Episode 119. A Vulcan Face-Off

Story

After the members of Enterprise have been summoned one by one into the Admiral's office, the hologram informs Captain T'Met that her turn has arrived. Rising from her seat, T'Met adjusts her clothes and hair before crossing the door that separates her from her superior officer.

Upon entering, she discovers an austere room, almost empty except for a few exotic plants and an immense desk where the Admiral sits enthroned, focused on a holographic screen. The white walls are bare of decoration, reinforcing the room's rigid atmosphere. Admiral Quihoui, a Vulcan whose face is deeply marked by age, seems to be 150 or 160 years old, perhaps more. Without raising her eyes, she remains absorbed in her screen.

After a brief moment, the Admiral switches off her screen and finally deigns to raise her eyes toward T'Met, her gaze piercing.

The Admiral stands and rounds her desk to approach T'Met. She extends her hand and places three fingers on the captain's face.

The pressure exerted by Admiral Quihoui becomes unbearable for T'Met, who shows signs of struggling to resist the mind meld. Suddenly, in a surge of strength, T'Met throws her arms apart, takes a deep breath, and hurls the Admiral to the far side of the room. The impact is so powerful that it is felt out in the corridor, where the Enterprise crew and Agent In'kògnytôh are waiting. He immediately enters the office, phaser drawn.

Agent In'kògnytôh leaves the room. Admiral Quihoui straightens up and settles back into her seat while T'Met, still shaken, returns to attention.

The Admiral hands T'Met a padd and asks her to sign the displayed document. It is a confidentiality agreement stipulating that the events recounted by the 21st-century survivors have, officially, never happened, and that she must never reveal them to anyone under penalty of serious prosecution.

T'Met takes a long moment to read the agreement carefully, realizing that this censorship would condemn Tarsi to being unable to defend herself at her trial. She senses that the Admiral takes a certain satisfaction in this situation, but T'Met decides to keep her composure and avoid showing her disagreement.

The Admiral does not deign to return T'Met's salute, and T'Met leaves the office feigning exhaustion, rejoining the Enterprise team waiting impatiently in the corridor.

Agent In'kògnytôh presses his combadge and transmits the order to transport nine life-forms. In an instant, they begin to dematerialize, their silhouettes fading in the beam of light.