Author Notes: Hi again! Thanks so much for all of your reviews! They really keep me motivated. Only two more chapters before the Enterprise rejoins the story, so bare with me. Malcolm has a lot more to do before he can see them again!

Chapter 6: In Eclipse

Blood pounded in her ears as she scrambled across the rugged terrain, attempting to avoid the shots being fired at them. Her breathing was ragged and shallow, and in the corners of her vision, stars danced in torment. She reached the peak of the slope that they had been driven up by the tribal Nexritu and staggered over to where Malcolm was standing. At first, she didn't realise why he wasn't running, and then it hit her as sharply as the violent blast of wind that suddenly whipped her hair. A roiling sensation could be felt in the pit of her stomach. Her voice wavered, "Shit."

They were standing on the edge of a cliff that gave sharply to the sea. Far out to the horizon, Katrina could just make out the shuttle attempting to get to them, but she knew that they couldn't come up to them, or they would be shot down. They were stuck; the only way was to jump. The ocean was calm and blue, and under normal circumstances she would have had no inhibitions about jumping. Katrina opened her mouth to explain to Malcolm, but he beat her to it, "We have a problem. There is no way in hell I'm jumping, I'd rather face the Nexritu," He swallowed, his face turning, if possible, even paler, "I…I have aquaphobia."

Katrina stared, "Fear of water?"

Malcolm gave a crooked smile, "Fear of drowning."

"Ah. Well, I wasn't planning on jumping either. I have vertigo."

"You? Scared of heights?"

"Nope. Scared of the impact." A shot whizzed past a foot away from her arm, "Okay. Here's the deal. I don't particularly want to be shot at and roasted on a spit. We have to jump." She held out her hand, fear clearly radiating from her eyes.

"You jump, I jump?" Malcolm grasped her hand, now shaking, "I can't swim – I know how, I just…can't."

"Well, I can't jump. You deal with that, I'll deal with the swimming." Katrina shut her eyes.

A horrible screeching mass of limbs and claws flooded over the hill. In one jump, Malcolm leapt cleanly off the cliff edge, pulling his friend with him. They gathered velocity as the wind wailed in their ears. Then it was all over. A calm bubbling could be heard, and then panic overtook him. In the fall, he had not taken in a breath, and now began to sink. The grip on his hand, however, did not let go, despite the impact the two bodies had felt when they hit the water. Together, they managed to reach the surface. Malcolm coughed violently, all of his energy having left him. His vision began to blacken and the water suddenly seemed freezing. He felt someone pull him up again, and then he heard the combined sounds of gunfire and an engine.

Katrina shivered under the blanket, her eyes fixed intently on Malcolm, who still looked rather pale. She couldn't believe how much the mission had screwed up in so short a time. It had been the first mission she had been allowed on, and that was after six months of being on the Hephaestus. It had meant to been a simple cargo pick-up, but five crew were dead. Only she and Malcolm had survived, plus Kril, another pilot who had stayed on the shuttle.

They sat in the back room of the shuttle, out of earshot from Kril. Today had been the last straw for Katrina. Malcolm had warned Vorik thousands of times that Nexritu shouldn't be taken on as clients, and still the pig-headed Vulcan had gone ahead. This was the second time that it had almost got her friend killed. She shifted to get comfortable. Now was as good a time as any, "Mal? I want to tell you something."

"Sounds ominous." Malcolm croaked, smiling.

Katrina tucked a strand of her damp blonde hair behind her ear, "I'm leaving the Hephaestus. I hate taking orders and I can't stand this anymore; it's no better than being a slave. I have enough savings to try and get my own ship. I'm going to tell the Captain when we get back." She lowered her eyes, not wanting to see Malcolm's reaction.

"Am I invited?"

Katrina looked up sharply, "I didn't think you'd want to. You seem to like it here so much."

"Like it? It just reminds me of what I had, and in retrospect, even that wasn't so good. I would love to have you as a Captain. Besides, you're a crap shot, you need me. I have savings too; we can get a ship."

Katrina broke into a grin, and then hugged him. She pulled away, "You have nothing against being illegal, right? Because I really don't want to abide to Covenant and Pensari rules."

Malcolm smirked, "Who wants to be boring?"

"I still don't get how you do it!" Katrina complained, trying to force her fingers into the arrangement that Vorik had used in farewell.

Malcolm laughed as they strode along the grubby corridors of Ancala Drift where their old captain had left them. It was a relatively large station, alive with pilots, engineers and other less than savoury characters. It orbited a huge gas giant that inhabited the same solar system as a junk-planet, as Soreq had so fondly described it. Basically, it was a scrapyard of old ships, one of which Katrina had bought and Malcolm was yet to see. They had rented a hanger and adjoining quarters for two months to make the ship spaceworthy. The station was a place that Malcolm would have hated to set foot in while in the employ of Starfleet, but now? Now it just felt like where he was meant to be.

Katrina punched in the code and swiped her keycard. The rusting doors grated open to reveal their temporary home. To be perfectly honest, the ship was a pile of junk, but then Malcolm had expected no less. It was larger than he had anticipated, and he could see that it had the capability to enter Jump; whether it would stay together was another matter. "I did mention I'm not an engineer, right?"

"Don't worry, I've already found one, he'll be here in a couple of days; Vorik recommended him. So, what do you think?"

"I think she is an incredible reflection of her Captain." He was whacked in the arm.

Katrina led him up the gangway. "She has two living levels and a huge cargo hold. Engineering is competent and decent weapons can be installed easily. There is large living area and a mess combined in one room and we also have a small infirmary to cater for your hobby of getting injured. The quarters are all situated on the top level. There's ten quarters, however miniscule they are."

"Ten? Are we planning on having that many crew members?"

"At the very least we'll need three, and that's a bare minimum of hands. This ship was a Covenant supply runner, so had a large crew for her size."

"I suppose we'd better get started then."

Katrina handed Malcolm a list that she had scribbled together, "This is what I want her to have. I won't let her fly until she's up to my standards."

Malcolm scanned the list, "A cloaking device? And energy shields? Are you kidding? And these weapons-"

"You'd be surprised how cheap all that'll come. By the time this ship is finished, it'll be such a combination of different races' technology it'll be unique. The way you're reacting, you'd think I was asking for some magic device that teleports people."

Malcolm raised an eyebrow, but decided not to comment.

Sparks shot out from the consol Malcolm was working on. Katrina poked her head around the corner, "Please don't break my already battered ship, Mal. Do you want to come and meet our new engineer? He'll be here in a minute."

Malcolm nodded and wiped his grimy hands on his once green t-shirt. He hopped out onto the ramp and strode over to where Katrina was shaking a man's hand. Malcolm was shocked to see that he was human; having only ever seen Katrina he had presumed all were slaves. The man was in his late twenties and had a calm air about him. The most noticeable feature of him was his hair: a mass of deep auburn waves, tied loosely into a rough knot. His eyes were bright green. "Hi, I'm Jamie." He put his bag down and shook Malcolm's hand.

Katrina spoke up, "I'm Katrina, the Captain of this ship, and this is Mal, first mate. You as good an engineer as Vorik said you are?"

"I hope so. Your ship is magnificent."

Malcolm snorted, "You have a weird taste."

"But it's such a challenge!"

"Okay, you are definitely an engineer."

Katrina smiled at their new crewmember, "Your temporary quarters are through that door and if you want to stay on after she's fixed up, you can find some on board later. We have all the equipment and materials, it's just the actual work left now."

Jamie nodded, and then bounded on the ship; Katrina quirked an eyebrow at his enthusiasm. She turned to Malcolm, "What do you think?"

"I trust him. And I like him; a rare combination when it comes to me, I assure you. What did he do before this?"

"He's an ex-cargo runner. His last Captain turned his hand to slavery a little while ago and he pulled out."

Malcolm nodded and then went to see what their new companion was up to.

"Cheers!" The three friends downed their shots and refilled. It was their last night on Ancala Drift; in the morning they would set off. They already had a job carting Oribium crystals to an Outer Colony. Jamie had decided to stay on, but then there really hadn't been much question about it – after only a few days the three humans had become close.

"So." Jamie sat back in his chair, "Have you decided on a name yet Katrina?"

"However drunk you boys get me, I refuse to reveal it until the morning." Katrina grinned.

"She's lying." Malcolm stated, "She's already swaying. She'll be singing next."

"I don't sing!" Katrina said indignantly.

Jamie had to hold his breath to prevent himself from spitting his drink back out; Katrina glared. "Sorry; mental image."

Malcolm shook his head, "Unless you want to embark on our maiden voyage with any more of a hangover than we already undoubtedly will receive, I suggest we return to our quarters."

Malcolm stirred in his bunk, his head pounding. They had moved into the ship's quarters a week earlier to adapt easier and he was finally getting used to the arrangement of the room.

After an hour of wandering around like a zombie, Malcolm and Jamie were finally fully awake. They sat in the living area waiting for Katrina. Jamie stifled a yawn, "When do you think we should wake her?"

"When we have a death wish."

"You're finally up then?" Both men turned to the doorway where their Captain stood, "I've been up checking the cargo for ages. C'mon, time for you to see the ship in all its glory."

Katrina led them outside to view the ship. It was jet black, blacker than Oribium, and was a completely unique shape. Their attention was caught by the area under the cockpit, where the name of the ship was painted in curly bright white writing. Malcolm smiled, "Eclipse? It has a nice ring to it."

Jamie nodded, "I like it. Now I think we need to set off, don't you? I'll get down to Engineering."

Katrina grinned, "You realise we should have put his quarters in Engineering, don't you; he practically lives there anyway. Come on." Katrina walked up the gangway.

Malcolm brushed a strand of hair out of his eyes and stared up at the name. This was a new life. When he had been a slave, there had been hope of rescue, of returning. When he had been on the Hephaestus it had been like living on a twisted version of Enterprise with a steady structure. The Eclipse would be a whole new experience and if he was honest, he had a feeling this would be the best experience of his life. Malcolm smiled; for the first time he was truly happy.

To Be Continued…

Author Notes: Please review!