He Who Fights With Monsters
By Thalia Drogna
*********************************************
"Well, that went well," said Archer sarcastically, when they were back on their way to Enterprise in the shuttlepod.
"I don't understand," said Reed. "He seemed fine last night. A bit cross about the whole thing, not worried, but definitely not exactly happy. Then this morning I wake up to find him chatting to Shar Jen and suddenly he wants us off the Rel Sevanne. Now he's talking as if he's pleased to be staying."
"I don't think that it's exactly all him, Malcolm," said Archer.
"I think we can assume that being part of a ship the size of the Rel Sevanne will have some interesting effects upon the human mind," said Phlox. "Not only that but he has a whole new sense to deal with. Humans may be used to dealing with their own emotions but they have no experience of an empathic sense."
"Could they have drugged him?" asked Archer.
"They are giving him various drugs," said Phlox, "but none of them would cause this mental state. In fact they are taking very good care of his body."
"That doesn't help us with how we get him out of this, Doctor," said Reed.
"No, but I now have more detailed scans and that should help give me a clearer picture of what is going on. I also managed to scan some of the Tien while you were engaged in your discussion with the Commander," said Phlox.
"Good work, Doctor," said Archer.
"I do not see why we require further scans," said T'Pol. "Commander Tucker has made it clear that he wishes to stay on the Rel Sevanne. The logical course of action at this point would be to continue our mission."
"As you never tire of telling me, T'Pol, humans are not logical," said Archer. "We've still got a day and a half to come up with something. I'm not leaving until then."
"Very well, Captain, if you think that is the best course of action," said T'Pol, making it clear that she did not think that this was the best course of action at all.
"Why are you so keen to leave, T'Pol?" asked Archer.
"I simply think that it would be most beneficial to continue on our mission as rapidly as possible," said T'Pol. "Commander Tucker is beyond our help, and Shar Jen may have been correct when she said that he is better off with the Tien."
"How can you even suggest that?" asked Archer. He noted that Malcolm had turned to stare at T'Pol.
"Commander Tucker has been having a great deal of difficulty dealing with his treatment at the hands of the Xindi. Not only that but he had been experiencing persistent nightmares about the nanoprobes controlling his body," said T'Pol.
"How do you know that?" asked Archer.
"He told me," said T'Pol.
"He told you? He hasn't even mentioned it to me," said Archer, his last sentence more introspective than resentful.
"He felt you already had enough burdens to bear," said T'Pol in a tone that would have signalled understanding in a human.
"Interesting," said Phlox, "I had wondered what the Commander thought about the nanites. He seemed to have integrated them successfully into his body but he was never prepared to talk about his mental state with regard to them. I suppose I now have an answer as to why that was."
"Are you telling us that Commander Tucker was afraid that the nanites would take him over?" asked Reed.
"That is exactly what I'm saying," said T'Pol. "He did his utmost to hide this from you."
"Why? We would have understood," said Reed.
"He was simply unwilling to let anyone else help him. He knew that I would not tell anyone anything that he spoke to me about," said T'Pol.
"You're telling us now," said Archer.
"I felt it might be relevant to our current predicament," said T'Pol. "The Commander Tucker that we spoke to today was not the Commander Tucker that I have come to know during our neuropressure sessions, this made me realise that the information that I have gathered could be relevant to our situation."
"How does knowing about Trip's nightmares help us get him out of there?" asked Archer.
"It doesn't," replied T'Pol. "It helps us understand why we should leave him with the Rel Sevanne without any regret."
"So you're saying that because he is no longer in emotional turmoil we should leave him with the Tien?" asked Archer.
"Exactly," said T'Pol. "It would be the kindest thing to do."
"I don't care what you say, Sub-commander, the Trip that I know wouldn't want to be left on the Rel Sevanne as a living part of their computer. We have to do something," said Reed.
"She does have a point, Malcolm," said Archer. "Trip has been through the wars lately and if he thinks he's happy where he is then maybe we should just leave him there."
"It doesn't matter if he's happy. It isn't him, it's what the Tien have turned him into. Trip didn't want this to happen," said Reed vehemently.
"Maybe that's true, but if he's happy now does it matter whether this is what he wanted or not?" asked Archer.
"I can't believe that you're suggesting that we leave him behind," said Reed, shaking his head as if to get rid of the unpleasant thought he was having.
"If we can do anything to get Trip back, we will," said Archer. "But the deadline still stands."
****
Reed's first stop when they returned to Enterprise had been the Armoury to check on the status of the weapons that the Rel Sevanne had pointing at them. He still couldn't scan them as fully as he would have liked but the fact that they were locked on Enterprise was unmistakable. He began the work of recalibrating the scanners to compensate for the oddities of the Tien technology in the hope that they could take some more accurate readings. The more they knew about the alien vessel, the more likely it would be that they could get Trip out of there, and more to the point the more likely it would be that Reed could blow it to pieces if necessary. He doubted Enterprise could do much against something of the size of the Rel Sevanne, but he had to try. He'd discovered at an early age that just because the enemy was bigger than you didn't mean they had the advantage, and anyone who'd ever taken on Malcolm Reed had learnt that to their cost. Firepower was more of a worry, but he wasn't Tactical Officer for nothing and they'd faced tough enemies before.
They had been back on Enterprise for a few hours when Phlox called them down to Sick Bay. Archer, T'Pol and Reed stood looking at a monitor with the doctor trying to make sense of the display on the screen.
"These are the scans which I took of Commander Tucker," said Phlox.
"What are we looking at Doctor," asked Archer.
"This is Commander Tucker's brain activity at the moment. The other image is his most recent scan before the nanites were introduced into system. You can see that the current activity is considerably heightened compared to usual human brain activity," said Phlox.
"Is that because of the nanites?" asked Reed.
"Not completely," said Phlox. "This is a scan that we took last time I was able to get him into Sick Bay, just after the nanites were introduced. The activity was elevated but not as much as it is now."
"So this is due to his connection to the Rel Sevanne," said Archer.
"I believe so," said Phlox.
"Doctor, what does this indicate?" asked T'Pol.
"In a normal human this would be extremely dangerous. What is happening to his brain is almost akin to overheating. His synapses are firing too fast and too often, if this continues his brain will simply burn out," said Phlox.
"Burn out? Brain damage?" asked Archer.
"Yes, I'm afraid so. It isn't a rapid process, but I give him five years at the most," said Phlox.
"Five years?" said Reed in disbelief.
"I'm sorry," said Phlox. T'Pol was blinking a lot, which Phlox knew meant she was wrestling with controlling a difficult emotion. Archer and Reed both just looked stunned. "The only compensating factor is that the nanites are taking some of the load."
"We have to tell the Tien," said Reed.
"Agreed," said Archer. "And Trip has to be told as well. I'm not sure if it will do any good though."
"If the Tien realise that this isn't a long term solution then maybe they'll give Trip back," said Reed. Even as he said it, he knew he was deluding himself. The Tien had made it clear that they only cared about their own survival.
"I find that to be a most unlikely outcome," said T'Pol. "They still will have no replacement for the Commander and it would not be logical for them to cause their own deaths."
"T'Pol's right. This doesn't change anything," said Archer. Except Trip's life expectancy, he thought.
"Why did none of the Tien have this problem?" asked Reed.
"I believe it was mentioned that the Tien who were conjoined were members of a line of Tien genetically engineered for the purpose," said Phlox. "From the scans that I've been able to take of the Tien their brain structure is significantly different from that of a human, the most noticeable difference being the empathic area of the brain which simply is not present in a human. I would imagine that the Tien patriarchs were engineered so that their brain chemistry was able to cope with the increased activity. Certainly the Tien which I scanned would be unable to cope with being conjoined for the same reason that Commander Tucker is in danger."
"Can't they just genetically engineer some more Tien?" asked Archer.
"The patriarchs were engineered on the Tien homeworld and they have been unable to replicate the process. In fact, from the files which the Commander gave to T'Pol on their efforts to find a way of replacing Ten En when it became obvious he was the final patriarch, it seems as if there were four patriarchs originally. They produced offspring but the genetic manipulation caused problems with their fertility and each generation of patriarchs had more problems than the last until Ten En's parents were only able to produce a single child. I understand that Ten En tried to mate but his attempts were unsuccessful," said Phlox.
"How were they able to pass on the traits of the patriarch to each successive generation?" asked T'Pol.
"An ingenious piece of genetic coding which ensured that any offspring of a patriarch would also carry the mental attributes of the patriarch. In effect the patriarch's genes were always dominant which is why the fertility problems worsened over the years," said Phlox.
"Is there any way that we could help them engineer a new line of Tien patriarchs?" asked Archer.
"I can look at the files and do my best, but although it would help the Tien, it wouldn't help Mr Tucker," said Phlox.
"Why not?" asked Archer.
"The genetic manipulation can only be carried out on fertilised eggs not fully grown Tien. We would have to wait until a child could be conceived, manipulated and then grow to an appropriate age, by which point it would no doubt be too late for the Commander," said Phlox.
"So we're out of medical options," said Archer, "what about technical ones?"
"I have been evaluating our alternatives in this regard," said T'Pol. "I am currently looking into modifying some of the Tien computer equipment to perform the same function as Commander Tucker's brain, but it is proving to be difficult, especially without direct access to their systems."
"Keep on it, T'Pol, it's the only option that we have at the moment," said Archer.
"Why is Trip so intent on staying?" asked Reed.
"Well, partly that is attributable to his extremely vulnerable mental state when he went to the Rel Sevanne," said Phlox. "He has been feeling very alone lately because of his experience with the Xindi and being given an empathic faculty has made him feel part of a much larger whole. But the Rel Sevanne also sends out a signal to its patriarch which tells them that they are accepted as part of the computer, almost like a password. In short a subtle kind of brain washing is going on which is persuading him that this is where he belongs and that he is happy there. A necessity for the patriarchs in the past who were able to observe their families and friends going about their daily business but unable to join in. This has made the Commander much more accepting of his situation than he would have been otherwise."
"That explains a lot," said Reed.
"There is one other thing that I should mention," said Phlox. "The longer we delay in removing the Commander, the harder it will be. Looking at the way the Rel Sevanne has integrated him into their systems and his increasing detachment from his physical body, he will have considerable trouble readjusting to normal life. If we leave it too long then he may not be able to adjust at all."
"What are you saying Doctor?" asked Archer.
"I'm saying that we may be able to free his body but his mind might not be so easy. I was concerned for his mental state previously but after this experience I have no idea how he will react to being a lone human being again rather than an empathic ship full of two thousand Tien."
****
Shar Jen was in the Engine Room working on Jerel. Trip had informed her that two of the five engines needed a complete overhaul before they could go anywhere and now she and her engineering crew were doing just that. She and her team had been working hard all day but there were still a problem that she couldn't solve and it was beginning to make her frustrated.
"Trip, could you purge the intake manifolds for Jerel, please?" she asked.
"No problem," replied Trip's voice. He did as she asked.
"I'm still having trouble tracking down that fluctuation in the dilithium matrix," said Shar Jen.
"Yeah, I see it. It's a tricky son of a bitch and that's for sure. Did you try re-aligning the crystals to compensate for the frequency drift?"
"Yes and re-setting the matrix amplifiers, I even replaced the crystals," said Shar Jen.
"Okay, maybe it's a problem with the control data. I can make some adjustments from here," said Trip. There was a pause while Trip ran through the data that he needed and made some changes to the control program. "Run your diagnostics again now," he said.
Shar Jen did as Trip said and was pleased to see that the glitch had gone. "You really are amazing," said Shar Jen. "How did you know?"
"Hey, you'd tried everything else, if it's not the hardware then it has to be the software," said Trip. Shar Jen stifled a yawn. "You're tired, you should get some sleep," he added.
"Yes, I am, but until we have Jerel, Lirat and Devas working at peak efficiency I won't be happy," said Shar Jen.
"Spoken like a true engineer. Exactly what I used to tell the Captain too," said Trip. "Now shut up and go to bed. You'll be a better engineer once you've got some shut-eye."
"Shut-eye?" asked Shar Jen.
"Sorry, human expression. Shut-eye is another way of saying sleep. You need sleep. Now go and get it. You know I'll wake you if anything important comes up and Rik Ben and the rest of your guys can handle it fine from here. Besides tomorrow's a big day for me, remember. I get to be officially part of the Tien, not that I aren't already of course, being hot wired into your system and all."
"That isn't until midnight, Trip En," replied Shar Jen, purposely using his Tien name. "You have to be patient just a little while longer. We did say that we'd give your Captain two days and one hasn't even passed yet. The Tien have damaged Enterprise enough without breaking their promise."
"Yeah, I know. I just don't think they understand what's happened that's all. I mean they can see what's happened physically but I'm not sure that they can ever understand what it's like to be part of the Rel Sevanne. They'll never know what it feels like to touch the emotions of two thousand Tien, or be able to sense the pulse of a warp engine. It just feels right." Trip could still remember that this wasn't what he had wanted but the fact was that even if he'd tried his damnedest to stop the Tien conjoining him, now he was conjoined he was pretty happy with it. Okay it wasn't like being on Enterprise working on his warp engine, but now he had five engines to play with. And he would miss his friends and he knew from the emotions that they'd shown as Nils Fen escorted them back to the shuttlepod that they'd miss him, but he also knew that the Tien needed him more. He could still feel Shar Jen's guilt though at what they had done in order to ensure their survival. "Anyway, it's late. Go to your quarters and get some sleep."
"Yes, Patriarch," said Shar Jen, deciding to give in and take it as the order she knew it wasn't. She made the short journey from the engine room down to her quarters. When she reached her quarters, she made immediately for the bedroom, not bothering to even think about food. Her tiredness was getting the better of her now she had left the engine room and she was beginning to think she would collapse on the floor before reaching the bed. She undressed down to her underwear and fell into her bed.
"Trip En?" asked Shar Jen. The bedroom was dark and she spoke to the empty room. She had never spoken to Ten En in the middle of the night like this, but then Trip was different.
"Yes, Shar Jen. Something wrong?" he asked. There were sound sensors and intercoms everywhere on the ship so all any of the Tien had to do was call his name and he would attend to anything they wanted to talk to him about. He had expected Shar Jen to go to sleep rather than want to talk to him again. He could tell from her emotional readings that she was very tired, he didn't think that she had slept since he'd been conjoined.
"You've felt my emotions. You know how I feel about you."
"Yeah, you like me. You like me a lot."
"And I have felt yours. You are attracted to me," said Shar Jen.
"Yeah, I was. Not much I can do about it now," said Trip. He wasn't sad about that, it was just another thing that had been overridden by his need to care for the Tien people. He could admire her though and enjoy what she felt for him.
"It doesn't matter. Just know that I love you," said Shar Jen. I can never have you now, but I do love you, she thought. She knew it wasn't his body that she loved but his mind, that he was now part of the Rel Sevanne made no difference to her. "Will you watch me sleep?" she asked.
"I don't know if that would be right," said Trip. He'd already decided that just because he could watch anyone on the ship, didn't mean that he should. He had no wish to invade anyone's privacy.
"It is a traditional Tien custom for those attracted to each other," said Shar Jen. "Look in your sociological files," she added.
"I've got it. Don't you think it's a little early in our relationship for that, we haven't even had our first date yet," he said with a touch of laughter in his voice.
"I think we can skip the first date and move straight on to this," she replied. "If you and I want to pursue a relationship then it will never be conventional. Some might not even call it a relationship, but it will be real to me. Watch me sleep and I will know that you care for me."
"I'll watch you," said Trip. And he did, even though his fragmented consciousness was in many other places performing his duties to the ship, he never once took his attention away from Shar Jen's quarters.
****
Archer wasn't entirely surprised when, after a day of futile modifications to their scanners, and T'Pol's investigations getting no where, Malcolm Reed showed up outside his quarters at 0200 hours.
"Let me guess, Lieutenant," said Archer, blinking bleary eyed at his Armoury Officer. "You couldn't sleep so you decided to keep me awake as well." In truth he hadn't been able to sleep much at all but Malcolm didn't need to know that.
"Sorry, sir," said Reed dutifully. "It's just that I don't think that this can wait." He handed Archer a padd and Archer ushered the Lieutenant into his quarters so that they weren't conversing in the open hallway any longer.
"What is this, Malcolm?" asked Archer.
"An escape plan," said Reed. "I think I've devised a way to recover Trip from the Tien."
By Thalia Drogna
*********************************************
"Well, that went well," said Archer sarcastically, when they were back on their way to Enterprise in the shuttlepod.
"I don't understand," said Reed. "He seemed fine last night. A bit cross about the whole thing, not worried, but definitely not exactly happy. Then this morning I wake up to find him chatting to Shar Jen and suddenly he wants us off the Rel Sevanne. Now he's talking as if he's pleased to be staying."
"I don't think that it's exactly all him, Malcolm," said Archer.
"I think we can assume that being part of a ship the size of the Rel Sevanne will have some interesting effects upon the human mind," said Phlox. "Not only that but he has a whole new sense to deal with. Humans may be used to dealing with their own emotions but they have no experience of an empathic sense."
"Could they have drugged him?" asked Archer.
"They are giving him various drugs," said Phlox, "but none of them would cause this mental state. In fact they are taking very good care of his body."
"That doesn't help us with how we get him out of this, Doctor," said Reed.
"No, but I now have more detailed scans and that should help give me a clearer picture of what is going on. I also managed to scan some of the Tien while you were engaged in your discussion with the Commander," said Phlox.
"Good work, Doctor," said Archer.
"I do not see why we require further scans," said T'Pol. "Commander Tucker has made it clear that he wishes to stay on the Rel Sevanne. The logical course of action at this point would be to continue our mission."
"As you never tire of telling me, T'Pol, humans are not logical," said Archer. "We've still got a day and a half to come up with something. I'm not leaving until then."
"Very well, Captain, if you think that is the best course of action," said T'Pol, making it clear that she did not think that this was the best course of action at all.
"Why are you so keen to leave, T'Pol?" asked Archer.
"I simply think that it would be most beneficial to continue on our mission as rapidly as possible," said T'Pol. "Commander Tucker is beyond our help, and Shar Jen may have been correct when she said that he is better off with the Tien."
"How can you even suggest that?" asked Archer. He noted that Malcolm had turned to stare at T'Pol.
"Commander Tucker has been having a great deal of difficulty dealing with his treatment at the hands of the Xindi. Not only that but he had been experiencing persistent nightmares about the nanoprobes controlling his body," said T'Pol.
"How do you know that?" asked Archer.
"He told me," said T'Pol.
"He told you? He hasn't even mentioned it to me," said Archer, his last sentence more introspective than resentful.
"He felt you already had enough burdens to bear," said T'Pol in a tone that would have signalled understanding in a human.
"Interesting," said Phlox, "I had wondered what the Commander thought about the nanites. He seemed to have integrated them successfully into his body but he was never prepared to talk about his mental state with regard to them. I suppose I now have an answer as to why that was."
"Are you telling us that Commander Tucker was afraid that the nanites would take him over?" asked Reed.
"That is exactly what I'm saying," said T'Pol. "He did his utmost to hide this from you."
"Why? We would have understood," said Reed.
"He was simply unwilling to let anyone else help him. He knew that I would not tell anyone anything that he spoke to me about," said T'Pol.
"You're telling us now," said Archer.
"I felt it might be relevant to our current predicament," said T'Pol. "The Commander Tucker that we spoke to today was not the Commander Tucker that I have come to know during our neuropressure sessions, this made me realise that the information that I have gathered could be relevant to our situation."
"How does knowing about Trip's nightmares help us get him out of there?" asked Archer.
"It doesn't," replied T'Pol. "It helps us understand why we should leave him with the Rel Sevanne without any regret."
"So you're saying that because he is no longer in emotional turmoil we should leave him with the Tien?" asked Archer.
"Exactly," said T'Pol. "It would be the kindest thing to do."
"I don't care what you say, Sub-commander, the Trip that I know wouldn't want to be left on the Rel Sevanne as a living part of their computer. We have to do something," said Reed.
"She does have a point, Malcolm," said Archer. "Trip has been through the wars lately and if he thinks he's happy where he is then maybe we should just leave him there."
"It doesn't matter if he's happy. It isn't him, it's what the Tien have turned him into. Trip didn't want this to happen," said Reed vehemently.
"Maybe that's true, but if he's happy now does it matter whether this is what he wanted or not?" asked Archer.
"I can't believe that you're suggesting that we leave him behind," said Reed, shaking his head as if to get rid of the unpleasant thought he was having.
"If we can do anything to get Trip back, we will," said Archer. "But the deadline still stands."
****
Reed's first stop when they returned to Enterprise had been the Armoury to check on the status of the weapons that the Rel Sevanne had pointing at them. He still couldn't scan them as fully as he would have liked but the fact that they were locked on Enterprise was unmistakable. He began the work of recalibrating the scanners to compensate for the oddities of the Tien technology in the hope that they could take some more accurate readings. The more they knew about the alien vessel, the more likely it would be that they could get Trip out of there, and more to the point the more likely it would be that Reed could blow it to pieces if necessary. He doubted Enterprise could do much against something of the size of the Rel Sevanne, but he had to try. He'd discovered at an early age that just because the enemy was bigger than you didn't mean they had the advantage, and anyone who'd ever taken on Malcolm Reed had learnt that to their cost. Firepower was more of a worry, but he wasn't Tactical Officer for nothing and they'd faced tough enemies before.
They had been back on Enterprise for a few hours when Phlox called them down to Sick Bay. Archer, T'Pol and Reed stood looking at a monitor with the doctor trying to make sense of the display on the screen.
"These are the scans which I took of Commander Tucker," said Phlox.
"What are we looking at Doctor," asked Archer.
"This is Commander Tucker's brain activity at the moment. The other image is his most recent scan before the nanites were introduced into system. You can see that the current activity is considerably heightened compared to usual human brain activity," said Phlox.
"Is that because of the nanites?" asked Reed.
"Not completely," said Phlox. "This is a scan that we took last time I was able to get him into Sick Bay, just after the nanites were introduced. The activity was elevated but not as much as it is now."
"So this is due to his connection to the Rel Sevanne," said Archer.
"I believe so," said Phlox.
"Doctor, what does this indicate?" asked T'Pol.
"In a normal human this would be extremely dangerous. What is happening to his brain is almost akin to overheating. His synapses are firing too fast and too often, if this continues his brain will simply burn out," said Phlox.
"Burn out? Brain damage?" asked Archer.
"Yes, I'm afraid so. It isn't a rapid process, but I give him five years at the most," said Phlox.
"Five years?" said Reed in disbelief.
"I'm sorry," said Phlox. T'Pol was blinking a lot, which Phlox knew meant she was wrestling with controlling a difficult emotion. Archer and Reed both just looked stunned. "The only compensating factor is that the nanites are taking some of the load."
"We have to tell the Tien," said Reed.
"Agreed," said Archer. "And Trip has to be told as well. I'm not sure if it will do any good though."
"If the Tien realise that this isn't a long term solution then maybe they'll give Trip back," said Reed. Even as he said it, he knew he was deluding himself. The Tien had made it clear that they only cared about their own survival.
"I find that to be a most unlikely outcome," said T'Pol. "They still will have no replacement for the Commander and it would not be logical for them to cause their own deaths."
"T'Pol's right. This doesn't change anything," said Archer. Except Trip's life expectancy, he thought.
"Why did none of the Tien have this problem?" asked Reed.
"I believe it was mentioned that the Tien who were conjoined were members of a line of Tien genetically engineered for the purpose," said Phlox. "From the scans that I've been able to take of the Tien their brain structure is significantly different from that of a human, the most noticeable difference being the empathic area of the brain which simply is not present in a human. I would imagine that the Tien patriarchs were engineered so that their brain chemistry was able to cope with the increased activity. Certainly the Tien which I scanned would be unable to cope with being conjoined for the same reason that Commander Tucker is in danger."
"Can't they just genetically engineer some more Tien?" asked Archer.
"The patriarchs were engineered on the Tien homeworld and they have been unable to replicate the process. In fact, from the files which the Commander gave to T'Pol on their efforts to find a way of replacing Ten En when it became obvious he was the final patriarch, it seems as if there were four patriarchs originally. They produced offspring but the genetic manipulation caused problems with their fertility and each generation of patriarchs had more problems than the last until Ten En's parents were only able to produce a single child. I understand that Ten En tried to mate but his attempts were unsuccessful," said Phlox.
"How were they able to pass on the traits of the patriarch to each successive generation?" asked T'Pol.
"An ingenious piece of genetic coding which ensured that any offspring of a patriarch would also carry the mental attributes of the patriarch. In effect the patriarch's genes were always dominant which is why the fertility problems worsened over the years," said Phlox.
"Is there any way that we could help them engineer a new line of Tien patriarchs?" asked Archer.
"I can look at the files and do my best, but although it would help the Tien, it wouldn't help Mr Tucker," said Phlox.
"Why not?" asked Archer.
"The genetic manipulation can only be carried out on fertilised eggs not fully grown Tien. We would have to wait until a child could be conceived, manipulated and then grow to an appropriate age, by which point it would no doubt be too late for the Commander," said Phlox.
"So we're out of medical options," said Archer, "what about technical ones?"
"I have been evaluating our alternatives in this regard," said T'Pol. "I am currently looking into modifying some of the Tien computer equipment to perform the same function as Commander Tucker's brain, but it is proving to be difficult, especially without direct access to their systems."
"Keep on it, T'Pol, it's the only option that we have at the moment," said Archer.
"Why is Trip so intent on staying?" asked Reed.
"Well, partly that is attributable to his extremely vulnerable mental state when he went to the Rel Sevanne," said Phlox. "He has been feeling very alone lately because of his experience with the Xindi and being given an empathic faculty has made him feel part of a much larger whole. But the Rel Sevanne also sends out a signal to its patriarch which tells them that they are accepted as part of the computer, almost like a password. In short a subtle kind of brain washing is going on which is persuading him that this is where he belongs and that he is happy there. A necessity for the patriarchs in the past who were able to observe their families and friends going about their daily business but unable to join in. This has made the Commander much more accepting of his situation than he would have been otherwise."
"That explains a lot," said Reed.
"There is one other thing that I should mention," said Phlox. "The longer we delay in removing the Commander, the harder it will be. Looking at the way the Rel Sevanne has integrated him into their systems and his increasing detachment from his physical body, he will have considerable trouble readjusting to normal life. If we leave it too long then he may not be able to adjust at all."
"What are you saying Doctor?" asked Archer.
"I'm saying that we may be able to free his body but his mind might not be so easy. I was concerned for his mental state previously but after this experience I have no idea how he will react to being a lone human being again rather than an empathic ship full of two thousand Tien."
****
Shar Jen was in the Engine Room working on Jerel. Trip had informed her that two of the five engines needed a complete overhaul before they could go anywhere and now she and her engineering crew were doing just that. She and her team had been working hard all day but there were still a problem that she couldn't solve and it was beginning to make her frustrated.
"Trip, could you purge the intake manifolds for Jerel, please?" she asked.
"No problem," replied Trip's voice. He did as she asked.
"I'm still having trouble tracking down that fluctuation in the dilithium matrix," said Shar Jen.
"Yeah, I see it. It's a tricky son of a bitch and that's for sure. Did you try re-aligning the crystals to compensate for the frequency drift?"
"Yes and re-setting the matrix amplifiers, I even replaced the crystals," said Shar Jen.
"Okay, maybe it's a problem with the control data. I can make some adjustments from here," said Trip. There was a pause while Trip ran through the data that he needed and made some changes to the control program. "Run your diagnostics again now," he said.
Shar Jen did as Trip said and was pleased to see that the glitch had gone. "You really are amazing," said Shar Jen. "How did you know?"
"Hey, you'd tried everything else, if it's not the hardware then it has to be the software," said Trip. Shar Jen stifled a yawn. "You're tired, you should get some sleep," he added.
"Yes, I am, but until we have Jerel, Lirat and Devas working at peak efficiency I won't be happy," said Shar Jen.
"Spoken like a true engineer. Exactly what I used to tell the Captain too," said Trip. "Now shut up and go to bed. You'll be a better engineer once you've got some shut-eye."
"Shut-eye?" asked Shar Jen.
"Sorry, human expression. Shut-eye is another way of saying sleep. You need sleep. Now go and get it. You know I'll wake you if anything important comes up and Rik Ben and the rest of your guys can handle it fine from here. Besides tomorrow's a big day for me, remember. I get to be officially part of the Tien, not that I aren't already of course, being hot wired into your system and all."
"That isn't until midnight, Trip En," replied Shar Jen, purposely using his Tien name. "You have to be patient just a little while longer. We did say that we'd give your Captain two days and one hasn't even passed yet. The Tien have damaged Enterprise enough without breaking their promise."
"Yeah, I know. I just don't think they understand what's happened that's all. I mean they can see what's happened physically but I'm not sure that they can ever understand what it's like to be part of the Rel Sevanne. They'll never know what it feels like to touch the emotions of two thousand Tien, or be able to sense the pulse of a warp engine. It just feels right." Trip could still remember that this wasn't what he had wanted but the fact was that even if he'd tried his damnedest to stop the Tien conjoining him, now he was conjoined he was pretty happy with it. Okay it wasn't like being on Enterprise working on his warp engine, but now he had five engines to play with. And he would miss his friends and he knew from the emotions that they'd shown as Nils Fen escorted them back to the shuttlepod that they'd miss him, but he also knew that the Tien needed him more. He could still feel Shar Jen's guilt though at what they had done in order to ensure their survival. "Anyway, it's late. Go to your quarters and get some sleep."
"Yes, Patriarch," said Shar Jen, deciding to give in and take it as the order she knew it wasn't. She made the short journey from the engine room down to her quarters. When she reached her quarters, she made immediately for the bedroom, not bothering to even think about food. Her tiredness was getting the better of her now she had left the engine room and she was beginning to think she would collapse on the floor before reaching the bed. She undressed down to her underwear and fell into her bed.
"Trip En?" asked Shar Jen. The bedroom was dark and she spoke to the empty room. She had never spoken to Ten En in the middle of the night like this, but then Trip was different.
"Yes, Shar Jen. Something wrong?" he asked. There were sound sensors and intercoms everywhere on the ship so all any of the Tien had to do was call his name and he would attend to anything they wanted to talk to him about. He had expected Shar Jen to go to sleep rather than want to talk to him again. He could tell from her emotional readings that she was very tired, he didn't think that she had slept since he'd been conjoined.
"You've felt my emotions. You know how I feel about you."
"Yeah, you like me. You like me a lot."
"And I have felt yours. You are attracted to me," said Shar Jen.
"Yeah, I was. Not much I can do about it now," said Trip. He wasn't sad about that, it was just another thing that had been overridden by his need to care for the Tien people. He could admire her though and enjoy what she felt for him.
"It doesn't matter. Just know that I love you," said Shar Jen. I can never have you now, but I do love you, she thought. She knew it wasn't his body that she loved but his mind, that he was now part of the Rel Sevanne made no difference to her. "Will you watch me sleep?" she asked.
"I don't know if that would be right," said Trip. He'd already decided that just because he could watch anyone on the ship, didn't mean that he should. He had no wish to invade anyone's privacy.
"It is a traditional Tien custom for those attracted to each other," said Shar Jen. "Look in your sociological files," she added.
"I've got it. Don't you think it's a little early in our relationship for that, we haven't even had our first date yet," he said with a touch of laughter in his voice.
"I think we can skip the first date and move straight on to this," she replied. "If you and I want to pursue a relationship then it will never be conventional. Some might not even call it a relationship, but it will be real to me. Watch me sleep and I will know that you care for me."
"I'll watch you," said Trip. And he did, even though his fragmented consciousness was in many other places performing his duties to the ship, he never once took his attention away from Shar Jen's quarters.
****
Archer wasn't entirely surprised when, after a day of futile modifications to their scanners, and T'Pol's investigations getting no where, Malcolm Reed showed up outside his quarters at 0200 hours.
"Let me guess, Lieutenant," said Archer, blinking bleary eyed at his Armoury Officer. "You couldn't sleep so you decided to keep me awake as well." In truth he hadn't been able to sleep much at all but Malcolm didn't need to know that.
"Sorry, sir," said Reed dutifully. "It's just that I don't think that this can wait." He handed Archer a padd and Archer ushered the Lieutenant into his quarters so that they weren't conversing in the open hallway any longer.
"What is this, Malcolm?" asked Archer.
"An escape plan," said Reed. "I think I've devised a way to recover Trip from the Tien."