Chapter 3
By Lieuten Keen
Disclaimer: Enterprise doesn't belong to me. I just like to torment them now and again.
Enterprise: Corridors leading from Sickbay
Shortly after the autopsy attack
T'Pol was happy to get away from the alien creature. She didn't stop moving forward until she was in the turbo-lift and then she continued her progress to meet with the captain. It would have been faster to use the intercom on board the ship, but since the smaller creature was dead and the second creature locked up, it didn't seem to matter. Besides T'Pol wanted to look the captain in the eye when she told him that a creature slight enough to hide inside an alien body was terrible enough to wreak havoc upon his ship. If he had any reservations about Andie's competency as doctor, the Vulcan didn't want him to wave off her warnings as flawed.
Considering that the doctor had recently admitted to carrying a rather large secret, T'Pol would have thought that the young woman would prefer to keep the captain in her good graces, but it seemed the physician was as willing as ever to antagonize the leader of this expedition. It was frustrating and self-defeating, but T'Pol had long since ceased to be surprised at such behavior from her human companions, especially during times of crisis.
Reed and Hoshi watched the Vulcan sweep through the Bridge and into the captain's Ready Room with particular interest. Hoshi had a thing about bugs and bug-like creatures ever since a Reptilian had implanted one in her head, while Reed was instantly alerted to possible danger by the extremely sober look in the Vulcan's' eye; so different from her usual sober expression. They exchanged significant glances when the first officer entered the inner sanctum without waiting for an invitation and prepared for bad news.
T'Pol faced the captain and laid out the problem in as few words as possible
"These things are hazardous?" Archer questioned again, trying to wrap his mind around the concept. "They could fit into a small box!" he protested as if size had anything to do with danger.
"I recommend an immediate upgrade to their threat level," T'Pol assured him, clasping her hands behind her back in an attempt to cease restlessly rubbing them together. She'd never had such a twitch before. She wondered if it was a new symptom of her Pa'nar Syndrome or her addiction to Trellium-D or perhaps an incomplete session in her meditations. Butterflies flittered in her stomach.
Archer punched the button on the comm. "Mr. Reed to the Ready Room!" The ensuing door chime occurred so quickly, Archer wondered if Reed had broken a record for speed.
"Send a security team to Sickbay, and place all the artifacts we collected from the Xhardin under guard as well." Archer looked his security officer in the eye. "Those small creatures may be responsible for the destruction on the alien ship."
"Yes, sir. Where's Dr. Andie?" Reed inquired. At the surprised looks of his senior officers, he added, "She has a knack for getting into trouble. I want to make certain she's covered as far as security procedures go."
"I believe she is still in Sickbay," T'Pol answered.
Reed nodded and moved out the door, pulling a communicator from his pocket and sending teams to two different science labs and three men to the medical ward.
Enterprise: Outside Sickbay
Same time
As soon as T'Pol disappeared around the corner Andie drew a deep breath and looked at Corporal Finn. His sandy colored hair was thinning on top, but you couldn't tell at the moment; he'd smoothed it back against his scalp with successive swipes of his nervous, sweaty hand until it was a single stripe of color on his nearly bald pate. "We have to go back in there," she stated baldly. "That thing still work or do you just carry it to look pretty?" She gestured at the weapon in his hand with a tilt of her head. Her tough talk did a serviceable job of hiding her own worry.
"I'm ready, Doctor," he agreed, swallowing hard. When she turned her back to punch in the code on the door, he wiped his hand on the leg of his trousers and reasserted his grip on the rifle. It wouldn't do for him to show signs of weakness in front of the petite female who didn't seem too concerned over what they had just witnessed.
"Here we go!" She announced. The doors slid open. They carefully stepped around the pile of bio-matter still residing in the hall and moved into the room.
Finn took the lead, slipping inside first and spinning right and left to check for enemies. He even tilted his head up to look at the ceiling. Andie stepped inside when he'd cleared the door and pressed the button to lock them in, ignoring his audible gulp.
"We're heading back to the body, Corporal," Andie informed him. In spite of his receding hairline, he was probably in his early twenties and a little newer to an alien situation than some of the other MACO's. This was his first tour of duty on a starship. She kept her tone matter-of-fact so he wouldn't worry. He switched direction and led the way to the autopsy bed, rifle tucked against his shoulder. At least he hid his fear well enough, she thought approvingly.
"The inside of the body had hollowed cavities inside the arms and legs," Andie spoke out loud to fill the eerie stillness since Phlox's fauna had resumed their silence. "I believe something stretched out inside and used the arms and legs of the Xhardin to move through the ship. That thing you shot isn't big enough to fit the hollows that were made."
"You think there's another one in there? A bigger one?" Finn repeated.
Andie stood in front of the drawer she'd just opened. "Yup," she agreed easily, picking up a fresh scalpel, then putting it down and picking up another with a longer, sharper blade. "That body went from Shuttle Pod to Decon to the imaging chamber; if something had escaped during any of those transfers, we'd have seen the hole it created in the body bag." It has acidic blood that eats through metal, her inner voice whispered. She replaced the metal tool and picked up a synthetic one, equally long and sharp.
Both crewmen crept up to the body, which remained flat and lifeless. Finn gulped but did not flinch at the dried up corpse lying splayed open. Andie peered at the body from behind the shoulder of the combat soldier. When the body remained lifeless, she stepped forward and waved a scanner over the top of it, but all the readings indicated that there was no life in the husk.
"I think we should get it into the imaging chamber," she said steadily. "Just to be sure it's not hibernating or dormant or something." She reached out to press the button to open the round portal.
It was a good thing that Finn was so unnerved out by the quiet room that he had never lowered his weapon. It was a very good thing indeed.
Enterprise: Outside Science Station B-7
Less than an hour later
Captain Archer, Commander T'Pol and Lieutenant Reed converged in the corridor just outside the turbo-lift. The call for extra security had sounded across the comm. just a few moments after Reed left the Bridge and all three senior officers headed for the problem area. Archer led the trio at a jog around the corner to the science lab where the medical kit containing the attacking creature had been taken once it was removed from the shuttle pod. A MACO had been sent to look after it, but T'Pol had also sent in a pair of scientists to investigate it before the autopsy had taken a turn for the worse. Something had occurred inside not long ago.
"The door's locked!" The captain huffed when the button didn't react to his imperative finger. Archer entered his command code into the keypad and door slid open. He didn't know whether or not to be relieved. They found both Ensigns Nichols and Mandara huddled on top of a counter peering fearfully over the edge. Corporal Riley moved about the room with his weapon held at the ready.
"What happened?" Archer barked. Reed and T'Pol crowded around him and the door slid closed; Reed had already pulled his sidearm from its holster.
"It flew!" Mandara panicked. "It flew right at his head, and if he hadn't stumbled when it jumped, it would have eaten his face off!" Her dark eyes were wide in her unnaturally pale face.
"It cannot fly!" Nichols countered petulantly. "It can't eat my face off! It doesn't have teeth! It barely had legs! I'm surprised it could even climb...!" Truth be told, there was something disturbing about the thing they'd found. He just couldn't explain his feeling of unease, and Mandara's complete excitability was making him nervous, especially in front of both the captain and the alien first officer.
"I repeat...What happened?" Archer barked louder.
"We were attempting to remove the creature from the medical case and place it inside a terrarium for observation," Nichols supplied when Mandara could only squeak. "When we opened the case, something lurched out."
"It flew!" she squealed.
"The case tipped over," Nichols corrected with a tired look at the female for the interruption. "We got it righted, but the creature went missing. It's in here somewhere. We just can't find it." He had the grace to look chagrined as he climbed down off the table to help Reed and T'Pol, who joined Riley to search under tables and chairs.
"Corporal Riley, please escort Ensign Mandara to her quarters," T'Pol interjected softly. She had a feeling the female would not be helpful in this search. The MACO moved to comply, but the tactical officer stopped him.
"We shouldn't open the doors until we find the thing," Reed cautioned. "It was...quite assertive...on the alien vessel." He cast a quick look at Mandara when she moaned at his words. She didn't move from her aerial vantage point.
Archer was happy to interrupt. He noticed an egg-shaped object rolling along the floorboards. Using a pair of tongs, he picked it up. "Is this what you're looking for?" he asked. Suddenly it jerked. It was instinct that caused him to steady the object with his bare hand rather than let its fragile surface hit the floor. It was soft yet pliable, like holding a hard-boiled egg in his hand but it was warmer than he expected and it shivered in his hand. The dark object made his stomach turn.
Nichols rose and opened the lid of the observation tank. Archer relinquished the alien substance with relief. He also took the towel offered by Reed and wiped his hands, depositing the cloth in the hazardous waste bin near the door. "See?" Nichols demanded in triumph to his science partner. "It doesn't have legs or wings!"
"I'm telling you it flew at his head!" Mandara repeated shakily. She climbed down off the table, shaking like a leaf. This time she looked darkly at the egg-like thing that continued quivering inside the case as she scooted directly behind the rugged MACO with the large weapon.
"Did you have a chance to perform any tests on it?" Archer asked. His hand itched and he rubbed it absently, still revolted by the soft, warm feeling from the alien object.
"We didn't have a chance to do an in-depth analysis. As soon as we opened the case it got away," Mandara explained in a shaky voice.
"This is the creature that you removed from the case?" Reed demanded, looking at the large egg shaking back and forth. "This is the only creature you removed from the case?"
"What's the problem, Malcolm?" Archer asked. His hand tingled queerly.
"This is not the creature that I shot at, nor is it the creature that Dr. Andie sealed inside the medical case." Reed began peering around, into corners and under furniture.
"Are you sure?" Archer demanded. He wished he hadn't thrown away that towel. He'd wrap it around his hand like a bandage.
"The thing we picked up had arms and legs...and teeth." He added the last under his breath, darting a quick look at Ensign Mandara when he said it.
"Oh!" she moaned, but she said nothing further. 'Things with teeth' were not her forte.
"Perhaps it reproduced," T'Pol suggested in a tone much calmer than she felt.
"Sir?" Reed held up the medical case for Archer's inspection. There was a hole in the bottom of the case, just larger than the captain's fist. If it could get out of a hole that small, there was no telling where it might be hiding in this room.
Speaking of fists, Archer's hand was really beginning to itch. He scratched more ferociously, drawing attention from both Reed and T'Pol. Noticing their pointed stares he held up his left hand. Already small red bumps were forming on the surface of his skin as though he'd been attacked by many mosquitoes.
"That's the hand that touched the egg," Reed noted, raising his head from his inspection of the medical case.
"I will accompany you to Sickbay," T'Pol stated firmly. "Do not touch anything else on the way." She reached out an arm to escort the captain and Reed reached around them and pressed the button to open the door to allow their exit.
Reed whispered as the captain brushed near him. "If the ensigns only found the egg, where's the mother?"
"Find it!" Archer commanded, trying hard not to touch his hand.
As the door remained open, the egg thumped against the side of the viewing cage.
"Make sure that lid is very secure," Archer directed before slowly moving out of the room and heading for Sickbay.
It was not turning out to be a very good day after all.
Enterprise: Sickbay
Not long after
Archer and T'Pol hurried through the corridors to Sickbay. They found Andie wrapping Ensign Pierce's finger in a bandage and lecturing gently. "The cream should soothe the burn. Don't get your bandage wet. Don't touch anything strange. Come back if you feel...icky." The physician looked up to see the senior officers enter her room, one of whom was holding his arm at an odd angle. She applied a hypo to the young man's neck then waved him away.
"He got chemical burns while repairing the shuttle pod, but he'll be fine," Andie answered before the captain asked.
"I'm injured, sir!" Pierce smiled, holding up one bandaged index finger.
"Swell!" muttered Archer, holding up his whole blistered hand and watching Pierce's face fall. Andie waved the captain to a bio-bed as the young man went back to work. "Is there chance of contamination?" Jon asked.
"It's not a virus," Andie spoke quietly as she changed gloves and began tending to Archer's reddened skin. "It's just a dermal irritation as a result of contact with a dangerous chemical." She repeated what Pierce had told her about his injury.
"It came from the inside of the docking clamp?" Archer demanded. "One of these things may have come aboard the Shuttle. T'Pol?" He barely got her name out before his capable first officer was speaking into the comm panel on the wall, directing a security team to check out the shuttle bay and instructing the engineering team to evacuate.
Andie finished securing the bandage around his palm and pressed a hypo into Jon's neck. His relief was short-lived. "There's more," Andie added soberly.
"More?" T'Pol rejoined the pair in the alcove.
"The creature that jumped at T'Pol and I was an infant," she announced quietly. A crewman was cleaning the mess in the corridor but there wasn't anyone else near enough to hear them, yet they spoke in hushed tones. "There was a mature creature hiding in the imaging chamber. I believe it crawled out of the body during the initial scans. Finn shot it and we put it in the Decon Chamber."
"You didn't think to mention that before?" Archer raised his voice.
One eyebrow arched perfectly over her wide eyes. "Before I tended your injury? The captain's health is my highest priority. No, I didn't think to mention the secured creature before I treated your wound," Andie refuted stubbornly. "Now that you're...fit...for duty, we should have a look." She led the way as Archer glowered at her back.
A few minutes later they peered inside the small room. For a long moment not a one of them could form words.
"It's only been a half hour," Andie protested weakly. "There was one creature. It was hiding in the imaging chamber. Finn and I put it in Decon! It's been there for half an hour!"
T'Pol peered inside. "There are six creatures here," she told the doctor.
"I dumped a container of protein paste on the floor to keep it busy! They were only here a half hour!" Her voice was rising with the strain.
"Did you activate the monitoring system?" the Vulcan inquired. Andie nodded and T'Pol checked the readings on the computer panel and called up the viewing monitors. She adjusted her position to allow the captain and the doctor to peer at the images that had been captured.
"Ew!" That was the resounding group reaction to the excerpt on screen, although T'Pol did not state her disgust out loud.
"I see they reproduce asexually," T'Pol stated calmly. She didn't feel calm. Her hands were trembling. Phlox would have been much more interested in the scientific fact. At this moment, she felt his absence keenly. He could be counted on for an even temperament and soothing words.
"It must be born pregnant!" Andie widened her eyes. "With sufficient nutritional elements, it vomits up an egg sack. As soon as the sack dries, it cracks open and there's another carnivore." She turned her head to look at T'Pol. "One becomes two. Two becomes four. Four becomes..." Andie turned around. "Each creature can replicate itself in ten minutes!"
"Ten minutes?" Archer demanded. He couldn't prop his hands on his hips because the bandage got in the way.
"There are six creatures in Decon," T'Pol stated again. "There should be eight."
"They ran out of protein paste," Andie suggested. The rate of replication was astounding.
"So we've got six now?" Archer demanded. "Why didn't you call security?"
"I was a little busy! The creature was secured! And unconscious! And the only one in there at the time!" she protested. "And then Pierce showed up and gave me his finger!"
"Where are the MACO's?" Archer barked at T'Pol. He didn't see the team that Reed had sent. Andie's explained in a frustrated tone that she'd sent them to cover the Launch Bay when Pierce and Cooper had arrived.
"There is an alternative," T'Pol said quietly. She pressed a few buttons on the wall and the temperature dropped dramatically inside the secure chamber. The six creatures huddled together for warmth, and wrapped their long limbs around their bodies. Their head flaps tucked against the sides of their craniums until they looked very similar to a half dozen eggs resting in the center of the decontamination chamber.
"They're susceptible to cold?" the captain inquired.
"Sort of," Andie answered, checking the readings. "I think they're hibernating. As soon as the temperature rises, they'll be just fine..."
"Drop the temperature on the ship!" Archer commanded his first officer. "And for the love of God, stop feeding them!"
"The temperature required to induce a hibernating state is below the safety limits for humans," T'Pol warned him.
"Drop the temperature in Science Lab B-7 immediately," Archer amended. "One of those creatures reproduced then went AWOL from that location," he explained curtly to Andie.
As if on cue Lieutenant Reed hurried around the corner, stopping shortly when he recognized the crew gathering in the unaccustomed position outside the Decon Chamber. He drew a deep breath and delivered the bad news. "Sorry, sir, it looks like the adult creature got away!" he apologized. "There was a hole in the ventilation screen in the room. It's possible that it disappeared there during the confusion. I sent Corporal Riley into the maintenance tubes after it. And I released Ensign Mandara to her quarters. She wasn't handling the news very well. Ensign Nichols is bringing the terrarium with the infant to Sickbay as we speak."
Captain Archer didn't need to turn his head from his perusal of the six oval shapes in Decon to know the lieutenant was standing at crisp attention, awaiting the punishment he felt he deserved due to what Reed would probably write up in his report as his shoddy security protocols and ill-trained officers, but he did anyway. Studying Reed, Archer thought it more likely that Reed would write the report so he took all the blame for his crewmen, and even for the fault of the failed ventilation screen. "We think they're looking for sustenance. Send more security officers to all locations that contain edible items," was all he said.
"We should secure the Galley and Mess Hall," T'Pol clarified. "They may be attracted to the smell of sustenance there."
"Also the greenhouse and the hydroponics bay," Andie threw in a couple more. "That doesn't account for house plants in crew quarters or galley take-out," she said to the science officer.
"Phlox's fauna?" T'Pol inquired with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm already working on that," Andie promised.
Down the hall the double doors slid open. "Sickbay is secured, Doctor," Finn joined the contingent in the hallway. He bore a bandage on his cheekbone. "This data came in for Commander T'Pol," he added, passing over a data card to the science officer, after saluting the senior officers. He handed back the medical scanner to the doctor. "I've accounted for all of the medical animals. There's nothing in there that shouldn't be."
"Thank you," Andie muttered absently, staring at the little band of alien life on the other side of the transparency. Her brows were pulled together in a tight knot on her forehead, indicating that she was thinking very hard about something.
"Ensign Sato said that whatever happened to the Xhardin vessel happened very quickly," T'Pol murmured softly. She didn't have to say more to indicate to the others that she thought this is what those other aliens had gone through, shortly before they became extinct.
"We are not losing control of this ship!" Archer stated very clearly for the benefit of the four other people standing around in the corridor. "We are going to apprehend these creatures and we are going to remove them from our vessel! That's an order!" he declared stridently.
"They're just stringing us along." The doctor's voice was soft and fragile, an unusual and unwelcome tone in the heat of the moment.
"What are you talking about?" Archer demanded. He made a gesture at the MACO standing around agog, and Finn turned and headed back into Sickbay.
"They were using the humanoid body like a...thingie!" Andie wiggled her fingers around as her voice climbed another octave.
"Like an itch?" Trip suggested in confusion, striding into view. He'd just got the lab findings back and had come to report about the fluid on the docking clamp of the shuttle pod. The ship's computer had indicated that the senior officers were gathering here.
Andie looked exasperated, wiggling her digits frantically as though that would clarify the meaning. "A...thingie!"
"A Marionette?" Reed suggested.
"Yes!" She snapped her fingers in triumph. "Puppets!"
"How'd you get 'puppets' outta this?" Trip asked Reed, wiggling his fingers around erratically.
"I'm very good at decoding messages by the enemy," Malcolm stated smugly. The words were no sooner out of his mouth before he shot an apologetic look at the captain for his glib attitude. It was the doctor who called them to the carpet for his lapse though.
Andie rolled her eyes. "This is no time for funny business! Can we please pay attention to the imminent extraterrestrial invasion by carnivorous alien puppets?"
"Invasion?" Reed repeated, instantly more interested. "I thought there were only two?"
"Carnivorous alien puppets?" Trip inquired with one eyebrow lifted high.
"There are six…no, eight creatures, including the ones you found in the science lab," Archer informed Malcolm, waving a hand at the Decon window. Reed stepped forward to take a peek.
"They eat and they breed," Andie hissed. "One of them utilized the existing nerve endings and muscle groups in the Xhardin humanoid to emulate the limbs and that's what stumbled toward us!" Her tone was growing increasing shrill.
"Actually that would make it a puppeteer, not a puppet," Reed supplied absently. In spite of his mounting concern about the situation, he was immensely satisfied at the frustrated scowl the doctor sent his way.
The engineer broke in before World War IV broke out. "If there was goo on the inside of the docking clamp, then it's possible there's another alien running around in the shuttle bay." When Archer's head whirled toward Trip the engineer hastily added, "We didn't see anythin' come out of the shuttle, but it's possible it was hidin' in there."
"They just feed and breed! There's no reasoning with that!" Andie screeched nervously.
"Is there any possibility that this...carnivorous alien puppet... was just making contact?" Archer suggested. "I don't want to throw around words like 'invasion' without being certain. It didn't actually cause you physical harm?" He knew he was grasping at straws, but he needed to grasp anyway. Time was sliding away as they talked here in front of the Decon Chamber, but if they didn't know what they were up against they couldn't make an accurate defense.
"The carnivorous alien puppet was not trying to make peaceful contact," T'Pol assured him.
"We need a shorter name than 'carnivorous alien puppet'," Andie groused, in spite of the fact that she had coined the phrase. "These space frogs..."
"Space frogs?" Trip repeated dubiously.
"We found them in space and they jump like frogs," Andie filled in impatiently. "The space frogs burrowed inside the Xhardin, drank their innards, and reproduced! They exterminated the entire crew! They are lethal and must be stopped! I suggest we remove them from Enterprise as soon as possible!"
"How do you suggest we do that?" Archer asked. "You want us to contaminate the ship by shooting all of them? You said their blood contains an acidic compound that will eat through metal."
"What?" Reed gasped. "Do we have proof that their blood can eat through metal?" he inquired.
T'Pol held up the data pad she'd just received from Corporal Finn in her hand. "The results from the science lab indicate the sample taken from the..." she looked sideways at Dr. Andie, "…puddle of goo...on the Xhardin vessel contains acid, among other things." A few keys were tapped and she looked at the new page on her data pad. "The biologic matter was compromised by an acidic compound mixed with both salivary chromosomal strands and hemoglobinal matter, but it seems to come from the same source."
Archer's head jerked around. "Wait! They spit acid too?"
"It is premature to assume they spit. The acidic compound may merely begin the digestive process once the animal begins to eat. The saliva present in the sample may be the result of the intensive feeding process that occurred on the alien vessel." T'Pol answered quietly. "The...carnivorous alien puppets...are not tidy eaters." Her tone indicated that might be the more horrific attribute.
Trip raised a hand in disbelief. "Wait a minnit! It's chewin' on my ship?"
Reed objected. "We'll need to take extra precautions if bodily fluids can cause harm. Permission to set the phase weapons on kill, sir?" he looked to Archer. "If the...space frogs...are intent on replicating their methods on our ship, it would be best if we caught them earlier rather than later." Reed hated to use the phrase the doctor had conjured, since it was ridiculous and sounded like one of the movies that Travis and Trip liked to watch, but 'carnivorous alien puppeteer' was definitely too long. "I'll arrange for roving teams to begin a thorough search immediately."
"Swell," Andie muttered. "You're just itching to shoot somebody, aren't you?"
"What other choice do we have?" Reed countered. They seemed to be replicating madly and confining them seemed to be a losing option. Andie had it right a moment ago when she suggested that they be removed from the ship as soon as possible. But if she objected to wiping out a threat with extreme prejudice, how did she think they were going to go away? He readjusted his grip on his weapon although it remained in his holster. "How do you recommend we remove these creatures, Doctor, if you are squeamish about killing them?"
"I'd like to point out that we are standing right next to one State of the Art Airlock Portal," Andie pointed out with a flourish. "Blow them into space. They hibernate at low temperatures. In fact, if we could pack the whole crew into Sickbay, we could open all the outer hatches and ventilate the ship. We could put them all to sleep at once."
Reed was already shaking his head. "That would not alleviate the threat; it would only leave them for the next ship that passes through this system."
The mere mention of the airlock entry brought Archer an uncomfortable moment. During the mission in the Expanse he'd thrown an intruder in there and threatened to ventilate him if he didn't cooperate. There hadn't been time then to worry about other considerations or diplomacy, but there was time now. Archer didn't want to keep making the same mistakes he made during a time of war, although he couldn't be convinced that threatening the pirate had been a mistake; he'd gotten what he wanted. He just found that he didn't want to remain the person that he had become then. He didn't want to become comfortable with the airlock entry. Inwardly he sighed; he'd never make any decisions if he kept second guessing himself and that seemed to be his habit more often of late.
"Wait a minute!" Archer held up his hands. "They haven't done anything to us. The Xhardin may have unwillingly antagonized the things and the creatures may be reacting to a perceived threat. I don't think we can just go around shooting them!" He looked at Malcolm. "I want the MACOs patrolling the ship. Set your weapons on stun and bring all the creatures here. Don't touch them without protection and don't get their fluids on you or your team. We'll secure them in Decon."
"Aye, sir!" Malcolm nodded before hurrying off. Securing them didn't sound nearly as safe as blowing them out the airlock, but his captain had spoken.
Andie pursed her lips at this command, but at least she did so silently.
Handing out assignments, Archer looked at the first officer. "T'Pol, find out how Hoshi's doing on the translation of the data rods we brought back. Perhaps we can find out what set these creatures off. Lower the temperature on the ship; maybe we can slow them down. Trip, put together a team to secure all the ventilation shafts and crawlspaces. Let's keep these things in a small confined space." A pair of 'ayes' preceded their exit from the corridor.
Jon drew a deep breath as though to fortify himself for an upcoming battle and looked at the doctor who was being unnaturally quiet now that she'd articulated all her worries. "Andie, I want a detailed analysis of those creatures in Decon."
She nodded. "Will Finn be remaining with me, or should I get a phase pistol from the armory?"
"Has Malcolm cleared you to carry a sidearm?" he inquired, arching one eyebrow.
Andie flushed at the same time she grinned. "He gave me one for the mission to the Xhardin," she pointed out.
"There was less likelihood that you would shoot him again over there."
"I didn't shoot him the first time...on purpose," she added with exasperation. This wasn't the time to relive that fiasco and with effort she tried a different tactic. "This could go very badly very quickly." It was clear she wasn't talking about her alleged inability to refrain from shooting Malcolm.
"And yet I'm giving you a phase pistol anyway," Archer joked, ignoring the warning tone in her voice. Her face held no trace of humor. She didn't really seem to be sulking either; just quietly watchful. He remembered Emory saying she had been a serious child and wondered what her personality would have become if her life had been different. "Don't shoot anyone on accident," he cautioned as he turned away.
"Archer?"
At least that was more respectful than Jon, he thought as he turned around. She stood there with her mouth open as though there was something she wanted to say, but no words came. He turned to leave again but stopped when she called his name once more.
"What happens if this doesn't work?" she asked.
"It'll work," he promised with an easy smile.
"Don't you have a plan B?" she queried. "You're not flying by the seat of your pants, are you, Jon?"
Instead of answering her, he just forced his face into a reassuring smile. "We've got this under control, Doctor."
This time she allowed him to leave, but the contemplative expression remained on her face. When she returned to Sickbay, she didn't have time for reflection. Two more crewmen from the area near the shuttle bay had acquired a need for burn treatments.
Enterprise: Bridge
Late afternoon
Things just kept getting worse.
Archer waited in his Ready Room with one eye on the other ship through the porthole. The reports just kept coming in. Chef kept a small herb garden in his quarters. When he went to take a nap before dinner, he discovered a space frog consuming his fresh mint and dill plants. It had even chewed on Chef's treasured book of secret family recipes, apparently enjoying the flour and egg that had dotted many of the pages. It was hard to tell whether or not the squeamish cook was more devastated by the life-threatening attack or the damage to the book. Crewman Moreno had discovered one in the corner of a turbo-lift after he stepped inside and had a nasty bite on his leg to show for his efforts. He had to be carried to Sickbay. The crewmen working in the Laundry at this hour complained of a pile of towels that giggled at them, and had called in to report two creatures. By the time the marines arrived there were four creatures and half a dozen fewer bath towels. And just to make matters worse, systems were hiccupping all over the ship. The lights in the Ready Room, for example, started flickering as though there was an interruption in the power flow, and Engineering said they would need to remain at impulse in order to the run the Level Three diagnostic on the EPS grid, which would render them unable to flee if this situation continued to spin out of control. Trip looked at his feet when he suggested that the tiny creatures might be inside the walls chewing on power conduits and whatnot. Security was dispatched.
Truthfully he was running out of options. Besides Crewman Moreno, the list of people reporting to Sickbay for minor chemical burns had grown by leaps and bounds. The creatures were proving elusive and hard to trap, and the drop in temperature didn't seem to be slowing them down. Jon flexed his fingers again, fighting to keep feeling in his hands. Although everyone on board was wearing jackets and caps, the temperature on the ship was becoming more than uncomfortable. Pretty soon his people would not be able to function at all. There were just too many people on board to worry about protecting while searching for those things. Archer ground his teeth silently. They may have to change tactics.
"Bridge to Captain Archer!"
It was Hoshi's voice, although not the soft sound she normally had. This tone was tight as though spoken through teeth clenched tightly to keep from chattering. She was not doing well with the extreme temperatures and had donned a pink knit scarf in addition to mittens.
"Archer here!" he replied.
"Captain, you may want to see this. The Xhardin is powering up."
"The dead alien vessel is powering up?" No matter how that might make his head spin, it still wasn't the strangest thing that had happened all day.
"Yes, sir. Travis is reading a change in heading."
He couldn't help glancing out his view port at the small ship in the distance. They were too far away to get a good look so he stood and entered the Bridge, drawing his shoulders up as he went.
"What's the new heading, Travis?" Archer inquired.
"Sir, it's coming this way," Mayweather responded. "The flight path is erratic."
"Toward us? What about life signs? I mean Xhardinian life signs?" Could someone have survived?
"I can't tell at this distance, sir," the navigator replied. "Sir, if I had to guess, I'd say the space frogs may have got lucky when they started the engine. They may not know how to maneuver it."
"We're not going to sit here and play a game of Blind Chicken, Travis. Begin evasive maneuvers!" He tapped a button on his console. "Reed to the Bridge!"
The navigator complied, but the Xhardin's rounded bow curved sloppily through the stars and continued toward them. Small asteroid chunks bounced off the hull as it made its course correction. Was that luck or was that skill? Already wishing he'd just let Malcolm shoot holes in each and every one of the things, Archer stood on the bridge of his vessel and watched inevitability come.
Reed came breathlessly through the turbo-lift doors. "We've got them confined to the aft section of C Deck, away from the Mess Hall and..."
"Ready the phase cannons, Malcolm," The captain interrupted.
Reed clamped his lips shut and took the seat which Higgins willingly relinquished, pressing buttons almost before he sat down.
"Travis, bring us closer to the medieval planet. Maybe we can lose the Xhardin in the atmosphere."
"Are you planning to destroy the vessel?" T'Pol had just joined them on the Bridge.
It was more than Archer wanted to think about at the moment. But he had been aboard that dead ship. There was nobody left alive on that thing. "Better them than us!"
The dead ship seemed to be coming about. Retro rockets seemed to fire uneasily and guide the ship around in a circle to hone in on Enterprise. Jon had no intention of letting alien space frogs take his ship. "Blow that ship out of the sky! No more of those things are coming on board!" They couldn't. If any more arrived, the humans would be outnumbered, and they were already losing the battle. Marines were guiding people to the medical ward, the most heavily reinforced rooms on board, but many crewmen were cornered behind doors and bulkheads scattered around the ship. Security told him that the bulkheads wouldn't keep those things out forever.
"Weapons online… Targeting sensors are locked!" Reed was more than happy to report. He was even less enthusiastic about surrendering this ship to space parasites than Archer was, if that was possible. He focused the main phase cannons and prepared to fire directly at the dead ship that had suddenly come to life.
"Fire!" Archer commanded when the rounded alien vessel drunkenly swooped in their direction again. He could hear the soft click of computer keys when Reed entered the command, and couldn't help but compare the sensation to ending a life through hand to hand combat. Fighting from the bridge was so different from standing in the corridor while alien life shot hand held weapons at his crew.
The pulse from the phase cannon connected with the tip of the Xhardin vessel and the front of the dead ship exploded outward. Orange fire reached out through space to expire quickly in the oxygen free atmosphere. Reed brought extra power to the main deflector as he polarized the hull plating. Bits of debris were jettisoned through space to patter against Enterprise's hull without serious damage.
Hoshi put the piece back in her ear and frowned. "It sounds like rain out there," she wondered curiously.
T'Pol looked up at the captain from her science station. "I'm picking up life forms on the outer hull, Captain."
"Life forms?" he growled. There appeared to be something malevolent in that rain that Hoshi heard. Space frogs were raining down upon them. Archer clenched his jaw in frustration.
"I believe they were scattered over the hull with the explosion. They are attracted to heat and are beginning to accumulate near our engines and other exhaust ports," she replied calmly.
"How many?" he asked with a sinking feeling in his stomach.
She peered at her readouts and she faced him again. "It is difficult to pin down an accurate count, but it is a significant amount."
"We seem to have woken them up!" Reed announced tersely. He was reading a message from the armory that said Crewman Ross was detecting a problem with the main phase cannons. The cannon seemed to be blocked by some of the debris jettisoned from the dead ship and would not swivel. Reed immediately contacted the armory and told the crew there to defend themselves by whatever means necessary.
"Their impulse engines don't seem to be affected by the blast," Mayweather pointed out. The dead ship was slipping through the stars toward the NX-01 in spite of the gaping hole in front. "The ship's still heading this way!"
"Malcolm!" the captain warned. "Fire when ready, Lieutenant!" Archer barked.
Something blew up all right, but it wasn't outside the vessel because the blast knocked Archer sideways. He'd been standing beside his chair and was thrown against it hard enough to make him think of the significant bruise he'd have tomorrow. "Damage report!"
"Port airlock just lost pressure!" T'Pol announced. "I'm reading many life signs in the corridor!"
They were in the ship. They were coming in.
"Drop the emergency bulkheads, T'Pol! Maybe that will slow them down!" The captain looked at the armory officer and tried not to rub the sharp flare in his hipbone. "Fire again, Malcolm!"
"Yes, sir!" Reed answered, tapping the keys in front of him. He hit the button to fire the starboard phase cannon and was surprised when nothing happened. Fuming, he looked at his panel and transferred the command to the port side cannon with better luck. "Firing, sir!" Malcolm pressed the button. He watched the torpedo burn its way through the blackened stars. It passed through the complicated passage of asteroids and planted itself directly into the center of the Xhardin. The missile detonated and the view screen went white with the flare. The Xhardin was no more. The remains of the dead ship exploded around them as the Enterprise slid through the detritus. Bits and pieces of it were spread throughout the sky.
"Get security to the Port airlock!" Archer barked, watching the fiery debris wink out of the sky. He heard Malcolm barking orders to another team of MACO's but something else drew his attention.
"Brace for impact!" T'Pol called out.
A large chunk of the alien ship collided with Enterprise's bow and tumbled across the hull directly above their heads. Raising his head, Archer could see the sharp edge of the metal plate as it passed across the transparent screen at the topmost section of the ship. He had a direct view of the sharp metal landing heavily on the edge of the viewing window, an inspection made easier when the impact overrode the inertial dampeners and tossed him to the floor in an ungainly heap.
From his position on the ground he could hear shouts and smell smoke, but the thing that worried him most was the smallest sound in the room. It was the sound of a small hiss. The Bridge of the Enterprise had a skylight. Shaped in a dome, it allowed a view of the passing stars. A leak appeared in the seal around the overhead viewing window. The bridge was losing pressure.
"Everybody out!" Archer choked out through the heavy smoke that was quickly filling the room.
T'Pol grabbed the communications officer when Hoshi stumbled to her feet. The science staff at the back of the room didn't hesitate; they obeyed the order. There were quiet cries of panic as the button to open the doors refused to work. A red light appeared on T'Pol's screen, indicating the pressure leak. Security protocols had sealed them inside.
Jon sat upright, feeling a little light-headed but pushing away Mayweather's offers of assistance. "Travis! Move out! That's an order!" Archer shouted. Above him the hiss grew more pronounced. The seal was disintegrating. In seconds the dome would lose its pressure seal and the oxygen in the room would be sucked out into space, not to mention anyone left inside. Stumbling to his feet, Archer grabbed Mayweather's arm and directed the young man to the doors at the back of the room. He could feel the air slipping away. It lifted the hair on the back of his sweaty neck. It was going to be close.
The smoke that was drifting into the room was moving upward toward the leak outside. Reed followed the wispy strings as they disappeared into the ceiling, understanding the problem. He pulled a small panel from his work station, ripping it right off the hinges. With a quick leap, he stood on the captain's chair, balancing precariously on the arms as he pulled his phase pistol.
They needed a stronger pressure leak to pull the panel up to the ceiling. "Hold on to something!" With careful aim in the thicker air, he fired once at the edge of seal. The instant gush of air rushing past him told him he had hit the target. He released the panel he held and it was sucked up with the lighter materials in the room to lodge against the small window, temporarily stabilizing the pressure leak.
One of the crew standing at the door hit the button and a brief gasp of atmosphere preceded their tumble into the hallway outside.
"Get out!" Reed commanded with a leap as he landed on the floor and helped Travis pull the captain to his feet. They dragged him off the bridge and sealed the door behind them. It didn't matter if the pressure destabilized on the bridge now; they were safe for the moment in the corridor.
T'Pol was already leading the way to the maintenance shaft, pulling off the access panel and indicating that the crewmen should climb down the ladder. Reed helped Hoshi into the tube as the Vulcan turned to check the wounds of her commanding officer. There was a thin line of blood over one eye, but it appeared to be a superficial injury. "I believe you will continue to live," she informed Archer.
"It'll take more than a knock on the head," he muttered, waving her assistance away. Travis disappeared into the access shaft as Archer hit the comm button next to the turbo-lift. "Archer to Engineering. We've lost the Bridge, Trip."
"Trip to Archer." The ship rocked beneath his feet as the reply came back weak and full of static. "We're having…trouble with Enginee…lasma leak and I'm….evacuating." The chief engineer's voice got cut off as the signal went dead.
"Trip? Trip!" Archer hit the wall panel in frustration. "How the hell did those things get in?"
"Sir, I'm not certain we can fight them off at this time," Malcolm announced. There were only three people left on this deck and Reed felt safe enough to advocate something drastic.
"What are you suggesting, Lieutenant?"
"Perhaps we should find a way to save the lives that we can." Malcolm's gray eyes looked deep into Archer's face. "Get as many crewmen off the ship as possible, and attack them in smaller groups."
"Evacuate?" The thought was unthinkable. Even when the Xindi had blown the Enterprise to pieces, they still had not abandoned the ship. There had to be other alternatives. "I think we can make a stand here, Malcolm. We just need to re-initiate command functions."
"Main computer access was transferred to the secondary systems in the command center on E Deck," T'Pol told the captain.
Archer sighed heavily. "I guess we're heading for the Command Center," he agreed. He led the few who remained down the access ladder and into the heart of the ship.