Disclaimer: see chapter one.
a/n: Drogna, Credo nos in fluctu eodem esse! Latin classes are useful for something after all, huh? Good translations, though I was going more for 'iron' with ferreus.
Okay, here's the next part, I'm trying to wrap it up, I promise! (Cyrogenie! Don't you dare fail your tests! I would feel too guilty...;)
Thanks again to everyone for reviewing!!!
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Archer shivered as a heavy mist fell from low, saturated clouds. He zipped up the dark blue jacket he wore to his chin. Six other Enterprise crewmembers walked, spread out, in the dense green forest wearing identical coats.
He couldn't account for what had happened here. Why hadn't Trip been with Malcolm? Why had their bio signs vanished from T'Pol's scanner when they had first landed? Trip had to be here...somewhere. A sickening feeling was rising in his throat; the longer they had to look the more likely it was that they would find Trip dead.
His eyes kept searching, deep into the thick fog. Something about these woods, no this whole planet, made him uneasy.
He glanced to the side; one of the crewmembers had stopped, and was looking up through the rain between the tree limbs.
"What is it?" Archer asked, taking a few quick steps over to the ensign. "See something?"
"N-no, Sir," he stuttered, looking back down at the captain. "I just thought I heard something for a moment."
Archer's eyes narrowed, his grip tightening on the phase pistol he held. "Where?" he asked in a low, dangerous tone, his eyes flitted among the dense shadows created by foliage.
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The doors of sickbay opened with a soft hiss. Malcolm jumped, suddenly waking.
"Is Lieutenant Reed awake?" Malcolm heard T'Pol ask.
"He is resting. I have just finished removing the bit of shuttle window that was wedged into his skull. He's lucky it went in at such a shallow angle."
Malcolm felt his heart begin to pound; there was something important to tell them...he had to remember...it was so important. Yet despite his best efforts to lift his heavy eyelids they remained closed.
"You will inform me as soon as he wakes?"
"Yes, yes of course Sub-Commander."
"Thank you, Doctor."
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Malcolm woke again sometime later with a start. His eyes sprang open.
"You're awake," said a soft voice next to him. He attempted to fix his gaze on the blurry image of Hoshi at his side. "I came to see how you were doing." She smiled gently.
He struggled to wrap his mind around her words.
"Hoshi," he croaked, looking up at her blearily, "where's Trip?"
She bit her lip, glancing around for Phlox, not sure she should be having this conversation with him yet. He looked awful. When she had come to look in on him she hadn't really expected him to be awake.
"Where's Trip?" Malcolm pressed, feeling his stomach drop, but hoping it had all been a dream, nothing but a dream.
"He..." she started to say, then her voice dropped slightly. "They are still looking for him."
Malcolm groaned.
"Doctor!" Hoshi called.
"No, Hoshi listen to me!" he said grasping her hand, fearing Phlox would come and put him out again. "Trip is in the building in the city...where I was, It tried to kill him...us. He needs help! They have to get off the planet! It will find them, and kill them all!" he said, looking at her desperately.
He couldn't read her expression.
"You don't believe me," he whispered. "Please, we have to help them. They are all in grave danger."
"Lieutenant, unless you calm down I will be forced to sedate you," said Phlox, appearing behind Hoshi and examining the monitors that displayed the injured man's vital signs.
Malcolm drew a deep breath. "Please listen to me," he pleaded looking from one face to another, feeling perfectly helpless. He couldn't tell by their grave expressions whether or not they understood how serious he was.
Hoshi heard the despair in his voice. "Shh, we do. I'll call T'Pol," she assured him, giving his shoulder a gentle squeeze.
"I already have, Ensign," said Phlox. "Though I will not let her talk to the Lieutenant until I'm satisfied he has quite settled down." He then turned to Malcolm. "There is no reason to have you so agitated right after the procedure you just under went."
Malcolm swallowed and leaned back on the pillow, a wave of exhaustion washing over him. He would be quiet until T'Pol got there. For a chance to make them understand, he would do whatever was asked of him. The doctor walked away to examine some other monitor. Hoshi studied the suddenly ashen officer, his expression grim as he stared up at the infirmary's ceiling. A familiar look of resolve settled into his tired eyes.
"Lieutenant," T'Pol's voice filled his ears. He realized his eyes were closed, quickly he dragged them open; she sat where Hoshi had a few moments ago.
"Sub-Commander," he said in an unsteady voice.
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Archer looked up into the trees, sharp eyes drinking in every detail. Then came a movement. In a flash his phase pistol was pointed up into the dark boughs. Every member of the search party followed suit with well practiced smoothness to their motions. No hesitation.
With no warning, darkness engulfed him.
The rest of the party remained in their tense positions. After a few moments of waiting, one noticed the Captain was no longer with them.
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"That's what happened, Trip was right beside me..." Malcolm finished, looking up at T'Pol tiredly.
She blinked, leaning away from him a little. "You believe that these entities still intend to do harm to anyone on the surface?"
"Yes!" Malcolm nodded emphatically.
She appeared thoughtful. "We have done extensive scans of the planet and have found no cities, or buildings," she said carefully.
"What? No, that's not possible. I was there T'Pol." He looked at her in a sort of bewildered manner.
Her voice softened, becoming almost gentle. "It is quite impossible that the Commander is in any building on that planet, because there are no buildings."
"I don't understand," Malcolm said faintly, his face turning, if it was possible, a shade paler.
"You are sure this is what happened?"
Malcolm leveled his gaze at her, "I've never been more positive. You must be mistaken about the buildings. Things like that don't just vanish..." he said quietly. "You have to get everyone out of there."
"Lieutenant..." she began but a chirp from her communicator interrupted her.
"T'Pol," she said walking smoothly, but quickly, away from Malcolm.
"Sub-Commander, we have a major issue down here."
"Issue?"
"Uh, it's the Captain, Ma'am. He's vanished. We can't even pick him up on sensors."
"Have you tried contacting him?"
"Yes, Ma'am. We can't raise him."
"Are you quite sure he isn't searching somewhere in the surrounding vicinity?"
"Yes. He was with us; we'd heard a noise and stopped. No one saw anything, and he is not on our scans...it's like I s...." The voice cut out abruptly.
"Ensign," she said. "Ensign, respond." she repeated a little louder.
Dead air answered her.
She turned back to Malcolm who was sitting straight up again in bed. His complexion had taken on a sort of gray cast in addition to the pallid one.
"We waited to long. It has them," he whispered.
"We do not know that," she said calmly.
"Listen to me!" he cried in frustration. "Let me go back down. I can show you where the buildings are. I don't know why you can't pick them up on your scanners, but I swear to you they are there!"
She gazed at him steadily, and though it was a perfectly expressionless Vulcan-like stare, he could tell she struggled inwardly with the decision.
"Every moment we wait it is more likely we will never see the Captain or Trip or anyone down there again. It will most likely take them to the city."
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The darkness was odd, for a moment he felt as though someone had thrown a heavy black blanket over him; his limbs refused to move in the directions he wished them to. He blinked, and found himself standing on a rocky hillside. Not too far away he could see ancient ruins that were all but level with the ground.
"...Help him..." came a firm but slippery voice drifting on the wind.
Archer spun around, but there was no one in sight. "Who's there?" he called out loudly.
"...Up the hill..." the voice answered.
"Where are you?"
"...Climb..." the haunting voice whispered.
With extreme caution, he took a few steps up the steep hill, eyes darting over the rough, brown landscape.
"Who are you?" he called out again, taking very slow careful steps.
"...It is not what I am...but what I am to become..." said a voice that seemed to come from all directions at once and disturbingly close to his ears.
"And what is that?" he said, trying to keep the conversation going in hopes of catching a glimpse of the source of the voice.
"...Not much farther...just ahead now..." breathed the voice. "...We need him alive for just a bit longer..."
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"There," muttered Phlox, putting a fresh bandage on Malcolm's head. He was grudgingly allowing Malcolm to be released from sickbay. He had told T'Pol it would take a direct order from her and a direct objection from the patient about being treated.
He got both, but was less then pleased about the situation, and insisted that he would have Malcolm beamed off the surface the second his bio signs indicated any sort of decline.
"You know where I stand on this Lieutenant, you're taking your health into your own hands the moment you leave my care."
"I have to," Malcolm said dully, grimacing as the doctor pulled the bandage snugly around his head.
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It wouldn't be long now, after so many years of waiting, after so many failed attempts. After all this, finally there had come a being capable of helping It defeat, and reign in Parialter and Diluculo. It laughed to Itself; doubting either knew It still existed.
Once again It would have absolute control. Yes, it would be very soon now...
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TBC...
a/n: Yeah, I know, I said I would be quicker then this with the update! Really sorry, hangs head in shame
But please review! Reviews of all sorts are most welcome! Let me know what you think!
And thanks to my ever patient beta!
Sit vis nobiscum.
(may the force be with you)
ha. That's one of my favorites.