Walk in the Dark
By Drogna
Chapter 6
AN: Apologies for the long wait, but hopefully the slightly longer chapter will make up for it.
T'Pol and her group encountered only empty corridors on the way to free Phlox. The ship seemed to be down to a skeleton crew with so many injured and undoubtedly some dead after the mutiny and ensuing crash. T'Pol led the way down the corridor. They reached the area where the wounded were being treated and noted that this was heavily guarded. They saw two Therans carrying weapons coming in their direction and had to withdraw before they were spotted. T'Pol signalled to the two MACOs that they needed to find somewhere to hide. They quickly backtracked along the corridor and found a hatch. It was locked but Corporal Vincent was able to break the code pad and open the door. They stumbled into the dimly lit room, shutting the door behind them and came face to face with another group of Therans.
"Who are you?" asked one of the group.
The MACO's turned their stolen weapons on the Therans, however the Therans weren't armed.
"And what are you doing on my ship?"
T'Pol raised an eyebrow, and indicated to the MACOs to lower their weapons, which they did grudgingly. No soldier liked to be at a disadvantage even against unarmed opposition. There were at least six Therans in the room against only three of them.
"I am Commander T'Pol of the starship Enterprise. We came to offer aid to your ship."
"And became caught up in our internal politics," said the Theran.
"I assume that you are loyal to the former Captain of this vessel," said T'Pol, examining the Theran in front of her carefully. These people had been locked in this room and had to be the loyal members of the crew.
"I am the former Captain," replied the Theran. "My name is Ro Tau. This is my first officer Commander Den Ohn and the members of my crew who refused to join Lo Pico."
"Lo Pico has captured our Doctor and I need to free him before I can return to our ship. If you help us then I can arrange for transport off this world."
"I would prefer to take back my ship. I am not a coward who runs from his enemies. But I will help you free your Doctor. Where is he being held?"
"The main area of your ship has been turned into an infirmary. Our Doctor is treating your injured there. Lo Pico has posted a number of guards."
Ro Tau nodded. "He is defending an important area of the ship as well as keeping an eye on any of the wounded who remain loyal to me. There is a weapons locker down the corridor. If we can arm ourselves then we stand a chance of reclaiming this ship and rescuing your Doctor."
"Lo Pico seems to have very few men. We were able to get this far without significant resistance."
"Good, then we will be able to get to the weapons unobstructed."
T'Pol nodded. "I suggest that you show us their location."
Ro Tau stepped up to the hatch and cracked it open enough to be able to observe the corridor and check that it was clear. He slipped out followed by T'Pol, the MACOs and the rest of the captive Therans. The former Captain led the way to a metal cupboard attached to wall. He pressed his hand against a plate on the front of the cabinet and there was an audible click of a lock disengaging. He opened the door and passed out the weapons that were inside to T'Pol and his men. He also passed out communication devices which fitted around the wrist of the wearer. He briefly instructed the Enterprise team on how to use the communicators and then outlined his plan to take back the central atrium of the ship.
T'Pol was aware that Ro Tau knew the lay out of the ship far better than she did and she had little choice but to accept his plan. However, on the face of it, what he proposed seemed reasonable. Ro Tau wanted to split into two teams and approach from two sides, using a maintenance passage to get round the room to the other side.
T'Pol and the MACOs waited with Ro Tau while Den Ohn led the other Therans through the maintenance passage. Den Ohn contacted them on the communicator when they were in position. This would be a delicate operation with wounded and Doctor Phlox in the room. The deposed captain promised T'Pol that his men were good marksmen and none of the non-combatants would be hurt.
T'Pol nodded to Ro Tau that she and the MACOs were ready. The signal was given and both teams stepped into the room. T'Pol shouted for Phlox to get down and the doctor was smart enough to do so without waiting to be told a second time. A split second after Phlox took cover, they opened fire on the four mutineer guards who stood around the make-shift infirmary. They were surrounded and taken down easily.
The firing ceased and Phlox poked his head up above the empty bed he had taken cover behind. "I am very glad to see you, T'Pol," said Phlox.
"Thank you for your help, Commander," said Ro Tau as he approached her. His men were currently tying up the stunned mutineers, bundling them into a corner until they awoke and could be moved elsewhere.
"Your assistance was also appreciated," said T'Pol.
"I think we can take it from here. We have a little more work to do yet though," replied Ro Tau.
"I understand," replied T'Pol and turned to Phlox. "We should leave. Ro Tau will be taking back his ship and I do not wish to be caught in the cross fire."
"Indeed," said Phlox, gathering together his medical bag rapidly. "Where are Lieutenant Reed and Commander Tucker?"
"Commander Tucker was experiencing some fatigue so I asked Lieutenant Reed to accompany him back to the shuttlepod."
"T'Pol!" said Phlox in alarm, "I heard Lo Pico talking about sending men to the shuttlepod to investigate it. They may have walked into a trap."
T'Pol didn't wait for further explanation from Phlox. She left the room at a run, the MACOs and Phlox following her towards the exit.
Trip's reserves of energy were waning and the fight was draining out of him by the time they reached the Dionas's engine room. He couldn't struggle and walk at the same time while his balance was playing up. His nerves were reminding him that he was overdue for his anti-inflammatory and pain medication. Overriding all of his physical pain was the emotional pain of knowing that his friend had died for him, or at least because of him and the illness he was afflicted with. A harsh spasm wracked his body and his guards pulled him to his feet when it caused him to stumble again.
"Look, I'm sick and my medication is in the shuttlepod. You have to let me get it if you want me to do any work for you," said Trip, desperately hoping that he could find a way of escaping.
"You're not going anywhere. You'll work or we'll kill you," replied the guard and Trip realised that they weren't going to make this easy for him.
"I'll tell you where the medication is and you can get it for me." Trip tried to sound reasonable, as if he was making a concession and really wanted to help. If he was going to stand any chance of getting out of this, he needed to take his medicine. He was beginning to wish he'd been able to reassemble the brace for his leg before they had to leave the brig, at least his leg wouldn't be buckling under him when he tried to put weight on it.
"We have re-captured your team. There is no point in trying my patience further," said Lo Pico, walking into the engine room. "Fix the engine or I'll kill the rest of your team."
"No! I'm telling the truth. I really do need that medication to work. Look," Trip held up his shaking hand.
"Get his medication," said Lo Pico to one of the guards. "He's no good to us sick."
"Yes, sir," replied the guard, leaving the room at a run.
"If you're tricking me, Tucker, then I can guarantee you'll be in a lot more pain than you are now," snarled the alien Captain. "Your Captain didn't seem interested in trading you for his ship so it's looking like you're my only way off this rock. How does it feel to know that your Captain has abandoned you?"
Trip didn't trust himself to speak so he glared at Lo Pico and remained silent. He couldn't tell if Lo Pico was telling the truth or not about recapturing the others, but Trip couldn't take the chance that he was. He'd seen Reed shot for no reason and didn't doubt that Captain Lo Pico would kill again if he felt he needed to. He couldn't get the image out of his head of Reed's blood spilling onto the rocks and above all he wanted to avoid another death. He was sure that Captain Archer wouldn't abandon him willingly, but then Archer had to think of the rest of the crew as well. Sheer numbers of lives in the equation meant that Archer might have to abandon the away team rather than agree to Lo Pico's terms.
The ship's com unit sounded.
"Captain, to the bridge," said a voice.
"Get to work," said Lo Pico and strode out of the engine room, leaving Trip to the mercies of the remaining guard and Mot Wa the Theran Chief Engineer.
T'Pol and the rest of the Enterprise away team had not been captured and were, in fact, nearing the ship's exit hatch. T'Pol kept her eyes open for potential enemies as she led the way at a run down the deserted corridor. Ro Tau was obviously providing sufficient distraction because so far their route had been deserted. It was as T'Pol stepped out into the hazy daylight that she saw the prone form of Lieutenant Reed lying near the shuttlepod.
It was clear that Reed was badly injured, but she was still cautious about approaching the shuttlepod. She signalled the two MACOs to cover her and used the larger boulders to stay hidden as she made her way towards the injured man. She reached Reed and felt for a pulse. It was weak but it was there. She applied pressure to the large wound on Reed's chest with one hand and waved the others forward. T'Pol kept watch while Phlox moved across the rocky, open ground and arrived at her side.
"I have a medical emergency," said T'Pol as Phlox got closer.
The doctor saw Reed and immediately went to work.
"What about Commander Tucker?" asked Phlox.
T'Pol scanned the surrounding area; she too had been puzzled and concerned by Trip's absence. "He is not in the immediate vicinity. It is likely that he has been recaptured. For now we must concentrate on Lieutenant Reed."
"We need to get him back to Enterprise now," said Phlox. "He was hit in the chest by an energy beam and I need to repair the damage as soon as possible. The heat from the weapon partially cauterized the wound, but he's still lost a lot of blood."
"There may still be Therans holding the shuttlepod," said T'Pol.
"He won't last long without proper medical attention and I don't have the supplies or equipment here," said Phlox.
"I'm aware of the problem, Doctor," said T'Pol. She had already calculated the difficulties that an injured man added to the equation. "Stay here with Lieutenant Reed," she added to Phlox and then gave the MACOs the signal to cover her as she moved to investigate the shuttlepod.
T'Pol reached the hatch and indicated to the MACOs to take up position. She grabbed hold of the handle and pulled open the door. She rolled to the side as the hatch swung open and avoided the gun shot aimed at her previous position. The MACOs didn't need her to give the order, they were already on the move. The Theran soldiers went down before they even knew what had hit them.
"Tie them up," said T'Pol, picking herself up from the ground. She turned on the Theran communicator and alerted Ro Tau to the extra prisoners. T'Pol helped Phlox gently carry Lieutenant Reed to the shuttlepod, where the doctor settled his patient in the back.
"What are you going to do about Commander Tucker?" asked Phlox, while he tended to the pale skinned Lieutenant.
"The MACOs will take you back to Enterprise. I will return to the ship and attempt to retrieve Commander Tucker."
"Maybe we should contact the Captain…"
"When you are on route back to Enterprise you should inform the Captain of the situation. My responsibility is to ensure the Commander's safety," replied T'Pol, cutting Phlox off before he could finish.
"It is easier to seek forgiveness than ask permission," said Phlox, knowingly.
"I am simply correcting an error in my judgement," said T'Pol.
"You didn't know that this would happen when you made your decision. Going back, alone, into such a volatile situation is extremely unwise." Phlox's blue eyes were sharp with worry.
"I will not be alone; it is in Captain Tau's interests to help me. I must carry out my duty, Doctor."
Phlox sighed. "Well, if I can't talk you out of it, you'd better take the Commander's medication with you. He will no doubt need it urgently by the time you reach him."
T'Pol retrieved the medical kit that Trip always carried with him and had stowed in the shuttlepod earlier. After the farce with the Colchans it had been decided that, in first contact situations, Trip shouldn't carry his medicine with him. This time that policy had backfired and Trip had been left without his much-needed medication for far too long.
"I will contact Enterprise once the situation is resolved," said T'Pol and with that she left the shuttlepod to return to the Theran ship, stopping only to convey her orders to the MACOs.
She heard the shuttlepod take off as she re-entered the ship, but her sensitive ears had also picked up the sound of two voices moving nearer along the corridor.
"I don't understand why we need him," complained one.
"To fix the damn ship so we can get off this forsaken rock," replied the other.
"He can't be that great if he's too sick to work without his drugs," said the first.
T'Pol quickly realised that they were talking about Trip and knew she had just been given her way to find her missing crewmember.
Trip was feeling worse by the minute. His balance was poor and his coordination lacking. Neither of these things was ideal when working on a warp engine. The combination of pain, shakes, dizziness, loss of balance and nonexistent coordination were making it impossible to concentrate. He'd tried to explain that he needed to rest or just wait until the guards got back with his medication, but Mot Wa wouldn't listen. He was working with a gun permanently at his head and the last thing he wanted was for Captain Archer to rescue a dead body. He doubted that he was doing his best work in any case and progress was slow without needing to artificially lower his rate of work.
He wondered if T'Pol had been able to rescue Phlox with the MACOs and perhaps they were already on their way back to Enterprise for help. That cheered him up slightly, until he remembered that even if he was rescued, Malcolm was still dead. He had been protecting him at the time and the guilt was overwhelming. He felt that if he had been healthy then he would have been able to do something, or the situation wouldn't have arisen in the first place.
Trip's weak left leg gave way as he tried to stand up and he ended up collapsing back to the ground, too sore and defeated to care what might happen to him.
"Get up," said one of the guards, in an annoyed tone.
"You know, you're really beginning to get on my nerves. You can take your damn repairs and shove them…" Before Trip could finish his tirade of angry abuse, he heard the sound of weapons fire. His guard's focus immediately changed and with the last of his strength Trip pushed himself up and fell into the guard, grabbing at his gun.
All Trip's anger at the situation, Reed's injury and his own disabilities were pushed into his effort to subdue the guard. Adrenaline poured into his system and he found a reserve of strength. His vision narrowed to his immediate survival and hatred of the Therans. He wasn't really paying attention to the fight, just punching and kicking his opponent as hard as he could. Finally a well placed elbow knocked the guard's head sufficiently hard against the deck that he fell into unconsciousness.
At the moment Trip had achieved his victory, engineering became a storm of weapons fire. He didn't really understand what was going on, he hadn't expected to see the Therans fighting amongst themselves, but that wasn't his primary concern. He decided to stay down and wait for an opportunity to escape. He took the guard's weapon and crawled into cover by the side of the warp engine.
He saw movement out of the corner of his eye and turned to aim at whoever had come around the corner of the engine.
"You took your time," said Trip, lowering the weapon when he saw who it was.
"I came as quickly as was possible in the circumstances," replied T'Pol and hit the deck as a shot impacted the bulkhead beside her. "I am continually amazed by your ability to get into trouble."
"It isn't my fault that they needed an engineer." Trip paused a moment and then added soberly, "T'Pol, they killed Malcolm."
"The Lieutenant is not dead and most likely back on Enterprise by now being tended to by the doctor."
"You found him alive? But they shot him in the chest."
"He was badly injured but alive. I will provide you with more details once we are not in the line of fire. I have brought your medication." T'Pol took the pouch off her belt and took out three hyposprays. She noted that Trip's hands were shaking too badly to hold the hypospray so she administered the medication. "Can you walk?"
"Not well," said Trip, honestly. There was no point in lying, T'Pol could see the tremors that ran through his body easily. The medication would take a little time to work and they needed to move now.
"Vulcans are strong. I will be able to carry you if necessary." T'Pol checked that the fighting was no longer aimed in their direction and pulled Trip to his feet.
"What's going on?" asked Trip.
"The Captain is attempting to take his ship back." T'Pol manhandled Trip towards the exit out of engineering.
"Right, of course," said Trip, his brain had just refused to connect the dots until T'Pol had explained the situation. It should have been obvious but he was in pain and his concentration wasn't at its best. The trip out of the ship became a blur of movement and continuous pain and weakness. Finally they were outside and a shuttlepod was waiting for them. Trip was helped on board and seated on one of the benches at the back. T'Pol sat beside him, keeping him upright. He leant his head against the hull and closed his eyes, drifting into a disturbed sleep.
He woke up in sickbay. That wasn't surprising given what he'd been through and it was becoming a common occurrence. However he was surprised that he had been so deeply asleep that he hadn't woken when the shuttlepod reached Enterprise. The events before T'Pol had found him came flooding back. "Malcolm!" He attempted to sit up but he seemed to be hooked up to a number of monitors and medical devices. A loud beeping began and Phlox and Captain Archer were beside him in seconds.
"Easy, Trip, you've been out for a while," said Archer, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder.
"Malcolm was shot. Is he okay?"
"He should make a full recovery," said Phlox. "He was very lucky that we found him when we did."
"He's in the next bed," added Archer, pulling back the curtain so that Trip could see.
Trip sighed with relief when he saw the evidence with his own eyes. Lieutenant Reed lay in the next bed breathing evenly.
"I thought he was dead."
"Any longer and he may well have been," replied Phlox.
"It was all my fault. I fell, and they used me as bait," said Trip.
"You didn't shoot him, Trip," said Archer, gently. "According to T'Pol, it was you who got everyone out of the cell."
"Yeah and did you read the rest of T'Pol's report? Did she tell you about how I could barely walk? How I nearly got everyone killed?"
"You're exaggerating. You all came back, and that's the main thing. Right now Phlox wants to keep an eye on you for a couple of days and we'll talk about all of this when you're back on your feet."
"Bed rest?" asked Trip, miserably.
"I'm afraid so, Commander," replied Phlox. Trip groaned, his face falling, but Phlox ignored him. "Just for a couple of days until I'm satisfied that your medication has been balanced again."
"Get some rest, Commander," said Archer, "I'll drop by again tomorrow."
"Thanks, Captain," said Trip, but he was tiring and knew he wouldn't be able to keep his eyes open much longer. He briefly had time to wonder if Phlox had slipped him something before he once again fell sleep.
Archer kept his promise and found time the next day to visit his officers in sickbay.
"Ah Captain, you're just in time," greeted a jovial Phlox as he entered. "Lieutenant Reed is conscious and has been asking for you."
Archer nodded and went over to Reed's corner of sickbay. He noted that the curtain had been drawn back on one side so that Reed could see Trip and vice versa.
"They were both restless until I made sure that they could have line of sight to each other," explained Phlox, softly, noting Archer's interest.
"They went through a lot on that planet," said Archer, equally quietly.
"Captain?" asked a weak, scratchy, voice with an English accent.
"Lieutenant," said Archer stepping up to the side of Reed's biobed. "How are you feeling?"
"Rather numb, actually, sir. Although I expect the pain will hit as soon as these rather nice drugs wear off," said Reed.
"You had us all worried for a while there, Malcolm, but Phlox tells me that you're going to be fine."
"Thanks to the good doctor patching me up," said Reed with a smile. He lowered his voice slightly. "Trip told me that he thinks it was his fault I got shot, but he's not to blame for this. I made a foolish decision when I allowed myself to be disarmed. I should have been able to get us both out of there unharmed. I wouldn't have been injured and Trip wouldn't be in such bad shape. I should have made sure that he was protected."
"T'Pol said something similar in her report. She believes that her decision to split the team was wrong," said Archer.
"Given the circumstances it was the right thing to do. We had a sick officer and Phlox being held hostage. She didn't know that the shuttlepod was a trap, and I should have seen it coming. It was far too quiet when we exited the ship."
"It sounds to me as if there were a number of contributing factors, and I can't say that any of you did something that I wouldn't have done," said Archer. "We'll have a full debrief once you're out of here but I'm certain that you all acted properly." What Archer didn't say was that he had been having doubts of his own about the mission and whether he should have sent the away team down at all. That was something that he had to think about and it wasn't going to resolve itself today.
He looked across Reed's bed towards Trip. Reed's gaze followed his and they both saw Trip shiver.
"Commander, are you cold?" asked Reed.
"Nah, 's too hot in here," said Trip, and Archer noticed sweat beading on his forehead. Even he knew this wasn't a good sign.
"Doctor?" asked Archer. Phlox had been hovering nearby and was now checking readings on the biomonitor above Trip's bed.
"Hmmm, you have a slightly elevated temperature. I'd better take some blood to test."
"Feels like I've got the 'flu," said Trip, and Archer detected a slight slur to his speech. He moved around Reed's biobed and to Trip's side. His skin was a little flushed and his eyes had a fever shine to them. He winced at the prick from Phlox withdrawing blood.
"It will take me a few minutes to analyse this," said Phlox and bustled off.
Archer pulled up a stool to sit on between the two biobeds. Reed was looking concernedly in Trip's direction and Archer knew he probably had a very similar expression on his face. Trip wasn't supposed to be getting more ill, he was supposed to be resting and recovering his strength with the help of Phlox's medication. The previous time when Trip's medication had been out of sync, it had just involved a couple of days of rest while Phlox juggled things. After that Trip had been back to normal, or as normal as he could be when suffering from a debilitating terminal disease. These symptoms sent up red flags in Archer's head and he was worried about what this meant for the progress of the disease.
Archer made small talk with Trip, telling him about the latest football game that had come in over subspace, but Trip seemed very tired. Reed attempted to join in but his voice barely carried across to Trip and he knew nothing about American football anyway. Reed fell asleep while Archer gave Trip a blow by blow account of the play as he remembered it, promising that they'd watch it together as soon as Trip was out of sickbay.
It was considerably longer than a few minutes by the time Phlox returned with the results of his tests.
"The Commander's immune system is very low due to exhaustion from the past few days activities. He has picked up a bacterial infection, probably from the planet, and, although it wouldn't normally be serious, his condition could make it difficult for him to fight off without help. I'll start him on antibiotics and that should do the trick."
"So it's nothing to do with my CS?" asked Trip, sleepily.
"I wouldn't say nothing to do with, but it is basically a separate infection," replied Phlox.
Archer breathed a mental sigh of relief, and wondered when things had got so bad that he was happy to hear that Trip had an infection. The infection itself would have been bad enough to put Trip in sickbay normally, but at least it wasn't another stage of the Clarke's Syndrome kicking in. Archer stayed with Trip until he fell asleep again, but his commitments to the ship meant he couldn't stay longer, however he would be back as soon as he could. Trip hated sickbay and there was no way Archer would be leaving him to get through this alone.
Archer spent the next few days doing his paperwork in sickbay rather than his ready room so that he could spend time with his sick Chief Engineer. The infection had worsened and Trip had fallen into delirium. He slept restlessly and often awoke from dreams only to continue them into wakefulness.
"The warp engine, Captain!" said Trip, urgently. "The shielding failed and the temperature's rising. I need to get down to Engineering."
"It's okay, Trip, there's nothing wrong with the engine," said Archer. "If the shielding had failed we'd know about it."
"It's too hot, something's got to be wrong with the cooling system."
"There's nothing wrong, you're the one who's too hot. You're ill remember?"
"Ill?" asked Trip. "But I was in engineering, just a moment ago."
"You picked up a bug down on the planet. You've been here for the past three days."
"Three days?" asked Trip, then he seemed to see something in a corner and began quietly muttering to himself while his eyes watched whatever it was that he was seeing.
It disturbed Archer to see Trip like this, but Phlox kept on reassuring him that it would pass. Archer had lost count of the number of bags of antibiotics that Phlox had hung on the IV stand and had been dripped into his friend's veins.
Things, of course, got worse before they got better. Trip's temperature continued to rise alarmingly. The delirium was replaced by unconsciousness and Phlox instigated some drastic rapid cooling measures to bring Trip's condition back under control. Cooling blankets were deployed and antipyretics were increased to levels that Phlox would have preferred not to use, but, eventually, it worked. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief that the doctor had been able to deal with the infection, but Trip remained unconscious.
Instead of the two days of bed rest that Phlox had originally prescribed, it had been over a week. Archer didn't know what else he could do other than visit Trip whenever he could. He had passed beyond worried days ago, he had moved into anxious and he was certain that he had now reached fearful. He felt responsible for sending Trip on the away mission which had gone so disastrously wrong for everyone.
At least Lieutenant Reed had suffered no complications from his wound, and now been allowed out of sickbay. Phlox had insisted on complete rest for another few days, followed by light duty, and Reed had grudgingly agreed. Archer knew that he'd be sneaking down to the Armoury as soon as he thought he could get away with it. It cheered him up slightly to know that some things didn't change.
Archer realised that he had a staff meeting to attend in a few minutes and it was time to leave Trip's bedside. He glanced over and realised that Trip was looking at him. His eyes were open and blinking tiredly.
"Captain?" Trip asked, his voice dry and brittle.
"Hey there," said Archer, quietly. The words almost caught in his throat, he was so pleased to see Trip awake. He reached for the glass of water that was on the bedside and helped Trip take a couple of sips. "How are you feeling?"
"Like crap," replied Trip, honestly.
Archer chuckled. "That doesn't surprise me. You've had a dangerously high temperature for the last few days, but your fever broke yesterday."
"I was having some weird dreams. Lots of hot places."
"You were delirious from the fever and kept telling me that the cooling system had failed on the reactor," said Archer, with a smile.
"It felt like it had. Even when I'm sick I'm still worrying about the damn warp engine," said Trip, and returned the smile.
"I'd expect nothing less from the best Engineer in the Fleet," replied Archer lightly. "I hope you don't think you're getting overtime for it though."
"If I added up all my real hours of overtime it would send Starfleet bust," replied Trip, laughing. The laugh turned into a cough and brought Phlox over. Archer excused himself to allow the doctor room to examine his recently awoken patient, and as he left sickbay he glanced back. This had been hard, on Trip and his friends, no one was ready to lose the Engineer and Archer wasn't sure that they ever would be.
Archer arrived at sickbay, not to visit the sick, but to accompany his Chief Engineer back to his quarters. Trip asked about how Engineering had been doing without him, but the conversation was a bit one sided, Archer was too preoccupied to really concentrate on what Trip was saying. He had spent a lot of the last week thinking whilst he'd been sitting at Trip's bedside and he had come to a difficult decision. He had been waiting until Trip had been discharged from sickbay, not wanting to add to his friend's problems, but it couldn't be put off any longer.
Archer settled Trip in bed in his quarters as per Phlox's orders, pulled up a chair and began one of the hardest conversations that he thought he'd ever have.
"Trip, I think we need to talk about what happened on the planet," said Archer.
"I know what you're going to say, Captain, no more away missions," said Trip.
Archer was stunned for a moment. Trip had done his dirty work for him by actually saying what he'd been working up to. Archer was at least spared from saying it, but the conversation still had to be had.
"We both know that a bad situation was made worse by your illness. All the decisions that were made on that mission had to take into account the fact that you were functioning at less than a hundred percent."
"I know," replied Trip, resignedly. "But I'm fine when I take my medication. I could start carrying it with me again."
"Suppose you're captured and your medication confiscated? I can't allow you to put yourself in a situation like that again when this is what it does to you. Your leg is getting worse and your balance, and, well, you're just…"
"I'm a liability," said Trip before Archer could finish.
"No, I'd never say that you were a liability, I'm just worried about your safety and the safety of this crew," said Archer. "From now on Lieutenant Hess will go in your place. She's competent and smart, and you've trained her well."
"Yeah, I know. She's going to make a great Chief Engineer one of these days." Trip stared at his hands. "Why do I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle?"
"You haven't lost yet, Trip. You're still a valuable member of this crew and don't underestimate how much Enterprise needs you. I wish I didn't have to do this, but I have to think of the rest of the crewmembers on this ship. I'll do everything I can to help you, but I won't put people in danger."
"I understand," said Trip.
"I want you to talk to Dr Francis about this," said Archer. Trip was going to need the psychologist's support through this.
"If you don't mind, Captain, I'd just like some time to myself right now." The voice was quiet and lost. It didn't sound much like the outgoing southerner that Archer knew so well.
"Sure, Trip." Archer nodded in understanding and left Trip alone.
He had never seen Trip look so dejected and it hurt him that he was the cause of that pain. Trip seemed broken, as if his spirit had just heard the final death knell and knew the end was approaching. He knew his friend saw it as a milestone on the path of his illness. It was another battle lost in the war for Trip's quality of life, and one step closer to the day he gave up his post as Chief Engineer. Sometimes being the Captain was a lousy job.