Chapter Five
Planet Fall
Nearly a week later, at slightly past 0330, Trip Tucker, unable to sleep, was walking down the corridor to E/58, finding the blonde haired Andrea Carstairs on duty outside the door. He noticed with some irritation, as he approached, that her eyes were closed. As he stopped in front of her, it was clear she was completely unaware of his presence. He stood for a moment before her, then tapped her on her shoulder. Startled, the woman jerked to attention when she saw him. "Sir!"
"Is this how you guard your post?"
"No, sir. I – I'm sorry, sir." In that moment, however, he got a good look at her bloodshot eyes and remembered something.
"You're Beta Shift, aren't you?"
"Yes, sir." She said with difficulty, holding stiff 'Attention'. "I was posted at 1600."
"And you didn't get relieved at Zero hours?"
"Sir, I haven't even had a 'head' break. Sir."
"All right, Ms. Carstairs. I'll look into this in the morning. Meantime, we're about a half hour outside Risa, so you're relieved. Go get some sleep."
"Thank you, sir." Feeling very relieved, she left as quickly as she could.
x
Following the woman with his eyes as she left, Trip shook his head. He'd talk to Malcolm later. The Chief did not normally make post assignments personally, but it was clear someone in his department had fallen down on the job.
'Well', he thought, 'as long as I'm here, I can just peek in on Tia. If I'm quiet, I won't wake her.' Activating the override control, he opened the door and stepped in quietly. As the door slid quietly shut, the light in the room was so dim he could not see anything for a few moments. Gradually, however, his eyes adjusted and he could make out the still form of his beloved on the bunk, blanket pulled up to her chin. He looked down at her placid face, her long golden hair framing her features, looking like burnished ore in the dim light.
He stood looking at her, as always unable to resist her beauty. She was like a … words failed him. He always admitted he was no kind of poet, now he wished he were so he could find some way of putting into words what she did to him.
"You as quiet as a clinda are." She whispered softly, not even opening her eyes, her soft whisper the only indication that she was even awake.
"I'm sorry." He whispered as softly, embarrassed. "What's a clinda?"
"Had one once. Closest thing you have a 'cat' might call."
"Cats are pretty quiet."
"This one nyasi. All night long, from furnishing one to another would she jump, until the prisna in must I her put if sleep I get would."
"I'll go."
"Nyas. Feeluy Li lurin edal nyasi." She shook her head, trying to waken enough to remember the words. "Lonely I want to be not." She pushed aside the cover, revealing that she wore a long nightgown of some light color that it was too dim to be certain of. He could now see her quite well even in the dimness, but could not distinguish color very well. "Veelma ri fuur, qualsia? Stay me with, please? Li luas ti … um, I going to feeluy edu … um, lovely, um, 'lonely' be."
"Are you all right?"
She nodded. "Daai. Tired just. Sleep well can not." She shifted aside as he sat down on the bunk, and sighed gratefully as he gathered her in his arms. She held him as he did her, not wanting to be anywhere else ever again.
He was surprised by how warm her body was. Normally it was nearly two degrees cooler than a human's, and that was definitely enough to detect, but now she was quite significantly warmer. "Tia, I'm not sure I told you this well enough, but I love you. I realize what you're going through is way beyond me, but I just wanted you to know I'm proud of you, of your strength, of your courage."
"Do feel 'courage' now nyasi. Feel like you I want to me hold forever.
"It won't be long now. We're less than a half hour outside Risan space."
"Scared I am." She whispered. "Do know what this will bring not. Would go through it not, if could I could."
"Don't worry. You'll manage. I have faith in you."
"I … wish could I. Know it today will be, and scared I am. More than minka … than yesterday."
"I wish I could go with you to help."
"Nyas. Allowed it is not. So many rules I broken have. Must 'draw the ling' where some."
"Draw the ling?" He asked, unable to keep a note of amusement out of his tone.
"Daai." She said softly against him, drawing a straight path along his hand with a fingernail. "Ling."
"Line." He corrected with a smile.
She shook her head, whispering. "Nyas. 'Line' an Earth predator is, live in 'Africa' it does." He leaned back so he could look at her better.
"Honey, are you all right?"
"Daai. Cusla Li eda. Forni oa mis."
"Huh?" He turned on the light over her bunk, brushed a lock of golden hair from her forehead, and as he did so he discovered she was sweating heavily. "Tia?"
"Suur?" She asked distantly, her voice having a sing-song quality he definitely did not like.
"Can you understand me?"
"Daai." She sighed. He gripped her more firmly.
"Do you know me?" She smiled.
"Daai." She answered as if it were the most ridiculous question. "Tuvi mrunion Alirki ne Avinyaan! Li vantis cuvilir."
"I was afraid of that. I love you too, but can you say it in English?"
Something in the question seemed to snap through her haze, and she stiffened in distress. "Aura. Ka Luuru!" She tried to get out of the circle of his arms, and he helped her to her feet, but her legs gave out and if he had not been holding her she would have fallen to the deck. She clung desperately to him. "Alyanti ri!" She begged.
"Of course I'll help you. Tell me what to do."
"Ka Luuru. Li vlis vas misa nyasi!"
"You can't stop it?"
"Nyas!" He gathered her into his arms, holding her close an instant before she stiffened, every muscle in her body cramping painfully in the same moment, and she flung back her head and screamed.
xxx
Hoshi was deeply asleep when suddenly the 'yellow alert' klaxon sounded once in her quarters, very loudly, and Commander Tucker's voice came on directly over the startled and now wide awake woman; "Ensigns Sato, Cutler and Mayweather report to the launching bay for immediate debarkation." She was already throwing the blanket off and swinging her legs to the floor when the Alert sounded again, followed by the same order. It would continue on a loop until she turned it off.
Half way out of her bunk, she reached back and, without looking, pressed her palm against the panel, trusting she would hit the button. "Ensign Sato acknowledging."
She looked at the chronometer in the dim light, which had automatically come on at 10 percent illumination on her first movements. '0416'. The Enterprise was scheduled to arrive at Risa shortly before 0400, but she was not scheduled to leave for shore leave until well after breakfast. There was only one reason for this pre-crack-of-dawn summons: something had gone horribly wrong. And she could only come up with one thing that could be. "Oh - – - – -!" For someone fluent in scores of languages, sometimes only the good old earthy English words did it.
Jumping off the bed, she yanked on a pair of shorts and a pink T shirt, stepping into slippers and grabbing the four travel bags from her table, two for her shoulders and two in her hands. Well it was that she had showered the previous evening and had been packed for all the varieties of their plans; for she was out the door even before she was done with the first long string of expletives.
x
It was fortunate that Gamma shift was well into its duties, and the bulk of the crew was blissfully asleep; there was no one in her way as she dashed headlong for the launching bay. As she clung to the bags clutched in her hands and criss-crossing her chest on long straps, she caught sight of a similarly burdened woman cutting into the corridor and running ahead of her. She didn't waste breath calling out; Liz Cutler would not be slowing down and she had to concentrate on keeping her own breakneck pace.
She was less than two seconds behind the biologist when they charged into the huge bay which contained the two shuttlepods. As they braked to a halt, the women took in the tableau in a glance. Commander Tucker, Ensign Mayweather and Dr. Phlox were together by the open hatch of 'pod 1, but no one else was about. The three men had varying degrees of concern and worry etched on their faces. "Oh, fu –!" Liz bit the word squarely in half.
"Inside" was all Tucker said. Neither woman stopped to consider if this was information or an order. They boarded the ship as quickly as they could, and each was very sorry.
Tia Anlor sat strapped to one of the rear seats, dressed in her Starfleet uniform, but she was collapsed into the seat, her head resting weakly on the support. When she turned to look at them they could see the pain reflected in her golden eyes. Her face and hands glistened with perspiration, and her uniform clung to her, already darkly wet. "Came in the night it did." She whispered; her voice tight. "Can stop it nyasi." She winced, clenching her fists tightly as she tried to silence a sharp exclamation.
They started toward her, stowing their bags wherever there was room as Mayweather boarded and got into the pilot seat. Cutler had her tricorder out as Hoshi took the younger women's hand, surprised at the heat of it. "You're running a fever of 102." The young woman should normally be 96.813.
"5 degrees nothing is." She gasped.
"Strap in, ladies." Mayweather directed, activating the various controls before him.
"Just take them wherever they say." Tucker directed from the door. "I'll square things with the planetary authorities." He turned to Tia, and his demeanor softened. "Hang in there, princess. You'll be fine."
"I you see soon sha –." It ended over an octave too high as every muscle in her body seemed to clench at once, and she stopped breathing, a long moment later releasing her pent up breath in an explosive burst. Liz, strapped in next to her, ran a dry cloth over her glistening face.
"Launching." Mayweather warned, and Tucker barely managed to get out of the way as the hatch closed. A moment later the chamber was vacated and being evacuated. It seemed like just seconds before the bottom dropped out from under the shuttle, and they fell into open space. "Any particular destination, ladies?"
"A beach. Isolated would be preferable, but if not, then anyplace there's water." Hoshi directed, wishing this could all be done in the Sick Bay, but knowing it was impossible.
"You got it."
x
Tia let her breath out in an explosive release, then took another and held it for a long moment before releasing it as sharply. She lay pressed into the chair, trying to keep quiet, but the expression on her face gave mute testimony to pain that she could not even try to hide. Liz scanned her body again. "105. And your BP is soaring."
Tia wrenched her hand away from one of the arm rests to point, with trembling finger, to a large black chest at Hoshi's feet. The linguist bent down to unlock and lift the top, finding ten containers of a familiar concoction, each containing one liter of the liquid. She hoped they contained Liz's revised formula. Tucked between four of them was a medical pouch, which she opened to find a hypo and ten phials. "Think we should give her some now?" She asked Liz.
"Nyas." Tia gasped. "Yet nyasi! Know where they were I you wanted." Hoshi closed the case again. Tia was gasping more and more sharply, her breath starting to wheeze when Liz gave her a cup of water which she drank quickly. The added liquid only made her perspire more, her wet uniform clinging to her like a second skin. "Oh, Aura. Can take this nyasi." She exclaimed half in anger, half in desperation and reached for the collar of her uniform. She yanked the zipper down, getting caught in the diagonal strap across her chest and then reaching under and yanking harder, pulling the zipper as far as it would go and pulling the material apart as hard as she could.
She was wearing nothing beneath it.
Hoshi looked forward at Travis, but his attention was completely engrossed in the approach to the planet. Her apprehension turned to a mild regret for her friend, who would probably never know what he had missed.
Even as Tia was struggling against the straps to get the wet material off her shoulders and down her arms, Liz was out of her seat and rummaging about in her travel bag which had been tossed into the rear of the cabin. She leaned over the back of Tia's seat. By the time the young Auran was finally free she was also more than halfway secured in a small but reasonably serviceable beige bikini top. Hoshi glanced forward at the absorbed pilot with a commiserating smile. 'Sorry, Trav.' She thought. 'Better luck next time.'
xx
It took only a few more minutes before Travis sent back word to prepare for landing, and a moment later they felt a gentle bump and he started switching off the controls. The two scientists started gathering their supplies, but Travis came back, glancing at Tia. "You'll have your hands full with her; I'll take care of this."
"Thanks, Trav." Hoshi said as Liz started to undo the straps holding Tia in place. She had been trying to get them loose, but her hands were trembling too much and she could not work the latches. They got her free and supported between them, astonished at the heat from her normally cool body, as he opened the hatch, taking a double armload of supplies out. They followed cautiously, stepping down onto the sand.
Hoshi had a moment to glance around. The pod sat at the far end of a small beach, reasonably distant from three vacationers who looked on with mild curiosity. It was not every day that a Starfleet shuttlepod landed on the beach, nor was it customary for one of the planet's visitors to be virtually carried out between two others, but no one made a move to come across the length of beach, and that suited her just fine. About ten meters away the small lake sat with barely a ripple on its surface. Again, this was ideal – far better than having to deal with oncoming waves, no matter how mild. The lake was small, perhaps no more than two kilometers about its irregular circumference. They should have no problems here.
Liz and Hoshi supported Tia between them as they started for the water. Her uniform was hanging about her hips, and it took barely three steps for it to drop off.
x
Hoshi was absolutely mortified as the blue uniform fell, tangling about Tia's feet. She did not have to look to know; she knew Tia all too well. She looked back to see where Travis was and if he had noticed – ha! – while the women tried to keep Tia from falling, tripping over the blue cloth puddle. A moment later he was beside them.
"Here. I'll hold her up. I'm sure you two can find something to fix this problem." As he took hold of Tia's arms high at her shoulders both women hurried to rummage through Liz's travel bag that had been dropped only two feet behind, finding the other half of the bikini. Fortunately, it was one that required, like the top, only string ties at the hips, so they had it secured in short order. Hoshi noticed that Travis gave them plenty of room to work.
When they stood up, he had his eyes firmly focused on the Auran's. "She's burning up, and her eyes don't look so great." He told them. Liz pulled her tricorder out, pointing it at the girl.
"108. Eleven above her normal."
Travis scooped her up in his arms, his attention kept strictly either on her face or the edge of the water several meters away. "I'll take care of her, you guys bring the rest." He carried her to the water's edge. She tried to put her arm about him, but barely managed to do so, and none of them liked the glassy, distant look in her eyes. Her body was hot, and she was perspiring so heavily she was virtually dripping. "Put her in?" He asked. Hoshi looked at Liz, who shrugged.
"Me you're asking? You know how many Auran women I've taken through this?"
Hoshi looked at Travis, then at Tia who lay in his arms, her hot flesh glistening golden in the warm sunlight. There were times she hated being the ranking officer. Uncertain, she nodded.
Half in, half out of the still water, Travis knelt down in the shallow water's edge so that Tia's legs and hips would be in the water, and gently deposited her in the cooling blue liquid. Instantly, Tia's free hand clamped over her mouth to muffle a shriek as every muscle from toes to hips cramped at once. Her other arm about Travis' neck tightened convulsively, pulling him over as her body's muscles seized up and she tried to muffle scream after scream until, after a very long moment during which her frantic friends tried to figure out what could be done to help, Travis being almost smothered against her, her body began to relax and her hand fell away from her mouth, releasing a long sob.
When Travis stood up, working the kinks from his own wrenched neck, Liz took his place. He turned to Hoshi. "I always knew she was stronger than she looked, but –." He shook his head.
"You okay?"
"Nothing a good massage won't cure. I'll get the rest of the stuff."
It took him three trips to bring everything to the water's edge. "Listen," he said to Hoshi, "the Commander explained this was private for you women, so I can't stay. But I won't be going on leave until the second tour, so if you guys need anything just yell; and I'll burn a hole in the atmosphere getting Phlox down here."
"Thanks," was all she could think of to say. She had been hugely impressed by his restraint. She could not have blamed him if he had gotten a good eyeful of the young woman, and most men she could think of would have 'supported' her chest to chest, and a good handful would have taken advantage of that very tight clutch she had pulled him into…
"Well, see you later. Good luck." He started back to the shuttle. She looked down at Liz, who was kneeling beside Tia, who had relaxed considerably. She looked back; he was just getting into the pod, and she looked again at her friends, turned and started running across the sand.
"Travis! Travis, wait!" She ran as fast as she could, which was not very, not getting traction on the sand. Already the pod door was starting to close. "Travis. Wait!" She skidded to a sandy halt just as the door stopped closing and reopened. She looked at him in the control seat, very aware of the disheveled appearance she made. "I – I, er, just wanted to say…" He looked at her questioningly. "I don't think I've ever really given you enough credit." His eyebrows went up. "Any other man … well … I just wanted to say that if you ever want that massage, I'll be happy to."
He smiled. "Thanks."
"You're welcome."
She realized there was a lot more she could have said, but couldn't think of any words. She backed away from the hatch, allowing it to close, and she stood off far enough for safety as the shuttle lifted off the beach.
