Title: A Wasteland of Dreams

Author: Mana

Email: celine1013@hotmail.com

Rating: PG

Summary: T'Pol experiences her Pon Farr due to mysterious circumstances.

Keywords: Archer/T'Po

Disclaimer: Not mine, I'm just borrowing them for a while. I'll put them back when I'm done, and they'll be (mostly) just like new.

Distribution: Anywhere, just ask me first. I like to know where my babies are going. :)

Authors Notes: This is in response to the Pon Farr challenge issued on the CAVe group. Hope you like. And remember...please feed the author.

A Wasteland of Dreams

By

Mana

Chapter 1

She wiped her hand over her forehead and rubbed the sand out of her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm the rushing blood and heat in her veins.

Looking around, she squinted into the barren desert, a wasteland of sand and rock.

Why was she here?

She took a step and turned around as she heard someone call her name from somewhere behind her. Blinking, she started to follow the voice, glancing around for the source of the voice.

Suddenly, a deep burning pain erupted in her head. It felt like there was a creature inside, trying to push its way out. Clamping down on the sides of her head with her hands, she let out a primal scream and fell to her knees.

The wind blew her scream away…

T'Pol gasped and jerked up into a sitting position. The starlight illuminated the room only barely, but she was able to see that she was alone in the room. Why did it feel like there was someone in there with her?

Raising the sheet from her body, she rose and made her way to the bathroom. She pressed the button on the wall, and the lights flashed on. Her pupils retracted at the bombardment of bright light, and her inner eyelid closed over her eyes. She closed her eyes for a brief moment and then opened them slowly, letting them adjust to the light. Stepping closer to the mirror above the sink, she took a second to take in her appearance. Her hair was disheveled, and her skin had a pale green flush to it. She raised her hand to her forehead and rubbed. Her head still hurt from the dream that had awoken her. It was the same dream she had been having for 3 nights now, only this time it was much more intense. Turning the faucet on, she bent down and splashed the cold water onto her face. She took a deep breath, calming down her rushing blood. Slowly, she made her way back to her bed, thinking more about the dream. Whose voice had she heard? That had never happened before.

Resolving herself that she would go to Doctor Phlox in the morning, she rolled over and fell back into a deep sleep.

Captain Archer sat in his dining room feasting on the scrambled egg and bacon Chef had prepared. He had to admit the man knew how to cook. Even the smallest meals, the blandest foods, were prepared to taste like a gourmet meal. Either that or he had been in space too long. He closed his eyes as he bit down on a slice of bacon. Mmm…heaven. The door to his dining room opened and he looked up and smiled as



Commander Tucker walked in. "Mornin' Cap'n." Trip acknowledged him and sat down, as a steward placed his plate on the table in front of his chair. Archer smiled and said hello. "Where's T'Pol?" Trip asked as he took a bit of eggs, closing his eyes and murmuring his pleasure for the taste.

Archer grinned and took a sip of his juice. "She said she had to see the Doctor this morning." Archer replied.

"Ah. Something wrong?" Trip asked.



"I don't think so. She just said something about a headache."



"Oh. Okay." Trip took another bite, then, after a beat, "So, I watched that water polo game you sent me. Pretty good stuff."



The two officers settled into a comfortable conversation for the remainder of the meal. After breakfast, the two parted and Archer made his way to the bridge. As the turbolift doors opened, he glanced over at T'Pol's station. He was surprised to see her there already, but then again, with a headache the doctor would have just given her a hypospray and let her on her way. She looked up at him and nodded her greeting. He smiled back and nodded in return.

"Is your headache gone?" He asked as he walked over to his chair.



"Yes sir. Doctor Phlox administered a hypospray and it relieved the pressure." She answered.



"Good." He finished and turned towards the veiwscreen. There didn't appear to be anything of interest ahead except for the millions of stars that graced the screen everyday. He turned back towards T'Pol.

"Do you see anything interesting out there?" He asked, hoping against hope that there would be something of interest.

"There is a class M planet in the next solar system that might be of interest, but at this distance I cannot be sure." She replied.



"Alright then, Mr. Mayweather, plot a course for those coordinates. Let's see what's out there shall we." Archer smiled.



"Yes sir." Mayweather acknowledged and soon they were headed for the planet.



Archer strode onto the bridge once again, after sitting in his ready room for the past two hours

"Report." He commanded and T'Pol spoke up.



"We are nearing the planet sir and it is indeed inhabited. It is a pre warp society, but with some space travel ability. It appears that this society has the abilities yours did in your late 20th century."



"Do we know what they look like?" He asked.



"Negative sir, we can't see that far onto the planets surface at this distance." She replied.



"Alright, let's get a little closer, but not too close. We don't want them seeing us right now." Archer sat down in his chair and looked at the planet before him. It didn't look anything like Earth. It was a red planet, and there didn't seem like there was any water on the surface. Only a few small lakes and oceans dotted the surface at the poles. It reminded him of pictures he had seen of Vulcan. He turned towards T'Pol and saw her staring at the planet as well. "Sub-commander?" He asked as he saw her brows knit together, like she was in pain.

She looked over at him, her calm rational face back in place. "Are you alright?" He asked.

"Yes sir. I was just looking at the planet. It looks remarkably like Vulcan." She turned back towards the screen.

He nodded and turned away.



"Sir, there is something coming up from the surface." Hoshi said.



"What? What is it?" He asked.



The veiwscreen in front of him blinked and then zoomed in on the craft. He let out a small laugh and looked around the bridge. The rest of the crew, except T'Pol, were all smiling as well. The craft looked very much like one of those ancient space shuttles that Earth used to send up. The crew watched as the shuttle docked at a station in orbit around the planet.

"Alright, well they seem to be doing fine on their own. Let's get out of here before they notice us." Archer said and soon the Enterprise was on its way once more.



To be Continued.