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"Calm Before the Storm" by Lady Rainbow Rating: PG-13 The reference to “Sunniv Four” goes back to “Calm Before the Storm”, where Travis Mayweather and Matt Hayes had a “side trip” there when they both served on the Montana(before Travis ended up on Enterprise and Matt on Columbia). Thanks, Pesterfield! :) Nine “What is her condition?” Malcolm and T’Les crowded in front of the small communications screen. He glanced sideways at T’Les; the Vulcan woman’s mouth was set in a grim line, her dark amber eyes flashed pain. Malcolm shared it, and shared the conviction that this was all some kind of elaborate plot to undermine High Minister V’Lar’s control. “Lady V’Lar is resting comfortably,” Doctor T’Vau replied. “Her vital signs have stabilized and she’s insisting on going back to work, as usual, but we have struck a compromise: as long as she wears a monitor and reports to me every three hours, she may do some government business.” “I’m glad to hear she’s recovering nicely,” Malcolm breathed. T’Vau glanced at T’Les and asked, “Did you get the High Minister’s formal request?” She nodded. “I did indeed. It has given me some...insight. I will consult with my daughter when we arrive at Earth, then advise Lady V’Lar on our decision.” “I will inform her as such. Please send my congratulations and well wishes to her and her shipmates. Vulcan Medical, out.” T’Vau’s image vanished from the screen. Malcolm frowned and asked, “Formal request? That’s unusual. Is there a problem?” T’Les sighed as she stood from the cramped comm chair. She crossed to the window, where they both could see the icy rings of Saturn in the near distance. Malcolm didn’t push her; he knew that T’Les preferred to gather her thoughts before speaking. As the seconds ticked by, he wondered if he’d inadvertently inquired about a private problem. “You don’t have to tell me—“ “Indeed I do. This could have an effect on your ship and its crew.” T’Les appeared to make some sort of decision, then turned to face Malcolm. “T’Vau told me what had triggered V’Lar’s collapse: she had an argument with Koss.” He raised his eyebrows. “With Koss? With T’Pol’s fiancé?” “Koss and I were supposed to meet to renegotiate T’Pol’s bride price,” she explained with a twist of her lips. “He did not detect anything wrong with T’Pol...and he should have, as her betrothed. T’Vau had describe it as...’absolutely no reaction at all, save for rage at the absence of the bride’s mother’.” Malcolm choked down his own rage. He had met Koss several times and disliked him intensely. His father was a prominent member of the High Command; both Koss and Soultek were cut from the same cloth. T’Pol did not like him; although the arrangement had been made decades before Malcolm was even born, he’d voiced his concerns about the bonding many times. Damn it all, he cursed mentally. I hate it when I’m right sometimes. “You were correct,” T’Les said in a flat voice. “You, T’Vau, Soval and so many others. I was blind to Soultek’s maneuvering, and to his son’s schemes and plots. Thus, V’Lar has composed a Formal Request of Dissolution.” “A Formal Request? You mean that T’Pol could be freed from her betrothal?” He felt a flame of hope for the first time since the Romulan crisis. “But that still requires Soultek’s and Koss’s approval.” “And neither will give it. Thus V’Lar will submit it under Priestess T’Naiya’s consideration.” Malcolm clamped his jaw shut to keep it from dropping in pure shock. T’Naiya, the High Priestess of Mount Seleya, the most powerful cleric in Vulcan society. If V’Lar planned to approach T’Naiya...then this was something that V’Lar wanted done. “V’Lar can do that? I don’t recall any High Minister doing it—“ “This will set a precedent. If it is successful, I cannot even predict the effect it will have on Vulcan society as a whole.” T’Les sighed and shook her head. “T’Pol has no knowledge of this, Malcolm. I beseech thee, as a friend, to please keep this confidential.” He nodded with great reluctance. “I shall do as thee asks, T’Les.” She gave a sigh of relief, closed her eyes briefly and opened them again. “I am too old to deal with all this change, Malcolm.” A sarcastic grin tugged at his lips, despite his best efforts. “Come now, my friend. One hundred and twenty isn’t old in the Vulcan way of things.” “I was not referring to biological age.” Her dry tone expressed the humor she didn’t show on her face. “If you would excuse me, I will prepare for our approach to Earth.” “Of course.” T’Les inclined her head and exited through the door that adjoined their suites. As the door closed, Malcolm turned back to the computer and consulted a different database. The information he requested came up on the screen. He split the screen and pulled up his previous research on the right side, comparing details with the information on the left. There was a slight correspondence between the two, but not enough to consider it the same results. Still...it is a start. He scrolled down the left side, which was a list of a patient’s brain neurotransmitter levels, then matched it with the corresponding area on the report on the right side. Now, this was unusual...he made notes on his PADD and his sense of unease increased as he processed the information. Finally, he came to the end of the patient’s test results and came across a note from Doctor T’Vau: Malcolm, I would ask that you keep this confidential for now. I will monitor this patient discreetly and send you the results. If my supposition is correct, we must counteract this, and immediately. T’Vau. Malcolm leaned forward and rubbed his temples. He thought, with a hint of bitterness, It appears that I am a repository for everyone else’s secrets, as well as my own. Matt Hayes shivered and zipped up his windbreaker. Even though it was early May, it was still cool in New York City. He walked to the café just within the borders of Greenwich Village. The girl behind the counter smiled at him and immediately took his order. Matt felt a bit of relief at the lack of recognition in the barista’s face. He’d kept a low profile since he’d arrived here early this morning; he hoped this meeting with Harris was short and sweet so he could get back to Los Angeles. And as if summoned, the familiar voice said, “Hey, Leilah. The usual, if you please.” The barista grinned at the man who stepped through the door. “No problem, sir. Final exams becoming a pain?” “I’m a bit old to take ‘em, but proctoring ‘em isn’t too bad,” Harris laughed. “I’m just happy that the semester’s almost at an end. I’m looking forward to the summer hiatus.” Leilah grinned as she topped the foam on Harris’s cappuccino. “So where’re you off to this summer? The Andes? Alaska? The Ruins of Athuasca Two?” “My secret.” “You’re a real Indiana Jones, you know. If you ever need a photographer for your travels—“ “I'll know whom to ask. Thanks, Leilah.” Harris nudged Matt with a friendly smile. “Leilah, this is Matt, one of my former students. We were on the Sunniv Four dig together.” “Pleased to meet you, Matt!” Leilah extended her hand and Matt shook it. He slipped into the role with a smile; so Mark Harris had taken the persona of an archaeology professor. Matt got the “Indiana Jones” reference, courtesy of Trip Tucker’s fondness for old adventure movies. “C’mon, I got something to show you.” “What, did Travis miss something from Sunniv Four that I didn’t know about?” “Nah, it wasn’t Travis’s fault this time. This is supposed to help you. Grab your coffee and follow me.” They occupied a booth at the back of the café. Harris pulled a paper map and several other pieces of...something...out of his jacket pockets. Matt tried not to smile as he picked up one of the pieces and turned it in his hands. “What’s this?” “An artifact from our storage,” Harris replied in an off-hand tone. “It’s some kind of detector, but we’re not sure what it does. I’ve tested its range and it’s pretty extensive.” “How extensive?” “Ah, now that’s why I want you to field test it.” Harris raised one finger and said. “I brought it to a mutual friend...an engineering expert, and he said that he’s seen something similar in a private collection. With some tinkering, he believes it can cancel out certain waves on the electromagnetic spectrum.” “Say...listening devices, bioscans—“ Harris pitched his voice low. “Remote triggers for explosives.” Matt’s eyes narrowed as he put the pieces together. “So this—“ “—is fairly advanced for the time period,” Harris finished, his normally friendly voice muted, “but equipment like this isn’t always foolproof. It can be construed into a protective device, instead of one for destruction. That’s why I want you to have this. It can be jury-rigged to cancel commands issued from far away over a certain radius.” Matt turned the piece over in his hands and thought about what Harris had implied. A mutual friend, an engineering expert...Henry Archer?...had seen something like this in a private collection...Paxton’s. This device—or something similar—had triggered the shuttle crash that nearly killed Hoshi, Liz Cutler, and T’Pol. But Archer had tinkered with it and discovered that its function went both ways...it could be used as a safety device to guard against certain transmissions... ...like setting off explosives at a wedding, for example. “I know that I made things worse when I tried to help,” Harris said quietly. “Consider this partial payment on my debt, Matt.” He looked up and nodded. “Consider it paid, Mark.” |
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