What a Difference a Day Makes (part 5)
By: TLR55555 (:TLR from House of Tucker)
Aug 2022
Part 5 : Our bonded couple is making the best of the situation they are in. The accelerated time of this planet is starting to show on them through loss of muscle mass, dropping energy levels and weakness. They struggle to keep going long enough to have the plants and seeds they just sewed to begin providing them with edible vegetation. They share and support each other through the process, while their ship mates continue to try to get to them before they succumb to the environment of the Ice Giant they are marooned on.
Enterprise is the property of paramount studios. I receive nothing in exchange for writing this story other than making fans like myself happy.
Trip and T'Pol remained in their bedding for 2 hours, just talking and recuperating their physical tolerance. When they felt ready, Trip helped T'Pol up and the two of them headed toward the garden area entrance, glow sticks in hand. They made their way down a small trail just to the left of the garden. The path they took slanted down at a 15 degree angle. The rock walls were smooth through most of the trail's length, however just before they reached the protein signature, the rockface was rough and uneven.
In a small outlet, there was the sound of pooled water. The room was dark, no light source reaching this place. When they entered the glow sticks they carried bounced light off the crystal structure, brightening the area quite a bit. In the center of this small space, was a rounded depression in the rock floor. It was filled with water, resembling a coy pond. It was only about 20 inches deep and there were some strange green shapes that moved intermittently along the bottom of the pool. The water seemed to circulate in from a fresh source, as there was no evidence of moss or slime. However, there was a small amount of algae seen along its sides.
"What are those things?" Trip asked holding his glow stick closer to get a better look. "They look like gigantic amoeba but their slimy and green, Yuk." The face her mate made told T'Pol she would have to do some convincing to get him to consume these life forms. "They are the source of protein I was detecting." She answered and saw the look Trip gave her. It told her she was correct in her assumption. "You're kidding right. Those slimy things are what's for dinner?" He shivered and made another face that indicated his disinterest in ingesting anything like that.
"Thy'll, they are a good source of protein and would help to boost your energy levels greatly. You should at least think about this a little, for when our stores are out and the garden vegetation is still growing." The Vulcan's voice was serious, indicating he should be thinking about survival, not how appealing the protein looks or tastes. Trip noticed she didn't say that she would partake in the protein source. "Me, what about you. You need the protein more than I do." His comment was met with a rather stunned look on his bondmate's face. "You know I am vegetarian. I cannot consume a living creature." Her response was defensive and held much conviction. He came up and shown the light on her features. "I know you are a vegetarian, but survival measures sometimes require doing something drastic. You may have to consider taking in this protein if it is the only source of nutrition we have. However, it is not something we have to decide today" He circled round looking toward the doorway. Trip then turned back to her and continued. "We found this place, when our supplies run out, then we will make the decision on whether to use them for protein or not." He saw the tiredness in his mate's face. He convinced her to accompany him back to their living area and get ready for bed. The next morning would come soon enough and they needed to rest as much as possible.
Archer found Lt Reed in engineering updating the signal enhancing stabilizers with the new specs he had been working on. He saw the captain enter and started to come to attention. Jon waved him to relax and offered to help with the work. Secretly, he'd felt useless not being able to work on a plan. This gave him a chance to do his part to bring his friends home. Malcolm nervously explained the modifications that needed to be made to all 16 of the units. Archer picked up a hyper-spanner and began to work alongside the Brit, matching his alterations to those Reed was making in real time.
Working on the units, Archer used this time to get more perspective on this plan from his armory officer. "When the storms subside, what is your plan for rescue?" Jon winced a bit as he had to use more muscle to get the outer covering off the second unit he worked on. Reed, having already adjusted three of them before his boss came in, continued to work more seamlessly on making the adjustments to the inner circuitry. "With the signal enhancers in place, Captain, we will be able to support beaming down a small landing party. I estimate the signal enhancers could work for about four transports."
Jon listened to the Brit's plan and wondered why so many units. "How many units do you need to transport the landing party?
"Only 6 Captain, they need to be placed in a hexagon shape large enough to encompass an area that would allow for 7-8 crewmen. This would be more than enough to form a couple of search parties." Reed didn't look at the captain's face but Jon turned back to him with a question on his mind.
"Why if you only need 6 are we working on 16 of them?" That got the armory officer's attention as he turned to look at Archer. " We want to have two spare, for the search and recover parties, and the remaining 8 to try and transport the shuttle pod to the cargo bay 1. With this planet's magnetic make up the grapplers will not be able to get a lock to retrieve the craft." Malcom explained it as if it was so simple. The captain was amazed that he had figured it all out to minute detail. As they continued Jon wanted to know more about this plan.
"The signal enhancers, what is the plan for deployment?" Reed handed the coil scanner to his commanding officer and answered. "We will be transporting the first units down in a set pattern near the shuttle pod based on the chemical signature. Once activated, to test their strength we will transport the remaining enhancers and some gear down into the supported area. If all gets there intact, we will then send the landing party down. Once we get down there, Sir, we will use rivet drivers to provide more stabilization of the units against the winds, just in case another storm comes up while we are searching for our people." Malcolm continued to make adjustments but secretly waited to hear what the captain thought of his plan.
"Thorough, well thought out." Jon returned, laying down the coil scanner and picking up a hyper-spanner once again. "Do you feel the chemical signal is close enough to the pod for us to locate it?" Malcom looked up from his work. "I think it is dead on Captain. The pattern of the chemical signature doesn't indicate a crash landing, more of a puddling that would be from a slower leak or purge." Jon smiled at that bit of good news. "How can you tell that Malcolm?" The Brit's accent got deeper as he went back to work. "Because Sir, the pattern of the spill would have been much longer and in many sections if there had been a crash. This signature is clearly from just one puddle, all be it a sufficient one."
"So you are sure it is a coolant leak." Jon made a face and winced as his finger was shocked slightly by some stray energy still left in the unit. Malcolm nodded his head sharply. "Could the coolant leak cause any issues with the life support?" The Captain asked, not aware of any. "No Sir, unless the pod was trying to take off, the coolant wouldn't be in use at all just for life support." The work continued for many minutes in silence, then Jon asked the question he didn't want to know the truth to. "You think we will find them in time?" There was several more moments where neither man looked up or stopped working.
"I am sure we will Captain." Malcolm response held a bit of frustrated conviction. "Trip and T'Pol are very good at survival. I know they will do what it takes to stay alive until we can reach them." With that, the pair sped up their recalibration of the remaining units. All needed to be ready when the storm let up. It had been 4 long hours for the Enterprise command crew.
Morning on the planet started with T'Pol waking up in her bondmate's arms. This had become a favorite thing for both and it was harder and harder for them to start the day when given the chance to be so close and work on their bond in this fashion. Trip had been awake for about 30 minutes already. He thought about getting up and checking on things but like his mate, he was enjoying the warmth and soothing feelings. Trip wouldn't admit it but he was starting to feel increasingly tired as well. He realized that perhaps what they talked about the evening before may actually have to be done to survive until the garden started producing.
"Hello pretty lady." His smile was warm and welcoming. "Sleep well?" T'Pol's eyes were still blinking lazily but were trained on the face of her mate. She nodded, not answering with her voice or through the bond. The southern male pulled her into a luscious embrace, planting kisses on her hair first then turning to softly place a few on her lips. " I slept good too… I had dreams of you and I deep sea diving." Trip chuckled a bit knowing if he dreamed it, then she did too. "I suppose you know about that."
He remained quiet a few minutes longer just reviewing their relationship, then began to laugh softly. 'What is so humorous?' His mate thought at him through their bond. Trip remembered in his head, the visions coming through to her clearly, but he still hadn't gotten the hang of the mind communication, so he spoke it aloud. "When I think of us now, I am really quite amazed. I mean, I remember when we first met, it seemed you wanted nothing to do with me, and look here we are.?" In his mind, Trip recalled the staunch Vulcan that walked into the captain's ready room and reported for duty. He remembered thinking how beautiful she was in the grey and white fitted catsuit. When she turned to see him and refused his hand, that point touched on T'Pol's conscious.
'I was doing what I was trained to do, Thy'll' She rubbed her cheek against his skin and readjusted her hip to lay flush to his. 'I was a betrothed female. That means that I had to keep from interacting with anyone that could pose a threat to my future bonding.'
Trip chuckled a bit more. "Yea, I guess I was a big threat to that betrothed bonding." His grin grew wide as he thought of Koss finding out his future wife was hot for a human. "Boy, that had to have made his ears red." T'Pol knew her mate was feeling full of himself but chose to allow him this moment. 'Yes, you were, and from the start I realized there was something about you that made me feel I should keep my distance.' As she sent this through their bond, Trip leaned down and answered, "Your darn right there was something about me. I am your soul mate. You couldn't help but fall for me." Now he as being a bit too full of himself.
'So you felt nothing for me I suppose.' Her voice in his mind was becoming very familiar and after a few sessions of this communication from her, he really couldn't tell if she spoke it or just thought it to him. "Oh I felt something. I knew I was in trouble the minute I laid eyes on you." His statement was misunderstood by his mate. She spoke this time. "I gave you reason to be concerned? If I did anything inappropriate…." Trip stopped her. "You didn't do anything wrong. I meant I could feel something between us too. I just thought you being Vulcan, you'd never be interested in a human like me, that's all." He rubbed her back, a daily practice that both found appealing.
'You are a remarkable human, Ashy'am.' T'Pol went back to communicating through their bond enjoying the massage she was getting. 'You are smart, kind, caring, logical, and very loyal.' Trip was surprised by her point about being logical. He'd never thought of himself as logical. More of a rogue or by the seat of your pants kind of guy. "I am logical?" he seemed amazed of that comment. 'Yes… in emergency situations, your ability to reason and find the most logical course of action is remarkable. You don't let any preconceived theory deter you. You plot out and execute a plan in very little time that often turns out to be very logical.'
"I guess you didn't think at all about my backside or brilliant blue eyes." Trip was being light hearted. 'Oh yes I did think on them quite a bit.' T'Pol confessed to that in the same light hearted manner as her mate. He was surprised she would admit that, even though he could see them in his mind vividly. They were in decon together, but this time he could see what she saw and felt. The thrill she got running her hands across the skin of his back, then working her way down his legs, while her eyes had a front row view of his powerful glutes. This shocked Trip in a pleasant way. He leaned forward and looked into her face with an expression of being playfully stunned. "You were checking me out in decon?" He asked in a mock shocked manner. "So what happened to your being a betrothed female."
'I didn't act upon it. I did what I was supposed to do.' She thought back at him. 'And as I recall, you had your fingers running across the top of my buttocks. Then you were fondling my ears when I put a stop to your exploration of Vulcan anatomy.'
"Yes, and I was enjoying every bit of it." Trip admitted without shame. 'We clearly could tell something was attracting us way back then,' she indicated. The Vulcan's nose found a cozy spot in the crook of her mate's neck. She felt his mind grow more serious. "You know when we went on our first away mission together. That space port on Rigel." Trip continued to stroke her back as he thought of his first alien planet away mission with his beloved. "I was excited and scared to go down to that place all at the same time. I was so glad when the captain paired us up together. I just felt safer having you with me." T'Pol could feel how sincere he was in admitting his fears in this way. 'I would not have let anything happen to you' She answered back through their bond.
"I know…. I could feel that. That is why I was less nervous than when we first touched down." The engineer remembered how scared he was and how it faded a bit seeing the strong and confident manner of his mate in that situation. "The way you went about getting the information from the office supervisor, you seemed to be very comfortable with the whole investigation. You really handled yourself well." The feeling T'Pol was getting from his message was of gratitude. She took a moment to return back to his comment. 'It is what I did with the ministry of security. That position required a lot of search and retrieval.'
Trip could sense through the bond, that his mate was tiring even though they hadn't done anything so far this day. Her body seemed leaner, more frail and her movements less sure.
"You're getting tired. You have to eat more….. Where are the protein pills you spoke of. I have to get them for you." Trip was feeling very concerned. 'It is okay Thy'll… I will get more rest and be better.' "No, you are getting weaker and I won't lose you T'Pol….I love you. I cannot go on without you." Her mate's voice shown the fear he had regarding her surviving. Trip got up and moved to T'Pol's knapsack. He rifled through it until he pulled out the quart sized bottle of white tablets. Removing two, Trip replaced the container in the bag and walked back to where his mate lay in their bed.
" T'Pol, I need you to take these for me. I know you wanted to save them, but you can't go another day without a decent source of protein." He held the tablets before her and picked up a water canteen from behind his pillow. The Vulcan thought for several moments, knowing she was saving them for her mate, but decided in the end to relent. Shakily she took the pills he offered and swallowed them down with a small swig of water from the vessel. Her actions as well as the reassuring feeling she sent through their connection calmed his fears a bit.
At T'Pol's request, Trip helped her to the bathroom and left her there momentarily to check on the garden area. As he passed their bed again, the engineer got another idea, and quickly ripped through the packing material that served as their mattress to get the device he needed to assure them a continued source of protein moving forward. After examining the object, he folded and stored it away before returning to the bathroom to retrieve his beloved.
Laying back down with her, Trip closed his arms about her waist. It's smaller diameter kept a bit of worry in his mind. T'Pol could feel her mate's body growing tired as well. 'Please stay with me for a while, to get rest' her thoughts in his head distracted him from his concern. "What do you say we both spend the day in bed to keep from using up calories. But tomorrow we have got to get some of those Amoeba and see if they can be prepared to provide a source of protein for both of us." He looked into her face, now gazing back at his. 'Seems most logical, Ashy'am.'
Hours went by with the two of them either napping or discussing their plans for the days ahead. As they spoke, something had been concerning T'Pol that she didn't let go through their bond. Finally, she found the courage to bring up the subject. 'Thy'll, does it bother you that I speak about our connection in a different way than you do?' Trip could feel a bit of guilt in her thoughts. "What because I call it love and you call it a connection…. No not really. We are from two different worlds, and anyways I can feel it all around me." T'Pol turned to look up into his face. Trip was still focused on the ceiling crystals as he continued. "I don't know how to describe it. It's a feeling of being wrapped in a warm and comfortable blanket. It's much like we are now, surrounded by each other's bodies" Trip had a scant smile on his lips as he spoke, his eyes focused far away as if seeing what he was describing in the distance. "This pleasant, almost contented feeling stays with me even when we are not near each other. I don't have to hear the words, because I feel it directly through the bond. So for me, as long as that is there, it doesn't matter what we call it." His head turned downward to find her face looking up at his.
"Does it bother you when I say I love you?" Trip knew it didn't but thought it necessary to ask. 'No… Knowing that is a human's way of expressing contentment with the bond, it's pleasing that you show me how you feel about our connection.' Trip relaxed back. "You know when you reach out to me through that connection, I can hear your voice so clearly. I take for granted you are speaking to me." He was amazed at her abilities. "Does it bother you I connect with your mind in that way?" she asked. This time his mate spoke to him, her voice softer and shakier than usual. "No… not at all, I just wish I could do it with you." Trip rubbed his chin upon her hair as he went back to gazing at the crystals. 'With practice, it will come,' she replied easing into the comfort of their embrace.
A few naps later, Trip was wondering what their lives would be like once they got back to Enterprise. His thoughts got his mate's attention. 'You have concerns for our future?' She asked, eyes still closed enjoying the rest and relaxation. "No not really concerns, just don't know what to expect that's all. Not in a bad way mind you, I just can't image a life without out you in it, but don't know how are being together will look." She considered a moment. ' I imagine we will have to see how it comes together. I know it was supposed to be, though I didn't know that until my mother's death.'
"Your mom's death? How does that play into this? Did she tell you something?" Trip was curious to know more. 'My mother must have sensed we were bonded, but she didn't share that with me. I thought I survived after her death because of a possible bond with my paternal foremother. I never remembered being connected to her, but she does still exist and would explain why I didn't die with my mother's passing.'
"T'Pol, I know losing a parent is hard, but you wouldn't' have died from it." Trip was speaking from human knowledge. 'Yes I would. Vulcans rely on being bonded. They need it to survive. A bond with a parent, mate or offspring will sustain us. Had my parents brought my foreparents into our bond, then it would have been the reason, but I couldn't recall having had a connection with them. I didn't really think about it at the time.'
Her mate was stunned. "You mean if we hadn't been bonded, you would have died with your mother in the forge." There was a moment of silence and Trip could feel a bit of sadness creeping into his mind. 'Yes, I would have. Our bond saved me, as it is saving me now. I need you to keep healthy Trip, so that we both can get through this.' She felt his disbelief. 'We are connected, I draw my life force from you as you would from me when you are weak. One of us has to stay strong enough to get through this period until the garden can sustain us. I need you to promise me that you will do this for us.'
"Of course, I will do anything for us, but you can't keep getting weaker and expect that I can keep both of us going. You have to do your part and try to stay as strong as possible on top of what you get from me. T'Pol, you have lost so much weight, you're weak and shaky. You cannot push yourself so far that this connection won't sustain you." He held a hint of sadness in his voice that made his mate realize there were tears welling without even looking. Her hand came up and caressed his face sending reassuring and tender feelings through his mind. "I may not end if you die, but I won't be able to live without you." He admitted before hugging his face into her hair to hide the tears that began to slip out. 'I will, I promise Ashy'am. I will do all I can.'
Back on Enterprise, the hour was late. Archer, having finished helping with the refit of the enhancers, left to check on Porthos in the good doctor's care. While there he discussed briefly the situation updates and what the current plan was to get their colleagues back.
"Phlox, How do you think they are holding up?" Jon asked petting his favorite beagle on the head. Porthos gave him a short "ruff" and a hardy tail wag for the attention. His master then snuck him a bit of cheese he brought back from the galley.
"I thought I told you that cheese is not good for canine digestion." The Denobulan sent a correcting glance at the captain. "Sorry, just know how much he loves it.. I won't give him any more." Jon rubbed at the dog's head while Porthos searched his hand looking for more cheese.
"You haven't answered my question, doc. Do you think Trip and T'Pol are doing okay?" The alien heard the captain's need for reassurance in the tone of his question. " I still think they are very adept at survival Captain. I know they are doing all they can to keep going until we can reach them." The physician came up to sit down on a bio bed next to the man and his dog. Archer kept scratching at the canine's head and ears. "I want you on the landing party when we do go." This the captain said more officially.
"Understood. I will bring first aid supplies and a hypothermia kit just in case." Phlox looked him over. "How are you holding up Captain?" He could tell the mantle of leadership was weighing heavily on Jon. "I'm okay. I just want to get down there. These damned storms, it seems as though when one starts to let up, another one is right on its heels." Archer slapped the mattress of the bio bed he had been leaning on. "I have half a mind to test the enhancers against the winds anyway, though Malcolm tells me they wouldn't hold up without being reinforced." He started around the bed and walked to the center of sick bay. "When was the last time you slept Captain?" The doctor offered assessing the dark circles beneath his friend's eyes.
"Sleep? You think I could get any rest while my friends are on that god forsaken ice giant. I can't get my mind off them. I am so worried." The captain's head hung low, and moved back and forth as he spoke, chastising himself for sponsoring this away mission. "I gave them the go ahead. I practically ordered Trip to go on it." The good doctor could feel his guilt with every word.
"Captain… You couldn't have known this would happen. You, and your crew took all the necessary precautions. The strength of the magnetic force was not something you could have known outside the nebula." Try as he might Phlox couldn't get the man to stop blaming himself for the situation they were in. It took the better part of 45 minutes before the doctor was able to talk Jon into going back to his quarters and trying to rest. Along the way, he stopped by engineering to see if Trip's engines were still doing okay.
Lieutenant Kivers was busy running about the room, going from one station to another. It had been a while since Archer had checked in. Entering, he realized he should have been down here sooner. "Lieutenant report." he commanded catching up to the young woman. Kivers looked back at her boss, but was too busy to stop what she was doing to come to attention.
"It's the magnetic force from the planet, Sir. Ensign Mayweather has been trying to keep us high enough to reduce our drain on the impulse engines, but they are still taking a beating." She moved several dials, and checked even more readouts before continuing. "I know we want to get down there to retrieve our crew, but if we don't raise out of orbit for a while, by the time we can beam down, our impulse drive will be shot." It was surprising to hear anyone speak to him like Trip would. Jon realized she must have been working extremely hard this whole time to keep the ship in such a tight orbit. "How much time do you need to get the impulse engines back up to full power?" He asked knowing if the ship wasn't in the best condition, their expedition to retrieve their friends would be a one-way trip.
"A couple of hours Sir. I think I can get them back to 85% by then." The Lieutenant was sheepish in her estimate, but dedicated to being a miracle worker for this mission to get her boss and the first officer back. Archer just nodded his head in defeat. He walked over to the com and called the bridge. "Archer to Mayweather, Travis what is our current orbit?" There was a brief moment of silence then the navigator returned "450 kilometers, Sir" The boomer waited for the captain's next order. "Take us to 650 kilometers. Hopefully that will ease up the magnetic pull. If it doesn't, then take us to 800 kilometers. But no matter what, keep us directly above the chemical signature. Let me know where we settle out at." Archer looked at the young lieutenant, "I will check back with you in an hour." With that Jon turned and walked toward the port. "Aye. Sir….Come on crew, let's get these engines back to 85%. Henderson, keep your eyes on the battery levels…. Jones, let's get our deuterium mix to settle out. Perkins, keep adjust the flow from the fusion reactor stream." The captain could hear the runt of a woman still barking orders as the portal door closed. Not taking the doctor's advice, Jon went back to the bridge, then to his ready room.
The next morning, our couple arose later than normal. Usually, Trip or T'Pol would have been up sooner than this, but both were feeling really tired. T'Pol was still sleeping, so her mate got up and went to the bathroom first. Since they didn't travel down to the water the night before, the engineer used part of his clothing to wipe off with water from their make shift sink. As he passed the bed and saw the Vulcan still sleeping, he then went to the garden. Trip was amazed that the plants they put in what seemed to be only 3 days ago were not only strong but they had grown at least 4 inches. In the lighting, he could also see the tips of vegetation peeping through the sand like soil from the seeds that T'Pol put in. This pleased him a bit, but he still felt that the reason T'Pol wasn't up yet was because she was weaker than him.
Today, he would have to travel above to exchange out the power cell, having let one go completely empty and the other go less than a half left. Trip knew that he would have to make another journey tomorrow to get the refilled one to keep the garden lit and their resequencer running properly. His only hope was that the solar panels that had been running so well, were still doing their job. T'Pol intermittently checked on them remotely using her tricorder, but it was only in Vulcan, so the human couldn't read the data even if he could bring it up on that device. When Trip returned back to the bed, his mate was still sound asleep. He studied her closely. T'Pol's chest rise and fall was even and unlabored. 'At least that was a good sign' he thought, then grabbed the item he had folded and stowed away yesterday. With a glow stick pulled from the power cell, Trip headed down the small passageway to the pool room where the protein source was found. He put down the glow stick on a near by rock and unfolded the net like fabric. With a pocket knife, he pierced four holes in the material, one at each of the corners. To these holes, Trip attached some cord he also removed from one piece of the packaging material they rested on. The cord formed a crisscross pattern that when held up from its intersection, made the fabric contraption look like a upside down parachute.
Attaching one longer piece of cord to the area where the two cross strings came together, Trip then eased the mesh into the water and pushed it down around the creatures until it came to rest at the bottom. He lined the bottom with a few smaller stones he picked up along the way down the path. They acted like a weight that kept the netting from floating back up to the surface. Trip stood and watched the strange green creatures swim over top of the material as if it wasn't even there. Secure it would be ready for tomorrow, Trip headed back up to where his mate was just awakening.
'Are you alright, Thy'll?' she thought rather than waste energy speaking. "Yeah, I was just checking on the garden and setting up the net to catch some of the Amoebas. Starting tomorrow, they become a part of our diet." T'Pol noticed he kept saying their diet, but felt with his concern about her welfare, it was better to let it drop. 'You are experienced in catching water creatures?' his mate asked a bit amazed. "Sure, my uncle Benny took me fishing lots of times. Uncle Benny was my dad's youngest brother. He became a commercial fisherman. I went out a few summers on his boats off the cost of Georgia. We caught tuna, bass, cod.. you name it, even shrimp in his nets." Trip came up with the jar of protein tablets. "Time for your protein." He held two more quarter sized pills out to his beloved. Again, she thought about resisting, but his steady demeanor this AM was very helpful, she didn't want to start another long conversation about conservation and ruin it. Taking the pills, she placed them in her mouth and swallowed them down with the water he handed her next.
"That's my girl." When he turned to take the jar back to her knapsack, T'Pol slipped the two pills she pretended to take into the pocket of her jacket, which she used as a pillow. Those pills joined the two that she palmed last evening. Other than the first two she took, T'Pol was still conserving so that Trip would have adequate protein to survive. She started to sit up and found she didn't have the strength to do more then tighten her abs. Acting as though she wished to remain in bed by choice, Trip joined her to rest up a bit before his big climb to the upper chambers. They laid there for a while, just reminiscing about their time on Vulcan.
"You know when we get back to Enterprise, the very first leave we get, I want to go back to Vulcan and see all the sights we missed." Trip didn't feel anything from his mate and thought he would ask. "I mean if you are up to it, with your mom and all." T'Pol simply nodded. "You know I never saw a place so beautiful and yet so logically designed." Now he felt a bit a reassurance coming through like a warm hug. "Now that we are bonded, I don't expect Koss will be come around anymore. That right there would make the trip more relaxing." 'Yes, it would.' Is all the response he got from his mate. "Perhaps they have learned more about the Kirshara" Trip thought it might get T'Pol's interest up talking about the artifact. She spent so much time after her mother's death pouring through the information to the exclusion of all else.
'They haven't gotten through all of it. I have. Once I got access to it, I was able to retrieve the entire catalog of writings.' Trip was impressed that T'Pol could go through so much faster than her government. It didn't make sense she would have access to more of it then they. "Is it because you found it, they gave you access to all of it?" Her mate was trying to make sense of this.
'No, the Kirshara belongs to my bloodline, so sections of it were not meant for all to see.' Her comment was so matter of fact. "So why would your bloodline own the Kirshara? Is your family part of the government?" ' No, the Kirshara belongs to members of Surak's descendants. That is why I got access to it.' Trip was a bit surprised by this. He thought a moment then realized, T'Pol did seem to get a way with a lot more than other Vulcans. He remembered how she told off Ambassador Soval, and the Vulcan High Counsel. It seemed she got away with more. "So you are from Surak's bloodline?" Trip asked fascinated. His mate simply nodded.
"So what was in it?" The human was dying to know. 'It was full of future premonitions regarding Vulcan moving closer to federation.' "Federation?" Trip questioned. 'Yes, just like the IDIC, Surak stressed the need to continue to seek out diversity, not just on Vulcan, but through the galaxy. He stressed the need to continue to dilute some of the stronger characteristics to better the Vulcan people's future.'
"What do you mean dilute?" Trip wasn't sure he ever thought of a Vulcan wanting to be weaker. He always got the impression they were trying to build their species, not decrease it. ' Thy'll, my ancestors used selective breeding to make the Vulcan people stronger, live longer, and be better prepared for predators. But in building these characteristics within our species, they made them so intense that they actually hinder life in a way.' Trip gave her a puzzled look. 'While we have longer lives and a stronger bodies, our empathic sense is so keen that it causes much discourse in our mind. That is why we have to meditate daily. It is sometimes painful to be around others, even our own kind because of the emotions they give off. It takes much practice and discipline to master control in the face of overwhelming emotions.' Her mate looked surprised. He knew she struggled at times with her emotions but he hadn't imagined it was due to her empathic abilities.
'Vulcan hearing is so acute, that sometimes it is overwhelming. Imagine so many voices going at one time in your head. It is difficult. In trying to make our species better adept at surviving on Vulcan, we have overwhelmed our people to the point of madness, if it hadn't been for Surak's teachings.'
"So thinning out some of the strength of these abilities will actually help Vulcans live better?" 'Exactly. That is why arranged marriages went from building characteristics to thinning them during and since Surak's rein' It seemed to all make sense to Trip. Now he could see for the first time some of what his mate was going through. "It must be hard living with such keen senses." He rubbed her back. 'Not as hard as my parents, foreparents, and their foreparents had it. Each generation benefits more from diversity. I cannot imagine the hardships people in Surak's day went through.'
"I guess it would be overwhelming." T'Pol looked up into her beloved's face. "It caused the madness that we saw on the Seleya." Her voice was weak and full of fear. "They were what all Vulcan's fear of turning into if they lose their ability to control their emotions." She spoke instead of sending her feelings through the bond with the words.
"Don't worry, you are not those creatures. You have some emotions, but I can handle that. I worry though will my human emotions cause you any pain. I don't want to make it harder for you in any way. Just tell me how I can control them and I will." Trip felt a bit of what she tried to hide from him by speaking it. 'Your being close and reassuring is all I need, Ashy'am. That will allow me to be stronger in my control.' Trip rubbed her back a few more times. "That I can do baby… That I can do."
After resting a couple of hours, Trip left T'Pol there in bed to make the journey to the upper levels. He secured the empty power cell with the additional harness, then attached that to his, before pulling himself up the large cliff. His mate watched as he disappeared into the cavern tunnel, then followed with him through their bond to be sure he was okay. Though much more tired than usual, Trip made his way through the inclining path to the upper cavern. In his EV suit, he was able to handle the colder temperatures. He quickly hooked up the empty and left the fully charged cell at the lower tunnel entrance. Moving over he checked on the solar panels. While no lights were out, he noted the color green they showed varied from panel to panel. Some shown a bright healthy green color, others paler and dimmer.
Trip feared a bit that the panels were wearing out, but saw both the collection box and the portable cell were fully charged. Looking at the front part of the panels, he noticed the ones with the dimmer lights had ice buildup. Taking his phase pistol, on low, he warmed up the ice on the panels at an angel that melted off the layers without damaging their advanced transparent aluminum covering. While there, the engineer looked in the direction of the pod. Still very much encapsulated in ice, it appeared more like a trick ice cube, one would use at a frat house to liven up a party. However, this time the fly in the ice cube was their only way to get off this world, if their friends didn't make it down to rescue them.
'How are the panels?' He heard the voice of his beloved through their bond. Trip tried his hand at replying. 'A little build up of ice, but still solid to the rock. They seem to be working okay. I am on my way back now. See you soon, darlin.' Not sure she heard him, the southern male was pleased at her reply. 'Be careful. You are most precious to me, Ashy'am. I await your return.'
Part 6 (last part) out soon.