A/N: This chapter was written in a bit of a hurry… sorry if the grammar's a bit off. And don't worry… a new chapter of Drifting will be posted very very soon. Promise J
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As the darkness settled in around them, the two came to a clearing in the woods, a small patch of dirt barely big enough to pitch a tent and have a fire and surrounded on all sides by ancient towering trees, their branches casting eerie shadows through the moonlight. They began removing their bags and assembling their camp in tense silence.
As they pitched the tent together, Malcolm tugged hard on the tent pole, so hard in fact that it pulled out of Trip's hand holding it on the other end, and clean out of the tent, causing the tent to collapse.
"What is your problem anyway?" Trip exclaimed, as the clank of the metal poles falling over echoed around them.
"My problem?" Malcolm asked, a scowl coming over his face, "My problem?" He threw the metal pole still in his hand down on the ground hard. "I'm not the one who blames the Armoury staff for what happened to crewmen Allan and Schaeffer. You know, it's not like I asked the Klingons to board us. I didn't say, 'Please, come and destroy our ship! I'll even turn our weapons off for you!'. His voice cracked with emotion as he turned sharply and stalked off towards the forest.
Trip followed, unwilling to let Malcolm escape so easily. "You might as well have," he told the man angrily. "Those Klingons got to Engineering way too quickly. That was two of my men, Malcolm. Two of my team died, because your team didn't think to cover engineering." He was yelling at Malcolm now, his tone venomous.
"Well, Commander, we were a little tied up preventing them from getting to the bridge and taking the ship. And perhaps we wouldn't have as many problems if you kept your team up to date on their security training." Malcolm responded defensively.
"Oh, so now it's my fault. Are you blaming me for the deaths of my people?" Trip was nearly crying, his emotions overcoming him. "They were my friends Malcolm. I saw them everyday. And they were my responsibility."
Malcolm yelled so loud his throat was sore, his voice cracking and tear beginning to well up in his eyes. "I'm not blaming anybody! I'm just trying to figure out why the hell you insist on blaming me." he sobbed. "It's not as if I don't know you're right. You don't think that I feel guilty about what happened? You're right... it is my job to protect this crew, and in this case I failed miserably. I know it, I don't need you to remind me every chance you get!" And he stormed off again, broken, and this time Trip didn't follow. He simply stood and watched him leave.
After a moment, he slowly began to assemble the camp himself, lighting the fire, and sitting by it himself staring into the flames as though hypnotized. He ate alone, and then went to bed alone. It wasn't until much later that he was woken in his sleep by the sounds of Malcolm crawling into the tent and falling asleep in the sleeping bag next to him. The sound of the other man's steady breathing was somehow comforting.
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The following morning, the two men walked in an uncomfortable silence through the forest to the site where the exo-biology team had set up their camp, their footsteps crunching on the fallen leaves. After a brief time like this, Trip finally spoke. "Where did you get to last night?" he asked softly. "I was kinda worried." Malcolm looked at him as though he had just gone crazy. "We are on an alien planet. You of all people should agree that caution might be a good idea."
"Caution? This from the man who decided to stick his hands in mysterious alien beads and came back to the ship pregnant. How dare you tell me to be cautious after all the stupid things you've done." Malcolm retorted.
"Stupid things..." blurted Trip, "You know, Malcolm, I was only trying to be nice. It won't happen again."
"Make sure that it doesn't." Malcolm bit back. "I don't need your pity, Commander." He stalked ahead, walking faster so that Trip couldn't catch up to him.
As the man got further away, Trip heard his last comment, thrown over his shoulder. "I went for a damn walk on a planet full of plants. That's it! Are you happy?"
Trip wasn't happy.
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The exo-biology team was ready for the two of them, and soon they were off helping to collect samples, and scanning the plants to make a record of their different properties. Malcolm had to admit that while he hadn't expected much from the day, he was rather enjoying himself. The sun was shining, warming him up from head to toe, and the air was crisp and cool in the shade of the imposing trees. And, Malcolm decided, plants were much more fascinating then he would have thought. It had been a long time since he had felt grass and ground beneath his feet, and felt dirt, real dirt, on his hands.
"That one there, Lieutenant." instructed his partner for the day, the perky Lieutenant Howard. She reminded Malcolm of a cheerleader in more ways then one, her shoulder length blonde hair shining in the sun. Malcolm looked where she had instructed and saw a small vine that had what looked like orange strawberries growing in bunches on it. "This one?" he clarified. Lieutenant Howard nodded.
He carefully did as the Lieutenant had shown him earlier in the day, tracing the vine back until he could see where it met the ground, and then using the spade he had been given to dig out the roots, and then transferring the plant into a pot careful not to damage the roots as he did so.
The routine of this was relaxing, and Malcolm allowed himself to enjoy it, and to forget about the torturous past few weeks on the ship, about the way Trip Tucker had been treating him, about his own guilt. 'Maybe the Captain was right,' he thought. 'I think this is just what I needed.'
After he had transferred the plant, he turned over to where Lieutenant Howard was hunched over a plant stiffly, grinning from ear to ear. He cleared his throat to get her attention, and she jumped up, startled.
"Oh!" she exclaimed, "You got it! Great!" She came over and began peering at the odd plant in Malcolm's hands. "Fascinating..." she said, lost in a world Malcolm couldn't even begin to comprehend. She scanned the plant slowly, examining the readouts intensely.
"What's so fascinating about it?" he asked, curiously.
"Well, this plant has all the properties of a common fragaria, but it's got the flowers of a vitus plant.
Malcolm was baffled. "What does that mean?" he asked.
"This plant is edible to a human, and it has properties similar to that of a strawberry plant, but it grows more like a tomato." she replied.
"Oh." Malcolm said, not understanding. "What's so special about that then?" he asked.
Lieutenant Howard only looked at him as though he was a small child and clucked her tongue disapprovingly.
A small smile crossed Malcolm's lips at this. He supposed he might be the same way if someone asked him why Phase Cannons were important.
His gaffe was soon forgotten as Howard spotted another plant, and forgot that Malcolm was even there.
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Trip smiled slightly to himself as he followed Ensign Roberts, whom he had been assigned to help for the day. He couldn't believe it, but he was actually having a good time. It was such a beautiful day, and he hadn't been off of the ship in such a long time, that he found himself relaxing and letting his mind drift away.
It surprised him that he could relax, seeing as how this little excursion had so far been a complete nightmare. Trip hadn't meant to get so upset with Malcolm, but how could he have known that Malcolm was so upset over the Klingon boarding of the ship? He certainly hadn't shown it. He remembered the funeral, and how he had looked over and Malcolm had not even shed one tear. The man was always so stoic about everything. How could Trip have known that Malcolm felt so guilty?
How could Trip have known that Malcolm was beating himself up inside? And why couldn't the damned man just open up, just a little, and let people know what he was really feeling? Even thinking about it for a second drove Trip crazy.
But, as he followed Ensign Roberts, occasionally stopping to collect a plant and chatting amicably with the man, Trip forgot about Malcolm. He forgot about the repairs on the ship. In fact, he forgot about all of his problems, and enjoyed himself.
He was busy collecting a sample of an odd plant that looked not unlike cauliflower when he heard an odd grunt come from Ensign Roberts. He turned his head and saw the man gazing at a hanging vine intently, as though he thought he could see through it if he simply tried hard enough.
"Find something interesting, Ensign?" he asked, curious.
"Very," Roberts replied. "This vine is very very unusual."
Trip stood up and walked over to examine the vine himself, intrigued. "What do you mean unusual?" he asked.
"Well," replied Roberts, captivated by the plant in front of him, "This plant is similar to a Dicotyledones class. Not unlike a Dionaea."
"Huh?" said Trip, completely lost.
"A Venus Fly Trap" Roberts clarified. "It bears similarities, but the differences are startling."
Trip took a step back from the vine, slightly revolted. "Venus Fly Traps? Aren't those the plants that survive on blood?"
Roberts laughed. "Not blood, Commander," he clarified, "insects. They're carnivorous. But I wouldn't worry about this vine... I said it shares properties with Dionaea, but this plant wouldn't hurt a fly... forgive the pun." The Ensign appeared amused with his own weak joke. "Even if it does bear some resemblance to similar plants on Earth, it wouldn't make any kind of sense would it? No other life has evolved on this planet except for plant-life."
Trip had to admit that this statement was absolute. A plant couldn't have evolved to rely on other life-forms for food when there were no other life forms available. His curiosity satisfied, he returned to the plant he had been collecting, content to leave Ensign Roberts alone with his vine.
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Later that evening, Trip met up with Malcolm at their camp, not far from where the exo-biologists had decided to set up for the night. Malcolm was covered head to toe in caked-on dirt and sweat. He was amazed at how exhausted he was. He had no idea that collecting plants could be so tiring, but Lieutenant Howard had insisted on dragging him across half the forest, collecting every plant they saw. All he wanted to do was shower, but given that he didn't have that option currently, he would settle for falling into the tent and passing out.
Trip appeared to have had a similar day, and so the two of them crawled into their tent without speaking, and collapsed.
A moment passed. "Malcolm," Trip asked quietly. "Are you still awake?"
"Mmph." came the half-asleep grunt from the man next to him.
Trip sat up halfway on his elbows and turned around to get a good look at Malcolm. He was out cold, his breathing steady. He poked him in the ribs, and got swatted away. He poked him again. "Malcolm..." he said loudly and close to the sleeping man's ear.
He was rewarded for his efforts as Malcolm's eyes opened and he rolled around until he was practically on top of Trip. "What do you want, Commander?" he asked grumpily.
Now that Trip had gotten Malcolm up, he wasn't entirely sure why he had done it. It had seemed like a good idea at the time. "Ummm..." he stuttered. "How was your day?"
Malcolm looked at him through sleepy eyes as though he had just done something really disgusting. "That's it..." he said harshly. "You woke me up for that? I'm tired Trip... I need to sleep. Goodnight." And he rolled over and went back to sleep.
Trip sat there staring at Malcolm for a moment before making a decision.
"Malcolm," he said, poking the man again, harder this time.
Malcolm sat up so quickly that it made Trip jump. "My day was fine Trip, now will you let me be dammit!" he growled.
"I'm sorry..." Trip muttered.
"S'ok..." Malcolm muttered sleepily as he lied back down, turning on his side so he was facing away from Trip.
Trip felt he had to clarify what he meant. "No, Malcolm... it's not... I-"
He was cut off by a piercing scream coming from the direction of the science team's camp. Malcolm immediately shot up out of his sleeping bag at the sound, and was out of the tent before Trip even had time to react. Trip quickly ran after him, trying to untangle himself from the sleeping bags and tent which slowed him down.
When Malcolm arrived at the other camp, he was greeted by complete chaos. The camp was torn apart, the tent collapsed and the science team's equipment strewn everywhere. But there was no sign of the team.
Malcolm quickly surveyed the site, but was at a loss until another scream, this one clearly from a man, pierced the silence. As he shot off towards the sound, he became aware of another sound... a rustling and crunching noise that seemed to be coming from directly behind him. When he turned around to look, fear ran through him. The plants themselves were following him. He turned and continued running quickly in the direction of the scream, finally coming face to face with a terrified Ensign Roberts.
The man was standing straight up, with hanging vines wrapped around every inch of his body. His feet were slightly off the ground, as the vines crept around his legs, his arms, and his neck pulling tighter and tighter, like a cobra trapping it's prey, while at the same time pulling him apart. They seemed to be coming from every direction. Malcolm knew he had to act quickly, and the forest seemed to close in around him as he stepped towards the horrified man. "I know you're scared Ensign... but I'm going to get you out of this." he whispered softly to the man, hoping he sounded reassuring as the vines began to reach out for him. "Just trust me." He pulled a switchblade from one of his back uniform pockets, flicked it open with a swish and began hacking away at the plants binding the hysterical man. But he knew even as he did it that his efforts were futile. The vines were ensnaring him now as well. He could feel them creeping away from Ensign Roberts, wrapping themselves tightly around his legs and his arm, caressing his back and sides and sending shivers down his spine. But he continued doing everything he could to free the Ensign. As he hacked, he noticed that Roberts had gotten back his presence of mind and was helping him. Soon, Malcolm was almost entirely helpless, at the mercy of the forest, however Roberts had succeeded in getting loose.
"RUN!" Malcolm yelled, as the vines began tightening around him, nearly cutting off the circulation. His breathing was becoming laboured and he knew that it was too late for him... Roberts needed to go and get help.
Malcolm could feel his head becoming light as the vines began to put incredible pressure on him, dragging his weight down towards the ground. As he lost consciousness, Ensign Roberts ran as fast as he could away from the forest, towards the shuttlepod knowing that whatever help he got would come too late.
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Trip ran as fast as his legs could carry him through the forest in the direction of the scream, but the forest seemed to be out to get him. He tripped over his own legs several times, and had a hard time keeping his footing, and he knew he would never catch up to Malcolm. What was going on?
As he finally made it to the scientist's camp, panting and covered in sweat and dirt, he saw the destruction there. Fear ran through him as he heard a rustling noise. He couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from, it seemed to be all around him. When he looked up, he saw that the forest itself had come alive, with the plants slowly creeping towards him, like an animal stalking prey. He stood, frozen and absorbed in the scene around him until he felt a leafy tendril begin to creep up his leg. Disgusted and terrified, he jerked himself away and ran, not noticing which direction he took, just knowing that he couldn't stay put, that he needed to find Malcolm and they needed to get out of the forest.
He ran, his lungs burning and his legs aching for what felt like an eternity before he suddenly felt something slam into him, pushing him down onto the ground. It was heavy and alive and after a moment he realized it was a person: Lieutenant Howard. She was lying on top of him, soaked in sweat, sobbing and shaking.
"Roberts..." she sobbed incoherently. "The plants... they came, and took him away..."
Hearing the rustling all around them, closing in on them, Trip pushed Howard off of him and quickly pulled her, trembling, to her feet. "We have to run," he whispered. But she wouldn't move. "Now!" he commanded, and yanked her arm hard, and dragged her along behind him as he bolted towards the edge of the forest. She was tired, almost like dead weight, slowing him down, but somehow he managed to pull her far enough to be out of danger. She collapsed on the grass, hysterical. Trip looked up and saw the shuttlepod across the clearing, shining in the moonlight like a beacon of hope. He loped slowly over to it, exhausted and saw that Ensign Roberts was collapsed in front of it, bruised and battered, crying. He had a communicator clutched in his hand like a lifeline, but all that could be heard coming out of it was static.
"Roberts..." Trip said anxiously, "Where's Lieutenant Reed?"
Roberts looked up at him, and Trip's stomach lurched as he saw the devastated look in his eyes. "Where's Malcolm?" he asked again, his tone urgent.
"I called for help..." Roberts said slowly, "But it's too late..."
Trip felt a brief surge of emotion at the man's words. He knew what he had to do, he couldn't leave Malcolm behind. Instinct took over as Trip gathered up all of his strength and bolted for the forest.
Trip ran quickly once he hit the forest, keeping his eyes open for Malcolm, listening carefully for the now-familiar rustling of plant-life crawling around him. He ran for ten or fifteen minutes, dodging errant vines and branches as he went until his foot hit something solid and he went flying, hitting the ground hard. He thought it had been a tree root, but when he looked, he was horrified to see the still of form of Malcolm, almost entirely hidden under layers of thick thorny vines, the same ones he had innocently examined earlier that day with Ensign Roberts. As Trip looked at his friend, barely visible for all the vines covering him, still snaking around him, pulling him tighter and further into the ground, Trip sobbed. This was all wrong. This was supposed to be a vacation.
"Malcolm," Trip whimpered, collapsing on top of his former friend. "Malcolm, wake up." But it was no use. Trip Tucker had failed one of his best friends. Trip trembled, his breathing heavy and lay there while the vines covering Malcolm began to creep up his arms as well, not caring. Soon he was engulfed by the strange plantlife, and he could feel it pushing at him, digging into him. It hurt but he didn't feel it. He was numb. He knew that this would be the end, and somehow he couldn't bring himself to care. As he lost consciousness, his final thought was of Malcolm, and how he would never get the chance to set things right. Then everything went black.
TBC…