part 2

Say Not the Struggle Nought Availeth

By Shouldknowbetter

Rating: R
Disclaimer: See Part 1

Part 2

~

Despite the fact that Malcolm Reed joined the Imperial Guard investigation team headed up by Tal, he found no facts to comfort those waiting on Enterprise. When the tactical officer returned to the ship at the end of the first day, his expression was even more sardonic than normal as he reported in to Archer and Soval in the captain’s ready room. “We found traces of DNA on the detonation device, captain.” Until then he had avoided looking directly at Soval, but now turned his head in the Ambassador’s direction. “It was Vulcan.”

“Any possibility,” Archer cut in without giving Soval a chance to respond to the challenge, “that it was a plant like the DNA from T’Pau you found at the Earth embassy on Vulcan?”

“No, sir.” Reed never came to a meeting unprepared. “Phlox is still analysing the data, but he’s already ruled out that possibility.”

Archer’s brow furrowed. “You’ve found no other leads, Malcolm?”

“One, sir. The Andorians pulled in a few people they believe to be opposed to the treaty with Vulcan. Tal showed me the witness statements. One of them mentioned that they’d had help organising a campaign of civil disobedience.” His mouth twisted as he looked over at Soval. “From a Vulcan.”

There was a moment’s uncomfortable silence, broken when Archer gave up waiting for the Ambassador to respond to the allegation. “Is it possible, Ambassador Soval, that there’s also a faction on Vulcan that doesn’t want this treaty?”

“I would have said no.” The Vulcan allowed a telling pause, concluding only reluctantly, “It would seem that I was mistaken.”

~

Although Soval spent several hours in subspace conference with Kuvac and T’Pau – and even allowed Archer to listen in – they were unable to shed any light on the apparent interference in Andor’s internal affairs by a Vulcan. No rumours of a pro-war group had reached the ears of Vulcan security, and all agents operating under the former government had been identified and recalled. They were left with one very unpleasant option that T’Pau did not shrink from voicing: that V’Las had run his own agents, and that those had not been identified because no one had known that they existed. Kuvac had been reluctant to accept the possibility, but had had little option except to ask Archer to investigate on behalf of the Vulcan government. Enterprise's captain accepted the commission gravely, and only after the conference ended turned a quizzical look on Soval, who had fallen silent towards the end. “Still don’t like accepting Human help, Ambassador?”

“In this instance, we have no choice.” It seemed that Soval did not mean to be rude, but that his attention was merely focussed elsewhere, for there was nothing but grave concern in the look he directed at Archer. “There is something awry here, captain.”

“Yet you agreed that the Vulcan identified by the Andorians must be connected with V’Las,” T’Pol pointed out quietly, and Soval flicked a dismissive eyebrow.

“I did. But his motives confound me. There is no logic in loyalty to a disgraced cause.”

“Maybe we’ll gain a better understanding when we catch him. But let’s catch him first.” Archer turned to his former first officer. “T’Pol, you worked for the Ministry of Security. Can you give us any hints on how to locate our suspect?”

She glanced at Soval for permission, but he was frowning at nothing. “Possibly.”

“Then work with Malcolm. I know he’ll appreciate your help.”

She accepted the complement with a faint inclination of her head, but the meeting still left Archer with the uncomfortable feeling that there was more going on behind the scenes than he had any idea of.

~

The next time the group met, it was in Sickbay where Phlox had summoned Archer and Reed to see the results of his analysis of the DNA sample purloined from the site of the explosion on Andor. Archer heard the doctor’s report, and promptly summoned the Vulcan contingent, casting a frowning look at Soval when the Ambassador arrived. “I thought you might be interested in this, Ambassador.”

In response to the captain’s nod, Phlox indicated an overhead display that was showing a familiar double helix. “I managed to reconstruct the DNA sequence from the sample provide by Lt Reed.”

T’Pol moved in for a closer look while Soval subjected the Denobulan to a hard look. “To what end, doctor? You had already confirmed that the sample was from a Vulcan.”

“I had. But with a complete sequence, I should have been able to make an exact match with the Vulcan medical database. I can’t. That means the sample comes from a Vulcan who managed to avoid the statutory DNA patterning at birth.”

“Or comes from one whose records have been deleted.” T’Pol looked around from her study of the display. “That would be consistent with the theory that V’Las operated independently of the Ministry of Security.”

“That’s a possibility, of course.” It was clear that Phlox was just being polite, even before he pulled up another display below the first. “But it did lead me to make a more detailed study of the sample.” He indicated the lower DNA sequence. “This is the generic sequence for a native of Vulcan.” He touched a control and both images expanded to show an enlarged segment. “You can see the divergence.”

Archer squinted doubtfully at the screen, although both Vulcans studied it carefully until T’Pol said quietly, “You believe this to be outside the variation expected in a normal population distribution?”

Phlox nodded solemnly, and Soval asked harshly, “And of the colony worlds?”

This time the doctor shrugged. “I’m not as familiar with the genetic diversity to be found in Vulcan’s colonies, but I believe that none of them have been settled for more than a few generations. Either this individual has mutated in response to harsh environmental conditions, or his ancestors left Vulcan approximately 50,000 years ago.”

“You’re saying the sample comes from a lost Vulcan colony?” Archer demanded, but again Phlox shrugged.

“All I can say, captain, is that the sample did not come from someone born on Vulcan.”

The captain swung irritably on Soval. “Ambassador, can you make any sense of this?”

“No.” The flat denial was delivered in a hard voice. “Speculation is futile. I suggest you do as you formerly proposed, Captain Archer, and endeavour to locate this man before he can endanger further lives.” Then Soval dipped his head fractionally in farewell and headed for the exit. “T’Pol, come.”

Clearly surprised at the unequivocal summons, T’Pol started hesitantly after Soval, although Archer jumped in almost before she had moved. “Ambassador! We aren’t finished here.” Utterly ignored by the elder Vulcan, the captain glared at the younger one instead. “T’Pol, we need to talk.”

“T’Pol!” Soval had halted at the door. “I gave you an order.”

The Vulcan woman stared back, her expression reflecting incomprehension, but also a resistance as stubborn as Soval’s own. He glared at her a moment longer, one hand actually clenching in frustration, then swung on his heel and strode away. Archer stared after the Ambassador for a moment in silence, then turned back to T’Pol, his own frustration indicated by the creases furrowing his forehead. “What the hell was that about?”

“I don’t know.”

T’Pol’s short answer did not pacify the captain. “I thought Soval trusted Humans these days.”
“I’m sure he does.”

“Then why the disappearing act?”

“I don’t know!” T’Pol appeared to take a calming breath. “Captain, Ambassador Soval rarely gives anyone his full confidence.” Then she added deliberately, “Except his wife.”

Archer’s mouth compressed in satisfaction. “Sounds like a job for Trip.”

T’Pol didn’t stay around to help him brief his first officer, no doubt of the opinion that she had already sufficiently compromised her position with Soval.

~

When Tucker wandered into the Mess Hall on an apparently casual quest for coffee, he found Amanda pushing a serving of dessert around her plate, her face set in an expression of wretched uncertainty. He grimaced to himself, and took a seat at her table without asking permission. “Wanna talk about it?”

“No.”

He ignored the denial. “So Soval slapped you down too?” She glared at him, and he answered the angry accusation in her eyes with a rueful shrug. “I heard he turned on the bitter old Vulcan act in Sickbay.” Amanda’s mouth twisted and she redirected her attention to her plate. Tucker waited a moment, weighing duty and friendship, and eventually tried to steer a course between both. “Any idea what’s bugging him?”

She shook her head, generous mouth drooping unhappily. “He wouldn’t tell me.” Her head shook again, more slowly this time. “We tell each other everything! D’you know what it’s like, Trip, to trust someone absolutely, to never doubt that they’re there for you? That’s what I have with Soval.” Then she bit her lip hard. “And now he’s shut me out.”

Tucker’s mouth twitched to one side. “Yeah, I know what that’s like.” He shrugged in response to Amanda’s startled reaction to the bitterness in his voice. “I guess that’s what hurt the most. I trusted T’Pol, and then she cut me out of her life. When we finally got back together, I couldn’t shake the doubts, and that just gave her more reason to pick fights with me.”

“I don’t doubt Soval.” Amanda didn’t sound as sure of that as she might have done, and Tucker sighed.

“Damn Vulcans. You fall in love with them and when it’s too late, you find out they’re not quite as perfect as you thought.”

He didn’t speak with much heat, but Amanda still gave him an angry look. “Speak for yourself, Trip. I know Soval’s not perfect, but I’m not gonna stop loving him that easily.” Then her gaze sharpened still further. “Is that what you’re here for, Trip? To see if I’d come to my senses and decided to leave the bitter old Vulcan? Because if that’s the case, you can get the hell out of my sight right now!”

“Hey!” Tucker held up both hands in a gesture of denial. “That never crossed my mind.”

“It had better not.”

She settled back again, and he forced a rueful grin as he reached out to give her hand an affectionate squeeze, knowing that he’d been sent on a fool’s errand. “Get back to him. Mom always used to tell me not to go to bed on a quarrel.”

Amanda’s smile echoed his own, although it also held a hint of elder sister-like superiority. “Good advice – but I learnt the truth of that one before this.” Then she hesitated on the verge of leaving. “Did you ever take your mom’s advice, Trip?”

He grimaced, reaching for his coffee mug. “When was the last time you heard of a kid who did what his mom told him?”

“Maybe you should try it now.”

“Too late.” His mouth pulled to one side, and even he couldn’t tell whether it was in regret or resignation. “Maybe it was always too late.”

~

Because there was very little else constructive for him to do that evening, Tucker permitted himself the treat of realigning the sensor grid. But when he arrived in Engineering, it was to find that someone was intent on spoiling his pleasure. He scowled at the elegant back blocking his view of the open compartment, and went to lean against the wall nearby, arms folded. “This is a restricted area, sub-commander, and you no longer have clearance.”

T’Pol did not look around. “Lt Reed has been unable to distinguish Vulcan bio-signs on Andor. He requested my help in enhancing the sensors.”

“You should have reminded him that I’m still the chief engineer. No one modifies Enterprise's systems without my permission.”

“Perhaps he believed that you had other priorities.” Her voice sharpened. “Such as seducing the wife of a visiting dignitary.”

“I can’t believe you said that!” Infuriated, Tucker reached out to grasp T’Pol’s upper arm, hauling her around to face him. “Even if Amanda was willing – which she isn’t! – I’m no marriage breaker.” He released her abruptly. “You should remember that.”

T’Pol ignored the latter half of his angry rebuttal. “So you admit that you met with Ms Cole.”

“Yeah. On your advice, according to the captain. For your information, T’Pol, Amanda doesn’t know what’s going on. And she wouldn’t betray Soval even if she could.”

There was a charged pause before T’Pol turned back to the equipment she had been working on. “I did not betray you.”

“It sure felt like it.”

Her shoulders moved, although it wasn’t clear if it was in denial or in uncomfortable acknowledgement of a point made. “I was,” she drew a breath and concluded awkwardly, “overwrought.”

Tucker threw back his head, resting it against the wall to stare at the ceiling. “Is that the best you’ve got to say for yourself?”

“I’m sorry!” The words sounded as if they had been dragged from T’Pol, but once out they appeared to act as a catalyst. She swung back again, eyes pleading even if her face was calm. “Trip, I know that I hurt you. But I could not stay. Your emotions …”

“I’m Human!” He lashed out, not letting her finish. “You knew that. Or was it still only Human sexuality you wanted to explore?”

“No! I cared for you! I thought I had learnt enough from the Kir’Shara to allow us to be together in safety.” Tucker stared at her, disbelief in his eyes, but at least this time he didn’t walk away or interrupt. “But when Elizabeth died …” She faltered at the reflected grief in Tucker’s eyes, but forced herself to continue. “I feared the strength of my emotions. I feared that I would lose control again. I feared!” She drew a calming breath. “I had to leave. I thought that if I lived amongst Vulcans again, it would be easier to master myself.”

Tucker did not respond immediately, but eventually asked harshly, “And was it?”

“No.” T’Pol looked down at the floor, then raised her head slowly, lovely eyes wide. “I missed you.”

The whine of an incoming transporter signal forestalled any response Tucker might have made. Training, and the instinct for trouble developed over five years of deep space exploration, had him reaching for the nearest comm. outlet, but the discharge of a weapon caught him squarely in the back before he had completed the call to security and he fell like one dead. T’Pol had no time to react before the weapon took her down, too.

~

When the door buzzer sounded, neither Soval nor Amanda moved immediately to answer the call, although Amanda felt Soval’s fingers tighten where they lay buried in her hair, keeping her close. She sighed for the necessity and raised her head from his shoulder. “I’ll get it.”

He scowled but didn’t protest in any other way than to release her reluctantly. Amanda slid from his embrace, pulling a robe around her and tossing him another. Until he’d had the opportunity to mediate, he found it hard to deal with other people after they’d made love. His emotional threshold had never completely recovered from Shran’s manipulation, and the intimacy and the pleasure of sex lowered it further. Soval didn’t mind his wife seeing him in less than perfect control, but it wasn’t something to be witnessed by anyone else. Amanda had been surprised that he had wanted to make love with her during this crisis when he needed to be in full command of his emotions. But he had needed some relief, even if it was only a palliative, from what disturbed him so deeply. At least his status meant that they had been assigned officer-class accommodation: T’Pol’s old cabin in fact. The bed was tucked into an alcove and hidden from the door. Soval would have a few seconds to compose himself if she couldn’t persuade whoever was at the door that their business could wait until later.

The buzzer sounded again before Amanda made it to the door, and she slapped the release in some irritation. “Okay, okay! What’s so damn important?” The door slid back to reveal Archer’s grim face, and she made an effort to conceal her annoyance: Enterprise's captain didn’t run his own errands unless the matter was important or unpleasant or both. “What brings you here, Captain Archer?”

“I need to speak with Ambassador Soval. Urgently.”

“I’ll tell him.”

Archer’s mouth pursed with annoyance. “I mean now, Ms Cole. Not when the Ambassador can spare the time from,” his eyes moved from her rumpled hair to her hastily fastened robe to her bare feet, “whatever else he might be doing.”

Amanda squared her shoulders, not liking the captain’s tone. It wasn’t the first time since they’d arrived on Enterprise that she’d noticed that Archer had trouble distinguishing the former MACO corporal from Soval’s spouse. It didn’t bother her on her own behalf, but the insult to Soval’s rank was another matter. “I said I’d tell him, captain. But not until he’s finished meditating.” It wasn’t quite a lie, but the half-truth didn’t pacify Archer, who took a step forward.

“This won’t wait.”

Amanda braced herself, wondering if Archer would really dare enter a private cabin uninvited, then a strong hand gripped her arm, moving her to one side. “Captain,” Soval’s tone was extremely unpleasant, “I fail to see what could be so urgent that you find it necessary to invade our privacy.”

Amanda winced. Soval had not had nearly long enough to compose himself - not when confronted with another man standing far too close to his scantily dressed wife.

“Really?” Archer appeared to be in as foul a temper as Soval. “How about the fact that T’Pol’s been abducted from Enterprise?”

~

For a moment on waking, T’Pol thought that she was still on Enterprise. The coolness suggested the ship that she had abandoned, but then she became conscious of the tingling sensation in her back and the numbness in her legs. She struggled to sit up, but the lower half of her body failed to respond, and she couldn’t quite stifle a gasp of apprehension.

“The paralysis is temporary.” The voice was pleasant, but that did nothing to mitigate the glare that T’Pol turned on the man who arose from a console across the small room from the couch where she lay. “You will regain the use of your legs within a short space of time.”

“Who are you?”

“My name is Tomek.”

“You are Vulcan?” T’Pol was not confident of her identification. There was something subtlety wrong with the man’s face, despite the characteristic points to his ears and the slant of his eyebrows.

“No.” The man moved a little closer, studying her face. “Although my ancestors came from your planet.”

“You are from one of the colonies?” T’Pol found it hard to think, because she kept seeing Tucker’s body collapsing to the deck in front of her. An inner sense told her that she had been unconscious for some minutes, and if the weapon had disabled her so thoroughly, she feared its effect on a Human body. Trip might no longer care for her, but her own feelings were as tenacious as her resistance to him had once been. “If you have a grievance, there are procedures. Violence is illogical.”

“So Surak would have had us believe.” Tomek took a step closer, forcing T’Pol to tilt her head back at an uncomfortable angle. “But I am not from one of your colony worlds, although I can claim kinship with you, T’Pol.” He paused as if to make the most of her confusion. “I am Rihannsu – one of those you call Romulans.”

~

Normally Amanda would not have accompanied Soval, but the news of T’Pol’s abduction had so clearly unsettled him that she had chosen to follow him, and he had not sent her back. She was doubly glad she was there when Archer took them not to the Command Centre but to Sickbay, and Soval checked his stride for the briefest of moments at the sight of Tucker stretched out on a biobed. What he felt wasn’t as strong as guilt or as destructive as anger, but there was a definite ripple of emotion from him, although his expression remained blank.

Rather than explain immediately what had happened, Archer went to stand over the body of his friend, frowning at Phlox who waited nearby. “How is he?”

“Paralysed.” Pain deepened the lines beside the captain’s eyes, and the Denobulan hastened to offer reassurance. “Temporarily. The weapon used in the attack disrupts the body’s central nervous system. Fortunately I was able to get Commander Tucker onto life support within a very short time of the injury occurring. He’ll be fine.”

“Can I talk to him?”

“I’d prefer to keep him unconscious for the next few hours, to give his system time to recover naturally.”

“Sorry, doctor, but he’s our only witness. I need him awake now.”

“What exactly happened, Captain Archer?” Soval had waited with surprising patience for an explanation, but had now decided that he had waited long enough following his urgent and undignified summons.

“The ‘exactly’ is what we’re trying to establish, Ambassador.” From Archer’s tone, it appeared that he was taking some of his own frustration out on the Vulcan. “Gamma shift heard weapons fire. When they went to investigate they found Trip unconscious. Just before that, Hoshi had detected an incoming transporter signal. Before she could raise the alarm, there was an outgoing signal. T’Pol’s no longer on Enterprise, and we know she was working down in Engineering. So logically, Ambassador, we deduce that she’s been abducted.”

“She has been,” Reed confirmed, as he strode from the doors into Sickbay to a workstation just behind the group gathered around Tucker’s body. “I’ve been upgrading the surveillance equipment in sensitive areas of the ship. I’d just completed the work in Engineering. This is what was picked up.”

He activated a screen and they all watched the silent image of Tucker and T’Pol talking while a man solidified behind them. They continued to watch as Tucker fell, T’Pol a second after him, then the intruder moved towards the camera to swing T’Pol’s flaccid body over his shoulder before dematerialising again.

Archer glared at the small screen. “Back up.” Reed obeyed. “Stop. Go forward – slowly. Hold it right there.” Enterprise's captain then turned his head to glare at Soval, any trust in Vulcans other than T’Pol that he might have developed shattered by the physiognomy of her abductor. “Anyone you recognise, Ambassador Soval?”

The man studied the image for a moment then turned away. “No.”

Amanda frowned after him, then moved in for a closer look herself. “Maybe it’s someone from one of the northern provinces.” She didn’t sound convinced. “Those heavy brow ridges …”

She trailed off, while Archer shook his head in annoyance. More practical, Reed leant in to study the detail of the image. “He’s wearing an emblem.” He indicated the shoulder device, even as he zoomed in, but his mouth twisted doubtfully. “It looks like some kind of bird.”

“A raptor.” Soval’s quiet clarification brought them all around to face him, although he kept his back turned, speaking over his shoulder. “The totem of S’Task, one of the finest of Surak’s pupils, who ultimately turned against him. The ensuing war very nearly destroyed Vulcan.”

“I remember,” Archer said slowly, “during one of my visions of Surak, he spoke of ‘those who march beneath the Raptor’s wings’.”

Soval nodded stiffly in acknowledgement, but offered nothing further, leaving it to Amanda to ask hesitantly, “So you think there are still followers of S’Task on Vulcan? After all this time?”

He turned slowly, ignoring the rest to look directly at her. “I know that there are still followers of S’Task. They do not survive on Vulcan.” She drifted to his side, twining her fingers with his, her expression sober and reflecting a pain that was almost certainly Soval’s own. He looked deeply into her eyes, then finally raised his own to Archer. “S’Task and his followers left Vulcan 1800 years ago, and were never heard from again. It was assumed that they had perished from the perils of space travel in primitive ships, or from the violence inherent in their own nature, for they had rejected Surak’s path of peace.” He paused then continued uncomfortably, “It took us 1500 years to recover from the wars. When we finally ventured out into deep space again, we found no trace of S’Task’s descendants.” He took a deep breath. “Until 60 sixty years ago, when one of our ships investigated a binary planetary system orbiting the 128 Trianguli star. Before the vessel was captured, it transmitted sufficient information to make it clear that S’Task’s people had survived. They call themselves Rihannsu. You know them as Romulans.”

“Captured?” Reed leapt on a single word in the disclosure. “Not destroyed?”

“Captured,” Soval confirmed, still speaking in a quiet voice that chilled those who listened. “Dismantled, and its technology exploited. We gave the Romulans warp capability.”

Archer had been prowling during the Vulcan’s explanation, but he came back as it ended to glare at Soval. “And you never thought to mention this to anyone else?”

“We did not.” Soval reacted predictably to the criticism, his tone hardening. “You have learned, Captain Archer, that Vulcan ceased to explore beyond the borders of known space in recent years and that the High Command’s influence increased. Now you know why: it was in response to the perceived threat from the Romulans.”

“But why? Why not try to establish diplomatic relations? Bury your differences?”

Soval’s chin came up, even as his mouth sneered in response to such naivety. “Because the Romulans do not wish for diplomatic relations, captain. They are intensely paranoid regarding their own security. They perceive every other space fairing species as a threat.” He grimaced, no more than a faint contraction of his facial muscles. “Much as the High Command believed that the Romulans were a threat to Vulcan.” He halted again, although his audience had no comment to offer. “You have conjectured that the Romulans’ strategy for maintaining their borders inviolate has been to ferment trouble amongst the other species. It would seem that we now have further proof of your theory.”

“It makes sense.” Reed saw events from the tactical viewpoint as usual. “The more effort we put into securing our own space, the less time would be available for exploration.

“So it’s one of these Romulans who’s taken T’Pol?” Archer’s statement of the obvious ssssbegged for one of Soval’s set-downs, but for once the Vulcan only bowed his head in agreement. “Why?”

“I assume for her scientific knowledge.” Soval’s tone was heavy. “This is not the first time that the Romulans have taken one of our own.”

“You might have considered sharing your suspicions before this, Ambassador.” Archer headed for the exit. “Maybe if you had, T’Pol wouldn’t be in danger.”

“Captain!” Archer halted at the door, looking back over his shoulder much as Soval had done earlier. “If you believe that I am not concerned for T’Pol, you are wrong. But I am more concerned for my people.” He moved slowly closer to the Human. “Captain Archer, I must ask that you restrict this information to your officers.”

“Why should I do that, Ambassador? Because Vulcan doesn’t want anyone knowing about the skeleton in their closet?”

“Yes.” Amanda’s influence showed in Soval’s ready understanding of the cant expression. “Our society has been shaken by the discovery of the Kir’Shara. I fear the consequences if it were widely known that the descendants of S’Task have survived to this day.”

“I’ll see what I can do.”

Soval had to be content with that half-hearted reassurance as Archer departed to start the search for his former first officer.

~

Well aware of Soval’s continuing distress, Amanda waited until they returned to their cabin to state firmly, “You’re still hiding something. What d’you know that you don’t wanna tell Captain Archer?”

He moved away from her. “I know nothing pertinent to T’Pol’s abduction.”

She knew him too well to accept such an answer at face value. “You might not lie, sweetheart, but you can be real economical with the truth. What is it you don’t know, but can guess?” He didn’t answer, just dropped heavily into a chair, staring at his clasped hands. Amanda eyed him anxiously, and tried a different approach. “How did the Romulans survive? Before Surak, Vulcans were violent. You told me you were on the verge of destroying yourselves. So how did a group who rejected Surak’s teachings manage not to wipe each other out?”

“How can I know? I presume they retained something of the discipline. It was Surak’s pacifism that S’Task rejected, not his logic.” Soval had been sitting very still, but he leant forward suddenly, covering his eyes with his hands in a totally uncharacteristic gesture. “That is why I fear this knowledge, Amanda. You have seen the instability in the Vulcan people caused by the Kir’Shara, and the Kir’Shara contained Surak’s unadulterated teachings. If it were known that others chose a different path, one that was also successful …”

“Successful?” Amanda’s tone was scathing. “Setting other species against each other? Destroying shipping? Murdering innocent people? If that’s success, Soval, I’d rather fail.”

“You would not.” He spoke heavily. “If your planet were in danger, would you not do all those things? Did Archer not compromise his principles in the Delphic Expanse in the name of the survival of your species?”

“But no one’s threatening the Romulans. Or Vulcan.”

“It seems that the Romulans do not believe that.” He shook his head and faced front again. “Nor everyone on Vulcan.”

Amanda’s head cocked. “You never mentioned that.”

Soval raised a hand to the bridge of his nose, as if struggling against some inner tension. “Not all opposed V’Las’s policy of aggressive defence.”

“You never told me if the investigation into V’Las’s conduct threw up anything.”

Amanda sounded nothing more than thoughtful, but Soval twisted his head to squint up at her. “The report was confidential – extremely confidential.”

Her mouth pursed in disapproval. “What didn’t you tell Captain Archer, Soval?”

He looked back at the floor. “Do you recall that you once speculated that V’Las’s suicide was judicial murder?”

“I was right!”

“He was murdered, certainly.” Soval came to his feet, moving restlessly around the cabin. “But not on the orders of Vulcan’s government. The proof was not compelling, but it suggested that he was killed by someone,” he grimaced, “very nearly Vulcan.”

“A Romulan!” Amanda’s eyes were wide, any chagrin over the fact that Soval had withheld information forgotten. “V’Las was working for the Romulans!”

“A possibility only.” Soval came back to the couch, slumping down gracelessly. “Amanda, I have no idea what to do. This could destroy my people, and I am powerless to prevent it.”

She moved close enough to wrap her arms around him. “You need to meditate.”

“I cannot.”

“You have to.” Her voice was stern. “Soval, you’re too emotional.” She freed one arm so that she could stroke his cheek, making him look at her. “Meditate. Now.” He grimaced, dropping his head again and covering his face. Amanda moved her hand to the back of his neck to massage the rigid muscles. “Come on, sweetheart, you just have to get started. Want me to light the candles for you?”

“When I cannot light my own candles,” his voice was muffled, “you may turn me over to the psychiatric healers.” Amanda smiled gently, still rubbing his neck, and Soval lifted his head to look into her eyes. “I love you.”

She frowned reprovingly. “Then you definitely need to meditate!”

~

Tomek seemed concerned for her comfort, but T’Pol held him off when he would have pressed a hypospray to her neck. “It will help alleviate your symptoms.”

“I do not require your help.”

“You pride yourselves on your ability to master pain, I know. But I see no point in suffering needlessly.”

“Pride is an emotion. I do not experience emotion.”

“Then what a hollow life you must lead.”

She glared at him for the facile observation. “Why did you abduct me?”

“Because we require your assistance.”

The simplistic answer nearly led T’Pol to snap back that under no circumstances would she assist someone who had abducted her, but the guile she had learnt from Archer stopped her. “With what?”

“With the most important project since S’Task departed from Vulcan.” Tomek leant closer, obviously sincere. “With the reunification of our people, T’Pol.”

“Reunification?” She repeated the word for the sake of buying herself a little thinking time. “A worthy aim, but one that I cannot reconcile with your attempts to destabilise relations between Vulcan and Andor.”

“Can you not?” Tomek shook his head in disappointment. “And we selected you so carefully, T’Pol. Use a little of your professed logic. Surely you have seen how the future of your planet is being entrusted to aliens who don’t even respect your culture. Aliens who would degrade the Vulcan species by encouraging ... relations with others.” His mouth twisted in disgust at the concept, while T’Pol stared back, hearing a dangerous echo of words she had heard once before – from the Human who had created her daughter to use as a pawn in his isolationist gambit. “A new era is at hand, T’Pol: an era that will expose the concept of interspecies unity as an absolute and vicious lie. An era that will witness the advent of a Vulcan-centred consciousness that will place our worlds above all others.”

“You wish to re-unit the Vulcan and Romulan people that we might dominate this quadrant?”

“Of course! We are far superior to these other species. Why should we allow them to dictate their terms to us?”

T’Pol’s head was spinning with more than the after effects of Tomek’s weapon. She very much wished that Archer were present to explain just what he thought of the Romulan’s xenophobic policy. Even Soval’s sarcasm would have been welcome. But she had never mastered the art of scathing put-downs – except to Trip, who had deserved better than she had ever managed to give him. “Why do you believe that I might be willing to assist you?”

“Because you have seen what the Humans are doing to this quadrant, and rejected it!” Tomek seemed to believe that his reasoning was impeccable. “You left their service once you saw that they had no intention of ceasing to meddle in the affairs of others.”

T’Pol did not try to answer him this time, simply drawing her aching body a little further from him, propping herself against the wall behind the bed. She doubted that he would listen if she pointed out the flaws in his logic: fanatics never listened to reason. And what if she did convince him that his government had completely misread her character? Probably a swift death, before ever Enterprise found her. Because of one thing she could be sure: Captain Archer would be searching for her. She just wished that she could be equally sure that Trip was still alive. Otherwise the future would be a very empty place.

~

On Enterprise, the search for T’Pol was indeed underway, but progress wasn’t easy when they didn’t even know if she was still on Andor. While Reed and Mayweather tried to identify any unauthorised ships that had left orbit, Sato and the science team scanned and rescanned the planet below them for Vulcan bio signs, and Archer wore out the deck plates pacing. His patience broke within an hour, when he called Soval to his ready room, his mouth pursing when he found that the Ambassador had again brought Amanda with him.

Soval simply ignored the fact that he had brought his unofficial wife – particularly since he had brought her for his own comfort. Half an hour’s meditation was nowhere near long enough to restore his composure. “You wanted to see me, captain?”

Archer frowned, but let the matter pass. “We’ve failed to locate T’Pol. We need more information. Anything you can tell us about these Romulans.”

“There is nothing I can tell you that would facilitate your search.”

The captain grimaced and prowled around his desk. “So far I’ve kept word of Romulan involvement from the Andorian authorities. But I can’t do that much longer. Not if it puts T’Pol in greater danger.”

“What do you want from me, captain?” There was a hint of annoyance in Soval’s voice. “Logic? I deduce that the Romulan and T’Pol are still on Andor, shielded from sensor sweeps. I can give you no more help than that.”

“Then I have to call in the Imperial Guard – and explain why.”

“Threats serve no purpose, captain.”

This time the annoyance was mixed with contempt, and Archer’s brow furrowed in answering anger, but before he could retaliate, Amanda said quietly, “Maybe Trip could help.” Both men turned to glare at her, and she took the opportunity to step closer to Soval, discreetly winding her fingers through his.

Archer shook his head impatiently. “He’s still confined to sickbay. And even he’d need T’Pol’s help to refine the sensors further.”

“That wasn’t quite what I had in mind.” Amanda turned to Soval, expression as blank as his could be; when he was agitated, it helped if she remained calm. “If they’re bonded, couldn’t he contact her? It works for us.”

“Bonded?” Archer queried, and Amanda supplied a brief answer without moving her eyes from Soval’s tense face.

“A psychic connection. It can develop if a Human and a Vulcan are close.”

“T’Pol’s my friend. Maybe it would work for me.”

Amanda finally looked back to him, mouth curving in a faintly mischievous smile. “I think Trip has the advantage over you there, Captain Archer.” She turned her head to Soval again, who frowned back. “Well?”

“Even if you are right, she may not know where she is.”

“Gotta be worth a try.” She evidently read acceptance in his eyes, because she tugged him towards the door. “We’ll let you know how it goes, captain.”

Archer would have protested her high-handed behaviour if he had not been certain that there was a degree of chagrin in the Ambassador’s expression. It reconciled him to the plan, as nothing else would have done.

~

The feeling had returned to T’Pol’s legs, but the temperature within the room in which she was confined led her to wonder how long she would retain sensation: it was bitterly cold. While the temperature of Vulcan’s deserts plummeted at night, it never sunk as low as this, and she had left her robes in her cabin whilst working on Enterprise's sensors. Surreptitiously she hugged her knees a little more tightly to her chest, but even that slight movement drew the attention of her captor. He turned from the terminal where he appeared to have been compiling a report – T’Pol trusted that he was not reporting on her! – to observe her carefully. “You are cold?”

T’Pol promptly uncurled herself. “Not at all.” There were aspects of the Romulan’s personality that affected her much as Trip Tucker had once done.

He ignored her ascertain – just as Trip used to do – rising to extract a blanket from a locker and offer it to her. “You will be more comfortable on Romulus. The environment presents greater challenges than you will find on Vulcan, but it is warmer than this ice-bound wilderness.”

T’Pol took the blanket, although not from any motive of cooperation. “We are still on Andor?”

“Naturally.” He gave her an all too knowing look. “Had you asked, T’Pol, I would have told you without the need for duplicity on your part. We are to the north, near the Aener compound, shielded within an ice flow.”

“You do not believe my possession of this information to be a threat to you?”

“Of course not. Acting on the information would be foolish.” Tomek’s eyes swept slowly and appreciatively over her. “I assure you, T’Pol, that however much I admire your beauty, my honour and that of my family demand that I return with you. I will prevent any attempt on your part to overpower me.”

This time it was not the cold that caused T’Pol to curl tighter on her prison bed.

~

When Soval and Amanda entered sickbay, Phlox was waging a small but vicious war with Tucker over whether or not the engineer could return to duty and assist in the search for T’Pol. Since he could not yet stand unaided, it might have been thought an unequal struggle, but it required a firm shove from Amanda to lay the engineer flat on his back again. “Forget it, Trip.”

He scowled back at her. “I have a job to do, Amanda.”

“And you can do it better right here.” Her tone was intense as she reached behind her to draw Soval to her side. “We need to know something. Trip, did you and T’Pol ever sleep together?”

Tucker stared back, mouth wide open in consternation, and Soval scowled briefly at his wife and asked a rather less impertinent question. “Commander Tucker, have you ever experienced any inexplicable,” he paused briefly to select an appropriate word, “sensations connected with T’Pol?”

Tucker glanced from Human to Vulcan, mouth closing as he assimilated where they were heading. “You mean, are we bonded?”

The couple exchanged a quick look that the engineer did not miss, before Soval said quietly, “Precisely.”

“You are?” Amanda would always be more direct, however long she lived with her Ambassador. “So how come you haven’t told Captain Archer where T’Pol is? Doesn’t she know?”

Tucker shook his head, glancing around for Phlox as the only point of sanity in the room, but the Denobulan had sensibly made himself scarce when Soval first glared at him. “All I know is that T’Pol told me we had this psychic connection, and once or twice I had this real weird daydream about her.” He shrugged dismissively. “And maybe I used to be able to tell if she was in the same room. But nothing like that’s happened since she left Enterprise.”

Amanda looked at Soval for an explanation that he gave reluctantly. “Very little is known about the bonding process – particularly with Humans. But it is possible that the bond weakens if not renewed.”

“But it doesn’t dissolve?”

The Vulcan shook his head slowly. “I suspect not. After all,” and his eyes met Amanda’s, “the laws prohibiting divorce once a marriage has been consummated come down to us from Surak’s time – but originally they were based on the premise that the couple were bonded. It may be that the prohibition stems from the indissoluble nature of the bond.”

“You mean T’Pol and I are married?” If he hadn’t been talking, Tucker’s mouth would have been open again: his eyes were certainly stretched with something that was hopefully delight, but was more probably dismay.

Perhaps out of compassion, Soval ignored the question. “Commander Tucker, if you are indeed bonded to T’Pol, it should be possible for you to speak with her, mind to mind.”

“But how?” Faced with the possibility of doing something constructive, Tucker focussed on the task in hand, not on the possible ramifications. “I told you, I’ve felt nothing in months.”

Soval’s cheek twitched with distaste, but Amanda was at his side, silently egging him on. “I may be able to assist you.”

“How?”

“You know that I am a melder. If you permit, I will join my mind to yours in order to direct you in accessing your bond with T’Pol.”

“You think you can do that?”

Soval glanced over at Amanda, who smiled lovingly back. “I have a good deal of experience.”

Tucker drew a deep breath, eying Amanda warily, but his answer was never really in doubt. “Okay, Ambassador. I’m in your hands.”

Despite the fact that he knew Soval was an ally, perhaps even a friend, despite the fact that he wanted to cooperate, Tucker didn’t find it easy to submit to the mind meld. Maybe he’d encountered one too many aliens who thought the Human mind was an entertaining place to live. Maybe he’d just watched too many horror films. He sincerely hoped that, subconsciously, he did not resent the idea of allowing T’Pol to think she still meant something to him. But whatever the reason, it took Soval several minutes to achieve the meld and, when their minds slid into alignment, Tucker became aware that the Vulcan had a raging headache – and promptly developed one himself. “Sorry.”

“Don’t mention it.” Tucker’s apology had been instinctive, but the dry response made him smile, at least in his head. Then the Vulcan directed firmly, “Show me your memories of your connection with T’Pol.”

This time Tucker could not deny his own reluctance. But to weigh against that were the last six months of missing T’Pol, the years spent working closely together and, far sweeter, the memory of her kiss when she welcomed him back to Enterprise from his stint on Columbia.

“Commander, please! Not all your memories.”

Again Tucker experienced a quick shaft of amusement, then he focussed his attention, remembering that weird encounter with T’Pol in her white environment.

“Very good.” Soval’s voice seemed to come from just behind him. “Now,” and to Tucker it felt as if he were steered around to face in a specific direction, “focus on T’Pol, on your feelings for her.” For a second, Tucker balked against that instruction and Soval’s mental tone hardened. “Do not fool yourself, commander. You have feelings for T’Pol. Use them!”

So the engineer gritted his teeth and let go of the hurt and the carefully nurtured anger to leave just the love, bittersweet as it had always been. And he was in another white room with T’Pol swinging around to face him, her eyes wide with relief and, he finally acknowledged, more than relief. “Trip!”

“We have to stop meeting like this.” The flicker of uncertainty in her expression cured Tucker of any further facetiousness. “Are you okay?” She nodded, and he knew that that made him glad. “Where are you?”

“Near the Aenar compound, under an ice flow.”

“Okay. Then we’ll find you real soon.”

“Naturally.” He grinned at the artificial confidence in T’Pol’s voice, and she added a little snappily, “The sooner you leave, the sooner you will locate me.”

“Yeah.” Belatedly Tucker recognised the flaw in Soval’s plan. “Uh, any thoughts on that one?”

He had time to see the disgust on T’Pol’s face before he was blinking in the lights of Enterprise's sickbay, Soval beside him with Amanda’s arm resting protectively around the Vulcan’s shoulders. She spared enough attention from her husband, whose head was bowed, to glare at Tucker. “Well?”

“It worked.” He swung his legs over the edge of the biobed, swearing when they still refused to support him. “Doc! Give me a hand here.”

~

Once they knew where to look, it became almost ludicrously easy. A high-resolution scan of the pertinent area revealed the faintest of heat anomalies below the surface, enough to give the transporter operator a target, and Reed and a handful of MACOs took the risk of beaming into the confined space. The Romulan never had a chance. But neither did Starfleet, Andor nor Vulcan ever get the chance to question him. When he saw that capture was inevitable, he died without a shot being fired. Phlox later diagnosed a self-administered toxin that not only brought about almost instant death, but degraded the cell structure post-mortem so that the autopsy could provide no useful information. It was the outside world’s first experience of the Romulan code that preferred death to dishonour; it would not be their last.

Given that Tomek’s demise took place on Andor, it would have been impossible, not to mention impolitic, to keep the source of the plot from the Andorian authorities, and Soval did not even try. But by dint of some very sharp diplomacy, he did manage to convince them that revealing the truth would assist no one. If he had to concede rather more than he had originally planned in the treaty negotiations, he considered the price well worth paying.

And then there were the less formal talks to be concluded.

~

Tucker had been back in his quarters only a couple of hours since being released from Sickbay, and was already bored: bored, undecided and frankly put out. Malcolm had made his usual efficient job of rescuing T’Pol, and that was a good thing, but Tucker felt that he deserved at least a little of the credit. But no one had been near him in hours. He hadn’t even been updated on the situation. He’d had to rely on Phlox for his information, and he was within an ace of storming off to the bridge to remind Archer that it wouldn’t hurt to keep his first officer in the loop, even if he was temporarily out of commission. Then the door buzzer sounded. “Come in.” The door slid back, and Tucker immediately wished that he’d made the effort to get into his uniform – not that it mattered one bit, of course. “T’Pol.”

She remained standing almost in the doorway, having moved forward only enough to allow the door to close behind her. “Commander. I trust you’re recovered?”

“Pretty much.” Tucker had risen to his feet, but was tempted to lie right back down again, just for the contrast with T’Pol’s formal pose, hands clasped behind her. But she seemed to be finding it hard enough to look at him, and he doubted that she’d appreciate any lapse into informality. And neither would he.

“I came,” she was looking over his left shoulder, at the diver’s helmet on the shelf behind him, “to thank you. For finding me.”

“You should thank Soval. It was his idea.”

“He would consider such an action illogical.” Her eyes flitted towards him then away again. “I doubt I will see you again before we leave Enterprise. Goodbye, Commander Tucker.”

She had her hand on the door release before Tucker made the hardest decision of his life. “T’Pol.” She didn’t look around, but she didn’t open the door either. “Maybe we should talk.”

“What would be the point?” She spoke to the door. “You have made your position clear.”

“Yeah. But maybe I was wrong about that.” She still hadn’t looked around. “Would it help if I said I still cared for you?” The lovely face turned towards him, eyes wary even if the expression gave nothing away. “That I realised I loved you when you told me you were gonna marry Koss?” Briefly Tucker’s mouth twisted into a reluctant smile. “The second time you told me!” Then he grew grave again. “I think maybe you feel the same, T’Pol. But if that’s so, I don’t understand why you left after Elizabeth died. Even if we never see each other again, I need to understand that.”

He saw her breasts heave as she took a deep breath, and had to concentrate to prevent a distracting train of thought. “It is,” she paused, “not easy to explain.”

“Try me.”

“My mother,” T’Pol’s voice faltered briefly, “my mother told me that my emotions have always been close to the surface. Others have said the same. I suspect that Ambassador Soval placed me on Enterprise for that very reason.” She paused, studying the room, the furniture, anything but Tucker, who was watching her closely but in formidable silence. “In the Delphic Expanse,” she shuddered almost imperceptibly, “I found a way to access them. I thought it was safe.” Her eyes slid over his face and away. “It was not. I became scared of what I had unleashed, scared of the consequences. I had to strive to undo the damage I had caused myself.”

“So I really was an experiment?” There was both hurt and disgust in Tucker’s voice, as he latched onto the thing that perhaps most affected him. “I never quite bought that, T’Pol, not until now.”

She closed her eyes, swallowing. “I experimented on myself, Trip. I never meant to harm you.”

“Maybe you should have thought a little harder about that one at the time.

“You do not understand Vulcan emotions! They make logical thought impossible.” Finally she looked him fully in the face. “I wanted you. I did not want another to have you. I could not think beyond that.”

He stared back, unforgiving. “You still haven’t explained why you left Enterprise.”

T’Pol moved slowly towards him, her mouth set in a determined line as if she had finally nerved herself to reveal something desperately unpleasant. Tucker had to struggle not to back away; he didn’t think he could take many more unpleasant revelations. “Because I was still scared. I had spent a year struggling to control my emotions. With the aid of the Kir’Shara, I thought I had succeeded. I thought that I was ready to enter into an intimate relationship with you. I wanted to do so! I felt,” she shook her head in wonder at the concept, “unfulfilled without you. But when Elizabeth died …” She broke off to steady her voice. “I could not entirely suppress my emotions. I wanted to be with you, but I was afraid of what I might do. So I left.”

Tucker left a few moments silence, before asking harshly, “What could have been so bad that you had to leave?”

“I feared that I would kill you.”

The bald statement made him blink, then he finally did move away. “What?”

“I’m Vulcan!” She was begging him to understand. “I grieved for Elizabeth, and for your pain, but I was angry too: angry at the men who had created her only to die. Trip, I feared that if I shared my grief with you, I would release the anger too. I thought it safest to leave.”

Tucker took a few breaths himself. “You should have told me.”

“Yes.”

That brought his head around, too surprised to avoid her eyes. “Just like that? No excuses?”

“None.” She stared back, hiding nothing. “Ambassador Soval tells me that Humans are capable of dealing with Vulcan emotions. He is in a position to know.”

They studied each other for a long time, before Tucker said quietly, “What now?”

T’Pol turned her head to one side. “I am scheduled to return to Earth with Ambassador Soval.

“And if you didn’t go?”

“My mother’s house is currently unoccupied.”

“So’s your cabin on Enterprise – when we don’t have guests, anyway.” She looked back at him, a question in her eyes, and Tucker scratched his cheek ruefully. “We could try again, T’Pol. Third time lucky, maybe?”

“You’re sure?”

Her voice shook slightly, and Tucker grimaced. “No!” He stepped close enough to take her hands gently, feeling a slight flutter in them too. “Are you still scared?”

“Yes.”

“Well, that makes two of us. Could be a good start.” He stared down at her for a moment longer, then lifted her hands to kiss them, grinning at her surprise as he stepped back. “But let’s take it slowly, okay?”

“Very well.”

“So who gets to be first officer?”

T’Pol tucked her hands neatly behind her back again. “I am still senior.”

“Let’s see, I’ve been a commander for five years. You managed a little less than one. It’s no competition.”

“We will see what Captain Archer has to say on the matter.”

Tucker chuckled at T’Pol’s righteous expression, and caught her arms to pull her close again. “Maybe first we should define what ‘slowly’ means.”

~

To ensure privacy for what she knew would be a trying interview, T’Pol made an official appointment to see Ambassador Soval. That he had respected her request became clear when she found him formally dressed and immaculately groomed – and alone. All too often over the last six months, she had been forced to deal with her mentor when his wife had also been present. While she had to acknowledge that his infatuation with Amanda Cole appeared not to have affected his abilities, she still deplored the relationship. “Thank you for seeing me, Ambassador.”

Soval leant back in his chair. “You are slipping back into bad habits, T’Pol. Human expressions of gratitude are illogical between Vulcans.”

“I …” One of Soval’s eyebrows rose, and T’Pol hastily bit back her apology, which would have been equally illogical. “I wish to reactive my Starfleet commission and resume my service aboard Enterprise.”

“Indeed? May I ask why?”

“That should be obvious, surely.” T’Pol left a nicely considered pause, that implied that her reasons were so obvious that Soval should voice them for himself. He declined the privilege, however, so she did so instead. “With the Romulan threat now identified, the Humans will need our help to neutralise it.”

“Laudable.” Soval’s face was impassive, his tone neutral, but T’Pol felt increasingly uncomfortable. “A pity that we know no more of the Romulans than I have already revealed. Your help will be of limited value.”

“I was referring to scientific knowledge, not to the supply of information.”

“I see.” Almost idly, Soval touched a data recorder lying on the desk before him. “I am reluctant to endorse your request at this time, T’Pol.”

“You are refusing my request?”

“So it would seem.”

T’Pol glared across the width of the desk. “Suppose I were to appeal to First Minister Kuvac?”

“You have that right, of course. He may, however, choose to value my opinion above yours.”

T’Pol squared her shoulders, prepared to state her intention of leaving Soval’s service whether he approved or not. Then she took another, closer look at the most irritating man of her acquaintance, and hurriedly reran their conversation. Her conclusion did not moderate her glare. “You will not refuse me.” An eyebrow moved slightly in confirmation. “I beg leave to state, Ambassador, that I find your attempted manipulation extremely unprofessional.”

He looked calmly back, unmoved by her rebuke. “But at least I can be sure of your commitment.” She rose abruptly to her feet, and Soval added gently, “You may wish to know, T’Pol, that your mother thought well of Commander Tucker. She did not approve of your relationship, but she liked him.” T’Pol drew a quick breath, inclined her head in unspoken thanks, and headed for the door, halting when Soval added dryly, “Kindly do not change your mind again, T’Pol. It causes me a great deal of paperwork.”

She glared back over her shoulder, this time seeing the amusement in her mentor’s hooded eyes. “Are you aware, Ambassador, that you are developing a Human accent?”

On that damning indictment she left, which was probably as well, because she was saved the humiliation of knowing that Soval had never taken the trouble to officially reinstate her.

~

The signing of the treaty between Andoria and Vulcan took place on Enterprise some weeks later, because neither side was quite prepared to allow the other to take the credit for hosting the event. The signing ceremony, attended by the heads of government for both planets, was followed by a reception at which both delegations were studiously polite to each other. The event went well – if one discounted Kuvac’s disgust with Soval, caused by his discovery that Amanda was present as the guest of Enterprise's captain – until T’Pol tempted fate by approaching Archer during a quiet moment. He eyed her doubtfully before producing one of his increasingly rare grins. “Don’t tell me: I’ve overlooked something vital.”

One elegant eyebrow rose. “On the contrary. I was about to congratulate you on the successful completion of the negotiations.”

His smile faded as they exchanged a long look that acknowledged their friendship and the lost potential for anything more. “Thank you.” Then his grin reappeared. “Can I say this time that it’s good to have you back, T’Pol?”

“I don’t know.” Her expression managed to combine innocence and haughtiness at the same time. “You may still not appreciate my advice.”

Archer was still chuckling when he went to answer Sato’s hail, although he ceased smiling long before she reached the end of the message. “Pipe it down here.” His voice was tight, and he had to swallow before he could raise it enough to get the attention of the room. “We’ve just received this broadcast from Starfleet. You need to see it.” Stiffly he moved to a screen built into one wall, viciously punching a button to start the replay.

The Vulcan and Andorian representatives gathered around, while Tucker and Reed, who had been doing their duty amongst the guests, drifted over to join their captain and first officer. On the screen, an image of Enterprise appeared to form, although as the shot panned around the name blazoned across the front of the saucer section showed that it was her sister ship. For a second Columbia continued to grow, as if approaching a stationary object, then the picture, which had been faintly distorted, crystallized and twin missiles shot out of the foreground towards the Starfleet vessel. When they struck, it became clear that Columbia's hull plating had been inactive, because the torpedoes ripped through the hull, the subsequent explosions tearing great holes in the ship; everyone watching knew that the bridge had been destroyed. Then the ship from whose perspective they watched moved under the crippled vessel and pounded more missiles into the Engineering section. There was a momentary pause, then Columbia tore apart as her warp core breached, the saucer section fragmenting, her nacelles spinning away into space, venting plasma.

On Enterprise there was stunned silence while the clip began again, but this time over it a voice delivered a stark message. “This is the Romulan Star Empire. We are now at war with the inhabitants of the planet known as Earth. Any who aid them will also experience our wrath. The Empire will prevail! Long live the Empire!”

Archer hit a button to prevent the message repeating again, and turned to survey the people around him. For a reason he never understood, it was the expression of grief on Soval’s face that caught his eye, and it was to the Vulcan he voiced the thought uppermost in his mind. “We never wanted this.”

“No.” The Ambassador’s quiet voice held a note almost of despair. “But that will make it no less bloody.”

Part 3

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