Episode 4: Star Base 1

Sorry it's been so long since I last posted. I have been wrapping up my degree and haven't had time to write anything non-academic since before Christmastime. I'm hoping to be able to add more chapters now that school is slowing down slightly. NO PROMISES.

Season 2 RECAP:

Beginning in Season 2 Trip and T'Pol are married, Hoshi and Malcolm are in a pretty serious relationship, and Lorian and Karyn are engaged to be married. Little Elizabeth is settling in nicely with her parents.

Trip was kidnapped by Soval in order to have a secret meeting about the complicated political and cultural situation on Vulcan. Syrranites, who Soval considers himself to be one of, have asked for Trip and T'Pol's assistance.

T'Pol is visited by Doctor Yuris who rids her of her Panar Syndrome.

Hoshi and Malcolm visit her parents and things do not go well for Malcolm. Hoshi's father tells him to leave and end his relationship with Hoshi so Malcolm does. Hoshi follows him, thus jeopardizing her relationship with her parents. (Not to worry, I have no plans on making her choose one world or the other.)

The memorial service has finally come and Sim is given his due respect. Trip is empathic which explains why both Lorian and Beth are empathic.

Now onto the next….

February 11, 2156

Trip shrugged on his uniform and pulled up the zip. He stretched out his limbs, working out the kinks. Endurance was quickly speeding towards Star Base 1, just a little under one week left at Warp 2, and Trip was starting to feel antsy. Beth was six months old and finally sleeping through the night, thank God. He couldn't remember the last time he had slept completely through the night without being awoken by the sounds of a very hungry, fussy, messy baby girl. He looked over to the moses basket in which the culprit herself lay sleeping peacefully. He smiled softly and walked over to her, planting a sweet kiss to the top of her head. Her wispy brown hair softly tickling his nose. She still smelled like a fresh baby. He wondered when she would finally turn into a sticky, screaming tyrant like his nephews were. He sent a silent prayer to the universe asking for just a little more time with her as the sweet innocent baby. Trip didn't think he could handle getting no sleep again.

As Trip quietly left his sleeping wife and daughter and made his way to the Mess Hall for a cup of coffee he took a look around. He was going to be seeing a lot of this ship and her crew for the foreseeable future. Endurance being assigned to Star Base 1 seemed logical and frankly Trip was happy to have his son and new daughter-in-law close at hand. Having all of the Endurance crew near their families also went over pretty well for all concerned. The star base was to be crewed by men and women, and whatever other genders the species involved had, who had families. New crew was being transferred to Endurance, some of whom had spouses that would be serving on the star base. The crew transport was just under two weeks out from the base and that left Trip and T'Pol a week to get everything ready for their future subordinates. A week. Jeez, I really hope I don't screw this up.

Trip sipped on his hot coffee as he made his way to the turbolift at the end of the corridor. Lorian had been on duty for quite some time and Trip had agreed to relieve him. Having three captains aboard one ship normally complicated matters and inevitably led to some sort of pissing contest but the three of them worked so well together that there was never any worry. And to think, Starfleet was against having families on ships. They clearly never worked with the Tuckers. Trip and T'Pol took turns sitting on the Bridge, taking command if need-be when Lorian was off duty. Ideally that meant that there was always a captain on duty but it also meant that they didn't see each other often. As far as command experience went, Lorian had a few years on both of his parents, but the crew trusted the Tuckers with their lives.

The Bridge was especially quiet when Trip exited the turbo lift. He was still getting used to the idea of walking onto the bridge of Endurance and seeing the interior of the Enterprise being manned by a completely different crew. Only a few things had been physically changed by the generations that lived on it and the Jupiter Station crew had upgraded a few things as well. For the most part Trip felt like he was walking through his front door. He walked over to the command chair and placed his hand on Lorian's slumped right shoulder. "Hey son, ready to head home?" He smiled down at him.

Lorian looked up at him, brow creased, eyes weary. "You have no idea how good it is to see you. I was beginning to think you forgot about your shift." Trip frowned. He was early to his duty shift but he could see that Lorian was exhausted.

Trip leaned forward and looked Lorian in the eyes, concern written in them."Why don't I walk you to your quarters?" It was more of an order than a question and Lorian knew better than to argue with his father. He nodded and stood slowly. Trip turned to the Science Console, "Ensign Casey, you have the bridge, if you need me you can always comm. me." Father and son made their way to the turbo lift and Trip decided then and there that they had a stop to make before heading to the Captains Quarters.

Once inside the lift Trip pressed the button for the deck to take them to sick bay. Lorian didn't even notice, he was staring off into space, his eyes unfocused and his breathing shallow. Trip was beginning to feel really worried about his son but forced the worry away so he wouldn't disrupt T'Pol or Elizabeth's sleep. The door slid open silently and Trip grabbed Lorian's forearm and pulled him along the corridor. When they entered sick bay Trip was met with a familiar face that he had been avoiding for most of the trip. Feezal Phlox greeted them both with a beaming smile before taking in Lorian's appearance. She rushed forward, scanner at the ready, as Trip steered him onto a biobed.

Lorian laid down without complaint and Trip fought the urge to send a burst of anxiety to T'Pol. Lorian needed him right now and waking T'Pol wouldn't serve a purpose at this moment. Lorian closed his eyes and his breathing quickly became deep and soft. Trip looked over to Feezal who finished her scan and nodded Trip away from the biobed. She pulled the privacy curtain closed around Lorian and turned to Trip.

Her voice was uncharacteristically quiet and her eyes kept flitting back to where Lorian lay. "He's unconscious right now, he seems to be experiencing extreme fatigue. Has he been sleeping well lately?"

Trip pushed his tongue into his cheek and thought about it. Lorian seemed to be getting plenty of sleep, especially since T'Pol and he were taking command shifts. In fact, Lorian hadn't seemed out of sorts until Trip went to relieve him today. "As far as I know he's been sleepin' just fine." He looked over to the curtained off area that held his son. "This came out of nowhere. He would have mentioned something or we would have noticed something. Do you know what could have caused this sudden exhaustion?"

Feezal walked over to the medical computer and began scrolling through various medical files. She shook her head. "I'm going to need more time to run tests. I would like Karyn to come in for an examination as well." Trip nodded.

"I'll head to their quarters to get her. Anything else?" Trip moved towards to door and gave his son one last fleeting look before Feezal smiled him out and turned back to the computer.

Trip pressed the door chime four times before deciding to just enter his override code, which hadn't changed since Enterprise was shipped out the first time, and entering into the cabin. Once the pneumatic door opened with a faint noise he stepped in. The lights were off and he could hear the soft breathing associated with slumber.

Trip stepped further into the room and the door slid shut behind him. He whispered into the room, "Karyn." He walked over to the bed and crouched by its side. He reached out and gently shook the shoulder of the shadow in the bed. "Karyn, honey, ya gotta wake up." His only answer was a groan. He sighed and stood up walking over to the desk. He flicked on the small lamp and the unconscious form of his daughter-in-law filled his eyes. She looked positively terrible. Trip walked over and shook her shoulder once again.

She remained unresponsive so he decided to carry her to sickbay. If she was ill and Lorian was ill then it was likely he already had it. That thought caused a sharp pain of fear to stab his gut. What if Beth gets this? What if it's deadly? T'Pol could die, Beth could die, Lorian, Karyn, everyone I care about. The whole crew. He pushed away his fears but he could feel T'Pol stirring in his mind and felt her send a rush of strength and love to him. He lifted Karyn to his chest and exited her quarters. He quickly made his way to sick bay.

T'Pol was sleeping when she suddenly felt overwhelmed by fear. She jolted up in bed with a desperate desire to check on Elizabeth and ensure her health and safety. She could sense that the fear was not her own but that Elizabeth was one of his worries. She sent him all of the emotional support she could and picked up a slumbering Elizabeth. She knew it would wake her up but she needed to feel her daughter in her arms. Elizabeth barely stirred and T'Pol grew concerned once again. It was unlike her daughter to be so somnolent, she looked down at her and noticed that Elizabeth was sweating. She did feel warm to the touch.

T'Pol quickly made her way to sickbay, her thoughts on her daughters well-being. She entered to see both Lorian and Karyn on biobeds. Trip turned to her immediately and worry danced across his face. "What has happened?" She asked breathlessly. She couldn't understand why she was having difficulties breathing all of a sudden. Trip reached forward and took Elizabeth from her arms and steered T'Pol to the only remaining bed in sickbay.

He called Feezal over who examined T'Pol and Elizabeth before nodding her head seriously and moving back to the monitor. Trip finally answered her question when he sat down beside her. He held Elizabeth in his arms, her body covered in a light blanket meant to fight off fevers. "I went to relieve Lorian of duty this morning as planned. When I got there he looked pretty bad so I brought him here. He barely made it before passin' out. I went to get Karyn for tests and she was unresponsive. They both have high fevers, chills, exhaustion, and for Karyn, nausea. Looks like you and Beth have whatever it is too."

T'Pol leaned into him and placed her head on his shoulder. "Are you sick?" He looked down at her. He voice was so quiet he had to strain to hear her. She was already drifting off into unconsciousness.

He shifted so she could rest more comfortably. When he responded he was quiet. "No, I'm not sick. Feezal already gave me a clean bill of health."

T'Pol shifted slightly, sleep already holding her tightly. "That is good." She said sleepily, the calming darkness taking her. Trip sat there surrounded by his family and fought and invisible battle with fear.

Feezal's unbelievably blue eyes were the first thing he saw when he awoke. The uncomfortable sickbay chair that he had been sleeping in left his body stiff and achy. He looked up at her with a question written on his face. She nodded and smiled at him. "I know what it is." She motioned him over to the monitor and brought up all four files. "They have the Influenza virus. You were vaccinated which explains why you are not infected."

Trip scrunched up his face. The flu hit them all? At once? Wait. "T'Pol was also vaccinated. The whole crew was before we left space dock. Phlox kept us up to date on all of our vaccinations." Trip fought the urge to rub the spot on his buttock where Phlox had given him his injection.

Feezal nodded again, she does that a lot Trip noticed, and motioned to T'Pol's file. "Normally she would also be immune but because she is breast feeding her immune system is compromised. A most fascinating aspect of Vulcan physiology. It would seem that when certain hormones are stimulated..." Trip tuned her out and turned to the biobeds. His whole family, his children and wife, were all fighting the flu. At least it was something that they could treat the symptoms of and he didn't have any real worries about T'Pol or Lorian or Karyn. But would Beth's tiny body be able to fight off the infection? He asked Feezal that question, interrupting what could only have been the most medically centered tangent in the history of tangents. "She is going to be fine Captain Tucker. Your daughter is very strong. I think they will all be on their feet by the end of the week. You should get plenty of rest and drink plenty of fluids to keep up your strength in the mean time. No need for you to get sick as well." She smiled a big Phlox smile and ushered him out of sick bay and to his quarters.

The warm water of a shower called out to him. He slowly removed his slept in uniform and deposited it into the laundry chute. The chilled air touching his skin jolted awake his lethargic brain. He walked slowly into the bathroom and looked at his haggard appearance. His face was drawn and pale, his hair stuck up in various directions, and he had a small amount of beard growth on his face. With a heavy sigh he turned on his shower and let the warm water wash away his worries.

One Week Later

After a fairly uneventful week as acting captain of Endurance, Trip was ready to take a break. Between serving his shifts on the bridge and swinging by Engineering he hardly slept. The fact that he couldn't seem to sleep without T'Pol in bed with him only exacerbated things. Lorian was cleared for duty after a week of bed rest and recuperating. Beth was a resilient little thing and kicked the virus after four days so Trip had to utilize the nursery for three days until T'Pol was released from Sick Bay. Karyn was still fighting through the worst of it and needed to stay in Sick Bay for another week at the most. Her Ikaaran physiology wasn't designed to fight off the flu.

Trip emerged onto the Bridge and took his place in the Command Chair. He spoke into the silence of the Bridge. "Report."

Lieutenant Rianna Mayweather, Travis' great-granddaughter answered from the communications board. "T-Minus four hours until arrival at Star Base 1 sir. We received a message from the skeleton crew on the base 45 minutes ago keeping to the communications schedule." Trip nodded and sat back in the chair. He finally felt like things were calming down. T'Pol was back in their temporary quarters, Beth was happy and healthy, and Lorian was still taking it easy while he waited for Karyn to recover. After the Expanse this mission felt like a cake walk.

The four hours passed slowly on the Bridge. With very little in the way of Astronomical Phenomena and absolutely no combat to occupy his attention paperwork was the only thing to do. He hadn't finished a report within the week of the event in years, maybe never. "Sir, we're within visual range. T-Minus ten minutes until arrival." Lieutenant Mayweather announced, breaking the festering silence that had fallen over he Bridge.

He looked up from the PADD in his hand and looked over to her. "On screen." The image of a structure resembling a grain of rice with rings encircling either end filled the screen. Trip took in the sight with the scrutinizing expertise of an engineer. He could see the four empty docking bays, the three small repair crafts attached on the docking arm of the topmost ring. The engineering compartment in the center was lit up and only two rows of lights above and below were on. The rings, which would offer a form of energy that wold be used to power lights, weren't rotating.

"Sir we're being hailed." He looked over to the communications board. Rianna was looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

He sat forward in his chair and nodded to her. "On screen." The smiling face of the base physician and currently the highest ranking officer on the base filled the screen. Trip had the vague thought that maybe every doctor in Starfleet was part of the Inter-Species Medical Exchanged. He quickly pushed that thought aside and took in the smiling face of the Andorian on the screen in front of him. His hair was longer than Shran's had been and had been styled in some pompadour-esque coif. His piercing blue eyes left Trip a little unsettled by the idea of this man being the base physician. "Greetings, I am Captain Charles Tucker the Third."

The Andorian smiled bigger and his antennae waved in amusement at Trip's official language. "Greetings Captain Tucker, I am Doctor Keval Endilev, Commander in the Andorian Guard."

Trip nodded. "It's good to finally speak to you. We should be within docking range in," he looked to the pilot who did a quick calculation before turning to him and raising seven fingers. "Seven minutes. We have supplies and personnel to offload."

Keval spoke quickly to someone off screen and then returned his attention to Trip once again. "Looking forward to new food stuffs sir. We'll roll out the red carpet for you and Captain T'Pol. Welcome home sir."

Trip smirked. Home. Well I guess it is home. He had a momentary flash of Beth running down the corridors, tearing stuff apart. He had to fight the impulse to laugh. "Thank you Keval, it's good to be home."