Disclaimer: I have no authorization on any level to use these characters, but I am, and I intend no copyright infringement by doing so. Everything except Gwen belongs to someone else.

Two Months

prologue

Jonathan Archer strode rapidly through the corridors of the starship Enterprise, hoping to outdistance his Science Officer. But despite the fact that he was a good deal taller than T'Pol, he was finding it difficult to get very far ahead of her.

"Captain, I do not see the need for—" she continued her protests as they came in sight of Shuttlepod One. Trip looked up as they approached and caught his friend's eye, giving him a sympathetic look. Jon grinned at him in response, before turning to face the Vulcan woman following him.

"Nevertheless, I am going, Sub-Commander," he said, emphasizing her rank, "And that's final."

T'Pol broke off then, recognizing the look and tone of voice that signified that the Captain had made up his mind and would not be persuaded to do otherwise, no matter how logical the argument given.

"Well, Trip," the Captain continued, turning back to his Chief Engineer, "is everything ready to go?"

"You betcha, Cap'n. We ran our last diagnostic check on 'er not ten minutes ago. She's all set! And I took the liberty of loadin' yer bags for ya."

"Thanks, Trip," he returned warmly, before giving his attention to the young woman standing just behind the engineer. "And thank you, Ensign Cutler, for being willing to take care of Porthos."

The petite brunette made light of it, "Oh, it's my pleasure, sir. Not a problem at all."

Archer bent down slightly to fondle the beagle she held in her arms. "No, it won't be a problem, will it, Porthos?" he said, looking into his dog's eyes as he spoke. The dog seemed to catch onto his meaning and shook his head to the side, causing Archer to chuckle and Cutler to grin. He gave Porthos one last pat, ordering him to "be good."

"Step in, Novakovich," the Captain said, gesturing to the shuttlepod. "T'Pol, you're in command during my absence." The Vulcan inclined her head to acknowledge his order. Looking around one last time, he nodded at everyone there. "See you in two weeks!" With that, he stepped into the shuttlepod and pulled the door closed behind him.

The peaceful calm of night was shattered when a line of fire trailed across the broad expanse of starry sky above. It was in sight for only seconds before it buried itself behind the tree line. Then the stars swirled and merged until they became two bright points and the points softened to become eyes and a face emerged. The face showed wisdom, compassion and a yearning to understand. Soon, though, it was blotted out by the red stain of blood, and a woman's scream pierced the silence of the night.

Gwen awoke with a jerk, her body literally drenched with sweat, her heart pounding, her chest heaving and her eyes wide open. Pushing damp strands of dark hair off her forehead with trembling fingers, she closed her eyes and breathed deeply to calm her racing heart. The dreams were back, she realized, as fragments of that night's dream returned to her. She fell back onto her mattress, images running through her head. There was fire, she remembered, and a man's face and then blood. The familiar tingling coursed through her body, but by now she knew better than to act right away. Time would tell, as the dreams grew clearer, if this was her mission to follow.

A/N: Well, what do you think? I've got the rest planned out in my head, but not actually written yet, so your reviews will certainly encourage me to do so more quickly!