Thanks for the reviews – you guys are a laugh! Joxer I don't think I'm entirely to blame for your mental health – you only just met me. And I gave you Ben without hurting him this time. You said I could pick on anyone else so I am!

Lynn, you're a sweetie, you always have something encouraging to say to everyone. Must be something in the name – It's my name too :-)

Anyhow back to the story…..

Chapter Six

"Robert?"

"Captain! I can't believe you're here. I thought … I thought …" his voice trailed off. He didn't want to be reminded of what he had thought. "Are you OK, Sir?"

Bridger continued to stare at him with a blank expression but didn't answer. Lucas grabbed his hand and was surprised to feel the captain was shaking. "He's as cold as me."

When the captain flinched at his touch, Lucas took a closer look and realised his hand looked bruised. Gently pulling back the sleeve he gasped at the sight. The captain's arm was obviously broken and he realised how painful it must be. It needed treatment but other than splinting it he didn't know what else to do.

"Captain, we need to get down from here and out of the wind. Are you all right to walk? … Sir? … Can you hear me?"

Slowly the mask over his face began to slip and Bridger lifted his good hand to rub his face.

"Robert. We weren't expecting you for dinner but your mother will be …" he stopped and shook his head. Looking back up at Lucas with a frown on his face he swallowed and started over. "You! … I remember … you were … yelling at me … can't …" He closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on the memory that wouldn't come.

Lucas was staring at his friend trying to work out what was going on. He wasn't making any sense.

"Captain? We were in the shuttle. Don't you remember? We were heading back to seaQuest when we were hit by something. The shuttle went down and we …"

"seaQuest! I know that name! It … it's on my shirt!" he was getting agitated and breathing unevenly. He pulled at the logo on his shirt as though it held answers that he couldn't grasp.

Lucas placed his hand on his friend's shoulder to try to calm him. It was obvious something was seriously wrong but he had no idea what to do about it. He thought back to the previous night and remembered how the captain was thrown across the shuttle and knocked unconscious. Fear started to rise as he realised he was not only dealing with a broken arm but a serious head injury too. "He thinks I'm Robert!"

"Captain, do you remember what happened to us?"

"What? Of course I do! Carol was planning on going to … she wanted to go to … " he frowned and rubbed his hand over his eyes again as though it would clear the fog.

" I know you. You were there … I was looking for you … who the hell are you?" He was struggling to focus on the face before him. Blonde hair. "I know you … " he whispered before closing his eyes again.

Lucas sat back against the rock and tried to calm his breathing. His chest ached as he tried to keep a lid on his panic. They were stuck on some godforsaken island with no supplies. Nobody knew where they were and now he was dealing with this!

The alarm went off and Ben rolled over to shut it off. Ford had placed the crew on rotating four hour shifts so everyone could get at least a few hours sleep. He felt like he'd only been asleep a few minutes.

He pulled himself up off the bunk and rubbed his hand along his jaw. Normally turning up for duty with stubble on his face would earn him a reprimand but not today. He pulled on a fresh uniform and headed out the door towards the launch bay. He wasn't surprised to see that Crocker was already there, organising to take over a shuttle from a returning crew.

"Any news, Chief?" he asked, already knowing the answer. If they'd been found it would have been all over the boat like wildfire.

"Nothing yet, Ben." His face looked grim. They all knew that each passing hour lowered the odds of survival in such cold water.

Doctor Westphalen hurried into the shuttle bay, followed closely by Ensign Johanssen. "Are we ready to go, Lieutenant?" she asked.

"Sure are. We're gonna find them today. I can feel it!" He grinned at her. That natural optimism was starting to wear out but he felt compelled to try anyway. Life on this sub without Lucas just wasn't part of the plan. He liked having Bridger in charge but he loved having the kid around. Who else could he rely on to play along with his latest hare-brained scheme? He shook himself out of his thoughts and focused on getting the shuttle out into the water again.

"Captain? The seaQuest is a submarine and we live there. You're the captain. Don't you remember?" He leaned closer as if willing his friend to remember.

"A submarine? Kids don't live on submarines. The UEO doesn't let captains take their family aboard."

"My name is Lucas. I live on the seaQuest as part of the science crew." He looked at Bridger's face for any sign of understanding but got none.

"OK, never mind. We need to get down from here and find something for that arm. Can you stand up?" Lucas tried to ease in beside the captain and pull him into a standing position. Struggling to steady his weight, he managed to stand up and by keeping his arm around the captain's waist Lucas started the slow process of getting them both down off the rocks.

Fortunately it wasn't too far down and they eventually made it to the dry sand below. Bridger stared out at the rolling surf before him.

"Water … I need water," he said.

Lucas knew how thirsty he was too and realised neither of them had had anything to drink since the night before.

"All right, that's a priority. Find some water. But first I need to find something to splint your arm."

"What are you talking about? There's plenty of water right in front of us." He gestured at the blue expanse in front of them.

"Yeah, if only we could drink it," Lucas looked at him with a wry grin.

Bridger continued to stare out over the ocean and Lucas wasn't sure he had even heard him. "I think I know how the Ancient Mariner felt."

"Who?"

"Oh come on, Robbie. We had that poem memorized. "Water, water, every where, nor any drop to drink." You always looked at the pelicans a little suspiciously after that. You said they reminded you of albatrosses. Of course you were only twelve so I couldn't blame you."

"Uh yeah … sure," Lucas decided arguing wasn't going to serve any purpose so he would just have to play along with the captain's erratic thoughts.

Looking around him as they walked Lucas finally spotted a small shrub that had branches thick enough to use for a splint. He sat the captain down in the sand and snapped a couple off. He pulled off his shirt and ripped out the sleeves then ripped them in half lengthwise.

He knelt down in the sand and looked at his friend. "Captain, I need to put this on your arm and it's gonna hurt … OK?"

Bridger just nodded at him as Lucas tried as gently as possible to splint his arm. He could tell by the look on his face that it hurt like hell but it needed to be done. Finally he took the last pieces of cloth and fashioned them into a sling. It wasn't pretty but it would have to do.

"Did Kristin teach you to do that?"

Lucas looked startled at the mention of the doctor. "You know who Kristin is?" he asked hopefully. Getting no answer he tried again. "Captain, do you remember who Kristin is? Doctor Westphalen? From seaQuest?"

The captain didn't answer so Lucas decided to drop it and get on with looking for water. He put what was left of his shirt back on and stood up and walked a short way along the beach, trying to see if there was any sign of a creek or fresh water run off . He didn't know if the captain was in any state to go traipsing around in search of fresh water but he didn't think he could be left alone either. While Lucas was busy debating this with himself the captain made up his mind for him.

Bridger stood up and starting heading towards the water line. Lucas turned back when he heard the movement and ran to stop him.

"The Rhime of the Ancient Mariner" is by Samuel Taylor Colleridge and is about sailors becalmed and dying at sea.