§ 10 §
What the hell? Archer could barely restrain himself from swearing aloud as he took in the information T'Pol was conveying in her unruffled voice.
"Can you read his biosigns?" he asked in concern.
T'Pol studied her information. "No, Captain," she said, looking up at him. "What I can read, however, is that that alien ship's engines are being powered up. It is logical to think the Commander may have something to do with that."
"Hail that ship." Archer ordered sharply.
Kelby indicated to Hoshi that she could use her station, and the Ensign quickly sat down and pressed her earpiece into her right ear, looking distressed but determined.
"Sorry, Sir, no response," she said quietly after a moment.
Trip studied the instruments before him with open satisfaction. Getting this baby to cooperate had been easier than expected. Lights were blinking and the wonderful hum of engines coming online filled the room. He heaved a deep breath, proud of a job well done.
"We will need all the power for the engines; we won't be able to keep shielding the ship from their scanners."
"We will shield only the engine room. And power up any weapons we can."
"The aliens will detect us."
"They won't do us any harm. We have their crewmember."
"Archer to Lieutenant Reed."
Malcolm felt as if he was falling, and his heart missed a beat. His eyes fluttered open. He was in his quarters, on his bunk and…
"Lieutenant Reed, respond…"
…this was no bloody dream. That was Archer's voice. And it sounded tense. In one swift movement he shoved the light blanket aside and propelled himself off the bed. Groping in the semi-darkness, he stumbled to the comm. link.
"Go ahead, Captain."
"I need you on the bridge, Malcolm. On the double."
"Be right there, Sir," Reed replied, frowning. It sounded like an emergency. Good thing he'd collapsed on the bed in his uniform.
"Sir, she's lifting off the surface," the ensign at Tactical said.
Archer clenched his teeth. Was Trip inside that damn ship? It seemed like the only possibility, since his biosigns were nowhere on the planet.
"Captain, our scanners can now penetrate the vessel again," T'Pol added. "Or, to be more precise, some of it - the engine room is still shielded. I am reading 5 biosigns, but Commander Tucker's is not one of them."
A high-pitched voice from the right said, "Some of their weapons have been powered up..."
Reed's man sounded a little frantic, and Archer wished the Lieutenant would hurry. The Ensign was young and inexperienced, and he needed his best man right now.
Just then the turbo lift opened and Malcolm rushed onto the bridge. He stopped abruptly in front of Archer, who had turned to face him, and his eyes silently questioned his Captain. Archer met them squarely.
"The alien vessel is taking off," he informed the Lieutenant, getting down to business. "Engines and some of her weapons have suddenly come online. Commander Tucker transported down to the planet about one and a half hours ago without permission, and we cannot pinpoint his biosigns. We believe him to be aboard that ship. In fact, we think he was the one responsible for getting her flying again. T'Pol is reading five biosigns on board."
Archer could almost see the wheels turning inside Reed's head. His clear blue-grey eyes were still fixed on his own, but they had narrowed slightly and the man's focus was obviously inward. With a short nod he then moved off to his station, his walk marred by a slight though still noticeable limp. The young ensign slipped out of the seat with undisguised relief painted on his face.
"They are armed with high yield particle weapons, Sir," Malcolm informed him calmly, after studying his readings a moment. "Nothing we cannot take on, but still, it would be best to avoid a fire fight, if the Commander is indeed on board that ship."
Travis turned wide-eyed to him. "Lieutenant, we're dead in the water and our engines are still off-line," he blurted out. "We couldn't engage that ship even if we wanted to…"
"Thank you for reminding us of that, Ensign," Archer said through gritted teeth.
"Sorry, Sir," Mayweather murmured, refocusing on his own, useless console.
Archer knew he had been a little harsh, but this was no time to dwell on it. He saw Reed's face twitch slightly, as if disgusted with himself for not remembering such a trifling detail as the fact that they could go nowhere. The Captain reached for the comm. link on his arm rest.
"Archer to Lieutenant Hess."
"Hess here."
"How long before we have any engines in working order?" he asked, his eyes locked with Malcolm's.
"Five or six hours for warp drive; less for impulse – I'd say an hour or so."
Too damn much time. He could see Reed was thinking the same
"The ship is about to leave the atmosphere," T'Pol said, a hint of stress finally entering her voice.
Reed jumped to his feet. "Sir, let me transport on board that vessel."
"And risk losing two officers instead of one?" Archer replied, hating the hoarseness in his voice.
"Respectfully, Captain, if that ship jumps to warp we risk never being able to find it again," Malcolm insisted. "In five or six hours she could be anywhere!"
Archer considered what Reed's words meant. Specifically, losing his Chief Engineer. No, dammit, losing his friend.
"The Captain is right, Lieutenant," T'Pol's voice said. "It is an illogical course of action."
"Can't we transport those 5 biosigns out?" Archer asked. Something about Mohammed and the mountain had suddenly popped into his mind.
"Negative, Captain," T'Pol replied after a tense moment. "The biosigns are… odd. We cannot seem to lock on to them."
"Sir." Reed's eyes had never left his Captain's. "Even if I can't disable the vessel, I'll probably be able to keep in contact with Enterprise, relay you her course…"
Still Archer hesitated. He hated choices that involved people's lives. He hated leaving Trip to his destiny, knowing it would be damn hard to find that ship again once she went to warp. He hated letting Reed go on a rescue mission that sounded more like a suicide one. Maybe he should go instead. But a ship's Captain shouldn't do the Armoury Officer's job. Reed had the training, Reed stood a better chance of success. He hated being Captain sometimes.
"Captain…" Malcolm's voice was vibrant and tense. "In a few minutes that ship will be out of transporter range. We don't have much time."
Archer pursed his lips and studied him. All of a sudden he could see right through his eyes, all of a sudden the man's shields were down, just like those of the alien ship. This wasn't Lieutenant Reed speaking, though the tone was collected and professional: underneath it was Malcolm, the friend who wouldn't let go. Trip was important to him too. Trip was too important to him.
Well, Trip was important, period. "Get ready, Lieutenant," he heard himself say. Damn, am I doing the right thing?
Reed actually broke into a smile. The man must be nuts, he was about to embark on what may well be a one-way mission and he was smiling. But then again, this was Malcolm. Archer saw him take off like a bullet towards the turbo lift and he didn't seem to be limping any more.
"Malcolm," he called after him.
Why on earth should he feel so protective towards the fiercest member of his crew? But the answer was not all that hard to find; it had to do with Reed's reckless willingness to put his life on the line. Perhaps generous was a better adjective.
Reed turned, already in the lift, his hand on the controls.
"Be careful."
"Always, Sir."
There was the incongruous grin again. And it actually looked good on Malcolm's face. Made him look almost invincible.
With a nod he pressed a button and was gone.
Malcolm's heart was racing as he rushed down the corridor to the transporter room. He knew the hammering in his chest wasn't only due to the rush of adrenaline for the impending mission; Archer's words kept echoing through his mind – Commander Tucker transported down to the planet without permission – without permission. That meant Trip was indeed not himself, and although Malcolm knew this was in itself a worrisome notion, he also knew it meant the past two days were a nightmare from which he could eventually wake up.
He reached his destination and found Phlox, Kelby and Müller waiting for him.
Müller wordlessly handed him a phase pistol, stun grenades, and a few other choice 'toys' he had been told to bring. Reed holstered his pistol; then, as he was finding places in various pockets for the rest of his things, he glanced at Phlox, who seemed to be waiting for his full attention before speaking.
Malcolm dismissed Müller with a nod, and the man went away with a "Good luck, Sir." Then he shot a look in Kelby's direction: the engineer was standing behind the console, intently preparing for the delicate job of scrambling his molecules. Reed turned his back to him
"Doctor," he said in a low voice. "I don't have much time. Did you check Commander Tucker after we spoke?"
Phlox's rueful blue eyes fluttered close for one millisecond. "I was unable to. Ensign Rostov's condition worsened and…" He trailed. "No matter." He handed Reed a couple of hyposprays. "This is a mild sedative. Just in case the Commander gets… too aggressive. But please don't use it unless you find it absolutely necessary. We don't know what's wrong with Mr. Tucker."
"And this?" Malcolm asked, looking at the second of Phlox's gifts.
"That's a painkiller, Mr. Reed," the Doctor answered, looking Malcolm straight in the eye. "I haven't forgotten that you're still also my patient. This is not exactly the kind of light duty I had intended when I told the Captain that you…"
Just then T'Pol's voice came through the comm. link, saving him from the rest of Phlox's lecture.
"Mr. Reed, the ship has left the atmosphere. She's still on impulse, but we can't tell for how long. Are you ready for transport?"
"Yes, Subcommander."
Malcolm took up position on the pad, grasped his phase pistol and looked at Kelby. "Better show me what you can do, Lieutenant," he told the man, tightening the grip on his weapon.
Kelby shot a wary look at the pistol and raised his brows. "Sure thing, Sir," he said with a feeble smile. Then he turned serious. "Bring the Chief back in one piece… and yourself too."
"I'll do my best."
Reed saw Kelby's hands pull the levers and swallowed past a lump in his throat as Enterprise's safe surroundings slowly faded away.
"Subject Two has transported on board."
"The automated security system is now powered up properly. This time he won't escape elimination."
"Shall we take command of the engine?"
"Let Subject One take the ship to warp; he is very capable. The second imprint will not last for much longer, but is still strong for the moment. We'll limit our control to navigation for now."
TBC