Chapter 2: Gallipoli

The small group of people, which to Charles' amazement consisted of three different species, entered the living room, where Martin Garret was waiting.

"Can I get you some drinks?" Catherine asked their visitors.

"Water will suffice," Soval answered and Charles got the distinct impression that, while the Vulcan didn't really need any, he seemed to want to give her something to do. Somehow the Vulcan ambassador in his living room didn't quite match the image of the ice-cool, unflappable person he'd seen on TV dozens of times over the past decades.

es.

"The same for me, please," doctor Phlox added.

"Take a seat y'all," Charles invited them and as soon as all were seated, he immediately addressed Soval: "Ambassador, can you tell me, what's happening to our son? He came home lookin' like death warmed over, fell apart like I've never seen before and the only thing he said was, that he'd be going to have nightmares and begged us, not to wake him up. Shortly after that he started screamin' and tossin' like he was fighting for his very life," he explained in an animated fashion. "My wife and I are scared witless. We lost a child nearly two years ago, losing another one would kill us..."

"Mr. Tucker," Soval politely interrupted, sensing that the human was approaching another emotional outbreak. "I cannot explain Commander Tucker's omission of basic information, but fortunately he was able to provide the most important information of all. Waking him would have been extremely dangerous to him and most likely T'Pol as well."

"T'Pol?" Catherine asked as she served glasses of water. "How can she be affected, she's not even here?"

do you know about the relationship between Commander Tucker and T'Pol?" Soval asked, while Charles put his arm around his wife's shoulders, when she took a seat beside him.

"Well, we've suspected that they've got a lot more going on than just bein' colleagues," Charles explained. "I probably wouldn't find a single transmission of Trip without T'Pol being mentioned at least twice. But we never expected that they've gotten as far as to have children. We didn't even expect that to be possible."

"Doctor Phlox can probably explain the situation much better than I," Soval nodded, turning to Phlox for an answer.

"Commander Tucker and Commander T'Pol are what humans call an engaged couple," Phlox explained and Charles' surprise was not very big. Trips countless transmissions had left little to be guessed about whom he had lost his heart to. "The information, I'm about to give you will be very difficult to cope with, but you need to know the truth."

Charles felt, how Catherine started clinging to him a bit more in anxiety.

"The baby girl was not the result of a natural coupling. She was cloned from tissue samples that were stolen from my medical facility."

Charles heard Catherine gasp in horror. "So, you're saying that someone stole samples of Trip and T'Pol to clone a child? That doesn't make the least bit of sense."

"She was created in a despicable attempt to show that Vulcans and Humans could not and should not combine," Phlox explained further.

"A child, no matter how it came into life, is hardly a dangerous prospect?" Father Garret asked. "If anything it would have been an encouragement. If she hadn't died, this whole idea would have failed."

Seeing that Catherine lost her fight with tears again, Charles gently rubbed her arm to console her.

"That, Mr. Garret is the most barbaric part of the crime," Phlox answered with a sigh. "It was inevitable that she died. When she was cloned, her creators manufactured a deliberate genetic defect to make sure that she would never survive infancy."

A primal rage boiled up inside Charles as his vision was blurred by tears. Shaking from the lethal anger that ravaged his soul he struggled to find any words. "Father Garret, would you take care of Cat, please, I need to..." and as soon as the priest had put a soothing arm around Charles' wife, he ran out of the room.

-=/\=-

Sovals nostrils were flaring as he found it increasingly difficult to keep his mind shielded from the sheer amount of raw, powerful emotions that the humans were radiating. Even Dr. Phlox seemed to be very close to being overwhelmed, reminding Soval that it was the Denobulan, who had fought desperately, but ultimately unsuccessfully, to save the life of the infant.

Closing his eyes, he slipped into a shallow meditation to re-establish his equilibrium, but he was violently ripped out of it by loud crashing noises coming from outside – at least loud to a Vulcans hearing. He doubted that the humans would even register it.

"I shall look after Mr. Tucker," he announced and acknowledged the grateful nod of the human priest.

Following the noise, he walked out into the backyard where he was greeted by a disturbing sight of pure destruction. Several ornamental items had been pushed over and some even destroyed. As he neared a small building, he saw that its wooden doors had been battered in. Inside he found Mr. Tucker, wielding an axe, wildly destroying wooden shelves and closets that lined the walls of what appeared to be a workshop of some kind.

"Mr. Tucker?" Soval asked loud enough to get the attention of the raging human. He watched as the human forcefully threw the axe to the ground turning to Soval. Even the disciplined Vulcan couldn't suppress a momentary flash of shock about the human's appearance. His face could only be described as a pained grimace of pure rage, while sweat mixing with a seemingly infinite stream of tears added to the almost frighteningly dishevelled appearance of Mr. Tucker's face. But the most disturbing sight was the uncontrollable shaking of a human very short of being overwhelmed by blind rage.

"Those shitheads, those fucking barbaric shitheads! They don' fuckin' know how t'is to lose a child. Dammit, what sorta sick motherfucker do ya hav'ta be to make a child just to kill it?"

Soval tried hard to make sense of the humans almost undecipherable dialect, surmising that, as it was with Commander Tucker, his parent fell back on his regional dialect in a heightened emotional state.

"I do not have an answer for that Mr. Tucker. I do not know if there is one at all," Soval answered calmly, hoping to achieve a calming influence on the human, who was still shaking from his raw emotions.

"What was it, they wan'ed? Ah, yeah, get rid of all aliens!" Charles spat sarcastically, before answering the question immediately. "Gimme a room full of aliens over just one of these assholes any time."

"In that regard, we are in full agreement, Mr. Tucker, if not, maybe, in the choice of words."

"Sorry, 'bout my language Ambassador," Charles answered and with satisfaction Soval saw that, however unusual Mr. Tuckers method of dealing with his emotions had been, the human seemed to find a state of relative calm again. "I'm usually not so ripe and Cat will rip me a new one if she ever gets to know about it."

"I understand," Soval answered. "And I shall make sure that your wife will not learn of your inappropriate language."

Soval did not show his confusion about the humans wish that his wife would not learn of the use of vulgar language, while he did not seem to be concerned about the fact that he had destructed a sizable part of their residence.

"They will give Trip and T'Pol a hard time, won't they?"

"It is a danger that cannot be discounted," Soval replied honestly. "But fortunately the perpetrators of this unspeakable outrage are a minority."

"Just one of them tries anything," Charles growled and Soval was slightly taken aback by the menace in the human's voice.

"I'm a religious man, Ambassador, but there are situations, when 'turn the other cheek' is bloody impractical."

"Be assured, Mr. Tucker. Both Earth and Vulcan will ensure the safety of all involved. Do you feel calm enough to return?"

"Think, so," Charles sighed. "Thank you, Ambassador."

-=/\=-

"You ok?" Catherine asked, when she saw the Vulcan Ambassador return with her husband in tow.

"I'm ok, Cat," he answered taking a seat and his wife's hand.

"Now that we know what happened to the kids," Catherine asked in Soval's direction. "Can you tell us, why it affects Trip so violently? Somehow I get the feeling it has to do with T'Pol being a Vulcan; no offense meant, Ambassador."

"There is no offense, where none is taken. Indeed, you are correct. T'Pol's Vulcan physiology does play a part in the situation."

"As far as I understand human practices, the act of becoming engaged is a mutual promise to marry. Is that correct?" Soval continued after giving the humans a few seconds to digest his answer.

"Yes, something like that," Catherine answered with an affirmative nod.

"For Vulcans this step carries more complex consequences. Engagement as such does not exist in Vulcan culture as future mates are betrothed in early childhood. After their marriage, in rare cases even before, they form a telepathic bond, which unites them for life."

"What is this ... bond? Have Trip and T'Pol formed such a thing?" Charles asked.

"It is a connection of their minds. Bond mates can share images, thoughts, emotions and can always sense each other's presence in their minds. And, yes, it appears that Commander Tucker and T'Pol have bonded."

"If it is telepathic," Catherine noted. "How can Trip be part of it? Humans aren't telepathic."

Phlox answered her question: "The majority of humans do not possess any telepathic abilities, but there have been rare, but confirmed cases of humans with latent telepathic abilities. This trait is a most rare, inheritable talent."

"Maybe it's you Catherine," Father Garret offered.

"I?" she asked back in surprise.

"Charles always says you see right through him, if he's not telling the truth and you were worried about Ingrid Hanson weeks before she was diagnosed with depression. You suspected Chuck Turner's drinking problem, when the whole neighborhood hadn't noticed a single thing yet. Couldn't it be that you have such a latent ability and passed it on to your son?"

"What you describe, would most certainly hint at such ability," Phlox agreed.

"That's all nice 'n well," Charles interrupted, turning his attention back to Soval. "But with all respect to Vulcan culture, if this bond has such grave consequences as it seems to have for them at the moment, I can't help but wonder if it is such a good idea for a human to be a part of it?"

"Pops, who are we to decide, whom Trip falls in love with," Catherine whispered with a hint of upset.

Before Charles could reply, Soval politely raised his hand to stop him.

"Mr. Tucker's concerns are warranted," he agreed. "However, the current crisis is the result of many unusual and unfortunate factors occurring together. What we are currently experiencing is, what humans refer to as the 'worst possible case'."

"So, if heaven forbids, something bad would happen again, they wouldn't have these problems?" Catherine asked, her worries stirred by Sovals agreement with her husband's concerns.

"Unless it were to happen within a very short period of time from now, you can rest assured that nothing of the sort will repeat."

"So, why is it so bad now?" Charles inquired.

"The first factor is the fact that the bond between them is still forming," Soval explained. "It takes approximately a year for a bond to reach its full strength. A second factor is the separation of T'Pol and Commander Tucker."

"So why didn't anyone tell him to bring her with him?" Catherine asked, slightly irritated.

"The decision to separate was one that was made out of necessity, caused by the third major contributing factor. Commander Tucker is not yet able to perform the meditation techniques, needed to reestablish T'Pol's emotional equilibrium and neither is he able to shield his mind yet, so his freely radiating emotions would threaten the control of all Vulcans in the vicinity, therefore threatening the ability of the priests in the sanctuary, who are currently trying to stabilize T'Pol in Commander Tucker's place."

"So you decided to send him away," Catherine spat, in growing irritation.

"Not at all, Mrs. Tucker," Soval explained, trying to calm her. "T'Pol was willing to take the risk, but Commander Tucker insisted on separating. He chose to increase his own burden to avoid any risks for T'Pol's recovery."

"That's a no-win scenario," Charles muttered. "If he stays with her, she's in danger, if he stays away, he's in danger. Now I understand what you meant with worst-case scenario."

"Indeed," Soval agreed. "I do hope that you understand what an immense sacrifice Commander Tucker has made. He made this decision in the knowledge that being among his family would give him the strength to overcome the challenging crisis."

"Thank you," Charles answered, moved by Sovals words.

"When can you bring T'Pol here?" Catherine asked. "By what I understand, the separation cannot be any good for her either."

"Once T'Pol's emotional control has been stabilized sufficiently, an end of their separation would be the first and foremost priority," Soval explained. "Unless such has been achieved, however, her presence would pose a danger."

"Why's that?" Charles asked.

"Your earlier outburst Mr. Tucker was not unlike what would happen to a Vulcan, whose control has been overwhelmed by emotions. Unlike you, however, no tool would be necessary to achieve the same ... carnage and a Vulcan would be unable to differentiate between inanimate objects and living beings."

"Good lord," Charles muttered wide-eyed.

"What carnage?" Catherine asked.

"Cat, you better don't go to the backyard until I had time to clean up," Charles admitted with a chagrined face expression.

Catherine immediately understood. On more than one occasion, Charles had broken things in desperation and overwhelming grief after the death of their daughter. She had never understood that the same man, who categorically refused to raise the hand against any living being, could lash out at inanimate objects with such force. Even if she should have latent telepathic abilities, this fact was something that would always elude her understanding.

"How can you be sure, that Trip will learn all this mental stuff that's necessary to prevent such problems in the future?" Charles asked, returning to the previous conversation.

"The fact that Commander Tucker has been able to bond with T'Pol is proof of that. I find it hard to provide a detailed explanation."

"Maybe, I can help," Phlox interrupted. "I think there is a human saying 'Before you can run, you first have to learn, how to walk'."

Both Catherine and Charles nodded.

"The fact that he was able to form a bond with T'Pol and the fact that he was able to reach a state of trance without ever having been instructed in the procedure, proves that Mr. Tucker most certainly knows, how to run. So it should not pose any problem to learn to walk, even if he 'put the cart before the horse', so to speak."

"Now, that makes sense," Charles replied with a nod before he was interrupted by a beep coming from Soval's robe.

"Excuse me," the Vulcan said and took out a small communicator, exchanging a few words in Vulcan, while the humans watched in suspense and Charles could have sworn, he had heard the Vulcan sigh. Closing the device, Soval addressed them: "The immediate danger to T'Pol has been averted, she has recovered a basic if still fragile control over her emotions."

Charles and Catherine fell into each other's arms, tears flowing out of joy for the first time since this nightmare had started and even Phlox couldn't help but letting a single tear of relief fall.

-=/\=-

Martin Garret closed his eyes and fervently expressed his gratitude to the Lord. The Tuckers had only lived here for about two years, but having counseled them through much of their grieving for their daughter, they had grown to be, not only a part of the community, but almost a part of his extended family.

"Doctor," Soval instructed. "With T'Pol awake, Commander Tucker will soon come to as well. It will be necessary to monitor him closely."

"On my way," the rotund alien replied and Father Garret wondered how such a substantially built individual could possibly speed off so quickly.

Seeing the Tuckers still embracing each other in relief, he could not help but smile and sent another 'Hail Mary' to the heavens. He turned his attention to the Vulcan ambassador, who approached him.

"Mr. Garrett, now that the immediate danger has been averted for T'Pol, it will soon be time to start dealing with Commander Tucker's grief, as well. I trust that you will continue supporting him and his parents?"

"Of course, Ambassador," he promised, while the Tucker parents joined them.

"Ambassador, can you bring T'Pol here?" Catherine asked. "I don't think we should waste any time, now that the worst has been overcome."

"Of course," Soval agreed. "I shall return as soon as possible."

Returning the Ambassadors nod, Martin Garret watched the Vulcan leave, accompanied to the door by Catherine Tucker.

"I can't tell you, how much it means to us, to have you with us," Charles said and Martin took his offered hand.

"There's no other place, where I would be in trying times like these," he replied.

"We'll see you at the mass tomorrow," Charles answered in gratitude, while escorting the priest to the door.

-=/\=-

Slowly Trip opened his eyes, trying to get a bearing on where, when or how he was. As his eyes got used to the light, he recognized a familiar face.

"Phlox?" he asked, surprised by how weak his own voice sounded.

"Welcome back, Commander, please do not move."

"Where am I; why are you here? Last thing I remember was being at my folks place."

"You still are, you just awoke from a healing trance," the doctor explained as Trip winced from the stings that were cause by IV needles being pulled out of his arm. "Ah ... yeah, right, Soval mentioned it. But why do I feel like I've just done a marathon?"

"Oh, that's not surprising," Phlox replied in his trademark upbeat voice. "While your body has been lying in trance, your mind has worked overtime for almost 24 hours."

"Right, I was in T'Pol's ... Dammit! T'Pol! I need to... ," Trip muttered and tried to jump out of the bed. His own exhaustion and a gentle push of Phlox caused him to crash back into it.

"T'Pol is well under the circumstances," Phlox explained. "Soval is on his way to see her. You, however, need to sleep or you will not be of any help to her."

"Is she really ok?" Trip asked back.

"She is, Mr. Tucker. Of course the term is relative, but the most dangerous phase has been overcome. You can trust me. But now you must let me give you this sedative. You need uninterrupted sleep, urgently and for obvious reasons neuropressure as an option is unavailable at the moment."

"I don't want to be drugged," Trip refused. "What if she needs me again?"

"You should listen to the doc, son," Charles added, entering the room. "Soval has explained a lot to your mom and me and he's bringing T'Pol here, so you should let Dr. Phlox do his job. You hadn't had any real sleep for a long time. How d'ya wanna help her if you're a basket case?"

"Ok, do your thing, doc," Trip sighed, surrendering to the logic of his father and a weak but visible smile graced his face, when he heard about T'Pol's imminent arrival.

Mere seconds after Phlox's injection he fell into a deep sleep.

-=/\=-

"What's that?" Catherine asked as Charles put down a small device on the table after he had bidden a grateful farewell to Phlox.

"The doc just gave it to me. It's a communicator, so we can call him, if anything's up with the kids."

"Funny, how we still call them 'kids'," Catherine shook her head with a sad smile. "From what I've learned about Vulcans, T'Pol could be our age."

"I should've known, momma," Charles replied, now smiling himself. "The moment you knew that Trip has fallen in love with her, you probably started studying Vulcanology. So you've got at least a year of head start on me. What do I need to know?"

"They don't like to be touched, so no hugging or handshaking," Catherine started to list the basic 'Vulcan 101'. "They need privacy, so we shouldn't ask her too many personal questions and they're strict Vegetarians. That's the most important things."

"Guess we'll be eating a lot of weeds then," Charles answered and Catherine could hear the undertone of displeasure in his voice.

"Don't worry pops, you won't have to become a vegetarian. But you shouldn't expect a steak for each meal."

"I know," Charles sighed, before shaking his head. "I'm such an idiot. The kids are havin' a hard time and I worry about my meals. I'm sorry, Cat."

"No, you're no idiot," Catherine refused, putting her arms around her husband. "You're just as confused as I am. It's been a tough few days and we'll need time to deal with all this."

"Thanks, dear," he smiled back at her.

The moment was interrupted by the doorbell.

-=/\=-

Charles and Catherine fought hard not to gasp in shock, when they opened the door. Two hooded figures stood before the door. The Ambassador was now a familiar sight, but the haggard appearance of T'Pol was almost disturbing. They knew her face from the few pictures that Trip had sent in his transmissions over the years, but the flawless beauty of the young Vulcan had given way to an unmistakable expression of misery.

"Please come in," Catherine invited them.

"I shall leave T'Pol in your care," Soval explained and handed Charles a small PADD. "These communication codes allow you to contact me, once Commander Tucker is sufficiently rested. It will become necessary for me to instruct both T'Pol and your son in essential techniques of meditation."