Disclaimer: As always, all characters and locations include Paramount Pictures and Rick Berman, Brannon Braga, based on Star Trek, created by Gene Roddenberry. I just came up with something new with them.
Content: agony / grief / suffering / pain - can have different causes. Physical and mental. A journey into the past, on a day of the present that could not have happened more inappropriately. One's agony, suffering and pain are the other's grief. Please be lenient with me - it's my first FF written in english and especially my very first FF in Star Trek: Enterprise.
Rating: P16
Characters: Archer, Tucker (Phlox, T'Pol and Shran as supporting characters)
Category: drama, fear, friendship, NONSlash
oooOOOooo
"Are not you well, Captain?" Jonathan Archer sat in his command chair on the bridge and was approached by his science officer Sub-Commander T'Pol. "Captain?". Confused, he looked up. "I ... But ... no ... I'm fine," he answered and picked up the pad again. He did not feel very well, in fact. Slightly feverish and he was feeling sick. Maybe he could not stand something at dinner. But he could still do the last half hour. Until the end of the shift, Sub-Commander T'Pol stole covert glances at her commander, who looked pale from look to miss. Carefully she looked around the bridge for the other crew members. But Alpha Shift's crew was already thinking about the upcoming closing time and was not much concerned with the first officer's concern. No one expected this emotion in the young Vulcan and therefore also paid no attention to her .. The beta layer gradually spun on the bridge. She and Captain Archer were the last to leave the bridge that evening. Archer briefed Malcom Reed, who also spent the night on the bridge duty, briefly what had happened during the day and the flight plans and wanted to say goodbye as usual, that he was always available in urgent cases, as the tactical officer interrupted him. "Sure, sir, but you do not look good, are you sure you do not want to sleep through the night?" "I think Lieutenant Reed is right, Captain, I'll be there if there's something," T'Pol added. Archer nodded weakly and turned to leave the bridge with the science officer. He felt that everything was turning around him. Worse than it was after an exhausting training session in the centrifuge.
In the elevator he leaned against the wall and closed his eyes for a moment. But the dizziness did not improve, on the contrary, he had the feeling that he was getting worse. "Captain?" He took a deep breath and exhaled to calm his stomach as he opened his eyes again. T'Pol looked worried. Concerned? Was that really concern? He tried to smile. "I probably did not tolerate anything at dinner." T'Pol raised an eyebrow. She did not believe him. "Shall I accompany you to your quarters?" She asked as the elevator stopped on the E-deck. "Thanks, but that's not necessary, Commander Tucker is certainly expecting you for the movie night, good night, Sub-Commander." "Good night, Captain." She replied and remained undecided at the crotch, watching Captain Archer behind. Something was wrong with him. She did not believe in a rotten stomach. The symptoms would have occurred earlier and would have had to show up to Commander Tucker too ... Commander Tucker ... She made her way to Mass where she would undoubtedly find him. If he was okay, he would be most likely to be there. He did not miss a movie night. If he was not there, she would still be able to go to the sickbay or look after him in his quarters. A few minutes later she entered the crowded mess. The film shown today enjoyed great popularity.
"Commander Tucker, could I speak briefly please?" Slightly annoyed, the chief engineer left his place in the front row, which was seized directly by an ensign. "Sub-Commander, I hope there is something more important than clogged injectors, so I lost my good seat." "It's about the captain." Immediately, any annoyance had left his face. "Jon, what about him?" "I'll get to that first ... I need to know how you're doing first. Have you felt weird since dinner or not healthy? Dizzy under circumstances? Were you sick or feverish?" "No, not at all, why do you ask?" "Come on, I'll explain it to you outside, "she told him, eyes fixed behind him, several crewmembers staring curiously in their direction, trying to hear something. "I noticed for the past four hours that the captain was getting paler. His eyes were feverish and he had noticeable problems concentrating. He dismissed this as a rotten stomach and insisted on finishing the shift. It was also available for nocturnal emergencies. Lieutenant Reed advised him to go to sleep one night. He also seemed to have noticed that Captain Archer was not feeling well. I also felt that he was dizzy as well, as he tried to fix a point while talking to the lieutenant. And just as he was on his way to his quarters, I had the feeling that the ground was moving under his feet. "What are you going to do, maybe he just ruined his stomach?" asked Trip. "I do not think so, the symptoms would have been much earlier and much more violent, I have a guess I would like to pursue, but at the moment I can't say more, otherwise I might make false accusations. I ask you to look for Jonathan Archer, I want to make sure he's okay." The commander nodded in understanding and turned right to walk down the corridor to his best friend's quarters while T'Pol turned left.
T'Pol entered the captain's mess hall, where they had dined just hours earlier - if their suspicions were really confirmed, they were really facing a problem and they hoped they could act in time. She pushed the chairs aside and squatted on the floor. And she actually found it. At the head of the table where the captain was sitting, there were still a few seeds that she had dismissed as sesame during the meal. She'd been a little surprised by how sesame seeds had come aboard the Enterprise. On the other hand, a few days ago they had met with the Kumari, an Andorian ship under the command of their Allies Shran, and also exchanged some food. Nevertheless, she felt uncomfortable, but she did not trust Commander Shran as much as he did Captain the Enterprise did. However, after their people lived at war with the Andorians throughout their lives, this was probably not surprising. With her find she wanted to see Dr. Phlox, the board doctor of the Enterprise, and secure herself. Her duties as first officer included paying attention to the captain and protecting him from dangers as far as she could. He was the most important person on board, even though he cared about the well-being of the crew in front of his own.
"Sub-Commander, what can I do for you?" She received the Denobulaner with a big smile. "I have some seeds here. Can you tell me what this is? " "Sure, show it off." He went with the grains to his analysis equipment. He put the samples under different equipment and became more and more serious. "Do you know what this is, Doctor?" She asked. The doctor looked up. "At first glance, the seeds look like sesame seeds. Only on closer analysis can one recognize that it concerns the seeds of the castor bean, which contain a poison named Ricin." So she was not wrong with her assumptions. "Ricin? What does that do? How does it work? " "Ricin, as I said, is a substance in the seeds of the castor bean. Already the consumption of eight seeds can be deadly. How do you get the seeds?" She had done the right thing, but she did not like the direction the conversation took. "Deadly? What signs show up in a poisoning?" T'Pol asked without taking the question of the doctor. "Hmmm ... that would be fever, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, tachycardia, and circulatory collapse ... but those are just a few of the common symptoms that can occur within four to eight hours of consumption. Everyone reacts differently to the poison, and the amount that is ingested is not negligible if you want to determine the exact symptoms." He had just finished his remarks when the doors to the sickbay opened.
oooOOOooo