Author's note: This is my first Enterprise fanfic, so I hope you all enjoy it! Please R&R and let me know what you think! I do have somewhere to go with it. J

Additional note: For some reason, my first account was deactivated, so I'm re-posting this story under my new account, which has the same name but different email. Enjoy!

Captain Jonathan Archer sat calmly in his chair, watching the stars fly by on the viewfinder. They were swiftly approaching a nebula that T'Pol had reported as currently birthing a new star. He glanced over at his science officer. She returned his look by merely raising an eyebrow. He looked away with a grin. So calmly Vulcan, so icily serious, her mere presence sometimes made Archer want to let out a loud baseball cheer just to see her reaction.

"Captain, our sensors have picked up a ship in distress." T'Pol's voice broke into Archer's thoughts.

"How far?" he asked.

"Two light-minutes. Do you wish to answer?"

Archer nodded. "Hoshi, please hail them."

"They're responding, Captain. I'll put it on screen."

The screen came to life, showing Archer a human male looking at him worriedly. Behind the man, the bridge was gloomy, with smoke allowing fleeting glimpses of crew moving frantically, occasionally highlighted by sparks from consoles.

"This is Captain Jonathan Archer of the starship Enterprise. How may we help you?"

"Captain, thank God you're here! I'm Captain Caleb Kistral, and this is my ship, Wind Dancer. Pirates attacked us a few hours ago. Most of our systems are shot, and a lot of the crew is wounded."

"How many in your crew, Captain?"

"Fifty-four, including myself. We don't have any children on board. We-"

He broke off as another man came and whispered frantically to him. Suddenly, a shower of sparks briefly obscured Archer's view. When the smoke cleared, he could see that the people who had been moving were now lying still on the floor. The captain shook his head groggily. He looked back at Archer, blood running from a cut above his left eye, the left side of his face darkened by burns.

"Captain Archer, my engineer tells me that our warp reactor is overloading. We don't have much time. There are three of my people on an escape pod, but we won't have time to get the rest out. Please, I'm asking you to take them in and get them home if you can. Will you?"

Archer hesitated. Not that he was against taking in extra people, but to do so in a split second…He glanced at Captain Kistral, who coughed hard, bringing up blood. Kistral stared back at Archer, pleading with his eyes. Archer nodded. Kistral's face relaxed.

"Thank you, Captain. Thank y-" His words were cut off as another explosion flared across his bridge, and the viewscreen cut out.

"Captain," Malcolm Reed called, "that ship's ready to blow. I suggest we get out of here."

"Did they jettison an escape pod?" Archer asked. Reed nodded in confirmation. "Then pick it up, and let's get ourselves out of range. Trip," he called out, "get the grappler ready."

In a few moments, Enterprise had a hold of the pod, and Mayweather moved the ship out of range, with not a moment to spare. The next thing Archer knew, the Wind Dancer exploded.

"Polarize the hull plating!" he yelled. An instant later, Enterprise was buffeted by the shock waves of the explosion. However, the hull held, and no one was hurt. Archer waited for his ship to settle, and gesturing to T'Pol to follow him, he headed to the shuttlebay to greet the refugees.

He found the doctor waiting for them when they reached the shuttlebay. Phlox gave him a brief smile, and the captain nodded then pressed the release button and stepped into the room. He saw one man standing, with cuts all over his face and arms, and Archer could see red marks through the rips in the man's clothing. A second man was down on the floor. He was very still, and his skin was ghastly pale and covered with lacerations. His head was being supported in the lap of a young woman, who, while sporting several small lacerations and a darkening bruise on her cheek, looked in better shape than her companions were.

"Captain Archer?" the first man inquired. Archer nodded. The man continued. "Alex Green, sir, pleased to meet you. Wish it were under better circumstances. Captain Kistral had enough time to tell us who you were. Did…the ship…?"

"I'm sorry, it exploded. There wasn't anything we could do."

The man clenched his jaw and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, Archer could see the grief there. "I want to thank you anyway for coming, Captain. At least we managed to get Jacobs here and Kesslyn to safety."

The girl looked up, her wide gray eyes brimming with tears. "Just me, Alex. Nick's heart isn't beating. I think he's dead."

Green cursed and swiftly bent down to the other man. Archer gestured to the doctor, and Phlox joined Green. After a few moments, he looked up and shook his head.

"Severe trauma to the head, Captain, and his lung was punctured. I believe he died just as he was being taken out of the escape pod."

"Dammit!" Both Archer and Green had spoken simultaneously. Green looked over at Archer. "Nick Jacobs, Captain, he was a good man. He was one of our engineers. He was always real protective of Kesslyn."

At her name, the girl turned to look at them. During Phlox's examination, she had gotten herself up and was standing with her arms wrapped tightly around her waist. Tears streamed down her face, marking clear tracks through the dust and blood.

"He was my friend," she whispered. Agony laced through her voice. "And Captain Kistral, and everyone else. All my friends, my only family, my home. All gone. Oh, Alex, what are we going to do? What happens to me now?"

Green caught her against him, sobs wracking her slender form. He stroked the tangled hair, making soothing noises. "Hush, little one, it's going to be all right. You're safe. We'll figure something out."

To Archer, it looked for all the world like a father comforting his daughter. He gestured to Phlox and T'Pol, and they stepped away to confer and to give the two some privacy.

"What do you think?" he asked.

The doctor looked over at the two refugees and made a noise of sympathy. "I need to treat them. Mr. Green has several deep gashes, and the girl needs her cuts cleaned as well. I just wish I could have done more for Mr. Jacobs there."

T'Pol spoke in a low voice. "It is a most unfortunate circumstance, Captain. I believe the doctor is correct, and the two should be treated. But as their ship was attacked, it would be wise to speak with Mr. Green and learn what we can of these pirates, in case they return. I would also like to know what is so important about that girl."

Archer frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"

"Captain Kistral chose to place those three on the first pod. Why that girl? What was her position on the ship? And she did not ask what would happen to them, but what would happen to her. Furthermore, Mr. Green said that she was safe, not that they were safe."

Archer glanced over at the pair again. T'Pol might have a point. He instructed Phlox to take the two down to sickbay and let him know when he was done. He gestured to T'Pol, and after explaining to Green what was happening, he and T'Pol left to return to the bridge.

"T'Pol, do you think she's any kind of threat?" Archer asked, nodding to a crewman that they passed. T'Pol shook her head.

"I do not have an opinion as to that, Captain. I merely noted those things and wish to know if they have any significance."

Archer sighed. "I hope you're wrong. Not that I question your instincts," he said hastily, trying to stave off the small frown she gave him, "but they've already lost a ship and many friends. I don't want to learn that there are worse things coming."

With that, they entered the bridge and proceeded to inform his officers about the current situation. They reacted predictably enough. Hoshi was sympathetically sorrowful and hoped for a chance to talk to the pair. Mayweather showed visible anger at the thought of more pirates attacking freight ships. Both Tucker and Reed wanted to talk to Mr. Green as soon as possible, Trip to see what he might need to modify to evade the pirates if necessary, Reed to see what he might need to do to reinforce themselves against attack or to go on the defensive. Archer let them talk it out for a few minutes, but as the din of voices increased, he held up a hand and called out.

"Quiet!"

The bridge crew, startled, immediately fell silent as all eyes turned to Archer.

"I understand that we all feel something about the situation, but nothing's going to get accomplished if we sit around arguing about what we do first! I'm going to wait for Doctor Phlox's report before we proceed with anything. Now, everyone, let's get back to work."

With slightly abashed expressions, the crew turned back to their duties. However, anticipation over the doctor's report caused a hum of tension on the bridge that Archer could clearly feel. He was almost tempted to call Phlox himself, just to break the silence. Just as he was reaching for his communicator, Phlox called for him. The doctor's voice made all of them, with the possible exception of T'Pol, jump. And even she looked a bit startled. Archer saw that Hoshi's jump had carried her further than the rest; more precisely, it had taken her to the floor. He suppressed a smile as she sheepishly climbed back into her seat.

"Archer here. Go ahead."

"Captain, I think you should come down here. And perhaps bring the sub-commander with you."

"Is something wrong?"

"I'm not exactly sure, Captain. That's why I suggest you bring T'Pol."

"I'll be right there, Doctor. Archer out."

He nodded, and T'Pol rose gracefully and followed him. He could feel the eyes of the bridge crew boring into his back as he walked out. He hoped very fervently that it was not something serious. After the encounter with Sulik and the officer from the future, the last thing Enterprise needed was another crisis.

When he reached sickbay, he saw that Phlox was waiting for him outside. Archer noted immediately that it was something of importance, because the normally jovial expression the doctor wore was now slightly worried.

"What is it, Doctor?" Archer asked. "Is something wrong with Mr. Green or Kesslyn?"

"Nothing with Mr. Green, Captain, he has a clean bill of health, apart from the wounds he received. Nothing too serious, he should end up with nothing more than a few faint scars. With Kesslyn, however, the answer is both yes and no. She seems to be perfectly healthy. Her lacerations should heal just fine, and leave no scars. However, it's what the other scans revealed that troubles me, Captain."

"What is it? Is she a carrier of a virus or something?"

"No, Captain. The thing is..well, she would appear to be normal for a human girl her approximate age. Except, Captain, she's not human."

Archer's mouth dropped in astonishment. She wasn't human? But she looked exactly like a human being! He quickly strode into sickbay and saw that Green was talking to Kesslyn in low tones. The girl looked upset. They both glanced up quickly as Archer walked over to them.

"The doctor just told me something very astonishing, Mr. Green, about Kesslyn. Care to confirm what he said?" Archer didn't miss how Green had positioned himself in front of Kesslyn as if to shield her, or the look that passed between the two.

"Kesslyn, kiddo, we've gotta tell him," Green said. "He rescued us, he has a right to know."

Kesslyn stared back at him for a moment. Fear and shock had dilated her eyes until there was just a thin rim of color surrounding her pupils. She bit her lip and slowly nodded. She looked at Archer then, and he was surprised at the fearful wariness he saw in her eyes. Green sighed and then looked up at the captain.

"I'm guessing that the doctor told you Kessa isn't human. We already know that, Captain, but we also know that she's lived her whole life aboard Wind Dancer and has been nothing but a great kid. We know that she's an orphan, and we know that she's very smart. There are only two things we don't know, Captain. We don't know where she's from, and we don't know what she is."