Disclaimer: Please be warned, this story deals with abuse and self-harm. You have been warned.
I am so sorry about the lack of up-dates I have no real excuse. I'm so so sorry!
The title and parts of poem in this story are taken from Mlaa's "The Call Of Steel." A big thank you to my beta, "HopefulNebula" as always, and to "Mlaa" for being kind enough to let me borrow her poem. Part of this chapter and the next chapter have been inspired by the DS9 episode: The Passenger - season one.
Please read and review!
The Call Of Steel.
Part 9:- Above all Things, Love.
~ cold
sharp
metal
the thoughts flutter
"The Call of Steel" by Mlaa ~
"What do you mean?" Archer asked, his full attention on Hoshi.
"The race that attacked us are called the Kobliad. The message they sent us was a warning. It seems a group of them visited Earth a few months ago, when they were leaving they were robbed and some files were stolen, including the schematics for a certain kind of data chip." Hoshi said, slightly out of breath.
"What kind of data chip? I still don't understand what any of this has to do with Trip's... farther." Archer said, a small frown appearing between his eyes. Hoshi carried on.
"I'm not entirely sure what the chip does. The message said something about placing someone's Ka into another person. So I-"
"Ka?" Archer asked, bewildered.
"It mean's someone's soul." Hoshi said softly . "The message also accused Charles Sr of stealing the plans so I came to the conclusion that Charles had... taken someone over." Hoshi finished. She looked at Archer, seeing an odd expression on his face. Mistaking the look for disbelief she hurried on.
"I know it sounds weird, but you have to trust me Captain, we are dealing with alien technology here, who knows how far ahead of us they are. If you think about it, it's not as farfetched as it sounds." Hoshi said. Archer looked off into the distance, thinking hard. Without a word he turned around and walked into sickbay, Hoshi hard on his heels.
"Captain, what is this about?" she asked in confusion. Archer shook his head, telling her to be quiet without words as he stared at the bed that held her best friend. Hoshi slowly raised an eyebrow.
"Captain?" she asked softly. Archer turned to her.
"Is it..." he paused and took a deep breath. "Is is possible Charles Sr. imprinted his... Ka, on Trip?"
"Well..." Hoshi began slowly. "I suppose anything is possible. It would all depend on if Trip has been acting differently the past few days, out of the ordinary in some way."
"Very well, Hoshi, you'll dismissed. Oh and don't tell anyone about Charles Sr or that you saw Trip here." Archer said. Hoshi nodded, events were going past too fast for her to take them in.
"Yes Sir." she said before walking out of sickbay. Archer sat down and looked at the still body of his friend.
"So, have you been acting differently lately Trip?" he asked, a trace of hysteric in his voice. "I don't know anymore. I thought I knew you Trip, but I don't know anything..." he trailed off, bile and sobs bubbling up past his throat.
"I don't know anything about you anymore..." he whispered. Phlox walked over, alarmed by the tears Archer was shedding.
"Captain Archer?"
"Doctor, good. I have reason to believe that there is a... second presence in Trip's body." Archer said, his manner brisk, at the moment he was fully a captain and nothing else. Phlox's face lit up.
"That would explain some things. How do you know this?" Phlox asked, while pulling up a brain scan he had taken of Trip only a few moments before. He carried on without waiting for an answer.
"As you can see there appears to be two brain waves - yet these are so alike that I attributed it to a mistake in the computer."
"So Trip's dad could be in there?" Archer said, before launching into the whole story of the Kobliad, the chip and all the horrid things that could have happened.
"I have an idea." Phlox said after Archer had finished and after he had pulled up all the information the ship had on the race known as the 'Kobliad'. "This is what I propose."
~~~
"You mean, I have to... kill Trip?" Archer asked, his voice dull. Phlox looked at him, then slowly nodded.
"I can do it." he offered, holding up the hypospray. Archer shook his head, determined. He reached out and plucked the hypo from the Doctors grasp before injecting it into Trip in one sudden decompression. Trip opened his eyes, waking up.
"Cap'n..."
"Don't play the innocent with me Charles Sr." Archer spat out. Trip frowned, the rest of his face perfectly frozen.
"W-What?" he said, struggling to put on a convincing stutter. It didn't seem to be enough. Archer continued to frown down at him.
"Be order of Starfleet, you Charles Sr, have been sentenced to death for your crimes."
"Cap'n, what are you talking about ?! It's me, Trip" Trip pleaded, looking scared.
"We know all about the Kobliad. We known what you did." Archer and Trip started at each other, there wills pitted against the other. Suddenly Trip laughed, a cold high laugh.
"Then you know that if you hurt me, you hurt Trip." the man in Trip's body snarled, a gloating smile lacing his lips.
"That's where you're wrong. I know Trip would rather die than have you walk around in his body. So I injected a substance in you. You'll just go to sleep and not wake up." 'Trip' glared at him, trying to work out if he was telling the truth.
"You're bluffing."
"Try me." Archer said coldly.
"You wouldn't hurt Trip... well, not any more than you have." This grabbed the Captains attention and held it fast.
"What do you mean?"
"I may have been the one to destroy the boy's faith, but it was you who re-built it... and it is you who have done far more damage by saving him than I could ever hope to achieve." 'Trip' said. He closed his eyes briefly then forced them open.
"There must be an antidote!" he cried in fear. "You wouldn't do this... Cap'n help me... please..." he murmured. Archer turned his head away as 'Trip' drifted off into his artificial slumber.
"It won't be long now." Phlox said, staring down at the still form of Trip Tucker. For half an hour they waited, neither one speaking, just watching the sleeping engineer. Even in this, his final sleep he was not a peace. Archer curled his fingers into a fist as he realized that Charles Sr, was tormenting Trip. Archer could only hope and pray that he was doing the right thing and that Trip knew that. Slowly, ever so slowly Trip's breathing stopped. His heart failed. His other organs shut down, one by one. Phlox pressed a button on the pad he was holding.
"All we can do is wait." he pronounced, gravely. Roughly two minutes crept by, until Phlox stood up.
"Now." was all he said. With speed, he injected something into Trip's blood stream and watched intently. Archer crossed his fingers.
"Come on Trip, I told your mother I'd take care of you. Don't make me a liar." he pleaded. Suddenly Trip's eyes snapped open and he stared at Archer in complete confusion.
"It's okay Trip, you're safe now."
"...dead?" Trip muttered, licking his dry lips. Archer smiled.
"No, you're not dead. Dr. Phlox knew that if your body shut down, your father's brain waves would retreat to the original brain." It was all too much for Trip to take in at the moment. He closed his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep, the strain of the past few days taking there toll.
Archer looked at Phlox, the smile fading from his face.
"Is he going to be okay?"
"He should be, after some rest."
"What about Charles Sr?" Archer asked, his mouth suddenly dry. Phlox moved over to the other bed."He should have returned to his own body." Phlox pulled back the curtain, to revel the still body of Charles. Phlox frowned and bent over his body.
"He's... still dead..." Phlox muttered. Archer stared at the body, willing himself to feel remorse that the man was dead, but all he could think about was the things that he had done to his only son. Archer didn't even what to think about what he might have done to Trip's sister. He had noticed that none of the Tucker clan had mentioned Lizzy and prayed that this meant she hadn't been harmed.
"Sub-Commander T'Pol to Captain Archer." The Vulcan's bland tones filled the airwaves, jolting Archer back into the here and now, away from his dark thoughts.
"Archer here."
~~~
It was some hours later before Trip made any indication that he was ready to return to the land of the living. He feebly tried to open his eyes, blinking at the bright light that threatened to blind him. He could dimly see a shadow to the right of him.
"Cap'n?" he murmured, straining his eyes in an effort to see who was standing over him. The past days crashed over him in a wave, making his breath caught in his chest. Who was standing over him? Who? He lifted his arms, trying to protect himself from the shadow.
"Easy Commander, easy." a soothing voice said and the next second the shadow had come into focus. Dr. Phlox smiled at his ill charge."How are you feeling?"
"Tired." Trip muttered, not feeling ready for a long discussion on the state of his health. Besides there was something at the edge of his mind, clamoring for his attention. He closed his eyes to focus on it, trying to remember what ever it was. The knowledge came to him in bits, time moving, first slowly, then rushing ahead, leaving an odd pounding sound in his head.
//Trip walked along a corridor, face red and blotchy. He looked terrible, with wide eyes, big puffy bags and an unsteady walk. Inside however he was humming to himself. He turned a corridor and walked over to a door. He pressed the buzzer and, after a short pause the door opened. Trip opened his mouth and made his voice sound scared and confused.
"Hi... I hope y-you don't mind me coming to see you... I just wanted to talk to someone... Can I come in?... Thanks." He stepped inside and the shining door skimmed closed.
Inside the room Trip stood in the middle of the floor, pushing something under the fingernail of his middle finger. When the other person looked away, to reach something from the floor he was ready. Moving forwards he tripped, falling on the back of the other. Though the other didn't know it, Trip had injected something into his arm. Trip pushed himself off the back and scrambled backwards, his job done.
"Ne-never mind." he said, before bolting through the door and out into the corridor. He was dimly aware of someone calling after him but he was too busy gloating inside to be bothered by it. When he entered his own room, he carefully removed the tiny chip from under his nail before stamping on it, destroying it completely...\\
He jerked awake, his face coating in a cold sweat.
"Oh God... Doctor!" he screamed, trying to tell someone what he or rather his father had done. There was no answer. After a moments hesitation he climbed out of bed and ran out of sickbay, searching for someone - anyone. The closest place was the mess hall. There was bound to be someone there, someone he could tell.
Trip ran headlong into the mess hall. He didn't notice the light was off until it was too late. With a half muffled cry he fell over a long black shape that was lying on the floor just inside the door. Trip remained where he had fallen, his breath knocked out of him .And then the light switched on, without any warning or any sound bar a small 'click' which could have been anything. Trip raised his head slight and froze in horror. About twenty feet away from him, leaning against the wall was Captain Archer, bound and gagged, though thankfully, at the moment at least, awake.
It was like something in a horror movie. Trip slowly twisted his body to stare at the thing he had fallen over. It was the chef, a phaser wound in his leg. For a long, agonizing second the chef's body remained frozen, then to Trip's joy, his chest raised, to signify that he was still breathing and therefore still alive. A shadow fell over Trip, covering him for head to toe.
"Ah, Son, how lovely to see you." a voice purred down at him.
Trip looked up into the smiling face of Malcolm Reed.
TBC...
anks for all the reviews, please leave one, now you've read this!
Because I love you lot;
Here, you all go, another teaser for the next part...
"What's the matter Charlie? Not happy to see your old man?" he mocked, admiring his new body. "I must say I like this arrangement better." he purred, moving over to his terrified son. "This way I can relive my life, and... punish you for your disobedience."
Coming Soon... Part 10: Infinite Shades of Gray.
~ Sethoz
I am so sorry about the lack of up-dates I have no real excuse. I'm so so sorry!
The title and parts of poem in this story are taken from Mlaa's "The Call Of Steel." A big thank you to my beta, "HopefulNebula" as always, and to "Mlaa" for being kind enough to let me borrow her poem. Part of this chapter and the next chapter have been inspired by the DS9 episode: The Passenger - season one.
Please read and review!
The Call Of Steel.
Part 9:- Above all Things, Love.
~ cold
sharp
metal
the thoughts flutter
"The Call of Steel" by Mlaa ~
"What do you mean?" Archer asked, his full attention on Hoshi.
"The race that attacked us are called the Kobliad. The message they sent us was a warning. It seems a group of them visited Earth a few months ago, when they were leaving they were robbed and some files were stolen, including the schematics for a certain kind of data chip." Hoshi said, slightly out of breath.
"What kind of data chip? I still don't understand what any of this has to do with Trip's... farther." Archer said, a small frown appearing between his eyes. Hoshi carried on.
"I'm not entirely sure what the chip does. The message said something about placing someone's Ka into another person. So I-"
"Ka?" Archer asked, bewildered.
"It mean's someone's soul." Hoshi said softly . "The message also accused Charles Sr of stealing the plans so I came to the conclusion that Charles had... taken someone over." Hoshi finished. She looked at Archer, seeing an odd expression on his face. Mistaking the look for disbelief she hurried on.
"I know it sounds weird, but you have to trust me Captain, we are dealing with alien technology here, who knows how far ahead of us they are. If you think about it, it's not as farfetched as it sounds." Hoshi said. Archer looked off into the distance, thinking hard. Without a word he turned around and walked into sickbay, Hoshi hard on his heels.
"Captain, what is this about?" she asked in confusion. Archer shook his head, telling her to be quiet without words as he stared at the bed that held her best friend. Hoshi slowly raised an eyebrow.
"Captain?" she asked softly. Archer turned to her.
"Is it..." he paused and took a deep breath. "Is is possible Charles Sr. imprinted his... Ka, on Trip?"
"Well..." Hoshi began slowly. "I suppose anything is possible. It would all depend on if Trip has been acting differently the past few days, out of the ordinary in some way."
"Very well, Hoshi, you'll dismissed. Oh and don't tell anyone about Charles Sr or that you saw Trip here." Archer said. Hoshi nodded, events were going past too fast for her to take them in.
"Yes Sir." she said before walking out of sickbay. Archer sat down and looked at the still body of his friend.
"So, have you been acting differently lately Trip?" he asked, a trace of hysteric in his voice. "I don't know anymore. I thought I knew you Trip, but I don't know anything..." he trailed off, bile and sobs bubbling up past his throat.
"I don't know anything about you anymore..." he whispered. Phlox walked over, alarmed by the tears Archer was shedding.
"Captain Archer?"
"Doctor, good. I have reason to believe that there is a... second presence in Trip's body." Archer said, his manner brisk, at the moment he was fully a captain and nothing else. Phlox's face lit up.
"That would explain some things. How do you know this?" Phlox asked, while pulling up a brain scan he had taken of Trip only a few moments before. He carried on without waiting for an answer.
"As you can see there appears to be two brain waves - yet these are so alike that I attributed it to a mistake in the computer."
"So Trip's dad could be in there?" Archer said, before launching into the whole story of the Kobliad, the chip and all the horrid things that could have happened.
"I have an idea." Phlox said after Archer had finished and after he had pulled up all the information the ship had on the race known as the 'Kobliad'. "This is what I propose."
~~~
"You mean, I have to... kill Trip?" Archer asked, his voice dull. Phlox looked at him, then slowly nodded.
"I can do it." he offered, holding up the hypospray. Archer shook his head, determined. He reached out and plucked the hypo from the Doctors grasp before injecting it into Trip in one sudden decompression. Trip opened his eyes, waking up.
"Cap'n..."
"Don't play the innocent with me Charles Sr." Archer spat out. Trip frowned, the rest of his face perfectly frozen.
"W-What?" he said, struggling to put on a convincing stutter. It didn't seem to be enough. Archer continued to frown down at him.
"Be order of Starfleet, you Charles Sr, have been sentenced to death for your crimes."
"Cap'n, what are you talking about ?! It's me, Trip" Trip pleaded, looking scared.
"We know all about the Kobliad. We known what you did." Archer and Trip started at each other, there wills pitted against the other. Suddenly Trip laughed, a cold high laugh.
"Then you know that if you hurt me, you hurt Trip." the man in Trip's body snarled, a gloating smile lacing his lips.
"That's where you're wrong. I know Trip would rather die than have you walk around in his body. So I injected a substance in you. You'll just go to sleep and not wake up." 'Trip' glared at him, trying to work out if he was telling the truth.
"You're bluffing."
"Try me." Archer said coldly.
"You wouldn't hurt Trip... well, not any more than you have." This grabbed the Captains attention and held it fast.
"What do you mean?"
"I may have been the one to destroy the boy's faith, but it was you who re-built it... and it is you who have done far more damage by saving him than I could ever hope to achieve." 'Trip' said. He closed his eyes briefly then forced them open.
"There must be an antidote!" he cried in fear. "You wouldn't do this... Cap'n help me... please..." he murmured. Archer turned his head away as 'Trip' drifted off into his artificial slumber.
"It won't be long now." Phlox said, staring down at the still form of Trip Tucker. For half an hour they waited, neither one speaking, just watching the sleeping engineer. Even in this, his final sleep he was not a peace. Archer curled his fingers into a fist as he realized that Charles Sr, was tormenting Trip. Archer could only hope and pray that he was doing the right thing and that Trip knew that. Slowly, ever so slowly Trip's breathing stopped. His heart failed. His other organs shut down, one by one. Phlox pressed a button on the pad he was holding.
"All we can do is wait." he pronounced, gravely. Roughly two minutes crept by, until Phlox stood up.
"Now." was all he said. With speed, he injected something into Trip's blood stream and watched intently. Archer crossed his fingers.
"Come on Trip, I told your mother I'd take care of you. Don't make me a liar." he pleaded. Suddenly Trip's eyes snapped open and he stared at Archer in complete confusion.
"It's okay Trip, you're safe now."
"...dead?" Trip muttered, licking his dry lips. Archer smiled.
"No, you're not dead. Dr. Phlox knew that if your body shut down, your father's brain waves would retreat to the original brain." It was all too much for Trip to take in at the moment. He closed his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep, the strain of the past few days taking there toll.
Archer looked at Phlox, the smile fading from his face.
"Is he going to be okay?"
"He should be, after some rest."
"What about Charles Sr?" Archer asked, his mouth suddenly dry. Phlox moved over to the other bed."He should have returned to his own body." Phlox pulled back the curtain, to revel the still body of Charles. Phlox frowned and bent over his body.
"He's... still dead..." Phlox muttered. Archer stared at the body, willing himself to feel remorse that the man was dead, but all he could think about was the things that he had done to his only son. Archer didn't even what to think about what he might have done to Trip's sister. He had noticed that none of the Tucker clan had mentioned Lizzy and prayed that this meant she hadn't been harmed.
"Sub-Commander T'Pol to Captain Archer." The Vulcan's bland tones filled the airwaves, jolting Archer back into the here and now, away from his dark thoughts.
"Archer here."
~~~
It was some hours later before Trip made any indication that he was ready to return to the land of the living. He feebly tried to open his eyes, blinking at the bright light that threatened to blind him. He could dimly see a shadow to the right of him.
"Cap'n?" he murmured, straining his eyes in an effort to see who was standing over him. The past days crashed over him in a wave, making his breath caught in his chest. Who was standing over him? Who? He lifted his arms, trying to protect himself from the shadow.
"Easy Commander, easy." a soothing voice said and the next second the shadow had come into focus. Dr. Phlox smiled at his ill charge."How are you feeling?"
"Tired." Trip muttered, not feeling ready for a long discussion on the state of his health. Besides there was something at the edge of his mind, clamoring for his attention. He closed his eyes to focus on it, trying to remember what ever it was. The knowledge came to him in bits, time moving, first slowly, then rushing ahead, leaving an odd pounding sound in his head.
//Trip walked along a corridor, face red and blotchy. He looked terrible, with wide eyes, big puffy bags and an unsteady walk. Inside however he was humming to himself. He turned a corridor and walked over to a door. He pressed the buzzer and, after a short pause the door opened. Trip opened his mouth and made his voice sound scared and confused.
"Hi... I hope y-you don't mind me coming to see you... I just wanted to talk to someone... Can I come in?... Thanks." He stepped inside and the shining door skimmed closed.
Inside the room Trip stood in the middle of the floor, pushing something under the fingernail of his middle finger. When the other person looked away, to reach something from the floor he was ready. Moving forwards he tripped, falling on the back of the other. Though the other didn't know it, Trip had injected something into his arm. Trip pushed himself off the back and scrambled backwards, his job done.
"Ne-never mind." he said, before bolting through the door and out into the corridor. He was dimly aware of someone calling after him but he was too busy gloating inside to be bothered by it. When he entered his own room, he carefully removed the tiny chip from under his nail before stamping on it, destroying it completely...\\
He jerked awake, his face coating in a cold sweat.
"Oh God... Doctor!" he screamed, trying to tell someone what he or rather his father had done. There was no answer. After a moments hesitation he climbed out of bed and ran out of sickbay, searching for someone - anyone. The closest place was the mess hall. There was bound to be someone there, someone he could tell.
Trip ran headlong into the mess hall. He didn't notice the light was off until it was too late. With a half muffled cry he fell over a long black shape that was lying on the floor just inside the door. Trip remained where he had fallen, his breath knocked out of him .And then the light switched on, without any warning or any sound bar a small 'click' which could have been anything. Trip raised his head slight and froze in horror. About twenty feet away from him, leaning against the wall was Captain Archer, bound and gagged, though thankfully, at the moment at least, awake.
It was like something in a horror movie. Trip slowly twisted his body to stare at the thing he had fallen over. It was the chef, a phaser wound in his leg. For a long, agonizing second the chef's body remained frozen, then to Trip's joy, his chest raised, to signify that he was still breathing and therefore still alive. A shadow fell over Trip, covering him for head to toe.
"Ah, Son, how lovely to see you." a voice purred down at him.
Trip looked up into the smiling face of Malcolm Reed.
TBC...
anks for all the reviews, please leave one, now you've read this!
Because I love you lot;
Here, you all go, another teaser for the next part...
"What's the matter Charlie? Not happy to see your old man?" he mocked, admiring his new body. "I must say I like this arrangement better." he purred, moving over to his terrified son. "This way I can relive my life, and... punish you for your disobedience."
Coming Soon... Part 10: Infinite Shades of Gray.
~ Sethoz