—Chapter 19—

The Vorlana was just as impressive from the inside as from the outside. Compared to the Enterprise, the hallways looked like freeways, the rooms like shuttle hangars. Where humans preferred pools of light and shadow, Vulcans seemed to prefer an overall level of fairly bright light, coming from the entire ceiling. That probably made some kind of sense, for it duplicated the pattern of light falling on Vulcan. Most interesting of all was the actual construction of the Vorlana, for where a human ship was clearly a functional machine with touches of artistry here and there, the Vorlana looked as if the Vulcans wedded art and science in order to create functional art.

"For your convenience," said T'Avala, the Ensign assigned to attend to the humans during their stay on the Volares, "you have adjoining suites. The Captain asks that you join him for dinner in an hour."

"Thank you, T'Avala," said Malcolm. "We'd be honored."

Trip said nothing. He'd been moody since leaving the Enterprise, enough so that Malcolm had noticed the change in the usually chipper Chief Engineer. Now Malcolm noticed T'Avala looking intently at Trip.

'Oh, brother,' thought Malcolm. 'Here we go again. I swear, Trip's got a gift with alien hotties. Lucky sod.'

Apparently on the verge of leaving, T'Avala changed her mind and said, "Commander Tucker, may I speak with you privately for a moment?"

That Trip was surprised by the request was apparent, but there seemed no harm in it.

"Sure, T'Avala. Where would you like to speak?"

"Your suite is fine, Commander. I'll only take a few minutes of your time."

Trip waved his assigned key card at the reader and once the door popped open, motioned that T'Avala should precede him through it. He made brief eye contact with Malcolm and a look of mild confusion passed from one to the other, then Malcolm gave Trip a perverted grin and a thumbs up. Trip shook his head, gave Malcolm a slight wave and stepped inside.

"It's a beautiful suite, T'Avala," said Trip, looking around. "Huge by our standards. I'll have to thank the Captain for it. What is his name?"

"The current captain of the Volares is Tavven."

"I see a stasis box there," said Trip looking around the suite and coming to land on a small dining area. "May I offer you something from it?"

"No, thank you, Commander. Feel free to grab something for yourself. You'll find an assortment of juices, teas and human iced coffee as well as an assortment of prepared foods and snacks."

"That sounds good," said Trip. "Let's sit at the table, and I'll get a coffee."

T'Avala moved for the table and Trip couldn't help but notice her grace. This one was a dancer, or perhaps a martial artist. He couldn't help but compare T'Avala to T'Pol, but that only deepened his unhappiness. He wanted to be back on Enterprise, with her, rather than on some hare-brained scheme concocted between the High Command and StarFleet.

They sat at the table, and Trip looked at T'Avala, patiently giving her the time she needed to begin.

"Do you have a lot of contact with Vulcans, Commander?" said T'Avala. "I ask because I know we have a good number of personnel at StarFleet Headquarters."

"I've met quite a few Vulcans in the past two years, T'Avala, if I add up diplomatic contacts, technical consultations with some of your engineers and assorted conferences, as well as random meetings at StarFleet HQ."

"Are you personally close to any of them, Commander?"

"Why do you ask?" said Trip, suddenly wary.

"Are you aware of our privacy codes, Commander?"

"Just in general. You draw a sharp line between private and public information and prefer to keep them separate."

"You are correct. In this case, concerning the conversation we are about to have, I wish to give you some information. I will never discuss our conversation with another person, human or Vulcan. I will never investigate the matter in order to confirm or deny my suspicions and if such information ever comes to light, I will never discuss that information with any other person, human or Vulcan. In short, this conversation will remain private between you and I, unless you choose to share its contents."

"Sounds serious, T'Avala," said Trip. "Go on."

"Are you aware that you have the beginnings of a tel, Commander?"

"Tel," said Trip. "Ok, what is that?"

"A tel is a mating bond, Commander, between two Vulcans. Something like your human institution of marriage, but much more permanent, for there is a psychic component to it, which makes divorce an impossibility."

Trip's heart began racing, but he said, "And yet I'm clearly not a Vulcan."

"That's true," said T'Avala. "And I find it fascinating. Apparently, your species was not a limitation in the formation of a tel, with, I suspect, the prim and proper SubCommander T'Pol."

Trip's heart was beating like a drum now.

"You know T'Pol?"

"Just slightly, Commander. We attended several classes together at the Vulcan Science Academy and our relations were cordial. It pleases me that she has found her mate."

"You knew she was aboard the Enterprise. Why ask about other Vulcans if you knew it was T'Pol?"

"I did not know, it was T'Pol. I only made a logical deduction, Commander Tucker. The tel is in its infancy and T'Pol only began her service aboard the Enterprise a short number of months ago. The data lined up."

Trip took a few moments to digest the information, then said, "How do you know of the existence of this tel between T'Pol and I? If it truly exists, that is."

"My psi ratings are through the roof, to use your vernacular, Commander Tucker. Officially, such talents are frowned upon, but the High Command likes to keep us around. We can be useful now and then, and of course psionic talents are widely spread through the population, to a greater or lessor degree."

"And these talents allow you to sense the formation of this Bond?"

"Among other things, Commander."

"How common is this talent? Will every Vulcan I meet be able to discern this fact?"

"Oh, no. The vast majority will sense nothing, though they can make logical deductions by observing your behavior, that is, your behavior and that of the SubCommander in relation to each other. The existence of a Bond is very difficult to conceal."

"I see," said Trip. "Why didn't T'Pol tell me of this tel herself?"

"I can not say, Commander, but it is likely she is not even aware of it herself. Among Vulcans, it is the female which first feels the effects of the Bond, even if subconsciously, while the male is the first to truly understand the nature of the Bond and the art of manipulating it."

"Is there a way to stop this Bond from growing further?"

For once Trip had the pleasure of stunning a Vulcan other than T'Pol, for T'Avala's eyes widened and her face paled, before she said, "Why would you want to do that, Commander? The Bond is a wonderful thing."

"You said T'Pol is likely not even aware of the existence of this Bond. What if she doesn't want to be Bonded to a human?"

"Oh," said T'Avala, relieved, for she had begun to think the human mad for wanting to suffocate a Bond, and that would have been a shame, for she rather liked him. "You need not concern yourself with that, Commander. No one may be Bound against their will. Technically it would be possible, but it would require mind-priests to force the two minds into alignment and then force to secure the Bond. That has not been done since the coming of Surak, and only rarely before that, usually for political reasons. No, Commander, you both desired the Bond, for it was the two of you who gave it life."

"I see," said Trip. "Vulcans have had space-flight for quite a while. How often have your people Bonded with aliens?"

"As far as I know, you and T'Pol are the first such couple, Commander. It may be that your species is unique in being able to form a tel with a Vulcan. Even more auspicious, it may just be you, yourself, Commander. You and T'Pol may be soul-mates."

"You're putting me on, right?"

"Putting you on, Commander?"

"Teasing me, T'Avala."

"Not at all, Commander. Vulcans believe that soul-mates go through the life-stream of Eternity, parted at the beginning, always trying to find the other, usually denied the other for a long, long time, until at long last, they find each other. Once their Bond is truly complete, they need never be parted again, and glide into Eternity as one, always growing, always reinventing themselves in subsequent lives and finer and still finer forms, but always together."

"And you think T'Pol is my soul-mate?"

"That I can not say. I only bring it up since a Vulcan joining with an alien in a tel is unusual enough that it has never happened in recorded history. Only you will truly know. But I can give you a clue, Commander."

"Which is?"

"If you are truly soul-mates she will not be parted from you, nor you from her, for the rest of your lives. If the High Command ever finds out about you two, I believe they will interfere and order her off the Enterprise. If they do, she will resign her commission without a second's hesitation, and even turn her back on Vulcan if that is required, for she will never turn her back on you, Commander."

"How does that differ from a normal Bonded couple? I would assume that is a very strong tie as well, no?"

"The lines are blurred, Commander, for normal Bonded couples may discover after many years together that they were indeed soul-mates all along, but the division line seems to be this: while a Bonded couple knows that the Bond can never be severed, they can choose to remain apart, if family, culture or other serious obstacles stand between them. It is difficult, but they can do it. Soul-mates can not, or rather will not. Only the other matters. Nothing else."