"LUNAR:  Tales From Crystal Tokyo"

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LUNAR: The Lost Episodes

By Jeffrey C. Branch

Volume Two: Episode 2-0.75  "Reconnection"

Rating: PG

Planet Vulcan, The Valley of Surak, 12 November 2737

            Under the cruel, relentless heat of dual afternoon suns, Professor Talia Kirk, Dean of Archaeological Sciences at the University of Crystal Tokyo, gently lifted the dirt encrusted metal pitcher from out of a rusted iron casket that had sat in a soft lime deposit for the last three thousand years.

            As a group of twelve student archaeologists, a mix of human and native Vulcans, looked on in amazement, Talia gently placed the pitcher, a foot and a half tall and four inches wide at its base, on a flat boulder and examined it for several moments.  No one dared to speak, least of all Talia, as she took in the sight before her eyes.  They all knew that a major find had just been discovered.

            Nodding, Talia reached for a thick bristled brush from her tool case and carefully brushed away the centuries of dirt that covered the pitcher as the others, still silent, watched their teacher as she worked.  With a patience born from having lived over seventeen hundred years, Talia brushed away the crusty sediment.  She then reached into her case for a small, battery-powered blower, which she used to blow away the surface dust, revealing the pitcher's dulled copper exterior, intricately inscribed with symbols of the Vulcan language.  Her language.  Inwardly pleased, Talia displayed the find to her students.

            "Our survey here was successful, class.  I present to you, the ceremonial water pitcher of T'Plana'hath, Patron of Vulcan Philosophy," Talia said in her unemotional monotone.  While her face and voice betrayed no emotion since she herself was a Vulcan, despite her uniquely Terran surname, inside, she was extremely pleased at having made such a rare find.

            One of the students, a wiry, redheaded young man with freckles broke out in a wide smile.  "Wow!  It's incredible, Professor Kirk!  It was thought that no artifacts from the era of T'Plana'hath survived the earthquake that devastated the region three millennia ago!  That's amazing!"

            "I doubt it could be considered that, Mr. Andrews," said Talia.

            "Emotion aside, Mr. Andrews is correct, Professor.  Even our own historians were skeptical that any finds could be made here.  Despite your vast experience, they doubted you could succeed," said one of the Vulcan students, a reed thin girl with very short dark hair.  She bowed to Talia out of respect.  "Once again, madam, you have proven the experts wrong."

            Talia waved off the girl's words, her only visible concession to emotion.  It bothered her to be treated with such reverence, something she felt she didn't deserve.  She was a teacher, nothing more.  "It was never my intention to do such a thing, T'shira.  I simply refused to believe that artifacts could not be found.  As you all know from having studied under me for the past six months, I do not accept defeat.  Ever."

            The Vulcan scientist consulted her wrist chronometer and nodded.  "It is time to break camp and return to the academy.  I will expect a detailed report on our survey in three days time.  Dismissed.  Hoshiko?"

            A slender and attractive Japanese woman with deeply tanned skin, long, dark brown hair tied in a ponytail, and dark brown eyes walked up to Talia.  "Yes, Tal?"

            "Would you please see to the proper cataloging and packing of today's finds for the return trip?"  Talia then handed the woman the pitcher.   "And take particular care of this item.  It is... important to me."

            Hoshiko nodded again and gave Talia a warm smile.  A paleontology teacher at UCTL, Hoshiko Akemi had worked at Talia's side for the past year and had the greatest respect and admiration for the Vulcan woman for her vast knowledge of ancient civilizations.  And, on a personal side, Hoshiko genuinely liked her colleague.  "Don't worry, Tal.  I'll treat it like a newborn."

            "Thank you."

            The group broke up and left for their tents, which were scattered about the quarter mile wide area where they had spent the last month on their archaeological dig.  Talia, wearing a tan jumpsuit and workboots like her students, walked to her tent, which was larger than the others.  For the first time in ten years, the Vulcan woman was able to enjoy her profession, her passion without interruptions that came with her duties with the fleet as a Sailor Senshi.

            Talia was eager to return to the academy and present her finds to those self same skeptics who told her she would not find anything.  She would enjoy seeing the expressions of shock and surprise, however small, on their faces when she showed the pitcher to them.  While she knew it was wrong, even illogical, to gloat at the expense of others, Talia could not resist the opportunity to prove her detractors wrong.  For her, it was what made Archaeology so rewarding.

            Walking in her tent, it was Talia who was surprised at seeing an unexpected visitor.  The visitor was a beautiful, dark skinned young woman with long, straight black hair that fell below her waist, along with large and shining dark eyes.  Wearing a white shirt that was stained dark in areas from perspiration, khaki shorts, and hiking boots, the woman, a head shorter than the Vulcan, broke out in a childlike squeal of delight and ran into Talia's arms.

            "SURPRISE!" Tanya Cambridge, Sailor Senshi, starship captain and best friend to Talia Kirk cried.  When Tanya broke the embrace, tears of joy were pouring down her cheeks.  "By the Crystal!  It's so good to see you, Tal!  You look great!  Hey!  You've even got a tan!"

            "Continued exposure to the Vulcan sun has been known to darken the skin, Tanya," said Talia.  Her heart instantly warmed at seeing her commanding officer, and her longtime partner.  "It is good to see you as well.  When did you arrive on Vulcan?"

            "Oh, about six hours ago.  I wanted to surprise you."  The ebon beauty paused to wipe her eyes with a handkerchief.  "Had I known how hard it was to get out here, I'd have waited for you back at the academy.  Wow!  You weren't kidding when you told me about how hot it is here!"

            "Pardon me for asking, but how did you get here?  I did not hear a vehicle approach the camp."

            Winking, Tanya produced her transformation wand.  "How else?  Senshi Power!"  She then walked back to Talia's desk and presented the Vulcan girl with a two-foot tall, colorfully wrapped box.  "Happy early birthday, girlfriend!"

            The Vulcan woman was taken aback as she accepted the box.  "But my birthday is not for another sixty-two days.  You did not have to do this."

            "Don't be silly!  You're my best friend in the entire universe.  I wanted to do this.  Now open it already!"

            Talia wore a cautious expression and she slowly unwrapped the box.  "Knowing your unorthodox sense of humor, it could be anything out of the ordinary."  Once the box was unwrapped, Talia's eyes widened and a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth at seeing her gift.  "An... an ice cream machine."

            Tanya grinned from ear to ear.  "Thought I had forgotten your weakness for ice cream, didn't you?"

            "The thought had occurred to me.  In this age of food replicators, I would have believed such a device no longer existed.  Where did you find it?"

            "An antique dealer in San Francisco two months ago.  Saw it in the window of his store while I was in town for a promotional tour for my latest book.  Runs like a top, too.  When I saw that gizmo, I just had to buy it for you!"

            Despite her best efforts, Talia's eyes filled up and she smiled warmly at the ebony woman.  She hated to openly display emotion, but that was difficult for her to do when she was with Tanya.  "You are indeed a very good friend to have gone through all that effort for me.  Thank you."

            "The pleasure was all mine."

            "My class is preparing to break camp and return to the academy.  We can have dinner tonight and... catch up on things.  If you are receptive to the idea."

            "Sounds like a winner to me.  Make any rare finds?"

            Talia shrugged slightly, thinking about the pitcher.  "A few.  Though none as rare as the depth of our friendship."

            After workers carefully packed up the finds and broke down the camp under Hoshiko's expert supervision, she, Talia, her students, and Tanya returned to the city and the prestigious Vulcan Science Academy, second to none, including the University of Crystal Tokyo, in all the galaxy for the pursuit of pure learning.

            After having proudly presented the water pitcher of T'Plana'hath to the Deans of the Academy, who were mildly surprised at the find, Talia retired to her quarters in the building's dormitory wing where she offered Tanya a much needed shower after her trek through the burning sands.  Once Talia bathed, the women changed into elegant evening dresses and went to the restaurant for dinner... and catching up.

            "My apologies for not being able to provide any meat dishes for you, Tanya," said Talia as the women enjoyed vegetable lasagna.  "But, as you know, Vulcans do not consume animal flesh."

            "Don't sweat it, Tal.  I understand.  Besides, this lasagna is great," Tanya replied.  The ebon skinned beauty popped a forkful into her mouth and washed it down with a sip of Vulcan spring water.  She then broke out in the giggles.  "I still remember that little argument we had when we first met in Tokyo seven hundred years ago.  You got on my case about eating meat while I razzed you about chomping on rabbit food.  Those were the good old days."

            "I would agree.  So, how have you fared with your current assignment at the Royal Star Navy Records Directorate?"

            Tanya made a face.  "Oh, terrific.  Peachy keen.  From starship captain to desk jockey in one fell swoop.  It has worked wonders for my career!"

            Talia arched an eyebrow.  "I assume you are being facetious."

            "You assume right!"  The black woman then became serious.  "Actually, being chained to a desk was the best possible move for me.  I haven't told anyone this, save for my therapist, but I'd been having horrific nightmares for almost two months after we returned home."

            "Nightmares?  About what?"

            "The war.  I'd dream about being back on the Draco, fighting for our lives in deep space against the DK, and the end result was always the same.  We went down in flames.  I was helpless to save my ship, my crew, or my best friend.  I lost track of how many nights I woke up screaming, soaked in sweat and sobbing like a child.  I was a wreck for weeks."

            Talia's eyes widened from concern.  "Why did you not tell me?"

            Tanya shrugged.  "You were busy as sin.  Between your research at the Skunk Works and your off-planet digs with Hoshi, you didn't need to be babysitting a mewling neurotic."

            "That is a grossly illogical assumption to have made.  I would have gladly cancelled all my duties to be at your side," said Talia, a tinge of anger in her voice.  "You did not have to suffer alone when I could have helped you through your crisis.  You are my friend, Tanya Cambridge, my companion.  I have been, and always shall be, yours."

            Hearing those words, Tanya's eyes filled with tears and her throat tightened.  She reached over and clasped Talia's hand.  "Thanks, Tal.  Knowing you care means a lot.  Still, it hasn't been all gloom and doom.  After several weeks of therapy, I recovered.  And, assigned to Records, I had plenty of spare time to crank out a new novel.  Made the best seller list."

            "I am most happy for you, Tanya.  The universe as a whole would be all the poorer without your floridly lurid tales of unscrupulous men, lascivious women, and relentless emotional turmoil."

            "Hey!  Romance novels are not relentless emotional turmoil!"

            Talia briefly smirked.  "I beg to differ.  I have read your work."

            Tanya frowned.  "Bite me, you pointy eared twit!"

            "No thank you.  That would not be sanitary."

            Tanya broke out laughing, remembering all the good-natured arguing she enjoyed with Talia in the past.  "Yep!  Just like the good old days!"

            After dinner, Talia and Tanya enjoyed a leisurely walk through the academy's indoor botanical garden.  The sky above them through the glass-enclosed structure was clear and filled with stars.

            "Now this is much better.  I don't feel like I'm in a microwave," commented Tanya.  "So, tell me, Tal, have you enjoyed your sabbatical here these last six months?  I suppose you must be happy to be home."

            Talia had to think on her friend's statement before she responded.  "Happy is a relative term, Tanya.  I have thoroughly enjoyed being able to practice my profession without interruption.  I have made many important discoveries, making the time I have spent here most worthwhile.  As for being 'home', I truly cannot say if Vulcan is that."

            Tanya did a double take.  "Huh?  What do you mean by that?"

            "This is the first time I have been on Vulcan since I left for the Moon with my mother nearly eighteen hundred years ago.  The centuries spent on Earth, then in space, have dulled my appreciation for the world of my birth," Talia explained.  "In a way, Vulcan is as alien to me as any planet I have visited in the course of my archaeological expeditions.  Since I have been here, I have not visited the land where my parents' home once stood.  Or their burial ground.  Do not ask why, for I cannot provide you with a suitable answer."

            Tanya studied her friend for several moments.  "I think I can guess at the reasons.  Maybe because it hurts too much?  Dredges up too many painful memories of the loss of your parents?"

            The Vulcan woman frowned.  "Nonsense.  That would presume I have consciously used the excuse of some negative emotion to avoid making such a journey.  That is highly illogical."

            "Pardon my French, but that is bullshit.  To quote an old Earth saying, 'Don't con a con man'.  After seven centuries, I know you like the back of my hand," Tanya growled.  Her face softening, she clasped Talia's hand in hers.  "You keep trying to suppress your emotions, but you do have them, Talia.  And it doesn't take a genius like Amy to see you're reluctant to confront the pain of your past.  A very human reaction if you ask me.  Especially for a Vulcan."

            There was a long, awkward silence between the women.  Talia felt affronted by Tanya's statements, almost to the point of anger, but she quickly came to realize the irrefutable logic in the things her friend had said.  "You presume much, Tanya.  And, as usual... you are correct."

            Tanya smirked.  "I'll bet that hurt to say."

            "More than you will ever know."

            "I can imagine.  Look, I think you should visit your parents' gravesite.  You need to reconnect with them."  Tanya paused to squeeze Talia's hand tighter.  "When I'm on Earth, I visit my homeland of Libya as often as I can.  I always feel a warm glow in my heart when I go to my parents' resting place, like they're waiting for me to visit with them.  For your own good, you have to do this before you leave.  Otherwise, you'll regret it for the rest of your life."

            Once again, silence.  Talia frowned as she thought over what she had been told.  "Vulcans never have regrets.  Even those burdened by the weight of emotion.  Very well.  I shall take your advice and make my pilgrimage tomorrow.  Will you accompany me?  Your moral support would be greatly appreciated."

            Tanya smiled.  "You've got it.  I'd be happy to come."

            "Happy.  Still a relative term," said Talia.

            "Not for me, partner."

            The ride to Talia's birthplace, south of the city, took over an hour by hovercar the next morning.  During the trip, Talia explained to Tanya that it was her father's choice to live far outside the city so he wouldn't have to travel far on his archaeological expeditions.

            "Hmm.  Somehow I never pictured you as a suburban kid," joked Tanya, wearing mirrored sunglasses against the early morning sun.

            Talia shrugged slightly.  "Neither did I."

            Finally, the women arrived at their destination.  It was a small memorial park, no more than twelve feet square with an eight-foot high arch made of polished marble at the entrance and oil fed lamps lit at the bottom of each side.  The ground inside the park was laid in the same marble as the arch.  Wearing tan colored versions of their RSN uniforms that were specially designed for oppressively arid climates like Vulcan, Talia and Tanya paused at the archway and looked up at where the symbols were etched at the top.

            "Uh, Tal?  What does that say?"

            "To lost family," Talia replied.  Tanya wasn't sure, but she thought she heard her friend's voice break slightly on that last word.  "My parents were revered in their day.  Come."

            The women entered the park, which was barren, save for three rectangular, three-foot high black marble gravestones that sat in the center.  The heels of their uniform boots clicked sharply on the flooring as the two women approached the gravestones.  Two were in front while the third was behind.  On each stone was a brass plaque with an inscription on it.  Talia stopped before the first two stones, slowly dropped to one knee, placed a hand on each stone and lowered her head.  Tanya, standing two feet behind, respectfully lowered her head, realizing those were the headstones of Talia's parents.

            "Mother... father..."  Before Talia could stop herself, her emotions, closer to the surface than she wanted to admit, burst open like a dam and the Vulcan woman began to sob.  Softly at first, then her weeping grew louder as her body shuddered from the tremendous release of emotion.  Talia's memories of her distant past, of her previous life with her parents over a millennia ago, played before her mind's eye like a kaleidoscope, intensifying her pain, her longing to be with the two people she loved most, and missed most in her world.  "MOTHER!  FATHER!" she then screamed to the heavens.

            Tanya, her own heart breaking to see her best friend suffering, walked up to Talia, knelt behind the anguished woman and wrapped her arms around the Vulcan.  "I'm here, Tal.  I'm here," she said, tears streaming down her cheeks as she keenly felt Talia's pain as if it were her own.  "Just go ahead and let it out.  I won't let you go.  I promise."

            Without saying a word, Talia, her heart aching relentlessly turned around and buried her head on Tanya's shoulder.  For fifteen solid minutes, Talia cried; the valley seemed to echo from her agony filled sobbing.  Tanya held her tight the entire time, softly crying along with her friend.  When Talia's sobbing finally subsided, she lifted her head and looked at Tanya.  Her normally stoic demeanor was back in place, for the most part.

            "Thank you, Tanya.  I appreciate your support," she said.

            "My pleasure.  How do you feel?"

            "I feel... better.  While it felt good to have released those emotions, it was quite... uncommon to have lost control like I had."

            "I don't think it was uncommon at all," said Tanya, gently drying Talia's eyes.  She then helped her friend to her feet and held the Vulcan's hand.  "Every girl, no matter how old she gets, needs to enjoy a good cry occasionally.  Believe me, you were long overdue.  Pardon me for being nosy, but who does the third headstone belong to?"

            Talia stared intently at the stone, and then said simply, "Me."

            Tanya's eyes widened from shock.  "What?  Are you serious?"

            "Very.  When word reached Vulcan that the Moon Kingdom had fallen, my mother's family, in charge of her estate after her death, had me interred posthumously, assuming I had been killed during the attack by the Negaverse," Talia explained.  "With no remains recovered, an empty casket, containing my burial robe, was placed into the ground.  A similar service was performed for my mother.  Her ship was destroyed by Beryl's forces while enroute to the Moon."

            "How... how did you find out about all that?"

            "I accessed my family's records under the ruse of historical research shortly after my arrival."

            "So what you're saying is that no one here knows the truth?" 

            "That T'alya, daughter of Setak and T'Lar, is still alive?  No."

            Tanya, confused, stared at her friend.  "For pity's sake!  Why keep your identity a secret?"

            "Practicality.  For all of our culture and mysticism, the Vulcan race, first and foremost, is steeped in pure, unyielding logic.  My people would never have believed, or accepted that a young woman, thought to be deceased for nearly eighteen hundred years, had miraculously returned from the afterlife," Talia explained.  "At best, I would have been regarded as mentally ill; at worst, a subversive, perhaps even an Infiltrator, from the Dark Kingdom.  Taking those factors into consideration, I thought it best that T'alya remain dead."

            "Mother of Serenity.  That's awful.  Now I know what you meant last night when you said Vulcan didn't feel like home to you.  Oh, Tal.  I'm so sorry."

            "There is no need to be.  T'alya was another life.  Literally.  Talia Kirk is who I am now, and forever," Talia replied.  "As for home, that too is a relative term.  It does not matter if my residence is a modest cabin aboard a starship, a spacious apartment in a crystal palace, or a dusty tent in the middle of the desert, as long as I have a place to rest at the end of the day, I consider that home."

            "NO!  That's wrong!  You're wrong!  Home is much more than just four walls and a ceiling!" Tanya shot back.  Angry, she grabbed Talia by the shoulders and glared at her.  "Home is the place where your roots are planted!  Where you open your heart and share all the wonderful moments of your life with family and friends!  It's that very special place where you love and are loved!  I can't believe that after all the time you've spent with the Senshi, with me, you still haven't learned those lessons!"

            Talia was silent, moved by the conviction in Tanya's words.  For the first time in her collective memory, the Vulcan was briefly at a loss for words.

            "Perhaps you are right, Tanya.  Rarely, if ever, have I considered the emotional ramifications involved with having a home," she said in a thoughtful tone.  She then looked around her at the barren Vulcan landscape.  "I do not think I can consider Vulcan my home, but Earth is another matter entirely.  That world is where my true roots are.  With friends, like you, who love me.  Thank you for helping me reconnect with everything that is important in my life."

            Hearing that, Tanya smiled.  "Glad to have helped.  It felt good to reconnect with you, too.  You're very important to me, Tal, you always have been, and I want you to be happy.  Even if you consider it 'relative'."

            The Vulcan woman frowned.  "I can see you are going to remind me of that incessantly."

            "You betcha!" said Tanya with a girlish laugh.  "When we return to Earth, I can help you do some house hunting.  Anyplace in particular strike your fancy?"

            "I have always been partial to San Francisco.  As you know, it was where I lived before moving to Tokyo in the early 21st century."

            "Great!  I met a realtor during my book tour there!  I'll hook you up with him after we get back!  But, for right now, how about showing me around?  Then tonight, you can make us some ice cream with your new toy!"

            Talia nodded.  "I would be... happy to accommodate you."

            The two women clasped hands and walked back to the hovercar.

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