^*^*^*CHAPTER 5*^*^*^

That night, Trip nearly dragged his feet to his quarters. His eyes watered from yawning so much, and he was sweating form the heat. Finally, they finished fixing the warp core. And now they were on their way to Veekicia. They'd be there in only a matter of hours, and he was thrilled but a little too tired to celebrate. He was exhausted and just wanted to get back to sleep once again.

As he got in his quarters, he just plopped down on his bed, yawned, and closed his eyes. He wanted to rest before getting undressed but he could barely stay awake. In a matter of minutes, he nodded off to sleep.

"Charles? Charles is that you?" he heard a voice call. He looked around - nothing but vines, trees, and fruit. The cool air smelled of sweet citrus and it softly brushed against his warm skin. The sun was shining and he tried to see through the leaves, squinting.

"Judianna? Where are ya?!" he yelled. The rustling of the trees were loud. He walked closer to them and pushed some out of the way to look through. "Judianna?!"

"Come here, Charles!" a woman's voice laughed. Eagerly, he pushed through the branches, beaming with excitement. As he got to the other side, he looked around in confusion, and saw nothing.

"Judianna! C'mon!" he called, and stood still to listen for her. No answer. Disappointed, he scoffed and shrugged his shoulders, still looking around, smirking. "Judia--!" he felt a pair of delicate hands cover his eyes.

"Surprise" she whispered in his ear. He grinned, glowing.

He turned around and looked into her eyes, and gently rubbed her cheek. She smiled as he leaned in and pierced his lips...

"Lieutenant Reed to Commander Tucker..."

"...Commander Tucker?"

Trip huffed. His eyes shot open and he sat up. Rubbing his eyes, he stumbled up, walked over to the comm and pressed the button.

"Tucker here" he said agitated "... what can I do for ya, Malcolm?"

"Commander, I was just wondering if you can assist me in helping out the Veekicians with their weaponry problem, tomorrow. The Veekician captain is eager for us to fix them before we get them back to..."

"All right, Lieutenant" Trip grunted. "I'll meet ya at 08:00. Tucker out"

He slammed the button on the comm and stammered to his nightwear spread out on the floor. Genuinely irritated about being disturbed from his sleep, he quickly undressed and after pulling on his leggings, he lay back down on the bed. Punching his pillow, twisting and turning, he snarled because he couldn't get comfortable. Taking out the frustration on his pillow, he got worn out and laid still and closed his eyes. He thought of that dream, and even though there was something unsettling about it, he wanted to get back to it.

Eventually, he fell back asleep.

^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^

In the morning, they had reached Veekicia. Trip helped Lieutenant Reed with the Veekician ship once again and he felt his job was done with their guests. He wanted to get back to his everyday life and start working on everyday things for a little while. He had had enough with the Veekicians and didn't want to run into a new species for the time being, either. But that had to wait another day or two; the captain and the rest of the crew were interested in the Veekicians, even T'Pol.

After the captain went down below to meet some Veekician ambassadors, Trip felt it was time to be alone for awhile before they came aboard the Enterprise for a tour. Hoping there wouldn't be as many crewmen around, he went back to engineering.

Only a very few other people were there, but they were on the upper level. He could only hear the faint murmur of the crewmen up above and they became more and more distant. It was now engine and engineer. He smiled to himself; he was looking forward to this for a long time. More crewmen would be back soon so he took advantage of the situation and planned to work as much as he could. The only thing on his mind was the ship. He drifted off into a corner to work on one of the computers, squinting in confusion at the panel and let out a deep sigh.

*Better get this fixed before the cap'n brings in his new friends for a tour* he thought to himself. Nothing would distract him now. The hum of the ship relaxed him and it gave him time to think. He thought of Tisk'rar but then decided it wasn't the time and he was gone for good once they would leave. Thinking of the dinner he would have with Archer, Reed, T'Pol, and maybe Hoshi that night, he knew there would be no Veekicians this time, and he was looking forward to it. It would be a nice dinner - maybe a steak with potatoes – and he would enjoy the company of his fellow crewmembers, even T'Pol. He sighed contentedly, his eyes never leaving his work. But then he felt a hand grab his shoulder and rolled his eyes and let out another deep sigh.

"Alright..." he started to turn around "...what is it now?" As his eyes fell upon the one who interrupted him, he realized it wasn't a crewman. The figure was nearly a head taller than him with a black cloak over its face.

"What the hell?!" he tried to pull the arm away but it wouldn't budge.

"Get the hell off me! Who do ya think y'are?!" confused and frustrated, he tried harder to let go of the grasp, gripping its wrist, trying to pull away. When the figure pulled out something from its side, Trip looked down.

Then... he felt a thrust. Trip gasped. He couldn't breath. Utter pain and confusion came across his face, in his eyes, and they watered. Feeling it pull away, the sting remained. He couldn't help but try to balance himself, grabbing for the wall behind him. Trip saw his attacker step forward then felt another stinging thrust. He clutched his stomach, bending over. A loud groan managed to escape from him as he choked. Everything started to blur and he couldn't see his attacker anymore, only a shadow. He could see his hands and he looked down at them, covered in blood.

His knees hit the floor; he could no longer support himself from the pain. He reached up to the comm but it hurt too much to stretch for it. Still clutching his stomach, he staggered to the floor, crouching on his side. Trying to stay conscious, he kept his legs moving, but they slowly started to quit on him.

The floor was cold; sweat was rolling down his face and neck. It added little comfort along with the vibrating of the floor. One of his arms then fell into a warm puddle of blood.

He attempted to yell for help but only a muffled groan of pain came out. Yelling hurt too much, he could only whisper. His face was full of fear, anguish; a tear ran down his face.

He tried to think in the short amount of time, his friends, family, and his voyage on the Enterprise. Serving on the ship was one of the last things he loved doing.

"This is it, Charles" he whispered to himself. He could barely hear the humming of the ship anymore and didn't know how long ago his killer left. Everything went numb, he kept his head and breathing steady, his eyes closed.

*I will miss it* he thought.

His mind was at peace, and he fell into a deep sleep.

~TO BE CONTINUED…