A Vacation to the Past

A Vacation to the Past

By : treklover

RATING: G
DISCLAIMER: Paramount owns Enterprise and all its characters. I tried to keep all the characters and the facts of the Star Trek series as near to the original ones as possible.
GENRE: Drama/Adventure/ Future Episodes
SUMMARY: My story continues one year after Star Trek :Enterprise’s (“ENT”) “Terra Prime”. I chose to ignore ENT’s series finale “These Are The Voyages...” as the episode has distorted the series.
AUTHOR’S NOTES: All reviews and comments are most welcomed. I hope that you would enjoy my story.

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Prologue

28 October 2191, 7.00am

The alarm clock was beeping softly in the darkness. T’Mira Tucker stirred from her sleep. Grunting, she tried to ignore it but found it to be useless when the beeping got loader. “Okay, okay”. T’Mira slowly got up, switched on the lights and rubbed her eyes. It was a long night, yesterday. Every crew member of the U.S.S. Meridian had been occupied with the preparations for the reception for the arrival of the Ambassador of Xarcon, who was scheduled to be boarding the ship at 1000 hours.

She turned to her right, checking if her husband was awake too. She left the alarm on hoping that the sleepyhead beside her would wake up. But there he was, lying on his chest, still sleeping soundly. “Gabriel” she poked his ribs. He jerked a bit, mumbled something and went back to sleep. Humans, she thought, always appreciate contentment in every kind of activity especially sleeping.

“Gabriel Archer! Wake up!” This time she poked harder, twice on his ribs. “It’ll be three hours before the Ambassador arrives and we need to get ready for the reception or the captain will throw us both into the brig. The captain wouldn’t want his first officer to be late for this important ceremony”.

Captain Sinclair was complacent when the Xarconians had finally decided to join the Federation. His negotiations with the peace-loving species had been fruitful. Since the birth of the United Federation of Planets on 2161, the captain had been enthusiastic in forming alliances with new species on behalf of the Federation.

The Xarconians had been resisting contacts with other inter-galactic species in fear of having their own society contaminated with alien cultures and technology. Hence, it was not surprising that not many species knew about their cultures and that the Xarconians were not technologically advanced.

The captain had been having a hard time convincing them to join the Federation. However, after an attack from a hostile species on their planet, they began to realize that the coalition did not seem to be a bad idea.

The Ambassador of Xarcon was impressed and intrigued by the captain’s negotiating skills and sincerity that he decided to travel on the captain’s ship to Earth for the signing of the Federation treaty. The captain felt honored and decided to have a reception ceremony for the Ambassador. Captain Sinclair had asked his Science Officer to conduct a research on the Xarconian language and culture; a set of information which the latter had finally decided to share.

“What time is it?” Gabriel croaked while trying to get out of bed with his eyes half closed, blinded from the lights which flooded their quarters.

“0700 hours” replied T’Mira. She was already standing beside her bed, switching off the alarm.

“T’Pol?” asked Gabriel glancing at T’Mira and then to the other end of their quarters.

“I’ll wake her up. You get yourself a shower first.” T’Mira answered and walked towards her sleeping daughter.

Chapter 1

8 October 2191, 8.00am

“Mommy, why do I have to wear all these layers of colorful cloth?” 5-year old T’Pol Archer was frowning at her mother who was helping her with the final piece of the robe.

“What you are wearing is the Vulcan traditional robe. The captain wants us to wear our most formal or traditional clothing.” T’Mira replied. Still frowning, young T’Pol ran across the room and found herself in front of a mirror. The frown turned immediately into a smile.

T’Mira shook her head and turned her attention towards her husband who was struggling with his jacket. “This is my first official Starfleet jacket which I wore during my Starfleet Academy Graduation, you know?” Gabriel smiled cheekily glancing at his wife. “And it still fits me.”

“Yes, I remember. And when was it? Twelve years ago I believe. I’m sure that your neck and your tummy have not grown since then” answered T’Mira mockingly. She strode toward him and helped him with the buttons. Three pips were embedded on his right collar.

Gabriel laughed “Your sense of humor is more human than Vulcan”

“I AM more human than Vulcan” stressed T’Mira, born half human, half Vulcan 33 years ago. her parents had always wondered why she did not have pointed ears.

“Daddy, when are we going for a vacation?” young T’Pol chirped as she danced and skipped around the room enjoying her new set of garments. “I thought we just came back from Vulcan last week?” Gabriel gave a questioning look. T’Mira lifted an eyebrow. “No, that was not a vacation. How about the real vacation?” T’Pol whined. She was tugging at her father’s sleeve. Gabriel winced. He knew that their trip to Vulcan was not entirely a vacation. Starfleet had sent Captain Sinclair and Commander Gabriel Archer to Vulcan for a seven day conference. While Gabriel was attending the conference, T’Mira took her daughter for sight seeing which the youngling did not enjoy, especially without her father.

“All right, this time I really promise you. When we get back to Earth, ok?” he promised as he tickled the back of his daughter’s pointed ears. << T’Pol always love the ear tickle >> thought Gabriel.

“Ok.” T’Pol frowned and glided slowly towards the window, gazing at the stars. T’Mira sighed and cocked her head glancing at her husband.

Gabriel turned to her and winced again, “All right, this time for real” he promised.

Chapter 2

28 October 2191 10am

“Th’lak Wan Jar” Captain Sinclair recited while pacing along the corridor towards the docking bay.

“Th’lak Wan Jarrr. The Xarconians emphasize on the Rrrr when greeting.” T’Mira corrected as she tried to keep pace with her captain.

“Th’lak Wan Jarrr,” the captain repeated. “Have they docked yet, Commander?” Captain Sinclair asked as Gabriel joined them from an adjacent corridor.

“I’ve just transmitted them the docking procedures. They’ll be docking any minute.”

“Good” replied the captain and then repeated the greeting again.

“Problems with their language, sir?” Gabriel smiled. The captain smiled back.

The Ambassador studied the interior of the Meridian with awe the minute they set foot on the ship. << They look awfully like praying mantis. >> thought the captain. Their thin and frail bodies reminded the captain of an insect called the praying mantis which he remembered seeing it in the museum. Every aspect of the Xarconians was similar to a praying mantis except for their heads which looked like bearded Tibetan monks.

“Th’lak Wan Jarrr, Ambassador J’ale. Welcome aboard the U.S.S. Meridian. It is an honor that you have chosen to be a guest of mine for the next seven days. This is my First Officer, Commander Gabriel Archer, my Science Officer, Commander T’Mira Tucker and this is our ship’s doctor, Zuzane Walker,” Captain Sinclair introduced with his most formal smile. The commanders and the doctor nodded their heads in respect.

Ambassador J’ale smiled back and extended his frail hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you again, Captain.” Captain Sinclair shook the Ambassador’s extended hand. He was surprised himself that the Xarconians had also done some research on human customs. “Captain Sinclair, your ship is a beauty and is most intriguing to our species.”

“The Meridian is one of Starfleet’s fastest ships. I’ll be happy to give you a tour around the ship after the reception at our mess hall. Please gentlemen, I will lead you to the mess hall.”

The captain walked along side the Ambassador explaining each section of the ship as they passed by. T’Mira strode beside her captain in case he needed any further cultural assistance. Fifteen other Xarconians followed behind them. Commander Archer and Doctor Walker were behind the group.

“Seems like the captain is already commencing the tour” the commander smiled.

“I believe so” the doctor smiled back.

“Commander Archer to the Bridge”. Gabriel ordered as he punched on the comm panel.

“Yes sir?” “Set a course for Earth at warp 6”

“Aye sir”

Chapter 3

28 October 2191 10.15am

In the mess hall, young T’Pol was getting impatient. << When are those people going to arrive? >> she thought as she waited quietly. T’Mira had warned her earlier to behave. If not, she would be sent back to Vulcan for a longer stay. Though she was part Vulcan herself, young T’Pol was afraid of her own species. Their lack of facial expression always gave her the goose bumps.

Minutes later, young T’Pol jumped excitedly and tugged at a crewmen’s arm beside her “There they are!” she cried.

Half and hour later, young T’Pol was feeling bored again. Her father was busy explaining the Federation procedures to a Xarconian and her mother was demonstrating how the beverage dispenser worked. T’Pol wandered around until she reached a window. She stared out at the stars and sighed << BORING and I can’t wait till we reach Earth >>.

Suddenly, she felt a presence beside her. She quickly turned to see a man standing next to her. He was in Starfleet uniform, the same uniform that her father and the rest of the crew wore. “Hello there, young T’Pol. Why aren’t you with your mother?” asked the man.

“I was bored and I just want to see the stars” answered T’Pol, still looking curiously at the man, who was now crouching down beside her. << He does not look familiar. But since he is in Starfleet uniform, it should be ok. He is not a stranger. >> thought T’Pol.

“What is your name?” the young girl asked.

“My name is Daniels. Which star are you looking at?” the man smiled warmly at the girl.

“Earth” answered T’Pol dreamily.

“You miss Earth? We are still one week away from Earth” T’Pol looked at him and saw sympathy in his eyes. “Daddy promised that we will go on vacation when we reach Earth”.

“Well, you can be on Earth now if you want to” Daniels said softly. T’Pol’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

“How?” she could not hide her excitement.

Daniels took out three devices from his breast pocket. Three of them were round shaped but one of them was attached to a wristband. He wrapped the wristband around T’Pol’s right wrist and explained. “You see the red button here on the wristband? This will transport you to the place you want in a matter of seconds. And the other two here would reach the same destination as the one you have here on your wrist.”

Now T’Pol was too excited that she forgot to behave. She cried out in excitement “So if I place the devices on my mommy and daddy, they will be transported to the same place as I am?” A few men and Xarconians observed them for a moment but then continued with their conversations.

Daniels quickly replied “Yes. Now better be quick before it is too late.”

Chapter 4

28 October 2191 11.00am

T’Pol did not understand what Daniels’s last words meant, but she was eager to test the device. She carefully hid the wristband under her sleeve and ran to her father. He was still in the middle of a discussion with the Xarconian when she approached him. She tugged at his sleeves. The Xarconian glanced down at her smiling.

“A cute little Vulcan”

“Ah, that’s my daughter, T’Pol” Gabriel answered while picking her up. She could reach his shoulders at this height and she carefully placed the device at the back of his neck between the jacket and his shirt.

“But you are not Vulcan” the Xarconian asked astonished.

“My wife is. She is the Science Officer on this ship” Gabriel laughed, not realising what his daughter was doing.

“Ah, that explains it” the Xarconian laughed nodding his head.

“T’Pol, find your mother. I need to introduce her to Chancellor Kur’jar.”

T’Pol found her mother talking to another of the ship’s guests. She ran to her and tugged at her robes. T’Mira was wearing the same type of robes as her daughter except that she had three pips on her right collar. T’Mira excused herself. “T’Pol where were you just now?” T’Mira bent over and asked sternly.
“Daddy wants you to meet Chancellor...something.” T’Pol was pointing at her father’s direction. She then wrapped herself around her mother’s neck and carefully placed the second device behind her neck under her robes. T’Mira was startled by her daughter’s behavior but then remembered that her daughter was somewhat eccentric.

T’Pol ran back to the window where she met Daniels but he was no longer there. She looked around for him and then took a glance out of the window. It was a habit of hers to glance out of any window she came across. T’Pol squinted when she saw something that was not there earlier. Out in the space, she saw a bright white star which was growing bigger every second. At first, she measured it with her index finger, a second later it was the size of her thumb. Curiously, she looked around and saw a Starfleet crewman walking by. “Uncle David” she cried “Can a star grows in seconds?”

Lieutenant-Commander David Ackler laughed. “No, T’Pol.”

“But that one is” T’Pol cried pointing at the white star which was now about the size of her fist. As Lieutenant Ackler turned towards the window, the grin turned into a frown almost immediately.

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Chapter 5

28 October 2191 11.15am

“Lieutenant Ackler to the Bridge!” There was no response. “Bridge please respond” The lieutenant cried again. No response. T’Pol felt the tension in the lieutenant’s voice but was not sure what the danger was. She felt uneasy and ran straight to her mother.

“Captain!” the lieutenant cried out in urgency.

Captain Sinclair saw the fear in his Chief Engineer’s eyes. He knew that there was great danger ahead of them. “What is it Lieutenant?”

“Captain, there is something out there which is coming straight at us on a collision course and it is approaching fast. The Bridge is not responding.”

The captain turned towards the window and instantly, his curiosity was replaced by fear. “All hands report to battle stations” The captain cried and dashed out of the mess hall towards the bridge. He was followed by Commander Archer and his Chief Tactical Officer. Lieutenant Ackler took a different direction straight towards Engineering.

“Captain!” cried Commander Archer as he kept up with his captain. “What has happened to the crew on the Bridge?”

“I have no idea Commander, but we have to make it to the bridge before that thing hits us” Gabriel knew exactly what would happen to the Meridian when the thing hit her. Anything that collides with a ship running at warp speed was a recipe for disaster. However, his fear was directed towards his wife and his daughter. He knew that he had to get to the bridge before it reached the ship.

T’Mira was stunned. She was too shocked to move. Her eyes were fixed on the window. She knew that it was too late. With tears in her eyes she kissed her daughter whom she was carrying in her arms. The “thing”, she realized was another ship approaching fast towards them. The ship had already covered 90% of the window space when the captain and the commander were approaching the bridge.

T’Pol saw the tears in her mother’s eyes. She also saw fear. There was a commotion going around the mess hall but she did not pay attention to them. She wanted her mother to be happy.

She then remembered her wristband. She felt the red button and wondered if it would be wise to press it right now. She looked at her mother again and knew what to do. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and pressed the button.

Seconds later, there was a loud explosion.

Chapter 6

Gabriel Archer was racing down the corridor; his heart thumping fast. Just when he was about to reach the bridge entrance, he was blinded by a bright white light and the next thing he knew he was sprinting down the wrong corridor. This put him into an abrupt halt, which sent him skidding straight into a wall in front of him. He looked around and saw the shocked faces of men and women around him. << These people are wearing some kind of uniform which looks awfully familiar to me. >> he thought. << Even the corridors look familiar.>> He stood there for a minute trying to gather his thoughts. Then a thought occurred to him. << This can’t be. >> his mind cried out.

As his mind spoke, three men in grey suits armed with phase pistols rushed towards him and stopped short approximately three meters from him. The phase pistols were aimed at him. << What is going on here? >> Gabriel thought. Next came three more men, this time in blue jumpsuits and they had their phase pistols aimed at him too.

One of the men in blue jumpsuit cried “Who are you? And how did you get onto our ship?” The man was well built but was a bit short for someone who was in charge of security. “Well? Answer me!” he demanded in strong British accent.

Gabriel recognized the British security officer almost immediately. Not knowing what to do, he raised his hands and replied calmly “I do not have the answer to your question and trust me if I say that I do not know how I got here, Malcolm.”

The man was now looking at him bewildered. “How did you know my name?” he cried.

“Archer to Lieutenant Reed” The man’s communicator beeped.

“Reed here”.

“What is the situation down there? Did you get the intruder?”

“Yes sir, I have one of them here. But sir, I believe that he is a spy.”

“A spy, Lieutenant? What makes you think so?”

“Well, one thing for sure, he knows my name.”

“Take him to the brig. I need to talk to him.”

“Yes sir.” Lieutenant Malcolm Reed turned to the MACO “Take him to the brig”.

<< What is going on here? What does he mean by one of them? >> these thoughts were running through Gabriel’s mind while being pushed towards the brig.

Chapter 7

T’Pol Archer slowly opened her eyes hoping to see land and sea. But what she saw was only a metal bulkhead in front of her. << Mr. Daniels lied to me. He said I’ll be on Earth by now. >> she bit her lip disappointingly.

Still in her mother’s arms she squirmed to face her mother just to see her stunned but now in confusion. She turned around and found that they were surrounded by tables and chairs. There were a few people in blue jumpsuits near them, staring at them curiously. “Where are we, Mommy?”

“I don’t know, honey. But this place looks awfully familiar to me.”

T’Mira was more confused than ever. At first, she saw the ship colliding into theirs. The next minute, she was here. << Here. Where is here? This is obviously a mess hall but it does not look like the one on the Meridian. >> Still carrying her daughter, she scanned the room.

Suddenly, five men in grey suits burst through the doors all aiming their phase pistols at her. Instantly, T’Mira took a step back and put young T’Pol down. Pushing her daughter behind her, she begged “Don’t shoot! We are harmless!” Another man walked through the doors as she spoke. This man, in blue jumpsuit was tall and exceptionally well built. His every movement showed that he was a man of high stature.

“Who are you? And how did you got onto my ship without permission?” The man spoke with authority. As he walked out of the shadows nearing the mother and child, T’Mira gasped “Uncle Jon”. “What?!” replied the man.

Despite of his anger towards the intruders, Captain Jonathan Archer was looking curiously at the two. Both of them were wearing Vulcan traditional robes but the mother did not look Vulcan at all. It was obvious from the shape of her ears. “Take them to the brig. I need to talk to both of them. Get Trip and T’Pol to meet me there.” The man in grey nodded.

Chapter 8

Once they were pushed into the brig, T’Mira and her daughter saw a familiar figure sitting cross legged on the bench inside the same brig. He jumped up as he saw them. “Daddeeee!!!” young T’Pol cried as she jumped into her fathers arms. T’Mira was smiling too and hugged her husband.

“What happened here, Gabriel? I thought I saw the ship colliding with the Meridian and the next minute I’m here.”

“I don’t know, Mira but I think we are stuck in some kind of a subspace dist

ortion. We are obviously on board the Enterprise NX-01 but I have this theory that we are in an alternate universe” Gabriel explained, showing a troubled look, “Wait, you said that ‘Thing’ is a ship”.

As T’Mira was about to answer, Captain Archer appeared outside the brig along with a short haired Vulcan in purple cat suit and a well built blond haired man, who was as tall as the captain. T’Mira’s heart skipped when she saw the two of them. The captain walked through the brig door, followed by the two. “My name is Captain Jonathan Archer and these are my two senior officers, Commander T’Pol and Commander Charles Tucker III.”

Before the captain could continue, young T’Pol Archer turned to her mother and asked aloud “Mommy, why does she has the same name as I do?” T’Mira did not answer but kept on gazing at Commander T’Pol who was now raising an eyebrow. “I thought you said that I was named after my grandmother?”

“Yes you are” answered T’Mira still gazing at the commander.

“Then who is she?” young T’Pol asked again pointing at Commander T’Pol.

“T’Pol, stop asking questions” Gabriel gave her a stern look. Young T’Pol quickly shut her mouth as she knew that whenever her father gave her stern warnings, he meant business.

Captain Archer was now looking at young T’Pol, and trying not to look intimidating, he asked “Your name is T’Pol too?” Young T’Pol WAS intimidated by the captain. Without answering she hid behind her mother while tugging at her father’s pants. Captain Archer decided to abandon the question and started to interrogate Gabriel and T’Mira. “Now would you tell me how did you get here, on my ship? And what is your purpose here?”

Gabriel answered in a serious manner, “As I have told your Lieutenant, countless of times, we do not know. We just happen to land here.”

“And you think that I should buy that!” snapped the captain.

The captain and Gabriel continued to argue on the matter. Listening to her angry father, young T’Pol began to feel guilty for deceiving her parents. She slowly walked in front of her mother and meekly murmured, “I know the answer to your question”.

The two men were still arguing and did not notice her but Commander T’Pol with her sharp ears stooped down in front of the child and asked “What did you say?”

Chapter 9

“Captain!” Commander T’Pol raised her voice to catch her captain’s attention. “I believe we should listen to what the child has to say.”

The captain glared at his Science Officer for interrupting the argument but then softened a bit and decided to let the child to have her say. “Speak!” The captain was trying not to intimidate the child again but saw that she jumped as he spoke.

Young T’Pol slowly pulled up her right sleeve to reveal a device attached to a wristband “This is what brought us here. I have the same device attached to the back of the necks of my parents”

“What?!” both Gabriel and T’Mira exclaimed. Reaching for the back of their necks they found a circular device attached to their garments. Young T’Pol was already in tears as she started to apologize to her parents and blaming Daniels for lying to her.

The name Daniels nearly knocked Commander Tucker off his feet. He slowly strode towards young T’Pol and crouched beside her. He gave his warmest smile and southern charms “Hi T’Pol my name is Trip. Ya said a man called Daniels gave ya this device?”

Young T’Pol nodded with tears still streaming down her face. “Can I have the device?........I mean I need to see what went wrong with it so that I can fix it and send ya back to Earth.” Trip smiled the moment he saw hope glimmered in the eyes of the child. She slowly removed the wristband and handed it to Trip. Trip smiled again “Would ya want to come with me to the mess hall and have a bowl of Rocky Road?”

“What’s a Rocky Road?”

“You’ll see.” Trip picked up the girl and asked for the captain’s permission to bring the child along with him. Young T’Pol too searched for her mother’s approval but found her smiling instead.

Chapter 10

Captain Archer was annoyed with Trip’s behavior but realized that he was more annoyed with himself for not being able to handle a child. “What is this all about, Trip?” the captain demanded. The captain had called for this meeting the moment young T’Pol was returned back to her parents. They were now transferred to a larger and comfortable room but were still restricted from leaving their quarters.

“Now Cap’n, when the child mentioned her name and about her grandmother, it struck me as odd. But the minute she mentioned Daniels, I have a hunch what is happening here.”

“A hunch, Commander?” Archer asked sternly.

“Okay, Cap’n. Have ya asked them what their last names are?”

Earlier, young T’Pol told Trip that her full name was T’Pol Archer. << The cap’n would be shocked to hear this. >> grinned Trip.

“Stop asking me to guess Trip!”

“Okay, okay. I believe that these people are from the future and that the child might be T’Pol’s granddaughter.”

Archer was shocked to hear his Chief Engineer’s explanation.

Commander T’Pol was sitting straight now “Commander, let me remind you that it is only a hunch.”

“Okay, I’ve got the three devices with me now, and I’ll prove it to ya. But Cap’n, trust me. Ya need to talk to them.”

That night, Captain Archer remained in his Ready Room thinking over the day’s events. Trip’s explanation did make sense. He knew what he had to do next. He pressed the comm button “Archer to Lieutenant Reed”

The voice on the other side replied “Yes sir?”

“Send Gabriel over to my Ready Room, I need to talk to him.”

As Gabriel entered the Ready Room, he found the captain concentrating on the panel in front of him.

“Please sit. Would you like a drink?” Captain Archer turned to him and offered.

“No, thanks.”

“I have a lot to ask you”

“I know.”

“All right then. Let’s begin. What is your last name?” Jonathan Archer wondered why he asked this question but he then remembered Trip’s advice.

Gabriel was taken aback “Why did you ask?”

“Why can’t you answer me?”

There was a long pause before Gabriel answered “Archer”

Captain Archer inhaled deeply. He was not expecting this.

“My Chief Engineer believes that you came from the future. Do you have any reason to believe it?”

Gabriel gasped “How is it possible?”

“The man whom your daughter refers to as Daniels ... well, we’ve met him before. He claimed to be an agent guarding the temporal accord. He has the technology to travel through time in order to fix any history that would destroy the future. Trip believes that the devices which Daniels gave your child have sent you back into the past.”

Gabriel was shocked “What year is this?”

“2156”

<< That explains it. We weren’t even born ye--not until two years later. Not only that. Jonathan Archer is not married and neither are Trip and T’Pol. >> thought Gabriel
“Well, that explains the oddness of the situation” Gabriel looked into his father’s eyes and sighed “It’s a long story, dad.”

Chapter 11

After a seven hour conversation between Gabriel and the captain, the family of three was allowed to roam freely along the corridors of the Enterprise except for Engineering, the Armory, and the Bridge. Young T’Pol walked along side her parents toward Sickbay, observing the ship’s crew as they walked pass. She was hoping to meet the blond haired man again who took her for a Rocky Road ice cream treat. “I’m not sick, Daddy. Why are we going to Sickbay?” she asked her father.

“The captain wants us to take a DNA test to prove our identities” her father replied in deep thoughts. She did not know what DNA meant but she just kept quiet and continued observing the people around her.

When they reached Sickbay, young T’Pol expected the doors to slide open automatically upon their presence but found that a switch was needed to open it. Once inside, they were greeted by a plump man with ridges on both sides of his face. “Hi. You must be young T’Pol. I’m Dr Phlox.” the man introduced himself cheerfully. “Now, I just need to extract some blood and don’t worry, it won’t hurt a bit” he smiled. Young T’Pol smiled back. Unlike any other child (according to her father), she did not seem to be afraid of doctors. When she was on the Meridian, she never failed to visit Dr Walker every day.

Gabriel and T’Mira left Sickbay after the test, leaving young T’Pol under the care of Dr Phlox. He had accepted the girl’s request to explore Sickbay with utmost pleasure despite her parents’ warning of her hazardous curiosity and non-stop babbling. The Denobulan doctor had always been curious about human child’s behavior and this gave him a chance to enjoy the companion of a child.

Chapter 12

Trip Tucker loved the challenge in taking apart new devices and understanding their mechanisms. However, taking apart this futuristic device seemed to be more frustrating than challenging.

He tried to concentrate on the device but found his thoughts wandering back towards the captain’s briefing earlier today. << I only suspected that T’Pol is the mother of T’Mira and the grandmother of the child. But I never expect that they were also my daughter and my granddaughter. >>

He fidgeted with the device and decided to give up. << Maybe I should try another way to understand this thing. >> he wondered. He picked up a tricorder and started to scan the schematics of the device. To his surprise, the creators of the device were not that stingy in sharing their technology. << Well, this might be a good start. >> Trip whistled.

As he was trying to study the schematics, he heard a familiar sound of soft footsteps approaching him. “Don’t try to debunk my theory, T’Pol. I trust my instincts.” Trip uttered in his strong southern accent. His eyes were still fixed on the PADD.

“I am not trying to debunk your theory, Commander.” Not hearing her usual sarcasm, Trip looked up and stared at T’Pol with surprise.

“The captain has already decided to believe them and Dr Phlox has confirmed their DNA. It is irrelevant for me to argue further” T’Pol informed with her usual monotone.

Trip tried to hide his disappointment that T’Pol remains skeptical on the issue.

“Ya still being skeptical, aren’t ya?”

“The discussion about my skeptism is irrelevant here.”

“So what are ya here for?”

“The captain asks if you require my assistance with the device.”

“Maybe ya can help me deciphering these codes.” Trip handed her the PADD.

Trip looked at her, wondering how to start a conversation. It had been a year since six month old Elizabeth Tucker died in her incubator. Elizabeth Tucker was not conceived by Trip and T’Pol but was created using their DNA. The baby was created by a group of radical human isolationists, Terra Prime. The group intended to use the existence of the baby as a threat against Starfleet. Her parents managed to rescue her from Terra Prime after discovering her existence, falling in love with her when they first laid eyes on their baby. However, the method used by Terra Prime’s scientists to create the baby was flawed and that flaw had led to the death of the baby causing much grief to her parents, especially T’Pol.

Vulcans were known to be experts in suppressing their emotions, but T’Pol could barely suppress her grief after her daughter’s death. She had wept silently in her quarters every night; and in public she had stopped mingling with her human colleagues, including Trip.

On the night before Elizabeth’s funeral, Trip was in her quarters crying beside her. He told her about Dr Phlox’s discovery that there was no reason why Vulcans and Humans could not have a healthy baby. He was hoping that she would consider having another one. But T’Pol had shut him out, not wanting to endure such pain again. Their relationship had been tumbling downhill since then: T’Pol had made sure that it was not more than a professional one.

“So, can ya believe it? We actually decided to have a baby after all.”

Trip looked at her face for guidance, hoping that she would agree with him.

T’Pol did not reply but had her eyes fixed on the PADD. << He is trying to strike a conversation again and this conversation is exactly the type that I need to avoid. >> T’Pol thought.

“I need more time to understand the schematics. I will send you the results once it is ready” With that, she turned around and darted out of Engineering.

<< Ouch. >> Trip grimaced.

Chapter 13

Jonathan Archer was giving Porthos a scratch behind his ears but his mind was not on the playful beagle. He still could not believe that he had married Erika Hernandez. << Well, we did have our moments together. >> he thought. Jonathan was shocked to learn that for the love of her son, Erika would give up her captainship on board the Columbia to live with him and to raise their son on the Enterprise. << She must be one hell of a wife. >> He chuckled.

What had made Jonathan believe Gabriel’s explanation was a piece of family history which he vowed not to share it with anyone other than his most loved ones. Who else would have known of this detail other than his own son?

Jonathan grinned while feeding his beagle a piece of cheese. << And who would have guessed that Trip and I would be sharing the same granddaughter. >> He gave a slight grimace when he recalled that the girl was very much afraid of him. << I must try to be gentler the next time. >>

His grimace turned into a frown when he remembered asking Gabriel to send his regards back to his future self when Gabriel was back in his present time. He felt disturbed when his son kept silent. Instantly, he knew that he must have died by then but when or how Gabriel would not tell. “It is best that you do not know the details.” That was all Gabriel replied.

Jonathan learned of more bad news when he asked why T’Mira called him ‘Uncle Jon’. << Looks like Trip and T’Pol has left the girl orphaned at an early age. >> The Archers had adopted T’Mira as their own after the death of her parents. And again, Gabriel refused to provide any further information.

“T’Pol to Captain Archer” A female voice cracked from the other side of the comm. Jonathan was dragged back into the present when he heard his first officer’s voice. “What is it?” “Commander Tucker and I have discovered a way to send them back to the future. Could you please meet us at the command center?” the female voice replied.
“On my way.”

“What have you found?” asked the captain.

Trip started his explanation “Well, I could not disassemble the device without destroyin’ it so I tried to find out if there is another way to understand its mechanisms without takin’ it apart. T’Pol and I ran through the schematics of the device and discovered this.” Trip pressed the console button to reveal strands of information on the screen accompanied by a graph of wavelengths.

Captain Archer studied the information and then turned towards his two officers questioningly. “So you are correct that the devices are a type of transport for time travel? But I am more concerned on how it works and how can we use it to send Gabriel and his family back to their present time.”

“Ya see the wavelengths here” Trip pointed at the graph.

“So?”

“These are some kind of transmission wavelengths. The wavelengths show that these three devices, I call it the transport device, are controlled by another remote device, which I call the control device. This means the transport device was programmed externally and the red button on the transport device is just to trigger the program. However, the problem is we have no idea what produced those wavelengths.”

“We ran through our databases but found no information on it” T’Pol added.

Captain Archer was silent for a while. “Since T’Mira is a Science Officer from the future, do you think she can help us on this?” the captain questioned.

T’Pol kept quiet.

“Maybe” Trip broke the silence.

“T’Pol, talk to T’Mira and see what you can learn from her” the captain gave his order.
T’Pol was about to argue against it but Captain Archer cut her off. “It’s an order, commander.”

Chapter 14

Young T’Pol had already spent the whole day in Sickbay before being dragged back to her quarters. She had observed all ‘medical’ pets which the doctor kept, asking for explanations on each and every one of them. She was intrigued by the doctor’s method of using those living organisms as a form of medical therapy. All the while, she thought that Sickbay was only about hyposprays and decompression chambers. Dr Phlox had been very patient in attending all her queries. “This five year old child would become a fine physician one day”, the good doctor told her parents with pride.

Earlier that day, both of her parents had retired back to their quarters after leaving young T’Pol with Dr Phlox. Somehow, they were quite relief that the good doctor was eager to baby sit their daughter as they wanted some private time of their own to discuss on the situation they were in. “You’ve told Uncle Jon everything?” T’Mira was startled by her husband’s confession. “Well, not everything. Not how and when they died.” T’Mira gave a slight sigh of relief. As much as she wanted her parents to live, she knew that such information would definitely change the future. And it was not a risk they were allowed to take.

The two were seated side by side on the edge of the bed holding on to each other’s hands. “So what did Uncle Jon say about helping us return to our present?” “Well, the devices are in your father’s hands and since he is a very resourceful and innovative engineer, dad...I mean the captain is confident that he would find a way to help us.”

“I miss them” T’Mira murmured softly. Gabriel gazed into her eyes and found a hint of sadness. “I really miss them” she repeated. Gabriel held her face with both hands and allowed her head to rest against his forehead. “I miss them too”.

Chapter 15

T’Pol was already working in the command center when T’Mira entered. “The captain told me that you needed my knowledge on the data you have collected from the transport devices.”

“Yes. This is what we discovered.” Not looking at T’Mira, T’Pol pressed on the console button to reveal the same information that Trip had gone through with the captain the day before.

To conquer her own emotions at the presence of Commander Tucker was already difficult, but dealing with mixed emotions she had towards the woman who claimed to be her daughter was much worse.

“We do not have any information on the nature of these wavelengths and the captain suggested that you might be able to help us on this.” T’Pol explained.

“There seemed to be overlapping wavelengths here. Can you isolate them?” T’Mira asked.

“I believe I can” T’Pol tapped swiftly on a few console buttons to reveal three graphs of different wavelengths.

T’Mira took some time to study the wavelengths in detail and found that they were all emitted from the same source. “I believe I have seen this before. All the wavelengths are in blue, which means that they are all from the same source. As for the different curvatures of each of the three wavelengths, two of them have similar curves at the beginning. It could mean that they are related to the same timeline. The third one however, is completely different from the two.”

T’Pol gave a deep thought and then communicated her theory. “It is logical that the two are from the same timeline. But I believe that one of the two represents the command function and the other to execute it. As you can see, there is actually a similarity between the first wavelength and the third one. These two might be command functions.”

T’Mira gasped “This means that whoever created these devices has already planned our departure date and also our return date. All we have to do is just to press the red button to execute our return. But how do we know when our exact time of return would be?”

“It is only a theory. We do not know if it is what we interpret it to be. We should test it further in order to prove it.” T’Pol warned “Do you know what the wavelength is made of? If you do, we can try to construct a control device to prove the theory.”

T’Mira gave a sigh. She had come across these wavelengths before and she knew that in this current timeline, it would be quite impossible to obtain its source. “The wavelengths are made out of quarilium particles, a harmful radiation if exposed for a prolonged period. The radiation could only be emitted from instruments constructed using Berithium ore. This particular ore is indigenous only in one planet, Mrith. The Mrithians are a hostile species and they are definitely not generous in sharing their precious ore. It is unwise for us to pursue such course of action. I trust that it would be wiser if we rely on the device to take us back to where we belong.”

“I believe that relying on the existing device without testing it would be foolish. You do not know if the device would work as programmed.” T’Pol counter-argued in monotone. Before T’Mira could argue against it, T’Pol continued “I would bring this matter up to the captain. I believe he would agree with me.” With that T’Pol headed towards the door.

T’Mira called after her “Mother. Can we talk?” The word ‘Mother’ made T’Pol shudder. “I am sorry but I am too occupied to engage in talks. And calling me mother would not be accurate as I do not believe that you are my child.”

T’Mira was shocked to hear this. “I AM your daughter, and Dr Phlox has proven it. Mother, you are a scientist and you rely on evidence. There is evidence that I am your daughter. However, I’m not sure why you are denying it?” T’Mira exclaimed in frustration.

“You are correct that I rely only on evidence. However, there is no sufficient evidence to prove that you are my daughter.”

“Not sufficient?!” T’Mira exclaimed in disbelief. “There is a family jewel that a mother would pass on to her offspring. It is an amulet, called the Ithi’ic. I see that you do not have the jewel and it casts doubts on your claims.”

T’Mira was dumbfounded. She knew the reason why she did not have the Ithi’ic was because the amulet was destroyed when the shuttle pod which carries both Trip and T’Pol exploded in space. Her mother died before she had a chance to pass it to her. However, T’Mira could not tell her mother this. Without a word, T’Mira stormed out of the command center.

Chapter 16

T’Mira found herself in the mess hall after the ordeal in the command center. She grabbed a piece of pecan pie and began to attack on it. Pecan pie had always been her solace whenever her heart was troubled. << What is wrong with her? This is not the mother I knew. >>

The mother whom T’Mira knew had loved her very much. Even though she had kept her emotions at bay, she had more than once shown much affection for her daughter. However, the mother from the past had shown otherwise. << Something must have happened here. >> T’Mira thought.

T’Mira was still drowned in her thoughts, when an exhausted and hungry looking man walked through the doors of the mess hall. Grabbing a plate of pan-fried catfish and a cup of coffee, he scanned around the room for a vacant table. He saw T’Mira sitting alone at a table and decided to join her.

“Is this seat taken?” he asked. T’Mira looked up to see the man she loved dearly. “No. Please, be my guest” she replied and shifted uneasily. Trip sat down and began to fork on his food. << Pan-fried catfish. It has always been his favorite. >> T’Mira remembered.

“Pecan pie, huh?” Trip grinned. T’Mira smiled back “I learned to indulge on it from my father.”

Trip chuckled “Ah. Like father, like daughter. So, any luck with identifyin’ the wavelengths?”

T’Mira hesitated for a while and replied “We have just discovered the source but I do not wish to discuss it until the captain has made his decision.” Trip shrugged and then curiosity overtook him. “Well, I was curious. How did ya end up with Archer’s son?”

T’Mira laughed and explained how they got fond of each other after spending 27 years of growing up together. T’Mira preferred to get married earlier than the usual Vulcan age of marriage giving her reason that her human partner might be too old by that time.

T’Mira was born on board the Enterprise five months after Gabriel and the two had spent their childhood onboard the ship. They were sent back to Earth for education when they were 12 and Gabriel’s mother, Erika had been their guardian when Jonathan, Trip and T’Pol continued to serve on the Enterprise. When they were 15, T’Pol decided to resign from Starfleet to take care of her daughter. However, before she could return to Earth, she and Trip were both killed during her final Away Mission. That was when the Archers adopted T’Mira. T’Mira of course never told her father how and when he died.

Trip had a good two hours of catching up with his daughter’s life before he was request back to Engineering. He was a bit disappointed that she did not follow his footsteps to become an engineer but was pleased to know that he had thought her much of his skills. Their conversation had been a pleasure to them both except when T’Mira brought up the issue about her mother.

“Well, I’m not sure what’s happenin’ with that Vulcan mind of hers.” Trip shrugged with a slight hint of sorrow in his face. “She has been like that since Elizabeth’s death.”

“Elizabeth? Your sister?” T’Mira was puzzled.

“No, our daughter. Didn’t we tell ya about Elizabeth?”

“No” T’Mira sounded a bit disappointed that she was not told about it but then abandoned the thought as she decided that her parents were too grieve-stricken to tell her that her sister had died. Trip of this timeline told her about Elizabeth’s account and how her death had affected them. “Seems like T’Pol had more trouble dealin’ with her emotions than us humans” Trip concluded.

Chapter 17

“This is absurd, captain” Gabriel remarked, wondering if he should call him ‘captain’ or just ‘dad’. “The device was designed to take us here and to send us back. Why do you still need to take the risk of constructing one?” “I do not trust the make of this device and I do not trust Daniels.” Captain Archer retorted. He however did not mention that he did not want to take the risk of sending his son to his death in case the device did not work as programmed. He was surprised that his senior officers had supported his decision much to the displeasure of both Gabriel and T’Mira.

“Now, would you tell me where Mrith is?” Giving up arguing with his father especially in front of his senior officers, Gabriel replied “Mrith is located at the Gamma Quadrant. It is the quarter of the Milky Way Galaxy appearing to be located between 9 and 12 o'clock if the great plane of the galaxy is viewed as a clock face. It is a dangerous region of space even during our time.” Gabriel then briefed the captain and his officers on the measures of precaution when dealing with the species. Their plan was to disguise as Mrithians and try to purchase the ore from the traders.

The problem however was to obtain information on the Mrithians and their technology, since Gabriel could not access to the Meridian’s database from this timeline. “I believe we should be able to obtain such information when we reach there” T’Pol suggested.

With that Captain Archer dismissed his officers and then directed his attention to the helmsman, Ensign Mayweather “Travis, set a course to Mrith. Maximum warp.” “Aye, sir”

Chapter 18

“Bridge to Captain Archer.”

“What is it Malcolm?” The captain was a bit displeased for having his dinner interrupted especially with his ‘family’ members. The captain had invited Gabriel and his family to join him, together with Trip and T’Pol for this special dinner.

“We have reached the coordinates, sir.” The captain glanced at the rest of them and answered “Understood.”

“Trip, T’Pol. Scan the surface and collect all the information you can.” The two nodded their heads and proceeded to their stations.

Dr Phlox with the help of T’Pol managed to acquire as much information on the physiology of the Mrithians. The external physiology of the Mrithians was very similar to humans except for their cornea which looks similar to a reptilian. It would be a challenge for the doctor in replicating such corneas. The mission would also be a challenge for Ensign Hoshi Sato the Communications Officer in studying their language and programming it into the Universal Translator.

After a couple of hours, the Away Team left Sickbay for the transporter room with their new ‘reptilian’ corneas. Captain Archer had selected Trip and T’Pol to join him on the Away Mission. Before being beamed down to the planet’s surface, Captain Archer gave his orders. “Gabriel, take the bridge. The Enterprise is yours. Malcolm” the captain turned to Lieutenant Reed “I want you to assist Commander Archer.” Reed nodded. With that the Captain nodded at the crewmen at the transporter control panel, “Energize”, he ordered.

Once at the surface, T’Pol took out her tricorder and began to scan the area for any settlements or trade markets. “North” T’Pol pointed towards Trip’s direction.

The three had walked for 20 minutes until they reached a bustling street filled with hundreds of Mrithians with their carts. There were shops along the street filled with the locals bargaining on the top of their voices. “Looks like Berithium ore.” Trip reckoned with his eyes fixed on the carts which the Mrithians were pushing. “Activate your Universal Translators” the captain ordered and with that they walked towards a store.

“We need a kilo of thoze ore” Trip pointed at the Berithium ore located at the corner of the shop. “Ah, the Berithium ore. Wise choice. The finest in our district.” The store owner walked proudly towards his three customers. “That would be 5,000 guoulds.” Trip opened his mouth in disbelief. The captain broke in exasperation. “We do not have that much of currency. Please reduce the price.” The store owner’s smile turned to a scowl “If you cannot afford it, then forget about it.”

As the store owner turned towards his other customers, Trip called after him “Look, maybe we could settle with a trade.” The store owner returned to them with some interest. “What is it that you want to trade?” Trip turned to his companions and grabbed the tricorder from T’Pol’s hands. T’Pol was slightly provoked by the behavior of the illogical human. “This.” Trip handed the Mrithian the tricorder. “We managed to ‘steal’ it from a species call Humans.” Trip lied. Jonathan almost wanted to strangle Trip for such an abrupt decision.

Trip was explaining halfway how the tricorder works, but then stopped short when he realized that he was no longer speaking Mrithian. The store owner was already looking at him suspiciously. << The Universal Translator must be broken. >> Trip thought in horror. A second later, the store owner was shouting for the guards.

“Alien intruders! Alien intruders!”

Jonathan punched the Mrithian unconscious and shouted “Run!!” The three were immediately on their feet, fleeing as fast as they could with the Mrithian guards behind them.

At the same moment, on board the Enterprise, Malcolm spotted something unusual on his console screen. “Commander, the sensors detect a faint energy signature right in front of us.” Before Gabriel could answer, a Mrithian warship, twice the size of the Enterprise decloaked in front of their screen. Malcolm exclaimed “Sir! They are charging their weapons!”

Chapter 19

“Captain! There!” T’Pol cried pointing at a secluded corner of the street. The three hid there and a minute later, they saw the guards ran by. Gabriel had warned them earlier not to get caught as the Mrithians would keep up with their reputation of being one of the best prisoner torturers in the galaxy.

Trip cursed. “Damn, I was this close to gettin’ the deal done. Now we’re gonna end up with nothin’.”

“Your cursing is not of any help, Mr Tucker.” T’Pol uttered flatly. Trip glared at her as if he would shove her out the airlock if they were on the Enterprise. Before he could say anything, T’Pol called out to the captain who was still on the lookout for Mrithian guards. “Captain. Look.” She pointed at a building which looked like a factory. With the factory door gaping wide open, they could see that it was a Berithium melting factory. There seemed to be no one in the factory at the moment. On one far side of the factory, there were sacks of the precious ore.

Trip glanced at her and argued “Are ya asking us to steal?”

“Commander, we are stuck in a hostile situation here. Your ethical opinion would not be relevant.”

Trip shook his head and was about to counter argue but was cut off by the captain “Enough of this you two. T’Pol is right. We wouldn’t want to steal it but in such circumstances, we have no choice. Trip and I will be going into the factory to retrieve the ore. T’Pol, I need you here to cover for us.” Trip gave a deep sigh.

The two men sneaked silently towards the factory. After scanning the surroundings for any life forms, Jonathan signaled Trip to enter the factory. “I’ll stay here and guard the door, go in and retrieve the ore as quickly as possible” the captain instructed. Trip nodded and entered the factory.

It took him a minute to realize that the sack did not actually contain the ore. Berithium ore was black in color and shimmered with blue and red minerals. However, this one did not shimmer. Trip began to panic and ran around the factory searching for the ore. He finally found a sack near the furnace which contained it.

Trip had spent more than 10 minutes in the factory when Jonathan heard footsteps coming his way. “Trip!” he cried softly “Quick, we have company.”

“Found it, Cap’n.” The two immediately ran back into hiding. The captain took out his communicator and cried “Archer to the Enterprise. Beam us up now.” There was no response but only static. The footsteps were getting nearer and nearer.

Chapter 20

“Raise the shields!” Gabriel cried.

“Shields, sir?”

Gabriel suddenly remembered that he was not on board the Meridian. “Polarize the hull plating now!” Just as he spoke, their ship shook when they were hit by phase cannons.

“Our hull plating is down by 30%” Malcolm shouted.

“Phase cannons, Mr Reed!” Malcolm nodded and without hesitating, Enterprise returned fire.

“There was no damage on their ship, sir. Their shields are holding.” Malcolm looked worried.

The Mrithian ship attacked again and this time the ship shook so hard that the crew nearly fell off their seats. Explosions were heard within the ship. “Report!” Gabriel cried

“Hull plating is down by another 40%.”

Gabriel then turned to Hoshi who reported on the ship’s status “Hull breach is reported on E deck and B deck. There are 10 injuries on board the ship.”

Gabriel was angry now. “T’Mira, can you tap into the warship’s systems and access their shield modulation?”

T’Mira, who was now seated at T’Pol’s science station answered. “Yes but our sensors cannot penetrate through their shields.”

Gabriel thought for a second and spoke rapidly “Mr Reed, direct all the power from the phase cannons towards their engines. T’Mira, you have two seconds to access to their systems.” T’Mira nodded but the lieutenant questioned the commander.

“Sir, the phase cannons have no effect on their shields, why are we wasting power there. Targeting their engines would weaken the shields for two seconds, just enough for us to get what we need.”

Malcolm knew that it was not a time to argue and followed the commander’s orders. Right after he fired on their engines, T’Mira started with her scans. “Did you get it?” Gabriel asked. T’Mira nodded and fed the information to the tactical station. “All right, Mr Reed set your cannons according to their shield modulation.” “Fire!” Malcolm saw that the force field surrounding the ship had weakened. “Their shields are offline, sir” Malcolm announced with awe. “Good, Mr Reed. Fire the torpedoes. Target on their weapons and engines.”

Chapter 21

“Archer to the Enterprise. Do you read me?” Captain Archer was almost shouting. The footsteps had almost reached them. To his relief, the static was replaced by a familiar voice.

“Enterprise here. Do you need a lift, sir?”

“Yes, please and now would be a good time, Gabriel.”

Just as they saw the guards approaching them, their bodies began to dematerialize and the next thing they knew, they were back on the Enterprise.

“Are they on board?” Gabriel asked. T’Mira nodded. “All right, Mr Mayweather. Take us out of here before the other ships locate us.”

“Gladly, sir.” Seconds later, the Enterprise jumped into warp.

After returning safely to the Enterprise, Captain Archer, Trip and T’Pol began to unload their gear and prepare themselves for the decontamination procedure as insisted Dr Phlox insisted. After knowing Trip for almost five years, T’Pol knew that he would bring up the arguments they had on the surface. Arming herself with her own arguments, she turned toward Trip expecting him to start his. However, Trip looked pale and was breathing heavily. T’Pol’s calm face was replaced by anxiety and concern. “Trip, are you all right?” She slowly walked towards him.

Trip glanced at her. It had been quite some time since she last called him ‘Trip’. He tried to reply, but found himself dizzy and lightheaded. He took a step forward and collapsed. T’Pol rushed towards him, just in time to catch him in her arms. “Archer to Dr Phlox” Captain Archer punched the comm button. “Commander Tucker needs medical attention, now!”

T’Pol was cradling Trip’s head and wiping the sweat off his forehead. Trip could barely keep himself conscious when he tried to force his eyes open. Even with a blurred vision, Trip could see the terror in T’Pol’s eyes. He thought he heard her asking him to stay strong before he slowly slipped out of consciousness.

Chapter 22

T’Pol tried to concentrate on the schematics of the control device which she and T’Mira had managed to construct. However, her mind wandered towards Sickbay. Trip had just come out from a coma but was too weak to be back on duty. He had been exposed to the quarilium radiation which T’Mira had warned earlier that it would lead to fatality. Seems that the melting of Berithium ore would emit such radiation and Trip had been exposed long enough to get himself poisoned by it. It was lucky that he was treated immediately.

T’Mira had offered to help T’Pol with the construction of the control device in the absence of Trip. With her inheritance of her father’s ‘magic hands’ she had successfully assembled the device. It was T’Pol’s job to program and test the newly constructed device.

Knowing that she could no longer concentrate on her work, T’Pol returned to her quarters to meditate hoping that it would ease her mind. She had always been on a mental turmoil ever since she was exposed to Trellium two years ago. Trellium exposure had allowed her to access her emotions which she had spent her life suppressing it. And it was the Trellium addiction which had unleashed a strong emotion she had towards Trip.

After Elizabeth’s death, she had vowed to return to her Vulcan way of life and decided to avoid mingling with the humans in fear that they might provoke her emotions. Trip was on top of the list of people she intended to avoid. She felt herself getting stronger every day ever since she decided to avoid Trip. However, Trip’s near death had thrown her back into an emotional turmoil.

She was in the middle of her meditation when her door chimed. “Come in” she called.

T’Mira walked in with a PADD in her hands. “Sorry, am I interrupting anything?”

“No. What is it that you wanted to see me about?”

T’Mira showed her the PADD and explained “I know that you are tired, so I tested the device myself. You were right to have the device tested. There has been a flaw in the program which would send us back 100 years.” T’Mira paused to look at her mother and then continued “Well, I just wish to apologize if I offended you earlier. And ....um I had wanted to tell you this for a long time. I love you, mother.”

T’Mira smiled and walked out the door. Halfway through the door she turned back and said “There is another thing. The reason I do not have the Ithi’ic is because you did not manage to pass it to me before you died.”

Chapter 23

Trip had coaxed Dr Phlox to discharge him as he was eager to be back on duty. He was worried that his engines were not taken care of in his absence. After much coaxing, he managed to convince the good doctor that he was fit for duty. “On one condition, commander” the doctor ordered “That you would come back to Sickbay for observation every six hours.” Trip winced.

Still, Trip was back in his cheerful mood. After his near death ordeal, he was convinced that T’Pol still had feelings for him. Later that night, when he was about to retire back to his quarters, T’Pol went to see him in Engineering.

“Well hi T’Pol. It has been quite some time since ya came down here” Trip greeted her cheerfully.

T’Pol raised on eyebrow and passed him a PADD “The device has already been constructed and tested. There was a flaw in the transport device and it has already been corrected.”

“I’ll be damned.” Trip spoke to himself while studying the PADD.

When Trip had finished with the PADD, he turned and spoke to her seriously “T’Pol, we need to talk.”

“What about, commander?” T’Pol began to shift uneasily, she knew what was coming up.

“About us. Look T’Pol, I know that ya’ve been tryin’ to avoid me for almost a year now. But I can see that ya still do have some feelin’s for me. I can feel it when I was about to die, when you are holdin’ me in your arms.”

“Commander, working with you everyday is not considered avoidance and as your superior officer, it is my duty to take care of the welfare of my subordinates. Your feelings are too sensitive and I believe that it is affecting your judgment.” T’Pol’s voice tensed.

“Damn it, T’Pol” Trip began to raise his voice. “Why is it every time there is hope in our relationship ya always find ways to crush it?”

“What do you mean?”

“What do I mean?!” Trip exploded. “Let me bring ya back to memory lane. It all started in the Expanse, where our neuro-pressure sessions had made us close-- not to mention sexual. I thought that we were about to begin a relationship there. But then ya denied your sexual advances and thanked me for allowin’ your ‘exploration of human sexuality.’ Fine! I swallowed my pride and respected your decision.”

“But along the way we became close again. Ya even invited me to visit your home on Vulcan, but guess what? It turned out that I was invited for an involuntary weddin’ between you and Koss. Ya left me devastated and feelin’ guilty. You tried to revive our friendship. Shortly after your weddin’ was dissolved, ya told me that ya needed time alone to study the Kir’Shara. I tried to be understandin’ but have you ever considered how I felt?” Trip yelled.

“In the end, I was too devastated that I decided to leave Enterprise and my captain and friend. I got myself transferred to the Columbia. Ya confused me again by askin’ me to return to the Enterprise. And finally when baby Elizabeth died, I thought that we were in this together, that we needed each other to get through our grief. But instead YOU SHUT ME OUT!! Goddamn it, T’Pol. Elizabeth was my daughter, too. And to add salt to my wounds, I had to lose two Elizabeths. My sister and my daughter. Why are ya doin’ this to me??!”

T’Pol was already breathing fast, her eyes were on the floor. Usually she would just reply with veiled sarcasm, but this time she could not as she knew that what Trip had said was true.

Trip saw that T’Pol was on the verge of an emotional breakdown. He sighed deeply and said softly “I can’t take this anymore, T’Pol.” There was a slight pause. “I have to make a final decision now, and that is to end this once and for all. But before I make that decision, I just want to know if ya want to end, too?” Trip noticed that tears were welling up in T’Pol’s eyes. “T’Pol?” Trip pleaded softly “Please give me an honest answer.”

T’Pol knew that she had to be truthful. She looked at Trip. Tears were already streaming down her face. She shook her head.

Trip slowly walked towards her and embraced her. He slipped one arm on the small of her back and the other on the nape of her neck guiding her head towards his shoulders. She returned his embrace. He gave a deep sigh and stroked her hair.

Chapter 24

Trip was leaning against the bulkhead at the transporter room making the final touch ups on the control device. << This is it. We are sending them home today. >> The captain had chosen the transporter room as the place to send them off. The transporter had always been used to send people off and even though the transporter was not used this time, the room seemed appropriate for such a parting moment.

T’Pol joined him half an hour later. “Have you finished programming the transport devices?” she asked.

“Yup, I’ve set those babies to the exact time and date as Gabriel has instructed.” Trip answered while nodding at the three transport devices sitting on the transporter console. Trip had used the control device which T’Pol and T’Mira had constructed to set the date on the transport devices.

“So, did ya manage to have a chat with T’Mira?” Trip asked.

“Yes, we had a long talk and I learned that I have been an affectionate and devoted mother--which I would not have foreseen for myself,” T’Pol murmured after a short pause.

Trip smiled “Well, I believe that you’ d be an excellent mother.”

Just as Trip spoke, Captain Archer and his guests arrived at the transporter room along with Malcolm, Hoshi, Travis and Dr Phlox. Young T’Pol was in the arms of the doctor. She had been crying and whining earlier, not wanting to leave Sickbay and the doctor. Sickbay had been her playground for the past few days. She even insisted in adopting one of the doctor’s pets.

“Well, I believe that it is goodbye.” Hoshi bid the child with teary eyes and kissed her forehead. Hoshi had also been a frequent visitor to Sickbay especially when a child was present. She had been young T’Pol’s playmate--they spent time playing Vulcan word games together. As a linguist, Hoshi had even taught the child a few languages.

“My turn.” Trip told Hoshi and took the child from the doctor’s arms.

“Trip, can we have Rocky Road again?”

Trip grinned and tickled his granddaughter’s ears “Yup, your mother has promised to give ya a Rocky Road treat when you are back home.” Trip winked mischievously at T’Mira as he knew that she did not wish to turn her daughter sweet toothed. “Promise that ya’ll be good” Trip imitated a stern look. Young T’Pol however found that it looked funny and laughed.

Gabriel smiled at his laughing daughter and turned to Malcolm. “Thank you for pointing your phase pistol at me.”

Malcolm looked embarrassed and apologised “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to. I just didn’t know who you were at the moment.”

Gabriel laughed at the poor man. “I’m just kidding. Well, it is nice to see you again.” “It had been my pleasure to meet the captain’s son too.” They shook hands. Gabriel then turned to Travis, “You’re one hell of a helmsman.”

“Thank you, sir. It’s been an honor serving with you.”

Gabriel finally turned to his father, who had always been stern and strict with him and was even now. Despite his stern looks, Gabriel gave him a tight hug. “Dad, I’ve never dreamt of serving with you, but I think Daniels had given me this wish.”

Jonathan returned his embrace and spoke “Gabriel, I want you to know that I am proud of you.”

T’Mira hugged the captain after the two men unlocked their embrace. “I will miss you, Uncle Jon.” She then turned to her father “I’m going to miss you too, dad.”

Trip hugged her and rubbed her back. “Hey, sweet pie, I love you too.”

T’Mira looked at him with amusement. “Dad, you have never called me that before.”

“Then, what did I call ya? I believe I would have given ya a nick name.”

“Yes, you did but not sweet pie.”

“What is it then?” “You’ll know it after I was born.” Trip knitted his eyebrows while scratching his head. T’Mira planted him a kiss and turned towards her mother.

T’Mira’s grin turned into a calm look to match with her mother’s. T’Pol broke the silence, “It has been agreeable to see you.”

T’Mira did not respond but embraced her mother with teary eyes. “I will miss you, Mother.” T’Pol stroke her daughter’s hair and then broke the embrace. She removed a chain that hung over her neck revealing a Vulcan amulet. “I want you to have the Ithi’ic.”

T’Mira was stunned, tears were streaming down her face. “I love you, Mother.”

“It’s time.” Gabriel finally announced. T’Mira joined her husband and took her daughter into her arms. Trip attached the two transport devices each onto Gabriel’s and T’Mira’s garments. Gabriel had changed back into his Starfleet uniform and both T’Mira and young T’Pol into their Vulcan robes. Trip wrapped the wristband onto young T’Pol’s arm. “Press the red button when you are ready, ok.” The child nodded solemnly.

“I believe the crew of the Enterprise will miss your presence dearly. But the fact is that you belong in another timeline and staying here would not be right. As such, we--or I--have to let you go.” The captain gave his final speech and nodded at young T’Pol. She glanced at her father who nodded back at her. She took a deep breath and pressed the red button for the second time.

After watching the family dematerialize in front of them, the captain and the crew returned their stations, except for Trip and T’Pol. Still staring at the void which the family once stood, Trip asked T’Pol sheepishly “It’s movie night today. So, whatcha think?”

“I wish to have the comfort of my quarters tonight”

Trip winced. <> he thought.

“I’m cooking Pok Tar tonight and I hope that you can join me for dinner in my quarters.”

Trip looked at her in disbelief. <> He grinned and answered “Vegetarian? I’m a meat person ya know.”

“I’ll try to prepare some meat if you want to.” “

Nah, I think I’ll try vegetarian tonight.” With that, they strode down the corridor.

Chapter 25

28 October 2191, 11.00am

Gabriel found himself facing a Xarconian who was expressing his excitement in the signing of the Federation treaty. However, he was not paying attention to him. He scanned around the room and found T’Mira at a corner of the room with T’Pol in her arms. She was looking at him with hope in her eyes. << The bridge. >> he suddenly remembered.

“Commander, are you all right?” the Chancellor asked Gabriel. Gabriel turned back to the Chancellor and excused himself. He distanced himself from the crowd and tapped on the comm panel. “Archer to the Bridge.” There was no response. << As expected. >> Without hesitating, he looked for Lieutenant Ackler “Mr Ackler, I want you to follow me to the bridge. I’ve tried to reach the crew there but there was no response.” “Aye, sir.” Lieutenant Ackler nodded and quickly, they headed for the bridge.

The two officers found the crew on the bridge to be unconscious when they reached there. The two searched the room and found an odd device attached to the captain’s chair. “Sir, this looks like a shock emitter which I believe is the cause of this.” Lieutenant Ackler informed while nodding at the unconscious crew.

“Deactivate it Mr Ackler and take us out of warp. Activate the long range scanners and watch out for any approaching ships.” Gabriel commanded

“Yes, sir but may I ask why....” “There is not time for explanations David. Just do what I say.”

The ship vibrated slightly and the Meridian was back on impulse. The comm cracked as soon as the Meridian dropped out of warp “Captain Sinclair to the Bridge. Please report why we have dropped out of warp.” The captain sounded annoyed. Gabriel briefed the captain on the situation. “I believe that we have been sabotaged and it is one of them.” The captain looked around him at the Xarconians.

Suddenly, Lieutenant Ackler cried “Sir, there is a ship approaching us on a collision course at warp 6. It is Xarconian. Collision in 30 seconds” the commander estimated. “Evasive maneuvers and get us out of their way!” Gabriel snapped. “Disable their engines, if possible, Mr Ackler.”

The Meridian jerked throwing its passengers off their balance. Lieutenant Ackler had successfully maneuvered the ship out of danger. Immediately, he turned the Meridian around and this time they were behind the ship. The lieutenant targeted the ship’s engines and fired two torpedoes. “Direct hit, sir. Their ship has been disabled.”

Gabriel sighed with relief and straightened his uniform. “Bridge to Captain Sinclair. We have disabled the ship, sir.”

“Acknowledged. Gather the security team. We will be boarding their ship.”

After much interrogation with the Xarconian ship’s crew, the Meridian crew found out that the Xarconian Chancellor Kur’jar had been the perpetrator for the sabotage on the ship. He was against the coalition between Xarcon and the Federation. The Chancellor had silently planned for the sabotage in order to prevent the signing of the treaty, when his pleas were ignored by the Xarconian Council.

Epilogue

A sleepless Gabriel tossed in his bed. The events of the past few days had been too much for him to digest. He sat up to check on T’Mira beside him. << At least she is sleeping soundly. >> he smiled. He jumped out of bed, got dressed and left his quarters.

Gabriel headed for the deserted mess hall and grabbed himself a cup of milk. Cupping his hands on the steaming cup, he reminisced about those events and smiled contentedly.

“I believe you have enjoyed your trip back to the past.”

Upon hearing the unfamiliar voice, Gabriel jumped up from the chair to face a familiar looking man. His father had shown a picture of this man before. “Daniels?!” “What the hell are you doing here?”

“I came to check whether the mission has been successful.”

“Mission?!” Gabriel exclaimed “Who are we to you? Your pawns in a game of yours?”

“Commander Archer, let me remind you that it is my job to protect the future. Had the Xarconians failed to join the Federation, the Delta Quadrant would fall into the hands of the Borg. And besides, I have saved you and your family’s lives including this ship.”

Gabriel was fuming but then realized that Daniels was true. “I’m curious. You sent us back to the past in order to save the future. By why send us 35 years into the past and not a day before or something?”

“Well, I’ve always been fan of the Archers and I thought of doing you a favour.” After finishing his sentence, Daniels left the mess hall, leaving Gabriel open mouthed. Gabriel sat there alone. << A vacation to the past, indeed.>> he thought.

THE END

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Half a dozen of you have made comments

I want to congratulation treklover on her persistence. She is not a native speaker of English, so I lost count of how many times I sent this fic back for regrooving.

Bucky

Great story. Nicely done. Keep writing.

treklover, you've got one heck of an imagination. I'm tremendously impressed by your English skills as well. I've got a degree in French, but I KNOW that I'd never be able to do in French what you've done in English with this story. BRAVO! I would truly enjoy reading how TnT finally get together to make T'Mira, and how Jon and Erika end up married.

Yeah really good job on the English treklover. :)
Just a good fic,, and I agree that you should write a sequal,, show TnT having T'Mira, and since you seamed to have one event in their history changed,, ; ) maybe TnT wont blow up together in that Shuttle? But either way atleast one didnt have to go on with out the other,, but its still sad that their daughter had to grow up with out her parents,,,, But I loved it any way. : )

Treklover, for not being a native English-speaker, you did such an excellent job! Heck, even if you were a native English-speaker, this is still a great story!

I hope that you will do a sequel as well. I'm enjoying your version of the Tucker family.

Thanks for the good read! :-)

I really enjoyed this story, Treklover, and I'm glad you left room for a sequel. Loved TnT and Archer, of course, but you've created really interesting characters in T'Mira and Gabriel, not to mention young T'Pol. I look forward to meeting them again.