Enterprise
Chapter One.
"Uncle John!" A six-year-old boy greeted the Enterprise captain on his arrival at his old friends home on Earth, San Francisco; a year and a half since he had last returned home. Jonathan Archer looked at the boy who'd shot up since he'd last seen him. The suns natural rays had bleached the boy's fair hair.
"Hello Christian. Do you remember this man?" Jonathan pointed to his chief engineer and best friend who had stepped inside the vast apartment with hesitation.
"Yeh! He's Trip." Christian said excitedly. "I have a model of your space ship Trip, but it won't fly! Can you help me fix it?"
"I sure can," Trip held out his hand, it was pale in comparison to Christian's. "Show me where it is!" Christian lead Trip into the living room.
"It's right through here!" Christian pulled Trip out of sight as Jonathan's friend came into the hall, followed by a meek young woman. They both let an awkward silence pass them by. Jonathan's friend was a ghost of his former self. Grey and pale; he looked older than he was.
"Captain-" His friend began.
"You know better than that, it's John." Jonathan corrected the man who was pointing to a seat at the table by the bay window. "What am I here for Karl? What's wrong?" Jonathan sat uncomfortably at the table, fearing what he already knew. On arrival, admiral Forrest had told him of Karl's sickness and that he didn't have long to live.
"Would you like something to drink, tea perhaps? Alana?" Karl ordered over the pale woman, it seemed that she didn't get much time in the Francisco sun.
"No thank you." Jonathan addressed the woman, but she kept her eyes to the floor.
"I know John, that the Admiral's told you. You'd be able to tell I'm dying from one look at me." Karl stopped for a small laugh, ignoring the woman who left quietly. "It's Madison!" If it was possible, he looked greyer than ever. He sat down opposite Jonathan, giving him the opportunity to look around; the white walls where covered in pictures of Karl, his wife and Christian, with no sign of Madison. "She ran away a couple of months ago… On a rogue Vulcan ship. I lost trace of her two weeks ago. John, will you find her and bring her home. I want to see her here, alive. Before I die!" He sighed. "I fear for her safety; I don't trust them, you're my only hope."
"-Jonathan." Karl's wife came to the bay window in which they sat. "How are you?" She was younger than Karl and barely older than Madison, petite and pretty. Jonathan knew her as one of Karl's students who befriended him when Madison's mother had died.
"Fine, under the circumstances. Do you know why Madison left?"
"I have no idea John... All I want is my baby back in my arms, I'll forgive her for disowning this family if she just comes home... I want my family together before I die."
"I don't understand!" Trip mused over the situation during dinner in San Francisco's finest restaurant, the place was crowded but a table was reserved for Trip by Jonathan, it was world renowned for the best T-Bone steak. Unfortunately, it couldn't lighten Trip's mood. "If he wants Madison back so badly, why'd he let us get all the way back to Earth to explain? Every second counts, right?" Jonathan winced; he didn't understand either. After he placed his knife and fork carefully on his plate he took a sip of water and began to speak-
"Trip, I'm not sure. Once Malcolm inputs all the data we've been given and gets us some co-ordinates, we'll be able to get some answers. I'll talk to T'Pol when we get back... There can't be that many rogue Vulcan organisations." He sighed. "It must be horrific for Karl… I think you knew her better than he did." Jonathan remarked, two ladies on the next table kept looking over. Perhaps they recognised him, hopefully they would not come over for an autograph. It was neither the time or the place.
"Yeah, but I wasn't the one who packed her off to England the moment her mum died and he got a new wife, he didn't give her chance to breath, let alone grieve. She needed some support. Some stability!" Trip argued.
"He did what he had to do! Don't remind me about your trips to Britain, you almost lost your friendship with Karl-"
"He was my mentor, not my friend John. Madison was my friend… and he didn't like that. Charles Tucker wasn't good enough for his little princess!" Trip spat. "She never got over the fact that he didn't love her! Which he didn't John. It takes less than an hour to get to London. He never once went to see her! Christian doesn't even know who she is, he has a sister and he knows her as "A friend of daddy's", no wonder she ran-"
"-Look, Trip. Aren't you being a little bit of a hypocrite here? You told me of those stories you used to tell her, about you always being there for her, being her white knight. She moved back here, for you. She joined the programme, for you. You haven't been in touch with her since we left Earth. Over two years! In fact, it's longer, you know when you stopped calling her! I've been in touch- You hurt her more than her father ever could, and you never tried to apologise!" Jonathan seemed to have had some steam to blow over Trip's mistake.
"I'm gonna make it up to her. I'm gonna save her." Trip said determinedly, entering a daydream.
"And what if she doesn't want saving Trip? What if you slip up, again." Jonathan placed his napkin down and left the table, he stopped and turned back round, "She won't want the fairytale, she's been out where we have... She's not that little girl anymore, remember that. Come on Trip lets go."
Chapter One.
"Uncle John!" A six-year-old boy greeted the Enterprise captain on his arrival at his old friends home on Earth, San Francisco; a year and a half since he had last returned home. Jonathan Archer looked at the boy who'd shot up since he'd last seen him. The suns natural rays had bleached the boy's fair hair.
"Hello Christian. Do you remember this man?" Jonathan pointed to his chief engineer and best friend who had stepped inside the vast apartment with hesitation.
"Yeh! He's Trip." Christian said excitedly. "I have a model of your space ship Trip, but it won't fly! Can you help me fix it?"
"I sure can," Trip held out his hand, it was pale in comparison to Christian's. "Show me where it is!" Christian lead Trip into the living room.
"It's right through here!" Christian pulled Trip out of sight as Jonathan's friend came into the hall, followed by a meek young woman. They both let an awkward silence pass them by. Jonathan's friend was a ghost of his former self. Grey and pale; he looked older than he was.
"Captain-" His friend began.
"You know better than that, it's John." Jonathan corrected the man who was pointing to a seat at the table by the bay window. "What am I here for Karl? What's wrong?" Jonathan sat uncomfortably at the table, fearing what he already knew. On arrival, admiral Forrest had told him of Karl's sickness and that he didn't have long to live.
"Would you like something to drink, tea perhaps? Alana?" Karl ordered over the pale woman, it seemed that she didn't get much time in the Francisco sun.
"No thank you." Jonathan addressed the woman, but she kept her eyes to the floor.
"I know John, that the Admiral's told you. You'd be able to tell I'm dying from one look at me." Karl stopped for a small laugh, ignoring the woman who left quietly. "It's Madison!" If it was possible, he looked greyer than ever. He sat down opposite Jonathan, giving him the opportunity to look around; the white walls where covered in pictures of Karl, his wife and Christian, with no sign of Madison. "She ran away a couple of months ago… On a rogue Vulcan ship. I lost trace of her two weeks ago. John, will you find her and bring her home. I want to see her here, alive. Before I die!" He sighed. "I fear for her safety; I don't trust them, you're my only hope."
"-Jonathan." Karl's wife came to the bay window in which they sat. "How are you?" She was younger than Karl and barely older than Madison, petite and pretty. Jonathan knew her as one of Karl's students who befriended him when Madison's mother had died.
"Fine, under the circumstances. Do you know why Madison left?"
"I have no idea John... All I want is my baby back in my arms, I'll forgive her for disowning this family if she just comes home... I want my family together before I die."
"I don't understand!" Trip mused over the situation during dinner in San Francisco's finest restaurant, the place was crowded but a table was reserved for Trip by Jonathan, it was world renowned for the best T-Bone steak. Unfortunately, it couldn't lighten Trip's mood. "If he wants Madison back so badly, why'd he let us get all the way back to Earth to explain? Every second counts, right?" Jonathan winced; he didn't understand either. After he placed his knife and fork carefully on his plate he took a sip of water and began to speak-
"Trip, I'm not sure. Once Malcolm inputs all the data we've been given and gets us some co-ordinates, we'll be able to get some answers. I'll talk to T'Pol when we get back... There can't be that many rogue Vulcan organisations." He sighed. "It must be horrific for Karl… I think you knew her better than he did." Jonathan remarked, two ladies on the next table kept looking over. Perhaps they recognised him, hopefully they would not come over for an autograph. It was neither the time or the place.
"Yeah, but I wasn't the one who packed her off to England the moment her mum died and he got a new wife, he didn't give her chance to breath, let alone grieve. She needed some support. Some stability!" Trip argued.
"He did what he had to do! Don't remind me about your trips to Britain, you almost lost your friendship with Karl-"
"He was my mentor, not my friend John. Madison was my friend… and he didn't like that. Charles Tucker wasn't good enough for his little princess!" Trip spat. "She never got over the fact that he didn't love her! Which he didn't John. It takes less than an hour to get to London. He never once went to see her! Christian doesn't even know who she is, he has a sister and he knows her as "A friend of daddy's", no wonder she ran-"
"-Look, Trip. Aren't you being a little bit of a hypocrite here? You told me of those stories you used to tell her, about you always being there for her, being her white knight. She moved back here, for you. She joined the programme, for you. You haven't been in touch with her since we left Earth. Over two years! In fact, it's longer, you know when you stopped calling her! I've been in touch- You hurt her more than her father ever could, and you never tried to apologise!" Jonathan seemed to have had some steam to blow over Trip's mistake.
"I'm gonna make it up to her. I'm gonna save her." Trip said determinedly, entering a daydream.
"And what if she doesn't want saving Trip? What if you slip up, again." Jonathan placed his napkin down and left the table, he stopped and turned back round, "She won't want the fairytale, she's been out where we have... She's not that little girl anymore, remember that. Come on Trip lets go."