Let the Dead Bury the Living
By Thalia Drogna
AN: Wow thirty chapters, not quite sure how that happened…
It was a couple of days before they could put their plan to catch Davis into action, which was time that they needed to find a suitable location and wrangle once more with Starfleet bureaucracy. Meanwhile Archer had been invited down to the shuttle bay to bid their Andorian guest farewell.
"So you're finally leaving us," said Archer as he watched Shran load up the Zor Rakh.
"I've stayed longer than I meant to," replied Shran. "I had hoped to witness Nash's conviction but obviously that won't be happening now." In fact Shran had stayed several weeks longer than he meant to. For almost a month now Shran had said that he would be leaving in few days time. Archer still wasn't sure why the Andorian hadn't left three weeks ago, but he suspected he had been waiting to hear whether the information he'd sent to the Imperial Guard would mean that he would be welcomed back or not.
"He found a way to avoid a trial that I didn't see coming," said Archer.
"It is rather galling that we were outmanoeuvred in the end game," said Shran.
"I wouldn't say end game. It's not over yet," said Archer. "I hear you've been reinstated to the Cammari."
"Yes, the information that I provided regarding the nanites was enough to ensure that I have returned to the good graces of my superiors."
"Hey, blue, quit chatting and get us out of here," said Enam, entering the shuttle bay. Ghanima trailed behind her mother not looking exactly happy.
"You're going with Shran?" asked Archer.
"He's offered me a lift to the nearest space station. Aldebaran I think it is. Ghanima and I can start a new life well away from the Tanu mob," said Enam.
"I don't want to go," said Ghanima.
Archer thought that it was the first time that he had heard the little girl say anything.
"We've been over this, Ghani," said Enam. "We can't stay here."
"But I want to stay!" shouted Ghanima, stamping her foot and obviously about to throw a tantrum. She burst into tears.
Archer never had been good with kids, they made him nervous and he had no idea how to talk to them. He'd conducted negotiations with alien species but for some reason this situation completely flawed him. He had just decided to let Enam deal with her daughter without his input, when the hatch opened and Trip walked in.
"Hey, what's all this?" he asked as he took in the scene in front of him.
"Trip!" shouted Ghanima with glee and abandoned her mother to run over to the Engineer. Trip currently looked as if a stiff breeze would knock him down and Archer was worried that Ghanima would bowl him over, but she just fastened herself around one of Trip's legs. He tottered a little but steadied himself with a hand on the door jamb.
"I just came down to say goodbye," he said slightly bemused by Ghanima's reaction.
"I want to stay with you, Trip," said Ghanima, sobbing into Trip's pants leg.
Archer now had an exceedingly amused look on his face. "Looks like you've made a friend. What is it with you and women, Trip?"
Trip gave his CO an annoyed glance and then concentrated on his problem.
"Ghani, honey, you need to go with you mommy," said Trip. He managed to peel Ghanima off his leg and then crouched down so that he was at her height. "What about all those things that we talked about seeing? You want to see the Horse Head Nebula don't you? And binary star systems? And more weird more aliens like me and Shran?"
Ghanima nodded. "But Enterprise is going to be doing that. I could come with you."
"Enterprise is going to be in dock for another few weeks. You can go now. And there's no guarantee that I'm going to be shipping out with Enterprise when she leaves. You know that I've been sick and I might not be well enough to go back into space."
"Then I want to stay with you on Earth," said Ghanima, stubbornly.
Trip shook his head. "I don't think your mom would be too happy stopping on Earth. You'd be the only Tanu on the entire planet. Don't you want to go home?"
"My home was Harrar Station and I don't want to go back there," said Ghanima. Trip remembered that Ghanima had never actually seen her people's home planet, she had been born and lived all her life so far on a space station.
"Home is where you want it to be, kid," said Trip. "Why don't you give your mom a chance to show you where your people came from? Then you can decide where you want to call home."
Ghanima sniffed and nodded. "Okay."
"You've got the contact details I gave you?" asked Trip.
"Yes, Trip," said Ghanima and gave Trip a little smile.
"Good. Now don't keep your mom and Shran waiting," said Trip.
Ghanima gave Trip a big hug and then ran back to her mother's side.
"I think I've just worked out why you always get the girl," said Archer to Trip in a quiet voice as he helped him up from his crouch. Neither of them mentioned the fact that Trip hadn't been able to rise on his own.
"She's a little young for me," said Trip with a smile.
Shran and Enam finished loading the Zor Rakh. Enam went to strap Ghanima into her seat while Shran said his goodbyes.
"I hope the next time we meet it will be less eventful," said Shran.
"Me too," said Archer. "Safe journey. I'm sure the Cammari is anxious to get it's commanding officer back."
"And I'm anxious to get back. See you around, pink skin," replied Shran and disappeared into the Zor Rakh to take the pilot's seat.
Enam jumped down from the Zor Rakhm giving Shran a nod as he passed her to let him know that she wouldn't be long. She turned to Archer. "Take care of yourself and that Engineer of yours. Ghani will never forgive you if you let anything happen to him."
"I'm quite capable of taking care of myself," grinned Trip.
"You just keep telling yourself that, sweety," replied Enam.
"Don't worry about us, just concentrate on starting that new life that you've got planned," said Archer.
"Ghanima's got all my contact details, so if you ever need us then get in touch," said Trip.
"I hope we won't, but maybe we'll catch up with Enterprise again at some point," said Enam. "It's been fun, Archer."
"Fun isn't exactly the word that I would have used, but I wouldn't have missed it," replied Archer.
Enam laughed. "Go, enough of goodbyes." Enam leant over and planted a kiss on Trip's cheek, then turned to Archer and kissed him full on the lips. She stepped onto the Zor Rakh and pulled the hatch shut whilst Archer stood looking dazed for a moment.
"And you say I always get the girl," teased Trip, a grin spreading across his face.
Archer decided that silence was the best defence in this case. The two men retreated from the shuttle bay so that it could be depressurised.
"I didn't realise that you had got to know Enam and Ghanima so well," said Archer as they walked back down the corridor towards Trip's quarters. "I guess I know how Enam came to tell you what we did on Harrar now."
"Well a bored kid and a bored Engineer have a lot more in common than you might imagine," said Trip. "Just call me the Enterprise baby sitting service. She had to pay me back somehow."
When Archer finally got the go ahead for their plan to catch Davis, another week had passed. The week had seen Trip become steadily weaker and Archer was beginning to have second thoughts about using him as bait. Second thoughts had turned into third and fourth thoughts the last couple of days. Trip was being even more stubborn than usual in his assertion that he wanted to be part of the plan. He'd explained that his illness shouldn't mean that he was completely useless and, as bait, all he had to do was be there. Archer didn't have the heart to contradict him, so Trip won the argument.
They decided not to tell Trip when the plan would be carried out, that way he wouldn't have time to think about it or worry. Archer came by to pick up Trip after his daily therapy session, which as usual had left him tired, feeling weak and nauseous.
"Hey Captain," said Trip, trying to be bright as Phlox disconnected the tubes that had been plugged into his arm. He really didn't want the Captain to know just how bad and miserable he was feeling.
"Hi Trip," said Archer. He had seen how much effort Trip had put into his smile and knew it wasn't genuine, but if Trip didn't want people to know how bad he felt then he wasn't going to pry. For the moment anyway. "Thought I'd give Malcolm the day off and come by and pick you up."
"That's real nice of you, Captain," said Trip. He tried to sit up but was too weak to even push himself up off the bed so Archer helped him to sit up and then gave him a shoulder to lean on to move to the wheelchair. Archer didn't say anything, he just gave Trip the help he needed. He couldn't help but notice how light Trip had become over the last few weeks, even given his appearance it still surprised him. Trip's deteriorating condition had become the proverbial elephant in the corner, everyone saw it but no one talked about it.
Archer got Trip settled into the wheelchair and put a blanket over his lap to keep him warm. Malcolm had said that Trip had been feeling the cold a lot more lately. The Engineer sagged visibly, obviously tired to his bones. Archer wheeled him out of sickbay and towards the shuttle bay. For a while Trip didn't say anything, leaning against the side of the chair, eyes closed. It took him a little while to notice that they weren't going back to his quarters.
"Captain, this isn't the way to my quarters, you know," said Trip. His voice sounded dry and quiet.
"I know, Trip. We're not going to your quarters," replied Archer.
"We're not?" asked Trip.
"No, today I've got something special planned," said Archer.
"The shuttle bay?" asked Trip recognising the route. "You've got the plan ready?"
"Yes," said Archer. "Just wait until we get there."
When they reached the shuttle bay Malcolm and Travis were already waiting for them. The back of the shuttle had been set up with a temporary stretcher for Trip so that he would be comfortable on the journey. The three of them manoeuvred the wheelchair in through the door. Trip gave Archer a questioning look when he saw the stretcher.
"It's a few hours journey down to Earth," said Archer.
"Earth?" said Trip, in a whisper. He hadn't actually expected to be allowed back down to Earth. When Archer told him about the plan to catch Davis he'd expected the Lunar Research Station or somewhere else equally remote.
"Yeah, that's where we're going, but Phlox wants you to rest on the way," said Archer.
Trip shrugged and Archer helped him to lie down. He covered him with a blanket once again and strapped him in.
"Are you comfortable?" he asked, genuine concern in his voice.
"Snug as bug in a rug," replied Trip. "You've gone to a whole heap of trouble."
"It's no trouble, Trip," said Reed. "If you'll strap in too, sir, we're ready to get underway."
Archer sat down beside the stretcher, so that he could keep an eye on Trip, and strapped himself in. It wasn't long before they were on their way down to Earth. Archer looked over to see that Trip had fallen asleep.
"How's he doing?" asked Reed, turning his seat around so that he could look back at the two men behind him while Travis concentrated on piloting the shuttle.
"He's sleeping peacefully," said Archer. "God, Malcolm, I've never seen him so ill. Even after we pulled him out of that Xindi ship, it was all stuff which could be fixed. I just don't know how to deal with this."
"We just have to hope that Ven Dath was right and this will eventually solve the nanites problem," said Reed. "Phlox seems confident that it's working."
"But what if it isn't, Malcolm?" asked Archer. "Is this how he's going to be for the rest of his life? I don't think that he could stand that."
"We're doing everything that we can, sir," replied Reed.
"We're about to use him as bait," said Archer, quietly.
"We're doing this to protect him in the long term," said Reed. "Davis has to be stopped."
Archer nodded but to be honest Reed's words didn't help, he still felt like a complete Judas for how they were about to use Trip. They had done everything to ensure his safety, but they were dealing with a dangerous criminal, one who could move through cracks in the floor boards or water pipes. They still didn't know enough about this new conjunction of nanite and man for Archer to be comfortable.
A few hours later they landed as gently as Mayweather could manage at their destination. Despite the soft landing, it still woke Trip when Mayweather powered down the engine, his engineer's instincts still as sharp as ever.
"This is home for the next few weeks," said Archer to a bleary eyed Trip as he was carried from the shuttlepod and carefully placed in his wheelchair by Ensign Mayweather and Lieutenant Reed.
"I'll go and check on the perimeter," said Reed once Trip was settled. He stalked off to ensure that everything was secure just as Travis lifted off in the shuttle to return to Enterprise.
Trip took in the scenery around him and almost wept. They'd brought him to a log cabin on a lake. The sun was shining, the lake was beautiful and most importantly it was Earth and he was unbelievably happy to be somewhere other than his quarters on Enterprise. It certainly wasn't what he'd expected as a location to set their trap.
Archer told him that the cabin was at a place called Eagle Lake, so called because of the eagles that fished in the lake. Trip loved it. He just wished that he was here under better circumstances.
T'Pol would be joining them later once she had followed up on a lead on Davis that had come up. Enterprise's missing shuttlepod had been located and T'Pol had decided to check it out personally rather than leaving it to a security team. The shuttle had been found just outside San Francisco, well away from their current location, but T'Pol had worried that it meant that Davis knew of their plans and she wanted to cover every possible eventuality.
Archer explained that Phlox would be coming down to stay with them as well. The cabin had four bedrooms so Trip and Archer would share, leaving one each for the Denobulan, Reed and T'Pol. Phlox thought that the arrangement would work out quite well as Trip was now so weak that it would be best if someone was with him at all times, which they had planned from a security point of view in any case. The largest room was also on the ground floor which would make life considerably easier given Trip's severely compromised mobility.
Trip wasn't thrilled by the idea of sleeping in the same room as his Captain, especially given his current disturbed sleep patterns but it seemed that he had no choice in the matter. It had been made clear to him that he had to obey the rules, if he wanted to stay here.
Phlox had sent down everything that he needed to continue with Trip's therapy as usual, so it would be business as usual from that point of view but Trip could enjoy the fresh air and change of scenery. It was better than being stuck in his quarters on Enterprise he supposed, although he spent most of his time sleeping these days. Trip wondered if he'd even realise that he was on Earth when he woke up in the middle of the night, jerked awake by some bad dream.
"So how did you swing this?" asked Trip, looking around him at the cosy decor. "I thought I was still an enemy of the state." Although Trip had obviously meant it as a joke, Archer caught the bitter undertone.
"It was part of the deal I made when I agreed not to resign and go to the press with my reasons why," said Archer. "The cabin belongs to a friend of my father's." What he didn't say was that the cabin belonged to Admiral Michael Hawke (retired), Starfleet's former head of Intelligence, who was one of the most paranoid men that Archer knew. The cabin was not simply a log cabin. It had a few enhancements which Malcolm had nodded approvingly at, before installing a few more enhancements of his own.
Trip nodded. "It's a nice cabin."
"Yes, and the best thing about it is that it's only accessible by air or on foot, so that cuts down on ways Davis can get here," said Archer.
"Let me guess, no communicators and no electricity. Wasn't that your dream? To get away from everything for a while?" asked Trip.
"I couldn't leave the communicators behind given what we're trying to do, plus Phlox would have never agreed to that given your..." Archer tailed off trying to avoid saying something about Trip's deterioration.
"Hey, you can say it," said Trip. "Illness isn't a dirty word and I know that the side effects have hit me a lot harder than even Phlox expected. He hasn't said anything, but it's in his eyes every time he examines me. I'm not dying, Captain. I'm just not very well at the moment. At least I can be ill in a nice place."
"I know, Trip, but it doesn't stop any of us worrying about you," said Archer. He took a deep breath and changed the subject. He wasn't ready to talk about what not having Trip on Enterprise would mean and he wasn't at all sure that Trip was ready either. "I thought you might get a bit bored without electricity to power the vid screen so you can watch those trashy black and white horror films that you love so much, so there's a generator out back. There's also an extensive sensor grid covering the whole house which should detect anyone trying to enter through any unauthorised routes. I'll give you a full briefing on all the security measures Malcolm has put in after your nap."
"Nap? But I just woke up," protested Trip.
"And you're already half asleep again," said Archer. "Phlox made me promise that I'd make sure that you got plenty of rest and he specified bed rest. So you're going to bed."
"Great, just when I think I've escaped Phlox's tyranny, I get you instead," said Trip.
"Is that any way to talk to your Captain?" asked Archer teasingly. If he tried to pretend that everything was as it always had been then, maybe he could ignore how ill his friend was.
"With all due respect, sir, you can be a pain in the ass at times," said Trip, grateful for Archer's attempt at normality.
"The bedroom's that way," replied Archer with a smile, pointedly ignoring Trip's comment. "Pick whichever bed you want. Travis will be bringing Phlox down tomorrow morning in time for your therapy."
Trip gave an exaggerated sigh and disappeared into the bedroom, just as Reed returned from his perimeter patrol.
"Everything is secure, sir," said Reed. "The sensor grids are set up to detect nanites. If Davis gets within two miles of this place then we'll know about it. He isn't getting the better of us this time."
Night had fallen on Eagle Lake. Everyone was sleeping while security systems kept watch over the exterior and perimeter of the property. It was quiet and stars twinkled brightly in the clear night sky.
Suddenly the peace was shattered by the sound of alarms splitting the night air. Reed was up and moving into the main room of the cabin within seconds of being woken. A slender black shadow opened the door of the cabin and stepped into the room. Alarms still blared out and he had no intention of turning them off until the threat had been located and dealt with. Reed flicked the light switch and aimed his phase pistol at the target. The light temporarily made his eyes hurt but he forced them to stay open and what he saw surprised him considerably.
"T'Pol!" shouted Reed over the alarms. "Jesus Christ! I nearly shot you!" He moved rapidly to the security console that he had installed in the corner of the cabin's lounge and silenced the alarms. "Why didn't you use the codes that I gave you?" he asked at a lower volume level.
"I did. I believe that you have a malfunction in your systems," replied T'Pol.
"I doubt it," said Reed. "I checked all of the systems personally."
Captain Archer emerged from his room looking extremely displeased, brandishing a phase pistol. "What the hell is going on?"
"A false alarm," said T'Pol.
"I want to know what the malfunction was and why it happened. I want a report first thing tomorrow morning."
"Yes, sir," said Reed, knowing that would mean staying up the remainder of the night to find out what had gone wrong.
"How is Commander Tucker?" asked T'Pol.
"Frightened," replied Archer. Reed looked guilty and upset at this news, as well he should, Archer thought, given that it was his mistake which had caused Trip to have a near panic attack.
Archer had been awoken by the alarms sounding and it had taken him a couple of seconds to work out what had happened. Trip however had been jerked from a particularly vivid and nasty dream which had left him disoriented. It had taken Archer a little time to reassure him that the alarms didn't indicate a Xindi attack and that he wasn't on Enterprise. He would have to ask Malcolm to change the alarm sound so that it resembled the shipboard tactical alert less.
"I'm going back to bed," said Archer. "We'll discuss this in the morning." He returned to the twin bedroom that he shared with Trip.
"Everything okay?" asked Trip.
"It was an alarm malfunction," said Archer. "T'Pol's arrived."
Trip breathed a sigh of relief. "Sorry for kind of going to pieces on you. My dreams seem to have a habit of kind of leaking into reality at the moment."
"Don't worry about it," said Archer. "Let's just try to get some sleep before we have to get up tomorrow. I don't think Phlox will be happy if his patient isn't awake when he arrives."
Archer heard Trip mumble something into the pillow and it didn't sound very complimentary about their Denobulan doctor. Trip wasn't a morning person and Phlox was permanently chirpy, even in the mornings, which tended to grate on him. Archer could see his point there. He lay awake for a while listening to Trip tossing and turning in his bed while he tried to get comfortable, obviously finding it hard to go back to sleep, but even that wasn't enough to keep him awake for long.
Archer emerged for breakfast in the morning to find T'Pol and Reed working on the security console. Neither of them looked as if they had slept.
"Do you have a report for me, Lieutenant?" asked Archer.
"So far we haven't been able to track down a fault, but the detectors didn't sense any nanite activity outside the perimeter. I can tell you that T'Pol didn't set the alarms off, something did, but I can't tell you what because the system isn't reporting correctly," said Reed.
"Lieutenant, our entire plan hinges on these systems. If we can't guarantee that we will have warning of Davis' arrival, then we can't guarantee Trip's safety, and I won't put him in unnecessary danger," said Archer. "If you can't find the malfunction, then we're all going back to Enterprise on the next shuttle."
"We should consider the possibility that there was no malfunction," said T'Pol.
"You mean that Davis found a way round my detectors," said Reed. It was a possibility that had briefly entered his mind however it was really too horrible to contemplate that the nanite creature was already within their defences. Reed had been almost hoping that he was going to find that he'd made a mistake setting up the security systems even though he was certain that he hadn't.
"We have seen the Commander perform considerably more complicated tasks with the nanites," said T'Pol.
"Davis may be here already?" asked Archer.
"It's a possibility," said Reed. "I can't find anything wrong with the systems. They did detect something, but the reporting modules aren't telling me what it was."
"Wouldn't T'Pol's scanner have detected it too?" asked Archer.
"Not necessarily," said T'Pol. "The detectors around the perimeter are based on the technology used in my scanner. If Davis was able to pass those sensors without being detected then it is likely that my scanner would also have detected nothing."
"I want to know for sure if he's here," said Archer. "And if he is here, I want him found and neutralised before he attacks Trip again. You're working to a deadline."
"Yes, sir. T'Pol and I can work on recalibrating the nanite scanners. Hopefully that should solve our detection problem," said Reed. "As long as Trip stays inside the house, he should be safe. I've installed a few extra surprises for anyone who might try to enter the cabin via an unauthorised route."
"We will get to work immediately," said T'Pol.