Trust is a curious thing.

Those with more power in a relationship do not have to trust the other. They can do as they wish, acting cruelly or with kindness. Despite her value, Meara Shaw was about to discover that she did not have the power in the relationship that had formed the foundation of her professional life.

And it would change everything.

Elsewhere on Enterprise, events were unfolding in an entirely new direction…

Archer was relaxing. Porthos was curled up at his feet. After the pressures of the Xindi Crisis and the loss of respect of some of his crew given the measures to which he'd had to resort, it had taken him a while to find the man Jonathan thought he'd lost. The curious, eager, wide-eyed explorer had been abandoned in favour of a man who it could be argued had momentarily lost his own Humanity. Ironic really. Having to lose yourself to save yourself. Thanks to T'Pol's patience and ministrations he had found his way back. He was even getting quite good at meditation, if he did think so himself. He smiled. Never in his lifetime would he have thought the benefits of a Vulcan First Officer serving on his ship could be so multi-dimensional. He couldn't imagine Enterprise without her. Well, if he was lucky enough to become Admiral when he finally hung up his space boots, he was damn well going to make sure Vulcan senior staff were part and parcel of the furniture on the bridge of every ship in Starfleet. He could imagine what Soval might say to that…

"Phlox to Captain Archer." He reached for the comm panel. "Archer here."

"If you're not busy Captain, I would appreciate your joining me in Sickbay? It's concerning Ensign Shaw. I'm afraid it's not good." Archer frowned. "I'll be right there, Phlox."

"Archer to T'Pol." Her smooth tone took a moment to respond. "Go ahead, Captain."

"Can you join me in Sickbay?" "Of course, Sir."

"Thanks, Archer out." What the hell could be wrong with the Ambassador? Archer had a sinking feeling in his gut. He hated that feeling as it was usually bang on the money.

When Archer entered Sickbay, T'Pol was already there, waiting. Also in the room, Phlox was standing beside a pale but impassive-looking Meara Shaw. The look of concern on Phlox's face was only adding to Archer's sinking feeling.

"What's the matter, Doctor?" he enquired as he fell in beside T'Pol, though looking at Meara as he spoke. "Are you alright, Ensign?" Out of necessary habit, Archer always deferred to her assumed rank in the public areas of the ship.

It took her a moment to gather herself to respond, her brain still reeling from the information Phlox had just imparted. "I think I'll let the Doctor explain, Captain." She stood up straight and looked him levelly in the eye. Despite her petite stature. "I want to state for the record first however, that I had no knowledge of the circumstances surrounding my selection for this mission other than what you and Sub-Commander T'Pol have already been made aware of."

Archer frowned as he absorbed her words. He'd been uncomfortable having an Augment on board Enterprise from the get-go, but he had a feeling those thoughts of disquiet were going to pale in comparison to what Phlox was about to reveal. He allowed his demeanour to mirror that of the ever-calming presence of T'Pol. He braced himself and took a deep breath.

"Phlox?" He was right about that sinking feeling.

"She's infected with a VIRUS?! Shouldn't she be in quarantine? Why didn't you detect it in your scans when the new crew members underwent their shipboard medical exam?"

"Don't think of it as an infection, Captain. Think of her more as- as a carrier of the virus. I assure you, Ensign Shaw poses no risk to the health and safety of the crew of Enterprise." Archer's shoulders relaxed slightly but Phlox recognised the pained expression of a man who would require a lot more convincing that his ship wasn't in immediate danger.

"The reason I didn't detect it was because it didn't show up on the normal scans." He turned to the monitor on his desk and motioned Archer and T'Pol over while Meara stood her ground and kept quiet. "Me being the intensely curious Denobulan that I am however, couldn't resist the opportunity to study our first natural Augment's biochemistry… And that's when I found this…"

Archer glanced at the monitor. "OK. You're going to have to spell it out for me, Phlox." T'Pol saw it immediately.

She gave Phlox a knowing look and turning her attention back to the monitor, whispered, "Fascinating." Archer sighed impatiently. "Well I suppose I should be relieved that you both find this - whatever this is -," he said, folding his arms across is chest, "so incredible, but I'd appreciate you sharing your insights with your Captain?"

Phlox spoke almost in reverence of his discovery. "The Virus appears to be er... piggy-backing, Ensign Shaw's white blood cells. While harmless to humans, it does however, present quite a danger to Klingons."

All three turned to look at Meara. She hadn't moved an inch. Phlox laid it on the line. "To put it in layman's terms, Captain, it would appear our Ensign Shaw is a bioweapon."