CHAPTER 9;
A BAD EXPERIENCE
"What the hell was that?" Ensign Travis Mayweather asked himself when he heard a loud cry, and the sound of feet running from around the corner. He poked his head round the bend, only to see that there was no one there.
"Weird," he mumbled to himself, and moved on round the corner, looking about himself, curious as to what the racket had all been about.
As he was pondering the mystery, there came the sound of several people exclaiming something, causing Travis to become interested, and jog in their general direction.
He arrived to find at least four crewmembers -two ensigns and two crewmen- staring in the opposite direction, as if something had raced past in a perplexing manner.
"What happened?" Travis asked them, his voice displaying his youthful curiousity and confusion.
And Ensign looked to him, one whose name Travis thought was Benson, and replied, "It was Commander Tucker. He just… ran past. Nearly bowled me over too. I don't know what was wrong with him… he looked terrified." Benson glanced over Travis' shoulder to see if something was behind him, and indeed there wasn't. "It was weird."
I should think it was! The thought worried Travis, and he turned to Benson, and asked, "Which way did he go?"
"Just down there. I think he turned right after that. From there… who knows?" Benson replied, shrugging.
"Thanks," Travis said quietly, nodding to Benson, and taking off at a run in the direction pointed out to him, confusion overtaking him. What had got Trip running scared?
Travis kept going; looking round each corner, noticing that there was at least one confused crewmember on the route Trip had obviously taken.
And then he turned the last corner.
"Trip? Oh my god," Travis mumbled, seeing the unconscious form of the Commander at an intersection ahead.
He ran swiftly down the corridor, stopping briefly at a comm panel to alert Doctor Phlox to the situation. He knelt down next to Trip, and felt his neck for a pulse. It was erratic, and the Commander's breathing was rapid, as though he were fighting for air.
Travis wanted to shake Trip; to see if he would wake, but thought against it, in case it could make matters worse. He just waited by the unconscious Commander until Doctor Phlox, Captain Archer and Sub-Commander T'Pol arrived. In his hands, Archer had a lightweight stretcher.
After them came two crewmen, who seemed to resemble rabbits in headlights, scared witless.
"I just found him lying here," Travis reported, seeing the worried look in Captain Archer's gentle eyes. "Ensign Benson told me he had been running from something. I don't know what."
"It would appear that Commander Tucker has had another of your so called 'episodes', Captain," T'Pol said dryly, her voice calm and collected.
Archer's head snapped in her direction, his eyes narrowed. "Do you have to comment on every little thing?" It wasn't a question to be answered, and it appeared T'Pol realised this, as she kept her mouth firmly closed, her hands clasped loosely behind her back.
The two crewmen aided Doctor Phlox in getting Trip onto the stretcher after he had said it was safe to do so. He, like Travis, had checked Trip's pulse, and after a sigh, had nodded to the two crewmen, who had taken the stretcher off the Captain.
After securing Trip to the stretcher, Phlox told the crewmen to take him to sickbay. They obeyed without question, with the Doctor in tow.
Archer followed close behind, T'Pol and Travis bringing up the rear.
Travis had noticed the look of fear on Trip's face, even in unconsciousness, and that look had worried him.
He wished someone would tell him what was going on here.
Jonathan Archer stood in sickbay with T'Pol and Mayweather, both of who he had permitted to remain, only because they had seen Trip's condition already. It was unnecessary to order them back to their posts at this point in time. Their services were not desperately needed on the bridge. Mayweather had been relieved for the rest of the night anyway.
Jon couldn't get his head around what was going on. He had explained the events up until this point to the two other bridge officers, and after a few useless comments from a certain Vulcan, he had told them to stay close, in case something else happened.
"Can you wake him, Doctor?" Jon asked Phlox, who was staring at a panel near to Trip's biobed.
Phlox looked back at him with shocking blue eyes, and cocked his head to one side in thought, and then nodded. "I believe so. I'm not quite sure what Mr. Tucker's immediate reaction will be, so it might be advisable to stay back for a moment."
Jon nodded, even if he didn't like it. He too didn't know what Trip was going to do upon regaining consciousness, and it was a good idea to stay a safe distance away.
Phlox injected something into Trip's neck, and then moved back.
Trip woke almost instantly, and just as quickly shot up form the bed, almost falling off it, and clutched his head tightly, closing his eyes.
"Trip? It's me, Jon. You're okay," Jon said, moving forward tentatively.
Trip looked up at him, a look of sheer terror in his blue eyes, and shot off the bed, cowering in the corner. "Get away from me!" he yelled, his voice weak and full of child-like fright.
He covered his head, his fingers twining in his hair, his breathing rapid, and seemingly forced. It was heavy, and Jon could hear it cut through the silence like a knife.
"Trip… don't be frightened. Tell me what happened to you," Jon said softly, moving up to Trip, lowering himself to his friend's level.
Trip did not look up from his position on the floor, his head tucked into his knees, his hands over his head, legs curled up near to his chest.
He looked like a child, frightened for his life.
Jon couldn't help but feel for Trip, his friend long before they had joined the Enterprise crew. He had been through more than one scrape with this man before, and he was going to help his through this one too.
But as he moved even closer, Trip lashed out at him, barely missing him, causing Jon to fall back onto the ground, looking up at Phlox with an exasperated look of shock on his face.
Trip got off the floor, and moved away quickly, hiding in another corner.
With a heavy sigh, Jon picked himself off the floor, and moved over to Phlox. "What's happened to him?"
"All I can think of is that the Commander went through something so terrifying that it had affected him on some major level."
T'Pol moved up to the two of them, casting a glance over her shoulder at Trip. "Will he recover?"
Phlox looked over to the far corner at the cowering Commander.
"I don't know."
A BAD EXPERIENCE
"What the hell was that?" Ensign Travis Mayweather asked himself when he heard a loud cry, and the sound of feet running from around the corner. He poked his head round the bend, only to see that there was no one there.
"Weird," he mumbled to himself, and moved on round the corner, looking about himself, curious as to what the racket had all been about.
As he was pondering the mystery, there came the sound of several people exclaiming something, causing Travis to become interested, and jog in their general direction.
He arrived to find at least four crewmembers -two ensigns and two crewmen- staring in the opposite direction, as if something had raced past in a perplexing manner.
"What happened?" Travis asked them, his voice displaying his youthful curiousity and confusion.
And Ensign looked to him, one whose name Travis thought was Benson, and replied, "It was Commander Tucker. He just… ran past. Nearly bowled me over too. I don't know what was wrong with him… he looked terrified." Benson glanced over Travis' shoulder to see if something was behind him, and indeed there wasn't. "It was weird."
I should think it was! The thought worried Travis, and he turned to Benson, and asked, "Which way did he go?"
"Just down there. I think he turned right after that. From there… who knows?" Benson replied, shrugging.
"Thanks," Travis said quietly, nodding to Benson, and taking off at a run in the direction pointed out to him, confusion overtaking him. What had got Trip running scared?
Travis kept going; looking round each corner, noticing that there was at least one confused crewmember on the route Trip had obviously taken.
And then he turned the last corner.
"Trip? Oh my god," Travis mumbled, seeing the unconscious form of the Commander at an intersection ahead.
He ran swiftly down the corridor, stopping briefly at a comm panel to alert Doctor Phlox to the situation. He knelt down next to Trip, and felt his neck for a pulse. It was erratic, and the Commander's breathing was rapid, as though he were fighting for air.
Travis wanted to shake Trip; to see if he would wake, but thought against it, in case it could make matters worse. He just waited by the unconscious Commander until Doctor Phlox, Captain Archer and Sub-Commander T'Pol arrived. In his hands, Archer had a lightweight stretcher.
After them came two crewmen, who seemed to resemble rabbits in headlights, scared witless.
"I just found him lying here," Travis reported, seeing the worried look in Captain Archer's gentle eyes. "Ensign Benson told me he had been running from something. I don't know what."
"It would appear that Commander Tucker has had another of your so called 'episodes', Captain," T'Pol said dryly, her voice calm and collected.
Archer's head snapped in her direction, his eyes narrowed. "Do you have to comment on every little thing?" It wasn't a question to be answered, and it appeared T'Pol realised this, as she kept her mouth firmly closed, her hands clasped loosely behind her back.
The two crewmen aided Doctor Phlox in getting Trip onto the stretcher after he had said it was safe to do so. He, like Travis, had checked Trip's pulse, and after a sigh, had nodded to the two crewmen, who had taken the stretcher off the Captain.
After securing Trip to the stretcher, Phlox told the crewmen to take him to sickbay. They obeyed without question, with the Doctor in tow.
Archer followed close behind, T'Pol and Travis bringing up the rear.
Travis had noticed the look of fear on Trip's face, even in unconsciousness, and that look had worried him.
He wished someone would tell him what was going on here.
Jonathan Archer stood in sickbay with T'Pol and Mayweather, both of who he had permitted to remain, only because they had seen Trip's condition already. It was unnecessary to order them back to their posts at this point in time. Their services were not desperately needed on the bridge. Mayweather had been relieved for the rest of the night anyway.
Jon couldn't get his head around what was going on. He had explained the events up until this point to the two other bridge officers, and after a few useless comments from a certain Vulcan, he had told them to stay close, in case something else happened.
"Can you wake him, Doctor?" Jon asked Phlox, who was staring at a panel near to Trip's biobed.
Phlox looked back at him with shocking blue eyes, and cocked his head to one side in thought, and then nodded. "I believe so. I'm not quite sure what Mr. Tucker's immediate reaction will be, so it might be advisable to stay back for a moment."
Jon nodded, even if he didn't like it. He too didn't know what Trip was going to do upon regaining consciousness, and it was a good idea to stay a safe distance away.
Phlox injected something into Trip's neck, and then moved back.
Trip woke almost instantly, and just as quickly shot up form the bed, almost falling off it, and clutched his head tightly, closing his eyes.
"Trip? It's me, Jon. You're okay," Jon said, moving forward tentatively.
Trip looked up at him, a look of sheer terror in his blue eyes, and shot off the bed, cowering in the corner. "Get away from me!" he yelled, his voice weak and full of child-like fright.
He covered his head, his fingers twining in his hair, his breathing rapid, and seemingly forced. It was heavy, and Jon could hear it cut through the silence like a knife.
"Trip… don't be frightened. Tell me what happened to you," Jon said softly, moving up to Trip, lowering himself to his friend's level.
Trip did not look up from his position on the floor, his head tucked into his knees, his hands over his head, legs curled up near to his chest.
He looked like a child, frightened for his life.
Jon couldn't help but feel for Trip, his friend long before they had joined the Enterprise crew. He had been through more than one scrape with this man before, and he was going to help his through this one too.
But as he moved even closer, Trip lashed out at him, barely missing him, causing Jon to fall back onto the ground, looking up at Phlox with an exasperated look of shock on his face.
Trip got off the floor, and moved away quickly, hiding in another corner.
With a heavy sigh, Jon picked himself off the floor, and moved over to Phlox. "What's happened to him?"
"All I can think of is that the Commander went through something so terrifying that it had affected him on some major level."
T'Pol moved up to the two of them, casting a glance over her shoulder at Trip. "Will he recover?"
Phlox looked over to the far corner at the cowering Commander.
"I don't know."