Chapter Thirty-One: Impact
"Hello."
Hoshi looked up from her meal.
"May I join you?" Nevilka asked.
"Sure," Hoshi answered, trying her best to smile enthusiastically.
"I haven't had the chance to get to know you," Nevilka said, sitting next to Hoshi.
Hoshi had only learned that Nevilka was the reason she was saved from her virus, and that she was married to Trip. "What would you like to know?"
"Well, I've learned that you are a very talented communications officer."
"Thank you," Hoshi said.
Nevilka looked at her, puzzled. "You needn't thank me for a true compliment."
"No," Hoshi shook her head, "I mean, thank you for saving my life…before."
Nevilka finally understood. "Ah…well, your welcome. But that is in the past."
"…yeah, the past."
"Do you know my native tongue?" Nevilka asked, changing the subject.
"Bits and pieces, but nothing I can wholly put together."
"I'll teach you, if you don't mind."
"Okay. But what's the catch?"
Nevilka lowered her head. "How did you know I would want something in return?"
Hoshi shrugged. "It's my duty to read between the lines."
"I…wanted to do something special for Trip. He's done so much for me. I thought…since you and him were…together before, you would know his likes and dislikes."
Nevilka's voice faded into the background.
"Pecan pie. Why am I not surprised?"
"Hey, there's other things besides pecan pie. See, here's pumpkin pie, lemon meringue pie, and strawberry cheesecake."
"They're all sweets."
"I figured it would be appropriate for such a sweet day."
"Trip's a great husband, but he doesn't seem to know how to be romantic," Nevilka said.
Hoshi snapped out of her daze. "His favorite dessert is pecan pie, and he absolutely loves Southern foods, mostly fried. His favorite color is white; he said it reminded him of the sheet that covered his grandma's body when she died. I could tell you more, later."
"Thank you, Hoshi." Nevilka smiled. "Trip…doesn't talk much about his family with me."
Hoshi ate the rest of her food in silence. "How did you learn English?" she finally asked.
"When I was in the Oknashtian rebel group, there was a human. We were friends and then he became my lover. He taught me his native tongue and about some of the human culture. We were going to marry…but…"
"Does Trip remind you of your love?"
"Yes, in some ways, he does."
-----
"Archer to Sato."
Hoshi slept peacefully.
"Hoshi."
She groaned and tossed in her bed.
"Hoshi!"
She bolted up. The ship shook hard and she fell off her bed. She scrambled to the comm. "Sato here."
"Hoshi," Archer said. "I want you on the bridge, pronto!"
Hoshi quickly put on her uniform, she didn't bother to pin up her hair, and ran to the lift.
-----
Hoshi rushed onto the bridge. "Captain."
"The starship that attacked us, before, is back. This time, I want you to enforce contact with them."
"I'll see what I can do."
"Malcolm, in case we can't make peaceful negotiations, I want you to proceed with the plan."
Malcolm nodded at Archer, and Hoshi looked at them. What did she not know?
"Jerfhdl funasf difedlk edked!" The Oknashtian man screamed, on the screen.
"What is he saying?" Archer asked.
"From what I know so far…he's looking for someone."
"Captain!" Trip ran onto the bridge.
"Trip, I told you to stay put!" Archer said.
The Oknashtian suddenly closed all communication with Enterprise.
"Damn!" Trip cursed.
"That's it. We're putting our plan in action." Archer said.
"What plan?" Hoshi asked. "What is it that you all are not telling me?"
"In case we were to be attacked again, we decided we'd be ready to defend ourselves." Archer explained.
"We have more company," Travis said. "There's another starship."
Another hit shook the ship and caused Trip to collide into Hoshi.
"I'm losing control of the ship, Captain," Travis said.
"Hoshi, I want you to send out distress signals to any nearby starship. We need help." Archer looked at T'Pol. "Are you up for this?"
"I'm ready, Captain," T'Pol answered.
"I'm losing the ship. We're going to crash!"
"Travis, I have every confidence in you that you'll keep us safe," Archer said. "Is there anywhere to land?"
"Yes. A planet about three minutes away. But I don't know if we'll make it."
"Travis, we will."
Nevilka rushed onto the bridge.
"Nevilka, you're not supposed to be here!" Trip exclaimed.
"This is my fault. You shouldn't have to go through this," she said, scared.
"We are falling fifty meters," T'Pol said.
Archer spoke through the comm. "This is your captain. We are under attack and will be crash landing on a nearby planet. The armory officers are ordered to their stations. Lieutenant Reed will provide you with further instructions."
To the rest of the bridge crew, he said, "Everyone, follow me, to the armory. Travis, Hoshi, and Nevilka, you stay here."
"Captain," Trip said.
"Trip, this has gone far enough. I listened to you, and that was my fault. You'd better pray that we make it out alive."
One by one, they exited the bridge.
"Take care, love," Malcolm said to Hoshi before he left.
"Brace yourselves; we're going to have a bumpy landing." Travis tried his best to control the ship's landing, hoping he would keep them from exploding with the impact.