Copyright: Please note that all characters and property belongs to good people of Paramount Pictures and Rick Berman, Michelle Piller, Jeri Taylor, Brannon Braga, Joe Menosky and Gene Rodenberry.

Another rumble, as the Equinox is attacked again by the neurogenic lifeforms, Andrew holding a bulkhead struggle to remain standing. Then the forcefield to the entrance of his cell had collapsed freeing the young officer. Andrew decided to take the opportunity to stop his superiors from causing anymore mass murder.

***

Meanwhile on the bridge, everyone is firing phasers at the fissures that allow these aliens to attack the crew, already one of the officers had been killed and Captain Ransom is already unconscious, meanwhile Ensign Gardener is covering him and Commander Burke where he's monitoring the shield generators.

Ensign Gardener: Commander, I don't know how much I can take this!

Commander Burke: Not long, just 10 more seconds! Just keep our butts covered!

Ensign Gardener: Sure, no problems!

***

Throughout the ship Andrew is on his way to the lab, then another fissure opens, with Andrew's quick reaction he fired his phaser which he retrieved from the armoury and closes the fissure. Then another fissure opened behind him.

Andrew: Hey guys! I'm tyring to save your butts stop attacking and I'll stop these murders.

The only response was a high-pitched screech as a neurogenic lifeform charges towards him. With little choice Andrew did an accurate side kick which propelled it back into the fissure. Andrew can only hope it was okay but that side kick got his foot burnt just with a single contact with that lifeform, he can only limp to continue his way to the lab but fell unconscious. Another fissure opened above him but then immediately closed as the Equinox shields went back online.

***

On the bridge Burke had fallen unconscious and Ensign Gardener limped towards her station and retransmitted Captain Ransom's distress call, Captain Ransom barely regained conscious.

Captain Ransom (groans): Report.

Ensign Gardener: Shields back up, but I don't think we can take another attack like this.

Captain Ransom: Let's just hope someone receives our distress call. I hate to abandon ship.

Then suddenly the computer starts beeping indicating a ship is approaching. Ensign Gardener starts examining the information.

Ensign Gardener: Rudy, there's a ship approaching it's a starfleet vessel, it's U.S.S Voyager. It's hailing us sir.

Captain Ransom: On speakers!

Captain Janeway(On speakers): This is Captain Kathryn Janeway ...

Captain Ransom (Interrupting): Voyager! You must extend your shields over my ship ...

Captain Janeway (On speakers, Interrupting): Alright but we need ...

Captain Ransom (Interrupting): Shields Quickly!

***

The U.S.S Voyager flies over the U.S.S Equinox and extends its shields over the war-torn starship.

***

Captain Ransom (relieved and tired, mutters): Finally we're rescued.

Ensign Gardener succumbs to her fatigue and falls unconscious on to her console. Then not long later, an away team beams in.

Captain Janeway: Check for survivors.

While the away team attends the survivors, Captain Janeway sees Captain Ransom slumped and fatigued, she immediately attends to the fatigued Captain.

Captain Janeway: Easy, easy, you'd taken heavy casualties

...

***

Meanwhile throughout the Equinox, Neelix and his team is searching for survivors. Neelix noticed an unconscious young man, he appears to be strong but young like fresh out of the academy. Neelix places a tag on his neck.

Neelix (Taps his comm-badge): Neelix to sickbay, I found an unconscious man, beam to sickbay.

Andrew gets beamed away just before he regains conscious. Neelix continues is search for survivors.

***

A few hours later in Voyager's sickbay. Andrew Thomas regains conscious he noticed his crewmates who are unconscious, crewman Noah Lessing, Ensign Marla Gilmore, Lieutenant Commander Maxwell Burke, Captain John Ransom, Ensign Luese Gardener, and Crewman Arial Spenser. Then the Voyager EMH approaches Andrew.

Voyager EMH: Easy Ensign, it seems you'd just had a concussion.

But Andrew thought it was the Equinox EMH, he quickly leapt from the biobed and ducked under the Doctor before he was able to incapacitate him and Andrew keyed in an override command into the control panel next to the exit in sickbay, the door opened and Andrew immediately starts making his way to Deck 1.

Andrew (Thinking): I must tell the captain of this ship, Rudy and Max must be stopped!

Voyager EMH (Taps his comm-badge): Doctor to security, a patient had escaped sickbay apprehend and return him, he's male in his early 20's and appears to be extremely traumatised.

***

Andrew was running, fast as he can, he never had been on another federation starship before, then suddenly a force field was projected in front of him and Andrew ran straight into it. He got shocked and bounced back then Andrew noticed a panel next to him and starts attempting to disable the force field. Then Lieutenant Commander Tuvok approaches him with his phaser pointing at him.

Tuvok: Stand down Ensign.

Ensign Thomas (agitated): You're not from the Equinox, who are you?

Tuvok: I am Lieutenant Commander Tuvok, I am chief of security of Voyager.

Ensign Thomas: Ensign Andrew Thomas of Equinox. I must see the captain.

Tuvok (lowers his phaser): Captain Janeway in unable to see you at the moment, why do you need to see the Captain? Ensign Thomas: I must! Captain Ransom and Commander Burke has been murdering alien lifeforms in order to get home, I'm been trying to stop them but I was caught not just that, Captain Ransom and his crew are being controlled. Commander I must tell Captain Janeway.

Tuvok: You're aware that you're accusing your captain and his first officer of a serious crime.

Ensign Thomas: Yes I am that's why we're been attacked by these lifeforms.

Tuvok: Perhaps it's best you get treated in sickbay, I assure that our doctor will not harm you.

Ensign Thomas (Suspicious): He's not the Equinox doctor?

Tuvok: No he is not, he's our doctor and don't worry I'll tell the captain your story.

Ensign Thomas (Relieved): Thanks Commander. I'll return to sickbay.

Tuvok: Very well, I shall instruct the Doctor to do a thorough check to confirm your story.

Commander Tuvok lowers the forcefield and he escorts Andrew back to sickbay.

***

Not long later Captain Ransom recovers in sickbay, Captain Janeway who hasn't been informed yet approaches Captain Ransom.

Captain Ransom: The Equinox.

Captain Janeway: She, sustained heavy damage, but she can be repaired. I know Voyager had been through worse. We only managed to find 22 survivors yourself included.

Captain Ransom (Looks down, and sighs): Lost more good men.

Captain Janeway: I'm sorry. We'll sort something out at the moment out doctor is treating your crew...

Captain Ransom: Is Ensign Thomas here?

Captain Janeway: Yes Tuvok just returned him back to sickbay, he's a stubborn one.

Captain Ransom chuckled under his breath. He slowly got himself out of the biobed and he noticed the Doctor attending to the young man.

Captain Ransom: Did you know he just graduated from the academy when he started serving on my ship?

Captain Janeway: He would've been just starting his starfleet career.

Captain Ransom: He did graduate at the top of his class when it came to Security protocols and Tactical operations, he even took on martial arts, I think he's a blue belt when he started serving on my ship.

Captain Janeway (Smiles): I think he'll learn a lot from Tuvok.

Captain Ransom: No one in his circumstances should've experienced this.

Captain Janeway: Everyone wasn't ready for this, but it happened.

Captain Ransom: Well, It's best to keep him here in sickbay for now, until my ship is fixed. I bet he's still traumatised by getting in the Delta Quadrant and nearly got insane during our latest events.

Captain Janeway: Very well, we'll keep him sickbay. But he already requested to talk to me so when things settle down, I'll grant his request before he'll return to the Equinox.

***

A few hours later, after the memorial Commander Burke and Noah Lessing is working with Seven of Nine and Tuvok in building a "Net" in order to scare off the neurogenic lifeforms away from Voyager and Equinox, Captain Ransom is with Captain Janeway cleaning up the mess on the Equinox Bridge, Ensign Gilmore, Commander Chakotay and Ensign Kim are working on scheduling the repairs on the Equinox and Ensign Thomas, Crewman Spencer and Ensign Gardener are in the messhall, the Doctor thinks it's best if Neelix tends to them.

Ensign Gardener: Well Andrew looks like you got yourself out of trouble again.

Crewman Spencer: This cooking great, I wonder who cooked this meal.

Ensign Thomas: Neelix did.

Spencer: Well I must borrow his cookbook. Well Andrew are you gonna tell us?

Thomas: Okay, the Doc finds me traumatised so he believes it's best for me to spend a few days in the messhall relaxing.

Gardener: Well, all this mess could've been avoided if you take the chip like everyone else on Equinox did.

Andrew: I just can't trust Max, I don't like the look of those chips.

Spencer: Well believe us none of us got lost when we got our chips.

Andrew (Thinking): They're not being themselves ever-since they took the chips.

Gardener: Oh give him a break Arial, he'll take the chip someday.

***

A day later the Voyager doctor had discovered the dark secret of the Equinox where the murder of neurogenic lifeforms are taking place in order to get home. Captain Janeway enraged, she had stripped Captain Ransom of his command, in the quarters where Max and his crew is locked in.

Max: Well, well it appears that the kid is coming with us.

Andrew: Get a life, if you have one.

Max: Now, now you can't talk to me like that, remember when you refused to take the chip, it was supposed to help you but you decide to take the hard way.

Andrew: Well sometime you can learn more on the rocky road than on the smooth road.

Luese: Hey knock it off! We still need to get outta here and ...

Then the entrance of their quarters opened revealing the Doctor, Andrew quickly noticed it was the Equinox EMH when he hands over a phaser to Max. But Max was aware that Andrew will try to stop him again so he quickly stunned him and Max and the rest of the Equinox crew meet up with Rudy, Marla and Noah and beamed themselves of to the Equinox.

***

The Equinox flew away after Voyager was unable to stop the rouge starship from flying away, then the Voyager's shields collapsed.

***

Back in the secure quarters Andrew is lying unconscious and a fissure opens above him, then a security officer ran in a fired her phaser at the fissure to close it. Then another opens and the security officer quickly reacted and fired her phaser to close it. Then Two fissures opened the Voyager security officer closed one of them quickly but when she turned to close the second fissure a neurogenic lifeform emerges from it charges towards Andrew and the security officer.

To Be Continued...