A/N Thanks to Guest, Guest, noro, and Ellen Fitzwilliam Brandybuck for the reviews. They mean so much to me.
I still own nothing.
As things went, Malcolm did not have to contact Admiral Gardner. It turned out that you cannot shoot off Phase Cannons in the city limits of San Francisco without attracting attention.
Fortunately, the crowds and the police arrived at about the same time and SFPD took over crowd control.
Soon after that Malcolm received a call.
"Commander Reed here."
"Commander, this is Admiral Gardner. What the hell is going on? We are getting calls from the Mayor and the Police Commissioner. Policemen on the scene are talking about a military action by Starfleet Security. When I called Security, they informed me you were in charge. I hope you have a good explanation why we apparently are engaging in warfare within the city. I also hope you didn't do this on your own."
"I responded to a call from Admiral Archer that Commodore T'Pol was in danger. She was being held at a warehouse by a large armed contingent of Terra Prime. After she was safe, we captured seventy-three combatants and killed twenty-one others."
"Where are the Admiral and Commodore now?"
"They have returned to their home." He hesitated, "There are some items I need to discuss confidentially with you."
After a long pause, "All right, I am on my way. Just hold the fort until I get there."
"Understood, Sir."
Admirals Gardner and Duvall were met by Commander Reed as they disembarked from their shuttle.
After getting a quick report on the current situation, Malcolm took them on a tour, showing them the prisoners and the inside of the warehouse. He informed them about the computer setup and that the equipment had been sent back to Security Headquarters.
When they arrived back at the Command Center, Gardner turned to Malcolm. "It appears you have things under control, Commander. Have you given a thought of what to do with the prisoners?"
"No, Sir. I was about to call you when you contacted me."
"I have been thinking about it and I think they should be taken to the terrorist's prison in Russia. We can hold them for a month before we need to decide what steps to take."
He turned to Duvall, "Admiral, I am putting you in charge of the prisoners. I suggest you call for a troop ship to convey them. Have them bring armed guards."
"Yes, Sir."
Gardner turned back to Reed, "I understand you have some things you need to discuss with me. We can use the Shuttle."
Malcolm and Gardner made their way to the shuttle, Gardner locking it up and turning on security devices.
"All right, Commander, what's going on?"
"At 1109 hours, Admiral Archer contacted me and said he needed a sizable security force. He said that Commodore T'Pol was being held by a force of approximately one hundred armed members of Terra Prime. He gave me the coordinates and told me to surround the building but wait for his signal to take action."
"When we moved in, we aided Commodore T'Pol who had escaped to the roof. She was accompanied by an unknown Vulcan who had been killed. We returned her and the Admiral to the Command Center."
"When Terra Prime resisted, we used the Phase Cannons to subdue them. Several of them escaped to the basement. I threatened them with Neuro gas and all but one surrendered."
"Admiral Archer told us there was another dead Vulcan in a shuttle in front of the building. He told us to mark them both as Unknown."
"That's about it, Sir, except for one more item that Admiral Archer told me to confide only to you."
Admiral Gardner pondered all that he had said. There was obviously a lot of information missing. He asked, "Do we know how all this came about? How did they get T'Pol in the first place? Where was Archer? What do these Vulcans have to do with all this?"
"That is all I know, Sir. The Admiral did say the Vulcan on the roof saved their lives."
"All right, it looks like I need to talk to Archer and T'Pol. Now, what is this one more item that is so confidential?"
Reed took a deep breath. "After I threatened them with the gas, all but one of those in the basement surrendered. When Commander Samson and three other men went to look for him, they found a body. The man had apparently committed suicide by blowing of his head with a Phaser."
He looked into Gardner's eyes, "When the Commander searched him, he found his wallet. As soon as he looked inside, he sent the other men away and called for me to join him. Admiral Archer and Commodore T'Pol accompanied me."
He took the wallet from his pocket and handed it to the Admiral. When Gardner looked inside, his eyes widened and he could not help exclaiming, "God Damn it, no."
It took him a few minutes to recover, "So, only four of you know about this?"
"Yes, Sir."
"This Commander…."
"Commander Samson."
"Can he be trusted?"
"I believe so, Sir."
"Maybe I should talk to him before I leave. Make sure he understands how vital it is for him to remain silent for the time being."
He went on, "As of now, Commander, you have no recollection of what we just talked about. I will take it from here."
"Yes, Sir. I understand, Sir."
"All right, let's talk to Admiral Duvall."
They left the shuttle and joined Duvall. "Report, Admiral."
"I contacted the prison and a Troop Ship with twenty MACO's are on the way. The police informed me they have dispersed the crowd and most of them will be leaving."
Gardner ran his hand through his hair, "All right, this is what is going to happen. Admiral, you will be in charge of dealing with the local government officials and the Press."
"Just tell them that Starfleet Security had located the Headquarters of Terra Prime and moved against them. Tell them we have prisoners and that they have been moved to a secure location. You don't need to tell them where; I am sure they will find out anyway. Tell them Starfleet Command and the President will issue statements later."
"Commander Reed, you will remain here until the Troop Ship arrives. Help with the loading of the prisoners and the bodies. Take the three bodies we discussed back to headquarters. Then wrap up your operation and head back to Security Headquarters."
As Reed and Duvall quickly said they understood, Gardner went on, "After I talk to Commander Samson, I need to contact the Admiral and Commodore."
Gardner decided the President should be in on any discussions and when he contacted Archer and T'Pol, they agreed to meet him at the new government building in Geneva.
It was ten o'clock at night when Archer and T'Pol arrived. They could hardly believe It had only been eleven hours since this had all began. Gardner was waiting for them and they made their way up to Samuels' office.
Samuels sat in this office waiting. He had been stunned when he heard that apparently Terra Prime headquarters had been raided. He supposed that was good news but having Admiral Gardner asking for a meeting at this time of night made him think he was not going to like what he was going to hear.
He was surprised when he saw Gardner was accompanied by Archer and T'Pol.
"Admiral, Commodore, I wasn't expecting you. It's good to see you."
Archer answered, "Thank you, Mr. President, it has been some time."
"Well, get seated and bring me up to date. Can I get you anything?"
After getting fortified with water, Gardner went over again the official story that had been given out. Some of that was news to Archer and T'Pol as well. He told them the troop ship was due to arrive at the prison at about 2300 hours.
He then took a deep breath. "Along with the Terra Prime casualties, there were three other bodies, two of them Vulcan."
Samuels' eyes widened, "Vulcan? How did they get involved in this?"
Gardner smiled ruefully, "I know very little about that. That is why I had Jon and T'Pol attend this meeting with me. All I really know is that T'Pol was in danger and Commander Reed acted on Admiral Archer's orders."
Both of them looked expectantly at Archer and T'Pol.
Archer sighed internally. Up to know, keeping the Romulan secret had consisted of keeping the truth from everyone, but now he was going to have to lie to their faces. But he was more sure than ever this was not the time to reveal the truth.
Taking a small breath, he noticed that T'Pol had touched his arm and he felt her support.
"When T'Pol and I returned to our home after a trip to town, we were met by four humans and two Vulcans. We later discovered the two Security men had been killed."
"All of the men were armed with Phasers. The four humans, who we later learned were from Terra Prime took T'Pol away in a shuttle. One of the humans told the two Vulcans to be sure and kill me where a camera could catch it."
"I later learned that the plan was to try to prevent the forming of a new Alliance by killing me and T'Pol. They somehow believed that if it was done by a non-human, it would be more effective."
"They took me into the building where there was a security camera but before one of the Vulcans could kill me, the other one shot and killed him."
"He then informed me that he knew where they had taken T'Pol. He also told me it was Terra Prime headquarters and there was around a hundred-armed men in the building. I then contacted Commander Reed to gather a sufficient force, but to wait for my go ahead. Solon told me he could get T'Pol out safely. When we arrived at the building, he had me wait outside. He and T'Pol escaped to the roof but he was killed."
As he paused and took a drink of water, the President, who along with Gardner found themselves stunned by what they were hearing, broke in, "Did this Solon give you any idea why he killed the other Vulcan and why they agreed to this in the first place?"
Archer sighed to himself, he was about to lie to his commanding officer and the President of Earth. He smiled inwardly though as T'Pol let him know she understood but believed it was necessary.
"He told me that both he and Klar who was the other Vulcan, were followers of V'Las. When T'Pau and I were instrumental in exposing him and found the Kir'Shara, they wanted revenge. Klar traveled to Earth several years ago, while Solon just followed him recently."
"Klar had taken no action during the War. He had grown so bitter that he found himself hoping for an Alliance defeat, resulting in deep shame for both T'Pau and I."
"When he was frustrated again, he sought a way to get his own revenge. Apparently, he somehow got involved with Terra Prime. Although he didn't agree with much of their ideas, he was hooked when they told him they wanted him to kill T'Pol and me."
"After agreeing to the plan, he was contacted by Solon, who had seen him talking with the Humans. When Klar told him what was happening, Solon was appalled. He wanted me dead as much as anyone, but he also felt the new Alliance was good for Vulcan."
"He was torn but had decided he needed to warn me and expose Terra Prime but they had followed Klar and burst into the room. To save his life, he pretended he agreed with what was happening and offered to help. But the they were both kept at the headquarters and he had no chance to warn me."
"Well, you know the rest. He killed Klar and rescued T'Pol." He hesitated, "They had planned to have the Vulcans rape T'Pol to further incense the other members of the alliance against Vulcan."
"You should know that he was the one to kill the Security guards. He said he was forced to do so in order to protect his cover."
Gardner and Samuels had sat in stunned silence as Archer talked. Finally, Samuels spoke, "What a mess. Even though it was a Vulcan that saved your life, this could cause problems with the attempt to form the Alliance."
He turned to Gardner, "I don't suppose we can keep this out of the news?"
"I doubt it, Sir. There are the dead security officers and of course the prisoners know what happened. We can't keep them quiet forever. It will be worse if they find out we tried to cover this up."
Samuels nodded, "I guess your right. I suppose we also need to do something about the bodies."
Archer broke in, "I propose returning them to Vulcan. T'Pol and I can accompany them and explain the situation to T'Pau."
Samuels nodded. Then he asked, "There was a third body?"
Gardner looked at Archer and T'Pol. Then he turned back to Samuels. "Yes, Sir. I am afraid this is worst news."
Samuels eyes widened. "All right, let's hear it."
"When the last of the prisoners surrendered in the basement, there was one that was missing. The men Reed sent to find him found a body with its head missing. He had apparently committed suicide with a Phaser. Commander Samson went through his pockets. When he found who it was, he sent his other men away and contacted Commander Reed. Admiral Archer and Commodore T'Pol accompanied him."
He hesitated and then handed the wallet to Samuels, "This was found on him."
When Samuels opened it and looked inside, his face showed shock and his whole body sagged.
"God, Damnit. What the hell was he thinking?"
"This is a total disaster. I can just imagine what the press will do with this. I'll be lucky to keep my job."
After a pause, "And what about the other members of the Alliance? What will they think when they find out the second man in the Earth government was associated with a group dedicated to hatred of Aliens?"
Gardner spoke up, "I agree this is bad, but I don't think it will be as bad for you as you think. You have a lot of followers and everyone knows you two were not very close, that he was a last-minute choice when Vice-President Andrews decided not to run for a second term because of health reasons."
"You may be right, but in any case, that is my problem and I will deal with it."
He went on, "But there is still the problem with the Alliance." He was deep in thought for a while. He looked up at them, "I think it is time to fall back on what has worked in the past."
He continued, "Admiral Archer, I need you again to try to salvage the situation. When you go to Vulcan, you will not only bring back the bodies, but discuss both them and the Vice President situation with Soval and T'Pau. Then I want you to travel to the other planets and work with them."
Without waiting for a reply, "How about it, Matt, do we have a ship they can use?"
Gardner, who was stunned by how fast this had happened, thought for a while, "We just commissioned a new ship, the George Washington."
Archer and T'Pol, who had also been stunned by what Samuels had said, exchanged thoughts through the bond. They realized they were in agreement. He spoke up, "Has a Captain been assigned?"
Gardner turned to him, "Yes, Captain Tillman. It's his first command."
Archer took a breath, "Admiral, I think for this to have the best chance of success, I should be in command."
Gardner smirked, "You mean you want to be in command. You're not a Captain anymore."
"That's true, but as the highest-ranking officer on board, he would have to eventually obey my orders."
He hesitated, "I know he might be offended…"
Gardner interrupted, "I doubt he would stand in the way of you taking command." He thought for a moment, "It would help though if he could be First Officer, but I suppose you want T'Pol…"
T'Pol broke in, "I would much rather have the role of Science Officer. I have no trouble with Captain Tillman being First Officer."
Gardner had to smile, "A Commodore as Science Officer. That has to be a first."
"All right, Jon, we'll do it your way. When do you want to leave?"
Samuels interrupted, "As soon as possible. I want you to be on your way when I make my speech."
Gardner shrugged, "The ship and crew is ready now. They planned to leave in a week."
Archer smiled, "That sounds good."
In the process of getting ready to leave, Archer and T'Pol invited their ex-crew members to their house to let them know they were leaving and spend some time with them before they left.
Hoshi, now four months pregnant, was disappointed that Archer and T'Pol might not be there for the birth. Archer told her it would be close but if it was possible, they would be back.
Although everyone was satisfied with their current circumstances, they all felt a little envy and sadness they were not going. Archer and T'Pol told them it would be strange for them too with their not being there.
Archer was under orders not to discuss what happened to the Vice President but told them they were undertaking this mission because of the attempt on his life and another circumstance that they would eventually learn from the President.
Trip told them the George Washington was outfitted with the latest Warp Drives and should be capable of Warp 7.5. He told them he was glad they would be along on its maiden voyage but wished he could join them.
A week later, Archer sat in the Captain's chair aboard the George Washington. The bridge was similar to the one on Enterprise, but there had been a station added to his right for the First Officer. He had been concerned about how Captain Tillman would react, but he had quickly made it clear he had no problems with Archer taking command. He admired him deeply and saw it as an opportunity to learn. As far as the crew was concerned, they were mostly in awe of Archer and T'Pol.
He looked over at the Science Station and had to smile to himself as he saw T'Pol engrossed in what she was doing. Then she looked up and caught his eye and although no one else could tell she reacted in any way; he felt her love for him.
He looked around the bridge. Hoshi's station was manned by Ensign David Braxton. He and Tillman were the most experienced members of the crew, a total of five whole years of service between them.
The helm was manned by Ensign Sarah Edwards, who had just graduated from one of Travis's classes.
As he had been introduced to the crew, he felt very old.
Taking a breath, he called out, "All right, Ensign, let's get this mission started. Take us out, one-half impulse."
She replied, "Aye, Sir."
He found himself holding his breath as they moved out of the hanger. When they were clear, he had to admit Travis could not have done it better. He continued, "Full Impulse, set a course out of the Solar System."
When they were clear, he told her to set a course for Vulcan, Warp 5.
As President Samuels waited for the signal to begin, he looked at the picture of his wife on his desk, "God, I wish you could be here. I could really use your support."
Right after the George Washington had started on its trip to Vulcan, he had a conversation with T'Pau and the other leaders of the Alliance. He had told them about the attempt by the Vulcan to kill Archer and the action of the second Vulcan. He had also told them about his Vice President and the successful attack on Terra Prime. He urged them to wait until they talked to Archer and T'Pol before deciding on any action. He could tell they had a lot of questions but agreed to wait.
As he got the signal, he took a deep breath and began,
"Good evening. I have asked for this time to bring you up to date on the events of the past two weeks. I know there have been many rumors circulating about what has happened. I ask you to set them aside."
"Ten days ago, there was an assassination attempt on Admiral Archer. The individual involved was a Vulcan. His life was saved by another Vulcan who killed the would-be assassin. He was later killed himself. Two Starfleet Security personnel were also killed."
"The group behind the assassin was Terra Prime. They kidnapped Commodore T'Pol and took her to their headquarters."
"Acting on information from the second Vulcan, Admiral Archer contacted Commander Reed at Starfleet Security who led an armed Shuttle force to the location."
"After the Vulcan had rescued T'Pol, giving his life in doing so; Commander Reed attacked the headquarters, killing twenty-one combatants and taking seventy-three prisoners. The attacking force sustained only minor injuries."
"The prisoners have been taken to a secure facility, where they will be held until a trial."
"During the raid, computers and other equipment were confiscated that contained names of other members of Terra Prime. Terran Intelligence has been in contact with them and thirty more arrests were made."
He paused and took a sip from a water bottle, "During a search of the facility, an individual was discovered who had apparently committed suicide."
"That individual has been identified as Vice-President Wharton and it has been established he had been working with Terra Prime and gave the final approval to the assassination attempt."
"I have no explanation of how he came to be involved. I accept the responsibility of allowing such an individual to hold such a high office."
"Both his and the Vulcan's involvement could be highly detrimental to the attempt to form a new Alliance. In an effort to limit its impact, I have sent Admiral Archer and Commodore T'Pol on a diplomatic mission to the other planets. They left three days ago aboard the George Washington. Once again they carry the hopes of us all."
"As for me and my responsibility, I considered whether I should resign but decided we need continuity in these times. However, I have decided I will not run for another term."
"These events are troubling, but we have survived worse and I have no doubt we will come out stronger than before."
"Thank you for your attention and may a Benevolent Sprit guide our path."
