Chapter Five

Five minutes later, they were back inside the cave both looking extremely dishevelled and ragged from the storm.

"I suggest we try and make ourselves comfortable," said T'Pol. "We don't know how long we this front is going to last."

"Fine," replied Trip, still mad at himself for carelessly getting them stranded.

"How much water do we have?" asked T'Pol, standing up and dusting off an upturned table, so she could put her equipment down.

"This canteen is about a third full and we have another full one in ma bag," replied Trip, checking their gear. "It'll probably be a good idea to conserve water."

"That won't be necessary," said T'Pol, dryly. "Vulcans can survive without water for several days."

"It might just be several days before Enterprise gets a shuttle down here again."

T'Pol threw him a look to suggest that she thought that was highly unlikely. "You never know," he replied with a shrug. "Look, somebody obviously lived here previously … there must be a water source around here somewhere, which supported them."

"A logical assumption," answered T'Pol, pulling out her scanner to start checking their surroundings.

"I have ma moments," said Trip.

"Sparsely," replied T'Pol, in what Trip could have sworn was a teasing tone. Before he could come back with a retort, she indicated for them to go deeper in their habitat.

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The desolation and dusty remains of various pieces of debris was scattered around the caverns, suggesting that no one had been, or lived around here for quite some time.

"Can ya tell how long this place has been deserted?" asked Trip, as T'Pol carried on scanning while they continued walking, glancing through doors as they passed numerous rooms.

"I would estimate between fifty and hundred years."

"Wonder what happened to them?" questioned Trip, more to himself than anyone else.

"The lack of any solid evidence at the moment prevents me from giving an accurate answer to your question," replied T'Pol, in a tone that suggested the same thought had crossed her mind as well.

They both paused at the door of one of the rooms, "Looks like they weren't primitive," said Trip, spotting what looked to be machinery of some kind.

"This looks like some form of communicative equipment," replied T'Pol, as she passed her scanner over them.

"Yeah, I think this is a radio," said Trip, bending down to examine them. "This looks like some kind of recording device. Maybe their version for recording their personal logs… I'm not sure what this is … maybe some kind of power cell …"

"Maybe you should examine them later," she said, pulling him away from getting too absorbed in his find and indicating for them to carry on deeper into the habitat on their original search.

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Ten minutes later they found themselves in a large cavern. Towards the rear, the sound of falling water could be heard.

"This appears to be a natural source," suggested T'Pol, running her scanner across the pool that the water was falling into.

"Is it drinkable?" asked Trip.

"Yes, my scans indicate that is consumable. It doesn't contain any toxins that could harm Humans or Vulcans," she replied, staring at something in the far corner.

"What's the matter?" asked Trip, looking over in that direction, trying to spy whatever had caught her attention.

"There appears to be a something over there," she replied.

"What?" questioned Trip, as they starting to walk over to get a better look.

"It looks like some kind of hive," answered T'Pol.

"Hive?… What kind of hive? What do ya mean?" asked Trip, growing concerned.

"I am unsure," replied T'Pol, bending down to examine the object. "I have never seen anything like it." She ran her scanner over it before drawing back in shock. "There appears to be a body inside …"

Trip pulled out his phase pistol and began cutting open the outer weave of the cocoon, revealing the object inside.

"Could it be whoever used to live here?" asked Trip, sounding a little anxious as he watched T'Pol examine the remains.

"Possibly," she replied. "I think it's a male. I can't be certain, though, due to the shrivelled and dehydrated composition of the body. The hard and dry structure of the body's internal and external features prevents me from ascertaining the precise cause of death. All indications though, would suggest that it has been preserved."

"Maybe it's part of their burial procedure. You know, like being embalmed?"

"No," replied T'Pol. "This is more like all the fluids have been bled out. Almost like it's been cured," she said, as she stood up and put away her scanner. "Until further examinations and specific scans can be carried out aboard Enterprise, it would be unwise to continue 'guessing'. I suggest we return to the previous room with the communications equipment. If you can get the recording device to work, we may find some of the answers."

Trip nodded his agreement to this. "Do ya still think it some kind of hive?" he asked, as they returned to other room.

"As I stated previously, I can only haphazard a guess at this present time as to its precise nature."

"So guess," replied Trip, sounding a bit agitated. "I won't hold it against ya."

"I think it is an insect cocoon," she replied, undeterred by their find. "Possible a spider's nest."

Trip's eyes grew large in fear. "Spiders …Why the god damn hell does it have to be spiders…?" he thought, almost trembling in fear.

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It had been an hour since their return from their strange finds in the previous cavern and Trip had been hard at work examining the machinery. He was glad of the distraction. Anything to get his mind off the idea of huge man-eating spiders prowling around in the shadows, waiting to pounce on their new prey.

"Have you had any luck?" asked T'Pol, looking at pieces of disassembled equipment from the radio, scattered all over a table.

"I'm not getting any reception. I think the receiver could be smashed."

"What about transmissions? Can you send a message?" asked T'Pol.

"Maybe … we could give it a try. The power cell looks a bit worn out though, so I don't know how long it'll last," explained Trip.

"What about the other piece of equipment?" asked T'Pol. "You indicated previously that you thought it might be some kind of power cell … maybe?"

Trip shook his head and smiled. "It is kinda like a power cell, but not nearly as advanced. I think its some kind of generator that powers the overhead lights but it needs some kind of liquid fuel to make it work. The tank underneath it appears about a quarter full, so I don't think there will be much problem getting that to work. The problem is how long it will last … I don't think there's enough in there to last more than a few hours …"

"What about the recording device?" asked T'Pol?

"Same thing as the radio," he sighed. "I think I can possible get round that problem by using the power cells from ma communicator and scanner, but it might take some time adapting our technology to theirs. I've then got to hook up the UT so we can translate whatever's on there ..."

"Proceed," ordered T'Pol. "I suggest you begin with the recording device first. Then, if you fail in your endeavour, we will still have the radio for emergency use."

"There are no guarantees that that this is even gonna work …"

"We are left with little option," replied T'Pol. "We need to find out what happened here and whether it still presents a danger. If that is indeed the case, we will need to contact Enterprise and inform them of our 'situation'."

Trip nodded his agreement and returned to work.

"Do you require my assistance?"

He didn't really, but he sensed a 'need' in her, that she required the preoccupation just as much as he did. "Thanks."

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